The Sun.
London, England, 1844-07-18 00:00:00

CONTROVERTED ELECTIONS.

Mr. T. DUNCOMBE also presented a petition
from Mr. Rigby Wason, of the county of Ayr,
stating that he had been summoned before
the Committee on Controverted Elections, and
had given certain evidence before that Committee ;
but had seen with surprise that in the report it had
agreed upon, his evidence so given had been suppressed,
and praying for the production of that evidence. The
Hon. Member gave notice that tomorrow he would
move that this petition he printed with the Votes.
AGRICULTURAL PROTECTION.

Mr. STAFFORD O'BRIEN 'presented several pei.
lions from the county of Northampton, praying for pro.
tection to agricultural produce.
QUEEN'S STORES.
Captain PECHELL presented' a petition from Mr.
Duncan M'lntyre, of Fort William, North Britain,
stating that some years ago he was the means of detect-
ing various enitmul(mcnts in certain stores, the pro-
perty of htr Majesty, for which he was entitled,
under the Act 10th William the Third, to 2001.
from the Board of Ordnance, and praying the
House to give hint just remuneration fur services for
the exclusive use of his country.
IRISH MAGISTRATES.
Mr. ROSS gave notice that on Tuesdly next he should
move fur an humble address to her Majesty. praying for
the removal of Mr. O'Driscoll, recently restored to the
commission of the peace in Ireland.
POST-OFFICE COMMITTEE.

On the motion of Mr. BARING, leave was given to
Lord John Russell to attend the Committee of the House
of Lords on the business of the Post-office.
SINKING FUND.

Mr. WODEHOUSE moved for a continuation of the
returns relating to the Sinking Fund up to the present
time.

REPEAL BUTTONS.

Mr. WYSE said that seeing the Right Hon. Gentle-
man, the Secretary at War, in his place, he wished to
ask him the question of which he had given notice. He
had observed in a Dublin newspaper, a few days ago,
a report of an occurrence stated to have taken place in
the Castle of Dublin. A young man, named Osberry,
was driving a lady through the gates of the Castle of
Dublin, and the soldier on guard asked him
if he had a. repeal button. He replied " No,"
and the lady -told the soldier that he ought not
to have stopped the man. The soldier followed
him, and asked if he had a repeal button in his pocket,
to which he replied that he had ; upon which he was
taken to the Chancery-lane station-house, and was next
day brought before the magistrates, who dismissed him
as not being guilty of any offence. A case of a similar
description had occurred to a person named Ignatius
Ennis. He wished therefore to ask the Right Hon.
Gentleman the Secretary at War whether any orders
had been given on the subject, and if so, whether they
had been given by the Commander-in-Chief ?
Sir T. FRENIANTLE said that, in reference to the
question which had been asked by the Right Honourable
Gentleman, no orders had been issued with regard to the
Castle of Dublin, but the Commander of the Forces for-
bade any civilian wearing political or party badges from
being permitted to pass through the barracks in Ireland.
He had not been able to obtain any precise information
with regard to the case alluded to by the Right Hon.
Gentleman. He had every reason to believe that the
order with regard to the barracks was legal, and of
course if any person actually under those orders had
exceeded his duty he would be responsible for the con-
sequences, and he believed that the soldier had been
threatened with a writ, and the officer had been bound
over to appear on a charge of false imprisonment.
LOAN SOCIETIES.

In answer to a question from Mr: COWPER, on the
subject of loan societies and pawnbrokers,
Mr. GLADSTONE said that there was no proba-
bility of the report on this subject being laid on the
table of the House during the present session, but it
would be finished during the recess.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER gave
notice that he would postpone the order of the day on
the Savings' Banks Bill, in order that the Poor-law
Amendment Bill might be proceeded with.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE POST-OFFICE
COMMITTEE.

Mr. DUNCOMBE rose, and said that he wished to
make a statement with respect to a particular branch of
the proceedings of that House. He had given notice of
his intention, in order that the Government or the gen-
tlemen comprising the Secret Committee in the Post-
office should not be taken by surprise. He was well
aware that it was not the practice or rule of the
House to refer or interfere with the proceedings
of Committees during their sittings, but he thought
there were cases in which it was right to refer to them.
He thought it was preposterous and most absurd for any
body to lay down a rule that supposing a Committee of
that House had done*great injustice or committed some
error, no reference should be made to that act of injustice
or that error, until such Committee bad made its report,
when it would be too late to remedy the injustice or correct
the error. He wished to call their attention to proceedings
which were of considerable importance to the public.
On Saturday last he was summoned before the Commit-
tee on the affairs of the Post-office. On being summoned
before that Committee, he was told that the Committee
understood that he had a statement to make to them.
He said that he had no statement to make,
but, as regarded any information that it was in
his power to give that Committee, he would
be most happy to give it. He was then asked
if he was prepared to prove certain charges that he had
made in his place in Parliament ? He stated he was
prepared to prove them by evidence. He was then
asked if he would repeat the charges which be bad
made in his place in Parliament ? And he did
repeat the charges which he had made. He
repeated to the Committee the same charges he had
brought forward in the House, and each member of that
Committee took down deliberately what he said, so that
he stood in the position of one preferring an indictment
against the Government. 'There was no reason
why he should not now repeat to the House what
he bad stated on a former occasion, and that
was that the letters of Foreign Ministers had been, and
were, opened ; that a very unscrupulous use had been

made, during two years, of this secret power of opening
letters ; that a roving commission had been appointed in
the year 1842 for the purpose of opening letters in the
country ; that the letters of certain individuals had been
opened ; that he (Mr. Buncombe) was in a position
to prove, as he believed, that his own letters
had been opened ; that some fifty or sixty of Mr.
Mazzini's letters had been opened since Christ-
mas ; that Captain Stolzman's letters had also
been openfd ; and that all this bad been done
at the instance of Foreign Governments. He (Mr.
Duncombe) also described to the Committee the way in
which he believed letterio- were opened in the Post-office,
and he also stated he was in a condition to prove the
existence of a secret or inner office, where this dark
work was carried on.- Having done this, the Committee