The Sun.
London, England, 1858-05-28 00:00:00

ribirb Utittton

SUN OFFICE, Seven o'Clock.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF COMMONS—(This Evening).
The SPNAXER took the chair at four o'clock.
CORPORATION REFORM.
The Sheriffs of London and Middlesex (Messrs. Alder-
man Lawrence and Alderman Allen) presented a petition
relative to the Corporation of London Reform Bill.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.
The Lords' amendments to the Malvern Improvement
Bill were considered and agreed to.
WATERFORD AND KILKENNY RAILWAY
(CAPITAL) BILL.
This bill was read a third time and passed.
The following bills were further considered and
ordered to be read a third time :—Ayr and Dalmellington
Railway, Birkenhead Improvement (Bondholders Ar-
rangements), Cromford and High Peak Railway, East
Kent Railway (Dover Extension), Manchester Corpora-
tion Water. Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire
Railway (Newton to Competell), Newport, Abergavenny,
and Hereford Railway, and Yar Bridge Bills.
CARLISLE, LANGHOLM, AND HAWICK
RAILWAY BILL.
Mr. ELLIOT moved that the minutes of the pro-
ceedings of the committee on the Carlisle, Langholm,
and Hawick Railway Bill, in group 13 of Railway and
Canal Bill?, be printed at the expense of the parties
making the application, and distributed with the
vote:so—Agreed to.
MANNING THE NAVY.
Lord C. HAMILTON, Treasurer of the Household,
brought up her Majesty's Government's reply to an
address for the appointment of a royal commission to
inquire into the best means of manning the navy stating
that her Majesty had considered the subject and had
given the necessary direction for its issue accordingly.
RAILWAY LEGISLATION.
Col. W. PATTEN gave notice that he should, on
Tuesday, 22d Jane, move an address to her Majesty for
the issue of a commission to inquire into the effect of
recent railway legislation. (Cheers.)
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE.
Mr. HAMILTON- gave notice that on Monday next
the Chancellor of the Exchequer would move that on
every Thursday during the remainder of the session,
Government orders of the day should have precedence
of notices of motion ; and on Thursday the Chancellor
of the Exchequer would ask leave to introduce a bill
relative to the funded debt.
THE LIBERTY OF THE PRESS AT SIERRA
LEONE.
Mr. ROEBUCK asked the noble lord the Secretary
for the Colonies a question relative to the suppression of
a newspaper called the Neu Era, lately published in
Sierra Leone. The paper in question had incurred
the displeasure of the Governor of that colony,
in consequence of its criticising his conduct ; and
be, with the concurrence of the Council, issued an
order in Council calling zpon every newspaper in the
colony to provide sureties, the same as was adopted in
this country. The proprietors of the New Era sent in
the names of certain persons as sureties, but the Govern-
ment rejected every one of them, and the consequence
was that the paper had been put down for some time.
He asked the noble lord whether his attention had been
called to this order, and if so, whether he or the Go-
vernment had done anything upon it, and if it had,
what I and farther, if they had considered the pro-
priety of recalling the Governor.
Lord STANLEY said an order to the effect stated
by the hon. and learned gentleman was issued
in the course of last year by the Governor of
Sierra Leone for all newspapers in the colony to find
sureties the same as the •English newspapers. The
Government, however, considered great inconvenience
would result from the working of the order, and they
had desired the Governor of the colony to repeal it.
(Hear, hear.) It was not the intention of her Majesty's
Government to recall the Governor of the colony. (Hear.)
THE RIVER THAMES.
Mr. GRIFFITH asked the First Commissioner of
Works the following question :—Whether the principle
just put forth by Dr. Odling, the Officer of Health for
Lambeth, that the perpetual motion of the water of the
Thames, and the flux and reflux of the tide, affects the
oxidisation of decomposing matters to that extent, "that
he has never been able to discover sulphuretted hydro-
gen in Thames water," may not be well worthy of
further investigation, as offering possibly the means of
escaping the has srdous and expensive drainage engineer-
ing undertakings that have been under consideration?
Lord JOHN MANNERS was understood to say an
enquiry was now going on relative to this subject.
BREACH OF PRIVILEGE.
Mr. CLIVE brought forward his charge of breach of
privilege relative to the attacks on him in the Carlisle
Lieaminer, imputing to him corrupt motives as chairman
of the North British and Caledonian Railway
Bill_ On a former occasion the hon. and learned gentle-
man brought the subject under the consideration
of the house, when it wes ordered that Hudson Scott,
the publisher, and Washington Wilke., the editor, should
this day attend at the bar of the home. Since that tone
be bad hoped these parties would have retracted their
charges, and he would have been satisfied ; but instead
of that, they had been repeated in a subsequent publics
tion of the paper. The hon. and learned gentleman was
proceedirg to read the article in the subsequent publica-
tion, when
-Mr. T. DUNCOMBE called the hon. and learned
gentleman to order. The printer and editor of the paper
were in attendance to appear at the bar of the house f ir
the complaint made against them on a former occasion.
He thought it unfair that the offence they had to an-
swer should be exaggerated before they were called to
the bar of the house.
The SPEAKER said the hon. and learned gentleman
was in order.
Mr. CLIVE having read a portion of the second
article, Mr. Hudson Scott and Mr. Washington Wilkes
were called to the bar of the house.
In answer to a question put to Mr, Wilkes, he stated
he was the printer, publisher, and editor of the Carlisle
Eosaminer. He published the article complained of in the
paper of the 15th May, believing the statements, from in-
formation be received, partly from a public and partly
from a private source, were true. He aas not then
prepared to withdraw the article or give up the author
from whom he obtained his information, but he thought
if a commission were appointed, the parties who bad
given him the information would come forward and sub-
stantiate the imputations contained in the article. He
had the information from a gentleman connected with
the line that was thrown out.
Mr. Hudson Scott stated that he was not now the
publisher of the paper, nor was he on the 35th May last.
They were then ordered to withdraw.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER then
moved three resolutions, to the effect that Washington
Wilkes had been guilty of publishing a false and
scandalous article, reflecting on the conduct
of the chairman of the committee (Mr. Clive)
and other members of that committee, and that
the Speaker do issue his warrant for his committal to
the custody of the Sergeant at Arms.
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL having seconded the
motions,
They were agreed to.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER then
moved the discharge of the orders for the further attend-
ance of Mr. Hudson Scott.--Agreed to.
THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER'S
SPEECH AT SLOUGH.
On the motion for going into Committee of Supply,
Lord J. RUSSELL called the attention of the house
to the speech recently delivered by the Chancellor of the
Exchequer at Slough. The right hon. gentleman assumed
in that speech that within three months her Majesty's Go-
vernment had brought forward such measures, or pursued
snob a course as to have preserved our relations at home
aad advanced the interests of the people of this country,
so as to deserve the confidence of that house, or, if not
of that house, certainly the confidence of the country.
(Cheers and counter cheers.) To ermine the grounds so
put forth, it was necessary for the house to consider
the state of our foreign relations, and also the
state of the country. In reference to the imminent danger
of war, alluded to by the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer' be (Lord John Russell) had inquired of the
Earl of Clarendon if such were the case, and he had
been informed by that noble lord it was not. The nohls
lord (Russell) then referred to the Conspiracy Bill,
and the course pursued by the house in reference
to it, and said he believed this country and France
were disposed to peace, and would not be disposed to take
up arms one against the other without most serious cause
for so doing. He asked from the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer an explanation of the ominous sentiment relative
to the imminence of war and why greater preparations bad
not been made to meet such an emergency by her Majesty's
Government. The noble lord asked for an explana-
tion from the right honourable gentleman relative
to the conduct of that house in reference to Sardinia
and Naples to commit these countries to hostilities to
destroy her Mejesty's present Government. He (Len!
J Russell) denied such was the case. The &sire
of the House of Commons was to prevent a collision
and preserve these two countries from ha.viros
recourse to arms. The noble lord also asked for
an explanation of that part of the right honour-
- able gentlensan'er speech relating to our policy in In-
- diaoshether it should be one of clemency, or whette r
it should be a policy of exterenina.ion and a rule
by force. Ise
and sked who bad proposed such a cour e
of
p• 'ley
challengeduhocar the Government to show that it
bad been
n that house, te, by the late Government or any one
o
laze.person of authority in th.e
ouo try or India.
aud ire had been the c. • ntrary, and
t o
dia. govern with
noblefor lord thuefanfirteflearred to the withdrawal
of the motion on Friday
~otn,d an said the tigh.
hon. gentleman had gone far bey
ftwhe facts in repro -
venting the terrific scene in that
thteh
hreference
only raised in his own imagination. house, which was
to their having to defend their votes on
had the vote last week been taken and founduadingP'
to the Government, the noble lord condemned vwehnaet
he termed a penal dissolution for the honest perform-
ance of their duty, and deprecated the dissolution last
year by the late Government. A government ought not to
advise her Majestyto dissolve Parliament when thwarted
ea • any particular question, and hold such a threat
over honourable members. Such a course would
have a tendency to damage the constitution and pro-