following no other occupation, might be deprived of their exemptions. The Earl of Lauderdale also entertained the same doubt, and proposed to insert words to the effect, that a Dissenting Minister should not be deprived of his exemptions on account of the occupation of from twenty-five to thirty acres of land. The Lord Chancellor was of opinion that the same rule in this respect would apply to Dissenting Ministers as did to the Clergy, namely, that although a clergyman could not take land to farm, yet that his being in possession of a lease of land in consequence of the death of a relation, or his Kolling land in fee-simple, was not considered in law a taking to farm. This construction of the law would also, he conceived, be applied under this Act, to Dissenting Ministers; so that their possession of land, under such circumstances, would not deprive them of exemptions. With respect to the Amendments, he thought some caution should be used, lest all the benefits sought to be conferred by the Bill should be risked. The clause was struck out. Earl Stanhope contended, that under the words of the Bill, assemblies for religious worship, not consisting of more than twenty, exclusive of the family and servants of the occupier of the premises, the doors being required not to be fastened, would be liable to be intruded upon, and that two or three more coming in would make it an illegal assembly, the place of meeting not being certified. therefore moved an Amendment to confine the non-fastening of the doors to certified places of meeting. He The Lord Chancellor contended against this construction of the Act, and observed, that if any dispute arose as to the number of the congregation, it could be easily settled by an inquiry into the fact. The Amendment was negatived. Earl Stanhope moved another Amendment in the proviso, saving the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, to confine that jurisdiction to the Ministers of the Church, complaining, that he could not learn from any one what was meant by the phrase, the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction over the Church. The Archbishop of Canterbury observed, that over the Church, meant over those who belonged to its communion, and contended, that to save the jurisdiction of the Church was of great importance in a Bill like this, in which con siderable concessions were made to those who dissented from the Church. The Earl of Liverpool stated, that this proviso left the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction exactly where it was, and that if any alteration was wished to be made, it ought to be brought forward as a substantive measure. Lord Holland agreed in this opinion, and observed, that the question of the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction was one of great importance and very complicated, which required much consideration, and that to use an expression of his noble friend's (Lord Stanhope), it would not be a tidy wav of going to work, to effect that jurisdiction by a side wind, through the medium of an Amendment in the present Bill. Earl Stanhope contended for his Amendment, but observed, that there was no way of tidily amending the present Bill. The Amendment was negatived. The Bill passed through the Committee, and the House having resumed, the Report was ordered to be received to-morrow. FRAME-WORK KNITTERS' BILL. The Earl of Lauderdale, in adverting to this Bill, contended that it was founded upon most mischievous principles of legislation. A part of the Bill went to interfere in the bargains made between the master manufacturer and his workmen, upon a principle which could not fail to produce the most mischievous consequences; and he could not help observing, with relation to this point, that the idea of some persons, that a minimum of wages would be beneficial to the workmen employed, was the most mistaken notion that had ever been conceived; for the inevitable consequence of a minimum must be, that in the case of a slackness of work, the masters would discharge their workmen altogether, rather than employ them at the minimum wages. The other part of the Bill was equally mischievous; it went to prohibit an article of manufacture, on the alleged ground of its not being a good article, although that article was in great demand, not only in the interior, but also for exportation. He could not conceive a more monstrous principle of legislation. What would the people of Nottingham say, if an Act were to be passed to prohibit the manufacture of worsted and thread stockings, upon the supposition that all persons would wear silk stockings? And yet this was precisely the principle on which the present Bill proceeded : an article of low price was to be prohibited, in order to give place to an article of high price, instead of allowing the only just and proper principle to operate, namely, for the demand to regulate the supply. He trusted that no similar legislative measure would again be attempted to be introduced, and that this Bill would be unanimously rejected. His lordship concluded by moving, that the Bill be read a second time this day three months. The Earl of Liverpool entirely concurred with the noble lord, although he was satisfied of the goodness of the motives which actuated the very respectable individual who introduced this Bill in the other House, and the well-intentioned, though certainly most mistaken views of those at whose instance it was introduced. He, however, thought there could not be a more mischievous principle of legislation than that on which this Bill rested. It had been well said in a foreign country, when it was asked, what should be done to make manufacturers and commerce prosper ? The answer was, laisser faire; and it was undoubtedly true, that the less commerce and manufactures were meddled with by legislation, the more they were likely to prosper. Were they once to entangle themselves in the principle which this Bill sought to establish, he knew not where they were to stop, until the commerce and manufactures of the country were utterly ruined. It was to machinery that we owe our superiority in commerce and manufactures amongst the nations of the world. Lord Holland entirely agreed in the sentiments uttered by the noble earl and his friends, and also in doing justice to the excellence of the motives of those by whom this Bill had been introduced and promoted. The principle, however, of the Bill was a most mistaken and mischievous one. Accident had carried him to countries where machinery had once been used, and manufactures prosperously carried on, but which had been wholly destroyed by the meddling policy of legislation, those employed in them reduced to the utmost distress, and the country devastated. These circumstances, he trusted, would be a warning to the Legislature of this country, against introducing so dangerous a - principle of legislation as that upon which the present Bill was founded. Lord Viscount Sidmouth also entirely concurred in these sentiments. The Bill had been introduced in the other House from the purest motives, but he (Lord Sidmouth) felt himself compelled, by his public duty, to give his direct negative to the principle which it sought to establish, but which he conceived to be most mischievous in its tendency and consequences; and he trusted in God, that no such principle would be again attempted to be introduced in any Bill brought up to the House. The consideration of the Bill was deferred for three months. PEACE PRESERVATION BILL. The House resolved itself into a Committee on this Bill. -Some verbal Amendments were made by Lord Viscount Sidmouth, to correct two or three inaccuracies; and the House having resumed, the Report was ordered to be received to-morrow. PRISONERS OF WAR ESCAPE BILL. In a Committee on this Bill, the Lord Chancellor gave notice, that either on the Report or on the third reading, be should move a clause, enacting that nothing in this Bill should prevent any prosecutions which might be commenced against offenders of this description under the common law. The Bill was reported, and ordered to be read a third time on Monday. The Amendments of the Commons in the English and Irish Insolvent Debtors' Bills were ordered to be taken into consideration to-morrow. On the motion of the Earl of Harrowby, some papers relative to the Clergy were ordered to be printed. Adjourned. DECLARATION of the Members of her Majesty's Council, respecting the state of his Majesty's Health :-Made on the 4th of April, 1812. We the underwritten, Members of the Council appointed to assist her Majesty in the execution of the trusts committed to her Majesty, by virtue of the statute passed in the 51st year of his Majesty's reign, intituled, "An Act to provide for the Administration of the Royal Authority, and for the care of his Majesty's Royal Person, during the continuance of his Majesty's illness, and for the resumption of the exercise of the Royal Authority by his Majesty ;"-having duly met together, on this fourth day of April, 1812, at the Queen's Lodge, near to Windsor Castle; and having called upon us, and examined upon oath the Physicians, and other persons attendant upon his Majesty, and having ascertained the state of his Majesty's health by all such ways and means, as appeared to us to be necessary for that purpose, do hereby declare and certify, That the state of his Majesty's bealth, at the time of this our meeting, is not such as to enable him to resume the personal exercise of his Royal Authority. That his Majesty's bodily health is as good as at any of the periods of our former Reports. That his Majesty's mental health is as much disordered as it has been during any part of his Majesty's indisposition. That all the Physicians in attendance concur in thinking, that his Majesty's final and complete recovery is extremely improbable, and they do not expect it; but they also concur in stating, that they do not entirely despair of it. A true copy, CHETWYND. (Signed) C. CANTUAR MONTROSE ELLENBOROUGH DECLARATION Made on the 4th of July, 1812. We the underwritten, &c. having duly met together, on this fourth day of July, 1812, at the Queen's Lodge, near to Windsor Castle; and having called before us, and examined upon oath, the Physicians, and other persons attendant upon his Majesty, and having ascertained the state of his Majesty's health by such ways and means as appeared to us to be necessary for that purpose, do hereby declare and certify, That the state of his Majesty's health, at the time of this our meeting, is not such as to enable his Majesty to resume the personal exercise of his Royal fonctions. That his Majesty's bodily health is as good as it was at the period of our last Report. That his Majesty's mental health is as much disordered as during any period of his Majesty's indisposition. That the hope of his Majesty's ultimate and complete recovery is diminished since the period of our last Report; but that such recovery is not absolutely despaired of. A true copy, CHETWYND. VOL. III.-1812, (Signed as above.) Ꮞ Ꮓ |