Star.
London, England, 1813-11-30 00:00:00

PARLIAMENT:Mr PROCE.EDINGS. "

HOUSE OF LORDS, NOVEMBER 29.
U the Appeal " Dempster v. Cleghoni and others," Mr. Ha.
tier was heard for the Respondents, and Sir Samuel Romilly in
tufty, 'lodgment to-morrow.
In an Appeal from the Court of Session In Scotland, " An-
dre* v.-Murdoch," Sir Samuel &torridly and Mr. AdaLn, jun.
wive heard fur the Appellant, and Mr. Adam and Mr. Nolan
fur the Respondent. t urther hearing oa Wednesday.
Reversion Bill. the • Helatone Election Bill, the London
Militia Service Bill, the Militia Interchange Bill, the 60th Regi-
ment Augmentation inn, the Militia Serjeants' Bill; and the
clew South Wales Debts Bill, were Drought up from the Corn-
:mons by Mr. BANKES, Sir Wu.LIAU CURTIS, Mr. LUSKIN°.
TON, and other Members, and were read a first time, with the
eszeption of the Reversion Bill, and the Helstone Election Bill.
'f he Loan Interest Bill, the Clergy Penalty Suspension Bill,
and the An oat Indemnity Bill, were read a 3d time and passed.
The Subsidy Bill, the Irish Olficers Bill, the Irish Sugar Bill,
and the stots spirit Licence Bill, were read a second time and
committed or to.niorrow.
Petitions from the Debtors confined in Lancaster mad York
Castles were presented by Lord-He ttazt D, and in Giltspur-street
and the P,ititry Compeers by Lord ZLLEIIIIOIOUGII. Ordued
to he un the 'I able.
INSOLVENT DEBTORS.
Lord REDESDA LE presented his Bill for;
am. tiding the Act of last Session, for the Relief of
Insolvent Debtors, which was read a first time, and
ordered to be printed.
Lord ELLENBOROUGH moved the second
reading of his temporary Insolvent Debtors' Bill,
wishiig that it might go through this stage in regu-
lar course, in order that, in the event of its not being
found practicable to render the Act of last .Session
effectual. for its object, that this Bill might pass before
the Recess.
Lord HOLLAND remarked upon the inconsis-
tency of sanctioning a Bill, professing to repeal the.
Act of lAA Session, at, the same moment that they en-
tertained a Bill for amending that Act.
Lerd REDESDALE also observed upon the in.
consi :tem y of .racctioning a Bill, the principle of which
was to repeal the Act of last Session, whilst a Bill
was before the House to amend that Act.
respect to the difficulties stated to exist in the execu-
tion of the Act of last Sessions, persons had been in-
dustriously employed to disseminate objections which
did not exist in point of fact, whilst the difficulties
that had really. occurred might be easily obviated.—
His Lordship then entered into a detail of some
length, for the purpose of strewing the easy with
which the real objections to the Act might be got rid
of, by declaring and enacting the power of the Com-
missioner to remove from place to place ; by decla-
ring and enacting the express obligation upon gao-
lers t, bring tip their prisoners; by appointing an
officer to take a provisional assignment of the deb-
tor's effixts, similar to the Clerk of the Peace at the
Sessions ; by repe- ling the Court of Appeal ; by
substituting a recognizance, to be given by the deb-
tor (as to the liability of his future property, under
the direction of the Court) instead of an engage.
ment : and, finally, by giving a discretionary power
to the Commissioner to authorise Justices in Quar-
ter Scsstons to discharge debtors, reserving to
himself to have persons brought before him, where
he saw a necessity fur investigation, which would
happen comparatively in but iew instances. This
latter clause, if the House agreed to add it to the
Bill in a Committee, would answei all the purposes
of the Noble and Learned Lord's temporary bill,
without tile objections which applied to all temporary
Insolvent Acts. Uoder.Acts of the latter descrip-
tion, the future property of the debtor was rendered
liable, but in a manner that rendered it only attach-
able by bringing actions, and thus it might happen
that one crckthor obtaining execution might get all
the effects of me debtor, nothing being kft for the
(Wier creditors, whilst the debtor might by this pro-
cedure be ruined. Under the Act of last Session,
on the contrary, the future property was only ren-
dered habie, subject to the discretion of r.e Court ;
and thus, if he attained the means, a gradual mode
of payment might be resorted to, under the autho.
rity of the Court, which would preserve the debtor
om ruin, and be more just to the creditor in the
equal distribution of funds for payment.
Lerd ELLENBOROUGH was desirous of its
being distinctly understood, that he had thrown no
obstacle in the way of the Act .last Session, but on
the contrary he had suggested many propositions for
what he considered the improvement of it. He still
urged the second reading of his Bill, that it might be
in readiness in case it could not be found practicable
effectually to amend the Act of last Session.
Lord REDESDALE did not mean to accuse the
Noble and Learned Lord of throwing difficulties in
the way of the Act of last Session, but where some
Officers attended the Court, whilst others chose to
disobey the orders of the Commissioner, without as-
signing any reason for so doing, it was clear that a
divosition existed somewhere to thwart the execution
of the Act. As to the suggestions of the Noble and
Learned Lord, they chiefly related to the form of the
jurisdiction to be erected.
Tlit LORD CHANCELLOR was desirous of
giving every possible assistance to render effectual
the Act of the Legislature. He thought, however,
that it would be advisable to forward the temporary
Bill a stage, in order that it might be available,
before the recess, in case they should be unable to
agree upon a proper Bill, for amending the Act of
last Session.
Lord HOLLAND was decidedly hostile to press.
ing a temporary Insolvent Bill at the present mo-
ment—particularly a Bill which stated what had not
been proved, that the Act of last Session had been
found ineffectual. It was not his practice to deal in
insinuations: it might have been by accident that the
Commissioner was not-appointed till two months af-
ter the passing of the Act—it might have been by
accident that the Marshal of the King's Bench, when
the Court at length met, chose to disobey the order
of the Court, and to assign no reason for such con-
&act ; but, with all the circumstances in view that
were notorious to the public, it was a little too much
to sa.y 'that the Act had been found ineffectual, par.
titularly when, after all, the difficulties started bad
been foto& to be merely such as might be easily re-
moved. He could not ccnsent to resort to the mis-
chi:vous principle of temporary Insolvent Bills, when
they had the sound principle of Legislation before
them already, embouied in an Act which only requi.,
red some trifling amendments. It was an observa-
tion of Mr. Horne Tooke's, when substitutes were
resorted to in a time of scarcity for fine flour..—" Do'
mot," says he to some poisons, 66 touch the barley