§ MR. RICHARD HODGSONsaid, he wished to put a Question with regard to an alteration which had taken place in the arrangement of the business on the Order paper for this evening. Yesterday certain Resolutions relating to the revision of the Standing Orders on Private Business were fixed for further consideration at six o'clock to-night, and many hon. Members had come down to the House to take part in the discussion. It appeared, however, that at the morning sitting to-day, without notice to the hon. and gallant Member for North Lancashire, who had brought forward the 2106 subject, and without notice to the House, these Resolutions were postponed, at the instance of some hon. Member, till tomorrow at twelve o'clock, when many who took great interest in their discussion would be unable to attend. He wished to have some explanation of these facts, and to ask, Whether they could not now revert to the notice paper as delivered this morning, in order to proceed with the Resolutions?
§ MR. MALINSalso complained of the course which had been adopted, and stated that he had come down to the House to consider this business, and then found that it had been postponed until the morrow, when he would not be able to attend.
§ SIR GEORGE GREYstated, that perhaps the right hon. Gentleman the Member for North Lancashire (Colonel Wilson Patten) would be able to answer the Question. He understood that when the adjournment of this private business was fixed for six o'clock that day, it was suggested that it would be better to fix it for twelve o'clock, because it could not otherwise come on till after the Motions were disposed of. He was under the impression that his hon. and gallant Friend had stated that he could not bring it on until twelve o'clock on Wednesday.
§ COLONEL WILSON PATTENsaid, that the right hon. Baronet was in error in saying what he intended to do. He had suggested that it might be irregular to fix six o'clock for taking the adjourned debate, and stated that if that were so he should have no objection that it should go over till Wednesday. But he that morning found the Order set down for that day, and he had, in consequence, made arrangements to proceed with it that day. He, therefore, suffered as much inconvenience as other hon. Members on finding it postponed to Wednesday.
§ MR. SPEAKERsaid, the Order was set down for the six o'clock sitting, but it should be remembered that there was no power to vary the Standing Orders of the House. As an Order of the Day, it could only come on after all the Notices had been disposed of, which, he thought, would have created more inconvenience to hon. Members than the course which had been subsequently adopted. He understood the hon. and gallant Gentleman to say that he had foreseen the inconvenience himself, and to declare that it would be more suitable for his purpose that the matter should stand over as the first thing on Wednesday. Consequently at that morning's sitting a 2107 Motion was made which seemed in accordance with the views of the hon. and gallant Gentleman, that the adjourned debate should stand over till Wednesday, at twelve o'clock.
§ COLONEL WILSON PATTENexpressed his regret that this business had been placed on the paper for six o'clock, and that hon. Members had been put to some inconvenience by its postponement.
§ SIR JOHN SHELLEYasked, with regard to what had occurred, and believing that there would not be a sufficient attendance on Wednesday, whether it would not be better to postpone the Order until Thursday, or until next Session? [Cries of "No, no!"]
§ COLONEL WILSON PATTENsaid, he had been pressed very urgently not to lose the chance of bringing on this business in the present Session, and therefore it would be taken on Wednesday as fixed.