The Sun.
London, England, 1833-06-20 00:00:00

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, • felt muff bound to blow that
the Bi he read a secon e this day six months.
Mr. HODGSON rose to second the amendment. He
thought the Bill should not have but introduced at a
time when there was so much important!. business before
the consideration of Parliament. The subject could not
suffer much by twelve months' delay; and he hoped the
House would not sanction the measure. -Besides his ob.
jectioa as to time, he objected to the metropolitan registra-
tion for country property, on the grounds that local places
of registration were not so liable to being Attacked by tu-
multuous mobs; and also on the score of iiisense, which
would amount to 1,0001. to each individual county.
And this expense he did not understand it was at all t!te
wish of the landed interest should fall upon the country.
Mr. PRYME said his first objection to the Bill was in
consequence of an expense not mentioned by the Hoar.
Member for Newcastle, namely, the expense it would
occasion to private individuals. The largelanded proprietors
I had not formed a proper estimate of the number of email
properties of only two, three, or four hundred pounds
value. In many cases it would go to prevent advances of
money being made by country bankers upon the mere
deposit of deeds, without any formal conveyance.
These deposits were, of course, for temporary pur-
poses ; but, in some instances, they were made
during the erection of buildings upon which advances
were made by instalments, from time to time, as the work
went on. Now, according to the proposed Bill, it would
be necessary to have as many deeds as there were huts?.
ments to secure the lender. So that besides the
objections as to expense, there were various ones
arising from the difficulties and impediments which
wouhl be thrown by the Bill in the way of conveyancing.
The Bill, as far as he (Mr. Pryme) had been able to
ascertain, was opposed unanimously by the legal profes-
sion, who must certainly be the best judges.—(Hear.)
The Honourable Member then went into a detail of
the mode of registration in the East Riding of York-
shire, to show the expense and inconvenience it occasioned.
He did not say that some Bill giving notice of incum-
brances and mortgages might not be desirable—(Hear).—
but he was opposed to any Bill tending to the system of
centralization proposed to be established by this
What he should like to see was, a number of metropo-
litan registers (if he might so speak) established in dif-
ferent parts of the country.
Lord MORPETH said that this Bill was recommended
by some authorities so high, and was supported by argu-
ments so strong, that he would rather not oppose it at
this stage; but lie wished to ask, whether his Hon. Friend
would consent to exempt the counties of the Northern
Circuit from the operation of the Bill ? They were most
distant from the proposed centre of operations, and front
them the greatest opposition bad proceeded.
Mr. HEATHCOTE must protest against the rest of
England being experimented upon for the benefit of the
northern counties. The opposition to the Bill in the
county of Lincoln, amongst those fitted to judge of its
effects, was very great, and as the representative of that
great province lie should oppose it.
Mr. LYNCH supported the second reading, and went
into statements for the purpose of showing the neces-
sity of the adoption of the Bill. The preference
shown by a purchaser to property in registered
counties proved it. Some measure of this sort was
absolutely necessary for the protection of the
purchaser, otherwise it would be impossible to know
when the property was, or was not, affected by
term of years, by conveyance or by settlement. This
proposed system of registry had been called for by
Lord Wynford, Mr. Justice Patteson, and by several
of the most learned men of the present time.—
The commissioners who had been expressly ap-
pointed for the purpose of inquiring into the subject
bad unanimously given their opinion in favour of the
proposed system of registry.
The gallery was then cleared for a division, but none
took place.
[During the time the gallery was cleared, we under_
stand that a short debate took place. Mr. Harvey de..
dared that he was friendly to any system which would
simplify the transfer of property. At the same time, b,
could not consent to the second reading of the Bill, unless
the Hon. and' Learned Member who had charge of i
would consent that its further consideration should h
postponed. This view was supported by the Marquis e
Chandos, Mr. Tennyson, and Mr. Strickland, and it was
opposed by Sir Robert Peel, the Attorney-General, and the
Solicitor- General.]
On our re-admission to the gallery, we found
Mr. TOOKE on his legs. At this late period of the
session he did not at all anticipate this measure could be
matured to any requisite degree of perfection ; be denied
the imputation cast upon his professional brethren of any
interested motives in opposing it, but he would say that it
was in no degree a measure which pressed, but which, if it
was good for any thing, would gain by delay. He him-
self was open to conviction, and be, therefore, trusted that
the House would come to no hasty conclusion.
Mr. TENNYSON coincided with the Hon. Member in
wishing it to be read pro forma, and pet off till another
session, so that it might be printed and circulated
throughout the country, for at present very little was
known about it. He himself had at first been inclined
to object to it, but from what be had since heard, he was
now inclined to support it, proviied the Honourable and
Learned Member would allow it to stand over till another
session,' as proposed.
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL said, he should be ex-
tremely mortified if a reformed Parliament were to allow
such a measure as this to be passed over to another ses-
sion. This would be to reject a measure which had been
found beneficial in France, Ireland, Scotland, and all the
world over, without a single argument being produced
against it. It had been suggested to read it a second time
pro forma, and pass it over to next session ; but this was
but a way of getting rid of it altogether. This was now
the third time of its being introduced to the House. The
most competent authorities had been consulted upon its
merits; and, although some objections bad been made to
some of its provisions, yet the great majority of opinion
was in its favour. He trusted, therefore, that it would
be allowed to take its chance this session, and that the ses-
sion would not be passed over without making it the law
of the land.
Mr. STRICKLAND opposed the Bill. He had been a
Member of the Committee up stairs, and must confess
that, although much diversity of opinion had existed on the
subject, the majority was favourable to it; but he did not
consider this any criterion. In the county which he re-
presented, a verystrong feeling existed against the measure.
There was already in that county ( York) a perfect system
of registration, which had been established with great
trouble and expense, and was all this labour and expense
to be thrown away, and were they to be subject to all
the inconvenience, of the new measure? He con-
sidered, that if the inconveniences of the new measure
were shown to be greater than its advantages, it
ought to be rejected. The country did not know what
the Bill contained, and therefore it ought to be post•
poned for another session.—(Hear.) The Bill compelled
every man to send his title deeds to London, where they
would be exposed for public inspection.—(Loud calls of
" Question.")
Mr. PEASE said he was of opinion that a Member
should support the views of his constituents, and he was
happy to be able to support their views. He had pre-
seated petitions against the measure from all the towns of
the southern division of Durham, and he could assert that
nine-tenths of the freeholders of that division were
against this measure. The evils to be guarded against
were precarious and distant ; the evils of the Bill itself were
certain, and would immediately arise. The whole expense
of the building would have to be paid by fees, the clerks
would have to be paid by fees ; the expense would be great,
and if one of these clerks should make a mistake by tak-
ing the wrong John Brown out of ten thousand John
Browns, and an estate of 10,000/. or 15,000/. were to be
lost, who would pay for that? in his opinion, the injury
it would cause would be incalculable. All the title-deeds
would be sent to London, but were Hon. Members aware
that parcels were sometimes lost? Then, again, the ex-
pense of that. Some provision was made for the postage,
but he should like to know what the postage would come
to of a set of title-deeds, such as he received a few days
ago, which filled the whole box of a gig ? The country
security—.but
of would never be satisfied with the enormous expense. He
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d landholdersbe
ai n
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theLim ,dem greatlsmalliagthelt
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number willinglyad freeholdersofspm aye
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con-
veyances, and more than 100 had passed through his
hands, in not one of which the fee simple was more than
30/. There was not one petition in its favour.
It was said that the opposition to it in the country bad
been got up by country solicitors. If it was meant that
they did not like to lose their business, he thought their
objections perfectly proper. He believed that gentlemen
there did not know how country solicitors carried on their
business; but he could say, that in general, when they
tssured their clients that a title wad good, the clients took
it, and it was better to take a title under those conditions,
than endeavour to vitiate it. No evil in practice resulted
from that. The whole of the county of Durham pro.
tested against the Bill. It was alleged that it was calcu-
lated to prevent fraud—he did not say it Has not ; but
there were other and more simple means, and the evil it
was by its cumbrous machinery to guard against was of
such rare occurrences that a respectable solicitor of Durham