Star.
London, England, 1811-06-18 00:00:00

PARLIAMENTARr PROCEEDINGS.

HOUSE OF LORDS, JUNE 17.
MUM= ?Mae&
The House met this day atja early hour, when the Marquis
of BVCKINGYAss was sworn previous to his giving his testimony
berme the Committee of Privileges appointed to enquire Into the
claim of the Berkeley Peerage. Tito House then adjourned till
eve o'clock.
The Committee of Privileges assembled at two o'clock, and
proceeded to examine Mr. Perry, the Marquis of Buckingham,
and the Duke of Norfolk, reepecting their knowledge of facts
connected with the claim of this Peerage. The Committee ad-
journed till to-morrow at two o'clock.
The %pose baying resumed. their Lordships proceeded to for-
ward the bltron the table in their respective stages.
excliANGa or PRISONER.
Lord HOLLAND adverted to the votes of the
House of Commons, from whence it appeared that a
motion had been made for the production of the cot-
respondence of the two countries relative to the ex-
•change of prisoners. He deplored the situation of
these unfortunate persons who remained in prison in
France, and also in this country ; and although he
had no doubt of the extravagant propositions of the
enemy, still, for the sake of relief to these sufferers,
be thought it right for the Legislature to enquire how
far the concessions which. were made were such as
were in any way admissible. •
The Earl of LIVERPOOL said he should take an
opportunity of laying before the House a copy of that
information which would be produced to the other
House of Parliament. When the proceedings on this
subject were before them, he had not the smallest
doubt but their Lordships would clearly perceive the
unreasonable demand of the French Government.—
His Majesty's Ministers, anxiously attentive to the
sufferings of these unfortunate people, had not only
made fair proposals of exchange, but had offered con-
cessions to the utmost degree consistent with common
justice ; and yet these were answered by the enemy
with the most unjust and extravagant conditions. It
would be found that Government had made every
exertion to put an end to what he could term no other
than an uncivilized state of warfare.
PORTUGAL.
Earl GROSVENOR required of the Noble Secre-
tary opposite if the whole of the two millions granted
for Lhe service of Portugal were to be expended on the
Portuguese army ?
The Earl of LIVERPOOL answered, that when
the two millions were granted to his Majesty for the
service of Portugal, there was a discretion left, whe-
ther his Majesty would bestow the whole, or only
part of the sum on that service ; and therefore a re-
sponsibility rests with administration as to the exercise
of that discretion. It was not to be understood that
the grant was to be applied wholly to the service of
Portuguese troops ; but it was to be understood that
the grant would be applied to the objects in general
calculated for the defence of that country.
INSOLVENT DEBTORS' BILL.
Upon the motion for the third reading of this Bill,
the LORD CHANCELLOR proposed to alter the
sum from £3OOO to £2OOO. He observed, his mind
was not satisfied with the division of a forme: night,
when the numbers were six and four.
Lord HOLLAND strenuously recommended the
clause to stand unaltered, upon the principle that the
gradual increase in this and former Bills was founded
upon the deterioration of the medium of circulation,
and the circumstances of the times. He spoke in high
terms of the perseverance of his Noble Friend (Earl
Moira) and regretted their Lordships had not adopt-
ed a general Bill for remedying the law of debtor and
creditor this Session. Such was the law as it now
stood, that on all hands it was acknowledged to be
opprobrium eris conntfrortim.
Lord E LENBOROUGH again reminded their
Lordships of the nature of the liberality they were
going to bestow. He noticed all the Acts of Insol-
vency from Queen Anne to George 11. fr In which
it appeared, that the sum was first £lOO, afterwards
£5O, and then £5OO, and it was only in late years
it was increased to £l5OO. By this sort of liberality
they were going to wrench from the creditor the only
means he had left for the payment of his debt.
The Earl of MOIRA conceived that no man could
defend the present system of law between debtor and
creditor. Imprisonment was penal in all its conse-
quences—and, he must say, that to inflict punish-
ment without inquiry, without knowing whether or
not there was a particle of fraud in the contraction of
that debt, was a disgrace to the Legislature of the
country. With respect to the sum, he coincided with
the observations of his Noble Friend (Lord Holland).
After a few words from the Duke of NoiuoLk, in
favour of the clause, the House divided—Contents,l
17 ; Not Contents, 32; Majority, 15.—Consequently
the sum is altered to £2OOO.
The consideration of other Amendments proposed
by Lord ELLENBORoUGn was adjourned till to-morrow.
SLAVES IN Till WEST INDIES.
The Marquis of LANSDOWN moved for a copy
of the correspondence which took place between the
Earl of Liverpool and persons in the West Indies re-
lative to the treatment of Slaves. The Noble Mar-
quis was aware, from what had transpired, that Bri-i
tish laws and British constitution might in their ex-
tension to all the West India colonies under an im-
proper administration, produce evil instead of good.
The motion was agreed to.
MILITIA INTERcEANGE.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL moved the order of the
day on this subject, and the House went into a
Committee on this Bill, and agreed to several clauses.
On that clause which provides for the privileges en-
joyed under the respective acts by the different Mili-
tia Forces,
Earl STANHOPE moved the insertion of the
words he had moved to insert into the Mutiny Bill,
and which provided that no officer should have the
power of compelling any soldier not of the Church of
England to attend its service, and gave him the right
of attending those places of worship to which he was
attached, according to the dictates of his own con-
science, such attendance not interfering with his civil
or military duties. He wished not to-leave this mat-
ter to the discretion of this or that Commander-in-
Chief, but to make it clear and undoubted by a Par-
liamentary enactment.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL thought the amend-
ment unnecessary ; as care would be taken, on the
adoption of this measure, to have a general order
issued here, similar to that in Ireland. He believed
the Catholics, whom he admitted to be as respectable
and loyal as other descriptions of his Majesty's sub-
jects, were quite satisfied on this point, and that the

regiments from counties chiefly Catholic were awing
those who would be first in volunteering their services

in England.
The Earl of MOIRA contended for the clause
proposed. He thought nothing could be more sim-
ple, and just, than to set the whole matter in a clear
and legal point of view, and so do away all grounds
of misunderstanding. He believed that nothing un.
fair was meant, and if his feeble' oice could reach
the ears of his countrymen, he would tell them that
they might rely on fair trertment: but it was sill
better to settle all reasons of doubt.
The Duke of NORFOLK alluded to the Test
Act. Ile was not enough of a lawyer to answer the
question ; but. he understood, that by that act, a per-
son might be sued civilly by the intorme.r, for non-
compliance with its enactments, about taking the sa-
crament in the Established Church.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL obanved, that the
Test Act had not been in force for many years in Ire-

Land. bar:peal by the Irish Parliament was, as far
as that country was concerned, an act of the United
Parliament. (Hear, Aear).
Lord HOLLAND argued with m'eich forte anti
animation in support of the clause. The question
ought not to stand on the disposition of a Secretary
of State, and a Commander-in-Chief, whoever they
might be : it was one which it became Parliament to
fix beyond misapprehension. A proof that the mi.
giant clause was not rifficient, was shewn in the ne-
cessity of promising a general "order from the Com-
mander.imetlief here.
The Earl of BUCKINGHAMSHIRE wished to
have the doubts removed. He had n. ob;ection to
the amendment to offer, except his decided convic-
tion, that Government would act with p• rfect firaess.
He also thought, that some difficulties migh• ease
from adopting the Amendment now, after refusing
it in passing the Mutiny Bill.
Earl STANHOPE, in reply,.strenuously defended
the principle of his amendment, as founded on the
sacred, inherent, and inalienible right of every man
to worship his Creator in his own way, when it did
not infringe on the civil and military duties he owed
the State. Why should the Secretary of State refuse
his amendment, which went to do that in a straight
forward way which he wanted to do circuitously-.
which went to put-that on a ground of right, which
others seemed to put on a ground of favour He
appealed to the resolutions passed in May, in Dublin,
to prove that the Catholics were not satisfied on this
subject. Indeed, they could not be satisfied. The
Secretary of State had a vast deal of faith, and the
proof of his excessive faith was to be found in his be-
lid in impossibilities! (Hear.) If the Catholic'
were dissatisfied, they would not come. Then the
Noble Secretary of State would be another Mahomet.
The mountain would not come so Imo, and Mahomet
must go to the mountain (a lass:h ). He had proposed
his amendment. in order to state his clear and con-
scientious opinion, and wondered how any man of
principle could dispute it. But he should not then
divide the House. •
The Amendment was negatived.
The Earl of RADNOR proposed a clause, which
went to limit the interchange to the cases of invasion
or rebellion.
The Earl of LIVERPOOL objected to the clause
as hostile to the principle of the Bill, the prrarased
object of which was to promote the intercourse, not
only on extraordinary but on ordinary occasio; s, and
thus more closely cement all the connections between
the two countries.
Lord HOLLAND was of opinion, that the Bill
as it stood really went to conviidate the efforts of the
empire; and therefore, though it considerably tr.nch-
ed upon the old principles of the Militia Act., yet
the former advantages so much outweighed any mem•
venieacy from the latter, that the Bill should have
his support.
The clause was negatived ; and after some farther
discussion, a 9d reading of the Bill was fixed for
Friday.

TIIB HIGHWAY BILL. .
Upon the Motion for the second reading of this Bill.
The Duke of NORFOLK stated, that he hid
great objection to many of its provisions, and he could
wish that the second reading was postponed.
Earl GROSVENOR also thought that as the Bill
would not take effect till November, 1813, loci ,g more
than two years hence, there would be no difficulty in
postponing it till another Session of Parliament.
The question being put upon the second reading,
the House divided—Contents, .5 ; Not-Contents, 3 ;
Majority, 2.—The Bill was then read the second time.
The other Orders of the Day were then disposed of,
and the House adjourned till to-morrow.

THE EVENING STAR.

LONDON.

TUESDAY, JUNE 18.
PRICE OF STOCKS THIS DAY AT ONE O'C.LOC..E.
S per Cent. Reduced 62/-.4 per Cent. 79i
Omnlum l*dis.--Eicheq. par 2s. di*.
Clinatunt esperienced yesterday, a farther depresdon—lt was it
1 i discount at ill o'clock.

Two Anholt Mails and one Heligoland arrived
this morning. From Gottenburgh we learn, that
General Lammas had arrived at St. Petersburgh,
where he had been most graciously received ; from
all v.hich it was inferred that all differences between
France and Russia were on the eve of being amicably
adjusted. A letter from Konigsberg, however, of
which the following is an extract, leads to quite
different conclusion :

" KONIGSBERG, MAY 20.

" War is inevitable, matters are come to such a situation.—
The Poles every where are welt disposed to Russia, and ill dl'-
posed to France. There might easily be raised an army of
150,000 fine men, accustomed to hardships."
A letter from Memel says, that an insurrection had
occurred in Poland, and that the French were. in
consequence, driven out of VV' irsaw. Amidst these
continual contradictions, it is still impossible to entre
at Any certain conclusion.
The prohibition of exports of corn and timber from
Danttic was expected to be soon withdrawn. In
Mecklenburg and Swedish Pomerania domiciliary
Ivisits had been resorted to, to enforce the commercial,
or rather anti-commercial laws, and several persons
- -