Star.
London, England, 1822-06-06 00:00:00

bored that would itcit thenise
The Marquis of LONDONDERRY said. that if
• by the-Mord:Wish*, were. meant'.a Committee up
stain, he was serest* itOthing had 'ever fallen from
, that side ofilfteliello countenance the expecta-
tion of, such-anthe inqiimintn the•state of Ireland being
instituted. Thcstate ;lithe agricultural interest; the
police of the empire, Ihe yySteni-of tithes, and most
other questions ureivincthe: consideration of the
state of the leedinernteresitk of. the.critintry, had un-
dergone inquiries in tisidAlbuie,..in a way which he
conceived' to be' the iinlrpractical mode Ter the
House to inquire. To such an.inquiry, Geiverninent.
were most anxious to lend themselves. In his poi;
nion, the best mode of inquiry in such caseswesliio
allege the grievance, and to seek for the lkest remedy
that could. be. applied to it. That species of inquiry.
was cnestantly going on, ant rise hoped would never'
cease whilst there was any euestion of consequence to'
thi interests of the nation demanding their attention.
He should be extremely happy to glve.his most cor-
dial co-operation to the suggestions of any measure
from the Hon. Baronet opposite, applicable I. the
, present state of Ireland. Honourable Gentlemen op-
posite had . with great readiness given the Coercive
measures required for Ireland, in confidence to the
Government of chat country ; and he had no doubt
that the information which would be afforded by his
Right Hon. Friend (Mr. Goulburn) would convince
them that they were justified in the grant of confi-
dence which they had made. The spirit of leniency
in which his Majesty's Government were disposed,
on both sides of the water, to treat that country, was
seen in their intention to remit the Suspension of the
Habeas Corpus Act.
Mr. C. H. HUTCHINSON said, that if his Ma-
jesty's Government suffered the Session to pass away
without doing anything for Ireland but continue the
Insurrection Act, and apply certain local relief, with-
out pointing attention to the internal state of that
country, and devising some system of' general ame-
lioration, they would not do their duty to that coun-
try or the empire. If the Noble Lord and his col-
leagues did not devise some means of turning the
• misery of that country to happiness and pease, not
all the military force of England and Scotland could
keep down the population. He called upon his Ma-
jesty's Ministers, therefore, to put their shoulders to
the wheel for the security of the empire, and not to
satisfy themselves with saying that they were willing
to lend themselves to any measure that might be
proposed. He was excessively grateful for the noble
contributions from this country, and for the disposi-
tion shewn by Government to relieve Ireland of
taxes to a certain extent ; but all that would not do.
He knew the difficulty of the case, and' in proportion
".as it was difficult did it behove Government to look
it in the fake, as the certain destruction of the whole
country would flow from the evils under which it at
present laboured, were they not removed.
The Marquis of LONDONDERRY thought his
Majesty's Government had not shewn any disposition
to be inactive in procuring labour for those who were
idle, and food for those who could not get it for them-
selves. The Hon. Gentleman admitted the difficulty
of the case, and although he (the Marquis of Lon-
donderry) had professed himself willing to give his
cordial co-operation to the Hon. Baronet (Sir J. New-
port) in any measure he might propose for the relief
of Ireland, he had not pledged himself to accede to
all he should come forward with.
. The Motion for the Return was then agreed to.
SALT TAX.
Mr. CURWEN gave notice, that he would on Tues-
day next move for the entire repeal of the Salt Tax.
Mr. BRIGHT presented a Petition from James Pe-
ters, a fish-curer of the City of Bristol, on the sub-
• ject of the Salt Tax. It was very obvious, the Hon.
Member stated, that the retention of the tax upon
salt used in the fisheries would be highly prejudicial.
. The country was obliged to the Chancellor of the
Exchequer for the relief now to be afforded ; but it
was always to be remembered that that relief was
purchased--that it was not given by savings which
had been effected, but by increasing the public debt
pro tempore.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER had
no objection to the Petition which had been presented.
He defended the plan which he brought forward, as
that which went to relieve the various interests of the
country more than aaj odor which had been sug-
gested. The duty which it was intended should re.
main on salt, was in future to be collected at the mouths
oldie pits et pans. but that which was to be exported
to foreign parts was to be delivered free of all duty,
Salt obtained for any other purpose was to pay duty,
but ip order that this regulation might not interfere
with the trndo of our 6:berme:kin foreign marketi,
where salt could lie_ procured on easier terms, it was
proposed that a drawback to the amount of the duty
should be allowed on every barrel of herrings or other
Ash exported, bet this was not to be allowed on fish
cured for, borne consumption. In other respects the,
fislierieiyould be relieved from manyinconveniences
and restrictions of an extremely rigorous nature to
which they„ha& been subjected, .and which, while'
the dutp continued, were undoubtedly necessary.—
The ketition was thea read, and ordered to be printed.'
ILCIIESTER JAIL.

Sue LBURDETT, in moving for the production of
the journal kept by the Magistrates at Ilchester Jail,
thought. as a matter of course, it would have been
produced when an inquiry was pending on. which it
aright throw lieu, and was much surprised that the
Fortner motion on this subject had not been acceded
to. The statements which Mr. Hunt had made, that
door had been closed which was necessary to be
opened, in order to ventilate his apartment; and that
a Magistrate bad refused him permission to see his
sister, which
.it.was saki the Rev. Dr. Colston had
authbrised an Honourable Member of that House to
contradict, deserved some attention, in order, to :hew
what degree of importance ought to be attached to
his authority.. The new jailer had opened the door
not on Mr. Hunt's account, but to correct the iusalu...

not let been telaailt. The-cithei tellittAnasinote int-
portant. In 1890, application had Iseen,-.made by
Mr. Hunt to Dr..Colston; and =POW cliabsArisiting
Magistrates (Mr. Moody, be believed), kelaraission
to see his sister, in order to excetals .legal in-
strument, and had been denied. Now**, pi the con-
tradictions authorised by the Rem. PipeAr being ne-
=at by what he himself had soamA and }he other
. as he believed,. capable of ben contradicted
rby-witnesseewho were ready,to appear at, their Bar,.
he know not What Berm to apply to the conduct of:
that individiabt btat he thought it clear that he was
unworthy tp remain in the Nragistracy of the County.
He had seen at Bath, ,in a paper called the therborne
gircuti, a lengthened' report of a speech made by
anitio" Einalet:an near him, in which, very incor-
lectly, prdbably, it iras stated that Mr. Hunt and a
turnkey of the name of Hobbs, bad conspired to
punish a Mr: Wyatt, because the latter had surprised
Mr. Hunt with Mr. Wyatt's niece on his knee. This
story., he was convinced, was without the—Aigh*st.
foundation. The insinuation whiCh it contained was
very gross, and ought- not to have been 'advanced
on slight grounds. This Wyatt had waited upon'
Mr. glint, who had 'finally quarrelled with him. 'lane,
Hon. Bart. then proceeded to shew that the evidence
of Wyatt was not worthy of attention—that he .was 1
at best hilt I half-witted fellow, who had been Con-
fined for a violent assault on his wife and children,
and that his testimony had been very properly stopt
by the interference of the Commissioners, on account
of its trifling and irrelevant character. He then called
the attention of the House to the case of a man of the
name of Evans, who had complained against Bridle,
and who had been confined in irons. By the way he
thought it right to remark that all who had com-
plained against Bridle, whether officers or prisoners,
had been visited for doing so in some way or other.
It appeared that an Hon. Member of that House, to
whom he had before alluded, had sanctioned the use
of irons on one occasion. Hehad gone down to look
at the wall where the man had got over, and had
approved of confining the individual in the way he
had described. Evans had been confined for six
months, but it did not appear what had then been
done with him. He could wish to know when the
man was delivered, or whether (as might be the case
for aught that appeared to the contrary), he was still
in solitary confinement? The subject must be followed
up in some way. It was absolutely necessary to as-
certain what had become of this man, and that ap-
peared to him an unanswerable argument in favour
of the present motion. The book which he called
for ought to be produced. The Right Hon. Gentle-
man, In refusing to grant it, had fairly admitted that
it was not to be regarded as private, as containing
merely the memoranda of the Magistrates' private
pocket-book. He would not call for it if he thought
it would make against the jailer Bridle. But he
should judge, that instead of prejudicing him on his
trial, its production might be necessary for his de-
fence, in order to shew that this or that act was per-
formed in conformity with the order of such or such
a Magistrate. He hardly wished to see Bridle prose-
cuted at all, as he conceived much of what he
had done to have been caused by the course which
the Magistrates bad pursued. There were two acts
which appeared to be his own, the placing a blister
on the head of a prisoner, by way of punishment, and
the confining a poor female, with her infant, without
giving them even the refreshment of a drop of water.
He hoped he would only be called upon to answer
for those acts which were undoubtedly his own, and
that the Attorney-General would be careful to lay the
venire in another county, and to make such other ar.
rangements as should secure him a fair and inipartial
trial, and counteract, so far as might be necessary.
any disadvantages under which he might labour at
present. He, however, could not see that the pro;
duction of the Magistrates' journal was likely to pt.',
judice his case, and from the manner in which it was
withheld, he suspected that it contained something of
importance. He concluded by moving

" An humble Address to his Majesty. praying that he would
be graciously pleased to give directions that there should be laid
before that House the journal kept by the Magistrates at &hes-
ter Jail."

Mr. Secretary PEEL said the Hon. Baronet had,
perhaps unintentionally, misled him and the House, -
when rising, as he had understood, merely to move
for the production of the Magistrates' Journal, he
had gone. into so many circumstances connected With
lichester Jail. He now ptoposed to confine himself
to-the motion, and the grounds on which he should
oppose it. He had already stated, that on the Re-
port of the Commissioners to the King, he had felt it
to be his duty to advise certain proceedings with re-
spect to that Report. He had taken the opinions of
the Law Officers of the Crown: they had advised a
prosecution of the jailer, and had accordingly di-
rected a prosecution to be commenced. He had also
addressed a letter to the Lord Lieutenant of the
County, stating what had been reported by the Com-
missioners, as to the scite and condition of the jail ;
and requesting hilts (though he believed that to hale
been unnecessary) to call the attention of the Local
Authorities to the subject. He also wrote to others
who were concerned, calling on them to explain what
had affected them. The Hon. Baronet admitted that
Mr. Bridle at present laboured. under some disad-
vantages: all he (Mr. Peel) desired was, that these
should not be increased ; and therefore he was anxious
that the Journal in question, and the explanations
which it might be necessary to give with it, should
be reserved till after the.triil ; then, should it be ne-
cessary to the elticidation of the conduct of the Ma-
gistrates, he would pledge himself to consent to the
production of any part of the Journal, or the whole.
The explanations which would be given, he was
bound to say,. would in many instances afford much
satisfaction to the House. With the Journal, the
trial being over, he. would consent to the production
of any document respecting the scite and condition
of the Jail, or the conduct of the Magistrates. Till

~.S.
to expect at the time that ge Coercive measures siine the risen cardsreetOr ' 4111 r
ha weft e
granted by the House to his Majaty's Govethnsent: ployediberciii ng been tangly
for Ireland. that some period' .of the Session would burned down. Now. F. . ) had been at
*lvy emu' isnnALCUTSCIOISIt inping.tienv An. is lichestur, • . own
quiry as to the staslof *land. The present was a eyes, could say it was impossible. **k Woad bass
j)erioti that loudly Cailidloirit ; and, although that.appearedaellsseA7 SD-Gia• as doer ley a. rouge
-wholesome inquiry bad always, been Rfstponed, be which had been assigned, as not a stone had been
booed that would ace hss the ease on Ibis occasion. touched since the die aka plaxi,:stistitiliklictory had