The Sun.
London, England, 1845-03-11 00:00:00

fr touting .1413 A-.

LONDON, TUESDAY, MARCII 11, 1845.

The House of Lords met at Five o'clock.
The Earl of MINTO postponed his motion on the sub
ect of Otaheite until Friday.

The LORD CHANCELLOR moved the second reading of
the Jewish Relief Bill. He proposed to relieve tlieJews
from the disabilities under which they at present laboured
with regard to holding municipal offices, by omitting in
their case the words, " in the true faith of a Christian,"
from the oath required by law to be taken by persons
before they could be admitted to such offices, thus put-
ting Jews on the samo footing with Quakers, Moravians,
and Separatists.

The Bishop of LONDON, in consenting to the motion,
distinctly reserved to himself the right of opposing the
Bill in a future stage, if he should see fit.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE and Lord BROUGHAM
supported the Bill, as did Lord CAMPBELL, who ex-
pressed a hope that, in the next session of Parliament,
the Noble and Learned Lord on the Woolsack would
come down to the House with a Bill which would en-
able a person of the Jewish persuasion not only to sit
in the Court of Aldermen of the City of London, but to
a Feat in the Legislature of the country.
Lord COLCBVSTER could not think it proper that
persons of the Jewish religion should be allowed to
sit in Parliament. He would not, however, oppose the

present measure.
After a few words from Lord RLDESDALE, the Bill
was read a second time.

Lord MONTEAGLE brought in a Bill to amend the la% s
relating to pauper lunatics in Ireland, which was read
a first time.

The Constables (Scotland) Act Amendment Bill was
read a third time and passed, and their Lordships ad-
journed.

The House of Commons met at Four o'clock.
After the transaction of private business and the pre-
sentation of petitions,
On the motion that the. report on the income• tax be
received,

Mr. C. But LER moved the following resolution by
way of amendment :—" That the circumstances under
which the renewal of the income-tax is at present pro-
posed, are such as to render it exceedingly improbable
that Parliament will have the power of dispensing with
its continuance at the end of three years and that it is
therefore the duty of this House to take care that
the tax be imposed in a form in which its opera-
tion shall be less unequal and inquisitorial than it
now is." The llon. and Learned Gentleman supported
his motion in an argumeEtative, sarcastic, and witty
speech, in the course of which he frequently convulsed
the House With laughter by his unsparing dissection of
what he said had been cal:el " the poor man's budget."
His close imitation of the language and style of
Sir ROBERT PEEL, as he stated the pains he
had taken to make inquiries into the quantity of cotton
used in the manufacture of fustian, and the calculations
by which he had arrived at the result that the saving
effected on a suit of fustian, by the reduction of the
duty, would amount to one penny and nine-sixteenths of
a penny was most ft licitona, and set the House in a roar.
His thrusts were home ones. "'I he Right Hon. Baronet,''
said Mr. BELLER, " will not give the poor man corn—
he will not give him butter, but he gives him alum to
adulterate his bread, and lard to adulterate his butter."
This was loudly ch:ered. It was the most telling speech
that has been delivered this session.

Mr. EWART seconded the amendment, which was
opposed by
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, who, in a
lengthened speech, defended the financial scheme of the
Government.

Lord IlowicK supported the amendment, and urged
upon the Government the necessity of removing those
duties which were imposed, not fur purposes of revenue,
but for protection. By so doing they would give relief
to the consumer without diminishing the finances of the
country. The income-tax was imposed solely to enable
the Government to continue the system of protection ;
and he hoped that, before the next general election, the
electors of England would well consider whether the
income-tax should be taken on their shoulders for the
purpose of bolstering up, for a few years longer, that
system of protection which even the members of the
Government were fain to admit, was contrary to the
principles of reason and of common sense.
Sir H. H. INGLL expressed his belief that there was
not a man in the House who did not believe that the
property-tax was a tax for ever. They ought not to be
contented with the statement of any Minister that the
tax was only for three years, and they ought to make it
as little oppressive as possible. He thought that some
portion of the surplus ought to have been appropriated
towards providing for the spiritual wants of the country,
and urged the relieving of all charitable a•;d religious
societies from payment of the legacy duty. He should
support the amendment.

Mr. WARBURTON could not supiot t the proposition of
the Hon. Member fur Liskeard.

Mr. M. MILNES thought the discussion was perfectly
useLss.

Mr. lIAwEs considered the imposition of the income-
tax unnecessary, as all the reductions might be effected
out of the surplus rev( nue without its continuance. It
was for the sake of continuing the protection to sugar
that the income-tax was imposed.
Mr. SPOONER opposed the amendment.

Mr. Hum:, although disapproving of the conduct of
Government as regarded the sugar duties, would yet
support thorn on the present occasion, because he con-
sidered direct prefera!ile to indirect taxation.
Sir R. PEEL combated the statements of the Hon.
Member for Lambeth, and went through a series of calcu-
lations for the purpose of proving their fallacy. He
also argued at great length against all the propositions
which had been made for modifying the income-tax.
He stated the grounds on which the Government had
proceeded in propo,ing the various reductions of duty
on different articles. With regard to the article of cot-
ton, he explained to those who had .hared in the wag-
gery of the Hon. Member for Liskeard on that subject,
that one great object of that reduction had been to
enable the manufacturers pf this country to Meet their
competitors in the foreign market on better terms.
The House was afterwards addressed by Mr. SHEIL,
Mr. COBDEN, Lord JOIIN RUSSELL, Mr. VILLIERS, and
Mr. MUNTZ after which the amendment was put and
negatived, the numbers being, for the amendment, 112,
against it 240—majority, 128. An amendment was also
proposed, granting an appeal to tenant-farmers, which
was lost ; and the other business being disposed of, the
.House adjourned at a Quarter past One o'clock.

Sir ROBERT PEEL and Lord LYNDHURST are deter-
mined to outbid the Whig leaders in promises and
oilers to the advocates of free trade and the enemies of
bigotry. But a few years have elapsed since these two
pillars of Church and State stood resolutely in every
avenue that could lead Catholics and Jews to offices
of honour, and emolument, and usefulness, be-
' cause their only objects were to pull down
the Church, and destroy our glorious Consti-
tution. To admit a Catholic into Parliament, or a
Jew into a municipal corporation, was regarded as great
crimes, which would bring down Divine vengeance and
tin-Christianis.: the land. These, horrors, however, have
vanished. Place and pensions and patronage have done
wonders in conjunction with the Reform Bill. Maynooth
now has no terrors—nay, it is regarded as a righteous
and useful institution; its power is to be increased,
Catholics are as good Christians as Protestants, and the
crowds that meet annually at Exeter-hall, in May, for
the conversion of the Jews, and heaping reproaches
upon their fallow-creatures, are treated with as much
contempt as the defunct Jumpers and the followers of
JOHANNA. S:JUTIICOTE. Every friend of humanity,
and every friend, too, of the Christian religion, will
rejoice at the result, for persecution only in-
creases bigotry and cruelty, and is utterly
alien to the humane doctrines inculcated by its great
Founder. The Catholics have been emancipated—they
are admitted into the sacred edifice of the Constitution,
and they are found as good subjects, as good senators,
and, perhaps, too, as good Christians as their bitter and
selfish opponents. The Jews, we confidently hope, are
now about to receive the same relief. Even in the House
of Lords, where they have hitherto been so fiercely de-
nounced, no opposition was made to Lord LYNDHURST'S
Bill last evening. The Bishop of LONDON, it is true,
said something to save appearances; but even that pious
and peaceable prelate was utterly harmless—he was
ready to yield ; and, though no party to the measure,
be would not oppose it, " because it would only
raise discussion, and excite angry feelings." All
the other bishops were silent, so powerful was
the charm practised by the Learned CHANCELLOR.
The Bill is very simple, and the security to the Church
is as ample as words can make it. A Jew, on claiming to
be admitted to office, is required to make a simple de-
claration to this effect :—" 1 will not exercise any power
or authority, or influence, which I may possess by virtue
of the office of
testant Church as it is established by law in England,
nor to disturb the said Church, or the bishops and clergy
of the said Church, in the possession of any right or
privilege to which such Church, or the said bishops
and clergy may be by law entitled." The
Bill applies only to municipal offices, but the
relief to this class cannot stop here ; it must be carried
into full effect, for England, so celebrated for her liberal
institutions, and in these days so conspicuous for
adopting great measures of reform, cannot be outdone by
the despotic States of the Continent. The Jews have
ever shown themselves peaceable citizens, useful members
of society, not given to change, and no class, therefore,
could be admitted with more safety to all the rigLts and
privileges of Englishmen.

We would wish to draw the particular attention of our
readers to an advertisement which appears in another
co!umn, on the subject of the subscription which has been
set on foot to provide for the widows and children of the
crew of the boat PlA:mix, of Yarmouth, who, on the
26th of January, perished in the gallant attempt which
they made to rescue the cr. w of a shipwrecked brig from
a watery grave. The terrific storm, which raged during
the whole of that day, will be long remembered. On
that occasion five vessels were wrecked near Yarmouth,
four on the Scroby Sand, and one on the Barber.

" In no one of those cases was there, at the time of their
condition being discovered, the slightest probability of saving
anything like property. Nothing, thurefore, but the warm
promptings of humanity could offer any inducement to the
beachmeu to man their boats—yet they hesitated not a
single moment, but at once launched their gallant barques
and set forward to the rescue. Happily their efforts, in fair
instances, were successful in saving all the crews."

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