The Sun.
London, England, 1845-07-09 00:00:00

GROUP X.

LONDON AND YORK LINE.
This Committee resumed this morning at the usual hour,
Viscount Courtenay in the chair.
Mr. Pickeregill, under examination by Mr. WEBSTER, deposed to
his being a surveyor and architect, and having lateq made a sur-
vey of the stations as laid out by the London and YOI k and North
Midland Railway. 'I he former would be most inconvenient, cross-
ing as it would five lines, and obstructing the traffic in the neigh-
bourhood. The witness here produced a model of the projected
position and construction of the stations as scheduled.
Mr. John Oliver, examined by Mr. WEBSTER—Is a farmer and
auctioneer, having resided at Stainforth more than thirty years,
and is, therefore, fully acquainted with the nature of the Don
navigation. In 1833 the a. ch of the old stone bridge was removed,
in order to enable light vessels safely and easily to pass under. In
this altered and improved state it remained till October, 1844,
when the archway was again removed, and a platform made to
swing, affixed to the top of the bridge. Since this
latter change, a vessel with standing masts, went through ;
previously such a circumstance was unheard of and impracticable.
In the capacity of parish officer 01 Brandwith, he had occasion, last
year, to complain to the Commissioners of the Don navigation of
the diversion of the roads.

Mr. J. Lee, a wet/ man, resident at Thorne, examined by Mr.
WEasraa—Proved the existence of three fixed bridges over the old
river Don between Goole and Thorne, and six over the new navi-
gation, some of tte latter having been altered during the last
year. The depth of the river is about 5} feet, and craft of between
60 and 65 tons are the largest that can be got up, and these have had
to leave their masts behind ever since the opening of the bridges.

Mr. COCKBURN here stated that the evidence on his case had
closed with the last witness, excepting only some formal evidence,
which was not as yet complete. He, therefore, wished at this sea-
sonable juncture to mention a circumstance which had of
late come to the knowledge of his clients. He was in-
formed, and he believed he could prove to the satisfaction of
the Committee, that a fatal error had been made in the plans and
sections as deposited by the London and York Company ; an
error precisely similar to that which had been discovered and held
fatal in the case of the Cambridge and Lincoln, and which, there-
fore, must place the former in the same predicament. In the ten
miles from King's-cross an error of no less than ten feet hail been
committed. The surface level was ten feet too low, taking the
working sections as a criterion, and thereby both the navigation and
the roads would be materially interfered with. The law allowed
only five feet difference in the limits of deviation, and on a turn-
pike road only two feet. In one place, however, an error of no
less than twenty-seven feet had been made in the line as now
before the Committee, and he contended that the Bth Victoria c.
20 had been violated. There was no difference between them and
the case of the Cambridge and Lincoln, and he called upon the
Committee to inflict on those who had first suggested the import-
ance of the error the same penalty as had been paid by the Com-
pany which the Committee had postponed for the present session.
Mr. Sergeant WitANGIUM, without entering into the merits of
the case at al, would merely submit that his Learned Friend has.
ing neglected to cross-examine any of the engineers who had been
in the witness-box on that point, were now precluded from enter-
ing into any es idente on the subject.
Mr. COCKBURN insisted upon his right to adduce any argument for
the case, and asserted that his Learned Friend could not bring any
precedent for the c:.urse which he desired the Committee t.) take.
The Committee then retired for consideration, and on their return,

Lord COURTENAY stated that as the Committee understood Mr.
Sergeant Wrangham, they were not in a position to give their deci.
sion till to.morrow morning. The points were so impel tent, and
invoived so many interests, that tilt), were anxious to consider
them carefully, but to-morrow he thought they might safely decide
as to the course which might he taken.
Mr. AUSTIN intimater that he had evidence to tender on the
part of the York and North Midland Company similar to that pro-
posed by Mr. Cockburn, and therefore this decision would affect all
the three parties who were opponents of the London and York
Bill.

It was agreed that Mr. Cockburn's evidence should be taken to-

morrow.

Mr. WEBSTER stated that he was prepared to prove that an error
of 18 feet had been made in the datum line of the Sheffield branch,
and proceeded to call evidence of the traffic on the line proposed
by the Direct Northern Company between Lincoln and York.
Mr. Mansell, an assistant of Mr. Bush, traffic taker for the line,
put in a number of tables to show the amount of traffic on the line.

MPERIAL PAR LIAME:NT.
(THIS DAY.)

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

The SPEAKER took the Chair to-day shortly after twelve
o'clock.

Leave was given for the different Committees to sit notwith-
standing the sating of the Hou-e.
LUNATICS ASYLUMS AND PAUPER LUNATICS

BILL.

Lord ASHLEY moved that the House should resolve itself
Into a Committee on this Bill.

Alt. LIDDELL regretted the absence of any of the :Wein.
hers of her Alajetty's Gi,vernment. as he was anxious to draw
their attention to thr tact that persons who had titivate
lunatic asylums would be greatly injured by the operatii n of
the Bill. lie wished to know whether any c au.e would be
introduced into the Bill to give them compensation. lie was
favourable to the principle of the hill, thinking it the duty of
every county to give support and an asylum to its pauper
lunatics. . _ _

Mr. WILLIAMS agreed with the principle of the Bill, but
he regretted that it had been introduced at so late a period of
the session. A Bill of such importance ought to have had
more time for consideration. He thought that the case of
parties who would be injured by the measure ought to be taken
into consideration, where that consideration would not inter-
fere with the prineip eof the Bill. He objected to the juris-
diction of the justices of the peace, thinking that the Commis-
sioners were the proper parties to adjudicate upon any question
that might be raised.
Mr. P. HOWARD said that the Bill had caused great
apprehensions in that part of the country from which
he came, and it was thought hard that small counties should
be compelled to-erect lunatic asylums, when there were num-
bers of other asylums to which they might be removed. He
believed that lunatics would be much sooner cured by removing
them to a distance, than by placing them in asylums where old
scenes and recollections would be fresh before them. If some ma-
terial alterations were not made in the Bill, he should on the third
reading, move the rejection of the measure. He thought it
quite unnecessary to knee such a measure forward at the pre-
sent late period of the session.
Lord ASHLEY thought it would be better to go into Com-
mittee on the Bill, and to discuss the different points that had
been adverted to when the clauses with respect to them came
before the Committee.

The Hou.,e then resolved itself into Committee on the Bill.
On clause 46 being proposed,
Mr. LIDDELL objected to the imprisonment of idiots and
imbeciles in these lunatic asylums.
Lord ASsiLEY observed that ten per cent. of the lunatics
of I.ngland were idiots and imbeciles, but as all lunatics were
to he taken before a magistrate, he would be governed by the
opinion of a medical man, which, if it were to the effect that
any of them were only idiots or simpletons, and harmless, the)
would, of course, be discharged.
Mr. WAKLEY considered that great care ought to be
taken that the opinion of the medical man who first saw the
lunatic should nut be the opinion on which the magistrate
should act. If this precaution was not taken, the lunatic would
not have that protection to which he was entitled.
Lord ASHLE Y considered if that course was adopted, it
would greatly retard the operation of the Bill. 'the subject,
however, be could assure Hon. Members should be fully con-
sidered.
The clause was then agreed to.
On clause 47 being proposed,
Mr. WARBURTON doubted whether sufficient protection
was given to the public under this clause. The little savings
of the pauper lunatic have been sold by an order of a magis-
trate, whicla has left him and his family destitute. The same,
also, applied to small tradesmen and persons with trifling in-
come, who had the misfortune to become lunatics ; their per-
sonal property did not meet with sufficient protection under the
proposed law.
Lord ASHLEY instanced a case of a poor hard-working
woman, with 95. per week, with a large family, who had the
misfortune to be afflicted with insanity, and who was supported
by the parish for some time, and eventually the entire family,
owing to the mother's inability to supply them with
necessaries, became chargeable to the parish. if this
woman in the first instance had been smut to the
County Lunatic Asylum, she would probably have been cured
at an expense of 4/. or al., and the parish would have been
relieved from the burl n which had been entailed on it. his
clause would provide against any such occurrence as that which
he had described.
Mr. PA KIN GTON observed that the clause woted make
the pauper lunatic chargeable to the county and not to the
parish.
After a few words from Mr. Baring, Mr. Vernon Smith,
Mr. Heel. y, Mr. Wortley, and Mr. Biiuverie,
Mr. WAKLEY said that he knew of many most atrocious
ea-es in which lunatics had been confined in order that their
property might be appropria7ed by their relations. He thought
that the clause, as it at present stood, would tend to encourage
constabies in doing wrung, by affording them facilities for
suing the property.
selling the property of pauper lunatics.
The clause was then withdrawn for the purpose of being in-
troduced in an amended form on the bringing up of the report.
Clause 48 was agreed to, as were also clauses 49, 50, and 51.
On clause 52 being read,