The Sun.
London, England, 1851-05-23 00:00:00

IMPERI

Mr. JOHN O'BRIEN presented petitions from the
parishes of St. Michael's, St. John's, and St. Munchin's,
in favour of the Towns Improvement Bill, and the reten-
tion of the 26th clause.
ATTORNEYS' CERTIFICATE DUTY.
Lord R. GROSVENOR announced that it was not
his intention to bring forward his motion on this subject.
ISLINGTON CATTLE MARKET.
Mr. WILSON PATTEN moved that the Islington
Cattle Market Bill be referred to the Committee on
Smithfield Market Removal Bill.—Agreed to.
ECCLESIASTICAL TITLES BILL.
Mr. T. MINCOMBE gave notice that, on going into
Committee on this Bill, he should move that the first
clause be postponed until the House be in possession of
the brief, rescript, or letter apostolic on which the said
'lenge is founded.
RAILWAY ACCIDENTS.
Sir G. CLERK wished to ask the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman at the head of the Board of Trade what steps had
been taken by the Railway Board in relation to the two
late railway accidents ; and whether, if the Railway
Board had not power to adopt regulations for the public
safety, it was the intention of the Right Hon. Gentle-
man to introduce a Bill for the purpose of enabling that
Board to interfere fur the safety of life and limb to the
public ?

Mr. LABOUCHERE said the subject had been for
some time, and was still under the consideration of the
Railway 130ard. With regard to the first accident, a very
able report had been presented to the Commissioners on
the subject by the gentleman who had been sent down for
the purpose, which report he should feel it his duty to
lay upon the table of the House.—(Hear, hear.)
An inspector had also been sent down to attend
the inquest on the second when it took place. With
regard to the most material part of the Right Hon.
Baronet's iapiry, the propriety of the Railway Com-
missioners undertaking the special control of railway ar-
rangements, in order to ensure public safety, he would
take the liberty of asking the House to be very cautious
before they adopted the opinion that the public safety.
would be increased by being placed under the control of
a railway board.

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
Mr. EWART rose to move that it is expedient that
the mitigations which have been made in the laws in-
flicting capital punishment in England be extended to
Scotland, and (as far as possible) to the colonial posses-
sions of this country. He thought there could, at all
events, be no objection on the part of the House to in-
stitute an inquiry into the law of Scotland on this sub-
ject. With regard to the colonies, he observed that the
laws of several of them presented many anomalies
as compared with those of England. In St.
Lucia the penal laws of Louis the XlVth.
were now in force; in Ceylon the Dutch laws prevailed,
and
and arothson, coining, homicide, receiving stolen property,
other offences were punishable by death. At the
Cape of Good Hope the same enactments existed which
were introduced in the time of Charles V., and
by thetuithe crimes of coining, forgery, housebreaking,
rioting, and stealing, were visited with capital punish-
ment. There still remained, also, at Malta, a remnant of
the Justinian code, and among other offences punished by
death were attempts to poison, and even the breaking of
the quarantine laws. lie believed that many of our colonies
had themselves effected considerable changes in their
liw3, but he was anxious that the laws of all the colonies
should be made conformable to the laws of England.
—(Hear, bear.) lie was not aware whether
the House had power to do this. It might be that
the principle on which it acted was first to improve
the constitution of the colonies, and then allow them to
make laws for thernEelves—a principle to which he was
favourable, but he thought, at the same time, that a
suggestion made by the ;House in the shape of a
resolution such as he proposed, would have con-
siderable influence is the colonial legislative assemblies.
Atsny governors of colonies had already expressed an
anxious wish that the law should be assimilated, and he
hoped, therefore, that no opposition would be offered to
his inotion.—(Hear.)
Mr. FOX MAULE said he could himself really see
no objection to the proposition of the Hon. Member
viz., that the law of Scotland and the colonies should be
assimilated to that of England, but he questioned very
much the propriety of the House adopting a resolution
of such a vague character. As regarded the colonies,
the House could not legislate for them in these matters,
and they were themselves the best judges of that which
best suited their internal arrangements.
11r. HUME did not think the Right Hon. Gentleman
had done justice to the motion of the Hon. Member.
With regard to Scotland, he should like to see what was
practicable done by law ; bat in reference to the
colonies, where they had the right of self-government,
he Was disposed to leave the matter in their own hands.
Maly colonies, however, did not enjoy that privi-
lege ; and in so far as he was concerned, he
thought their criminal laws ought to be assimilated to
our own, lie hoped, therefore, the Home Secretary
would take up the subject and call for the opinion of the
Houle upon it.—(Hear, hear.)
Me HA WES did not deprecate discussion upon this
subject, but he certainly was adverse to legislating
upon :t at present. The motion, however, was defective
so far as it related to Scotland, because the proper mode
of proceeding for altering the law of Scotland was by
Bill, sad not by resolution. Considering all the House
had heard of late on the question, of local self-
govermeent, he did think it would be highly impolitic
to adopt that part of the motion which had reference to the
colonie', But, in point of fact, as regarded the majority of
our colonies, there was no necessity for this species of le-
gislatiot, because their criminal codes, as nearly as
was possible or expedient, had already been assimilated
to those of the mother country. In proof of this ho need
only refer to the papers which had been laid before the
House it the course of the present session, wherein it
would b 3 found that even in colonies whose codes
were severer than our own, a desire was always ma-
nifested by the authorities to follow the example
of the mother country, arid adopt a system of transpor-
tation in preference to resorting to the punishment of
death.—(lfear, hear.)
Sir G. GREY was understood to say that instructions
had been fsrwarded to Scotland to make the law there
in crimina cases as lenient as it is in England.—(Hear,)Mr. E WART said the purpose of his motion had been
answered by the discussion which it bad given rise to,
and he world not, therefore, put the House to the trou-
ble of dividing upon it.
The motion was accordingly withdrawn with leave.
SECULAR EDUCATION.
Mr. W. if. FOX then rose, pursuant to notice, to
move that it was expedient to promote the education of
the People, iu England and Wales, by the establishment
of free schools for secular instruction, to be supported
by local rates, and managed by committees, elected
specially for that purpose by the ratepayers. He said
he rose wick some encouragement to make this proposi-
tion, became, at the recent anniversary of the British
and Foreign School Society, the Noble Lord at the head
of the Government, who presided over the meeting, ex-
pressed his conviction that the present was a fitting
time for making additional efforts to promote the educa-
tion of the people. The proposition, therefore, that
he was now making to the House was not in its object
ill-timed. He did not, however, think the Noble Lord's
language was sufficient to warrant him in expecting that
the Noble Lord would honour this motion with his sup-
port, but it did warrant him in expecting that it vrQuld

HOUSE OF COMMONS, May 22.
The SPEAKER took the Chair at Four o'clock.
NEW WRIT.
On the motion of Mr. HAYTER a new writ was
ordered for the Borough of Newry, in the room of Vis-
count Newry, deceased.

PRIVATE BUSINESS.
Mr. A. HASTIE moved that the order of the Com-
mittee of Selection of the 11th April, nominating the
Committee on the Caledonian Railway (Motherwell
Branch Extension and Lesmahagow Branches Lease)
Bill, Group 15 of Railway Bills, be discharged: that the
Bill be withdrawn. That leave be given to bring in a
Bill to enable the Caledonian Railway Company to pro-
vide for the construction of certain Branch Railways in
the county of Lanark. That on the said Bill being pre-
sented, and read the first time, it be referred to the
Examiners of Petitions for Private Bills, with leave to
sit and proceed to-morrow.—Aereed to.
THIRD READINGS.
The following Bills were read a third time and passed
Chorley Waterworks.
&worn Union Railway.
Edinburgh Royal Asylum for the Insane.
Liverpool Docks (Alteration of Management, &c.).
Weston-buper-M,re Improvement and Market.
CONSIDERATION OF BILLS.
The following Bills were considered and agreed
Brackley Roads Consolidation.
Great Western Railway (Railways to connect the Bir-
mingham and Oxford Junction Railway with the Lon-
don and North-Western Railway at, Birmingham, &c.).
Hayling Bridge and Causeway.
North Shields Quays and Improvements.
Sunderland Improvement.
NEW WRIT.
On the motion of Mr. CUMMING
in th BRUCE,e
a new writ was ordered for the county of Argyll room
of Mr. Duncan M‘Neill who had accepted the office of
one of the judges in Scotland.

PETITIONS.
Mr. FREWEN presented a petition from Sussex in
favour of the Improvement of Towns Bill.
An HON. MEMBER presented two petitions praying for
the repeal of the attorneys' certificate duty.
Sir JAMES DUKE presented five petitions from the
city of London, praying for the repeal of the taxes on
knowledge.
The MASTER of the ROLLS presented a petition
from an individual holding the office of Clerk of the
Enrolments in the Court of Chancery, complaining that
recent acts of the Legislature had completely
annihilated the fees of his situation, and praying the
Elouse to make some provision for him in the new County
Courts Bill.
Mr. W. J. FOX presented a petition against the
Reyium Don um grant.
Sir B. HALL presented a petition from St. Pancras
in favour of the consolidation of paving boards.
Mr. DUNCUFT presented fifteen petitions from Lan-
cashire and Yorkshire against Papal aggression.
Mr. DUNCAN presented two petitions from places in
Scotland against the Education Bill.
Mr. a BERKELEY presented a petition from the
coachmakers of Bristol, praying for an equalization of
the carriage-tax.
Sir GEORGE CLERIC presented a petition from the
Synod of Lothians against the Education Bill for Scot-
land; also a petition from the same place against the
Jew Bill.
Mr. KERSHAVir presented a petition from Liverpool
against the Regium Donum.
Mr. M. GIBSON presented a petition from Manchester
praying for the repeal of the taxes on knowledge; also
a petition from Ipswich against the Ecclesiastical Titles
Bill.