House of Lords Journal Volume 63: 8 February 1831

Die Martis, 8° Februarii 1831.

DOMINI tam Spirituales quam Temporales præsentes fuerunt:

PRAYERS.

The Lord Wynford sat Speaker by virtue of a former Commission.

Lords take the Oaths.

This Day George Robert Earl of Buckinghamshire and Frederick Lord Ponsonby took the Oaths, and also took and subscribed the Oath of Abjuration, pursuant to the Statutes.

Ld. Gardner takes his Seat.

This Day Alan Legge Lord Gardner sat first in Parliament after the Death of his Father Alan Hyde Lord Gardner; his Lordship having first, at the Table, taken the Oaths, and also taken and subscribed the Oath of Abjuration, pursuant to the Statutes.

Papers delivered:

The House being informed, "That Mr. Smee, from the Bank of England, attended;"

He was called in; and delivered at the Bar, pursuant to the Directions of several Acts of Parliament,

Applications to the Bank for Advances to Government:

"A Copy of all Applications made by The First Lord of the Treasury and The Chancellor of the Exchequer to The Governor and Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Advances to Government authorized by Parliament, from the 5th January 1830 to the 5th January 1831; with a Copy of the Minutes of the Court of Directors thereon, and the Answers of the said Court thereto:"

Government Securities purchased by the Bank:

Also, "An Account of the Amount of all Exchequer Bills or Treasury Bills and other Government Securities which have been purchased by The Governor and Company of the Bank of England, or on which any Sum or Sums have been lent and advanced for the Public Service by The Governor and Company of the said Bank, in the Year ending the 5th Day of January 1831; shewing what Amount of such Bills before the making up of this Account has been paid off and discharged, and the Amount of such Exchequer Bills or Treasury Bills or other Government Securities which was in the Hands of The Governor and Company of the said Bank on the 5th Day of January 1831 aforesaid:"

National Debt.

And also, "The Annual Account of Sums received and expended by the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt, ending the 5th January 1831."

And then he withdrew.

And the Titles thereof being read by the Clerk;

Ordered, That the said Papers do lie on the Table.

The House was adjourned during Pleasure.

The House was resumed by The Lord Chancellor.

Thomson v. Dr. Williamson et al. et e con.

Ordered, That the Cause wherein James Thomson Esquire is Appellant, and Doctor James Williamson, and others, are Respondents, et e contra, be heard by Counsel at the Bar on Thursday next.

Sir G. Noel v. Rochfort et al.

Ordered, That the Cause wherein Sir Gerard Noel Noel Baronet is Appellant, and Gustavus Rochfort, and others, are Respondents, be heard by Counsel at the Bar on Thursday next.

Maddison's Petition referred to Judges.

Upon reading the Petition of John Maddison of the City of Bath, Esquire, praying Leave to bring in a Bill for the Purposes in the said Petition mentioned:

It is Ordered, That the Consideration of the said Petition be, and is hereby referred to Mr. Justice Park and Mr. Justice Taunton, who are forthwith to summon all Parties concerned in the Bill, and, after hearing them, are to report to the House the State of the Case, with their Opinion thereupon, under their Hands, and whether all Parties, who may be concerned in the Consequences of the Bill, have signed the Petition; and also, that the Judges, having perused the Bill, do sign the same.

Slavery, Petitions for Abolition of: (Beaminster:)

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of Beaminster and its Vicinity, in the County of Dorset, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying, "That their Lordships will immediately adopt decisive Measures for the utter Extinction of Slavery, and admit our Colonial Bondmen to a Participation of the Rights and Privileges with which the Petitioners are favored in common with others of His Majesty's Subjects:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Burrasakane:

Upon reading the Petition of the Gentry, Freeholders and Inhabitants of the Town and Neighbourhood of Burrasakane, in the County of Tipperary, Ireland, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Nun Monckton:

And also, Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Village of Nun Monckton, in the County of York, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; severally praying their Lordships "to pass a Law for the early and utter Extinction of Slavery in the British Colonies:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petitions do lie on the Table.

Barnsley:

Upon reading the Petition of the Members of the Methodist Congregation assembled at Barnsley, in the County of York, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Hardsley:

Also, Upon reading the Petition of the Members of the Methodist New Connexion Congregation assembled at Hardsley, Yorkshire, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Birdwell:

Also, Upon reading the Petition of the Members of the Methodist New Connexion Congregation assembled at Birdwell, Yorkshire, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Mapplewell:

Also, Upon reading the Petition of the Members of the Methodist New Connexion Congregation assembled at Mapplewell, Yorkshire, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Low Swithin.

And also, Upon reading the Petition of the Members of the Methodist New Connexion Congregation assembled at Low Swithin, Yorkshire, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; severally praying, "That their Lordships will adopt Measures for the utter Extinction of Slavery, and the Extension of all the Blessings of Freedom to the utmost Limits of the British Empire:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petitions do lie on the Table.

Bedfont Road Bill.

Hodie 2^a vice lecta est Billa, intituled, "An Act for more effectually repairing the Road from the Powder Mills on Hounslow Heath, in the County of Middlesex, to the Twenty Milestone on Egham Hill, in the County of Surrey."

Ordered, That the said Bill be committed to the Consideration of the Lords following:

Their Lordships, or any Five of them, to meet Tomorrow, at Ten o'Clock in the Forenoon, in the Prince's Lodgings, near the House of Peers; and to adjourn as they please.

Brodie v. Sinclair, Appellant to sue in formâ pauperis.

Upon reading the Petition of George Brodie, Appellant in a Cause depending in this House, to which William Sinclair Esquire is Respondent; praying, "That their Lordships will be pleased to order him to be admitted to prosecute his Appeal in formâ pauperis:"

It is Ordered, That the Petitioner be at liberty to prosecute his said Appeal in this House in formâ pauperis, as desired.

Commercial Intercourse at Canton, Correspondence respecting, delivered.

The House being informed, "That Mr. Danvers, from the Court of Directors of The East India Company, attended;"

He was called in; and delivered at the Bar, pursuant to an Order of the 12th Day of July last,

"Copies of all Correspondence which has taken place between the Factory of The East India Company at Canton and The Court of Directors, with respect to the recent Interruption of Commercial Intercourse at Canton."

And then he withdrew.

And the Title thereof being read by the Clerk;

Ordered, That the said Papers do lie on the Table.

Coals carried Coastwise, Petitions for Repeal of Duty on: (Swansea:)

Upon reading the Petition of the Coal Proprietors, Merchants, Ship Owners, Traders and the Inhabitants of the Town and Neighbourhood of Swansea, in the County of Glamorgan, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying, "That their Lordships will be pleased to repeal the Laws now in force imposing Duties on Sea-borne Coal and Culm:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Dover:

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Town and Port of Dover, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying, "That their Lordships will take the Subject of the Duties on Coals and Culm into their Consideration, and by a Repeal of those Duties relieve the Petitioners from an Impost so unequal and oppressive:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Coleman Street Ward, London.

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Ward of Coleman Street, in the City of London, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to take such Measures for the Repeal of the Duty of Six Shillings per Chaldron upon Sea-borne Coals, as to their Lordships shall seem meet:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Judgment & Execution Bill.

The House proceeded to take into Consideration the Amendment made by the Commons to the Bill, intituled, "An Act for the more speedy Judgment and Execution in Actions brought in His Majesty's Courts of Law at Westminster and in the Court of Common Pleas of the County Palatine of Lancaster; and for amending the Law as to Judgment on a Cognovit actionem in Cases of Bankruptcy."

And the said Amendment, being read Three Times by the Clerk, was agreed to by the House.

And, A Message was sent to the House of Commons, by Mr. Harvey and Mr. Cox, to acquaint them therewith.

Reform of Parliament, Petitions in favor of: (Belper:)

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of Belper, in the County of Derby, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to take the Subject of Parliamentary Reform into their immediate and serious Consideration, with the view of providing a Remedy for the Evils of which the Petitioners complain; and that such Remedy may be most certainly obtained by shortening the Duration of Parliaments, by rendering the Suffrage more extensive and uniform, and, above all, by the Adoption of the Vote by Ballot, which they regard as the only effectual Security against Bribery, Intimidation and every other Species of undue Influence:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Waterford:

Upon reading the Petition of the Citizens of Waterford, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to extend the Elective Franchise more in Ireland, to augment the Number of Members from Ireland, to free the Representation from all unconstitutional Control, totally to abolish all corrupt Boroughs and Corporate Influence at Elections, to return to Triennial Parliaments, as likewise to protect the Voters in the Exercise of their Franchise, by admitting the Vote by Ballot, and generally to reform the Commons House of Parliament, so as to make its Members the true Representatives of the People's Wishes, so as thereby to give the People of the United Kingdom a greater Interest in the Management of their own Affairs, and a controlling Influence over their Representatives, and consolidate all the Institutions of this great and then most powerful Empire:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Stroud:

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Town of Stroud, in the County of Gloucester, and its Vicinity, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; complaining of the corrupt Constitution of the Representative Branch of the Legislature; of the Amount of the Public Expenditure; of the injurious Effects of the Corn Laws; and of The East India Company's Monopoly; and praying their Lordships, "That, as a Prelude to and Earnest of more efficient Relief, those Portions of the Assessed Taxes which are denominated the Inhabited House and Window Duties (as being obnoxious in their Nature and oppressive in their Operation) may be immediately repealed; and that the Petitioners may have such further Relief as in their Lordships Wisdom shall seem meet:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Gosport:

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the ancient Borough and Town of Gosport and Parish of Alverstoke, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to take into their early Consideration the present unjust and defective State of the Representation of the People in Parliament; and to adopt such Measures as shall lead to a Diminution of the Public Burdens, by the Abolition of all useless Sinecures and unnecessary Places, by a rigid and uncompromising Economy in all Branches of the Public Expenditure, and by the Repeal of those Taxes which press with so much Severity on the Middling and Labouring Classes of the Community; and also to pass such a Law as shall cause the great Body of the People in this Country to be fully, fairly and freely represented in the Commons House of Parliament:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Salehurst & Etchingham:

Upon reading the Petition of the Owners and Occupiers of Land in the Parishes of Salehurst and Etchingham, in the County of Sussex, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships, "That such a Reform may be effected in the Representation of the People in the Commons House of Parliament as may ensure to the Electors the Return of Members who will truly represent the Feelings and Opinions of their Constituents, and be ever ready to listen with Attention to their just Complaints: That their Lordships will repeal the Duty on Malt, a Tax which presses more heavily than any on the Agriculturist, and the Repeal of which would increase the Demand for Agricultural Produce; and, by enabling the Petitioners to give their Labourers higher Wages, would empower the Labourers to procure once more many of the Comforts which they formerly enjoyed; that their Lordships will repeal the Duty on Hops, and those Taxes which, while very uncertain in their Amount, are equally expensive in their Collection in an unproductive as in a productive Season, the Taxes on Soap and Candles, both necessary Articles of Consumption to the Labouring Classes; and that their Lordships will take into Consideration the present Law of Tithes, which the Petitioners feel to be a most grievous and oppressive Burthen, and which are a Payment equally claimed of them whether they derive any Profit from their Labour and the Employment of their Capital, or whether they suffer a Loss, and which the present System authorizes the Owner to take in a Manner the most oppressive to the Cultivator, and so as often to exceed the Amount of Rent payable to the Landlord, and to deprive the Holder of the Soil of all the Profit which he ought to derive from his Labour and Capital:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Longwood:

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Township of Longwood, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Sutton.

And also, Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Township of Sutton in the Parish of Kildwick, in the West Riding of the County of York, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; severally praying their Lordships "for the immediate Repeal of the whole of the Assessed Taxes, as a Measure calculated to give great and lasting Relief to the Country, and which may be adopted without Injury to the Honor and Safety of the British Empire, if His Majesty's Ministers, imitating the Example of their Sovereign, make a Sacrifice of a Portion of their Official Incomes to the Public Exigencies, introduce a rigid Economy, and abolish all useless and sinecure Offices in the State:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petitions do lie on the Table.

Education, (Ireland) Petitions from Dungarvan & Tallow, for regulating Grants for.

Upon reading the Petition of the Roman Catholic Clergy and Laity of the Town of Dungarvan and its Neighbourhood, in the County of Waterford, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

And also, Upon reading the Petition of the Roman Catholic Clergy and Laity of the Town of Tallow and its Neighbourhood, in the County of Waterford, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; severally praying their Lordships, "That all Grants for Education in Ireland may be withdrawn from all Societies requiring by their Rules certain Observances of a Religious Nature, at variance with the Principles of the major Part of the Community, and placed in other Hands; firstly, because their Acts are totally at variance with the Intentions of the Legislature in making such Grants, by having the Effect of confining those Grants to a Sect; secondly, because their Acts tend to keep up Religious Discord in this Country; and thirdly, because they monopolize the Public Money, and, instead of benefitting the Public, tend to paralize the Efforts of many well-meaning Individuals who are anxious to assist in the Education of the People:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Foreign Lead, Petition from Wirksworth, &c. for a protecting Duty on.

Upon reading the Petition of the Working Lead Miners of the Townships, Parishes or Places of Wirksworth, Middleton by Wirksworth, Cromford, Carsington, Brassington, Bonsall, Mattock and Wensley, in the Wapentake of Wirksworth, in the County of Derby, called The Kingsfield, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to adopt such Measures for the Relief of the Petitioners, as in their Wisdom shall seem meet, by granting an adequate protecting Duty upon Foreign Lead and Foreign Lead Ore imported into Great Britain:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Galway Elective Franchise, Petition of Merchants of Galway for Extension of.

Upon reading the Petition of the Protestant Merchants of Galway, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying, "That their Lordships will be pleased to equalize Civil Rights in Galway, by extending to the Roman Catholic Mercantile and Trading Classes the Elective Franchise, in as full and ample a Manner as the same is now enjoyed by Protestants:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

House & Window Tax, Petitions for Repeal of: (Coleman Street Ward:)

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Ward of Coleman Street, in the City of London, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Bishopsgate Ward:

Also, Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitant Householders of the Ward of Bishopsgate, in the City of London, in Ward Meeting assembled, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

St. Anne, Westminster:

Also, Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitant Householders of the Parish of Saint Anne, Westminster, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

St. Luke, Middlesex:

And also, Upon reading the Petition of the Churchwardens, Overseers, Guardians of the Poor, Trustees and other Householders of the Parish of Saint Luke, in the County of Middlesex, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; severally praying, "That their Lordships will take such Measures for the Repeal of the House and Window Tax, as to their Lordships shall seem meet:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petitions do lie on the Table.

Newcastle upon Tyne.

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants and Occupiers of Property within the Town and County of Newcastle upon Tyne, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "for a Repeal of the several Duties denominated Assessed Taxes, but more especially the Duties on inhabited Houses, Windows and Lights:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Machinery, Petition from Charterhouse Hinton against Use of, in making Woollen Cloth.

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Parish of Charterhouse Hinton, in the County of Somerset, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to suppress the Use of the following Machines now used in the making of Woollen Cloth,-Picking Machines, Mules, Gigs, Shearframes or Cutters, Spring and Power Looms:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

2d Report of Comis on Real Property, presented.

The Lord Melbourne presented to the House, pursuant to an Address to His Majesty of the 21st Day of December last,

"Copy of the Second Report made to His Majesty by the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the Law of England respecting Real Property."

Ordered, That the said Report do lie on the Table.

Ordered, That the said Report be printed.

Suits in Common Law Courts Bill.

Ordered, That the House be put into a Committee upon the Bill, intituled, "An Act to prevent the Expence and Delay of Suits in the Common Law Courts at Westminster," on Tuesday next; and that the Lords be summoned.

Frauds on Creditors Bill.

Ordered, That the Bill, intituled, "An Act to prevent Debtors from defrauding their Creditors, by lying in Prison or absconding from England," be read a Second Time on Thursday next; and that the Lords be summoned.

Stamford Annual Bullrunning, Petition from Stamford for Abolition of.

Upon reading the Petition of the Inhabitants of the Town of Stamford, in the County of Lincoln, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to pass a Law for the immediate Extinction of the Annual Stamford Bull-running:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Tithe System, Petitions for Revision of: (Almondsbury:)

Upon reading the Petition of the Freeholders, Yeomen and Inhabitants of Almondsbury, in the County of Gloucester, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "promptly to adopt such Measures as may best remove the intolerable Burden of Tithes, under which the Petitioners, in common with others, have too long been groaning:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petition do lie on the Table.

Old Sodbury:

Upon reading the Petition of the Owners and Occupiers of Land and other Inhabitants of the Parish of Old Sodbury, in the County of Gloucester, whose Names are thereunto subscribed:

Horton.

And also, Upon reading the Petition of the Owners and Occupiers of Land in the Parish of Horton, in the County of Gloucester, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; severally praying their Lordships "speedily to adopt Measures for removing the grievous Burden of the Tithe System, by devising some other Support for the Established Clergy in lieu of Tithes:"

It is Ordered, That the said Petitions do lie on the Table.

Com ee on the Poor Laws, Bp. Bath & Wells & Ld. Kenyon added to.

Ordered, That The Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells and The Lord Kenyon be added to the Select Committee appointed to consider of the Poor Laws.

Com ee on Office of Clerk of the Parliaments appointed.

Ordered, That the Lords following be appointed a Select Committee to consider of the Proceedings had in execution of the Measures recommended in the Reports of the Lords Committees upon the Office of Clerk of the Parliaments, in the Sessions 1824 and 1826; and to report to the House:

Their Lordships, or any Five of them, to meet on Friday next, at Four o'Clock in the Afternoon, in the Prince's Lodgings, near the House of Peers; and to adjourn as they please.

Adjourn.

Dominus Cancellarius declaravit præsens Parliamentum continuandum esse usque ad et in diem Mercurii, nonum diem instantis Februarii, horâ undecimâ Auroræ, Dominis sic decernentibus.