The Sun.
London, England, 1829-03-21 00:00:00

satisfaction they felt at the introduction of those measures.'
in both of which they concurred, being afraid to risk the •
one by any attempt at interference with the other.—( Hear,
hear. )—The Meeting expressed their thanks in a peculiar
manner to the Noble Duke at the head of the Government,
and the Right Hon. Secretary of State for the Home
Department. That Meeting had been attended by 50/.,
20/. and forty-shilling freeholders, both Catholic and
Protestant, all of whom concurred in the proposed mea-
sures.—( Hear, hear. )—He had only to add, in the county
of Westmeath, and one or two other counties in which
the struggle by the forty-shilling freeholders was greatest,
the feelings of the laity and clergy were generally in favour
of the proposed measures.—(Cheers, and cries of Hear.)
Mr. Secretary PEEL heartily rejoiced at having given
way to the lion. Alennber, because no speech could have
brought forward such respectable testimony in support of
the proposed measures.as that just read by the Hon. Mem-
ber for Westmeath, coupled with the able and disinterested
support of the Hon. Member for Waterford. In West-
meath, Waterford, and Clare, the elections bad turned
mainly on the support given by the forty-shilling free-
holders, and yet here were these parties prepared to make
the concessions asked by his Majesty's Government.—
(Cheers.)—He believed that this feeling was not confined
to Meath or its neighbourhood—he believed it was not
confined to the Roman Catholic Clergy, hut extended itself
to the Roman Catholic gentry, who felt themselves pecu-
liarly situated with the great body of their constituents,
and wished to see the proposed measure carried into effect.
The Irish forty-shilling freeholders held the elective fran-
chise as invaluable, so long as it aftbrded them the means of
seeking the other more important measure of emancipation
which they had in view ; but now that the measure was
within their reach, they were ready to sacrifice the minor
privilege for its attainment-o-(Hear, hear.)—As to the
feelings of the Protestants of Ireland, he thought they were
in favour of the measure; and, if a doubt existed on the
subject, he, arguing a priori, would refer to the feelings
expressed in Ireland upon the subject within the last fort-
night, as well by Protestants as Roman Catholici.—
( Hear, bear. )—He considered that the debate of last night
turned entirely upon the question to be decided to night.
A Noble Lord over the way, who always addressed 'the
House with great acuteness and ability, gave as one of his
reasons against the measure, that it would have a tendency
to prevent the registry of freeholds. Now he (Mr. Peel)
felt that the very reverse would be the fact : and, in a
matter of this kind, the best reference was to facts. Ile
had been told by a gentleman who was a most competent
authority on the subject, that in one county in Ireland
there were 20,000 registered forty-shilling freeholders ;
and when he inquired how many of these had registered
their freeholds at their own expence, be was answered two.
A MEMBER—Two thousand?

Mr. Secretary PEEL—No; but two individuals—only
two individuals.—(Hear, and laughter.)—The most im-
portant observation and the urgent point made by the
Noble Lord, and seconded by the Hon. Member for Lime-
rick, was that at all events the forty-shilling freeholders in
fee-simple might be continued. That such a measure
would have any beneficial effect he strongly doubted, and
he was confirmed in that doubt by the fact that the greater
number of the forty-shilling freeholders in fee-simple were
Protestants, and the Roman Catholic forty-shilling free.
holders being disfranchised, while they were untouched,
would not unnaturally feel jealous at the preference given
to the former, because lie was a Protestant.—(Hear.)—
By the returns obtained from the Clerk of the Peace for
the county of Waterford, it appeared that in 1825 there
were 2,119 forty-shilling freeholders standing in the
books, and not one of these was registered on estates in
fee simple. In a Protestant county, which he would
not name, there were t,lO-1. forty-shilling freeholders,
12Y of whom were registered as possessing estates of forty-
shillings in fee. He entreated the -lion. Gentleman to
consider the effects of the measure he proposed, when of the
forty.shilling freeholds, nine out of ten of these franchises
,vere held by Protestants. Fir his part, he knew no dis-
tinction of religion among the forty-shilling freeholders in
fee-simple. Isle !coked only at the abuses which took
place under the present law, and he was persuaded that
More forty-shilling freeholders were made in fee-simple on
bogs and mountains than on estates. The measure, as it
was now proposed, was a measure of justice and equality.
It was entirely free from favour and partiality. He had
some alterations to propose in the ineasurea «his ha
thoaglit would ret;oormeni it to the opinion of most of the
Members. He should not propose any further tonight
than to go into a Committee, pro forma, propose these
alterations, reprint the Bill, and afterwards have it recorn-
mitte6. At that late hour he would only state the sub-
stance of the alterations he meant to propose, and he
oresumed they would be agreed to, its city whey.
tyitleued tire; hill than Vesiri4tltl it. By the Bill as it
at preserit stood, yotea were coatied to legal titles. He
apprehended the
.phrase " legal title" might induce a
tendency In practice to exclude freeholders. He should
propose that the words " legal titles" should be left out.
At present the Bill required that the ten pound free-
hold should be free of incumbrance, but as freeholders
++e+;e
iiabiei jud4itie-eit gohtp, apd ipcumbraucee included
them, he -shOuld'propose to, leaVe out the word incuin-
branees, and provide that the freehold should be required
to be freefrom parochial charges and taxes. Anottei
attecatil .n arioinct propose we* be as to appeal. At
present the Bill allowed an appeal from the derision of
the Assistant Barrister to a Jury summoned by him and
presided over by him. It had been state dto him that
there were objections to this, particularly in alliwiug asp,
appeal from the Assistant Barrister to tr Court in which
tile Judge. lie toeant, therefpre, to allow the ap-
peaf a•Joke•of Assize and a Jury. The other altera-
thiiis were too technical for explanation, and they would
be seen when the Bill was reprinted. He would reripv
that he should then propose that tho comirrited
pro
.fort,.—(Loped cries of " Question.")
Lord PALMERSTON suggested that the Bill might
be limited to such a period as to come again under the
review of Parliament when the present excitement had
solnoidetli.—(Cries of " no, no.")
Mr. PEEL yegarded the measure both as a measure
of security and as a substantive measure of improvement ;
and in this latter character he could not consent to the
suggestion of his Right Hon. Friend.
'Lord DUNGANNON, with reference to lOW had
fallen from the Hon. Baronet, denied that be had ever
been a party to an agreement to disfranchise the forty-
shilling freeholders. He was not in England when that
was proposed, and with his feelings he never could have
heels a party to such an arrangement.
The House then divided, tylien there appeared for going
into a Committee 220—Against it 20—Majority against
Lord Duncannon's Motion 200.

House went into a Committee, the Report was re-
qiyo, 0ra,..0 to I.!e t4gn into ;wither consideration
on Tuesday next.