Lords Sitting of 3 May 1842

MINUTES.
BILLS.Public—2a. Parish Property.
Reported.—Soap Duties Drawback; Timber Ships; Queen's Prison.
Private—la. Gosport Pier; Duke of Argyle's Estate.
2a Bolton and West Houghton Road; London and Black wall Railway; Great North of England (Clarence and Hartlepool) Railway; New Cross Roads; Granton Pier (No. 2); Northern Coal Mining Company; Charterhouse Estate; Saundersfoot Harbour.
Reported.—.(specially) Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne, and Manchester Railway; Buckland Inclosure; Weston-super-Mare Improvement; Glasgow and Redburn Bridge Road; Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock, and Ayr Railway.
3a. and passed:—Bates's Naturalization; Bolton and Preston Railway.
PETITIONS PRESENTED. By the Earl of Winchilsea, from Long Melford, and Ramsgate, against any further Grant to Maynooth College.—By Viscount Lorton, from Roscommon, against any Alteration in the Law relating to the Importation of Foreign Cattle, and Salted Provisions.— By a noble Lord, from Pimlico, and Southwark, for the Redemption of the Tolls on Waterloo and other Metropolitan Bridges—By Lord Fitzwilliam, from Ayr, and Sheffield, for the Repeal of the Corn and Provision Laws.—From Hitchen, against the Importation of Live Stock at a less Duty than 20 per cent.—From the Vestrymen of St. Luke's, against the Income-tax,—From Tam-worth Union, for Alteration of the Bastardy Clause of the New Poor-law.—By Lord Clifford of Chudleigh, from Newark-upon-Trent, Cannington, Longton, and Banbury, for a measure to secure Religious Instruction to the Roman Catholics serving in the Army and Navy.— From J. Nelson, for the Repeal of the Tithe Commutation Act.—From Ballymodan, Bandon, and several other
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places, for Encouragement of Schools in connexion with the Church Education Society (Ireland).— From the Medical Practitioners of Carlow, for the Better Remuneration of Medical Men attending Coroners' Inquests and Courts of Justice, etc.—From J. Sturge, for Universal Suffrage.

LEGAL REFORM.
Lord Campbellwished to ask the noble and learned Lord on the Woolsack, what was the present state of the Lunacy Bill, the Bankruptcy Bill, the Local Courts Bill, and the Ecclesiastical Courts Bill.
The Lord Chancellorsaid, with respect to the Lunacy Bill, it had been read a first and second time, and stood for the committee; it was his intention to-morrow to give notice for the committee on Monday. As to the Bankruptcy Bill, it had been read a first time, and he would propose the second reading some day in the ensuing week. With respect to the third bill, the Local Courts Bill, he had found such conflicting interests, and such difficulty in reconciling them, that he had not been able to lay it on the Table; but he trusted to meet such a concurrence of opinion, that he should be able to introduce it soon after the recess.
Lord Abingertrusted the bill would never be laid on the Table of the House; but if it was, he should give it his determined opposition.
The Lord Chancellorbelieved he had given no answer to one of the questions put by his noble and learned Friend; namely, that with respect to the Ecclesiastical Courts Bill; and he therefore begged leave to inform him that the bill had been prepared and was ready to be introduced in the other House.
Lord Broughamwas exceeding glad to find that the intention of his noble Friend was such as he had stated; but with respect to the policy of the Bankruptcy Bill taking precedence of the Local Courts Bill, he entertained great doubt. If his noble Friend would look more narrowly into the subject, he would find the more convenient course would be, to proceed first with the Local Courts Bill, and afterwards to add the Bankruptcy Bill to it.
The Lord Chancellorbegged leave to state that the bill was already laid on the Table of the House, and no inconvenience could result from the second reading of the bill, because, at any future stage, the progress of the bill might be stopped if necessary, until the other bill had been read a second time. He begged leave to state, that it occurred to him that it was not necessary to postpone the bill, and to proceed with the other bill, for this reason, it was nothing more than extending the principle of the bill introduced by his noble and learned Friend with respect to bankruptcy, which had been found to operate so beneficially, that several merchants of London had presented a petition to extend the operation of the bill to the whole country. The object of the bill was, in consequence of the increased facilities for communication, to extend the jurisdiction of the town commissioners, and to provide a jurisdiction for the country.
Lord Broughamsaid, that the bill met I with his concurrence, both in principle I and detail.

UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE.
Lord: Broughampresented a petition from the provincial council of the National Complete Suffrage Union, dated the 15th of April, praying for universal suffrage, annual Parliaments, vote by ballot, and no property qualification. The body from which the present petition emanated was
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composed of between ninety and one hundred delegates from different parts of England, Wales, and Scotland. They met at Birmingham, where they held several deliberate assemblies for the space of several days, and they came to certain resolutions. They afterwards convened a public meeting, which was attended by many thousands of their fellow citizens; that meeting consisted of persons of all descriptions, amongst whom the greatest unanimity prevailed. The middle classes showed the greatest anxiety that their fellow citizens should be brought within the pale of the Constitution. As the petition spoke not only the sentiments of the individual who had signed it on behalf of the meeting, but also those of 3,000,000 people, and as its object was universal suffrage, annual Parliaments, vote by ballot, and no property qualification, he trusted their Lordships would not think he was asking too much when he requested that the petition should be read at length.
Petition read at length.
Lord Broughamin moving that it do lie on the Table observed, that the gentleman (Mr.Sturge, of Birmingham) whose name was signed to it was a most respectable and amiable individual, a member of the Society of Friends, by many of whom the prayer of the petition was supported.
Petition to lie on the Table.
Adjourned.