DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.16545#0009
VOLUME XIII.--JULY TO DECEMBER, 1847.
TJIE ETTSSELL CABT?\ET.—184-7.
First Lord of the Treasury........... Lord John Russell.
Lord Chancellor............. Lord Cottenham.
Chancellor of the Exchequer .......... Mr. C. Wood.
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster......... Lord Campbell.
President of the Council............ Marquis of Lansdownb.
Lord Privy Seal............. Earl of Minto.
Home Office.............. Sir George Grey.
Foreign Office.........- . . . . Viscount Palmerston.
Colonial Office.............. Earl Grey.
Admiralty.............. Earl of Auckland.
Board of Trade.............. Earl of Clarendon.
Board of Control............. Sir John Hobhouse.
Postmaster-General............. Marquis of Clanricaiide.
Paymaster of the Forces ........... Mr. T. B. Macaulay.
Woods and Forests............. Viscount Morpeth.
Chief Secretary for Ireland........... Mr. H. Labouchere.
Judge Advocate-General............ Mr. C. Buller.
°AGE
POL1TICAI, S UMMA11Y.
alarm has subsided ; and that the pressure on the banking
and commercial interests has been mitigated.
" The abundant harvest with which this country has been
blessed, lias alleviated the evils which always accompany a
O/E referred in the Introduction to the preceding volume
to the withdrawal of several measures of importance, the
Encumbered Estates Bill and the Health of Towns Bill
(strongly opposed by the Corporation of London) among
others, preparatory to the dissolution of Parliament and the
General Election. In all cases the new Ministers were re-
turned, and Parliament was unexpectedly called together ou
the 18th November, the necessity for such a step being set
forth in the Queen's Speech, which was delivered by com-
mission after the Members had been sworn in, and Mb. Shaw
Lefevue elected Speaker without a division, Lord G. Ben-
tinck considering it a matter of congratulation that he and
his party had been defeated in their former opposition, so
admirably had Mr. Lefevre discharged the duties of his
important office.
As the order of the succeeding debates in Parliament fol-
lowed the paragraphs in the Queen's Speech—for once in a
way intelligible to the meanest capacity—we will give briefly
in detail the measures which passed in connection with the
various paragraphs.
" Her Majesty has seen with great concern the distress
which has for some time prevailed among the commercial classes.
The embarrassments of trade were at one period aggravated
by so general a feeling of distrust and of alarm, that Heu
Majesty, for the purpose of restoring confidence, authorised
Her Ministers to recommend to the Directors of the Bank of
England a course of proceeding suited to such an emergency.
This course might have led to an infringement of the law.
" Her Majesty has great satisfaction in being able to
inform you that the law has not been infringed; that the
want of employment in the manufacturing districts."
The Commercial difficulties which had begun as early as
April, had now assumed the form of a Panic, and many Com-
mercial Houses, the Royal Bank of Liverpool, and one iu
South Wales, had succumbed to the pressure of the times, the
amount of their liabilities being over fifteen millions. The
Bank had made advances at the rate of nearly £300,000 a-day
until the Directors were compelled to announce that unless a
large amount of these advances were returned, the dividends
would not be paid. The Government therefore on the 25th of
October issued a letter, authorising the Directors to relax the
conditions of the Bank Charter. The conduct of the Govern-
ment was strongly censured by Lord G. Bentinck, who
attributed the evils which had arisen partly to the financial
policy of Sir R. Peel ; but mainly to Free Trade and the
speculations in Corn. The Chancellor of the Exchequer
moved for a Select Committee to inquire into the causes of the
Distress, and the operation of the Bank Restriction Act of
1844. He was met with an amendment by Mr. Wilson, who,
in a speech of great ability, desired to limit the inquiry to
the question of the Currency; but the original motion was
agreed to.
" Her Majesty has, however, to lament the recurrence of
severe distress in Ireland, owing to the scarcity of the usual
food of the people.
TJIE ETTSSELL CABT?\ET.—184-7.
First Lord of the Treasury........... Lord John Russell.
Lord Chancellor............. Lord Cottenham.
Chancellor of the Exchequer .......... Mr. C. Wood.
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster......... Lord Campbell.
President of the Council............ Marquis of Lansdownb.
Lord Privy Seal............. Earl of Minto.
Home Office.............. Sir George Grey.
Foreign Office.........- . . . . Viscount Palmerston.
Colonial Office.............. Earl Grey.
Admiralty.............. Earl of Auckland.
Board of Trade.............. Earl of Clarendon.
Board of Control............. Sir John Hobhouse.
Postmaster-General............. Marquis of Clanricaiide.
Paymaster of the Forces ........... Mr. T. B. Macaulay.
Woods and Forests............. Viscount Morpeth.
Chief Secretary for Ireland........... Mr. H. Labouchere.
Judge Advocate-General............ Mr. C. Buller.
°AGE
POL1TICAI, S UMMA11Y.
alarm has subsided ; and that the pressure on the banking
and commercial interests has been mitigated.
" The abundant harvest with which this country has been
blessed, lias alleviated the evils which always accompany a
O/E referred in the Introduction to the preceding volume
to the withdrawal of several measures of importance, the
Encumbered Estates Bill and the Health of Towns Bill
(strongly opposed by the Corporation of London) among
others, preparatory to the dissolution of Parliament and the
General Election. In all cases the new Ministers were re-
turned, and Parliament was unexpectedly called together ou
the 18th November, the necessity for such a step being set
forth in the Queen's Speech, which was delivered by com-
mission after the Members had been sworn in, and Mb. Shaw
Lefevue elected Speaker without a division, Lord G. Ben-
tinck considering it a matter of congratulation that he and
his party had been defeated in their former opposition, so
admirably had Mr. Lefevre discharged the duties of his
important office.
As the order of the succeeding debates in Parliament fol-
lowed the paragraphs in the Queen's Speech—for once in a
way intelligible to the meanest capacity—we will give briefly
in detail the measures which passed in connection with the
various paragraphs.
" Her Majesty has seen with great concern the distress
which has for some time prevailed among the commercial classes.
The embarrassments of trade were at one period aggravated
by so general a feeling of distrust and of alarm, that Heu
Majesty, for the purpose of restoring confidence, authorised
Her Ministers to recommend to the Directors of the Bank of
England a course of proceeding suited to such an emergency.
This course might have led to an infringement of the law.
" Her Majesty has great satisfaction in being able to
inform you that the law has not been infringed; that the
want of employment in the manufacturing districts."
The Commercial difficulties which had begun as early as
April, had now assumed the form of a Panic, and many Com-
mercial Houses, the Royal Bank of Liverpool, and one iu
South Wales, had succumbed to the pressure of the times, the
amount of their liabilities being over fifteen millions. The
Bank had made advances at the rate of nearly £300,000 a-day
until the Directors were compelled to announce that unless a
large amount of these advances were returned, the dividends
would not be paid. The Government therefore on the 25th of
October issued a letter, authorising the Directors to relax the
conditions of the Bank Charter. The conduct of the Govern-
ment was strongly censured by Lord G. Bentinck, who
attributed the evils which had arisen partly to the financial
policy of Sir R. Peel ; but mainly to Free Trade and the
speculations in Corn. The Chancellor of the Exchequer
moved for a Select Committee to inquire into the causes of the
Distress, and the operation of the Bank Restriction Act of
1844. He was met with an amendment by Mr. Wilson, who,
in a speech of great ability, desired to limit the inquiry to
the question of the Currency; but the original motion was
agreed to.
" Her Majesty has, however, to lament the recurrence of
severe distress in Ireland, owing to the scarcity of the usual
food of the people.