Star.
London, England, 1817-04-29 00:00:00

ACADMICAL INSTITUTION.

Mr. WILBERFOkCE rose to present a Petition
front certain Members of the Academical Institution,
held in Chancery-lane. on the subject of being u-fus-
ed- their license. He stated the nature of the Society.
and added, that he certainly was one of those who
assented to the Bill under which this Society had
been interrupted; but if the pr-visions of it were at
all of a nature to interiere with them, he had certainly
misunderstood the tendency of the measure. The
Petition was then read. It described the Socie tyto
have been instituted in 1793, to have latterly held its
meetings at 110, Chancery-lane, for the purpose of
discussing philosophical, literary, and historical ques-
tions ; but their rules did not admit of observations
being made on any living character in the United
Kingdom. Under the former Act for preventing
seditious Meetings, they applied for a license to con•
tinue their debates, which was immediately granted.
By a deputation of their body, they had applied for
a license under tb peseta Act, oa the 15th instant,
which had been refused by the Magistrates assembled
in full Session. at the Old Bailey, two of the four
having declared the Act was intended to put down
all political discussion. Under these circumstances
it called on the House for such interference in their
behalf as they should think fitted to the eccasien.
Mr. C. GRAN I' bore testimony to the respectabi-
lity of toe Petitioners, from the knowledge he had of
the m personally.
Sir M. W. RIDLEY said, the House must have
listened with no common feelings to a Petition like
the present. Ititad been objected to the Bill lately
passed, that it went to trust too much to the discre-
tion of the Magistrates, and that the . unheard of
power so confided to them might be misused, and
exercised' so as to check the greatest privileges of
Englishmen. He admitted it was almost impossible
to suppose such a construction would be given to the
Act as had been put upon it by the Magistrates in
the case in question. He should think, however, it
was now high time that Ministers should state what
were their sentiments on the subj• ct. He did nut
now mean to complain of those Magistrates who had
so overstepped prudence, and, as he thought, their
duty, or to assume that they meant to transgress the
law s but, under certain circumstances, pets:ins in
their situation were likely to give a law that 'construe-
lion which they thought would be most agreeable in
a certain quarter, in opposition in that which would
be dictated to them by their more sober judgment.—
He would ask if a law like this ought to be left to
the discretion of the Magistrates ? He wished them
to remember what were the words of the celebrated
Lord Mansfield on the subject of the discretion en.
trusted to Magistrates. " The discretion to be exer-
cised in a Court of Justice," he described to be " a
discretion grounded in law, regulated by rule, and
not by humour, which might cause the decisions
come to to be arbitrary, vague,, and fancifhl." In
the present instance. that.whicb had taken place he
maintained to have been arbitrary, vague, and fanci-
ful, and calculated to hold the best privileges of Eng-
lishmen in check, -if it were- not properly n:et in the
first instance. He trusted Ministers would now state
the Act io have been totally misunderstood by the
Magistrates. If this were not done, he (Sir M. W.
Ridley) would then sire notice of a motion fur leave
to bring in explain the said Act.
Mr. BATHURS'Is knew nothing of what had
been done by the Magistrates, but from the state-
ment contained in the Petition, and therefore could
not pretend to decide on the propriety of their con-
duct. Not knowing what reasons they might have
for interfering with the Society in question, he could
only say, taking the allegation contained in the Pea-
don as he found it, that if the Magistrates had thought
the Act was intended to put down all political di:-
mission, they had misunderstood its object. He wish- '
ed the exercise of the discretion left wjth Magistrates
Se be regulated by the language held by Lord Mans-
field on that Subject, which bad been quoted by the
Honourable Baronet.; and that which it was intended
to leave with them under the Act lately passed was
ly given to them for the purpose of enabling them
'Rs put down those Debating Societies, wbich were
made the vehicles of disaffection, and not to put down
,all political discussion whatever.
'Lord MILTON was ignorant of the merits of the
'else; but after what had fallen from the Right Hon.
Gentleman, lie hoped Ministers would think some in.
(pity necessary, in order to ascertain what had been
&ma jaw time conduct of the Magistrates. In other
'pens of the country, persons not equally well inform-
ed of the means by which they ought to seek redress,
eieight be oppressed hy the same sort of arbitrary
.swtharity. Some measure ought to he devised to pe-
lmet the Act being thus misused.
Mr. BROUGHAM thought Ministers could not
call the Magistrates to account for their conduct,
after giving the power out of their own hands, as
tbei bad done by the late Act, This might serve to
Harrah them how cautious they ought to be in entrust=
log to others a discretion which might be thus mis-
timed. lit the hands of men like the Right Honour-
ibleGentleasan (Mr.Batburst,), and hi. Noble Friend
/Lord Milton). this discretionary power would be
*lc It would not be exerted as it had been in the
ew now brought before them. It was for such then.
1 I=asned them to honour thou) as Sir William
vine and John Jonsithsa Smith, to read the Avt

'

as no roan hi drat House had thougbt of
thereupon to come to a decision which was fine',
which left the p.,rti.s aggrieved without a iv; t2t,
He hoped when those who put such a cnnstruo
on an Act of Pariliament, had ,iccaroli to apply to
those in power, in whom thil thus souttlit recerl.
mend themselves that Ministers would hr as neuirst
on such applica: ion being made, as by law they n.
to be at present. where the juiici..l proceedirono' tse
Nlazistrates were called in question. He th..n
mewed I n the of its made t.l convert this Act Iran
an (11g:N:' for Eiflilg all disrtission. even tbat svFo%
lad tiil new been Ireely ei.tertaint d in the seminar:et
of instrilctinn, and which %VAL only sn'aservi. In to the
putposes of education. He partici:la:ly alluded to
the course panned by the Vice ChencePor of C.
badge on a late occasinn, who, since the passing of
this Act, It ,d put a it, p to those debates which ware
formerly common at that University, and till no.; lie
knew of no attempt having been made to intetietc
with a practice so laudable and so ustfttl.
The Petition was read, and ordered to be printed.

ntstrtv,sim stATE or

Mr. BROUGHAM presented a l'ctttion, signed,
he might venture to say, by nearly the whole labcato
ing population of the town of Birmingham.
public meeting had given birth to this petition, nor
even bad any public notice been given of its lyingfcr
signature; but, without any such means being re-
sorted to, it was understood that three copies of such
a petition were in different parts o' the roan, and in
eight and forty hours 10,000 names were signed.
Persons of credit and re,pectability attended at there
three places, in ()Eder to see that no person signed mere
than once, or at all, who did not appear to be 21
years of age. To guard against the disorders to be
expected from the assembling a great concourse of
persons, it had remained Inlet. ler signature but a few
days longer, when the names subscribed to it amount.
ed to 12,500. These, be thitught, he was justified in
takinA to be the whole, or, nearly the whole, of the
labouring population of Bo n7irglia In, 11. e total
amount of the population of that town being e,ti-
mated at fifty nr sixty thotasatid persons. This pe-
tition had not been framed to forward any party or
political views. It was couched its humble and ear-
nest but most touching language. From reading
it be felt satisfied that the representation of the dis•
tiess in that quarter Which he had submitted to the
House on the 18th of March, fell far short of what
it was at that time, or it bad greatly increased since.
He now found the poor rates had averaged in the
last twelve mantis 9. 4d. in the pound—fur the last
six months Its. for the last three mouths ISs. and
for the lag lour weeks it amounted to 14s. 4d. and
still fell short of what was necessary for the support
of the poor by the difference ht•tween 14s. 4d. and
17s. Bd. The Poors' It ors had in tact, doting •he
last week or two, tell off more by one hundred, than
they had done at any former period. He thought
right to say, that to diSl real' like that of these
;iciness no immediate relief could be afforded by
that House. To relieve all those whose names sere
.igtted to this petition, without including tho.e wh)
resided in the vicinity of Birmingham, would squire
neatly halt a million. How the Chancellor or e
Exchequer expected to relieve the country eenerally
by the issue of a million and a half of Exchequer
Bills, it would be for him to explain—for his 0411
part, he was convinced that no permanent and sub-
stantial relief could be afforded, till a change mkt
place in our whole commercial system.
The Petition was then read. It set forth the pa-
tience, loyalty, and extreme distress of the petitioners.
They only desired to be enabled to procure by their
labour, food, clothing, and shelter from the elements ;
and denied these humble comforts, which till now
the industry of an Et glishinan could always procure,
it was betier for Ahem to die than to live, add then
they would not experience the wanks of which they
have at present to complain, and would be spared the
misery of hearing their children cry for bread, which
it was not in their power teafford.—The petition was
received, and ordered to be printed.