§ Mr. T. Duncombebegged leave to ask whether it was the intentions of Government to introduce any measure for the purpose of putting an end to that wholesale system of bribery to which he believed a vast majority of the Members of that House were at present indebted for their seats? During the last Session the right hon. Baronet had intimated an intention of bringing in a measure of that nature, unless the noble Lord (Lord J. Russell) who was then in office should follow up his expressed determination to introduce a bill on that subject. He now understood that it was not the noble Lord's intention to introduce any measure of that nature, and therefore he was anxious to know, as the bribery was admitted, whether Government intended to bring in any bill of the description to which the right hon. Baronet had formerly alluded?
§ Sir R. Peelsaid, he had not the advantage of communicating with the noble Lord, so as to learn what were the intentions of the noble Lord with respect to the contemplated bill to which the hon. Gentleman alluded. He was therefore taken by surprise when the hon. Member intimated that it was the intention of the noble Lord to abandon that object. He, however, thought that it would be more convenient that those great measures, the Corn-laws, and others that were intimately connected with the financial and commercial policy of the country, should be first brought under the consideration of the House. They were at present of awful importance, and were likely to occupy much of the attention of the House. He, therefore, did not wish to distract that attention by putting notices of motion on the paper, which might be put off from night to night, and never come on for discussion. Such a proceeding could only have the effect of 72 impeding the effectual consideration of questions in the contemplation of which the public mind was at present almost wholly absorbed. He hoped, therefore, that the House would excuse him if he directed its attention, in the first instance, to measures which were admitted on all hands to be of the utmost importance.