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for the liberty of the subject as any man, and so had his father before him.

Mr. Perceval objected to a measure of this kind, which had been formerly withdrawn, on account of the late pe riod of the session, being again brought forward, without any ground assigned, also at an advanced period of the session. He should therefore negative the motion.

Mr. H. Browne, Mr. Giddy, Mr. M. A. Taylor, and Mr. Rose, all spoke against the measure, and it was negatived without a division.

The Secretary at War obtained leave to bring in a bill for better regulating the office of pay-master general, so far as regards the accounts to be given in to the secretary at

war.

On the question for the second reading of the oxymuriatic acid bill, a conversation ensued, in which Mr. Foster, Mr. Ponsonby, &c. opposed it, on the ground that it went to impose a duty in Ireland, which was not warranted by the union. It was at length agreed, that the measure should be taken up early next session, and the bill was ordered to be read a second time this day two months.

Alluding to the circumstance which had occurred in relation to the military inquiry commissioners bill, by which' one act was suffered to expire before the bill renewing it could be carried into a law, Mr. Perceval obtained leave to bring in a bill to remedy any inconvenience which has or may arise from the expiring of acts before the passing of other acts to continue them.

Lord Binning presented the third report of the committee on the sugar distillery. Ordered to be printed.

Mr. Foster brought in the Irish loan bill; which was read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time to

morrow.

He also gave notice that he should on Monday move for the house to go into a committee to consider of the laws regulating an intercourse of spirits between Great Britain and Ireland.

Mr. Huskisson obtained leave to bring in a bill for repealing part of the act of last session relating to the sinking fund.

He also gave notice that he should to-morrow move, that the house do go into a committee on the granting of duties on letters to the Brazils.

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The Chancellor of the Exchequer gave a similar notice as to the duties on coffee, with the view of lessening those duties, so as to discountenance smuggling, increase the fair revenue, and also the consumption of the article, without, at the same time, diminishing the consumption of tea.

LOCAL MILITIA BILL.

On the motion of the Chancellor of the Fxchequer, the English local militia bill was read a third time.

Lord Castlereagh brought up a number of clauses as riders to the bill. Among others, one for raising part of the local militia, in the same proportion as the ordinary militia, from among the tinners and miners in Cornwall.

His lordship brought up another clause, enabling magistrates to grant one-half of the penalties to in-. formers.

Mr. Barham objected that the bill ought to be recommitted. It was impossible that the house could have any idea of the effect of the clauses now introduced into the bill.

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Sir J. Newport strongly inforced this objection. Why were different stages fixed for discussing every bill in that house? According to the mode pursued by the noble. lord, one discussion on the principle of a bill was sufficient. If he had omitted any thing, let him bring it in as a separate bill."

Mr. Windham said, such a multiplicity of riders of different descriptions, he was satisfied, had never yet been mounted on any one thing. They heard of riders mounting two, three, or four horses, but here there were five, six, or seven riders clapped upon one horse.

Lord Castlereagh stated that they were only explanatory. On the question for bringing up the clause, a division took place :

Ayes
Noes

61

15

Majority

46

Lord Castlereagh then proposed a form of conviction, and a provision that there should be no appeal by cer tiorari from the conviction of the magistrates.

Mr. Windham and Sir Arthur Piggott objected to it,

.

on the ground that the right of appeal was not to be lightly taken away.

The clause was agreed to.

Lord Castlereagh then proposed a clause, enabling the magistrates to call out the local militia in cases of riot and providing that whatever number of days they should be out in this manner, should be deducted from the subsequent number of days of drill.

Sir Francis Burdett opposed it, as shifting the power lodged by the constitution in the sheriff to the magistrates. Mr. Windham thought the clause would be vesting enormous power in the magistrates; and that it would be useless in its operation, as it would be easier to call in the regular troops, than to assemble this force when dispersed.

Mr. Perceval defended it.

Mr. Whitbread observed, that this was vesting in the magistrates powers that might be dangerous to the liberties of the subject; and that if this was to be proposed at all, it ought to be by a separate bill.

Mr. D. Giddy thought it very proper that magistrates should have this power.,

Sir S. Romilly observed, that as this was a novelty in the constitution, an opportunity ought to be allowed to consider the objections to it. It was therefore extremely improper to propose such a provision by way of rider to a bill, which deprived the house of the opportunity of giving it that consideration which the importance of the subject deserved.

The house divided:

For the clause
Against it

Majority

After the clause had been read,

97

80

67

Mr. Sheridan observed, that it was more objectionable than had at first been imagined. It conferred unprecedented powers of interference with the military on the civil magistrate, and was besides perfectly absurd with a view to the execution of its own object. A riot, suppose, might take place on Saturday: a notice must be fixed on the church door on Sunday, and the local militia might perhaps be ready to begin to suppress it on Monday. Could any thing be more ridiculous?

396

THE PARLIAMENTARY REGISTER.

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Lord Castlereagh opposed Mr. Sheridan's amendment, which was supported by Mr. Windham, and opposed by Lord Louvaine, Mr. Montague, and Sir J. Orde. The amendment was then negatived without a division.

Mr. Whitbread then proposed as an amendment, that the justices of the peace respectively employed, should have no military command, which was also negatived without a division.

A considerable time having elapsed in engrossing the different amendments,

Mr. W. Wynne moved an amendment with respect to the appropriation of the penalties to be levied.

Lord Castlereagh objected to the amendment, and it was negatived without a division.

On the question that the bill do pass,

Mr. Windham congratulated the house upon the lessons which it had received in the course of the evening, in the science of legislation, by the different processes of erasure, engrossing, &c. which used to be transacted out of doors. These processes, however, had occupied so much of the time of the house (no less than five hours) that he should now compress what he had to state into a small compass. He observed in setting out, that the military establishment of this and every other country was composed of two divisions, the army and what is not army. Of the former division he did not now intend to speak; respecting the latter, it was constituted upon two principles, either of being incorporated or unincorporat ed; and this distinction formed the great ground of dif ference between him and the noble lord. The noble lord was of opinion, that the whole subsidiary force of the country should be regimented; he thought, on the contrary, that the enrolment, and a certain degree of training, was all that was necessary; and that the incorporation proposed to be carried into effect by the bill was a great burthen, and would be attended with very little benefit. No man would seriously contend, that these regi ments of local militia would be fit to be placed in the line of the army in case of invasion; and if they could not be so employed, incorporating them in regiments was locking up a part of the population of the country, starving the army, and absolutely purchasing weakness at an enormous expence. With respect to the volunteers, the noble lord evidently wished to get rid of them altogether,

The whole plan he could not compare to any thing but the idea of an army-clothier's making soldiers red, blue, and yellow, and of all colours. Did the noble lord think, that by such means he would frighten Buonaparte? If he did so, there was one improvement which he would suggest to him, which was to give them fur caps and whiskers. Having alluded to such circumstances, he could not but regret the practice that was getting i. to the army, of introducing into it these foreign fashions. For God's sake, said he, if we are to have dirt, let us have English dirt; and if you do think to terrify your enemies by your external appearance, form corps of coal-heavers and chimney-sweepers. The latter might be employed with much advantage in the woods, where they could mount the trees like squirrels. Mr. Windham then proceeded to expose the pretension of the noble lord's plan to novelty. He shewed its tendency to injure the ordinary recruiting of the army; to hurt the morals of the people; to derange their whole economy and habits; and totally to destroy all military distinction.

Sir Francis Burdett expressed his disapprobation of the measure, both as oppressive and unconstitutional. The bill united in itself all opposite defects. It was at once oppressive and ineffectual; harassing to the subject, and at the same time completely impotent as a measure of national defence. It ought rather to be called a bill of pains and penalties, than a bill for the defence of the country, as it contained no less than eleven penalties, without counting those which might have been annexed to the clause brought up by the noble lord this evening. He did not think that we ought to trust for our defence to a standing army alone, after having seen it fail in so many instances in other countries. But we ought to look at the internal condition of the people, upon which the existing taxes already bore too heavily, and which would certainly be rendered much worse in consequence of the oppressive enactments of the present bill. He professed to be a great enemy to the practice of flogging, as detrimental even to the service itself, and in this opinion he was sup ported by the rule of the French armies, where this prac tice was wholly exploded. The noble lord seemed to act on the principle of "evil, be thou my good;" he has al tered the system of the right honourable gentleman on

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