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

LARODR IN IRELAND.

The Earl of BLESSINTON observed, that there was one
branch of labour in which the poor of Ireland inight be use-
fully employed ; it WAS in the quarries, where, he conceived,
that quantities of stone for the erection of public works, might
be obtained at a much cheaper rate than in any other part of the
kingdom ; and he wished to know if any proposition were made
to Government, whether that indulgence niieat be granted to
the people of Ireland ?
Lord MELVILLE. said, that stone might be obtained as
good in quality, and as cheap, if not cheaper, elsewhere.

AGRICULTURAL DISTRESS.
Lord CALTHORPE presented a Petition from
several Occupiers of Land in the County of Suffolk.
He said he should take that opportunity of making
some observations on the subject to which the Petition
referred. The distresses under which the Agricul-
turalists of the kingdom laboured, could not be
ascribed to any one particular cause, and least of all,
in his opinion, to the operation of the Corn Laws,
which tended to do more mischid than good. He
was ready to acknowledge the beneficent spirit which
dictated those laws; but when he found that the very
persons for whose protection they were intended, dis-
' avowed any benefit that was supposed to arise from
them, he felt it would be better not to have such
laws at all. During the years 1817, 1818, and 1819,
no less than three million quarters of Corn had been
imported from other countries; and the introducing
so much foreign Corn, duty free, into the country,
must have had a most injurious effect on our Agri-
culturalists, who were subject to much greater ex-
pense in growing Corn, than the cultivators of other
countries. Yet, he believed, the evil arising from
the importation of foreign Corn was slight, compared
to the warehousing system; and those who advocated
that system ought to explain how it could be benefi-
cial. If this system went on, .all the protection in-
tended to be given by the Corn Bill was done away,
and this subject well deserved the attention of Par-
liament, and he hoped it would be well considered
by the Committee on the Bill in the other House of
Parliament. There was a feeling among the Agri-
. cultural classes, which .ought to be seriously attended
to. Among so quiet and useful a class of people
as our Agriculturalists, it was most grievous to find
a spirit of murmur, of dissatisfaction, and even dis-
affection against the existing state of things. His
Lordship then presented the Petition.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL said be could not let
this occasion pass without making some remarks on
what had fallen from the Noble Lord. With regard
to the warehousing system, which was sti much con-
demned by the Noble Lord, if it was attended with
any abuses, the same ought to be corrected; but he
could not agree in the opinion just given by the
Noble Lord on that question. A Committee had
been, appointed last year to take it into consideration;
and he could assure the Noble Lorti, that those who
went into the Committee full of prejudices against it,
came out with a full conviction, that so far from be-
ing attended with any abuse or disadvantage to the
Public, it had been attended with considerable benefit.
The question was, whether, after Coin was imported
and deposited in warehouses, the law upon the sub-
ject could.be evaded? It any doubt existed as to
that point, the question ought to be investigated.—
Supposing the law respecting the warehousing sys-
tem done away, he wished their Lordships to see
what the effect must be. It would be nothing less
than that of impoverishing the commerce of the
country ; for Corn intended for importation into
Great Britain would then be warehoused in other
countries, whose inhabitants would thus derive all the
benefit arising out of a trade thus taken away from
us. He therefore•felt it necessary to enter his protest
against the principle advanced by the Noble Lord. 1
The Earl of LIMERICK said, that in one yea!)
the speculations in foreign Corn amounted to between
seven and 800,000 quarters ; and he hoped,, if the
warehousing system was to be continued, that it
would be under such regulations as should prevent
the great evils that arose from those speculations.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL observed, that the ole-
jec.ain of the Noble Earl did not apply to the ware-
housing system, but to the mode of taking the I
averages. If there was some hand in that operation,
it ought certainly to be corrected, and that- was the
object of a proposition lately submitted to the other
House—(Hear, hear).
Lord CALTHORPE, in reply, said, he thought
more security would arise. from a fair remunerating
price than any other regulation.
The Earl of DARNLEY said the distresses of the
&mows arose alone from the enormous weight of
taxation that pressed on all clays of the people, and
he pzotestcd 4gaiug any plan of deluding the country

by 3 hope that these distresses could be diminished
in any other way than that of lowering the taxes and
paying off a large portion of the Public Debt. It
seemed as if the Farmers who sent up their Petitions
tliought that Parliament could alter the nature of
things. lie-was confident that by a due attention to
economy, the taxes might be greatly lowered ; and
he could see no other mode of relief than that.—
Nothing but going to the root of the evil could
ever remedy it.
Lord RSKlNE'agreed with the Noble Lord who
had just sat down, that much depended on the
amount of the taxes; but he must protest against
the opinion that it was indulging the people of the
country to take into consideration the numerous Pe-
titions with which their Lordships' table had been
loaded. It was insulting the people to tell them that
no remedy could be found, when at the same time
inquiry was denied—Wear). If a Committee was
granted to take those things into consideration, he
was convinced.that the people would be satisfied. If
the physician said, " I can do ifOthing for you," the
patient niiitht surely claim that he should at least
feel his pulse. But his Noble Friend would not al-
low even the form and ceremony of inquiry ! He
thought himself of proposing the appointment' of a
Committee, and if it were true that all the causes of
distress resolved themselves into a load of taxation,
where could that fact be more satisfactorily ascer-
tained than in a Committee ?

The Earl of HAR ROWBY declared, that it would
be most mischievous to hold out prospects of relief
which could never be realized.

The Earl of DONOUGHMORE said the farming
part of Ireland was in a most melancholy state of
depression ; thb pasturing part was not se bad; the
subject ought to be seriously considered ; but lie
should do injury to the Irish Farmers if he held
out to them any prospect of immediate relief.—
He must say, in justice to his country, that its en-
durance of that distress had been wonderful, and did
it the greatest credit—(Hear, hear).
The Petition was read and laid on the table.
The Duke of DEVONSHIRE presented a similar
Petition from the Owners of Land in the neighbour-
hood of Whitford, in the County of Nottingham,
Laid on the table.