The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-08-29 00:00:00

HOUSE OF LORDS-MONDAY.

Lord BROUGHAM moved for certain returns relative to
the state of the appeal business before the house, and also
before the Privy Council, but principally, as it would ap-
pear, that he might eulogise the reports of the Criminal
•Law Commission and the law reforms of the present
session.
The LORD CHANCELLOR gratefully acknowledged the
learned lord's 'ratuitous services as President of the Ju-
dicial Committee of the Privy Council; Lord CAMPBELL
could not resist the temptation to be jocose upon the
short-comings of government in the matter of law reform.
Lord BROUGHAM, of course, replied. Lord CAMPBFLL
rejoined, and with the assistance of Lord MONTEAGL
and the extreme weakness of his opponent's case, certainly
came off victorious.
• The returns moved for were ordered. and their lordships
then passed to the consideration of Lord Lucan's com-
plaint against the Irish government, Lord WHARN-
CLIFFE and the LORD CHANCELLOR expressing their
conviction that Sir E. Sugden was entirely justified in
removing Lord Lucsn from the commission of the peace.
The Marquis of CLANRICARDE paid a just tribute to
the value of Sir E. Sugden's services as a law officer, but
could not extend his approval to his discharge of that part
of his duties in which the magistracy were principally
concerned. He thought the hasty expression which was
alleged as the ground of the noble lord's dismissal had
been too severely visited, and that the conduct of the
stipendiary who presided should have been inquired into.
Lord LUCAN warmly accused Lord Wharticliffe of
_trickery in the conduct of the discussions before the
house. and Lord WHARNCLIFFE as warmly vindicated
himself.

Lord BROUGHAM and Lord CAMPBELL concurred in
implting nothing more than an error of judgment to the
Irish Chancellor ; but Lord CHARLEVILLE felt that Lord
-Lucan had been very harshly treated for having in a mo-
•snent. of irritation resented a gross insult. He had no
confidence in Sir E. Sugden as the bead of the magistracy,
And nothing but the urgent call of the public service
should induce him to act under him.

The Duke of WELLINGTON having examined the papers
on which the charge against Lord Lucan was founded,
bore testimony to the great amount of provocation which
•he had endured before he committed the contempt of
court which had been punished by his dismissal. He vin-
dicated, however, Sir E. Sugden's decision, and especially
the spirit of impartiality in which he had removed from
the commission not only Lord Lucan, but the magistrate
with whom the squabble originated.
Lotd GLENGALL highly disapproved the conduct of the
'lrish Chancellor, but after a few words from one or two
"other noble lords, the matter dropped.
Several other bills were forwarded a stage, and their
'lordships then adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS—MONDAY.
- Among the bills brought down from the Lords, and
agreed to by them, was the theatres' regulation bill, their
lordships not insisting on the amendments proposed by
them therein. The house having gone into committee for
further consideration of the report of the slave trade sup-
pression hill, Sir T. WILDE proposed certain amendments
to meet the objections of the Attorney and Solicitor-
General as to certain clauses of the bill on Friday last.
After some conversation they were agreed to. The re-
mainder of the business transacted was not of public in-
terest.

HOUSE OF LORDS-TUESDAY.

The royal assent was given by commission to a multitude
-of bills.

Lord CAMPBELL, in moving the consideration of the
Commons' amendments to his defamation and libel bill,
-lamented the mutilation it had suffered, and cited a num-
-her of instances to show the injustice of adhering, as the
lower house had done, to the old rule of common law,
which denied redress for any spoken scandal, unless it
imputed an indictable offence or tended to injure a man in
his profession. The chastest matron or the purest maid
might be accused of incontinency ; the bravest soldier
might be publicly proclaimed as a coward or a scoundrel ;
yet the law, although punishing the impu'ation that one
person had lifted his hand azainsr another, afforded no
redress. He contended that in such cases as these the
treatment of spoken should be assimilated with that of
written slander, and thought that the fear of costs would
be a sufficient restriction upon frivolous actions. He com-
plained also of the omission of the clauses which prevented
the mere truth of a charge from being a sufficient answer
in a civil action without proof that the publication was for
the public benefit, but generally approved the other alte-
rations.

fh;L. ORD CRANCELLOR vindicated the discretion of
the House of Commons in the changes they had made,
and the amendments were then agreed to.
. Lord TEYNIIAM afterwards moved for certain returns
ffectine the administration of the poor law, with the view
principally of procuring for the poor au extension of out
door relief, but partly also that fie might procure the ap-
poiptment of a committee to inquire into the operation of
theact. He entreated that regard might he had not only
to the wants but to the feelings of the poor, and established
by several instances the impolicv as well as the cruelty of
Offering relief on condition of entering the workhouse, and
thus forcing the honest and able-bodied labourer to eke
pat his existence by theft, which, when discovered, would
render his family a burden upon the parish, and ruin his
future prospects of employment. In districts, where
Wages were so low as to be insufficient to support more
than two or three members of a family, relief either in
food or money .should be given, and neither in this case,
or when work failed from the circumstances of the times,
should the workhouse test be applied. He attributed the
hardships inflicted upon the poor not so much to the act
itself as to the orders of the commissioners, which had
induced many who had originally co-operated in carrying
Out the system to withdraw themselves from a participation
in its cruelties. The expectations of decreased expense
that they had been taught to entertain were miserably dis-
appointed—a necessary result of the practice of driving
whole fatni:ies into th. workhouse, whom a little tempo-
my assistance would have enabled to nvintain themselves
in independence. He pressed for a general inquiry into
the system—into the regulation of the workhouses, the
classification of their inmates, and other topics connected
with the operation of the act, but more especially into the
proceedings of the commissioners themselves. He did
not regret that the law bad been so little discussed this
session, as enough was not known of its working to enable
their lordships to introduce satisfactory amendments.
Lord STANHOPE complained that some returns which
which had been ordered by the house last session had not
been produced, and expressed his surprise that Lord Teyn-
ham should have contented himself with asking for only
a' more merciful administration of the law. He objected
not only to its cruelty and injustice, but to its principle,
and on behalf of the oppressed poor demanded its repeal.
That result would one day be obtained ; and if it was not
conceded by parliament, it would be achieved by the
people.

Lord WHARNCLIFFE bad no objection to the returns,
and the motion was, therefore, agreed to.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.—TUESDAY.
On the motion for the third reading of the Slavery Sup-
preattiou Bill, Mr. 1-I,twas repeated his disapprobation of
the measure. But since it had now been so modified by
Ministers as to be really in its present state a Government
bill, he felt that be had not the power to defeat or to de-
lay it; and therefore, though he could have wished it post-
poned, he would not oppose it.
Mr. MILDMAY was surprised that Mr. HAWES, who
bad, so many good reasons to give against the bill, should
have concluded by expressing his intention to forbear from
opposing it. He therefore would himself move that it
should be read a third time on that day three months.
Sir J. R. REID seconded this amendment.

Sir T. WILDE said, that this hill was opposed by two
sections of members, one of which objected to it because
it would repress this kind of commerce, and the other be-
cause it would not. It was no new measure; there had
been lone and ample notice that it was to be brought for-
ward. Unless it were fitting that British subjects resident
abroad should be permitted to employ their capital in en-
coOraging the slave trade, the opposition to this measure
could not be sustained. It affected slave-trading only,
and not slave-holding. It prevented the importation of
fresh slaves, but not the transfer of slaves in the country
where they already existed as such.
The ATTottv EY-GENERAL (by whom the modifications
of the bill had been introduced) would yield to no man in
his zeal for the suppression of the slave trade. The bill
was beneficial in this, among other respects, that it would
evince to foreign nations the sincerity of the British desire
to extinguish that traffic. He vindicated the necessity of
the clauses which he had introduced ; indeed, it might be
collected that what had been done was pretty nearly right
froin the disapprobation of both the extreme parties. It
was not, however, properly to be called a Government
bill.
It was then read a third time, without a division.

HOUSE OF LORDS.—TuortsDAY.
___

PROROGATION OF PARLIAMENT.
Her Majesty prorogued Parliament this day, with the
usual formalities. She looked remarkably well, and %as
loudly cheered as she passed along. The following is a

copy,of -
HER MAJESTY'S SPEECH.
•" 141 v LORDS AND GENTLEMEN,
"-The state of public business enables me to close this
protracted session; Anti to release you from further at-
tendat4o kttl your Parliamentary duties.
"- 1 thank you for the measures you have adopted for
enabling me to Rive fall effect to the several treaties which
I have concluded with Foreign Powers.
I have given my cordial ass, nt to the bill which you
presented to me fur increasing the means of spiritual in-
structton in populous parishes. by making a portion of the
revenues of the Church available for the endowment of
additional ministers.
"1 confidently trust that the wise and benevolent in-
tentions of the legislature will he aided by the zeal and
liberality cf my subjects. and that better provision will
thui he made for public worship and for pastoral
superintendence in many districts of the country.
" I view with satisfaction the passine of the Act foChurchr re-
moving doubts respecting the jurisdiction of t
of geotland in the admission of ministers, and for securing
to the people and to the Courts of the Church the full
exercise of their respective rights.
"It is-
myearcest hope that this measure will tend to
restore t v
peace in Scotland, and to avert the dan-
gers which have threatened a sacred institution, of the ut-
most importance to the happiness and welfare of that part
of
imp dominions.
continue to receive from all Foreign Powers Luau-