Lords Sitting of 21 February 1842

MINUTES.
Bills. 1a Bankrupt Laws Amendment; Bankruptcy, Insolvency, and Lunacy; County Courts; Improving the Law of Evidence.—2a Mitford's Divorce.
Petitions presented. By Lord Brougham, from Burton-upon-Yore, and from several places in Scotland, and by Viscount Melbourne, from Matham, for a Repeal of the Corn-laws.—By Lord Brougham, from Presbyterians of Letterkenny, and other places, for Legalizing Marrriages by Dissenters.

TREATY FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF THE SLAVE-TRADE.
The Earl of Aberdeensaid, that, in laying on the Table a

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treaty, signed by the representatives of the five great Powers of Europe, for the more effectual abolition of the slave-trade, he regretted to have to inform the House that the French ratification of this treaty had not been executed with that of the other powers. Nor was he enabled to inform the House the precise time at which the ratification by that power might be expected. Their Lordships might be aware of the causes which had produced this decision on the part of the French Government, and which his Majesty the King of the French had thought furnished reasons sufficient to justify the suspension of his ratification. He felt it to be his first duty to abstain from saying or doing any thing which could possibly increase the difficulties which existed, or throw any additional obstacles in the way of the satisfactory termination of this business. The protocol, at the desire of the French Government, still remained open, and its execution by that power might yet be looked for. He might as well explain to the House the situation in which the other powers would be left by the course which had been taken. The treaties with France, of 1831 and 1833, remained in full force and effect. Indeed, the treaty at present under consideration was originated on that of 1833, which bound England and France to propose to the other great powers to accede to the treaty into which they had entered; and it was principally with a view of obtaining the perfect union of the five great powers that the present treaty was undertaken, and not with a view to the introduction of any new terms; for in the treaty, with only one exception, scarcely any deviation had been made from that already existing. By the treaty of 1831 a mutual right of search was fully recognised, and by that of 1833 the equipment articles furnished sufficient ground of caption, and afforded primâ facie evidence of guilt. The only addition made by the new treaty was an extension of the latitudes within which the former treaties were to apply, and although this treaty should not be in force with regard to France, these former treaties would remain in full operation within the restrictive space to which they referred. He need not more particularly allude to the causes which had operated with the French Government, but he might say that they were such as to render it impossible to suppose that affairs would long remain as they now stood, and he
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might express a confident hope that the treaty would be shortly ratified by that power.
Lord Broughamsaid, that he, with the rest of the people of this great country, had heard with the deepest regret the announcement, which had been now repeated by the noble Earl, of the temporary postponement, as he sincerely hoped it would prove, of the ratification of this important treaty. He, like the noble Earl, would carefully abstain from saying one word which might have a tendency to increase any of the obstacles that existed to a consummation which all parties were most anxious to secure. But he would take leave to add, to what the noble Earl had said, that if in any quarter whatever a suspicion prevailed, that there lurked beneath the ardent and universal desire of the people of this country, of all classes, and of all parties, to see this important treaty ratified, and its provisions honestly and faithfully executed—to see the infernal slave-traffic effectually put down —any sinister motive or fancy, or imagination, that thereby or there through might be secured any extension of any maritime right, or of any general right of search, or might be fortified any claim, or gratified any desire to increase the maritime power of this country, or to accomplish any object, or further any view whatever, except only the extinction of the African slave-trade, there never entered into the mind of man a more complete and absolute delusion. He would venture to say, that in no quarter—neither on the part of the Government, nor of those opposed to the Government, nor in any branch of either House of Parliament, nor in any party out of doors, nor in the mind of any one man in the whole of this empire—had there ever existed any idea whatever as connected with this subject, save and except that of securing the destruction of the slave-trade, and that the right of search was connected with any subject or consideration except that one single object, never entered into the mind of any one human being of the twenty-five millions who inhabited the British empire.

LOCAL COURTS.
Lord Cottenhampresented three bills for the establishment of Local Courts. The noble Lord said, that in the course of the last Session of Parliament he had stated his reasons for abstaining from moving the second reading of three bills which he had laid before the

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House upon the same subject, and he had then stated his intention of renewing those bills in the present Session. He was aware that there had been a public announcement, on the part of the Government, of an intention to introduce a bill, to a certain extent referring to the same subject, but he was anxious that the whole question should be discussed; and although it was not his intention to interfere with any step which the Government might think proper to adopt, he thought it his duty to redeem the pledge which he had given, and to lay the present Bills before the House. If the Government bills should meet his views upon the subject, he should be happy to abandon these bills, and he should abstain from proceeding any further with them until the House had had an opportunity of seeing the propositions of the Government. He would state the general nature of his bills. The first was a bill to establish courts of local jurisdiction in all the districts throughout the country, so that every town might have, at short intervals, a court of sufficient jurisdiction to decide questions of property to a certain amount, for which at present the remedy was insufficient. By a second bill, he proposed to take advantage of this jurisdiction for the purpose of the better administration of the Bankrupt and Insolvent Acts; and a third bill was intended to employ the same jurisdiction in executing those duties connected with the Court of Chancery now executed by special commissioners, and not well executed, at a great expense, Another object attempted to be carried out by one of the bills was to effect an amendment of the bankrupt law, recommended by the commissioners who had inquired into the subject.
The Lord Chancellorhad no objection to the course proposed by his noble and learned Friend. Undoubtedly it would be better that the measures of the noble Lord, and of the Government, should be brought on to be discussed at the same time. He hoped very soon to lay on the Table of the House the bills proposed to be introduced by the Government.
Three bills with the following titles were then successively read a first time:—"A Bill for the Amendment of the Laws relating to Bankrupts, and for the better advancement of justice in certain matters relating to Debtors and Creditors." "A Bill to enable the Lord Chancellor to direct that certain Proceedings from the Court of
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Chancery, and matters in Bankruptcy, Insolvency, and Lunacy, may be carried to the County Courts." "A Bill to improve the Practice, and extend the Jurisdiction, of County Courts."—Adjourned.