The Sun.
London, England, 1858-04-16 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PAR LIAMEN T.

HOUSE OF LORDS.-(YESTERDAY.)

The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the wool-
sack at five o'clock.
PUBLIC MEASURES.

The :Marquis-of IVESTMEATH brought in a bill to
suppress barrel organs and other nuisances in the public
streets of the metropolis. (Laughter.) .

PATRIOTIC FUND.

The Duke of NORFOLK gave notice that on Monday
next be would move a bumble address to her Majesty
praying far certain returns relative to the patriotic fund.

COMMUNICATION WITH DUBLIN.

Viscount DUNGANNON asked the Postmaster-
General whether any arrangement had been definitely
come to on the part of her Majesty's Government with
the Dublin Steam Packet Co. relative to the transmission
of the mails between Holyhead and Kicgstown ; and
whether the difficulties reported to have arisen with regard
to carrying into effect the object of Urger vessels, capable
of performinc, the passage in a short .r period of time,
being placed on that station, bad been overcome !

Lord COLCHESTER said he would endeavour to
answer the question, though as far as he was concerned
he had taken no part in it. A scheme had been under-
taken by three great companies, viz., the North-
Western Railway, the Chester and Holyhead
Railway, and the Dablin Steam-packet •Com-
p3ny. The contract had been submitted to the
Post•office authorities, and by theta referred to th e Tree.-
sury for their sanction, and there was nothing to lead
him to entertain any other hope than eventually the con-
tract would be signed by all parties and then carried into
execution. There was no specific time prescribed in the
c,ntract for the sea passage, but the companies were
bound under very heavy penalties to effect the journey
from Easton-square to Dublin in 11 hourr.
Lord REDESDALE said a difficulty had arisen be-
fore him with respect to this subject. Their lordships
might not be aware that there was now on foot measures
for the complete amalgamation of the North-Western
and the Chester and Holyhead Railways, the effect of
which would be that the North-Western Railway would
so arrange the fares that the whole of the traffic between
London and Dublin via Holyhead would f jII into
the hands of that company, including the mails. No
company, if this arrangement was carried into effect,
could compete with the amalgamated companies, and no
large sums had been spent on the improvement of
Kingstown Harbour. He thought Parliament ought to
be very cautious bow they granted to any company such
a monopoly as he had mentioned. He had told the
parties who bad been before him that he would be no
party to such an arrangement.
Alter a fa?v words from the Marquis of CLANBICARDE,
the subject, dropped.
THE PASSPORT SYSTEM.

The Earl of M MESBURY—I beg leave to lay upon
your lordship' table the correspondence between the
English and French Governments on the subject of pass-
ports. It may be advantageous to the public generally if
I should briefly explain what has been done by the late
Government and the present Government on the subject.
Your lordships know very well that after the attempt on
the Emperor's life at Paris the French Government was
naturally alarmed at the plots of foreigners in this coun-
try and in France. They thought that the Emperor's life
would be made more secure by a change in their system
of passports. A suggestion was reade to them by, I be-
lieve, her Majesty's Consul at Havre (if I am in error the
noble earl opposite can correct me), that no passport
given to an Englishman should be signed by any French
agent. That suggestion was communicated t and
adopted by my noble friend. Many complaints have been
made against the French Government on this subject,
but very unfairly, because, if a passport system be ad-
hered to by the French Government, nothing can be
more just than that they should require that any subject
of a foreign country visiting France should present a
passport signed by the authorities of the country to
which he belongs. The alteration in the system of pass-
ports occasioned some difficulty to English travellers.
Many Englishmen formerly went without any passports
to Boulogne, Calais, and Paris. At all events, if they
had no English passports, they without any difficulty ob-
tained passports from French agents, without being
obliged to c ,rue to the Foreign-office in London. I aun
glad to inform your lordships that the French Govern-
ment have most liberally said that Englishmen living in
France may travel from one town to another in France
without English passports, and simply with the French
passports given to them in France. They have also said
that any French consul may vise?. an English passport,
and have appointed agents at the principal ports in the
Channel and at Liverpool to vise?. English passports,
which will do away with the necessity of English tra-
vellers coming to London. So much with respect to
the steps taken by the French Government. When my
noble friend opposite found that he was to give the
whole of the passports granted to Englishmen by the
Fereigie office he required some sort of security that the
person described in the passport was really the person
to whom it was granted. It has been said that an Eng-
lish passport should be merely a certificate of British
citizenship; but I think reflection will bring your lord-
ships and my countrymen throughout England to the
conclusion that that would not be sufficient, and that a
passport must fleeces +rely identify the person who bears
it. My noble friend sought for that security in a certi-
ficate to be granted tea person applying for a passport
by the mayor and magistrates of the towns in which the
applicant resided. That process, in consequence of the
small number cf those who could grant such certificates,
and of the neei silty of transmitting such certificetee to
the Foreign-office, was found to be very inconveWent to
many English travellers. Those alio complained of the
inconvenience suggested that mayors and rnugistrates
should be empowered to give passports independently of
the Foreign- ,ffice. That was a very plausible suggestion,
but we ad know that what is everybody's business is
nob Ody's business. No mayor or magistrate could be ob-
liged by any act of Parliament or executive authority to
viser or grant passpoi ts. In many cases it was of the ut-
most importance that passports should be granted with-
out a moment'sAelay, and, if that burden were east upon
them, applicaels for passports might make their demands
upon them at any hour of the night or day. Some mayors
and magistrates would no doubt be good natured enough
to such npplicante, but we may imagine a. mayor the mo-
ment he sat down to dinner, or a magistrate just as he
was going to meet the hounds, being asked for a pass-
port. It is very likely that in such cases the applicants
would hear anything but the expression of wishes for a
good journey. (Laughter.) On consideration I thought
it would be best to widen the area of the godfathers (if I
may say so), who should give certificates of identity to
applicants. Her Majesty's Government having approved
my suggestion, we have agreed that not only mayors and
magistrates but clergymen of the various Christian de-
nominations, physicians, surgeons, solicitors, and nota-
ries should be empowered to give certificates of identity
to persons wishing to obtain passports. I think it will
be almost impossible for any one in any part of England
to foil in obtaining a passport under this new arrange.
ment. It has been said that it is a great inconvenience to
travellers to come to the Foreign-office in London with
these certificates for passport', and that passports ought
• to be granted at other places bean
.the Foreign-office