The Sun.
London, England, 1834-05-15 00:00:00

IMP RIM, PARLIAMENT,

F IS DAY, THURSDAY, MAY 15.

HOUSE OF COMMONS:

The SPEAKER took the Chair at twenty minutes past
twelve.

Colonel L. HAY brought up the report upon the
Stolfield and Lossiemouth Harbour Bill.

Upon the motion of the hon. and gallant member, the
Edinburgh Police Bill committee was empowered to sum-
mon witnesses.

Upon the motion
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tants of Bermondsey, against the Bermondsey water works,
and from the parish of St. Mary, against the same bill.
Upon the motion, of Mr. H. HUGHES, the amend-
ments of the Lords upon the London Bridge Improvement
Bill were agreed to.
Mr. C. BRUCE then presented a petition from
the provost, town council, &c. of the borough of Forres,
upon the subject of clandestine emigration to America,
and praying that steps might be taken to punish captains
of ships who should connive at such emigration ; and a
petition from Lanark, upon the subject of church
patronage.
Mr. EWING presented a petition from Glasgow
against the Church-rates Bill ; and two petitions from
the same place upon the subject of church patronage ;
and two others, praying for some law for the better ob-
servance of the Sabbath ; and a petition from the hand-
loom weavers of Glasgow praying for an inquiry into
the cause of their present distress.
Mr. MAXWELL supported the prayer of the petition
from Lanark, and also the hand-loom weavers' petition,
and expressed a hope that some measure would be intro-
duced for their relief.
Mr. EWING thought that it was beyond the power of
legislation to relieve the condition of the hand-loom weavers.
Mr. THICKNESSE supported the prayer of the hand-
loom weavers, and said that their condition was rendered
still worse by the high price of provisions, particularly of

potatoes.
Sir D. K. SANDFORD also supported the peti-
tion of the hand-loom weavers, and could state from
his own knowledge, that there did not exist a more
dissatisfied body of men. When their distress was
universally acknowledged, it was too much in the Go-
vernment not merely to refuse relief, but even to prevent
their case from being stated in that house. He would
support the motion of the hon. member for Lancashire
(Mr. Maxwell), when he introduced it ; and he thought
an inquiry into the distress of these men was absolutely

necessary.
Mr. G. W. WOOD said he thought it very desirable ,
that there should be an inquiry into the case of the hand-
loom weavers, to see whether any thing could be done for I
them, or whether their condition would admit of relief.
The speeches he had heard that day confirmed him in his
opinion that such an inquiry was absolutely necessary. He
did not, however, believe that the condition of these w ea-
versswas so bad as was represented, or that they were in
such great distress. Their wages were higher now than
they had been, and employment was abundant, and though
the price of potatoes might be higher, still, on the whole,
he thought their condition was im ved.
Mr. SINCLAIR thought that nothing could be
more prejudicial to the hand-loom weavers than that
it should go forth that their case was quite irremediable. '
He should certainly vote for a committee of inquiry into
their distresses.
Mr. BROTHERTON said that there could be no
doubt that the weavers were in great distress ; and their
duty was to inquire what was the cause of this distress.
He thought that the repeal of the corn laws would in a
great measure effect a remedy.
Mr. RUTHVEN supported the prayer of the petition.
Mr. M. PHILLIPS thought it very desirable that
the evils and distress of the hand-loom weavers should
be investigated ; and whenever the hon. member, Mr. Max-
well, brought on his motion for an inquiry, it should have
his cordial support. He did not, however, think that local
boards of trade would effect a remedy.
Mr. FIELDEN supported the prayer of the petition,
and expressed a hope that a committee of inquiry would
be granted by the government.
After a few words in explanation from Mr: G. W.
Wood and Mr. Maxwell, the petitions were ordered to lie
on the table.
Mr. CRIPPS brought up the report of the committee
on the County Coroners Bill.
Admiral FLEMING presented a petition from a place
in Stirlingshire against the separation of church and state ;
also a petition against the payment of church rates, from
dissenters in the same county.
Captain YORKE presented two petitions, one from
Cambridge, signed by 920 householders of that town,
against the exemption of dissenters from the payment of
church rates, and their admission to the universities ; and
one to the same effect from the archdeacon and clergy of
the archdeaconry of Ely.
After a few words from Admiral FLEMING, the peti-
tions were laid on the table.
Mr. THICKNESSE presented a petition from the re-
tailers of beer in Wigan, praying to be put on the same
footing as the publicans.
Mr. BRIGGS presented a petition, signed by
2,800 inhabitants of the town of Halifax, and an-
other from a township in the parish of Halifax,
against the Church Rates Bill now before the house.
The hon. member then presented petitions from the
woollen manufacturers, from the shopkeepers, and from the
operatives, of the town of Gomersall (Yorkshire), and
from the operatives of Leeds, praying to be protected from
the violence and threats of the trades' unions.
Mr. PHILLIPS presented a petition from the over-
seers and churchwardens of Castledonnington against the
registration clause in the Poor Laws' Amendment Bill.
Mr. WYNDHAM presented several petitions from
Southarkington, Windham, and other parishes in East
Norfolk, complaining of agricultural distress, and praying
for a repeal of the corn laws ; also praying for some mea-
sure for the better observance of the Sabbath.
Mr. HUGHES HUGHES presented a petition, of
which he had given notice, from the mayor, burgesses, and
town-council of the city of Oxford, against the admission
of dissenters to the universities. The honourable
member read the petition and contended at some
length against the claim of the dissenters as of right, and
observed that the bill about to be passed through that house
by the right hon. the Secretary for the Treasury would be
inoperative, as the tutors of the university had passed a
resolution determining to adhere to their present system of
religious instruction. (Hear, hear.)
Lord NORREYS gave his cordial support to the peti-
tion.
•Mr. G. W. WOOD contended that the bill would not
be in the slightest degree mischievous, nor would it in any
way interfere with the present system of religious education.
Mr. AGLIONBY thought the opposition to the mea-
sure was founded upon a species of bigotry and prejudice,
which he did not expect to find if existence at this period
of the nineteenth century.
Mr. GASKELL supported the petition, which was then
laid upon the table.
The Earl of DARLINGTON presented several pet'

dons against the admission of dissenters to the universi-
ties, from Shrewsbury, Bridgenorth, Bishopscastle, Os-
westry, and other places in Shropshire.
Mr. SINCLAIR presented petitions from the town of
Larne, the parishes of Abernethy, Inverness, Moneymore,
the presbytery of Perth, and about twenty other places,
against the present system of church patronage in Scotland.
Referred to the committee on church patronage.
Lord CHANDOS presented petitions from Nottingham,
complaining of agricultural distress, and against the beer-
shops ; and also a petition from the fishermen of Cork,
praying for the introduction of poor laws into Ireland.
Mr. F. POLLOCK gave notice of bringing in a bill
to abolish arrests for debt after Jan. I. 1835, except in
cases where a bill, note, or bond, was given by the debtor
to make the debt payable on a certain day.
At half-past two there were no members present, but
the Speaker remained until three o'clock, in compliance
with the resolution of the house.

Jerome Bonaparte, the ex-King of West-
phalia, who travels under the title of Count de Mont-
fort, has taken up his residence, during his sOour in
the metropolis, at the Brunswick Hotel, Jermyn-
street. He is accompanied by his son, who is styled
by the attendants " Prince." The stay of the Count
de Montfort here, it is said, will extend to a month.
It is singular that there are at present three brothers
of the late Emperor Napoleon sojourning in this
country, namely, the Prince of Canino, Count de
Survilliers, and the Count de Montfort.

The late Consul-General in Egypt (Henry
Salt, Esq.) bequeathed his valuable manuscripts and
papers, on which he had been so many years engaged,
to his early friend and schoolfellow, Mr. Halls, who
has just given to the world the memoirs of this amiable
and distinguished character. From his long official
residence in Egypt, and the high favour he received at
the hands of the Pasha, Mr. Salt possessed facilities
enjoyed by no other traveller, of pursuing his favourite
object—that of bringing to light the wonders of anti-
quity, buried beneath the sands of a country stamped
by Holy Writ, as one of the most interesting on the
face of the earth. It is not generally known, that it
was under the immediate auspices, and at the expense
of the British Consul, that Belzoni was enabled to
effect his extraordinary discoveries at Thebes. The
familiar correspondence of Mr. Salt introduced into
this work, at once attests the accomplishments and the
many excellent qualities of the writer. No one can
peruse it without feelings of the highest esteem and
admiration. It is to be regretted that the splendid
collection of antiquities and curiosities of such a man,
the result of so much expense and labour, though
offered to the British Museum, at a comparatively
small sum, should not have been purchased by his
native country.