Lord Walsinghampresented the report of this Bill, and their lordships proceeded to take the amendments into consideration.
The Earl of Liverpoolsaid he had a few additional amendments to propose, but these were chiefly of a verbal nature. His lordship then proposed the same to different parts of the Bill.
§ Earl Stanhopesaid he should not object to the amendments now proposed by the noble secretary, some of which he perceived to be necessary. But he wished to stand absolved, in the eyes of the House, or of the public, from being the cause of any ill or mischievous consequences that might arise from the great alterations which had been made in the Bill since he had the honour to propose it. The Bill which he proposed in the first instance was so clear and plain, that every juryman in the country could understand it. He acknowledged himself the father, as he had said before, of the Bill, but since the noble earl and his learned friends had undertaken the nursing of it, it was so altered, that although lawyers might understand it, few jurymen he believed could. He conjured noble lords to consider that this was a legistive measure, which, of all others, required to be clear and plain, considering its objects; 846 and it was one also which ought, as far as possible, to obviate the misconstruction of lawyers.
The Lord Chancellorobserved, that his noble friend need not be apprehensive from the amendments which had been made to the Bill, that it was rendered obscure or unintelligible; it was such as no juryman in the country could misunderstand. He could not however avoid remarking, with respect to the noble father of the Bill, that though he had committed it to the nursery of himself and his friends, he was very fond of attending in order to rock the cradle. To this he had no objection, and he trusted that wish the care taken in the nursing of the Bill, it would be rendered an efficient and salutary production. As to guarding this or any other Bill from the misconstruction of lawyers, he believed it would be found impracticable to do it, where they were so inclined.
The Earl of Liverpoolsuggested the propriety of introducing a short clause for preventing the operation of the present Bill from extending to Ireland; as from the different customs which prevailed in that country, in these respects, its application might lead to considerable inconveniences.
The Earl of Rosseacquiesced in the propriety of what had fallen from the noble Secretary of State, and was of opinion, that from the different modes and interval of paying the rents, no serious inconveniences were to be apprehended in Ireland, in the interval between this and the probable period of the next meeting of parliament.
§ The clause was then added to the Bill, which, with the amendments, was ordered to be printed, and to be read a third time on Monday.