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    ^bb u.4BT 14, 1846. ,_¦ ¦ , _ THE NORTHE...

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    Thi -The Sf-akkb . —The hon . gentleman is entitled to i . i . _anes-tan , bnt he is nrt entitled by the rules of . ES _^ _^ _n _* _?* - _*^ { H _« _r , hear . ) . Sir sir . F _ B _ j _ s » . — -I will put the question , then , to _ l _ h « mi no ble lord , whether the petitions hehaspresented __ re t are the free and unbiassed acts of the persons whose _nnstf _^ Bi _es are app ended to them ? ( Laguhter . ) _^ _jlxa-d _Mobp-sth . —I have just to say that , tothe bbstbst of my belief , the signatures are the free and _unilS _ _lSse-i actsof the persons whose name-are appended 4 to tlto those petitions . ( Cheers . ) H Jfr . D-scombk moved for a return of the number / lofiJ ofiann-ies and persons who had been removed from _tr _teirtar p laces of settlement in _Lancashire , _Yorkshirt , _jjndjjid Cheshire , in the years 1842-34 , with the rpli . pl _ . ee . to which thej had been removed , and their tfl _^ _itfsidences in the towns . The return was ordered .

    FACTORY SCHOOLS . }! Mr . Briohi objected to tbe manner in which the i _ _ _oiu _ oney accumulated from fines under the Factories j Act Act had been distributed . Messrs . Horner and . _SauSaonders had paid to the chnrch and schools £ 420 . _iffhrffhereasthe-iiia awarded to the Dissenters' schools i _fra-fras only £ 75 . 5 sir J . GsAB-o-conld assure the hon . member th » t _iitvitwas the wlshofth * government that the fines to _iv __ _ _iv _ _ _** _ he referred _ahould bo distributed without iparpar tiaUtJ' - favour . ( Hear , hear . ) Instructions . hat had been given that the spirit ofthe aet should be , «_ t «_ rried out in the recommendations of the . in-- _ pE -p ectot-, and that the distributions should take place " wii with reference only to the wante ofthe schools . He , _coico- M assure the hon . member he would find that any

    ap ] app lication , come from whatever quarter it might , w _v onld leceive the fullest attention . ( Hear . ) . Sir R . _IsQua wished the right hon . h _ u . net to _sia state more fully than he had done , whether the bohouse waa . to understand that an equal amount wag to tobe given to the schools ofthe establishment and « L- « t- _ r-cho 0 _ i , or only a proportional amount to the hi biter . He understood irom the right hon . baronet tli tliat a proportional sum was to be given , aecording to to the number of scholars . Sir J . Graham , in reply , bad to state that by the _sc set there was no distinction aa to the schools , and th that the inspectors were directed to report , without re reference tothe number of scholars , what sum thej ti thought should be given .

    TIIE REFORMATION OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS . Jfr . Liddeix asked the right _hou . the Secretary of S State for the Home Department if government were P prepared to take any steps towards the improvement a aad refomation of juvenile offenders ? Sir J . Graham said , this subject had not been ne-§ _rlected either by the present or by the former gov _vernment . Before 1838 there waa no institution in tl this country for the punishment of juvenile convicts e except in the hulks in the Medway , and so far from t this being a place favourable to reformation , it was l highly injurious to their morals . In 18 _ S governr ment , with the sanction of the house , founded an

    i institution at Farkhuist , for the reformation of { o ___ -dei __ . In September , 1 BU , there were 260 _juvei _nile offenders confined there , and they had since ini creased to 606 , being subjected to discipline and to _; a . good moral training as was possible under the ciri en __ _rt-tnces . He observed , in addition , that there ¦ _vereat _ Mill- _ nk 200 _juven-leoffender 8 , ofwhomlOO ' wars very young ; so that mt the present moment there were Wo juvenile . Sanders subjected to discipline on the most perfect principles . ( Hear . ) If h shonld be the pleasure of tne house to sanction the proposal of iter Majesty ' s government , that an annual sum should be granted to promote the improvement of juvenile offenders convicted by a jury , certainly it would be his endeavour to induce the

    magistrates in the various counties in England to give directions for setting apart a portion of the prisons for the special use , and to establish schools for the discipline of these children —( hear , hear);—and when the schools had been established he would _recommend that the public in each county should also ! erect an asylum of refuge , in which , on their escape from prison , th _ s » offi _ ndersnri _ bt be r * ceived before they were restored to society . Mr . D-XcoMB-present-d a petition from the paperhangers of tiie city of London , declaring themselves favourable to the principles of free trade , but wishing them to be equally applied , and complaining that the daty on the importation of foreign paperhangings _was to be reduced five-sixths , in place of one-half .

    THE CORN LAWS . Sir R . Pox rose for the purpose of correcting a false impression , tbat the present duties levied on ths importation of foreign corn would -ease as soon ss his resolutions imposing the new duties had received the assent of the committee and had been approved by the house . He had thought that Parliament had been accustomed to deal with the corn as with other duties ; but as it was not so , he would make the reduction ofthe duties take place npon the pissing of theAct . Government , however , Bad determined to give to the Corn Bill precedence over all other public business . It would be taken without waiting for the bills necessary to give effect to thc other alteration in the tariff , and would , if it passed the House of Commons , be sent forthwith , to the Iiouse of Lords .

    THE _CONDITION OF AGRICULTURAL LABOURERS . _^ Jlr . W _ j __ -T , after presenting several petitionin favour ofthe repeal ofthe Corn Laws , said tbat he bad another petition of an important nature to present on the same subject . It was from 14 labour-tin Wiltshire , and was as follows : —

    " To Hit Hon . the Commons of Great Britain and i Ireland , in Parliament Assembled . "The petition of the undersigned , inhabitants of _Pewsey , in the county of Wilts , showeth , —That yonr P-iitioners are agricultural labourers , members of thai class for whose especial protectitn and benefit the Corn Laws are said to have passed , and are now sought to be maintained . That , so far from havin * received protection and benefit , the condition of vour petitioners is one of destitution and of degradation , being obliged to submit to the work usually assigned to beasts of burden , namely , to be harnessed to carts and to draw them , laden with stones , from place to place , in order to earn , not ths lair wages for labour , but a miserable pittance , a sum nicely calculated as being just sufficient to keep them from starvation , and to prevent their availing themselves of that refuge which tbe law of theland has provided for them , and which the poor-rate is levied to

    ensure to them . Inat , although some of your petitioners have as many as eight in their family , in no one instance does the payment for their labour amount to more than 6 s . a-week , out of which sum rent , fuel , and other necessaries , as wellas food , have to be provided ; that , being thus reduced under the Corn Laws , which do not enable the occupiers of the soil to _gtre them employment for fair wages , and which clearly do not afford them protection , or . contee to their benefit , your petitioners are strongly of _opbdon that those laws are injurious , ratherthanadvantageous to them ; they therefore humbly implore your hon . house immediately and entirely to abolish those laws , and all others the tendency of which is to make food scarce and dear , —a state of thines that is always hurtful to the labouring classes . . Signed by 14 labourera , having 14 wives aud 48 children , altogether amounting to 7 C persons , _subsisting , on £ 4 . 2 s . a-week , or 13 d . each person , being _U-. than 2 d . a-day each . )"

    THE GOVERNMENT COMMERCIAL _MEASURE . On the motion that the S peaker do now leave tho chair , 3 Ir . P . Mass rose , and moved as an amendment , that the house do resolve itself into committee that day sis months . He trusted that be approached the consideration of the _question with a just sense of its laagmtude , and that no expression- might fall from win which should tend to excite any angry feelings _, it was , indeed , of too important a character to be treated on mere party grounds . It was a question which touched tbe interests of every man in thi-- _"• antry , the highest and lowest , the merchant and the agriculturist , th « landlord and tbe tenant , tbe -P-rative and the artisan ; and it was a question of far greater magnitude than the Reform Bill , because it imolied a change in the policy which had been

    pursued in this country from tbe earliest period of its _historv , and trader wliich it had risen to great emi- ; _ e _ _ e " -a policy which all nations had long followed , and which all still continued to follow . ( Cheeis . ) ll-ietherthe country was prepared for this great j change—whether theconstituencies were prepared to give their sanction to the measure of the right hon . _. entleman—he could not venture tosay ; but he ( Mr . _3-liles ) could not hesitate to declare that on a question cf such vital importance to their interests they ought at least to be consulted . Undoubtedly the majority oi this Parliament was elected on protectionist prin-« ii > les . ( Hear , hear . ) Notwithstanding the explataiions given by the right hon . hart . ( Sir IL Peel ) be ( ilr . Miles ) could not but agree with the late Secretan- for the Colonies , in thinking that there was to peculiar necessity for this measure—that though there was a failure of the potatoe crop in Ireland , Jet there was no failure in the harvest of this

    -iuntry , for every report showed that the crop was very large . From the reports which had been published it appeared that between the oth of July , IS 45 , aud the 5 th of . January . 1 S 4 C , nearly 1 , 000 , 000 <_ uarteis of grain had been imported , and more than l _'* _. cwt . of meal . That there was no apprehension of famine was shown by the fact that wheat was at pis . a quarter—a price which in 1842 the right hon . _taronet . badthoughtafairprice . ( Hear , hear . ) He * -, _*;¦ - - _) did not nn « _lerrate the responsibility of the Minister . He could understand that the right K _..-. W . t- _____«_ r _.---v 4- * - _> ___ ___ . _ __ _ _ _ . C honbaronet

    * . _sannety would _beiucreased by the mere _ d <* of a famine . . Then the right hon . baronet had not only the earliest reports from different quarterbut he was receiving such reports continually . At the same time the right hon . baronet ' s collea gues , had _equally with himself the means of judiang whether the emergency was such as to demand the measure he proposed in November ; aud wheu those colleagues were seen refusing to open the ports , and declaring the reports of famine exaggerated , he ( Mr . Miles ) , without wishing to impute improper motives , could not but say that he felt that the cause of protection

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    had long been doomed in the mind ofthe right hon bart ., > nd thatthe propositions nownudeby the rid * hon . bart . _nadlatlsatseated itsfate . Uponthatprinciple he ( Air . Miles ) was prepared to take his stand and give his most decided opposition to therighthon baronet . But ne did not mean to deny that there were parts of _themeaaure from which the countrv would derive benefit . He thought a moderate nrotection , however , due to native industry . He had brought forward his motion , not on account of the agricultural interest only , but on account ofall the interestsofthe country ; he belonged to no particular X _* _^ ° _r te wa 9 equall y engagedin all . He knew tiie difficulty he should have in bringing this question before the house . But such difficulties should

    not dishearten him ( Jfr . Miles ; for a i _„ rge party in that house-a large and influential party Beyond its walls-heldI opinionsi inaceordance with his own . Hi * chief objection to the measures of the right hon baronet was , that he saw no termination to them . Every session would bring an additional change . It wm proposed to _efiect great changes ; and _greater still must follow . Tha more he considered the ques . tion , the more was he convinced that those measureought not to he _aUowed to pass through Parliament before the deliberate opinion ofthe countiy hadbeen taken on the subject by an appeal to the constituencies . He did not think the recent prosperity of this country was attributable to measures of the right hon . bart ., but to the fact of improved harvests , and

    the immense impetus given to trade by the more general application of capital to railroads . The termination of the wars in China and India had also materially aided in producing this result ; he could not therefore admit thattheprosperity ofthe country was attributable to the right hon . baronet ' s policy , for many of those circumstances would have taken Slace had the noble lord been in power . ( Hear . ) either was the state of exports a test of prosperity . The foreign markets had been glutted—China and India had been inundated—with British goods . Afore reliance was to be placed en the home trade . He would not quote the former speeches of the right hon . bart . on the Corn question , nor taunt him with inconsistency . If the rieht hon . bart . considered

    Ms measures essential to the best interests of the countiy , he ( Mr . Miles ) for one would not blame him ; but he could not consent to follow the right hon . baronet . The Corn Law , it would be admitted , had worked well , so far as a law could work well . ( Laughter and cheers . ) So far as calculation could go it had , he thought , answered the right hon . baronet ' s expectations . The object of that law was to give a fair price to the farmer . What did he consider a fair price now ? If the right hon . bart . was right in hia views of the effect which would attend the repeal of the Corn Laws , what became of the " cheap loaf" argument of the hon . gentleman _opposite ? There was a vast difference between the cheapness produced by a good harvest , aud the

    cheapness produced by the introduction of foreign corn . Mr . lluskisson had described theimportation oi foreign grain as the sure forerunner of scarcity ; while the same great authority held that a steady home snpply was the only sure guarantee for a steady home market . The right hon . baronet ' s measures would lead to tie utter ruin of the agricultural interest ; they wonld cause great agricultural distress , and tend to lower wages ; the working classes would feel their effects before tbe higher orders . When these measures passed , free trade would be the principle of her Majesty ' s government , and protection could not be taken from one interest without its being taken from all . What would be said of the navigation laws , of reciprocity treaties ? Where the

    sweeping current was to pass when once the barrier was broken down . Im could not say ; but , if justice were done to all parties , protection ought to be continued . Then the free trade proposed was a onesided free trade _. This countiy wonld be inundated with foreign goods , but have no corresponding advantage ; and already the Swiss and French competed in hosiery , cotton goods , cutlery , & c ., with British manufacturers . Wages on railroads or public works might for a time be higher , but ultimately all would be reduced . There were other circumstances which gave the manufacturer great natural advantages over the agriculturist . His establishment was much better conducted . ( Ironical cheers from the Opposition . ) What he meant was , that the manufacturer

    could survey aU his workmen at one glance , and therefore had them more under controul than the farmer . ( Hear , hear . ) Whether the sun shone , or tha rain poured , the factory went onthe same ; but the farmers were subject to the vicissitudes of the weather . It was a matter of great doubt whether manufactures and agriculture could be governed by the same Jaws and principles ( hear ) , as regards the restriction of labour . The manufacturer also had an adrant-ge over the agriculturist in the burdens they respectively bore . One of the largest cotton manufactories in the country , the annual produce of which was £ 170 , 000 worth of goods , and which paid £ 30 , 000 a-year in wages , paid only £ 530 in direct burdens . ( Hear . ) There was nothing to

    counterbalance this in _faveur ofthe farmer , lhecompensation offered to the landed _interest-some £ 400 , 000 spread over the whole country—was not sufficient _. There was another article of product , which , howl ever , did not strictly come within the subject—he meant sugar . In 1344 and 1845 certain advantages were given to free-grown sugar over slave-grown _, sugar . But now the growers of free-labour sugar were told that they could stand a little more competition . Why , what was to protect them from being told in 154 . that the West Indian colonists had already derived great benefit from competition , and , therefore , that tbey must be subjected to still more . Ob the other hand , if the farmer was obliged to sell

    his corn at the cheapest market , why should he be compelled to buy his sugar at the dearest ? ( Hear . ) Extend the principle of the Canada Corn Bill generally , ahd he ( Mr . Miles ) would then not object to vote for the plan . If free trade principles were to prevail they ought to be extended to the colonies ; and the manufacturer of this country ought not to be allowed to have a monopoly ofthe colonial market . Upon the whole , he believed that they would be acting for the be 3 t interests of-tho countn ,, for the benefit of commerce , of the colonies , and of ihe working classes , by advocating protection for every branch of British industry . The hon . gentleman , who was very imperfectly heard towards the close of _ ds speech , conclude-by moving bis amendment .

    Sir W . Heathcote rose to second the amendment . He said , that in opposing the measure of the right hon . baronet , he was desirous of altogether avoiding the practice that had in some quarters become general of charging the right hon . gentleman with personal dishonesty in having introduced it . It was true that he looked upon the measure itself as delusive , as based on grounds separately inconclusive , and inconsistent when combined ; and thathe thought the right hon . baronet , in his eagerness to accomplish a great result , overlooked the evil of shaking a settlement which appeared to the public mind to be based on the good faith of the present Parliament . ( Hear . ) He believed also that the right hon . bart . had not sufficiently perceived the violent shock that

    was being given to public confidence in public men . But , to suppose that the right hon . baronet was pretending a conviction he did not feel , or that he had any other object in view than to promote what he thought to be the best interests of the country , appeared to him ( Sir W . Heathcote ) to be _agratuitousassumption . The plan proposed to be a large and comprehensive scheme of free trade . If it were so , and if it was at the same time impartial , he would still look on it as a step in a downward course , and one which was calculated to lead to evil . He was not afraid to avow , that , on his conscience , he believed the legislation of the last twenty years in the same direction , had produced evils greater than bad been supposed , and the amount ol * wbicb had been conce _ Kd only through

    the -n . nn . U- growth of our colonial trade—a . trade which , lie it remembered , had been carried on on principles antagonist to those of this measure . ( llear , hear . ) The measure , however , was not impartial—it did not take protection from all alike . The different classes of dome-tic industry demanded protection in proportion to tho amount of manual lubour required to carry than . on . Yet , by tbis plan , that braucn which required more manual labour than any—agriculture—was to have the least protection ; while manufactures , on which machinery would be so much brought to bear ,. was to have the most . ( Hear . ) The right boa . baronet rested its abolition on considerations , he said , partly of justice and partly of policy . Surely , as regarded the justice of it , thc

    condition of the British agriculturist , as compared witb the foreigner , should be considered . He lived in a countiy where , money being plentiful , and its circulation rapid , prices were high . He was exposed to taxation unequal and heavy , and also to those local assessments which in foreign countries were borne by the state . The agriculturist was embarrassed too , more , perhaps , than any other person in the state , with thc burden of the stamp laws , the indirect taxation of the Excise and Customs . But it was impossible to do away with the effect on the right hon . baronet ' s supporters of his former arguments in favour of protection . ( Hear . ) He ( Sir W .

    tleathcote ) could not forget that the farmers , who were not fifty years ago so highly taxed as thoy were now by three times , were able to feed double the population . Nor could he forget that when last a scarcity occurred , such as was made one of the pretexts for this measure , England was the only country in Europe really able to meet it , and that at a time when overy other country was prepared to close its ports against us . To avert thc possibility of such a crisis being renewed , Lc had voted for the Canada Corn Bill , and he was prepared to have voted for an Australiiui C-in Bill also . But now no such principle was retained , ho conceived himself bound to oppose the measure .

    Mr . W . Lasceu . es . aid the lion , baronet who last spoke seemed to attribute the _prosperity of England to the system of pi-tection . Hc thought differently ; for from the time of the commencement of the adoption of the principle might be traced a system of fluctuation , of alternations of prosperity and adversity . Nor did he see why this measure should be made a test of Conservative policy . Tliere was nothing in the reconstruction of the Conservative party , after the Reform Bill , to authorise the supposition that a restrictive commercial policy was to fcecoiuidered as

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    its fundamental principle . The right hon .- baronet had been taunted with tho sudden change in * his policy and with his inconsistency , but it was impossible to look at the principles of his former relaxations in the protective system arid not see that they had pmbraced the whole princi ple of free _trado ( Hear , hear . ) They were so understood . ( Hear ) In 1842 the right hon . baronet proposed the existing Corn Law ; and what was the consequence ? ( Hear 1 In every succeeding sessions of Parliament questions had been put to him in every tone ef alarm" After the principles you have expressed , do you mean to alter the Corn Laws , or do you not *" The right hon . baronet ' s answers , which were

    considered unsatisfactory at the time ( hear , hear ) were to this effect— " I have no intention to alter the Corn Laws , but no man who is the Minister ofthis countiy ought to pledge himself for ever as to what he may do upon such a subject . " They mi » ht attempt to bolster the trade of the country by protective duties , but , depend upon it , that at the root of the question we should find our best policy in free intercourse with foreign countries . From the first opening of the East India Company ' s charter and whether they looked at the articles of silk ' sugar , or wool , every instance that they could possibly bring to mind of a relaxation of protective duties established thc wisdom of that policy .

    Lord Norreys said , that having been a constant supporter [ of the right hon . baronet ( Sir R . Peel } since the year 1830 down to the present time , he regretted that he must now not only oppose the measure , but also withdraw all confidence from the right hon . b-ronet s administration . He had not deserted their ranks uutil he had heard the explanation and themeasures . He _wasjready to admit the difficulties ofthe right hon . baronet ' s position , that whatever change he had proposed would have met with equal opposition from most ofhis present opponents ; therefore he might have been driven to such an extensive plan . But he ( Lord Norreys ) thought he might have obviated much ofthe difficulty if he had refused to return to power until the government had been ottered

    to the noble duke who presided at the Agricultural bociety . Any man who knew anything of public aflairs knew what would have been the result . This would have opened the eyes of the agriculturists to their real position , and some settlement more favourable to tie agricultural body might havebeen effected _, lie ( Lord Norreys ) never could have expected that he who , in 1841 , so damaged the fixed duty that its advocates-dare not again propose such a mode of protection—who , in 1842 , professed to make an adjustment ofthe question—that he would have been tbe man to propose a 4 s . duty to end in total repeal . He did not believe that the right hon . baronet had been wanting in political integrity , or that he had been actuated by . any dishonest motives ; but ,

    contrasting his conduct in former years with the present , it was clear he hadbeen wanting in that foresight which it was necessary a leader should possess to command the confidence of his party . He ( Lord Norreys ) would resist the measure , and the right hon . baronet , and not those who opposed the measure , must be responsible for any confusion which arose . ( Hear , hear . ) Mr . B . Cochbaxe declared his intention to vote for the measure of the government , and did not see that Sir Robert Peel had been more inconsistent than others . The Reform Bill had passed , and the necessity for passing this measure was one ofthe inevitable consequences ef that bill . Mr . W . _Dekdes defended the Corn Law of 1842 , and commented upon the inconsistency of Sir Robert

    Peel , who instanced the prosperous condition of the country during the last three years , and then called upon Parliament to alter the law under which that prosperity had been attained . Sir J . Walsh denied that the maintenance of the Corn Laws resolved itself into a question of rent , as was frequently _Btajgd by the free traders ; though even if it were so the magnitude of the interests dependent on tlie land should induce the legislature to be cautious in unsettling it . The country had made rapid progress under the old system , and there never was a period when its agriculture was more ready for a stride in advance , and if proper security was offered they would be quite able to meet the demands of our increasing population . Mr . A . B . Hope supported the amendment .

    Lord Sandon startled lhe houso by declaring that though he disapproved of the scheme proposed by her Majesty ' s government , he had made up his mind to vote in favour ofit . After stating his objections to _thejneasure at some length , he said that he felt that the country must be governed . He found that wheu opinions hostile to protection had been pronounced by the great leaders on both sides of the house , and tbat it was now opposed by all the gentlemen who had ever sat in the government except two , it was no longer a matter for discussion ; but the onlyquestion was the way of doing it . He looked upon it » aa the French said , " un fait accompli "— -it wa 3 settled . It might be railed against , but the country must be governed ; and when the only persons who could govern the country were of one opinion , the sooner it was settled the better it would be for all

    parties . Lord J . Russell believed that he was the first member who had risen on his side ofthe house on the important question now before them ; and while he should give his vote on the same side with the noble lord who had just addressed them , he could say that he should do it with better heart and hope than that noble lord . He was not at all terrified by an argument which appeared quite conclusive on the other aide—namely , that protection was a system of legislation wbich bad been adopted in England i ' or centuries , and tbat we were about to destroy it . We had destroyed many other systems wliich had been injurious to the country , though they bad been defended by the prescriptive usage of centuries ; and he hoped that hereafter we should be proud of having

    destroyed this system , and of having participated in _founding instead of it a newer and better state of tilings . The protection which it was now sought to maintain for agriculture was defended on the ground that it was a protection for the benefit of agriculture , and of agriculture alone . Now , such protection was an interference with trade and labour for the benefit of a class—it was a tax on the community for the benefit of a class , whilst the class for whose benefit it was professedly intended , absolutely lost by __ it . These were truths which every writer on political economy now admitted ; but he was sorry to say that every one ot them was at fault when they came to the consideration on the question— " What is the course you ought to take , when you wish to get rid

    of that protection , which you admit to be an evil ?" Admitting that the transition from protection to free trade could not be made without some suffering , he proceeded to discuss the mode in which Sir R . Peel had treated the question . He thought that Sir Robert had not laid the grounds for his measure boldly and broadly enough in point of time . Sir Robert might have quoted _several measures of Air . lluskisson with respect to raw silk , French gloves , and several other articles , to shotvthe benefit of removing prohibitory , and of relaxing protective duties . He ( Lord J . Russell ) would not enter into any criticism at present on the reductions in the commercial and manufacturing articles contained in the new tariff proposed bv Sir Robert Peel , but would

    confine his observations to his plan ior getting rid altogether of the corn duties at the expiration of three years . He was of opinion that if Sir Robert had undertaken his present course in the year 1 S 42 , it would have been better both for agriculture and tlie community at large . As matters now stood , seeing thc _struggle which was going on throughout the country , and which wa-s likely to continue , he was prepared to say th : it tlio immediate abolition ofthe corn duties was the most expedient course for a government to pursue . _Considering , however , the plan of Sir R . Peel as a great measure , whicli was to lay the foundation of a new principle of commercial legislation , and was to leave all tbe interests of the country to flourish or to fade

    according to the skill of the parties concerned in them , be was determined and prepared " to give every support in his power to it , although it did not go to the length hc wished . The relief offered by the plan to the agricultural interest was more apparent than real . He heard from all parts of the kingdom that the fanners everywhere said that if they were to have a system of free trade , they would prefer an abolition of the duties at once to a gradual reduction of them , and that they were anxious to be relieved from that new Corn Law which was proposed to break their f all A ter explaining the reasons why he thought that the farmers were correct in that opinion , hc put it to Sir Robert Peel whether he would not re-consider that part of

    his plan . He wished , however , that plan , whether amended as he suggested or not , to succeed both in that house and the House of Lords ; and no vote of his should be so given as to endanger its success . He then made some comments on the minor details of Sir _Robert ' s scheme , and concluded by drawing a contrast between tbe disinterested support which thc Whigs were now giving to the free trade measures of a Tory government , and the factious opposition which tho Tories gave to the same measure when proposed by a Whig government . His opinion was that if the free trade measures of the Whig government had been allowed to pass when tliey werc ori . inally proposed , much ofthe suffering of the vcar

    1 S 42 would have been avoided . Sir Robert Peel would have escaped much of the invective which was now heaped upon him , if he had then been true to himself , and would not have been reproached with betraying somebody if hc had then been true to his country . Sir Robert might wear thc laurel for enabling the poor man to get a better reward for his labour , and so to improve his moral and social condition ; he might also wear the laurel for increasing the prosperity and improving the revenue of the countiy ; but with the Whigs would rest tlie solid satisfaction that out of office they had joined together to consolidate thc triumph of the Minister ol the day .

    Sir R . Ixous congratulated Lord John Russell on the gallantly with which he had come to the rescue of the Ministry after nine gentlemen had risen one after another on the Ministerial _b-nches to direct their fire , uot against a common enemy , but against each other , He lamented that thc vote of Lord San-

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    Jon should U sucn direct contradiction to his speech , which was one of the most ' _.. _hvincingArguments which he had ever heard against the expediency of the present change . The principle on which the legislature ought to proceed on a question like this was to obtain the largest and best supply of corn on the most moderate and equable price . He asked whether there was any country in the world in which corn had been obtained on a more equable price than in Lngland under the present system , ln proof of the affirmative of this proposition hc quoted return of the price of corn for many years at Hainbuigh . Rotterdam , and several other foreign ports : He should have liked Sir Robert ' s plan better , if he had transferred that Dart « f the nnnr rata o . h __ . __ _«__

    -fell on the land exclusively to tho Consolidated bund , lie then complained that government had not taken into consideration the effect of this change in the Corn Law on the rent-charges recently created in lieu of tithes . It would be easy to prove the gross inconsistency o f all those who agitate this measure : but it was unnecessary , as we had _cwyiiente _. nos . Lord John Russell had changed the opinions of his youth for those ofa maturer age . He did not accuse liim of any low or mdH mot [ ve _j n making that change . Neither did he accuse Sir R . Peel ofanyiother motives save those which were most pure and honourable . If , however , Sir 11 . Peel was a great statesman now , his past conduct must have been that of a man insensible to the wants and _eniercencies of th _>

    country , ills change on this point had beon so sudden , that we could not hel p expecting more changes on other matters . In Lord J . Russell he knew what he had to expect ; and he must say that he would ratber trust to an open enemy than but he stopped himself , and concluded by declaring his intention to support the amendment . Major _FiizMAi / iHCK opposed the ministerial plan . Mr . Sins * . Herbbo t showed , by . reference to the reports ol the commissioners , the imminent dangers which hang over Ireland , in consequence of the failure ofthe potatoecrop . The hon . gentleman then said : " I do not stand on a point of consistency when I frankly avow that I think the law of 1842 has failed —( cheers ); thatthe first time it was tested by adverse

    circumstances it tailed , and signally failed * , " and proceeded to show that the present ministry had offered to the noble lord opposite & hearty and spon _^ taneous support in effecting a change iu the system , should lie have succeeded in forming a cabinet . He denied that wheat could be imported from the _continontal ports at the low prices which hadbeen stated * , and asserted that it would bc impossible to bring any great quantity of foreign grain to compete successfully with our home produce . As to the apprehensions from the United States , the population increased in them much more rapidly thon the production . The right hon . gentleman then proceeded to say that a meeting took place at a village called Goatacre , in my county—a meeting wliich has been alluded to in a different sense by different parties in

    this house , ( Hair . ) Now , I am not prepared to deny—indeed , I think on the face of tho resolutions agreed to at that meeting it is obvious that those resolutions were not drawn up by working men , that the proceedings were preorganised and contrived by others . ( Hear . ) But this 1 om bound to stats , that the statements of those _ivorking men as to the difficulties they labour under were correct . ( Hear , hear . ) Hive in tht midst of a population as fo _« . / . _»»» I scarcel y know hoiv ihey exist . ( Hear . ) The only remedy he could see for this state of things was high farming , which would at once give & remunerative return for capital and greater employment for labour . The lion , member concluded an elaborate and eloquent speech by strongly supporting the new measure . On the motion of Mr . S . O'Brien , the debate was then adjourned till Tuesday .

    PRESENTMENT SESSIONS ( IRELAND ) BILL . Sir James Grauam . moved fov leave to bring in * ' a bill to authorise grand juries in Ireland , at the spring assizes of tho present year , to appoint extraordinary presentment sessions ; to empower such sessions to make presentment for county works , and to provide funds for the execution of such works by loans of public money . " He said the powers wliich were meant to be conferredon grand juries by the bill were permissive , and not compulsory . One object of the bill was to render the money already in the hands of grand juries immediately available , so that the contracts for which it was intended might be commenced in the spring and in the early part of summer . This sum amounted to £ 120 , 000 , and was now lodged in exchequer bills , and bearing interest , bo that

    supposing all the grand juries in Ireland concurred in the objects of the bill , it could be sent into the labour market immediately . The second object of the . bill was to give grand juries power to make presentments at the spring assizes for further works , which , under the existing law , they could not do until the summer assizes . It was intended that these further works should be made to the amount of £ 80 , 000 , making in alt £ 200 , 000 , to be expended in employment under the control of the grand juries . It was , he should repeat , merely a permissive , and not a compulsory power , and under existing circumstances he hoped the house would b » induced to pass the measure with as little delay as possible . ( Hear , hear . ) Sir James Graham and Mr . Young were then empowered to introduco the bill . The house adjourned at one o ' clock .

    HOUSE OF LORDS-Tuesdat , Feb . 10

    TIIE POLISH NUNS . Lord Aberdeen , in answer to a question from Lord Kinnaird respecting the cruelties alleged to have been perpetrated on the Polish nuns at Minsk , stated that he had no doubt the persecutions in question were grossly exaggerated ; and that whatever might be the state ofthe case , the government . of this country had no power to interfere . Several petitions were presented , the Scotch Turnpike-roads Bill was forwarded a stage , and the house adjourned . HOUSE OF COMMONS-Ti . ESDAr , Feb . 10 . Mr . James S . Wortley took the oaths and his seat for the county ef Bute .

    NEW WRIT . On the motion of Mr . J . Young a new writ was ordered for tlie election ofa citizen to serve for Westminster in the room of Captain Rous , who , since his election , had accepted the office of one of tho Lords Commissioners for executing the office of Lord High Admiral . A large number of petitions , for and against tho Corn Laws , were _presontod by various members . Petitions in favour of the Ten Hours' Factory Labour Bill were presented from places in the county of York , by Sir G . Strickland ; from places in the county of Dorset , by Mr . Bank 9 s ; from twelve places in Glasgow and its vicinity , and two places in Chorley , by Mr . T . Duncombe ; from places in Wales , b . an hon . member , whose name we did not learn ; and from several places in Lancashire , by Mr . Ferrand .

    Mr . T . Duxcombb presented petitions from inhabitants of Marylebone , Pancras , and other place ., against the enrolment of the militia , which they considered to be altogether unnecessary . After a sharp conversation respecting thevaluoof tlie tariffs of different countries , prepared for Parliament by Mr . M'Gregor , which werc styled by Lord Seymour "dull romances , " and defended by Dr . Bowring , Mr . Hume , and others , the house resumed the debate on

    THE CUSTOMS AND CORN IMPORTATION ACTS . Mr . S . O'Buiex denied that there existed , as Lord J . Russell represented , an impression among thc farmers that the repeal of the Com Laws , if it took place at all , should take place immediately . He regretted that the agricultural interest hnd _« ot an opportunity of publicly and constitutionally declaring tlieir opinion . After the late declarations ho wanted to know upon what principles parties in this country were iu future to be kept together ? Not only had the present government changed its principles since it came into office , but it bad also taught us this valuable truth—that parties in this country were no lonsrer to be keot _totrcthcr by distinctive principles .

    Mr . "Sidney Herbert had told tlicm that the law of 1 S 42 had signally failed . What bo wanted to know was this— "Did that law fail to the Sidney Herbert of 1845 , or to the Sidney Herbert of 181 b ? " The Sidney _llerbert of 1 S 45 found that it failed because it let in corn too freely ; the Sidney Herbert of 1340 found that it failed because it restricted the free importation of corn . Mr . S . Herbert asked too ' much , if lie supposed that the Corn Law of 1812 could , by any human ingenuity , be made to answer the views of a Minister of so changeable a temperament . Thc failure of a law which had succeeded two years and failed only one year , was not a sufficient reason why he should give . up the principles of a whole life .

    He could not agree with tho proposition ot Lord J . Russell , tbat protection to agriculture was no longer defensible ; and , in _refsrenco to his assertion that labour was the property of the poor man , observed , that it was well for those who had used up that property most cruelly in tho manufacturing districts to come forward and say now that wo ought to let it alone . We were propounding tho most selfish doctrines when we brought forward measures ot winch the avowed object was to leave the poor man without protection , and so to consign bim to unmitigated ruin . The axiom of buying in the cheapest mar ke _; and selling in the dearest , and that the property ol the poor man needed no protection , was . a verj

    plausible one ; but seo how it operated . Suppose an individual to buy his paper-hangings in Paris , his carriages in Brussels , and his li _. rdwarc in Germany ; and suppose , win le he was looking out of tho window ot Ins smart house , or his del-ant carriage ,, hc saw the labourers all idle , because of the new lr 4 _\ v which had passed in tavour of the introduction of _Uicse articles ; and suppose ho said to them , " My _^ ood follows , 1 have done my best to make you poor , and wretched , but I have not done so from any _sclxisli motive . On the 27 th of January , 1 S-G , it wr . s propounded by the head of tho government tb . at the property ofthe poor needed no protection , o \ nv \ that in future we should all buy m the _cheapest market and sell in the dearest , and 1 Have _onlr / a wish to promote my own interest by acting _ur - on those principles . " What poor consolation this

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    would . be _. to the poor workman ! : He begged , the house also to think not only of the amount of poverty which these proposals , if carried out , would occasion , but of the amount of alienation and disaffection which they would occasion . In that house they were all rich . men .: Comparatively they were all rich . They all had had a breakfast that morning and they all would have a dinner before night . But there were millions in the country who could no ? say so . ( Hear , hear . ) The doctrine they had announced waa tbe most selfish doctrine . It was not a question of cotton against corn . But when they spoke of alwaya buying in the cheapest ahd selling in the dearest market , ho would ask how they reconciled their principle with that of a poor law ? Could _thnv exnlam whv nm , _» . _»_ . > _„ __ .. _ . _ . i i . 1 . _ .

    relieve another man ' s property ? In _' showing that their principle struck against that ofa poor law he was onlyarguingagainstaclumsy _. liard _. and impracticable dogma on which they never could act ; which if reduced to practice , would alienate the affections ofthe people , and only increase their own dangers He was sorry to hear that dogma promulgated in that house the members of which could not call themselves in any sense the representatives of the poor man—( hear , hear _);—btcauie , while they talked of respecting the rights of the poor , they had hitherto been acting so as practically to diminish and destroy those rights . They should be very careful how they announced that they were no longer abla to protect the property which the millions of their

    followcountrymen said was all thoy had in the world . He had been accustomed to consider the present as a landlords' question . He was convinced that he had been wrong . It was not a landlords' question , but a tenant-farmers' question ; and being such , he refused to alter the existing law relative to the importation of foreign corn . He thon drew a highlycoloured picture of the ruin which would fall upon the _tenant-larmers and the labourers whom they employed—whose honest hearts were worth more than all the heaviest volumes of political economyif tho new-fangled doctrines of Mr . Cobden should be carried into execution under the auspices of Sir R . Peel . Their great fault was that they , like their landlords , had trusted in the faith of the legislature ;

    and the misfortune which they would most doplore in their common ruin would be the loss of all confidence in public men . Mr . S . Crawford considered that the eloquence of the last speaker was much greater than the power of his arguments ; for though he professedly took great interest in the welfare of the working man , he showed the value of his _professions by refusing to give to that working man cheap food . Nothing would promote tlie prosperity of th * country so much as cheap corn , and therefor * it was that lie wished to repeal every tax which was imposed on its importation from foreign countries . He concluded by declaring his intention of giving his cordial support to the proposition of her Majesty ' s government on this occasion . ¦

    ' Mr . II . Baillie regretted that this question should have been taken up on party grounds . . The members on tho ministerial side of the liouse had only the choice of two alternatives—they must either accept the compromisenow offered to them , or throw out the present administration to make room for another equally _p ledged to the abolition of all duties on the Importation of foreign corn . Under such circumstances , he should support the proposition of the government from a conviction that in so doing he was supporting the best interests oi" the British empire .

    Mr . _Lx . _noy commented on the speech of Mr . S . Crawford on the wretched condition of the population f Ireland , and asked how this measure was calculated to improve it , or to raise the capital of the landlords and farmers of Ireland , who were the employers of labour ? He declared himself compelled , as an Irish member , to oppose the proposition ofthe govcrment , wliich lie denounced as a most rash ami hazardous experiment . Lord C ___> k _ ts bad no hesitation in meeting the challenge of the last speaker , and in contending that this proposition would not be injurious either to the

    population or tho landlords of Ireland . He wished hon . members would inquire how far the Corn I _aws had benefited the agricultural population of Ireland . Nothing could be more destitute or deplorable than the condition of the peasantry of that country . What , then , was , or what would be , the benefit of protection to a population in such deplorable misery ? Had it been , or would it be , of the slightest use either to the tenant-farmer , or had it prevented , or would it prevent , the labourer from standing idle in the market-place ? No such thing . He should , therefore , give his support to thc government proposition for the alteration in the Corn Laws .

    The Marquis of Giiahbt believed that Sir R . Peel was actuated by the most pure and honourable motives ; but if he had promulgated in 18-11 the samo opinions which he now entertained , he would not have proposed them now as a Minister of the Crown . It was not a fair way of putting the question to saj that the labourer , if the Corn Laws were repealed , would be enabled to buy cheaper bread . The question was , would he be able to buy and to eat more bread ? He was . afraid that he would not be able ; for where subsistence was cheap , labour was cheap

    also , and the condition of the population most _miserable . Sir Robert had told the house that he < ould not hold out hopes that foreign nations would follow our example or relax the regulations of their tariffs . But even if they did , you might increase your exports , but in the same proportion your home consumption of manufactures would fall off , as your agriculturists would be deprived of funds where . ith to purchase them . He should support the principle of protection , which had mainly conduced to the greatness , the happiness , and welfare of Great Britain .

    Mr . _Gbkoort contended that agriculture had flourished hitherto in this country , not through , but in spite of protection . He derided the fears of the agriculturists , that land would be thrown out of cultivation , and that we should become dependent on foreigu nations for supply , if we acceded to the proposition of government . lie hoped that the hbioe possessed too much true courage to be afraid ef the imputation that this measure was granted as a concession to agitation . Lord Bbookb expressed his regret that , on his first entrance into Parliament , he should find himself compelled to oppose the administration of Sir Robert Peel . He gave the First Lord of the Treasury credit for a sincerity and straightforwardness

    which nad not been manifested by many of those who followed him . He was surprised at hearing Lord Sandon express his disapprobation of the measure , and his determination to vote for it , because he considered that the government of tho country could not be carried on without the aid of the unqucstioiiod talent of Sir Robert Peel . For his part , he thought an objectionable measure should be rejected , without regard to possible consequences . Another reason assigned for supporting tho government measure was , the fact that the present Parliament was near its end . But old age frequently benumbed the faculties , and impaired the judgment ; and in its senility , Sir Robert Peel called upon it to make its will , and give away its property .

    Lord Worslky observed that this measure was not brought forward by her Majesty ' s government as a measure which they deemed right , but as a measure which peculiar circumstances had rendered expedient . A t thc last general elcotion no cry was so general as that of " Peel , the farmer ' s friend ; " but now " Peel , the farmer ' s friend , " was introducing a measure which almost every farmer in the country considered as pregnant with ruin to himself and his _property . Noticing the observation of Mr . Sidney Herbert , that the country gentlemen of England wero entertaining apprehensions of the proposed change not very creditable to their good sense , he asked who wero tho parties who had first poured those apprehensions into thc agricultural mind ? Peel

    Tlicy were no Jess personages than Sir Robert and Sir James Graham . Having read amid the cheers and laughter of the house extracts from their speeches in direct contradiction to tlio many advantages which they now proclaimed as likely to result from free trade , he observed , that with the recollection of these speeches fresh in their memories it was impossible that the farmers would not at the next general election choose such representatives as would enable them to demand a revision of the Corn Laws , even if they were defeated in their present opposition to the new-fangled schemo of government . The question , therefore * , ivould not be settled , even if the present measure were passed * , but lie hoped that it would not be passed even by the present Parliament , which was elected as a Protection Parliament ; for it was not either wise or cquitablo to enact a permanent law to meet a mere temporary evil _.

    He urged upon the government the propriety ot appealing to the country upon this subject , and of _taking the opinion of tlic constituencies whether they would or would not abandon protective duties . If they did not , they must remain in their present painful position , in which they were dependent on their opponents for support . Sir J _ _uies Gkaiiam considered that this question was one of vast importance , which demanded from all who were engaged in bringing it forward the most frank explanations . 1 lo then avowed most explicitly that he had changed his opinions on the subject ot the Corn Laws ; and with tkut avowal ho disposed ol all the speeches which he had formerly made , and which Lord Worsley had just quoted against him . lie then proceeded to explain thc reasons of thc change which had taken place in his opinions , and to apply certain tests to try the honesty of that change . Tho first test would havo relbrenco to his private

    interests in tins question . He must , therefore , inform the house that his private position asa landlord , who had inherited a largo portion of inferior land , exposed him , if this change should prove injurious , to as great risk as any landowner in thc country . Lord Worsley hail insinuated that the government had brought * forward the present measure , not because it was . right , but because it was expedient . Now , he distinctly asserted that thc government had brought it forward , not only because it was expedient , bud also because it was right . He denied that this alteration would be injurious to the poor , ! _» _ud contended that it would give cheaper bread to

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    the . working population .- The question , therefore , narrowed itself within this compass— " Is tho maintenance of tlie Corn Laws conducive to the interests of the majority of the community , and is n calculated to procure for the population a cheap and abundant supply of food ? " and that quesiT' , i _** vmceuleA to argue at considerable length . He admitted that the unforeseen circumstances which occurred after the close of the last session had exerted great influence in _producing tho change ol opinion which he was now about to defend _, those unforeseen ciicumstancesweve the condition of the harvest , which though not deficient m quality was variable in quality , and thc great failure ot the potatoe crop through all the _domestif .

    dominions of Great Britain . In Ireland the failure was so universal that it would become necessary before many days elapsed to make a grant of puWio money to purchase food for its inhabitants . But could any Minister take upon himself the responsibility of asking the people of Great Britain to submit to a tax tor such a purpose whilst their own food was enhanced in price by artificial regulations ? He certainly could not ; and , therefore , he had proposed that the law should be suspended ; but he foresaw the necessity of abolishing if you once suspended it . Since the year 1842 those whose duty it was to watch public events had had experience leading to the most decisive conclusions We had , continued the right hon . bart ., first of al

    the lamentable experience of 1842 itself , a year of the greatest distress , and , since it has passed , I may say of the utmost danger . ( Hear , hear . ) What were the circumstances of 1842 ? Allow me just to glance at them . We had in this metropolis , at midnight , Chartist _meetings . Almo-t for nearly three weeks tliere were assembled in ail tlie environs of the metropolis immense masses of people , greatly discontented , and acting in a spirit dangerous to the public peace . What was the condition of Lancashire , the seat of our great staple manufacture , depending for its prosperity on uninterrupted tranquillity and labour ? Suck was the madness of the people on that occasion , that a great combination existed to stop machinery , and to put an end to the source of the

    labouron which theydepended for subsistence , ( llear , hear . ) What was the duty of the government under these circumstances ? It was my painful duty to consult with thc Horse Guards as to the precautions that were necessary for the maintenance of the public peace ; a large force was inarched to Manchester , and the troops were actually called on to enforce public tranquillity . I can safely say that for three months the anxiety which I and my colleagues experienced with reference to the public peace was greater than we ever felt before with reference to public concern * . ( Hear , hear . ) Those were the days o high prices and scarcity . ( Hear , hear . ) I am certain from what I have since observed , that that turbulent _disnosition . that daneerous

    disposition , mainly arose from the want of adequate sustenance , combinedwith low wages . ( _Loudcheers . _) He would now refer to the different experience of the last two years . They had been blessed with an abundant harvest in this country ; and as a consequence , with plenty of work . What were the results ? Within the last few weeks he had not had a singlo interview with the commissioners of police —( cheers ) —and witkin the last twelvemonths not one with the authorities at the Horse Guards . ( Loud Opposition cheers . ) There had been perfect peace , tranquillity characterised the whole of the great seats of industry , happiness and contentment were diffused among their population . ( Great cheering . ) He did not wish to trouble tlio house with statistics , but he had

    prepared an analysis of the state of crime in the counties which were the great seats of industry , whicli was pregnant with instruction . The returns comprised the six counties of York , Lancaster , Warwick , Gloucester , Chester , and Stafford . The amount of crime in the three high-priced years of 1840 , 1841 . and 1842 , when average prices of wheat were GCs ., 64 s ., and 67 s ., a quarter , had been compared with the amount in the three years of 1845 , 1844 , and 1845 , when the average was 50 s . per quarter , the general result was that the average decrease on the whole six counties , from 1842 to 1845 , amounted to 18 per cent . To these instructive figures he could only add , that he was convinced from experience , and b y reflection on oast

    events , that it was a fallacy that wages fell with low prices and rose with high prices . ( Hear . ) _Unles 3 tho rise in wages was equal to , and concurrent with the rise in prices , there could be no benefit to the working classes . In support of this he might adduce the testimony and the experience of Sir John Walsham _, Assistant Pcor-law Commissioner , and himself a landed proprietor in thc _coenty of Hereford . That gentleman had informed him that hc had never known wages rise in the agricultural districtsfrom more than 10 s . to 12 s ., and in other districts from 12 s . to 15 s . or 2-5 per cent . ; while the rise in tlie price of food had been from 40 to 50 and even 90 per cent . With such facts before them , could it be contended that wages rose in proportion to the increase in the price of food ? But whatever might be

    the effect in agricultural districts , the fact was always the reverse in the manufacturing districts-In them low wages were always accompanied by high prices , and high prices by low wages . . ( Hear . ) So speedily did this cause act upon the manufacturing districts , a short time asro they had information Irom the West Riding , that on account of an actual rise in the price of food , andthe apprehension ofa still greater rise , they had begun to work short time , and it was expected that such reduction would extend -till farther . ( Hear , hear . ) For these reasons , therefore , he said , that looking at the state of the country in the mouths of November and December / and contrasting the _conditisn oftliemanufacturingdistrictsia 1842 and 1845 , tliere was no option left to the

    government , but to take the course tbey had done . ( Cheers ) It was formerly the opinion of the operatives that low prices were synonymous with low wages ; they had now departed from that opinion . ( Murmurs . They had changed that opinion . ( Hear , and No . ) The experience of the last four years had convinced them of this fact . It was true , they might still be subject to many evils—they might be taxed in their industry and subject to long hours of labour ; but if they were made to understand that by this measure their comforts would not ba diminished , and the trade of the country placed upon a more secure basis , he did hope that by subsequent mutual agreement between the masters and the men , the question of the hours of labour could be satiifactorily settled ; -and

    he did not hesitate to say that it ivould be the happiest day in his life , when he saiv that important question so settled by mutual consent . He was happy to seo that the noble lord the member for Yorkshire , whose absence from that house he had never ceased to regret , as one of its brightest ornaments , bad _tipon the hustings expressed similar sentiments . In conclusion , he would say that he did not think the landlords would have any great sacrifice to make , but if it were ten times greater than he thought it could be , he would say for himself that sooner than have an increase of rent at the expense of the comforts of the noorer classes , he would descend to a lower

    estatesubmit to a curtailment of his means—rather than have such a charge laid to his door . ( Cheers . ) It had been said a great party had been broken up , old ties severed , and two powerful ministries dissolved by this question ; but he hoped and believed that the adoption of the proposal now under tlieir consideration would save a great and powerful nation from misery , from anarchy , and ruin . The right hou . Baronet resumed his seat amidst general cheers . Lord Clive briefly opposed the ministerial measure , and called for a dissolution , in order that the question might be fairly tried by thc country ; and after disposing of the orders of tho day the debate was adjourned at one o ' clock till Thursday .

    IIOUSE OF LORDS-Wednesday , Feb . 11 . Tho House of Lords did not sit . IIOUSE OF COMMONS—Wkdsf . sdav , Feu . 11 . The Spkakkh took the chair at the usual hour on Wednesdays , twelve o ' clock noon . Several petitioi . s were presented in favour of tho repeal of the Com Laws , and praying for thc contiiiuiiuce of protection to agriculture . . NEW WRIT . A new writ was ordered for the election of a knight ofthe shire for the county of Mayo , in the room of Mr . M . Blake , who has accepted the Chiltern Hunuveds . . . , -,,-Mr . Blackburn presented a petition from \\ at * - rington iu favour of a Ten Hours' Factory Bill .

    IRISH POOR LAW . Mr . S . Crawford called the attention of government to the necessity of immediately extending the powers of the Poor Law ( Ireland ) Act , so as to enable boards of guardians to dispense out-door relief to destitute persons iu case of the poor-douses being filled . This subject was one of great importance in the peculiar circumstances of Ireland at present . In Ireland , undor uo circumstances could tbe guardians administer out-door relief—all tlicy could do was to offer relief in the workhouse to those who were properly recommended . The rule , too , was , that unless the head of the family became sm inmate of thc workhouse , nono of his family could obtain relief tlieio . In case of famine , then , the Poor Law guardians would not be able to meet the _applkaUona made to them for relief . Under such circumstances , he hoped that government would introduce si bill giving to the board of guardians a discretionary power to administer out-door relief .

    Sir J . _Giuiuu regarded with much anxiety the condition ofa large portion of the Irish poor for tho next four or five months . During that time the difliciilty would bo groat , and must be met by provident arrangements on lhe part of the government . After stating the various measures wliich had been introduced by her Majesty ' s ministers in the hope of increasing the menus ol employment in Ireland—such , as the Public Works Bill , the Grand Juries Presentment Bill , and the Drainage Act—hc observed , that it was possible that in Committee of Supply he should feel it necessary to ask a grant in aid of that object . If , wnfovtwnately , fever \_ Y _ o _ l _ Vo Ao \ v tho scarcity now impending over Ireland , tlio government would not bo taken by - surprise , « s the Poor Law _Commissioners had m * .. _tle the most ample arrangements to meet it . _Ju reply to Mr . Sharnuu * _.

    ^Bb U.4bt 14, 1846. ,_¦ ¦ , _ The Northe...

    _^ bb u . 4 BT 14 , 1846 . , _¦ ¦ , _ THE NORTHERN STAR . 7

• Citation
  • Northern Star (1837-1852), Feb. 14, 1846, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns3_14021846/page/7/