§ Order for Committee Read.
§ House in Committee.
§ Clause 1.
§ MR. BENTINCKsaid, that unless the Chancellor of the Exchequer consented to stop at Clause 16, so as to allow him the opportunity of moving, on another occasion, the omission of Clause 17, he should move that the Chairman report progress.
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERsaid, that unless the Bill passed through Committee to-night it could not go through the other House before the recess, and the public in that case would lose £1,000 a day by the postponement.
§ MR. BENTINCKasked whether the right hon. Gentleman would make the next stage of the Bill the second Order of the Day to-morrow, so as to give him an opportunity of making his Motion.
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERassented to this arrangement.
§ Clause agreed to. Clauses 2 to 8 agreed to.
1584§ Clause 9.
§ MR. EDWIN JAMESsaid, he wished to direct attention to a point which he declared to be practically inconvenient and even absurd. To enact that a broker was not to recover his brokerage unless the delivery order was stamped, he maintained to be a most extraordinary proposition. If he understood the clause, which was very enigmatically drawn, that was its meaning.
§ MR. CRAWFORDsaid, the only operation of the clause would be in the case of contract notes of brokers on the Stock Exchange.
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERdefended the clause, and urged that its meaning could not bear two interpretations. That which the hon. Member for London had mentioned was the correct interpretation.
§ MR. AYRTONsaid, he did not think the clause could possibly bear that meaning.
§ Clause agreed to. Clause 10 agreed to.
§ Clause 11 (Documents not to be valid unless stamped, at the time of execution.)
§ MR. EDWIN JAMESobjected to that provision.
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERsaid, he would consider the matter, and state his decision on bringing up the Report.
§ Remaining clauses agreed to.
§ House resumed.
§ Bill reported; as amended, to be considered To-morrow.
§ House adjourned at half-after Two o'clock.