The Press. — London, England, 1857-05-23 00:00:00

MAY 23, 1857 VratOings in J arliament. HOUSE OF LORDS—MoNnkr. INDIAN JUDICIAL COURTS. Lord CAMPIIELL presented a petition from the in habitants of Bombay, complaining of the adminis tration of justice by the civil servants of the East India Company, and praying that a supreme court might be established at Bombay, to be composed of English lawyers, together with certain members to lie appointed by the Governor-General in Council. ST. JAMES'S PARK IMPROVEMENTS. Lord GRANVILLE, in reply to the Earl of Malmzs bury as to whether the Treasury had authorised the recent expenditure upon St. James's-park, said there would be no objection to produce the correspondence batween the Treasury and the Beard of Works. In uture there would be a saving of 'JOU a year in the supply of water, which would be kept at a level of three feet. The Earl of EGLISGTON asked if anything would be done with the water in Hyde-park ? Earl GRANVILLE could not answer the question at the moment. MARRIAGE OF THE PRINCESS ROYAL. MESSAGE FROlf VIE CROWN. The LORD CHANCELLOR brought up "the following Message from her Majesty Victoria R.: Her Majesty having agreed to a marriage between the Princess Royal and his Royal Highness Prince Frederick William of Prussia, has thought fit to communicate the same to the House of L. ids. Ifer Majesty is fully persuaded that this alliance cannot but be acceptable to all her Majesty's faithful subjects, and the many proofs which the Queen has received ot• the affec• tionate attachment of this house to her Majesty's person and family leave her no room to doubt of the ready con• currence of this house in such measures as will contribute to the marriage of her eldest daughter, and may be suit able to the dignity of the Crown and the honour of the country. Earl GRAN - yr= in a few words bore testimony to the high character of the illustrious persons men tioned in her Majesty's Message, and anticipated for them from such an alliance more than the usual rneasura of happiness. The noble earl moved the following Address . That an humble Address be presented to her Majesty, to return her Majesty the thanks of this house for the most gracious communication of the intended marriage between the Princess Royal and his Royal Highness Prince Frederick William of Prussia, and to express to her Majesty the'r satisfaction at the prospect of an alliance with a prince of so illustrious a family, which they doubt nut will contribute to the happiness of her Majesty and of her Royal Highness, as well as prove conducive to the best interests of the kingdom ; and to assure her Majesty that she may rely on the cordial concurrence of this house in such measures as may be necessary for the conclusion of this marriage, and may demonstrate the zeal, duty, and affectionate attachment to her Majesty, a ju,t sense of the virtues and met its of her Royal Highness, ands due regard to the dignity of the Royal Family and the honour of the country. Lille Earl of DERBY said am sure your lordships will unanimously agree to the Address which has just been moved by my noble friend opposite. As I understand him, the Message, as far as regards the details in connection with that marriage, will be taken into consideration on a future day. We are now asked to express our loyal.y, affection, and attachment to her Majesty, and the satisfaction that the proposed mar riage will contribute to her happiness and that of the Royal Family, which I am sure is felt, not only by every member of your lordships' house, but by every member of the community. Unlike ordinary royal marriages, her Majesty's was one not founded on considerations of policy alone, but • on personal acquaintance and attachment. I hope and believe the same remark may be applied to that marriage to which your lordships are asked to assent ; and I ant quite sure your lordships can express no better wish for the future happiness and welfare of the Princess whose marriage is about to be celebrated than that, as she enters upon married life under similar auspices, so in the course of it her happiness may be as complete and well merited as that of her illustrious mother. (Cheers.) 1 have great satisfaction in concurring in the Address. The motion was agreed to. PROBATES BILL. The LORD CHANCELLOR moved the second reading of the Probates and Letters of Administration Bill. The measure having been so recently explained when brought forward in the past session, the noble and learned lord contented himself with briefly describing the machinery by which he proposed to supersede the present testamentary jurisdiction of the Eccle siastical Courts. In the first place, he proposed that the present judge of the Prerogative Court should be the first judge of the new Court of Probate, with a working salary of 4,0001. and a retiring salary of 2,0001. a year. As under the new bill all disputed matters of fact would be tried by a jury in the com mon-law courts, the labours of the court would be much reduced ; he therefore proposed that the judge of the Court of Probate should be the judge of the Matrimonial and Divorce Courts, and that ultimately whenever a vacancy occurred in the Court of Ad. THE PItESS. miralty he should be judge in that court also. All the proceedings before the new Court of Probate were to be viva voce ; and in cases of wills, where the property disposed of did not exceed 2001. per. sonalty, or 3001. realty, the judges of the County Courts were to have jurisdiction. District registrars, if the testator died within the limits of the district, were to have jurisdiction if the property bequeathed did not exceed 1,500/. The originals of wills proved in these districts would be kept in the country registry, hut copies would be sent to the chief registry in London, and in the Probate-office in London there would be a department where testators might deposit their wills so that their relatives might know where to look for wills supposed to be in existence. The present bill did not propose to establish a probate for real property, and the right of appeal would be to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Certain officials who might be deprived of emoluments by the bill would he compensated, and the whole busi ness of the new Court of Probate would be left in the hands of the proctors. The noble and learned lord concluded by moving the second reading of the bill. The Bishop of LONDON trusted that the claims of the existing ecclesiastical registrars and chancellors would be considered in committee. Lord CAMPBELL gave his cordial consent to the bill, especially as all approach to the Court of Chancery was now avoided. But there were details in the bill which would be better discussed in committee ; and a good many of the proposals regarding procedure would probably require consideration : There was one point which, as he conceived, touched the dignity of his brother judges in the common•law courts, and to which he could not help alluding. It was proposed that this new judge of the Court of Probate, for whom he had a most sincere respect, should take precedence imme diately atter the Vice Chancellors, and therefore before all the puisne judges. N3W, ho thought this ought not to be. The new judge was ultimately to receive 5,0001., the same salary as the puisne judges, and he did not consider it would be any disrzagement to him if he took precedence among the puisne judges according to seniority. The bill was then read a second time. Dt•LWICH COLLEGE. The LORD CHANCELLOR laid on the table a bill for carrying out the scheme of the Commissioners for College. The bill was read a first time. The house adjourned at seven o'clock. HOUSE OF COMMONS—SIoNDAy. MARRIAGE OF THE PRINCESS ROYAL. Viscount eALUERSTON appeared at the bar of the house with the Royal Message, and, having been called upon by the Speaker, proceeded to read it, all the members being uncovered. The Message having been read, Lord PALMERSTON moved an Address, thanking her Majesty for the communication, expressing satis faction at the proposed alliance, and assuring her Majesty that the house would immediately proceed to consider the Message : It, is impossible (said the noble lord) not to see that this marriage, independently of the prospect which 1 trust it holds out of happiness to her Royal Highness, from the high qualities of the Prince whom she has selected as her future husband, also holds out to the country political prospects not undeserving of the attention of this house. We all know how family alliances tend to mitigate those asperities which from time to time must be produced by those diversities of policy which inevitably arise occasionally between great and independent powers ; and therefore 1 trust that this marriage may also be considered as holding out an increased prospect of good will and of cordiality among the great powers of Europe. Mr. DISRAELI seconded the Address : All of us (observed the right hon. gentleman) must join in the fervent hope and the full belief that the alliance which has been intimated will contribute to the happiness of her Majesty; and I am sure we shall all be prepared to consider in a becoming spirit, at the proper opportunity, the means by which it may be in our power to accomplish her Majesty's wishes. (Cheers.) The motion having been agreed to, Lord PALMERSTON said : I shall propose that her Majesty's most gracious Message be taken into consideration on Friday next. 1 1 1 1 1 I t C t t t f t THE VICTORIA CROSS. Sir J. RAMSDEN, in reply to Major Knox, said it was not desirable that all the names sent in for the cross should be published. It would be invidious to publish the names of those who were rejected, and the result would be to cause disappointment among numbers who were less fortunate, though perhaps not less deserving. The object of the Government was to confer the greatest amount of honour, and at the same time to cause the smallest amount of mor tification. THE PERSIAN WAR. Mr. WYSE asked the noble lord ist the head of the Government whether there was any prospect of the papers relating to the war with Persia being laid upon the table of the house? Ur. BAILLIE wished to be informed whether these papers when presented would contain the despatches of Lord Stratford de Redefine relating to the pro- 49'7 posais made by Ferouk Khan at Constantinople before theleommeneement of the war. Lord PALM) RSTON : We have reason to hope that the ratifications of the treaty with Persia will at an early period be exchanged. Until tint is done, of course no papers can be laid upon the table ; bnt we shall then produce such papers as we think will enable the house to form an opinion upon the war. _ _ Mr. BArr.r.te : The noble lord has not answered my question. I again ask whether the despatches of Lord Stratford de Redcliffe will be laid upon the table ? Lord PALMERSTON : I can at present give no answer to that question. EDUCATION OF OFFICERS OF THE ENGLISH ARMY. Lord PALMERSTON, in reply to Sir De L. Evans as to when the report of the commission appointed to inquire into the military education and institutions of the Continent, with a view to certain improvements which were contemplated in the education of officers of the English army, would be placed in the hands of members of that house, said that the subject of the education of officeri had for some time oc cupied the serious attention of the departments in terested in considering the matter : Several proposals had been made by different persons with a view of aiding the deliberations of the Government. These proposals led in the end to the formation of a board of military officers of merit, at the head of which was the Commander in• Chief. This council was at present employed in preparing out of all the materials before them a plan to be adopted for the future education of officers. When that plan should have been matured, and the Go vernment bad decided on bringing it forward upon its own responsibility, there would be no objection to place the matter before the house; but be thought the house would not desire that the materials out of which that p'an was to be built should be brought piecemeal before them, and that the more especially when it was considered that many of those materials were the confidential suggestions which parties had volunteered for the good of the public service. Sir DE L. EVANS was afraid that he had not made himself understood. The report to which he re ferred could not be considered confidential, for it had been circulated amongst the members of the other house. Lord PALMERSTON would inquire by whom it had been circulated. It might have been circulated by private parties. He was certainly not aware of any thing of the kind having been put in circulation by the Government. Mr. S. HERBERT thought that the hon. member and noble lord were at cross purposes. The report to which the hon. and gallant member referred was not a confidential communication by any person, but a report of certain commissioners who were ap nointed to inquire into the state of education in the army. Lord PALNERSTON said that perbaps the hon. mem ber would get more definite information. He was unable to give any further answer at the moment, the hon. member not having given him notice of his intention to put a question. THE ARMY AND GENER tL M On the motion for going into committee of supply, Colonel NORTH adverted to certain charges against the officers of the army, which the hon. member for Lambeth was reported to have urged in a speech ad dressed to his constituents at the late election. Mr. W. WIT.LIAMS denied that his observations bore the meaning that had been attached to them. He had always believed and said that the regimental officers of the British army were better and braver than those of any other army in the world. Of the military system, and of the commanding officers, be might possibly have expressed a different opinion. Sir W. CODRINGTON admitted that election speeches should not be too minutely criticised. They were spoken amidst scenes of much excitement, and often incorrectly reported. He was therefore ready to accept the explanation offered by the member for Lambeth. But a letter had recently appeared in the Times, signed by a staff officer, and containing a most unjust and scandalous attack upon General Ash hurnham, not only affecting his public character as a general, but his private character as a courageous officer. The hon. and gallant member tben read the following letter from an eye-witness, describing General Ashburnham's conduct at the battle of Sobraon lie (Sir IV. Codrington) had received the letter from an officer who was well qualified to write upon the subject, and whose name, if requested, he should be happy to fur. nish to any hon. member. That letter exonerated General Ashburnham from the charges brought against him by his auonytaous accuber, and lie would, with the permission of the house, at once proceed to read it. It ran thus : Winchester, May 4. You have seen the attack on General Ashburnham. Well, with a soldier that part of it about taking the outposts is easily disposed of. General Ashburnham had received his orders from the Commander•in.Chier, and obeyed them in preference to the suggestions of two junior officers, who must have had no small share of in pndence to go to him with their opinion after being told he had received his orders and intended to obey them. Now, I will state on my honour what I saw of General Ash. burnharn on the day of Sobraon. He commanded the Queen's 9th and 62nd, as also a native corps. After the flank companies of the 82nd had got into the outpost which they were ordered to take, the remainder of the regiment was ordered to remain about 200 yards in rear for the protection of some artillery. Gonna Astburnhain then left the regiment, and went to the