The Sun.
London, England, 1845-04-03 00:00:00

MAYNOOTH.
Mr. DIVETT presented a petition from Exeter against
the increased grant to the Roman Catholic College of
Maynooth.
Sir G. SMYTH presented nutnerens petitions from
parishes in the county of Essex also against the grant.
Mr. PLUMPTRE presented a great number of peti-
tions to the eame effect from parishes in Kent, Bucking-
ham, Berkshire, York, and other counties.
THE BOARD OF TRADE—CROYDON RAILWAY.
Mr. DODI) rose to move, according to notice, that
the report of the Board of Trade against the Bill in-
tended to be brought in by the Croydon Railway Com
pang, to authorise the construction of a railway to Ash •
ford, be referred back to the Board of Trade for recon-
sideration.

The SPEAKER said, that before the Hon. Gentleman
proceeded with his motion, the House should decide
whether that motion could come on during the
time of private business. This was the first
case of the kind that had occurred, and it was his (the
Speaker's) opinion, that the motion involved a question
as to the conduct of the Board of Trade in the discharge
of a public duty. He, therefore, thought that it should
be brought on at the time of public business.
Mr, II AWES trusted that the House would take this
matter into its serious consideration. With great
d.-ference to the opinions advanced by the Speaker, he
(Mr. Hawes) conceived that, if they were acted upon, it
would be imposing a very great restriction on the pro-
gress of private Mils. The reports which the Board of
Trade made, he understood, were only fur the information
of the House, and he should wish to know how these indi-
viduals could proceed with this Bill if they were not allowed
to question the accuracy and value of the Board which had
decided against them. If this opinion were acted upon
it was perfectly clear it would stop the further progress
of this Bill. He thought it would be in his power
to show that the decisions of the Board of Trade
were not entitled to the confidence of the House, and
under these circumstances he thought it better for the
House now to decide whether the Board of Trade should
thus be allowed efficiently to arrest the progress of pri-
vate Bills.

Lord G. SOMERSET, without entering into the
question of the principle sought to be established by the
Hon. Member for Lambeth, certainly thought that this
was a most improper time for bringing the subject before
the notice of the House. It was quite true that if the
Hon. Member could get the House to support the
opinions he had advanced it would be most desirable
that the question should be at once settled. But the
House should remember that the reports of the Board of
Trade were nothing more than an opinion given upon cer-
tain schemes by a number of gentlemen ; and whether
these schemes were reported against or not, it was at the
option of the supporters to proceed with those schemes.
lie trusted that the matter would be allowed to go on in
the proper order, and that, therefore, the Hon. Member
would not proceed with his motion now.
Lord HO WICK said that the. House was placed in a
most anomalous position with regard to the Board of
Trade. Hon. Members might recollect that during the last
session it was decided that the reports made by the Board
of Trade should be referred to the Committees on the Billa
to which those reports had reference. But in this session
they had gene somewhat further. On the 4th of March
it was decided that A hen railway Bills and projects had
been reported on, these reports should be referred
o the single Committee, and under this re-
solution the Bill to which the Honourable
Member alluded, and the report upon that Bill
would go before the Committee appointed to examine
into the group of schemes of which that Bill formed a
portion ; and the Committee, therefore, in dealing with
the whole subjk ct, would reject or approve in a great mea-
sure upon the report of the Board of Trade. He begged
to remind the House that the resolution by which these
schemes were referred to single Committees, was moved
by the Noble Lord (Lord Granville Somerset) and
agreed to by the House at the time of private business.
He thought it a great injustice to refuse a hearing to this
motion at the present time, for if the Hon. Member were
not allowed to bring it forward now, he might not be
nabled to do so for a very considerable time. In the
meantime, however, the private Committee might be
appointed ; it might proceed to the consideration of this
Bill, and to the report of the Board of Trade, which this
petition complained of. They ought, therefore, to be
given an opportunity of stating their ground of complaint
before the Committee was appointed. It would be folly
to refer the report back to the Board of Trade, because,
as the Noble Lord himself admitted they had not time
even now to get through their own proper business.
Sir GEORGE CLERK said it was not his intention
to follow the Noble Lord in the course of reasoning he
had adopted. The question simply was, whether this matter
ought to be brought forward at the time of public business.
He would not go into the details ; but he should say
that the uniform practice of the House was, that railway
matters should be disposed of with the private business.
But this question did not fall within that rule. As it
touched the character of a public board, he did not
conceive that it should be heard with the private business.
Mr. LABOUCHERE confessed that he was inclined
to take the view of the Right Honourable Baronet
opposite, in preference to the opinion of the
Honourable Gentleman who sat beside him. He could
not help thinking that this resolution differed in
its nature from any that he recollected, and was sure
that it would take the House, some considerable time to
discuss it. It could not be considered or disp,sed of as
the private business of the House as it effected the con-
duct of a public board, and would open the door to other
and perhaps more serious petitions. If it were true that
the Board of Trade had hastily and negligently
reported on this Bill, he thought that a discus-
sion on the matter in this House in this mode
would be perfectly unsatisfactory. He was of
opinion thet the House would do well to adhere to these
rules which they had hitherto observed, and wished that
the House would dismiss the Bill.
Mr. DUNCOMBE did not coincide with the reasons
offered by the Hon. Gentleman who had just sat down,
for resisting the Bill. His complaint was that more peti-
tions could be presented to the House against the reports
of the Board of Trade ; but if there were petitions of
that description presented, it was the duty of that House
to hear them, and it was right that they should be heard.
In fact the discussions upon this question had been the
cause of creating very great dissatisfaction in the public
mind against this department of the Board of Trade—
(" Hear, hear," from Colonel Sibthorp)—and that dis-
satisfaction would continue to increase if this inquiry
should not be gone into.—(Hear, hear.) But
the Right Honourable Gentleman opposite said,
"let the Committee decide upon this question ;" but
surely the Committee had quite enough to do already,
without imposing this additional duty upon them—
( Hear, hear)—but if it should be referred to them, see
the loss of time that would follow : there would be
counsel on the one hand, and counsel on the other,
and in fact there would be no end of the labour they
ould have to perform.—(Hear, hear.) Then,
with regard to what had been said about not
allowing matters of this sort to interfere with
private business, surely the Right Hon. Gentleman
should recollect that their petitions had been allowed to
he presented and printed during private business ; and
therefore the time for bringing the subject forward here
eas the time during which private business was before
the House, in order to hear all just complaints and do
jestice to those who had charges to make against the
public department of the Board of Trade.—(bear.) If
those complaints were not to be brought forward now,
he would like to know when they would ?—at the close
of the session?—up stairs, when all the falsehoods put
forward on one side should have been heer.l ?—(Hear,
hear.) lie would say that there were very grave and
serious accusations made against the railway depart-
ment of the Board of Trade, and he was aware that
they could be supported, and when they were heard it
would be found that very great injury had been done to
many persons connected with railroads ? and therefore
he did think that the proper time to hear those parties
was during the private business. On those grounds, he
begged to move that the Hon. Member for Maidstone be
now heard.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. GISBORNE conceived that Hon. Gentlemen
opposite had got themselves into a great mess by the
manner in which they had conducted this proceeding.—
( Hear.) The present was only one of a great many cases
of this kind, lend they were all owing to parties
having a duty entrusted to them which they were in-
competent to deal with.—(Hear.) By referring these
complaints to a Select Committee who bad already 23
independent railways to deal with, it would
be found that this addition to their labours could
not be satisfactorily denit with by them. His opi-
nion was that the case ought to be heard. Tue
Hon. Gentleman ought to be allowed to make his state-
ment, and should the report of the Board of Trade
afterwards prove unworthy of further notice, it would
be the duty of the House at once to cancel it.
Colonel SIBTHORY would defy any body of gentle-
men, no matter however diligent they might be, to
come to a correct decision within six months of a vast
num'.:er of railway schemes, and he should, therefore,
support the motion of the Hon. Member for Finsbury.
Sir G. GREY said that he could not altogether coin-
cide in the opinion of the Hon. Member for Maidstone
(Mr. Dodd), and the position which he had taken.
Whatev,r mtht be the error committed by the Board of
Trade in their tactics, he believed their opinions to be
hoeestly adopted. Whatever decision the House
might come to on the case of the present petition, he
trusted that the object of the petitioners wuull not be
prejudiced thereby. It could hardly be expected the Board
could come to any sufficiently considered decision within
a month or six weeks. At the same time he must say
that the decision of the Board of Trade was not the de-
cision of the House of Commons, and he thought that
that decision, whether it militated against or was in
favour of any particular scheme, ought nut to prevent
tanyee.
express discussioniie
declaration
shouldu paolia it when it came before a Commit-
soof
remindtheth
eHouse.hthtelmeteeit wasntof a
that any
facts transpiring which Board,affected
their decision, that they
should reconsider it, and republish it in the Gazette.
Thee was nothing to prevent e r
decision within the present session.eonsideration of that
reports were not considered at the And as these
usual hour for
public business, he trusted that if the
motion
Hon. Gentleman was not acceded to, that ermstance
of the
would not prejudice the petitioners in Committee.
Mr. DODD begged to thank the Right Hon.
Gentleman opposite for the interest he had evinced
in the object which he had the honour of bacdnegs
ing before the House. He would also beg to
thank the Vice-President of the Board of Trade
for the suggestion which he had made with respect
to the republication of the reports of that Board in the
Gazette. If the House would consider that the peti•
tioners were 57 miles from London, and by the alteration
that they would be brought within an hour and a-
half
The SPEAKER must remind the Hon. Member that
he had no right at present to go into the merits of the
petition.
Mr. BORTHWICK thought that the present diffi•
culty arose from the constitutiou of the Railway De.