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1824 Committees.-Dublin Local Taxation

Valuation of Land

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Commissioners.Revenue-Courts of Justice — Public Ac
counts-Fisheries-Public Records

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1825 Committees.-Dublin Local Taxation-Linen Trade-State of Ireland-Petition of Ballinasloe relative to Roman Catholic Association

Commissioners.Courts of Justice-Fisheries-Education –

Revenue

Com-Commismittees. sioners.

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1826 Committees.-Butter Trade-Market Tolls-Promissory Notes 3 Commissioners.-Revenue-Dunleary Harbour- Public Accounts-Fisheries-Roads and Bridges-Justice (2)

1827 Committees. -Grand Jury Presentments

Commissioners-Accounts

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-Courts of Justice Roads and
Bridges-Prisons-Paving Board-
tentiary-Fisheries-Schools and Middleton-Educa-

Richmond Peni

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1828 Committees.-Education-Vagrants Commissioners. Public Accounts

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Roads and Bridges

Courts of Justice-Prisons-Fisheries-Education-
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1829 Committees.To consider Eighteenth Report of Judicial In-
quiry-Kilrea Petition (forged signatures)-Miscella-
neous Estimates

Commissioners.-Post Office Revenue Public Accounts

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1830 Committees.-On Nineteenth Report of Judicial Inquiry-Poor 2 Commissioners.-Roads and Bridges-Courts of Justice-Education-Records

1830-31 Commissioners.-Courts of Justice-Prisons-Roads and

Bridges

1831-32 Committees.-Boundary Commission-Post Office Communication-Tithes-Turnpike Roads-State of Ireland. 5 Commissioners.-Ecclesiastical Inquiry-Courts of JusticeEducation-Public Accounts-Prisons

1833 Committees.-Derry Bridge-Dublin and Kingston Ship Canal

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Thus, in the course of the thirty-two years that elapsed between 1801 and 1833, there have been sixty Committees of Inquiry, and 114 Reports of Commissioners, making in the whole 174, all bearing upon Irish interests.

But it has not been merely by Committees and Commissioners that legislation has been carried on for Ireland. The following is a Return of the Number of Acts of Parliament, Public, Local, and Personal, passed from the Year 1800 to the Year 1833, both

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inclusive; distinguishing the Public from the Local and Personal, and showing the number of each class passed in each Year for England, or England and Wales, for Scotland, for Great Britain, for Great Britain and Ireland, and Ireland separately; together with the Total Number of each for the whole Number of Years. [House of Commons, No. 411, June 25th, 1834.]

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If attention be paid to the number of topics, and to the time they occupy, it will be found that nearly one-half of each Parliamentary Session is occupied with legislation for Ireland; although, frequently, discussion, as in the case of the “Arms Registration Bill," is kept up for mere personal or party purposes, and but few of the Irish Members even attend. During the last Session a furious warfare was carried on against the Irish Church; and, in the midst of an adjourned debate, the House was counted out, there being only thirty-eight Members present. Of those present, but seven were Irish Members, two of whom were in favour of the Established Church. Again, on Mr. Wm. Smith O'Brien's recent motion on Irish grievances, there were but forty-two out of one hundred and five Irish Members present; and of those forty-two Members present, one-half-viz., twenty-one-voted against Mr. O'Brien's motion-namely, fifteen for counties, five for boroughs and one for Dublin University.

Many other instances might be adduced to show the fallacy of the recklessly untrue misrepresentations that have been promulgated on this, as on every other subject relative to the effects of the Union.

MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS.-Under this head it is not necessary to show the fallacy of the assertion that the "municipal Reform Bill for Ireland is almost an entire mockery," because by the operation of this very bill the Roman Catholics in religion, and the Radicals and Whigs in politics, have obtained the chief control in almost every corporation in Ireland, not excepting Dublin; what more is required it is difficult to imagine; but it may be advisable to show that Ireland is possessed of extensive and complete municipal institutions in every city or town of magnitude, and therefore is enabled to carry out every useful purpose of local government, without resorting to what is sometimes called a "Domestic Legislature" for local purposes. The Irish Corporations were founded by English sovereigns for local and national utility; thus, for instance, as regards the Dublin

Corporation (whose income is now about 30,000l. a year), the charter of Henry VI. recites as follows:

"We, mindful of the acceptable and laudable services which the citizens of Dublin and their ancestors have manifoldly rendered to us and to our progenitors, to us daily, and especially for the preservation and defence of the city and parts adjacent against the hostile assembly of our Irish enemies, who daily strove to invade our lands, and to plunder and destroy our people, cease not to render at immense expense and labour, exposing their persons and their property to sundry dangers."

Henry VIII.'s charter recites

"For the laudable and praiseworthy services and expenses performed by our trusty and well-beloved subjects, the mayor, bailiffs, commons, and citizens of our city of Dublin in our land of Ireland, by their boldly and manfully defending our city lately against the treasonable attacks and cruel assaults of the most wicked traitor, Thomas Fitzgerald, his cousin and accomplices, as well by famine and watchings as by the effusion of blood of most of the said inhabitants, their bloody wounds and miserable and lamentable destruction, and otherwise heretofore manifoldly and daily suffered for us, We have given," &c. &c.

Elizabeth's charter recites as follows:

"We, considering the praiseworthy zeal of the lord mayor, &c., and their having often, not without heavy expense, performed services for us and our ancestors, in the safety and defence of our city of Dublin and parts adjacent, against the hostile attacks of our Irish enemies, and exposed themselves to various dangers, do grant," &c.

All these grants are without limitation or restriction, and specify no particular purpose therein.

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It is not improbable that some of the early municipalities were partly ecclesiastical and partly lay corporations, the latter absorbing the power of the former when the influence of the Church began to decline; for instance, Edward VI., in the fifth year his reign, made the Royal College of St. Nicholas, Galway, an "Ecclesiastical Corporation." The greater number of the charters now relied on are those granted by Elizabeth, James I., Charles I., and Charles II. The corporations are very numerous in Ireland. In the County Cork, for instance, there are eight corporate towns; the charter of the oldest-Kinsale-is dated 10th May, 7th of Edward III.; Cork City is 6th James I. and 7th Charles I.; Waterford, 2nd Charles I.; Belfast, 27th April, 1613; Armagh, 26th March, 1613; Londonderry, 18th Charles II. The corporate towns constituted boroughs for regulating the return of Parliamentary representatives, and until the recent Municipal Act,

were chiefly in the hands of the Protestants; they are now almost as exclusively under the control of Roman Catholics. With this explanation, it will be sufficient to show the number, jurisdiction, and income of the Irish corporations, according to the returns of the Municipal Commission, as laid before Parliament in 1835. The following is a summary

In 117 places inquiry was instituted by the Commissioners.

22 appear not to have had municipal corporations in 1800.

95 appear to have had municipal corporations in 1800.

In 24 the Commissioners were unable to discover, in 1833, any existing members of the corporations which had subsisted in 1800.

In 11 they found the corporations in actual decay, or in a condition of doubtful existence.

In 60 they found the corporations still maintained.

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The corporations claimed to be governed by charters principally from—

Walter De Lacy in 1 borough; Henry VIII. 2 do.; Elizabeth, 6 do.; James I. 55 do.; Charles I. 7 do.; Charles II. 16 do.; William III. 1 do.; Anne, 1 do. By prescription, 4; by Act of Parliament, 2.-Total, 95.

In the 71 boroughs in which there are existing corporations or corporators—
They found the corporations composed of definite classes only in

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