The Sun. — London, England, 1848-02-15 00:00:00

residences. The architect, however, thought it neces sary to finish first those parts of the building which were dedicated to public business ; and he (Lord Mor peth) thought that any other coarse would hardly be felt desirable by the gentlemen for whose accommo dation those residences were intended, since the approaches to their abodes would otherwise be encum bered with rubbish. He was happy also in thinking that the present residence of their respected clerk judging from the appearance which he presented, was not yet a subject for his (Lord Morpeth's) Sanitary Bill. —(A laugh.) But really the House, to do justice to the architect, must consider the very special circum stances of this building. Where had they any building that could be compared with it? It covered between eight and nine acres of ground, and it was more like a small town than a building.—(" Hear, hear," from Mr. Osborne.) How many rooms did his Hon. Friend sup pose this building contained? Between five and six hun dred rooms, and one hundred and fifty staircases.— (Hear, hear.) In fact, he tnougbt, as to style and size, there was no such building in Europe, except St. Peter's, and that took two hundred years in building. The architect was quite prepared to stand a comparison with any building of ancient or modern times, either with reference to the cost of construction, the speed of con struction, or the defects of construction. He felt con fident that he was entitled to make that challenge ; and he (Lord Morpoth) believed, for one, that Zr. Barry would not come to shame out of it. Mr. Barry felt that, under all the circumstances of the case, he had to sustain himself nearly all the responsibilities of this vast undertaking.—(Hear, hear.) lie believed that the architect was actuated by the single desire to make the building a credit and glory to the country, and to rivet his own reputation. He believed that the devotion of Mr. Barry's 'time and' talents had been almost unparal leled; that the anxieties to which he had been sub jected had much impaired his health and spirits ; and that if the confidence of the country were now with drawn from him, he would no longer be able to maintain the contest. He owned that our national experience in matters of architecture had not been the most happy ; and he did not wish to deny but that some of the items laid down in the present case might have been intended more for the credit of the building than for the credit of the Exchequer.—(llcar, hear.) He thought that both Parliament and the country should direct their anxious attention to this last consideration, and he was able to state that the Government had taken measures to con tract the annual sum voted for this service. —(Hear.) Of course, this must be done at the cost of a slower com pletion of the building.—(Laughter.) They thought it their duty first to require that the most essential parts of the building should have precedence, and that the House of Commons s ho u ld first of all be proceeded with, while the merely ornamental parts shonld be de layed.—(Hear, hear.) He certainly regretted that there had not been a more rapid completion of the works; but, nevertheless, the Government had resolved, considering the great extent of the works, and the state of the finances of the country, to make a deduction on the sum required for this department of the service. The Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Osborne) had alluded to the per centage on the gross sum of 25,000/. to be allowed as remu neration to the architect ; that sum was the amount stipulated for at the commencement of the works. And, whatever that House might choose to do as to the entire remuneration of Mr. Barry, be presumed he could have no complai nt if he was allowed for the services origi nally agreed upon the sum of 25,000/. He was sure that Mr. Barry had been actuated throughout by an anxious desire for the credit of the building; and while he would not deny that the cost had far exceeded the general expectation, yet he must say that he considered it had been expended upon a structure which would be an ornament rind an honour to the country, and also to Mr. Barry. He must say for that gentleman, that by those who best knew him he was regarded with the highest respect and the strongest attachment; and that as an architect he joined the most excellent conception with the most consummate skill, and that for that class of excellence for which our era had been most remark able he believed the palm would be awarded by those who came after us to the genius of Barry.—(Hear.) Sir R. INGLIS exculpated Mr. Barry from all re sponsibility attaching to expenditure in the new Houses of Parliament beyond his own immediate department. He entreated the Noble Lord to reconsider the subject of spreading the sum necessary for the completion of the buildings over four er ,five years. If the Government was Prepared to complete the designs, let the necessary amount be at once asked for, and bring the works to a conclusion, instead of delaying their termination for so Many years. Mr. HUME agreed with the last sentence of the llon. Baronet who had just sat down as to the impro priety of prolonging the works. This was a course which he had no doubt would add to the expense. It had been said that Mr. Barry had an excellent oppor tunity of showing his taste in the course of the erection of these buildings, and to that he (Mr. Hume) should not have objected, ;sr )vided he had done so at his own , c :Naense.—(L aug h ter .) He was glad to see the Right yon. Baronet (Sir R. Peel) in his place, because he would be able to show the Right Hon. Baronet that he had ev ery fight to expect a very different result from what had been shown in respect of these buildings. It should be recollected that this business was not hastily begun, and that they had a pledge from the Chancellor of the Excheq uer at that time (no .v Lord Ripon) that no more tan 30 0,000/. would be expended without working plans being exhibited. A recommendation, however, was Riven by the Committee appointed by the Right Hon. t erentleman (Sir It. Peel), that a plan involving 707,0001 should be adopted. He (Mr. Hume) made a proposal that they s h ou ld not ta k e M r . B arry ' s pl an , b u t th a t o f Mfr. Ha m il ton, wh i ch was est i mate d at 450,0001. ; b ut that proposal was rejected. He was resolved, however, tjtatltbe plan of Mr. Barry should not be adopted by the C ommittee till they had some examination as to whether his estimates had been properly made out. Accordingly Mr. Barry was called in, and, on e xamination, he stated that h e h a d made the estimates h i mse lf, assisted by com petent persons —that they wore such as he could rely upon —and that the kind of stone to be used, for which a price of 4s. a foot was estimated, was to be the best that could be got for the purpose. As to the sum of 4,0 00/, which the Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Osborne) spoke of as having been expended by the Committee appointed to make inquiry after the best quality of stone, he did not know what error there might be in that item; but he was one who strongly approved of the appointment of that Committee, as he was opposed to the building being begun till they ascertained that the stone to be employed was sufficient for the purpose, and of one face and colour. But to return to the estimates. When he had put a variety of questions to Mr. Barry, it turned 9 1 4 that Mr. Barry had not made all the estimates himself. He could not give any satisfactory answer I I I ) : to what the expense of the building might ; and he (Mr. H ume ) w as referred to one 0 two gentlemen for information ; but the result was that,,,p he could find no one responsible for the estimates.— ar, hear.) An entire year was then given to get %,‘rerect information, and to make out the complete plans. ..4_) Committee at length reported, recommending the tToption of the plan finally proposed by Mr. Barry, on ."2 express understanding that the work was to be ;!ecuted for a sum not exceeding, by any considerable ,;".. 13 , the amount stated by Mr. Barry.—(Hear.) He flume) objected to this undertaking being left to , i , t r 7are of the C omm issioners of the Woods and Forests, twere a changeable body, depending upon the altera w,na of the Mi n i s t r y. The First Lord of the Treasury in fault ; an d, as the greater proportion of the ode viations took place when the Right Hon. Gentleman ) Pasite was in office, he was responsible. The expen diture would exceed by one entire million the amount to w hich the House of Commons had limited the expense. 1;1 0 4 ald the Right Hon. Gentleman and the Committee th° agreed t o enter on su ch an undertaking if they had en an y idea that the expenditure would so far excee d reestimate? 754,000/. w as considered the utmost extent which th e expense would amount. The House had baeon t° complain. Ho had com p lained of the late pesorough, as Chief Commissioner of Woods sa d b or _R rests, in reference to this matter; but Lord Bes ugh denied that he had sanctioned the additional ez ' l:lnditure, and stated that he had signed a plan, be ta jig it to b e th e or i g i na l pl a n, though it turned out b d ."' one with amendments. If any such imposition had Zen place there was no punishment which the Govern- Me a t ought n o t to h ave i n fli cte d on th e gu ilty p ar ti e s. itad never seen any disposition on the part of the ° _itse to ref use an y expense f or any useful building. ,ur himself, he had n e v e r refused.— (A laugh, and to hear")—in cases where the building was likely I add • a . credit or honour to the country. lie should not Iy . that Mr. Barry had had anything to do with the 7:lltional expenses, but ho wished to know what share Committee of Taste had had in authorising them. t ' i :ould the Noble Lord lay on the table an account of is e ,apenses which ey had authorised? It was wrong b lame Mr. Barry th or the Government if others were at .lault. He knew not whether Prince Albert was (A t e is head of that body.—(An Hon. Member observed (A i a r, was.) That did not improve the matter— one .„ ) It was a subject of great satisfaction to find c ot (`) Igh in station take his place as a Member of that v a t ei , is tion. He (Mr . Hume) was very far from under eeatr g the services of the Prince; they were, on the lead 111 7 , of great advantage, and anything which might h esa t b n . the withdrawal of his valuable assistance would th e „ h i e et of regret. But he wished to know what was lit r. i St e which had been taken by that Commission. Ala Barry had a toy, had fools to deal with, and had b e Jed with it as he liked.—(A laugh.) There had also so 11 an excess of expenditure on the navy estimates; Ati " the inevitable result seemed to be additional tax i), r 0: lt was said this was a noble building. It might we but it was more than they wanted. Was it right, th" a e t i l t Parliament had decided to give a certain sum only, Waa jblaaa as much should be expended? The precedent forests were One. The Noble Lord said the Woods and the ~,wr e re not responsible. It was a reproach, thee, eur Te A t i. asury that such expenditure should be in per._" and the First Lord of the Treasury was the sTrilitt!nw,,hom blame ought to be attached. When ,e was not First Lord of the Treasury .ne building was commenced. W ME—No; but perhaps when the deviations bar. er e —, sh e „ l r° o . It was originally decided that the architect zo tv t . tv not be paid by a per centage; and it should tri p l ed l e li t a lteen held out to any man that if he doubled or t nere expenditure be should receive so much the aUr had It was to be regretted that the Trea tweYmuiiad n et adhered t o th e original resolution, and that the Th arae °n : of money should be sunk on the banks of was not to blame. Thrice regard to the site, he (Mr. Hume) theme to select Thrice had he tried to induce the r e , one, opposite Marlborough-house, where th e as an excellent site. In addition to the Abbey , itin Y e were to have a large tower to keep out the sun- Prevent The Government ought to take measures to another h• • to ste t , L - - chilling from being thrown away, and G,„ ,e,a.: they meant to control the expellee. The . t jat u t ' i k , -xeart the Member for Middlesex had done Same) b e h ..," I') ih' s? ;Intl his Y: J11"'-', it kkrue) vi n_ i PTl, would have a salutary effect. Ile (Mr. "'lett to see the building completed, but with out the tawdry ornaments which disfigured the House of Lords, and which, though they might be fit for the time of Louis XIV., wore certainly not so for the pre. sent age. Sir R. PEEL—When the subject was last under the consideration of the House I offered a humble sugges tion, that the House should appoint a Committee to in ' quire into all the circumstances; for I felt that the in vestigations of such a Committee would, either as regards the original estimate of the construction of the Houses of Parliament, or as regards the deviations, throw light upon the whole matter much more effectually than any thing which could be said in the course of a debate. I was anxious that a Committee should be appointed to inquire as to the original estimate, and all the works which It covered, that we might see to what extent the original estimate had been exceeded, and ascertain whe ther there were any other items besides the expense of embanking the Thames not included in it—what was the excess of expenditure, and what were the causes that had led to that excess. This is my opinion still. If a Select Committee was appointed, all those things could be ascertain-Al more satisfactorily before it than before the House, reserving, of course, to the House the full right of judging for itself when the report of the Committee should be laid on the table. The lion. Gentleman recollects much more fully than I do what passed in the Committee, of which I also had the honour to be a Member. With regard to the remuneration of the architect, I perfectly recollect that subject being under consideration. I agreed with those who thought it better to determine what should be the total amount of his remuneration than to adopt the general rule of the profession and give him five per cent., or any other per-centage. And I must say it is very unfortunate that the Treasury allowed a single stone to be laid before laving down that condition, re ceiving the protest of kr. Barry. They should have said, " We have a sum to be paid to you, be it 25,0001., or 30,0001., or any other sum. We discourage entirely all expectation on your part of payments to a higher amount, or on another principle. At all events, we give you notice that it is a matter which will be settled before the commencement of the building." I don't think the blame falls on the Government, on the Woods and Forests, or the Treasury. I think the House of Com mons must rather bear the blame. The House of Commons has hot and cold fits—(Cheers)—in regard to public buildings; and if the results of the deliberations of the Committee of 1835 had been to present us with a building according to the beau ideal of excellence which was suggested, namely, a building corresponding with Somerset House, I believe there would have been a feel ing of universal disgust. Mr. HUME made a remark which was inaudible. Sir R. PEEL—It was said by the Hon. Gentleman that a building might be reared which would equal Somerset House at a cost of 400,000/. There are re peated instances which I recollect when the House was in a very economical humour, and specified a sum which was not to be exceeded. First, there was Buckingham Palace. The lion. Gentleman got an assurance that 300,000/. should be the extent of the expenditure. If he walk through St. James's Park, he will now see a very significant proof of the consequences. Mr. llUME—These are additional - buildings. Sir R. PEEL—But, even without the additions, I don't think there was very much satisfaction felt with Buckingham Palace. Then there is the Treasury. After some lapse of time, it had been resolved to alter its appearance; and to whose aid are you indebted for the great improvement which has been effected? To that of the very Mr. Barry whose qualitit . :s are so much called in questik,n. I think it is a proof of his consum mate skill that Mr. Barry has been able to make out of the Treasury, as it was left twenty or thirty years ago, se beautiful an ornament to the metropolis.—(Cheers.) There are other instances of the consequence of your economy in regard to public buildings. First you limit the architect to such an amount that his skill is fet tered, and then you become so dissatisfied with the effects of your limitation of expense that you pull down the whole front of a building and employ another archi tect to supply a better one. Lord MOitPETII—The National Gallery. Sir R. PEEL—I was just going to mention it. We are all anxious that Mr. Barry should be sent to improve that. A sum perfectly inadequate was awarded to erect a building on that magnificent site, and the result is a structure on which we cannot congratulate our selves. Mr. HUME—It would have been a brick building but for me. It was at my recommendation that it was faced with stone.—(Laughter.) Sir It. PEEL—It was originally proposed that the arcade should be 11 feet high. 1 recollect the observa tion made by the lion. Gentleman that a man was not 11 feet high—(Laughter)—and therefore the arcade ought not to be more than seven feet high. Mr. HUME intimated dissent. - Sir R. PEEL—Does not the Hon. Gentleman recol lect my suggestion that the higher we had the arcade the more you would save in brick and mortar ? (Laughter.) In the case of tSc National Gallery you stinted the architect to a certain sum. The result was a building which was quite unsuited to the character of the country. lam quite sorry to think that any blame should be cast on the conduct of the Government in appointing the Fine Arts Commission. It was the universal opinion of Parliament that they should not build a house for themselves without seeking how far they could make the circumstance instrumental to the promotion of the fine arts. A Commission was ap pointed without any power to order the execution of works. They can have no such authority without the permission of the Treasury. Such were the origin and objects of the Fine Arts Commission, over which, with the utmost benefit for the promotion of art, and with the most assiduous attention to his duties, Prince Albert has presided. Mr. Eastlake, whom I cannot mention with out paying him that tribute of respect which is justly his due as one of the most able and efficient members of his profession, has acted as secretary of that Commission, for a most inadequate remuneration, at a great sacrifice of time. Has that Commission not been successful? I hear it is said that English taste is not accustomed to those productious which have appeared under its auspices. There are gentlemen who contempl sted oil paintings as fit decorations for the Houses of Parliament; but you are to consider that the works which have been selected are novel in this country; and you find that those who are acquainted with fresco are surprised at the suc cess which has attended the efforts of our artists. At any rate, every exertion has been made by that Commission to call out the latent talent of the country; and no man can see the exhibitions of successive years in Westminster-hall without rejoicing in the opportunities which have been afforded for its development. Many, whose powers were previously unknown, and who had not had the advantage of any connexion with the Royal Academy, have shown a knowledge of art for which the country was quite unprepared. In that respect the Fine Arts Commission has accomplished one of the objects origi nally contemplated, it having been a matter for consi deration whether the erection of the new Houses of Parliament could not be rendered conducive to the pro motion of art. If a Select Committee should be ap pointed there is every disposition to give information ; and I think the Hon. Gentleman will find that the Com mission is not responsible for any expenditure. But if such a Committee be appointed as that proposed by my Hon. Friend the Member for the University of Oxford (Sir R. 11. Inglis) an inquiry will be instituted into all the circumstances, and you will then see whether any blame can attach to any party, and on whom that blame is to fall. It may be that the House will find that this building was undertaken under circumstances which relieve those who have been chiefly inculpated from responsibility with regard to the site. That subject was brought before Parliament. The Hon. Gentleman thought the best site lay opposite Marlborough House, and all his reasons were given for such preference. But there was a strong unwillingness on the part of the House of Commons to have the new Houses of Parlia ment removed from this spot, and there was a great de sire to restore the old Palace 9f Westminster as nearly as possible on its original site. It ought to have been foreseen at the time, from the nature of the foundations, that it was difficult to make any estimate of the entire expense. But what I desire is that the subject should be fully inquired into, so that we may ascertain what may be the ultimate expense, as well as the excess of expense over the estimate, and the causes of that excess. With regard to Mr. Barry himself, I must do that gen gentleman the justice to say, that in all my opportuni ties of intercourse I have found him fulfilling his duties —fulfilling every duty which could possibly be expected from one placed in that situation,—most solicitous that the work on which lie is engaged should be worthy of his own name and of the purpose to which it will be de voted, but with no disposition to incur unnecessary ex pense, or assume any authority for himself, or depart from the plans originally approved of. Whatever we may think now, when we are smarting under the ex pense which has attended the building, I may state that so far as I have had intercourse with foreigners, I have always heard it extolled in the highest terms. I have visited it with foreigners, architects and others, who hare had the best means of comparing the merits of public buildings in Europe, and as regards the interior, and also as regards the exterior and the façade, I have heard scarcely any other opinion expressed than that the struc ture is most honourable to the country that has under taken it, and to the person by whom it has been planned. I believe that Mr. Barry, and I may say ail the artists with - whom I have come into communication, are inspired with as high a feeling of honour and principle as those which animate any other class of her Majesty's subjects, and that, in general, they prefer honour and distinction to pecuniary profit.—(Hear, hear.) I believe that by this motive exclusively Mr. Barry has been animated ; and I believe that the result of the inquiry will show that Mr. Barry is not responsible for any excess in the expenditure, and that it will be seen to have arisen from the nature of the works, from the number of persons for whom accommodation had to be provided, from the con flicting opinions of the Lords and Commons, from the varying views'of separate and joint Committees, from the immense extent of accommodation required for Committees, which was hardly contemplated when the building was designed. I believe that, by a full in quiry, it will be seen that there are modes of account ing for a great part of the excess of expenditure, which will leave no blame on any individual or party ; but, whether this be the case or not, let us go into the in quiry, and whatever censure may be due for the past, let us see whether any precautions can be taken to avoid it for the future.—(Hear, hear.) I have one concluding point to notice, and that is, that I concur with the Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Hume) in thinking, that if we are satisfied that the building—l will not say ac cording to the original design, but according to the pre sent design— can be completed is a short time, it would be better, for the sake of economy, to avoid spreading the cost over a certain number of y sirs; that vi - v should be guided by economy aionc, that Wt; should be influenced by no desires for incre,.....tl convenience, by no desire to exchange the old bantling ku the new, by nu j.teousy of the House of Lords on account of their having pos session of their apartment so soon, by no considerations T EIE SUN, LONDON, of architecture even—l am content to rest the case upon economy alone, upon a saving of money—and if the reult of the inquiry should show that, by the employ ment of a great number of men simultaneously, and a great number of expensive machines, we can complete the work in two years at less cost than if it were spread over seven years, do not let us incur the additional expense from an unwillingness to meet the cost at once. —(Hear, hear.) In the case of individuals it may sometimes be necessary to pay by instalments; but, in the case of the public, if the public interest and a regard to economy should require the immediate completion of the work, lam sure it will be much better to pay at once for its immediate completion than to have it spread over a certain number of years. But, we cannot discuss those matters satisfactorily until the proposed Committee shall have presented the result of its deliberations. Mr. M. MILNES confessed he had been annoyed at finding that the new House of Lords had not been so generally appreciated as a work of art as he had ex pected, even by persons who were well able to appreciate it ; nor could he find any consolation in attributing this effect to a fundamental error, which he was sorry to trace to the Commission itself rather than to the operation of individual artists. He believed it had been represented as strongly as possible to the Commission that if they attempted to make any single apartment the receptacle of so many fresco paintings as they intended, the result would be to overpower the architectural details, and detract from their effect. The Commissioners, how ever, had, unfortunately. deviated from this principle, and disappointment had been the consequence. He believed that the Commissioners had been actuated by the amiable motive of encouraging as many artists as possible ; but he hoped they would take warning by the result, and avoid the repetition of tho error in the deco ration of the other parts of the building. With respect to the cost of the building, he begged to express a hope that the House would not unnecessarily limit Mr. Barry either in this respect or in regard to time. The Earl of LINCOLN said that the Hon. Member for Montrose had accused Mr. Barry of exceeding his estimate. Mr. HUMS—The Lords' report says so. The Earl of LINCOLN—The Hon. Member quoted the Lords' report. He (the Earl of Lincoln) had not seen the report, but this he knew, that concurrently with the Lords' Committee, a Committee of that House had sat, of which he had been chairman; they went care fully through the accounts, and the result was that Mr. Barry was entirely exonerated, it being fully proved that all extra expenses had been incurred under the sanction of Committees of that House. He (the Earl of Lincoln) was prepared to say that if a Committee were now ap pointed the result would be, no blame to the architect or to the successive boards, but to that House and its Committees. He could speak for four years, during which all proposed alterations were invariably sub mitted to the House or a Committee, and the result was generally an increase rather than a diminution of the expenditure. He would not go into the details of expenditure, as that was more properly matter for the Committee; but with respect to another subject to which allusion had been made, namely, the conduct •of Lord Bessborough when in office, he denied that Lord Beesborough had exercised any more control than other commissioners. During his (Lord Lincoln's) term of office every proper control had been exercised, but Commissioners of Woods and Forests were not to go be) and their constitutional bounds. The warming and ventilation (so heavy an item) were first proposed under Lord Bessborough's auspices; and the first thing done by the new Government, in 1841, was on his (Lord Bessborough's) recommendation, to appoint a committee to inquire into both subjects. That Committee recom mended an addition but no curtailment of expenditure. —(Hear, hear.) It had been said that, on an original estimate of 700,0001., an expense of 1,400,0001. had been incurred. He was prepared to say that that statement was entirely erroneous. An estimate was before the house for 1,401,0001., but that was not the amount already expended. All the expenditure together, sup p!ementary works and all, amounted to only 833,0301 ; but of this 378,0001. was for works which had never been mentioned in the original estimate.—(Hear, hear.) The Noble Lord opposite (Morpeth) stated the whole sum already expended at 808,0001., and, assuming that to be correct, it would leave the whole amount expended on works mentioned in the estimate 430,0001. He was anxious that, on this point, no misrepresentations should go forth to the public.—(Loud cries of "Hear, hear.") According to his account, Mr. Barry had, of his original estimate, 276,000/. still remaining. The fact was, that all the increased expenses for warming. ventilating, &c., had originated with the House, and had led to expensive alterations in the architect's estimates. Ho hoped that, for the future, care would be taken to keep the architect and ventilators distinct, as he believed that hitherto much delay had occurred from their func tions not being properly defined. The amount of remu neration to Mr. Barry of 25,000/. was consented to by him under protest, and was only 3 per cent, on the ori ginal estimate, instead of 5 per cent, which architects usually received ; and by a Treasury minute, he was excluded from receiving any greater amount of remune ration, should the expenditure exceed the original esti mate. Considering, also, that Mr. Barry was unable to undertake, no doubt, smaller and less important, but more profitable corks for private individuals, it was evident that the Government had not been deceived and plundered by Mr, Barry, as some Honourable Gentlemen seemed to think. Whoever was to blame for delay or increased expenditure, they should at least do justice to his motives, to his zeal, and to his abilities, which no one denied. Indeed, one of the elements of Mr. Barry's satisfaction was the applause he received, not only of his own countrymen, but of foreigners. who, without ex ception had expressed their admiration of the building. He hoped the Noble Lord would grant a Committee which would thoroughly investigate the question, and prove that neither the architect, nor the Noble Lord, nor he (Lord Lincoln) had been wanting in their duty to the House of Commons, but rather that the House of Commons was wanting in duty to itself and the country. _ _ _ Mr. G. THOMPSON conceived that no satisfactory answer had been given to the question put to the Go vernment, either respecting the cause of delay, or the excess of expenditure over the original estimate. As for Mr. Barry's abilities and fame as an architect, no ono had disputed them, and the remarks made in their defence were therefore thrown away. He wanted to know whether there was to be any authority responsible for the future expenditure of the building ? Mr. ENVART advocated inquiry by a Committee. Mr. BANKES considered that the time was come when that House ought to cheek the public expenditure. He objected to a Committee, and did not agree with the Hon. Baronet the Member for Tamworth, that they ought to concentrate the expenditure in this instance, but, on the contrary, if the expense must be gone on with, that it should be spread over as wide a period as possible. After a few words from Mr. A. HOPE, Mr. DRUMMOND demanded a simple reply to the simple question, " who was responsible for the excess of expense over the estimate," but no reply being given, The SPEAKER put the question that the House re solve itself into a Committee on•— THE NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT BILL. The Earl of LINCOLN said he felt it necessary to interpose some remarks at this stage of the Bill ; and proceeded to show that the present constitution of New Zealand, although correct and beautiful in the abstract, was yet so erroneous in form, so theoretical in its appli cation, and had been so universally condemned by Members of that House, and by those competent to form an opinion out of it, as to justify a discussion of the question upon the present Bill, in order that they might consider what had been the errors already committed by the Government, and what was their best remedy. The Noble Lord referred to former debates, to show that the opinion of the House had been in favour of a repre sentative government for New Zealand, beginning with municipal institutions. The Right Honourable Baronet the Member for Tamwoith had stated that he regarded municipal institutions as the germ of representative government. The Noble Lord (the First Lord of the Treasury) had said that a muni cipal constitution was the proper prelude to a repre sentative constitution. He moreover distinctly stated, that he did not anticipate that it would be wise or desirable that a colony should at once jump from a state of despotism into an elaborate and fine drawn constitution. Such a constitution had not been desired by any party, or any Member of that House ;and in a petition presented by Lord Howick, in July, 1845, asking for a representative government, without distinc tion of race, the petitioners stated that, looking to the ignorance of the lower orders, it was desirable that the local constitution of the country should be as little de mocratic as possible, and should be composed of persons having an interest in common with the colonists, and not of strangers who went there in search of place and salary. How disappointed must those petitioners have been when they received at the hands of the Noble Lord through whose instrumentality they had made known their sen timents, a constitution which they now perceived had not attained the objects intended by it—a constitution which might be said to ho half American and very little Eng lish. He (Lord Lincoln) regretted that the Noble Lord had acted with such extraordinary haste, and without obtaining the opinion of the Governor,lof the colonists, or of residents in this country competent to advise upon it. The machinery of that constitution, :though perhaps perfect in itself when put into operation, was found wholly inapplicable. The Noble Lord, for instance, proposed a franchise intended to be democratic, being limited only by the ability to read and write English ; but if ever there was a plan devised to produce, not an amalgamation as anticipated by the Noble Lord, but a war of races, this was the plan ; for, according to the authority of Captain Grey, not one of the natives could read or write English. This suffrage was there fore limited to a small minority of English settlers, and the entire natives deprived of it. The Noble Lord, too, had had his attention drawn to these and other points by four leading colonists resident at the time in this country in a report containing their objections to his proposed constitution. They were most anxious that these cor porations should have a more extensive bearing. The Noble Lord had proposed the establishment of these corporations in some few districts of the colony ; they were to consist of mayor, aldermen, and burgesses, who were to elect the Parliament of New Zealand, or Provincial Assembly. Besides these, the Governor was to appoint two legislative councils, who were to elect another; and thus the system was one of great complexity. The franchise for the election of the corporations had been strongly objected to by the gentleman he had before referred to, on the ground of the electors being subject to undue influence. In the election at Wellington, where there were 355 electors, an influential man had made 25 of them drunk, and led them up to the poll to vote at his dictation. Surely this system wan not so much approved of in this country as to warrant its in trod into a Ca. - at. colony.---(Hear, hear.) Aleut ti, • •io Lord (grey) succeeded to the ~; Fre.--('ltrch cleists prepar e d to leave Scotland for New Zealand, on t e understand. ing that they would there find representative institu t Lions. At the close of the session of 1846, the Noble Lord's Bill having passed, and they Laving received the assurance of a representative constitution, they sailed for Otago, where, he believed, they had now arrived. Mr. AGLIONBY—They are now on the sea. Lord LINCOLN—At all events, when they arrived, they would find that the constitution on the faith of which they emigrated was suspended for five years. Mr. M. MILNES—They have gone to the southern island. Lord LINCOLN—But it Ns as well known that the suspension of the constitution applied alike to all parts of the colony. Governor Grey had taken the view which all the world took, and at once suspended this constitution as impracticable. It was condemned here, and condemned there—all the New Zealand papers were oppose&to it. It Ras on the suggestion of thelGo vernor that this constitution was now to be suspended for five years. To this he should not object, were the interval occupied in deviiing some more practicable messure ; but a suspension implied an abstract approval of the constitution. Rather let the Government confess in substance, what was confessed in spirit, that the thing was wholly inapplicable to the colony, and repeal it at once. He recommended this, because he was anxious to see the colony in possession of a real repre sentative constitution.—(Hear, hear.) As to the fitness of the colony for receiving such a constitution, the Governor had expressed a very decided opinion ; to the southern island especially, he thought such a consti tution might safely and properly be granted. Probably it would be urged, that uniformity was a reason for suspending the constitution in the whole of the colony ; but it was extremely likely that, before the Bill now under discussion arrived in the colony, the representative constitution, bad as it was, would h av e been established in the southern island. The uncertainty in which these continual changes involved the colonists was a great evil. At one time a representative constitution founded on universal suffrage was given them; then the whole power was vested in the Governor, who might grant or refuse such constitutions at his pleasure. This was a very unfair responsibility to cast on an individual •, and the Noble Lord (Grey) seemed sensible of that. By the fifth clause of the Bill before the House the Governor was even authorised to regulate the qualification of the burgesses. In this country such a power would be thought most unconstitutional and improper, and would be regarded in the colony with great distrust. The Noble Lord in his dispatch empowered the Governor to grant '.;senses to vote; and though such a power would donbtless be properly exercised by Governor Grey, yet he was not immortal, and his successor might be less judicious.—(llear, hear.) Upon the whole, ho thought it would be far better to withdraw his Bill, and bring in one of ono clause, entirely repealing the Act of 1846, and empowering the Governor to establish suitable municipal institutions in the whole colony. It was evident from the Governor's recent dispatches, that the colony was in a very critical state; and on this ground he had avoided the introduction of many exciting topics, being sincer;ly desirous to see past errors corrected. As the Government valued the peace of the colony, and the well-Leing of those emi grants who had gone thither on the faith of enjoying a representative government, he hoped they would early consider the question, and not let the matter rest where it was till the five years had nearly expired. Mr. LABOUCHERE assured the Noble Lord that ho was fully sensible of the importance of the subject; but he thought many of the points now urged would be better discussed in Committee. He hoped the whole of the time of the House would not be consumed in preli minary discussion. He would not revive the discussion on the land question, but would assure the House that there existed not the smallest difference of opinion be tween the Noble Lord at the bead of the Colonial De partment and Governor Grey on the subject of the waste lands. This was confirmed by a letter which had been received in this country from a missionary in New Zea land. On a former occasion he (Mr. Labouchere) had said he could not acquit the Bishop of New Zealand of indiscretion : he must now express, on his own part, and that of the Noble Lord (Grey) their thanks to the Right Reverend Prelate for his successful exertions towards effecting a settlement of the differences which existed with the missionaries on the subject of the grants.—(Hear, hear.) As the present Bill proposed the suspension of the constitution, he did not feel it necessary to answer seriatim the objections which had been raised against it bi the Noble Lord opposite. Otherwise it would not have been difficult to defend the steps which had been previously taken by Government. The Noble Lord had come into the Colonial office at the end of a session of Parliament, and found the Govern ment pledged to grant representative institutions to New Zealand. He had accordingly sent out this constitu tion; but it was to his credit that, as soon as it was found inapplicable, he had directed its suspension.— (Hear, hear.) As to the Scotch emigrants, it could not be made matter of complaint on their account that, when they arrived in the island, they found that institutions which were inapplicable to the colony had been suspended. All were agreed that this con stitution should be either suspended or abolished; but; to adopt the recommendation . of the Noble Lord opposite for the withdrawal of this Bill would be extremely unwise.—(llear, hear.) It was true that extraordinary powers were proposed to bo given to the Governor, but this was the only course which could safely and promptly be adopted for putting the colony in possession of suitable representative institutions. The population would thus be prepared for the posses sion of such institutions; and the Governor might gradu ally introduce such widening of the franchise and exten sion of liberties as he might see to he desirable. Gover nor Grey said that the southern part of New Zealand, where the majority consisted of white inhabitants, and where the aborigines were but few, was fitted to receive free institutions, but it was not ripe for such as they possessed at home.—(" Hear, hoar," from the Opposi tion.) The Nobie Lord called this a " hybrid constitu tion. He (Mr. Labouchere) did not defend it as a per manent system, but it was a constitution, however, that was not unknown in the colonies; and, recollecting that the Noble Lord was a member of a Cabinet which, under the auspices of Lord Stanley, had sent out a con stitution exactly similar to Newfoundland, after suspend ing a more popular one, he was surprised that the Noble Lord should call it a hybrid constitution. A similar con stitution was established in Guiana, and it existed at that moment in New South Wales. This Bill would empower the Governor to increase the number of the legislative council, which was desirable, because it was proper that he should surround himself with the best local advice, when so much responsibility was thrown upon him. There were to be provincial councils, into which he might infuse as much or as little of the popular element as he thought fit. All this was to be done by ordinance, but it was to be subject to the approval of the Crown. The Noble Lord laid great stress on the preservation of municipal institutions. But the Bill before the House slid not interfere with the establishment of municipal institutions. He had stated the reasons why he did not think the proposal of t h e N o bl e L or d was so good as that of her Majesty's Government, which he considered would lead to such free institutions in New Zealand as would be c o ns istent with their welfare and safety. The House then went into Committee. Clausrs 1, 2, and 3 were agreed to. On elato:e 4 being proposed, Mr. GLADSTONE said he wished to point to something which appeared to bim to be defective in the framing of the Bill. The Right Hon. Gentleman defended the suspension of the Bill rather than its held out to the people g r o e f p N ea e l, w on z t e h a e la g u r d ou t n h d e thhaopt,ehaovrin free institutions, they ought not to do anything to create a doubt of their intention to carry them into effect as soon as pos sible. Now, he could not see that the passing of the Bill of 1846 had furthered the cause of free institutions in the colonies. On the contrary, he thought it rather tended to damage th at cause. The promulgation of the consti tution had prove d a serious cause of danger to the co lony,reoavto an impression on th e part o f t h e nat i ves that the constitu tion would place power in the hands of the settlers, or from a fee l i ng on the part of the settlers that they would be e x c l u d ed from participating in it, in we i n i d ng excited grave appr e h ens i ons—whether these consequence of the clause requiring reading and writing as a necessary qualification for the elective franchise, he did not know. He was afraid, therefore, that its mere suspension would leave some of that excitement which There might be a retaining it in the statute-book. The present measure, however, was not balancemen a c e d o f the theoreticalpeac e of advantagethe ia the one which Governor Grey asked for. He drew a distinction between the north and south of the colony, and requested the Secretary of State to a s k P ar li amen t to conform ,its proceedings to that disti nct i on. But the Governaseat did not recognise that di s ti nct i on, an d responsibilitythey threwup o o f d n r G aw ov ing erno th reGdriesinction between they single-handed th e t north and south. He confessed he very much doubted the wisdom of such a course. Mr. LABOUCHERE remained unconvinced of the advisability of the course which the Right Ron. Gentle man suggested. The Right Hon. Gentleman thought that the Government should lay down the outline by which the Governor was to be guided , but he (Mr. La bouchere) was of opinion tha t it was mu ch wiser, in the circumstances of the colony, to throw the discretion on the Governor; and the council, rather than undertake themselves what was a most difficult thing namely, to lay down exactly what should be done with respect to institutions which after all must be but temporary. With regard to the feeling o f apprehension arising from the constitution being only suspended, he did not think that there was any ground for alarm as to the effect of the new institutions on the rights of the abori g i nes. Mr. DISRAELI asked, was it to be endured that a Colonial Minister was to make the debut of his official career by sending out a measure which the local authorities were obliged to scout ? This was an act of legislation produced by one of the most enormous errors ever perpetrated by a Secretary of State. The very name of New Zealand was synonymous with wholesale jobbing and official ignorance; but the act of the Colonial-office with respect to it was worse than all the other instances of official ignorance that ever came to his knowledge. It was only last session the grants were obliged to be made in order to stifle the complaints of people who could justly Complain of official mismanagement. They were about to begin this session by passing another Act to save a Minister. This was nothing else than an attempt to save Earl Grey's reputation. Seve him if possible by argument, but let them not brag the house of Commons through the mire in order to silence complaints of one of the most scandalous acts ever perpetrated by a Minister of the Crown. Mr. V. SMITH tbought, when an Hon. Member de nounced so violently the acts of a Minister of the Crown he ought to have borne in mind what was the state of :he colony when the constitution of EA-1 Groy was pro mulgated. That constitution lay 0. no tablo of th House all last sossion, and n'aas upuz; . ved on by the Noble Lord or the Hon. Member opposite. .', I Mr. LABOUCHERE oonsidoe4 tkitt, it.iTits a very • ~., TUESDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 15. 1848. proper principle in the House to lay down that there should be municipal institutions for New Zealand. Mr. AGLIONBY thanked the Noble Member for Falkirk for the manner in which he had raised the pre sent discussion. He urged the necessity of no longer withholding a good constitution from the colonists. Settlers from these islands, they were fully competent to exercise any constitutional rights which might be ex tended to them. He thought that the provisions of th, present measure threw too much responsibility upon the Governor of New Zealand. At least the first principles of self-government for the colony ought to be laid down by the Government at home, to be then, if you like, ap plied by the local governor. Sir R. PEEL had heard with the utmost satisfaction that there was no material difference between Lord Grey and Governor Grey on the subject, so fruitful of peril, the settlement of the claims to land. It was in with t h e n n u t g i r h e t g thatood f m it o h s towards t c h e e n s n u a r t e i e h s a i n d t b h e i e s n r e p s it p s e s the highest degree essential th a t we s h ou ld act lle d ed t on his Noble Friend the late Secretary for the Colonies, in relation to his view of the construction of the treaty of Waitangi. He considered that it would be better at once and wholly to repeal bite constitution of 1846, ac comp :vying that repeal with the clear statement that we were prepared to give the colony a c o ns tit u ti on b ase d upon sound constitutional principles, not, h owever , i n the meantime, being too explicit as to the exact detail, of those principles, or too ostentatiously putting forward an indiscriminate application of the English constitution. It would be necessary to wait fur Governor Grey's deliberate opinion upon each point before any decision was formed by the Government at home. The Govern ment would scarcely venture, he thought, to put as the preamble to their suspending Bill the real reasons which induced them to frame it. He recommended the adop tion of municipal institutions as the best medium o' introducing a representative system of government But the representative system recommended to Go vernor Grey was, that he was to choose the electors. He (Sir R. Peel) believed Governor Grey to be above the usual order of civil governers; but certainly the in structions of the Ministry would give him the power of making as large or as small a constituency as possible, and though Governor Grey might not be disposed to avail himself of that power, few civil governors could resist the temptation. What he complained of waR, the nature of the declarations made by the Government in respect to New Zealand. Let the Government adopt some qualification that was intelligible. It was said that many of the young chiefs were men of great pride; why not, therefore, give them an elective franchise upon some uniform scale of qualification, and thus put an end to the possibility of rousing a feeling of enmity towards the Government on their part ? Such were the views he entertained on the subject, and he asked the House to put on record its desire to adopt free institutions, and to teach the inhabitants of New Zealand that they were to be put on a level as British subjects with the settlers in that colony. Mr. LABOUCHERE objected to the introduction of municipal institutions in New Zealand, and adhered to the plan proposed, of giving Governor Grey the power of granting certificates for the purpose of constituting electors. As to the question raised respecting the con stitution. he considered on the whole that it was ad visable to suspend the constitution, and not to abrogate it entirely, as suggested. He did not believe that after all the proofs of interest in the prosperity of New Zea land which the Parliament of England had displayed there, could be so unfounded a jalousy entertained in that colony with respect to the suspension of the consti• tution as was imputed to the natives. Capt. lIARRIS was at a loss to conceive whether the proposed suspension for five years of the constitution granted to New Zealand was for the purpose of enabling the natives to qualify themselves for electors by learning to read and write English in the interim. He believed that municipal institutions were well adapted to the colony, and he entreated the Government to repeal the constitution, and if at a future period it might be thought necessary to revive it in another form, he would then b e prepared to consider that question. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER ex plained the instructions issued by Earl Grey to Governor Grey with respect to the certificates to be granted by him qualifying natives for electors under the constitu tion of New Zealand. Mr. DRUMMOND stigmatised the whole proceedings of the Government towards the New Zealanders as a series of oppression and injustice that inflicted the greatest dishonour on them. Mr. M. MILNES said his Hon. Friend who had just sat down had totally mistaken the whole tone of the treaty of Waitangi. He believed that there never had been a fairer attempt to raise and improve a savage people than that which had been made by the English colonists in New Zealand. After an attempt by Mr. BROTHERTON to adjourn the debate, Sir R. INGLIS said that Government claimed supre macy for the Crown in Now Zealand. Now supremacy could only ariso from first discovery, conquest. or treaty. If Government leant upon treaty, their treaty secured the rights of the natives, He looked upon the treaty of Waitangi as being as binding as the treaty of Utrecht ; and until he learned that power was to be substituted for right ho should consider all the natives of New Zealand as well entitled to the benefits of their treaty as if they had been the most civilised people in the world. Mr. lIUTT concurred in the greater part of the speech of the Noble Lord (Lincoln); hut he begged to express his hope that the constitution of so important a colony as New Zealand would not be suspended for five years. He did not think that the substitute offered to the settlers would be considered by them as an equiva lent for their constitution, and therefore he trusted that Government would at once set themselves about putting the affairs of the colony in a train for the assumption of popular rights. Mr. SCOTT regretted that the treaty of Waitangi had not been observed. In the matter of land sales he trusted that the spirit of that treaty would be respected. Another hardship connected with the sale of laud was the rule by which the natives could only sell their land to the Governor, whose maximum price to the settlers was 20s. the acre. He did not approve of the suspen sion of the constitution for five years, and doubted whe ther it would not have been better to abrogate it alto gether, waiting for a fitting opportunity to establish a new and suitable one. Clauses 4 and 5 were agreed to, as were the remaining clauses, and the House resumed. _ MONTGOMERY ELECTION. The SPEAKER read a letter from Mr. Pugh, stating that he had been returned for Montgomery borough by 389 electors, and that the same number bad voted for Mr. Cholmondeley, who had since informed him that he did not intend to defend his seat. On the motion of Sir R. PEEL it was ordered, in conformity with the precedent in 11th George 111., when a double return was made for Scarborough, that the Clerk of the Crown should attend the House to morrow (this day), and amend the return, by striking out the name of the gentleman who did not wish to sit. IMPEACHMENT OF LORD PALNIERSTON. Toe CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER having moved the order of the day for going into a Committee of Supply, formally to take a vote upon Exchequer-bills, Mr. URQUHART said that it was notorious that the Government had used means to prevent the motion of the Hon. Member for Youghal being brought on, and he therefore would move the adjournment of the ouse. Mr. W. S. O'BRIEN seconded the motion, because he thought that injustice had been done the Hon. Gentleman. Lord D. STUART said, that if be felt as the Hon. Member for Youghal, he would certainly persist in his motion, but would not interrupt the public business. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, if the Hon. Gentleman would take the advice of the Noble Lord behind him, Government would do their best to keep him a House on a notice-day.— (Hear.) It was desirable for the public interest that the vote he proposed to take to-night should be taken, as a matter of form, before the Noble Lord at the head of the Government made his financial statement. The O'GORMAN MAHON admitted that he had ex ercised all the power he possessed to induce Members to retire on the occasion referred to—(Laughter)—for the purpose of marking his disapproval of what he consi dered the factious course pursued by the Hon. and Learned Member (Mr. Anstey),:who had brought for ward his motion in opposition to the expressed wish of both sides of the House.—(Hear.) Mr. ANSTEY said he had given the Government, in the early part of the evening, every opportunity to afford him the assurance that he should have an oppor tunity of bringing on his motion; but no such assurance had been given. He and other Hon. Members had re mained all the evening, at great inconvenience, and he was now asked to surrender the only advantage he had been able to obtain. If the Right Hon. Gentleman would name a day next week for the Committee of Supply, and fix it at an early hour, he would accede to the request now made; otherwise, he was quite ready to proceed. It was perfectly notorious 4hat, on the former evening, the Hon. and Noble Gentlemen who acted as whippers-in to the Government had used their efforts to count the House.—(Laughter.) The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said it was desirable that the Hon. and Learned Gentleman might take an early day—say that day fortnight—when his motion would probably stand first, and Government would do all in their power to secure him a House. As to bringing the motion on when a Committee of Supply was fixed, he would have just the same opportunity on any future occasion of a Committee of Supply. No ad vantage could be gained to-night by bringing the motion on at this late hour. Mr. ANSTEY agreed to postpone his motion till the day named by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and hoped that good faith would be kept with him. Tho motion was then withdrawn, and the House went into COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said the vote he bad to proposovas the usual annual vote for the payment of outstanding Exchequer bills. The vote, the amount of which was 17,543,500 L, was then agreed to. The House resumed and then adjourned at a quarter after one o'clock. -- - - RECRUITS FOR THE ARMY.--Irswlcil.—On Tues day last, several fi ne young men, recruits of the 95th regiment of foot left this town en rou te t o join the depot in Ireland. Among the rest were two countrymen, who came a short distance to hear the lecture lately delivered at the Town Hall, in this borough by Mr. Plummer, on the Folly of the Sword. The account given by the lec turer of the enormous sums received by the Duk e o f Wellington contrasted so strongly with the mise ra bl e pittance of 101 a day which they were receivi ng 'us s m r i.. cultural labourers, that they instantly became desir"ous tryil:g their fort.:nes.ip the tebtKi field, an d o b serv i ng Sergeant Rontree , who is recruiting for the above corps, in the room, offered themselves as candidates for a red coat and were accepted.—Suffolk Chronick. ' SECOC.L'iD EDITION OF " NOW AND THEN." Oar opinion of Mr. Warren's latest fiction has been co:rrohorated, not merely by the commendations of our - Contemporaries, but by the coincident opinion of the Public. A little more than one calendar month ;has elapsed since the first appearance of "Now and Then," and a second edition has already proved requisite. This, we take it, is a healthful sign as to the state of the average taste in literature. The prac tical encomium which has thus been pronounced upon the volume, to our thinking, affords a favourable prognostic for our more natural and inartificial novel isol; it is a sufficient attestation that the perceptive faculties. of English readers have not been perma nently I slurred by the mists of caricature, and that their imaginations have not been actually diseased by I the prusaient effusions which have latterly achieved a certain degree of popularity. Neither the success of " TEO - Thiry of a Late Physician," or of " Ten Thou sand a Year," proved this fact so forcibly as the em 'deltic and almost unanimous approval expressed upon the unostentatious merits of "Now and Then." Remarkable as were the powers betrayed in the two preceding works, the genius of the author received from each of tt le subjects a degree of adventitious aid such as derogated in some measure from their excellence as literary compositions. In " The Diary of a Late Physician," for eximple, curiosity was excited by the hideous revelations of physical suffering which con stitutes the experience of a medical. practitioner. On the other band, " Ten Thousand a Year" was ren dered that vehicle for political sarcasms, such as could not fail from their bitterness, and occasionally even from their personalities, to tickle the appetite of a numerous class of partizans. One production was to a considerable extent assisted in the acquisition of a speedier renown by the excitement caused by its many agonizing narratives; the other was invested with a very different but equally potent air of fasci nation by its adroit and earnest appeals to the pas sions of politicians. In the last work of Mr. War ren, however, no extraneous help whatever has been sought after—no bait is tendered in its pages to the morbid or the factious—the chapters are not tesse listed by the ghastly shadows of agony, nor are the characters of the story coloured with the brilliant hues of sarcastic allusion. " Now and Then" is as simple as an English tale can be : simple in construction ; simple in diction ; simple in interest, and eminently simple in purpose. The plot flows onward as naturally, and, if one may so speak, as spontaneously as a river—narrow and clear at its commencement, varied and meandering as it pro gresses, and spreading out in dimensions, and becom ing more profound in moral, and more rapid in inci dent, as it approaches its conclusion. On reviewing the work immediately upon its first publication we commented upon this distinguishing and laudable peculiarity. While, moreover, we expressed our ad miration of what appeared to us to be its most con spicuous excellences—its elegant and idiomatic lan guage, the clever development of the story, the truthfulness of its characters, and the majestic moral of which it was intended to be the enforcement--we did not abstain from taking exception to several of its incidental and more noticeable blemishes. In the new edition which has just been issued we perceive nct merely a moderate extension of the fiction, but the evidences of a very careful and even scrupulous emendation. Although Mr. Warren still preserves the austerity of old Adam Ayliffe's manner towards the close of the volume, he elevates and ennobles the misfortunes of the younger Adam by interpolating in the remarks of good Parson Ilyltoa the following exquisite passages of consolation :- 6. Great and terrib!e are the sufferings both of mind and body which you have undergone ; but they have been inflicted upon you by an Allwise, Just, and Incom prehensible God. Your duty is humble and joyful sub mission to all His dispensations : He owes you nothing: you owe Him everything. As He is your Maker, so Ile is your Judge ! It is for Him alone to deal with you, both here and hereafter, as seemeth best to His infinite wisdom. Had you perished on the scaffold : had you died in ignominious exile after leading a long life of bodily agony—insect of the dust ! What could you have said against it to your Omnipotent Creator ? But in judgment He has remembered mercy : lie has given you the consolations of religion : RESIGNATION : peace of mind, even in your very sorrow. Awfully incom prohensible in His nature, He has yet permitted you to see in Him a FATHER ! who chasteneth those whom . lle loveth, and even vouchsafes to them some few glimpses of His wondrous government of the world. Long suffering, He stoops even to reason with His crea tures ! And is it no mark - of His favour and blessing that you are now here ? Alive ? With your loving wife beside yon ? And your venerable father alive to welcome you ? And your character and innocence vindicated before all mankind?" Among the minor, or rather verbal improvements, in the ' second edition, we must especially mention the circum stance that the author seems to have rectifiedthroughout the scholarly blunder of reversing the positions of the nominative and objective cases in their relation to the verb. Graceful in Latinity, it is a practice which sounds awkward enough in English composition, and for this reason we are gratified to find that the pure Saxon utterances of "Now and Then" are no longer injured by its recurrence. We direct attention like wise to these minute corrections, for the pur pose of showing that the new edition is something bettor than a simple reprint. Already it would seem that "Now and Then " has acquired for itself an audience beyond the shores of England. From its republication in the - United States it appears to have obtained a fresh multitude of readers beyond the Atlantic ; at Leipzic and at Paris it starts forth suddenly in French and German translations. This rapidity of diffusion is chiefly attributable of course to the celebrity already acquired by Mr. Warren, for we cannot but think that the simplicity, the naturalness, and the exalted morality of "Now and Then" will at the outset prove somewhat distasteful to those who have been hitherto glutted with the exaggerations of a romantic, ornate, and indecent literature. In America, for instance, the wholesome and inimitable fancies of Washington Irving have been latterly neglected for the extrava gant and sometimes preposterous conceits of Edgar A. Poe. In Germany the fantastic visions of Richter and the domestic puerilities of Schokke hare • become the fashionable themes of panegyric; ' while in France it is notorious that public delicacy is perpetually outraged by a swarm of veteran or incipient feuilletonists, by the grim imaginings of De 13alzic, the voluptuous delineations of Sand, the impudent laxity of Dumas, the distortions of Sue, and the lascivious dreamings of De Kock. Amidst such a fraternity o: vicious writers Mr. Warren may in a foreign version exercise no mean or evanescent influ ence—for with the daintiest purity of purpose he combines a masculine energy and an enthralling in terest, qualities which are absolutely essential to con quer the prejudices inspired by a depraved and vitiated school. If "Now and Then" can only tend to beat down the Standard of the Flesh in the hearts of the novel-readers of Paris and Prussia, and to elevate in its stead that Standard of the Spirit which is the banner of Christianity, it will have nobly fulfilled a mission which it is eminently qualified to accomplish, and will have diffused beyond the circumference of a clique that abiding zeal for religion which burns so ' brightly in the ideal hearts of Adam Ayliffe and Henry Hylton. COURT CIRCULAR. The Queen held a Court at Buckingham Palace at three o'clock yesterday afternoon. Count de Reventlow, the Danish Minister, had an audience of the Queen to present the official notifica tion of the death of his Majesty the late King of Denmark, and also to present his credentials from his present Sovereign. His Excellency was introduced by :.Viscount Palmerston, G.C.8., her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. The Right llon. Sir Stratford Canning, G.C.8., was presented to her Majesty by Visccunt Palmers ton, on his return from his mission to Switzerland, and to take leave on his departure for Constanti nople. Mr. David Morier was presented to the Queen, at an audience by Viscount Palmerston, on the termi nation of kis mission in Switzerland. her Majesty gave audience to Viscount Palmers ton. The Queen was attended by the Earl of Morley, Lord in waiting, and Colonel Berkeley Drummond, Groom in waiting. His Royal highness Prince Albert, and their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Saxe Coburg, accompanied by Count Arthur Mensdorff, and at tended by Madame la Baronne de Wangenheim, Cap tain the Hon. A. Gordon, and Baron Fritsch, visited the New Palace at Westminster yesterday, and in spected the House of Lords. Her Majesty, attended by the Viscountess Jocelyn, Lady in Waiting, and Colonel Buckley, Equerry in Waiting, visited the Princess Sophia yesterday, at her residence at, Kensington. The royal children took their usual airings yes terday. The Queen and Prince Albert, accompanied by their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Saxe Coburg, and Count Arthur Mensdorff, honoured the performance of the French plays with their pre sence yesterday evening. The royal suites consisted of the Viscountess Jocelyn, Madame la 13aronne de Wangenheirn, the Earl of Morley, Colonel Buckley, Captain the lion. A. Gordon, and Baron Fritsch. A deputation from the London and South• Western Railway Company, consisting of Mr. Chaplin (Chair man), lion. F. Scott, Mr. Real, Mr. Mill, Mr. l3ircham, and Mr. Bassalgate, had an interview with the Right lion. E. Strutt yesterday at the Office of the Commissioners of Railways in the Board of Trade. Lord Campden had an interview with Sir George Greg yesterday at the Home-office. Mr. Wickham, Chairman of the Stamps and Taxes, and Mr. Pressly, Secretary to the Board, had an in terview with the Chancellor of the Exchequer yebter day at his official residence, in Downing -street. 117 r. John Wood, Chairman of the Excise, had also an in.• terview yesterday with the Right lion. Baronet. A deputation from the Waterford and Kilkenny Railway Company, consisting of Mr. G. Anderson (Deputy Chairman), and Captains Currie and Moor som, had an interview with the Commissioners of Railways yesterday on the subject of the Company's application to Parliament for power to make certain improvements in the Railway. Dispatches were received yesterday at the Colonial office from the Governors of the North American provinces. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council sat yesterday. The Lords present were the Archbishop of York, the Master of the Rolls, Lord Campbell, the Chincenor of the Duchy of Cornwall, and the Judge of the Admiralty Court. After disposing of an Appeal from the Court of Arches, " Shore v. Barnes," their Lordships commenced the hearing of "The Reoresent•mtives of Count de Wall v. the Commis siotiers of French Claims." HER 'MAJESTY'S THEATRE. Her Majesty's Theatre opens on Saturday, and, as has always been the case since Mr. Lumley under took the management of this great lyric establish ment, opens in reality, and not in name only; the ar.ti-paschal season has never :been slovened over by Mr. Lumley, as it had invariably b een b y his predecessors; and, accordingly, we find that at the very commencement of the season we are to have Gardoni, Signor Beletti (the admired baritone, from La Pergola, Florence), Signor Cuzzani (the great tenor, from La Scala), and Mademoiselle Sofia Cruvelli (the prima donna of the Fenice at Venice). These will appear in Verdis's opera of E,rnani, which will be followed by a new grand ballet by Paul Taglioni, entitled Fiorita, in which Caroline Rosati and Marie Tag lioni will appear. This is a good beginning, bat bettor is to follow, and the season of IS4B bids fair to eclip7e in brilliancy any of its predecessors, and to cast even the glories of 1847 into the shade. Of course Jenny Lind is to be here; the Nightingale arrives in March, and will appear in several novel and interesting characters in a succession of new and established operas. It was a complaint last season, and one not altogether ill-founded, that on the nights which were not Jenny Lind nights there was no prima lonna, worthy of th e hi g h repu t at i on o f h er M e . jesty s Theatre, as Madame Castellan, although a very sweet singer, was scarce l y equal to the situa tion into which circumstances had thrust her. That complaint has been most effectually remedied. Madame Erminia Tadolini, whom the audiences of La Scala and of all the other great Italian theatres have long since hailed as the prima donna of Italy, and whom the audience of Vienna hailed as (with the ex ception of Jenny Lind, with whom she has of ten h e ld friendly contest) the prima donna of the world, has been engaged, and will, we understand, appear on alternate nights with Jenny Lind during the greater E vart of the season. We sincerely congratulate Mr. Lumley on his having secured the services of Madame Tadolini, and we congratulate the English dilletaiiti, also as having now, for the first time, an opportunity afforded them of hearing the greatest of female Italian artiAtes. Mademoiselle Adelaide Moltini, of whom the habitues of the opera have many pleasing reminiscences, is also engaged ; and Mademoiselle Schwartz, of whom report speaks as the most marvellous contralto in the world, will make her debiit early in the season. Mademoiselle Abbadia, who has been winning golden opinions at La Scala, and Signora Sofia Vera, are also engaged. Gardoni, of course, is here ; and Cuzzeni who makes his debdt on Saturday, has long been primp tenorc at La Scala, and comes to us with an established Italian re putation. asanother Signor Labocetta from Berlin, is also engaged. We have already alluded to the engagement of the baritone Peletti, but he is an addi tion to the corps operatipe, and not a substitute for any seceder, for we are also to ha ve C o l e tti, B ouc he, F. Lablache, and the Lablache, in every sense of the word the greatest actor and singer in the world. The band and the chorus, which will be complete in every part, and in which great improve ments have been made, will be as heretofore under the direction of Belle, with Tolbecque as leader. The ballet will be, as it always has been at this theatre, the first in the world. We are to have Carlotta Grisi, Caroline Rosati, Marie Taglioni, and Cerito, with her husband St. Leon, and Perrot, and Paul Taglioni, as the maitres de ballet, each of whom will produce a new ballet in the course of the season. With such attractions we are not surprised to find that the sub scription list is so rapidly filling up. Mr. Lumley deserves success, and in general those who deserve attain it. FRENCH PLAITS. Her Majesty and Prince Albert honoured the St. James's Theatre with their presence last night. They have of late greatly patronised the theatres. In the muse of last week they visited both the Haymarket and the Lyceum. A very pretty vaudeville in three acts, called Rose et Marguerite, was played for the first time. Rose and Marguerite (Mdlles. Baptiste and Nathalie) are the two heroines of this vaudeville, whose youth will last as long as this vaudeville remains in the reper toire, their ages being marked in the Look eighteen and twenty respectively. The young ladies b e i ng orphans, live under the roof of their grandfather, Baron de Villiers (M. Cartigny) a superannuated busybody, as silly as he is good-natured. For tunately for the helplessness of this little family, they have found a friend, a mentor, and protector, in Jacques Perrin (M. Ste. Marie), a man of sound sense as well as excellent heart. He is a bachelor, forty years of age, but when the play begins, to acquire a more immediate right to treat his three friends as his own family, he is about to marry Marguerite. The young lady, who is highly romantic, has secretly formed an attachment, whilst at the sea side, for a youth of her own disposition, Jules de St. Ives (M. Fechter), and she is in utter despair at this conjugal prospect. The arrival of Jules in Paris formally to claim her hand reveals her secret passion. Perrin generously gives up his be trothed, and is about to separate from the family for ever, when he is stopped by Rose, the youngest sister, who displays towards him such deep affection, that he hastens to transfer to her the title of his wife. The consequence is, that the two sisters are married the same day, amidst the rejoicings of their friends, in which Frederic, their cousin (Montaland) participates for reasons of his own. He is a gay young roué, who having been rejected as a suitor by the sisters, has declared war against all husbands gene rally, but against his fair cousins' spouses in particular. In the two last acts we witness the intrigues by which Frederic attempts to take advantage of the ennui of Rose, whose husband is absorbed by business, and of the indigna tion and vengeance of Marguerite, whose consort is engrossed by far more culpable pursuits. In all his attempts he is baffled by the tact and good sense of Perrin, whilst the passions to which the other dra matis persowe are successively a prey, vary and keep up to the last the interest of the plot. Mademoiselle Nathalie's performance elicited the greatest applause; but it would be great injustice not to notice how greatly several of the habitual members of the troupe contribute to the success of the performances, al though one might well expect their efficiency and talents would be marred, their memories being over tasked by learning the repertoire of each newly arrived star since the beginning of the season, each vaudeville being rarely performed more than twice or thrice at the utmost. Aldlle. Baptiste, however inexperienced, is always pleasing, whilst Ste. Marie, Montaland, Cartigny, Josset, and Mdme. Valmy are clever as well as painstaking actors, who never fail to make the peculiar wit of the vaudevilliste tell with point and piquancy. TEE LATE EXTENSIVE FAILURE IN TEE IRON TRADE.—BIRMINGHAM, MONDAY.—AS was expected by many persons best acquainted with the affairs of the Oak Farm Works, near Dudley, the arrangements at tempted a few weeks ago have not met with the concur rence of the creditors, and it is feared that, to the great detriment. of the property, the firm will have to pass through the Gazette. It is already known that Lord Lyttelton, Mr. Gladstone, and Sir Stephen Glynne, who hold heavy mortgages upon the works, offered to gua rantee 9s. 6d. in the pound to the unsecured creditors. To this Lord Ward, by his agents, takes exception, and a docket of bankruptcy has been struck. On Saturday a general meeting of the creditors was held at the Dee 's Royal Hotel, when a resolution was passed to the effect, that the parties present were desirous of abiding by the resolution passed at the former meeting, and arecomrd mending Lord Lyttelton and his partners to p Ward his debt in full, as the difference to ther sm wo e y u a l o d s be to not more than about ;001. It is hope d by this OermSovoegellnt'STAFEOßD.• it is not impossible t hat ' other k escape a bankruptcy • but should Lord w lN i ' t a h rd a s , n i c o c w ee t d o , similar T il B success, i‘itNtN S A TURDAY.—There DOA p, rs now t s o n i b n e n. G infi v y l a s d .r o ß p i t c a r y that the turn-out of the colliers will be of short duration. In the neighbourhood of Dudley many have resumed their work ; but the iron - ev ery l3l i p u‘ ;o i b N a c b il i p r ob abili ty men remain obstinate. The masters can afford to wait; for although stocks of iron are low, there is an exceed ingly limited demand. The nail trade is unusually flat. A YANKEE PREACUER ON PREDESTINATION.— Let us, fur arguments sake, grant that I, the Rev. Elder Sprightly, urn fore-ordained to be drowned in the river at Smith's Ferry, next Thursday morning, at twenty minutes after ten o'clock; and suppose I know it; and suppose I am a free, moral, voluntary, and account able agent—do you think I am going to be drowned? I should rather guess not! I should stay at home; and you'll never ketch the Rev. Elder Sprightly at Smith's terry, nohow—nor near the river neither. SOUTH WALES RAILWAY.—We understand that the line of railway in this neighbourhood is to be pro secuted with vigour, orders having been received by the contractors to engage as many mon as possible for that purpose,—Monmouthshire