§ Mr. Andrew Johnstonon presenting a Petition from Edinburgh, against the Ministerial Plan of Education (Ireland), expressed his regret that the subject had been put off last night by the extraordinary and unlooked for adjournment which took place at so early a period of the evening.
§ Mr. Sinclairsaid, he also could not forbear from expressing his regret and disapprobation of the manner in which the proceedings of the House had been brought to a close yesterday, and Gentlemen prevented from bringing forward important public business.
Mr. James E. Gordonsaid, he should not now make any observation upon the petition, as he should take the earliest possible opportunity of bringing forward the subject to which it related—a course in which he felt perfectly warranted, in consequence of the unprecedented trick (for he could call it nothing else) which had been practised yesterday. It was never 950 expected that Gentlemen should continue to occupy their seats on those benches while private bills and petitions were presented; and to take such an opportunity of defeating the motions of which Members had given notice was so opposite to the feeling of courtesy which ought to regulate the proceedings of all the Members, that he could not help expressing his indignation at it.
§ Mr. Gisbornesaid, that the tone in which the hon. Member had thought proper to animadvert upon the course which he had pursued yesterday, should not prevent him from acknowledging that, upon further reflection, he felt that his proceeding had been in some degree ill advised. He regretted that he had put any Gentleman to personal inconvenience. The point did not strike him at the moment, and, in fact, the whole operation was almost instantaneous in his own mind. He thought it right to state, unequivocally, that what he had done was done wholly upon his own suggestion. No one had said a syllable to him on the subject, nor had he communicated with a single person, except at the very instant when he made his motion. It might be better that he should not trust himself to say more than he had said, in deference to what had fallen from those hon. Gentlemen who had spoken. He confessed that he had not acted as cautiously as he might have done, but, at the same time, he might venture to say, that the general course of his conduct was not such as to entitle Gentlemen to use such language as had been applied to him; and if there was any one who more than another should abstain from such language, it was the very Gentleman who had taken that opportunity of employing it. The circumstance, however, would be a warning to him in his future conduct not to act upon a hasty feeling.
Mr. James E. Gordonsaid, that after what had fallen from the hon. Member, he could not hesitate to acknowledge, that he had spoken under considerable warmth of feeling, for which the hon. Member would admit he had some reason. He retracted in the fullest manner every word which might have offended the feelings of the hon. Gentleman.