subject of copyright would not be pressed forward too hastily, but that the subject would meet with the attention which its importance merited. Mr. Gurney said, that in many cases the inconvenience to authors and publishers was very great, in consequence of the number of copies with which they were bound to furnish the universities. This inconvenience was particularly felt when the work was expensive. Mr. Lysons was then publishing a work the price of which would be 60 guineas, so that before he could derive the least profit from the sale of it it would be incumbent on him to send copies to the universities amounting to 660 guineas. The petitions were ordered to lie on the table, and to be printed; as were also petitions on the same subject from Mr. Cooke, and Mr. Daniell, engravers, and from the rev. Rogers Ruding, author of " Annals of the coinage of Great Britain and its dependencies." BREACH OF PRIVILEGE.] Lord Archibald Hamilton said, that he wished to call the attention of the House to a subject of great importance, affecting the privileges of the Commons House of Parliament. He would not at present enter into any details on the subject; he wished merely to state, that it related to a contest now going on in a county for the election of a member to serve in that House, in which contest a noble lord, a member of the other House of parliament, had thought proper to interfere. He intended to submit this matter to their consideration on Friday next; and he now desired merely to know whether, as this motion related to a breach of their privileges, it would not be entitled to precedency over other business. He should abstain fromj mentioning the names of the parties, or any of the particulars, unless the chair, or any honourable member, thought that he ought to be more explicit on the subject. If no farther explation were required, he should now merely add, that he would bring forward this matter on Friday next. Lord Castlereagh observed, that several matters stood on the orders for Friday, but he apprehended that, if the noble lord wished to make his motion on that day, it would, as a matter of privilege, be entitled to precedency. REFORM OF PARLIAMENT PETITION FROM ROYTON.] Lord Stanley wished to call the attention of the House to a petition which he held in his hands. The House must be aware that. in his situation of representative for the county of Lancaster, a number of petitions were frequently put into his hands, of which he could not approve either the matter or the manner. The petition which he now held in his hands, was signed in behalf of a meeting held at Royton, by George Taylor the chairman of that meeting. He was aware that the House did not recognize any petition so signed, as the petition of those from whom it purported to come, and that it could only be received as the petition of the individual who was the chairman of the meeting. But this was not the point to which he was most anxious to draw their attention. Among the petitions put into the hands of members some came so near the line of right and propriety, that it became a matter of doubt whether they ought to be presented. With respect to this petition, he owned that he had his doubts-it certainly came very near the line of propriety-but as he always wished to leave the right of petitioning as unfettered as possible, he should be sorry to do any thing to prevent the voice of individuals from being heard. There was hardly any thing in the prayer of the petition which was improper. Whether in the body of the petition some expressions might not be considered as improper, he should leave for the House to consider when they heard it read. The Petition was brought up and read. It purported to be the petition of several thousands of people assembled at Royton, in Lancashire, on the 23d of March 1818. It commenced by stating, that self-preservation was the first law of nature. It went on to state, that many of the petitioners were weavers, whose wages did not exceed seven shillings a week, a sum altogether inadequate to the support of themselves and families, and the payment of house rent and taxes-that in this situation they were bringing children into the world whom they could never support-that God never made men to labour and to starve-that the business of quarter sessions formerly used to last only about two days-but that the quarter sessions now usually lasted twelve or fourteen days that this moral deterioration was the consequence of the unexampled misery and privation in the lower classes-that general misery was productive of ignorance and slavery-that a state of things like this could not be conducive to our Mr. Wynn contended, that there was a prosperity either at home or abroad-that great difference between a petition like the property of a country consisted in the this, and one signed by a sheriff in the produce of its land and labour-that if too name of a county meeting. This alone much of this produce went to rent and was a ground for refusing to receive it; taxes, the consequence was a proportion- but when he looked at the manner in which ate privation and suffering of those by it was worded, and the outrage offered to whose labour that produce was realized the House, by attributing selfish princi. - that the avarice and cunning of some ples to them, he could come to no other individuals had succeeded in appropriating conclusion, than that the petition was preto themselves, and those who were instru- sented for the purpose of insulting the mental to their views, so much, that no- House, and therefore ought to be rething was left to others that it was the jected. duty of wise statesmen to check this evil, Mr. Lambton would not enter into the and to oppose instead of supporting ex- question of informality; but he had at. pensive wars, the undertaking of which tended to the wording of the petition, and could neither be productive of good, nor he certainly could see nothing in it insultprevent evil-that the weight of the bur. ing or derogatory to the House. If the dens of these wars fell on the poor with hon. member meant to propose that the double force—that from the attention petition should be rejected on the ground which they had given to the proceedings of improper language, he should feel it of the House on the subject of the poor his duty to divide the House on that laws, they could see no disposition on the point. part of the House to diminish the evils of The Chancellor of the Exchequer was pauperism-that as wages increased, pau- surprised to hear it said that such a petiperism decreased—that his majesty's mi- tion ought to lie on the table. The nisters had imprisoned many of the best men words " selfish principles,"contained in in the country, on the pretence of treason, the petition were such as one member while no treason had been committed could not, without great irregularity, use that as well might men have been com- to another, at least if he was to hear any mitted for murder, while no murder had member use such language in that House, taken place-that any disorders which he would certainly call him to order. took place were solely attributable to spies Mr. Tierney said, it appeared to him and incendiaries employed by the govern that the petitioners had used the word ment—and that they attributed their mi- selfish as intending to convey that the sery to the selfish principles which had in- House had entered into a narrow view of fluenced the honourable house for a long the subject, and had not proceeded on time. The petition prayed the House to general grounds. If the House were to repeal the corn bill, that rents might fall reject such petitions as this, they might -to retrench all useles and improper ex- as well say at once, that the people should penditure, that the burden of the taxes never petition for parliamentary reform. might be diminished and to reform the Feeling as anxious as any man that the Commons House, and to admit the peopleto doors of the House should be open to pethe exercise of their just rights. On the mo- titions, he must declare his opinion, that tion, that the petition do lie on the table, there was nothing derogatory to their Mr. Bankes was of opinion, that as this dignity in the language of this petition. petition professed to come from a public The word “selfish" was the only un. meeting, and was only signed by one in- happy word on which the chancellor of dividual, it ought not to be received. He the exchequer had been able to place his was aware, that the House sometimes ex- hand. The right hon. gentleman had said, tended their indulgence so far as to con- that any member who should use that sider a petition of a public meeting word, in debate, would be called to order. the petition of the individual who signed Now he would use that word on the very it; but as this petition alleged only first opportunity, and he was sure the general opinions, he thought it would right hon. gentleman would not call him be inconvenient for the House to extend to order [Hear, hear!) If there was any their indulgence to it. He wished, there- thing really offensive to the House confore, to refer to the standing order of the tained in the petition, he would not sup the House which forbid the receiving such port it. But if people who had no land petitions. saw those who had a good deal passing a bill to serve themselves at their expense, | which the right hon. gentleman had given it was natural that they should express themselves as they felt. The question being put, "That the said Petition do lie upon the table," the House divided: Ayes, 14; Noes, 43. FORGERY OF BANK OF ENGLAND NOTES.] General Thornton rose, pursuant to the notice he had given, to move for an account of the nominal value of notes presented at the Bank of England and refused payment, in consequence of being forgeries. It was, he observed, a matter of melancholy consideration, to observe how rapidly the crime of forgery had increased within a few years. Indeed, so great had been the sacrifice of human life in consequence of convictions for forgeries of late, that several persons against whom there was sufficient evidence to convict capitally, had been suffered to escape with impunity. Compromises were frequently entered into with the accused parties, and the capital charge withdrawn in consequence of their consenting to plead guilty to the charge of uttering forged notes. He was well convinced, that if the directors of the Bank gave the proper encouragement to able artists, means might be devised of rendering forgery, if not impossible, at least extremely difficult. He was sorry that the plan proposed to the Bank about twenty years ago by Mr. Tilloch, had not been adopted. That gentleman had invented a particular kind of plate, which in the opinion of Mr. Bartolozzi, and all the eminent artists of that day, was considered as inimitable. They had declared it was impossible to imitate it with any chance of success. At that time, however, the Bank consulted Mr. Terry their engraver, and he produced what was called an imitation of it, but his imitation was declared by many celebrated artists to be so bad, that no person could be deceived by it. Since, then, the Bank had altogether neglected the plan, though its completion was still within their power. He trusted, however, that they would now, from motives of humanity, see the necessity of devising some method of preventing a crime which had risen to such a height. If the Bank directors should not come forward with a motion for a committee on the subject, he trusted the chancellor of the exchequer would. Indeed, he felt much more interested in this subject at present than before, in consequence of the motion of notice for a renewal of the Bank Restriction act. That circumstance imperatively called for some such measure as that to which he had alluded. He had heard, that the Bank had refrained from adopting the plan of Mr. Tilloch, in consequence of the expense attending it. He was not aware how great that expense was likely to be, but he was certain, that if the expense of the prosecutions for forgery incurred by the Bank was known, as he trusted it would, by the result of the motion on the subject which stood for Tuesday, they would be found not inferior to that which the Bank wished to avoid in refusing to adopt the plan of Mr. Tilloch. With the view of assisting in the object of bringing the matter more fully before the House, he should move, "That there be laid before this House an account of the total nominal value of Bank of England Notes presented at the Bank of England and refused payment on account of their being forged, for the last six years, to the latest period to which the same can be made up: specifying the total nominal value so presented and refused payment in each year respectively." Mr. Grenfell did not mean to oppose the motion, but he suggested to the hon. general whether it would not be better to withdraw it for the present, in consequence of a motion of an hon. and learned friend of his (sir J. Mackintosh) which stood for Tuesday, and which embraced the same object along with some others. General Thornton was not aware that the motion for Tuesday embraced the object which he had then in view; but as he now understood that that object would be included in the intended motion, he would, with the leave of the House, withdraw his. The motion was accordingly withdrawn. HOUSE OF COMMONS. LEATHER TAX.] Lord Holland said, he had come down to the House on Monday for the purpose of presenting some petitions, but happened to be a few minutes too late. They were against the additional duty on Leather, which he considered a most oppressive and impolitic tax. Notwithstanding the decision which had been come to in another place, he considered it his duty to lay the petitions on the table, in order that their lordships attention might be turned to the subject, and that those who asserted that the cona | AND PUBLISHERS OF LONDON RESPECTtinuance of such burdens was indispensa- ING the COPYRIGHT Bill] Mr. Wynn ble to meet the expenditure of the coun presented a Petition from the Booksellers try, should consider themselves called and Publishers of London and Westmin upon to show, that various objects of that ster; setting forth, “That by an acti expenditure, which far exceeded this tax, passed in the 54th of his majesty, to were necessary; among these objects were amend the several acts for the encouragecertain monuments, and also churches, ment of learning, by securing the copies for which a very large sum had recently and copyright of printed books to the aubeen voted. There was likewise the esta- thors of such books or their assigns, it was blishment at Windsor, which occasioned enacted, amongst other things, that 11 an expenditure nearly of the same amount copies of the whole of every book and of as the produce of this leather tax; that every volume thereof upon the paper was an establishment which afforded no upon which the largest number or imprescomfort to any one, and was not very sion of such book should be printed for creditable to those who persisted in main- sale, together with all maps and prints betaining it. Nothing had yet been said to longing thereto, which from and after the convince their lordships or the country of passing of the said act should be printed the necessity of that expenditure, which and published, on demand thereof being formed the apology of the present into made in writing to, or left at the place of lerable taxation. His lordship concluded abode of the publisher or publishers thereby presenting petitions from the tanners of, at any time within twelve months next of York, Nottingham, and King's Lynn, after the publication thereof, under the against the tax. hand of the warehouse-keeper of the ComOrdered to lie on the table. pany of Stationers, or the librarian, or other person thereto authorized by the MARRIAGE OF THE Princess ELIZA- persons or body politic and corporate, BETH.] The Earl of Liverpool rose to proprietors or managers of the libraries' propose an Address of Congratulation to following, viz. the British Museum, Sion the Prince Regent, on the subject of the College, the Bodleian Library at Oxford, marriage of his royal sister, the Princess the public library at Cambridge, the lio Elizabeth. He also intended to move brary of the Faculty of Advocates at Edin. messages of congratulation on the same burgh, the libraries of the four Universievent to the Queen, to the Princess Eli- ties of Scotland, Trinity College Library, zabeth, and to the Prince of Hesse Hom- and the King's Inns Library at Dublin, or bourg. It could not be necessary for him so much of such eleven copies as should be to take up the time of the House in intro respectively demanded on behalf of such ducing these motions with any lengthened libraries respectively, should be delivered observations, as it was not possible to by the publisher or publishers thereof reconceive that they would meet with oppo- spectively, within one month after demand sition from any quarter. With reference made thereof in writing, as aforesaid, to to the event itself he should only say, that the warehouse keeper of the said Company it certainly must be a proper subject of of Stationers for the time being; that the congratulation, that a union had taken petitioners hoped and expected that the place with a prince of a most illustrious librarians, or other persons authorized by family, high military reputation, and who the proprietors or managers of the said had displayed great talents in the course eleven libraries, would have demanded the of the long war in which he had been en- copies of such books only as would be of gaged. The noble earl concluded by real and lasting utility in such libraries, moving an Address to the Prince Regent, and that a selection would have been made which he followed with motions for Mes from the general mass of publications for sages of Congratulation to the Queen, the that purpose ; but the petitioners respectPrincess Elizabeth, and the hereditary fully state, that every book published and Prince of Hesse Hombourg. entered at Stationers-ball has been de.' The motions were agreed to, nem. diss. manded for the said libraries, without any discrimination or selection, excepting that for two of them, namely, the Advocates" HOUSE OF COMMONS. library in Edinburgh and Trinity College Thursday, April 9. in Dublin, no music or novels are claimed, PETITION FROM THE BOOK SELLERS but for all the others both music and $ novels have been demanded ; that, in the as has been asserted, of a trifling nature ; bill brought into the House on which the if it were so, they would not complain; said act was framed, the said delivery of but daily experience makes them feel books was limited to those which should more heavily the burthen, and convinces be first published after the passing of the them that its effects will be seriously insaid act, but, in the ultimate wording of jurious 'to literature in general; ihey the said act, as it now stands, the peti- therefore respectfully hope for some legistioners have become liable to a delivery of lative regulation, which may induce the all reprints of books published before the managers of these libraries to make a sepassing of the said act, although the same lection of the books which they may demay not contain any addition or altera- mand, so that the petitioners may have to tion, and although a former edition of deliver those only which are likely to be such books may be already in the posses- of real and permanent utility; and they sion of these libraries; and, from the sys- humbly conceive, that to require the libratem of indiscriminate demand adopted by ries to pay some part of the price of each the said libraries, all such re-prints are so book they may demand, will induce them demanded, which operates to discourage to make such a selection as will be most the re-printing of former publications; beneficial to themselves, and will lessen the petitioners respectfully submit, that the burthen to the petitioners; that they it cannot answer any object of instruction forbear to state in detail the heavy grievor improvement, that every book which ances which these demands and deliveries shall be published, whatever may be its have occasioned to them individually, besubject, its tendency, or its merits, should cause they hope that some regulation, to be demanded for the use of the said libra- the effect above-mentioned, will produce ries, as, from this indiscriminate demand, a material relief, and because they are ina great number of books are taken from formed that a bill is now before the House the petitioners which can only become with this object in view ; they therefore waste, and they are thereby heavily bur- most humbly pray, that the House will, thened without any adequate advantage in its wisdom, be pleased to grant them to the said libraries, while no instance has some relief, as to the demand and delivery occurred in which any books demanded of the eleven copies of books for the libraand delivered have been returned to the ries above mentioned, by enacting, in the petitioners when they were found not to bill now before the House, some regulabe necessary or useful to such libraries; tions which will make it expedient that and they humbly beg permission to infer, these libraries should only demand such that it could not be the intention of the books as it will be proper and useful that legislature that they should be burthened they should possess, either by requiring by the delivery of books which are not some part of the selling price thereof to be only not useful, but which are actually paid at the time of demand, or by such detrimental, or an incumbrance to the other provisions as to the House shall libraries themselves; the petitioners do seem meet." not wish to deprive the said libraries of Petitions in favour of the bill were also the beneficial enjoyment of their right presented from Mr. Valpy, and from cerunder the said act, so far as the real ob- tain artists and engravers. They were jects of their respective institutions are ordered to lie on the table, and to be ihereby promoted, and so far as such right printed. could be exercised with such modifications as will preserve the petitioners from un- Police OF THE METROPOLIS.] On necessary grievance; but the petitioners the motion of Mr. Bennet, a committee feel, that nine-tenths of the publications was appointed, to inquire into the state daily issuing from the press, are neither of the Police of the Metropolis, and to necessary nor advantageous to all those report the same, with their observations libraries, and yet the delivery heavily bur- thereupon, to the House. The committhens the petitioners, and that they are tee to consist of the following members, all aggrieved thereby, but on some, from viz. Mr. Bennet, Mr. Abercromby, sir the expense and risk of their publications, F. Burdett, Mr. Butterworth, Mr. F. Douit falls with peculiar severity; the griev- glas, Mr. Holford, Mr. Lambton, lord ance under which the petitioners labour, Ossulston, sir S. Romilly, Mr. Sumner, and from which they humbly pray the Mr. Wynn, Mr. Davies Gilbert, Mr. Ward, House to afford them some relief, is not, Mr. Sheldon, sir R. Ferguson, sir T. AC |