The Sun. — London, England, 1861-05-11 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT, HOUSE OF LORDS—YESTERDAY. The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at five o'clock. THE WAR IN AMERICA. The Earl of DE R,BYsaid hehad given notice in writing to the noble earl opposite to ask a question relative to the state of affairs in a distant part of the world. Their lordships were aware of the unfortunate outbreak that had taken place be tween the Northern and Southern States. He knew that the question of belligerent rights was now under the considera tion of the law officers of the Crown, and therefore he should not touch upon that portion of the subject. It was ascer tained that letters of marque or sanction for privateering had been issued by the Southern States. Now, this state of things would place the British traders in a very dan gerous position by such a proceeding on the part of the Northern and Southern States. He understood that a proclamation was about to be issued on the part of the Government with respect to belligerent rights, and as he looked upon privateering as a sort of sea poach ing, he thought it was highly important that British sea men who might be attracted to join in such a perilous course should know the exact position in which they stood. It was right they should know in the most unmistakeable manner on what footing they stood by proclamation of the Government. They should be informed that they would lose all their natural rights, and that their blood would be upon their own heads, as this country would not interfere in any way to save them. The question he wished to ask was, whether, in the proclamation that was about to be issued on the subject of belligerent rights, distinct instruc tions would he given of the risk British seamen would incur by going in any privateering ships, and that the Go vernment could not in any way i n terfere for their protec tion? Earl GRANVILLE said, with regard to the question whether the Government intended to issue a proclamation warning her Majesty's subjects to preserve that neutrality which it was the desire of the country to maintain in re spect of the struggle in America, it was the intention of the Government to issue such proclamation in accordance with precedents of former times. Lord BROUGHAM expressed his regret at the state of things that existed in America, and agreed in the necessity of issuing such a proclamation as that referred to. The Earl of HARDWICKE denied that privateering was to be regarded as piracy. If properly conducted it stood in a very different position. The matter then dropped. PRIVATE BUSINESS. The Leeds, Bradford, and Halifax Junction Railway, Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (Bootle Branches) were read a second time. The Whitworth Vale Gas, Western Super-Mare Gas, Forth and Clyde Junction Railway, Exeter mad Exmouth Railway, Witney Railway, and Kendall Fell Bills were read a third time and passed. PASSENGERS (AUSTRALIAN COLONIES) BILL. This bill was read a second time. LEASES, &c,, BY INCUMBENTS RESTRICTION BILL. The report of amendments on this bill was brought up and received. AFFAIRS OF SYRIA. Lord STRATFORD DE REDCLIFFE rose, pursuant to notice, to move-1. That this house weuld view with deep regret any circumstance leading to a continuance, however brief, of the occupation of Syria by foreign troops beyond the sth of June next ensuing, the period now fixed for their complete withdrawal by the convention agreed to at Paris on the 15th of March ; 2. That the house considers the late calamitous events in Syria as not to he attributed to causes exclusively local, but also and chiefly to the gene ral state of the Turkish empire, more especially in point of revenue and administration; 3. That the house is deeply impressed with the urgency of obtaining from the Ottoman Porte a prompt adoption and strict enforcement of such measures as may best afford in the spirit of the Sultan's hatti-humayoun of 1856 a reliable security against the re currence from any cause whatever of these sanguinary con flicts. The noble lord said the subject which he was about to bring under the notice of their lordships was so little re commended by any simplicity in its character that he should have shrunk from trespassing on the indulgence of the house if he had not borne in mind the importance of the national interests at stake. The resolutions which he pro posed were, he thought, of a character not calculated to raise any difference of opinion, and still less to cause any division among their lordships as to their adoption. He thought that it would be advantageous, concurrently with the discussion which had taken place in the other house of Parliament, that the subject should also be dis cussed in that house, in order that the Government might have the full advantage of being supported in their policy by the approval of both houses; and he could see no cause for apprehension abroad arising out of such a discussion, while, as far as this country was concerned, such discussion must be beneficial, by diffusing a knowledge of the interests involved and the principles by which the policy of Parlias meat and the Government were guided. It could not be said either that the discussion was premature. It wasnow six weeks since the correspondence on the subject had been laid en the table by the Foreign Office. It was not his in tention to refer to that correspondence in detail, bat he might say that it was impossible to read it without seeing that the policy of this country had been ably sustained, that those entrusted with the duty of carrying it out had ably and faithfully performed their duties, and that this was the case especially with the commissioner appointed to act jointly with the representatives of France and Turkey, who, though comparatively inexperienced in diplomacy, had not only ably promoted the great interests of humanity, but also the character and the policy of this country, in a way which reflected the highest honour upon himself. (Hear.) The question itself was one of great complexity, and which presented circumstances of great difficulty and deli cacy to deal with. The occupation of Syria by foreign troops involved piestions of the gravest importance. At the time that France offered to send troops to Syria he felt, with the Government, that the time for their remain ing there should be limited to the shortest possible period. Since then it had been found by the Government that it was advisable that the period shcaild be still further ex tended. It would be a matter for deep regret, if it should, from any cause, be still further extended. lle could not doubt that the French Government was sincerely desirous of carrying out the last convention, and had no pecuniary interest in prolonging the occupation; but still• it was possible to conceive that circumstances might arise to in duce them to desire a further extension of the period, and it was desirable that our Government should be supported by Parliament in its determination to insist upon the striet fulfilment of the last arrangement. It really did not appear that the continuance of the French troops was necessary for the restoration or maintenance of tranquillity in. Syria. Their presence had been con fined to a small portion of the country, and it had had the effect of exalting the Christian tribes. He would put it to the house if any army of a foreign Power should be placed in this position? It was right, therefore, for this House to aid the Government in carrying out the arrange ments made, and also in taking such steps in connection therewith as would G.m , .11r0 the tranquillity of the Turkish Empire, which, by treaty, we had undertaken to gu a . rantee. It was no slight task we had thus undertaken, but it was one which policy and good faith alike for bade us shrinking from. Long before such treaty obliga tions became binding upon us this country had taken a deep interest in Turkish affairs. 'Within the last century we had six or seven times sent an army to aid in main taining the integrity of the Turkish Empire. This could not, therefore, be considered a light question, and at a time when, not only Europe—the whole of Europe—but America, was in so uneasy a condition, it was more than ever our duty to guard against any possible circumstances that tend to weaken that empire, or to lead to di s p u t es i n connection with it s a ff a i rs . It was'of importance that they should take a right view of the thesecau sesof the disturbances of in Syria. No doubt manycausestionwetore that,local in th e ir nature and operati on ; b ut in addition m ight be truly said that the more i n fl uential and activelyit mov i n g causes were of a general char ac t er . The corruption w hi c h unhappily pervaded the admini s t rat i on was one great cause. The army, which was on paper 150,000 strong, did not in reality number more than 50,000 or 60,000 ; and another cause was the embarrassed state of the finances. What the Turkish Empire required was an army adequate to the defence of the country and the maintenance of its internal tranquillity. Unless some remedy be applied to these things it would be impossible for this country to do j'atiet to the engagements into which Government had en tered. They should endeavour to induce Turkey to exert her ow„ energies and to carry out those reforms which the Government of Turkey had admitted to be n ecessar y . There issu w e " fro a m _ f aulty in bringing the Syrian quest ion to an efti ues with which the Porte had to deal. He thought it was a subject e o to f k r e egre . t that more persevering efforts had not been in h th i e Turks th steady , in the progress of reform. It se enaed e t p o . not a fanciful or speculative subject, and in one which could -a b s St- POlvarl. It was a question W hi ch must be . dealt . with, o or events might result which would com e this country with surprise, as sz ithin the last six months t o an th ti e o r . events had occurred of which no man had the le aa la Minis e ra Parliament to enable them to It might happen at no distant period tkat be compelled to call upon carry out the engagements of this country towards T so , ke „ . Nothing was more necessary than that these enea geine : ta should be maintained which were c.-ser Cal to the r aa i nt ,. nance of the balance of power in Europe. lie trusted their lordships would consider the resolutions in the spirit in which they had been framed. He should be sorry it their discussion should throw any obstacle or difficulty in the way, as ho bad frankly stated the motives which had induced him to bring th e reso l ut i on forwar d . He had touched upon most of the points which ho thought bore upon the su bj ec t . li e had overcome his reluctance to address their lordships from a strict sense of duty arising from the experience and the knowledge he possessed of Turkish affairs. The noble lord concluded by moving his resolutions. Lord WODE HOUSE was sure their lordships had lis tened with a uch attention to the speech of his noble friend who was so well acquainted with Turkish affairs. There was much in the resolutions in which he agree•l, but at the same time he did not think it would be advisable at the present moment that the resolutions should be agreed to. (Hear, hear.) There was no doubt tha t th e occupation of Syria by foreign troops was an anomaly, and was a dan ger to the independence of the Turkish empire. The occu pation by French troops was assented to by all the Powers who were parties to the arrangement of occupying Syria ; but the Government of this country had no doubt whatever that the occupation of Syria by the French treeps would terminate, as had been arranged, on the sth of June. (Hear hear.) He thought the papers which had been presented very plainly showed that the Maronities originally com menced the unfortunate events which they deplored, and that the Dresses eagerly entered into the contest. The Turks were also he thought greatly to blame, but he thought. the Turkish Government had rendered every re paration their power by the vigorous efforts they had m ade to p unish the offenders. He did not however see th at there w o u ld be any advantage in their lordships expre ssin g any opinion at pre sent on the subject. His noble friend had very properly pointed out the great importance of the subject, but it might have been said at any t ime within the last century that the Turkish empire was in great danger. It was always in dan ger in one sense, because it was an empire composed of varied races, with differing languages, creeds, and habits, and it had powerful neighbours always disposed to press upon it, so that it was exposed both to external and internal pressure and disturbing causes. But he thought we were very much disposed to exaggerate the danger. (Hear, hear.) The reports laid on the table from the various British con suls gave a picture of the state of the Turkish empire some what different to those which were usually drawn. All these reports concurred in stating that in many provinces great improvement was-visible, and in pointing out that it was not the laws of Turkey which were defective, so much as the administration. The noble lord who had been all his life so earnest in urging reforms upon the Porte, had scarcely given it credit for the efforts made to give effect to these reforms. In many parts of Turkey the laws were equitable and enlightened, but unfortunately the admini stration was corrupt and irregular. The noble lord had said for this we must seek a remedy, but he (Lord Work house) could not see any other course open to us than that we had already pursued, viz., to advise the Porte in a friendly spirit as to the course to be pursued with!respect to the management of the finances of the empire. Her Majes ty's Government had recently sent two gentlemen to Con stantinople, possessed of great experience and knowledge in financial affairs, to advise with the Turkish Government, and if the Government would really listen to them, act upon the advice, and avail themselves of the services of these two gentlemen, the finances would be soon got into a regular state, or at least very great improvements would be made. His noble friend had not touched upon the effect of the changes to be made in the government of Syria, so much as he might have done. But in fact there were a great many schemes "under consideration, and that of itself implied great difference of opinion. Upon that point, as upon every other, he could only say that it was the object of her Ma jesty's Government not to weaken that of Turkey in any way. As to the French occupation of Syria, the Govern ment had no reason to suppose that it would be prolonged beyond the appointed time, and he could assure his noble friend that the advice given by the Government to the Porte, was in all respects such as he himself would ap prove of. The Marquis of CLANRICARDE said the question really was, what were our engagements to Turkey, and how far were we to be dragged into war without making efforts to improve the internal condition of the empire? If the object of the resolutions were simply to urge the with drawal of the French troops he could not assent to them, because he believed the French Government were deter mined to carry out the arrangement. But the resolutions referfed to the circumstances under which these troops were sent there, and the interference of other powers. It was quite clear from the papers uefore the house that such in terference was urgently called for, and he thought therefore that the house would be justified in adopting the resolutions. His noble friend who had just sat down had said there were symptoms of improvement in Turkey, and that the state of the Turkish army was owing to local and financial causes. That was just what his noble friend said in his resolutions, and showed the necessity for adopting resolutions which at all events if not adopted he was glad to see upon the jour nals of their lordships' house. If governors of provinces only kept an army upon paper, how was it possible to main tain internal tranquillity, or repress disturbances. Our en gagements to Turkey had already frequently led to a great expenditure of blood and treasure on our part, and it would be the height of folly for us not to look carefully at the ex tent of these engagements, and to take such measures as would prevent the recurrence of such events. If we were responsible for the welfare of Syria, we had a right to inter fere with its administration, and demand that it should be so conducted as to prevent the recurrence of such sangui nary events as led to the present occupation by foreign troops, which he believed had prevented the effusion of some blood in Syria. The weak state of the Government of Turkey was shown by the disturbances in the State of Montenegro andneighbouring States,which the Government was unable to put down, and he believed that at this moment Turkey was unable to send a squadron into the Adriatic, because she had no money. While we were prepared to fulfil all the guarantees already, he hoped that we would take care and give no more of such guarantees. We had hitherto faith fully fulfilled our treaty obligations to Turkey, and if we wanted to get out of them we should do so openly. What was really wanted by Turkey was a loan of money, and he thought we were not prepared to assist it in that way. For himself he should have liked the resolutions of his noble friend to be adopted, in order that the opinion of their lord ships' house on the subject should have been recorded. The Earl of MALMESBURY agreed with the =late lord as to the weakness of Turkey in past times, but the bane of Turkey had been not its own weakness, tut the constant interference of foreign Powers. In Montenegro there had been constant orders and interference, both by Russia and France. He could say, from his own experience when in office, that nothing could be more barbarous than the con duct of the Montenegrins; but in 1846, when they were about to be subdued by the Turkish Government, the Rus sian Government interfered to prevent it, and since then France had maintained a continual interference, for which reasons were not stated, but could be imagined. However, it was not his intention to enter upon this question at length upon that occasion. He merely rose to say that Turkey had received a great deal too much of advice, and that it would be better if her Government were less interfered with in future by any parties whatever. • (Hear, hear.) Lord STRATFORD de RE DCLIFFE said a few words in explanation, and stated he was of opinion that such was the character of the Turkish Government and the Turkish people that it was necessary to be continu ally pressing upon their attention the necessity of carrying out the reforms which were needed in that empire. Earl GREY agreed with the noble earl opposite that it was a great error on the part of European Governments to be continually interfering in the affairs of Turkey. He contended that Turkey should be left to itself. Reform, to be of any value, must come from within. He hoped and trusted they would not carry fin faer the policy of interfe rence, and it was for the purpose of expressing that opinion that he had risen to say a few words. Lord STRATFORD de RED CLIFFE said there were at least ten great measures which had been adopted in Turkey on the recommendation of the Government of this country, but they had not been carried out. Earl GREY asked what was the use interfering to recom mend reforms when they were not acted upon ? Earl GRANVILLE did not rise to prolong the debate, but to express a hope that the noble lord would not press his resolutions, as he thought mischief would arise by the ' adoption of them, which he, however, considered their lord ships would not assent to. He did not agree with the senti • ments expressed by the noble earl (Earl Grey) that in such a state of things as they had witnessed in Syria, the Euro pean Governments should not interfere. If the Turkish em pire fell to pieces it would be difficult to say what would be the solution. Having already interfered and entered into engagements with Turkey, it would be very unwise in this country not to offer such advice as they deemed would give strength and solidity to the Turkish empire. Lord STRATFORD de RE DCLIFFE then withdrew the resolutions. BOROUGH OF DUBLIN BILL. Lord TALBOT d 3 MALAIIIDE, in moving the second reading of this bill, explained that it was to make some local improvements necessary in the city of Dublin. The bill was read a second time, and their lordships ad- Journed at 25 minutes past 7 o'clock. --- HOUSE OF COMMONS.—YESTERDAY. Llic CDRAKER took the chair at four o'clock. ritINXTE BUSINESS. The Lords' amen dments to the following bills were con sidered and agreed to :— Garaton and Liverpool Railway ; Great Western Railway (Capital) ; and Kingston-upon- Thames and Leatherhead Road. The following bills were read a third time and passed : Blyth and Tyne Railway, Clitheroe Gas, Greetwell Dis trict Drainage, Leeds and Ealand Road, Limerick and ailway, and Ross and M onmouth Railway. FoTyhnees R Trent, Anchholme, and Grimsby Railway and Wycombe Railway . (Extensions) Bill s were considered and ordered for third read PETITIONS. Several petitions were presentHl against the abolition of the Paper Duty, against cert iin provisions of the Budget, for are-adjustment of the mode of levying the Income-tax, from certain vestrymen in Liverpool that their parish night be e xemp t e d f rom th e ex perso of Roman Catholic i alreadychaplains being appointed, as such was unnecessary , they being_ freely admitted to the workhouse. THE R AJAH OF SIKKIAI—INDIA. Mr. EW AItT into with the It ' - aim). of trade from India to Thib t Mr. VANSITTARTtqokt ? right hon. gentleman whethe inquired if any terms had been entered o f Sikkiru to afford increased facilities that opportunity of asking the ? intended to introduce his bill on India before Whitsuntide° Sir C. WOOD said with respect to the first question, that he had received no official information on the sub ject, but a communication had been fo rwarded to the Government, from which it appeared that arrangements had been effected to open. the commerce from Bengal Thibet. As regarded the second question, he hoped n to g have been able to have brought in the India 13i1,1. before the hell days, but in consequence of the length of the discussions on the budget it was impossible to do so. COMMERCIAL TREATIES WITH TURKEY. Mr. FRLAND asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Airs whether thle ratification of a commercial treaty between England and turkey had been exchanged, a nd, if so, when a copy of the treaty would be laid upon the table of the house; and whether any corres pondence had taken place between the Governments of England ani France relating to the conclusion of a simi lar commercial treaty between France and Turkey; and, if so, whether there would be any objection to lay copies of that correspondence and of the correspondence between the English and Turkish Governments on the subject of either treaty, on the table of the house? Lord J. RUSSELL said that the treaty between this country and Turkey had not been completed, and when it was, the correspondence relating to the subject would be laid on the table of the house. He replied to the first part of the second question in the negative. MR. GILL'S PATENT. in reply to Mr. S. BEAUMONT, Lord C. PAGET said that Mr. Gill had submitted his patent for the improvement of ships of war to the Admiralty, who, having examined it, considered that it was not prac tically applicable to ships of war. Mr. Gill afterwards addressed him, and at his request he gave him an interview, but having heard his explanations and considered his patent he did not think it would be of any use to her Majesty's navy. The Board of Admiralty did not intend to test Mr. Gill's plan for accelerating or diminishing the speed of vessels. EDINBURGH CASTLE. Sir J. FERGUSSON asked the Under Secretary for State for War when it was intended that the portion of Edin burgh Castle which was pulled down with a view to im provements should be rebuilt ? Mr. BARING said that the plans for the rebuilding of that edifice had not yet been decided on, and he could fur. nish the hon. baronet with no information on the subject a present. ADJOURNMENT OF THE HOUSE. Admiral DUNDAS inquired of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in the absence of the First Lord of the Trea sury, if it was arranged when the house should adjourn for the Whitsuntide holidays ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that he was not in a position to answer that question. _ ITALY AND AUSTRIA. Mr. PEACOCKE drew the attention of the house to the affairs of Italy, and moved for any despatches on this sub ject which had been received from our ambassador at Vienna. He made some general observations condemnatory of the position which Austria maintained in occupying the Quadrilateral, and said he was actuated by no hostile spirit towards that Empire, and did not condemn the foreign policy of the Government. Mr. ST. AUBYN advocated the union of Venetia to the Italian kingdom as desirable for the interests both of Italilu unity and Austria.- Mr. B. COCHRANE condemned the foreign policy of the Government in reference to the affairs of Italy. Lord J. RUSSELL—I wish to make some observations upon the speech of the hon. member who has brought for ward this subject. (" Speak up I") Ido not think it would be advisable to produce the despatches to which he referred. They are despatches not entering accurately, or with much of remark into the present constitution of the Austrian empire. Of course there are among them official papers, but those papers have appeared in the Vienna Gazette; they have been copied into the newspapers of this country, and, on the whole, I do not think I should be justi fied in producing them to Parliament. Undoubtedly it is a matter of great interest to this house and the country, but at the same time it is a matter the primary decision respect ing which must rest with the Government of the Emperor of Austria. The Emperor of Austria has changed the institutions of his country, and has given his people a con stitution, founded on the principles of freedom. He has very lately declared the entire religious freedom of his Protestant subjects—a question upon which I had ventured more than once to remark that the Protestants of the Empire were en titled to greater consideration than they then received. (Hear.) 'With regard to the general constitution which he has given to the empire, it is, as the hon. gentleman very fairly says, founded upon the principles of the United States Senate. There are separate local bodies of repre sentatives in Bohemia and various other provinces, and each of these bodies sends members to the governing body —the Reichsrath. How this system will answer it is beyond our power to say. At all events, we cannot but rejoice that the.principles of representative government are recognized, and that the representatives of the people are called together to have submitted to them questions affect ing the taxes and expenditure. (Hear.) We cannot but see in those provisions the germs of free representative govern ment. (Hear.) And I hope there is no man so prejudiced against Austria as not to desire to see the Emperor and his people proceed together in the path of free representative institutions. (Cheers.) But this grant of a constitution to Austria raises other questions which are of a very difficult nature. It is to be observed with regard to the real consti tutions which are created on the continent, that in those States which are composed of people of different races and nationalities you do not excite the Government against the people, but you give greater scope to those popular feelings of jealousy, and perhaps of dislike which prevail there. Thus, in r€gard to Poland, since Alexander L established a constitution in that country, there has been a strong feel ing on the part of the Russian subjects of his Majesty against further concessions and furtherliberty being granted to Poland; and in the same way we find that the Liberal press of Vienna is quite against making further concessions to Hungary. The Emperor of Austria, I believe, has in tended to act fairly towards Hungary ; but the people of Hungary are, as I think, very naturally attached to the ancient principles of their constitution. I quite agree with the hon. gentleman that if the constitution of 1843, with a Foreign Minister, a War Minister, and a Finance Minister to Hungary, were effectually carried out, it would lead to the dismemberment of the Austrian Empire. (Hear.) What one must wish is that the principles of that ancient consti tution may be observed, and that the King of Hungary may be able to reconcile the desires of the people of Hun gary for the continuance of their ancient national constitu tion with the unity of the Empire at large. (Hear.) It is a question of the utmost importance, requiring for its solution the wisdom of statesmen who know those countries, and it would be very presumptuous therefore for any foreign Go vernment to say in what way those great problems should be settled. (Hear, hear.) All we can do is to show our r sympathy both for the Sovereign of Austria, who is endea vouring to effect those great improvements, and for the people of Austria and the people of Hungary, and to ex- press our heartfelt wish that they may be able to overcome these difficulties, and to give fresh stability to that ancient Empire of Austria and that ancient kingdom of Hungary, by whose side we fought, not yesterday, or the day before, but throughout many of the troubles of old times. (Hear.) On the subject of Venetia I cannot venture to pronounce a positive and dogmatic opinion, but I must say that the in clination of my mind very much agrees with the opinion ex pressed by the hon. member. (Hear, hear.) For a long time the empire of Austria had attached to it those pro vinces which now form the kingdom of Belgium, and the Austrian statesmen found that a great burden was imposed upon them by provinces so far removed from the seat of Government, in which there were fortresses which they were obliged to defend whenever war took place between France and her neighbours. Any one looking at the diplo- matic correspondence of that time will see that Austrian statesmen were always anxious to get rid of that burden ; and at last, after the'defeats which they sustained in Italy in 1796, they gave up the Low Countries altogether for ever, and obtained in their place the provinces on the Adriatic which had belonged to the Venetian Republic. I must say that I do not think that was a well considered provision. (Hear, hear.) The Venetian Re public, which had not been an enemy of Austria even in that war, was absolutely destroyed, and Austria obtained what was no less a burden to her than the Belgian pro. vinces had been. The people of Venetia are not well affected towards Austria, and the attempts made by her to conciliate them seem always to have failed. The attempt now made to obtain representatives from Venetia to be sent to Vienna have failed also from that national feeling which prevails in Venetia, and which we are told makes it unsafe for anybody to go from Venice to Vienna. That is a most unsafe tenure of Venetia. (Hear, hear.) I must say that the accusations against Austria are often very incorrect. This House and the English public have lately read a very able despatch from Count Cavour on the subject of the formation of the kingdom of Italy, and the conduct of that kingdom towards Austria ; and hon. gentlemen will probably have observed in that de spatch an assertion of Count Cavour that for a long time there has been a state of siege in Venice. The Austrian Ambassador brought me a despatch the other day from Count Rechberg, in which he says that a short time after the treaty of Villafranca the state of siege was raised, and has never since existed in the province at all. (Hear.) He denies, also, some other assertions, but, altbough those assertions may be inexact, and although many of the charges of tyranny against the Austrian Government are not true, it is quite true that there are continued attempts in Venice to show their dislike and disaffection towards Austria, and that those attempts are punished by the Austrian Govern ment. There seems, unfortunately for Austria, such a dis affection in Venice towards the Austrian Government that, in my opinion, Venetia can never form part of the strength of the Austrian empire, nor, as long as Venetia forms part of the Austrian empire, can it be said that Austria and Italy, or even Germany and Italy, can ever be on those terms of amity which are so desirable for the maintenance of the balance of power in Europe. (Hear, hear.) How that problem is to be solved I know not, but he would not be a true friend of Austria who would tell her that the province of Venetia formed part of her strength, or that she ought to waste her military power or impose heavy burdens on her people for the sake of maintaining them. (Hear.) I speak of these things not as matters of internal concern, but as matters which affect the general int.:rests of Europe. I. trust i the t day may come wh en this question may b e se ttled h general agree ment b etween A us t r ia, Italy, andthe u of Europe. (H ear.) We have ye t t o hear and o rwiryer by s a what the Austrian Chamber of Deputies—what their Ho use of Commons-1139T think with re s p ect to these ques ti on s ; what they may think as to the heavy taxes which the Aus popio 1 14T0 to pay, how these two will Do Dot die, tributed, and what amount of army they should maintain AU these are questions for the representatives to settle with their Government, and it is for them to .consider in what way the empire can best be saved. I have already stated that I do not think it would be desirable to produce the papers. I will only repeat that, however much I may be reproached with being an old-fashioned politician of obso lete opinions, I do entertain the strongest desire for the prosperity and the reviving strength of the empire of Austria. (Cheers.) The motion was withdrawn. SYRIA. Sir J. FERGUSSON rose to call the attention of the house to certain papers recently presented to Parliament re lative to the affairs of Syria; to move an address for a copy of the final recommendations of the International Commis sion for the future Government of the Lebanon ; and asked her Majesty's Government whether it was their intention to urge the adoption of the plan of her Majesty's Commission for the Government of Syria upon the Sublime Porte. He reminded the house that it was out of the Syrian question arose the war of 1854, 1855, and 1856, into which they had been drawn. It was not necessary to go into the details of the civil war which led to such sad results, but having, be fore the commencement of the troubles, asked the house to suspend its judgment, and having expressed his opinion that the quarrel was not one of religious differences, but of hos tile races, he must say that ii was satisfactory to know that the noble lord at the head of her Majesty's Government, who so well represented this country, had come round to the same opinion. The history of this internecine quarrel could only be interesting as bearing on the future of Turkey. Having read extracts from Lord Dufferin's despatches re specting the cause of the outbreak, and expressed his appro bation of the firmness which had been exhibited by her Ma jesty's Government, who foresaw the difficulties likely to occur, Sir F. Fergusson said they had every reason to con gratulate themselves on the universal meed of approval which their representative had received in Syria. The kindness of the British officers had also made an impression on the people. With respect to the case of Cid Bey, he must say that he ex • petted to have heard of his liberation, but he had received that evening from a gentleman residing in Paris, a letter which filled him with great pain. The writer, who had be fore given him valuable and reliable information, said that Cid Bey was dying in prison, with many suspicions of foul play, and he asked him for God's sake to try and see some of the Government, that a telegram might be sent for his removal from prison ; and he concluded by re- marking that the continued occupation of Syria by the French troops considerably lessened British authority iu Syria. No doubt the noble lord at the head of the Foreign office was already informedon the same subject, and he trusted we would not allow Cid Bey to languish or be mur dered in prison. (Hear.) Lord Dufferin's opinion of the quarrel was that, however criminal the conduct and ex cesses of the Druses might have been, the original provo cation came from the other side. Mr. Brandt, the British consul at Damascus, said the real cause was the weakness of the Turkish Government, which rendered them unable to check the disorders that had taken place. The French Government had at first agreed with England as to the in expediency of foreign occupation, and M. Thouvenel had expressed himself to that effect, but subsequently it ap peared that the Emperor of the French came round to a different opinion. The noble lord considered that the de • spatch of troops was unnecessary, but the Moniteur showed that the Emperor of the French was of a different opinion. France insisted on having troops sent out, and then the English consented, but the tardiness of the noble lord gave the leadership to the French. He thought the noble lord, having consented to the sending of troops, should have limited the occupation of the coast by the French troops. The language used to the troops by the Emperor showed that his policy did not mean a peaceful occupation of the province. It was full of reference to the glory of the Napo leon dynasty, and inspired ideas of a crusade rather than a temporary interference for the purposes of humanity. The Emperor always professed his anxiety to withc'raw his troops as soon as a regular Government was established, but still, notwithstanding repeated remonstrances, the French troops were continued there. M. Thouvenel's de spatch however showed, and with excessive candour, that the object of the French occupation of Syria was to encourage the Maronites to lean on the French Government rather than their own. "No object (says M. Thouvenel) have the French in Syria than this, that the Maronites shall not be left worse than we found them, and to prove to them that the French Government will not turn a deaf ear to their complaints." Now, what had been the result of this occu pation ? Had it tranquillised the country ? He thought that so far from the French occupation of Syria tending to that result it had quite a contrary effect. He had received, during the last month, letters from gentlemen in Syria, describing the anxiety of persons long residing in Beyrout, and ex press ve of their fears if a sufficient /ores were not sent from England to preserve order. It was somewhat curious that a confidential document, printed for the use of the Foreign Office, and presented to Parliament in February last should have been in the hands of the French. The Revue de Deux Mondes had criticised it, and he wished to give a free trans lation of one of the opening sentences of the article :—" We have beft re our eyes reports sent to English consuls and ambassadors—reports not intended to be made public— printed only for the use of Parliament and the Foreign office; and, having read them, we theaght it would be use ful to submit them to public opinion." Then follows an article in which the writer says—" The jealousy of the Eng lish is such that they would rather have a recurrence of the Syrian massacres than that Syria should be in the hands of the French." Then ()marred this passage—" There has been in this country (Syria) a horizon of blood which will fill Europe with remorse and shame. Think of 30,1,00 Chris tians having been massacred last year, and 30,000 more in 1861, because England does not wish Syria to be saved by the French." Again and again had Lord Dufferin stated in his despatches that the Maronites trusted on longer the Turkish Government, and that they only looked to the French for protection. Now, what had been pro posed for the amelioration of the condition of Syria ? Lord Dufferin had addressed himself with great ability to this question. He laid down principles on which he thought the future Government of Syria should be conducted. He pointed out, in a despatch, bow the recurrence of future outbreaks might be ot, viated. "In the first place," he said, " for several years Syria must be looked upon as our out lying Pachalic, from which considerable profit might be derived by the farming of taxes." This was the most vexatious part of the system, as no peasant could certainly know how much taxes he h a d to pay. The great difficulty : up by the I n t ernat i ona l C omm i s - s was the jealousy existing betwe en the two races. An able report had aadll b o e f en w h m greed, except th e French dorawCommis sioner, that the governor or governors of those tribes must not be a native. The French Government no doubt would throw all the responsibility of the consequences of with drawing their troops on this country ; but, if they could induce Turkey to grant a good government to their people —no matter of what race, or creed, or sect—they would do more than had been accomplished b) any government who preceded them. Lord J. RUSSELL thought it right to state the views of Government, after the speech made by the hon. and gal lant gentleman, and the position in which the affairs of Syria now stood. The arrangements made with regard to that country were not as yet settled ; but he might state that it was proposed to appoint a governor-general with ex tensive powers, and to have under him Christian governors in the Levant. For his own part, he owned that, in his opinion, that was the best arrangement that could be made; but the Government of the Porte had a great objection to it, and principally on the ground that what was once done in Egypt might be hereafter repeatedin Syria. That argu ment coming from an independent Government could not be resisted. It was next proposed that a khan should be ap pointed to rule over the Maronites, and another over the Druses, but the objection to that was, that in certain villages there were Maronites who would have to be included in the district of the Druses, and Druses who would in the same manner come under the government of the Maronites. It was also opp sed by the French commissioner, and so the matter rema'ned for the present. He himself was of opinion that no native should be chosen as khan, because he would bring with him in the discharge of his duties all the hatred of his tribe and race, and the last report of the commissioners accorded with that view. The opinion of the French Government was, however, entirely different, but matters were still the subject of negotiation. He had great hopes that by the discussions now going forward the condition of Syria would be improved, and he need hardly say that he appreciated all that had been done in times past by Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, assisted as he was by his noble friend near him, when holding the office he (Lord J. Russell) had now the honour to fill. There was also a difficulty. arising from the Russian Government insisting on a protectorate , of the Greek subjects of the Porte, and the French Government of the Roman Catholics, but the course of her Majesty's Government had been to go on the prin ciple that, be they Greeks, Roman Catholics, Mahomme , dans, or Druses, they were all entitled to the protection and freedom which a proper system of rule would ensure them. Great improvements had taken place he was happy to say within the last 25 years, and with regard to the evacuation of Syria by the French troops, they believed that the pro mise of the Emperor of the French would be strictly carried out. Mr. LAYARD thought the house was much indebted to his hon. and gallant friend for bringing the subject before them, and certainly his information appeared to be derived from very accurate sources. The papers already laid on the table proved beyond doubt the difficulty of governing Syria, and that the Christians, led on by their priests, were the original aggrefsors. There was also no doubt that the Turkish Government was much to blame, for although they punished some of the chief offenders, they allowed others to escape with impunity. At one time they were governed by a Christian, and at another by a Druse. It was impossible that such a system could give satisfaction. It was like at one time sending a Catholic, and at another a Protestant Lord-Lieutenant to rule over Ireland. Of Lord Dufferin he could not speak in too high terms. He was a gentleman of the best intentions, but the scheme which he submitted for go verning Syria, it was itni.osiible that the Porte could as sent to. Lord Dufferin and the commissioners suggested another plan, and that was that a Catholic governor should be selected to govern Syria, and to that France con. seated, and said, " Let such governor be a Maromte ;" but of course that could not be assented to. Lord Dufferin him-, nit had said that tllo wit bloody Nub oAd,strifo sYrift THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, MAN" xi, 1861. were among the Christians themselves. It had unfortu nately been the policy of France to misrepresent the policy of England in the East. Indeed the most infamous people in Syria were the persons calling themselves Christians. And of the efforts upon the part of the French to misrepre sent the policy of England with regard to the East, if the house would extend one moment's further indulgence to him, he would bring under their notice a matter that was personal to himself, and which was remarkable as a gross misrepresentation. He read in the'Debats of that morning a severe commentary written by one of the French writers on the debate on the lonian Islands two nights before—a commentary in which her Majesty's Government was not spared—some remarks affecting himself. He was repre sented in the Debcrts—a journal which had the character of being generally temperate and respectable—as having ex pressed an earnest desire that two Albanian regiments, without pay— The SPEAKER—I beg to remind the hon. member that unless there is anything in the article personal to his own character, he is not in order in referring to it. Mr. LAYARD begged to assuve the house that it was personal to himself. He was represented as having ex claimed, when he was speaking of the lonians, that he wished the Sultan would send two Albanian regiments to Corfu, without pay, and he warranted they would soon give the people of that island a distaste for the government of free Greece, Now he must say that that was a reflection upon his character in this house. No English gentleman would say so, and he now emphatically declared that he never made use of any such expression. (Hear.) He hoped that hon. gentlemen would read the papers relating to Sy ria, and they would see what the character of the Christians there was. He was sorry that they bore the name of Chris tians. The papers, on the other hand, reflected the greatest credit on the Porte. It might appear paradoxical, but the position of Turkey at that moment was owing to the great toleration of the Turk. Let them see how it contrasted with that of Spain. Spain sought to exterminate the Moors, and Russia was at that moment exter urinating or driving out the Tartar lace from the Crimea by the most infamous and Intolerant proceedings. Now, looking at the morality of Syria, there was not in existence a more moral people than the Turks in that country. If the European Powers de sired to put a stop to the existing state of things in Syria, they could not only do it by preventing the consuls from meddling in the affairs of the people in that country ; and they should also put a stop to the meddling of the priests, for of all agitators those in the garb of a priest—he cared not of ,what denomination—were the most dangerous. (Hear.) He implored the noble lord at the head of the Go vernment to support the Turks in the adoption of their own plans, and not to force upon them the plans of any foreign Powers. Colonel CLIFFORD would be one of the last to ap prove of the attrocities that had been committed in Syria. Much credit was due to Lord Dufferin for the efforts which he made to stop the effusion of Druse blood, which was called for by the Christian priests. It was well known that the Christian prelates sent in the names of 4,600 Druses for proscription ; and it was due, and highly cre ditable to Lord Dufferin, that he resisted the demand, and succeeded in having the names reduced even to 1,000. He (Col. Clifford) had with his own eyes seen acts of the vilest and most wantonly-cruel kind inflicted by the Christian Maronites upon the Druses in Syria. He, however, could not coincide in the glowing account of Syria which had been given by the hon. member for Southwark (Mr. Layard), being enabled to speak differently on that subject from his own observation and experience. In conclusion, he bore his testimony ty the gallant conduct of Sir Hugh Rose in protecting the Christian garrison at Beyrout from an attack by the Druses. Sir H. VERNEY said that it was the corruption and maladministration of the Turkish Government which was at the bottom of the discontent in Syria and every other part of the Turkish Empire. An Hon. Member moved that the House be counted, but 40 members were present when the Speaker announced the number. Sir H. VERNEY said that if the noble lord the Secre tary for Foreign Affairs could by ar y means cause an im provement to be effected in the Government of Turkey, and infuse into it the sprit of justice, moderation, and integrity, he would confer the greatest possible benefit on Europe. Mr. MONSELL denied that the evils of Syria arose from any desire on the part of the tribes to fight with each other. He believed that the Druses and the Maronites would live in perfect harmony if they were left to them selves—(hear, hear)—and not acted upon by any sinister influence. It was not the Druses or the Maronites they had to control, but the Turks. The Turkish Government and the Turkish officials promoted the massacres, and to allow the Turkish Government to arrange the affairs of the Lebanon would be not only inconsistent with the honour and promises of this country, but would infallibly lead to the most disastrous results. Her Majesty's Go vernment should insist, before the European troops were removed from Syria, upon the establishment of some fair and reasonable system by which the Christians would be protected. It would be an outrage against humanity to sanction the removal of the troops until that were done. They could not agree to the Turkish plan of allowing the Turkish Pacha to be omnipotent in the Lebanon. If they chose to do so, they could compel the Turkish Government to introduce such a system as would prevent a repetition of those miseries produced by their misgovernment. Great, indeed, would be the responsibility of her Majesty's Go vernm,ent if they neglected that line of policy. (Hear.) Mr. FREELAND said the Government had been ex tremely fortunate in their choice of Lord Dufferin as com missioner. (Hear, hear.) It was right also as regarded M. Thouvenel, who had been referred to, to state that his measures were of a most benign character. He (Mr. Free land) hoped the Powers of Europe would endeavour to solve this difficult question in a humane and conciliatory spirit. As to the French occupation, he thought that sub ject might be safely entrusted to the noble lord (Lord J. Russell) He thought the Maronites were the aggressors. That was the opinion of Lord Dufferin, and M. Thouvenel almost admitted it. The Ottoman Government, however, were chiefly to blame. Sir H. Bulwer said this, and in one of his despatches said he had been constantly bringing this matter before them, but without any satisfactory results. After repeated warnings, the Turkish Government had de clined sending troops to Syria to repel these disturbances. Lord Dufferin said the Turkish Pachas at Beyrout were chiefly responsible for the disasters that had occurred. He (Mr. Freeland) thought it was of the greatest importance that the Government of the whole of Syria, and not of the Lebanon merely, should be looked to, and secondly, that Syria should not be governed for the interest of any parti cular European country, but for the benefit of the native races. Among the reforms that ought to be made, hewould suggest a reform In the seraglio, the extent of which was beyond belief, and the expenses of which were greater than the whole army of Turkey. (Laughter.) Mr. GRIFFITH thought we ought to prevent any thing likely to lead to foreign conquest in Syria, to avoid joining with any particular party there, and to allow the provinces to obtain their liberation how they may. (Hear.) AFFAIRS OF MEXICO. Mr. BUTT asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when the papers rel ►ting to the affairs of Mexico would be laid on the table of the house, and if any instruc tions were sent out to Sir C. Wylie to enforce the conven tion relative to the Customs duties ? Lord J. RUSSELL replied that instructions had been sent out to Sir C. Wylie, but at present he had nothing further to communicate. THE INDEMNITY BILL. Mr. lIADFIELD wished to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the yearly Indemnity Bill would be brought in; whether the form and purport of it would be the same as had been used. annually since 182 . 8 ; and whether he would cause it to be printed in the way usually done on the introduction of other bills, for conside ration and discussion ? Sir G. C. LEWIS replied that the bill was annually brought in by the Under Secretary of State for the Home Department, and was a very short one. It would also be found always in the folio edition of the statutes. As to the law on the subject, there was no test whatever. A declara tion was required, and if not made, the parties were saved from all consequences by an Indemnity Bill, which passed every year. SUPPLY. The house then went into committee of supply. On the vote of £398,695 for the manufactory for arms and establishments at Enfield and elsewhere, Mr. NEWDEGATE complained of the cost to which the country was put by these establishments, and the neg lect displayed in not laying the accounts of the expenditure before the committee in a manner which would enable them t) judge if too much were charged. Looking at the returns presented, he believed that the cost of manufac turing these arms was much higher than in the trade, and he was of opinion that there was really no sense in con tinuing the system. Two committees sat on the subject, and certainly their recommendations ought to be attended to. In addition to Enfield, they had an establishment at Milbank which cost £15,000 a year, and at Weedon, which cost £3,000. Enfield cost the country £70,000 a year, and surely Vaat was enough for all purposes. Captain CARNEGIE objected to the items in the esti mate for lodgings to those officers who could not be ac commodated in barracks. Proper accommodation ought always to be provided. Colonel DUNNE said he considered it necessary to call attention to several of the items in this vote. He found one of them had reference to small aims, for which a large sum was sct down. Lcoking to the returns, ho found great inaccuracy in relation to these arms, These returns did not cont tin any information of the manner in which the alleged losses of small arms occurred. It had been said that there were large losses of those weapons in the Crimea ; but it should be recollected that the small arms were not sent out to the Crimea untill the war might be considered as at an end. Then, with regard to the cost of the soldier's tunics, he also found the returns most in accurate. He found that in the estimates a sum of £1 2s. 6d. was set down and charged a s the cost of a soldier's tunic, while it was a well-known fact that the tunics of forty battalims cost only 18s. each. (Hear.) With regard to the want of proper barrack accommoda tion for thd army, he thought it most desirable not to have so many married men in the army. They had not barrack accommodation for them, their wives, and chit- , dm, He did not think a f 591419; VgAtO Yfifet". Lord STANLEY could not concur in the views expressed by the hon. baronet the member for Finsbury as to putting the control of the expenditure into the hands of permanent officials. If that was done thOse permanent officials would in fact become the irresponsible ministers of the country, and the whole foundation of our parliamentary system would be undermined. The control exercised by that house would be in fact taken away. (Hear.) Mr. E WART said unless some explanation were given as to the reason why there were so many clerks he should be obliged to vote with his hon. friend. Mr. AYRTON agreed with Lord Stanley in thinking that to give the control of the expenditure to permanent officials would destroy the power of the house, but the fact was we had a permanent establishment, and the house was continually called upon to resist the tendency of the per manent establishment to increase itself. At Gambia, for instance, he found, though on two different pages, that £257 was paid for the supervision of the expenditure of £4. That was a sample of the way in which the money was ex pended, and certainly he believed his hon. friend the mem ber for Finsbury would not spend money in that way. He must say that it appeared to him that the per centage paid for supervision was much higher than was paid in the establishments of private individuals. He must say, how ever, that the more they looked into these estimates the less they understood them. Mr. BARING could not agree that the cost of works and the cost of supervision should be included in the same ac count. He admitted, however, that economy might be in troduced into the superintendence of Works under the Board of Works. That had not escaped observation on the part cf the Government. The present system was too military for the execution of what were or might be called civil works. (Hear, hear.) With respect to the proposed reduc tion in the amount of money paid for the lodgings of sol diers, he would remind the committee that money spent in promoting the health and comfort of the soldier was not money thrown away. (Hear, hear.) It was, he admitted, in reply to what had fallen from the hon. member for North Warwickshire, of great importance that they should have a complete account of the expenditure con nected with the public manufactory of arms, and he should take care to have such an account prepared on commercial principles and laid before the house. He hoped that in the course of next year the expenditure under this vote would be in some degree economised. Lord W. GRAHAM wished to know where the military telegraphs, for which £2OO was charged, were placed. Captain JERVIS advocated the diffusion of the manu facturing resources of warfare over` the country, instead of concentrating them in a few places. They ought by this means to keep up ihe pre-eminence they had always done. Mr. FREELAND wished to know was there any special reasons for lumping together in this vote no less than nine items of a miscellaneous character, which amounted to £45,000. Mr. BARING would take the suggestion into considera tion before the next session, and if the items could be set out in detail that arrangement would be made. The account of the manufacturing expenditure for the past year would be rendered within three or four weeks from the present time. The observations of the hon. member for Harwich as to the position of the manufacturing establishments was worthy of every consideration, and would receive it. The military telegraphs for which a vote was made were situated at Malta and New Zealand. He could not hold out hope of increased pay to barrack-masters, as had been suggested by some hon. members. Mr. W. WILLIAMS said he would now move that the vote be reduced by the sum of £24,690, which would bring the vote dowa to the same amount as it was last year. After a short discussion the committee divided, when the numbers were— For the amendment .. 24 Against Majority The vote was then agreed to. The next vote proposed was £866,447 for the wages of artificers, labourers, &c. Mr. MONSELL thought the Government could, by their own manufactories, produce all the stores that were neces sary, and thus effect a great saving. For small arms alone we voted £7`A4,000, which was equal to all the arms paid for by the French. Unless some explanation were given on this point he would vote for a reduction. Captain JERVIS said the country, after many experi ments, had been greatly indebted to that great philosopher —for he could call him by no other name—Sir W. Arm strong, for his gun and his shell. By his invention no wooden ship could appear before us that we could not blow out of the water. No foreign Power could make that gun for want of mechanical appliances, and therefore, if they discovered the secret of the Armstrong gun, still they would be unable to make anything like it. From experiments made, Great Britain was in a position to attack iron ships with a success which no other country could aspire to. Mr. CHILDERS did not understand why England should be spending £3,000,000 for arms alone when France only expended £800,000; and yet, in comparing the armaments of both countries, their neighbour across the Channel was much superior in that respect. He wished, therefore, to know what they were to look forward to as the result of this great expenditure. Mr. E. BALL was not a man of war, but he could easily understand how money was expended in carrying out such vast improvements in such warlike materials as the Arm strong guns. He gave her Majesty's Government great credit for the position in which they placed the country, and certainly so long as the present Emperor of the French ruled the French people that precaution was necessary. After a few words from Captain JERVIS, Mr. a'. G. BARING, in reply to the hon. member for Limerick (Mr. Monsell), on the armaments of the year, said the expenditure rendered necessary was not for guns only, but for egun- carriages and ammunition. 490 gurs were manufactured at Els% ick, and 897 at Woolwich, making a total of 1,387 guns. The total cost of the guns manufactured was £520,000, without gun-carriages or am munition. The Royal Carriage Department at Woolwich was entirely employed in the manufacture of guns of different descriptions, and the estimate for that department was £336,312, and if they added the £300,000 to the half a mil lion it would bring the sum to upwards of £BOO,OOO. Now they came to the ammunition for those guns. It was all manufactured at the Royal Laboratory at Woolwich, and the amount was nearly £500,000, making a total of £1,300,000. With regard to the cost of small arms, it was half a million of money for those that were contracted for, and £370,000 for those manufactured by the Government. By those means, aiding those two items to the £1,300,000, they got more than £2,000,000 out of the £3,000,000 for which the vote was asked. With regard to this large expenditure, looking to the state of the armaments of other countries, it would not be wise not to supply the navy with the best guns. The charge for all the Armstrong guns (with the exception of those necessary for the navy) would be taken in this vote. It would be borne in mind that they were now passing through a transition state, and unless something extraordinary should occur, it was to be hoped that the ex penditure next year would be considerably less. He was sure the committee would agree with him that, for the defence of the country, this was a vote that ought not of all others to be reduced. (Hear, hear.) Colonel DUNNE said although the hon. member had satisfied the committee on several points, he yet did not satisfy the hon. gentleman opposite as to what had become of the guns which had been hitherto manufactured, and as to what had become of the vast quantities of finial] arms. Mr. BARING, in answer to Colonel Dunne, said a large oortion of the rifles, he e w re a g s ira ha e p n p te y e t f o sthaye, line,had aa beenlr large distri buted to her Majesty's por tion to the militia, a large portion to the volunteers, and also a considerable portion to her Majesty's navy. The vote was agreed to. The next vote was £525,416 for army clothing, which after a short conversation was agreed to. The next vote was £1,456,834 for forage, fuel, light, barrack furniture, bedding, &c. Mr. D. GRIFFITH proposed to reduce the vote by the sum of £12,454, an amount equal to a stoppage for forage from the staff and departmental mounted officers similar to that deducted from the cavalry officers, namely, Bd. per forage ration—that is to say, per horse per day. Mr. CONI.NGHAM regretted that the members wl 0 signed the round-robin to Lord Palmerston steadily voted against all propositions for retrenchment of the expendi ture, and he trusted that their constituents would look after them. He thought, as the vote was £200,000 larger than last year, that it should be reduced by that amount. Mr. BARING said that the proposal of the hon. meta. ber would extend the system of stoppages, a system which he (Mr. Griffith) condemned as a bad one. Captain JERVIS reminded the house that, by the pre • sent arrangement, it , eas impossible for men of limited means to accept cavalry commissions. C9louel DICAS9N objected t 9 Kr t QrieVlC o proposal. (Laughter.) When he was a young man he felt, as a ' Because the cavalry officers were unjustly treated by stop soldier, that a " wife " would be a great incumbrance, and pages, that was no reason why the staff and departmental that she was no part of the necessary comfort of a soldier officers should be similarly treated. (Laughter.) For example, they had now regiments corn- Mr. D. GRIFFITH withdrew his amendment. prising a thousand persons, and they had not barrack After a short discussion the vote was agreed to and the accommodation for more than 700. He thought a proper Chairman reported progress, when the house resumed. retiring provision ought to be made for barrack-masters, PRINCESS ALICE'S ANNUITY BILL. and a better system be introduced than that to which he This bill was read a third time and passed. had referred. (Hear, hear.) WAYS AND MEANS. Sir MORTON PETO could not but call attention to the The report was brought up and agreed to. item relating to 196 clerks of the works, who had salaries SUPPLY. and expenditure allotted to them amounting to £135,959. The report on supply was brought up and agreed to. He had had long experience with public works, and he was POST-OFFICE SAVINGS BANKS BILL. utterly at a loss to account how there could be a necessity The Lords' amendments to this bill were agreed to. for such a Cody of clerks of the works. (Hear, hear) And The other orders were disposed of, and the house ad.* when he compared the expenditure of England with that of journed at twenty-five minutes to one o'clock. I France, in their public works, he must say that that of this cluntry was frightful. (Hear, hear.) We must separate the political from the commercial and financial departments of the Government. Until that was done any real enforce ment of economy was perfectly hopeless. If they removed persons from responsible positions just as they became efficient, it was impossible to exercise efficient control. No such changes took place in other countries, and there was no reason why it should be the case here. He should be glad to hear from the Under-Secretary-at -War some ex planation of the item to which he had referred, because he knew of no works now going on in this country which should require the services of 196 clerks of works, at a cost of £136,000 a-year to the country. Colonel DICKSON concurred with the hen. baronet in his condemation of this particular item, which had also arrested his attention in looking over the estimates. MOUNT VESUVIUS. A letter from Naples of the 3cl. says :—" As Vesuvius interests every one, I will give you some little news about that celebrated mountain. It has now been more or less in a state of eruption since the 19th December, 1855, which is the first instance of an event of the kind being of such duration. In May, 1858, the cone gave way in every direc- tion and threw out, by seven different fissures, its lava, which had not ceased flowing for a single moment since that time, filling up all the ravines, and destroying the carriage road which led to the Hermitage and to the Observatory. It has covered all the arable land for a space of about a square league, and on that ground it has accumulated to a height of about 80 yards. Fancy, then, the quantity which the crater must have thrown out ! That movement partly stopped on the Bth ult. The lower fissures are closed, but the upper ones send out increased quantities. The mouth of the 19th Dec., 1855, begins again to growl and thunder; the hard lava with which the bottom of it is filled is so far down that when a stone is thrown into the gulph you cannot hear it fall. It is very possible that the fire may again begin to burst forth from the top of the mountain, unless the cone should again split at the sides. Such is the opinion of M. Palmery, the Director of the Obser vatory, but my idea is that the whole cone will one of those days fall in altogether." COUNTRY MABEETS. LIVERPOOL-MAY 10. There was a fair attendance of the town and country trade at this morning's market, and we had a very good business doing in both wheat and flour, at an advance of ld to 2d per cental and 6d per barrel upon former rates. Barley, beans, and peas were without change in value, with a fair sale. Oats and oatmeal were at late quotations. Indian corn in good request—mixed American, 34s 6d per 4801 b ; yellow, 35s ; and white 35s to 365. WAKEFIELD-MAY 10. The supplies of grain here to-day were less than usual. The wheat trade rather firmer, and for good descriptions there:was a retail demand, at last Friday's extreme rates. Barley, again with an inactive demand, at late quotations. Beans steady. Oats quite as dear. In shelling there was no change. Averages for the week : Wheat 747 qrs., at 60s 4d Oats B a as y :.. r1ey........ 70 3Bs lid Peas .... —s O Beans 7O 4ss 3-id Rye — —a —d LOUGHBOROUGH-MAY 9. At this market to-day the show of wheat was limited. The inquiry was firm, and last week's rates were about rea lised ; white, 62s to 07s ; red, 54s to 65s per 36 stone. Bar ley was quite as cheap as in the week previous, malting selling at 37s to 43s per qr.. grinding 32s to 35s per 30 at• Oats barely supported their value. Beans firm. EXETER-MAY 10. Wheat, white. .7s 6d to 8s 6d Barley.. 4s Od to 5s Od Ditto new .7s Od to 7s 9d Oats ... 35 Oa to 3s 61 Flour, fine, 46s to s ; seconds, 44s to —s per sack. CATTLE. There was a short supply of cattle, with a fair sale, and last week's rates current. 1 Fat beef,p score, lls to 11s6d Ewes, per lb .... 6id to Od Pork carcases,dolUs to Ils Gd Wethers, d 0...... 7d to Od Sheep, per lb. Od to —d. Fat calves, d0....5id to 61 Rough fat, 4id per lb. BRISTOL SUGAR-MAY lA. Our sugar market continues very dull, and attempts to force sales are only successful where the importer will give way to the extent of 6d per cwt. Refined goods in mode• rate demand, and prices, if anything, are weaker. In runio there is no new feature to notice. COAL MAR (Prices of Coal per Ton a 1 s. d. Tanfield Moor 13 0 Tanfield Moor Butes l3 0 Carway and Duffryn Malting 24 0 Do. Anthracite 21 6 Buddle' s West Hartleyl6 9 Holywell 16 0 Howard's West Hart ley 16 9 Byass's Bebside West Hartley ...16 9 North Percy Hartley..ls 6 Eden Main x .. 16 3 Walls End. Hartlepool..... 17 9 Ships at market .ET—MAY 10. the close of the market Walla End. THE MAILS. L d. Harton Peases West .15 6 Hetton .. lB 6 South Hetton ..8 0 Framwellgate 1 1 6„ 3 Heugh H 9.11 16 0 Brsddyll's Hetton 17 0 South Kelloe.. 17 0 Eden 16 ‘ , 3 Acorn Close 16 0 Hedley l5 6 Cassop l7 0 Kelloe .... .17 Tunstall Haswell . :1 8 :, 70 ; sold, 42. MAILS DUE. Australia, Ceylon, and. Mauritius (via South ampton) .. .. • • .. May 19. Do. (via Marseilles) May 13. Brazil and Cape Verds .. June 4. Buenos Ayres, Monte Video, &o. Cuba and Mexico .. May 19. Canada, &c. (via L'derry) Overdue. Cape of Good Hope, &c. Juno 1. China, Penang, and Singapore (vial• S'ampton) May 19. Do (via Marseilles) May 13. Gibraltar (via Southampton) .. .. May 11. India (Calcutta), Ceylon, &c. (via Southampton) May 19. Do. (via Marseilles) May 13. India (Bombay), (via Southampton) .. May 11. Do. (via Marseilles) May 10. Lisbon May 11. Malta, Egypt, and Aden (via Southampton) .. May 11. Do. (via Marseilles) .. June 4. Vigo, and Oporto .. ~ May 11. United States, California, &c. .. May 15. Western Coast of Atrica, Madeira, Teneriffe .. May 10. West Indies and Pacific, Carthagena, Cuba, &c. May 14. [ADVERTISEMENT.] Pills and medicine invariably giavate and perpetuate diseases; their annoyance, die' appointment, and expense may be avoided by person/I in indifferent health sending only their address to 11 S. Barry. Esq., 77, Regent-street, W., London, and their will receive gratis and free by post the " INVALIDS' OWS, nIDE," or Natural Restorer, without medicine or a p-nse, of perfect digestion, strong nerves, sound lungs, an d , refreshing sleep, to the most enfeebled, insuring the remova l of indigestion (dyspepsia), constipation, liver complaints , nausea, epilepsy, paralysis, debility, nervousness, palpitatiot , cough, asthma, consumption, dropsy, flatulency, diarrhals. dysentery, biliousness, fevers, sore throats, catarrhs, cold" noises in the ears, rheumatism, gout, impurities, eruption/. hysteria, neuralgia, irritability, sleeplessness, acidity, palpP tation, heartburn, headache, despondency, cramps, spasnt., sinking, fits, bronchitis — "Uneuestionably the safest Quids to health." [ADVERTISEMENT.]—HoIIoway's Ointment and Heart's Action.—The slightest irregularity in the heart 0 function is felt throughout the entire system ; any obstruc: tion to the regular impulse of that organ must be removed without delay, or the whole circulation becomes disordered palpitation comes on to be succeeded by dangerous faint' ness. In a multitude of cases these symptoms arise flora a stomach distended by flatulency, and are cured by rub.: bing Holloway's Ointment over the pit of the stomach and right side, and occasionally likewise over the heart and chest. It speedily relieves the harassing throbbing pulse' a ttic :el to carry off a n nre. milovoellaonwyaya's ce P um ill ui s s a h ti o o u n ld f b ro e m ta t k h e e n a a l t im t e h n e ta sa ry me can tini til : y noxious matters from stomach, liver , bowels, dr kidneys, BIRTHS. BAILLIE.—On the 25th March, at Petropolis, Brazil, the Lady F, antes Baillie, of a son, CHICHESTER.—On the 9th inst., at 8, Cumberland-streets the Hon. Mrs, Frederick Chichester, of a son. PA.RRELL.-011 the 9th inst., in Dublin, the Hon. Mrg• Farrell, wife of J. A. Farrell, Esq., of a son and heir. PLUMMER.—On the 11th inst., at 93, Wimpole-streett Mrs. Scott Plummer, of a son. MARRIAGES. NEWTON—BERROW.—On the 9th inst., at Old Milvertorif Warwickshire, Thomas Henry G. Newton, M.A. of the Middle Temple, to Mary Jane, elder daughter ofliara Berrow, Esq., of The Laurels, Milverton. PROWSE—ORTON.—On the 9th inst., at March, Cambs., the Rev. R. H. Prowse, to Mary, second daughter of Richard Orton, Esq., of March. DEATHS. COULCHER.—On the 9th inst., at Kentish-town, George Beaumont, only son o f G eo rge Bedell Coulcher, Es4.l aged 11 weeks. --- CROCKER.—On the 9th inst., at Manchester, Mr. James B• Crocker, aged 51. MOSTYN.—On the Bth inst., at Birling Manor, Kent, the Hon. Thomas Edward Mostyn, Lord Mostyn, M.P., aged 31. _ TENNANT.—On tho Bth hie., at Frant, near Tunbridge-. wells, John A. Tennant, eldest son of Charles Tennant , Esq., of The Glen, Peebles, KB., aged seven years and five roont is. WATSON.—On the 6th inst., at Kensington, Henry Robert Watson, aged 43. LONDON : Printed and rnblished by MURDO YOUNG. No. 112, Strand, Printer, at TrIE SUN 0111ce, No. 112,8trall df in the Precinct of the Savoy, fA the County Of kiiddlella *attirClah !day 11,188. RE ITE inst Per live ing Adi der plat som In t he• • Bin and the iJet Pat, star. S gen Lth tion abo ev( ela Pa] the EN