The Sun.
London, England, 1844-02-07 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY_KyENING,
_FEBRUARY, 7, 1844.

a malicious prosecutor.—(Cheers.) Could they only hope tc ob-
tain a conviction by having a jury of Tories, Anti Repcalers,and
'Protestant=. 'lt 'Was -InjuttitM to the-jurymen themselves. If
they returned a verdict of guilty; the verdict would lose all moral
effect; if they-returned a verdict of not guilty, they would be at-
tacked by their own party.-(Cheers) He was not surprised at
the conduct of the Government.' It was what he had expected from
'them. He had never entertained thorre expectations of fair-dealing
from the Tories; which others had.—(Cheers.) They were un.
changrd and unchangeable, and there was no hope of justice from
them for the Catholics of Ireland.—(Cheers.) When Emancipa. •
. ti.in passed, the gratitude of the Catholics was unlimited ; but the
moment they proclaimed that Protestant ascendancy was to be the
basis of the Government, that moment of course they lost the con-
fidence of the Catholics, and justly lost 11.--(Cheers.) The dccla.
ration made in Parliament by one of her Majesty's Ministers, that
eonciliation had gone to its utmost limits; was not likely to conci-
liate the Catholics' of Ireland. Her Majesty 'declared in her answer
to the address of the Dublin Corporation, that the just demands of
her people would ' be listened to. • Yes, they' ' knew to
whom they • were, and ought ' to be grateful—to him
who struggled for them when it was thought Emanci-•
pation was unattainable.—(Lciud cheers.) Yes, they ought
to be grateful to the Catholics of Ireland, and they ought to be
grateful, above all, to Daniel O'Connell.—(Lond cheers and waving
of hats.) The Chairman then read an extract from the Dublin
Review, in 'answer to a publication which called him a gross and
dun*, deceiver :
" For forty years has this ' gross, clumsy, open, impudent de-
ceiver ' been-living among them, mingling in their festivities, pre-
siding at their assemblies, kneeling at their altars; instructing,
advising, guiding, impelling, restraining; standing upon an emi-
nence, with -the scorching gaze of a mighty empire fixed for ever
upon him ; every word and every gesture, every action and
every omission recorded and canvassed, in the high courts of law,
in the high court of Parliament, in the high court of public opinion,
in the high court of the press, the most powerful press in the world,
by eloquent men, by learned men, by acute men; by the lower
orders of society, by the middle orders, by the upper orders; by
artisans, by merchants, by lawyers, by parsons, by proud barons, by
mighty kings; in all these, by all these, has this being been accused
and tried. For forty years has this trial been going on, and the first
generation of accusers,• and witnesses, and judges has passed away,
and left room for another and another ; and, after all this, the •
conviction is yet to come. His bitterest enemies have borne testi- :

Admiralty, " The General ate un Navigation Comrany n.
Tonkin.

The Queen's Advocate and Mr. Platt, Queen's Cottnsel,,
were heard for the respondent.. Judgment:was deferred. ~
The Solicitor-General eras heard • (cx parte), " Thomas Le
Breton c. Jamos.Ennis," from Jersey.
His Royal ,Highness the Duke of Cambridge arrived
town yesterday/fremhisl-esidence at Kew. • _

The Secretary at War transacted business yesterday at the:
Home-office.
Sir James Graham and other Cabinet Ministers had inter-7
•views with Sir•E. Peel.yesterday. • • •
Dispatches were received•yeaterday at. the Colonial-office;
from the Governor of the Cape of. Good Hobe. • ,
Dispatches were sent of last evening from the Colonial.
office, for the Governorof Hong-Kong.

mony iu his favour; and they who would grind him as uheat, or
burn him In a furnace, have admitted and maintained that he is a

sincere man, an honest man, and all—all proclaim that he is "a great
man. They who know him best, whose interests are chiefly
Identified with' his corruptible virtue, one of the purest
hierarchies in the world one of the most labori.
ous, virtuous, simple.minded priesthoods in the world,
and seven millions of the Irish people, have placed in his hands,
without a shadow of misgiving, their dearest earthly hopes. Nor
have they done so precipitately, blindly. They have tried him long,
they have trusted him long, and he has never once betrayed them,
and therefore they trust him again. He has the blessing of the
Church, he has the prayers of the people, he has the confidence of
both. Profane history has no example of this kind."
He knew not the individual who composed this passage, but he

envied him hireloquence, and the justness of his praise, When
there was a hint to endow the Catholic clergy, the Catholic hier-
archy repudiated the offer. He, for one, agreed • with them in that
refusal—(Hear, hear;—and he would use all his exertions'in Parlia.

ment to prevent such an endowment, if it was attempted. This was a
meeting of sympathy with the Irish Catholics, and he was glad that
their English brethren came forward in such at manner. For him-
self, he hoped hewould be always found at hirpost.—(Cheers.)
Lord STourtron waircalled on to, propose the first resolution.
He said he • was almost a jubilarlan in the service of his
Roman' Catholicbrethren.—(Cheers.) He saw thuse who had assisted
them one by one decay, but he, though old, was a living witness
to refute the calumny that Catholics were not to be bound by their
oaths.—(Cheers.) His late excellent friend the Duke of Norfolk
would not pass the rail by which he might enter Parliament, and
he cast hie staff upon the ground rather than enter
that place, beeause he would not take a certain oath,
He would 'not enter it himself, because there was an oath upon
it--(Cheers.) They would not endure to have' their privileges
abridged in the House of Parliament, because they were
Catholics. If ' they could net vote upon every measure that

came before them, he would consider it a •dishonour
'and not an honour, to be a Member of the House of Peers.
'Such was the opinion of thd first Peer of the realm, the late Duke
of Norfolk. If he abstained from voting on questions relating'to
the Established Church, he did so from delicacy, but riot in cconse-
quence of any oath he'had taken. He would never submit to be
inferior to any other member of the' House •of Peers. He
would, as' Lord Grey said, stand by his order. ' The
Chairman, in his able and clear remarks, had anticipated all that he
intended to say. He would now proceed to state with pain the
consequences of the doctrine that Catholic,' were not to be believed
on their oaths. •If it were true that the Catholics were not bound

by an oath, then were the foundations of their holy religion de-
stroyed. It would sap their belief in Christianity itself. Stich
an opinion might indeed proceed from the temple of reason, but
not from the temple of Christianity. Hi would say, as Mr. Shaw

said, with regard to the Bible—Trust not our oaths, or, " to 'your
tents, 0 Israel."—(Cheers.) The Catholic religion was spread over
the world, and if it were - true that Catholics were not to be-
lieved on their oaths, then they were perjurers over the whole
world. ' Let Catholics and Protestants quarrel with each other on
the point, but 'let them not weaken the foundations of their com-

mon religion; and their common belief in the sacred volume. Let
them call on her Majesty to protect not their,' but her and their

common Christianity.

The Noble- Lord • concluded amid

loud cheers, and proposed the resolution, which wag read by the
Secretary.

The SEckETASY read the resolutie n, which was as follows:
" That the abolition of civil distjnctions on act.oUnt of religion,
was the avowed object of.thor:Who introduced and understood the
principle of the A:t for the Emancipation of the Roman Catholics."
The Reverend Mr. HAnniNcrrore then 'addressed the meeting.
lie paid' a• high compliment to the past and present: exer-
tions of Lord - Stourton, and expressed' his satisfaction at
seeing so many assembled on the present occasion. He alluded to
the hopes that were entertained at the time the Emancipation
Act was passed ; the gates of the Lords 'and Commons were pre-
viously Closed, but one man with a strong .arm came to
them and broke 'open the portal-that man was Daniel O'Con

nell !—(lmmettse- cheering, the whole assembly. rising en masse.)
They Were now open, but stlll there was a barrier; they might be
Privy Councillors; or Members of the House of Commons, but they

could not be Jurors. He noticed the conduct of the Irish Attor.

ney-Geheral in severe terms; he seemed to have undertaken to
teach the young counsel of the Irish bar, " hoiv to shoot."—
(Gaughter.)--A Catholic Juryman would have been justified

in asking if • the Attorney-Gineral's• pistol was registered.
—Laughter.)--For Trial by Jury, he had done 'his best to
substitute the trial by battle.—(Hear, hear.) He concluded by
saying, that fta juryman was not to be believed on his oath, neither
was a witness ;it was their duty to come forward unanimously to
repel the accusation. He seconded the resolution. ' ,

The radiation was put from the chair and carried.
After several other rcsolutions were put and .C'rried, the meet.
ins separated:.'?

COMPLETION OF THE - SOUTH-
EASTERN RAILWAY-TO D:OVER:

, MYER, EEL,. 6.—A communication having been received here
last week, that the,Directors would open, this railway to its ter-
minus at Dovcr this day, .agreeably to resolutions come to in
Common-ball assembled, the inhabitants, with the Mayor and cor.
poration at, their,head, got up a grand demonstration in celebration
of the event; and, in order to ci.rnept the bonds of friendship be.
tween England, France, and. Belgium, invitations were sent to the
authorities of. Ostend, Calais, and Boulogne,‘ to join Ahem in the
festivities. Invitations were also sent to the authorities. and other
inhabitants of Deal, Folkestone, and the other neighbouring towns,
and many of our neighbours on either side of the Channel were in
attendance.

Yesterday afternoon the Deputy Mayor of Calais. and about a
dozen of the leadingmen of that- place, together with the excellent
band of the National Guard of Calais,„3l in, number, dressed in
military uniform, arrived by her Majesty's packet the Beaver ; and
this morning parties of visitors from east, west, north, and south,
flocked into our ancient town. The fine band of the Ist or King's
Dragoon Guards, stationed at Canterbury, were also .present to
give eclat to the scene.

At 2 .o'clock, the inhabitants and visitors began to., assemble at
the .rallying„ point—the; New. Bridge—to form themselves, in the
order of- processinn ; and at 3, they moved off to the railway ter..
minus,, the bands of. music playing favourite.airs. , _The .procession
reached the terminus about half.past 3 o'clock, when the immense
multitude, by this time about 6,000 strong, were, arranged on.each
side of the..rails at the temporary station, French and English
mingling together in the utmost friendship, while the music. struck
up merrily to beguile the half- hour.
According to arrangement, exactly .at four o'clock the shrill
whistle of the engine was heard, .and .on ,the instant the Sbak-
speare" engine and ,four carriages, with the Chairman ,and Direc.
tors, came home to the. terminua in gallant style,, amid the cheers
of the multitude, and .under a royalsalute from Archdiff Fort.
On leaving. the carriages the Directors mere metby the authori-
ties, when the Mayor of
.Dover presented Mr. Baxendale, the
Chairman of the Company, with an.approptiate, address of tongratu,
lation. , . , ,

Mr. BAXENDALE having returned thanks, the -procession, after
the respective guests had been added to, it, was- re-formed, and
moved off toithe theatre, where a banquet was prepared for the

At five o'clock_about 300 gentlemen sat. down to a sumptuous
dinner at the theatre, which had been completely stripped of its
scenery, machinery, &c,, to make room for, the banquet, and which
was neatly fitted up for ihe purpose. The pit was floored over, the
lower boxes were converted into tables, and galleries, were raised on
either side of the stage containing dining.tables. The one-shilling
gallery was appropriated to the ladies, and it was completely
crammed, while the side slips were occupied by the respective
bands. At the back of the stage sat the Chairman (the Mayor of
Dover).

The Directors and other officers of the Company, and other.-dis-
tinguished guests, sat near the Chairman. Among those present
we noticed Messrs. John Baxendale, W. P. Richards, E. Cardwell,
L. Cubitt, R. Davis, G. Mlkey, General Hodgson, F. Mills, H.
L. Swink, E. Sturt, Captain Tyndale, W. Cubitt, P. W. Barlowe,
J. P. Fcarou, J. Whitehead, B. Cubitt, J. Cubitt, S. M. Latham,
H. Latham, J. B. Knocker, G. W. Ledger, J. Marsh, E. Knocker,
Rev. J. Prickle, M. Rennett, and Wilcox ; a number of the
officers of the Ist Dragoons, Colonel R Jones Major Eyre, Colonel
King, Captain Egerton, Captain Charlewood, Lieutenant Merritt,
M. Le Gros Divot, Mayor of Calais, and the following authorities
of the same place :—M. Le Maine, M. Quillecq, M. 11. Dupont,
President of the Chamber of Commerce; M. Gullibert, Comman-
dant of the National Guard; M. Nehon, principal engineer; M.
Vogue, member of the Chamber of Commerce ; M. De Rheims,
officer of the National Guard; N, Dessin, member of the Chamber
of Commerce M. Bauchol, civil engineer; M. Spiers, member of
the Agricultural Society, &c. M. Adam, the Mayor of Boulogne,
was unavoidably absent through severe illness, but the deputy mayor
and the rest of the authorities of that place were present.
On the removal of the cloth, the CHAIRMAN gave " The
Queen," " the Queen-Dowager," " Prince Albert and the Royal
Family," " King Louis Philippe," " the Arcbb'shop of Canter-
bury," all of which toasts were enthusiastically responded to.
Mr. E. R. RICE, M.P., for' Plover, gave the toast of the even.
ing—namely, " the Chairman and Directors of the South-
Eastern Railway Company," introducing the same by a suitable
preface. This toast was received with all the honours, it N 5 as pos.
sible to bestow by the company.
Mr. BAZENDALE returned thanks in a most businesslike man-
ner, and went into the history of the railway from its commence.
ment to its terminus' that day at Dover ; he adverted to the
difficulties with which the Directors and Engineers had had to
contend ; he had, however, always considered Dover the high Way
to continental nations, and he bad never 'despaired.
Mr. WlLeox gave " Mr. Cubitt, the engineer-in-chief."
Mr. CUBITT returned thanks.
Mr. LEDGER---" The Secretary and other officers of the South
Eastern Railway Company. "

. -
Mr. H. LATHAM gave !` The Mayor and authorities of the foreign
ports who had honoured them by their preseace."

The " licalths of the RepresentEitives of Dover," " The Lord
Warden of the Cinque Ports," and other toasts, ftillowed, and the
evening passed off most enthusiastically. •
The festivities were kept up till a late heur, assisted by the vocal
talents of Mr. Moody, and the members of the choir from. Can-
terbury.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMEN_',e;

treaty; yet • there had been since a; supprementary
treaty, in which he believed. it was provided• for. Sir
henry Pottinger had done- all his work'well';• bitt he
was
.not a diplomatist, . and • he had been in some
respects' remiss and unsystematic. He had written
to
_him (Lori Aberdeen) to say that the Supplementary
treaty had been Signed ; but he had not sent' it.; or . a
eoliy of it. 'But he could isot doubt that it included some
provision on the subject, because Sir Henry Pot-
Unger had been before aware . of' the' intention of the
Goverment. In a communication dated. the'NOveniber 4,
he. (Lord A.) said that all. the. Government. wished for
wa; -.a fair and unobstructed trade, and that we
desired. no. advantages which should. not he en-
jpyed by the subjects of other Governments.—(Hear.)
With that knowledge in his possession at so • early a
. period; it' was exceedingly probable that there might be
an article to that effect in the supplementary treaty.
As soon as that Supplementary treaty arrived, it would
be laid before the house, and he trusted that it would
.be found to be as satisfactory to their Lordships and the
public as the. original treaty had been.—(Hear, hear.)
CORN -LAWS.
•
Lord REDESDALE presented' twenty-nine petitions
from different .places in Lincolnshire, .praying their
Lordships to continue to. the agricultural interest that
small amount of protection which they yet possessed.
The Duke of ROXBURGII said that, although no
allusiOn had been made to the corn-laws in the Speech
from the throne, yet the Noble Mover of the address had
alluded to them in the course of his speed], and. on that
same evening an announcement had • been made in the
other House of Parliament that it was'not. the intention
of her Majesty's Government to make any alteration in
the corn-laws.—(Hear, hear.) He rose for the purpose
of expressing the gratification which he had felt on hear-
ing that announcement. It would tend more than any-
thing else to restore stability to that agricultural interest
which was now, so sorely depressed, and would enable it
to resist those attacks which were so unjustly and' so
perseveringly levelled against it—it would give fresh
courage to those who had recently so nobly stood up in
defence of their rights. He felt it to be' his duty to
take this, •the earliest opportunity, of expressing the
satisfaction with which he hailed the announcement-o.
the Government on the subject of the corn-laws.
, BANK CHARTER.

HOUSE OF LORDS, Feb. 6,
The Loan CHANCELLOR took his seat upon the-Wool-
sack at. Five o'Clock. . . .. .
• LAWS RELATING TO GAMBLING:
The. Duke of-RICHMOND moved that the -esidenio
taken before the Select Committee appointed to consider
the-laws relating to'gambling, should be presented froM
'time to time for the use of the House, but that it should
not be delivered until further orders.---Agreed to.
- -PROPERTY OF FELONS..
The Duke of RICHMOND -then proceeded to call
the attention. of- hiS Noble Friend at the head of the
Council-office to a circular, dated the 2d of- September,
1843, which 'was • signed by the 'Assistant-Secre-
tary :to the- Treasury, : and which - had been sent
_to the different clerks of the peace of the United King-
dom. He had no vigil to throw any impediments in the
way of the Government, or to impute blame to any one ;
but he thought it much. better that all communications
from the Government to the magistrates, especially on
matters relating to the administration ofjustieettii regarded
criminals should be made through the medium of the -Secre•-•
tary of State for the HOme Department. Had such a course
been adopted in the present instance, the irregularity of
which he had now to cotnplain would not,,in all pro-
bability, have occurred. Their Lordships were aware
tttohh
eagtce ttrhoaesw property
totapenhedr
as tnyotohdfeoayul lbc
cto out Uhl
dve i
fcTrtoermde a
tfsehularotyn
ssiolw,ue•rracese
af oslrt faenitxvido
should,utos
however; be recollected that the country. gentlemen of
England had to pay. half the expenses of these prosecu-
tions out of the county-rate, and to maintain the criminals
in gaol ; and he thought that, at all events, the county
should be reimbursed the expenses which they had in-
curred; from the forfeited property of criminals before
the Crown seized it, leaving the residue, after the pay-
ment of those expenses, to the Crown. However, he
admitted that by law the Crown was entitled to all the
property of convicted
_felons. He was well aware that
this letter was only a letter or advice, but magistrates
would scarcely be inclined to think that the Lords of the
Treasury would offer them bad advice. The paragraph in
this letter recommended that the justices should make
a return of all moneys taken from prisoners by the go-
vernor of the gaol. To that he did not object; The go-
vernor of every prison was bound to take an inventory- of
all property found on the prisoners; and he thought there
could be no objection to that inventory being transmitted
to the Treasury • but there was,another direction in the
letter to which he did object, and that was, that in cases
in which there was reason to suppose that the prisoner
was possessed of property other than that found on his
person, the magistrates were required to cause inquiry to
be made at -the residence of such prisoner, pr, in any
other place frequented by him, in- order to :ascertain
particulars as to the value of such property, which was
to be returned to the clerk of the peace, , and included in
his return to the Treasury. He (the Duke of Richmond)
contended that such a requisition was illegal; a constable
entering a place to make such inquiry would be liable-
to an action for trespass. How was he to know
to whom the property belonged ? He had no right
to look over partnership accounts ; and if .such
inquiries were made, he (the Duke of Rich-
mond), as a visiting magistrate; should feel it his duty
to inform every prisoner that, up to the moment of his
conviction, he had a perfect right to assign over his pro-
perty, or dispose of it in any way he might think proper.
He hoped the GoVernment would withdraw this letter,
or, at all events, amend it. The Noble Duke concluded
by moving for the production of the letter.
Lord WHAIINCLIFFE had no objection to the pro-
duction of the letter. The Noble Duke had correctly
stated, that, by, the common law of the land, the goods of
convicted prisoners were forfeited to the Crown,- and,
Until a few years ago, a regular return of such goods was
made. Some very strong instances have arisen in which
the property of prisoners had fallen into other "persons'
hands, and had been retained by those perions7 One
was at Brighton, when forty sovereigns were taken
from a prisoner, and not -given up. A still stronger
case had occurred in Westmoreland, when. no less a
sum than 2,0001. wai.kept back, and was only .recovered
after the lapse of a considerable time. He agreed with.
his Noble. Friend, that in particular cases: the recom-
mendations contained in the clause of the letter. could
not be acted upon. The object -of this recommendation
Was, that on every -apprehension the officer • should
be 'compelled to mark on the back of the
commitment the amount of money found upon the
prisoner. If this recommendation - were adopted,
he thought it would be attended • with good
results, and he thought it would be 'well' for the magis-
trates to attend to the suggestion. It was also recom-
mended that,- when the constable took the prisoner into
custody, he should take an account of the property pos-
sessed by the prisoner ; but by this it was by no -means
-intended that he should inquire into the -particulars of
undivided -profits of partners. -. • • • • •
'Lord-BROUGHAM was very glad this -subject had
been brought under the consideration of their Lordships.
By the clause of the letter, to which more .particnlar re-
ference had been. made, it. was recommended that the
constable should be empowered to inquire. into the
amount of property. belonging, or supposed to .belong,
to a prisoner. ,It was impossible. to defend the clause,
inasmuch as it empowered an officer toeommit trespass.
Lord CAMPBELL regretted that this letter -had not
been subinitted to his Noble and 'Learned Friend- the
Lord Chancellor, or to the Attorney-General, before it
was issued. - He thought it was the duty of the Lords of
the Treastiry to take the highest legal opinion as to its
validity. : He was of opinion that the sooner the law *as
revised the better..

-The. Duke of RICHMOND would suggest that it
would be desirable to hare a letter written to other
counties not to act on that law, which the Noble Lord

thought had been better onlitted." , Ile would withdraw.
the'tnotion, but he shouhl like to have amintimation on
the part of the - Government_ that .care should be .taken
to have other counties inforined of! the opiniOns which.
the governmententertaine.

Lord MONTEAGLE disclaimed all party motives in
bringing forward the subject of which he had given
notice. He was aware of the. great difficulty in treating
of banking affairs, and while the difficult task of treating
of those affairs had devolved upon him in the other House
of Parliament, he had received from the members of the
present Government such cordial assistance, that he
should be guilty of ingratitude were he to discuss this
subject with any degree of hasty feeling. At the time
his Noble Friend Earl Spencer had brotight forward the
Bank Charter Renewal Act he had also introduced
another Bill: on the subject of banking, which had un-
fortunately not passed into a law. Since that time
no very important measure on the subject
had been submitted to Parliament. He agreed that
premature discussion was unadvisable, but he also
thought that every possible information 'should be com-
municated to their Lordships. Their 'Lordships were
already in possession•of a `asst deal of inforMation on
the subject. He by no means recommended the ap-
pointment of a Select Committee to consider the subject,
but if it were the attention of the Government it cer-

tainly was advisable that the Committee should be 4-
pointed as speedily as possible. The first question he
had to ask was, whether it was the intention of her
Majesty's Government to institute any inquiry of that
description? The next was, in the event of an inquiry
of that description being instituted, whether it was the
intention of her Majesty's Government to lay before
Parliament any documents showing what negotiations
or what communications they had had on the subject
with the Bank of England? He would not ask that
question without a word of explanation. He thought
nothing could go further towards impeding the settle-
ment of this question than the prodnction of any papers
which had only incidentally helped the Government to
arrive at this conclusion. On the other hand, he
thought any papers distinctly explanatory of the course
intended to be taken by the Government ought, as far as
consistent with the public, service, to be laid before-Parlia-
ment. An,impression had obtained ground that it wasin-
tended to create a monopoly in banking. This was a most
erroneous impression, as nothing of the sort could -be
intended. He thOught the sooner the terms of the, pro-
position agreed-to by the Government and the Bank of
England were made public, the more likely was this
question soon, to be settled. He did not wish to draw
from the Noble Duke what that proposition was, but he
hoped. the Noble Duke would, as soon as convenient,
pit the public in possession of it. The third question
he'had to put was, whether the alteration of the law
contemplated on the subject of banking would apply to
Ireland as well as England?

The Duke of WELLINGTON was willing
.to give
the Noble Lord all the information in his power. The
first question was, whether it was the, intention of the
Government to appoint a Committee on banking. He
thought there was no need for the appointment of such
a Committee, 11,S the House was already in . pos-
session of sufficient • inforMation "on the sub-
ject. Regarding the second question, he was not
aware that there was at present any document which
it vi ould be desirable to lay before the House, but the
House might rely upon it that if there were any docu-
ments which it wa,s• requisite to lay before Parliament
they would be spedily laid before .their Lordships.
Regarding, the renewal of the charter of the Bank of
Ireland the Noble Lord must be aware that it depended
upon entirely different circumstances from the renewal
of the charter of, the Bank of England.—(f Hear, hear"
from Lord Monteagle.) It was intended that when the
charter of the Bank of Ireland was renewed it should be
renewed on the same principle as the Bank of England.
./i'return of the assets and liabilities of the. Bank ofl
Edgitlnd, as 'published in the London Gazette in •the years'
1842 And 1843, was then moved for. - •
• Lord MONTEAGLE wished to know if --it ' were the
intention of the Government to institute any inquiry re-
garding.the Irish poor-laws during the, present session?
The Duke of WELLINGTON said it was the in-
tention of the ,Goivrinnent to institute such an inquiry,
•but not until the Irish representatives had returned.
The Marquis of NORMANBY presented a petition'
from .the Catholics of Belfait, comylaining. that .Roman.
Catholics were rejected frotn the 'Jury appointed at the.
State trials..; He • would not, however, for obvious
reasons, make•any observations on the subject. •
The douse then adjourned. • •

After a few words . from I:.ord WHARNCLIFFE and the,
Duke of RICHMOND, -we understood, the motion>.was
withdrawn.. • • 4. ,
THE AFFAIRS, OF SPAIN

-The Earl-of-CLARENDON' gave notice that he
would, on Friday rie;et, ask some questions of the‘.NOble
Lord, the Secretary •for Fiireien Affairs, respecting the
events .which had recently • taken place in Spain, and
their, present relationS with that country-. •
• ,
. ~ • CHINESE,; TREATY.
• .f The Earl of,bLARENDON . said he wished to put
a question to the -Noble Lord, the:Secretary •for .Foreign
Affairs, respecting-,one or two points, an explanation
upon which, he thought -necessary to 'render that im-
portant document' coMplete: they' were about to
enter on a new field of commerce, which it was mo-gt,
'"would -depend upon Strict-adherence to th'e
terms' of the treaty on their part--it Was. essential
.that no misunderstanding shoji.
Government would ex ld exist,:and the Chinese
pect a :rigid, .ailherence te.all the
engagement& which they entered into. , Their Lordships
.had heard with great 'satisfaction in the speech from the
•throne,- that the: same, favour .would be • afforded- to the
commerce Of other 'nations: with China which their,,own
had ; but there Was nothing in tha treaty to indicate to
foreign countries that this • *LIS the case. He sup-
posed that this was an 'cireissiOn; but it was' of
iniportinee that no doubt should rest on a.
transaction 'which reflected' so
,much honour en this
country, and which first gstahlislied the principle of free
competition in this new market, ,the: benefits of which
would probably . he extended to other countries. by the
Chinese. . This. wisdom and .•liberality was•owing to the
instructions-of, her. Majesty's Government to the very
enlightened, individual -• 11'1"-Ivhoni !those- negotiations
Were• carried on. Wit • regard W the-- regula-
tions appended ' the • • treaty,:' they appeared
to lia,Ve been framed mith a very careful regard to the
CUstoinS of Chine, and With a view to prevent fraud on the
'part of the'Cliiesse, and quarrels on their part, by Which
their,intereoutse:;might hereafter be interrupted.. „ But
these., regulations moat . he considered, he appror
hended, . a -part of • -the., treaty,,. equally . binding.
and,. of the, same- force with.. the treaty, becaus,
in the • second article... 'they :were • adverted to
and- formed.an integral part. Of-it, but it was desirable
that no misunderstanding shorild exist in it matter of so
much importance. Ik' wished, to -know whether her
Majesty's representatives in China hitcl authority, to
enforce those
,regulatiens as a portion of the.. treaty
between the two countries,. Some, of those regulations
were of - a•,very stringent, character,- and they ;ought
to be • well ,known .in - this country, because on
their-due observance depended the continuance of their
peaceful' intercourse with ,China. The third •regulation,
respecting her Majesty's. ships, provides for the impo-
sition of various fines, some of' them amounting
to five hundred' dollars, together with confiscation of
the whole, cargo, for certain offences therein specified,
but in no part ,of the regulations clid 'lie find
it, stated ,by, whom .tbes, tines were, to. be
_levied.
Regulation, the 13th WAS the most important. part,Of
..the
whole treaty.; blithe scarcely thought that it was expressed
with .sufficient clearness. It Said that, with respect to the
punishMent of • English criminals, 'the Goyern-
ment of • the ''QUeen of. England would entict
laws to provide for that , object., lie . begged
te• ask his Noble' .Friend whither,, any. code :of
laws had been drawn up, and. if £O, when
it would, be ready to be put in execution ?
. might be . highly important that the Consuls
should be able , early to put .the, law in force:
•, lie
.wished also, to , ask, whether that power would be
restricted to the Consul-General or the authori-
ties at Ho/T.-Kong ? or whether each of the.
Consuls at the five ports would be•empowered to carry.
the law into effect upon his own authority ? The
'fourteenth regulation provided ,that cruisers should be
stationed off. each of' the five„ ports for the protection
of the 'Consuls.. He thought,that a. most important re-
gulation, and lie was sure that the country, would he
glad to learn . that it was intended to . be perma.-
tient, ,as..it;was..most ,desirable, for, the
.preservation
of peace between The two nations.•,--(Hear, hear.) On
the subject of the 15th regulation, he begged to ask vvlie-
ther it was intended that the Consuls should give security
for the conduct of' the merchants, or for the payment of
the dues to the Chinese GoVernment ?
The.Earlof ABERDEEN was happy to have it in
his power. to giVe the. explanations which his NOble
Pyiend required. The regulations 6*g:been agreed
upon by the Chinese Commissioners and Sir Henry
Pottinger must ht; considered
,as. part, of time treaty., The
power of framing. ,ft code was given . to. the Governor
and Couecil Hong,lCoug,. . and each •of the
Consuls would -be. empowered to carry "it into
execution. He entirely ag-reed with his 'Noble Frien4,
that a British cruiser should be' permanently' sta-
tioned off each of- those, perts7=-(llear,: hear.)
respect to the 15th regulation, lie (-mild atisivi.r that. the
Consuls would run n. i ii list, Were
secutity for ,the , bin nse the.
the , Hong merchants were abolished ; but they
would have the,,ships' paperSAOivere,d to them, and left,
in their possession, until the captains showed that the
Chinese authorities were satisfied. Although there was
no,stipulation respecting 'other European nations in-the

.and and flax factories, at work, empty,and together, in tLe. power of the Executive to institute a suit
in each county of the United Kingdom.
COMMERCIAL TREATIES.
- , - , and g . .give
:the::. damages, by, tty of 'compensation,
.
'l.y
to the . party injured. ,The regulations... regarding
Mr. RICARDO, gave notice- of his intention of
.children were not at present the' same in silk
bringing forward a motion relative to the commercial mills as in cotton and other 'factories,, and he now
treatieshetween this and. other
other countries.
MAN., 1
IMPORTDUTIES proposed to bring silk . India under precisely'the same
OF ' • .regulations in respect to children as other - factories.
Dr. BOWRING said he hada question to put to-the Ile ha.d men tionedibe Principal provisions in the with
Right Hon. the President Of the' Board of "Trade, in re- the. exception only Of that portion of the Bill of last
ference to the import duties payable in the Isle of Man. 1, session to which attention had been niore , especially
-He -Wished to ascertain whether: the- Right Hon: Gentle- directed. Ile did not mean to interfere wiTh-that por-
man intended to-abolish the 21- per cent. iMpOrt duty on Lien of the. Bill which prescribes the ruleS' regarding
Britislinianufactures payable in the Ida of Man ; and education.--(11.ear:) A child from eight to - thirteen
whether he intended to supersede' or modify the license years Old he proposed should not be employed continu-
-system in that island; of which so manycomplaints were ously formore than six hours and a half,and that the other
made. - portion of the day should be devoted to education. The
Mr. GLADSTONE ,said, in answer to the Hon. Gen- Government last year proposed to do something with re-
tleman, he could state that they had proceeded so farm spect to. the quality of the education given to the chil-
the examination ot this subject, aS to-enable him to say that dren in factories, ' The enactments throughout the
in the course of the pr6ent session, he hoped to be able existing. law of factory. .education.• were, he was
to introduce a' Bill' which would certainly abolish the afraid, .-almost illusory, for persons had been
•22s her cent. duty, payable on British ntanufacturesi and employed that'were little qualified, indeed,' even for flu.
which would also have the effect of very materially re- tics so humble as those entrusted to thew._ Even the
-stricting the licensing system, and exempting from. its stoker of .the furnace was, occasionally to be- found
operation many important commodities, as well as in t- acting. the .part of schoolmater,;. and there. was an
proving in other respects the commercial arrangements undeniable want _of every proper facility. Anti appa-
of the island.-
ratus in the shape of books and other requisites. . In
On the motion of Mr. CHARLES WOOD and. Mr. fact, the system had been one not of education, but of
VERNON SMITH, several unopposed . returns' were mere confinement, leaving, the children without ' any
ordered-. - •
knowledge or instruction whatever. He (Sir James
Graham) was, hOwever, bound to state, that
these evils were giving way, under the force of public
opinion,,to a better state of things, and he ;indulged the
hope that there were now many mill-owners whelvere
sincerely anxious to supply the means of instruction to
those employed by them. The experience of last year,
hoWever, had determined him not to interfere with the
quality of the instruction now offered.---(Hear, hear.)
It had been the hope of the Government that a measure
providing scriptural teaching, snperintended by the vi-
gilant. inspection of officers appointed by. the Privy
Council on Education, would meet with general con-
currence. He confessed that that hope, in his mind• at
least, had vanished. Reliance must now be placed, and
it was not a vain reliance, after what they had lately
seen, but he confessed that with him it was a confident
hope—reliance must be placed on the honest rivalry
which had arisen between the Church and the Dissenters,
by whom he trusted great efforts would be made to dif-
fuse amidst the immense masses of the population sound
general knowledge in connexion with scriptural instruc-
tion. He was cilia° satisfied that if good schools were
established in the manufacturing districts the people
would have sufficient discrimination to prefer them to
bad schools. If the Legislature provided that the children
should hiVe sufficient leisure for instruction, he was confi-
dent that they would be instructed, and instructed in a
manner infinitely superior to anything that had yet been
witnessed. At all events he was not prepared at pre-
sent, either directly Or indirectly, to, interfere with the
quality -of the instruction to be - afforded ; all that he
asked the House to do was, to allow leisure to the chil-
dren, which would secure for them, without being over-
strained by labour,- an opportunity of attending the
school for at least three hours every day, with the ex-
ception of Saturday, which was a half holiday. He
would express an earnest hope that the'effect of the dif-
fusion of knowledge, based upon sound principles of in-
struction and upon religious truth, would have the
,effect
of averting that which, if left unchecked, would be a
source of the greatest and most serious national injury
—llth evil of a dense population living without know-
ledge, without instruction, and without religion. The
Rightillon. Baronet then moved for leave to introduce a
Bill-to amend the Factory Act. .
Mr-HUME said he was surprised that the Govern-
ment should continue to introduce measures like that
which had just been announced. If 'they interfered
with any class in this manner they should interfere with
all. They should • not confine. themselves, to the em-
ployment of one class at particular times, but they
should extend the measure :to every branch, of manu-
factures... It mould appear as though experience were
lost upon those who made these attempts. at legislation.
Here were parents, children,, and manufacturers all in-
terested in the :subjeat of employment as one affecting
the means of subsistence, and yet the Government were
attempting to throw every difficulty in the its
fair exercise. • It would be much better if the govern-
ment would take! into consideration the cause of that
anxiety to which reference had been made. It was the
want of employment. What was it which. pre-
vented employment ? Bad legislation. Why not
remove . that • instead •_ of attempting to bolster
up evils by this patchwork legislation I' All
experience , showed that measures of . this • - kind
`could not succeed, and he was anxious that
the Government. should look to causes and not
attempt. to • correct the, results of bad legislation.
They ought not .to restrict the employment of children
in one manufactory, and leave it unrestricted in another.
Education should be made a national object, and they
should require that every child should be educated. lle
greatly deprecated the requiring certificates, considering
it extremely objectionable. It was to be provided, too,
that in all instances of accident, loss of limb, or injury,
an action, at law might lie against the proprietor of the
factory. Why should not railway companies and other
bodies be subjected to the same process? He thought
that this part of the measure required • to be well con-
sidered.. If there ever was a demand upon-the Govern-
ment,. it was that they 'should provide. an efficient mea-
sure of general education, leaving religion to the different
religious sects. But the . present measure was 'one to
which he entertained the..strongest objection.
Mr, STUART ..WORTLEY said -he believed
there could. be. no, greater evil than the absorp-
tion of the •• bulk of the female population in
factory employments: Ile deprecated the 'system of
employing persons in factories for so long .a_ period as
that contemplated by the Bill. His Right Hon. Friend
had referred to the authority upon .which he founded
the measure lie was now aboutto bring.in, and said that
it was
.derived from the Inspectors ,3f Factories, but he
(Mr..Wrortley) wished tha his Right. Hon. Friend had
paid more attention to.some suggestions which-had 13« en
made by those gentlemen. Mr. Saunders,- in his ilast
Report, had stated, in language than which nothing
could be stronger, that the labour.-of persons- nf,,the age
contemplated in the present Bill. should. in no instance
be allowed. to exceed eleven hours during the.day. Mr.
Horner, expressed a similar. opinion also. :He thought
with those exceptions . that the measure ,was likely to
effect much good,-und .to.improve the operation of- the
present Act: . • ..
Mr. HINDLEY.:feIt glad that Wallin had been in-
troduced, because he thought it would be an improve-
ment upon. the former Act. He perfectly concurred -with
the ljen.,Member who had just sat - dow,u,that an alte-
ration should be made_ in . the number -Of hours-during
which it was;propoSed to require the young persons to
, labour,,ancl that. this subject required the . most , serious
consideration of the
,House. - He .should. wish .the Hon.
MemberforlMOntrose, who took a. very abstract. view
of this question,,-to consider the facts of the matter. He
(Mr. llindley) considered that while the Government
allowed certain,prjvileges to the manufacturers, they also
should : retain. the , right . to themselves. of inter-
fering when . a system. _ was adopted which was
likely produce great physical and moral evils.
They heard much of their wealth and of their great pro-
duction;
,but if that.vast amount of production was-tak-
ing place at the sacrifice of the health, morals, and in-
telligence of the people,
.it might be purchasedflike gold,
too dearly. They had been told that their ,interferenee
in this subject would endanger their foreign commerce.
This he disproved by . showing.. thatomdev-the present
Act, th-e manufacture. of cotton - had increased 438, per
cent. Puhlic opinion was in favour of the ,rednetion Of
the amount of human labour ;' he alludecitto
lions made by, the drapers': assistants,. and .fire, persons
employed in other occupations, to, procure a eurtailmtgit
of the -hours ot labour. The drapers of Manchester had
ceased to employ their assistants on Saturday after-
noons. ' There was a general , impression that human la-
bour had heen too much employed in this-country;' that
it had been tasked till human strength sank beneath-it.
'He contended that,
,with respect to the cotton trade, a
shortening of the hours of labour would be attended
'with advantage in, Tendering the amount of labour
more proportionate to the limited supply of cotton they
had this year received from America. •He -urged
on the Government the propriety of taking
up this question in a right and determined
spirit. It Was not for him, as their .political ~opponent
(as he generally was), to tell them what to doin.order
to bring the people 'of England around' them in sup-
port of their exertions.. They had the means of doing
so, by showing a 'determined spirit in support of the in-
terests of the labouring classes.
Lord ASHLEY said the House was well aware. how
inconvenient it was to discuss the principle of a Bill in
itsearliest stage.--(llcar,' hear.) . He. therefore- would
not attempt to occupy their attention. at that, moment,
ladle could not feel satisfied withoUt rising to express
'his gratitude to the Government for the advance they
had made.—(llpar, hear.) He would
,not advance his
own views
.and sentiments then, but simply repeat his
thanks to -I‘linisteri for the ; advance ..now made.—
(Cheers.)=-Leave was then given to bring in. the Bill.
- POOR-RATES IN IRELAND.
Major MACNAMARA, on behalf of Mr. F.
French, moved for a return of dates On which, and the
places where, the military or police have beep employed
in enforcing the collection of poor-rates in. Ireland,
between the Ist day of January, I $43, and the Ist day
of January, 1844 ; specifying the number of men em-
ployed, and the amount collected, on each occasion; and
also a return of the date and amount of each rate made
in the different poor-law.unions in Ireland, under the
provisions of the Act 1 and 2 Vie, c. 56, for the more
effectual relief of die destitute poor in that country;
specifying the amount Of each rate remaining uncollected
on the Ist, clay of January, 1844.
SELECT COMMITTEE ON RAILIVA):S.....
Mr. W. GLADSTONE moved, that the Select Com-
mittee on Railways should consist of the following gen-
tb men :—Mr. William Gladstone, Mr. Labotich,ere,
Lord Seymour, Mr. Wilson Patten, Viscount, Sandon,
Mr, Gisborne; Lord Granville Somerset, Sir John East:
hope, Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Russell, Mr. Patrick Maxwell
Stewart, Mr. Green, Mr. Maclean, Mr. 'I liornely„ and
Mr. Cardwell.
..„
Mr. WALLACE said, he should now.. propose the
amendment of which he had given' notice, and which
was to the effect that' no person should be on the Com-
mittee who had a direct interest hi any railway. . In
-doing this,'he belic_vaed he was bringing under the con-
sideration of the House, no novel principle, but one
which had obtained for a very considerable timf-7-;
namely, that no Hononrable Member would all's' his
I a direct name to remain on a Committee
pecu-
niary interestin the Matter' on
had to sit. 'Before he went'flirtlicrr.,,,i,v;
in reference to
that what he had'advaneed laiisitnoe,,diat„
locality.,,was
‘,`,..ll',l,,•,ll,aiclitieCdoi ton7s!ttatetee
satrirf4aliylwna.i,d
..eet,.nll,l' that' the concession
tan, insteadmad(tloV6hl;;;lrign7,l:it,::l,alls
it ,in} lit to hate breaeill)7tyo
ithh;.-fdairreese';o)li. sl-,httd‘ iiinrilit-lenic''e t(lrirrioTnsiii,liTit4l ellend7.
instead of redueins fixes; they iucreasecl'Vogt's, .that

LIGHT GOLD. • •
Mr. GISBORNE said he had put a question the other
day to the Right Hon. the President of the Board- of
Trade, on the subject of the light coinage which had
found 'its way back to the 'Mint, and that gentleman
not being then prepared to answer it, had re-
quested that it might be =repeated an a futnre
occasion. lie Would now ask if the Govern-
ment were in a situation to give any information to the
House, Whether the gold coin which had been called in
had been deteriorated by wear and tear alone, or whether
it had been subjected to sweating, or any other illegiti •
mate prOcess•T • ••.•
Mr. GLADSTONE, on the part of the Government,
begged to gay that they had no direct and positive
means of ascertaining the dates Of all the light sove-
reigns sent in for re-coinage. • Sovereigns of all dates
had been returned, but the great Mass. of them -were of
the reigns 'of 'George the Third and the early part 'of
George the Fourth. Respecting the question, Of which
the Hon. Member had been kind enough to give him
notice, Whether or not the coin returned had been sub-
jected to the. proeess of sweating Or other illegi-
timate process, , he Could • only say that the
Government had "no 'Means-Of ascertaining positively if
such Were the case 'or not: As far, howeVer, as a cor-
rect opinion Could be founded, it was believed that the
returned•coin had not been subjected to such process to
any great • extent. - The Coin generally gave evi-
dence of very great wear, altliongli, of course,
in particular cases, illegitimate means Of causing
deterioration had been resorted to.
Mr. GISBORNE then gave notice that-he would; that
day fortnight, move for a Select Committee to' in-
quire into the deterioration of the gold coinage, and
whether any measures could' be adopted for preventing
the loss arising therefrom from • falling unjustly upon
the people.
Sir H. DOUGLAS -begged to ask the Noble Lord,
the Member fin: Dorsetshire, whether he intended to
proceed with his motion 'respecting the affairs of Sinde,
on the day stated in. the notice paper? • -
Lord ASHLEY said it was certainly his intention to
bring forward his Motion on-that day. •
" Mr. STAFFORD O'BRIEN begged to ask the Right
Hon. Gentletnan, the Chtineeller of the Exchequer,
whether he could give the Honse
(any any. of
the discontinuance of the Miperiments on • the Kingston
and DalkeY Atmospherie Railway in Ireland ?
The CHANCELLOR Of the 'EXCFIEQUER said
the Right Hon. Gentleman was misinformed if he sup-
posed there had been anything more than a partial,dis-
continuance of the experiments. It was a part -of the
original agreeinent that a 'sufficient portion Of the trench
which ran along the Kingston Harbour should be
covered over, for the accommodation of the public ; the
railway was completed without that condition being ful-
filled ; and it was the procesS of covering over, a' certain
portion which had caused the'suspension. •
IRISH REGISTRATION.
:Mr. WYSE begged to aikthe Right Hon. Gentleman,
the Secretary of State for 'the Home • Department, at
what period it was his intention to bring forward the
Registration Bill for Ireland, 'and what would be the
,provisions,of the measure? • • -
Sir JAMES GRAHAM said he felt great pleasure
in answering the first question which the Right
Honourable Gentleman had put to him respecting
the period at which lie should introduce the Bill.
It was his intention, on the part of the Government, to
move for leave to introduce a Bill to amend the law res-
tecting the registration of voters in Ireland before the
Easter recess. As to the particular provisions of the
measure, he hardly thought it could be expected of him
that he should then state what those pro Visions might be.
He was not aware, that under similar circumstances, it
had been expected of any Government.—(Hear, hear,)
THE RAILWAYS COMMITTER- •
Mr. WALLACE, seeing the Right Hon. Gentleman
the President .of the Board of Trade in his places took'
that opportunity of informing him that previous to the
Right Hon. Gentlenian's coming into the House he had
given-notice that, on the -Motion for appointing the Com-
mittee on Railways, he 'would move a resolution to the
effect that no director or shareholder of any railway
company should be a member of that Committee. He
now begged to-ask the Right lion. Gentleman if amongst
'the Members whoth he intended to appoint upon that
Committee there was any railway director or shareholder?
• Mr: GLADSTONE. said "that he was obliged to • the
Hon. Member for Greenock for having. communicated to
him the notice- he had given, and he had no difficulty in
giving hiM all the information in his power in reply to
his concluding`qtiegtion: 'The 'gentlemen Whom 'he had;
named for , his Committee 'were. - not- - selected •13Y1
'him; but were "nominated' at the Suggestion or
the gentlemen who • formed. •the previous' Com-:
mittee. He could- say, however, that there Werel
some directors,,
,and at least, 'Os far as his know-!
ledge went, One, shareholder in railway , CoMpthiies.:
The' Honourable- 'Member 'for Reading was Chair-'
man of the . Great Western "Rail Way. .The Ifo.!
'nOureble Member for Clitheroe was a Director of the
South Eastern, and two other of the gentlemen were
also railway directors. The ,two first-named gentlemen
were connected- with what were called high fare rail-
ways, and the two 'last with l'ow fdre lines. There was
also the Noble Lord the Member for Totnes' who was'
nominated because, as he: was a Member:r, of the
late GovernMentcand 'had been upon the' former Com-i
mittee, it was thought right that he should be also upon
this. He believed that the Noble Lord was a directori
of a new railway.. He himself '(Mr. Gladstone)rwas a
shareholder .in a railway company but 'he was,
not able to.give the Honourable Gentleinati any further
information as to-the constitution of the Committee. '
THE RIGHT OF SEARCH.
In answer to a question froin Sir C. NAPIER, •'•
Sir ROBERT PEEL said" that the whole question
of the instructions to be ' given- to the Comman-
ders. of cruisers for -the 'detection 'of slave -ships, had
been referred to..a Commission consisting of Dr. Lush-
ington and- Captain Bayne. With regard to'
occasioned by negotiations with the United: States, he
could only say, that they were 'consistent with the in-
structions -formerly-given, but' he did not think a •due
regard to the public service would allow him to give a
more explicit answer.
Lord PALMERSTON wished to ask' ,Whether the
Government had come to any understanding, or 'made
any arrangements as . to the power which the com-
manders of our Vessels should have of' visiting ships for
the purpose of ascertaining their nationality ?
Sir R. PEEL said the instructions which had been.
.. • .
given this year were the same as those which had been:
issued to the officerg of her Majesty's Navy the:first
instance.

. CEMP.Td. ERIES IN LARGE: TOWNS.
In reply to an HON. MEMBER, who inquired Whether
it'was the intention* of Government to introduce any Bill
for the prevention of interment in large 'cities and towns,
Sir J. GRAHAM said the question' of the health of
large_towns was at present under the consideration of a
Committee; and until this Committee had made their
Report, he could not distinctly state what course the
Government intended to pursae.
. 'FACTORIES AMENDMENT BILL.
Sir. J. GRAHAM rose to introduce a Bill for the
better regulation of, and to amend the laws relating to,
factories • and in doing so said that the Bill was similar to
the one he had introduced during the last session, which
had been founded upon the Report Of ti Select Committee.
His Bill introduced ; several 'important alteratiOns and
limitations as to ages and hours of labour. As the law
now stands, the .definition of children was between the
ages of nine and, thirteen years. He proposed that the
'specification be somewhat altered, and that the definition
of children be fixed,betwcen the ages of eight and thir-
teen. Hoc proposed that children: between_ the sagfs of
eight. and thirteen should not be employed in
day for a longer period than six hours and a. halt; and
that they should not be employed both in the
:forenoon and the afternoon of the same day,
Respecting young persons, the definition in the
law, as it stands, was 'between the ages of thirteen
and eighteen years. lie did'not propose to make any,
alteration in this definition of ages, but he should pro-
pose, as to their hours of work, that they should not be
employed in any cotton, silk, wool, or flax manufac-
tory for any portion of the twenty-four hours longer than
from half-past five to seven in summer, and from six to
'eight in. winter, thus making thirteen and a. half hours
of work, with one hour and a half of time for rest. As
the law at present stood, all persons above the age of
eighteen were 'considered adults, and of their labour
there was no limitation at all. But under
the present law many persons were employed as adults
'who were totally unlit 'for the labour. The Right Hon.
Baronet then read extracts from the report of Mr. Homer,
as to the periods of work required from pet sons who were
considered • adults, and especially from adult females.
With the best consideration that he could give to the
reports and evidence whiCh it had been his 'duty to con-
,snit, he had determined to propose a limitation to the
'continuous labour of females, • satisfied that the
'uncontrolled exercise of their industry was alike
injurious to their health and their morals.—(Hear,
hear.) He also proposed to enact a new limitation
with respect to the way in which back time was now
brought up, and which had led 'to 'great' infraCtions of
the law. Where the power had been of a double nature
(steam-power
,and water-power), whenever loss of time
had accrued, the party so 'losing it had 110 en made 'to
greatly Violate the law in bringing that time up
ngain. He proposed that no facilities shinild be
given for redeeming this lost power, e.:,eeptino•'' where
the power. is water-power only---and- to that,alsa,- he
shoutil propose' a, further limitation. Power also was
given to the proper authorities to ,notify to MillowneM
wherever. and whet;tever, in their opinion; :niaainery
might be`considered dangerous ; and if, after
such Doti-
fiCatioh, -any accident should occur, it Sh°l2l4 be

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