The Sun.
London, England, 1819-12-07 00:00:00

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TUESDAY. DECEMBER 7, 1819.

COURT OF COV \ION COUNCIL,.

Ye'ste'rtlaV,•ptirsitant to a Requisition pre'sented
tO the Loud Mayor, a Court of Common Council
was held, fur the purpose of conside; hig the pro.
ptiery rif Pet itioniog 'Parliament against the mea-
siirest no d n
WiI.IIAM RAWL:INs r;‘'serited the Report of
the 'Committee which hid beet) appointed last
Court (lay, to con'sider what should he done ;da-
tive t'o the Court Of Ardetmeir having instituted a
prosecntion.Which s'tated, that they thought such
ineasure'`wotild be 'productive Of great danger,
and therefore the 'Coranittee suggested the pro-
priety of its being rdtoge-he'r abandoned. The
Committee in the Meantime th'otight it their ditty
not to procee'il tilrthe'y saw wriat iva's dotie by the
Court of Aldermen.
The Report. Was, 'afte'r a shrift rfiscus'si4
agreed to.
Sir Wm. ItAWLINi muted iii t'it;""e ford blitv.e►s;,
lay the 'said Report before tile 'Court tlf
Xtiter men, which was also ag'reed to.
Etcke presented a Pet'itioo 'from the inba-.
bitants of the Ward of Crippleeat'e-Within, which,
related to the Mtoichester soutferers,- and to the
prostcw ion lately in wed against Mr. Alder--:
man IVaitionan and others. The l'eti.ion lirayed
for a sum to be allowed to the sufferers, and also
(hilt the proseetilion >hnrtld be dropt forthwith.
'Due Petition was milt-red to lie on the Table.
;‘ir FAVELL rose to addrs.ss the Court oil the:
subject of the Rtrpti,ition. EL-. trusted the time
had not arrived when the country was called to

choose between anarchy and despotism. The
kVoirthy Member commented an the baneful con-
sequences resulting from the Traverse Bill intro-
duced to Parliament by Lord Eldon, in the Honse-
ot Loris. He next alluded to the Search for Arms,
Hod to the Public Aleetiog,s Bolls, the latter of
which. he contended, would totally foonihilate
puhtlic meetings altogether ; while the former
tool% h way the grit tlege vi hick every English-
Man had, by the Bill of lights, to keep aims
io 'his house. Take away such rights, and it,
would be found that secret and vindictive men-,
',ores would be resorted to, as in other countries.
He next agreed in the -public indignation against
seditious and lilasphettroirspoblica:ions, while he
believed that Christianity was founded ou a rot:.h
against which the gates of ha could nor prevail.,
But at the same tionehris measure of 'restraining the!
liberty of the press would, in his opinion, be more
productive of evil than good. After some (millet ob-
servations on the (lest, nctive nature of the present
Bills in Parliament, lie was wily sati,fied that bad;
there beet aComtnit tee appointed last year to ingnire
into the state of the country, more good would
have- been done than by all the coercive plans
which could he adopted. He concluded by read-
ing the Resolutions and Petition.

r. TATLan secowleal (15, thatigh
It ino“ modernte Iu r!vrry atid a sucl
ivt II calcidafed produce

Mr. iitxoN opposed the motion, as his impres-
sioo was that -st:ch measures were absolutely ne-
cessary tor the protection of the property and
rights of vile stihjeet. /le contended it teas
those itinerant orantrs who went front place uo
Enlace th,,t were the persons who ought to he pit-
isited. oh,erved, that while reform was said

to be the panacea 'for all r if,, it WAS most rx

traolifinory titat not (VC[) Of its advocAtes aerce(

how tar such lel ni •rn shmild he exrehded.
Ivroved of the !tteastires prot.o,rd by

sters, lie at the same time hoped they ►voulrl he
continued for as short a period as was consistent
.w:th die safety of tie puhlre.
Mr. JAM S also opposed the petition, as taro-
gether an unnecessary interference on the part of
the Court.

Mr, Jur? and Mr. CuABLES PEARSON severally
addressed the Court. The buy!. Gentleman went
into »11 the provisions of the Bills now in Rit ha-

went, which he strongly condemned, to totally
Orstioetive of the liberty of the subject.
• Mr. JAC. KS opposed the Petition.
Mr. AV ELI, replied ; after which the Lord
Mayor, on it spew of baths, declared the Resolu-
tions to be cwrried in the affirmative.

A division was then called for, when the num-
bers vere declared to be—

Fur the Resulutioos,
Aldermen, 4—Commoners, 75—Tellers, 2
Against them,
Lord Mayor, I—Aldermen,s—Commoners, 58—Tellers, 2 CG

Majority for the Resolutions
The Court adioni !It'd of Fait-post live o'clock.

OUTRAGE oF T 14.8 RADICALS..--01) Satitrilay,last,
meeting, was called by the respectable house: holders
and inhabitants of the town of Kilharelian, with
siew of testifying their gratitude for the liberal
manner the Heriiors had come forward at their late
meeting, by a double assessment, to enable them to
create work for the niteitiploved operatives. Sir
William Napier made an osier of five hundred
pounds, provided the lieritors paid him 5 per Cent,
for two years, whi,:h was unanimously agreed to.
A number of :he most respectable householders
anti inLabitano; accordingly met in the SOtool-
ho,ise tot the above purpose, but before ptoreeding
to the bo,ibe'ss, bet ireen two and three huilit4ed
of the Hadical 'nets came in, who tu.--
haved in the most outrageous and insultiog man-

ner to the petv.etahle and well disposed people,
rthosing, io the most a oti4cioos told opprobrious
language, thelleritotA, Hurl, by hissing, showing,
and bowline, so intimidated them, thtit they %vete
vlad to make their Escape.—(Greenock .Idveriiser ,
Dec. 3 )

Wedneschy night, bet weep ten and eleven
o'clock, it being clear moon light, a squad of
Radical Ref (mite; 6,,. between 40 and 50, were
oioerved at du ill on the Calton G-reeth—Olusgatv
corn ier .)

P A Rl,l A E N T.

iIOtTSE 'OF LORDS, MONDAY, Dec. 6.

Soon after the Loa') CHANCELLOR h4d taken
' 5,.,il on the ‘Vtiolstiek, the ()4ths of Alleiflattee
awl 'Fidelity were administered at the Bar in, the
ftiriti o, the 1-16 r). Mr. Edward Ftix
vecald, and to thr Honoirrables Lonisa ,11411'atnela
Fitiger;4lll., daughters of Ole late Lord Edward,
io joiesOittic'e of the Act for.icversing the attainder
egeinSt the fionity of ttat Nobletritio, passed last
Session.
The I.l6Welheb adjourned for 'smite time during
pleasure.—Soon ;ate!' 115 resenting,
Viscount SIDMotiTH, pursuant to a Vote of
their LordArps; !ail upon the (Able, at) account
of the member of littlictthetts and Informitions
Itiirl in Cases of Libel, Witilit a given period,
and of the proceedings which 'took place thereon,
obit* IliNstloollered to be prin',ed.
SEDITIOUS AND BIASIIIEM'OUS PUtiLICATIONS.

1
' Viscount Sinmotrra tooved tire second reading
of the Bill berate their -Lordships for the better
Prevention of Blasphemous and Seditious Libels.
The Noble Secretary of State prefriced his motion
with a short Address to the House, in which he
adverted 4o tir*e great increase, pat tieulanfy of late,
Of those most daneelous public:l6(ms. All that
had been done by Parliament in reference to the
piesent critical state of the country, would, he
observed, be of little avail, if the destructive
po
ifrinanal ruinous effects of those evils- were lest
' unchecited. hbe means chiefly provided by the
Bill frr this object, was the leaving it in the
power of the twat to increase the punishment
on the .coliV-iction for a second offence. On a
former occasions Ire bad stated the grounds gene-
rally upon which his Mj-sry's Govemment frit it
their duty ro propose the measure inn question
He shook' therefore reserve himself., should any.
important objection be offered, and not in the
present instance detain their Lordships longer
than while be. moved the second icading of the -
Bill.

Lord EasKitis rose, and a.t some length ex-
pressed his sentiments, which we-re unfavourable
to Ike 13i11. The measure, he observed, went to
operate a new and darming alteration in a long
standing and important law of the country
After exiowhiting upon the established law of
libel, and advecting to some interesting proceed-
' lots which froth time to time had taken pace in
• the Courts below, and in some of which he was
concerned, lie re'exted to some publications in
which the character and conduct of tke other
House of Parliament had been injuriously calum-
niated—that branch of the Constitutional Govern-
ment, to whom the country stood itidebred tor the
glorious ltevniution, for the Habeas Corpus Act,
and for p.:es•ing the amended Libel B 11. Ills
Lordship then pas:ed to it more immediate dis-
cussion of the particular measure, in which, not-
wirbstanding thEirtteat difference, the respective
offences of blasphemous and seditious libel did
not appear to Vim to be duly discriminated
Neil bet npear to him that the means pre-
s.enteet, would at all allot, the object, inas-
much as the difficulty of convietion would increase
with the severity of the punishment: A system
of severity and coercion would he found in-
adequate to the end proposed, whereas a lenient
and conciliatory system, with the adoption of a
moderate and rational reform, would unite (very
good man in the country it) support of the Coll-
ctitivion and Government. The povitions and
language of the Bills, he conceived to be, in many
parts, not sufficiently clear and iutriligtble, and
won't' require flinch alteration, and of which he
addoCed sonic iillistration. The measure, how-
ever, as inducing an important and uncalled for
change in the law, could not have his cordial
support.

The Earl of ilittnowEY argued with much abi-
lity in defence of the erasure, which he consider-
ed as indispensably tiicessary in the I;resent state
of things, and emphatically called fur by the in-
creased publication of libels of ace most inflam-
matory and dangerous character. The proposed
increase of punishment Mile!) was Si, com-
plaint(' of Was not po6itively annexed, but was
vegttll in the discretion of the Court, and be
thought the proposed increase rather tell shoit es:
being commenstitate to the enormity of the of•
forme. With respect to the increased punishment
it was in no case to apply before a repetition of
the offence, and this correction was indispensable
with reference to the extent to which such publi-
eatiOn9 had now arrived, an extent greater tbail
41 any former period; and referring chiefly to
those of a blasphemous character, the injurious
tendency of such, passing through the bands of
families, was easier cot ccivett than described.
The increased punishment in tree event Of repeti-
tion he held to be indispensable ; it was impossible
the resent extent to which such (induces had ar-
rived could be longer tolerated wi,ttout the
most alarming consequences. The real freedom
of the ple,s conk not be deteriorated by such re-
stlietions, which on the contrary, ivoubl afford
addnionil security to it by vindicating its charac-
ler and strrugtheniue it a piurity.
The AlArgoesa of LANsDON as spoke at some
length against the Bill. The preamble he thought
not to be borne out by the facts of the case; nor
did he conceive that the en..ctinents of the Bill
%vete consistent with such a preamble. He dejtte-
cated such an increase of punishment, which in
(list respect classed an offence as a felony which
heretofore was only regarded as a misdemeanor.
Neither did its necessity appear, for there was
information before the House, that the existing
laws had been tried, and found inefficient. The

proposed increase of t►►rnisi►n►eut would not ope-
rate 85 it t.cap,m.ly UCCOtInt Ut iLs gi tat