Lords Sitting of 6 February 1855

MINUTES.
PUBLIC BILLS.—1a Purchasers Protection against Judgments.
2a Fisheries (North America).
3a Cathedral Appointments Act Continuance; Bills of Exchange.

FISHERIES (NORTH AMERICA) BILL.
On Motion that the Bill be now read 2a,
THE EARL OF DERBYsaid, he did not wish to offer any opposition to the second reading of this Bill, as it was one of pressing importance, its object being to enable the Crown to carry into effect a treaty which had been already concluded between the United States and this country, and which had already received the sanction of the various Colonial Legislatures, except that of Newfoundland. If, however, they were then discussing the terms of the treaty, he should find some difficulty in admitting that the principle of reciprocity between the two countries had been fairly carried out by it. He doubted very much whether for the free navigation of the St. Lawrence obtained by the United States they had yielded a fair equivalent in the concession to us of the right of navigating Lake Michigan. But the concession on our part, for which he was unable to see that we had obtained any reciprocal advantage, was the right granted to American fishermen of taking fish, not only within certain limits, but in the very bays, harbours, and creeks of certain British

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North American Colonies; for it was idle to say that the concession to our fishermen of the right of fishing on the coasts of the United States was worth anything, for it was notorious that the only fisheries of any value were those possessed by the British Colonies. The only advantage that we had obtained in return for this concession was, in fact, that fish imported front the coast of Nova Scotia, whether in British or American vessels, should be admitted free of duty into the United States. He thought these terms were unduly favourable to the United States; but still, as the treaty had received the sanction of the various Colonial Legislatures, he was not disposed to enter further into their discussion. He wished, however, for information on two points on which some apprehensions were entertained. One point was as to whether the jurisdiction of the mixed Commission to be appointed under the treaty was to be confined, as he hoped, to the settlement of disputes that might arise as to whether particular parts of the coasts of our Colonies were or were not within the limits to be reserved for British fishermen. Another point was this: It appeared by the treaty that the American fishermen were to be allowed not only to fish upon the coasts and shores of the British Colonies, but were to be allowed to land there for the purpose of drying and curing their fish. Now, he thought that the utmost care should be taken that this right should not be extended so as to permit the erection of permanent buildings, or the maintenance of permanent establishments, the property of citizens of the United States; for if one thing more than another was likely to give rise to disputes between two countries, it was the granting territorial rights (secured by treaty) on the part of one country to the inhabitants of another. The result necessarily was, that on points guaranteed by the treaty questions continually arose between the two Governments, and their interference was invoked in disputes between the inhabitants of the two countries which might have been easily settled by an ordinary magistrate. He trusted that his noble Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster would be able to give him a satisfactory assurance that his apprehensions on these points were unfounded.
EARL GRANVILLEwas not able to give the requisite explanations. His noble Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, within whose department the Bill
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fell, was now detained at his office by a pressure of public business; but would take a future occasion to give the noble Earl the information he required. Under these circumstances, he would suggest that further observations in reference to the treaty should be postponed till the House went into Committee on the Bill.
Bill read 2a, and committed to a Committee of the whole House on Thursday next.

THE LAW OF JUDGMENTS—PURCHAS ERS PROTECTION AGAINST JUDG MENTS BILL.
LORD ST. LEONARDS presented a Bill for the better Protection of Purchasers against Judgments and Lis pendens and Life Annuities. The noble and learned Lord stated that one object of the Bill was to remedy certain anomalies and doubts which at present existed as to the law of the registration of judgments, another was to place the counties palatine of Durham and Chester on the same footing with respect to that law as the rest of the kingdom; another object had reference to the registration of annuity deeds. These deeds were formerly directed to be enrolled, in order to the protection of grantors of annuities against usurious transactions. When the usury laws were repealed last year, the Act for enrolment of annuities was very naturally repealed also. He proposed now to re-enact the registration of these deeds; and he did so for this reason. Although he was opposed to the registration of mortgages, purchases, and settlements of land, he drew a wide distinction between dealings with the estate and the title deeds thereof, and such incumbrances as were created upon it by lis pendens, judgments, &c. He thought the latter class of incumbrances should be registered; and he proposed now to enact that no life annuity should be a charge against lands, tenements, and hereditaments unless it was registered. The reason why he proposed to include this with the other classes of incumbrances to which he had referred was, that they were general incumbrances, that the title deeds of an estate never went along with the annuity, and that, therefore, it was such an incumbrance as a purchaser ought to have the means of being protected against.
THE LORD CHANCELLORsaid, he was by no means opposed to the Bill which his noble and learned Friend had just laid on the table. He was, however, sorry to

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hear that he still retained his objections to the registration of assurances, because it was his (the Lord Chancellor's) intention to introduce a Bill during the present Session, not for the general registration of assurances, but for carrying it one stage further by establishing a registration of mortgages.
LORD BROUGHAMentirely concurred with his noble and learned Friend on the woolsack in approving highly of the measure introduced by his noble and learned Friend near him. He must at the same time say that he thought it would be of very great advantage to the jurisprudence of this country if we had such a functionary as a Minister of Justice. Had we had had such an official, it would have been perfectly impossible that such anomalies as those pointed out by his noble and learned Friend should have occurred.
LORD CAMPBELLalso expressed his concurrence in the principle of the Bill, not despairing of a general Bill on registration.
Bill read 1a.

THE ADMINISTRATION.
THE EARL OF ABERDEEN: My Lords, in moving the adjournment of the House, I think it right to express my confident hope and belief that, before the next meeting of the House, the present state of anxiety and embarrassment as to the condition of the Government will be brought to a happy termination.
House adjourned to Thursday next.