ealousies, and removing
causes of discontent. His lordship concluded by moving the rejection
of the amendment of the lords on the fourth clause, which implied the
continuance of corporations, and which the peers had therefore expunged.
This motion led to another debate of two days' duration, in which all
the topics previously discussed were again brought forward; superadded
to which were many reflections on the house of lords, and on Lord
Lyndhurst in particular. On a division, the motion to reject the
amendment on the lords was carried by three hundred and twenty-four
against one hundred and twenty-eight; and on the 13th and 14th of June,
the bill was brought back to the shape proposed by ministers in so far
as regarded corporations being limited to the twelve towns mentioned by
Lord John Russell. Subsequently, a committee was appointed to draw up
the reasons of the house for not agreeing to the amendment of the peers;
and the amended bill was delivered to the lords at a conference on the
17th of June. On the 27th, Lord Melbourne moved that the amendments
of the commons should be agreed to, which motion was met by a direct
negative by Lord Lyndhurst. The motion was lost by a majority of two
hundred and twenty against one hundred and twenty-one; and the bill
was then sent back to the commons, with the reasons of the lords for
adhering to their own amendments. Finally, on the 30th of June, Lord
John Russell moved, and the house agreed, that the amendment should be
taken into consideration that day three months, and thus the bill was
dropped.

THE IRISH TITHE-BILL.

{WILLIAM IV. 1836--1837}

Another great party measure was the Irish tithe-bill. Ministers
reintroduced this measure on the 25th of April. It was brought forward
by Lord Morpeth, the Irish secretary, who moved this resolution:--"That
it is expedient to commute the composition of tithes in Ireland into a
rent-charge, payable by the owners of the estate, and to make further
provisions for the better regulation of ecclesiastical dues and
revenues." In opening the scheme which ministers intended to
incorporate in their bill, Lord Morpeth announced that the principle of
appropriation would still be declared and acted on. The bill, he said,
would follow the uniform precedent of three previous bills, and
he believed of four successive administrations, in converting the
tithe-composition into a rent-charge, payable by the owners of the first
estate of inherit