moved the order of the day for the house to resolve itself into a committee of the whole house, to take into consideration the reports of several committees that had been appointed to examine into the state of the corn trade. And then moved that the Speaker do leave the chair.

rose to oppose it, because he thought the subject one of too much importance, and too deeply involving the public interest, to be brought forward at so late a period of the session, when it was impossible it could receive the due consideration it required. He had beside to observe, that the measure, with a view to which the hon. member yesterday moved for the committee, was one which ought not to be adopted without the most mature consideration. For even already, and while the bill which had so recently fallen to the ground, was pending in parliament, its operation upon the corn market was most alarming. The price of bread-corn particularly had a most unusual and enormous rise, from no other public cause, insomuch that the Bakers' Company had yesterday waited upon the Lord Mayor and magistrates, and represented that, owing to this rise, they could not, without a most considerable loss, proceed with their business, unless a very material increase was made in the price of bread, as regulated for the week. The price of corn still continued to rise higher this day, and for this fact, he would appeal to his hon. colleague near him (Mr. Alderman Curtis). It was therefore obvious, that the consequences of reviving the measure must be extremely oppressive to the public. He hoped the hon. member would not persist in the measure this session, and should oppose the Speaker's leaving the chair.

said, he was sorry to find the hon. alderman object to a measure that had already been discussed in parliament. Should the motion for the Speaker's leaving the chair be now agreed to; it was his intention to move in the committee certain resolutions, which should be the ground-work of a bill he afterwards meant to bring in for regulating the exportation and importation of corn; and which should be similar to a bill lately passed in that house, but which was lost in consequence of the Lords having made in it certain amendments that were incompatible with the privileges of the Commons. He should bring in just such another bill, with the amendments, and then gent. who meant to oppose it, should recollect that it had passed that house without even a division, and that it had passed the House of Lords without any, or with very little opposition.

here interrupted the hon. member, by observing, that he was not at liberty to take notice of any thing which had passed in the other house of parliament.

resumed. He said, he was sorry if he transgressed the orders of the house; but his object was to show that the bill, of which he meant to move a similar one, had been considered by parliament as a necessary measure, inasmuch as it had passed both houses in the manner he described. He was sure that, upon due consideration, gent. would feel this to be a most important measure. It was nothing less than a measure to prevent thousands of acres of land throughout the country from being deserted by the plough; to prevent farmers from converting their lands to other purposes besides those of sowing corn. It was a measure to prevent the recurrence of that scarcity, which had been felt in so dreadful a manner some years ago; and, ultimately, to make the price of corn moderate and cheap. These things could never be done by importation; they must be done by holding out a sufficient inducement to the farmer to cultivate grain. It was as much for the interest of the consumer, as it was for the grower of corn, that such a regulation as was contained in that bill should take place. He also wished that gent. would, for a moment, look at this measure on the principle of policy, and see how far it was necessary so far as it respected foreign countries. There were some circumstances, which had very recently come to his knowledge, which must render the policy of the measure very apparent. He understood that the govt. of France had lately issued an order for permitting the exportation of corn, with a view that the agriculture of France might not sustain any injury. He hoped, therefore, that parliament would take care that it would not be necessary for us to import any corn into this country, which must operate as an encouragement to the agriculture of France, and as a discouragement to that of G. Britain. This was a very serious consideration, and he hoped it would have its due weight with the house. He was confident, that if some encouragement was not held out to make it more worth the farmers while to grow corn than it was at present, we could expect nothing else but scarcity. The resolutions he now had to submit were so moderate, that no one could object to them. Here the hon. member moved certain resolutions similar to those that had been laid before the house before, and declaring the necessity of certain regulations for the importation and exportation of corn.

declared that he was equally anxious with the hon. gent. to promote the object of the bill he meant to introduce, as he perfectly agreed with him, that every encouragement should be held out to the growers of corn, to increase the quantity of that article in the country. But he agreed with his hon. friend near him (Alderman Combe), that a farther time ought to be allowed for the discussion of a measure of that kind, which, at the present moment, was likely to do a great deal of mischief in the country. He wished the hon. gent. opposite to him to consider what was the operation of the bill that was already before the house. It had the effect of spreading a general alarm throughout the metropolis, and raising the price of corn and of bread. On the last market day wheat rose 5s. a sack; on the present day it rose 5s. more. All this was in consequence of the bill which had passed that house; and if a bill, merely in its progress through parliament, had produced such an effect, what might not be expected from it when passed into a law? The prices would become so high, that we should be obliged to seek for supplies from foreign countries. For these reasons he was determined to oppose the measure which the hon. gent. meant to bring forward in every stage, and which, he trusted, he would consent to put off till next session.—The motion for the Speaker's leaving the chair was then agreed to, and the house being in a committee, agreed to the resolutions and the report was ordered to be brought up to-morrow.—Adjourned.