The Sun. — London, England, 1861-03-08 00:00:00

INDIA. The following is from the Bombay Gazette, Feb. 12 : " The famine is great in the land. Horrible ac counts reach us from the North-West Provinces of human beings dying at the rate of 400 or 500 a day ; while the desolation is not even limited to the vast expanse of country from Lucknow to Lahore ; for tales are now told equally appalling of the extremi ties to which the population of the native state of Travancore, in the south of India, are reduced by the drought which has caused to wither all the fruits of the earth. According to a Cochin newspaper, mothers in Travancore are selling their children as slaves for sixpence each, that they may have wherewith to purchase bread, if only for a single day. While so many millions of the people of India are thus afflicted, it is at least a consolation to know that both the Government and the public have exerted themselves with liberality and promptness to lessen the weight of this terrible calamity. In Bombay alone from seventy to eighty thousand rupees have already been collected, and Calcutta and other great Cities have also responded nobly to the appeal of the Pauline Relief Committee. In the North-West the showers of rain that have lately refreshed the earth have, it is hoped, saved the spring crop; bad as our situation is, the worst be believe is already known. " Sir George Clerk is on his way from Gogo to Kurrachee. It is expected that the railway from the latter port to Kotree will be opened while his Kxcelleney is in Scinde ; and thus the difficult navi gation at the mouth of the Indus will be avoided, and a ready outlet provided for the vast commerce of Upper India. _ " The Bombay Income-tax Commissioners have quarrelled among themselves, and one of the native members of the board, Mr.Munguldass Nathoobhoy, has retired. No less than 10,000 blank returns have, it is reported, been sent in, and of those which have been filled up, the commissioners are said to have surcharged at least one-half," THE RED SEA TELEGRAPH. The committee on the Red Sea and India Tele gragh Company's Bill sat again yesterday. Since their last meeting clauses had been prepared on be half on the company, and submitted to the convey ancing counsel of the Treasury, which were approved by him. At the meeting of the committee this morn lug the chairman announced that the committee had determined upon altering the frame of the Bill by striking out all portions of it, except such as related to the agreement and the assumed doubts arising on it. He accordingly showed to the chair man of the company two clauses which he intimated the committee had decided to insert in the Bill, and he called upon the company to state whether they approved them. Mr. Cotton, on the part of the company, observed that ho could not say that the frame of the bill, or the clauses as altered, were Satisfactory to the company, but that, as he could not say th e y a ff ec ted the interests of the company Injuriously, and the chairman had stated that they removed all impediment to the payment of the dividend, if the committee thought fit so to frame the bill, he on the part of the company, was not in a position to offer any opposition. The committee thereupon announced their intention to adopt the clauses. These are as follows : " 1. It is hereby declared that the guarantee contained in the said agreement was not intended to be, and is not, con ditional on the line of telegraph of this company being in 'working order. " 2. This act, and the Red Sea and Indian Telegraph Act, 1859, s h a ll be construed together as one act." SPORTING INTELLIGENCE. TATTERSALLS'—YESTERDAT. LIVERPOOL STEEPLECHASE. 6to 1 agst Jealousy (take 100 to 15) 100 to 12 agst Old Ben Roe (taken) 9to 1 aget Emperor (taken) 10 to 1 agst Anatis (taken) 10 to 1 agst Franc Picard (taken) 11 to 1 agst Master Bagot (taken) 20 to 1 agst Freshman (taken) 20 to 1 agst Xanthus (taken) 20 to 1 agst Bridegroom (taken) CITY AND SUBUREIN. 15 to 1 agst East Sheen (offered) 33 to 1 agst Lady Clare (taken) 33 to 1 agst Dover (taken) CHESTER CUP. 12 to 1 agst Chere Amie (taken) TWO THOUSAND GUINHAS. 6to 1 aget Klarikoff (taken and offered) 9to 1 agst Kettledrum (offered) 9to 1 agst Diaphantus (take 10) 12 to 1 agst Sweet Hawthorn (taken) 12 to 1 agst Russley (taken) 16 to 1 agst Matador (taken) DERRY. 100 to 6 agst Big (offered, take 20 to 1) 30 to 1 agst Knight of the Thistle (taken) 1000 to 15 agst Sweet Hawthorn (taken) BETTING AT MANCHESTER, TEITRSDAT. Many of those who had been to Nottingham having re• turned, there was more attention given to future events than for somedays past. For the Liverpool Spring Cup, sto 1 Was taken about North Lancashire, and Feodorowna, Prin cess Royal, and The Prophet were also supported.—For the Liverpool Chase there was some business done, but it indicated little change ; 7 to 1 was taken freely about Jeal• ousy, 81 to 1 Old Ben Roe, and Irish Emigrant and Dr. L rn e ete had some friends at 50 to 1 eaeh.—For the Two Thousand Guineas Stakes, 6 to 1 was offered on the field, 10 to 1 was taken about Sweet Hawthorn. CLOSING PRICES. LIVERPOOL SPRING CUP. 6to 1 agst North Lancashire (taken) 10 to 1 agst Feodorowna (taken) 10 to 1 agst Princess Royal (taken) 12 to 1 agst The Prophet (taken) 12 to 1 agst Calpe (offered) 14 to 1 agst Rosamond (taken) 20 to 1 agst Furious (taken) LIVERPOOL STEEPLECHASE. 7to 1 agst Jealousy (taken freely) Bto 1 agst Old Ben Roe (offered) 10 to 1 agst Freshman (taken) 10 to 1 agst Anatis (offered) 12 to 1 agst Master Bagot (offered) 50 to 1 agst Irish Emigrant (taken) 50 to 1 agst Dr. Leete (taken and offered) TWO THOUSAND. 6to 1 agst Elarikoff (offered) 9to 1 agst Kettledrum (wanted) 10 to 1 agst Sweet Hawthorn (taken) 10 to 1 agst Diophantus (taken) 12 to 1 agst Russley (offered) CITY AND SUBURBAN HANDICAP. 14 to on the field (offered) 26 to 1 agst Chance Shot (offered, take 30) 25 to 1 agst Industrious (offered) 33 to 1 agst Benbow (taken) THE DERBY. 4 to 1 on the field (offered) 1000 to 16 agst Sweet Hawthorn (taken) COVENTRY RACES.—Taußspli. The Coventiy Plate of 5 soya each, with 25 added ; winners extra. One mile. lir. Smith's Gaylad, 4 yrs 6st (Whiteley) 1 Mr. P ayne ' s Gwellyan, 4 yrs,7st (Drew) 2 I.l r. J. Dawson's Gloom colt, 3 yrs, 6st 121 b (Wheatley) 3 The following also ran :—Miss Eleanor, Brino, Philo mela, Bonny Lass, and f. by Tadmor out of Taurina. Betting to 1 each agst Gwellyan and Brine, 4to 1 agst Gaylad. Gaylad made the running throughout, and 'won by a length. Gwellyan beating the Gloom colt by a bead for second ; the like distance separating the third and fourth ; Bonny Lass was next. The Coventry Handicap of 10 sovs each, with 0 added ; winners extra. One mile and a half. Whittaker's Black Diamond, 3 yrs 6st 81b (Grimshaw) 1 Mr. Cliff' s J as per, 4 yrs 6st 121 b .. (Kendriok) 2 Mr. Menard's Harriett, 4 yrs 6st 121 b (Pearson) 3 - The following also ran :—Foretop, Volunteer, Tonio, Heliopolis, and Medora. Betting -6 to 4 agst Foretop, sto 2 agst Black Diamond, 7to 1 agst Harriett. Won in a canter by eight lengths ; a neck between the second and third ; Foretop finished fourth. The Craven Steeplechase Plate of 60 sous, with 60 added ; winners extra, ...—..... ____. Mr. Simmond's Jerusalem, aged, lOst 131 b.. (G. Stevens) 1 Mr. Walker's Heads or Tails, aged, 9st 21b (Kendall) 2 Mr. Land's Red Rover, 5 yrs, 10st (J. Land) 3 The following also ran :—The Colonel, Deceiver, Little Monkey, The Dodger, and Pountney. Betting- 5 to 4 agst The Colonel, sto 2 agst Jerusalem, 6to 1 agst Red Rover and Heads or Tails. The favourite took the lead to within a quarter of a mile of home, when he was passed by Head or Tails and Jerusalem, the latter winning easily by four lengths ; Red Rover was a good third ; and Little Monkey fourth. The Military Steeple , chase, a Sweepstakes of 10 soya each list 71b each. Three miles. Pour subs. Captai n Coates's Constance, by Faugh-a-Ballagb, aged, list 71b .......................... (Captain Barclay) 1 Captain Blundell's Matchlock, s , yrs, list 71b ..(Owner) 2 Captain Gunter's The Pet, list i lb Betting-6 to 4on Constance, who waited until within half a mile of home, when she came away and won easily. The Pet refused early in the race, and was not persevered With. Handicap Hurdle Race. Conductor 7 °PHY ....M .................... Seven ran. CHARGE OF PERJURY AGAINST AN EX-MEMBER OP THE BRADFORD TOWN COUNCIL —Yesterday morning Joseph Hudson, woolcomber, of Bradford, and ex-member of the council of that borough, was again examined under remand, on a chaage of perjury, committed at the Leeds Bankruptcy Court, on the 31st of January las t, in his evidence relating to a transaction with Thomas Hood, of Qomersal, a bankrupt. Evidence having been given to Prove the all ega ti ons of perjury, the prisoner was core ittod to the York assizes for trial, but adulated to bail, TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF COOKE'S CIRCUS. PORTSMOUTH, FRIDAY MORNING: Cooke's circus was destroyed by fire last night. Eight of the adjoining houses were burnt down. No lives lost. Eight horses were burnt. TITIS DAY'S 1114.2ZRETS. CORN EXCHANGE. We have again to report the arrival of a very limited supply of English wheat up to our market to-day. In the samples there was, as usual, a great deficiency in quality. The best qualities were taken off somewhat readily at Mon day's currency, but all other kinds were a mere drug. The show of foreign wheat was again large, nevertheless importers were firm, and a fair average Lusiness was trans acted in most kinds at full prices. Floating cargoes were a dull inquiry. The barley trade was rather heavy, but no actual decline took place in the quotations. Fine maL; sold steadily, other qualities slowly, on for mer terms. Thore was a good consumptive demand for oats. In prices, hoverer, no change took place. Both beans and peas were firm, but the demand for them was far from active. The flour trade was in a sluggish state at Monday's quotations. ARRIVALS TUTS WEEK. Wheat. Barley. Malt. Oats. Flour. Eng1i5h........ 240 1,250 2,30 6O J 750 Irish - 3,240 F0reign........ 14,290 29,460 2 ,b 20 , 40 sacks 6,100 brls. NEWGATE AND LEADENHALL. The supplies of meat having somewhat increased, the .rade generally has become less active, as folhzvs Per 81bs by the carcase. s. d. s. d. s. d. s. d. Inferior beef .... 3 0 3 4 Middling mutton 4 8 4 10 Middling d 0.... 3 6 3 8 Prime do . . 5 0 5 2 Prime large do.. 3 10 4 0 Veal Do. small d 0.... 4 2 4 4 Small pork 4 8 5 0 Large pork 3 10 4 6 Lamb.......... 0 0 0 0 Inferior mutton 3 8 4 4! BOROUGH HOP. Fine hops are mostly held at full prices. All other kinds are very dull, and the quotations have a drooping tendency. New Mid and East Kent per cwt. pockets.. 80s to 200 s ealds 60s to 168 s Sussex 60s to 126 s Yearlings 80s to 170 s COLONIAL. Tx A.—The market has been very inactive, the dealers deferring their operations until the publie sales, which take place to-day. SI:GAL—OnIy a moderate demand has been experienced, but the finer descriptions have maintained previous rates. In the refined market dried goods have shown no change in values. COME.—The dealings were limited to small parcels in the private market, and full prices have been obtained for plantation Ceylon. RlCE.—Business has continued 'very quiet, and late quo tations are barely maintained for East India descriptions. SALTPETRE.—Th6 dealings have been on a very limited scale, and prices have shown a downward tendency. TALLOW.—The market has shown less activity, and a slight decline has taken place in values. P.Y.C. on the spot is quoted 60s. ; April to June deliveay, 595. ; and last three months, 555. 6d. to 565. per cwt. COUNTRY MARKETS. MANCHESTER—MARcu 7. Our corn market this morning was very moderately attended, and was of an improved character. An active business doing in English and foreign wheat, and best qualities brought full rates. Oats and oatmeal were at late rates. Indian corn firm. Beans rather lower. More in quiry for flour. BIRMINGHAM—MARcH 7. At this day's market there was a very short supply of wheat, and all English qualities were at prices as high as th• currency of this day se'nnight. Foreign the same. Barley rather cheaper, and difficult to quit in quantity. Oats were nominally unchanged. Beans and peas were is lower. MELTON MOWBRAY—MARou 5. There was about an average show of wheat to-day, which sold at last week's extreme rates for good descriptions. Barley little inquired for, at barely late rates. For oats our quotations were sustained, Prices :—White wheat, 54s Od to 63s Od ; red, 508 Od to 60s per 36 stone ; beans steady, but slow, at 50s to 55s for old ; new 50s per 38 at. barley, 32s to 42s for malting, and 28s to 34s per qr. for grinding ; oats, 29s to 38s Od per 24 stone. CORK-MARCH 6. The following were the quotations this morning :--fled wheat, 261 Od to —s Od ; white, 31s Id to 31s 6d; barley 16s Od to 19s Od ; oats, 10s Gd to 15sfid, EDINBURGH GRAIN-34Rcu 6. Wheat on the top 54 Od down.. average 2s 4d up. Barley on the top 2s Od down average Os 3d down. Oats on the top 4s Od down. average Os 14c1 down. Beans on the top Os 6d down. average Os 6d up. Averages per Imperial quarter. Wheat.... New wheat .. -12ths Bexley . 1 18 10 10-12ths Oat■ 1 9 7 6-12ths Beans Total Supply and Sales. Wheat ..1027 qrs Sold 862 qrs Barley... 1442 qrs Sold 836 qrs Oats 2566 qrs Sold 1519 qrs Beans 304 qrs Sold 222 qrs DERBY SMITHFIELD-MARCH 5. There was a full supply of fat beasts to-day ; former prices again asked, and, there was no advance obtained. A good supply of sheep, maintaining late prices. The supply of calves more plentiful. Fat pigs were also in good supply. - .. Beet - 7d to 7i d Veal . 7d to 7 1 1 Mutton . Bid to 9d Pork Lamb —d to —d Rough fat, 5s 6d per stone. Hides, 2/d to 4/d; calf skins, 5d to 6d. THE MAILS. MAILS DUE. Australia, Ceylon, and Mauritius (via South ampton) .. Mar. 21. (via Marseilles) Mar. 15. .. Mar. 6. Do. Brazil and Cape Verds • . • • Buenos Ayres, Monte Video, &o. Cuba and Mexico .. April 1. Canada &c. (via I., ; (1 erry) March 6. Cape of Good Hope, &c. .. April ?. China, Penang, and Singapore (via S'ampton) Mar. 6. Do (via Marseilles) Mar. 15. Gibraltar (via Southampton) .. .. Overdue. India (Calcutta), Ceylon, &c. (via Southampton) Overdue. Do. (via Marseilles) Mar. 15. India (Bombay), (via Southampton) .. .. Mar. 13. Do. (via Marseilles) .. Mar. 7. Lisbon .. . Mar. 11. Malta, Egypt, and Aden (via Southampton) .. Overdue. Do. (via Marseilles) .. Mar. 7. Vigo, and Opctrto Mar. 11. United States, California, &c. Mar. 14. Western Coast of Atrica, Madeira, Teneriffe .. Mar. 10. West Indies and Pacific, Carthagena, Cuba, &c. Mar. 16. 11118 DAY'S SHIPPING% LONDON, March B.—Wind this day at noon—South- Westerly ; light breeze, and mild weather, but rather cloudy. PORTSMOUTH, March 7.—Wind W.N.W.—Arrived— Major Wolf, from Shields for St, Thomas. Sailed—Earl of Hardwicke, for Madras. (RY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.) SOUTHAMPTON, Friday Morning. Arrived, March 7—Genova, steamer, from Liverpool; Branch, from Sunderland ; Alliance, steamer, from Havre; Penelope, from Newcastle; Brilliant, from Jersey; Temora, steamer, from London ; Mature, from Cardiff. Sailed, March B—Marquis of Bute, for Sunderland ; Tagus, steamer, for Lisbon ; Genova, steamer, for London; Temora, steamer, for Dublin ; William, for Cardiff; Da nube, Susanna, and Dora, for Newport; Brilliant, for Jersey. (ET SUBMARINE AND MAGNETIC TELEGRAPR.) GRAVESEND, Friday Morning. Arrived—Concordia, steamer, from Rotterdam. DEAL, Friday Morning. Passed, March 7.—Plantaganet, from Matanzas, for London. Anchored—Embla, from Shields, for Naples ; Anna, from Honduras, for London ; Rabgrach Fredrick Pr anz, from Shields, for Naples; Mary, from London, for Cardiff; Nonpareil, from London, for New York ; Maria, from Hamburg, for Lisbon. Sailed—The homeward bound, for their destination. The interest on Treasury-bills in Paris has been raised to 31 per cent., and 4 per cent. for those of short periods, and to 41, per cent. for those having a year to run. The rates fixed six months back were as low as to 2 per cent. Lord Truro, in a letter to a contemporary, says-- in compliance with the wishes of the cavalry and infantry corps under my command, I am arranging a" march out" to Wimbledon-common on Easter Monday ; and that, should any corps remaining in London on that day be dis posed to join us, I shall be extremely happy to cooperate with their commanding officers with a view to that effect. DEATH OF THE STATE EXECUTIONER.--John Lund, late Grenadier Guards, died on Wednesday last. He held the appointment for many years as headsman at the Tower of London, who'se duty it was to decapitate all state criminals. This sinecure is in the gift of the constable,-but most likely the situation will be abolished, as in the case of the gentleman yeoman porter on the death of Mr. Murray. The last state execution took place in 1746, at the time of the Scotch rebellion. The salary is £BO per annum, with an excellent house. Mr. Lund was only seen at the Tower when the half-yearly muster took place, and had his posi tion on the right of the warden, with a large bright hatchet on his shoulder.— United Service Gazotte. THE TURN-OUT AND WAGES MOVEMENT AT BOLTON.—There appears at present little probability that the turn-out amongst the power-loom weavers at Bolton NI ill soon be ended, and there is every probability of a turn lout amongst the operative spinners and other branches of the factory hands. IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS.—(YESTERDAY.) The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at five o'clock. CHURCH RATES. Petitions against the abolition of church rates were pre sented by Viscount Dungannon, Lord Stradbroke, Lord St. Leonards, Lord Colville, the Bishop of Carlisle, and the Duke of Marlborough. PRIVATE BUSINESS. The Caledonian and Symington Biggar and Broughton Railway bill was reai a second time. THE BERKELEY PEERAGE. The LORD CHANCELLOR said he had received a letter from Lord Brougham, requesting him to explain the cause of his absence when the decision was given in the Berkeley peerage. His learned friend stated that the rea son he was not present was that when he was at the bar he was concerned for the first claimant to the peerage. The noble and learned lord quite agreed in the decision that had been given. TFIE SITI4, LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, MARCH 8, 1861. fur that purpose towards carrying out which the promoters had not contributed a farthing. Mr. ROUPELL intimated that his name also had been placed on the back of the bill without his knowledge or con sent. Mr. CLIVE thought the subject should be referred to ,he committee up stairs. The house divided, and the numbers were— For the second reading Against Majority Mr. BRIGHT said that before the bill was read a second time he wished to make a few observat:ons. He under stood that the bill, before being introduced into the house, should be indorsed by the names of two members. In this case 12 gentlemen, whose names were on the back of the bill, denied that they had given any authority for such endorsement, so that the bill came before the house in direct contravention of the standing rules. He begged to ask the Speaker whether, under these circumstances, it was com petent to proceed with the bill. The SPEAKER said that on a motion for leave to bring in a bill, and such leave being given, it was necessary that the names of two members of the house should be placed on the back of the bill. Whether the agents in this case had exceeded their duty was a matter which he thought should form the subject of inquiry. Mr. BRIGHT asked whether, under the circumstances, the second reading of the bill should not be postponed until such inquiry had taken place ? Tho SPEAKER was understood to say that the more proper course would be to move the adjournment of the debate. Mr. LOCKE then mo'red the adjournment of the debate, which being seconded, Mr. ROUPELL said that he had not received any ex planation on the subject of indorsing the bill, and he thought the conduct pursued by Parliamentary agents in reference to such matters was most objectionable. Ultimately the debate was adjourned until Monday next. _ SYRIA. The Marquis of BATH asked whether the attention of the Government had been directed to the despatch which had been transmitted from Prince Gortschakoff to Count Kersloff at Paris, requesting him not only to support but to urge the military occupation of Syria without limit as to time. If the Government were aware of the circumstance, he should like to know what course they intended to pur sue ? Lord WODEHOUSE said the despatch alluded to by the noble marquis was perfectly authentic, and a copy had been sent to her Majesty's Government. He could not therefore say their attention had not been drawn to it. With respect to the tone of conduct her Majesty's Govern ment intended to pursue, negotiations were now going on with respect to that circumstance, and therefore he could not for obvious reasons give the noble marquis any answer to the latter part of his question. POLITICAL OFFENDERS AT CAYENNE. The Earl of DERBY wished to ask the question he had given notice of to the noble duke opposite, namely, whether any bill had been introduced into the colonial legislature of British Guiana for the purpose of sanctioning the extradition of prisoners escaping from the French colony of Cayenne. In every extradition treaty political offenders were carefully exempted. As almost all prisoners at Cayenne were political, he wished to know whether such a bill had been introduced with the concurrence of the British Government; and whether there was any objection to lay on the table copies or extracts of any despatches that might have been received on the sub ject The Duke of NEWCASTLE was glad of the opportu nity of explaining the subject. He had not received any official information to the effect, but he had no doubt the noble earl's information was correct, because instructions had been sent out from this country in September author ising the introduction of such a measure. A draft of the bill had, however, been very carefully prepared by the Queen's Advocate, and political offenders were excluded from its operations. The bill would only include offences which were specified in the convention of 1843. He had no ob jection to lay the despatch on the table of the house. STATUTE LAW REFORM BILL. This bill passed through committee without amendment. THE NEW LAW, COURTS. Lord ST. LEONARDS reminded their lordships that a short time ago he brought under their consideration the report of a commission in favour of bringing all the courts of law and equity on one site. The commissioners, though in favour of such a combination of the courts, said not a word about the Suitors' Fund. But it was proposed to take £1,400,000 from the Suitors' Fund of the Com t of Chan cery for the purpose, and he understo3d the noble lord on the woolsack, who was at the head of the Courtof Chancery, to approve of what he must call that misappropriation of money. They were told that the Government were prepared with a bill to carry out the object in view. He had heard of no bill, but he found by the Gazette that a new commis sion was to be issued to inquire into the office of the Ac countant• General of the Court of Chancery and into the ma nagement of the funds of that office. In his opinion it was a most unprecedented proceeding. No charge had been made against the office, either in that or the other house of Parliament, yet the Accountant-General and his officers were to be dragged before this commission. Either there must have been some misconduct, or her Majesty's Govern ment wanted to know a little more of the funds they were nibbling at and desired to lay hold of. There was not a single equity judge or equity lawyer on the new commis sion, and apart from personal qualifications, he objected to Mr. Rogers and Mr. Field being members of it, because Mr. Rogers was a willing witness before the first commission, and Mr. Field, who was also examined before it, expressed his opinion that the Accountant-General's office was ut terly useless and ought to be abolished. It was not right that a gentleman who had so committed himself should be put upon a commission of inquiry. Such a mode of pro ceeding was disrespectful to the court of which his noble and learned friend was the chief, and alarming to the suitors, who had hitherto been under the impression that their funds were under the protection of the law. The Suitors' Fund by various enactments was expressly devoted to purposes connected with the benefit of the suitors. The fees in the Court of Chancery amounted now to £lOO,OOO, but with a little care they might be reduced to £50,000. The noble and learned lord concluded by moving that an humble address be presented to her Majesty for a copy of the commission recently issued to certain commissioners to inquire into the constitution of the accountant .general's department of the Court of Chancery, and the provision for the custody and management of the funds of the court; and to ask the Government upon what grounds the the commission has been issued. The LORD CHANCELLOR said there could be no ob jection in acceding to the motion, but he thought his noble and learned friend had unnecessarily alarmed himself. The name of Lord Bingsdown on the commission ought to be a sufficient guarantee to him that the interests of the suitors would be protected. The noble and learned lord defended the composition of the commission, and explained that its object was to improve the system, so that the funds of the suitors might be employed in the manner most beneficial to them. After a few words from Lord DENMAN in deprecation of the removal of the courts from Westminster-hall, Lord KING SDOWN said that he was a member of the commission, for when the Government thought there was a necessity for inquiry, he felt that it would be inconsistent with his duty to refuse to serve. As far as he knew it was not possible that the most profligate and rapaciously in clined commission should meddle with the funds of the Court of Chancery. The whole object of the inquiry was to ascertain whether any saving could be made or improve ment effected in the custody of the funds; and whatever might be the suggestion of the commissioners, nothing could be done except under the control of Parliament. Moreover, he believed that there was nothing in the terms of the com mission which would authorise them to express any opinion as to whether any portion of the funds should be appro priated in the construction of new courts. His noble and learned friend (Lord St. Leonards) had done more perhaps than any other person during his term of office to insure the safe custody of the money ; but he was mistaken if he supposed that there was any secret plot for the purpose of obtaining indirectly an expenditure which perhaps could not otherwise be procured. Personally, he should not at all be unwilling to see this commission annulled, knowing by experience that those who served on such an inquiry were sure to incur the hostility of individuals whose interests were interfered with, while en the other hand the public, whose interests they were to promote, often joined in the outcry against ,them. (Hear, hear, and a laugh.) THE PAPER DUTIES. The Earl of CAMPERDOWN moved that there be laid before the house an account of the gross and net produce of the paper duties for one year, to the latest date to which the same can be made up. Th 6 Earl of DERBY suggested that the returns should be for more than the last year. The motion was amended so as to embrace the last three years, and was then agreed to. Their lordships then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—(YESTERDAY.) The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock. GREAT DOVER ROAD BILL. On the motion for the second reading of this bill, which was introduced for the purpose of extending the powers of the parties who undertook to construct the Great Dover Road, Mr. WILLIAMS moved as an amendment that the bill be read a second time that day six months. The promoters of the bill made the road several years ago, and it appeared that the undertaking did not realise their expectations. The last time they came to Parliament for a renewalof their powers for taking tolls they applied for an extension of 21 years, which, on the distinct understanding that they should not again apply to Parliament, the term for the continuance of these powers was extended to 31 years. He contended that this application for a further extension of these powers was most unjust under the circumstances. Mr. MASSEY said that it was rather singular that this opposition should come from the hon. member (Mr. Wil liams), considering that his name and Mr. Roupell's were on the back of the bill. These turnpike and road bills were made the subject of a special regulation of the house by being investigated up stairs, and afterwards submitted to the consideration of the Home Department, as preliminaries to their being passed by the house. Mr. WILLIAMS explained that his name had been put on the bill without his knowledge. Mr. LOCKE agreed with the honourable member for Lambeth, and bt ited that in 1809 certain parties un dertook to construct this road, to connect the Borough with the New Kent-road by a more eligible mode of communication than existed at the time. They had not realised their expectation of 12 per cent., but that was a result that might occur to the promoters of any other private undertaking, and did not entitle them to any special privilege. Besides the promoters had not carried out the condition of lighting and paving the road which they had promised when they applied originally for the bill. On the contrary the parishes of Southwark )141 to bring ii a bill PAROCHIAL EXCISEMEN. Mr, LOCKE asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether excisemen had been employed by the Board of Inland Revenue to collect the laud, assessed, and income taxes in the parish of Bermondsey, and elsewhere ; and, if so, whether security had been given by them, and whether they had taken the oath of secrecy as collectors required by the Income-tax Acts ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER explained that the Board had appointed inspectors of their own to collect thetas; in consequence of local arrangements for that purpose having failed. These offices were sinecures, but it was not the practice of the board to require security in the case of officers whom they appointed to such situations. MAJOR YELVERTON. Major GAVIN asked the Under Secretary of State for War whether his attention had been called to th 9 case of Thelwall v. Yelverton; and whether the name of Major Yelverton was to be retained in her Majesty's Army List ? Captain ARCHDALE said he understood that an officer from the Horse Guards had been appointed to watch the law proceedings in the celebrated trial which had just con cluded in Ireland. Mr. BARING said that Major Yelverton had been sus pended from the performance of his military duties until the legal proceedings that might follow the trial had taken place. The Secretary of War could not be supposed to take any steps at present, as such might be considered pre judging the case. (Hear, hear.) THE AVON AND SIR BALDWIN WALKER. In reply to Mr. B. OSBORNE, Lord C. PAGET said that the Avon returned without being successful in overtaking Sir Baldwin Walker. (Laughter.) FRENCH OCCUPATION OF SYRIA. Mr. FITZGERALD asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, if the conference now sitting at Paris to consider the propriety of prolonging the French occupation of Syria should be invited to consider the ques tion of an increase of the force now in that country, her Majesty's Government are prepared to refuse their assent to that proposal; and whether the information he had re ceived led him to believe that the number of 6,000 men, to which the French force in Syria had been limited by the convention, had been exceeded ? Lord J. RUSSELL said, with respect to the first ques tion, that it appeared that the effective French force was in reality not more than 6,000 men. BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE.7-ADJOURNMENT FOR EASTER. Lord P ALMERSTON said that he had to appeal to hon. members in regard to public business. For the conveni ence of hon. members it was proposed that the house should adjourn on the Monday before Easter instead of, as previ ously, on the Thursday. It was necessary that they should pass the army and navy estimates before the day of ad journment, and he trusted private members who had motions to bi ing forward would postpone them on the motion for going into committee of supply until some more conve nient opportunity, so far as public business was con corned. AFFAIRS OF ITALY. The adjourned debate on the motion for going into com- mittee of supply was resumed by Mr. JAMES, who expressed his regret that in a matter of so much interest and importance as the present posture of Italian affairs the hon. and learned member for King's County had not concluded his speech with a definite resolu- tion. There could not be the slightest doubt that in Pied mont, and, indeed, throughout the whole of Italy, the debates of the English House of Commons were read with the deepest interest and anxiety; and for that reason alone, if for ne other, the able speech of the hon. and learned member for King's County, impugning the Italian policy of her Ma jesty's Government, ought to have been followed by a dis tinct motion. His regret that the hon. and learned member had not pursued that course was increased by the fact that in another place ante-prandial conversations were indulged in night after night on matters of the greatest interest af fecting the policy of Sardinia andthe general affairs of Italy, and that those conversations, though entitled to no weight, were regarded in some quarters as if they were expressions of the deliberate opinion of the assembly in which they took place. It was not his intention upon the present occasion to follow the hen, and learned member for King's County into the contrast which he had instituted between the financial position of Sardinia and that of the Papal States. Whether the imports into the island of Sardinia had fallen off during the war was a matter of no consequence to the present oc casion. One might as well take the imports into Ireland dur ing the famine as a test of the prosperity of England at that trying period. So, with respect to the importation of eoal and iron into Ancona. Everybody knew that the coal and iron imported into Ancona were not consumed by the inhabitants of the Papal States, but were intended for the use of the various steamers touching at that port. They were, in fact, no more a test of the prosperity of the inhabitants of the Papal States than so much coal and iron imported into an island in the middle of the Mediterranean. Nor was it his intention to follow the hon. baronet the member for Dundalk into his most discursive speech. The staple of that scolding speech consisted of abuse of the Em peror Napoleon, allusions to a threatened invasion from France, a revival of all those delicate topics which had been used to excite the enthusiasm of our volunteers,and the sub stitution of nicknames for arguments. In the opinion of the hon. baronet Garibaldi was a pirate, and the King of Sar dinia a traitor. He submitted, with due deference, to the hon. baronet that a question of such paramount importance as that raised by the hon. and learned member for King's County should be discussed upon higher grounds and in a more dignified manner. Nicknames were not arguments ; abuse possessed no power of persuasion ; and nothing could be gained by following the bad example recently set in France, where the priests were calling their Sovereign " Pontius Pilate." There were two questions, as he under stood it, before the house, one relating to the conduct of Sar- dinia, and the other relating to the Italian policy of her Majesty's Government. He would not weary the house with unnecessary observations upon the conduct of Sardinia and its relation to the interests of Italy. It was natural that the people of Italy, who had been exposed for years to all the horrors of Austrian tyranny, should look to Sar dinia to relieve them from the misgovernment under which they had so long groaned. Charles Albert failed in his attempt to free Italy in 1848, but in 1859, when Sardinia had obtained a large accession of territory by the an nexation of Lombardy, it became more than ever natural that the inhabitants of Southern Italy, seeing the establishment of constitutional government in the North : should desire and invoke the sympathy and aid of Pied mont. (Hear, hear.) The hon. baronet the member for Dundalk had - charged the Government of Sardinia with complicity in the Garibaldi expedition from Genoa ; and no doubt it was known to the Cabinet of Turin, as it was known to the whole of Europe, that a strong national feel ing had burst out among the people of Italy, and that a vigorous effort would be made by them to redress their in juries. The expedition from Genoa was the result of an enthusiasm which the Sardinian Government could not have restrained,just as our own Government could not have re strained the enthusiasm of those hired mercenaries who,under the pretence of joining the Papal police, left Ireland for the purpose of fighting against the freedom and independence of Italy. But Garibaldi was a pirate What reason the hon. baronet the member for Dundalk had for calling him so was more than he could tell. Garibaldi throughout the whole of his career of disinterested patriotism always pointed to the Sardinian flag and declared he was fighting for King Victor Emmanuel. His progress from Marsala to Messina, from Palermo to Naples, was one continued triumph. The entire population was with him, and a man who commanded only a mere handful of volunteers, and who had no cannon except those surrendered to him by the Royal troops, passed through the country like a conqueror. It had boon said that when Garibaldi arrived in Naples that capital was like a city of the dead. He well remembered all the circumstances attending the arrivalof the Liberator. The enthusiasm of the people was unbounded, and the en trance of Garibaldi into the house which had been selected as his residence in Naples was delayed by the crowd of priests who pressed forward to kiss the hem of his gar ment. The soldiery threw up their caps with joy, and the men who had been instructed by the King to fire upon the people did not venture to perform the duty entrusted to them. Garibaldi a pirate 1 Surely there never was such an instance of disinterested patriotism. (Cheers.) He had the whole treasures of Naples itt his hands, and YOt he left the city as poor as when he entered it. When he entered Naples his only possession was his sword, and he quitted it with barely sufficient to pay his passage to Caprera. (Cheers.) During his stay in Naples he was careful that not an insult should be offered to the King. He never entered the Royal Palace. Property was as secure as in the most peaceful times, and not a crime was committed which might not have been sufficiently punished with a short imprisonment. Was it not that, in consequence of the state of misgovern ment in Naples, his people were glad of the opportunity of throwing off their allegiance to the King ? (Hear, hear.) But, said the hon. member for King's County, that govern ment was a paternal government. He would read a short extract from a letter which was found among the papers of Louis Philippe, written by the father of the ex-King of Naples, which would give a little insight into the way in which the Neapolitans were governed : "My people de not want to think. I take upon myself the care of their welfare and their dignity. I must draw closer to Austria. Liberty is fatal to the Bourbons. The Bourbons are ancient, and if they were to try to shape them selves according to the pattern of new dy nas ti es th ey wou ld be ridiculous. We will imitate the Hapsburgs. If fortune plays us false, we :hall be true to ourselves." That was what was called the paternal government whish the ex-King of Naples was administering to his subjects. (Hear.) It might be that for this state of things the ex-King was not originally responsible ; the system pursued there had been precisely the same for a long period ; no doubt the last advice given to the ex-King by his father was that he should still pursue the same course, and that the lesson was instilled into his mind—which, no doubt, was true— that liberty was fatal to the Bourbons—that they must imi tate the Hapsburgs, and be governed by the Austrians. Now what was the state of Naples when Garibaldi entered ? There was but one institution in Naples, and that was its police. (Hear, hear.) The dungeons were thrown open on the arrival of Garibaldi. There came out from these prisons men who had been imprisoned for years for what they called political offences, but who had never been tried or confronted with their accusers. There was a system of espionage there, because it was a Government that made war, not upon the poor by exaction—it did not merely paralyse phy . sical action, or abridge material comfort ; but it was a tyranny upon intellect, freedom of thought, and the edu- er.ted mind of the people. The system of espionage was so ramified that he was afraid to tell the house the number of sbirri and spies employed. The Government could say with Macbeth— " There's not a one of them, but in his house I'll keep a servant fee'd." The system was such as that under Fouche, when a man did not know, when he was sleeping with the wife of his bosom, whether he was not sleeping with a traitress and a spy. (Hear, hear.) Some of these prisoners had been tried by what was called a commission, but without even knowing the offence for which they were tried. He remembered a most remarkable instance. One who had beenreleased when Garibaldi ordered the prisons to be thrown open called upon him the morning after his discharge, and having made in- quiry into his statement he had reason to believe that it was true ; it was but a sample of the system which had been going on. Ho was a young man and a gentleman; he said he had been confined in Ischia or in Procida—they shifted the prisoners from one prison to the other ; he had been _ _ confined for two years and two months ; and what was his offence ? He had one day taken a carriage in Naples to drive a little distance with a friend, and they talked together about liberal institutions. He had not returned to his home and wife half an hour when ho was arrested and dragged to prison by the police. He was utterly at a loss to know who were his accusers ani their witnesses. He did not know whether the friend with w hem he had been talking had been the traitor or spy. He had never been allowed to see him till he was discharged. His friend had been imprisoned for the same period, and both, during an imprisonment of two years and two months, entertained of :each other the same hor- ribTe suspicion, which, to honourable minds, was as great a misery as the imprisonment itself. (Hear, hear.) It turned out, when both met, that the coachman who drove them was a hired spy in the pay of the King of Naples, and that he swore the accusation against them. That was a sample of the state of things which prevailed in Naples. His hon. friend, in alluding to the conduct of the noble lord the Secre tary for Foreign Affairs, had made one of the most extraor dinary statements he had ever heard. In broad terms he accused the noble lord of having prevented the King of Naples from fighting at the head of his troops. A more monstrous accusation, in a total absence of materials for it, he had never heard. The hon, member for King's County had misapprehended a despatch which had reference to a totally different state of things. The noble lord referred to the effect of interposition if there should be an attempt to repeat the horrors of the bombardment of Palermo. Prevent the King from placing himself at the head of his troops I Why, he found in Calabria that long before that despatch had been received the troops had voluntarily laid down their arms, and refused to fight for the King. Why ? Be- cause the King's father had stated publicly that his troops were meant to keep down his people, and if Naples or Italy were invaded he should rely on Austrian bayonets. (Hear, hear.) He could not, therefore, understand how such an inference could be drawn from the noble lord's despatch as that he had prevented the King from placing himself at the head of his troops. But the hon. gentleman, referring tq the despatch of the 27th of October, said the noble lord was not correct in stating that the whole population had taken up arms. The noble lord was perfectly correct. The hon. gentleman seemed to think that he was cor roborated in bis views by the statement of the Times' correspondent that there were not above 100 Neapoli tans who became :soldiers in Garibaldi's army. Did he not know what that meant ? The correspondent of the Times evidently referred to the citizens, or, if he might use the expression, cockneys of Naples. Garibaldi had troops enough, and the citizens of Naples enrolled themselves as national guards and volunteers for the protection of Naples; yet his whole army—the thousands of men who flocked around his standard, were inhabitants of the kingdom of Naples. What was the meaning of the despatch He had the honour to call on the noble lord before leaving for Cala bria. (Hear, and a laugh.) He was politely received — nothing more—as every one was who called on the noble lord, whether political friend or opponent. He called for this reason—he had intended to put a question to the noble lord :—lf an attempt were made to bombard Naples as Pa lermo had been bombarded, what course would the British Government pursue ? The house broke up some what sud denly, and he had no opportunity to put the question, and he called on the noble lord to obtain an answer. The noble lord said the Government would not, as he thought, allow the horrors of Palermo to be enacted at Naples, and that he might say so. Did the hon. gentleman mean to sup pose that the English fleet would be allowed to lay at Naples calmly reposing on their shadows, and see re-enacted the horrors of Palermo ? (Hear, hear.) It would indeedhave been an impeachment of the noble lord to suppose that he could allow such a state of things. Well, but it was said there bad been a great deal of anarchy. Where was it ? Where did it happen ? He was perfectly ready to admit that for a short time there had been a state of uncertainty; but what course did Garibaldi pursue ? With the same disinterested conduct which distinguished him throughout, he declared for annexation of Naples to Sardinia ; he con sented to the mission to offer it to Victor Emmanuel, and with the same view the elections had taken place. There were some extraordinary fallacies to be guarded against here. A great deal had been made of the outrages said to have been committed at either side by General Cialdini and the Papal generals ; but the facts which he was about to give to the house in reference to the extraordinary statement made by the hon. member for the King's County would show, he thought, that'credence ought not to be given too implicitly to rumours of that kind. The hon. gentleman had stated that at Milan very few persons had voted ; and that at Piacenza, out of 1,238 voters, only 60 had recorded their votes. The franchise in Sardinia consisted of an LS or £lO rental-40f. direct taxation, and there were other qualifications such as gentlemen on the other side called " fancy franchises." (No, no.) Well, then, gentlemen on his side of the house, if they preferred it. (Laughter) The name had originated on that side, and was adopted at the other. (Hear, hear.) There was nothing in the name of " fancy franchise" except that it was rather vul gar. (Laughter.) Now, what were the facts with regard to the voting in Milan ? That city was divided into five electoral colleges, in the first of which were 1,304 electors ; in the second, 1,864 ; in the third, 1,235 ; in the fourth, 1,177 ; and in the fifth, 1,549. In the first col lege 775 voted ; in the second, 1,056 ; in the third, 678 ; in the fourth, 598 ; and in the fifth, 843. (Hear, hear.) The hon. gentleman had spoken of Liborio Romano, whom he called " a traitor." Traitor was a hard name ; he was a Minister who had changed sides— (laughter)—with as much rapidity as had been done elsewhere, and whe joined a coa lition Ministry. (Laughter and cheers.) He really was at a loss to understand how his hon. friend could have said that Liberio Romano had been returned to Parliament by only 119 votes. The fact was that he had been returned for six places, and that in the district where the numbers stood lowest in his favour 475 votes had been recorded, when inti mation was received that he had already been returned for five other places, and he consequently declined to carry the contest further. Another fact which would correct the im pression created by the speech of the hon. member for the King's County, that the Italian electors were wholly indif ferent to the result of the election, was that in Piacenza, instead of the voting being confined to 60 voters, as he alleged, 923 electors voted out of a total constituency of 1,786. (Cheers) In Florence, as to which another extra ordinary statement of a similar character had been made, he found that there were four colleges, of which the first contained 1,719 electors ; the second, 1,347 ; and the fourth, 1,310. Of the third of these colleges he had mislaid the return. Of the first there voted 769 registered electors; of the second, 572 ; of the fourth, 462. (Hear, hear.) Tie figures which he was now quoting were taken from the offi cial returns made to the Sardinian Parliament, and examined and tested by a committee of that body. (Cheers.) Re membering that these elections had taken place among a people new to the exercise of the franchise ; that they had no organisation for the conveyance of voters to the poll:- (laughter)—that inducements to vote such as existed in certain boroughs that could be named were altogether absent, and that these really were primitive electors, he thought the figures he had read conclusively answered the remark that the Italian people h ad shown no interest in the proceedings. The record o f votes at Sardinian elec tions was likewise affected by the fact that a candidate was returned as soon as a third of the constituency had polled in his favour. Others, therefore, who might have been willing to give him their support became luke warm about the matter as soon as it was known that he had obtained the requisite number of votes. (Hear, hear.) Deep interest and euxiety were felt in Italy with refer ence to all statements made in that House, and he therefore pledged himself for the accuracy of these returns, and should be glad that the hon. gentleman would take the trouble of looking into them. The Italian Parliament . on which an attack had been made, contained men of integrity, of literary ability, and of great eminence in their own country, and he believed their debates would con trast favourably with those of any free Parliament in Europe. Both the hon. member for King's County and the bon. member for Dundalk had passed great encomiums on the Pope. Of the religion to which Fenelon and Bos- suet had belonged it was impossible for hiss to speak otherwise than with respect ; but, in his belief, the tem- poral power of the Pope was doomed. Those gentlemen said that the Pope's government was a paternal govern ment, and that under it people were far happier than in other States. But could any one shut his eyes to the fact that this temporal power—call it a theocracy, a system of ecclesiastical government, or what they would— was the very bane of his spiritual authority ? If harsh and cruel laws were administered in the name of the Pope, the veneration in which he was held as the head of the Roman Catholic religion became lost in the contempt and execra tion awakened by his temporal misgovernment. (Cheers.) There had been Popes, like Julius 11. and Alexander VI., who placed themselves at the head of armies and added territories by conquest to the Papal dominions. There had been Popes who protested against the principle of foreign intervention, and Popes following after, who when their temporal power was endangered, immediately invoked the aid of foreign powers; and the result had been that, as regarded their temporal possessions, the Popes were alter nately the vassals of Austria, of France, and of Spain. (Hear.) If you proposed laws from the altar, instead of the throne, if those laws be cruel and • corrupt, the result will be visited on that religion with which they are thus associated. (Cheers.) If in the name of the Pope cruel executions and trials without even a shadow of justice took place—if bishops were made policemen and policemen bishops (laughter)—if the peasant was constrained to see in every priest a spy and in every bishop an enemy—could it be wondered that all devotional feeling was destroyed in the population. and that the Pope became responsible in their eyes for the grinding tyranny of his temporal sway ? (Cheers.) Much as he venerated the religion of every man_ he believed that the Papal authority in its temporal aspect was gone, and that the struggle to maintain it would only endanger his spiritual power. The Italian policy of her Majesty's Government had been impugned, but he ventured to think that the course pursued by the noble lord had been clear and unambiguous—(hear, hear)—and that his policy was just and enlightened. (Cheers, and a cry of No, no 1) His hon. friend the member for Brighton said "No, no 1". and perhaps he went further than he did in his view of what the Italian policy of the Government should have been. But he could not help thinking that to restore order and con stitutional law in Italy—(cheers)—was to have achieved a great deal. There had, of course, been Republicans in Italy—honest men, who dreamed of a political Utopia; but Count Cavour—whom he regarded as one of the greates t statesmen in Europe—(cheers)—succeeded in bringing the swo'len torrents within the limits of a wise policy; and in this he had been assisted by her Majesty's Government, who gave to him the moral influence of England. In this respect their policy commended itself to the people of Eng land—(hear, hear)—and were it possible to elicit the feel ing of the House of Commons on any scheme of policy shadowed forth by gentlemen who thought differently— and this he might observe had not yet been attempted—(a laugh)—ho felt sure there would be a triumphant majority in favour of the course which the noble lord had pursued. (Hear) England might point to that policy as filling one of the brightest pages of her annals. In the spring of last year the noble lord had before him circumstances of great difficulty. His aim was that there should be a fair expression of the opinion of England, as she had a right to express her opinion where the liberty of a nation was concerned. He was anxious to keep the armies of Austria and France out of any struggle in that peninsula, because Italy in such a case would have suffered the worst, as she always had done. This country occupied a position on this question of which she might be justly proud. We bad in past times squan dered blood and treasure in unjust and impolitic wars. We had lavished millions to uphold the Bourbons on the throne, and had equipped armies to maintain a crumbling empire in the East, But the moral influence of England was lately heard amid the crash of arms and the conflict of parties. Without the sacrifice of a life, without adding to the bur dens of taxation, she had assisted to secure the liberties of a great country, which when united, would be her greatest safeguard in the balance of power ; for the policy she had pursued would bind Italy to her by every feeling of grati tude,'while it must also commend itself to the free spirit and love of justice inherent to the British people. (Cheers.) Sir R. PEEL—My hon. and learned-friend has certainly I made a very able speech. (Hear, hertrYl - He has not been discursive, but he may have been:ante-prandial. (A laugh.) He has treated his subject with his accustomed talent and skill. In fact, he has given us, in a very entertaining manner, what I may, without exaggeration, call the re miniscences of a vacation ramble. (A laugh.) We know that in the autumn of last year he passed through Italy. He:saw Garibaldi, and probably also Liborio Romano, who if not a traitor, is at all events the biggest rat. (Laughter and cheers.) What I gather from my hon. friend's address is, that, after all, lawyers are like other men—that gentle men learned in the law have in the excitement of forensic display,or the homely comforts of the Inns of Court,nothing commensurate with the " pomp and circumstance of glo•• rious war." (Laughter.) I cannot pretend to import into this discussion the animated topics that he has introduced. My only object in ri,ing is to offer a very few observations which have been suggested to my mind by the course of this debate. I listened attentively to the very able remarks of my hon. friend the member for Southwark the other night, with whom I quite agree as to tie importance of this discus sion, both as eliciting an expression of policy on the part of this house and as giving encouragement to the Italians, who follow our debates with great anxiety, and are natu rally inclined to gather confidence from the support they may meet with in the British Parliament. (Hear.) I can not, however, concur with that hon. member, or with the hon. gentleman who spoko last, in thinking that this dis cussion has been brought on in an inopportune manner. I see nothing inopportune or unusual in it ; it has been raised in accordance with an usage often employed to ob tain a declaration of opinion from the Government, and of which the hon. member for Southwark has before now fre quently availed himself in order to criticise or attack the conduct of the Government. (Hear, and a laugh.) With respect to the speech of the hon. member for King's County (Mr. Hennessy), of course it cannot be supposed that I en tirely subscribe to the views which he expressed either as to the policy of her Majesty's Ministers, or as to the im mense advantages derived from ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Italy. But this I will say—and lam sure the house will confirm my assertion—that that hon. gentleman certainly showed much research in getting up his case, and put for ward his opinions with a great deal of spirit and ability. (Hear, hear.) But the gentlemen who have preceded me —the hon. member for Southwark, the hon. member for King's County, and the gallant knight the member for Dun dalk—(a laugh)—in alluding to whom lof course allu 3e to his Italian capacity—(laughter)—those three gentlemen have monopolised the whole of our time. I wished to speak the other night at the early hour of 12 o'cicck—(a laugh)— but 1 had not the opportunity. I have no intention now to occupy an hour and a-half with extracts from the news papers, but will assume—as the honourable member for Dundalk did not—that everybody is not only acquainted with the opinions of the press on the policy of the Govern • ment, but has also read all the blue-books. (Laughter.) Starting from that point, I shall begin with the honourable gentleman who introduced this discussion. That hon. member was, as might have been expected, very severe upon the noble lord the Foreign Secretary. He accused the noble lord of actively interfering to promote the Pied montese policy, and attempted to show that the trade and commerce of Piedmont were diminishing and her finances sinking. The hon. gentleman next turned to the condition of the Papal States, which he described as very flourishing and presenting a marked contrast to Sardinia. Now, know ing something of Italy, I was struck with this remark, for it certainly never occurred to me that there was this great superiority in the 'Papal States over Sardinia. (Hear, hear.) The honourable gentleman then said that the noble lord had wilfully concealed despatches, and, in fact, almost made him responsible for some of the atrocities committed in Central and Southern -Italy. He next brought forward almost the gravest charge I have ever heard one member of this house prefer against another, for he accused the noble lord of having destroyed all confidence in the honesty and integrity of the Foreign-office. (Hear, hear.) That is certainly very strong language, and yet I venture to say, without party feeling or prejudice, I believe the noble lord can justly affirm that the honesty and in tegrity of the Foreign-office are as safe in his hands as in those of any other man in England. (Cheers.) And of this I am quite certain, that whether the noble lord or Lord Malmesbury holds the seals of that department— Minrster, no Lord Palmerston or Lord Derby is Britishthe country e c confidence with nfi d e n c a e n o y f regard Primethe t t t h cio e fual sentiment shtraicvte npounr o n u t e e d r v a e n n y t i o o other r butpo l a ' feeling be t observed, B o uni versally ( c e t no n-intervention, h p e r e e r s s sin th o a f nt o r a al coupled with that s e te Ys rn —tri prevalent ex throughoutwc oh t uo h n e tt oyo kw nation. aasn ea nn ts (Hear, bff h ye e r e a t hear.) the t s Kh ai wi d nag t r i s e Papal Government was arbi vthTrilheursve.braoieldebeeecasrnipsfirireSfi-1-oeutrhat it maintained gross abuse—that it wasya disgrace rather than a subject of congratulation. He attacked the vices of ecclesiastical government, and then insinuated ,that Sardinia's policy was the Italian policy. Well, those two gentlemen's opinions being so diametrically opposed to each other, I began to think that neither of them knew what he was talking about. (Laughter.) They both, indeed, began by telling us they knew the country, having travelled through it. (A laugh.) Mr. HENNESSY—I distinctly said I would not trouble the house with my experience. Sir R. PEEL—Am Ito understand that the hon, gentle man has travelled through the country ? [Mr. Hennessy --, _ , signified assent.] Oh I then you have. (Laughter.) It really appears that both of the hon. members have travelled through Italy, but it is thrown in the mouth of the one • that he saw the country with different features—that the one saw it with Monsignori, and the other with vetturini. (Laughter.) Neither of these, however, could give any correct idea of the effect of ecclesiastical jurisdiction in the Papal dominions. I also have seen the country; I know it well from one end to the other, and I am anxious, therefore, without entering into wild reminiscences of rambles or vacation scrambles—(a laugh) —to give my impressions to the house. The opinions of a person who has absolutely viewed the state of the country with his own eyes, and judged of it with his own mind, may, I think, be deserving of some weight on a question of this magnitude and importance. I have followed the noble lord's policy from the close of last session down to the pre sent moment with a very eager, I will not say a very hos tile, but a very critical eye. I have observed the difficulties he has had to contend against, and seen one or two of his shortcomings. (A laugh.) Happily, however, his mis takes were corrected by subsequent despatches. In dealing with this question these three great objects must have pressed upon the noble lord's mind :—First, there was the French alliance to be maintained ; next, there was the policy worthy ot this country to be adhered to ; and, thirdly, t here was the interest of Italy to be considered. Now, in a very remarkable speech delivered by Prince Napoleon the other day, it was well said that the French alliance with England is not with this or that Minister, but with the great and loyal English people. Well, the noble lord had to endeavour to cultivate that alliance, which as a member of Parliament and a British subject I hope may long continue. But I admit the French policy in Italy was ambiguous ; it meddled at Messina—it interfered at Gaeta; it still inter- venes in Rome; and I think it was a policy which caused the country great fear and great uneasiness. Then, again, there was another annexation—a small matter, but stilt an annexation—of Mentone and Roquebrune. That subject was alluded to on the first night of the session, and the noble lord, in replying to a question, observed that it was a matter of very small importance, which could not affect the European equilibrium. That is quite true, but still it is an indication of the policy of the French Emperor. cHear.) I say that we should be very cautious how we allow these transactions to pass by unnoticed, and I hopethe noble lord, with his usual spirit, protested through Lord Cowley against this annexation. I was mixed up with the events of 1848-9, and I recollect well what was the policy of the noble lord at that time. The noble lord allows the matter to pass now as if not worthy of notice ; but those two same pro vinces of Mentone and Roquebrurie were united in 1848 by the popular voice, and added to the d om i n i ons of Carlo Al berto. In Oct. 1849 that annexation was ratified by the Turin Chamber of Deputies, and then came a despatch from the noble lord threatening them with the anger of all the Powers that had signed the treaties of 1815, for what he called " this infamous annexation." (Hear.) I say that if that was an act of usurpation on the part of Sardinia then the present annexation is clearly an act of usurpation on the part of France. (Hear.) But there was also another sort of difficulty with which the noble lord has had to contend. He has had to deal with a new system of action—a new feature in diplomacy. 1 allude to the plan adopted by the French. Government of issuing pamphlets upon the various politi cal questions of the day. Those pamphlets were issued fre quently from the French press ; they appeared anony mously; if the ideas they developed were approved they were acknowledged, but if they were not approved then they were allowed to sink into oblivion. There was one pamphlet —Le Pape et le Congres—concerning which I find a sene tence in a despatch of the noble lord to Lord Cowley, dated Dec. 24, 1860, That despatch was copied into all the French papers •, but this paragraph I am about to read was omitted from all, from the Moniteur down to the Constitutionnel--- " This pamphlet has made Pio Nono lose half his States." I ask the noble lord what is his opinion of the last pamphlet we have had ; because if ever there was a remarkable one this is it. It is an open rupture with Rome, a declaration of war; it attacks the religious system of the country; it speaks, not anonymously nor in any concealed manner, but with the sanction and authority of the French Government and of the Emperor himself. Those were the difficulties which the noble lord had to deal with in the French policy, end I think he has steered his course with admirable judg ment as fares the French alliance is concerned. (Hear.) As to the English policy, that, I say, would have been thesame under Lord Derby as under the noble lord—it is non-inter vention, with the influence of our moral support. In the be ginning, I must say, there were some indications of vacilla tion on the part of the noble lord, which afterwards happily disappeared, and from October until now I think he has acted in a straightforward and justifiable manner. (Hear.) That despatch of August certainly did affect me very much. - (Laughter.) It was a despatch in which the noble lord threatened Sardinia in case she should enter the Papal States, and that, I say, was direct intervention. (Hear.) Lord J. RUSSELL—There was no threat. Sir R. PEEL—WeII, it read very much like it. (Laugh ter.) However, the later despatch of October 27 was an admirable one. Sardinia had then intervened, and the despatch justified the act, and said that whether France, Russia, Austria, or Prussia objected or not, he (the noble lord) approved of it. And that is the policy I approve— (hear, hear)—and I think that from that time the noble lord has pursued a most judicious course. He has had to consider the interests of the country, but he could not abstain from giving expression to the sympathies of the nation for the cause of Italy. I have felt warmly for the Italian cause; and I repeat that the noble lord has done what no English Government could have declined doing, and has adopted a policy which has aided the Italians by giving the moral support of this country to further the pro gress of liberty and unity in Italy. (Hear, hear.) I think questions of foreign affairs will be the most important ques tions that we shall have to discuss this session. We may have but few discussions here, but still I am convinced that foreign affairs occupy the attention of the Government more, than any other matt( rs at this time. lam sure that what ever differences there may be, if they only follow upon this question a straightforward, disinterested policy with re spect to Italy, it makes but little difference what may bo the blunders of the Secretary to the Admiralty—(laughter) —or what may be the differences between the noble duke at the head of the Colonial Department and the noble lord upon the subject of the administration of the colonies. (Renewed laughter.) The Italian question is now centred in Sardinia and in King Victor Emmanuel. That Sove reign was very severely handled by the hon. baronet the member for Dundalk (Sir G. Bowyer), who made a huge catalogue of charges against him. Now, I may say that upon public grounds there were few men in this house who had more reason to censure Victor Emmanuel for the transactions of last year than I had. I looked, and still look upon the annexation by France of Savoy and Nice as a most serious infringement upon the established law of Europe. I was the more induced to take up that question in company with my hon. and learned friend (Mr. Kinglake), because we felt that, while it affected the interests of the country, it was also a severe blow to the independence and neutrality of an ancient and cherished republic. (Hear, bear.) That w as w h y I strongly advocated the cause of that country against the policy of the King of Sardinia, and I feel that that conduct must still cause him cinsiderable uneasiness, especially when we find that, in an order of the day issued at Naples, General Cialdini telling the world that the Sardinians were fighting under the Cross of Savoy. (Hear, hear.) Why, the Cross of Savoy no more belongs to the King of Sardinia than to me. (Hear, bear.) But he is responsible for an act which I am sure he must still regret, and which he may probably have cause to lament. (Hear, hear.) But there is one point in connexion with that annexation to which I will, with the permission of the house, refer for a moment. There has recently been a meeting in Switzerland of generals, headed by the most distinguished man in that count y, who was himself a mili tary ins:ructor to Louis Napoleon when the latter was in exile, and the words of General Dufour on that occasion will show the feeling that prevails in that country. He said:— " Switzerland, although so well supplied with natural defences, is nevertheless, comparatively speaking ? of so small and limited an extent, that without compromising her existence she cannot hike part in Eurooean wars. Neutra lity, therefore, is not only a necessity but the very element of its vitality. Happily, that neutrality is at the same time in the interest of the Powers which neighbour Swit zerland, and this has been the opinion of men best qualified to form one from their experience in military stra‘egy, such as Napoleon and the Archduke Charles." It is the act of Victor Emmanuel which has affected the vitality of that ancient Republic, and upon that ground I shall never cause to condemn the policy of Victor Emmanuel and the French Emperor. (Hear, hear.) But when I see Victor Emmanuel now at the head of the Italian move ment, I am not so mean spirited as to crude him success in his great undertaking. (Hear, hear.) Ido rejoice to see him in the position which he now holds—the guardian of the interests of Italy, and called upon to fulfil a task than which there never was a nobler, and which I fervently hope he may bring to a speedy and successful termination. (Hear, hear.) He has to do with men of different ideas, and I can do no better than quote the noble words of Count Cavour to Baron Schleinitz in November last : " Europe ought not to lose sight of the fact that the Sar dinian Government is in Italy the sole, Conservative power capable of raising a rampart against the revolutionary ele ment and of subduing it. We are Italy, we act in her name, but we are also the moderators of the national move ment. We are the representatives of the monarchical prin ciple, which in Italy had disappeared, convulsed by popular vengeance." That was a noble expression on the part of Count Cavour of his policy and that of his King, and a vindication to Europe of their position. And who has that King now to deal with ? He has to deal with a people who have been ground down by the effect of successive revolutions, who are rty fet tered by the triple bond of tyranny, ignorance, o and f low seeking to —for ignorance is poverty, and tyranny men, who have been so ground down, see among the na tions themselves, to enrol themselves of their national snot tags. of Europe, to acquire possessions iration ? Is it not tage. (Hear.) Is not this a nobleorta (ft. b { l oth. These the people of this an effort deserving the moral supp that have been manifested tial disturbances and disaffection No doubt there have been in some districts of the country. d on the borders of the Roman disturbances in Calabria, one,an is it to be wondered at that si country ? (Hear.) Allusions have been made to the par- States ; but, I ask an av y been poisoned by the long continu ance of their miseries h alitv of their success ? (Hear.) should even in the moment of vic tory, almost to say that success is no dream, no fanci- But I am happy people whose d l o i ideal scheme of a few hot-headed conspirators; feel vision, no a real Italy—gained by the unaided exer tions is a reality — the people and theheroic deeds of a man who is tions of not pirate, as he was called by the hon. member for Duns lives of t alk e , but one distinguished for his patriotism, and who has undoubtedly excited the admiration of all the nations of the world. (Hear.) At length, lam happy to say, liberty ia dawning upon Italy. Lord Malmesbury recently advised the Italians to " trust to themselves a n d t o no one else for their liberty." That is true. I have myself seen the Aus trian prefets and the mannikin despots who ruled over the small States of Italy, and I have often asked myself— " Does she always intend that a tyrant shall print The footsteps of slavery there ?" No I Italy is breaking her shackles and rallying round a constitutional Sovereign and the standard of liberty. That is a noble destiny for a nation. (Cheers.) She will have many difficulties to contend against; one of them I will name, and it is one to which I wish to direct the attention of the hon. gentleman (Sir G. Bowyer). 'We must recollect that the movement now going on in Italy is not merely a result of political feeling; the regeneration of Italy has a higher cause. Were it merely a political movement even now I should doubt of a full amount of liberty being realised. And why ? Because, over and over again, political move ments with the plea of nationality have been organised, and they have failed. But the present movement for the regene ration of Italy is a religious movement. (Hear, hear.) The political and the religious impulses are acting together. Fanaticism and the mummeries of superstition are giving way before a spirit of toleration.' (Hear, hear.) That will be a great blessing. The hon. member for Limerick, 1% 1 0 is net exactly an advocate of the Protestant Alliance, but rather (laughter)—observed to me the other evening, duri n g 1 r rather to be regarded as a friend to monastic ascet _ discussion, that an attempt to open a Protestant chapel t i m t. Bologna had been prevented by the people wing C