Star.
London, England, 1821-04-03 00:00:00

election. The Burksisies to Obtain redress' for *see'
instituted three years ego; proceedings at law against
these parties, and had, in the course of that time ob-
tained two judgments in their favour from the Couit
of Session in Scotland, but owing to the power pos-
sessed by the Magistrates of Edinburgh, they had
beers able to elude their judgMents which, it ap•
peared were not binding. ,The Magistrates had
thrown every legal impediment in the way, and the
Petitioners, after having their resources wasted in
law expenses, and seeing no prospect of obtaining a
rectification of the abuses they complained of, ap-
plied to that House for redress. He hoped the House
would give every attention to the matter, as he was
convinced that, if they did not, there would be no
hope for the Petitioners.
,The Petition having been brought up and read,
Mr. ABERCItOMBY said, he gave his cordial
as-
sent to the sentiments contained in the Petition, and

he recommended the consideration of it to the House

as a subject most deservin&.g):" and peremptorily re-'
quiring, their attention. abuses complained of
in this Petition were such as animated the breasts of

69Q,000 persons in Sc-otland, who felt that their
rights, property, and claims had been materially in.
jured by the long continuance of a system of self-
election, opening a door to the greatest abuses. and
dealing out the heaviest penalties upon the whole
Scotch nation. He was bound to assume that the al-

legations in the Petition were true, for the Right Ho-
nourable Member for Edinburgh, and the cord Ad-
vocate, opposite, listened to tnem and the statement
of the Noble Lord, without offering any contradiction.
Mr. DUNDAS said it was not his intention to take
up the time of the House by arguing the merits of
1 this case; but he must remind the Honourable Gen-

denim and the Noble Lord opposite, that three years
ago a Committee of that House decided this question.
The facts of the case were, that two parties got to
law together, and one.being deteated, applied to that
House to do what the law refused. He had no doubt
the statement of the Petitioners, as to the expense
they had been put to, was entitled to the fullest cre-
dit. Had they asked his advice, he would have re-
commended them on no account to go into a Court
of Law, the inevitable consequence of which must
be discomfiture to one party, and most expensive liti-
gation to both. He could not exactly see what that
House could make of this application ; but his a -
vice to the Petitioners was, that they should drop
their arms, and sit themselves down in peace with
their neighbours.
Mr. HUME asked, if it was to be, wondered at
that the Right Honourable Gentleman (Mr. Dundas)
should recommend the parties to drop their arms,
when it was known that he owed his seat in that
House to the dictum' of this self-elected Magistracy,
and which Magistracy, having been twice decided w
have been illegally chosen, by the Court of Session
in Scotland, that Right Honourable Gentleman
had sat in that House tor two Sessions illegally P--
Notwithstanding the character given to the matter
by the Right Honourable Gentleman, he hoped the
House would not turn away from the investigation of
it. It was matter of complaint all over the king-
dom, and upwards of £350,000 of the public pros
perty was suspended under the system of which these
Petitioners complained. Having spent their time in
litigation, they applied in despair to that House, and
he hoped it would redress their wrongs.
Sir R. FERGUSON highly commended the very
able and clear manner in which his Honourable Friend
ho had just spoken, had explained the case of the
Petitioners. He could not agree to this Petition being
referred to the Committee on Scotch Burghs, which,
from the experience he had had of it, was so averr
from anything like a change, that there would be no
hope of obtaining redress Irete. That Committee
he thought had done nothing and he intended to
withdraw from it shortly, and was sure his Noble
Friend (Lord A. Hamilton) only continued to be
Chairman of it from a sense of duty.
The LORD ADVOCATE vindicated the condrict
of the Committee appointed to inquire into the state
of Scotch Burghs. That. Committee had now been
engaged three years, and when its Report was laid
before the House, it would be seen that they had not
been idle, but had investigated every case that had
come before them with the utmost impartiality.
Lord A. HAMILTON pressed the case of the Pe-
titioners on the attention of the House. He hoped it
would-not be thought necessary to await the Report
of the Committee in question, in order to decide upon
the merits of the case, as he perfectly concurred with
his Honourable Friend (Sir R. Ferguson) in the cha-
racter he gave that Committee. There was not a
Lawyer in Scotland who did not believe that the de-
cision of the Court of Session against the Magis-
tracy of Edinburgh was a just and, correct one. He
implored the House to consider that the Petitioners
had been three years engaged in law before they
troubled that House with their application.
Mr. J. P. GRANT stated, that owing to the de.
lays of the Couit of Session, it made it impossible for
the Petitioners to take any course than apply to that
House for redress, as there seemed to be no likelihood
of their case being decided upon, before they became
ruined from the expense of the suit.
The Petition was then ordered to be printed.
ROMAN CATHOLIC BILL.

The Order of the Dayroi th'ethiid reading or the
Roman Catholic Disabilities Removal Bill being mid,
Mr. CRORER rose to ask the Rightlion. Bart.
(Sir J. Newport) whether he had any more amend.
menu to propose to this'Bill ?
Sir J.NEWPORT said, that at present he could
not answer the question, bui if the lion. Gentleman
would only wait a little time, he- could judge from.
the turn which the debate would take.
1 Mr. CROKER said, his only reason for asking the
question was to leArn whether these new amend-
ments might not, at some future tin!, produce ano.
ther debate.
Sir W. SCOTT then rose to statt objections to

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