The Lord Chancellor,in the absence of his noble friend (Lord Lyndhurst), rose to move their Lordships' concurrence to some Amendments which had been made in the Regency Bill, in the House of Commons. One of them was, the making provision for a case, which certainly had not been overlooked by his noble friend in the drawing up of the Bill, but which had been, in his opinion, properly rejected by him. The Amendment was contrary to the scheme and constitution of the Bill; and it provided for a state of things which, in the opinion of the noble Lord, and in his own, could very well be provided for when the exigency itself arrived. It was to the effect that, in case her present Majesty should die, and his Majesty marry again, the Bill should expire and be invalid. Now that was a case which could not come on by surprise; and a death and a marriage of such elevated persons were not likely to happen in twenty-four hours, and therefore time must be given for legislation. Still, the Amendment had been made in the other House; and though it was an instance of care and over-anxiety, more than of necessity, still, for the sake 1205 of unanimity, and as his noble friend had no objection to it, he recommended their Lordships to agree to it.
The Marquis of Lansdownsaid, that another Amendment had been made, by the substitution of the words "Roman Catholic," for "Papist," as the latter had been considered as a term offensive to some persons of that persuasion. He hoped their Lordships would have no objection to the Amendment; and he was understood to say, that it would have been made at an earlier period, if a noble Duke, a member of that faith, had thought it worth while to have the alteration made.
§ The Amendments agreed to.