The Sun.
London, England, 1846-06-16 00:00:00

CORN-LAWS.

The Duke of BUCKINGHAM presented petitions from
Cornwall and several other places against the corn-laws.
The Earl of ELDON presented petitions from Lancashire
and other places to the same effect.
FREE CHURCH SITES.

Lord CAMPBELL presented petitions from Ayr and other
places in Seltland, respecting the granting of sites for the
erection of places of worship for the Free Church of Scotland.
NEWRY AND ENNISKILLEN RAILWAY.

The third reading of this Bill having been moved, a discus-
sion ensued.

In reply to a question,
Lord ELLENBOROUGH said as securities were given by
the parties promoting the Bill that the harbour should not be
injured by the railway, the consent of the Admiralty was given
to its passing in the way complained of by several Noble Lords.
Lord STANLEY considered that there was no ground for
postponing the decision of the Committee.
Some confusion prevailed here, and after a few words from
some Noble Lords,

Lord CAMPBELL said that he hoped they would read
the Bill a third time.
Strangers were then ordered to withdraw.
On re-entering we found that the amendment had been
ethdrawn r.r.(l the Bill had been read a third time.
CHESHIRE AGRICULTURAL PROTECTION
SOCIETY.

Lord DELA:MERE repeated that what he bad said the other
night as to his never having subscribed to the Cheshire Agri-
cultural Protection Society, or any other association of that
sort, was perfectly true, notwithstanding what had been said by
the Noble Duke on the cross benches (the Duke of Richmond).
At the time when the Anti-Corn-law League sent its emis-
saries throughout the country distributing pamphlets to alienate
tenants from landlords, and interfere with the registration,
and not only with that but many other things, at
that time he with many others attended a meeting at
Northssich, with a view to taking measures to counteract the
operations of the Anti-Corn-law League. It was true that he
contributed his poor pittance, only 251., that the committee
might have funds to pay for legal advice, for advertising, and
such like. The aloble Earl denied, howev,r, having been
either before or after a member of the Central Agricultural
Association. Had he known at the time that the Noble
Duke made his statement, that he was making such a state-
ment, he would have risen at the time; and he did so now, at
the risk of delaying important business, only that he might
vindicate his own character.
'Fhe Duke of RICHMOND said it seemed that Noble
Lords in Chester did not hear or did net remember much.
He did not charge the Noble Lord with any offence beyond
what had been committed by many other Noble Lords—the
changing of their opinions on the question of protection,
and that the Noble Lord had been a member of
a protection society. He (the Duke of Richmond) had
had in his pocket since the commencement of the discussion
on the corn-laws a list of Noble Lords who had belonged to
protection societies—(Laughter)—and before it had concluded
he would in all likelihood read it, when it would be found very
curious and instructive.—(Hear' hear, and laughter.) In 1644
there was a large meeting in the county to which the Noble
Lord belonged. It met in the Market-hall, and it
was so large that it had to adjourn elsewhere.—(Hear,
hear.) The first resolution which was proposed at that
meeting, and they had heard from the Noble Lord that he
was present at it, was to the effect that "the society be
formed for the protection of agriculture, to be called the
Chester Agricultural Protection Society, and that
the society be not only formed to protect the landed interest
against the destructive proceedings of the Anti-Corn-law
League, but also to oppose all measures that may be brought
forward having a tendency to deprive the agricultural inte-
rest of such protection as they are so justly entitled
to. —( Laughter.) That such a society shall not interfere with any
political subject except those having reference to agriculture,
but that every endeavour shall be made to afford the tenant
a return for his capital, and his labourer a fair day's wage
for a fair day's work.' " This resolution was moved by the
Right lion. Lord Delamere.—(Cheers and laughter.) It is
on that paper (continued the Noble Duke) that I rest
my justification. I agree with that resolution, and was
in hopes the Noble Lord did also.
Lord DEL AMERE was pr& sent at the meeting, which was
very numerously attended, so numerously that they were
obliged to adjourn it; but that adjournment did not take
place from the large numbers that attended, but took place from
being ousted by the Anti-Corn-law League.-(Laughter.) The
resolution was moved by him as the Nobluke had stated,
but it was with many others in connexion with the subject
for which the meeting had been called together; but then they
must recollect that it was moved at a time when the Anti-
Corn-law League first introduced paid emissaries into Che-
shire—it Via. 3 when these persons introduced themselves into that
county, and endeavoured to separate the farmers from the land-
owners, and the labourers from the farmers, and to create
general disunion in the county, that this meeting was con-
vened, for the purpose specified, as well as to promote the
registration of votes; but he never eansidered that he be-
longed to that society ; and he could prove by two of the
largest landowners in the county that he had been frequently
invited to attend their meetings, but that he had refused to do
so. And, besides, he never paid a halfpenny to it, except 25/.
—( Hear, hear, and laughter)—which he subscribed to coun-
teract in some measure the machinations of the Anti-Corn-
law League.
Lord COMBERMERE read the letter from the Secretary
of the Agricultural Protection Society in Cheshire, in which
it was stated that Lord Delamere was a vice-president of the
society.—( Great laughter.)