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Northern Star (1837-1852), 9th June 1849, Edition 1 of 3, Page 7, Untitled Article

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      i r ^ te ? ort o » * e Leasehold Tenure of Land ( Irefi « d SS bl 6 Ught DP > 8 nd thethird " *""? ^ irlordshipa ihen adjourned . HOUSE . OF CbMMONS . - Parliamentary Reform ;—Mr . Humb moved for leave to bring in a bill to amend the national representation , by extend mg the elective franchise to atfftouseholdere and bv enacting that rotes shall ' be taken by ballot , that the duration of parliaments shall not exceed three years and that the proportion of representatives to the population be rendered more equal . He premised that S r 5 rni > alt ] r * ? P ™ -luce d S bentfit , had fallen far short of what he had ejected from tt h ^ r ; ^ W 3 S ^ cause of its itcoS SS . J f f ° sed to carry it further , by enactments which , so far from being fraught with danger , as alleged would tend to realise an object of the utmost moment , in which all classes , from the crown to the peasant , were interested , namely , good government , by improving its main instrument , the representation of the . people in parliament . No proposition of his :

      or of any other man ' s could make parliament peri wP ever ytWnS which tended to improve it shouldbe supported by the House , atd , above all , by the ministry . How could they lay their heads on their pillows , and think that they had discharged their duty to their country in the term 3 of the oath which they had taken , or were acting as honest and fa thful councillors to the crown , when they reflected on the discontent which they allowed to exist among the people to such an extent as but recently to threaten alarming consequences ? But it was a hard matter to push reform . He remembered Mr . Canning declaring he would stand against all reform , and would defend Gatton and Old Sarnm , because England : had betn more prosperous than continental states—as if Gatton and Sarum were the reasons for her greater

      prospers y . But that time had gone by--Gatton and Old Sarum , and all the" other rotten boroughs , to the credit of this country , were Temoved for ever . After the passing of the Reform Bill , England stood at the head of popular representation . The condition of affairs had , however , changed since then , and we were now called on to consider whether we should riot adapt ourselves to altered circumstances . His hon . Mend ( Mr . T . Buncombe ) , wh"se return to the House he rejoiced at , in 1847 brought in a bill to repeal the ratepaying clauses of the Reform Bill , but the noble lord at the head of the ^ oTennnent stated that lie should like to have a little mnre experience of their working before he consented to the introduction of that measure . He said at the same time , however , that he was not against reform , but was for a gradual progressive reform . What had been the noble lord ' s

      progress towards retorm since ? ( Hear . ) He gave notice of a motion to bring in a bill to repeal the cesspaying clauses as far as regarded the assessed taxes—it was put off from day to day , week to week ; month to month , till - at last it" finished in " . the slaughter of the innocents" at the end of the session . ( ' Hear , hear , " and alaugh . ) Next there was notice of a bill for better registration in Ireland . No part of the empire required it more . A more discreditable state of representation could not . be imagined than existed in that country , and yet the noble lord and his colleagues—such . earnest reformers were thevallowed that bill to drop also . ( Hear , hear . ) Their desire for reform , then , was a makebelieve and a mockery . He called it so because , if they

      were honest and intent on reform , they would make any small reforms as an advance , but be believed all their promises of reform were delusive , and he had made up . his mind that the noble lord and his colleagues—those ardent and useful reformers — had come to the conclusion to stand fast and do nothing . ( Hear , hear . ) England , instead of being at the to ? , was now at the bottom of the ladder of representation—that liberty which had been pronounced to be dangerous for Englishmen to possess had been conferred on Frenchmen , and on almost every other continental power . ( Derisive cheers and laughter . ) * Yen , he heard their cheering . What did they gather from it—what had been the result ? ( Loud cries of " Hear , " from the

      Ministerial and Opposition benches . ) The resultthey had all witnessed arose from the gross misconduct of their rulers , who , having agreed to reform , bad then attempted by force to set it aside . He appealed to any one who had marked the progress of events in France whether any injury had arisen from Universal Suffrage ? ( Hear , hear . ) Had not the people returned a large majority of a most conservative character ? and had they not shown-unaccustomed a ^ they were to the exercise of representative privileges—that th ^ y could mike a fair and honest use of them ? ( Hear , hear . ) Yes , hon . gentlemen on the opposite side might cheer as they pleased ; and the noble lord ( Lord J . Russell ) , he observed , was the first to cheer ; but w'iat « vas there to raise it ? If the noble lord looked to Russia or

      Vienna—where his two dear a » d darling Sovereigns were , who had betrayed their trust and broken their promises—he would see that it was not the people who should be blamed for any excesses , but those who misgoverned them—the people were honest ; by the by , he so longer heard it argued that it was unsafe to trust the people of this country with power ; and , feeling that they were honest , it was with the greatest regret he saw the present condition of England ; for in former days tha Sovereign could trust in her subjects , and the military were maintained fo-the protection of the country from foreign enemies . Then tlu-ir whole military establishments in the unite'l kingdom was only 25 . 000 or 26 , 000 men , and so late as 1816 Lord Palmerston declared he

      wanted no military for the internal protection of the country . In 1792 Pitt , the arch traitor of reform , reduced his establishment to 25 , 000 . There was not one barrack in the kingdom except in a garrison town , and the whole expenditure was limited to £ 12 , 000 , 000 or £ 13 , 000 , 000 annually . What was the difference now ? There were barracks in or near every town . Last year they spent £ 100 , 000 to build one at Preston ; another large sum was expended for the some purpose at Manchester . The whole country , in fact , was starred with barracks . They had batteries of cannon now of which they h- 'd not one in 1792 . For what purpose , were all these men and artillery ? To frighten the people . Let not the government try to conceal » he fact . Instead of

      rf posing on the affections f-f the people , they were taking measures not to yield to them their constitutional rights , and to coerce them to a svstem which was unjust . ( Hear , hear . ) Was such a state of things to continue ? Instead of the country brisiling with bayonets , and instead of barracks and planted artiuVry , they should give the people their rights as the t- ue way of maintaining peace . All these preparations arose from the fear of reform . He did not deny that there were unfortunately ardent and wild reform : 'T 3 . bnt that - was no reason why the House should not calmly and quietly consider while peace existed , what had led to such a state of things , and to the enormous military establishments which were weighing down the country , snd beneath which

      it must eventually sink . In 1792 the whole taxation was JE 16 , 000 , " 000 ; £ 9 , 000 , 000 for the national debt , £ 6 , O 00 . O 0 U for civil and military expenditure , and £ 1 , 000 , 000 for the Mnking fund . In 1 S 48 we had in round numbers £ 60 , 000 , 000 of taxation . Let any one think of 4 , 000 . 000 of fellowsubjects in a state of destitution in * the "Workhouses of England , Ireland , and Scotland , and compare with it this expenditure of £ 325 , 000 on the gold lace and trumpery of the rourt . Why , the plainness 0 " " Windsor grey" in former days did more cr < lit to the sovereign of England than all the tawdry gold lace and trumpery s-uffs they bad taken in imitation of Napoleon . " ( Hear , hear . ) It would be more to the honour of the sovereign to see the

      simplicity which prevailed agnin in vogue . Last week ic dined with an old friend of his ' the Lord Mayor . ( A laugh . ) There were also present the ambassador from Constantinople and au English ambassador about to proceed to the United States , and he declared that if he wanted to put his finger on the cloth of their coats he could not « lo it for the gold lsce Upon them . ( A laugh ) When he was a boy he recollected going to see the state trumpeters , on state occasions , in their gulden coats . They were a sort of show . And , really , to look at our ambassadorsat our Court—ay , and at our Ministers , they were just as bad . ( A laugh : ) Look at the Hwdry manner in which they went to court . ( Laughter , in which Lord J . Russell and several members of the

      o-overnment joined . ) Was that the state in . which they should appear when thtir fellow-countrymen were dying in scores every day ? and should the public money bs spent on such useless , vain , and gaudy trumpery ? ( " Hear , hear , " and laughter . ) lie often thought £ 60 , 000 notVnough for the Sovereign;—liberal as he knev her to be to all charities ; but the rest of the money so uselessly spent would go far to relieve distress . He did not expect any Minister to step forward in reforming those abuses ; they all required not a gentle but a strong pressure to make them s'drat a 1 . Otiier countries had set them an example . In Belgium the government granted reform as soon as they heard of the events or l'c b in FranceEvery Minister and every public

      ruary . officer at once reduced his establishment one-third . The Duke ofWurtemburgh , when he succeeded his father , who was over head and ears ,. iit debt , . immediately reduced every establishment one-halt , and in that way won the love and admiratt . n of . Jus subjects . After admitting that great differences of opraoa existed among his . own friends as to . tne exact kind of suffrage they would give , ; Mr . Hum * proceeded to show the inequalities ^ ana injustice of the present franchise . Taking the population of England , Wales , and Siotland , in round numbers , at about 20 , 000 , 000 , ; be

      found by areturri dated June 5 . 1841 , that the number of adult males '' was . 8 . 000 , 000 . ' There were 3 , 500 , 000 houses ; the number bt . elecjtorsjat present registered was 820 , 000 . In Ireland there was no registry such as would allow an exact estimate to be formed ; but so far as he bad succeeded in attempting to ascertain what was the extent of the suffrage there , he could not make out that there were 40 . 000 electo irs to the- 8 , 000 , 000 of population in Ir-land . The proportion then of elector ! to non-electors j was as one to five and a half . What was now thei state of matters ? The population had increased ^ and' the proportion of electors to non-elcetoraw&s now nearly

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      one to ten . .. Where had that increase token place ? In the manufacturing towns , not in the agricultural districts . While the population had been increasing at the rate of 34 per cent , in tke manufacturing districts , it had increased only H per cent , in the agricultural districts . The disparity , therefore , between the former proportion of electors » o non-electors , namely , one in five and a half , and the present proportion , had occurred in the manufacturing districts . Every year the disproportion was increasing between the ' electors and the lion-electors , and in those ¦ districts where it made itself observed , namely , in the manufacturing districts , intelligence would . be found wide-spread , schools everywhere existed , associations had been formed and meetings were held-which were

      calculated so to train the people as to fit and prepare them for the exercise of those rights to which they would be admitted , if the changes he proposed were introduced . The aristocracy of the country were far more interested than any other part of the community in h : mng this question' effectually set at rest . For what was the value of their property unless it could be employed , if it were necessary to have bayonets to protect them azainst their nearest neighbour ? In no disturbance which had taken place had the working classes shown any disposition to plunder or appropriate the property of their superiors —( hear , hear)—there were innumerable examples which showed that such was contrary to thvir disposition ; and was it to such men that rights enjoyed by the

      Lazzarom of Italy ought to be refused ? ¦ in what did the inequality of representation consist ? Instituting a comparison between ' great and small constituencies , ha found that there were sixteen boroughs containing 2 , 917 , 000 persons , being one-half of the borough population of England . Those boroughs , including Birmingham , Bristol , * and other great towns , returned thirty-two members . He wo U 1 compare them with twenty-three English boroughs which , with only 100 , 000 , returned as many members as the other sixteen boroughs . The great towns , then , containing half the borough population , had one member to 88 , 000 inhabitant ;" , and twenty-three small towrisV returning an equal number of members , " had one member to every 10 , 000 inhabitants . Would

      any one say that this was a fair participation in the elective franchise ? It was not a favour , hut : as a constitutional right-natural right was out of the ques-tion—tliathe sought an extension oltlie suffrage under the circumstances he had suited . While those small boroughs returned one member for every 10 , 000 person * , and the other boroughs returned only one member for every 88 . 000 , 23 , 000 in Scotland sent nine members , and the remainder of the population was divided among the other members . The Char ; ists had created an alarm which had been turned to account as a ground for making military preparations ; though it seemed as if the government Had become alarmed for nothing at all . But what in the end would be the consequence of . allowing matters to

      remain as he had described them , to allow the disparity between electors and non-electors to go on increasing ? The inequalities that , existed ought to be put an end to . There were eighty-three kinds of franchise or qualification , from potwallopfcrs to tenpounde'S—an expensive absurdity which none but an English House of Commons . would suffer to exist . Then there , were : twenty-eight English boroughs , each returning two members , which had less than 500 registered electors , while there were fifteen other boroughs returning two members also wuich had more thnn 5 , 000 registered electors . Boroughs which could only reckon 600 electors among them returned as many members as the city of London . It was impossible to make absurdity appear more

      absurd , yet country-gentlemen , and those who were connected with the aristocracy , seemed to flatter themselves that nobody knew * anything of these facts . If they were to oppose his motion , he trusted they would take the manly course of Canning , and say " "We want no more reform at all . " 16 was also of great importance to bring out the fact that the majority of the House of Commons represented less than 1-Sth . of the population of the country . Of the 658 members , 330 represented 3 , 127 , 000 ; 328 represented 23 , 800 , 000 . The majority included all the small boroughs , and those under the influence of landlords ; the minority , the greater proportion of the counties and large cities . Such was a description of the people ' s house . Who would not

      say that there was not fallacy on the face of such a system ? The aristocracy had one house to themselves , but had both Houses at their disposal under the existing mode of management . Democratic principles had advanced throughout the world . Were any men so blind as to suppose the march of those principles was to be stopped by the perpetuation of so great an injustice ? One in every ei fiht only was within the pale of the constitution . All the rest ivere excluded , as unworthy . There was a certain class in that House which was regarded as particularly attentive to the interests of the community , and especially anxious to be esteemed as the friends of the working classes , standing forward to advocate measures for their rclielj . whether ' , by

      the institution of baths and wjishhouses , Ol of ragged schools , or the improvement of dwelling-houses . Yet those very parties refused to the working man that which would elevate him as a member oi the community , which would elevate his social State , which would , do ten times more than any other measure to advance his welfare . What ought to be done was to extend political rights to the working man , so that he . should be able to take his part in directing and controlling public affairs , in putting down bribery and corruption and extravagance ; but any gewgaw which might be held up to catch popular applause was preferable to such a measure . At a meeting of working men held ii . Exetor-hall with reference to a reward which had

      been offered for the oest essay on the question how best the Sabbath-day could he sanctified , Lord Ashley , in acknowledging a vote of thanks , bore testimony to the extraordinary talent and good conduct of the working men . He attributed the stability of the throne to the steadiness , piety , and inteliigence of those men ; and yet Lovd Ashley would not come forward and say he would give thorn'the elective franchise . After examining the different bases upon which the suffrage might bo extended , whence it appeared that the result of population or of property would be the same , Air . Hume pronounced in favour of the former , as the easiest , and thus concluded , a speech of about two hours' duration . Seeing the causes of discontent which

      existed , seeing the desire that prevailed among the working classes to acquire the suffrage , seeing that it was just and right before God and man that t ' ley should have it , for there was no principle which could be stated to justify , their exclusion , he would implore the House coolly and calmly to entei ; on the consideration of the measures he proposed for their adoption . If Ministers were dissatisfied w . the terms in which he proposed to carry out his object , let them prepare a measure such as they might deem less open to objection ; if they thought there was anything dangerous in his proposition , let it be removed ; or any thing defective , let it be supplied . Mr . IT . Berkeley , in seconding the motion , took occasion to censure some of the occupants of the

      Treasury bench for having voted agamst his motion for the ballot on a recent occasion . The . Secretary for the liome Department , who voted for the Ballot in 1842 , voted against it in 1 S 49 ; that was to say , he xoied white on one occasion , and black on another . The . rig ht hon .. gentleman was bound to apologise for one of those votes . Surely the right lion , baronet would not assert that intimidation , corruption , and bribery had ceased to exist since 1 S 42 . The Master of the Mint made an emphatic speech for the Ballot in lSi 2 , but when he was asked to vote for it the other night , he replied that ho was sitting on the Treasury bench , and he did not think

      that the people were as desirous of having the Ballot as they hud been formerly . ( A laugh . ) : As to the noble lord at the head of the government , the people were more disposed to look up to the right hon . baronet the member for Tamworth as . a leader than to him . no hoped that the noble lord would not again pursue the disreputable course which he followed lately with regard to the Ballot . ( A laugh . ) Of course ,. when he used the word " disreputable" he applied it in a political sense . The noble lord ought , at least , to attempt to offer some measure against the present motion ,. for , as to a majority to negative it , he was sure of that , supported as he was by the Tories . .

      Sir G . Gret said , this identical motion had been brought before the House last session by Mr . Hume , and after two nights' discussion had been rejected bf a large majority ; and / after a year ' s experience , he was ready to put the question upon the contrast , which Mr . Hume had invited , between the internal condition of this country and that of the continent of Europe . Mr . Hume had said that Universal Suffr age and other changes on the continent had lea to happy results ; but he ( Sir G . Grey ) declined to accept those results in conjunction with such an armed force as existed in Paris , and with other incidents found to be the invariable accompaniments of ¦ treat political changes . He asked Mr . Hume , who professed to go " slowly and ' surely ; " whether this change was to be considered as an instalment onlv . and whether , upon the fortchcoming motion of Mr O'Connor , he meant ' to concede two more points of the Charter , Before we gave up the Constitution

      we now enjoyed , the House , ho observed ; should know distinctly how far it was proposed to proceed . The propositions of Mr . Hume , and the opinions of those who supported these changes , were vague ; the statistics of Mr . Hume were not always correct ; the number of adult males was 4 , 000 , 000 , not 8 000 , 000 . Sir George avowed that lie hail never held the doctrine of finality ; but let the House ; deal with the subject as reasonable men , and not blindly ; rush upon undefined courses : Mr ; Hume had chosen , population as the basis ofhis extension ofthosuf-. rage , biit he had at the same time repudiated liqual Electoral Districts , Why , then , not prefer property ? He had asked whether the . House reprosent ' ed the people . The same question -might be asked ifhestopped ' shprt of Mr . O'Connor ' s scheme . Sir George acknowledged , that he believed the House , since the Reform : Act , fairly , and adequately ' represented , under the . constitution , of parimment , wftSW * - * " wishes of tho ; natioa ,-fftnd ,. ho urged

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      the House to ' shun the groat danger that would be incurred by entering upon the course recommended byMr . Hume . * . " Mr . O'Oo-nkor said : If it had not been for the allusion made to him , by the . right honourable gentleman , it was not his intention to have spoken upon the proposition of the honourable member for Montrose ; But as the right honourable gentleman had entertained the House with a political tragedy and force , —with a French tragedy , and an American farce , he might be permitted to introduce his interlude . ( Hear , hear . ) "When the right

      honourable gentleman referred to the melancholy transactions which had recently taken place upon the Continent , he appeared to be ignorant of the fact , that the cause of those calamities was the vain attempt of despots arid tyrants to stop the mind ' s progress , and withhold the legitimate rights of the people by brute force . ( Hear , hear . ) Whereas , by a timely and prudent concession of those legitimate rights , they might have still maintained their positions , but , like . other countries , they waited until they were compelled to surrender to fear what they denied to justice . ( Hear ,

      hear . ) But as the right hsnourable gentleman had endeavoured to awaken the fears of that House , by reference to those foreign convulsions , he ( Mr . O'Connor ) , would use them as a warning for the . future , and tell the House , that tlie progress of mind in tins country was farther advanced in knowledge than in any other country in . the world , and what arms and revolutions achieved abroad , that mind would assuredly achieve at home . ( Cheers . ) But , - as the right honourable gentleman had triumphantly referred to the present state of France , he was prepared to join

      issue with him ; and although far-seeing gentlemen may attempt to augur the future from the present , "ho ' would ask whether it was possible ; that : a more perfect stale of 'tranquillity could exist , than that which , characterised the recent French elections ? ( Hear , hear . ) "W ell , what did that prove ? But that the voiceof knowledgebadsilenced the ' eannon ' s roar , and that a warlike people , trained to arms , had now abandoned those arms for the stronger force of mind —( hear , hear )—and were now deteriniued to fight labour ' s battle hi the representative assembly instead of in tlie field ;

      and although they may bo taunted . with some men en blouse , and two sergeants , sitting in that Assembly , who , he would ask , was so fit to represent labour , and to instruct that iiouse ^ —wholly ignorant of the labour question—as the labourer himself ? His ( Mr . O'Connor ' s ) greatest attachment to the Charter arose , from the hope that it would introduce proper and legitimate instructors into that House —( hear , hear)—and although some presumed that he was about to oppose the motion of the hoa . member for Montrose , so far from it he begged to tender him his thanks for

      marching so far with him and the people on the road of political progress , as by the achievement of political power only could they hope to acquire their social rights . ( Hear , hear . ) ' But as he wished that every act of his , and every vote of his , should be susceptible of defence , after the minutest scrutiny , he felt himself bound to point out the incompctoncy of the proposition of the hon . member to ensure a legitimate representation of labour in parliament . The hou . gentbman omitted two vital points of the People ' s Charter , namely , "No Property Qualification , " and . <(

      Payment of Members ; " while , without these two points , the other four points would be incomplete , inasmuch as the honest labourer—honoured by his class , intellectual , of good character , and respected in his localitywould not bo able to show a qualification of six hundred pounds a-year for a county , or three hundred pounds a-year for a borough ; and even if that propertied . qualification was done away with ,-if . he was not paid for his services , how could he abandon his profession ? ( Hear , hear . ) Noble lords , and right hon . gentlemen

      who sat opposite , were paid for taxing him , and why should he not be paid for defending himself ? ( Hear , hear . ) The right hon . gentleman had , very triumphantly taunted the hon . member for Montrose with the great discrepancy of opinion that existed upon every single one of his points , and lie had called their attention to the fervid and dramatic speech of the hon . and learned member for Reading , delivered last year , upon a similar motion , in which . ho reminded the House that it was impossible to draw the distinction betweon the man that

      holds the house and the house that holds the nmij , and that the gipsy under his tent might be considered as included in the lion , member ' s definition . ( Hear , hear . ) Well , it was because he ( Mr , O ' Connor ) would not multiply those stalking horses of the minister and the opponents of the measure , that he had resolved not to criticise too minutely the distinction betweon his own proposition and . that of the hon . member for Montrose . ( Loud cheers . )

      But , let him ask whether these fine-drawn distinctions would reconcile the millions to the rejection of a measure as to which they Avere agreed ,. however those who undertook to represent them may base their , opposition upon such a flimsy pretext ? ( Hear , hear . ) But , did they hope successfull y to resist the progress of mind in this country ? As English loyalty had been boasted in the midst . of these continental

      revolutions , let him explain that they had mistaken quietude , arising from the hope of the mind's triumph , for Euglish loyalty . ( Hoar , hear . ) In this country free discussion was permitted , and however the people may be taunted Avith ignorance , he boldly asserted that there was not a people on the face of the earth who were better iustructed as to their rights , and thai reliance , upon that instruction , and not upon physical force , was the cause of their boasted loyalty . In other countries , the people wore not allowed to meet and discuss their grievances , and in-the moment of excitement they betook

      themselves to arms . In France , with a population of thirty-six millions , there were little more than two hundred thousand voterswhereas , now there , are millions , and henceforth her battles will be fought in the National Assembly , andnot upon the battlefield . ( Hear , hear . ) And ,- . however , the right hon . gentleman may use . the present state of Franco , as demonstrative of . the result of the proposition of the hon . member for Montrose , he appears to have forgotten that . the acts of ages of despotism andtyranny cannot be all . at once superseded by any better system , and that a time

      must .. be allowed for the . fervour and excitement by which ; that change was accomplished to subside , before a new state of things can be . organised . .-, ( Hear , hear . ) But he wouldask the noble lord opposite ( Lord J . llussell ) whether , ¦\ yitii : a . knowledge of the' fact that Prussia , a despotism eightceen months . . . ago / -haying-now granted a . " / freer constitution than the . English constitution—whether , in the , face of such a fsict , he would ' . attempt to resist the' progress of mind in this country ? . ( Hear , hoar . ) In- Prussia they had all but Universal Suffrage , and four years ' parlnments , find was riot such a lump as that ,- from . . unmitigated

      despotism , agreatcr constitutional chaugcthan the concession of every point' in the 'Charter to the enlightened people of this country , would be ? ( Hear , hcarl ) - -In ' brder to multi p ly those differences of opinion which exist upon the several , points oi the People ' s Charter , the right hon . gentleman had asked him ( Air . 'O'Connor ) for his definition of Manhood Suffrage , and whether he like some others proposed to oxtend ; it . to females ? . His . answer to the question was No ; that he . confined it to eyery ; iruin of . twenty-one years of age , - of sound mind , and untainted ; with crime .,, ( Hear , hear . ) . -But still relying with

      upon conflicting opinions regard to his ( Mr . O'Connor ' s ) proposition , ' and that . of thohon . member foi \ : MontroBe , the right hon . baronet has declared that he sees advantages to be gained from my definition . of : Eo ^ ual . -Electoral . Districts ,.: while he recognises comphcation . and . impcrfcc . tion . in that of ; tti& . hon . . -member ^ for Montrose .. Well , . all ^ he would say upon that point ; w . as , ; : that . lie , was happy to have made , a cenyort of the . right , hon . gentleman , to oiie ' of his propositions ;' which inspired'him . with hope that ere . long-he would ' convert him'to the whole ' . animal . '• " ( Lpud ch ' ecrs and : laughter , ) The right .-hon . gentlpnian . would ' nnd ^^ mp le . exciise toi

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      his conversion from the precedent established upon his vote for the Ballot in 1842 , when he sat upon this side of the House , and against the Ballot in 1849 , Avhen he sat upon that side of the House . ( Cheers and laughter . ) Well , he did not use it as a taunt to the right hon . gentleman , as seven years were fixed as the standard of man's mental consistency . But he would remind the hon . baronet and the House , that the progress of mind had reduced their standard from seven ' years , to seven days ; and that whereas in the good old Tory times , seven—yea , seventy years tranquility may be relied upon , as the result of legislation , whereas no man , not even the mi ' tod prophet , can foretell the events of seven davs m this aire of progress . Wlthm the

      last twenty years that class , to whom you now deny the right of freemen ,- has been enlisted as the army to fight for what they were taught to look upon as great political changes , —as the means to . insure social benefit . Emancipation—Reform—and Free Trade were the three great measures of that time , and dear-bought experience has taught the people that they have not achieved one particle of benefit from any one of those measures . But as sly allusion haa been made to the reviled Chartists , he stood there as their representative , and defied the House to say , that even to accomplish their own object limy had set Bristol in flames—burnt Nottingham Castle—carried the portrait of their king , amid the cheers of the boasted loyalty of

      Englishmen , with the executioner represented with the bloody axe prepared to decapitate him , if they refused the noble lord and his friends the Charter , by which they achieved power and dispensed patronage . ( Loud cheers . ) Now ho defied the House , the country , and the world , to charge the Chartists with any such acts of violence to obtain their Charter ; and he was there as the representative of tliiit body , to tell the House that he never had been , nor he never would be , any party to a physical revolution , because he saw , and felt convinced , that the mind of the country , 'if wisely , actively , and judiciously directed / was capable of conquering all that the country required . ( Cheers . ) And his greatest boast was , that in spite of slander , and in spite of

      all attempts to seduce the people into a course which would be their * ruin ,. and the ' triumph of their enemy , ho had consistently persevered against fearful opposition , in * one" resolute line of policy , and as long as life and strength remained he would persevere in the same course , and would only abandon it when his object was achieved , or when he ceased to live , Uo would not hold a seat in that House upon the condition that he was to give a . single vote at variance with his feelings and opinions , although he would not ' offer any obstruction , but on the contrary would support the proposition of the hon . member for Montrose . ( Hear , hear , and cheers . ) This he would do for two reasons ; firstly , as far as possible to disai-m the right hon . gentleman of the charge of

      discrepancy ot opinion ; and secondly , uccause tue hon . gentleman stated that his measure was to be considered but as one stop—an assiiran . co which gratified him ( Mr . O'Connor , ) inasmuch as the hon . gentleman explained to the House that , while there woro eight millions of male : adults , Household Suffrage would but . enfranchise three millions and a half of that population / thus leaving four millions and a half—a majority of the whole—unrepresented in that House , lie merely mentioned these facts , lest his support . of the present motion should be construed into his acceptance of it as a substitute for the six points of the People's Charter . Ko part oi the right hon . gentleman's speech had given him ( Mr . O'Connor ) greater satisfaction than his

      expression of joy at the triumph of foreign nations over their despots . But what would England ' s old allies say , when they read these congratulations in our English press ; and what would the English people say , when they found an English minister rcj oicinff in the acquisition of popular principles abroad , and resisting the same principles at home ? ( Loud cheers . ) He ( Mr . O'Connor ) had always expressed his opposition to the ballot with the - present standard of franchise . ( " Hear , hear , " from Lord J . Russell . ) Yes , but ho voted for that , lest his opposition to it may bo urged as further proof of the difference of opinion of those who advocate the four points , and those who advocate the whole of the six points ; and he was

      determined ' that no factious opposition of his should creatediscord inthe popular ranks . ( Cheers . ) ' The ¦ noble lord , in his'speech delivered at'Bristol in 1840 —an able speech—adduced excellent arguments against the Ballot with the present franchise . He said , — " The electors are but the trustees of their votes , and if you adopt the Ballot you release them from popular vigilant control , and constitute them the owners , rather than the trustees , of that sacred property . " ( "Hear , hear , " from Lord J . Russell . ) Weil , but surely if they had a right to exercise that control over the trustees of their property , they have a perfect right to exercise it for themselves without any such control . ( Cheers ) It wasbecaiise he believed that what had been doneb . v

      physical force hi other countries COllld be dono llOl'O by moral force that he should advocate the Charter . But . the right hon . gentleman , in referring to the hon . gentleman ' s having presented no petitions on this subject , had furnished him ( Mr . O'Connor ) with the strongest reason for not proceeding with hU own motion that evening . He had presented no petitions ap ' on the question , uut he had received applications from nearly every town in England ¦ to postpone his motion until they could send up petitions to that House in order to show that they were still determined to persevere . They certainly would not have a monster petition like las ' t year —( a laugh)—but the several members of the boroughs and cities who presented

      the petitions would have to vouch for the signatures attached to them . There was a mind in this country looking to progress , and he would tell the ri ght lion , gentleman and the noble lord not to hug themselves with the belief that , because foreign countries had made an evil use of the powers that had been conferred upon them , that would be justification for refusing to grant such powers in England . He should vote most cordially for the motion of the hon . gentleman , assuring him , in his own words , that it was but the beginning ol the end , and that , even if tlie motion were carried , it would not prevent him ( Mr . O'Connor ) from supporting the principles of the Charter , or bringing forward his motion on that subject , as soon as he was backed by the expression of public opinion , which would be conveyed in petitions from all parts of the country , and then he was sanguine enough to hope that the hon . member fov Montrose would dismount from

      his quadruped , and mount his ( Mr . O'Connor ' s ) scxinud —( cheers and laughter)—a measure which he never would abandon in that House or on the platform so long as life remained , for , however slow Us progress , like . the . snow-ball , it would continue to bieroase , until , at last , the whole rational mind of the country would adhere it . ( Cheers . ) Col . Thompson was of opinion tJiat the present government at a former period had achieved the most glorious , because the most successful triumph . in parliamentary reform with which this country was acquainted , and he trusted that the House of Commons would be enabled once more to advance to victory under their old and distinguished leaders , Mr . Campbkia made a finality speech in favour of the Ilcform Bill , " Go thus far , but no further , " and with respect to the present motion . ' said , that even if it had the sanction of the noble lord at the head of the government , he must meet it -with a firm and indignant denial .

      Mr . Locke Kisg , in a speech which was interrupted during its delivery by loud cheers , energetically supported the motion , expressing his belief that whether in this year or in the next , another Ilcform Bill must come , and when it did come it would be productive of the greatest good , by bringing a vast number of men fully fitted for the exerciso of the responsibility within the pale of the constitution , and would raise them to thuir proper rank as freemen and citizens . Mr . Newdegate followed in opposition to the

      motion , his main attack being made on the new mode originated at Manchester of enfranchising forty shilling freeholders . He might remind the House that thohon . member for the West-Hiding ( Mr . Cobden ) had , in the most ' emphatic manner , assured them that when the corn laws were repealed , the League , with its organisation for corrupting the constituencies—for it was nothing less than a wholesale system , of corruption —( cheers from the Protectionists ) —even worse than the old rotten borough system—( renewed cheersj-r-wpuld . 1 ) 0 dissolved . He was » . wnre that there was some difference in tlie tactics

      now pursued by these gentlemen . There was something too glaring in importing strangers by wholesale into the constituencies . There was some danger that such a system , might be . met _ by that House . The system now pursued was to facilitate by companies the purchase of freehold land , but not in the honest and straightforward manner in which the - purchase of land was promoted by the land companies established by the hon ; -member *»• bottngtiam ( " Hear , " from Mr . F . O'Connor and laughter ') ' Some of the-hon . gentleinfen opposite professed to be great purists when anything . Ukc corruption was mentioned , and he ( Mr . Jtewdogate ) , although h . e might be called a corrupt Tory , was somewhat irritated at seeing attempts made to disft-onnhise or swamp constituencies l > y those who

      always bad the cry ; pf" Purity of election" on their lips ( Sear , lieaf . j / He felt indignant * on the part otliis constituents ; and he'thought he should be wanting in his duty to them ,- 'if he did not warn the House and the public' against , the ' organisation directed by hon . ' gentlemen opposite . . \ . ' -. ' . , ' 'Mr , ' BJnonT gave st counter ; explanation of the system of enfranchisement referred to by . Mr . Newde ate , and observed that it was fortunate for the country , after the avowals of Lord J ; Russell and Sir G . Grey , that there was a mode by which industrious arid intelligent members of the working-classes could place themselves within the pale of . the , CJonstitiitibn . In uncivilised nations there was a , mtivem © nt ; in the direction of a government more under thei control of the people , and more in accordance , with their interest !? . TMiocft ' jWoiFOPOsed by Mr , Hume ^ vas

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      consistent with the theory of the Constitution ; th ° existing mode of representation was not consistcn with that theory or with the interests of the nation ; it excluded masses of the community , qualified by knowledge and mor . il culture for the franchise , from just privileges and rights . The working classes had made gre . it progress of Into years , as was evidenced by the ably-wrTtten newspapers and the cheap nnd '' moral- literature which -circulated among them , their energy in seeking employment , and ¦ tho efforts they made to ' educate both themselves and their children . ( Hear , hear . ) There was no doubt that the artisan of l&M ) was a different being from the artisan of 1832 , ami yet in the last-named year his help in the way of

      petitioning and assembling for carrying the Reform Bill was not despised . ( Hear , heart ) ' If it should be said that the working classes were so vicious that they ought not to bo admitted to political po \ voi « , he could give some striking proofs that the working classes—hespokeofthciininufacturiiigclasses , whoiu they all seem to be afraid of—were not so vicious that they ought to be excluded from their fair share of . political power . The hon . member hero referred to a report of the commission sent down to Stockport , in which the working classes were described as being persons of great-intelligence and industry , avoiding as far as possible dependence on the poorrate , and availing themselves , when in a state tf prosperity , of provident institutions , in order to

      preserve their savings . He also quoted from a report of the chief constable of Stoekport , with the view of showing the peaceable disposition of tJio working people , and the improbability , on account of theit advance in moral knowledge , of their being drawn into insane projects of physical force . He believed that to be tlie true character of tlie whole manufacturing population . The hon . member then proceeded to review the circumstances under which the principal measures of reform have been passed , and shon-cd that force , or the fear of civil war , had , in almost all instances , influenced tliem . Take tlio agitation of the Anti-Corn Law League ; it was v . ot an agitation of force , but of conviction —( " Oh , oh" )—it was an agitation which did not so much conquer opponents as convert them . —( " Oh , oh ! " —but ho right lion , baronet ( Sir It . 1 ' eol ) , strong : is

      Ins convictions had become in 1 S 45 , was not able to propose the alteration of the corn law until he saw iamire coming upon Ireland ; and it required the sacrifice of one of the most potent ami able Ministers the- country ever had —( hear , hear)—before this boasted " constitution" would permit the people of this nation to purchase their bread freely : vt the world ' s market price . ( Hear , . hear . ) Take the question of economy ; the House legislated as if there was no British nation—as if tax-paying was unknown ; wheroas , if the House at all represented the British people , no subject would be so carefully and constantly discussed . ( Hear , hear . ) Ireland presented another great trial of our " constitution . " The NOblc Jonl ( Lord J , llussell ) and tho right hon . bart . ( Sir It . Peel ) must both of them have been aware for years that the laws with regard to land in Ireland were in a most defective and

      mischievous state ; but it was not in tho power of the Minister to propose the changes he had proposed , until calamities were imminent or had happened which shut tlie mouths of the cavillers at every good proposition submitted to the House . ( Hear , hear . ) He had to wait till half a million of the Queen ' s subjects were underground , perished in tho nineteenth century by a calamity which could only overtake a barbarous or ill-governed nation . ( Hear " ) Ho ( Mr . Bright ) had no respect for a constitution—( "Oh ! " )—or a system or state of parliamentary representation- —( hear , hear)—which required civil war menaced in order to get Catholic Emancipation , brickbats to pass the lteform Bill , an insurrection in Jamaica to abolish slaverv , a famine to repeal

      the Corn Laws , half a million of men and families perished of hunger to improve the laws with regard to tiie tenure of land in Ireland . ( Wear , licar . ) But , perhaps , the noble lord would say , the system worked well out of doors . From 1836 , when the people began to feel that they had been cheated of tlie influence they expected to acquire by the Hcforcn Bill , there had been an incessant movement in favour of an extension of the stifiivige , oist of wlu ' eli had come the frightful thing called Chartism ( a laugh ) , not frightful because "" of the " six points , " but because of the passions stirred in the discussion , and the animosities engendered among a population believing themselves excluded from their fair share of political rights . ( Hear , hear . ) He ( Mr . Bright )

      had seen some ot the fruits of that agitation—not an agitation all evil by any moans—for whenever tho people were stirred up to the contemplation of political questions , there was an admixture , often large , of good . He had seen them at torchlight meetings —( hear , hear );—he had heard of them since in small , and it might bo miserable , but not wholly to be despised conspiracies —( an ironical cheer );—ho had seen incipient insurrectionary movements —( cheer renewed );—and we all knew that there was a wide-spread discontent among a . largo and intelligent class , and a hatred of the law winch those who sat in that House ought to be tho last to encourage . ( Hear , hear . ) Did the government deny it ? Ask the judges—the Attorney-General ; go to the prisons now , and you would find not a small nmnbor of men incarcerated who lmd been foolish and wicked-to a great extent , but with whom a great-many sympathised to no

      inconsiderable degree . ( Hear , hear . ) If the Home Secretary was alarmed on the 10 th of April last year—iiniest ; he was he practised great hypocrisy on the country —it was because Jio icnew tli . it there existed great political discontent , and causes for it . ( Hear . ) Of the 6 , 000 , 000 of adult men in the united kingdom , OjOUOjOOU were not electors ; a very large portion of them were not very much below tho members of that House in information upon important subjects ; they were men who stood about tlie hustings at an election and longed to participate in it . ( Hear . ) The noble lord said , the other night , in the delate on triennial parliaments , that the country had sufficient influence in that House ; if he meant by " the country" his own order , what he said was true ; but not if he meant what others did , all below thc titled class . '( Hear . ) Look at the composition of the Cabinet ; if the House represented the nation , was it likely that the members of the government would all be chosen from one class—that the Cabi .

      net would consist of peers , and relatives of peers , und baronets ? ( Hour . ) Hon . members had boon accustomed to this from childhood , and no doubt believed it to be right ; tlie winning side always believed itself in the right —( a laugh );—but there was another side that would win some day , and tliat was beginning to find out that this w ; is wrong . ( Hear , hear . ) If the House was a fair representation of tho grown-up population of tho country , or even of the middle classes , it would be impossible that the Cabinet could be so uniformly composed of one privileged class ; the Cabinet was aristocratic and not popular , because the House was aristocratic and not popular . ( Hear , hear . ) The five-sixths of the population that were excluded .

      from political power and influence in that Housewere they a . body in whom they had no eoiradoneo ? What would tho country be it' they were excluded from everything else ? All the virtue , industry , ingenuity , morality , reli g ion oi tho kingdom , were not to be found in the one-sixth represented in that House . Arc your schcwls to go for nothing , your chapels for nothing , your churches for nothing ? Is that great mass of tlie people which is between pauperism at the bottom and privilege at the top to . be considered nothing ? Aud can you conceive that your constitution is good , or that your institutions arc worth , preservinff , if you arc afraid that this class , if once admitted , " would overturn them ? I am not the friend of disorder or of violence , at any time or in any cause . I believe in . my conscience that we who * advocate the proposition of my hon . friend ( Mr .

      Jlunic ) arc truly the conservative party in this House . ( Hear , hear , and cheers . ) 1 am satisfied that whatever is valuable in your institutions would be consolidated by the passing of tho measure which he proposes for your adoption . ( Hear , hear . ) Do not think that I am unmindful of the liberty we enjoy . ( Hear , hear . ) I honour the memory and revere the character of those who have gone beforeus , and who gained for us the personal and political liberty which we possess . But , in proportion us I honour them , am I anxious that we should not leave the world without having done something to repair and to amend the institutions which have been left to us ; and I vote for the measure of my hon . friend on . this ground , —that I believe if it became the law of the land we should leave to our children and our posterity the priceless heritage of a renovated and enduring constitution . ( Cheers . )

      Lord J . Russell paid a tribute to the moderation which had marked the speech of Mr . Hume , tho obscurity of whose scheme—for he still had not defined the term " householder "—had been cleared up by Mr . Bright . ' who , whatever might be tho intentions and wishes of Mr . Hume , informed the House that the franchise must be extended to every adult nuile , and that only the six points of the Charter would content him . In considering the motion Lord John thought it necessary briefly to explaiii the intentions of those who framed the lteform Sill , which was to amend" tho defects in the representation in the spirit of the ancient constitution . With regard tothe franchise , if the electors were not independent and intelligent the object in view—nawely , tlie good ld not be secured

      government ofthe countryT-wou , and much of the . corruption of the unreformed parliament arose from the want of these qualities , in the electors . ' He was ! of opinioa that the couuiry , as a whole , was far better represented by a xoixed and varied representation , than " if large counties returned only - ' agricultural' niemuers , and : large oitios membeVs who represented manufacturing interests ; - and ' that ; if the whole country were to be divided ifltodistriots ; go fur from the rqresc - ntation being move complete , it would' he less so » Mr . Bright hadadmitted that the working ^ classes had now the means of buying a franchise but he ;( Lord Johji ' PvUsseUy-vepeated that he' saw nothing . in tho Reform Act-,. ' W in any optiuonhe had . expressed , that shoved "iete him froxa adopting any plan by which tUobase of the - *« t&M » «» ght be yn JacU w

      Mwiti Uartiamem. , ¦¦ ,

      mwiti Uartiamem . , ¦¦ ,

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      MONDAY Jbjjb 4 sssair *^* - ^ « -- * ^^ Sasaswas |» fS ^ £ S&'S Mg , has not been attainPd . Further ^ soeri ^ L is , however , required before definitely pSuS ME | £ 2 a = ss 3 &ffi W tf ^ i ^ SBKK&H-« L ? r ^™ ' ? t ° absenfc from indisposition , the Marquis of Lansdow . me consented to postpone the third reading of the Navigation Bill till this day week . ... - - . J

      The order of the day for the third reading this dav was ften discharged , and the Lords were ordered to be summoned for next Tcesday . \ J * tH : I 0 : ? u ' Education . —Lord Stjutley asked Sf&P ™ « srresP ° ilden _? between the Committee ™ X ^^ il oa Education and the heads of the S , «^^ i ? ^ ^ i """ tosKHi . and whetner the tmns which had been agreed on were such SSSSt&SP ^ the ffiembers of the The AJar < iuis of Laxsdovtsr was sorrv that the correspondence had not yet terminated . He thought it proper that the correspondence should be brought to a conclusion before it was presented to parliament , but , if he should find that any considerable time was likely to elapse before it was finished , he would lay it upon the table as far as it baa gone , as he was most anxious that the attention of both Houses of Parliament shonla be called to the subject .

      . After some discussion on a petition from certain shareholders in the Caledonian Railway , who complained of the misapplication of the funds of the society , Lord Portmas moved the second reading of the Landlord and Tenant Bill , which was agreed to on a division , when the numbers were—Content .. .. .. 9 . Non-content .. .. 5 " Majority .. .. ., —4 . Their lordships then adjourned .

      HOUSE OP COMMONS . -i . 1 r . Home , whose health appeared to be completely restored , took his usual seat , amidst loud cheeriDg . The hoH . gentleman gave notice of bringing the affairs of Ceylon and British Guiana before the liouse on that day week , in the event of a motion for going into committee of supply being then made . Parhasientart Repohm . —Mr . P . O'Coxxon oeggedtOiV-Kthelion . member for Montrose , whether he would bring forward his motion relative to parliamentary reform tn Tuesday . His object in

      putting the question was this : if the hon . member for Montrose would submit his motion on Tuesday , then he ( Mr . F . O'Connor ) was authorised to withdraw the amendment of which notice had been given by the hon . member forKochdale ( Mr . S . Crawford ) , who was at present labouring under indisposition . That amendment was to theeffe t that the suffrage Tie extended to every adult male of legal age , of sound mind , and not disqualified by conviction of -crime , and who has resided for a fixed period , and been duly registered in one locality .

      Mr . Hums said it was his full intention to submit iis motion for parliamentary reform on the following day . ( Hear , hear . ) Mr . F . O'Coxnor . —Then I beg leave to withdraw the amendment of the hon . member for Rochdale . Mr . Beight . —Is the hoa . member for Rochdale indispos d ? Mr . P . ( PBosxob . —I said he was . E-scrorBsaD Irish Estates . —The order of the day for the third reading of the Encumbered Estates ( Ireland ) Bill having been read , Sir Xi . O'Beiex moved by . way of amendment that the bill be read a third time that day six months . The speakers in favour of the latter proposition ¦ were Colonel Donxk ( the seconder ) , Mr . Gkogax , Mr . Hapier , and Mr . Hen ^ bt .

      Mr . Sadijeir gave a qualified assent to the provisions of the bill , bnt expressed his intention of voting for the ihird reading . After some observations from the Solicitok-Gexekai . the House divided , when the amendment was negatived by a majority of 105 , the numbers 12 to 117 , and the bill was read a hird time and passed . Suppi-y . —The House theu resolved itself into -committee of supply on the Miscellaneous E-timates , when various votes were agreed to without comment , that for Polish Refugees originating a discussion , but no other result . On the question of the Dissenters' llegiam Dosum an animated debate arpsein opposition lo tue grant , in which Mr . Wtxd , Mt . . C .

      LcsmsGTosr , Mr . Bright , Mr . W . J . Fox . IV ? r Rershaw , and Mr . J . B . Smith took part , the first-named hon . member moving its rejection . Lord -J . RussELt def .-nded the grant , sta'ing that the government could give no list of tbe recipients because they did not know who they were . On a division the amendment was negatived by a majority of 19 , the numbers 33 to 52 . After various other votes had been agreed to , the Chairman reported progress , and ttuf House resumed . The report of supply oflriday lnstwas then brought up . the votes discussed being tho ? e for the Military Knights cf Windsor , the Ecclesiastical Commission , that for education , and the grant for the National Gallery .

      The Protection of Pupils ( Scotland ) , and the Sheep-stealers ( Ireland ) Bills , were read a second time , and ordered 'o be committed . AusiuitUN Coloxies . —Mr . Hawes then moved for leave to bang in a bill for the bettir government of the Australian colonies , which , he said , was -framed with a view of meeting the wishes of the colonists , and the propesed scheme of government for those cronies tris based . , as far as possible , upon that of the existing constitution of New South Wales . One object of the bill was to mate Port P iili p a distinct col ny , to be called Vieoria , and the new coiatitut on wou d be conferred upon all th 2 Aus'raian colonies , New South Wales . Soutu

      Australia , V =-. n Piemen ' s Land , Victoria , and Western Australia , upon the latter colony conditionallv , provided it foifiUed the necessary conditi n of supporting its own government . Anothtr great object of the bill was to crtate a federal union of all the colonies , for certain defined general purposes . Each colony was to be empowered to elect cei tain members cfa general assembly for the whole union , whose 1-g slatire functions were lo be limited to obiertswbic ! i j-. ffec'ed the collective interests of all the colonies . Mr . Hawes explained the details of the measure , the constitution and powers of the assemblies , which would po ? sess a control over the civil lists , which they might alter by bill 3 ex ept the salaries of the r . overnor and ju « lges .

      Mr . Gladstone was friendly to the general purposes of the bill , which promised a material advance in our coloiual legislation . Mn llavres had , however , overlooked a principal difficu lty , namely , the franchise , which was essential to the proper working of the new colonial sysem . As regarded district connciK although he ageed that it wo ; i ! d be well if something of the tend could be organised ; yet as the principle had been tried in New South Wales , and had failed , tluse councils would not possess maclifiivour with the other colonies . Another important question w . -s , whether the legislative bodies shcul'l consist of a single or a double chamber . The evidence of the public sentiment in the colonies was scanty , but it oas not unfavourable to a double Chamber , and he feat ed it would be difficult to work a federal legislature except upon the principle of a donble chamber , which form had been recommended bv the ex . erience of the United States .

      " After observations from Mr . V . Smith , Mr . -M ' GBEGOB . andMr- E . DBMSox , Lord J Rcssell stiEgested that the discussion should be reserved until the bill was regularly under consideration . With regard to the guest ™ whether tlie legislative bodies in the colonies should consist ot ote assembly , or a council and an assembly , Mr . Gladstone , lie thousht , had not allowed saftcent weight to the objection urged in New Sonth Wale , that tbe advantage of a council must depend upon the cleir . ei ; ts of which it was composed ; that in ^ jhe United States the senate consisted of men Of ni&ll and independent character , whereas in the colonies the members would be mere nominees of the crown , relieving the executive from the responsibility of the veto . He thought the question , therefore , depended much upon the state of society , and that the double chambers had not worked well in all our American colonies .

      Captain ILvrris was of opinion that the measure -waspremature . * ¦' .. Leave was given to bring in the bill . Sir W . Somebville obtained leave to bring in , aad broug h t in . a bill to abolish the ? aol of Newgate , in Dublin , and tor other purpescs , and another bill to make temporary provision relating to the collection of connty c (? 3 sin Ireland . The House adjourned at a quarter to twelve ° ' d ° ' TUESDAY , Juxe 5 .

      HOUSE OF LORDS . —Lord Brougham presented ssveral petitions in favour of the Bankrupt Law Consolidation Bill , and called the attention of the House to the benefits which the mercantile community would derive from the measure should it become i law . After entering at . length into certa « n alterations in the details of tbe bill , and passing a ig ? 2 to * m on Mr . Miller , of the Bankruptcy Court , who had drawn np the digest on which rt wa » founded , the noble and learned lord moved tne reoiamittalofthebill '

      c . _ , " After " some observations from Lords Campbell and Whabscliffe , the bill was recommitted . ^ . The Marquis of Lansdowke expressed nimseu much pleased at the alterations proposed by Lord Urongbam , and promised to use every , effort in order ; i . o sscutai the passieg of soimcortantameasure during * h ? present session . . .

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      / JTJNE 9 , 1849 . . ¦¦ -.-- ¦ - ¦ ¦ -:. - THE NORTHERN STAR . 7

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), June 9, 1849, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1525/page/7/