The Sun.
London, England, 1857-02-11 00:00:00

nudely dad its way there. With respect to the decision of ; This was a sufficient precedent for the measure now pro.
disputes which involved doctrinal points—disputes which posed.
threatened, he would not say the disruption of the church, The motion for the appeintment of a eel et cetrenittee
but to disturb its peace and union—he suggested that was then agreed to.
these unhappy eases should be sent, in the first instance, ; SECONDARY PUNISHMENTS.
before a tribunal cern peeed of cimperent persons to ob- Viscount DUNGANNOIet, who had riven notice of a
taro their opinion on these points, which opinion was not question on this sus jest, :said ;hat after what bad passed
to bind tha deuiBh", but to ci)uve.Y information '0 te) in the other beuse on the preced ng night, when Sir
Judicial Committee. Under the present law, also, G. Grey obtained leave to bring in a bid relating to
clergymen who conscientiously separated themselves 1 secondary puuiehmente, he would abstain from putting
from the Established Bhurch and performed the service of his question, an 1 woull reserve any remarks be had to
Protestant dissenters, were liable to be brouebt before make until the bill was before their lordship.
the diocesan within whose 6iteceete they exercised the /thee After a few words from the Earl of HARLIOWBY, the
of dissenting parsons, and to be dealt with by him in the House adjourned at half-past eight o'clock.
same way as if besti'l belonged to the Esto.t.lished Church.
Holy orders were he knew considered to be indelible, but
if some provision could be introduced which, without in-
fringing on the principle of the indelibility, would give
relief in this respect to persons who separated from the
church, it would be a most wise and tolerant addition to
the bill. (Hear, hear.) He thought that common jus-
tice and expediency also required that the expenses to
which bishops were put in prosecuting violations of
ecclesiastical discip!ine should be made good from tlse
common fund. He was aware that in one case a right
reverend friend (the Bishop of Winchester) had to pay
between 5,0001. and 6,0001. as costs, not one farthing of
which could he by possibility recover. The inevitable
tendency of this was to prevent prelates from per-
forming their duty in respect to these cases. With regard
to the Marriage Bill he was sorry it did not go farther
than it did, though as far as it went it was in the right
direction. To take away from the wife the right of ap-
pearing in court, ur being heard by counsel, whilst the
husband in seeking for a divorce might be ruining her
character, was an injustice as crying and cruel as any
that xneted within the *bole compass of the world. This
should be remedied ; but he hoped the right of action in
these cases of criminal conversation would be taken away
altogether. Seduction should be treated as a public
offence, and not as a private injury. He would sot
dwell on the state of the law as it affected the property
of married women, because he intended to introduce a
bill on that subject himself. (Hear.)
Lord WENSLEYDALE (who was very indistinctly
heard) said that the present was not the proper stage in
which one could make up hie mind in regard to the de-
tails of the bill. He was perfectly aware that some
clauses wool I require further consideration. With re-
gard to the Testamentary Jurisdiction Bill, it was a great
advantage to have only one court of probate instead of
the numerous petty jurisdictions which at present tx•
It was also a great improvement, and a chief
merit of the bill, that no new officers were to be created,
and that no large compensations were to be paid. These
•were substantial advantages conferred by the bill, and in
what respect it could be amended they would be better
able to say when they came to consider its details.
The Bishop of OXFORD said that the bill which his
noble and learned friend sketched in the conclusion of
his speech, was not on the same subject-matter as the
Clergy Discipline Ac'. The act dealt with persons who
had remained in the church, and it would he better not
to incorporate with that act provisions relating to those
who had left the church, but to deal with the subject in
a separate measure. He trusted that the other mea-
sures that had been sketched out would be brought for-
ward separate from the Church Discipline Bill. He hoped
the Lord Crianeellor would well consider the principle of
confining the decisions of the Privy Council to the legal
part of the question, without any reference to the thee.
logical. The latter part ought to be left to an ecclesi-
astical court constituted for the purpose. At present
the decisions of the Privy Council Committee had the
aspect of spiritual decisions. This ought not to be the
case ; and the addition of more assessors to the court
would only increase the evil, for it would be impossible
to avoid the imputation that certain bishops had been
selected in order to secure a certain decision.
Lord CAMPBELL said—ln the case of a question
whether a clergyman bad in his sermon contravened the
doctrines of the Thirty-nine Articles, the whole question
would have to be determined by the bishops, and the
decision of the Privy Council would be of no effect.
The Bishop of OXFORD explained. The doctrine of
the church was not to be found in one single article, but
to be gathered *from a comparison cf the whole. The
spiritual court wooll determine the particular doctrine ;
the Privy Council would be responsible for the decision.
The LORD CHANCELLOR d.d not think that there
would be any greater difficulty in baring three or four
bishops sitting as assessors than in having them sitting
in a court by themselves. They would be appealed to by
the Judicial Committee, as the judges were when sum-
moned to their lordships' house. It should be remem-
bered that the question to be decided was always a legal
question—whether a party had violated the law. He
thought the inconvenience would be much less from hav-
ing the bishops sitting as assessors ; but he would give
the suggestion his c nisideration. With reference to the
observations of Lord Brougham, as to the judge of the
proposed court, he would remark that the judge would
only have one function to pertorm—to say whet her be
was satisfied with the verdict, or whether there should
be a rehearing. He preferred one of the Vice-Chanctl-
lors as a judge, because he was always in London. A
common law judge might perform the duty just. as weal ;
but he was out of town for half the year.
Lord BROUGHAM—Why not a vacation judge I
The LORD CHANCELLOR said he had been a va-
cation judge, which his noble friend I ad not been, and
he knew that the time of a vacation judge was most
filly occupied—frequently from 10 o'clock till 6 or 7.
He could not admit that because the Vice-Cbanceil.trs
might not be familiar with nisi prius proceeding., there-
fore they were not fit for this office.
The bills were then read a first time.
IMPROVENIENT OF NEW ACTS.
The LORD CHANCELLOR moved to refer the
second report of the statute law commission to a select
committee, in order to consider the propositions in that
report for the adoption of means to improve the n•anner
and language of current legislation. The statute law
commission was one whose duty it was not merely to
consolidate the statute law, but to devise means for ob-
taining simplicity and uniformity in modern acts. In
their second report, presented last year, they expressed
the opinion that a great advantage would be derived from
a better supervision in the progress of bi ls through Par-
liament—(hear)—that, in truth, a great portion of the
evils of our statute book arose from the language of acts
being unnecessarily verbose, and that b!115 were passed
without due considerntion of the mode in which the exist-
ing law affected them, -endin which they affected the
existing law. That wq.s the CA6O3 when they were origi-
nally introduced ; the evil was still more aggravated by
alterations innumerable being made in them in their
progress through Parliament. The introducer of a bill
was often troubled with applications from a variety of
parties, and when be found that be could conciliate op-
position by adopting some new clauses, he was apt to do
so, and material alteration. not contemplated at the time
were made. He proposed that an officer should be ap•
pointed, with a sufficient staff—at least one or two per-
sons under him—whose duty it should he to attend to all
bill; that were referred to bins, and to report exactly what
the state of the existing law wag, and how the proposed
alterations would affect the existing law, With that ad-
vantage, members might more satisfactorily come to a
decision whether measures ought or ought not to pass. It
would be pre-etninently part of the duty of such officer,
after a bill had been through committee, to examine it,
and report irnmeciiately to the house what had been
done by the committee. The most discreditable role.
takes were made for want of some such supervision.
Only in the very last session of Parliament (and he took
shame to himself, for the bill came more less under his
own cognisance) a County Courts Act was passed, which
said that the judges should receive the salaries mentioned
in the schedule. They were enumerated in the schedule,
and sums set against their names ; but by some over-
sight, the salaries of two were omitted. The bill passed
the other house in that form ; and it came back to their
lordships with nil opposite the names of two of the
judges ; and as that house bad no power to remedy it,
questions of money belonging to the House of (Horn
moos, it passed io that form. That was a most ridicu
I tus oversight. He knew not bow the Treasury had
dealt with those persons, whether they had assumed that
they were to have the Ranee salaries as their colleagues
or not. (A laugh.) H« was ashamed to say that in the
same session an act had been passed for improving the
Scotch Bankruptcy Acts, in which certain proceedings
were to be carried on according to the feria in the sche-
dule set forth. But there was no schedule at all. (Hear )
Tne reference, no doubt, had been put in in committee.
In 1851 or 1852 an act was passed, which was to come
into force on the feet day of next Trinity Term. It
Passed in Trinity Term, so that it refeired to Trinity
Term in the ntx':, year ; and it wne necessary to pass
another act to set it right. Besides these blunders
there was a very inconvenient mode cif thrusting clauses
into bills with which they had no connection whatever.
In the 20,h Geo. 11. a h•ll was passed for the better co -
lection of the duties upon windows ; and in that act
was introduced a clause, "Be it enacted that, se herevt r
in any Act of Parliament England is mentioned, it
shall be deemed to include Wales and Berwick.
upon-T w eed." Not long ago, Lord St. Leonards
bad complained that a certain bill referred to Eug-
and only, this old enactment having escaped his atten-
tion. That was an anomaly that ought to be remedied.
At present there was a macs of legislation
passed every
year, of which a very small portion consisted of acts that
were to be a permanent guide of conduct, the rest con-
sisting of local and personal acts, acts relatinr, to certain
departmental of the government ; and all these formed
part of the statute-beok. According to an observation
made by Mr. Coulson, that applied to no less than lour-
fifths of the legisletien of the year, Therefore, it was
proposed that the bills shoal I be classed, se that those
which were permanent rules of conduct Rheum he
sepa-
rated from the rest. These again would be eubdivided,
according as they related to England, Ireland, the United
Kingdom, or the colonies ; on that our yearly legi4ation
might not be that confused mass which it was now tee
apt to be, With a view to introduce tt.is amendment be
proposed that both houses should refer bile to select
ctouimittees, empewerie r those ceminittees to c:inimuni
cafe with each other. The great e Eject would be to
have the sates i.fEcer attached to both hi,usee, to as to
reduce the expense,
prevent col:isioo bttween the
two houses irueted that this us., a m ve in tl.r
right direction ; and thetees
e it might not seem a very
imp trtarit ores-ore at fir.t, he
hoped that, in its immi
d.ats and ultimate operation, it %And lead to the very
best results.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.-(YESTERDAY.)

The SPEAKER took the chair at 4 o'cl)ck. There was
a very full attendance of memberi, owing, probably, to
the expected explanation between Mr. Disraeli and Lord
Palmerston on the " secret treaty."

NEW MEMBERS.
Sir R. BETHELL, her Majesty's Attorney-General,
took the oaths and his seat for Aylesbury ; and Mr.
LANGWORTIIY taok the oaths and his seat for Salford.
The following private bills were read a second time :
Bathgate, Airdrie, and Coatbridge Railway ; Birken-
head Docks (Construction) ; Birkenhead Docks (Ma-
nagement) ; Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire
Junction Railway ; Blackburn Railway ; Brigh-
ton, Hove, and Preston Constant Service Water;
Carlisle and Hawick Railway ; Chester Water;
Cornwall Railway ; Dumbarton Water, &c. ; East
gent Railway (Extension to Diver) ; E!y Tidal
Harbour and Railway ; Exeter and Exmouth Rail-
way ; Glasgow City and Suburban Gas ; Glasgow Gas ;
Great Southern and Western Extension Railway ;
Great Yarmouth Britannia Pier ; Inverness and Nairn
Railway ; Kidsgrove Market ; Lancaster and Carlisle,
and Ingleton Railway ; Leslie Railway ; Lewes and
Uckfield Railway ; London and South Western
Railway Acts Amendment ; Mersey Conservancy
and Docks ; New River Company ; Newry, War-
renpoint, and Rostrevor Railway ; North Eas-
tern Railway (Capital) ; Oldham, Ashton-under-
Lytle, and Guide Bridge Junction Railways ; Pee-
bles Railway; Portsmouth Water; Price's Patent Candle
Company ; South Devon Railway ; South Durham and
Lancashire Union Railway ; Stratford-up in-Avon Gas;
Sunderland Gis ; Taff Vale Railway ; Twee 1 River
Fisheries ; Victoria (London) Dicks ; Watchet Har-
bour; Watchet Harbour Trust ; Waterford and Tramore
Railway; Wearmouth Ferries, and Approaches;
West Somerset Mineral Rail way ; Whitehav en, Cleator,
and Egremont Railway ; Whitehaven and Furness Junc-
tion Railway.
INCOME TAX.

Numerous petitions were again presented against the
present assesdment of the property and income tax.
On the motion of Mr. MOFFATT the following re-
turn was granted, showing the number of persons
charged to the income tax for. the years ended the sth
day of April, 1855 and 1856, under Schedule (D) ; dis-
tinguishing the number charged in each of the following
viz.—under 1001. a-y!ar ; 1001. and under 1501.
a-year ; 150/. a-year and und-r 2001. ; 2001. and under
8001 ; 3001. and under 400/. ; 400/. and under 5007. ;
5001. and under 600/. ; 600/. and under 700/. ; 700/ and
under 8001. ; 800/. and under 9001 ; 900/. and
under 1,000/. ; 1,0001. and under 2,000/. ; 2,0001. and
under 3.000/. ; 3,000/. and under 4,000/. ; 4,000/. and
under 5,000/. ; 5,000/. and under 10,0007. ; 10,0001.
and under 50,0001. ; 50,000/. and upwards ; and the
amounts of t,-x received from each class : Similar re-
turn, under Schedule (E), to 5,000/. a-year and upwards :
return showing the net amount of property and income-
tax fur the same years, claved under the several eche-
dales (in con inuation of Parliamentary Paper, No. ,
of session 1856). And similar return for Ireland.

Lord C&MPBELL had gnat pleapure in giving
support to the propo-ed measure. The state of the bilis
now passed was most discreditable ; and a great portion
of his time and that of other judges was spent in trying
to reconcile their contradict ions. Re anticipated the
greatest benefit from the proposal of the Lord Chancel-
lor being Carried into effect. Formerly he found that
bills were, frequently committed to the law officers of the
Crown, the judges, and other persons not members of
that house, in order to report upon their legal effect.