The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1839-07-09 00:00:00

imptriai Varliamtnt.

HOUSE OF LORDS.—THURSDAY.
The royal assent was given by permission to the Sugar
Duties Bill and two private hills.
Earl STRANGFORD said he had heard with surprise and
alarm that the French had extended a blockade along the
whole coast of Buenos Ayres. He wished to know if go-
vernment had received official information on the subject?
Viscount MELBOURNE answered in the negative.
EDUCATION.

On the motion of the Archbishop of CANTERBURY, the
most reverend. primate's motion on the subject of education,
which stood for Friday evening, was ordered to be printed.
The of IlAvniNc.To-s wished to know if any dissen-
ter, being a clergyman, would be appointed a member of the
board for superintending the printing of the Bible in Scot-
land?

MELnouRNE said there would be no departure
from the course already indicated.
Lord BROUGH Am again postponed the further considera-
tion of his education measure till Friday week.

JAMAICA BILL.
On the order of the day for the bringing up of the report
of this bill beingfead, _ _

The Earl of-HARE woon rose and strongly opposed the
measure, as harsh, arbitrary, and unjust, uncalled for by the
state of the island, and, if necessary—which he deemed it
vas not—equally applicable to other places in the West Indies.
He had no wish to defeat the measure in any clandestine
manner ; he should, therefore, urge the propriety of the
government withdrawing the bill.
Lord BitouGliAm said, that in consequence of what had
passed in committee the night before last, he was prepared
to give their lordships an opportunity of passing their judg-
ment on.the second clause, and now the only clause in this
unfortunate bill. He had stated his own objections to the
bill the other night, and his noble and learned friend oppo-
site (Lord Lyndhurst) had drawn a distinction between such
of the expiring bills as were money bills, and such as were
not ; and this distinction and difference between the two

ought to he carefully made and observed, and that for rea-
sons involving, as appeared to him, the credit and honour of
parliament. These money bills had expired by lapse. This
bill went to renew them. But renewing an expired law was
bringing in a new law, and imposing a new tax. He would
now move his proviso as an amendment to the report ; and,
should it not meet the approval of their lordships, he should
feel it his duty to enter his protest against the bill in the
same words as his former protest.
Viscount MELBOURNE said, that, as an appeal had been
made to him by the noble earl (Harewood), and by his noble
and learned friend (Lord Brougham) on his right, to with-
deaw the bill, or that part of the second clause which related
to money bills, he could assure them that he should be disposed
o accede to any suggestion which would put an end to this
question, if it could be done consistently with common jus-
tice and fairness ; but it was impossible for him to concur
with his noble and learned friend in an expectation which his
noble and !earned friend had given no ground for entertaining.
Without again going into the arguements on the subject, he
must contend that the measure before their lordships was
rendered necessary by the conduct of the house of assembly.
The power which it granted was absolutely required to carry
orl the government of the colony. It was necessary to pass
t le money acts alluded to, and therefore he could not con-
sent to the proposition of his noble and learned friend.
After a few words from the Earl of Wicklow, Lord Clon-
curry, and the Marquis of Normanby, the LORD CHAN-
CELLCR read the proviso to the second clause of the bill
moved by thenoble and learned lord as an amendment, to the
following effect : " Provided always, that nothing herein
contained shall enable the governor, with the assent of the
said corceil, to continue or renew any act for the raising of
money." _ _ _

Tile gallery was then cleared for a division; but the house
negatived the amendment without a division, and agreed to
the report.
The hone adjourned at seven o'clock.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.—THURSDAY.
On the motion of Sir E. KNATCHBULL, the Lords'
amendments to the North-Eastern Railway Deviation Bill
(No. 2) were read and agreed to.
A number of petitions in favour of a penny postage, and
other subjects, were presented.
Mr. MILES postponed his motion relating to small Debts
Courts and Courts of Conscience until to-morrow fortnight.
Mr. WYSE gave notice that on Tuesday he should move
for leave to bring in a bill to relieve Literary Institutions
f:•nin the payment of assessed taxes.
On the motion of Mr. F. MAULS, the Turnpike Acts
Continuance Bill was read a second time.
The report on the Paper Duties Bill and the Brick Duties
BM were severally agreed to. and the Bills ordered to be en-
grossed.
The report on the Electors Trial Bill was brought up, and,
after • a desultory conversation, agreed to. The bill was
ordered to he read a third time on Monday.
The Canada Government Bill was read a second time
without a division, after a discussion of no particular interest.
The bill was ordered to be committed on Thursday.
MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS (IRELAND.)

The order of the day having been read for the house re-
solving itself into committee upon the municipal corporation
(Ireland) bill, and the Speaker having left the chair, which
was then occupied Mr. Bernal ; on clause C, section 20,
being proposed, Mr. SH Am said, that as the clause related to
the amount of the franchise, he could not easily overrate its
importance. It might be well to state shortly to the com-
mittee what it was that the bill proposed in the way of qua-
lification, to which he (Mr. Shaw) objected, and what qua-
lification he proposed to substitute by way of amendment.
First, the bill proposed that for the ensuing three years the
qualification should be a tenement valued for the purpose of
being rated at the net annual value of £B. It proposed that
the psrties qualifying for the franchise should be six months
occupiers ; in other words, that they should be six months
resident as inhabitant householders ; and it proposed that
they should be allowed to be only six months in arrear of
t-zeir taxes up to the time of going to the poll. The second
q 'alification was the occupancy of premises of no matter what
r ;due, provided they were rated for the relief of the poor for
a period of between two and three years, that they were
resident as inhabitant householders of the same period, and
Ciat they Paid their taxes up to within six months of the time
of going to the poll. He (Mr. Shaw) objected to the fran-
c :ise contained in the bill ; and proposed to substitute a £lO
franchise composed of the net annual value to which the
tenement shall be rated under the poor-law, and of the amount
of the sums at which the repairs and landlord's insurance
should be estimated. Fie proposed a twelvemonth's occu-
pancy and a six month's residence as an inhabitant house-
holder ; and an arrear of only three months in the payment
cf taxes. 'He would deal first with the latter of the govern-
ment's two propositions. The gist of that proposition was,
after the expiration of a certain time, to give what was
termed, and what was in effect, the English franchise to Irish
municipal voters. He was quite aware that this franchise—
a franchise founded simply on the principle of being rated—
was now filly in operation in England. But he did not,
think that it could be applied with safety, or would it be at
all satisfactory in Ire and. _ _

Lord Mostisaru said the government intended to adhere
to the plan of adopting an £8 franchise for three years, and
of introducing, at the end of that period, a franchise similar
to that existing in England. In all the preceding discussions
upon this subject, it had been stated by the friends of what
was called, and he hoped properly called, a liberal policy in
Ireland, that it was very desirable to assimilate the institu-
tions of that country to those of England ; bat above all
things, they protested against the adoption of a different and
more restricted franchise in Ireland than that which was
enjoyed in England. However, as it was said that on account
of there being no legal rate to refer to in Ireland correspond-
ing to the poor-rate in this country, the adoption of the
English franchise' would give rise to loose statements and
inaccurate calculations, and open a door to innumerable
frauds and perjuries, the government had consented to adopt
aasettled rate. In fixing this rate, they had taken into con-
sideration the circumstances, that the tendency of every
system of rating was to produce a return lower than the actual
value of the property rated. He was anxious, as soon it was
practicable, to assimilate the franchises in England and Ire-
land, because he was convinced that such a course would tend
to remove the heart-burnings between the countries ' • and he
confessed that he anticipated, both in England and Ireland,
when the inhabitants of boroughs had to select persons who
should have the disposal of their money, they would lose
sight of religious and political differences and animosities.
Lord ELIOT said, that he had last year regretted that what
appeared to him to have been so favourable an opportunity
for the settlement of this great question should have been
allowed to escape ; and he was sorry to say, that that feeling
of regret had been much increased by what had since taken
After the best consideration he could bestow upon
subject, he had come to the conclusion of supporting the
kill in its present shape.
Sir ROBERT PEEL observed, that he had laboured anxiously
towards the great object of a settlement of the Irish corpo-
ration -question ; he had induced many of his friends to aid
in that attempt, and he had obtained their assistance upon
the full assurance from him that a hona-fide franchise would
be established. The course which he had taken on the
second reading must be in the recollection of the house.
If on that occasion, or on any other, he thought the noble
lord right, and that he himself was wrong, he (Sir R. Peel)
should at once give way ; but at present he could not shrink
from testing the opinion of the house by taking a division.
He objected to determining what should be the franchise in
the ominous year 1842. He should make no rash promises;
he should wait to see the working of the poor-law bill, and
then determine what course it would be best to take. He
had proposed a £lO franchise, subject to deductions for
landlords rates and insurance ; and he felt to be his duty to
adhere to that £lO qualification proposed last year, being un-
convinced by the arguments which he had heard in the
coarse of the present session ; and, under the influence of
that opinion, he felt himself entitled to complain that the
measure had been brought forward at so late a period of the
session, and that the present division was demanded at such
aa'hour of the evening.—The house then divided—ayes, 104 ;
noea, -54 ; majority for the clause, 50.
The remaining clauses were then gone through, after two
rnin-Iportant divisions. The preamble was agreed to, and
house having resumed) the report was ordered to be
received.on Monday.
BILLS OF EXCHANGE (NO. 2.) BILL.

On the order of the day for the committee on this bill
being read, Sir R. H. INGLIS objected to going into the sub-
ject at that hour. The bill, in his opinion, was too extensive
in its operation. It went to an almost total repeal of the

usury laws.
Mr. RICE said, that the present bill was brought in in-
stead of one which had already passed that house, and gone
up to the House of Lords, whence it had been returned with
such amendments as would render its passing into a law
very inconvenient. For instance, the lords removed all
loans on deposits of goods from the operation of the usury
law:s.;. Now, one effect of that would be to repeal the pawn-
brokers' act, which certainly was not contemplated on the
introduction of the bill. There were other amendments by
tile lords, to which there was no objection ; but, instead of
agreeing to the amendments of the lords in the original bill,
it was thought better to bring in a new bill, which, while it
ailop-ted those amendments, did so without risking the repeal
of the pawnbrokers' act. The house went into committee
and, •after a short discussion, the clauses were agreed to
without a division. The house then resumed, and the chair-
man reported the bill without the amendment.
The other orders of the day were then disposed of, and
the house adjourned at half-past two o'clock.