The Sun.
London, England, 1835-08-28 00:00:00

,••
IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS, iluarrar 27.
The letters patent, appointing William Birch, Esq., clerk_
assistant in the room of Mr. Courtney, now Earl of Devon,
having been read, that gentleman took his official seat at the
table of the House. •

•
William Rose, Esq., in like manner, appointed reading
clerk in the room of Charles Phillips Rose, Esq.-, took his
seat at the table.

The Police Dublin Bill, and the Glass Duties Reduction
Bill, were brought up from the Commons, and afterwards read
a first time.

TITHES, TURNIPS.
The Duke of RICHMOND presented petitions from the
graziers, &c., of the neighbourhood of Arundel, Worthing,
and other places, in favour of the Tithe on Turnips Bills.
On the motion of the Duke of RICHMOND, the Tithe
on Turnips Bill and the Tithes Recovery Bill, severally went
through a Committee.

POOR LAWS—BASTARDY.
The Earl of RADNOR moved that certain returns relat-
ing to the cases of bastardy which had been presented, should
be primed. These returns related to the number of children
affiliated in England and Wales during the past year. There
were certain clauses in the Poor-law Amendment Bill to which
he had always objected, and these had introduced a pfacticeo;
a still more objectionable kind than any which had before
existed. The exposures which used to take place at petty
sessions, now took place in open court of quarter sessions. At
the last midsummer quarter sessions of a northern county, two
whole days were occupied in this -business. The female be-
came hardened by this exposure, and mischiefs greater than
ever were created. He should now merely move that the re-
turns be printed, but should take another opportunity to bring
the subject fully to their Lordships' attention.
Lord WHARNCLIFFE had always objected to the bas-
tardy laws remairing in their present state ; and he should
have been better pleased if the magistrates had had no power
at all to make bastardy orders. But while the practice of
making these orders was continued, .he must say that be
should never consent to their being restored to the petty ses-
sions. He was ready to put an end to the present system,
and to throw the burden of maintaining the child on the
mother and the parish.
The Returns were ordered to be printed.
Lord BROUGHAM presented a petition from 1,200 per-
sons in Glasgow against the arrestment for wages; also from
the house carpenters and joiners for the abolition of the Stint)
on Newspapers; from places in Wexford in favour of the
Irish Reform Bill; and from persons in Liverpool, in favour
of the Imprisonment for Debt Bill ; also a petition from Mr.
Wm. Gladstone, of Birmingham, stating, that if th'eir Lord
ships adopted, with regart to themselves, the same rule of a
property qualification which they applied to the members of
the Council of Municipal Corporations, they ought to have a
revenue of 174- millions as a qualification.—( A laugh.) For
aught he knew, their Lordships might have such a revenue,
he could not tell any thing about it—(a laugh)—but such was
the statement of the petitioner.
SHERIFF'S' ACCOUNT (IRELAND) BILL.
The Marquis of 'WESTMEATH objected to the provi-
sions of this Bill, and saw no reason for changing the old law
on this subject. This alteration was proposed by the lawyers.
He had great respect for lawyers, but he must say that he
did not think that lawyers were always the best legislators,
and he believed the fewer of them we had as legislators the
better, and he should prefer going to the 'squires and country
gentlemen.—(Laughter.) He should propose as an amend-
ment, that the Chief Remembrancer should attend at the
office daily, in the same manner as a Master in Chancery.
Lord PLUNKETT said that the amendment of the Noble
Marquis amounted to a censure upon the present Chief Re-
membrancer. Such a censure was totally undeserved by the
learned gentleman, as the Earl of Eldon, if he was present,
would readily testify. The supposed amendment would, in fact,
make the labour of the Chief Remembrancer less than it was
at present. He was strongly opposed to the amendment..
The Marquis of WESTMEATH should divide the House
on his amendment.
The Earl of DEVON said that the censure implied in the
amendment on the conduct of the Chief Remembrancer was
quite undeserved.
Lord BROUGHAM said the proposed amendment was not
only an injustice to Mr. Blake, but might be an injury to. the
public, by making the Chief Remembrancer take the amount
of labour of the Master in Chancery as the maximum of what
was required from him.
Viscount DUNCANNON was also opposed to the amend
ment

After a few words from the Earl of WICKLOW, Lord CAR-
BERY, and Lord LYNDHURST, the amendment was put and ne-
gatived.
The House then resumed, and the Report was received.
• On the motion of Viscount DUNCANNON the Heredi-
tary Revenues (Scotland) Bill was read a third time, and
passed. •
The Earl of CA RNARVON presented a petition from the
borough of Southwark against the Imprisonment for Debt Bill.
TONNAGE ADMEASUREMENT BILL.
The Duke of B UCCL E UCH presented a petition from the
London Steam-packet Company against this Bill.
Lord BROUGHAM said that at his suggestion a clause
had been introduced into the Bill in Committee, which would
meet the objections of the petitioners.
After a few words from Lord AUCKLAND,
The Duke of BUCCLELTCII had no doubt but that the
explanation of the Noble and Learned Lord would be per-
fectly satisfactory.
GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY.
Lord WHARNCLIFFE presented the Report from the
Committee en the Great Western Railway Bill, and moved
that it be agreed to.
Lord KENYON said, the circumstances which had taken
place in the Committee on this Bill were of such an eatraor-
dinary nature that he would venture to say that they were al-
together unparalleled during the thirty-five years that he had
had the honour of having a seat in that House.—(Hear.)
The Committee had nret on forty-one days, and in the course
of that time a small number of Peers only attended the Com-
mittee, but as the termination of the sittings many attended
and voteal without knowing what the merits of the Bill were.
—(Tiear, hear.) We understood the Noble Lord to say
that the Committee sat for 41 days, and the largest number
of Peers who had been present during the sittings attended
yesterday. Among those Noble Lords who bad most assi-
duously attended the investigation before the Committee
was his Noble Friend the chairman of it, who was present
evcrx day. The Report was agreed to yesterday by the
Committee under the circumstances he had just mentioned,
and after a division had taken place, when 33 Peers voted
on one side and 21 on the other ; looking to the majority of
33 who voted for the Report he found that 29 were Noble
Lords who had attended the Committee only that day, and for
the first time. He did not mean to cast any reflections on
any one of these Peers for the manner in which they had given
their votes; they were at liberty do so, and it was not for him
to call their conduct in question. He might be told that
Noble Lords were justified in voting, who had not previously
attended the Committee, provided they had read the evidnce;
but he must observe, that there was a great deal of difference
between attending a vied voce examination, and merely look-
ing over the evidence. The resolution come to yesterday in
fav(vr of the Bill was not agreed to by the majority of those
who had most constantly attended the sittings of the Commit-
tee. He repeated that he did not intend to throw out any im-
putations against any Noble Lord, fozothey had to settle the
matter with their own consciences, and he was bound to as-
sume that every. Peer who gave his vote on the occasion was
doing what he considered, to be his duty. He felt called upon
to trouble their Lordships with a short statement as to the
circumstances of the case. He would proceed to show the
grounds which induced him to think that the Committee yes-
terday came to a wrong conclusion as to this Bill. In oppo-
sition to the line of road proposed by the promoters of the
Bill from London to Bristol, another had been proposed, the
adoption of which, he believed, would be more advantageous.
If this Bill passed, a new railway would be necessary of the
length of 129 miles, whereas the other line of road would
only require a railway of the length of 84 miles. The latter
line of road was from London to Basing, and thence to Bris.
tol, and this railway had been proposed to the Committee in
competition with what was called the Great Western Rail-
way. A portion of the railroad he had just alluded to was
now in the course or construction, under an Act of Parlia-
ment of last session for constructing a railroad from London
to Southampton. It appeared that the parties interested had
ample funds for the completion of this railroad, and satisfactory
evidence had been adduced to show that all the money that
was required was forthcoming. They had also good evidence
that the projectors of it had sufficient funds in their possession
to go on with it as quickly as they were willing to do ; and in
addition to this it appeared that the instalments are always
paid tip readily and immediately they were called for. Again,
43 miles of this railroad would be completed within a short
time, and therefore the whole would be completed with less
delay thao if the line of road laid down in this Bill was adop-
ted. He admitted, from all that he could hear, that there was
a probability of a sufficiency of funds for the completion of the
Great Western Railway; at the same time a considerable
smaller sum would be required for the formation of the road
through Basing to Bristol. As, therefore, this last line of
road could be completed in a shorter space of time than the
other, and as it would cost less, the convenience of the public
would be best consulted by adopting it. He was sure, there-
fore, that their Lordships would consider that a satisfactory
case had been made out for the adoption of the railroad of
eighty-four miles instead of the line of road of 129 miles.
He believed- that the difference in' the time of travelling
on either of these lines of railroad by locomotive en-
(sines would not be very great, as he understood the dif-
ference in the time of the journey from London to Bristol
would not exceed ten minutes. Therefore, as far as that point
was involved, there was no great difference. lie was also sa-
tisfied that the and Basing line of road had a much
better termination in London than that proposed in the
That railroad would terminate on the other side of the
river on the banks of the Thames. Be thought it desirable