The Sun.
London, England, 1826-12-06 00:00:00

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recta'', the Chief anatice declared, not only that arch week,
tions were contrary to an existing Act of Parliament, but illegal
at common law, as leading to mischievous conssqunmo, ang
encouraging gambling. Nevertheless, after the declaration of
thisols
oofpirnhieonlanodf,thheadlasew; trteemvseerlyvz
tokebrareolthriek:airstrois, tfohre
tlh.eegistialake-
of filling their own pockets, and yet did not scruple to hold seats
in Parliament,_—(Hear, hear, )__h any Hon. MeMber wauld get
up in his place, and say that an individual who had so' conduCtigt
himself was fit to sit in the Chair of Committees, it was more
than would be believed by any dieinteretted man in the kingdom.
—(Hear, hear.)—Complimenta, though sincere, would be worth
little from him; but he felt confident that Ministers would not
countenance any such proceeding. The question *ruched bath
sides of the House—which party was moat deeply involved he tfiti
not pretend to decide; he had but one duty to perform, and he
was sorry that ere now, Government had not taken up the inkjet as
a matter of national concern. It appeared that an Act of Parliament'
was to be applied fur; but, before he noticed this circumstantes.
he ought to mention, that when Mr. Flattery cams over, the job
was to put the whole 15,0001. into the pocket* of only three or
four persons; that plan, however, was not thought practicable,
as other gentlemen might have some little hankering after the
money. It was consequently resolved to divide it into smaller
shares; and, as some parties for whom it was intended would not
take it, and others were abroad, their proportion was left in the
hands of one Honourable Gentleman. One Member of this Heuer,
received 2,500/. of the money, besides 1,22151, for shares sold,
although he had not paid a single deposit upon them. This feel
was sworn to by the Clerk of the Company.—.(Cries of " name,
name !" here interrupted the Honourable Member.)—He referred
to the Chairman, Sir William Congreve, upon whose shareell/St
for premium was due, and to this hour had not been paid—(ltelffe
hear.)—The House would see how the matter stood. An Act of
Parliament was iu progress, and a Member who wes to hi called
upon to decide upon it put this large sum into his pocket.
while his brother-in-law obtained 1,000/. and another of hie
agents 1,000/. mme. ' How many other agents he might
have, and how much they obtained, he (Mr. W.) knew not.
Under these circumstances, was not the House in honour
hound to do something to free itself from this reproach...4%mb
cheering.)---A fouler stain bad never been east upon Parlia-
ment, and, compared with it, the prenottatiou of 1,000/. to Sir J.
Trevor for the Auckland Bill was nothing. Yet Mr. Hutchins
son, who had received twenty guineas, had been expelled, on the
ground that the receipt of a bribe was subversive of the character'
and independence of a Member. He -Would now proceed td
another point, in reference to another Company. In that instanter
:14 Members of Parliament had 20,000 shares divided between
them, and a majority of the Committee upon the Bill introduced
consisted of Direc'tnrs and Sharcholders.—(Hear, helm !)—A
needless degree of sympathy seemed lately to have been shewri for
Private Committee., and it was contended that those who
arraigned their impartiality were a little too severe in their cern,
sines ; but could any terms express the indignation that ought to
he felt by every honest man, when it was found that the tribunal
to decide upon the-merits of a measure consisted chiefly of those
who were Directors or noteholders of the Scheme the Bill was to
carry into execution ? The thirty-four Members , had accepted
Lad sold their shines When they were at a premium, and bad re-
need to pay the deposits upon them when they were at a dis-
munt.—(Hear, hear, hear !)(Several Members here inter-
flirted Mr. Waithman, to make some suggestions to him)...
He was much obliged to his Honourable Friends, but they
must excuse him if he proceeded in hie own way, as he could only
to one thing at a time—(Hear !) The Equitable Loon Company's
fill was solicited in this House, and upon that occasion a Petition
was presented, complaing of jobbing and illegal traffic in Shares,
Ind calling upon the House to institute an inquiry, which wee
refused. The Directors held out to the public that they were
own of the highest honour and character, and of the first conse-
quence ; and they had the audacity (it could only have been effect-
ed by misrepresentation and fraud) to prevail upon the Doke
of York to lend his name as the head and patron of the un-
dertaking. All knew the readiness of his Royal Highness to
lend his aid to any charitable purpose—(Hear,)—and it must have
been by pretences of this kind that he was imposed upon. Ceder
the mask of charity and general benev&eeee, what did the
promoters of this wheelie do ? On the 2d of April (they
ought to have chosen the let of April, All Fools' Day),
they published a paragraph, which, after dilating on the pro-
fits and rascality of pawnbrokers,' proceeded to laud their own
humanity, benevolence, and piety. They bad no private ends,
hut merely the public good in view ; and yet, ludicrous as it
might appear, while they heaped all sorts of abusive epithets on
pawnbrokers for obtaining such excessive and fraudulent re-
muneration, they declared that they should theme lees be able to
pay a handsome dividend to the shareholders out of the sale of un-
redeemed pledges only. It was held nut to the public that, for
hatter security, each Director was to hold 300 shales, but when a
premium could be obtained upon the sale of them, the qualification
was reduced to only SO shares. On the 2d of April it was also
asserted, that there was it demand for 8,000 shares more than ex-
isted." Fresh shares were therefore issued, and a week was taken
to make a fair distribution of them ; and out of 40,000 shares in
the whole, no less than 31,500 were divided among the Directors
and two of the officers of the Cempany. The rest were divided
among stock-brokers, - persons connected with newspapers, and
others. He would broadly assert, because he was possessed of the
most accurate information on the point, that twenty of the Direc-
tors up to this hour bad not paid the deposits on their shares..
How could any man, he would ask, dare to go to a Company sod
-ask for a hundred sharee that he might sell them at a plemium of
t 0 per Cent., and obtain 400 shares from another concern of the
same kind, the deposits upon $OO of which sere yet due how
him ? [The Hon. Gentleman at this part of his speech exhibited
to the House from his pocket the very shares on which an Hon.
Member had qualified himself sea Director of one of these Com-
panies, and which shares he had sold.] He had had some conver.
sarion with one of the Directors of the Equitable Loan Company,
who admitted that the scheme was a bad one, that • it was badly
conducted, but that he had cleared 12001. by his shares.--
Though he had disposed of them, he fairly owned ' himself
still bound to take care of the interests of the parties to whom he
had sold them, and when be (him. Waithman) reminded him that
it would have been better if he had returned the money, the Di-
rector could not by any means concur in the necessity or wisdom
of such a proceeding.—(Hear.)—When the Bill wet brought
into Parliament, he (Mr. Waithman) had told the promoters that
it WAS impossible for them to carry it ; and what was their an-
swer ? They showed him a list of the Directors, and told him
that so many were in the House of Commons on the Ministerial
aide, and so many on the Opposition side; and, what was of still
more importance, they had secured the Saints.—(Lond laughter.)
—They relied upon this advantage, and the ParhamentaryDirec-
tors were attached to the undertaking precisely in proportion to
the sum of money they obtained for the shares which were given
to them. One Hon. Member, indeed, had declared, "so help him
Heaven !" that he was ignorant of anything improper in any of
the transactions, and .that he was bound by his °Me! to watch

over the iaterebts of the proprietors. What he (Mr. 'Weidman)
had already stated would give a fair, and not an exaggerated,
%ample of schemes of this nefarious description : he might,
indeed, go into a mass of detail, but it %would not render the

____.___ ......
subject inure clear, and the great difficulty with which he had
to contend was the accumulation of materials. He had been
encumbered by them, but he would not fatigue the House by
going further into a case, as he thought, sufficiently established.
If asked whether he desired to make the proposed inquiry ge-
neral, his answer would he that he wished to do no more than
*
was practicable. If a Committee were appointed, doubtless its
labours might he extended, but it ought only
and whenever a flagrant case was exposed, to investigate the
must crying abuses. Reports might be made from time to time,
it ought certainly to be
41104 to the bottom. Where a great public object wee in view,
lie trusted that he should be met by nothing like a mere techni-
cal objection.—(Hear, hear.).—He had furnished Ministers with
.
the names of the Committee he wished to have appoint4a, and
he could assure them that his sole guide had been a desire to
select those who had no personal feeling, and were wholly un-
connected with these gambling projects. With regard to the
case of the Honourable Gentlemen (gr. licogdeo), he could
assure hint with the utmost sincerity, that if it could he shoivn
that'he (Mr. W.) wait in error,
~o man would rejoice more than
putation. Until the chugs had been refitted' he should continue
himself that the Honourable Gentleman was freed front all int-
ma Who bed so mixed himself up with
of Opinion that an indirld
transactions
ought not to preside over the
Committees
occupying further time he
4 That a Select Committee 1* appointed to inquire
ss
of of
tthhois udo esu :Vpti ahut
should move. •
into the management, and prevent state of the Joint Stock
have been formed durthe ears ,
tPee a
tonrigli::h' 21 i.e.b dto report the same tot hg te House, with say
: Cepe,VilittttleB 1
r'n touching the conduct of any Member of 'this
IlatiOitrable House."
Mr. BROGDEN, with a considerable earnestness
of manner, begged leave to second the Motion,
The SPEAKER, alter having put the Question,
said, that he had received a letter front An Hon. Member, men-
tioned in the course of debate (Sir W. Coagcset), stattiug, that it
.
was utterly impossible for bins to attend at prow*, on amnia
of ill health, and enclosing the certificates of Dr. Paris and a

surgeon.
Mr. CANNING assured the Hon. Alderman that,
in manumit:nig his intention to move ak Atuenktioent, h. thttl