angers' gallery;
sometimes, when I know beforehand of an interesting debate, I get one of
my friends to put my name on the "Speaker's list," and I then take my
seat on one of the two front rows of the strangers' gallery; sometimes,
again, I go down on the chance, while the House is sitting; and if I am
fortunate enough to find any one of any friends there, he generally
brings me, in a few moments, an order from the Sergeant-at-arms, which
takes me also to the front row of the strangers' gallery. Some benches
under the strangers' gallery are reserved for peers, ambassadors, and
peers' eldest sons. The Speaker and the Sergeant-at-arms give permission
generally to foreigners, and sometimes to some other persons, to sit in
these benches. I do not know which officer of the House of Commons
superintends the admission of reporters. Ladies are admitted to the
Black Hole assigned to them, by orders from the Sergeant-at-arms. I have
no doubt that the Speaker and Sergeant-at-arms are responsible to the
House for everything relating to the admission of strangers, and without
taking upon myself to say what is the authority under which Mr. Barry
has acted, I have no doubt that, in building galleries for strangers in
the new house, he has done what is consistent not only with the long
established practice, but, under the new order of 1845, with the theory
of the House of Commons.

As regards the passage quoted by Mr. Jackson from the _Edinburgh
Review_, the reviewer would probably allow that he had overlooked the
new standing order of 1845; and Mr. Jackson will perceive that the
recognition of the presence of strangers does not legalise the
publication of speeches. The supposed difficulty in the way of
legalising publication is, that the House of Commons would then make
itself morally responsible for the publication of any libellous matter
in speeches. I do not see the force of this difficulty. But the
expediency of the existing rule is not a proper subject for discussion
in your columns.

CH.

Whatever the present practice of the House of Commons with respect to
strangers may be, it does not seem probable that it will soon undergo
alteration. In the session of 1849 a Select Committee, composed of
fifteen members, and including the leading men of all parties, was
appointed "to consider the present practice of this House in respect of
the exclusion of strangers." The following is the Report of the
Committee _in extenso_ (_Parl. Pap