The Sun.
London, England, 1866-02-16 00:00:00

Colonies if he proposed to 'iltroduce the Jamaica Govern-
ment Bill that evening.
Mr. CARDWELL said it had been thought advisable to
introduce a measr-e that evening, but the discussion of it
would be taken on Monday evening next, on the occasion
of its second reading.
NEW COURTS OP JUSTICE.
Mr. C. BENTINCK asked what steps were being taken
with respect to the building of the new law courts ?
Mr. COWPER said the selection of the design for the
new courts of justice would be by competition. As that
matter would be a very extensive and intri-
cate ono, the number of architects who
would be entitled to compete would be limited.
The gentlemen who were to enter into competition would
be nominated by a committee composed of some of the
leading members of the legal profession, and a number of
the members of that house.
CATTLE DISEASES BILL.
The house then went into committee on the bill intro-
duced by the Government.
Clauses up to 5 were agreed to, and Clause 6 was post-
poned.
Mr. BRIGHT renewed his protest against indiscriminate
slaughter and against the principle of compensation out of
rates raised from the whole community, par.icularly to the
extent proposed 133 the bill. He objected altogether to
retrospective compensation, and urged the Goverment to
reconsider the compensation clauses.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that
the questions then before the committee were two—first,
whether they were prepared to give compulsory powers
for the slaughter of infected cattle; and secondly, whether
such powers should be conferred without compensation.
These propositions hardly admitted, he thought of dis-
pute, but with regard to the rate of compensation he was
not prepared to say that that contemplated by the bill might
not be too high.
The amendment was withdrawn.
Mr. J. B. SMITH referred to the practice followed in
Russia in granting compensation where cattle affected by
the rinderpest had been destroyed.
Lord CRANBORNE pointed out that in Belgium two-
thirds of the value of the slaughtered animal were allowed,
in addition to the meat where it was fit to be sold for
human food.
It was, after some discussion, resolved to retain in clause
13 the words " not exceeding £2O ;" but the Chancellor of
the Exchequer subsequently moved to strike out from the
words " such sum not exceeding two-th"rds the value of
the animal, as they (the local authorities) shall think fit,"
the words " two-thirds," and substitute for them " one-
half." He thought " one-half" the value would be ample
and literal inducement ,to the farmer to declare when his
stock was affected with the disease, whilst the power would
be left to the local authority of adapting the precise amount
to the circumstances of the case.
Sir F. KELLY had heard the proposition with regret
and surprise. It seemed to him to have been dictated by
the member for Birmingham.
Sir J. PAKINGTON also condemned the propozal, as
founded upon the "Bright fallacy" that the bill was in-
tended for the benefit of landowners. What they were doing
must be justified on the principle of public policy or it
would not be defensible ; and on that principle he urged
the Government to hold out a liberal inducement to the
owners of stock to come forward and declare when their
beasts were affected.
Lord J. MANNERS complained that the Chancellor of
the Exchequer had taken the h0u...0 altogether by surprise,
and trusted the committee wovid vindicate the Govern-
ment in their original proposition, and reject the amend
ment.

Mr. BRIGHT intimated that he thought that, on tho
whole, the change was a reasonable settlement of a que;:-
tion of difficulty.
Col. W. Patten, M. Dent, and Mr. Henley also expressed
their opinion that "one-hall" wag a fair proportion; whilst
Mr. Dutton, Mr. Newdegate, Sir J. Trollope, and Mr.
Duncombe were as decidedly in favour of the clause as it
stood.
Mr. DISRAELI, consider'ng the question with reference
to the general interests of the country, and givLng credit
to Ministers for a desire to act with energy in the promo-
tion of those interests, had counselled his friends to sup-
port the Government in the cou'se they recommended in
this emergency, He presumed that the bill was the result
of calm and mature deliberation ; though it might neces-
sarily present some crude characteristics; but he was not
prepared for such a sudden change of opinion on the ques-
tion before the committee. He was inclined to believe
that the first proposition was best. Under these circum-
stances, however he hoped his friends would not go to a
division.
Ultimately the clause was amended as suggested by the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, and in that shape was agresd
to.

On clause 16, directing the slaugh43r of cattle which
have been herded with diseased animals, a motion of Mr.
Blight to amend the clause by providing that such animals
should be slaughtered only with the consent of the °neer,
led to much discussion, which ultimately terminated in a
division, and the confirmation of the clause by 388 to 50.
Clause 17, relating to the value of slaughtered animals,
was amended by the addition of a proviso that parsons
violating the regulations should be excluded from com-
pensation.
Clause 18, the retrospective clause, and the 19th and
20th, as to isolation of infected places, and the rules to be
applied to them, were postponed.
On the 21st clause, " movement of cattle,"
Mr. HUNT proposed amendments to the effect that no
cattle should be moved on any railway before the 25th of
March, 1866, or along any highway, elnal, navigation, or
river, except in certain cases to be expressly provided for.
Sir G. GREY said this propos-I necessarily involved the
stoppage of every market for fat cattle throughout the
Ingdom. The effect of that would be to change the sup-
ply of live cattle into dead meat, and thus, in the absence
of the requisite facilities, materially interfere with the sup-
ply of food and greatly enhance its puke to the people.
Mr. HENLEY supported, and Mr. IlEimArt (in the inte-
rest of Newcastle) opposed the amendment.
Mr. LOWE expressed his strong opinion in energetic
terms in favour of adopting one simple, unvarying rule
to be applied to the whole country.
The discussion was continued amidst the marked im-
patience of the house, and at 12 o'clock a division was
taken on this, the most important portion of the bill, when
there appeared—
For the amendment 264
Against it
Majority against the amendment
The amendments were then agreed to.
Mr. BOUVERIE, as the commi.tee had now reached the
exceptions to the clause, moved that the chairman should
report progacss, in order that time might 133 afforded to
consider them.
Sir G. GREY consenting, the motion was agreed to, and
the house resumed.
The National Debt Raduction Bill, the Savings Banks
and Post-office Savings Banks and the Pensions BD,
were severally :ead a second time.
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAMAICA.
Mr. CARD WELL rose and said—ln accordance with
what I understand to be the opinion of the house, I will
now proceed to lay the bill relating to the Government of
Jamaica before the house. I will make no statement with
reference to the general subject, but merely explain what
are the contents of the bill. The bill will then be in the
hands of members, who will have an opportunity of consi-
dering it before the debate comes on. Now, sir, it will be
in the knowledge of all those who have looked into the
papers with reference to the late events in Jamaica that the
Jamaica Legislature in the first place passed an act for the
revision and reconstruction of their own Constitution ; but
upon receiving from me an intimation that I should be
ready to submit the question to the judgment of Parlia-
ment—if it should seem desirable to Parliament that I
should do so—the Governor submitted that to the Jamaica
Legislature, and that assembly readily assented to the
sub-
stance of a new form of Constitution being left entirely in
the hands of the Crown. And it is stated by th
Legislature
was in his despatch, that the understanding of the
.ed out
k
o
was that, if passed by the Crown, it should
ooldbuercee w
catered
took
then its full and plain meaning. No's, the
then was this. It being our opinion that it would not be
the present state of its
right to call upon Parliament, in
knowledge respecting the colony of Jamaica, and whole
yWie
to
of the inquiry into recent events
1, nt insetymet
mepforg, finally
nal
colony
shall what the form government
shall be—(hear, hear)—Wo think that the wiser coursey
would simply bo to ask thehouseofto ratifyjamafotehe
itself
has which the Legislature
e for the government of the
colony fora period. The
has arrived at, and thus
inPiT nvt'id on is that Parliament should
II governmentar
agree, in the first instance, to substituting
lufoefrmtiher tohitherto
government of the colony,that
now in force in Trinidad. hear.) And we propose
to
in Council.nth(); billthe shall be iyn
We propose t period shall be three years. That
to do that, with the permission
will
a limited period, and that
h the commission of inquiry, whether
derived through enable Parliament to judge, by the aid. of the. informa-
tionthe measures taken in pursuance of the Order in Council
are likely to be productive of benefit to the colony. And
then, when the experiment has been tried, Parliament will
be called upon either to supply some other mode of govern..
i
ing the colony or simply to ratify the system experimen-
tally adopted.
Mr. B. COCHRANE said the right hon. gentleman the
Colonial Secretaay believed it was possible that the fate of
this bill might be influenced by the result of the inquiry at
present going on in Jamaica. That bring so, he would sug-
gest whether it would not be better for him to wait for
information from that colony before introducing a bill
which was to change the whole constitution of the island.
Mr. WALPOLE thought it was quite clear that when
the Government of Jamaica had abdicated their functions
nothing was to be done but immediately to provide some
other machinery for' the government of the island. He
would like, however, to know from the right hon. gentle-
man the Secretary for the Colonies whether he intended in
the bill itself to Lpecry the kind of government which, by
Order in Council, was to be given to Jamaica?
Mr. CARDWELL—No.
Mr. WALPOLE was of opinion that the hon. gentleman
had made some little mistake, He (Mr. Walpole) held