The Sun.
London, England, 1828-04-04 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARCHMENT.

HOUSE OP LORDS, APRIL 3.

The Royal Ascent was given by Commission to
the Applimtio'.l in Aids Bill, and to several other
Bills.

The ;,orris Commis'aioners were the LORD
CHAN:IELLOR, the Earl of SUAFTESBURY, and Lord
ELJABoßouctt.

MESSAGE FROM THE COMMONS.
Sir ALEXANDER GRANT, and others from the
Commons, communicated, by their desire, a copy of
the report of the Selid Committee, appointed by
the Commons in tbe- last Session, to consider the
state of the pauper lunatics in the county of
Middlesex, and of lunatic asylums, together with the
minutes of the evidence talon before such Com-
mittee.

The same Messengers communicated an abstract
of the returns of the sums of money levied and ex-
pended for the relief of the poor in the several
counties in England and. Wales, during the year
ending the 25th of March, 184.
The same Messengers bro,ught up the Stamp
Duties Bill, which way subserviently read a first time.

LIFE ANNrJITIES.
Mr. Crater, from I,he T'masury, presented a Copy
of a Letter from Mr. Pinlaystan, on the. subject of
Life Annuities.
On the motion of Le.,d CANDOR, several Re-
turns were ordered,-
.especting the proceedings in the
Court of Ch,ar.ce.sy,
and also respecting the number
of causes wlll
:n k.attie before the Court of the great
Session in. vellef.
Mr. 'Atewrisori Clarke presented office copies of
Pr°r.eeclings; in the ecclesiastical side of the Supreme
("Ault Of C
al cutt a , as evidence in support of Sweet-
naan's Divorce Bill.
r,:ancis Clarke. and Mr. Ellison proved the hand-
writing of the proper officers who attested the pro-
ceedings.
The Earl of MALME SB URY moved that the copy
of the report from the Pauper Lunatic Asylum might
be printed.—Ordered.

Lord HOLLAND presented a petition from cer-
tain friends of religious liberty residin at Tadbury,
Staffordshire, praying for a repeal of the Test Act.
Thi: Noble Lord also presented a pet :ioii from the
Pr, )testan t Dissenters of Long Buck by Northampton-
-I'F re, praying for the repeal of the; orporation and
'Pest Acts; and a similar petition from Protestant
Thissenters, residing in and near the city of Glom-
e ester. The Noble Lord then gave notice, that on
'Thormgy, April 17, he should move the second read-
ing of the Corporation and Test Acts Repeal Bill,
mid their Lordships were accordingly ordered to
be summoned for that day.

The Earl of ELDOS presented a petition from
parish of St. Martin's, Leicester, against the
Repeal of the Corporation and Test Acts.

Lord CALTHORPE presented a petition from
tie Vicar, Churchwardens, and other parish
officers of Saint Pancras, complaining that there
was no provision in the County Lunatic Asylum
13i11 for allowing parish officers to have ac-
cess to the asylums, for the purpose of examining,
from time to time, the condition of the pauper
lunatics sent from their respective parishes.—Order-
ed to be printed.
Mr. Mason presented returns of the Salaries and
Peons granted by the East India Company.—
L'ild on the table.

Lord STANLEY and others from the Commons,
brought up the Ashton-under-Line Improvement
Bill, and two other private Bills.

Mr. ESTCOURT and others also brought up private
Bills, which were all read a first time.

ADJOURNMENT OF THE HOUSE.

On the motion of the Earl of SHAFTESBURY
their Lorthihips adjourned to Tuesday, the 15th of
April.

HOUSE OF COMMONS, Arm S.

Mr. Stratford Canning took his sent, to-night, in
the Hone of Commons, as Member for New Sarum.

The SPEAKEIt look the Chair this day at ten
Ininutes before four o'clock, and soon after the De-
puty Usher of the Black Rod appeared at the bar
to request the attendance of this House in the Houie
of Peers, to hear the Royal Assent given by Coln-
-mission to several Bills. The Speaker and several
of the Members then present withdrew, and were
absent for ten minutes. When they returned, the
Speaker informed the House that his Majesty's As-
sent had been given by Commission to various pri-
vate and public Bills, (for which see Lords' report)
Mr. Johnson, from the Chief Secretary's Office in
Ireland, presented papers relative to Vestries in
Ireland.

Mr. Henderson, from the King's Remembrance'.
Office, presented papers from that Office.
Mr. BURRELL brought up the Report on the
Horsham Roads Bill, which was read a third time
and passed.
Mr. Alderman WOOD presented a petition froth
the inhabitants of Poplar, praying to be heard by
Counsel against certain clauses in the East India
Dock Bill.
Lord STANLEY moved the third reading of the
Ashton-tinier-Line Improvement Bill, which was ac-
cordingly read a third time and passed.
Mr. C. PALLMER brought up the Re-
port of the Committee on the Surrey and Sus-
!•ex Roads Bill. The Committee stated that the
Standing Orders of the House had been complied
.with.

Sir J. YORKE presented two petitions, one
from Greenwich, and the other from Woolwich,
against the Bill for employing the Oreeowich Poor
/in the roads. •

Lord FITZROY SOMERSET presented a pe-
tition from the Inhabitants of Truro, against the Re-
tail Brewers Bill.

Mr. W. PEEL brought up returns of the num-
ber of Ecclesiastical Courts in the United Kingdom;
also various papers relative to public accounts.
Mr. W. PEEL presented returns of the fees
taken by the clerks of the peace in the several coun-
ties of England and Wales.

Sir J. GRAHAM asked if the Right Hon. Gen-
teman (Mr. Secretary Peel) intended to have a
commission to inquire into the fees taken by Magis-
trates, as he had intimated in the course of last
Se,ssion.

Mr. Secretary PEEL said that in many instances
those fees were taken under the impression that they
were perfectly legal, but still they ought to be put
a stop to. He had only one objection to a commis-
sion which was the expense, and he rather thought
the Hon. Gentleman had better, in the first instance
move for returns of the fees taken.
Mr. LITTLETON said that the Magistrates of
Stafford had agreed to a resolution, stating that
they were most anxious to have such au enquiry
take place.
Mr. PEEL said the greatest anxiety had been
expressed by the magistrates, particularly. in the
counties of Stafford and Warwick, that an inquiry
should be instituted into the fees received by their
clerks, in order that the fees which they were war-
ranted in taking should be determined.
The returns were then laid on the table, and or-
dered to be printed..

Mr. M. :FITZGERALD presented a petition
from the Roman Catholics of Munsterhaven in favour
of Catholic Emancipation: The lion. Member
stated that he presented this petition in the absence
of his lion. Friend the Member for Kildare. The
Hon. Member presented a similar petition from the
parish of Bally Longford, county of Kerry,
Mr. PLAN TA brought up a return of the number
of ballast ships which passed through the Sonnd
frcin the Baltic during the last year. -
FRIENDLY SOCIETIES'
.13ILL.

Mr. Alderman WOOD presented a petition from
a Society called the Associated Brethren, agalOst
the Bill for the regulation of Friendly Societies.
A Message from the 'Lords announced their
Lordships' assent to several private Bills.
Mr. HUME presented petitions from different
Benefit Societies in the Metropolis, against the
Friendly Societies' Regulation Bill.
Mr. HUME presented a petition from a Mr.

Butler, praying the House to pass a Bill to prevent
the impressment of seamen. The\ petitioner also
*prayed the House to institute ;t.n inquiry into the
laws affecting Seamen in tile Merchant Service.
Mr. SPRING RICE biciught in a Bill for regu-
lating the xights of Executors and Testators.
Sir JAMES GRAHAM said, he was about to
move far some returns, to which he understood there
was no objection. He wished to take this oppor-
tunity, however, of asking a question of a Right
Hon. Gentleman, whom he saw in his place, and
whose statement on the Corn Laws, the other night,
was extremely satisfactory in every point but one.
On that point he (Sir J. Graham) was now anxious
to have some explanation. The point to which he
alluded was the mode by which the averages were
intended to be taken. By the former Bill the
averages were to be struck weekly from the price of
the week before; but the change in that respect, by
the Bill of this Session, was, the averages were to
be struck quarterly from the prices of the six weeks
preceding the 15th of February, the 15th of May,
the 15th of August, and the 15th of November in'
each year. There was also a change as to the mode
of striking the averages from returns made from certain
towns and citiel in England and Wales, with power
to his Majesty by an order in Council, to change
from time to time the towns and cities, and to sub-
stitute cities and towns i❑ Scotland and Ireland.—
The question which he wished to ask was whether
it was the intention of his Majesty's Government to
have the averages taken in pursuance of the Act of
Parliament as it now stands, or if it was the inten-
don of Government to makd any alteration, what
was the nature of such alteration. His motion was,
that there be laid before the House a Return
of the average price of British Corn and Grain.every
week, front the Ist of August, 1827, to the Ist of
March, 1828, distinguishing in separate columns li
the averages from the cities and towns in England
and Wales, made pursuant to the Act 7th and Bth
Geo. IV., and also the Averages from the Returns
of other cities and towns in the United Kingdom,
nominated by his Majesty's Orders in Council.
Mr. CHARLES GRANT said he had no objec-
tion to the motion of the Hon. Member, for lie

thought it right that the returns called for should
be laid before the House. He was happy that
an opportunity had been afforded of entering into
the explanation which the question put by the
Honourable Member demanded. It was the in-

tention of the Government to leave the whole
question relating to the article of wheat just as
as it stood before the clause in the last Act. That
was, it was his intention to propose that the ave-
rages should be taken as they had been last year,
every six weeks. That was the way in which the
UM passed the Lords last session. This House,
however, then thought it better that the averages
should be taken from week to week. That clause
was, however, altered in the Lords, making the
average to be taken every six weeks. The conse-
I quence was, that a partial Bill was pas,,ed in this
House, by which it was provided, that from the
Ist of July the averages should be taken every six
weeks. That principle it was the intention of the
Government to apply to the present Bill.—(Hear,
hear.)—The Bill last session, which was lost in the
Lords, was so altered there, that it provided for the
taking of the averages as if under the old system.
The partial average Act was in consequence passed
in this House. Indeed, he could not avoid mention-
ing that a great deal of confusion had been the ine-
vitable result.—(Hear.)—The returns of the ave-
rages under that Act were those which were in-
tended to apply to the duties under the new Bill in-
troduced last session, but that Bill was so altered
in the Lords, that the averages were made to apply
-to the present prohibitory duties ; while, in the
mean time, this partial average Bill was passed, and •
thus considerable confusion was created. That Act
must be repealed, and in the Bill which it was
his (Mr. Grant's) intention to introduce, he would
propose that the averages should be taken in the
same manner and under the same regulations as in
the warehousing Bill of last session. With '
respect to the towns and cities in which the averages
are to be taken it was the intention of the Govern-
' meat to have included among the returning towns
English towns only, and to exclude Scotch
and Irish towns. In the resolutions submitted the
other night, there was a trivial error which he
wished now to correct. In his (Mr. Grant's)
statement, he had said that no alteration respecting
the duties upon barley and oats would be made from
that proposed in the Bill of last session. The co-
pying clerk, however, in the first edition of the reso-
lutions, put the Winchester measure in the place of
the Imperial measure, and the consequence was, that
the duty on barley and oats, according to the pre-
sent resolutions, appeared to be lower than that pro-
posed in the resolutions of last year. He supposed
there would exist no objection, although the reso-
lutions had been printed, to have the error correct-
ed, as he intended to propose only the same duty on
these articles as that proposed last year.
The returns were then ordered.

Mr. DAWSON moved that there might be laid
before the House the name of the officer in Dublin
Castle, to whom, and the day of the nionth when,
an abstract of the accounts of the presentments made
by the Grand Juries of the county of Monaghan,
and city of Dublin, under 49th Geo. 111., and 7th
Geo. IV., was delivered; and ,also a similar account
as to the presentments of the Grand Jury of Lon-
donderry, under 49th Oleo. 111. His object was
to teach these gentlemen that they must not neglect
those returns which were made pursuant to an Act
of Parliament.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
suggested' to his Right Hon. Friend, that the de-
linquent may not be the officer in Dublin Castle,
whose name the motion called for, but the officer in
those respective places, whose duty it was to make
those returns.--i'dotion agreed to.