The Sun.
London, England, 1845-03-14 00:00:00

FREEDOM OF THE CITY OF LONDON.

Lord BROUGHAM brought in a Bill, which was read a
first time, far extending the provisions a the sth and i:th
William IV. to the City of London. The object of this Bill is
to enable non-freemen to carry on business in places where
freedom was previously a title.
DIVORCE.

Lord BROUGHAM presented a Bill, which was read a
first time, for extending the suggestions in cases of divorce (not
to cases of divorce, for that made a considerable difference),
the object of this Bill being to facilitate the remedy of the
poor man in such cases.
RAILWAY SCHEMES.

Lord BROUGHAM said that he wished to ask a question
of his Noble Friend at the head of tt.e Board of Trade, re-
specting the decisions to which the Board, cf which he was
the bead, had come, with reference to the several lines pro-
jected between Lund and York. He would not ask this
question; to-day, =if it were inconveti'ent to answer it, but be
would give notice of it for a future day, as his object was to
found a motion which would bring before the House the
day and the time of the day—for the time of the day was
important, when this decision was come to. His reason for
asking the question was this :—lt was well known in the City,
at 12 o'clock on Tuesday, that the London and York had been
decided against, and the consequence was that the shares of
the other two lines had risen 2 and 3 per cent. premium, long
before the Gazette which contained that decision was pub-
lished.

The Earl of DALHOUS'E said that he had not
the slightest objection to give the information which
his Noble and Learned Friend had asked, as far as it laid
in his power. The fact was that the precise time at
which this decision was made was in the afternoon.
The Board on that day was held in the afternoon,
and, therefore, it was utterly impossible that this rise could
have resulted horn any communication with the Board of
Trade. The inferences which his Noble and Learned Friend
drew from the facts which he had stated, was, that either a com-
munication had been made from the Board of Trade with parties
in the City, or else that proper concealment had not been used in
order to prevent the decisions of the Board of Trade from being
made use of in the stock market, and he could not conceive
that the decision in this particular case had had any t ffect
on the operations cf the stock market. There were
three distinct parties to the communication between
Lonuon and York. There was the London and York line,
the Caasbridge and Lincoln line, the objet t of which wag to
extend the communication to York by means of Cambridge,
and the Direct Northern. These three parties were each pre-
pared to carry out their des;gns to the fullest
extent. They were possessed of large capital ; they
were supported by a h.ng following, and were backed
r( spectively by immense iefluecce. They appeared to carry
out their design to the very utmost. A circumstance, however,
occurred, of which he was taut cognisant until the Tuesday.
This circumstance had occurred on the Monday. Upon con-
sideration the Cambridge and Lincoln and the Direct Northern
had come to the decision of coalescing.
had come to the decision of coalescing. Was it to he wood red
at that those who were cognizant of this fact would fail to per-
ceive that where two lint's had coalesced against a third, that
the great probability that Parliament, cr the Board of Trade
at least, would certainly decide in favour of those companies
which lied coalesced, and against that which had thus gene to
the wall , and that they, therefore, who had interest in the
third line, would be cog. r to sell out of that line and buy into
the ether taco, and that the shares of the other two should rise?
But he would defy his Noble and I earn( d Friend to produce
one person who had received any communication from the
Board of Trade, or whol could prove that the proper
measures fur concealment had not been taken. He was
ready to give every information that he possessed.
Lord BROUGHAM said that all he could observe was, that
he derived his information from a very important merchant
and broker, that that gentlemen had no knowledge whatever on
Tu:ssday of the coalition which his Noble Friend at the head of
the Board of Trade tad said took place on Tuesday, and he lelt
that it was not only a matter of courtesy but a bounden duty
on the part of the Ministers of the Crown, to give the fullest
and most extensive information on any subject which was
brought before Parliament. It was their duty not only to
Parliament but to the country. There was sufneient reason
for his question in the fact of this rise having been realised at
twelve o'clock, when the Gazette, by which the property ought
to have been affected, was not lublished until the evening.
The Earl of DALHOUS'E said that he had already stated
that the Board was not held until the afternoon, and that
therefore the shares could not have been affected by the deci-
sion at winch it had arrived. He was ready, he repeated, to
give every information, and he felt that it was a matter of
duty, and not one of courtesy--.though he was not aware that
it was the duty of a. 3linister of the Crown to give that in-
formation which he did not. possess. If his Noble and Learned
Friend had seen as much of railway schemes within the last few
months as he had, he would have learned that railway polities
was an exce( dingly intricate matter, and that it was a policy
among railway shateholders to conceal as much as possible the
knowledge which they possessed from each other.
Lord BROUGH ANI said he could not but say that the ex-
planation of his Noble Friend, so far as it went, was satisfac-
tory; but he must, at the sarce time, assert that a judicature
like that which was exercised by the Board of Trade over rail.
way schemes, was one abhorrent to the constitution, and odious
to the whole country, and that should such accidents as these
frequently occur, he should feel it his duty to bring a motion
before the House for a considerable modifieation of that Board.
The N o nee Ea al.then presented a petition, very numerously
signed, from traders and shopkeepers of Exeter, against the 201.
clause in the Bill of last session for the Abolition of Imprison-
ment for Debt.

_Lord COT FEN H AM took that opportunity of disclaiming the
authorship of this clause. It wai true that he had proposed the
abolition of imprisonment for debt, but he had cuopled that pro-
position with affording the creditor the means of getting his
debt.

Lord BROUGHAM s'id the means which his Noble Friend
proposed was that of taking the wages of the debtor, and this
was found not to answer iu Scotland, although it was still in
operation in that c.untry.
Lord GOTTEN it AM said he had proposed to give the cre-
ditor the power of examining hi, debtor as to what property he
possessed.
After a few words from Lord CAMPBELL the matter
dropped.