The Sun.
London, England, 1833-02-12 00:00:00

ELECTION PETITIONS.

The SPEAKER announced that petitions had been
lodged in the House-keeper's Office, against the returns
made for Newry, Cork, and, we believe, Galway.
SHIPPING INTEREST.

Mr. YOUNG gave notice that, on the 22d of April, he
should move for the appointment of a Select Committee
on the shipping interest.
ADDRESS TO HIS MAJESTY. _ _

The SPEAKER announced that the House had attended
his Mijesty this day with the address of the House, to
which his Majesty had been pleased to return the following
most gracious answer.
" I thank you for your loyal and dutiful address, and
rely with confidence upon the determination you have ex-
pressed to maintain inviolate the Legislative Union between
Great Britain and Ireland ; and you may be assured, that in
exercising the powers of Government for the suppression of
all acts of violence and outrage, I shall think it my
duty .to assist you, to the utmost of my power,
in removing all just grounds of complaint in every part of
my dominions."—(Loud cheers followed this answer, espe-
cially from the Opposition.)

IRISH
CHURCH REFORM.

Lord ALTHORP rose at half-past five, and addressed
the House as follows:—lo coming forward to propose the
measure of which I have given notice, I do so because it
is a measure connected with the Government of Ireland.

I am quite sure it will not be considered by any gentleman
who has heard me speak, that I come forward to perform
this duty because I am more competent than my Right
Honourable Friend, the Secretary for Ireland. I
doubt not but that he would have performed this task
touch better than myself, but as this is a measure of
his Majesty's Government, it has been thought best,
by myself and colleagues, to follow the example set
us by preceding Administrations, an I appoint a person
standing in the highest situation in this House,
to bring forward this measure, rather than
the particular Minister, to whose department it might
naturally be thought to belong.—(Hear, hear, hear.)
I will not, however, detain the House by
making any apologies for myself, but will pro-
ceed to explain as deafly as I can the grounds of
the measure I intend to propose, and the provisions
I should wish to submit for your consideration. In the first
instance, however, I think it desirable to go back a little
into the history of the legislation of Ireland, in order to show
what has been done and what still remains to be done, to remedy
evils under which that country laboured. Nine years
ago, I bad the honour of submitting to this
House a motion with respect to the state of Ireland,
though I do not pretend to say that, at the time, I
was fully acquainted with the circumstances in which
Ireland was placed, or that, unconnected as I am with that
country, I could be wholly aware of the grievances
which afflicted it. But it must be evident to the House

that the grievances which I then selected would be those
which then pressed most prominently on our attention.
I wish to recall to the recollection of the gentlemen who
then heard me, what the grievances were which I
then stated to exist. I stated then, as I must state
now, that many of the grievances of Ireland were entirely
beyond the reach of legislative enactments—(Hear, hear)
were grievances which it was utterly impossible any laws
could entirely remedy. I said then, as now, that those
grievances must depend on the inhabitants of the county
itself; upon the good feeling of parties one towards
another; and upon the conduct of both the richer
and the poorer classes in their relative conditions.
The grievances I then stated were several. Catholic
disabilities was one which I brought forward ; the ex-
clusion of office by law at that time ; the existence
of Orange and Ribbon Societies, which occasioned
great evil to the country ; the tithe system, the
Church Establishment ; the Grand Jury cess ; the taxes
that pressed heavily on the people of Ireland, and the ob-
jectionable laws between landlord and tenant. I should
wish now to draw the attention of the House
to those as they now exist, and in their
altered state. The Catholic disabilities are removed,
and therefore I have nothing to say on that point. With
regard to Catholics being employed under Government,
to which reference has been made, the only rule Go-
vernment ought to have in view is not to con-
sider the religion of the party employed, but
impartially to select those who will best discharge the
duties of office.—(Loud cheers.) In a former de-
bate, it was stated that in the case of stipendiary Ma.
gistrates, no Catholics had bee❑ employed. I believe
that to be a mistake. I don't know the number, but
some Catholics have been appointed. Mr. Magann and
Mr. Galway, I believe are both Catholics; but whether
that be so or not, I can assure the House, the question of
religion was not made a consideration in the appointment.
The appointment being one of a temporary nature, the
individuals selected were selected impartially to ful
fil the office. Another observation has been made with
respect to the Sheriffs. Twat is accidental, because in
former years Catholic Sheriffs had been appointed, and it
is merely accidental that in this year they are not; they are
all, I believe, Protestants.—(A cry of " All but one.") But
with respect to the Lord Lieutenants of the Counties,
•everal of them have been selected from the Catholics.
With respect to other appointments, Catholics have
been in them; and I am sure Government will not
do its duty it it does not continue to appoint Catholics
where they are fit for office, just as readily as they
would appoint Protestants—(Loud cheering)—and
as
the majority of Irishmen are Catholics, I apprehend
as their education and fitness for office increases, no doubt
in proportion appointments will be given to the Catholic
population. Now the next grievance is the state of the
Orange Societies. I sincerely believe that the feelings
which produced those societies still continues to exist.
We shrived our inclination to put down these societies
by the bill which we passed during the last Session.
With respect to the tithe system, Sir, the great grie-
vance is, the mode in which it interferes with the
power of the occupiers in the cultivation and urn.
rovetnent of the soil, without the improvement goin4
against the interest of the party who has im-
proved the land. Ju the principles on which we