The Statesman.
London, England, 1822-02-09 00:00:00

THR ST4TIMMAN.

Were a Habene-Oeepos Iwo I ceder martini few. w
woad be a salnient Morn to make upon tan well MO
the individual therein massed was in the hands sir A*
military power—(Cheers.}—Was that a reason kit Ile
Right Hon. Baronet's preference ?—(Hear.)—Wßl
spec, to the use of the suspension of the Habeas C,llO
Act, be bad stated particularly the evil to which. elle SD
which only, it ought to be applied. It would not be O-
ohed upon the unfortamtes suffering soda deludes. but
upon those emissaries who were traversing the country.
seducing the people from the path of loyalty and virtue.
(Corers.)-0n those grounds only had he proposed those
Acts, ana on those grounds only had he called upon the
house to agree to them.—(Cheers.)
Dr. LIISHINGTON complained of the ignorance in
Ithich the house and the country had been kept previ-
ew
to the introduction of the Bills. He doubted whe-
ther. even so late as Tuesday last, Ministers themselves
bed made up their own minds. He doubted also the n-
ame offered last night fur consenting to the postpone-
ment of the Committee on the Bills to this night. The
Learned Gentleman after recapitulating and concurring
in the arguments of his Hon. Friends who had pre-
ceded him in opposing the Bills, reverted to the
1 animadversions of the Noble Marquess (Londonderry)
on Isis (Dr. Lushington's) Noble Friend (horst Folk-
stone.) The Noble Marquess bad said that his Noble
Friend (Lord F.) stood alone en the charges brought
against the Marquess Wellesley; but let it not be for-
gotten that many great men. now no more. bad some:-
ed those charges. Amongst those were Sir S. Hannilly,
Mr. Whitbread, Mr. Sheridan, and even Mr. Windham.
—(bear.)—lf his Noble Friend had been in error, he
bad cried in company with some of the greatest names
upon the records of that House.—(hear )—ilia Noble
Friend had a right to revert to the former conduct of
the Marquess Wellesley as a ground for refusing to arm
I' with despotic power. IVhen Mr. Sheridan 'ban-
cloned the charges against Lord Wellesley during the
administration of his (Mr. Sheridan's) friends, he (Dr.
Ltishington) asked him why he had done so? The au-
stere of Mr. Sheridan was. " that he did not bring for-
ward those charges against Lord Wellesley, because he
would not run the risk of dissolving the Administra-
tion."—(bear.)--Ht (Dr. Leshington) believed that the
Marquess Wellesley had been saved by a compact; and
Ise would condemn Mr. Sheridan for his conduct, so
contrary to that independence and honesty which nog
to influence every action of a great public man. '1
Marquess Wellesley had been, in his (Dr. Lushington's)
opinion, carried away by the brilliant Prospect of en-
larging our territory. without considering very scru-
pulously the justice of the means by which his ends
were to be attained. He was not, therefore, a man to
whose lime di.rit the liberties of the entire population of
a country were to be subjected, without a tribunal to
appeal to; fur there was no doubt a Bill of Indemnity
would be passed to secure him from consequences. Ile
gave the Marline's Wellesley credit for the intention
to perform his dusty honestly, bnt he would not answer
for his discretion. He would mention one instance
of oppression which. under the suspension of the
Habeas Corpus, had been nearly committed on the
person of a most respectable Itumau Catholic Gentle-
man io Ireland, and who was, at the period of which 1
he (Dr. Lushington) spoke, nearly seventy years
of age. A report having reached the old gentleman's
son, by some means, that a warrant had been issued
against Isis father. be went le Duldin—inquire,) into the
tact, and was told he haul been misinformed. He reuses-
ed to his father's house—the information was reiterates,
—he set off for Dublin once more—went to the Carle.
and saw the then Secretary of State(tlse Noble Marquees
opposite). and learned that a warrant for High Treason
had brew issued against his father. Oe an explanation,
he convinced the Noble Secretary of the falsehood of the
charge, and procured an order for the release of his
father, with which he reached hotue just in time to pre-
vent his being dragged to prison.—[The Learned Gentle-
man Isere alluded to the evidence they hail from Hon
Members of the danger of intrnsting great powers to
the Magistracy of Ireland, and referred to the ease of a
murderer named Seanlan, who although sitting in com-
pany with die Magistrates, the latter dared not venture
to arrest hinaj—When Irish Gentlemen said that Irish
Magistrates were not worthy of being trusted, he (Dr.
I ) would not, as an Englishman, consent to place in
their hands the liberties of the people. !duels stress bad
been laid upon the clause, by Ishich a King's Serjeant
or Counsel was added to the Magistrates in the consti-
tution of the Court. Ile knew not trust Irish Serjeants
were. hot (fixing his eye upon a Learned Serjeant
opposite) he would prefer being tried by the worst
Jury in England to being tried by any English
Serjeant in existence.—(Lou.) latighter.)—lt was
the duty of the Government to do all that in them
lay to ascertain the causes of all those evils, and then to
apply a remedy to them. Against those ev;ls that were
the result of habits and disposition in the people, it was
not so easy fur Government to provide remedies; but of
this he was certain, that, in the political world, diligence
and honesty on the part of the rulers would he sufficient,
if not to make • people happy, at least to prevent those
ebullitions of discontent, the existence of which all now
deplored in Ireland. Being of opinion, then, that the
statements on which the proposed measures were de-
manded dill not furnish adequate grounds for them, and
that, even if strong measures were necessary, the pro-
posed ones were not those which would be effectual, be
should give his negative to the motion.
Mr. LOCKHART said that it would be with great re-
luctance indeed that be should consent to intrust to any
body of men such extraordinary powers as the Insurrec-
tion Bill would give them. But he should be departing
widely indeed from the suggestions of duty as well as
humanity, if he allowed the system of outrage that was
at present going on in Ireland to proceederithout an effort
to check and suppress it. Ile wasaware that the distresses
of the poor in Ireland were very extensive and galling.
But he was afraid that it was not ro much the interposition
of the Legislature that mean wanted, as a more wholesome
state of relation between the landlord and tenant.

Mr. S. RICE admitted the necessity of an immediate
remedy to the pressing evils in Ireland—he admitted'
even that some snch measure as the second Bill should be
enacted; but if he consented to pass such a measure it
must he on a modified plan, and accompanied by the al-
terations which he would take an opportunity of pro-
posing at the bringing up of the Report of this Bill.
'flie first alteration would remove front the Bill the
el nse which suspends the Trial by Jury. Juries had
been tried—they were found etfi..ient and conscientious
men. Be would ask if any one of the Judges on the 'Me
Npecial Commission had ever intimated that enough of
men could not be found firm and conscientious enough
to discharge the duty of honest jurors. Why then dis-
pense ii i:11 the form? The next alteration would em-
brace a anise empowering the Magistrates before the
Special sossions to admit to bail. The third would give
the Government the power of appointing individnak,
subject, of course, to the usual qualifications, as Justices•
altos. Peace, to Act under the authority of tisis Statute.
ilisohj,rt here was to remedy the illl7ollV,'!lleime. which
might arise from the circuusstanre of there being very
large districts, in various counties, where non of the
comity Magistrates resided, and where, of coarse, it-
would be impos.ilsle, in any convenient time, to assernhle
a sulfirient number to act on a particular swca•i3n.
Should he tail in his proposition fora ci as* enanlits
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81"!1.11 0 111*

• .
Mr. CALCRAFT felt it his duty to state meow for
"Plonk.' the Proposed oloooares. Ififor one, did not
like an luserreetims Act—be did not like the sespeasion
of the Habeas Corpus Act; het he bad a still greater
dislike for rebellion ;—(bear.)—Some gentlemen pro-
posed Initial law, awing at the same time their op-
farto measures so extensive as the Bills of the
Lord. IVhat! would those geatheinen in their
humanity subject the whole country, innocent and guilty,
to the terrific consequences of martial law, rather than
Intrust a comparatively mild measure in the heads of a
temperate Government, which would have the power of
applying it to sueb places as in its discretion it might
see it ? The Magistracy of Ireland had been complained
of. To be sure, the body of the Magistracy embraced
many unworthy members ; bat was he, on that account.
to withdraw from the body at large, whom he believed,
in general, to be very worthy of the trust, the powers
which it was necessary for the safety of the country
they should be armed with ? He heard absenteeship
stated as one of the causes of the calamities of Ireland.
Ile believed it was. Bat that evil, he was afraid, never
would be cured effectually. He believed it would never
he cured at all, if those respectable men who dared to
reside in the country—who bore the brunt of the attack
as they did, in many instances, with the utmost courage
—if such persons were not intrusted with the power to
suppress rebellion, and the disorders which threatened
their lives and properties. In conclusion, he should ob-
, that he never could bring himself to believe that
a man wl.o lured fame as the Marquess Wellesley did.
would think of calling for useless and unnecessary mea-
sures—that lie should open his administration by de-
manding such, and thereby tarnish the whole progress
of it in future, whatever was its character otherwise.

Mr. WM. LAMB said he would support the bill, from I
his confidence in his Majesty's ministers, and his sanfi-
deuce in the noble lord (IVellesley) to whose hands the
execution of this power would be chiefly confided. He
would also support the present bill from the confidence
he had in the gentlemen of the sister country, who, he
was satisfied, would do every thing in their power to
carry it into effect. While he voted for those strong
Measures on the ground of their pressing necessity, no
man felt more deeply for the distresses of Ireland than
be aid, and no man was more anxious that it should be
governed with the most liberal policy. He would there-
fore go as far as any for an inquiry into the cause of
the present disturbances, with a view of reuiosing them
if possible.
Mr. C. HUTCHINSON restated his objections to the
measures. He admitted that some unusual means were
necessary to repress the outrages that were now prevail-
ing in the country ; but he was of opinion that an
increase of military force would be sufficient for the pur-
pose.

Colonel DAVIES considered strong meamres neces-
sary, but could not agree with his Hon. Friend that a
large military force was the means Ow ought to be em-
ployed for the purFose of putting down the evils com-
plained of.

The House then resolved itself into a Committee.—
The Bill having passed the Committee, the house re-
sumed.
Mr. BROM/EN then brought up the Report, and, on the
motion that it be read,

Mr. SPRINO RICE proposed his first alteration in
the Bill, by virtue or which the trial by Jury would ►e
given to the prisonertried under this Act.—lt was nega-
tived without &division.

Mr. RICE proposed the seeondelteration, empowering
She justices under the Act to admit the prisoners to bail.
..—This was also negatived.
A division then took place on the clause proposed by
Mr. Rice, to give the benefit of a trial by a Jury, before
the Magistrates, to the prisoners tried under the Act.
The house then divided, when the numbers for the
ataedment were 30—against it 139.
We understood that during our exclusion from the gal-
lery the Bill was passed.