had often opportunities of approaching cal laws, and that the word longitude was merely a popular expression for denoting their certainty or operation. The intention of the bill which he should have the honour to propose was, that the commissioners of the board of longitude should remain just as they were, but that there should be added to them such gentlemen in the scientific world as, by a residence in or near the metropolis, would become useful members and assistants. His object was, indeed, to replace the board in that state of efficiency in which it ought to be-to restore it to that situation in which it was intended to be at its very foundation and commencement. There were many important considerations which would show the necessity of resorting to this proceeding. In the first place, he would beg to state, that, in the year 1767, Dr. Maskelyne, a name which could never be mentioned without the highest respect, projected the Nautical Almanack, a work which was published during his lifetime with the greatest honour to himself, and the most essential service to the country. But, after his death, the reputation of that book greatly declined, and it had latterly fallen to a very low state. Mr. Croker said, he had himself looked into the whole of the almanacks, from the earliest period, and had found only two or three errata in any one volume. The latter publications, how ever, were very incorrect, and he was sorry to be obliged to say, that the volume for the present year did not contain less than eighteen grave errors, and the publication for the next year not less than forty. In fact, the nautical almanack was a by-word among the literati of Europe. He would mention, however, that, generally speaking, they were not scientific, but typographical errors: but the mischief that must arise from such a publication was an injurious in the one case as in the other. From this consideration, it would be part of his measure, that the Mr. Davies Gilbert said, that after the House should select a proper person, with very luminous explanation which the hon. a moderate but adequate salary, to super- gentleman had given respecting the obintend the publication of that work.-jects of his bill, and the benefits which Another object which deserved great attention, and in which he considered the honour of the country to be deeply interested, was the discovery of a north-west passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific ocean. This had become an object of great anxiety since the reign of George 2nd. By the act of the 16th of Geo. 3rd, it was recited, that whereas the whalers * must arise from it, he considered it unne cessary to detain the House by any observations of his own. He most heartily concurred in the measure, and thought it highly desirable that some steps should be taken for improving and perfecting time-keepers, and the construction of lunar tables. No. thing, he believed, had come nearer to perfection than the astronomical instru but to subjects calculated to promote the powers and happiness of man. He wished, however, to make some inquiries into the lord of the admiralty should necessarily be a judge of scientific merit. When it was admitted, that every thing in this department had hitherto gone on so well, why was it necessary to make any alteration? He feared that the present plan might only have the effect of increasing patronage to no purpose. ments now in use. With respect to the Nautical Almanack, he begged to inform the House, that the reputation which that work had acquired was owing to the un-plan proposed, and he did not see how a remitting care and attention of the rev. Mr. Hitchins, a gentleman whose name had not been sufficiently known, nor his labours duly rewarded. Since his death, the publication had fallen into other hands, and was not so well conducted. Another clergyman, the rev. Mr. Edwards, had greatly distinguished himself by his calculations on these subjects, in which his wife and daughter frequently assisted; but Mr. Edwards was now dead, and his widow and daughter had not met with that degree of attention which they deserved. In point of fact, they were no longer employed. Mr. Brougham said, that he did not rise for the purpose of opposing the measure, but he wished to be informed whether any difference of opinion had arisen among the members of the board of longitude? No one, he believed, would object to the salary of 100l. a-year for each of the additional members, if they were found to be necessary; but there was one point connected with that measure which deserved the most serious considerationhe meant the additional patronage which the appointment would confer on some persons. Mr. Croker stated, that he had never heard of any disagreement in the board of longitude: such disagreement was, indeed, hardly practicable, as there were only two or three meetings in a year, and they sat for a very few hours. He found by the act of queen Anne, that nine commissioners were appointed; but it was now proposed that there should be only six. The patronage would be certainly very little felt, and learned men would look more to the honour than to the emolument of the office. The salaries were to be put on the ordinary estimates of the navy and the elections would be annual, subject to the control and revision of parliament. It was because he was anxious that no imputations of a wish for paltry patronage should be cast on this measure, that he would at once state to the House, that appointments had been offered to Dr. Woolaston, Dr. Young, and captain Taylor. Mr. J. H. Smyth felt great satisfaction at the disposition the House had shown to listen with interest, not to plans of destruction, not to the false glories of war, A short conversation followed, in which Mr. Wilberforce, Mr. Forbes, and the chancellor of the exchequer participated, in the course of which Mr. Croker stated it to be intended to relieve the Nautical Almanack, which was only an almanack in name, from the almanack duty. Leave was given to bring in the bill. HOUSE OF COMMONS. WEST INDIES INDEMNITY BILL.] On the motion for the third reading of this Bill, Mr. Masterton Ure said, he approved highly of this bill, which indemnified persons for a breach of the law, in admitting supplies of provisions into the West India islands in neutral vessels, and without which supplies they must have been exposed to all the horrors of starvation. He availed himself of this opportunity of directing the attention of the House to the unfortunate situation in which certain of the West India colonies were placed. He alluded to the Leeward islands, or old colonies. These were settled so far back as the year 1630, or about that time. They then enjoyed the monopoly of the trade with Great itain, in consideration of which, at a subsequent time, they agreed to pay a duty of 4 per cent on their stock to government, shipping their produce to England, and receiving their supplies from the mother country. In the progress of time their soil became impoverished, and they were obliged to convert their provision grounds into sugar plantations. Their dependence for a supply of provisions was on distant countries, on Great Britain, the British settlements in Canada, and the United States of America, but limited as to all, to be carried in British vessels. This has been the case since the close of the American war, when restrictions were laid on their intercourse with the United States. Of late years they have been exposed to greater inconvenience, from the difficulty of obtaining supplies from this country, in consequence of deficient crops. The same deficiency has existed in Canada, and the inhabitants of our settlements there have been obliged to obtain supplies from the United States. Such was the case last year, and although sir J. Sherbrooke, in his last speech to the legislative body, holds out a hope of their being a surplus produce this year, it by no means affords a reasonable ground for reliance on a supply of food to the population of the Leeward islands. The islands themselves produce little more than sufficient for the maintenance of a tenth part of their population. The old colonies are more unfavourably situated than any of the more recently settled islands, with a worse soil, and exposed to many other inconveniences in point of climate to which the latter are not subject. He called the attention of the House to these circumstances, in the hope that some remedy would be applied, and that they might be put on the same footing with the ceded colonies. The bill was then read a third time and passed. INDEMNITY BILL.] The Attorney General having moved the order of the day for the first reading of the Indemnity bill, began by observing, that, on the present occasion he trusted it might be thought better, that before the House went into any debate upon it, the bill should be printed, in order that every member might have an opportunity of perusing it before the third reading. On considering the events that had taken place in this country within the last thirteen or four teen months, and the measures which parliament had for it necessary to adopt as also the proceedings in the House of Lords, he was certain that the more the contents of this bill was reflected on, the stronger would appear the justice and necessity of passing it. Ile wished to call the recollection of the House to previous proceedings of this nature, not for the purpose of saying, that because in former times indemnity bills had passed, that therefore the present bill ought to pass but, in order to show the occasions on which such bills had been produced and sanctioned by both Houses. And he would point out to the recollection of the House, that though in certain circumstances, these bills had differed, yet the (VOL. XXXVII.) circumstances which called for the present bill, fell completely within the scope of those which justified similar bills on former occasions. It seemed, however, that some misconception had prevailed as to the facts which led to the passing of the former bills; for he believed it had been supposed by some gentleman, that the year 1801 was the first time that an Indemnity bill had passed subsequently to the suspension of the Habeas Corpus act. But it would be found, that in most instances in which the legislature had deemed it necessary to suspend the Habeas Corpus act-indeed in all instances he believed, excepting one, an indemnity bill had passed after the suspension of that act. There had also been instances of Indemnity bills in cases where there had been no suspension of the Habeas Corpus act. The fact was, that with respect to both classes of bills, they had been passed at different times since the Revolution, according as the necessity of the times rendered them indispensable. But the same exigency that created the suspension of the Habeas Corpus act made it necessary that bills of Indemnity should. be carried, for the protection of the guardians of the public tranquillity, as well as for the protection of those who had furnished them with information, on the authority of which they had found it necessary to take the steps that had been resorted to. If gentlemen would take the trouble to refer back to the time of the Revolution, they would find, that the persons who were the greatest supporters of that memorable proceeding, and the means of preserving the laws and liberties of the people of this country,--that these persons, immediately after passing the Bill of Rights, found it necessary to pass three several acts for the suspension of the Habeas Corpus act; and as they expired, there were passed Indemnity bills to protect the persons who had informed against and apprehended those guilty of conspiracies against the reigning monarch. At a subsequent period, an Indemnity bill was passed, which was not preceded by a suspension of the Habeas Corpus act. It was in the year 1714: the act was the 1st of George 1st, cap. 39, and it recited, that as several lords licutenants and other officers had apprehended certain persons, who might have excited riots and disturbances, it was deemed necessary by parliament to indemnify them (3 L) for their conduct in the preservation of the public peace. In the year 1744, the act for the suspension of the writ of Habeas Corpus was not immediately followed up by an Indemnity bill: but, in 1746 the Indemnity act was produced, to protect all persons in the situation of magistrates, &c. for their conduct in the preceding year and for what they might have done subsequent to the expiration of that act. This, however, was not thought sufficient; for as that act only indemnified them to the 30th of April, and as the magistrates had been under the necessity of taking up several persons subsequent to that day, another act was passed indemnifying them for all actions done between the 30th of April and the 25th of July, 1746. Thus an Indemnity bill had, in all instances, followed the other. From that time till the year 1792, there was no sus. pension of the Habeas Corpus act; but there was an indemnity bill for the circumstances that took place in the year 1780, when the petitions presented to parliament on a subject then depending were accompanied by the most dangerous tumults; as the magistrates and others had acted on their own responsibility for the security of the public peace, at a time when it was absolutely necessary for them to interfere, and when it was difficult, if they had been prosecuted, to bring home the offence to the persons they had secured, so as to justify their apprehension. From that time till the year 1801, he was not aware of any bill of this kind having been passed; but in that year there were two such acts, for indemnifying persons for having apprehended and detained individuals suspected of high treason, and for having been active in suppressing tumults and riots in Ireland. He merely mentioned this to show that our predecessors thought it necessary to indemnify public officers for apprehending persons who had assembled as auxiliaries for treasonable purposes. On all those occasions it must have been for the consideration of the House whether the exigencies of the times had been such as to justify those particular bills. Twice within the last year, and after the fullest discussion, parliament had thought it necessary for the peace of the country to suspend the Habeas Corpus act, and to give certain powers to the secretary of state and the privy council, for the purpose of detention. If the House would recollect the circumstances which had taken place within the last fourteen months, they must be convinced that it was absolutely necessary for those who were the guardians of the peace of the country, to take the steps they had done, and that they would have been guilty of a gross dereliction of their duty if they had acted otherwise. They were therefore fully entitled to the indemnity of parliament, in order that if any proceedings should be instituted against them in courts of law, they might not be under the necessity of disclosing the testimonies they had received, and thereby marking out those persons as objects of vengeance, or be put in the situation of violating the confidence reposed in them. Without such a protection, they would be put in the situation of sacrificing those persons, by making public their names, who had given information on condition that they should not be disclosed. It was impossible not to see that there had been conspiracies formed for the purpose of overthrowing the government of this kingdom in church and state as established by law. Plans had been formed by persons taking advantage of the distresses of the lower orders of the people, to get them to assemble under the false pretence of petitioning that House for a reform in parlia ment, while their real object, undisguised amongst themselves, was, to effect an entire revolution; so that at the very time they were speaking of reform, they had in view nothing but destruction to all the admired and revered institutions of the country. The transactions that had taken place in February last year, and the December preceding, manifested the intention of getting together large numbers of people, for the purpose of persuading them to acts of insurrection and revolt. It therefore became the absolute duty of the magistracy to interfere, and they performed that duty in a manner highly creditable to themselves, and beneficial to the country. And here he could not help observing, that amongst the intentions detailed to the committee of that House which was appointed last year, one scheme of those who were endeavouring to disturb the public peace, was the plan of coming to parliament with petitions signed by ten persons each; but in large bodies of several thousands, every tenth person having a petition in his hand. This was stated in February, and its truth was established by the attempt to carry the daring project into effect at Manchester in the following month. Who were the projectors or instigators of this bold scheme, he could not say; but it was a cool and deliberate plan of some persons who had studied every head and section of the law against tumultuous assemblies, in order to see if they could not be evaded: and there was no man but must be convinced, that instead of these being large assemblies of petitioners, their object was to have a sort of army, every ten men having a leader, and every hundred a centurion, that they might come to overawe parliament, not by petitioning, but by threats and terror. He would say, there never was a more mischievous or a more atrocious project than this was intended to be, if it had not been circumvented. Poor persons were persuaded to leave their labours, and to march without provisions, clothing, or any means of supporting nature, so that their very necessities must have led them to violate the laws as they proceeded, in order to prevent themselves from starving. It was therefore the imperative duty of the magistrates to stop them in all the parts through which they passed, as being unlawfully assembled, to the danger of the public peace. When the evils took place in the year 1780, the reproach against the guardians of the public peace was, that they had not done their duty, as the situation in which they stood called on them to stop those outrageous proceedings, instead of letting them go on till they burst into an explosion. What would have been said to the magistrates of those counties, if they had allowed the insurgents of last year to approach the doors of that House, or to meet in the metropolis, with their petitions amongst every ten men? Would it not have been said, that they had been guilty of a gross dereliction of their duty? The House also would recollect the proceedings that had taken place at Manchester, that information of these proceedings had been given upon oath, and that on this information the government had acted. The committee had reported last year on the state of the country, and the committee to whom the papers were lately referred had reported their opinions on its present state, all founded on the oaths of persons who had deposed to the circumstances that had taken place. Those facts must prove, that disturbances had occurred, and that it was absolutely necessary to proceed to the trials of the most active conspirators at Derby, by which step the insurrection was put down. As he had spoken of the trials at Derby, he would add, that it was clearly proved, from the testimony of persons whom it was impossible to doubt, that this was the branch of a large conspiracy which was intended to extend to many parts of the country, and which was only prevented from taking full effect by the activity of the magistrates. The trials in question had fully satisfied him that a deep laid conspiracy had existed, and that it would have gone on and led to a universal explosion. What he meant to say was, that it would have been so far general as to have taken place wherever an assembly of misguided people had been collected. With respect to what had been said about Oliver, he would counteract an important impression that had been made on the public mind respecting his appearance at Derby during those trials. Oliver was not brought there to give his evidence; he was brought there for a very different purpose. He had no hesitation in saying, that he (the attorney general) had been the man who had caused him to be brought down, and he would state for what purpose. There was a man who had been at Derby, and said he had seen Oliver amongst the conspirators, and he was to appear as a witness, and was to have proved that the man he was speaking of was Oliver. Oliver was therefore sent for to Derby, not that he might be examined as a witness, but as an auxiliary, that those on their trials might have an opportunity of saying whether he was the man; but the jury was perfectly satisfied that he was not the man. This was the reason for Oliver being at Derby, and it was a good reason; not for the purpose of having any thing communicated by him, but that he might be confronted with persons who might have said that he was present at many of those meetings; and thus the base fraud used on that occasion would have been detected. He ought to apologise, as this was the first opportunity he had had of making the statement, and he did it for the purpose, that if any blame was to be attached for having Oliver at Derby, it might rest upon him. He believed, that Oliver had had no concern whatever in exciting or promoting the insurrections alluded to in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, or in producing tumultuous meetings or insurrectionary movements |