The Sun.
London, England, 1848-04-17 00:00:00

IRELAND.

The Marquis of LANSDOWNE laid on the table
certain returns connected with the operation of the
recent Coercion Act for Ireland.
The Earl of ELLENBOROUGH called the at-
tention of the House to the fact that arming :was
going on extensively in Dublin, and yet the
Lord-Lieutenant had not put that Act in force
in the city of Dublin.—(Hear.) With regard
to the purpose which these armaments were intended
:to bring about, there could be no doubt they had
Already been explicitly declared by Mr. Mitchell.—
(The Noble Ear) here read several extracts from the
United Irishman, for the purpose of showing
that these armaments were going on for the
avowed object of levying war on the English
Government in Ireland.) The students of Trinity
College and the Dublin Society had oflered their
services to the Lord-Lieutenant, but his Lordship
while accepting their offer had urged upon them the
necessity of not arming. Now, if while enmity on
the part of those seeking a subversion of the
empire was to :be suffered thus openly
to go on while those who were anxious
to support the Government were prevented from
arriving, there could be no doubt but that the friends
of order and good government would be disheartened
when they found themselves surcounded by those who
were:armed for their destruction. If we suspect that a
compromise was intended when a question, which ought
to be the subject of compromise, and vast numbers of
them would cease to be true to the Government,
from the moment that the Government ceased to be
true to itself; and the consequences would be irre-
trievable ruin to the empire. It was not sufficient
for the Government to support the Union, they must
support everything connected with the Union—
(Hear, hear)—and they therefore ought to be pre-
pared to give their support to all the loyal subjects of
the empire.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE could assure the
Noble Earl that the matter to which he had alluded
had been the subject of anxious consideration both
to the Government and the Lord Lieutenant, but as
the Act alluded to was to be put in force by the
Lord-Lieutenant he thought that it ought to be left
to the Lord-Lieutenant's discretion to decide the time,
the plan, and the mode in which he Ni ouldezercise these
powers. It was true that the manufacture of arms
was going on to a great extent in Ireland, yet still
implicit credence ought not to be given to all the
statements which had been made on the subject.
Many of which were greatly exaggerated. The
common law of the land gave the Lord-Lieute
nant ample powers of seizing all collections
of arms and ammunition which he might
have reason to suspect were made for an illegal pur-
pose. With regard to the answer of the Lord Lieu.
tenant to the deputation of those who had waited on
him to offer their services, he had to state that in
those instances in which he had thought it advisable,
he had caused arms to be given to the persons apply-
ing for them.
Lord BROUGHAM had great confidence in the
Lord Lieutenant, yet still he thought it advisable
that every encouragement should be given to the loyal
subjects, while discouragement should be given to those
who sought to create disunion. He believed that none
but agitators and demagogues desired a repeal of the
union. The great majority of the property, of the good
sense, ay, and of the population of Ireland was opposed
to a repeal of the union. Still he thought it necessary
that the loyal subjects should encouraged. He should
like to know the composition of the body to which
arms had been given, and whether or not their ser-
vices bad been accepted.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said that that
body was composed of men of all shades of politics,
but he declined to state any further particulat a.
SCOTCH PEERS.

The Earl of EGLINTOUN then rose to draw the
attention of the House to the claim of Lord Colville
to vote for Representative Peers of Scotland, and was
(LEFT SPEAKING.)

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
The SPBAKER took the Chair shortly before Four
o'clock.