The Press. — London, England, 1857-07-18 00:00:00

694 very necessary in a sanitary point of view. The House of Commons had already discussed this sub• ject, and passed a vote for the money laid out on the park. Lore NIONTEAOLE condemned in strong terms the laxity by which Sir 13. Hall was permitted to apply public moneys to purpo.les for which it was not voted by Psrliamcnt. The subject then dropped. A series of eight bills consolidating the acts re lating to lunacy, libel, forgery, offences against the person, and some other departments of the criminal law, were read a second time on the motion of the LORD CHANCELLOR, and after a few words from Lord CAMPBELL and Lord WENSLEYDALE. Oa the motion of Lord CAMPBELL the Sale of Obscene Books, Sze., Bill was read a third time and passed. Their lordships adjourned at nine o'clock. HOUSE OF COMMONS-MONDAY. THE DIVORCE BILL. Lord PALMERSTON, in reply to Mr. Henley, said it was the present wish and intention of the Govern ment to bring on the Divorce Bill next Monday. THE PRESS, JULY 18,1857. On resuming, The Fraudulent Trustees, &c., Bill was considered as amended in committee, and some further amend ments proposed. The bill was then ordered to stand for third reading. The second reading of the Justices and Police (Dublin) Bill was opposed by Mr. GROGAN, who moved as an amendment that the bia should be read a second time that day three months. The ATTORNEY•GENERAL for IRELAND defended the measure, which he stated merely consolidated the various existing acts relating to the police force in Dublin. Considerable discussion followed, in which Mr. BUTT, Lord C. HAMILTON, Mr. VANCE, and other Irish representatives took part. The house then divided—For the motion, 155; for the amendment 19-130. The bill was then read a second time. The other orders having been disposed of, the house adjourned. HOUSE OF LORDS-TUESDAY. Earl GRANVILLE read some telegraphic despatches received by the Government on the subject of recent events in India. (The despatches will be found in another part of the paper.) The Duke of ARGYLL, in reply to the Earl of Hardwicke, explained that everything was done to facilitate the communications between this c•auntry and India. Lord HARDWICKE, explaining that from the French authorities first sorting their two letters the English mails were detained at Marseilles twelve and twenty four hours, suggested that nothing would be easier than for the French Government to provide an addi tional passenger train, by which the mails could be forwarded, or to put on an express train, which we could pay for. Thiliuke of ARGYLL said : The French Government had very kindly and consider. ately made an arrangement by which if our mail bag arrived at Marseilles within two hours of the departure of the morning mail, and provided it was not beyond noon, they would forward it by an express train, and should that train not overtake the mail at Lyons they agreed to send it on all the way to Paris. If, however, the mail bag arrived after the departure of the night train, it was thought in that case to be unsafe to send it forward by express, on account of the traffic. Several bills were advanced a stage, and their lordships adjourned till Thursday. HOUSE OF COMMONS-TUESDAY. At the morning sitting, The house having gone into committee on Sir Frederic Thesiger's Grand Juries (Metropolitan Police District) Bill, Mr. BowyEß moved (with the view of defeating the bill) that the chair man do leave the chair. Sir FREDERIC THESIGER remonstrated against this course, and referred to the importance and de sirability of the measure. A long debate followed ; but on a division Mr. Bowyer's motion was negatived by 187 to SO. Na progress, however, was made, the discussion on the first clause continuing till four o'clock. At the evening sitting, Mr. SCHOLEFIEI.D brought up the report of the Mayo Election Committee, dechtring that Mr. Moore was unduly elected, and that the election was vaid. Special reference was made to the conduct of two priests, as calling for the serious consideration of the house. Mr. HARDY brought up the report of the Bury St. Edmund's Committee, declaring that Mr. Hardcastle was duly elected. INDIA. Mr. DISRAELI inquired whether the Government could give more detailed and authentic information respecting the exact posture of affairs in India, and whether they would afford the house an early oppor tunity—say Friday—of expressing its opinion upon the causes and probable consequences of this state of affairs. Lord PALMERSTON replied, that the despatches which had been received contained in more amplifi cation and detail the information as to the events in India of which the electric telegraph had previously communicated the substance ; and that the intelli gence received by the Government did not vary from that published in the newspapers, and was not fuller. He thought it would be desirable, before the subject was discussed in the house, that the papers should be laid upon the table, which should be done without delsy. Mr. DISRAELI : It is, I think, very important that we should have some general understanding from the noble lord as to how far back the papers which he intends to lay upon the table will extend; because if they are to be confined to a mere name. tive of events which the noble lord tells us we have already obtained accurately from other sources, their production will be of no great utility, and to defer the discussion on their account would only lead to an inconvenient delay at the present period of the session. If, however, I understand from the noble lord that we shall have despatches placed on the table which will give the house information as to the accounts which the Government received as to the state of India during the time that they were draining India of troops to send theta to China or to Persia, I admit at once that they would be most important papers, without which we should be unable probably to form a fair opinion of the conduct of the Ministers; but I certainly should not wish to precipitate a discussion without these documents. But if I consent not to avail myself of the opportunity afforded by the forms of the house of bringing on the sub. ject on the first supply night, it will be only on the under. standing that we shall be put in possession of papers of a date so far back as to give us the fullest information with respect to the counsels which led to the war with Persia, as well as to the recent revolt in India. Lord PALMERSTON : We shall present such papers as we think best calculated to put the house in possession of the fullest information, and it will be for the right hon. gentleman, when they are presented, if he does not think them full enough, to point out in what respects he considers them to be deficient. Lord J. RUSSELL hoped that the reinforcements which would be sent to India would be sufficient, and that the Government would trvike a complete statement of their intentions, which, he thought, would supersede the necessity of a discussion. Lord PALMERSTON said that previous to the receipt of the despatches, which arrived on Monday, the Government had made arrangements for sending large reinforcements to India—larger, in fact, than Lord Canning had asked for. Although they felt no apprehension or alarm, they had acted as it there were real reason for alarm, resolving to leave nothing undone to provide for any possible emer gency. Sir JohN WALSH inquired whether the late General Anson had given any warning of the existence of disaffection in the Indian army. Mr. MANGLES stated that s►nce the mutiny had broken out he had made a special search in the despatches of the late General Anson which had been received by the East India Company, and he could not find one word of warning upon the dis affection of the Bengal army up to the vary day of the outbreak. Mr. VERNON SMITH, in answer to Lord J. Manners, made the same statement as far as the Board of Control was concerned. Sir CHARLES Woon, in answer to Admiral Dun combs, stated that no warning had been given by Sir Wm. Gomm. EXAMINATIONS. Lord GODERICH moved a resolution : That the experience aegaired since the issuing of the order in council of the 21st of May, )8.55, is in tavoar of the adoption of the principle of competition as a condition of entrance to the civil service, and that the apvlication of that principle ought to be extended, in conformity with the resolution of the house, agreed to on the 24th of April, 1856. Lord Goderich at once proceeded to state the purpose and intention of his motion—namely, to obtain an expression of the opinion of the house that the system of competition was one which it approved and desired to see extended. That system, he in sisted, was well calculated to secure the efficiency of public servants, and as far as it had been ttried had been attended with most satisfactory results. In anticipating cbjections to the extension of the system, he contended that the patronage system, if it had any real political influence, was fcr that reason objectionable, such influence, apart from any idea of corruption, being undesirable. On the other hand, an extended system of competition would be one of the most potent agents in the work of popular education. Lord ItsysitAm moved an amendment, to add at the end of Lord Goderich's motion the words, " and that it is desirable that the nomination of all persons desirous of competing for vacant appointments in the civil service should rest with the heads of the departments in which those vacancies occur," stated his objections to open competition, and argued that there should be some guarantee that candidates for public employment possessed other qualities besides those of the intellect. No member seconding this amendment, it was therefore not put. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQTTR explained the nature of the competition sanctioned by the order in council; this was not an open competition, against which he had always contended. The principle of limited competition, he had before said, and he repeated, it was desirable to apply to the chief departments of the Government. In point of fact it bad been applied to the Audit, Board of Trade, Civil Service Commission, Colonial, and Home Offices, CHATHAM AND SLIGO ELECTIONS. The SPEAKER acquainted the house that he had received notice that the petitioners complaining of an undue return in respect to these boroughs did not mean to prosecute the said complaint. NEW WHIT. On the motion of Mr. HAYTER, a new writ WRS ordered for the city of Oxford in the room of Mr. Neate, whose election had been declared to be void. Lord PAr.mr.ttsrox, in reply to an inquiry by Mr. Disraeli, said the only information her Majesty's Government had received from India was that com municate d by the telegraphic messages, and which was as well known to the public as to the Govern ment—namely, the death of the Commander-in- Chief in India; the disaffection of a few additional regiments of the native army ; that a large number of the Bengal Sepoys had disappeared, having re turned to their homes ; that, on the other hand, in an encounter with the mutineers under the walls of Delhi they had lost twenty six pieces of cannon, and been forced to take refuge within the walls of the city, which, it was expected, would immediately be as saulted. When the despatches arrived, he added, the Government would be ready to lay before Par liament and the public whatever papers or portions of them as might be essential to full information with respect to the course of events. Mr. DiSRAELI inquired, further, whether informa tion had been received from Herat that the person Lott' PALMERSTON replied, that her Majesty's Government had received no information tending to confirm this report. In answer to Sir J. PAKINOTON, the noble lord stated that Lord Panwure had taken immediate steps to select a Commander-in Chief in India; that an offer of the post had been made to Sir Colin Camp bell, who had accepted it ; that, when asked how soon he should be able to start, Sir Colin replied "To morrow ;" and accordingly, the offer havin.t been made and accepted on Saturday, Sir Cohn had set off on Sunday evening, a telegraphic despatch having been sent to Marseilles to stop the steamer till his arrival. Lord Palmerston proceeded to state that, in addition to the 14,000 troops under orders for India, and which had partly embarked, more were to be sent; that Lord Canning had written to Lord Elgin to divert to the Indian service some part of the force destined for China; and that such arrangements would be made, if any of these troops were actually diverted from their original destination, that there would be ample means to carry on opera tions in China. Ou the order for going into a committee of supply, Lord ELMO moved a resolution, "That in the present position of the Ordnance survey of Great Britain the survey on the six•inch scale ought not to be proceeded with without further inquiry, and that an address should be presented to her Majesty praying her Majesty to appoint a royal commission to inquire into the whole subject of the national survey, and report upon the scale or scales on which it should be made and published." The motion was negatived, after a short dis cussion. The house then went into committee of supply on the civil service estimates. On the vote for the Regium Donum, Mr. BAXTER moved that the amount should be reduced to 3001. This amendment was supported by Mr. Ktrix, and opposed by Mr. GILPIN. Mr. HADFIELD baying spoken against the grant, the committee divided— For the grant ll7 Against Some other supply votes were passed, ending with the alnual vote of 100,0001. for civil con tingencies, which furnished the usual miscellaneous discussion.