The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1833-02-26 00:00:00

TITRES.

Mr. - SEIEIL presented a petition from Maidstone, Kent,
against the measures to compel the payment of tithe. The
hon. member observed that ministers had brought into the other
house au act of parliament by which courts martial were to be
created. 'the several offences referred to in the act were sub-
ject to the punishments of courts martial—one of which was
whipping. He doubted the wisdom of punishing any iffeuces
by whipping; if to this punishment of whipping was attached
the least renewal of those scenes which, notwithstanding a lapse
of 30 years, were still fresh in the recollection oreland.
The lord, in introducing his measure, had under-rated
the church lands—it was the value of £700,000 or £BOO,OOO
—he had left out the glebe lands, he hadleft out 48 parithes
that paid tithes (no, DP) ; at all events he had left out the sur-
plice fees.
Sir F. BURDETT said that the petitioners were mistaken, that
the proposed measures were not for the purpose of enforcing
the payment of tithe in Ireland. Though the courts martial
tried offences, they were to punish by the law of the land. No
such idea as the punishment of whipping was ever entertained
by. any man.
Mr. WARBURTON must say that the effect of the measures
would be such as was described in the petition. If the pleasures
gave satisfaction, there would be no complaint, and he would
agree that they were not intended to put down complaints upon
the subject of tithes; but when he found, in the evidence before
the tithe committee, the crown solicitor stating that the simple
transfer of payment would not give satisfaction, and that tithe
must be abrogated—when he saw no measure for that-purpose
about to be introduced—when he found all the wituesse;. say,
" Settle the matter at once"—when he heard that this was to be
an opeh question in the cabinet—and when he heard vittiPera-
tion for leaving the question open, thou he must say that he
thought the complaints contained in this petition were just, and
that these measures of coercion were intended to repress coui-
plaints upon the subject of tithe. He hoped that these coin-
plaints of the people of Maidstone would be followed up by com-
plaints from the whole body of electors. When he Beard that
the' measures proposed for
,a remedy fell -short of their object,
and that the other measures would not tranquillise Ireland, then
he said it was time for the people of England to turn their atten-
tion to the subject, and to call upon the government at once to
give a final settlement to the question of tithes.
Mr. O'CONNELL was glad to find Englishmen coming forward
as a protection to Irishmen. He could not see this first symp-
tom of good will without hailing it with delight and pleasure,
from a conviction that, if ministers did not use expedition, the
sound sense of England would come forward and protect
Ireland Irvin more atrocious measures. He had seen the pro-
posed plan in the newspapers—a power was given to a majority
of three officers in five to inflict punishment. The hon. mem-
ber only exposed his ignorance when he attempted to deny that
this did not include au unlimited power of flogging. Ile was
old enough to remember that when courts martial existed, Sir
Edward Crosby, a loyal gentleman, was dragged from his
residence before a court martial, of which a major of dragoons
was the presiding officer, and asked, amongst other questions,
"You are a gentleman of rank—how does it happen that you
never entertained any of the officers of the garrison?" He
was convicted and executed, although as innocent as any man
in this house could be. Did the hon. baronet think that Irish-
men had not the feelings of liberty? They would stand by the
constitution as long as a rag of it remained. The hon. baronet
was mistaken if he said that the proposed measures were not
calculated and intended to enforce tithes. If tithes were not
paid in a district, would it not be immediately proclaimed ? Wo
to the mail who did not pay tithes! The pretence of refusal
brought hipi under the IV hiteboy Acts. He should be told that
the sensibly awl souPd people ot. Maidstone were mistaken, but