The Sun.
London, England, 1835-09-05 00:00:00

HOUSE OF LORDS.

The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said he was entrusted
with a petition from Spalding, in favour of the Executors'
Administration Bill, and took that opportunity of stating,
that both this Bill, and the Registration of Wills Bill, had
been fully discussed in Committee and otherwise, and that at one
sitting of the House, nine successive hours were occupied in
discussing its details ; therefore the assertion that had been
made in another place that these' Bills had been smuggled
through the House was most unfair.—( Hear.) If those who
made that assertion would condescend to meet him in pri-
vate conference, he would soon convince them how erroneoug
such a statement was.—( Cries of "Order" from the Opposition. )
Mr. E WART supported the prayer of the petition.
SIR PETER LAURIE.
General PALMER gave notice of his intention on Mon..
day to present a petition relative to the conduct of Sir Peter
Laurie, and others of the Court of Aldermen of the city of
London, and Governors of Bethlehem Hospital, in the case
of a female lunatic, now confined there ; and being a
question of the deepest interest, not only to the petitioners,
but to the whole country, and to the cause of humanity
throughout the world, he humbly hoped for the atten-
tion of his Majesty's Ministers to the subject, and that nothing
might prevent him (General Palmer) from having an oppor-
tunity of bringing it forward.
Sergeant WILDE presented a petition frow Newark
against the alterations in the Municipal Reform Bill.
COLONIAL AGRICULTURE.
Mr. CRAWFORD presented a petition from the Agricul-
_

rural Society of Calcutta, a society established to improve the
agriculture of that country, having among its members the
chief justice of Bengal, Dr. Willis, a celebrated botanist, and
many eminent men. The prayer of the petition was for an equali-
zation of the duties on the produce of India with the rates charged
on the same articles imported from the British Colonies in the
West Indies, especially coffee and sugar. India had now
become more essentially than ever an agricultural country ;
in fact, three-fourths of the people were interested in the
prosperity of agriculture. The great resources of the
country required only the removal of restrictions to be
developed. India required encouragement now more es-
sentially, since she possessed no other means of supply-
ing the annual drain on her resources required by the late
Act of Parliament relating to her Government. It had not
been his intention to present this petition at the present mo-
ment ; he had intended to keep it till the commencement of the
next session, in the hope that before the House had many days
met, they should have a discussion with reference to the equali-
zation of the Sugar Duties. He was, however, induced to
present the petition, in consequence of some circumstances
which had taken place connected with a Bill before that House,
under the title of the Custom Duties' Bill. The object of that
Bill was to reduce the duty upon Coffee, the produce of the
British possessions in the East Indies to the duty upon West India
coffee. The Bill had but one enacting clause, and when it
came out of Committee, it stood in this condition, viz. that
from the passing of that Bill, the duty upon coffee should be
reduced to sixpence, the same as West India Coffee.—
( Hear, hear, hear.) He had attended the progress of
that Bill with considerable anxiety—he had watched
through the Committee for the purpose, if it were proposed to
insert any clause requiring a certificate of origin, some modi-
fication should take place. The Bill was reported, and stood
for the third reading without any clause to that effect being sug-
gested. He was not a little surprised to find the third reading
of the Bill was postponed at the suggestion of the Chancel.
lor of the Exchequer, whom he was very sorry not to see
present. Upon hearing of that postponement, he took an
opportunity of seeing that Right Hon. Gentleman, and left
him under the firm conviction that he would not proceed to
adopt any certificate of origin without giving him ( Mr.
S.) an opportunity of being heard. He found to his
astonishment, under these circumstances, that the Bill
had been read a third time, with an appended additional
clause to the effect that there should be required a particular
sort olf certificate which was not in use, and which it was impos-
sible to comply with. It was proposed to allow coffee
grown in Ceylon to be introduced for consumption at
sixpence duty ; and, in the same manner, coffee coming
from India was liable to a higher rate of duty than was
proposes! in the terms of the enactment of the Bill. As his
attention was much directed to commercial subjects, it might
be said in a particular manner to devolve upon him, and
he had taken every means to have an opportunity of speak-
ing in his place before this took place—( Hear, hear)
he had been disappointed from a course of events not under
his controul, having been followed in this Bill in a way not
usual and exceedingly inconvenient. He had been de-
prived of the opportunity at the proper time to make these
observations, and to press upon the House the neces-
sity of modifying the certificate, so that it should be in the
power of parties to render one in compliance with the Act.
He had heard it said that there was no reason why East India
Coffee in this country should not be liable to the high duties.
It was stated that it was in the possession of parties who had
bought it expecting to pay the high duties ; in answer to that
he would only say that it was within his own knowledge that
all the coffee hitherto imported into this country grown under
the Madras Government, came here as the property of
the original planters. Under these circumstances he
could not see how the growers of coffee in Ceylon
should be subject to the continuance of this duty, for the "
space of fourteen months to come. He thought the measure
one of the highest injustice to the East India growers, and in
direct contravention of the clause of the Act. He had made
these observations, in the hope that something would be done
in the course of the next Session, to relieve them from the in-
justice under which they laboured.
Mr. LABOUCHERE was sorry that the 6hancellor of
the Exchequer was not in his place, in order to explain what
he must consider a misconception on- the part of the Hon.
Member. He could assure him that it was not the
wish, and never was the intention, of the Chancellor of
the Exchequer to take him or the House by surprise—
( Hear.) He could only say with regard to the question
the Hon. Gentleman had mentioned, that he knew it was the
opinion and intention of his Right Hon. Friend, when the
measure was first proposed for the consideration of the House,
while on the one hand he was most desirous to place the
coffee, the produce of the East Indies, on the same footing as
that of the West Indies, with regard to the amount of duty, yet
he considered it due to the West India Colonies to place the
Coffee of the East Indies under the same restrictions of cer-
tificate of growth. That certainly was his intention from the
commencement. He would only state with regard to the petition
which had been presented by the Hon. Member, that he
perfectly coincided with the sentiments he had expressed.
He was most desirous that the House should give every en-
couragement for the developemenc of the agriculture of the
East Indies.

Mr. P. STEWART thought the Act had come up to the
limit intended by the House—namely, placing the duties upon
an equal footing, both in the East and West Indies. The Act
went no further than to prevent Foreign Colonies from coming
in, in prejudice to their own.
Mr. CRAWFORD explained. He had no intention of
throwing out any taunt upon the proceedings of his Ma-
jesty's Ministers. He had merely wished to vindicate himself.
Mr. E WART admired the manner in which the Hon.
Member for Lancaster had defendeil the policy of his Majesty's
Government. He should ever support any motion for placing
the produce of the East and West Indies on an equal footing,
and he would say that it was disgraceful to that House to
have these duties so long without equalization. The impor-
tation of sugar from the West Indies was 400,000,000
cwt., while the total amount which was imported from
the East Indies was only 77,000 cwt., although in the latter
country it was the spontaneous produce of the soil, only want-
ing capital and skill to render it most productive. The quan-
tity of coffee imported from the West Indies was 22 millions
of lbs., while that from the East Indies, was only one and a
half millions of lbs. He had often heard the propriety of
equalizing the duties upon sugar, and the articles of agricul-
tural produce in these countries, and the facts he had stated
were corroborative of the necessity of that measure. He
had often called the attention of that House to. the ar-
ticle of pepper. In the year 1825 the duty had been
reduced from half-a-crown to one shilling per pound, and the
consumption immediately rose from 900,0001b5. to 1,500,001b5.
Now he (Mr. Ewart) contended that a duty of Is. in the lb.,
was a most extravagant one, more especially when the favoured
West India article of Pimento was admitted on payment of a
duty of sd. only. He hoped the East Indies would not sub-
mit to this injustice, but would forward remonstrances, and if
that did not succeed, something more determined than re-
monstrance.

Mr. BUCKINGHAM complained of the depressed state
in which the commerce of India was at present, from the in-
justice with which they had been treated with respect to the
articles imported from that country into England. There
were not less than 800 millions of acres of surface
in that country abundantly pro ductive, and people were indus-
trious to an extraordinary degree; and yet, with all these ad-
vantages, the trade of the country was almost annihilated.
India had been treated most unfairly by this country. They
had given it a charter, and had provided for it institutions simi-
lar to their own; and yet all tb e time, they had been only prae-
tising delusion with respect to India. \- He trusted that the
professions that had been mace would end in something more
than mere words. If not, he hoped the Government of India
and the people of England iv ould press the subject upon his
Majesty's Government in a -tone that would be irresistible.
Mr. ROBINSON feared. there would be somewhat more of
difficulty attending the ecilualization of the duties than Hon.
Members were aware of. -Whenever his Majesty's Govern-
ment did so, he hoped along with equalizing the duties on
sugar, they would effect a considerable reduction in them.
Mr. GROVE PRICE presented a petition from Sir John
Claridge, late member of the Court of Reeerd of Prince of
Wales's Island and the Island of Singapore, complaining that
the Government of India had not fulfilled the terms of his ap-
pointment, and praying for an enquiry into his ease.
Sir J. HOB H 0 USE was of opinion that the House ought
not to interfere with this case, which was purely one of law,
and did not come with;o the jurisdiction of the House.
The ATTORNEY GENERAL made a few remarks
which were understood to be confirmative of the opinion of
Sir J. Hobbouse.
Mr. 'WYNN also thought V.ie House ought not to interfere.
Dr. LUSHINGTON, as a Member of this House, felt
that though he had been intf:rested in the case, he could not
interfere.