The Sun.
London, England, 1802-02-23 00:00:00

DEBTORS

;Vr, W. WY NNE, moved the Order of the Day
for the second reading of the Bill to enlarge the
powers of the Lords' A.
The Bill was read a second time.

On the question for its commitment, - I
Mr. NICIIOLLS said, he was not prepared to
go much at length into the subjed, but it appeared
to him to be of considerable importance, as the
Bill, if passed, would effe& a change. in the Law,
of which many Gentlemen could scarcely have an
idea, He would suppose the case of a person
having a mortgage upon his estate, and haying
given, a 4 was usual, a bond to the mortgagee. Upon
this bond he might he .arrested, and compelled, un-
der the present Bill, by the Justices in' Quarter
Session to sell his estate for the benefit 'of ltt's credi-
tors. If this were so, all the effect of the decisions
of the Court of-Chancery for one hundred and fifty
years, for the purpose of preventing th equity of
redemption from being brought to Sale, would he
completely destroyed. He thought such a subject
ought to be thoroughly investigated, before the
House consented to pass a Bill of this nature, as it
should be remembered there were fraudulent CredL
tors as well as fraudulent Debtors. He hoped that
those practising Barristers Who were members of
the House, would attend in the.prOgress of the;dis-
cussion upon this Bill, to prevent. the Law of tli
land from being incautiously and unjustly over-
turned.
'Mr. STURGES said, he could not discover that
the Bill was in any resped. contrary to Law, nor
did. he think ifeould produce those prejudicial con-
sequences which were feared by the Hon. Gentle.
man. The House well knew that the object of the.
Lords' Mt was to provide against fraudulent Debt..
ors, who were possessed of propert3r; -Throwing
themselves into gaol, and there living in comfort
and luxury, whilst they refused to pay the sums
justly due to their Creditors. This was certainly
a wise and politic regulation, but the objea eould
not-be accomplished by that Aft. The At only
extended to persons in custody for any sum not ex-
ceeding 3601.—a sum sa small, that it was not to
be supposed that any person of the description =al.,
luded to by the Hon. Gentleman; possessed of large,
landed property, would chine .to live in a gaol
merely for the sake of refusing to.pay so trifling a
sirtn. The Ad was therefore in this respea per-
fatly nugatory ; and he remembered, when an in-
quiry was made, some years since, upon this subjed,
it was found that the Aft had not been in this
respea enforced, as no person of property had
chosen to remain in gaol for such a such, The ob.
jet of the present Bill was to extend the provisions:.
of that At to any sum whatever,
.in order to, ,prg -
vent Debtors, in any case, from living lukuriotisly
in prison, and refusing to pay thcit'Ciedit'oi'L:
_lt
, also ,ektended the powers given- by that Mt to
Judges of Assize, unto the Justices in Sessions, in
order that persons might not be compelled to wait
a year, as must be the case in some of the Northern
Counties, before theatidges of Assize came down.
Mr. Itircnow explained. _ _ .

Mr. WYNNE said, with respect to, t 11:: Bonds
giveu upon Mortgages, alluded to by fat. Lion.'
Gentleman (Mr, 'Sic L 1.51,,he Gould not ;onccive

of' what use those Bonds were, unless they could be
gled upon.
Mr. JONES said, that many tradesmen bad been
entirely ruined by fraudulent Debtors. He highly
approved of the Bill, and hoped the Hon. Member
who had brought it forward, would pursue the ob-
jeft he had in view, to a successful termination.

Mr. BRAGGE said, he doubted how far the oh. •
jeCtions of the Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Nt c ',Ls) to
_the Bill had been satisfadorily arft.wered. The corn-
plaint of the Hon. Gentleman was, that the power of
the Court of Chancery, with respe& to Equities of
Redemption, would be, by this Bill, transferred to
the Quarter Sessions. A case had been supposed,
of a person, having a Mortgage upon his Estate,
being arrested upon the Bond which accompanied
that Mortgage. The Quarter Sessions, upon such
a Bond, would have to decree the sale, of the Estate;
the hardship which might arise in that case vas
evident—the Court of Chancery -knew of the Mcrt-
gage, and tided accordingly ; but the Quarter Ses-
sions, having a person before them in custody won
the Bond, must order the immediate sale of the
Estate. He thought this- objeetion had not Jeen
satisfadcrily answered ; it might, however, bepro,
vided against in the progress of the Bill.

Mr. ALEXANDER, Sir W. ELFORD, Mr. I\Ew.
BOLT, Alid Sir HENRI- MILDM each said avert'
few words, and

Mr. STURGES explained, observing thot. t 1 e
Bill did not give any additional powers to the
Justices in Quarter Sessions, but merely that power
which the Judges of ASsile before possessed relative
to this objet.
The Bill was then ordered to be committed to a
Committee of the whole House to-morrow.

Mr. ROBSQN" said, if there was no objeeion
to a Motion he held in his hand, he would make it
then ; if it was objeded to, he would make it to-
morrow. He then moved for an Account of the
produce of the 4.1 per Cent. Leeward Island Duty,
Mr. N. V 4 NSITTART said, that in the ab-
sence of the CHANCEL-1.04 of -the EXCHEQUER he
did not exaElly know what objection might be
made to the produaion of the Paper alluded to by
thr Hon. Gentleman. He believed the same sUb-
jed was some, time since brought before Parlia-
ment.

Mr. ROBSON said, as there appeared some ob-
jeaion to the motion, he would withdraw it, and
give notice of it for to-morrow.
Mr. ALEXANDER brought up the Report of the
Committee of the whole House on the Report of
the Seleft Committee of Expiring Laws, which was
read and agreed to, and Bills ordered.