the 9th of August last, up to the 28th visional arrangement with the Republic of March, for England and Wales, ex- of Uruguay, in South America, for silver cluding the metropolis, is 9,776, and in and gold coinage. The arrangement, at the metropolis, 2,501 making alto- present, is only provisional, and I cannot gether, 12,277. Of these, 1,155, having give details as to price. As to the second been previously convicted, are subject to point, I have very carefully and anxpolice supervision. Other offences were iously examined the question, whether created under the Act. I have received it is possible that the whole coinage of this morning a Return from several con- this country could be conducted by considerable towns up to the 28th of March; tract; but I have satisfied myself, for but I have not yet had time to examine reasons which appear to me conclusive, it. In the metropolis and police district that it would not be attended with ecothere have been convicted of receiving nomy or security. The next question is, stolen property under the Act, 30; of whether we may adopt the policy of exeharbouring thieves, eight; of purchas- cuting orders for the coinage of other ing metal, six; of assaults on the police, countries—a policy adopted by almost where the sentences exceed two months, every country in Europe. We are obliged 64; and the number of suspected per- to keep up very large and expensive sons, loitering vagrants, &c., is 287. The establishments, which have often very reports from Birmingham and other little to do. Last year there was a conlarge towns speak very encouragingly siderable gold coinage. This year it will of the operation of the Act. The mere be very light. I am, therefore, of opiapprehension of the enforcement of the nion that it is desirable, rather than Act has had a beneficial influence. Be- keep our establishments unemployed, fore the end of the Session I shall have that we should do as other countries do, an opportunity, in introducing an Amend- and undertake orders for the coinage of ment of the Habitual Criminals Act, to other countries. I am prepared to enter communicate to the House full informa- into engagements of that kind, and to tion on the subject. execute such orders, to keep our establishments not otherwise employed. As to the question of injury to parties in the manufacturing towns, I am not aware that the private coiners of this country therefore I do not see how this engageever executed gold or silver coinage, and ment of the Mint can be injurious to them. As to the bronze coinage, I believe it was executed in Birmingham; but I am bound to say that if it had been possible to employ the Mint upon THE MINT-COINAGE FOR FOREIGN COUNTRIES.-QUESTION. MR. DIXON said, he would beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether the Mint has lately received, or tendered for, an order for Coinage from a South American Government; and, if so, at what price; whether the policy indicated in the following extract from the supplementary Memorandum on the changes proposed in the Mint, dated November 17, 1869, is hereafter to be adopted by Her Majesty's Govern ment-viz. That there would appear to be no reason why the Mint should refuse to undertake the execution of Coinages for Foreign Governments. Many Contracts for Foreign Coinages have of late years been executed at Birmingham with large profits to the Contractor; and it is obvious that the Mint, with the appliances at its command and the risk to which it may at any time be exposed of being left unemployed, could with advantage undertake such Contracts;" and, whether, in his opinion, such a policy, if adopted by the Government, could be otherwise than injurious to the manufacturing interests affected by it? THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER: Sir, it is quite true that the Government have entered into a pro it, it would have been executed more cheaply than it could be by contract. of my hon. Friend is that we are preThe result of my answer to the Question pared to act for foreign countries, and to undertake the execution of coinages for them. BETTING ON HORSE RACES. QUESTION. MR. T. HUGHES said, he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether, having regard to the public scandal connected with betting on horse races, and to the failure of the attempts in the Jockey Club to provide an adequate remedy, the Government will be prepared to take the necessary steps with a view to le gislation on the subject at an early | plied in the Question of the hon. Gendate ? tleman; but as he had received his kit and part of his bounty, and as there was nothing to prevent his re-enlisting, if discharged, the Adjutant General, with the approval of His Royal Highness the Field Marshal Commanding-in-Chief, decided against his discharge. As regards initiating a better system, I may take the opportunity of saying that I intend, when we renew recruiting, to endeavour to do so without bounty. As respects the publication of the Correspondence, there is nothing in these particular letters which there would be any objection to produce; but I am of opinion that, speaking generally, the House will seldom think it right to call for the production of letters from the commanding officers of a regiment to the authorities at the Horse Guards. MR. BRUCE: Sir, in consequence of the information received at the Home Office of the great and widespread mischief arising from betting on horse races, authority was given to the Chief Commissioner of Police (Colonel Henderson) to institute proceedings against bettinghouses, and the effect, on the whole, has been considerable. One effect was to bring into light some defects of the existing law. One doubtful question is now under the decision of the Courts of Law. Another effect of the operation has been that the persons convicted in this country have taken refuge in Scotland, where the Act does not apply, and formed establishments abroad, especially at Boulogne. The Lord Advocate has, so far as Scotland is concerned, we shall in course of preparation, a Bill by which, be able to check the evil. With regard to Boulogne and other foreign parts, the question is under consideration whether the present law is not sufficient to meet the case of advertising such houses. The whole subject is under consideration, and I shall be prepared, I hope, with the means of remedying the deficiencies of the existing law. REVENUE COLLECTORS. QUESTION. COLONEL GRAY said, he would beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether it is proposed that the change in the mode of levying and collecting in the mode of levying and collecting the Income and other Taxes shall come into operation this year; and, if so, whether the services of the present Commissioners, Assessors, and Collectors will ARMY-CONVICTED ARMY RECRUITS. be no longer required; if those of the QUESTION. MR. STACPOOLE said, he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for War, Whether it is true that the Lieutenant Colonel of the Grenadier Guards applied to the Horse Guards for permission to discharge a recruit who had been apprehended three days after he enlisted, on a charge of robbery committed previous to his enlistment, and sentenced to six months hard labour in Norwich Gaol; whether His Royal Highness the Commander-in-Chief was pleased to decide that the prisoner should be retained in the service; whether the Secretary of State will endeavour to initiate a system which shall tend to discourage the retention in the ranks of convicted felons; and, whether the Secretary of State will consent to produce the Correspondence on this subject between Colonel Bruce and the officials of the Horse Guards? MR. CARDWELL: Sir, a recruit was convicted in the circumstances im Mr. T. Hughes latter (the Collectors) only are dispensed made to such of them as have, for a with, whether any compensation will be number of years past, devoted the whole of their time and energies to the duties of the office? THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHE QUER said, in reply, that the Bill having reference to the collection of the Revenue would not come into operation until 1872, consequently the services of those at present collecting the Revenue would be required to continue doing so next year. Consideration would, of course, be given to the case of persons who had served for a long time, and who had given their whole attention to the subject. At present, the Government proposed to follow the plan of the Bill introduced in 1864, and thrown out by a majority of 3 on the third reading, on account of provisions which did not affect this point. ARMY-CASE OF COLONEL BOXER. QUESTION. MAJOR ANSON said, he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for War, If he will read to the House the private Minute of the late Secretary of State for War with regard to Colonel Boxer's claim for reward for his invention; and, if he will explain the discrepancy between that Minute and the official Letter of the Director General of the Ordnance, dated 4th January 1868 ? SIR JOHN PAKINGTON: This Question, Sir, relates so much to me that my right hon. Friend (Mr. Cardwell) agrees with me that it would be more fair, both to him and to myself, that I should give the answer to it. I have brought down to the House a copy of the Minute, and since I have been in the House my right hon. Friend has very kindly placed in my hands the original. In answer to the first part of the Question of the hon. and gallant Member, as to whether my right hon. Friend would read the Minute, I have to say that after what fell from me on the subject last Friday the Minute, in fact, became public property. I have not the slightest wish to withhold it, and if I had any such wish I should not have a right to exercise it. I am, therefore, perfectly willing to read the Minute, or if the hon. and gallant Gentleman would think it more satisfactory, that every Member of this House should read it for himself. ["No, no!"] As it seems to be the wish of the House, I will read the Minute. It is in these words "This question of pecuniary reward to Colonel Boxer involves a decision between the two principles so clearly described in the Minute of General St. George-namely, whether on the one hand, as stated by Colonel Boxer, the duties of a Superintendent of a manufacturing department are confined to the manufacture of approved articles,' or, on the other, as contended by General St. George, that ingenuity and talent are among the qualifications for which a Superintendent is selected, that a certain salary is attached to the office which is presumed to be adequate, and that by such payment the Government becomes entitled to all the time, talents, and exertions of the officer.' I agree with General St. George and the Reward Committee, and I therefore approve of their Report. The latter of the two principles stated above seems to me to be sound, and I do not think any Government would employ an officer who avowed his intention to act upon the former. But while I reject the principle that a Government officer is entitled to assess at a money value every improvement which his professional know ledge may enable him to introduce into his department, I do not wish or intend to lay down that Government officers who originate useful invenWe have many precedents for such rewards; tions are in no case to receive pecuniary reward. Colonel Boxer has himself received them. I think they should be reserved for inventions of conspicuous merit and public advantage, and given in each case only after careful consideration and inquiry by the Secretary of State. "J. S. P., 28, 12, '67." But That is the whole of the Minute, and my right hon. Friend asks me to explain the discrepancy between it and the official letter of the Director General of the Ordnance, dated the 4th of January, 1868. General St. George wrote the following endorsement upon my Minute :— the decisions of the Reward Committee as that "Draft a letter to Colonel Boxer embodying arrived at by the Secretary of State. Express at the same time Sir John Pakington's sense of the value of Colonel Boxer's services in his position as Superintendent. "J. ST. G., 31, 12." Before I refer further to this endorsement, I may perhaps be allowed to say that I am very glad of this opportunity of removing a misapprehension which exists in some quarters, to the effect that words which have been made subject of question were improperly introduced by some clerk in the War Office in the interest of Colonel Boxer. I feel bound to say there is not the slightest ground for any such suspicion. I am sure my right hon. Friend will agree with me when I say that there is not in the War Office a gentleman of higher character than he who was intrusted with this matter. He is, I may say without fear of contradiction, above suspicion of any unworthy conduct; but, irrespective of that consideration, I beg leave to state that in this case there really was no room for suspicion. have observed that in General St. George's endorsement reference is made to the decision of the Reward Committee; and here I should state that, in consequence of the numerous applications made to me for money rewards by inventors, I formed a committee within the War Office of some of its highest officers, and I called upon this committee to report to me their opinion upon these various claims for rewards for inventions, and upon Colonel Boxer's among the rest. The committee reported against the gift of any such reward, and with respect to two of the claims they grounded their refusal on The House will the fact that Colonel Boxer had taken ) sufficient to carry on the business of the out a patent. Under the circumstances Board; and, what is the date on which to which I have adverted the draft of the appointment was made? the letter in question was written. That draft was passed by General St. George, who also signed the letter itself. General St. George is not in England now, or he would, I have not the slightest doubt, endorse my belief that there was not the slightest design in the words which have been made the subject of comment, because they appeared to him to convey the meaning I endeavoured to convey to the House last Fridaynamely, that, although we could not for a moment allow Colonel Boxer to derive profit from Government supply, we could not, so long as he held the patent, interfere with arrangements he might make respecting the supply either of Foreign Governments or the public in this country. I have now stated the whole of the facts; and I have only to add that there is not in the War Office a single Paper connected with the subject which, as far as I am concerned, this House and the public are not quite at liberty to see. SCOTLAND-LUNACY COMMISSION. QUESTION. MR. BRUCE said, in reply, that the appointment alluded to by his hon. Friend had been filled up because, in the opinion of the Government, it was absolutely essential for the efficient performance of the duties of the Department. The Members of the Lunacy Commission of Scotland were two Commissioners and two assistants. The duty of the two Assistant Lunacy Commissioners was to travel about and examine the state of the various lunatic asylums; while as to the Commissioners, one had to be always present at the Board, and the other travelled about and examined asylums. These duties could not be performed well by any one Commissioner, and though attempts had been made during the illness of one of them for the other to fulfil those duties, it was satisfactorily proved to him (Mr. Bruce) that such a state of things ought not to be allowed to continue. There had, however, been no such recommendation as that referred to in the Question of his hon. Friend. MR. CRAUFURD said, he would give Notice that he would, in Committee of Supply, take the opinion of the House on the propriety of altering the salary of the second Commissioner. BRIDGWATER AND BEVERLEY. QUESTION. MR. HIBBERT said, he would beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury, Whether, in the event of the Bill for the Disfranchisement of Bridgwater and Beverley becoming Law this Session, he will postpone the introduction of any measure for the re-distribution of the Seats until a Return of the Census of 1871 has been presented to Parliament ? MR. CRAUFURD said, he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether the vacancy in the Scotch Lunacy Commission, caused by the retirement of Dr. Brown, has been filled up by the appointment of another paid Commissioner in opposition to the evidence given by the Lord Justice Clerk before the Commissioners on Scotch Offices, to the effect that one paid Commissioner would be now sufficient to carry on the work of the Lunacy Board, in opposition also to the recommendation of those Commissioners, that the Boards of Supervision and of Lunacy should be amalgamated, and notwithstanding the request made on behalf of the Select Committee now sitting on Scotch Poor Law, that the vacancy in the Lunacy Commission should not be filled up until the Report of that Committee had been presented to the House and considered by Her Majesty's Government; if the vacancy has been so filled up, what special or urgent reasons have caused him to disregard the several official remonstrances addressed to him on this subject, SIR CHARLES ADDERLEY said, he although for many months past one paid had reason to believe that the Colonial Commissioner had practically been found Office had received satisfactory informaSir John Pakington MR. GLADSTONE replied that, as far as the view of Her Majesty's Government was concerned, it did not necessarily follow the disfranchisement of Bridgwater and Beverley that any measure would be introduced dealing with the disfranchised seats. CANADA-RED RIVER SETTLEMENT. tion relative to the state of affairs in the Red River Settlement. If that were so, perhaps the right hon. Gentleman the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies would have no objection to state to the House the nature of the information he had received? MR. MONSELL, in reply, said, he was pleased to be able to state that Her Majesty's Government had received information of a most satisfactory character. The delegates appointed by the Red River Convention had come to a perfect agreement with the Government of Canada as to the terms upon which the Red River Settlement was to be annexed to Canada. That information had been received by telegraph; the telegram, received that afternoon, stating that the Bill sanctioning that arrangement was in course of passing through the Parliament of Canada, and that there was no doubt that the whole matter would now receive a perfectly peaceful solution. His right hon. Friend had only given him Notice of his Question a few minutes ago, and as he had not the document now by him, if he would repeat his Question to-morrow he (Mr. Monsell) would bring it with him, and give the most detailed information which Her Majesty's Government possessed on the subject. IRISH LAND BILL-[BILL 29.] (In the Committee.) Clause 3 (Compensation in absence of custom). MR. GLADSTONE said, he wished to make an appeal to the hon. Member for Kilkenny (Sir John Gray). The hon. Member, by the Amendment of which he had given Notice, had raised a question of very great interest and importance; but the addition he proposed to make by way of "rider" to the 3rd clause was an addition which, in point of fact, contained within itself-very evidently considered and expressed with much care-the provisions of a very important Act of Parliament. He did not urge that as a reason why they should not adopt a clause to that effect; but he would say that the addition which the hon. Gentleman proposed to make by way of alter native to the 3rd clause was really not an alternative to the 3rd clause, but to the whole of that portion of the Bill; and, consequently, it had no proper place in that clause. It was not another mode of proceeding in lieu of the 3rd clause; but another mode of proceeding in lieu of that clause and the other clauses which followed it. Under those circumstances, he thought it was plain that, consistently with the usual practice of the Committee, and with the obvious dictates of good sense, it was hardly desirable that any decisive issue should be taken on the hon. Member's proposal as an addition to the 3rd clause. Even those who might approve it would scarcely wish to add it to that clause. The Government would give the hon. Gentleman's proposal a perfectly impartial and dispassionate consideration when they were able to deal with it in its proper place, but not as a mere appendage to the 3rd clause. SIR JOHN GRAY moved his Amendment pro formá; but after some discussion, withdrew it, on the promise on the part of the Government that they would at an appropriate time afford all facilities, so that it might be brought on at a convenient hour and thoroughly discussed. Amendment moved, in line 29, after "void," insert 66 Except in case of a tenant who has executed a lease or an agreement for a lease in accordance with any of the leasing provisions of this Act."— (Mr. Bruen.) After a few words from the SOLICITOR GENERAL for IRELAND Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. DR. BALL said, he wished to call the attention of the House to the wisdom and propriety of introducing some statement to guide the Judges, who would have to administer the law, as to the principles on which they were to proceed. His Amendment proposed to declare that "The Court in awarding compensation under this section shall have regard to the terms and conditions subject to which the tenant originally obtained possession of his holding, to the period of actual enjoyment by the tenant, to the rent payable by the tenant, during such his period of enjoyment, as proportioned to the fair letting stances connected either with the cultivation of value of the holding, and to any special circumthe holding or with the mode or incidents of the termination of the tenure." [Committee-Clause 3. |