LORD BROUGHAMsaid, he could not but avail himself of the opportunity of again calling the attention of the House to the state of things existing nearer home. The mischief of which he had on a former occasion spoken still continued to prevail. The crying evil still reigned in the metropolis—that it was nightly convulsed by tumults, and by the disorders of a perfect ochlocracy—that the peace of the community was all but broken up and destroyed—and that the tranquillity and rest of Her Majesty's subjects were nightly broken. Alarm was everywhere spread abroad—trade was interfered with, and, above all, the worst possible habits were beginning to be formed among the people—he meant the habit of large bodies of lawless men co-operating and acting together for lawless purposes, to the contempt of the law, while they acquired experience in working together in combined masses—a state of things between which and war there was but a shadow of difference. But, more than this, the most painful state of feeling was beginning to spring up, on the part of the citizens and of the police, towards those who were creating these disturbances. It had been represented to him (and while believing it to be true, he could not wonder at it) that the greatest feeling of exasperation prevailed among the various persons interested in the maintenance of order, against those who were doing 332 their utmost to disturb it. They avowed that their intention was not to expose themselves to any risk, but to keep up these illegal and most unseemly proceedings, until they should have exhausted the police, the special constables, and all but exhausted the military themselves. He did hope that some attention would be paid, and that speedily, to this most important subject.
§ The MARQUESS of LANSDOWNEwas not at all surprised that his noble and learned Friend should again call the attention of the House to this subject. It was one to which the attention of Parliament would naturally be directed until these proceedings of habitual disturbance were put an end to. All he was prepared to say was, that measures had been taken which, in the opinion of the Government, would put an end to them. He had every reason to hope that those measures would be successful; but, if they were not, undoubtedly the attention of Parliament would be called to the subject.