The Statesman.
London, England, 1810-06-01 00:00:00

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-RotisE OP COsisioNS,lMAy 31. 4
•, Mr..LUSIIIMGTON brought up. Loci] Militia
.11)111, Bills, which were raid a first time:
' Thirlimse reselyed 'into .a .Cortnuittee. on the Porteir.CO-
louring'Bill. Report to be received to-morrow.
Thu Report of the Comm4le.• of Supply was brought hp;
and the several Resoltetimirt sigma to. .. • • - •
• The Report of the Committee at !the Bastard Bill ‘ftt9 re-.
ceived I.the Bill ordered to be engr.btel and teal a third
time to-morrow. •
The Seventh Report of the Committee on the Celediedau-
Canal Bill win presemed, and ordered to lie on t'ie table,
The Bill for regehning the Redemption of Load 'Tata initi
'read a third time and passed. • . • % • •1
The Lottery Bill went thrOugh Committee.ilfrisose So.
be received to-morrow.
The hotel:yid Distillery Bill west through a Colleitittee..
,Report to. be received to morrow. . •
The Holyhead Barbour Bill went through o Committee,
.Wheti.several Amendments were Ignide, and Report ordered
to he received to-morrow... . -
The Scotch Judges' Salary Bill pent through a Committee.
`Report to be received to-morrow.
The Irish Loan Bill went likewise through a Comnlittae"."
.Report to-mon'utv. •
The Poor Badge Bill was read,a *third time, paa.sed,rllMV.
ordered to the Lord,i. ' •
The further consideration of the Newfoundtand- Fished,'
Bill wits deferred till to-morrow.— . •
The Report ou the Black Game Bill was brought op; op-.
dered to be eagrossed, and rend's third time to-ii.ofrow. • •
The Bill to limit the amount of PensiOna out of the Seitelt
Civil Litt, was read afirst time, and ordered tette mod a so-
mind ime to-morrow.
The East India Recruiting Biwwent through a ttWj
when .
Sir HENRY MONTGOMERY objected to the prielitit
followed in Inditt,'of granting a superiOreommand to'nfficem
of his. Majesty's army, over the officers in. tale East
Company's service, although their seniors or superiors. He
also complained of local rank being_gsipted to. those okra=
for fhesame.purpose. He wield the*fore move for a clause;
regutting_rank seploirity, . •
• /VI . DUNDAS objected to any infringement of the sr.
rangements made with the coMent of the East India army.
The Clause was.uegatised without a ilvision. The Rah
port 'was then received.' To be taken into consideration. to..
morrow.
Mr. ROSE. postponed to Tuesday uext the. Committee on
the ,roreign Timber Bill.
Mr. ROSE brought up it Bill to 'amend dm Wenl-regulat-.
ism Ari. Read a'first time. aiid ordered to be read a second
time to-morrow. . . -
Mr. W. W Y NNE gave notice, that to-ino-roW he would
move fur tilave to bring in a Bill for the better preventing'of
bribery and Corruption. •
LORD DDRSLEY.: '
• Mr. SWAN presented •It petition from certain
freeholders of the county of Gloucester, com-
plaining that Wm. Fitzli.ardino Berkeley, taking
Loral n
upon himself the title of LorDursley, and who,
under that title, had been elected Member ,to serve
its Parliament for .the county of Gloucester, had•
laded to co:e ply with the enactments of an Act of
George I i. requiring Members of Parliament, pre-,
vions to their voting or acting as Members in. that
House, to lodge in the hands Of the clerk the
quilite qualification. The Petitioners therefore
prayed the lioll..l,loalse to afford them such relied
as the circumstances-of the case might seem tout.
quire: • . • - .
Ott the question for bringing up the Petition,'
Mr. BANKEi said, he did nut nnderstand that
the Petition called .the rotors in question ; it did.
not therefore follow that it•should be brought'up
as a matter of course: The petition merely pray.
ed the lioneurabler House to take the case into
consideration, and ti grant such relief as they
should see requisites

that..t he -mo o s f-.4lortal Woe ti a now •co tonktlited
of being posterior to: the election and relifief,
cue not fall under, or have any relition to that'Att. The intisiiitifikettiaiplainett (Wail getitind
of disqualification, might taken up by the
House itself, but the present petition eonki: newer
be Sent to a committee sindeuthe Grenville Act.
If then the question could only be taken up by
the House, was. it. fit. that it sheet(' budone •
consequence of a le...titian like the present ? tie •
tito,v nothing, of the parties, but front the tie.
scription of persons coming before these in this
'petition, slating theleselves to be freeholders :of
e...
the county of GlOweester, Who could haletot'ett ' •s 1,
' ferttard is •ts 'iery different way, he could 'not
view them,wiltheity very favourable aspeet.,
had a right to hiVo called oath° etinaidite hie his
'qualiti'.:atioit tiering thn-eitection-..obey might have •
voted .against him, or. &hey otight.have petitioned
apt* his return --...they. had, •so •Vitteltokitis,
choseq to forego those metios. of 4:ibtainieg saeis- •
feel:len. They had. net even stated thkt liv.was
not the fittest person to represent•the elettetti—r- .--
they had not condescended on tiny grievatitedottaler.'i • t,';• 4
which they laboured ; and he could -viewlthtv•
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in s
nit other light than. ai an- attempt to• drewithhe
House•iuto a decision of a euestion. which Well
'serve no practical •purpose whatever. " Iltelbet •
'view of the case, . wee it fit fur the Haunts to Oro. •
ceed on' this petition ? That it wis'net an eteett,th
petition War Clear: The petitioners had;thciiihre
'interest in the matter than any o4her•utett
laud. The petition was nZt more thitn:ip•spet of - • '
• itiformation• to the llotise,'•complaiiiing *of *vihat •
was only an irreg.ilirity in A 1%.919.%),0 , 90114
House; and• the question wren', if the matter ought; •
st
eo come before them in that shape.? He admitted-
that.it was perfectly competent. for any Member •
of that House. tit,stew that. this was a ease' ip
which a new Writ should issue. But, in the eVt.itt •
of. his making such inotion,.he must also be bound
to make outdo: facts. The Honsel•howevervbstt • ••
no right to call on the•present petitioners to make
out the facts they acerred—to punish them if they
nor even to visit them with cos.s in the
event of their allegations prating groundless and
vexatious., Neither Would the Noble Lord, who
was the subject of the petition, with whose.figore
even he (Sir A.) was unacquainted, have Win.
his power to insist on defending himself. Ile • •
again warned *the Noose agaitist entering into a
question which was *brought before them with no
practical object w hatover. They, ought-la he'd°.
liiate of_ receiving such qttestiods,• and should Obt •
entet tain.them without necessity. The- Ache; of .• -
I:4ord bura/ey, or f his • , v.O under brother, ce4d
wever•balost.ebed "by that Clouse, and ittereforeit
tins instmssittle'they could ever properly interfere.
' Wt. WYNNE thoktght, though this •
preiont ceeld tiotbe considered,as an election pe. •-•
still.tke House ought toehear tare! complaints • •'
of persons who tlii;J•ght• themselves aggrieved.
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Mr. WHITBREAD conceived it to be
siblutosobject to the. Petithin briog brought up.
It would then, hoviever; become a serious cottvl. 4,, .
deratien, wheth,it*should lie•on the table. lie • •
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Sir J. ANS-TRUTHER said, unless the House was austisAeattott.ltsoold alsecJaeweeektathea-r*-'
Pq43140610101..a5,..t0 the form of the Petttiotr, it iitifunde'r the Grenville Act, and •hc wit a"io eon. •
was impossible they could say whether it ought or winced it would' be agreeable to the feelings
ought not to be brought up. • ' • ._• " every Gentleman 'in the Houle to find thiitihdy
The SPEAKER, said, it would be necestary fin could not entertain it at all, as by it they we
thellon. Member to state the statue of the Peti. called on to the consideration of a poittt which '
lion more distinctly. . • they coul.l never be •eomptaeift'lide'termilie.
Mr. SWAN stated, that the Petitioners corn- What were they called on here to. decide? That
plained, That at the late election for a Member to' person who assumed to himself' the title of
serve in ?ornament foe the county of Gloucester, Dirrsley, eldest laWful son-and heir adsarent to :
candidate under the titled Lord Dursley had the Earl ofßerkeley—whom the Earl of •
been returned; but that be had neglected to give in Icy, too, himself declared to be se, who,
his qualification on oath, as was required, but that character, had stood Caudidate for tfieccine:: • .
stated himself to be the heir apparent to a Lord of 'ty of Gloucester, and had been elected •
Parliament. That it appearei, however, from not the person ho and • his father •so reprteenied •".
an entry in the registry of births for the pariah of him to be I, Would the House wish to take upon •
St. George, Hanover-square, in 1787, that William itself•sech a Bower I Would they wis4;:Without • •
•Fitzharding was times baptized as the son of the Eail haven any right,. or • 4tly call on them la do so', ,
of Berkeley, by Mary Colcs.:That it appeared from not only to• determine so, but also to declare that
a registry of marriages i i,r the is 'rich of St. Mae. Earl:Berkeley' had been guilty of a conspiracy
ry's, Lambeth, in. the county of Middlesex, that against the county of Gloucester ? before, they
the Earl of Berkeley was niaeried, on thu 17th of ventured to take such a task upon themselves, he
May, 1796, to Mary 'Coles, spinster. That presumed they would at least wish to learn from
about the same period the Earl-made oath before a tho Petitioners whether they were, at the time of .
Surrogate duly qualified, that he was then a bathe. the ratan, acquainted with the matters stated in
for ; and that from a-registiy of births fur the the petition. If the ellectof allowing the preicti(
county of Gloucester, in the latter end of the petition to lie on the table was to have the etrect
year 1796, it appeared., that •a son of the Earl of deprisaig a person of his rights, or of causing
and Countess of Berkeley was then Otptized, un- the House to interfere in a..matter ofe,t which they •
der the name of the Hon. Thomas Augustus Fitz- had no legitimate jurisdiction, he mustopputte its .
herding Berkeley; Lord Dusky. From thiie, lie could not think the House called on to ptuitgo.
circurnstauc6, the 'petitioners inferred, that.the itsel; into such a. .dilemma as this, He' had, no
person, who had been returned as Member for the objection to the petition being brought up, btit
county .of Gloucester, under the title sof. . Lead could not earwig to its lying on the table.
Dursley, Was not the heir apparent to the Earl of Mr. PERCEVAL thought there could be no
Berkeley, in. which character he gad taken his doubt as to receiving the petition. , The question
scat in Parliament ; and that not having otherwise , would then •be, having received it, if they. aoidd
qualified agreeably to law, he was nut entitled to rcfu;e'to pay attention to the coutents of it.. :He "
sit in that House. . • • agreed that the House could not interfere in the:
Mr. TIERNEY said, this was not a petition rights of parties, but 'still they were entitled to
complaining of an undue election, else there could entertain the Question, so far as they themselves%
be noquestion in it. This, on the•cobtrary, was . were concerned. .If he felt as clear on this point'
a petitiou front a body of Gentlemen asking of as some others Ham Gentlemen- seemed to do, ho
the House to do what, on a question by •any of shoulddoubt as to the propriety of at all receiving
its Members, it cauld not do for itself. It was the petition. He was in favour of adjournment,
not for strangers to ask of the House to inquire that the question might be maturely considered.
into the birth, parentage, and education of its . Mr. J. ABERCROMBY thought it important
Members. • It 'would be more tit for the Honour. for the House to know if the petition contained
able Member who presented this petition, if he allegations which swere•unknown to the petition.
saw any propriety iu the measure, himself to.make era- at the time of the election. If
,they then
a question of it, by 'moving for a new writ for knew the candidate not to be the person he re. •
Gioncestershire. . • • presented himself to be, they ought at *at time.
Mr. BANKES thought if this petition was to to hive asked him toe his ivraliAeation. If they
be received at all, it could only bens as matter of were awire ofthe cirediestinces in which he stool,
course. • and omitted so to cell on him, they were nut en.
Mr. BATHURST saw great doubt as to the- •titled now to come to•the House. , ,
receiving of the petition.. He was by no means Mr. PONSONBY asked, if the petitioner*
satisfied that ittould.be considered as coming with.. came here claiming the benefit of the Act of
in the purview of the Grenville Act; but at the 10th George-HI.?
. same time he was not prepared to say, that any pe. 'Mr. SWAN answered in the negative. •
titiour which did not. come under .this Act must The petition'was then brought *u and read.
therefore be rejetted, and could on no account be Mr. SWAN moved thiit it do:tie.on the-table. .'
entertained by the House. 'l' he .question was 'of Mr. C-ALCRAPT thotight it necesaary for him,
very great 'importance, and he therefore wished- in a question of so grave Alta serious a niter° as
it to bepostponedr in grder to allow time fur con. the present; to Worm the , House of a• few facts •
sideratiun. - •.$ , • .; . •• . in aids•ease'••avhicjv h. come within his know. •
Sir JOHN ANsta,lslll*ll, .took as view of ledge, Ntiidltlit Was impossible should not havi
the four ginends'of'Complaiet lion understood to' beet known td the 'petitioners; and "which 'must.
be allowed 'by the &fen/1116 Act, and contended have been suppressed by them, though they

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