The Sun.
London, England, 1817-03-22 00:00:00

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[PErc SF. VI'S NtNc E.

been the mere circumstance of going to
ful meeting, as his Nobteyricmi seemed to imm.
gine, he ailuaitted, that the punishment' would be
too severe : but it was not the going to the meets
lug, but the refusing to disperse, when com-
manded, that rendered the persons so disobeyit g
liable to the punishment of death.

Lord HOLLAND repeated, that the punilhment
was too severe for the mere act of peaceably
itl the case ot•the riot act, the pe,alty
was incurred, not by the mete act of remaining,
but that of remaining riotously and funiultottsly,
and to the disturbance of-the public peace.
The Lodz) CHANCELLOR said, there was a dig.
tinction certainly between an unlawful uasembly
and a riotous or romans assembly but, under the
present circumstances, the punishment of death
might to be here retained.

The amendment was negatived without a
division.

Some discussion arose about making Proclamq-
thm with a loud voice, and these words were ob-
jected tc, ; but :the LORD CPIANCELLott awl Lord
ELLENBoa6UGH contended that they ought to be
retuine.l; observing, that the persons at the 24Ieet-
ing.ought, it possible, to hear the cominand to
disperse. The words were retained, with bottle
alteration as to their place.
• Lord BuSKINa called the attention of the Com-
mittee to the, provision which, by its wording,
enabled the Magistrates to decide upon what
tended to excite hatred and contempt for the
-person of his Majesty, or his successors," &c.,
which, in fact, would give them the power of de-
ciding upon a question of libel, a power which
the law itid not entrust even to the Judges of the
land, who were authorised only to state their opi-
nions of- the same to a Jury of the Country. No
ina,i was more desirous than himself of iesisting
all attacks upon the character of Parliament ; but
the clause, he thOught, gave too great a latitude
Of power to a Magistrate, .respect to this
arduous and important question. lie ti.erefore
moved to omit, from tim clause those words which
went to invest a Magistrate with what be con-
ceived to be stick a power.
Lord Hota.kiar thought it Would be preferable
to leave the whole of the• clause in question on;
of the Bill, and, in consequence, .
•
Lord EasKtstti agreed to withdraw his Amend-
ment. in order to give place to the Motion of his
Noble Friend.

Lord ELLENBOROUGH saw the effect of the
Clause in a different tight, and argued, that at.
though it gave the Magistrates the power of (Hi-
persinc the unlawful assemblage, it by no means
conferred on them the power of deciding upon any
question of libel ; but some degree of summary
power, in such eases, it was obviously nectr.ssary
VitaiNettilltin IMA- UU 1111.

beets urged against it. If,' Isomever, any words
could be suggested to make it clearer, or to re-
move the scruples of the Noble Lord who had
spoken on the subject, either by a provision for
making the persons who issued the notice liable
to be prosecuted by a due course at law, which
they certainly were as the clause now stood ; or
for preventing persons from being so far misled,
as to 1158610'8e under the ootice, r for both 'of
those objects, such alteration m ght be made by
ttay of rider,, on the third reading of the Bill.
With respect to the possibility or a notice of-the
nature referred to 'ist the clause, be agi cell with
the Noble Baion who spoke last but one, that
it was not so very improbable an occurrence as
some Noble Lortk had supposed. lutteed, he bad
sects a notice'for a Meeting, in the neighbourhood
of the metropolis; previous to the 2d of December,
which was of s highly blameable nature. "It Was
true, es his Noble and Learned Friend bad said,
tbAt the notice might be made the subject of pro-
secntitin on its being issued, and the persons sign-
ing it brought to punishment ; but in'the Mean
time the meeting would be held, Before even in-
structions could be given to an Attorney to pro-
ceed, all the mischief, which it was the object of
the clause to prevent, might be completed. No
more power, then, was therefore given than wms
absolutely necessary at a time like the present,
when wicked and artful men were seeking,
by- speeches .and publications, to undermine;
the principles of the people ; because they
knew that, unless they first succeed in shak-
ing the morality end religion of the Country, and
banishing the best feelings which glowed in Bri-
ish hearts, they could not hope to overthrow the
Constitution. With regard to the act for the sus-
pension of the Habeas Corpus, which a Nisble
Lord opposite had considered us aggravating the
enactments of the present Bill, he must ob-erse,
that that act did not deprive persons of the right
of being bailed, except in cases of committal on
Charges of high treason and treasonable prac-
tices. let the present state of -things, no pre—
cautionary measures had been adopted beyond
what were absolutely -necessary. If a system
was acted upon in the country, tending to make
public meetings a means of overturning the Go-
vernment, the. persons having such object in
view would laugh at the punishment at their
notices by the usual course of law. No feeble
measures would do. If their Lordships thought
it right, that the religion and morality of the
country should be destroyed, and the Governtnent
disratipected, they would leave the law as it now
stood. If, on the contrary, they wished to secure
the inestimable blessings the country enjoyed,
they would not hesitate to invest the Magistrates
with the stronger powers proposed to be given by
the Bill. In so doing, they would only imitate
what had often been done by their ancestors,
namely, to suspend their liberties for a Short time,

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in ord .r 14) have the full eiljoyment of them for

evr,- • 'Pe.
Lord :101.1.AN1) did not see how the particular
ro, g"" Its'this elanße, anti defended by the
Not le an Lem tmeil Lou tr (Chancellor), were ne-
cegaty. iie..(Lord rtnirely diisented front
the ruse ,100 gave one Magistrate, merely upon
Ilk owl) diirretlon, authority to disperse a meeting.
Lord tLtisKTNL. %VHS Of t 114.! same opinion.
144,rd,Gattrivit.hr. repeated some of his former
observiit iqns. He wished that the meeting should
Itieve,,,u4t.jkalkat its.:assetiabling.tvas
.• ,The Earl of trAttroitttme suggested that some
alteration shotild he made in the clause that re-
Iltyd to the giving of lectures ) and alto soote
furt'.;.cr tli!tetio.ion thellonse testoned, and he
itcport ;if the Committee was ordered to he re-
re:ved t,n Montkay, to which thy the House ad-
jOurned.
•