The Sun.
London, England, 1844-06-08 00:00:00

4 1 firtartg 2/Altt

LONDON, SATURDAY, JUNE 8, 1844.

In the House of Lords last evening, after the pre-
sentation of a few petitions, some interest wes ex-
cited by the entrance of his Majesty the King of
SAXONY, who took a seat that had been placed for
him opposite the Bench of Bishops, and near the
Woolsack. His MAJESTY exchanged a few words
with the Marquis of LONDONDERRY, but did not
enter into any general conversation with the voble
Lords present.
The occasion of his MAJESTY'S visit was rather
unfavourable, as the business was very unimportant.
The LORD CHANCELLOR. asked 1,0r.d MONTEAGLE
to postpone his motion on the corn-laws, as the bring-

ing it on then would be exceedingly inconvenient to
the Government.
Lord MONTEAGLE assented, regretting the delay
he had experienced in bringing it forward. Monday
WAS named as the day on which the discussion is to
be taken.

_
Lord BROUGHAM and the Marquis of LANSDOWNE
both expressed a hope that it would not be agaiu
postponed.
Lord CAMPBELL, as a rergedy for these frequent
delays, suggested that their Lordships might with
advantage recur to the old system of meeting at eight
o'clock in the morning
The Duke of WELLINGTON expressed his readiness
to be in his place at that hour, but with some irony
remarked that younger men, who had more to do than
himself, might find it difficult to attend so early.

The motion of Lord MONTEAGLE was eventually
postponed till Thursday next, and their Lordships
adjourned.
The House of Commons met at the usual hour.

The SPEAKER communicated to the House the
acknowledgment by the Governor-General of India
of the vote of thanks to the army of India, passed by
the House on the 20th of February last.

Nu nerous petitions were presented both for and
against the Dissenters' Chapels Bill.
Mr. SHAW gave notice that, in Committee on the
Bill, he should propose a possession of sixty years in-
stead of twenty-five.
On the motion that the llouse do resolve itself into
Committee on the Parishes (Scotland) Bill,
Mr. D oxcart M'NEILL explained the object of the
Act. It had for its object to facilitate the division of
parishes in Scotland. By the law as it now existed,
the patronage of a new parish belonged to the patron
of the old one; but where other parties bore the bur-
den of erecting the new parish church, it seemed but
reasonable that some other provision should be made,
saving, of course, the rights of the heritors. The
present Bill gave a power, in such cases, to attach
a district to the church, and to erect it into a separate
parish, without the consent of the heritors, who, as
they were not called upon to contribute, had certainly
no right to interfere capriciously to deprive persons
of that religious instruction for which they were
themselves willing to pay.
Mr. Fox MAULE said no necessity had been shown
for the Bill, or fbr legislating on the subject at all,
and moved that it be committed that day six months.
A discussion ensued, in which the provisions of the
Act were discussed in connexion with the late move-
ment in the Church of Scotland. During this dis-
cussion the King of SAXONY entered the House ; he
sat for some time in the chair of the Sergeant-at-
Arms.

Sir J. GRAHAM states that the principle of the Bill
was one that had always been upheld in the best days
of the Scotch Church. He charged the Member for
Pei th (Mr. Fox MAULE) with inconsistency. It
was scarcely a fortnight since that Right Hon.
Gentleman brought forward a motion for the aboli-
tion of subscription of tests in the Scottish Univer-
sities, and yet on the previous night he was found in
the course of the debate advocating the continuance of
tests. This reference to a recent debate being irre-
gular, was followed by loud cries of " Order."
Mier the usual explanations and apologies, Mr. F.
MAurm's amendment was rejected, on a division, by a
majority of 54, and the House went into Committed.,
on the Bill.

In the discussion on the first clause Mr. Fox
MAULE retorted the charge of Sir JAMES GRAHAM.
lle thought the last person to make a charge of in-
consistency ought to be the Right Hon. Baronet
himself. "1 he man who wrote Corn and Currency,'
and who now sat as the supporter of the agricultural
interest, ought to be very cautious in charging another
with inconsistency. In a celebrated caricature pub-
lication of the day, the Right lion. Baronet wrs
represented as receiving a deputation from the dis-
tressed thimble-riggers.—(Laughter.) One of these
thimble-riggers was made to ask the Right Hon.
Baronet if he had any objection to allow a game of
round-about ? and the Right Hon. Gentleman replied
Oh, no, for I have patronised round-about all my
life.'—(G real laughter, in which Sir JAMES GRAHAM
joined.) The Right Hon. Baronet should be careful
how he made a charge of inconsistency against
another. "—(Hear.)
' The Committee divided on the clause, which was
carried by a majority of 32.
Another division took place on clause 8, which was
also carried by a majority of 36 ; and en clause 9,
which was carried by 41.
The remaining clauses were agreed to, and the
House resumed. The report is to be received on
Monday.
The House adjourned at a Quarter to Ten o'clock.

Those who have seen—as we have often seen, and
experienced the greatest delight from the spectacle—
scores of operatives, with their wives and children,
flushed with the unaccustomed glow of health, stroll-
ing, on serene summer or autumn evenings, over the
breezy uplands of Hampstead Heath, or bivouacking
in groups in in its more shady and sequestered nooks,
indulging in a homely pic-nic—a rare enjoyment,
snatched with difficulty from amidst toil, anxiety, and
privations of all sorts, looked forward to with pleasure,
and remembered with equal delight ;—those, we say,
who have ever chanced to witness this grati-
fying spectacle, will participate with us in
rejoicing that the Bill for inclosing this healthy
and picturesque heath, from which the poor
London artisan derives almost his only notions of the
country, has been thrown out by the House of Lords,
by a majority which must convince Sir THOMAS
WILSON, pertinacious as he is, that his favourite
scheme of inclosure is not very likely to be speedily
carried into execution. For one year at least—and
most probably for many years to come—Hampstead
is safe from the visitation of the architect, with his
dandy designs of new cockney villas, and his atten-
dant posse of masons and hodmen, whose arrival in
any particular suburban locality never fails to be a
legitimate source of jealousy and annoyance to the
inhabitants, associated, as it is, in their minds,
with ideas of smoke, confinement, and the deprivation
of that fresh air to which they hare been habituated.
The continuous and systematic spread of brick-and-
mortar is one of the greatest nuisances of the metro-
polis. There seems positively to be no end to the in-
vasions of the builder. He is here, there, and every-
where, just as though he were endowed with übi-
quity. Not a year passes but London stretches
itself in every direction at least half a mile further
into the country. Where, but a few months since,
you saw a green field bordered with hedges, alive
with the merry music of birds, played over, AS if in
very fondness, by the cool winds of Heaven, and
affording pasturage for a few sheep or cows—
those picturesque additions to the living beauty
of landscape scenery—you now see nothing but long,
dirty rows of new-made, straw-severed bricks, or
skeletons of buildings run up in haste, and in reck-
less violation of all the rules of architecture. To
the rich man these sudden, tasteless conversions of
country into town are matters of the most perfect in-
difference, for he can at any time mount his horse or
drive off in his carriage a dozen miles or so, away
from the stir and crowd and close atmosphere of the
metropolis; but the poor man—much as he needs it
—has no such resource ; he is necessarily confined
within a limited distance ; he can hurry off to sniff a
mouthful of fresh air, just as far as his legs can carry
him, and no further ; consequently the more this
vast over-grown capital of ours extends itself,
the fewer are his chances of enjoying, when his day's
toil is at an end, the enviable luxury of a quiet
evening stroll into the country. In fact, the
London artizan has now no country left him, with
the exception, perhaps, of Hampstead, and one or
two meagre sylvan symptoms which still continue to
exist in the neighbourhood of Holloway. To be
sure, he is going to be compensated for this loss of a
rural walk by a park, which is to be manufactured
for his express accommodation at the East end of the
metropolis ; but Heaven only knows when this
long-talked-of park will be completed. If we
may judge from present indications, we should be
strongly tempted to say that it would not be ready
for his reception till Sir JAMES GRAHAM obtains the
Lord-Lieutenancy of Cumberland, and Dr. Plum,-
POTTS the rich rectory of Stanhope. But to return
to the subject with which we set out—the at-
tempted inclosure of Hampstead Heath. Most
sincerely do we rejoice that this ungenerous
scheme has been defeated ; and not less
delighted are we with the prompt and decided manner
in which it was opposed in the House of Lords. The
spirit which dictated this OppOSWOH was of the