§ Order of the Day for the Third Reading read.
THE BISHOP OF CARLISLE, in moving that the Bill be now read the third time, said, he hoped the Bill might be sent down to the other House with such momentum as to give it some chance of passing. The speech made upon the second reading by the right rev. Prelate (the Bishop of Peterborough) had been much considered, and had had a great effect in the country; but he (the Bishop of Carlisle) was disposed to hope that, notwithstanding that speech, the Bill would have a better chance of being passed than the right rev. Prelate had prophesied. The right rev. Prelate said that he (the Bishop of Carlisle) might just as well read tie) Bill a second time in his own study as in that House; and he pointed out that the Government would not pass a Bill of this sort through the other House. The right rev. Prelate referred to the position of Parties, and said that the passing of any ecclesiastical legislation would be impossible, and that the Bill would never get beyond that House; but ho (the Bishop of Carlisle) wished to point out that this was not a Private Bill, but that it had been prepared, after mature consideration, by a representative body of noblemen and gentlemen, who wore appointed by the Government to deal with the questions referred to them, and this Bill was the result of their consideration. It was absolutely necessary to prevent the labours of the Commissioners from being altogether futile; and, therefore, it ought not to be on the footing of a Private Bill, which had to knock its way through the House of Commons in the best way it could by its own unaided efforts. He thought ho bad a right to appeal to Her Majesty's Government to give a Bill of this kind something in the nature of sympathy and support. 520 He did not ask them to adopt the Bill as their own, but only to give to it such an amount of sympathy as would secure for it a reasonable consideration in the other House, and so do that which would be very much to their own credit—namely, utterly refute the description and prophecy made by the right rev. Prelate (the Bishop of Peterborough). The Bill in itself was so simple, so reasonable, and so necessary, that if it were only brought before the House of Commons he had not the slightest doubt that the justice of that House would pass it. In conclusion, the right rev. Prelate moved the third reading of the Bill.
Moved," That the Bill be now read 3a."—(The Lord Bishop of Carlisle.)
THE EARL OF KIMBERLEYremarked, that, as regarded the intention of the Bill, he need hardly assure the right rev. Prelate that the Bill received the general approval of the Government; but he was unable to promise that facilities would be given by the Government for passing it through the other House, because any such facilities must depend upon the state of Public Business there. Considering the uncertainty of doing Business in the House of Commons, the right rev. Prelate could hardly expect him to give an assurance that the Bill would be taken up by the Government.
Motion agreed to; Bill read 3a according; an Amendment made; Bill passed, and sent to the Commons.