The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-03-07 00:00:00

parliamentw tirottrzitnqs

HOUSE OF LORDS.—Tnuttsnme

oral, BE

.OUGHAM called the attention of the

hips ici

state of the mu

pal corporat

with a v

In doing tt

wish to speak wit
Lion of London.

bitterness or disrespect of the corpora-
ldeed it would be most ungrateful of him

to do so, because on a certain memorable occasion he had
ther with his noble friend (Lord Den-

man); with the freedom of the city, and was in consequence
a member of that corporation himself. This, however, could
not blind him to the enormous abuses which prevailed in that
corporation—abuses, some of which were so glaring that,
after his statement of that night, he would predict they could
not exist for a single year. The noble and learned lord then
entered into a lengthened statement of the abuses he referred
to, as well in the mode of election of the responsible mem-
bers and officers of the corporation, as in the general manage-
ment of its enormous revenue. He denounced the system of
city police as dreadful, and said that if the intention was to
invent a system the best calculated to promote vice of every
kind a better one for that purpose could not be devised /han
that existing in the city of London. The administration of
justice in the city was decidedly bad. The aldermen, &c.,
were a remnant of the old feudal system. The Duke of
Lancaster bad given up his judicial jurisdiction—in Durham
also this jurisdiction had been given up—in fact throughout
the kingdom these local jurisdictions had been abandoned,
and yet in London two aldermen could try men for their
lives at the Central Criminal Court. The aldermen, &c.,
had also the power of appointing no less than six judges—one
chosen by the aldermen alone, and the other five by the
Court of Common Council. Those judgeships were can-
vassed for, and .when Lord Denman contested the common
sergeantcy with Mr. Bolland he ran a great risk of defeat,
because the latter gentleman was city pleader, and those who
wished to succeed him in that office got their friends to vote
for his elevation. A similar influence defeated Mr. Hill.
Was it right that the appointment of judges should be de-
pendent upon such influences and motives. The noble and
learned lord then strongly denounced the practice which pre-
vailed of persons asking advice from city magistrates, and
thus making exparle statements, when the parties whom
they complained of had not the remotest idea that their con-
duct was to be subjected to such a public investigation.
There were a nest of magistrates in the city who were fond
of hunting out what they called swindlers; their imperfect
knowledge of the law not telling them that swindling is a
term unknown to the law, and those magistrates were conti-
nually listening to stories got up for the express purpose of
extortion, from the fear of parties of being dragged before
the public, however innocent might have been their conduct.
If they persevered in this conduct after this warning, he would
tell them that the Court of Queen's Bench would take cogni-
sance of their proceedings, and put an end to the usurpation
which' they thus exercised of the jurisdiction of higher courts
•
noble and learned lord concluded by moving
ljesty, praying that her
o direct the report of

of justic

be graciously pleasec

ion of the corporation of t

y of London
nrsht.

friend should have given a more definite notice of his object
before he sought to pledge the house to an extension of the
municipal corporation reform bill to the city. He concurred

in all that had been said as to the impropriety of the conduct
of magistrates who listened to charges which they had no
assed would

Put an end to the practice

as his noble friend had represented it to be. h was a repre-
sentative government, and no doubt abuses had crept in,
which he hoped to see reformed.
Lord BROUGHAM then said he %%milk] withdraw hie mn_

tion, and bring it forward ir, another shape

HOUSE OF LORDS.-:

'ALDAN

Lord BROUGHAM presented a petition from the Marquis
of Townshend, and his brother Charles V. F. Townshend,
containing allegations against a person named John Mar-
getta, who had, it was alleged, falsely assumed the title of
Earl of Leicester, although not legitimate.
The petition was referred to a select committee, and their

lordships adjourned

HOUSE OF COMMONS.-FRIDAY

Sir IL PEEL assented to the production of the papers
moved for by Lord Palmerston relating to the Ashburton
treaty, with the exception of such parts as were confidential.
The right hon. baronet also said he would, on Monday,
state the course be would adopt with respect to the question
of privilege.

Lord STANLEY, in reply to a question from Mr. LABOU.
CHERE, said there was no truth in the rumour that in the
measure relating to the importation of Canadian flour a clause
was to be introduced for the purpose of excluding flour ma-
nufactured from grain grown in the United States. It would
be sufficient if the flour was manufactured in Canada to con-
stitute it colonial flour. He did not expect to be able to in-
troduce the new measure before Easter.
Lord PALMERSTON, in reference to Mr. Roebuck's charge
of falsehood against the Simia proclamation, in which it was
stated that Shah Soojah would " enter Affghanistan sur-
rounded by his troops, observed, that the proclaination was
fulfilled within six months of its date : but, even if it had
never been fulfilled, that circumstance would not have im-
peached the proclamation. Shah Soojah had entered Canda-
har, "surrounded by his troops," which were partly com-
posed of Hindostanees and partly of Affghans.
Mr. ROEBUCK said his charge was that the proclamation
had been drawn up for the express purpose of delusion ; and,
in support of this charge, he quoted a letter from Col. Dennie,
‘ that lamented officer declared that Shah Soojah had
Affghan in his whole army. He would ask if
-fimmanded by British officers, and paid

in whict

that army was not