Star.
London, England, 1818-03-10 00:00:00

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___________,—....................-ese semhled as auxiliaries for treasonable purposes. On
poverished, and ahey were obliged to convert their all those occasions it must hike beeh for the cotisi-
provision grounds into sugar plantations. Their de- deration of the House whether this exigencies of the
peoelence for a supply. of provisions was on distant , times had been so& as to justify those particular
--. . Crr''. like. .onsOreatlritain the British Settlement:lllols. Now, it was seen that twice durtnithe period
it; Canada, and the United States of America, but iha had mentioned, and after the fullest discussion;
limited as to all, to be carried in British vessels.— Parliament had thought it necessary for the peace of
Ibis has been the case since the close of the Ameri- the country to suspend the Habeas Corpus Act, moil
illa War, when restrictions were laid on their inter- to give certain powers to the Secretary of State and
course with the United States. Of late years they the Privy Council, for the purpose of helention. If
brave-been exposed to greater inconvenience, from the House would recollect the circumelimces which
the difficulty of obtaining supplies from this country, had taken place within the last 14 months, they must
in consequence of deficient crops. The same deft- be convinced that it was absolutely necessary for
ciency has existed is Canada, and the inhabitants of those who were the guardians of the peace of the
our settlements there have been obliged to obtain country, to take the steps they had done, and that
supplies from the United States. Such was the case they would have been guilty of a gross dereliction of
lut year ; and although Sir J. Sherbrooke, in his last their date if they had acted otherwise. They were
speech to the Legislative Body, holds out a hope of therefore fully entitled to the Indemnity of Perim-
there being a surplus produce this year, it by no meet, in order that if any proceedings should be insti-
means affords a reasonable ground for reliance on a tuted against them in Courts of Law, they might not
supply of food to the population of the Leeward be under the necessity of disclosing the testimon:es
Islands. The Islands themselves produce little more they had received, and thereby marking out those
than sufficient for the maintenance of a tenth part of persons as objects of vengeance, or be put ireithe situ-
their population. The old Colonies are more unfa- ation of violating the confidence reposed in them—,
vourably situated than any of the more recently set- Without such a protection, they voluld be put in the
teed Islands, with a worse soil, and exposed to many situation of sacrificing those persons, by making pub-
other inconveniences in point of climate, to which be their names, who had given information on condi-
ths latter are not subject. He called the attention of tion that they should not be disclosed. It was impos-
the House to these circumstances, in the hope that sible not to see that there had been conspiracies for-
some remedy would be applied, and that they might med for the purpose of overthrowing the Government
be put on the same footing with the ceded Colonies. of this Kingdoth in Church and State, as established
The Rill was then read a third time.and passed ; by law. Ilan: had been formed by persons taking
as was also the Madder Duty Bill. advantages of the distresses of the lower orders ofthe
tinontwoOr JILL. people, to get them to assemble tinder the false pre-
The ATTORNETOEN'O AL having tweed the tence of petitioning that House for a Reform in Par-
Order of the Day for the first reading of the Indem- liament, while their real objects, undisguised among
nite Bill, began by observing, that on the present oc- themselves, was to effect an entire revolution ; so that
'lesion he trusted it might be thought better, that be- at the very time they were speaking of Reform, they
th-e going into any debate upor. it the Bill should be had in view nothing but destructisn to all the admi-
printed, in order that evetybehfloerrenber might have an red and revered institutions of the country. The
opportunity of perusing it the third reading.— transactions that had taken place in February last
On considering the events that had taken place in this tear, and the December preceding, manifested the
country within the last thirteen or fourteen months, intention of getting together large numbers of people,
and the measures which Parliament had found it ne- for the purpose of raising an in iurrection and revolt.
cessary to adopt, as also the proceedings in the House —lt therefore became the absolute duty of the Ma-
of Lords, he was certain that the more the contents gistracy to interfere, and they performed that 'duty
of this Bill were reflected on, the stronger would ap- in a manner highly creditable to themselves, and be-
pear the justice and necessity of passing it. He neficial to the country. Here he could not help *-
wished to call the recollection of the House to pre- serving, that amongst the intentions detailed to the
vious proceedings of this nature, not for the purpose Committee of that House which was appointed last
of taping, that because in forther times Indemnity year, one scheme of those who were endeavouring
&Us had passed, that therefore the present Bill ought to disturb the public peace, was the plan of coming
to pass ; but in order to spew the occasions on which to Parliament with Petitions signed by ten persons
such Bills had been produced and sanctioned by both each ; but in large bodies of several thousands, every
Houses. And he would point out to the recollection tenth person having a petition in his hand. This was
of the House, that though in certain circumstances, stated in February, and its truth was established by
dine Bills had differed, yet the circumstances which the attempt to carry the daring project into effect at
called for the present Bill fell completely within the Manchester, in the following month. Who were the
scope of those which justified 'similar Bills on former projectors or instigators of this bold scheme he could'
occasions. It seemed, however, that some miscon- not say; but it was a cool and deliberate plan of
ception had prevailed as to the facts which led to the some persons who had studied every head andseetioe
passing of the former bills ; for he believed it had of the law against tumultuous assemblies, in order
been supposed by sortie Gentlemen, that the year to see if they could not be evaded ; and there wasl
1801 was 'the first time that an Indemnity Bill had no man but must he convinced, that instead of these
passed subsequently to the Suspension of the Habeas being large assemblies of petitioners, their object was
Corpus Act. But it would be found, that in most in- to have a sort of army, every ten men to have a
stances in which the Legislature had deemed it ne- leader, and every hundred a centurion, that they
cessary to suspend the Habeas Corpus Act—indeed might come to overawe Parliament, nut by petition-
in all instances, excepting one, an Indemnity Bill ing, but by threats and terror. He would say, there
had passed after the Suspension of that Act. There never was a more mischievous, or a more atrociods
had also been instances of Indemnity Bills in cases project than this was intended to be, if it had not
where there had been no Suspension of the Habeas been circumvented. Poor persons were persuaded to
Corpus Act. The fact was, that with respect to both leave their labours, and to march without previsions,
classes of Bills, they had been passed at different clothing, or any means of supporting nature, so that
times since the Revolution, according as the necessity their very necessities must have led them to violate
of the times rendered them indispensible. But the the laws as they proceeded, in order to prevent them-
same exigency that created the Suspension of the selves from starving. It was therefore the imperative
Habeas Corpus Act made it necessary that Bills of duty of the Magistrates to stop them in all the parts
Indemnity should be carried, for the protection of the through which they passel, as being unlawfully as-
guardians of the public tranquillity, as well as for ' sembled, to the danger of the public peace. When
ale protection of those who had furnished them with the ewis took place in the year 1780, the reproach
information, on the authority of which they had against the guardians of the public peace was, that
found it necessary to take the steps that had been re- they had not done their duty, as the situation in which
anted to. (Hear.) If Gentlemen would tee the they stood called on diem to stop these outrageous
trouble to refer back to the time of the Revolution, proceedings, instead of letting than go on till they
they would find, that the persons who were the burst into an explosion. What would they have said
greatest supporters of that memerable proceeding, and to the Magistrates of those Counties, if they had
the means of preserving the laws and liberties of the found the insurgents of last year at the doors of that
people of this country—that these persons, imme- House, or even in the Metropolis, with their Petitions
diately after passing the Bill of Rights, found it ne- amongst every ten men? Would ii not have been
cessary to pass three several stets for the Suspension said that they had been guilty of a gross dereliction
of the Habeas Corpus Act ; and as they expired, of their duty ? The House also would recollect the
there were passed Indemnity Bills to protect the per- proceedings that had taken place at Manchester, that
uses whehad informed against and apprehended those information of these proceedings had been given
guilty of conspiracies against the reigning Monarch. upon u:ith, and that on this information the Govern-
* a subsequent period anindemnity Bill was passed, ment had acted. The Committee had reported last
which was not preceded by a Suspension of the Ha- year on the state of the country, and the Coalmines
teas Corpus Act. It was in the year 1714, and the to whom the papers were lately referred had reported
Act was the Ist 9f George L cap. 99, and it recited, their opinions on its present state, all founded on the
that as several Lords Lieutenants and their officers oaths of persons who had deposed to the circumstans)
had apprehended certain persons, who might have ces that had taken place. Those facts must prove
excited riots and disturbances, it was deemed neces- that disturbances had occurred, aid that it wes ab-.
sary by Parliament to indemnify them for their con- solutcly necessary to proceed to the trials of the most
duct in the preservation of the public peace. In the active conspirators at Derby, by which step the in-
year 1744, the Act for the Suspension of the Writ of surrection was put Own. As he had spoken of the
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Habeas Corpus was not Immediately followed up by trials at Derby, he would add, that, it was chary
an Indemnity Bill : but in 1746 the Indemnity Act proved, from the testimony of persons whom it was
was produced, to protect all persons in the situation impossible to doubt, that this was the branch of a
of Magistrates, &c. for their conduct in the preceding large conspiracy which was intended to extend to
year ;,and for what they might have done subsequent many parts of the country, and which was only pie-
to the expiration of that Act. This, however, was not vented from taking full effect by the activity of the
thought sufficient • for as that Act only indemnified Magistrates. The trials in question had fully satis-
them to the 30th Of April, and as the Magistrates had fled him that a deep laid conspiracy bad existed, and
been under the necessity of taking up several persons that it would have gone on and led to a universal ex-
subsequent to that day, another Act was passed, in- plosion. What he meant to say was, that it would
dennifying them for all actions done between the 90th have been so far general as to have taken place
of April and the 25th of July, 1746. Thus ap In- wherever an assembly of misguided people had been
siemnity Bill had in all instances followed the other. collected. With respect to what had been said about
From that time till the yeas 1792, there was no Sus- Oliver, he would counteract an important impression
pension of the Habeas Corpus Act ; but there was an that had been made on the public mind respecting
la.:pinky Bill for the circumstances that took place his appearance at Derby during those trials. Oliver
k the year 1780; as the Magistrates and others had was not brought them to give his evidence; he was
acted on their own responsibility for the security of brought there for a very different purpose. He had
the public peace, at a time when it was absolutely no hesitation in saying, that he (the Attorney-General)
ass essary for them to interfere, and when it was diffi- had been the man who had caused him to be brought'
cis:, if they had been prosecuted, to bring home the down, and he would state for what purpose. There
cZeace to the persons they had securbd, so as to justify was a man who had been at Derby, and said he had
their apprehension. From that time till the year 1801, seen Oliver amongst the conspirators, and he was to
he was not aware of any Bill of this hind having been appear as a witness, and was to have proved that the
passed ; but in that year there were two. such Acts, for man he was speaking of was Oliver. Oliver Was
indemnifying persons for having apprehended and therefore sent for to Derby, not that be might be
deatined individuals suspected of High Treason, and examined as a witness, but as an auxiliary, that those
far having been active in suppressing tumults and on their trials miait have an opportunity-of saying
riots in Ireland. He merely mentioned thilato thew whether he was tile man ; but the Jury were per-
that our predecessors thoughtit necessary to indemnify fad? satisfied that he was not the man. This was
pahlic officers for apprehandieg persons who bad as, the reason kr Oliver being at Darby, and it was a

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