CONSIDERATION. THIRD READING. (Hansard, 18 August 1883)

§ MR. BIGGAR
said, the Amendment which he had to propose was to leave out, in page 1, the words after "Act," in line 12, to the end of line 16. This Tramway Bill would give over to a lot of swindling Companies full authority to rob the barony without limit. What he wished to do, if possible, was to limit the amount of appropriation that might take place. A considerable number of Irish Members were of opinion that it was desirable that there should be some limit to the power to be given; and another advantage in what he proposed was, that if an undertaking was believed by the promoters to be in-feasible, and not likely to pay working expenses, they would not be bound to push the scheme on. But if the words he referred to in the Amendment were allowed to remain in the clause, the projectors of a scheme would have every inducement to lead the people to go on with their scheme, even if they knew it would not be successful. He moved the Amendment for the purpose of raising this question; and, if the Government agreed to it, they might introduce on the third reading, or in "another place," a 1305 consequential Amendment which would meet the case. He was perfectly willing that the ratepayers should be bound to provide a guarantee to the extent of 3 per cent as long as the tramway worked; but he thought that was quite a sufficient sum to require them to pay. If a line worked, then the Government would pay 2 per cent. and the ratepayers would pay 3 per cent.

§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. PORTER)
said, the very essence of the Bill was that tramways should not only be made, but should work, and it would be impossible consistently with the Bill to accept the Amendment.

§ MR. LALOR
said, he had an Amendment to propose which he had understood the right hon. and learned Gentleman the Attorney General for Ireland was willing to accept with some trifling modification; but it appeared now that the Government were not willing to accept it. He proposed to insert, in line 18, after the word "completed," the words "by the Company." These clauses were intended to guard the baronies against careless extravagance, and against Companies getting hold of works.

§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. PORTER)
said, the hon. Member (Mr. Lalor) was not correct in saying that the Government had given 1306 any undertaking to accept his Amendment. They had given a promise to consider it, and they had done so; but they had come to the conclusion that the acceptance of the Amendment would render the Bill unworkable.

§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. PORTER)
said, he must now ask the House to allow the Bill to be read the third time.

§ Mr. HARRINGTON
said, the Bill provided that the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland might devote £50,000 of the £100,000 it dealt with for emigration. The object of the £100,000, however, was clearly emigration. Irish Members had so far sunk their feelings with regard to emigration, as to accept the Bill; but certainly that was on the express condition that only £50,000 should be devoted to emigration, and if he could not get any assurance from the Treasury Bench that only that £50,000 was to be devoted to emigration, he 1307 should divide the House upon this Motion. He did not see how it could be consistent with the proposals of the Government, or with the speeches which had been made from the Treasury Bench that such an assurance should not be given, because they had led hon. Members to believe that only £50,000 would be devoted to emigration, and £50,000 to migration. If they were acting bonâ fide, he should ask them for that assurance; but if, after all the trouble the House had had in considering the Bill, and after the manner in which Irish Members had sunk their feelings—for they felt very strongly on the subject—£100,000 might be devoted to sending people out of Ireland, that would be simply a case of breaking faith with Irish Members. He did not say that was the intention of the Government; but he wanted an assurance from some one responsible for the Government. He would appeal to the right hon. and learned Gentleman the Attorney General for Ireland, who was now present, to give him that assurance.

§ Mr. SHEIL
said, he thought his hon. Friend (Mr. Harrington) was needlessly alarmed. The object of the Bill was clear; and, in the speech he had made, the hon. Member had not done justice to the hon. Member for the City of Cork (Mr. Parnell) for the remarkable skill with which he had managed to make this Bill so useful and valuable as it was now expected to be for Ireland. The original Bill proposed to provide £100,000 for emigration; but the hon. Member for the City of Cork had reduced the amount for emigration to £50,000, and, moreover, had obtained, for the first time, a Parliamentary sanction to the counter-scheme of migration.

§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. PORTER)
said, the Government had not the slightest intention to devote more than £50,000 to emigration.