The Sun.
London, England, 1860-04-03 00:00:00

they would have no choice left them but to grant free trade
in intoxicating drinks. The right hon, gentleman said he
wished to join eating and drinking together; but people
drank more after dinner than they did at dinner. (No, no.)
'Well, they used to do. (Laughter.) Besides, a man did
not eat except when he was hungry; whereas he drank for
many reasons, People drank with a friend, or because—
" Good wine, a friend, or being dry,
Or lest you might be by-and. by,
Or any other reason why."
(Laughter.) No one would wish to see persons who now
dined at home with their families frequent eating-houses ;
and therefore the class to whom the bill would apply was
comparatively limited. But a man who had once been to an
eating-house where liquor was sold would find his way there
again when he wanted to drink ; and he would not think it
necessary to eat first. Thus, eating-house or no eating-house
it would be all the same. In the early part of the session he
(Mr. Hardy) had asked for the report of the Forbes Mac-
kenzie Act. A commission had been sent into Scotland to
inquire into its operation. That was a restricting act against
the sale of wine and spirits, and the houses which supplied
wine and spirits. He must say that the preamble of that act
contrasted in a most remarkable manner with the provisions
of the present bill. It recited that great evils had arisen from
certificates granted to houses for the sale of wine and spirits
in Scotland ; a commission was appointed to inquire into
the operation of the act, and, whilst waiting for the report,
the Legislature of this country was called upon to pass an
act for England and Wales upon totally different principles.
That commission was composed of several eminent and en-
lightened men, and Sir G. Clarke's name was sufficient to
insure an impartial and disinterested inquiry. Was it not
important that the house should know what the report
of these commissioners said ? (Hear.) He hoped he was not
detaining the house, but this was a subject on which he felt
• a deep interest, and he hoped the house would pardon him.
(Hear.) Then it was said that this bill would prevent adul-
teration. But only a few days since the hon. member for
Birmingham introduced a bill to stop the adulteration of ar-
ticles of food and drink. But the house well knew that the
statutes relating to publicans and beersellers contained re-
strictions of the most severe character against the adultera-
tion of beer and spirits, yet the attempt to pat down adulte-
ration had entirely failed. The hon. member had informed the
house that bread was often made of plaster of paris, and that
cayenne was nothing but brickdust ; so that a man after eat-
ing adulterated bread, and then endeavouring to rectify his
digestive organs by the stimulant of cayenne pepper, ran a
chance of having his internal economy entirely walled up.
(Laughter.) That took place under the most perfect system
of free trade. There was another point to which he would
allude, viz., the sale of wine in single bottles. That, no
doubt, was a matter of comparatively minor importance.
Yet there was a great deal in what had been said by the
hen. member for Southampton. One of the chief evils of
the present system was the presenting servants who came to
make purchases for their masters and mistresses at shops
with wine or spirits over the counter. Was there no danger
of this system extending itself, and taking the place of the
old practice of giving veils to servants ? (Hear.) He thought
that subject was worthy of considerable attention. He had
already treated of some of the social features of the measure;
but there was another question which be would wish to put.
Was it likely that this bill would succeed as a matter of re-
venue ? (Hear.) He confessed he thought not. By this time
it was pretty well seen which way the taste of the mass of
the people was extending. It was not to be supposed that a
supply of minor stimulants would stop the sale of stronger
liquors. The case might be compared to that of the news-
papers which were deemed objectionable. People asked one
another why do you not take in a good family paper? (A
laugh.) The light wines would be considered harmless and
insipid, people probably thinking that they did them no good;
and as the "family papers" disappeared from circulation,
so people would at last have recourse to the more exciting
stimulants which they had a greater affection for. The
right honourable gentleman seemed to anticipate that
drunkenness would diminish, inasmuch as it did not pre-
vail M. countries where the light wines were drunk. He
(Mr. Hardy) did not know where the right hon. gentle-
man obtained his information. Ho could only say that
Mr. Fenimore Cooper, the American novelist, had stated,
speaking of Paris, that he saw more drunken people in Paris,
by knowing where to go to look for them, than he had ever
seen in London. He found it also stated that there were
no less than 360,000 of these wine shops in France; and
that out of 11,000 homicides perpetrated in that country
400 were committed in these wine shops: With respect to
Sweden the Chancellor of the Exchequer gave the house
some information which he (Mr. Hardy) was glad to hear.
He had had occasion some years since to comment upon the
case of Sweden, and he was glad to hear that Sweden had
rescued herself from the stain which had attached to her.
Every Jerson in Sweden had a right to distil ; and in order
to show what the result of free trade in spirits was, he
would observe that in Sweden there were 150,000 distillers.
He quoted from Alison's History, where the authorities were
cited, and the result of this free trade was, that notwith-
standing the thinness of the population, the amount of im-
morality in Sweden was not paralleled by the case cf any
other country. The Chancellor of the Exchequer had told
them that 1860 was to be a memorable year. Did he mean,
with Jack Cade, that conduits were to run with nothing but
claret ? (A laugh.) Re would recommend the !right hon.
gentleman to build his fiscal reputation on measures which
would improve the morals of the community, and not on
founding new houses for the sale of intoxicating liquors. If
he added to the 120,000 debauched houses already existing,
he would be doing that which was against the sense of his
constituents, of the house, and of the country at large.
Mr. AYRTON moved the adjournment of the debate.
(No, no.)

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER consented
(Cries of " When ?")

The adjourned debate was fixed for the 19th of April,
amidst much cheering from the Opposition.
FISHERIES (SCOTLAND) BILL.
This bill was read a first time.
POLICE AND TOWNS IMPROVEMENT ACT
AMENDMENT (SCOTLAND).
This bill was read a first time.
PUBLIC CHARITIES.
This bill was read a first time.
The house adjourned at 20 minutes past 12, till 3 o'clock
to-morrow (this day).