Star.
London, England, 1824-06-18 00:00:00

PARLL4.IfEgTArZI PkOCkEDINGS.

HOUSE OF LORDS, JUNE 17.
Tbts morning their LordshlPS that at ten o'clock in a Committee
of Privileges, on Vie dorniant LW Peerage, which claim, after
the hearing of Counsel and taking of evidence, was postponed to

next Session.
Counsel were called in after prayers on the appeal of " Doe v. the
Earl of Jersey," 'Spiro which the Learned Judges attended ; and;
after a series of questions bad been propounded to them by the
Lotto Cuaricintoa, it was resolved that the Learned Judges should
attend the service of this Ilouse on Alonday at two o'clock.
4 At at quarter to four -o'clock, the Archbishop of CANTIMPURY,
the' Oi) CHANCILLLOR, and the Earl of Sitarstmoric, took their
seats before the throne, being robed as' Lords 'Commissioners for
nhtifying and declaring his Majesty's Assent to divers Bills, agreed
upon by. both Houses, and the Yeoman Usher of the Black Rod
*as directed to require the,attendanee of the other House in this.
' Within a very revs' minute! Mi. See/saki; who was followed by
several of the Members of the Ciiiiimons House. cause to their
tordships' bat, when the Royal. CommisSion, which was dated on
td-day, and signed by the 4lng's own hand, was read, and the
tClerks of the House were directed in consequence to pass the Bills
1 *fug i—The 'Micky. of Cotowall Bill, the Ecclesiastical Bine-
cMortgages Belief Bill; the Exchequer Bills Public Works BIR.
British and irith 'Fisheries Encouragement Bill, the Salt Dads,'
l}epeal (Sill, the East India Goods Bill, the Newfoundland Judica-
ture and Marriages Bills,the Irish Tithes Composition Act Amend-1
went Bill; the .ScOtilsh LaW Courts 1310, the General Tursmikh
Act Amendnient Bill, the Insolvent Debtors' Act Amen•lment Bill,
the Irish Wheat Warehousing Bill, the Excise Officers' Oaths Re-
lief 13111, the Irish Bankers Bill, the Weights and Measures Uni-
formity Bill, the Pauper Lunatics Asylum Bill, the Silk Acts Bill,
. Payne Knight's (British Museum) Coins and Medals Donation
. the East Itidia'Colopany's Agreement 'Bill, the Dublin Local
attialaticiitn
ilirth,ethiteivie'braThines6latind
(*lATleeditW)
, . the Leeds Improvement' Bill, the IsalTNYngCvtaoiglilitllimoßnpil
roliivnlePhnire:.vnßenittilisteitiolltl,
Parldington ImprOiethint Bill; the Bathlate Pollee. Bill, the
ndee Improvement Bill; the Bolton le-Moors Water Works
U, the Canterbury and Cheltenharn Water Works Bills, the Irish
ining Bills, the Alliance Assurance Company's 13111, the Camden
own Road Bill, the Commercial Road Bill, the West India Docks
Roads Bill; the Stafford 'Veerage "Reveisal of Attainder Bill, the
Mar Earldom Restoiatlon Bill, the Strathallan Peerage Restoras
don Bill, the Kenusure and the Nairn Peerages Restoration Bilis,
te` Scotch Law Courts Rik with several Road and Inclosure
ills, amounting in all to seventy-six, the Commission not ending
till half after four o'clock. • • '
When the Loreto Commissioners bad unrolled, the House 11%
cnd, and Counsel were called In upon the Marine Insurance
ompany's Bill.
Mr. HARRISON and Mr. Lin attended for the London Assurance
Company, and Mr. Bosauctuer and Mr. Class for the ROYal Ex-
diange Assurance Cons:pad,:
• The LORD CHANCELLOR here remarked, that he appre-
hended that the Counsel for one Company was likely to embrace the
.uinent which would apply to the other C.unpany, and therefore
would be aufficient for their Lordships to proceed to hear the ar-
guments Of Ctiunsel in support of the London Assurance Company.
Mr. Halation then opened the statement he was instructed to
~eke, wkkh he enforced by a variety of argument; when he was
illowed by Dir. Lints upon the same side, who appealed to the Act
Parliament by which the London. Assurance Company, in com-
mon with the Royal Exchange Assurance Company, had so long re.
lied on the pledged faith of Paillainent.
Counsel werenow ordered to withdraw, the LORD CHANCELLOR
ing that the arguments, as they respected the present Hill,rim. the whole of the questiOn.
Lord BEXLEY (Counsel having withdrawn) addressed their
Lordships. He trusted that, natwithstandins' the arguments which
hid been so ingeniously and ably urged by the Learned Counsel
Who were engaged to opptist the present Lill, their Lordships
would not on that account be induced to relax in their proceedings.
They were assembled there not al interested In the que.ti.ot them-
selves, but as one of the Houses of Parliament ; and it was their
duty to consider whether they •oueht not to relieve an important
branch of the trade and navigation of their country, which had la-
boured under an improper restriction for upwards of a century.
It had formerly been the opinion of the Privy Council, when al,-
tted to on the subject, that these chartered rights ought to be re-
ed and extinguished ; but then it was thought this had better he
done by l'arliament. It never could be conceived by their Lord-
ships, in the present day, that the Parliament of the year 1720
could have wished to enact, that under all circumstances in future,
amidst all the changes in the commercial world likely to ensue,
that the business of Marine Insurance should be left entirely to two
Companies. What might be sufficient for the purpose of the year
1720 could hardly be thought sufficient for the year 1824, when
the capital and power of the old Companies were not sufficient to
take charge of the navigation of the country, and when trade 'had
augmented at least fourfold. Whilst saying this he wished to assure
.thi:ir Lordships he bad a great respect for the exertions of the Com-
-I:naittee at Lloyd's, who, no doubt, had rendered great service to
the tsade and navigation of the country; but there was nothing in
1 the present Bill to prevent individuals from insuring in any way,
though it certainly went to allow of partnerships in insurance'.
Let their Lordships ask at liarnburgh, or in any port of Holland,
and most of the maritime towns and ports of the Continent, what
was the practice there? They would discover that it was dud- 1
dedly in favour of such measures as that proposed by the present ,
1 13111. No doubt it was true, as had been sfrgrd by the Learned
, Counsel against the Bill, that oo great losses had ever been incurred
by the insurers from the insolvent underwriters at Lloyd's ; but
then, on the other hand, was the premium of insurance as !ow as
it otherwise might have been? Premiums had, upon the contrary,
Ban kept unnaturally up ; and therefore it would be a- great
benefit to the Public to open a free competition for insurances,
which the present Bill proposed to do. Great part of the coast-
ing trade indeed was insured by mutual insurances, at a much less
premium than was required by the Chartered Companies. Fur
the purpose of creating a free competition and with a view to re.-
moving a monopoly which had lung existed' for no good cause, he
now called on their Lordships to support the Bill.
Upon the question being put from the Woolsack, the Bill wall
reads second time and soldered to be committed fir to-morrow..