Star.
London, England, 1816-06-13 00:00:00

- present motion was less called for now than at any
former period. Besides, any person aggrieved might
' appeal to.the Privy Council, where the law would be
stated by the Lord Chancellor, the Master of the
Rolls, the two ChiefeJitistices, and Chief Baron, as•.
sisted by theeleito Officers of the Crown. lie him-
self did not think it necessary to give any opinion on
the qiiestion which had been stated. It would be
presumptuous in him to do so, when the law would
be settled, in case the question arose in the exercise
of the powers given by the Bill, by those of much
. more competent authority.
Earl GREY said, that the question was, whether,
where a serious doubt existed as to the subject upon
which they were legislating, that doubt ought not to
be revolved ?—and he could not conceive any thing
more palpably wrong than to proceed to Rats a law,
while they remained .uncertain against whom it was
-tocperate ; more especially- when they were called
upon to grant new and extreorduaar * powers, which,
not aithstandieg ell that had b seated about pre-
rogative, could only be given reit, Legislature.—
' .The Noble Lord said, that he himself Would state no
opinion on the question, and that it *mild be pre.
sumptunus in him to do so ; and yet it was to him in
particular that these powets i were to besranted.—
The Noble Lord said no inconvenience had been felt;
hut how did they know what inconvenience might
have occurred ? The Noble Lord had refused all in-
formation, and m.my Americans might have been
sent out of the country under these laws.—(Lord
Sidmouth denied that any such instance had evere
occurred.)—Supposing the pewter had sever been
exercised in that way, the aperehension of it might
be attended with mischievous consequences and great
inconvenience. As to the appeal to the Council, the
Legislature ought itself to see in the first place
against whom the law might aptly. Besides, the
.appeal ‘4 as given to Aliens only, and the Americans
might deny that they were Aliens, and apply for a
Habeas Corpus ; and then a single Judge might be
celled upon to decide this very question. It was of
the greatest importance that these matters should not
be lett in a state of. uncertainty, for, until the doubts
were resolved, they were legislating in the dark.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL opposed the motion,
because for 23 years no practical inconvenience had
been felt from these doubts. But he objected also,
because it was in fact putting an abstract question to
the Judgis, and a question not well worded, even
with a view to the Noble Lot d's own purpose. It
would be infinitely better to have the question decid-
etl en appeal to the Nett Council, when the case
should practically arise. But then it was said, that
the party might rot appeal; but apply for his Has
bas C. rpus. His answer was, so much the better,
as the law would then be stated by soma of the
urts i t Westmiaster Hall. This would be the
hest way to have a judicial decision on the subject,
with werence to which they might have recourse to
some legslative measure, if that should appear neces.
nary bet he was decidedly averse to this proposi-
tion fair petting an abstract question to the Judges.
The Met gins of BUCKINGHAM said, that the
object of legisietien was to clear or remove doubts,
and not to make them. That maxim appeared to be
reversed on this occasion. The Alien, he contended,
would be pieced ia a situation the most unjust. He
was eithzi to stand bafere the Privy Council without
the assistance of legel advisers, or he was to go to
the expense ri a process in Westminster Hall. He
exeected that :melt e,- oppertunity would occur of
delivering his servinaants against the principle of the
Aiien Biii ; bin h tying been prevented last night
Eom attendieg the discussion of that principle, he
could not help now expressing his surprise at the opi-
nion which he understood had been expressed by the
Learned Lord at the head of the equity of this coua-,
try, and by another Learned Lord at the head of the
Criminal Law—that the prerogative of the Crown
could in any case affect the pereonal liberty of any
suleject.
The LORD CHANCELLOR adverted shortly
to what had fallen froin the Noble Marquis. Whe-
ther the Croon had or had not the power of sending
an Alien out of the country, was not the question
before the House ; but whether the measure was to
be justified by the influx of foreigners, an.-I the cir-
cumstances howhich the country was placed ? The
Alien Act of 1793 did not originate from the fear
of French troops—these could always be met by Bri-
tish troops ; but from the fear of French principles.
Had it been moved in 1793, that a similar question
should be put to the Judges, he should have opposed
it—first, because he did not think it so worded as to
enable the Noble Lord to attain his object ; but prin-
cipally because it might have this inconvenient effect
—that the Judges would stand pledged by the an-
swer they might give to an abstract question. He
was persuaded, that it the question was put to them,
they would reply that it was too general in its nature
to be answered, consistently with safety to the admi-
nistration of justice. No one could deny that the
Alien Bill was a measure of great importance :—but
were their Lordships prepared to say, that after it
Lad been in operation for 23 years, it should be all
• at once abolished, and not even permitted to exist for
two years 'ringer ? He conceived that it was on the
whole calculated to produce a preponderance of be-
nefit. The presumed Alien, if claiming to be a
native-born subject, had his writ of trespass, or of
Habeas Corpus, to resort to ; and at any rate the
Privy Council, composed as it was, might be pre-
sumed as capable of terming a judgment on his case
• as any Court in the kingdom.
• Earl GREY observed, that the Noble-Viscount
had asserted that no American had ever been sent
out of the country under the Alien Act : but since
the assertion was made, he had learned that an Ame-
rican had been sent out of the country—that Amer
can was Mr. Barr, no inconsiderable person, and who
had been once Vice-President of the United States.
Lord HOLLAND shortly replied, after which the
question was put, and negatived without a division.
Earl G Itknl postponed his motioa for the, second
reading of the Freehold Estates Bill till Wednes-
day next.
Tin CLERGY. •
The Archbishop of CANTERBUEY rose for the
purpose of bringing in a Bill, the chief object of
which was to bring into one Act of Parliament the
various statutes now in force respecting the govern.
mont of the chute!). No one was more sensible than
he was of the injurious effects of agitating and bring-
ing into discussion the laws which governed the