The Sun.
London, England, 1860-07-27 00:00:00

THE POST-OFFICE REPORT.

Sir G. BOWYER said he had been informed that the
report on the Post-office had been in the hands of the Go-
vernment at least a week. He begged to ask the Secretary
to the Treasury when it would be laid on the table ?
Mr. LAING said that the report was placed in the hands
of the Postmaster-General some two or three days ago. It
involved matters requiring the greatest consideration ; and
he was not able to give the house any assurance aid to the
course that would be taken with regard to it, or the time
when it would be produced.
THE BUSINESS OF THE SESSION.

Lord PALMERSTON—Sir, I rise to make the motion o
which I gave notice the other day, with a view of facilitat-
ing the progress of the business of the session, which is now
far advanced. (A laugh.) I should hope, now that the
period has arrived after which no bills, except money bills,
or those involving matters of urgent importance, can be
sent up to the other house—at any rate the bills of private
members have no chance of passing through the other
house of Parliament—l hope, therefore, that the house will
not object to the proposal that on Tuesday orders of the day
shall have precedence of notices of motions, Government
orders having the priority. I had fixed Tuesday next as the
first Tuesday on which this arrangement should commence.
But I find there are hon. members who have motions for
that day whom I should be sorry to disappoint, and three-
fore I propose that it shall commence on and after Tuesday,
the 7th August.
The motion was then put from the chair amidst some
laughter.
Mr. DISRAELI—The house has shown no indisposition
to assist the Government so far as the arrangements with
respect to public business are concerned. Thus, at Whit-
suntide, we gave up, without a murmur, Thursday. The
noble lord then proposed another mode through which our
time was much curtailed. It seemed only a very slight
proposition at the time that notices of motion should be
taken at a quarter past four instead of half-past four ;
but I may venture to say that it has occasioned very great
inconvenience to private members—(hear, hear)—whilst
there is not any evidence of its having at all advanced the
public business. (Hear, hear.) The noble viscount now
asks private members to give up the only day which is left
to them. lam not disposed to throw any difficulties in the
way of this proposition ; but I think that hon. members
should be met by an equally frank and accommodating
spirit on the part of the Government. (Cheers from the Op-
position.) There is one subject at least on which they have
not experienced that spirit from the Government, that,
namely, which relates to the changes which are contemplated
by the Government with respect to the paper duties. (Hear,
hear.) Now, hon. gentlemen are agreed that this is a matter
of great importance, and that it ought to be introduced at a
time when it can meet with full discussion in as large an
assembly of the house as at this period of the session can be
expected. But although more frequent inquiries have been
made from both sides of the house with regard to this in-
tended measure than I can well recollect on any subject, and
although I have myself been compelled to deal with it in a
somewhat intrusive manner, still we have not been favoured
until to-night with any notification from the Government as
to their intentions upon that measure ; and then a day is
proposed which certainly appears to me to involve an unrea-
sonable and unexpected delay. (Hear, hear, from the Op-
position.) I should be sorry to oppose the motion of the
noble lord, but if the house agrees to this motion, I think
the noble lord ought to fix an earlier day than next Monday
week for the introduction of the important measure to
which I have referred. At any rate, I think the noble lord
ought to fix the earliest day after Monday next, which cer-
tainly is engaged. Ido not see why the Government
should not some days ago have allowed that business to be
introduced on Friday night (this day). They have nothing
on the paper for Friday ;sight but supply. But lam quite
willing to support the Government on this motion, pro-
s-Red we have an assurance that it will come on on the ear-
liest day after Monday next, namely, on Thursday. If the
noble lord had proposed to postpone the notices of motions
off Tuesday next, and allowed the paper duties to come
on on that day, which would have been a not unreasonable
proposition, I would have supported him, provided that
hon. gentlemen would have consented to give up their mo-
tions for that day; and I think if the noble lord had given
expression to a strong opinion, they would have done so.
If, however, that arrangement cannot be made, I shall be
happy to support the modified proposal of the noble lord,
that the paper duties be brought on on the earliest day at
the command of the Government after Monday next.
Mr. HADFIELD said that he for one was willing to sit
for any time her Majesty's Government might choose to fix,
even if they kept him there for two months. (Much laugh-
ter.) He thought a question as to the constitutional mode
of expressing the opinions of the house was a matter of the
highest importance.
Sir G. BOWYER said he thought the proposal which
had been made by the noble lord by no means unreasonable.
But with regard to the introduction of Government bills he
wished to call the attention of the Government to a bill of
great importance which was in his charge (the Roman
Catholic Charities Bill). It had met with very serious and
unexpected difficulties, arising from the opposition of hon.
gentlemen on his (Sir G. Bowyer's) side of the house, and
unle- s the Government would allow a day for its full and
free discussion, the bill would be lost, and the Roman ca-
tholic charities would be left to the administration of the
Charity Commissioners without the protecting clauses
which had been promised in the first instance.
Mr. MONSELL said that if every hon. member had not
the patriotism of the hon, and learned member for Sheffield,
all were agreed that the question of the paper duties ought
to be settled as speedily as possible. (Hear, hear.) He
therefore wished to press upon her Majesty's
.Government
the importance of discussing the question on the earliest
possible day. It could not satisfactorily be dealt with ex-
cept in a full house, and he did not think that on so late a
day a large assemblage of members could be expected.
Sir M. FARQUHAR said that when the question re-
specting the paper duties was put on Monday last by his
right hon. friend, the noble viscount said that he would
give an answer next day. It was very remarkable that on
Monday, when the noble viscount made his important state-
ment respecting the fortifications, the Chancellor of the
Exchequer was not present. But on the following day, when
the right hon. gentleman the member for Buckinghamshire
asked the question of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who
was present, the noble viscount was not there, and the right
hon. gentleman got no reply. The question was put to the
noble lord the Foreign Secretary, but the noble lord could
not assist his right hon. friend. It was surmised from this
I that one of three things had occurred—either that there was
was great dissension in the Cabinet, or that some negotia-
tions were pending in France which were incomplete ; the
Emperor of the French having desired the removal of the
prohibition, the Legislative Council had objected to that,
aad therefore the prohibition had not been withdrawn, but
the admission of foreign paper was still permitted; or
thirdly, that, as a late Chancellor had observed, when he
was Attorney-General, and some one remarked upon the
wonderful amount of business which was despatched at the
end of a session—" the end of a session was the best time
in the world for getting through business without obstruc-
tion." (Hear, hear, and laughter.) Whether the latter was
the true reason or not he did not know ; but the subject had
been discussed considerably not only inside the house but
out of it; and it was considered most extraordinary that
this question should be delayed day after day.
Lord PALMERSTON said the proposals which had been
made were so many and various, and it was so difficult to
agree to Tuesday next, that he must beg to adhere to his
original proposition, that Government notices of motion
should have precedence on Tuesday se'nnight. With re-
gard to the observations of hon. members as to the time
when any particular measure would come on, if hon. gentle-
men knew how difficult it was to settle the days upon which
business could be brought on, and then observed the way
in which business was continually postponed, they would
see that it was not only difficult but impossible to fix with
certainty any clay on which a particular measure should be
brought forward.
Mr. JAMES said he wished the noble lord would inform
the house what measures he really meant the house to pro-
ceed with this session. (Hear.) This he thought was a
very good opportunity to discuss this question. He for one
was very much surprised at the statement of the noble lord,
that several bills for the consolidation of the statutes which
had been recommended from the throne, were to be passed
without any examination ; that the house should be asked
to take upon trust the measures of an assembly which had
sawed to take upon trust the financial measures of that
house. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. BENTIIiCK said he regretted that the noble lord
had not given a more definite answer to his hon. friend the
member for Hertford as to what was the intention of the
Government with regard to the paper duties. lie could not
believe that the Chancellor of the Exchequer was serious
when lie said it was intended to postpone this important
question till the Gth of August. He thought, without im-
puting any motives to the right hon. gentleman, that would
seem like trifling with the business of the country. The
right hon. gentleman must be impressed as much as any
man in the house with the importance of the question, and
he must know that on the 6th of August it would be per-
feetly impossible to
get a full and fair attendance of the
house. The hon. gentleman the member for Birminoarg