The Sun.
London, England, 1827-06-16 00:00:00

FRIVOLOUS ARRESTS PREVENTION BILL.

On the Order of the Day being read for the House going
iuto a Committee on the Bill for preventing Arrests on
mesne process under 20/.,
_ _ .

Mr:HOBHOUSE objected to the further progress of
this Bill at that hour of the night.

The SOLICITOR-GENERAL saw no reason for delay.
The question was simply, whether the power of arrest
should be limited to debts under 20/. Surely that was not
a question which could admit of much discussion.

Mr. HUME, though friendly to the Bill, wished it to be
fully discussed, as the only piohable mode of removing the
prejudices against it.
Mr. Secretary BOURNE was apprehensive, if any
further delay took place, that the Bill could not be passed
this Session. Ile was anxious for its success, because no
Bill could more intimately concern the liberty of the subject.

The House then resolved itself into the Committee.

Mr. HOBHOUSE opposed the Bill as unnecessary and
unjust. He gave notice that he would propose the reduc-
tion of the sum fixed by the Bill to 151.
Mr. Alderman THOMPSON agreed with the Hon.
Member for Westminster.

Lord ALTHORP approved of the Bill on its introduc-
tion, and was confirmed in his approbation of it the more
he considered it.

Mr. D. W. HARVEY opposed the Bill, which he said
might as well be entitled " a Bill of Indemnity to all Deb-
tors under 201." What the country really wanted was a
cheap and expeditious mode of recovering small debts.

Mr. HUME wished to see arrests on mesne process alo-•

error
particularly with regard to femalea who,
eM'lnor of this process, were very liable to be im-

%sal upon. He urged the expediency of substituting at-
tachments on property, according to the course of the law
of Scotland.

The SOLICITOR-GENERAL said the whole question
was, whether the power of arrest before the debt was
proved should be raised from 151. to 20/. One reason for
this change was the great proportion of the costs compared
with the debt. The ordinary charges on the debtor were
not much less than ten pounds, which on a debt of twenty
pounds was nearly one half of the sum originally due. An-
other reason was, that the number of arrests for debts un-
der 201. constituted almost a fourth part of the whole, be-
ing 500 out of 1,800. He wished it was in his power to
extend the protection still higher, in order that Tally indi-
viduals might he relieved from the misery to which they
were liable to be subjected.
Sir J. SEBRIGHT panegyrised the speech of the Soli-
citor-General, and supported the Bill.
The Amendment for filling up the blank with the words
" twenty pounds" was agreed to.
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL, with a view to prevent
vexatious arrests, proposed a clause restraining Sheriffs
from granting warrants for arrest, unless the process should
be delivered and attested by an attorney-at-law. As the
law stood at present, process might be sued out by persona
,who had no claim whatever against the party arrested. A
person in the City had recently been arrested for a sum of
60,0001., where no one answering the description of the
plaintiff could be found.
Mr. HUME suggested the expediency of taking the
security that the attorney should prosecute the suit.

The SOLICITOR-GENERAL observed, that the name
and address of the attorney would be sufficient ; taking se-
curity by bond would only lead to an increase of litigation.
The clause was agreed to.
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL next moved a clause,
that no process should be sued out by special original,
unless the debt amounted to 1001., except in cases where it
might be necessary to proceed to outlawry. The proceed-
ing by special original greatly increased the expenses of
the suit, and led to frequent abuses. The expenses upon
an arrest for a debt of 601., for instance, had amounted to
no less than 23/.

This and the remaining clauses were then agreed to, and
the Report was ordered to be received on Monday.

Thellouse then went into a Committee on the
CANADA CLERGY RESERVES' BILL.

Mr. W. HORTON raid the object of this Bill was to
allow 100,000 acres of the Clergy Reserves in Canada to
be gold yearly,'without giving any pledge as to the specific
appropriation of the funds arising from the sale. By the
Act of 1791, a certain portion of land in Canada was ap-
propriated fur the support of the Protestant Clergy, and
this land was made inalienable. Although several million
acres of land were reserved for this purpose, they never
netted more than 400/.. per annum, and Parliament was
annually called upon to contribute SUMS for the mainte-
nance of the Clergy in Canada. The object of this Bill,
therefore, was to take these lands out of mortmain, and
remove the obstacles which had so long existed to the im-
provement of the Canadas. Applications hail been made
to the Government to appropriate a part of the-proditei of
these reserves to the support of the Scotch Clergy. There
was no indisposition whatever, on the part of the Govern-
teent, to accede to these applications, but it was obvious
that, as these reserves produced little or nothing under the
existing system, the funds were not, at present, available.

Mr. WARBURTON thought it would be better not to
appropriate any portion of the produce of these lands, until
the Committee, which was to inquire into the state of the
Clergy Reserves in the next Session, might determine in
what proportion they should be divided among the different
sects.

Lord BINNING concurred in the suggestion of the
Hon. Member who had just sat down.
Mr. STANLEY was glad to hear from the Right Hon.
Gentleman, that these lands were intended for the ad-
vantage of the Presbyterians, as well as the Protestants,
although it was in the teeth of a declaration made by the
Right Hon. Gentleman in reply to a question of the Mem-
ber for Cailington (Mr. Baring), when he affirmed that
they appertained solely to the Established Church. He
did not intend to offer any opposition to the present Bill,
but the state of the Church Lands required examination,
and he was determined, at an early period of the next
Session, to move for an inquiry into the state of Church
property.

After a few words from Mr. ESTCOCRT in support of
the Bill,

Mr. WILMOT NORTON briefly replied.

Several Amendments were then proposed and agreed to,
and the Report was ordered to be brought up on Monday next.
The Bankrupt Act Amendment Bill was read a second
time, and ordered to be committed on Friday next.
On the motion of Mr. TENNYSON, the further con-
sideration of the Report upon the Sale of Game Bill was
postponed till Monday next.