The Sun.
London, England, 1845-06-24 00:00:00

BERKS AND HANTS RAILWAY.

The Lords' amendments to the Berks and Ilants Ra'lwav
Bill were agreed to.
ABERDARE RAILWAY.

The report on the Aberdare Railway Bill was brought up
by Mr. BECKETT.
The Forth and Clyde Navigation and Union Canal Junction
Bill was ordered to be recommitted.
THE GREAT SOUTHERN AND WESTERN (IRE-
LAND) RAILWAY
This Bill was read a third time and passed..
EPPING RAILWAY.
On the motion of Dr. EOWRING, the Eitving Railway
Bill was read a second time, and ordered to be conwitted.
Mr. BECKETT presented a petition from Leeds in favour
of a ten hours' Bill.
Mr. ROCHE presented a petition from Cork in favour of
the repeal of the Legislative Union. The petition was eigncd
by the Mayor.
CHESTER AND BIRKENHEAD RAILWAY.

The Chester and Birkenhead Railway Bill was read a third
time and passed.
ARRESTAIENT OF WAGES.

I Mr. T. DUICX6IIIBE presented several petitions in favour
of the Arrestment of Waggon ( Scotland) Bill.
BLACKBURN, DARWEN, AND BOLTON RAILWAY.
The Lords' amendments to the Blackburn, Darwen, and
Bolton Railway Bill were agreed to.
UNIVERSITY TESTS.
Captain WEMYSS presented several petitions from diffe-
rent parts of Scotland in favour of the Bill for abolishing
University tests.
Mr. BANNERMAN presented a petition from
Aberdeen
in favour of the Bill for abolishing religious tests in the Scotch
Universities.
The SOLTCITOR-GENERAL presented a petition from
Mr. Carus Wilson (as we understood) complaining of his im-
prisonment by the Royal Court of Jersey, and praying for in-
quiry.
Mr. ENTWISLE presented a petition from Oldham, in
Lancashire, in favour of the Physic and Surgery Bill.
Mr. BRIGHT presented a petition from an individual
named Wheatley, complaining of neglect on the part of one of
the reviskg barristers. Also, a petition from some place
in Huntingdonshire, praying that those persons who
conscientiously objected to taking an oath, might be permitted
to make a declaration instead. Also a petition from slme place
in Huntingdonshire against the sale of intoxicating
liquors on the Sabbath ; and a petition from an
individual complaining of the conduct of the magistrates
of Loughborough and Ashby de la Zouch, and praying for
inquiry.
Mr. COLQUHD[JN presented a petition from the xne•
chanics in Bradford, Yorkshiie, praying for a shortening of
the hours of labour.
LYNN AND DEREHAM RAILWAY.

The Lynn and Dereham Railway Bill was read a third time
and passed.
J3EDFORD, LONDON, AND BIRMINGHAM RAIL-
WAY BILL.
This Bill ales was was read a t}.ird time and passed.
ASHTO.N AND STALEYBRIDGE RAILWAY.

The A-hton, Staleybridge, and Live pool Junction
.Rail-
way Bill ( Ardwiek and Guide branches) was read a third
time and passed.
SHREWSBURY, OSWESTRY, AND CHESTER
JUNCTION RAILWAY BILL.
The Lords' amendments to this Bill were egreed to.
CORNWALL RAILWAY BILL.

The Cornwall Railw.iy Rill was read a third time and passed,
SCOTTISH UNIVERSITIES BILL.

Mr. MACAULAY moved that the order of time day for the
second reading of this Bill be read for the purpose of post-
poning it to Wednesday, the 9th July.—Agreed to.
NOTICES OF MOTION.
Mr. O'CONNELL rave notice that he should, on Wednes •
day, move for certain returns and surveys.
Dr. BOW RING gave notice that to-morrow he should put
three questions to the Home Secretary, on the subject of the
case of J. W. Caldecott—first, whether he had been committed
to Castle Rushen, Isle of Man, in September last, without
any-execution having been issued out against him. Secondly,
whether his complaint to the Lieuterant-Governor on the sub-
ject had not been referred to the committing magistrate ; and
thirdly, whether, although only committed for six month., he
was not still in prison?
THE LATE ACCIDENT ON THE GREAT WESTERN
RAILWAY.
Mr. W. 0. STANLEY wished to put a question te the
Vice-President of the Board of Trade. It would be in the
recollection of the House that a serious accident, unattended,
however, with the loss of life, had occurred on the Great
Western Railway, on Wednesday, near Slough. Two days
afterwards another accident took place nearly at the same part
of the railway. He understood that the Board of Trade had
dispatched the Inspector-General, General Palley, to the spot,
to inspect the line, and he (Mr. Stanley) should feel obliged to
the Right Hon. Gentleman if, when he received General Pas-
ley's report, he would state to the House what Lien. Pas'ey con-
sidered to have been the cause of tim accident, and whether
the cause still remained. It was a matter of great public in-
terest, for there was an impression out of doors that the very
high velocity at which the express trains travelled was not al-
together safe.
Sir G. CLERK said that immediately that the report of
the accident on Wednesday had reached the Board of Trade,
the Inspector-General had been dispatched to the spot, to as-
certain the cause of the accident, and to report to the Board of
Trade what measures it would be necessary to adopt in order
to prevent its recurrence. It appeared that the accident had
been owing to the elasticity of the rails at the place where it
had occurred. Those rails were the same which had been ori-
ginally laid down at the first construction of the Great
Western Railway, and it appeared that they were
much lighter, and were placed on sleepers of much less
scantling than those at present in use, and which experience
had taught the Company were better adapted for the purpose
than those originally laid down. The Company had been for
some time past removing these original rails, and substituting
for them rails of greater weight, and sleepers of larger
scantling, which would produce greater stiffness, and prevent
the too great elasticity of the rails. The House was aware that
some years ago it had been suggested,in consequence of the:manner
in which certain accidents had occurred, that a luggage van
should always be interposed between the tender and the pas-
senger carriages. This plan had been adopted on the Great
Western Railway, and as it was an object with the express

rains to carry as little as possible, the van thus used for these
trains was a light four-wheel one instead of one with
six wheels, and it was .lightly loaded This van
had, through its lightness, been thrown off its train
and dragged the other carriages after it. As a proof that the
lightness of the. van was the cause of the accident., he might men-
tion that the same thing occurred to the luggage van on Friday
but as it was the last carriage on the train no serious consequences
ensued. Gen. Pasley had called the attention of the Company
to the circumstance, and they had, therefore, now substituted a.
luggage carriage wi'h six wheels for those with four, and they
had also loaded it to such an extent as to make it equal in weight
to the passenger carriages. He had likewise pressed upon
the company the necLseity of removing those light rails,
as speedily as possible, and, he believed, that before
the end of the summer the light rails would be removed
on the whole of the line. Now that the luggage vans were
of sufficient weight in the express trains, it was the
opinion of the Inspector-General that no danger was likely
to occur on account of the speed, and he hoped he might say
that there now existed no danger of the recurrence of such an
accident.
After a few words from Mr. OSWALD, which were in•
audible in the gallery,
Sir G. CLERK explained that rails made of stronger
materials would not be so likely to yield to pressure. A similar
accident had, some time ago, occurred on the Edinburgh
and Glasgow Railway, in consequence of the too great e:as-
ticity of the rails; that cause had been removed,
and no accident of a similar character had since recurred.
THE TEN HOURS' BILL.
Mr. S. CRAWFORD presented a petition from a town in
the \Vest Riding of Yorkshire in favour of the Ten Hours' Bill.
COMMON LAW PROCESS BILLS.
On the motion that the order of the day for the Ireland Col-
leges Bill be read,
Mr. Sergeant MURPHY said he would detain the
House a few minutes while he made an explanation
respecting certain personal allusions that had been made re-
garding himself. He had no doubt that the House would per-
ceive by the sequel that the allusions made were not justified
by the real facts of the cas and were calculated to do him
considerable personal injury. On that ground he would state
to the House the circumstances to which he alluded.
The animadversions had reference to certain Bills originally
entrusted to him, in which it was alleged that be did not act
the part he had promised to de, in regard to the car-
irnyinngumtblic.erm
fothrrothueghregthuelationof
House. The Bills
law
weir,er
processes
es
the common
in England, Ireland, and Scotland, the leading object bring to
m +lre parties domiciled in either of the three kingdoms, who
might have contracted debts in any of those in which they
might not at that time be residing, legally responsible for
their debts—that is, that any one resisting in Ireland
and Scotland, who had contracted debts in England, should
be made amenable to their creditors in the latter
place. But the bills had another object—the doing away
with certain onerous and expensive processes that interfered
in pursuing parties out of the jurisdiction of any one of the
three kingdoms to the others. To the latter provisions of the
Bills he subscribed to the fullest extent, but to the
other part he did not. The Bills were introduced
last year, since which considerable opposition had been
raised against them by the Atterney.Gencral for Ireland
and the Lord Advocate for Scotland. As the Ministry
did not take up the Bills be entrusted them to the
Honourable and Learned Member for Cirencester who
att,-nded to them with exceeding great care and assiduity.
He had had several communications with the Noble and
Learned Lord who introduced the Bills to the other House of
Parliament; and when the Bills were passed and sent
down to this House, the Noble and Learned Lord requested
him (Mr. Sergeant Murphy) to take charge of them.
He did so, but in the meantime, however, he found
that a great opposition to the Bills was raised in va-
rious quarters ; and he himself received several remonstrances
from persons in Ireland who were not connected with any poli-
tical party. Amongst other objections to the Bill, it aas stated
to him that great numbers of persons fiom Ireland were
obliged to come to this country upon temporary business,
and that it would be a great hardship to them to be dragged
into the English courts. He had also received remonstrances
from persons of the legal profession in Ireland, pointing out
the hardship and inconveniences to which they would he sub-
jected by being obliged to follow their causes from their own
jut isdictien into this country, under such circumstances as the
Bill contemplated. Accordingly, he did communicate with
the :Noble arid Learned Lord requesting that the care of the
Bills should betaken out of his hands. In answer he received a
letter from the Noble and Learned Lord, without any date ;
but as he received it on the lst of May he supposed it was
written about that time.—( Laughter.) He subsequently re-
ceived a second letter, which seemed as if it were intended to
express some change of the Noble Lord's mind.—(A, laugh.)
He would, with the permission of the House, read those letters.
The first was as follows :—" My dear Alurphy—l think it is
quite right, that you should wash your hands of the obnoxious
Bills."—( Laughter. ) It was on the authority of that letter
that he (Mr. Sergeant Murphy )afterwards stated in the Haute,
in the words of the Nola'.o and Learned Lord, that he has
"washed his hands" of the Bills. The second letter began thus :
" My dear M urphy—Pet sonally, I do not care one farthing about
the Bills, but I cannot see that there is any occasion for the
opposition to them, for I do tint think that they would inflict
any of the alleged hardships." After the receipt of that
ietter, he (Mr. Sergeant Murphy) entrusted the Bills to his
Honourable and Learned Friend, the Member for Ciren-
cester, with whom he consulted es to what chances
the Bills would have of being carried. It seeneed. to them
that all the Noble and Learned Lord cared about was the
decent interment. of the hills—( A laugh)—and it seemed to
hitn now that what the Noble and Learned Lord chiefly re-
gretted was, that they had not been decently interred.—
( Laughter.) He (Mr. Sergeant Murphy) did not wish to
infringe upon any privilege of Parliament; but, in the way in
which the usages of the House allowed him, he would shortly
allude to what had been said elsewhere.—( Hear, hear.)
The Noble Lord hist said those Bills had been dealt with with-
out his authority. The Member for Cirencester would con-
firm his statement that he had distinctly told the Noble Lord
that those Bills could not be passed during the present
session, and
He could not be blind to the fact that the
the Noble Lord had assented to what he
ha
statement which had gone forth, though made in a moment
stated.
t
of jocular hilarity, was calculated to do serious evil any
him especially. The impression out of doors was that be
bad committed a gnu breach of aonfidenze, tad betnyea.lia