The Sun.
London, England, 1833-03-29 00:00:00

against the Ir:sh Coercive Dill, and, in sa doing, be ob-
served that the counter petition which had been presented
that night from Leicester, had been hawked about for two
days, and every effort made to procure signatures ; but
they had only obtained about a thousand.
Mr. RUTHVEN, in moving for certain returns, spoke
at considerable length ; hut withdrew his motion after
some discussion.
The House adjourned at a little before twelve.

HOUSE OF LORDS, MARCH 28.
The Earl of SHAFTESBURY having take❑ his seat on
the Woolsack, in the absence of the Lord Chancellor, the
Sugar Duties Bill was read a third time, and passed.
The Earl of SHAFTESBURY laid upon the table a
copy of the returns of criminal offences committed in
England and Wales during the last 25 years.
Lord CLONCURRY presented a petition from Limerick
praying for the abolition of tithes. The Noble Lord
stated that tithes were the chief grievance of Ireland, and
if not attended to in time, would render acts of coercion
continually necessary. The great bulk of the people were
heavily taxed to support a Church with which they had
no communion, whilst the ministers of their own Church
were left to depend upon the charity of their flocks.
He could state that there were no men more anxious to
perform their sacred duties, or more indifferently paid;
than the ministers of the Catholic Church. The Noble
Lord also presented a petition from the Protestant and
Presbyterian inhabitants of a considerable district in
Antrim.
The Earl of ROSEBERY presented a petition from
Brechin, in Forfar, praying for the abolition of negro
slavery, and another from Arbroath, praying for a revision
of the common law of Scotland.
The Bishop of WINCHESTER presented petitions
from Bolton-le-Moors and other places, fir the better ob-
servance of the Sahh ath, and against the Beer Act.
Lord AUCKLAND presented petitions for the aboli-
tion of slavery.
Lord ELLENBOROUGH moved for a copy of the
correspondence between the Bow d of Control and the
East India House relative to the Charter.—Granted.
The Earl of WICKLOW presented a petition from the
Protestant clergy of the diocese of Elphin against that
part of the Church Reform Bill which proposed to take
away their Bishop.
Lord KING remarked that a great many petitions had
come from the diocese of Elphin of late, although he be-
lieved it was but a very small district.
The Earl of WICKLOW observed that the petitions
which had come from the diocese of Elphin were signed not
only by the Protestants, but the Catholics, thereby show-
ing that that part of the Bill which the petitioners com-
plained of in the petition did not meet with the approba-
tion of Elphin.
The Eat l of RODEN presented petitions from a parish
in Dublin, and from Montrose, in Dublin, praying for the
better observance of the Lord's Day ; a petition front pa-
rishes in Dawn, against the Church " Spoliation" Bill;
and a petition from the Protestant Clergy of King's Lynn,
in Norfolk, and its neighbourhood, playing the House to
take into its consideration the distressed state of the clergy
in Irel and.
Lord SUFFIELD rose to present to their Lordships
petitions upon a subject which was of the great•st im•
portance to the people of this country—the total and
immediate abolition of negro slavery. He had
delayed presenting to the House petitions which
had been confided to his charge, on account of
the confidence he had in his Majesty's Government ;
but certain rumours had lately gone abroad, which had
induced him to revive the subject. He was fully per-
suaded that the principle of his Maje-ty'e Government
was a sound and right principle, and he hoped that they
would be disposed to act upon it. He had no doubt that
their Lordships would receive shortly numerous petitions
upon that subject, which would more distinctly declare
the wishes of the country, that nothing short of the total
and immediate emancipation of the slave would satisfy the
people of England. lie should have been ashamed, after the
pains taken by the Anti-Slavery Society, to trouble their
Lordships with the meaning of the word "immediate," were
not daily efforts being made to abuse the public mind upon
the subject. The wore " immediate," as applied to this
subj-ct, only meant to apply to the earliest possible and
practicable substitution of legal restraint fir the irrespon-
sible power the master at present held over the slave.
He earnestly entreated their Lordships favourably to
consider that proposition, and he believed that they
would find that the people of England would be ready to
assist them in their endeavours to put down that system.
The petition, the prayer of which he was about to read,
was from the city of Edinburgh, signed by 22,291 per-
sons. The Ni.ble Lord then read the petition at length,
and added, that he thought it the duty of every English-
man to make his voice heard in favour of the total and
immediate abolition of slavery, if that were his wiab.
Lord ELLENBOROUGH said that he had not heard
the reports to which the Noble Baron had alluded, and,
perhaps, it would be more consistent if he were to state
what these rumours were. He had himself thought that
they would have been called upon before the present pe-
riod—he would not say to decide, but at least to
discuss the question of slavery; and lie regretted that
the House had not been called upon to do so. He con-
fessed, the state in which the question was at present left
was one, if not of danger, of inconvenience to the public.
If his Majesty's Ministers had any plan upon the subject,
it was most desirable that they should produce that
plan, and he was quite sure that the delay only tended
to increase the difficulties of the question. The uncer-
tainty of the intentions of Government must create in the
minds of the planters and the slaves that degree of agita-
tion which would render it impossible to adopt any mea-
sure they might afterwards propose.
Lord SUFFIELD, in explanation, said, the rumours
he had spoken of were partly whispers among a certain
class, and statements put forth in newspapers. However,
he was sure that no plan by which slavery was continued
would satisfy the public. He was of opinion that it was
the West India body that was to be charged with the
delay that had taken place. The Noble Lord then pre-
seated a similar petition from Sheffield, by 11,000 persons.
Lord GODERICH said that he was not aware of what
Turnouts the Noble Lord had spoken, but whatever they
were, Government were not answerable for them. He
was not conscious that there was anything that fairly could
be called delay in the bringing forward of the question, which
was one of very great importance, and required the utmost
consideration. Neither did he think that he could fairly
be called upon to state the result of any interview between
Government and any body. He was perfectly aware of
the almost absolute necessity of quickly submitting
the question to the consideration of Parliament ; but no
one could expect or wish that it should be brought for-
ward without mature deliberation.
Earl FITZWILLIAM said, anxious as he was, and
anxious as the people of England were for tl e settlement
of this great question, he was sure there was nothing they
would so much deprecate as any haste in the bringing for-
t% and of that measure, by which its efficiency might be
impaired. He beieved be was the only one in the House
who had lately been in contact with large bodies of the
people, and he could assure their Lordships that the feel.
ing upon this question was very strong in all parts of the
country, and was not now confined to the large manufac-
tuting towns, as heretofore, for the feeling and wish for
emancipation was as great in agricultural districts as in any
other. _

The Duke of BUCKINGHAM said he could assure the
House that the delay in introducing a measure on this
subject was not the fault of the West India Proprietors,
for they were most anxious—in !act, no one could be inure
so—for the introduction of the Minssterial plan. It was
to be lamented that the Ministers bail not made up their
minds on the subject, which they bad not done, nor, in his
opinion, did they act in a becoming way by letting out parts
of their plan, whi-pering their wishes to another, and
telling the whole world of their disputes, on the subject.
Eat' GREY would not he provoked by the attack of
the Noble Duke to make any premature explanation of the
intentions of Government. There was not one of their
Lordships who would not allow that the subject was one
requiring the greatest consideration, and that, above all
others, it was one which required the most mature deli-
beration ; and he was prepared to submit to any imputa-
tions as to delay, rather than run the risk of introducing
the question without having had its due share of attention.
He would not then throw out a hint of any plan that the
Government had in agitation, but would only assure the
House that the subject was at that moment tinder the con-
sideration of the Government. He was most anxious for
the abolition of slavery, but he was not prepared to in-
troduce a Bill declaring that from that moment the slave
should be free. There were many conflicting interests
which it was necessary to consult.
The Duke of BUCKINGHAM explained.
The Duke of RICHMOND begged leave to deny, in
the most distinct manner, one of the statements made by
the Noble Duke opposite. There were no disputes in the
i‘linistry with regard to that question.
Lord SUFFIELD then presented a petition from Glas-
gow, by 32,000 persons, to the same effect.
g°‘'
Lord ELLENBOROUGH, as one of the opposition
allies alluded to, said that the opponents of the measures
of Ministers, were solely actuated by a deep sense of the
interests of the people at large, and of the slaves themselves.
Similar petitions were presented from Yorkshire and
Lancashire, by Lords FI]ZWILLIAM and LILFORD.
The Bishop of LICHFIELD presented several petitions