§ On the Order for the Second Reading of this Bill,
§ MR. CYRIL DODD (Essex, Maldon)said, he desired to call the attention of the House to the Bill because it was not one which he thought should be read a second time simply as a matter of course. The Bill proposed to permit one of the colleges at Cambridge to sell off a considerable portion of land adjoining the college. By Act of Parliament passed in 1801 the land was purchased for the use of the college. It was bought, as the Act showed, for college purposes, and at that time the House permitted various rights of common to be extinguished, so that the land might be used for the purposes of the college for ever. It was only right that he should point out that all those who had rights of common were fully compensated, or had the opportunity of full compensation, under the Act. Consequently the land was obtained for the use of the college under the sanction of that House, and now the college proposed to sell it. It seemed to him that land purchased under those conditions should not be allowed to be sold, or, at least, that some good ground should be shown before the college authorities were permitted the relaxation asked for by this Bill. There might be strong grounds for selling the land; if there were such grounds, they would, of course, be investigated by Committee, but unless some good primâ-facie reason were given for selling, the college ought not to be allowed to do so.
§ Bill read 2°.