Lords Sitting of 18 May 1865

MINUTES.
PUBLIC BILLS—First Reading—Pheasants (Ireland)* [109] [H.L.]
Second Reading—Customs and Inland Revenue* (105); Police Superannuation* (95); Companies Workmens' Education* (102) [H.L.]
Report—Metropolitan Houseless Poor* [70].
Third Reading—Married Womens' Property (Ireland)* (70), and passed.

COMPANIES WORKMENS' EDUCATION BILL—(No. 102.)—SECOND READING;
THE ARCHBISHOP OF YORK, in moving the second reading of this Bill, stated that its object was to enable Companies and Corporations to provide for the education and religious instruction of the families of their workmen, and to provide means of education and worship for their use. It was undoubted that there
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did exist a great desire among large Companies employing many workmen to make some better provision for their educational, moral, and religious improvement than was found in many cases to exist at present; and this Bill, which was merely an enabling Bill, provided that such Companies and Corporations, with consent of three-fifths of their shareholders, might vote money or appropriate land for the purposes he had indicated.
Bill read 2ª, and committed, to a Committee of the Whole House on Tuesday next.

REPORTS OF SELECT COMMITTEES.

  RESOLUTION'.
  EARL STANHOPE moved the following Resolution:—
  "That in the Case of every Select Committee of this House, other than Select Committees on Private Bills, any Report presented from such Select Committee shall not merely be laid on the table of the House, but shall be printed and circulated; and Notice shall be given on the Minutes of the Day on which it may be intended to take the Report into consideration."
  The noble Earl said, that the Resolution was intended to remove an irregularity that existed in the proceedings of their Lordships' House, by preventing a Select Committee laying its Report on the table without its being printed and circulated. At present, if a Report was merely laid on the table, it remained utterly unknown to all Peers who had not formed part of the Committee. It could not be more completely unknown to the House generally if instead of being laid upon the table it had been flung into the Thames. The present system was not only anomalous in theory, but mischievous in practice. In proof of this he might allude to what had taken place with reference to the Report of the Select Committee on the granting of a pension to Mr. Edmunds. That Select Committee presented a Report recommending Mr. Edmunds for a pension, It was merely laid on the table, not printed; and, consequently, it remained entirely unknown to all Peers who had not belonged to that Committee. If it had been printed and circulated among their Lordships the matter would have been discussed both in public and in private; it would have probably been taken into consideration, explanations would have been asked, and probably the result would have been dif-

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  ferent from what occurred. As it was it remained on the table unnoticed for a week, and escaped observation until other circumstances brought it to light. Of course, no blame attached to the Committee, who merely followed the precedent before them; but the question was how far the present practice was proper or advantageous. He had taken counsel in this matter with the highest authorities among the officers of the House and with his noble Friend the Chairman of Committees, who agreed that the Resolution he proposed would be an improvement, and would be effectual to prevent the recurrence of such a case as that to which he had alluded. He, therefore, asked their Lordships to adopt it.
  Resolution agreed to.

  PHEASANTS (IRELAND) BILL [H.L.]
  A Bill to alter the Days between which Pheasants may be killed in Ireland—Was presented by The Earl of BLLMORE; read 1ª; and to be printed. (No. 109.)
  House adjourned at half past Five o'clock, till To-morrow, half past Ten o'clock.