hon. Member for Tipperary (Mr. Dillon), | the earliest possible opportunity of rebecause the provision would be utterly examining the whole subject, and of useless unless it were made co-existent considering whether the extreme powers with the duration of the Bill. in the Executive had been wisely used. Would the Committee observe that this clause differed fundamentally from many of the other proposals in the Bill? Because, whereas many of the other proposals were for the enactment of powers which were, unfortunately, too familar to the Irish people, this clause was proposed in order to revive an enactment which was never resorted to except on one occasion, and that an occasion of extraordinary danger. The Alien Act was passed in 1848. Many parts of Ireland were then in a state of practical insurrection, and the Executive were confronted by an armed rebellion-the movement then was political and not social. Notwithstanding the extreme gravity of the occasion, the Government of the day simply proposed that the Act authorizing the removal of aliens should remain in force for one year, and to the end of the then Session of Parliament. That was following the maxim of Earl Grey; it was following the maxim which had governed English statesmen from all time. What was the proposal now before the Committee? Why, that Parliament, when it had once placed these extraordinary powers in the hands of the Executive, should not be able to say a word on the subject for three years to come. At this moment three distinct functions were possessed by the Govern SIR WILLIAM HARCOURT said, he hoped they might now decide this point, whether it was necessary that the provision with respect to aliens should be co-extensive with the other provisions of the Bill. No doubt, this clause was a very unusual one; but the Government believed that a great part, he might almost say the greater part, of the mischief done in Ireland was due to foreign agencies. It was as desirable that these foreign agencies should be dealt with during the period the Government thought it right to recommend that this Act should remain in force, as that any of the other provisions of the Act should be proposed. The hon. Member for Tipperary (Mr. Dillon) had said that, in 1848, the Alien Act was passed for one year. That was true; but at that time an Act of Parliament did not take a whole Session to pass. At that time the House of Commons were in the habit of dealing reasonably with the questions brought before them; but now a time had been reached when the arts-he would not say of Obstruction, he would rather use some less obnoxious term-when the arts of procrastination had been carried to such a point, that if it were desired to renew an Act, it must be reckoned that the renewal would occupy the whole Session of Parliament. That seemed a conclusive reason for ex-ment-namely, Executive, Legislative, tending the operation of the Alien Act to three years. 66 MR. SEXTON said, the speech of the right hon. and learned Gentleman the Home Secretary was interesting, for it had brought a new term-namely, procrastination"-within the region of political phraseology. A few days ago the right hon. and learned Gentleman professed great admiration for Earl Grey, who, speaking of coercive powers, had said that the Representatives of the people ought to have the earliest opportunity of revising and considering the exercise of such extreme powers. The Government of the Whig statesman whom the right hon. and learned Gentleman so much admired laid down the cardinal principle that, with reference to restrictions of individual liberty, the Representatives of the people assembled in the House of Commons should have and Judicial; and, surely, if it was only necessary to enact the Alien Act for one year in the presence of an open rebellion, why was it necessary to re-enact it now for three years, when the movement against which the Act was aimed was but a social one? He could not conclude his remarks without referring to the suggestion of his hon. Friend the Member for Wexford (Mr. Healy), that because there was a law about to be passed against aliens in Ireland, it would be well to extend the law to England. He (Mr. Sexton) was not of that opinion. Two wrongs could never make one right. It was a pity that aliens in Ireland should, because of the unfortunate dispositions of the English Government towards that country, be driven away; but he could never put that forward as a reason why aliens--peaceable and industrious men-in other countries should be sub jected to the same treatment. He should, | could be put into operation by the Lord upon the broad principles of liberty, pro- Lieutenant; but he would say that he test against the application of this clause to England, though it might be applied to Ireland. MR. DAWSON said, that an Industrial Exhibition was now being got up in Ireland. That Exhibition had been "Boycotted" in the most severe manner by the landlord class; and the deliberative effect of this clause would be to chase from Ireland, on mere information given to the Lord Lieutenant, anyone who sympathized with the present industrial movement. He had no hesitation in saying that one of the objects of the clause was to stop the Industrial Exhibition, on which the Irish people set such store; that this Act was one to stop the industries and enterprize of Ireland he was convinced. In the name of the industrial classes he must enter his protest against this clause and against this Bill. From an Imperial point of view this was a dangerous clause. He hoped that the aliens who were in Ireland would remain there, and he hoped that strangers would come from foreign countries to Ireland to support the people in their industrial enterprize, which many people calling themselves Irish had refused to support. It would, indeed, be a perilous thing if the Government attempted the deportation of any such strangers. DR. COMMINS said, this clause proposed an experiment of a very dangerous kind. He would like to know how many Members opposite who blindly followed the Government had gone to the trouble of reading the Alien Act? He ventured to say, if a Return were laid on the Table of the House, it would be found that not five hon. Gentlemen had ever read that Act. Of course, it was not necessary that hon.Gentlemen should be acquainted with every expired Act; but surely it was requisite they should know something of an Act it was proposed to re-enact by a sort of side-wind, as in this instance. He would not say anything as to the extraordinary manner in which the Act doubted whether, in the present state of affairs, it was desirable, from an Imperial point of view, to open the door for further complications with foreign countries. If Parliament re-enacted this Act, it was just possible that America and France and other countries might take it into their heads to pass an Alien Act in order to expel from their countries any English residents they might consider troublesome. The arrest of three or four aliens in Ireland under the Coercion Act of last year had led to complications, the gravity of which they, in the House of Commons, had no conception. There was no doubt that complications of a very serious character arose between the Government of Her Majesty and the Government of Washington in consequence of the arrest of American citizens; and it was very probable that if the powers of this clause were exercised in regard to Americans, the complications under the Act of last year might be mere trifles in comparison with the complications which might arise hereafter. It being a quarter of an hour before Six of the clock, the Chairman left the Chair to report Progress; Committee to sit again To-morrow. LONDON: CORNELIUS BUCK, 22, PATERNOSTER ROW, E.C. INDEX ΤΟ HANSARD'S PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES, VOLUME CCLXX. FIFTH VOLUME OF SESSION 1882. EXPLANATION OF THE ABBREVIATIONS. In Bills, Read 1o, 2o, 3o, or 1a, 2a, 3a, Read the First, Second, or Third Time.-In Speeches, A When in this Index a* is added to the Reading of a Bill, it indicates that no Debate took When in the Text or in the Index a Speech is marked thus, it indicates that the Speech When in the Index a t is prefixed to a Name or an Office (the Member having accepted or - Some subjects of debate have been classified under the following "General Headings: "- - BERDARE, Lord - Protection of Person and Property (Ire- Wrexham, Mold, and Connah's Quay Railway comm. 11 Adulteration of Foods and Drugs Acts- Questions, Mr. R. H. Paget, Mr. Wilbraham Africa (East Coast)-Suppression of the Question, Mr. Gourley; Answer, Mr. Campbell- YOL. CCLXX. [THIRD SERIES.] Africa (South) - - Cetewayo, Ex-King of Zululand-Restrictions - ALEXANDER, Colonel C., Ayrshire, S. 56 Police, Leave, 620 Settled Land, Comm. 355 3 S 270. (Mr. Jesse Collings, | ARMY-cont. Mr. Burt, Mr. Brand, Mr. Bryce) Allotments Bill o. Committee -R.P. June 7 [Bill 90] MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS Appointments in the Royal Engineers, Ques- Competitive Examinations- West Indian Regi- Cost of Salutes, Question, Colonel Nolan; An- The Judge Advocate General June 19, 1582 Instruction in Military Tactics, Question, Mr. Pay Department, Question, Colonel O'Beirne; Shooting and Driving Prizes, 1881, Question, Soldiers as Caretakers (Ireland), Question, The British Troops in Natal, Question, Sir Auxiliary Forces Adjutants, Question, Mr. Mac Iver; Answer, Militia Surgeons Pensions, Question, Mr. Volunteer Corps, Question, Mr. Rankin; An- Army (India)-Captain J. B. Chatterton, Motion for an Address, The Earl of Galloway ARNOLD, Mr. A., Salford Egypt (Political Affairs), 364; English Parliament Rules and Orders - Standing Prevention of Crime (Ireland), Comm. el. 4, 857, 908; cl. 7, 1281; cl. 8, 1500; el. 11, Settled Land, Comm. Amendt. 349, 351, 352, Arrears of Rent (Ireland) Bill Questions, Mr. Biddell, Mr. Gregory; An- The Irish Church Fund, Question, Sir Henry Artillery Ranges Bill c. Read 3°* June 5 [Bill 188] Organization of the Cavalry, Question, Colonel June 9, 652 Read 2a June 16 [cont, 270. ASHLEY, Hon. E. M. (Under Secretary | BALFOUR, Right Hon. J. B.—cont. Africa (South)--Miscellaneous Questions Cetewayo, Ex-King of Zululand-Restric- The Transvaal-Attacks by the Boers on Zululand-John Dunn's Territory, 474, New Zealand-Te Whiti, the Maori Chief, 1585 Prevention of Crime (Ireland), Comm. cl. 1, Settled Land, Comm. 353 Supreme Court of Judicature Acts Amend- Scotland-Miscellaneous Questions Debtors' Act, 1880-Illegal Pawning, 69,- BARING, Mr. T. C., Essex, S. Partnerships, Comm. 212, 214 BARNE, Colonel F. St. J. N., Suffolk, E. BARRY, Mr. J., Wexford Co. Prevention of Crime (Ireland), Comm. cl. 4, BARTTELOT, Colonel Sir W.B., Sussex, W. Ireland, State of Murders of Mr. Bourke and "Treaty of Kilmainham," 986, 987 Baths and Washhouses Acts Amendment (Mr. Stanhope, Mr. Chaplin, Mr. Gorst) BENTINCK, Right Hon. G. A. F. Caven- Parliamentary Elections (Corrupt and Illegal BIDDELL, Mr. W., Suffolk, W. Licensing |