§ THE CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES (Mr. COURTNEY) (Cornwall, Bodmin), in moving a number of Amendments to the Standing Orders with respect to Private Business, said, that the alterations he proposed should be made in them had been agreed upon after very careful consideration in concert with the House 305 of Lords. The alterations had been proposed to carry out three special objects. Many schemes now came before them for making tramroads as distinguished from tramways—that was, trams across the country, as against trams in the streets—and one set of Amendments defined these two kinds of tramways, and brought both more fully under the supervision of Parliament. The second object was to simplify to some extent, both as to their scope and repetition, the Notices to be given; and the third set secured that Private Bills in which any Public Offices might be interested should come before those Public Offices. For example, Bills in any way touching the relations between the Mother Country and the Colonies would come before the Secretary of State for the Colonies.
§ THE LORD MAYOR OF DUBLIN (Mr. SEXTON) (Belfast, W.)remarked, that some of the proposed alterations appeared to be of considerable importance; but when they had the assurance of so high an authority as the Chairman of Committees that he had carefully considered them, he thought that at that late period of the Session they might be agreed to without debate.
§ SIR WALTER B. BARTTELOT (Sussex, N.W.)asked, what was exactly intended by the alterations with respect to tramroads?
§ MR. COURTNEYreplied, that tramways running along highways would be left exactly where they were. It was proposed to give additional powers with regard to tramroads running across country which had not hitherto been sufficiently under control.
§ Motion agreed to.