The Sun.
London, England, 1842-05-12 00:00:00

reAef should have that relief found for him at his own.
h, use, and the guardians were subjecte I to a penalty of
1. if they dil not provide relief. The Right Ho-
rcurable Baronet then read the clause to this ef-
fect, and which provided that employment should
be given within five miles of the labourer's residence.
Now let it bo observed that it must be near the place of
residence—the pauper was not to receive distant work,
nor was he to change his residence to obtain employ-
ment five miles off. Instead of the man going to the
employment, the employment must come to him. If the
employer moved to six miles off; thn-guardians were
obliged to see tliftt he provided for the .labourer it suit-
able residence within the lawful distance of the place of
employment ; and there was also a clause by which it
was provided that, under certain circumstances, the
guardians might agree with the employer, that the
parish should pay one-half of the wages and the etaployer,
the other- half. There was nothing in the. Act
to prevent the guardian and the manufacturer.being the
same person ; there was nothing to prevent him, as
guardirn, making a bargain on the part of the parish
with himself as the employer. The rule under the Act
was to give in-door relief to the aged and impotent, and
out door relief to the able-bodied poor. The rule of the
new law was, to give to the old and impotent, that is to
aged persons of sixty years and upwards, relief out of
the workhouse,
.and to apply the test of the workhouse
to the able-bodied.—(Hear, hear.) He would only say
further, that it was the intention of the Government to
propose the repeal of the Gilbert Act, and to leave it to
the House to say which principle was the best. As to.
the Local Acts it was not intended to alter the present,
law. It had been decided by the Court of Queen's
Bench that, the law is that when a governing body
is constituted under a Local Act, the Commissioners

under the new law cannot interfere with the body except`
only as to the mode of administering relief ; in which

respect, the Commissioners have the same power, as the
law now stands, as they have in any other parish. So
competent were they under the present law, that it.wes
not the intention of the. Government to interfere with •
the choice of the governing body under the Local Acts, •
but at the same time to exercise a complete control over
the ;node of administering relief: •It was, however, in- ~
tended to limit the power of adding to the governing
body under- Local Acts, as: it was liable to great abuses.
One of the most important clauses which he intended to
introduce into the Bill, was one which had been fully
discussed in the,last session of Parliament, and related ;,ae
to the important question ,of education.. He had the ad- -1 e;4
vantage in bringing in the Bill in the present session of '.ela"
having ascertained what was the opinion of the House upon al7
this point in the last Parliament. It was their intention
'
to propose a clause for the purpose of limiting the appii '
-
1 Cation of the power of' the .Commission in large districts. ea;
They proposed that there should be a maximum distance e‘lij
of 15 miles from the further point of one union to an- .-,
other. For the appointment. of this school a mejority of _-a/t
the board would be necessary. This limitation would 1171
comprise the Metropolitan districts, and in the neigh- 11.1,
bourhood of Manchester, and four or, rive miles rpunti the
principal manufacturing and commercial Itowns in Lug- aaee
land the limitation would also operate. He had been in asf
duced to make this limitation far various reasons, first Of all ;0 4
that the limitation would enable the experiment to thrive 's'a
in the most densely populated places.. in the first
the provision for the education of the poor gave
great dissatisaction, on account of the children.
being removed twenty or thirty miles from their pa-
rents or natural guardians ; .but narrowing the li-
mitation would place it in the power of tbe
children's relatives, on Sundays or holidays, tovisit their
children at the establishments, thus - giving them the
pleasure and advantage of more or less superintending
them. At the same time, in bidding . this provision, they • ~
intended to act up to the recommendation made in the
last session of Parliament, whicie he hoped the House ,
would consider salutary-7-viz., thot of introducing the
mode adopted at the school at la'reewood in schools of
this description. These schools when established would,
be subject to the. control of the Centrsel.ComMitteee*
Education Land they would be inspected by the- COMA'
mittee on Education; and the Committee would have OR •.,),f
power of calling for any information respeseting there: e"a;
they might require. He thought that that %meld be
prudent advance in the education of the poor. He J
thought that nothing could be more conducive to the ftaae'llel
ture advantage in life of the poor than a • system:ov
sound education, conducted under such superintendeneei
as he had mentioned. With respect •to the casual •
poor, he proposed that the rellef given to them should ea.
be charged on the funds of , the union. He had next- to ;iJ):
state to the House the provision which was intended to
meet objections that had been frequently urged agahls
t
the existing law. It was applicable especially to union* • a
in the north of England, which were of large size. It e'
had been felt, and rightly so, as a grievance that whore &
family applied for relief, before the case was decided one
the head of the family should go before the Board
of Guardians, and where the Board assembles
at the extremity of the Union' the necessity. of 0°
attending there on the part of the head of the family'
lost to him a day's work. It was proposed, then, that .
poWer should be given to the Board of Guardians where -
any parish union should be distant snore than
miles (the blank to be filled up in Committee) from th:
place of meeting of the Board of Guardians, to aPPlae ; •
prpeeceriee' receive
latspoophol iincinea t
oiootneh
estrhaealera
proposedattliilleeocecaaxlsisetesio.r.:Hmlaei:h.eaedlttoa
desirable not to encumber the Bill wide
with the law of settleMent ; and he was satisfied th''t
that law would upon its own merits command the Sntsa
serious consideration of the Legislature. But he
ask
•
not think it would be expedient in the Bill be asae
leave to introduce to raise that important question. aav
the same time there was one case of such crying hard-
ship that although it was connected with the law of
settlement, its urgency had induced her Majestys
Ministers to endeavour to apply to it an immediate
remedy ; he alluded to the case of those who being re--
sident in a parish or a union without a settlement, but
to which they had for years given the benefit
of their industry to the advantage of the in'.
habitmits
,and the ratepayers of that union•
but who still, under the pressure of sickness, were dented
any relief except on the condition that, if they receive:
a shilling, they and their families should be remove •
lie had reason to know that at this very moment, under
! the threat of an immediate removal, in districts where:
very great distress prevailed, parties who were out of
work, not having any settlement, were debarred from any
relief whatever, from the fear that if- they applied for
relief the application would lead to their subsequent re'
moval and consequent ruin. He did not propose to go
the whole length, upon that occasion, of dealing with
any atte -19:rNen'tenricyriet -
such cases of destitution, but he dal propose that in cases
of sickness, persons becoming chargeable were to be re-
lieved where they were resident, and should not be re;
' moved, or should not be liable to removal, until they 10°'
been chargeable for forty days upon the Union.--aiieat)
Those were the principal provisions of the Bill he asked
leave to introduce, with one farther addition. He pro-
posed to make one other material alteration with respee.
to the law of bastardy. On the passing of the Poor-lavr
Amendment Act through the other House of Parliament
clause-was introduced which gave the power of ape**
before the Quarter Sessions, and the Quarter Session'
only. That remedy was found very soon to be inoper
five, and the further remedy was given of an applicatioae •
not fo the Quarter Sessions, but to the Pettit Sessions.
But still no sufficient remedy was given against fugitive •
parties. It constantly happened that the sons of wealthy
yeomen, or independent labourers, allowed their children
to go into the workhouse, where they were supported
by the contributions of honest farmers who had a family
of their own to take care of. But as the law now stood`
there was no remedy in such cases. He thought in
moral point of view, and in an equitable point of t'in's''
he was bound to go to this extent, that where there wor •
ii, return of niella bone there should be a power of imp!'"
coning the father for three months. This certainly 10_
volved a most important principle, it was a d"" a,;
cided change, but upon the best deliberation 13° "
could give to the subject, it was the bests
mild adopt. There was another circumstance.
great importance to which ho wished to adveit, ands"thstae
was with respect to the election of the Board
Guardians. Now, with respect to that, he proposedniefe
place the owners and occupiers on the same footing!" pr,)
equality. He proposed that no person should have mse/4
than four proxies. He declared to the House most sisl,ff',
cerely that nothing should have induced him to POP",
responsible for a Bill of this description, if, in hie celtia;a
science and judgment, he was not convinced thatJheteJa
measure would be found to be conducive to the
or'
of the sick, the aged, and the infirm. He would. aao
snore, he believed it would be equally conducive to thij
independence and welfare of the working classes. TPV,'
was his sincere and most decided opinion, and he horaeard
that in the discussion that might take place, the greatite,ir
temper and discretion would be shown. The Itig",
Hon. Baronet concluded by moving for leave to brim'
in the Bill. •aa,
comforeee
Mr. DUNCOMBE said he did not rise to offer dic.'
slightest apposition to the measure, but merely toed. .
press his sincere regret at the statements he had hell:,
from the Right Hon. Baronet. It was with extreme foe e
gret he had heard that the Right Hon. Baronet intend
to continue for six years—(" Five, five")—for five Yewr,,
and a Session of Parliament, which made it almost Oa°,
a measure that was so offensive and obnoxious to tila
public at large. He did not wish to go back to thee° a
system, and the control of Magistrates, but he aris'ilete •
to have the Board of Guardians properly elected, an‘
give them a full discretionary power. From the teams.
ment having refused inquiry Into the Gilbert Ceorporatio!lie
it was supposed it was their mten Lion to suppress them. -fia
was sorry to find that such was the intention ; and vvhia
regard to that suppression, he should feel it his due): id
offer it every opposition, and throw every impedirae° 'li
its way that the forms of the }louse would allow hineoa,
would be a gross breach of faith towards these Core of
tions to abolish them without obtaining the consen'i et,
two-thirds of the`Buard of Guardians, according to e •
of Parliament.
Mr. LIDDELL asked the Right Hon. Baronet whe,tili'ccef
the Local Committee, .appointvd by the clanse to
he referred, was for general or for limited and sr; . ,
purposes
Sieeeet,
rJ. GRAHAM was understood to reply, "..a
Committee would be appointed to hear casesaand ea a
th
a report of them to the Board of Guardians. the
Mr. WAKLEY said lie had often found that ecw' at
was no agreement between the clauses of Bills lerTaiel4ia
into that House, and the kind and merciful tone o.oa-10
speech that introduced them. The Right Hon. 13}1at,'
la teaso
had expressed himself in .a most benevolent t 1 G
wards the poor,-and expreseed his conviction t!iaa
the measure were carried into effect,
benefit to the poorer classes throughout the Itina Jae
Ha had aj_ways objected to the principle of the <)eraso
it would Prfaeee
Amendment Act, and no alternative in the details'
i(a)jas:o
measure could ever reconcile him to the Fri° ` tad
(Cheers.) The principle of the Bill was t° tha'a
from the rate-payers the management ° acai.f a
. own. fyillq end to traeefer that manageta 0,„e•
tle• ra-e .•s! ee • •''eelerese-- - I inaleiug tteaa,e a
the scupe-guat for all the cruelties practised inaa-0 au
nagemont of the poor throughonp England. It v