Mr. Corry propofed a claufe to limit the duration of the bill to one year

Mr. Foster faid he would not object to this motion, but he thought it would he better to vote the duties for one year, and not to limit the duration of the bill, which contained a number of regulations which it would not be wife to limit to one year.

Mr. Ormay laid, that this bill contained a clause to enable the officers to collect all arrears of duty, and he fuppofed the bill of next year would contain a fimilar claufe. There was one circumftance which he wished to mention, which was, that in the former bill there was a claufe to continue the regulations refpecting the American treaty during the continuance of that treaty. The claufe in the prefent bill continued thefe regulations for one year, provided the treaty fhould continue fo long.

The motion of Mr. Corry was agreed to, the bill paffed the Committee, and the report was ordered to be received the next day.

CORN AND MALT.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer took notice of a petition which had been prefented on the 15th of February laft, on behalf of a great clafs of perfons who were growers of barley and maltfters, grounded on a complaint against the laft act of Parliament for impofing a duty on malt, that the corn act alfo was extremely inadequate in its provifions, partial and oppreffive in its operations, and highly injurious to agriculture, and praying that the whole of the fyftem may be revised, &c. He had reafon for believing that this fubject would undergo a thorough investigation by thofe who were the beft qualified to form a correct opinion upon it; for which reafon, in order that the public might have the full benefit of their labours, he intended, at an early day after the approaching Eafter holidays, to fubmit the fubject of this petition to the confideration of a Committee of that Houfe, fo far as it related to complaints against the corn act of the 35th of the King, and that fuch Committee should confider the matter thereof, and devife fuch alterations as may be neceffary according to exifting circumftances.

Mr. Fofter wished the right hon. Gentleman to extend his views further, and to take in the whole fyftem of the corn laws as they now ftood, both with regard to England and Ireland, and put the whole law into one regular and folid fyftem; for that the laft general act which applied to that ubject had produced fome injurious effects upon agricul

ture,

ture, which had been impeded in its progrefs in a manner , that had not been felt before the paffing of that law. He thought it his duty to throw this out as a matter for the ferious confideration of that Houfe and of the right hon. Gentleman.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that this was a subject which was under the particular confideration of a right hon. Friend of his in that Houfe, and which he would bring forward for the attention of Parliament; and the Houfe would then have to decide whether they would go into a Committee upon the broad principle which the right hon. Gentleman had stated, or give inftructions to a Committee how they were to take the subject into confideration.

Mr. Corry faid, it was in his contemplation to have brought the fubject under the confideration of Parliament on the renewal of the act, &c.

Mr. Alexander brought up the report of the Committee of Ways and Means.

The refolution, which was for raising two millions by way of loan on Exchequer bills, was read, agreed to, and a bill ordered to be brought in purfuant thereto.

Mr. Corry moved the order of the day on the Irish countervailing duty bill.

The bill paffed through a Committee of the whole House, and the report was ordered to be received the next day. Adjourned.

HOUSE OF LORDS.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14.

Counsel were heard in continuation relative to the Scotch appeal, the Duke of Queensberry v. M'Murdo, after which their Lordships adjourned the further hearing of the cafe till Wednesday next.

The bills before the Houfe were forwarded in their feveral stages: among these the Weft India dock improvement bill was read a third time and paffed, and Alderman Boydeil's lottery bill was read a fecond time, and committed for Friday.

On the fecond reading of the Irish priests and deacons orders' bill, the Lord Chancellor thought proper to remark a verbal error which obtained in the title thereof. In the fifth article of the act for the union of Great Britain and Ireland, provifion was wifely made for the fecurity of a very important object, namely the complete union of the churches of

England

England and Ireland. The words of the act were, That the churches of England and Ireland, as now by law established, be united into one proteftant epifcopal church, to be called, The United Church of England and Ireland; and that the doctrine, worship, difcipline. and government of the faid united church shall be, and fhall remain in full force for ever, as the fame are now by law established for the church of England." Now, in the title of the bill before the House it was called "the United Churches of England and Ireland," whereas in ftrict propriety, and agreeably to the terms of the act of union, as he had juft quoted them, it fhould be the United Church. He thought it proper in that ftage of the bill to call their Lordships' attention to this error, which at the proper opportunity could be regularly amended..

The bill was then ordered to be referred to a Committee of the whole Houfe the next day.

Mr. Alcock, from the treafury of Ireland, prefented an account of the monies iffued by that treasury, for the service of the year 1803, with a statement of the difpofition thereof. When the accounts were laid on the table,

The Earl of Suffolk obferved, that he thould have to call their Lord hips' attention to certain parts of them-perhaps to fome paris connected with the military branch; but certainly to the expenditure of the barrack department, which be conceived to be enormous. There were already, he believed, expended on thefe buildings more than two millions of money, and before the erections now carrying on were completed, an additional million must be expended. He fhould think it his duty to call the attention of the Houfe to this part of the accounts before them, and in order to enable him to do that the more effectually, he moved that the accounts in queftion be printed.

No objection being made to this propofal, it was ordered accordingly.

Some private bufinefs being difpofed of, their Lordships adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS..

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14.

Mr. Cartwright obtained leave to bring in a bill to amend the condition of chimney-fweepers' apprentices.

On the motion of Lord Martham, Sir James Earle, M. D. was admitted to the bar of the Houfe, and after having been

doly

duly fworn, he stated that John Atkyns Wright, Esq. a Member of that hon. Houfe, who had been appointed a Member of the Middlefex election Committee, was prevented by illness from attending his duty in that Houfe, and that according to his opinion, it was probable that the hon. Member would be unable to attend his duty for three weeks to come. The phyfician having withdrawn, Mr. Wright was, on the motion of Lord Marfham, excufed from further attendance on the said Committee.

Mr. Alcock presented accounts of the application of money iffued from the treafury of Ireland for the fervice of the year 1803. Ordered to lie on the table.

Lord W. Ruffell brought up a petition from the owners of mills, lands, and manufactories on the rivers in Surrey likely to be affected by the bill for a canal between Croydon and Portsmouth. This petition was figned by Sir Beaumont Hotham, Sir Giles Rook, and a number of other perfons, owners of property to a great extent on the feveral rivers.

On the motion of Mr. Hurft, John Wilfon was brought to the bar. The Speaker then addressed him nearly in the following terms :

John Wilson, a felect Committee of this House, which was appointed to try the merits of the Aylesbury election petition, has reported that you have been guilty of grofs and wilful prevarication. In the corrupt and fcandalous scenes which have been exhibited there, you have acted a principal part. A fyftematic plan was adopted for the bribery of the electors, which plan was fo far matured as must inevitably tend to the prejudice of the freedom of election, and materially infringe upon the privileges of this House. But though by fuch means the privileges of the House may be violated for a time, no plan whatever can poffibly be fo firmly established, as to fubvert or prevent the operation of thofe falutary regulations which the Legislature has adopted for the prefervation of freedom in election, and for the punishment of offences like yours. Among the confufion and embarrassment which you created, you were the first to fuffer. Your prevarication has been reported to this Houfe; you have been imprisoned in the common gaol of Newgate, by which your character has been, ftigmatifed, and you have fuffered in your perfon. The juftice of this House is so far fatisfied; the rest of your conduct is referved for future investigation, and you are now ordered to be discharged upon paying your fees.

Mr.

Mr. Hurst then moved, that the obfervations of the Speaker upon this occafion, fhould be entered on the Journals of the Houfe. Ordered.

The Irith duty, the Irish countervailing duty, and the Irish malt bills were, feverally reported, and ordered to be read a third time the next day.

The two millions loan bill was read a first time, and ordered to be read a fecond time the next day.

The American trade indemnity bill was read a fecond time and committed for the next day.

The House went into a Committee on the expiring laws bill: feveral refolutions were read and agreed to, and the report was ordered to be received the next day.

Mr. Secretary Yorke obtained leave to bring in a bill to amend the militia laws in Ireland, fo far as refpects the provilion for the families of the Irish militia.

Mr. Calcraft ftated, that he had heard it reported, that a right hon. Gentleman (Mr. Pitt), who was not now in his place, intended to bring forward his motion relative to the naval defence of the country on Friday next, instead of on Thursday. He would be glad if any friend of the right hon. Gentleman could inform him with certainty, on which day the motion was to be fubmitted to the House.

Mr. Canning declared that he had never heard any doubt upon the subject, and he was confident that his right hon. Friend intended to bring forward his motion the next day.

ACCOUNTS.

Mr. Gregor expreffed a wish to move for fome accounts relative to the property tax. He wished to be informed what progrefs had been made with respect to the property tax, and for that purpose intended to move for an account of the affetsments returned to the Tax-office; if, however, there was any dojection, he should merely give notice of it for a future day. He alfo intended to move for an account of the fums paid into, and of the charges upon the confolidated fund between the 5th of January, 1803, and the 5th of January, 1804, diftinguishing each quarter. There was another circumftance on which he wished to make a remark, relative to the printing of accounts laid before the Houfe; it frequently happened, from only one copy of an account being laid before the House, which was immediately fent to be printed, that the Members were, in the mean time, deprived of all information upon the fubject. He concluded by moving for the account he had alluded to refpecting the confolidated fund.

VOL. II. 1803-4.

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