Debates an iprotettlinas in Varliament.

POSTPONEMENT OF THE IRISH REGISTRATION BILLS.

On Monday, Lord JOHN RUSSELL explained the course be meant to take with respect to Lord Morpeth's bill. His first consideration related to the business of the House: he believed it would be extremely inconve- nient that the discussion in Committee should commence immediately before Easter, when many Members would necessarily be absent, and when it was very probable that a further postponement would become necessary. Under ordinary circumstances, after 296 Members had

voted against the second reading of the bill, he should have doubted the possibility of carrying it through its subsequent stages, but the debate which preceded the division had left a different impression on his mind ; several Members on the other side having recognized the expediency of adopting some clear method for fixing the Irish franchise, while other Members, who had voted against the second reading, had admitted that the poor-rate would form a good test for the purpose. Under these circumstances, the amount of rating became the chief consideration ; and though he attached great importance to the amount fixed by the bill, he saw no objection to a brief delay, with a view to enable him to place before the House more precise and positive information. [This Intimation was received with loud laughter on the Opposition benches.] It would not require either much time or trouble to collect that infor- mation; and he should therefore propose to take the discussion on going into Committee in the first week after the Easter holydays ; and with that view, he would now move that the order of the day for going into Committee be postponed till Friday the 23d April. [Renewed laughter and ironical cheers hailed the announcement.]

Lord STANLEY said he shared largely in the surprise that had been ex- pressed by those around him at the proposition of the Minister. He lad indeed all along maintained that the information on which the assent of the House had been demanded to the bill was much too meagre and inconclusive to form the foundation of so important a mea- sure ; but he thought Ministers guilty of the height of rashness in bringing forward such a measure on information which they now ad- mitted was an insufficient guide for a vote of the House.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL was understood to say, " Not all the information which Government possesses."

Lord STANLEY exclaimed- " Not all the information which the Government possesses ! I cannot be- lieve so. I will assume that the Government, on giving information to the House, gave all that they possessed. (Loud cheers.) If they have not given all, they have deluded and deceived the House, in calling upon Parliament to sanction a measure of this vast importance on evidence not only confessedly meagre and imperfect, but confessedly more meagre and imperfect—if I am to credit the noble lord—than it might have been." (Continued cheers.)

Lord Stanley, vehemently cheered on by his party, proceeded to say that he would take the sense of the House against the clauses which went to constitute a 51. franchise. He gave Lord John great credit for his ingenuity in overleaping ten or twelve order-days ; the consequence of which would probably be to postpone his (Lord Stanley's) bill till a period of the session when it might be defeated by the mere lapse of time. He bad great suspicion of the motives which had dictated this postponement. He should postpone the second reading of his own bill till the 23d of March; and he pledged himself that within ten days of that time he would be prepared to announce whether it was or was not Ilia intention to press the second reading on that day.

NAVY Es-natures.

Before going into a Committee of Supply on the Navy Estimates, on Monday, Mr. HUME moved an address to the Crown, asking for copies or extracts of the correspondence between the Foreign Office and the Governments of France, Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Turkey, since 'the year 1838, " respecting the Pasha of Egypt and the interference with the province of Syria." The motion was agreed to. In bringing forward the Estimates, Mr. MORE OTERRALL first called attention to an excess of expenditure over the votes at the termination of the previous financial year, on the 1st of March 1840. Formerly, any unexpended balance was allowed to remain in the Exchequer to the credit of the Admiralty, and was afterwards expended in making good the deficiency of subsequent years, or in other purposes of the depart- ment. By the Act 1 and 2 William IV., however, the Admiralty were obliged to lay an account of the expenditure before the Board of Audit in November each year, and any unexpended balance was carried to the account of ways and means for the subsequent year. In March 1839, 5,000/. remained thus unexpended ; but in the November following, the sanction of the Treasury was given for it to be retained to meet the ac- counts of expenditure not yet received from the Cape of Good Hope and Trincomalee. The 5,0001. was brought to account in 1840, to defray those demands ; but an excess of expenditure still appeared of 29,6941., which would have to be made good by a vote. The next vote would be for an estimated excess of expenditure on the current year of 161,5001. When in July last he proposed a supplemental vote of 2,000 men, that increase to the force was quite sufficient, with all the obligations imposed by the treaty of the 15th July. Had he asked for more men, it would have excited the jealousy of foreign powers, and afforded some pretext for what had since occurred. But the excitement and warlike preparations in France during September and October rendered it necessary to strengthen the force in the Mediterranean, and to provide a force at home in case of emergency ; and Mr. O'Ferrall trusted that those on both sides of the House who had so often found fault with the small force which he had formerly proposed, would be consistent, and support the present increase—

On the 1st January 1840, the number of ships in commission, of all classes, was 239; on the 1st January 1841, 242; making an increase of three in num- ber, but the vessels were of a much superior force. The number of men voted in 1840 was 37,165, including the supplemental vote of 2,000 men ; the num- ber proposed for this year was 43,000; making an increase of 5,835 men, of which 1,500 were to be Marines. The excess on the gross estimate of this year above the gross estimate of last year was 729,6531. The credits in aid last year were 195,800/. ; this year they were only 158,812/. ; therefore the net excess to be voted this year above the sum voted last year would be 766,6411. In giving a detailed explanation of the increase, Mr. O'Ferrall said, that of 4,4141. increase in the scientific branch, 2,146/. would be applied to measure an arc of the meridian at the Cape of Good Hope. The Cape Hospital was reestablished ; and there was also a new establish- ment at Valparaiso, to fulfil duties formerly performed by the Consul, who had the charge of the stores ; and of 6,170/. increase under the head of wages for establishments abroad, 3,1701. would be applied to foreign victualling-yards and the hospitals at the Cape and Bermuda. At home 100,0001. would be applicable to the full establishment of ship- wrights. The increase under the head of stores was'242,527/. ; but the head embraced every thing used in the building and furnishing of ships, from a nail to the new steam-engine factory. Mr. O'Ferrall reported progress in " new works "- The expenditure on this head would be considerable this year, though the

increase on the vote of last year did not exceed 8,503/. It might be interest- ing to the Committee to hear what new works were in progress for which the vote was taken. At Deptford, a small sum would be applied to complete the baking machinery, and make some small addition to the rope machinery. At Woolwich, 10,0001. would be applied to complete the East Dock, which would contain the Trafalgar, a first-rate, when launched in April : 15,000!. would be applied to the West Dock ; it would be of the same size as the East Dock, and would be finished in the course of next year 15,0001. would be applied to the erection of boiler-sheds, and the purchase of some additional ground, if it could be obtained on reasonable terms. A sum of 2,0001. would be applied to clear away a bank of mud formed in front of the dock-yard, to enable the Trafalgar to be launched. It was necessary to call the attention of the Com- mittee to the state of the river in the neighbourhood of the dock-yard. A. large sum of money had been expended some years ago for its improvement— he was sorry to say with little success, for the evil bad been increasing every year, from what particular cause it was impossible to say ; whether from en- croachments on the river, or from natural causes, had not been decided ; but the subject lied attracted considerable attention, and an application would pro- bably be made in a future session for a sum of money to prevent the growth of so serious an evil. At Sheerness, the annual sum of 5001. was necessary to complete the paving of the yard. At Chatham, the sum of 4,0001. would be expended on groins to prevent the accumulation of mud in the river, and 4,0001. on the improvement of the smitheries, and the erection of anchor-fires : the same course would be followed in the smitheries of all the principal yards. 6,000/. would be applied to the repairs of Hasler Beach, damaged by the storm ; large cranes and anchor-fires would be erected in the smithery, and a small ap- paratus for making into fuel, on the plan of Me. Grant, the coal-dust of the yard. At Plymouth, 7,0001. would be expended on the pier and entrance to the basin : 4,000/. would be applied to the sea-wall : this sum was voted last year, but in consequence of the injury to the dock by the fire, it was necessary to apply this sum to its immediate repair. As no sum was proposed in the Estimates of this year to make good the damage caused by the fire, the Com- mittee might desire to know the extent of the loss; which, including the da- mage to the ships, did not exceed 38,5991., that was to say, the estimated value of all that was destroyed ; but it would require the sum of 91,559/. to replace it with new work. The sum proposed to be voted in a succession of years for the completion of the Breakwater was nearly exhausted ; it had amounted to 117,000/. Of that sum 15,0001. would be voted this year, leaving 12,0001. to vote next year. But, in addition to this, a sum of 175,0004 would be re- quired to complete it. The original estimate was 1,000,0004; which would have been exceeded by 50 per cent, when the work was completed. At Pem- broke, 10,0001. would be expended on the new slips, the saw-machinery well completed, with several other minor works. At Malta, it was proposed to ex- pend 10,0001. on a new dock, or Morton's patent slip. This had long been much desired, and would avoid the necessity of sending home ships on receiv- ing slight damage. 10,0001. would be expended in erecting baking-machinery at Malta : at present the grinding of the corn was done by mules ; the bakery employed 150 men, and could only supply biscuit for 11 sail of the line : with machinery, only 40 men would be required to supply 18 sail of the line, at a saving of 5,000/. per annum. The discussion on the first vote, 29,6941., to cover the excess of March 1840, was opened by Sir GEORGE CLERK ; who complained of the ab- sence of Lord Palmerston, and objected to thus dealing retrospectively with the wants of the past, instead of affording the House an opportu- nity of controlling the expenditure before it had been incurred. Lord Jour; RUSSELL repeated Mr. O'Ferrall's argument, that to have made more ample preparation last year would have inflamed the jea- lousy of France ; and the more discreet policy, he said, had succeeded— He did not pretend to say, with regard to the question of policy, that her Majesty's Government, in the ordinary course, would have been justified gn making an increase in the numbers without a vote from Parliament. (4. Hear, hear I" from Sir James Graham.) He had no doubt that this was the con- stitutional doctrine ; and that the right honourable gentleman who cheered, and who bad so ably exposed the administration in the Navy of former right honourable gentlemen, and the negligence and concealment in former years of the honourable gentleman now sitting on his right, (Sir George Clerk,) who had been the Secretary of the Admiralty, was right on general principles. What Lord John Russell now urged on the Committee was, that this was a most extra- ordinary occasion. Their difficulty and their anxiety at the time, and what they most considered, was how to preserve the peace of Europe. Me thought that was the great question; and that the question whether her Majesty's Ministers should make themselves responsible for the 161,000/. was only se- condary to that. If they had not taken this responsibility, it would have been their duty to summon Parliament ; but their paramount duty upon that occa- sion was to preserve the peace of Europe. (Cheers.)

Mr. HUME attributed the armament of France to the treaty of July. Lord John Russell would have them believe that he had maintained the peace of Europe at a cost of 161,000/. ; but the Estimates of this year exceeded those of the last by 1,000,0001. On the 23d July last he had predicted that the treaty of the 15th would lead to war. He should move that the vote be postponed until the correspondence for which be had already moved be produced.

The vote, however, was ultimately agreed to.

On the next vote, of 161,500/. for the excess of naval expenditure on the current year, being proposed, Sir ROBERT PEEL asked whether the dispute with France respecting the Syrian question was definitively settled ?

Lord PALMERSTON had no hesitation in saying, that he did not see one point connected with the matter which was likely to interrupt the friendly relations existing between the two countries.

Sir ROBERT PEEL did not blame the Government for departing from the usual course, if the formal and regular procedure would have inter- rupted the pacific understanding between France and England. But he thought that Parliament ought to have been informed of the emer- gency, either by Ministers coming down and asking for a vote of credit last session, or, in the not inconceivable case of such a plan being likely to give umbrage to France, by a formal statement of the circumstance in the Speech from the Throne. He was apprehensive lest the practice should be drawn into a precedent. Lord PALMERSTON concurred in the principle laid down by Sir Robert Peel ; but contended that the present was precisely one of those excep- tional cases which justified a departure from established rules. And Lord JOHN RUSSELL thought that the discussion upon the subject, which was now placed on record would be quite sufficient to prevent the case being set up as a precedent. Mr. Hume, however, opposed the vote, on the general ground of his objection to the Syrian policy of Ministers ; and Lord CLAUDE Hum- TON and Colonel SIBTHORP promised to vote with him. On a division, the vote was carried, by 89 to 8. The other votes which the House agreed to were-

1,443,7111. for Wages; 782,048/. for Victuals; 121,8441. Admiralty Office' • 2,9801. Registry Office; 31,9821. for the Scientific Department; 124,5291. Establishments at Home; 22,1521. Establishments Abroad.

SEMINARY OF ST. SULPICE.

In the House of Lords, on Thursday, the Bishop of EXETER pre- sented a petition from two thousand of the British Protestant inhabit- ants of Montreal, against the ordinance incorporating the Seminary of St. Sulpice, and investing in that institution the seignory of the island of MontreaL The petition bore the signatures of all the Protestant clergy, M hether of the Church of England or any Dissenting congre- gation. It was signed by eighteen out of the twenty-four Magistrates, by two members of the Special Council, and among others by Mr. Day, the present Solicitor-General of Lower Canada. The Bishop of Exeter, in supporting the petition, made a long speech, in which he contended that the ordinance effected a transfer of property which le- gally belonged to the Crown, to a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical insti- tution ' • and by this means an encouragement was given to Popery which had never previously been ventured on— This seminary, it had been proved, was the property of the Crown ; and if it was so, it was the duty of the Crown to take care that it did not produce the series of evils which, according to Lord Durham, it had heretofore generated. The ordinance said, that nothing was done by it which affected the temporal interests of any ecclesiastical body : but surely this, which rendered a preca- rious tenure a sure and definite one, most beneficially affected the temporal in- terests of this seminary. But there were vastly higher considerations than those to which he had already called their attention. By this ordinance two corporations of Irish priests were established. This step King James the Second never dared to take. The Bishop regarded this as one of the many instances of the recent encroachments of Rome. Bigot they might think him, but he believed that never was there a time when such gigantic strides were made by Rome to resume her lost power, and never was there a time when they were met with such utter indifference on the part of the Executive Government of a Protestant country. He wished that he could fairly say, with indifference ; he should rather say, with fondness and partiality. The people of Montreal looked on the ordinance, which had been brought forward by the Governor-General, acting on the part of the Crown, as a violation of good faith towards those who had held the Lower Province at the risk of their lives. He complained also that such a measure should have been adopted at a time when, in consequence of the crimes of others, the petitioners were for a time deprived of their constitutional rights.

Lord MELBOURNE contended, that the rights of the Seminary of St. Sulpice to the estates was confirmed by a possession of seventy years, and by many acts in which the claims were admitted. If this did not constitute a right, and supersede all previous claims, there was nothing fixed or stable among mankind.

" The right reverend Prelate has taken objection to the establishment of a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical corporation ; which, he says, is unconstitutional. The right reverend Prelate also says that it is a part of the policy of the pre- sent Government to favour the advancement and influence of the Church of Rome. I can only deny that such is the fact. He says, moreover, that the Church of Rome is showing a disposition to make rapid and gigantic strides ; and that her encroachments are met with weakness and indifference. I do not say that that Church does not exhibit such a disposition as he attributes to her; but is that disposition confined to the Church of Rome? Has the Presby- terian Church of Scotland shown herself quite free from the spirit of domina- tion, or the Protestant Church of England ? if the right reverend Prelate had generalized a little—if he said there was a general disposition amongst all churches to increase and advance their power—I should not differ so much from him. 1 trust, notwithstanding the powerful and elaborate speech of the right reverend Prelate, that your Lordships will look at the measure as an attempt to secure a fair settlement of an important question, without disturb- ing,:the tranquillity of her Majesty's Canadian Provinces."

The Duke of WELLINGTON alluded particularly to the manner in which the ordinance had passed, under the personal superintendence of the Governor-General, as an objectionable feature in the case, that had received no answer from Lord Melbourne. He contended that whatever the equitable title might be, the seminary was not a legal body, nor had any legal title in effect. In order to give this title, the corporation had been created ; which deprived the Crown of its legal claims to the estates. The ordinance he considered to be a total departure from the principle of the Reformation, which had been maintained in Canada from the period of its conquest to the present time. The Duke denied the right to transfer the property by ordinance— .

" You made over this property to the Assembly of Canada under the Act of Union ; and you have now no right to dispose of it under an ordinance, and more particularly one which may be opposed as unconstitutional on other grounds. It rests with your Lordships to consider between this and the next ten or eleven days, whether you will do that which is within your power with reference to this ordinance or not. I was one of those who thought the union of the two Provinces last year premature, and that circumstances had not prepared Canada for that union. I was unwilling, however, to press your Lordships to adopt my opinion on that subject ; and should be unwilling to press your Lord- ships to adopt it on the present occasion. But I do entreat your Lordships to avail yourselves of the few days at your disposal to consider this question well ; for it certainly does involve some of the most important principles that ever came under the consideration of a British House of Legislature—some of which, especially relating to religion and the religious institutions of this country as established by the Reformation, have been untouched up to this moment."

The petition was ordered to lie on the table.

MAYNOOTH COLLEGE.

In the House of Commons, on Tuesday, Mr. COLQUHOUN moved for leave to bring in a bill to alter the Irish acts relating to 3aynooth Col- lege. These acts were a legislative recognition and sanction of the College, and must be altered before the public grants could be properly withdrawn. Under the first act, the Visiters had the power of drawing up the rules, appointing the Professors, and otherwise regulating the discipline. Now those visiters were laymen, and members of the Go- vernment. But, under a second act, the power was transferred to ecclesiastics, and no visitation was now permitted by them. There was a strong feeling out of doors against the renewal of public grants to this College. To that feeling the House ought to respond. Mr. Colquhoun dilated upon the danger of foreign connexion in- fluencing the Roman Catholic clergy ; and adverted to the doc- trines taught at Maynooth College, iu standard books, from which he cited some extracts, absolving Roman Catholics from all faith with and all allegiance to heretics. He quoted Mr. O'Connell, Mr. Denis Browne, and others, to show that the Maynooth priests have not the loyalty of the old class of priests educated abroad, and are in most re- spects a more bigoted and violent set of men. He referred to the prac- tice of denunciation from the altar, and to the consequent beatings and maimings inflicted on the victim ; and asked whether the House would allow this perversion of the services of the church to the purposes of political ambition. Perhaps the House might not have the power to prevent Maynooth from teaching dangerous doctrine ; but it had the power, by altering the Irish acts, to remove the sanction now appearing to be given to that College by the State. The annual grants would be questions of annual consideration.

Lord MORPETH would not follow Mr. Colquhoun into his many disquisitions on matters intimately connected with the Roman Church. It was one of the advantages of the Act of Emancipation, that it had brought into the House a number of gentlemen much better qualified to deal with these matters than he could possibly be.

Mr. Colquhoun had made it matter of complaint that the nomination of the Catholic Bishops should not be subject to the control of the Secretary of State ; but he ought to have recollected that the Secretary of State who attempted to interfere with the nomination of Catholic Bishops would render himself liable to the penalties of` a premunire. Lord Morpeth argued that the extracts read by Mr. Colquhoun from Catholic theological works used at Maynooth bore in no way on the question. At the time the College was founded, the object in view was to provide an establishment at home for the edu- cation of Roman Catholic ecclesiastics ; and it was necessary to show that the books and studies at Maynooth were contrary to the known rules of the Catholic Church, before any fair censure on this subject could attach to that College. Lord Morpeth made some allusion to the Pusey ite Professors at Oxford, who renounced the Protestant character of their establishment, and talked of "the crimes of the Reformation "—doctrines the natural consequence of which was, that pupils deserted the faith in which they were reared, and embraced that of the Catholic Church. When these doctrines and their fruits were seen, it might be matter of consideration whether such management and tuition did not call for the interference of Parliament. He certainly disapproved of the act of denouncing men from the altar, as had frequently been done in Ireland : such conduct was a desecra- tion of religion. But when he saw that the male part of the Irish people displayed more sobriety, the women more chastity, and the whole popu- lation a greater degree of patience and endurance under most trying calamities, than the inhabitants of any other part of the empire—and when he saw the large influence of the priesthood in producing these effects—he could not join in the general and indiscriminate censures heaped upon them. Lord Morpeth concluded by saying, that he should not oppose the motion, as he thought it desirable the House should see what the enactments of the bill were to be.

Sir ROBERT INGLIS came to the defence of Oxford University : the tracts alluded to by Lord Morpeth had been published in the Univer- sity, but not by the University ; whose conductors were therefore not responsible for them. Mr. MORGAN JOHN O'CONNELL, as a Catholic, rejoiced in the progress of the Oxford tenets. The bill was a mere peg to hang electioneering speeches upon. Mr. LANGDALE denied that Catholic allegiance to the Pope superseded temporal allegiance to the State. Mr. Lnwroti confirmed Mr. Colquhoun's charges against the Maynooth class-books. Mr. O'CobniELL believed all that was taught at Maynooth ; bat he disowned the indecent doctrines that had been quoted that night, and which had been disowned and disavowed over and over again. They had been told again that night of the disregard of the Catholics for oaths. Had the assertion been made anywhere but in that House, he would have said that it was "as false as hell." Mr. O'Connell entered into a variety of theological arguments, and said that all difference be- tween the Cisalpine and Ultramontane schools was at an end ; that all Catholics now recognized, in its fullest extent, the spiritual authority of the Pope. The consequence was, that Catholicity was extending in every country in the world, while there was no country in which Pro- testantism was extending. He maintained that the Catholic priests had a perfect right to interfere in elections, and to speak from their altars in condemnation of perjury and bribery. Further than that no priest had gone, and he defied any one to prove the contrary. The speech of Mr. Colquhoun was a slanderous speech, a calumnious speech, a speech replete with foul, envenomed, and unfounded calumnies. Of what Church did the honourable Member elect call himself? the idol whom he ap- peared to set up and glorify being John Knox. And who was John Knox ? Had the honourable Member read Mr. Tytler's work ? That Protestant Presbyterian historian proved that John Knox was accessory before the fact to two murders—a notable idol for the honourable gentleman ! And to talk about the Roman Catholic doctrine inculcating the violation of faith even to Pro- testants'. I Thehonourable gentlemen's idol, John Knox, indeed, said that no faith was to be kept with Catholics ; but to assert that Roman Catholic doc- trines, in any place, or in any manner or degree, inculcated the abominable principle that faith was not to be kept with Protestants, was a preposterous and utterly unfounded calumny. Ile had been compelled by the turn which the discussion had taken to look at the question more than he could have wished in a polemical point of view, but polemics having been introduced by others, he felt that, standing in the presence of that God before whom he might so soon appear, he could not afford to give up one tittle of the faith which was his consolation and hope, and which, while he had breath, be would never cease to uphold and maintain; a faith which had been flue faith of some of the greatest names in history ; a faith which, in his firm belief, was fated to endure for all time ; a faith which, to use the eloquent words of a recent pub- lication, "would be found standing when some traveller from New Zealand shall take his stand in the midst of a vast solitude on the broken arches of London Bridge, to sketch the ruins of St. Paul's." He cordially supported the motion for leave to bring in the bill, though he did not believe the honourable gentleman ever would bring it in.

Mr. Sergeant JACKSON reiterated the accusation against the class- books used in the College ; and Mr. BARRON repeated the defence of that institution.

The motion was agreed to.

CHURCH OF SCOTLAND.

In the House of Lords, on Tuesday, the Earl of DALHOUSIE asked what were Lord Aberdeen's intentions with respect to his measure to regulate the Church of Scotland?

The Earl of ABERDEEN said, that it was not his intention to bring in his bill for the purpose this session. The increased demands of agi-

tators has given rise to a new state of things, for which his bill would not provide a remedy. Though his bill had not been opposed in that House, it had met with such strong opposition from the different parties out of doors, that he feared its object, which was to restore peace, would be entirely frustrated. The Government, or at least some members of the Government, had also opposed the bi'l ; and this had diminished its

chance of producing any good effect. He had understood from the

recent declaration of Lord Melbourne, that the Government were sa- tisfied with the present law as it stood, and were prepared to carry it

into execution. As matters at present stood, he did not see any more judicious course to follow ; but that declaration, to be effectual, should be honest and sincere— He meant not to intimate any doubt as to the honesty and sincerity of his noble friend, but to impress the necessity of taking care that any declaration that issued from him in that House should be responded to in a similar strain by the officers of the Government elsewhere. He would take as an instance tha principal law-officer of the Government in Scotland. The Lord-Advocate

was looked upon by the people who called for the total abolition of patronage

as their supporter. The Earl of Aberdeen was sure that this impression must be erroneous, but it existed almost universally. In England, the people would know how to measure the dimensions of such an officer as a Lord-Advocate ; but in Scotland the thing was different there the Lord-Advocate was, in the e) es of the people, a more important personage than the noble viscount at the h ad of the Government. In Scotland the Lord-Advocate was regarded as an impersonation of the Government—he was all that the people saw and knew of the Government. Therefore, ant declaration of his, or any conduct of his, was calculated to do away completely with any thing that the noble viscount might happen to declare in that House.

Lord Aberdeen noticed a letter sent by the Lord-Advocate in declining an invitation to a public dinner at Leitb, in which he assigned, among other reasons for not accepting, that a public de- monstration at that time would not be the means of advancing their common objects ; those "common objects" being, as Lord Aberdeen stated, "the destruction.of patronage, and the stigmatizing the judg- ments of the Supreme Court and of that House, as illegal, unconstitu- tional, and highly sinful in the sight of God and man." Such a letter was calculated to do away with the effect of any declaration made by Lord Melbourne in that House. He concluded by noticing the conduct of the dominant party in the General Assembly— The dominant party in the General Assembly had very industriously circulated a report that it was his intention, or that of a noble duke not then in his place, to introduce some other measure, of a much more coercive and stringent character. Now those persons knew that it never had been his intention, and they equally well knew that it was not now his intention, to introduce any measure of such a description. But there was no thing which those individuals desired so much as a little persecution : it was a thing of all others which they most coveted. Yet, at the present moment, they were themselves the persecutiog and tyrannical party ; and most cruelly and preseveringly had they persecuted their brethren for acting in obedience to the law—that was the whole "head and front of their offending." They knew that the right feeling of the country. was against them : they wished to ex- cite commiseration ; and this was precisely the ground on which they would like the appearance of a little persecution. But he could answer for his friend the noble duke, as he could answer for himself, that he never in- tended to introduce any such measure of coercion as he had alluded to; and be was sure that he never would. It was to be hoped that the existing law, tem- perately, firmly, and steadily administered, would be found too strong for those reverend agitators; and that the noble viscount would act consistently, and not be led to imagine that a declaration of his in that House would be effectual, unless the language held by him was in harmony with the sentiments and conduct of his colleagues.

SHERIFFS COURTS IN SCOTLAND.

Mr. WALLACE moved, on Tuesday, for a Select Committee to in- quire into the nature and extent of the duties of the Sheriff Principal, or chief stipendiary Judge for each county in Scotland. and into the system of nominating stipendiary deputy judges. He was opposed by the LORD-ADVOCATE ; who enlarged upon the great advantage of keeping the subordinate judges constantly refreshed in their pro- fessional knowledge by private practice, instead of confining them to mere judicial duty. Sir ROBERT PEEL resisted the motion, on the general ground that he believed the administration of justice in Scot- land to be satisfactory to the people of that country ; and he invited the Lord-Advocate to apply this argument when his friends, Lord John Russell and Mr. Fox Maule, should bring on their bills for constituting Registration Judges and County Court Judges in England. The motion was also opposed by Mr. Fox MAULE, and Sir GEORGE CLERK; and supported by Mr. HUME, Mr. GILLos:, and Mr. ROBERT STEUART. On a division, it was rejected, by 86 to 37.

COUNTY COURTS.

The County Courts Bill was considered in Committee of the House -of Commons on Wednesday ; when a resolution was proposed for making provision out of the Consolidated Fund for any deficiencies in the sala- ries of the Judges that might arise from want of fees. Mr. Fox MAULE stated, that the salaries of the Judges would depend upon the duties to be performed by them ; but in no case would the salaries ex- ceed 1,5001. a year. Colonel SIBTHORP opposed the grant of money for working out the objects of the bill ; and he called on Mr. Hume, as the usual professor of economy, to support him in that opposition. Mr. HUME said, he was not opposed to expense when the object was to faci- litate the administration of justice. The resolution was agreed to.

COPYRIGHT OF DESIGNS.

On the motion for-the second reading of the Copyright of Designs Bill, on Wednesday, Mr. WILLIAMS spoke against the measure as a useless and dangerous innovation in a system which had been found to work well for the last fifty years. In his opinion, the protection of three months to designs for printing on cotton fabrics was quite long enough. Under the present system, the manufacture had increased since 1800 from about 32,000,000 yards annually to 420,000,000 yards. He contended that the proposed extension of the protection would greatly embarrass the trade, and lead to endless litigation. The diffi- culty of determining what was an original pattern would be the source of continual perplexity. As to originality in designs, it was almost unknown, as the patterns produced as new were generally merely different combinations of former designs. It had been stated by Mr.

Brotherton, the former Boroughreeve of Manchester, that after an ex- perience of thirty years, he had only seen two original patterns. The great object ought to be to facilitate the manufacture of goods at the cheapest rate, to compete successfully in the foreign markets ; and this bill would have a contrary tendency. He moved as an amendment that the bill be read a second time that day six months.

Mr. SHED, admitted the subject was attended with difficulties ; but be

thought that there should be a more extended protection given to de- signs, for the purpose of encouraging the manufacturers of this country to compete with the French in the elegance of their patterns. In paper- staining, particularly, he thought an extension of protection would be the means of greatly benefiting the trade, as the French papers were now in demand merely on account of the superiority of their designs. He thought the term of twelve months required by Mr. Tennent was longer protection than necessary for patterns on calico, which lasted only for a season ; but in paper-staining he thought a greater extension might be advantageously granted. Government were willing to extend the copyright in designs on printed cottons to six months, but not longer. He recommended, as there are already five acts of Parlia- ment relating to copyright, that instead of another being added, the whole should be consolidated into one act.

Mr. GREG strongly opposed the bill, on the ground that it would tend to raise the price of printed cotton goods, whilst in its operation it would afford no real protection to the original designers, owing to the difficulty of determining whether a pattern was new or merely a copy. The effect of such a law would be to impose additional trammels on commerce, and be the means of injuring the present prosperous condi- tion of that branch of manufacture.

Sir ROBERT PEEL was of opinion that a case had been made out for extended protection to designs, which it was impossible to resist. Among the disadvantages and injustice of the present state of the law, he noticed the circumstance that the copier discredited the original design by printing it on an inferior article, and thus committed a double injury on the original inventor— It was just in the same way that the mawkish imitators of Lord Byron and Walter Scott had almost disgusted the public with the writings of the original poets, admirable as they were. It was admitted that they were inferior to the French in the art of designing; and this might unquestionably combine with an extended copyright to give an advantage to the French. But if their ori- ginal designs continued to be subjected to that injustice which he had pointed out, what a great and lasting impediment must it not prove to the advance- ment of the art of design in England. What he contended for was a fair com- petition, and by no means an undue protection. Upon these grounds he would vote for the second reading of the bill, although he would not disguise his ap- prehension at its possib'e effects upon our manufactures. The strongest argu- ment against its extension was, that they could take no precaution against copying or imitation on the Continent. But the point for which he at present contended was, that if there were to be a copyright at all, it ought to afford a bona fide protection.

Mr. WARBURTON supported the principle of the bill; but be considered it essential that a court should be provided where the parties might vindicate their rights in a cheap and expeditious manner. Without some arrangement of that kind, he would not vote for the bill in its future stages.

Mr. LABOUCHERE, in supporting the principle of the bill, guarded himself from admitting more than that it was right the present period of copyright should be extended. The House was at the same time bound to consider the effect that any rash alteration might have on the export- trade. He considered it was cheapness, and not quality, that had en- abled us to maintain our footing in foreign markets: therefore the House ought to advance with great caution, lest the price of the goods be en- hanced by the extended monopoly.

Mr. HUME expressed indignation against those who supported the bill ; which was directly opposed to the principle that had recentl ybeen recognized of offering the least possible restrictions to manufactures and commerce. He was surprised that Mr. Warburton, who had taken such active measures to prevent the extension of literary copyright, should be found among the supporters of this measure.

Mr. MUNTZ attributed the superiority of French patterns to the longer extension of copyright in France. Mr. WILLIAMS ultimately withdrew his amendment ; and the bill was read a second time. It was ordered to be committed on Friday.

MISCELLANEOUS.

NEW MEMBER. Mr. Andrew Armstrong took his seat on Monday for King's County.

DESTRUCTION OF THE CAROLINE STEAMER. In reply to a question from Sir JAMES GRAHAM, on Monday, it was stated by Ltird Joint RUSSELL, that the pension to Lieutenant Cormick, which appeared in the Navy Estimates, had been awarded in consideration of wounds received while serving under the Colonial authorities in the capture of the Caroline. Lord John added, that there would be no objection to laying before the House the Order in Council by which that pension had been granted.

RIGHT OF VOTING. Lord Joint RUSSELL, on Wednesday, brought in a bill to make further provision for the exercise of the right of voting for Members of Parliament in England and Wales. It was read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time on the 22d instant.

DEATH PUNISHMENT. Mr. KELLY'S bill for abolishing the pu- nishment of death in certain cases, was on Wednesday read a second time, without discussion, on the understanding that the debate on it shall take place in Committee ; which is fixed for the 17th instant.

CHURCH-RATES. On Tuesday, Mr. EASTHOPE gave notice that on the 16th of March he would ask leave to bring in a bill for the abolition of Church-rates in England and Wales.