The Sun.
London, England, 1861-02-26 00:00:00

CHINA.

Lord J. RUSSELL laid on the table additional corres-
pondence in reference to China.
NEW ZEALAND.

Lord A. CHURCHILL asked the Under Secretary of
State for the Colonies, whether he had received official in-
timation of the passing, by the General Assembly of
New Zealand, of a - bill for constituting a council
to advise the Governor on . all questions con-
nected with the management of the natives ;
and whether her Majesty's Government have as yet come
to any determination in reference to the allowance or disal-
lowance of such bill?

Mr. C. FORTESCUR said that the subject was under
the anxious consideration of his noble friend the Duke of
Newcastle, but it was thought advisable that a communi-
cation should be made direct from Government to the Go-
vernor of Now Zealand, instead of reaching him through
any unofficial medium.

other members of the Government by surprise, as they were
quite unprepared fur the statements which that report ton-
tained. He deemed it his duty to make some qtiities on
the subject in the City, but it did not t ppear that
there was any reason against the ap, ointment of
Mr. Laing. Ile felt that it would be h , duty to in-
quire more particularly into this matt . From the
communication which he had with he chairman
of the company in question, it appeared that the charges
in the report were a mere ex parto statement, and thei efore,
in justice to the gentleman whose character was affected, it
would be only fair to suspend opinion on the charges made
against him until further inquiry was instituted.
THE NAVY ESTIMATES.

In reply to Mr. BAILLIE,
Sir G. C. LEWIS said that the navy estimates would be
proceeded with on Tuesday next.
BANKRUPTCY AND INSOLVENCY BILL.
The house then went into committee on this bill.
Clause 118 was agreed to.
Clause 119,
Mr. MURRAY and another hon. member proposed
amendments, making number as well as amount of creditors
tell in decisions in bankruptcy.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL thought that upon the
whole it was better the creditors who had the largest
amount of interest should exercise the greatest influence in
tho election of assignees.
The clause, as amended, was agreed to.
Sir F. KELLY wished to know when it would be conve-
nient for the right hon. gentleman the Attorney-General to
take the sense of the house with respect to the question of
remuneration to the county court judges?
On clause 120, which gave creditors the option of taking
no further proceedings in bankruptcy,
Mr. HADFIELD moved the addition of the following
words to the end of the clause :—" And the bankrupt shall
be entitled to an order of discharge."
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said that great inconve-
nience would arise from the adoption of the words proposed
by the hon. gentleman in their simple form, because if a
bankrupt were to be entitled to his dischargebefore, perhaps,
he had passed any examination or made a full discovery of
his estate, he would be enabled to go awayand leave his cre-
ditors without the necessary information. He would not
object to the introduction of the words "the bankrupt
loving made a full discovery of his estate may be at liberty
to apply for an order of discharge."
Mr. HADFIELD withdrew his amendment, and that of
the Attorney-General having been adopted,
The clause as amended was agreed to, as were also clauses
121 and 122.
On clause 123, which gave to the majority of creditors
who had proved debts power to choose one or more creditors
as assignee, to be called the creditors' assignee,
Mr. MURRAY said that he thought the creditors ought
not to be compelled to select an assignee from their own
body. He should therefore move the emission of the words
"one or more creditors who has or have proved to be the
assignee or assignees," and thus leave the law as it now stood.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL adopted the suggestion
of the hon. member.
The clause as amended was agreed to.
On clause 124, which stated that the powers and duties
of the official assignee should cease and determine on all the
estate, both real and personal, of the bankrupt upon the
appoiitment of the creditors' assignee,
Mr. MOFFATT moved to insect, after the word "assig-
nee," the words, "as creditors' assignee."
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said he would meet the
objection of the hon. gentleman to the clause in its present
form by consenting to omit the words, "the power and
duties of the official assignee shall cease and determine."
Mr. MOFFATT would be willing to adopt the sugges-
tion of the right hon. gentleman.
Mr. VANCE said that manymercantile men in the north
of England questioned the wisdom of the arrangement pro-
posed by this clause. They would prefer to have an option
whether the estate should be wound up by the official assig-
nee or by the creditors' assignee. It would be a pity to de-
prive the creditors of the power of deciding whether they
might not prefer the services of the official assignee to those
of the trades' assignee. He must also protest against the
haste with which the present measure had been hurried on.
Mr. MALINS said that he had by that morning's post re -
ceived no less than 12 or 14 letters from chambers of com-
merce and gentlemen throughout the country on the sub-
ject of this bill, and, he believed, containing suggestions
for its amendment. He had literally not yet had time to
look into one of them, but it so happened that the bill had
been pushed on with such rapidity that he, and many
others, laboured under great disadvantages in discussing
its provisions. He believed, however, there was a very
general opinion that the management of the bankrupt's
estate ought to be given to the official assignee instead of
the trades' assignee.
Mr. MOFFATT believed that the bill was received with
so much favour by the public at large from carrying out the
principle of giving creditors the entire management of the
property immediately the insolvency was declared. The mer-
cantile community were not disposed to go back to the old
bankrupt laws and the abuses to which they gave rise. He
trusted the Attorney- General would adhere to the clause,
which was one of the best features of the bill.
After a few words from Mt. liAl/11ZIAJ,
Mr. GLYN was sorry to see any objection raised to the
clause. With regard to cases of malversation, so many por-
tions of the bill protected the public against them that no
distrust need be entertained. The mercantile community,
while giving due praise to official assignees, were very de-
sirous that in the management of estates a little more should
bo left to the control of the trade assignees than was the
case at present. What they complained of was that after a
man was made a bankrupt, and the official assignee ap-
pointed, the trade assignees were very little consulted, and
the management of the estate passed away from them
almost entirely.
The clause, as amended by the Attorney-General, was
then agreed to.
Clauses 125, 126, 127, and 128 were also agreed to.
Upon clause 129, "security by creditors' assignee,"
Mr. MURRAY proposed the insertion of words to pro-
vide that a " majority in value of the creditors," instead of
" the creditors," should at a meeting for the choice of cre-
ditors' assignee determine whether any security should be
given by such assignee.
After a short discussion, the amendment with some ver-
bal alterations was agreed to.
Mr. MOFFATT said that the bill would not work if the
conditions imposed on trade assignees by this clause and
clause 185 remained. It was now difficult without such
penal restrictions to get persons to act as trade assignees.
Their object, he thought, was to obtain men of standing and
of high credit and reputation, but such men would never
accept the office with the conditions proposed. This clause
required that the trade assignee should give security for the
amount of the debts he collected, but in the commercial
world it would be considered a great offence to ask any one
to give security where he voluntarily took an office fur the
benefit of others as well as himself. He proposed to strike
out the words of the clause which required security to be
given.