The Sun.
London, England, 1846-02-26 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF COMMONS, Wednesday, Feb. 25.
The House met at Twelve o'clock.
The following Bills were read a second time :
Bridgewater and Minehead Railway and Pier.
Carnwath and West Linton Railway.
Ballochney Railway (Shotts Branch).
Caledonian and Dumbartonshire Railway.
Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway (Chapel Hall Branch).
Swansea Vale Railway.
Glasgow Harbour Mineral Railway.
Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway (Amendment and Branches).
Leeds, Dewsbury, and Manchester Railway (Wakefield Ex-
tension).
Ulverstone, Furness, and Lancaster and Carlisle Railway.
Edinburgh and Peebles Railway.
Mr. DUNCAN presented several petitions from Paisley,
Glasgow, and other places, in favour of a Ten Hours' Bill ;
and also five petitions from Tavistock and other places,
against the enrolment and embodiment of the militia.
A petition was presented from several of the resident
clergy of Denbigh in favour of a Ten Hours' Bill.
A petition was presented from Bostock, in favour of Frost,
Williams, and Jones.
Mr. W. PATTEN presented two petitions from places in
Lancashire, in favour of the Ten Hours Bill.
Mr. GREENE brought up the report on the Wakefield and
Pontefract Railway, and the Huddersfield Railway.
Mr. GREENE moved that Standing Order No. 114, re-
quiring the breviate of all private Bills to be laid on the
table three clear days before the second reading of such
Bills ; and standing order No. 119, requiring breviates of
Bills amended in Committee to be submitted to the Chair-
man of Ways and Means, and laid on the table the day pre-
vious to the consideration of the report, be suspended with
be
respect to all Bills entitled to the priyiSeges agreed )
granted in certain cares by the resolutions of the House on
the 7th day of July last.—The motion was agreed to.
ROMAN CATHOLIC RELIEF BILL.
In reply to a question from Sir R. INGLIS,
Mr. ESCOTT said that in the absence of so many Irish
Members he should not feel justified in moving the second
reading of the Roman Catholic Relief Bill.
Mr. HUTT understood that it was not intended to move
the second reading of that Bill during the present week.
The order of the day for the second reading of the Bill
having been read,
Mr. STAFFORD O'BRIEN regretted to bring under the
notice of the House a circumstance which had recently
occurred at the Nottinghamshire election, and which
had come under his cognizance. It appeared that the Hon.
Member for Maldon had stated that the views of Lord
Lincoln, with reference to the policy which it was intended
to be pursued towards Ireland, were perfectly satisfactory,
and that he had given utterance to very strong opinions with
reference to this subject. When he (Mr. O'Brien) looked
over the votes of that House, he had found that
the name of the honourable Member for Melton
was among those who had voted in the attempt to
destroy the Irish Church establishment. In the course of
the conversation which ensued between Lord Lincoln and
the Hon. Member for Maldon it might be inferred that his
Lordship considered himself justified in remaining a mem-
ber of the present Government, although he entertained
sentiments contrary to the principles which the Government
had recently professed. The Noble Lord is also reported to
have said that he should take no part in the present debate ;
for, although he should support the Administration, his prin-
ciples would not allow
.him to interfere further in the matter
than to give his vote. He (Mr. O'Brien) felt
it to be his duty to state in the most public
manner that the greatest possible anxiety and con-
sternation prevailed as to the nature of the sentiments which
the Noble Lord might entertain with respect to the policy to
be pursued towards Ireland. He must say that he deeply
regretted that the Noble Lord had not remained silent with
respect to his opinion on Irish affairs if the revenues of the
Irish Church were to be disturbed. He entertained the
sincerest regard for the Noble Lord, and for. that reason he
regretted still more the events that had recently occurred.
He would most earnestly hope that the Noble Lord the
Member for London should have the task of interfering with the
temporalities of the Irish Church, and that the disagreeable
duty should not fall to the lot of his Noble Friend Lord Lincoln.
If those sentiments expressed by Lord Lincoln were perfectly
satisfactory to the Member for Maldon, who was distinctly,
pledged by his vote to the destruction of the Irish establish-
ment ; and if the views of the Noble Lord coincided with the
views of the Government, he did not think he was trans-
gressing his duty to ask the Government to state their
opinions with reference to this subject of the Irish Church.
Sir JAMES GRAHAM said that it was possible Lord
Lincoln would be in his place in a few days, and that then
he would be able to explain his conduct most satisfactorily to
the Hon. Member. He had no knowledge of the matter
more' than what was derived from the newspapers, and he
could not state what opinions were held by the Member for
Maldon, or on what subject it was that Lord
Lincoln gave him perfect satisfaction. The Ho-
nourable Gentleman had stated, that if the destruction
of the Irish Establishment was resolved upon, he would much
rather it were committed to the hands of the Noble Lord op-
posite. Now he was not aware that either he or the Noble
Lord opposite ever contemplated the destruction of that
Church.
Lord J.:RUSSELL said that he considered it due to his
own public character to state that he had been informed
generally of the whole conversation which had taken place,
and he was at liberty to state that Lord Lincoln made use of
no expression which implied that he was to take a part in
the overthrow of the Church Establishment in Ireland ; he
said that his opinions were in favour of a liberal policy, and
with respect to details he would be able to form his judg-
ment after some residence in the country.—(Hear, hear.)
He (Lord John Russell) did not think that any-
thing had taken place at all inconsistent with
his former opinions, and with regard to himself he
must decline the measures which the Hon. Gentleman would
impose upon him. He had never held the opinion that the
Church of Ireland ought to be destroyed ; he did think
there was a portion of its revenues misapplied, and
a contest arose between him and gentlemen opposite
as to that subject. They said his views, if carried out, would
destroy the Establishment—he considered that if they were
that they would tend to its more certain preservation; but
with regard to the Church of Ireland as a whole, he wished
for its maintenauce, and lie, therefore, could not accept the
duty which the Hon. Member would devolve upon him.
Mr. O'CONNELL observed that there was no person in
Ireland who wished for the destruction of the Irish Church.
He would wish for its maintenance, but the temporalities of
that Church were quite another affair, and he would press
upon the Government the necessity of seeing a portion of
them otherwise applied than they were at present.
Mr. P. HOWARD observed that he saw with great
pain a report of certain observations made use of by the
Member of Nottingham, with reference to the Roman
Catholic religion. Now he did not think that the words
could do any possible injury to the Church against which
they were directed, but he complained of them as cal-
culated to raise the seeds of religious discord in the country.
Ile had himself stood as many contested elections as any
man in England, and he had never used any words that
might not be employed in a drawing-room, and he hoped the
representatives of the aristocracy would do the same. Un-
less they did so, how could they blame the ignorant and
uneducated for following their example?