that House were absent voluntarily-that of the particular circumstances of the others who were naval and military men case; but he must beg to observe, with were occasionally ordered by the Crown respect to the petition from Canterbury, on service in distant parts of the world; to which the hon. member had alluded, but those were cases quite distinct from that that petition was signed only by the case in his contemplation. If any those who were politically hostile to the hon. member, jealous of a new precedent, hon. member against whom it was directed. were to recommend an adherence to what If the hon. gentleman and the House was sometimes called "the wisdom of our would advert to the various sections of ancestors," he would beg to remind that the 43rd of George III., c. 52, which hon. member, that our ancestors were provided for the vacating of seats in parinfinitely more difficult to satisfy, on the liament, they would find that all the propoint of the personal attendance of mem- visions of that act were prospective. He bers, than we were. Our constitution, must say, that he thought great caution however, had a constant tendency to get ought to be used in framing any new law; rid of all loose operations of the preroga- and that a retrospective operation, such tive of the Crown on the one side, and of as that proposed by the hon. member, was the privileges of parliament on the other; unwise in any case in which injustice and to reduce to the form of specific laws might be the result, and where there was whatever of both it might seem desirable no urgent necessity for such a step. to retain. Therefore, although in the olden time there were precedents of moving for new writs on the ground of the absence of members, and even when that absence was occasioned by ill health, yet such a practice had been so long disused, that it would be justly considered to be a stretch of authority to have recourse to it; and it would be much better to pass a specific act to meet the case. He was no friend to legislating on any speculative contingency; but here a real difficulty had arisen, and a complaint had been made to the House of it. He had not heard any objection made to the principle of the measure, as far as respected its prospective operation. But he had heard objections to its being applied to any existing case; or, in other words, to Mr. Lushington. His opinion was, that the bill ought to cover that case; and that it ought to provide for the filling up of the vacancy in the House created by the impossibility of performing incompatible duties. The hon. gentleman concluded by moving for leave to bring in a bill" to exclude persons accepting Offices in India from sitting in the House of Commons." Colonel Lushington considered it rather unprecedented to render any measure of this nature retrospective. It was clear that the retrospective clause could affect only one individual, the member for the city of Canterbury. He was quite sure that that hon. member would not desire to retain his seat a moment longer than was consistent with the wishes of his constituents and the opinion of the House. He would not enter into any explanation Mr. Fergusson observed, that there were only three cases of appointments in India to which the proposed measure could possibly apply. If it were expedient to pass a bill to vacate the seats of members who had accepted offices in India, he did not see why the bill ought not to be extended to persons who embarked for India, although without the acceptance of office. Under any circumstances, he was at a loss to conceive why the constituents of any hon, member who should thus vacate his seat were not to have the power, as in other cases, of reelecting him, if they chose to do so; yet he did not understand that the bill proposed by the hon. member was to contain any such permission. He would ask also, whether there were no other parts of the world as well as India, a visit to or á residence in which was incompatible with the discharge of the duties of a member of the House of Commons? Why was not New South Wales or the West Indies equally obnoxious? Either, therefore, it should be provided, that a member who absented himself for a given period to any place out of England should vacate his seat, or the proposed measure would be partial and unjust. Dr. Lushington said, it was now seven years since a measure recognizing the principle upon which the hon. member for Callington wished to act had been intros duced. Upon that occasion it was de cided, that a person holding the office of master in Chancery in Ireland could not, at the same time, retain a seat in that House; and the bill was passed, but Lord Clifton said, it was not his intention to take any part in this question, between the electors of Canterbury and their representative. without having a retrospective effect. He thought, however, that the present case differed materially from that to which he alluded. He had had a conversation with Mr. Lushington shortly before his departure for India, and that hon. gentleman had assured him, that he had not the slightest wish to retain his seat for Canterbury, and that his doing so was altogether at the request of a large portion of his constituents. Now, he could not see what right the House had to interfere with the constituents of that borough; for if they suffered from the absence of their representative, they did so with their own good will. He did, however, think, that some measure ought to be introduced upon the subject, but without having a retrospective effect. Dr. Phillimore felt thankful to the hon. member for having introduced this measure, which he considered of great importance to the country. Precedents had been spoken of; but, he would ask, what would be thought of the circumstance, if Mr. Canning had retained his seat for Liverpool, after his appointment to the governor-generalship of India? He thought the principle which the hon. member for Callington's motion went to correct one of a most injurious tendency. Leave was given to bring in the bill. HOUSE OF COMMONS. Mr. CORN-LAWS.-FREE TRADE.] Hume said, he had to present a petition from the Carpenters and Joiners of Manchester. The petitioners complained, that they were willing to work, but had no work to do, and the consequence was, that they were in a starving situation. They ascribed their condition to the operation of the laws which prevented the importation of corn until it was at a Mr. Secretary Peel thought that appointments in the East Indies differed from the appointment to the government of Colonies. With respect to the case immediately before the House, he thought that though an hon. member might, under such circumstances, afford his constituents an opportunity of selecting another representative, still he doubted the propriety of setting a precedent which would inflict a disqualification upon such persons. He confessed, that, although the law upon this subject ought to be equal-certain price; and he had no hesitation lized, he could not help feeling that its application, in the present instance, would be an implied censure upon the hon. member at present holding the government of Madras. There were certain parts of the bill which he was ready to support, without pledging himself to any thing like an acquiescence in its details. Mr. Bright thought it would be most advisable to act on old precedents, and have it at once declared, that a seat became vacant upon an appointment to a distant office. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said, he should certainly oppose the retrospective operation of the bill, without pledging himself either way with respect to its other provisions. Mr. Hume thought there was no occasion for the bill, inasmuch as the acceptance of any such office as that in question should in itself operate as an exclusion from a seat in that House. But, unless the present case could be shown to be a hardship upon the electors of Canterbury, he could not see why any specific measure should be introduced respecting it. in saying, that a Free Trade in corn was what they were entitled to, and was the only measure by which the prevailing distress in the country could be alleviated. He thought it was gross injustice to allow the existence of laws by which the people were reduced to a state of starvation. If an efficient alteration were not made in the Corn-laws, ministers would, he thought, have to answer for much of the mischief which was likely to happen in the country. Mr. Wells denied, that the existing distress was in any degree caused by the Corn-laws. It was to the newly-introduced system of Free Trade that it was mainly attributable. The people throughout the country complained of that system. If a committee were appointed to inquire into the facts, the evils that had flowed from it could be decidedly shown. Mr. D. W. Harvey said, he could not hear such an observation, as that which had been just made by the hon. member, without entering his strongest protest against it. When the hon. member stated that the sufferings of the people were not in any way to be attributed to the Corn-| This, together with the deficient harvest of laws, he asserted that which was not last year, had raised the price of corn to its founded in fact; because, so long as present level. They had, for many years, bread was an essential article for the sus-kept corn out of the market by prohibitory tenance of the people, so long must its laws, which would not allow the foreigner price be a most important ingredient in to grow a steady supply for our use.uff their expenditure, and must visibly affect their comforts. If the hon. member argued, that the Corn-laws had no effect in raising the price of bread, then, he would ask, why did those laws exist? Those who opposed them stated that they directly tended to increase the price; and if those who supported them thought they had no such effect, why did they not concur with the enemies of those laws and repeal them? So far from thinking that the Corn-laws did not increase the distress, he looked on them as the primary cause of that distress. Nothing would be more beneficial to the community than the repeal of them. do Mr. Whitmore also wished to enter his protest against the assertion, that the high price of corn was not connected with the sufferings of the people; because they did aggravate very considerably the existing distress. But, while he admitted that the Corn-laws were an evil, he could not agree with those who thought that the high price of corn was occasioned by them alone, because there had been a very considerable deficiency in the last harvest, and that circumstance must have produced an unfavourable effect. The hon. member for Maidstone had attributed all the present distress to the system of Free Trade. Now, he would ask the hon. member whether any innovation had been made with respect to the cotton-manufacture by the system of Free Trade? That manufacture was most extensively carried on at Manchester, and the hon. member had alluded to the distress experienced by the cotton-spinners there; but there must be some cause assigned for that distress other than the system of Free Trade, for there was no foreign competition with the cotton manufacture, and there could not be any; yet the severest distress prevailed even in that district which might be called the head quarters of the cotton-trade [hear, hear] Mr. P. Thomson was of opinion that a great portion of the present distress arose, not from the operation of the present law, but from the operation, for a series of years, of as bad or perhaps of worse laws for regulating the importation of grain. Mr. M. Fitzgerald observed, that as the principle on which these Corn-laws were founded was that of averages, by which the price was regulated, it was most desirable that those averages should be correctly struck. Now, he was convinced that in a most important district-the district of Lancashire,-a very great quantity of corn was brought to market which was not returned. It would therefore be proper for his majesty's government to ascertain the facts; and in the present disturbed state of Lancashire it was important that the people should be informed that the nominal price of corn in that county was exceedingly exaggerated. In the week ending the 18th of April the return for that district was altogether five thousand six hundred and forty-seven quarters; then, deducting for Liverpool four thousand three hundred and fifty-seven quarters, it left for the rest of the county, including Manchester, Bolton, Preston, and Wigan, all populous towns, one thousand two hundred and ninety quarters. In the week ending the 18th of April, the return for Manchester was seven hundred and forty-six quarters; and in the week ending the 25th of April, four hundred and thirty-eight quarters, not being in reality the tenth part of the wheat sold; the population in that district amounting to one hundred and fifty thousand souls. This was calculated to deceive the public. If such proceedings were proved to exist, some corrective should be adopted by government to ensure the accuracy of those returns. Mr. Peel said, the statement should be examined into, and if it were ascertained to be well-founded, a remedy should be applied. SUPPLY OF WATER TO THE METRO POLIS.] Mr. Stuart Wortley rose, to call the attention of the House to a most im portant subject--the Supply of Water to the Metropolis. A committee to inquire into that subject had last session been appointed by that House, and on which committee he had had the honour to sit. That committee made a report, which was all that they could do; but, as the evil originally complained of still continued, he expense of a survey, with a view to ascer thought that hon. members, particularly tain the best plan for supplying the metro those who represented this great metropo-polis with pure water. That gentleman, lis, should not allow the session to pass without bringing the subject under the notice of parliament. He knew not what measures to suggest; but he thought that the House ought, by attending to the subject, to show to those who had undertaken to supply a sufficient quantity of good and wholesome water to the metropolis that their neglect of their contract would not go unpunished. He would ask the hon. baronet the member for Westminster, whether he meant to bring the subject again before the House? Sir F. Burdett said, he had felt the importance of the subject, and had had frequent communications upon it with the right hon. Secretary opposite, who had evinced the utmost readiness to forward the views of the committee. It appeared to him (sir F. Burdett) that no further steps remained to be taken by parliament, and that the only best thing that could be now done would be (as recommended by the committee in their report), that his majesty's government should send competent persons to make a survey, and report from what points a better supply could be obtained. Indeed he understood it had been ascertained, that a better supply could be easily obtained, either higher up the river Thames, or from the Colne. He thought that something ought to be done to show to the water companies, who had at present the supply in their hands, that they would not be suffered to continue in the course they had hitherto followed. Although the supply had been insufficient and impure those companies had already levied upon the inhabitants of the metropolis no less a sum than 44,000l. beyond what they had been empowered to charge. Mr. Secretary Peel said, that he looked upon this as a question of considerable importance to the metropolis; and he trusted, although it was not perhaps quite regular, that he might be allowed to say a word or two upon it. And, first, he must observe, that if any blame was to be imputed on the ground of supineness or delay, the hon. baronet who represented Westminster was the last man to whom that blame could attach, for he had been indefatigable in his exertions respecting it. After the report made by the committee of the House last year, Mr. Telford, the engineer, was applied to as to the probable than whom no more competent authority could be applied to, was of opinion, that the survey would take from 3,000 to 5,000,, but he could not be positive that the latter sum would cover the expense. Under these circumstances, ministers did not feel themselves justified in entering upon the measure. Besides, he must observe, that such an interference on the part of government would form a most dangerous precedent. If they interfered in procuring a supply of water, why not in pro curing a supply of gas, or in lighting, watching, and paving the streets? Nay, more, if such interference took place with respect to the metropolis, what was to prevent Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh, and the other great towns, from making a similar application? Repeated complaints had been, and continued to be, made of the conduct of the water companies that the water supplied by them was, in some instances, deficient in quantity and impure in quality, and that the price charged had increased with those deficiencies. The consequence would be that, unless the evil was remedied by the existing companies, new companies would rise up, who, by the encouragement they would receive, would teach the present companies that they had forgotten their own interests when they neglected or violated the principle of their contract with the public. He still thought that the companies, who were in the enjoyment of this monopoly, were bound to remedy the evil complained of. thought it would be wise in those companies to bear the expense of the survey. If they would, government would see that it was executed, and there was no doubt that either higher up in the Thames, or from the Colne, a plentiful supply of pure water could be obtained. He had great hopes that the evil would be very soon remedied, either in this or in some other way. t He POOR LAWS (IRELAND.)] Mr. Sadler said, he rose to present a petition from certain inhabitants of Clara, in the King's county, praying that a similar measure to that which regulated parochial relief in England might be introduced into Ireland. The hon. member said that, instead of taking any part in the discussion upon this subject, which was to come on that even ing, he would call the attention of the Dundas and William Battie Wrightson, esq., whose election has been declared to be void." House to this petition. It contained many very important passages which were well worthy of the attention of the House. The hon. member then proceeded to advert to Mr. Hudson Gurney seconded the moseveral parts of the petition, but the noise tion, though he said he did not entirely which prevailed in the House was so great, agree in some of the views of the hon. that his observations were indistinctly member: but, after the House had conheard in the gallery. We understood the firmed its former division in favour of the hon. member to say, that the petition proposition of the hon. member for Hert stated that the introduction of the Poor- fordshire, it was quite clear that no public laws into Ireland would give activity to benefit could be obtained by depriving every branch of industry; that the sum East Retford of the right of representagiven to the poor was not to be considered tion. Any election taking place now as a loss; that the Poor-laws would bind would probably be sufficiently free from the lower orders in a stronger union with the corruption; but if the hon. member pergovernment; that the introduction of this severed, and the House determined to national charity would establish a moral persevere, in attempting a remedy for the police; that it would promote friendly en-abuses that had prevailed there, he would tercourse between Catholics and Protest-venture to suggest, that instead of bringants; and that it would give employment ing in the hundreds, he might find some to labour which was now lost in indolence. arrangement in East Retford itself, which, [ Here the noise became so great that the hon. member's voice was for some time inaudible.] He said, that hon. gentlemen would have better consulted their own convenience if they had heard the petitioners now, instead of listening to him in the discussion which was about to come on. Lord Oxmantown said, that as the petition came from the county which he represented, he wished to offer a word or two. He differed with the hon. member in thinking that the money given to the poor under the Poor-laws was not productive of loss to the country. As well might he argue, that the money expended during the war, and which now pressed so heavily, in the shape of national debt, was not a loss to the country. Ordered to lie on the table. before another election, might possibly Re Lord Morpeth declared, that no 'support he had ever given to any motion was more constrained than that which he should afford to this. It was, however, in his mind, the only way by which they could avoid the difficulties of the situation in which they were now placed. duced, as they were, to an unpleasant election between two difficulties, they EAST RETFORD.] Mr. H. Fane said, were compelled to abandon for the mohe should occupy very little of the time ment those principles which ought otherof the House, as this question had already wise to govern their conduct. The former been so fully discussed. He must, how-votes he had given on this subject were ever, remind the House, that the borough given, not so much with a view to punish of East Retford had been unrepresented the delinquency of a body of persons, as for three years, on account of misconduct on the part of some of the voters, and that it would not be until Monday next that the House would take the first step towards punishing that misconduct. The hon. member concluded with moving, "That Mr. Speaker do issue his warrant to the Clerk of the Crown, to make out a new Writ for the electing of two Burgesses to serve in this present parliament for the Borough of East Retford, in the room of the hon. sir Robert Lawrence to dispose of a privilege, originally cons ferred for the benefit of the community, in such a manner as would best conduce to the advancement of the interests of the whole people. He must say, that" there was a great degree of inconsistency in admitting, as they had done for three sessions, the delinquency and corruption of a particular borough, and then acting with regard to that borough as if no such corrupt practices had taken place. Yet he was willing to be guilty of that inconde |