The Express. — London, England, 1849-06-27 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, WEDNESDAY EVENING, JUNE 27, 1849. s ad two or three old colonies in North America, has been *no ised within the last ainety years—moot of it within the l y e e ty years. For instance, the Canada', is 1769 ; Trinidad u s o u t! West Indian islands, Ceylon, and New Atte Wales, is the integral between 1763 and 1797' the rest of A us teeli. New Zeeland. the whole of South Africa, British Gs j oss , the Mauritius, Melia, the lonian Island., Helier.- l am e Hoag Kong, and Lotman were not (as the noble I ,rd see pries minister ones called them) precious in• heritenees from our noble ancestors, but bay* been added to the British dominins since the beginning of olio Penury. These colonies had been acqaired toe various tea mos, 2001 P we conquered because we grudged the pounsion a thug to rival powers, and fancied that the might of a m oos was in proportion to the extent of its ti Intones; dans we held as outposts, on the plea of protecting cur own erode, gad injuring the trade of other countries : end others we occupied as plans of punishment for our ciiiniula, Thus our nil inial empire consisted chiefly of conquered pro emcee, garrison towns, and gaols. Their government was entrust. dto a central authority in Eogiand. The invariable trident, of such an authority was to grasp as much power as usable and to resist every measure which a.emed 'duly, directly er indirectly, to diminish that power. In toefothaity with these tendenci•• the colonial policy of Great Britain was formed ; and the C. laid claim to omnipotence and infallibility in all matters concerning the colonies ; that claim was long recognised in this country, and scarcely disputed in the colonies, but of ' hp years it bad been contested, not so much within as with get Me wells of this house ; and every eeloay had repeatedly sad enereetically peotestea easiest it. And now the amen Oen was daily pining ground throughout the empire that Mr colonial system was net well suited tither to the state of Great Britain et of the colonies. That conviction had @s quired rtersch in this country in proportion as pulite attention bad been more and more directed to colonial rows Soto ; slid of late years greater attention had been paid to those questions for various resonos. Fine, because within the list quarter of a century Great Britain had begaa aisin to cekoise, and ow a mace greater seal. than ever before. For daring that period at least 2,000,000 of peruse had migrated fros this country ; half of teem had gone directly to our independent colonies of the United States; the ether half to our dependent colonies, whom* a largo portion of them had re ed to the United States. This gnat remigeation, thougb chiefly di rected to our hid• penitent colonies, had made the subjects of coleadutien and eoloaial government matters of deep and increasing interest to a large portion of the committes:, espetially to the humbler and middle classes, for there is scarcely one amongst them who had not some StllUt friend, or elation i t one of the culmin, or about to emi grate ; also mosey of the aristocracy end gentry who have kinsmen residing in the coluni is, as governors or in other altuatiuns of Snot and profit. Is ''sequence of this great emi s erwim the relations between Gnat Britain and her depeadeneies had thin profoundly changed, and there ought to have been a corresponding change in her colonial polry, which wee framed without reference to goy Emigration amept that ce convicts. Beeoad, public attention has been v. ry mach directed of late years to colonial elms does by initinas of distinguished men, who have carefully iatestigated the mammy of new s• clods s, examined into the principles of colonial government, and attentively studied the suiyect of colas is mon and congestion, with the view of relieving the economical difficulties of the United hieg- Jones, and id planting tafeuninhabited pertiens of the globe with communities worthy of the English name. Of these writers Mr. Wakefield was the most eminent: Cy his wri tings be produced a prrfound isms Rios on the minds of mow of the ablest men of our day, as, for instance, John Mill, Grate, : and there were few per sons in this country who had paid much atten tion to colonial questions who would not readily acknonitdoe, even when they did not adopt all Mr. Wake field.* c inclusions, that they were deeply iedebted to that path man for a considerable portion of their most valuable knowledge of 'Kitten relating to the colonies. Thirdly, public opinion had been mash directed of late years to colt:- nisi queatioi.s in consequence of the discussions which had taken place with regard to free trade and the navigation laws. For must of the statesmen of this country had main tained that there was an intimate connexion between the colonial and commercial policies of Great Britain. They had generally di fended the acquisition of new colonies en the pin that such foreign poseenims aff >Men markets for the exclusive benefit of our manufactures and produced a trade for the exclusive bens fit of our merchants and skip ow DM; and they persuaded the nation that in return teethe' se privileges it wag worth our while to pay vast sums of money for poinciana and governing the nelsons'. These privileges being abolished the question seemed very naturally to arise, why were we to continue to pay for them. The colonies were free to trade with whom they will, and in what manna , they will. Therefore, they would only trade with us and employ our shipping when it was mat profitable for them to do so. Therefore, as far as trade was conc'rned, they were become vista shy lade. endent states; and this revolts lion in our commercial policy had directed public attention ti the question, whether there ought not to be a correspond. ing change in our colonial policy. Fourth, the linen. tion of perli intent and of the country had of late Inbeen constantly occupied with colonial questions, cots.queece el a series of remarkable events in the (*Maim, which kad aanuagy occasioned heavy demand. to be made (a the pu bic purse. In the the course of the Lis: tiocen seen the colonies had directly goat Great Britain at least 60,000,0(01. in the shape of mili tary, navel, civil. end extraordinary expenditere, exclusive of the 20000,000 1. which were paid for the abolition of slavery; there'oss the to'al direct cost of the culubles had been at least 80,000,0001. in the last fifteen years, Maw, if ken. numb. is would merely take the trouble of recalling to their minds the chief events which wore taking place in the colonies while this money was spending, they must at non spending, admit that the resell of she expenditure had been far from satisfactory tither to the United Kingdoms or to the mionii 5; and he thought that they would likewise admit that there must be something essentially faulty in a policy which, at such en enormous cot, produced the results Swivel" lie would briefly enumerate to the house. Ist. In our North American depen4encin, within the last 14 ycan,there hail been a cu. flict of races, ending in civil war ,• two rebellious, one is Upper Canada, one in Lower Canada suppressed at *great cost to this country; various constitut ions destroyed or sus pended ; two hostile provinces united by means of intrigue and corruption, and it was said—he hoped most untruly— the war of races wu about to be renewed ; if this should happen and load to cinl strife and rebellion. •nd it Great Britain should unhappily attempt to mappens it by force of arms, that attempt if sucee•srol would cost many 'Milieu more than the former rebellion; for the re bels would be, not the poor ignorant habitants of Canada, but the dery and tie Anglo-Saxon population. 'lad. In the West Indics within the last fifteen tiears, a proposal to lead Mises millions had been rasyscted btu a gift of twenty million, arid followed by the universal robe cri the phenol ; in one colony, Jamaica, the onsetitutiers to be suspended ; is another colony British Oarir,te supplies a upped; and now again in British Guiana and also in Jamaica the supplies "tepee ; in Beata Lucia hour rectionary rigs; M all our other sues' plantations discon tent vets* on despair. 3rd. In 8 nth Afriee,withia the last Abeam rune perpetual border feuds with rapagions sad war like snags, who r. the Colonial oaks owe time mistook for peore:tel and harmless shepherds; with these loyesee two does wars with lavish expenditure, eneemoss peculation, sod so amonstability ; three rebellious et the lopes ever striving in vain to escape hoes our bated trios", sad pilfering to dwell ammo* wild beasts red wddee men to the detested doodah= of the Colonial aloe ; and, Amity, the acquisition of a huge, we rthMrs, and costly empire, containing nearly 300,000 "quart miles— chiefly ragged mountains, and desert sod banes plains, without water, without limber, wittiest navigable riven, without harbours, and in sheet without everything except the elements of great and ineneseing exposes to this country. 4. Is Ceylos, thou of patronage, eilletal ineptitude, and excessive expenditure, teammate so eke port oldie Colonial office, 'emending flaaasial assionweessest, sod toadies to injudicious taxes; slots and mardel law, military exemitioae, and punishments disonesfal to the British name. 6. In Australasia, communities, the earring of convict emigra tion, more hideously Adam thou any recorded its mend or profane history: that fleaviet emigration one day abolished to the joy of the colonists of Teesside, the nest day renewed so their horror and unsuineee 6. Is New Zealand, is- Docile governors, direr limb's hoidenish's, and unnecessary wars with the natives; unfortunately successful efforts to mar the fairest scheme of colonisatiorn, sad to die arrest the hopes of the choicest emigrants; and, finally, a constitution proclaimed one day sad suspended the sent. T. On the north-west coast of America, Vancouver's Island—hat he would net weary the house with more on this subject. He would only beg the house to observe that all these events, and many more of a similar character, had occurred in the nurse of the last fifteen years. Therefore, judging of the tree by its fruits, it was not Minh to infer that there were gnu errors and defects in the orkohd, policy of the British empire. To this conclusion Mega miesial fellow subjects had long ago arrived, and a Imes ream of the thinking and practical men of lthis were in the act of arriving. Our colonial policy had ele a l i Mnders metal thia home ; no defenders in it except wow oars ; for whenever the hes. gentleman the Under- Beelgeregy of State kw the Colonies rou, and with 'matchless mango sad undaunted determination maintained that nothing could be more perfect than our skald policy, that nothing Gould be more judicious Mao idle ses ame if the colonial secretary, sad that sodas; meld be more praiseworthy' than all the apialaaleatilliada by his noble friend, a solemn silence relpaill NNW Ida scarcely if ever interrupted by a hint show. far the Imam, reflecting on the history of the colonies limo Ms year 1846, could not fail to remember that nosy of the mod =sat nosh to Which he had just referred min sent, had occurred shim the = r essestirryv= the colonies took ogles: for initiate. the alleged renewal of the war of races in Comas, the rig the supplies 112 British Onion and Jamaica, the misomosillwient of the Kaf fir wsr, with peculation, extzsvganwll equadithre, and no eueastability; the rebelle d ' m oiss Bees, with the loathe extensile& of our empire in Bomb Addis, the hasty transpor tation of lonvicts to the Caro of Seed Hope, the =ct of the flamed& moildso ed Ceylon, with° stran g e n e and dierrainful emsomwsees, the absodoessont sod the renewal of transportation to Vas Memo's the Ishudere shout the soostituttua 'of Mow leokok el the transfer of Vancouver's IsYd he the Rohm% Bay Company. (Cheers.) T'ho boom Of all this, mots be longed to the adesinistratkee Of &element ssigalary of state he the solosim He amid row Salo what is lie *pinion, should be the dal 1114111 e of bear.). 'They might be enweged eider the b ree . ha l t ebldnlal iniventaiest, colonial eVprediture, and emigration or eolenration. Ist An inquiry should be made into our System of colonial government, with the view of removing the main causes of coolosial complalat. Now, the on* frost came of colonial complaint, wee irresponsible government ham a Mstanee. (Hear, hear.) The faults inherent in our geomumeret of the colonies had bees forcibly described in wads which he would reed to the house, and t 9 which he was sere the house would listen wkb attention, in memory of one who bad lately quitted us fee ever. "That system hu all the faults of an mends/1y arbitrary government, in the hands of persons who have little personal interest is the welfare of those whom they rule—who expertise, of their condition—who are obliged to trust to second hand and one-sided information—and who are ex posed to the operation of all those sinister influences which prevail where publicity and freedom are not established. The power of these p non is exercised in the faulty manner in which arbitrary, secret, and irresponsible power must be exercised ivy distant communities. It is exercised with great ignorance of the teal condition and feelings ef the people subjected to it ; it is exercised with that presumption, and at the same time in that spirit of mere routine, which are the Inherent vices of bure rrrrrrrr rule ; it is exercised in a mischievous subordination to intrigues and cliques at home, and intrigues and cliques in the ootonies. And its resells are, • system of cosecant procrastination and vecilletion, which reessions heartbreakir g injustice to the ineividush, and castiuued disorder in the communities subjected to it. These are the results of the prment system of colonial go "velment ; and must be the results of every system whisk' subjects the internal affairs of a people to the will of &distant authority not respoosible to anybody." (Hear, hear.) These were the corns of his (Sir W. Molesworth's) lite friend Mr. Charles Buller. Now, the colonial system wee es sentially the same. In reply to this assertion the Underline eretary of State for the colonies would in all probeleillty boast sgsia, as be had boasted before, that of oar 43 colonies, 27 have had representative institutions conceded to them But the hon. gentleman must acknowledge that of these 27 colonies, 8 lead only had therandie of representative insti tutions, and that the remaining 19 had representriive insti tatioas hag ago, when the noble lorJ, the Secretarl of State for the Colonies, was en enerestie sender of colonial-office government. (Hear, hear.) In consequence of those suau!ta upon our colonial mum, it was expected that so aeon aa the noble lord came into office he would have hastened to bestow representative institutions o', many colonies which were well deserving of them. Bet what had he accomplished in this respect during his lest three years of office ? He bad imagined a condescript cot stitution fir New Zealand, end insmrniately suspended it ; he then sent it to New South Wales for inseertien, and New South Wales rejected it. Hay */ failed to reform the c meths- Lion of New Sour h Wales, he now, at a late period of the session, introduced a bill to bestow the constitution of New South Wales upon the other Australian colonies, and it now appeared that that bill was a blunder, for it was withdrawn last night. Mr. HAWES—Yes ; and I brought in the same bill again. Sir W. MOLESWORTH continued—Finally, he had anossalsolesed the renowned S i r Harry Smith, the great lobed Lauda of the CaSres, to devise a constitution for the Coped Geed Hope. He (Sir W. Moleswenth) would not walrus to anticipate the results of these measures. He lisped and trusted they would be productive of benefit to this colonies coarsened; but in order that they might be as bent finial as possible, he maintained that they must be ac companied by a thorough revision and reform of our colonial polies ; for, ender the existing system, in meet of our colm nice the might, indeed, say in all of them wilt the excep tion of Canada), rept% sentative insientioes were rather shams than realowe, for they seldom led to the legitimate consequences of representative government—namely, respor sible government according to the will of the majority of the representatives of the people. (Hear, bear.) It would be easy to take colony after colony, and show in each a series of lamentable blunders which had been committed by the Colonial office—tor instance, how the war of races had been stimulated in Canada ; how the ruin of the planters had been mad• inevitable in the West Indies ; how a valuable ironies of our fellovesubjeets in /teeth Africa bad been driven into into the desert and became rebels: how the immorality of Van Diemen's Lend had been tearfully augmented; how the colooisation of New Z eland had been spoiled; how Vancouver's Island had been thrown away—all through the ignorance, negligence, and vacillation of the Colonial office. Ignerance, negligent*, and vacillation were three inseparable smithies of our oysters of colonial government. Ignorance was the necessary consequence of the distance which inter vened between the rulers and the ruled. Negligence was the invariable result of the want of efficient reoponttbiley, and the re ponsibility of the Coloniabetfise to parliament was merely nominal, in consequence of the ignorance of parlia ment with regard to colonial affairs. (Hirer, hear.) Lastly, es • recent instance of ignorance on the part of the Colonial.effice,he would remind the bouse of the case of Ceylon. In 1817 the present Secretary of Sate for the Colonies ap p.einted a committee, consisting of the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies and other gentlemen of eletingubdted abilities, is investigate the financial c tndition of Ceylon, with the view of proposing measures to promote the econo- mical prosperity of that colony. After much labour these gentlemen drew up a report which received the sanction of the Secretary of State for the Color. i. 5. Now, it had been peeved in this house, end no one would venture to contradict bb statement, that the chef data upon which that report was founded were incorrect ; that the most important con. elusions to which the committee arrived were erroneous ; that they mistook li abilities for amen—(. Hear, hear," from Mr. Hawes) —a bankrupt exchequer for a full treasury, and a deficit for a surplus of income over expenditure ; that in eensequence of these mistakes they recommended a reduction of tasation when they should have recommended • reduction of expenditure—(" hear, hear," from Mr. Hawes)—that the Secretary of State for the Galenite s, not being better informed than his committee, adopted their recommendations, and in structed the Governor of Ceylon to give effect to those re commendations. These instructions were obeyed by the unlucky grternor (Lord Torrington), a nobleman who had been apptintad on account of his skill in agricul ture and in railroad fioanee—ainghter)—but who was certainly not better acquainted with the akin of Ceylon than either the Secretary or Under -14-cretery of State for the Colonies. The consequence had been financial embarrassment, which led to the imeoeition of tams so injudicious that within • year it was necessary to re! 0.1 them. lie knew that a different opinion on the subject prevailed both in this country and in the celonies ; that in cos sequeaes of former speeches made by the present colonial minister very exuger tied expectations bad been formed of what he would do when in office ; that those ey:greeted expectaticess had been disappointed; that that disappoint ment bad been embittered by the injudicious praises of friends mid subordinates ; and that hence his name was meet unpopular. But in his (Sir W. Molesworth's) epinion, it would be • great mistake to suppose that either his recur 1 from office, or any mere change In the stet of the Colonial office, would be of any real benefit to the colonies. The fault was in the system. (Hear, hear.) The wonder to him was, not that the system worked ill—not that it produeed discontent—but that it worked no worse thin it did. Con sider, said he. for one moment the nature of its working machint ry. To g item our 43 colonies, scattered over the face of the globe, inhabited by men diffi ring in race, lan gWs and religion, with various institution, strange laws, ' and unknown customs, the stiff of the Colosial-office con sisted only of rive superior and twenty-three inferior rune ' *inert's. The superior functionaries were the Seeretary of State, the two ender-seenstasies, the assistant under-secretary, sad the ale( sleek. The Secretary of State and one under secretary left office with the government, and rarely retain albs for more than two years at a time ; they wen the ostensible heeds of oar colonial system, and were reopen- Shia to parliament far the government of the colonies. The One other superior functionaries Woe permanent were the reel heads of our colonial oysters ; they were screened from emposeibility by their polities' esperion ; they were en knows N parliament, scarcely known to the public by name, bathed home edebested of late years under the witty deigealisa ef Mr, Mother senate', /Tidied to them by Mr. Charles laller. Subordinate to tame gentlemen there IMO 'wintertime sleeks, making in all twenty-eight peelers for the government of 43 colonies. Therefore, with an equal divides of labour there would net be one (Meal for the government of each colony. But no such division of labour was practicable. The Secretary of State for the Colonies was reepoasible to parliament for the government of every colony. It was bin duty, therefore, to be acquainted with the affairs of each of the 43selemies, to read and study every despatch, and to be prepared to answer either in bit own per son or by his undenseendary, eve ry question which might be put to him in either house of parliament with regard to the colonies. If he could divide Ms time equally amongst the colon' , s, as there were 43 colonies, be could give about a week a year to the affairs of each separate colony, bet to no single colony could he at any one time spare a week of continuous attention, for every colony moron less required his attention simultaneously. He repeated, therefore, that the wonder was not that our ins tant of colonial government worked ill, but that the wonder was that it worked no worse than it did. He maintained, thenfore. that that system required revision, to ascertain in lariat maser it ought to be revised, how the machinery of the Odenial-clise could be improved —(bear, hear)—and whether 1010 bog government end more self-government watt to be given to scene or all of the colonies, should, is Ms opinion, be the first great objects of the inquiry. 1110101 he propels& to the consideration of the house. The second heed el Inquiry which he proposed for the com mingles was seismial expenditure. He had calculated on a femur emewiaa thet w the avenue of the lest fifteen years the direst oust albs esionise to Great Britairnunder the four heeds of *NIL naval, miLtary, and extraordinary expandi ble*, had ameeneall to at lust 4.000,0001. a year, etc:naive ef the ewes mil for smandpaiing our slaves. The civil es had bum between 200.0001. and 300,0001. a year. C li ant expeaditan he believed be had under-estimated at 1,000,0001. a year. The mileare expenditure most have ear. taisly exceeded 2,500,0001. a year, and at least 200 0001. a yaw - had been required en the average of the last fifteen years to cover the extraordinary expenses of Canadian lions, Kaffir wan, &e. He was satisfied that wi h a reform of our colonial system, and with a searching Inquiry into the cost of our colonies, a large reduction could be made in colo nial expenditure, especially in military expenditure. Last year the military force in the colonies consisted el 47 regiments of the line, 9 colonial corps, 1 regiment of cavalry, 38 completes of artillery about 800 sappersand misers, and about 100 , 1/11T officers ;in an 4.5,000 men of sll ranks. The cost of these troops for pay and etwielmariat expenses alone, bad been re turned to parliament for the five years ending list of Mareh, 1847, at 9,742, 0001., or at the rate of 1,948,0001. a year for pay and commissariat alone—(hear, heel—besides oedemas* expense,. These trope wore scattered about in various stations over 37 colonies. In the ordnance; stimatee of this year »femme was made to 64 military ations, in which there were either barrack or ordnance eiablishments, gene rally both, with barrack mastere, bona& emseents, /10111 keepers, deputy store keepers clerks of the works, ele., This year the sum of 197,0001. were required for the salaries of the taws and the wages el the workmen %Lillie' to these establishments. The storehouses of these redoes mataimad stores of the estimated value of 2,500,0001.—(hear, bear)—a wafileint mount of stores, if they did not perish of thasseltee, SOT about 20 years' consumption during peace. (Hear, tear.) la most of thaw stations considerable seas had 1) ea annually expended N fortifications and other coa.- haste works, The sum required for these Puriateel in the whilst* for this year was 216,0001., and the total sum ex pended upon them in the course of :he 19 years from 1829 to 1847, had emanated to 3,500,0001. (Hear, hear.) For instance, outing that period we had expended in North America Pa Cr 'Bence works, at Kingston 312 ; et Quebe r ,., 330,0001. ; at Montreal, 135.0001 ; at Toronto, 65,00014 at the Rideau Canal, 67,0001; at Halifax 215,0001. ; in Merirfoundland, New Brunswick, dtc about 100,00131., making in all about 1,300,000/., spent in ordnance works in North America within the last nineteen pan. (Hear, hear.) Many of these works were neon plated ; and, to complete them, large tams of money would still be required; for instance, at Kingston, 140,0091. Ouch ' of this expenditure, he believed, had been unnecessary— some of it absurdly so. For instance, troops and military works were not required in Australia: it was true that a hostile power might destroy Sydney, burn Mel bourne, and commit other ants of vandalism, but it crowd keep permanent possession of New South Wales OA Victoria against its English inhabitants. On the contrary, in oar conquered colonies we mould not trust the population ; end in those colonies troops and military works were re quired more against our own hostile subjects, than against t 'reign enemies. This was said on high authority to be the case of the Mauritius. It was said that in event of a war, if Port limb were not fortified, it would be difficult for us to retain pomesdon of it; and if we were to loath, it would be difficult for us to regain poem/Mon of it; in both cases, for the same reason, because the population were hostile to us Now it was said that the Mauritius was an important military Motion, that in the lest war, before we took pagandom' of it, pr us of the value of 7,000,0001. had been carried into it. Hence the supposed necessity of extensive ordnance works in that island, both cn the sea side against foreign enemies, and on the land aids against domestic foes. On thine works above 200,0001. had been expended since 1829 To complete the dilemma on the side of the see, at least 200,0001. more would be required, exclusive of the cost of the lend defences. However, it was pr lowed to expend only 5,0001. a year on these works; therefore at least forty years would elapie before they could be completed ! May we be at peace (said Sir William), and are finished! (Hear, hear.) In the lonian Islands nearly half a million had been expended on ordnance works since the peace. The ease of the tertian Islands was • capital in stance of the manner in which public money had been thrown away upon worthier colonies on the absurdest pleas. Our ex port Made to the lonian lalenos bad not, on the average of the last ten yesrs, exceeded 121,0001. a year ; an the lonian states had been wholly unable to fulfil their pecuniary en gagements to this country. They had cost us 130,0001. a year en the ge, or about 4,600,0001. since the peace. We had built fortifications at Corfu—cad here ANA a curious instance bow ordnance bills wi re run up—the original esti mate of which, as sanctioned by the Duke of Wil:ingtun in 1824. was 182,0001. ; this estimate was increased in 1831 to 227,0001, in 1834 to 240,0001., in 1839 to 340,0001. ; that sum having been expended, we voted last year 12,8731, and we were to vote this year 9,206/. for these same works, and then to complete these at least 60,0001 more would be re quired ; and when them works, originaPy estimated to cost 182,0001., shall be completed at a coat of above 400,0001, they will be found so exteneive, that in f • serious war, it would hardly be expedient to spare forces sufficient to man them, and the wisest plan grimed be to withdraw our troops, to blow up the fortifications, to abandon the Wands, and concentrate our forms at Malta and Gib raltar. (Hear, hear.) The Kaffir war which had just terminated was a sample of what we might expect frequently to barpen in our South African dominions. By the time all the bills were paid, that war would probably have cost us • couple of millions sterling. (Hear.) And if it were our sovereign wi 1 and pleasure that Sir H. Smith should proclaim himself paramount chief of Kafraria, with strange rites and wonderful discourses—(laughter)—if be was to add desert after desert to our barren empire in South Africa, till it became as large as the whole Austrian dominions, if he were to cross the deserts which were the natural boundaries of the Cape, end to acquire • new frontier as far as from here to Naples, exposed for many hundred miles to the ravages of fierce, warlike, and rapacious barbarians, if we were to hunt across the plaios of Central Aria the boon, ever flyirg from oar hated dominion, why the British people must make up their minds to pay dearly fir their whistle—(hear, hear) — and a more worthless one had never been acquired by forts of British arms. (lies:, hear.) Now, did any one fancy that in them days we could imp-iss upon mankind by such a sham—that we could, fur Instance, persuade the statesmen of Europe that by acquiring en empire in South 'Africa as large as the Austrian dominions, we had added the might of old Austria to that of Great Britain ? On the con tray, those statesmen wculd he much more likely to fancy that there were young Hungaries springing up both in Canada and in the land of the linen. (Hear, hem.) Therefore, this "prestige of might argument," should rather be termed the " sham lion " fallacy ; and a dangerous fallacy it had been, for it had, many a time and oft, led us to commit the grave and costly mistake of trusting more to military force than ti good government for the maintenance of our colonial empire. (Hear, hear.) Now, it ace to him, that if the commission which he pro be appointed, it should inquire to what extent it was necessary or politic for us to keep troop., or build fortifica tions in our colonies; whether we ought to do so in any colo she% except in our strictly military stations; what colonies ought to be considered to be military stations ; and what is tke best mode of checking and control ing our huge ordnance expenditure in the colonies, which is at the present moment without check or control. (Hear, hear.) This inquiry appeared to him to be a very important one, for be felt persuaded, that without a very coneiderabl , reduction in the military and naval force maintained on ie. count of the culanies, so considerable reduction could be made in the that of the colonii s, or in fact in the general expenditure of the British empire. (Hear, hear.) He aloe thought that if a commission were appointed in ad dition to inquiring into the cost of the colonies to Great Britain, it might, with some advantage, inquire into the cost of colonial government to the colonies themselves. Them were eighteen &Web colonies which paid for treir own governors. Their salaries amounted in all to 72,0001. a year ; therefore the average was 4.000/. • year, or nearly nine limes the average gaiety of a governor in the United States. In fact, the total amount of the salutes of the thirty governors of the thirty states of the Union was less by 2,5001. • year than the total amount et the salaries of the four go. vernon of the British North American provinces of Canada, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland. There fore there was a general opinion in the colonies that the sala ries fixed by the civil lists were excessive, and those civil lists had been subjects of perpetual dispute between the colonies and the Colonial-office. Now it appeared to him that it would be a question for the consideration of the commission whether ea or some of the colonies which paid car their governors should not be permitted to eh et their governors, and to determine the amount of their salaries: Of, on the other hLod, if it be deemed expedient Mat all the governors should be appointed by the imperial government, whether they ought not to be paid out of im perial funds. In the colonies which had free institutions it was evident that the representative assemblies were the best guardians of the pubic purse; but in those crown colonies which were unfit for representative institutions it was a matter well worthy of inquiry by the commission, what Minks existed or ought to exist against extravagant or un norreary expenditure. Lastly, he proposed that if a com mission were appointed, it should inquire into the subject of emigration and colonisation. It would be easy to show that the colonial policy of this country had not directly tended to encourage any emigration except that of convicta, and that by encouraging convict emigration it had indirectly tended to discourage the best kinds of emigration. For no good and respectable man, especially if he were the father of • family or intended to be one, would ever think of going to • owlet rimy, tinier he were is complete ignorance of the motel egmesquentes of convict colonisation. Therefore, it meg of the utmost importance to the colonits that the ques. Men ebould be settled, whether convict emigration was or wog set to continue to be a portion of the colonial policy of the Britisherapina Under the old system of distribution the moral filth of Great Britain was accumulated in vast and ferment log mow in the penal colonies, whence 'morel typhus, Bpestilence, and all manner of hideous disease, and ritish peet-houses of Australia, stunk in the nostrils of mankind. (Hear, hear.) Under the present system of die. WIWI= that filth WY to be spread oat evenly over the sur face of the colonies, end the colonists were to be told that it would be a fertilising manure, which would increase their martial wealth and prosperity. To the old system of con vict distribution it was impossible to return. - The new sys tem, he believed, contained within itself the germs of sure and speedy decay. He maintained that we had no morel right to relieve Gumless of our criminals at the expense of the colonies ; and that the desire to mike a saps-goat of our coloafes, by whomsoever entertained, whether by members of this house, or by magistrates of quarter sessions, or by judges on the bench, was a mean and selfish feeling, of which, as citizens of this great empire, we ought to be heartily ashamed. (Hear.) With reference to free emigrrion, he did not recommend that the commission, if appointed, should inquire into the expediency or practicability of the great scheme of emigration or colonisation which had been lately proposed, with a view of relieving the economical diffi culties of the United Kingdoms. He recommended that the inquiry should be goateed to ascertaining the nature of the obstacles which stood in the way of individeal enterprise in colonising, ad which impeded emigration to the colonies. (Hear, hear . The exirenee of such °Wades would be acknow by every one who was conversant with the history oft e attempts which had been made of late years to found celestes in Australia and New 3ealand. Havingbeen concerned in one of those attempts, experience had satisfied him that under oar present system of colonial government, no gentleman, no man of birth or education, ought to think of emigrating to as one of the British dependencies. If that systemessdiased to be unreformed, he felt satisfied that for oilseed emigrants who wished to seek their fortunes i• a item where there was less competition, and a ergo opea wi a for rathfel energy and enterprise, would be mote sod mere apt lodized their steps to the United States of Auriga, where they would enjoy institutions and sett possessor of Baglish=sia, and would not be liable to have tbilit by the ignorant and capri cious interfermwe i T ee dis s lost sod irresponsible authorities, or of their ill-esiseted Inelemarmla. (Hear, hear.) Within the last five and twisty _yews. as he had already said, about 2,000,000 of preens ball emigrated from this country one minks had gone* dtrectly to the United States of America, alma IWO le war North Americao dependencies ' the the latter than half eked ra emigrated to United Slim. Therefore, in all probability, three fourths of th• emigration from this country during the last Iva asi twenty years bid been to the United States. Reload wow stated what in his opinion shoed be the chief heads bye toeamission,—namely, edema/LI govern meet, gels expenditure, and emigration or coloation. Under MA of times heads the commission shou'd inquire what questions should he considered as imperial ones, and whet should be looked upon as local ones. It should attempt to ateertaia what powers the imperial government ought to retain for the tenetit of the empire at large ; and what powers ought to ber delegated totheeoloniel legislatures. It apparel! to him that it would not be diffiessit to clamt:7 and define the powers which ought to be resereed asim,,rial ~.nes,and then ell other powers, not so reserved, should be held 1 0 be local powers. The advantages of such a classification, if sam::innod by the imperial legislature, wen sell evident. It won:d enable the colonial legislatures to know precisely what the) were entitled to do, and what they must elusion from doing. It would thus greatly diznioith the chance of hostile collision between the local legWatures and the imperial government; and last, and not least, it would spare us many • useless debate about colonial questions, with which it was impeesible for us to be well acquainted. (Hear, hear.) If this inquiry were properly conducted, it would furnish the means of settling the great pan tieut questions of colonial government. Fur instance, what colones ought to have free institutions ; what was the best form of sellgoverument for colonies with representative in stitutions ; what was the best kind of local government for colonies unfit fur ulf-government ; what defences were seeded for the colonies ; what should be the nature and amount of expenditure for the colonise ; what would be the hest cheeks both on imperial and local 'immature in the colonies ; to what colonies convict emigration, if not abolished, would be least mischievous; for what colonies free emigration, and of what kind would be most beneficial ; what rules should be adopted tor the disposal of colonial waste lands, and by wnom those rules should be framed ; and lastly, with regard to the uttlement of all these questions, and of many others of equal importance to the colonies, and with reference to each clue of colonies separately,whst powers should be reserved to the imperial government, and what powers should be delegated to the local authorities ? He was convinced that upon the practical settlement of these questions the maintenenee of our colonial empire mainly depended. He believed that the stability of that emirs was in imminent Ganger from their non-settlement ; first, in consequence of the colonial discon tent engendered thereby ; secondly, in oonsequince of the opinion, which he was sorry to say, was thence pining pound in this country, that those colonial questions wets Wolubls, therefore,that colonies were nuisances and burdens, and, therefore, the fewer they were in number, and the sooner tney were got rid of, the better. (Hear, hear ) If lobe hours should swede to his (Sir William Mole* worth's) motion, and her Majesty should be graciously pleased to appoint a commission, he should presume to re. commend that it should consist of not more than five per sons; that the CMIIOIII4OII should report from time to time to her Majesty; that their reports should be laid before parliament; that if approved by parliament they should be the basis of colonial legislation, and of a reform of our colonial policy. The task which the conneissien would have to perform would be an arduous as well as au imp aunt one. The qutsti in would be asked, to whom should the performance of such a task be emulated; what should be the qualifications of the members of such a cane mi s 4i m ? It might, perhaps, be maintained that the it_quiry wt i 1 he prepaid st.ould be conducted by the deportment to which the 'management of our colonial affairs was in trusted, and if the inquiry were to be merely hate the details of enlobi 41 eihninistrat —into the machinery of the col maid office—into the number of functionaries which were required in that office—and into the best cisi inn of labour besweim tht m—he might then admit that such an inquiry might be left to the management of the colot But the it• quiry which he proposed was a much more extensive one, cam ly, into the whole colonial poli,.y or the British empire. Now, first, the functionaries of the uteri 41-4ffice were too much occupied with the daily admicistrition of colonial M aas to be able to spare the time for so extemalve an inquiry as that which he contemplated ; and, secondly, he must say, without any intentiuual disrespect for theme gentlemen, that haling been accustomed to the existing system, they would, In his opiaion, be:apt to look upon that ey.tcm with too favourable an eye. Therefore he objected to entrusting this inquiry to the Colonial-office. To whom, then, should the inquiry be entrusted ? It was evident that it ought sot to be conducted in a party spirit—(bear, hear) — and in fact it was not a party question. For each party was equally interested in the good government of the eclonies— (hear, hear)—in the reduction of unnecessaty colonial expos dune, in the promotion of colonisation and emigration, and in short in everything which could conduce to the prosperity of Our c empire, and to the happiness of our colonial fellow-subjects. Therefore, if • corianain ion were appointed, he should recommend that it be fairly anises from the four divisions of this house; for example, one member should be appointed from the ministerial la/melba—such a person, fur instant t, as his hon. friend the Under S..cretary of State tor the Home Department ; one member from amongst the friends of the right hon. hart. the member for Tamwurth— as, for it stance, eithor the right hon. hart. the member for It pun, or the right hon. gentleman the member for the uni versity of Oxford.or the noble lord the member for Falkirk; one member from the ranks of the protectionist party ; and one from the section of the house to which he belonged. To the four members so selected he would recommend that there should be added one ()tour most davit:Finished economi cal and political writersonieb for instance as Mr. John Stuart Mill. lie thought a commission so constituted, with lull powers of inquiry, would deserve and obtain the confidence both of this country and of the colonies, and would lead to the most important results. Therefore in the firm convic tion that his motion was both a practical and a useful one, be begged leave now to submit it to the consideration of the house Mr. HUME, to seconding the motion, said that his hon. friend had alleged very strong reasons for the house to secede to his proposal. The motion was not based on party prin cipli e. The plan before the house was, in his opinion, the best ever yet presented. It was to choose the best and ships% men to search into and suggest correction for the abuses which prevailed in the Colonialoilice. He (Mr. Hume) was most &- Seoul to sic the country relieved from the expense of the colo nies, and to render them useful to the mother country. He did not mean as to the revenue, but by way of relieving England hoes the pressure of her surplus population, and et con suming her manufactures. He likewise supported the mo des of bishop friend bscause he was for carryin 4eut the prin ciple of self-giverument in the colonies. every colony, except the Canadas, was in a state of discontent. And tree Canada had self-government and a practical constitution, which explained tte face. Patronage was at the root of the present system of colonial government. He blotted no mi nistry in particular on this account, but nevertheless the fact was so. The &manna having put the original motion for an ad dress to the crown. Mr. B. HAWES said that the hon. baronet had divided his speech into two parts, which he would deal separately with. It was not easy for him to meet vague charges on points which related to colonial matters. But he certainly had felt somewhat familiarised with the topics, the argu ments, and the proposals of the hon. baronet. The proposal, however, wasone which be did not hesitate to prosource to be impracticable and illusory, and believing it to be so, he must oppose it. Now het bought the hon.beronet might at least have shaded out to the house some of the causes of colonial com plaint ; and, if he had done GO he would have found that the duty which he proposed to impose upon the commis. stoners would be no very easy one. The great cause of com plaint at this moment amongst our West Indian fellow subjects was that we had introiuced an entirely new system of commercial policy. Did the hon. baronet mean that the comme donors were to inquire into that subject, and by so I inquiring raise expectations that that system would be changed ? If the hon. baronet did so intend, then he (Mr. Hawes) protested against giving such a power to say com missioners. (Hear, hear.) Now he would turn for a mo ment to the petitions from the Jamaiea Assembly. They traced all their misfortunes to Mr. Canning's resolution in 1823, which they said led to emancipation,whiist emancipation spin led to ruin. But did the hon. baronet propose to open the whole que'tion of the sins* trade ? If he did, he (Mr. Hawes) must protest against that tgiin. (Hear.) Now let them turn to another hemisphere. In New South Wales the great cause of complaint was the minimum price of land. That, he admitted, might be a fair subject for special in quiry ; but after the hon. baronet's speeches of former years he was surprised that be should he the person of all others to allude w it. Then there was another question to be considered by the commissioners—the form of govern ment. Thies five gentlemen, sitting, not in Downing.street of mane—anywhere but there—there was a natural abhor rence to the name of Downing-street ; but sitting in White hall, or to any newly furaished apartment that could be found, were to discuss the form of government of every co lony. But those wen, he contended, great questions, to be decided in that house, to be proposed by the minister on his own responsibility, and were not to he shirked by_a commis. sion of five gentlemen sitting at Whitehall. (Hear, hear.) But let them appoint that commission and what would be the coarse taken with any colonial question ? Sir W. MOLESWOBTH—It would Dave debates in this house. ----- Mr. HAWES continued—But be was not sure that the commissioners would have the confidence of the colonies any more than the government, and he was not sure that the result would not be to provoke instead of to prevent debates in that house. (Hear, hear.) The honourable baronet wished for a commission. His noble friend had had a commission described in a letter from Governor Grey on the 12th April, 1848, and their labours had led to the committee of council being appointed. That committee distinctly referred to the chae in their policy, and laid down new principles which h aled to the introduction into that house of the bill for the better government of the Aut. train* colonies. He would briefly call the attention of the house to the report of that committee, because it admitted a change of p-liey, distinctly asserted that the time had come when a change should take place, and had down the principles on which that change should be bawd. They stated that in those ancient pomessions of her Majesty's predecessors which at present formed so large a part of the United States of America, and in all the other British colonies there prevailed until the commencement of the nineteenth century the almost invariable usage of esta blishing a local legislature en the system of three estates ; vie., of a governor apeointed by the sovereign, a coun cil nominated by the sovereign, and an as,embly elected by the:people. But during the nineteenth century they aided, the British crown bed acquired, by conquest or cession, from foreign states sixteen additional colonies, and in no one of them had the old colonial policy of a governor, council, and assembly, been Introduced. Bet that was not all. What was done at the commencement of this session ? An inquiry was proposed he° two colonies. He (Mr. Hawes) had no objection to thaw inquiries. One of them had been made— the report was before him—and if the house remembered the charges which were at that time made against the Colo nial office, they would sea how for those charges had been substantiated. The other colony wee Celon. He (kir. Hawes) was precluded from speaking o f Ceylon at this moment. The hon. baronet however lad spoken of it in strong language. The ease was undergoing inquiry, and he thought the hon. baronet's strictures might have been spared. (Hear, hear.) When his noble friend (Berl Grey) became colonial minister, there was throughout the 'stole of those colonin au absence of that liberal, popular, sell contrast which he believed to be the basis of our colonial policy, and he had introduced a bill, it least giving to the Asstrelish colonies the prospect of a tree governottot, With regard to the Cape, the hon. baronet said that it was left to Sir Harry Smith to propound a constitution for the Cape. They would see in due time whether that statement amounted to anything more than the ordinary exaggeration of the hon. baronet. The Caps constitution was now under the con sideration of the committee of council, and he was not at all afraid of the result of their inquiry. New Zealand at least had had a moustitution given her. The hon. baronetsaid that Earl Gee,: had recalled it. It was not a correct de scription to say so„ That house suspended it; but the governor, on groan& which he believed to be irrefragable, and which he had tions to its minim: into in:mediae@ operation, because he said the bill would cosier legislative powers on a small European population over a large and warlike people of pe culiar shrewdness and intelligence who were not at all in clined to nehmen to European rule. In another colony— that of Guiana—he might state that he thought they were very likely shortly to have something like a respectable re pneentatton of popu'ar public opinion. The hon. baronet next referred to the West Indies, and said that the policy of the Colonial-office had ruined the West Indies; but the hon. baronet had voted for all that free trade policy which by a great party was thought to have ruined the West Indies. He would show, however, that that policy had not ruined tee West Indies. Injured they had been—deeply injured by our changes of policy; but he believed them to have been inevitable. They had been founded on public opinion, and he believed that no government could have resisted the abolition of the slave trade. (Hea-, hear.) But to free ti ads, he again stated, that he looki d for the salvation of thou colonies. When he refernd to a paper recently laid before the house, on the motion of the hon. member for Wolverhampton, he found an Recount of the imports of sugar, ikc., law the United Kingdom from the West Indies. It was remarkable that the year in which the least quantity of sugar was imported was 1841, and that from that time to the present hour, there had been a steadily increasing quantity imported. The quantities nut-2,100,000 cert., 2,500,000 cwt., 2,400,000 cert. 2 800,000 cwt., 2 100,000 cwt. (the ye a r of drought) , l 3,100,000 cwt.. and 2,700,000 ewt. And when he introduced the But Indies, and looked at the East and West Indies together, then he found the case very different indeed—f it dies merely appeared that the deft:lent supply of the West Indies had been exactly made up by the Eat Indies, the total quantity imported altogether, including both Eat and West Indies, amounting to 5,000,000 cwt. Now, he turned to another group of colonies—:he Australian. Could any one doubt that those colonies, taken as a whole, were pro gressing ? Let them take the population of New South Wales alone—why the increase was quite enormous. In 1833 the population was 97,000 ; in 1847 it was 205,000. The exports in 1838 were 800,0001 ; in 1847 they amounted to 1,800,0001. The hod in cultivation in 1838 was 92,000 acres; in 1847 it was 164,000 acres. (Hear, hear.) Let them look again at any of our other colonies in that part of the globe. Lot k at the vast increase in the export of wool. In New South Wales, is 1825 it amounted to 411,000 lb. In 1847 it had reached 22,000,000 lb. In South Australia again, the same thing was visible. te 1814 the wool exported was of the valets of 64,10 W. In 11147 it amounted to 110,0001. In fact, all throughout there was the greatest iiicri'aaa. (Hear, hear.) He repeated that it would be utterly impossible for the pro posed c ommission to conduct such an inquiry. But them they were to inquire also into the cost of government. ( lisle hear.) The hon. b nonet hoped materially to reduce our military expenditure in the colonies, but he believed that he would not tied that quite so practicable as he inn pi led. When the hon. baronet divided that force into' forces applicable to our colonial establishments, and then again into a kind of colonial force, for the general mainte nance of the police of the seal., he misled both himself sad others. The whole force of England was afloat gene rally for the preservation of the peace of the highways of the seu, and for the protection of our trade, without which our commerce could not be carried on all over the globe, as it now wee, in perfect security. (Hear, hear) There was not a single part of the world where we hod colonies bat the government was asked to increase that thrce. Mr. HUME—Yes, to spend British money there. Mr. HAWES continued—Not at all. They wanted British ships of war to maintain perfect security for their trade, and not for the mere money that might be spent in the neighbourhood. (A laugh.) Ex penditure might he divided into three great portions ; it I might be celled expenditure fur colonel purp nes, expendi ture for purely military purposes, and expenditure in refer ence to convict services. The average expeuditure, according to the return referred to by the hon. member for Montrose, soon colonial possessions, properly such, including 31 cols nies, w.os 760,0001., and the average commissariat' 30,0001. ; no that a million was expended entirely on the army for those colonies which were pun ly commercial. Looking at Africa, with its vast satin populati ; looking at Lelia, and the whole of the West Indies, could the amount be materially reduced ? Undoubtedly the re might be, by a change of system, a considerable reduction of espeiodeure, but it must be entirely the work of time, and could not he done by sudden cleans.. His opinion was that the motion ought to be rejected, if it were on the ground only that it would raise expectations which could not he realised. Mr. ULM/5 LONE looked upon this quer ion, not so much with reference to the precise terms which the hon. baronet had adopted, as with reerence to its general scope. As to the pricier term., they were capable of a construction which would lead it to be supposed that the object of the commis sion was to be a minute inquiry into all the detail, of the go vernment of the different colonies, end intoall the complaints' of abuses and grierances that any colonies, in any part oi the world, might be disposed to advance; In abort, a general court for inquiring into all the charges against the administra tion of the colonial deportment; but he thought the house would cement en error if it were to address her Mijesty fur the eppoiutmentof a commission for any such purposes. He took ir, on the contrary, that the object of the hon. baronet was by no mesas an inquiry of that nature into the abuse of detail, to fasten chug• on particular pers ore who might be engaged in the administration of the colonial government, or in the coloilin themselves, but to see whether it was possi ble is make same permanent contribntion towards the im provement of the administrative system of our colony. a Many moat important queatioas hail been settled on large and comprehensive maniples. lie was fully aware that the inerea-ing difficulties from year to year which attended the administration of our colonial system might have but a slight connexion with the qualities of she minister; but he must say this in behalf of Earl Grey, that in many points he thought he was equal to any, and superior, per haps, to almost any of his predecessors, with reference to the administration of the office which he now held, hut he could not, whilst admitting his abilities, his unwearied in dustry, his perect honesty and integrity of purpose, and his freedom from motives of pasty in the choice of gentlemen in the conduct of affairs, commit the conviction that Earl Grey had been led, in certain cases, into most serious errors in the conduct of colonial affairs, and those °Tyro had con tributed much is the necessity that the house should take some steps on the subject. The question with Mu was whether the circumstances of the colo nies, and of the colonial system were such that they ought, instead of resting satisfied with these means, which ear institutions had provided for working the business of the government of the moony, to endeavour to call in all some farther means, not to s.pplant those which were ordinarily employed but to reinforce them, and make them more effec tual for the attainment of their ends He thought the time had arrived when they should make an attempt of this kind, and be founded that opinion on a variety of considerations in their complex and joint remit. In the first place the Colonial Secretary had to go through a mass of details which could not be put aside, as might be done in other office. ; he was necessarily dependent, on sc. count of the distance of the possessions he had to govern, on partial information. His department 'abased under great disadvantage from frequent changes of ministry, and it had happened that he did not receive a return of the pat to the first letter he wrote on a public question, before he was out of office. A further element of difficulty was the utter im possibility, in nine cases out of ten, of drawing an adequate degree of attention from parliament to colonial questions. Toe hon. gentleman who last addressed the hones had re ferred to two reports of committee on the subject of what was going on in Ceylon and Guiana, in regard to which he con tended that the charges against the govetoment, or certain of them, had not been substantiated. The result of the labours of the committee would be materially to ma dify the policy of the Colonial-office as to British Guiana ; and that wea another argument in favour of the in stitution of this committee. The hon. gentleman had cer tainly shown that there were some subjects not fit subjects of inquiry by this committee, and he agreed with him that there were subjects which ought to be sedulously excluded from the view of the commission. But there were others which ought not, and he would give the house such instances as occurred to him. In the first instance he thought it would be most useful that a body of well-selected gentlemen should consider what were the general rules which ought to be followed in the foundation of sew colonies. Observe the position of the colonial minister: there was no remission of the constant pressure of business; from day to day he was overwhelmed with a mass of papers, and had hardly time to give a comprehensive consideration to that to which he ought to give consideration. As to the foundation of a new colony. When first a propasal came before the secretary he was obliged to view it in the midst of other details. When Lord Stanley was in office, he and the hon. member for Ripon, in concert with him, considering the difficulties in which which they were placed as to transportation, thought there was an urgent ne ceselty for founding a new settlement to the worth of New South Wales. (Hear, tear.) lie thought it was too much to say that a large portion of the surface of the earth, which was considered of the utmost value, should depend on the single feed of one man to con sign them either to _perpetual sterihty, or what came within one degree of it. The nee* great q intion was that of the management of local affairs. There was the case of Jamaica. It would be a desirable cue if the constitu tion of Jamaica should undergo the review of able and impartial men. The New Zealand constitution was an instancy bearing on this great subject of management of local affairs by the colonists themselves, in which it would have been most useful. There should have been some such body of rules and pncep's as the abilities of the gentlemen forming any commission would have been able to lay down. It wee not without pain that he could look at the history of this transaction, and the position in which the queen's government and parliament were placed in re ference to the concession of free institutions. In 1846 we began with a bill passed with great precipitancy, at the instance of government, enabling the Queen to grant a representative constitution to New Zealand. The constitu tion was framed with the firm intention of granting the bleassings of free government, but next session there was a proposition for the house to retrace its own steps, and cancel its own &dogs., to suspend for a number of years the constitution which had been granted, and to delegate the authority to one man, Sir (lures Grey. The result had been very great discontent among,: the settlers of the southern portion of New Zealand. We never should have seen this Rid-sag proceeding, the itnitification of the legisla- lire powers of psrliament, if the Secretary of State had had the advantage in the 'irst instance of being obliged to con coct a system of colonial philosophy fur himself. A oommis lion might not be able altogether to cure the evil, hut cer tainly could assist government is laying the founds ion cf a better system. Mr. LABO UCIIERB objected to the motion, u a sweeping and indiscriminate unsure. The hon baronet the member for Southwark had stated that be c •asidered the province of the commission would be to inquire into colonial government, expenditure, and emigration, comprising in fact almost the whole circle of duty loelongine to government. He was at a loss to knew what would be the &demount. of delegating functions of so high a nature to any irresponsible body. The honourable baronet had also suggested that the proper composition of such commission would be five members, one from each of the four corners of the house, and a fifth (Mr. Mill) to act ea a sort of at biter. But the hon. baronet had altogethi r forgotten the House of Lords. (Hear, hear.) Would it not be right that the upper house should have a voice in such commission ? ( hear.) However, he (Mr. Labouchere) objected to delegation altogether, especially as being unconstitutional. He thought that questions of great constitutional policy should be solved by the mini ter of the crown on his re sponsibility, and that he should not endeavour to relieve himself of that responsibili•y ►y . throwing it on the shoul ders of a parliamentary commission. (Hear, hear.) For these reasons, feeling it to be unoonstitatior al and improper, he felt bound to oppose the motion. The right honoura ble gentleman opposite, in supporting the honourable baronet, had outwitted many duties for the com mission, but he (Mr. Labouchere) could not clearly understand what they were. He was not sure w►ether the tight hon. gentleman proposed that it should be a standing commission, to which questions might be submitted as they arose, or whether it should be appointed on a particular occasion and for a 'pedal purpnse. There were several questions is which a commis-ion might be Lurid, bat that was a did rent thing from setting up a standaig commie 011, to which were to be submitted all the grievances of every colony—in fact, even to supersede the acting government of the country. (Hear.) It appealed that the latter was the sort of commission which the hon. baronet contemplated. Nothing but disappointment could follow from the norni- Mon of this commission, and however go Id the intentions with which the present motion was introduced, he e o.da. regret to see the house adopt this proposition for a novel, i anomalous, and specious institution, from which no benefit • could result to the colonies. (Hear, hear.) ' Mr. F. SCOTT supported the motion. Mr. ADDBRLBY said that the argument against the commission proposed by the hon. member for Southwark, if valid at all, was valid against any commission whatevir. Lord J. RUSSELL said the hon. baronet had proposed his motion in terms which were calculated to induce mem bers holding various opinions t i give it their support. The motion included the diminution of colossi expense, and the giving tree scope to colonial enterprise. The diminution of colonial expenditure had always been a popular subject, and colonial enterprise was, with reference to culovition, a question in which most ken. members tel a deep interest. So that the hon. baronet had skilfully framed his motion with the view of obtaining a considerable amount of sup port. He was at a loss to understand, however what object the hon. gentleman meant to accomplish. He could understand perfectly well the appointment of coin 'abalone's to inquire into the state of the poor law, or of the church, but a commis-ion to inquire into the state of the I colonies, with their various constitutions and races, and into the causes of complaints in each, appeared to him too vast a proposition to be entertained. His right hon. friend (Mr. Labouchtre) had asked the tight hon. gentleman opposite (Mr. Gladstone) whethe r he wished the commission to be a standing one. The right hon. baronet replied that that was not his desire; hut he (Lord J. Russell) could not con ceive how, within too lifetime of the youngest member of that house, the labours of the commission were to terminate. The right hon. gentleman (Mr. Gladstone) thought that many errors had been committed with regard to colonial policy ; and, with a sort of speculative optimism which he (Lord J. Rusa:ll) had not expected to hod in one who was conversant with the business of that house and with official lite, he seemed to think that by selecting five members from different sides of that house, they would obtain an infallible rule of wisdom for their guidance in all colonial matters. (Hear, hear.) That certainly seemed to him (Lord J. Russell) a Utopian conception. The great objection to the motion was, that amidst mice a multiplicity of subjects it would be hardly possible for the cnsuneutun to come to any rational conclusion. The hon. gentleman had very fairly stated his notion as to the manner iu which the commission should be framed. lle said that the Under- Secretary of State for the Colonial Department would be on the commission ; that a right hon. gentleman opporite, either the right hon. member for Ripon, or the right hon. member fur the University of Oxford, or the noble lord the member for F.:lkirkl (L:rd Lincoln) might form a second member; that some month man bclonoing to the protectionist party might be a third mem ber, and one of his friends another; and that some learned author, like Mr. Mill, might be the fitth—(laughter)—and he proposed that these gentlemen should rapt , . as their opi nions on all colonial grievances and difficulties. (Renewed laughter.) For the last two years there had been great complaints from the West Indies, and it was probable that on that subject the protectionist member of the commis sion would always find four to one against him. Now, in considering the chem. s made with regard to colonial policy, he would take the growth of two or three colonies only. In a late publication he found that the population of Lower Canada in 1825 was 423,000, in 1848 it was 766 000 ; the population of Upper Canada was, in 1824, 1.51,000, in 1818 723,000. That certainly afforded no proof of misgovernment or of glow growth. The population of New South Wales. including Port Phillip, was, in 1837, 85,00 0; in 1816, only Line years later, it was 196,000, and he believe 1 that according to the last accounts it now exceeded 200,000. The imports of New South Wales were in 1837 130.090/., wh in 1846 they blue wed to 1,600,0001.; the exports in the first period were 760,0001. in the second 1,487,0001. This afforded an example of pro gre-s to which there was scarcely any parallel in tae history of colonisation. With r. gard to the liberties of the e it had been said that in the case of Canada the govern.. ment had done wrong in not interfering, and it could not now be contended that they had committed the oppo site fault of that with which they were charged. As regard ed any proposal to lay down rules with respect to the autho rity of the crown and that of the colonial legislature, he should certainly oppose any such scheme. (Hear, hear.) The best rule was forbearance on both sides. On the one hand the colony should not desire to assert without necessity a (tandem which might be hurtful to the crown, and, on the other hand, the imperial government should not restrain any exercise of free] em which might be beneficial to the colony. But if fixed rules were laid down, the interpretation of them would lead to disputes, and angry feeling would be created. it was said that the commission might lay :lowa rules with respect to the extension of free dom; but he thought the beat course was to follow 'ho ancient constitution of the country ; even Lord Halifax having laid down in the reign of Charles the Second, the principles of an assembly represent ing the colony, and a government represeating the crown. All questions of administraion should be gui2ed in the first instance by certain fired principles, but on the other hand, the application of those principles should be adapted to the circumstances of each colony. One who wrote with almost mathematical precision, notwithstanding all the beauty of his language, Rousseau, declared at the end of his life, that politics were after all a sties ee of circum stances and of modification, and that the particular questions on which the rules were to be applied must not he decided by the statesman solely upon the Astrid theories of the philosopher. He certainly did not consider that any benefit would arise from the appointment of this commission. He really thought it would be mat undesirable to intro dues such a mixed government as that which would be con stituted by the appointment of this commission. Had the hon. baronet proposed a commission to inquire into any par ticular and definite subject—into the question, for example, of the operation of the present system of disposing of public lands in our colonise, into the question of the operation of the Colonisation and Emigration Board—such a question as either of these, or any similar inquiry, would be a fit sub ject fir reference to a commission, and a propositionfor such reference would have met with no opposition at his hands. But, as to the general colonial government, it was bitter to leave this question to be dealt with, in the first instance, by the responsible government of the country, subject to the control and supervision of parliament. That was the free constitution of this country. (Hess, hear.) I have said that it was inconvenient to kayo frequent changes in our colonial administration, and no doubt it was so; in like manner, it was inconvenient to have frequent changes in our foreign policy, and herein the Emperor of Russia had so far an advantage over us, since from 1815 to the present time he had had bet one Minister of Foreign Affairs, who had held throughout the same language and pursued throughout the same policy; but the advantage o such unvarying policy would be dearly purchased, in the opinion of the people, by the sacrifice of that free constitution under which these changes of prilicy took place from time to time in England. (Hear, hear. j Ho considered that the best thing to be done in colonial peaky was to enlarge the powers and extend the freedom of or,r colonies as much as possible, to diffuse as rapidly and as 'widely as we could among them the advantages of lor,al government. (Hear, hear.) By this course we a' could most effectually promote the prosperity of our colonies, without introducing any principle at variance with that free constitution which in it self so endeared the mother-country to her colonies as an example of freedom. (Hear, hear.) After a few wore shorn Sir W. MOLES WORTH in reply, the house divided. The numberrwere— For the 'motion B9 Against it WAYS AND MEANS The Retoort of the Committee of Ways and Means was received.. - WILITIA BALLOT SUSPENSION BILL. This bill passed through a committee. SOAP DUTY ALLOWANCE BILL. This bill waa read a third time, and passed. SMALL pEWTS COURT BILL. This bill was read a third time, and passed. LIFE POLICIES ASSURANCE BILL. This bill was read a third time and pawed. AUSTRALIAN COLONIES BILL. This bill was raid a first time. PASSENGERS BILL. The Lords' amt. lment to this bill Inn) agreed to. COUNTY RATES BILL. This bill was read a first time. The house adjourned at one o'clock. -- Mr. Pl7O paired with Mr. W. Cubit' fusing Mr. Hamil ton's motion, and with Mr. D. Waddinatnn OtIaldoo) to femur of far. Stuart Wortley's Marriage Bill. , - ‘l t . 1