The Sun.
London, England, 1846-01-29 00:00:00

1' ttenin
4 •

LONDON, TIIURSDAY, JANUARY 29, 1846.

The House of Lords did not sit yesterday.
The Commons met at Twelve.

Several petitions having been presented,
Mr. GISBORNE brought forward the motion of which
he had given notice, for an alteration in regard to the
manner in which railway Bills are introduced to the
House. The object of the proposal was to authorise the
Committee, on the petition for a railway Bill, to report
whether upon any, and upon what, condition the stand-
ing orders in relation to such Bill might be dispensed
with—to enable the House, where any one Member of
the Committee (not being the Chairman) departed from
such report, to take it into consideration, without refer-
ring it to the Standing Orders' Committee, and to enable
the promoters of railway Bills to be heard by counsel
before the Standing Orders' Committee. His object was
to give the people an opportunity of knowing the reasons
on which the Committee founded its decisions ; and
without such knowledge their decisions would never be
respected. He objected to these secret decisions of Se-
cret Committees, and he thought the Standing Order
Committee should give its decision publicly, and should
hear the arguments of counsel as to the matter which
they were called to adjudicate.
Lord GRANVILLE SOMERSET opposed the motion, as,
one likly to entail great expense on the landed proprie-
tors who opposed railway Bills, and who would have
to employ counsel to appear for them before the Stand-
ing Orders' Committee.
Mr. Gisnoniqz was sorry to find the motion resisted.
Mr. STRUTT must oppose the motion, as its effect
would be to place the Committee ou Standing Orders
and the Committees on railway Bills in opposition to
each other.

After a few words from Mr. GISBORNE, the motion
was withdrawn.

Mr. WODEHOUSE moved for returns relating to the
poor-rates, highway-rates, and county-rates,
Mr. ETWALL gave notice, for 10th February, of a
motion on the subject of the Andover Union.
On the order of the day for the second reading of the
Public Works (Ireland) Bill being read,
Sir T. FREMANTLE intimated his intention to bring in
a measure to amend the system of valuation in Ireland.
Mr. HOME opposed the motion, because the Bill was
unintelligible.
Sir T. FREMANTLE explained that the measure did not
alter the existing law.
Mr. O'CONNELL would not oppose the motion, but
reserved to himself the right of suggesting alterations at
a future stage.

After a short discussion, in which Sir R. FERGUSON,
Mr. S. CRAWFORD, Sir H. W. BARRON, Mr. M. MILNES,
Mr. F. FRENCH, and Colonel CONOLLY, took part, the
Bill was read a second time, and ordered to be com-
mitted to-morrow.

Sir J. GRAHAM gave notice that to-morrow Sir R.
PEEL would move that the House, at its rising, do ad-
journ to M9nday.
Mr. F. FRENCH reminded tho Right Hon. Baronet
that Friday was the last day of receiving petitions
against private Bills, &c.
Sir J. GRAHAM promised to consider the subject and
state his intentions to-morrow.
The House then adjourned.

On referring to the new tariff proposed by Sir ROBERT
PEEL, we are only more confirmed in the opinion that
it is highly satisfactory, and that it will be received most
favourably throughout the country. It is of a compre-
hensive character ; it will afford relief to many classes,
and perhaps most of all to those who gain their liveli-
hood by daily labour—a class, unfortunately, in former
times neglected or forgotten by our aristocratic legisla.
tors. As an act of justice, as well as of political policy,
it therefore recommends itself to all those who prefer
fair play to selfish interests, who wish to see peace and
good order, and loyalty maintained by liberal institu-
tions and wise legislation, rather than by the musket and
the bayonet, and those barbarous and despotic laws so
much admired by the SIDMOUTHS and ELDONS. The
people of this country are the very last in the
world to rise against their SOVEREIGN, or even
resist the authority of the Executive, and seldom or '
never have recourse to illegal proceedings unless when
driven to them by acts of oppression or the most glaring
injustice. The middle classes, unlike those of a neigh-
bouring country, do not spend their time in billiard-
rooms, and in sauntering idly on the public promenades;
they do not, for want of better employment, hatch plots
and devise schemes of war; they are constantly engaged
in some active employments for bettering their condition,
or raising themselves a step in the ranks of society. And
as for the hard-working population, they are unequalled
by those of aoy country in the world. They
will perform twice as much work as the same class in
France in the same time, and no men are more thankful
for getting employment. It is the paramount duty,
therefore, of a Minister to attend to the interests of such
a class, and if he will not, or cannot grant them electoral
privileges like the rest of the community, he is bound
by his sacred trust, as well as by the necessity of secur-
ing peace throughout the country, to show that their
rights are not forgotten by the Legislature. In this
respect, therefore, the tariff is eminently judicious and
impartial. A vast proportion of those articles which are
to be admitted duty free at once, or at the end of three
years, are necessaries of the first importance to the great
body of the people. Should the tariff not be obstructed
by the House of Peers (and no man who wishes to
see that body respected will desire such a result), some
ten or twelve articles of consumption will be admitted
without the payment of any duty whatever. Among
these may be mentioned live cattle, Indian corn, rice,
bacon, beef, potatoes, pork (fresh or salted), vegetables,
cotton manufactures (not being articles wholly or in
part made up), linen manufactures, woollens, &c. But,
in addition to these, the duty on a large number
is to be greatly reduced, on many of them one half—
such as butter, cheese, candles, hams of all kinds, hats,
boots and shoes, soap, and some fifty more, which it is..
needless to enumerate. In the long list, however, we-
cannot discover the foreign article to which, in these,
hard times, a Noble Duke attached so much importance,
—curry is to be found nowhere in the, three lists. That:
part of the tariff which relates to corn is of more con-
sequence, perhaps, for
perhaps, than all the rest. The impost is
farmer andl threeand yearslord is (but
a d o
uwbhtef
ut hl eciru forest
question),
the goodand
then,
of 1. t hi
i the language of Parliament, " cease and determine." In:.
the meantime, however, it is very light, and can ,
for
onily7
a very trifling difference in the price of bread
e.
present price of wheat three-fourths of the duty
once remitted. All these articles are consu
by the middle and lower classes, or, speaking more
correctly, they form a much larger proportion of the
' outlay of these classes than the rich, and a fall in price,
therefore, cannot fail to afford material relief. But
the rich are not forgotten, for the import duties are
to be greatly reduced on carriages, silks, brandy and
Geneva, mounted canes, crystal, cut or manufactured,
lace, perfumery, velvet, and even that Russian delicacy, the selection has
caviare, is not forgotten. Altogether, consumed
rl
chieflyl atb et
aul
been judiciously made ; and the public cannot justly
complain that, as a quit for such material changes, some
burdens on land are to be reduced. The landlords would
do well to accept the offer, snd not provoke further in-