The Sun.
London, England, 1832-04-12 00:00:00

( No. 1 2.:35

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS, APRIL IL

Mr. BERNAL and others brought up the Navy Civil
Service Regulation litll, the Dublin Nisi Prius Hills, the
Irish 13('King Bill, and some private Bills.
Earl RODEN presented a petition from a person in
Ross-shire, against the system of education in Ireland. He
also presented a petition from Sir Harcourt Lees, a per-
son well known in Ireland, against the Reform Rill.
The petition stated, that the Bill in prozress through the
House, under the denomination of a Bill for Reform, if
passed into a law, would insure, with others, the return
of a revolutionary assembly, composed principally of
English revolutionists and Irish C ttholic priests ; and the
petition, in behalf of the infant (laughter of the late
Duke of Kent, Priuc'ss Victoria, pr: ye that their Lord-
ships would reject the Bill. The petitioners were confident
that if it were passed into a law it woald,insure the destruc-
tion of the church, the dissolution of the House of
Lords, a general revolution, anarchy in both islands,
and the establishment of a republican instead of
a mqn trchical Government. The Noble E trl was aware

that their Lordships might consider some of the statements
in this petition as extraordinary—statements coming from
an individuAl who presumel to come before the House ;
but that same individual had often stated things respecting
Roman Catholicism equally extraordinary, which had turned
out to be true, and what had been the effect of that most ob-
noxious measure.

Lord TEYNHAM objected to the reception of such a pe-
tition as this, and moved that it be rejected.
The Duke of SUSSEX would submit to whatever the
House might decide upon, but he did conceive that a peti-
tion containing the assevtion of any individuals presenting
themselves before their Lordships, that the object of pas-
sing the Rcform measure was to set aside the succession to
the Throne of the Princess Victoria was an outrage to the
H .use, an insult to the public, and ought not to be
received.

Earl RODEN desired that the Clerk of the Howe would
read the petition through.
The petition was then read verbatim.
Earl RODEN conceived that the petition merely stated
the opinions of the petitioner—that the petitioner was a
man of very great discernment, and he had a right,
like any other subject, to come and lay his opinions in re-
spectful terms before their Lordship• ; therefore, he
could see no reason why this petition should be
reieeted.—(Hear, hear.)
Earl GREY was not at all surprised that the
Royal Duke should hare been struck with the terms
in which the petition was couched ; but he (the
Noble Earl) was certainly not prepared to assert,
whatever might be the absurdity of the language of the
petition—the almost insanity of the petitioner, that the
petition ought, on that account, to he rejected. The pe-
titioner did not, in the least, impute to their Lord-
ships the character of revolutionists; it imputed that cha-
racter to some persons whom that petition did not name.
He hoped there were not any in that House to whom the
description applied,—to whomsoever it might be applied, it
did not seem to him that the petition ought to be
rejected. At the same time had such a petition been
put unto his hands he would have declined to have pre-
sented it.

Lord TEYNHA9I said, that after what had been stated
by the Noble Earl he should not think it proper to put
the House to a division on the question of rejecting
this petition ; ther-fore he begged to withdraw his motion,
at the satnetitne, he certainly had given the Noble Esrl
on the otber side of the House (Earl Roden) credit for
better judgment than to have presented such a petition as
this.—The petition was ordered to lie on the table.
Lord WYNFORD presented a petition from certain
freemen of Sudbury against Reform.

REFORM BILL.
The order of the day having been read for resuming the
adjourned debate on the Reform Bill,
The Earl of WINCHILSEA rose and said it was not his
intention to detain their Lordships for many minutes, but
he could not allow this debate to close without stating
the grounds on which he intended to vote upon
the Bill now before them—a Bill so important, that
not only the best interests of the country depended upon
it, hut even their •ery political existence itself. Widely as
their Lordships might differ with respect to the important
Bill on the table—widely as they might disagree upon its
expediency and sound policy, and upon the benefits ultimately
to be derived from it, should it receive the sanction of the
three Powers of the State, he felt it must be their unani-
mous wish to bring this most momentous question to
a speedy and final settlement, is order to allay
that spirit which had unfortunately been excited
by its agitation, and to restore public peace which
had ben disturbed in so many parts of the
country to the destruction of property and loss
of life to an extent which would for ever leave
a stain upon the age in which they lived, and which
it would be ♦ery long 'ere, if ever, the country
recovered. Of all political questions that could be
brought before the country, there was none which more
required calm and dispassionate consideration than this.
—(Herr.) As yet, what were the circumstances under
which it had been brought forward?—(Hear, hear.)

It was a measure which, from its very nature,
must, at any time, and under any circumstances,
in which the country might have been placed, have
dicited a strong feeling in its favour on its very
first announcement, and for this reason, that nine-tenths
of those whom it professed to benefit fancied they
were deprived of something which would advantage
them, and which they might derive by its means,
But the time at which it was brought forward gave the
Bill a tenfold greater weight than it would have had if
brought torward at any other period of our history. He
would not detain their Lordships by proving that
which he was sure no man was disposed to deny—he
meant the great difficulties and distress under which
every interest of the country laboured at the time

the Bill was introduced. Fie would not occupy
their time further in endeavouring to trace the source
of theme difficulties. He would not ask whether they aroee

from that taxation which it was necessary to enforce
in order to pay the interest of a debt incurred to
carry on that long and arduous war, which had been
designated by so many opprobrious terms by the Noble
Lord who spoke from the cross bench, but which he
had contended was entered into to secure the very existence
of the country and the maintenance of those principles with-
out which no society could exist. tie would not stop to
inquire whether these difficulties had arisen from false no-
tions of the political economists of the day, who, prefer-
t ing foreign markets which consumed not a tenth part of
our manufacture, had brought bankruptcy and ruin upon
the home market. He would not dwell, however, upon
the injudicious rejection of the pray,rl of the people
to inquire into tha cause of their distress, as it was
sufficient for him to show that great distress did, in
fact exist among all classei. The agriculturists whom
he had talked to on the announcement of this Bill,
hailed it because they hoped it would bring better prices ;
the freeholders hailed it because they expected it would oc-
casion a reduction of taxes upon the necessaries of
ti'e ; and the manufacturer hailed it, because he ex-
pected protecting duties and expected foreign com-
merce. In facr, all classes that he had conversed

with, feeling the pressure of distress, looked to this Bill to
give them relief. He would now make a few otyerva-
tions upon the Bill itself ; and although he might be
charged with inconsistency, as lie had been by the
Noble and Learned Lord on the Woolsack in his able
speech in the month of October last, yet would he fear.
lessly declare his present opinion.—( Hear, bear.) No
man more admired political consistency than he did.
He was not anxious, however, to support his consistency
of opinion at the expense of truth sad justice ; at
the same time, he could not consent that he was
liable at present to that charge. The Noble Duke re-
minded him that he kad declared in favour of Reform. He
protested he was as much a Reformer now as ever ; but
that surely did not imply that he should accede to all
measures of Reform, however sweeping in prin.
••ip'e, that might be brought forward. With re-
mpect to the Bill now before the House, he would
h meetly and candidly confess that while the opinions he
before entertained were unaltered respecting the necessity of
mine degree of Parliamentary Reform, he could
not look to it without alarm. his former opinions prepared
him to give representatives to the new and great towns pos.
'Posing wealth, property, commercial weight and importance,
md which h,(l grown up to that state since the
present representation of the country had been esta.
•fished. He would take the Parliamentary influence
s•hich had fallen into the hands of individuals
decayed boroughs, in order that he might thus transfuse
And diotributo it among the property of the country. but