The Sun. — London, England, 1861-02-23 00:00:00

DITION. SUN OFFICE, Six o'clock. AMERICA. The following are further extracts from the NeW York Herald of Feb. 9 : THE ATTACK ON FORT SUMTER EXPECTED TO BE MADE ON WEDNESDAY NEXT. Washington, Feb. 8, 1861. Col. Rayne and Li,iut. Hall, the joint representatives of South Carolina, and Major Anderson, left this morning for Charleston. Lieut. Hall has had the final instructions of the Secre tary of War to Major Anderson for several days ; but has delayed his departure because Col. 'Jayne was not ready. Up to a very late hour last eveninc , the latter had decided that he would not leave for several days yet ; but for some cause he suidenly changed his mind, leaving much work for Lieut. Hall to execute at a late hour last night. As late as midnight Lieut. Hall was holding an interview with Mr. Holt. Secretary of War. He had previously called upon the President and Secretary Dix. Col. Hayne's sudden decision last night to leave here this morning was un doubtedly in consequence of late advices from Charleston, to the effect that the populace are ungovernable, and are determined to attack Fort Sumter, no matter what over tures the federal administration here may make. I am satisfied from positive information received direct from Charleston, that the attack has only been t postponed ac complish d until they can erect a sufficient number ofbater their purpose, and the moment that is done theywill open fire upon Fort Sumter without reference toany thing that Col. Hayne may be doing here. His hasty re • turn undoubtedly has reference to this state of things. If a fight is to be precipitated, there having been no yielding to-the demands of South Carol i na, he desires to make the attack in a formal official way , an d not allow it to be made by a disorganised mob. The time for withholding reinforcements to Major Ander derson will cease the moment Lieutenant Hall returns to Fort Sumter. I learn trom a reliable source that Wednesday next has been fixed upon as about the time when the secessionists will be ready to commence the assault upon Fort Sumter. Four or five ships belonging to the Gulf squadron will soon return to Northern ports, most of them to New York. The impression here among gentlemen who are well ac quainted with the subject is, that no apprehension need be entertained relative to an immediate attack on Fort Sum ter, as that question will be referred to the Southern Con gress; meanwhile the South Carolina authorities will keep stricter guard of the coast to intercept any attempt to rein force Major Anderson; all domestic supplies and mail faci lities are to be denied, and every possible means taken to weaken and starve out the garrison. Major Anderson has written to Senator Crittenden, rela tive to the charge that on his movement in retiring from Fort Moultrie to Fort Sumter he took the act initiative of a declaration of war. Major Anderson furthermore declares that if he had been, or is, attacked under his present in structions, he will defend the fort to the last ; and, before he will surrender he will blow up the works. Washington, Feb. 8, 1861. It is reported here to-night, that New York bankers have decided not to loan money to the Government unless pre sent difficulties are settled. RESIGNATIONS IN THE HOME SQUADRON. A correspondent at Vera Cruz, writing on the 20th inst., states that Paymaster Clarke and Surgeon Grafton, both of Arkansas, and now in the Home squadron, have sent in their resignations, and asked to be relieved at once. Lieutenants Rutledge, Porcher, Ingraham and Evans, of South Carolina, and Midshipman Read, of Mississippi, have done the same. Flag Officer Prendergrast has for warded their resignations, but refuses to allow them to return them. These officers have represented to him that the Union is dissolved, and that they cannet and will not serve under a flag that is hostile to the South Commodore. Prendergrast, although a Kentuckian by birth, adheres to the Central Government, and will probably throw every obstaclo in the way of Southern officers leaving the service. A STANDING ARMY FOR VIRGINIA. A bill is now pending before the Legislature which au thorises and directs the Governor to raiso and organise a military force of not less than 10 nor more than 20 thousand men, to be called the Virginia State Guard, which are to be organised like corresponding corps in the United States army, and to be governed by the same regulations and ar eieles of war. The bill empowers the Governor to com mission (with the advice and consent of the Senate) a per son of suitable military experience and qualification as com mandant, with the title of major-general, who shall have charge of all tha forces of the State while in actual service. The officers are to enlist to serve a term of years, and, as enlisted, if not previously competent, are to be placed at a school of practice to be conducted under the orders of the Major-General -in-Chief. ARKANSAS. A despatch to the Memphis Enquirer, from Little Rock, Arkansas, says the United States troops at the outposts of the western frontier of the State, and in the Indian Nation, have all been recalled from winter quarters to reinforce the garrison at Fort Smyth and the United States arsenal in Little Rock. The arsenal is one of the richest depositories of military stores in the United States, and this is supposed to be the ultimate destination of all the troops ordered from the frontier. GEORGIA. The Milledgeville correspondent of the Augusta Chroni cle states that an agent of a Belgian company is now on a visit to Governor Brown, and that he will negotiate to sup- ply Georgia with any quantity of arms. SECESSION IN MISSOURI. A correspondent from St. Louis, Missouri, writes that he has recently travelled over three-fourths of the State upon a collecting tour, and has had many opportunities for ascertaining correctly the political sentiment of the people. lie is satisfied that not only is the disunion sentiment ra pidly increasing, but two-thirds of the people now favour secession, unless a compromise be adopted at Washington. In spite of the assertion of the Republican press, four fifihs of the Missourians are as pro-slavery as the people of Alabama. The census shows that the slave population has annually increased since 1850. Unless a compromise be a '.ipted Missouri will be the first Border State to secede. SECESSION PROCESSION IN MEMPHIS. Memphis, Feb. 8, 1861. There was an immense Secession torchlight procession to-night--the largest ever held here. Great enthusiasm was manifested. A SOUTIIERN SYMPATHISER SHOT DEAD IN OH] 0. The Zanesville Courier of the lst inst. contains the par ticulars of the shocking murder of Win. Wilkins, a few days previous, at Sewellsvillo, Belmont county, Ohio. The murdered man was engaged in a heated discussion of the national troubles, during which he earnestly sided with the South, and, exhibiting a pistol, expressed his willingness to fight for her. One of his companions, who had taken part in the discussion, requested Wilkins to let him fire the pistol, and upon his compliance with the re quest, remarked that if those were Wilkins' sentiments it was as good a time now as any other to make a commence ment, and placing the weapon at the breast of the latter, fired, the ball entering the heart and killing him instantly. No arrests were made. UNION SENTIMENTS IN TEXAS. A correspondent from Austin, Texas, writes that although secession is rampant inTexas, yet there is a strong, conser vative, Union-loving sentiment there, which, if properly nurtured, will exercise considerable influence. The Gover nor of Texas is strongly opposed to the immediate seces sionists, and wi:l in no way favour their schemes by advis ing precipitate action. Texas has gained too much by joining the Union to be willing to leave it if any reasonable com promise is offered to the South. At the time of its annexa tion Texas only contained 50,000 inhabitants. The last census shows that its inhabitants now number 415,000 whites and 183,000 slaves. The United States expends an nually about 2,500,000d1s in defending the frontier against Indian incursions ; and the experience of last winter shows that if the federal forces be withdrawn, the rich valley of the Rio Grande will become the prey of Mexican robbers and filibusters. No wonder, then, that Texas does not de sire to leave the Union if she can honourably remain. SPEECHES ON THE CRISIS. House of Representatives, Feb. 8. ' The house resumed th e cons id erat i on o f the report of the Committee of Thirty-three. Mr. HATTOF (opp.), of Tenn., contended, with regard to the principal question at issue—namely, slavery in the ter ritories—that question has been decided in favour of the South, and slavery was entitled to protection in the Terri tories. It was complained that these rights were not re epected, and upon this ground some of the States say they will secede, while others have seceded; but Tennessee would seek no such remedy for wrongs. She would deem herself humiliated and disgraced if she abandoned the constitution of their fathers, and helped to dismember this glorious Union. He protested against the State being dragged in the wake of the reckless and selfish leaders of the cotton States. Mr. KELLOGG (rep.), of 111., said that if the country was to be saved parties and platforms must be sunk and buried in oblivion. He cared for no party and no platform in the face of the momentous crisis before them, and his principle of action in this dread emergency would be that the Uaion must and shall be rreserved. No matter at what abandon ment of party or platform, so long as there would be. no abandonment of honour and conscience. The questions at issue were such as might easily be adjusted if they were approached with deliberation and calmness, and with feelings fres from the trammels and prejudices of pasty. Let this be done, and peace and harmony would once more be restored to our distracted country. Re volution, unfortunately, is a fact, and history has re corded it that six States, and perhaps seven, of the outer circle of the States of the confederacy have withdrawn their. light and brightness to set—unless they return as legal States—to set in that darkness for ever which disloyally to truth and freedom roust ever engender. The time has come when all men, North and South, must combine to save the n, sinking ou t o f s i g ht f o r the time at least all abstrac tions which had hitherto prevented them from clearly see ing Liao proper course which lay before them. Let them do this, and the sun would not rise and set five times until peace was restored. Harmony would once more spread her wingsand stripeso r will wave nation, and still the glorious old stars erased, not a line Me as ' bright eci and free as ever—not a star (Ap plause.) What werenutehhe difficultiesonthetwirahviceholpdrflevaagil. from whence did theyprevailed, and the returnin g of r , S i p t fing ? The real difficultywas not a Lea from labour, for in his State, and in all other Stater; ' w , l ,iv r e the question had been tested, every facility had been n to the execution of that law. Mr. Lincoln had declared' of his speeches that the South was entitled to an efficierfilikgitiyealave law. How, then, could they establish an upon this? No, it was a mere bagatelle, and had any to do with the ' the disruption of the present difficulties which threaten ' Union, as the question:was easy of solution. The didiculty arisen from a conflict of opinion betweeninstitution people of h th a e s the e ion l of slavery, North and the South relative to thi some believing that it was. a blessing to i benefit to the master, while the other, the slave and h w d ere taught to regard it as a moral and political wrong, and this co nflict of opinion would continue to ex i s t as long as the government shall last. Fifty years ago it was generally con ceded, South as well as North, that slavery was wrong; but since then education and political training had greatly changed the current of men's feelings with regard to this question, and now the opinions of the people cannot be changed. They might legislate till the tide ceased to flow, and yet the South would believe that slavery was right ; they might legislate till the sun grew tired of his course, and yet the rthera mind would retain the belief that slavery was a moral and politic al evil. This was a subject on which It was useless to legislate. Now , the proposition introduced several days ago was to amend the constitu tion as our fathers have before us. How was the question in 1820 settled ? A remedy was at once applied —a line was drawn between the free and slave States, saying that north of that line slavery should not be, but Bout of it slavery might exist. The result was that peace was 1. stored to the country, an undisturbed peace of 30 years, during wLich time the country devoted itsel f to the .dev. , pment of their natural resources. He further explained his proposition, be lieving that it would be the opinion of the American people in six months. He did not talk to politicians, as they are joiner to their idols. Let them alone. M r . f c zrnsworth (rep.) of 111., asked his colleague whe • ther he favored - lied that he would adhere to the line slavery south of the line ? Mr. Kellogg el ) „ with all its legal an,: uences. In further re -qu. Mr. Farnsworth be reminded lo,gical conseq sponse to a question tL, F : ) . voted for the ..Crittenden that gentleman that he (Mr: . embrac . ed . a provision to Montgomery amendment, white 11 %Ist itution, if the peo admit Kansas with slavery in the L. ple should so determine. ale would not so Mr. Farnsworth said he knew the p eo determine. *bat amend- Mr. Kellog resumed, sayingthat he voted for went in the full recognition of the princip l es it L-mbodied. He was for his country in all its parts. He did n,'t Dare whether his proposition was found in the Breckinn _e, Douglas, or republican platform. It was enough for hi -4 if it suits the country. (Loud applause.) sosaafif l et i ht r whe . ia S gttho m hivn i i: t r h tnhsm ( et o ae p utn p ent . l : ifoos o nou f .ll4 N onHn .C goet , acbs in oehn t eca h rlu e prida c egr o dth u y r tbs s t e :r o at f aihveh hi oode s neaso r tti e u.rn m ruge a wt r tie k hor s tlee , Crittenden compromise. IMPE DIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS.-(YESTERDAY. THE TIPPERARY MILITIA ARTILLERY. In reply to the Earl of DONOUGIIMORE, Lord HERBERT said he had certainly ne cause to com plain either of the noble lord's motion or of the terms and tone of his speech. When the offer was made to convert the regiment of the Tipperary Militia into a brigade of the Royal Artillery, he frankly stated to his noble friend ti t :ke difficulty in which he was placed, and which would oblige him to abandon the scheme under consideration. He con fessed he had heard for the first time that night, that his noble friend never contemplated that his officers should belong to the Royal Artillery. He would refer him to his letter of 1859, which, although it might certainly admit of an interpretation consistent with his speech, that interpre tation—he said it on his honour—never before occurred to him. His Royal Highness the Commander-in-Chief, to whom the letter was first sent, read it as he did, and was doubtful whether it would be right to give the officers artil lery commissions, lest it should create discontent. Of the men themselves he could speak in the highest terms of com mendation ; for, being at Chatham on one occasion, and observing how free their conduct-book was of any traces of crime, he inquired whether that arose from laxity of discipline, or from really good conduct, and he was highly gratified at being informed that it was the latter. (Hear, hear.) Circumstances rendered it necessary to recur to the proposition, and a negociation was entered into with a view to determine the nature of the examination which the militia officers should undergo previous to entering into the artillery. There were some differences of opinion on the subject, but he felt he could not be justified in lowering the degree of the examinations, which ought necessarily to re•• late to artillery service and artillery duties. The proposition could not eventually be entertained, for it would have given rise to the most dangerous jealousy on the part of a talented, highly qualified and susceptible body of men, some of whom returning home after distinguished service in China, might have found themselves commanded by an officer of the Tip perary Militia. Under these circumstances he felt that they had made a blunder in going so far as they did, and they preferred to avow it rather than endanger the public service. With regard to the noble lord's suggestion, that their decision was found3el on the resistance of the officers of the service, he could only say that the statement was altogether erroneous. The regiments were about to be dis embodied, and he was desirous of securing that body of men. He then referred to a letter he had received from the noble lord opposite, after which he put himself in commu nication with the Commander-in-Chief. He (Lord Her bert) felt that he had injured the prospects of the officers, and he was anxious to make them any reparation in his power, and the men who wished would be received into other regiments. He had now stated the whole of the case as far as required by the noble lord opposite. (Hear, hear.) The Duke of CAMBRIDGE said he was quite ready to take his share of the responsibility which fell to the Secre tary of State. The Secretary of State communicated to him that there was not. a sufficiency of artillery at home. On the Ist of April the militia were to be disembodied, and he had made up his mind that if this admirable body of men could be added to the Artillery, he was satisfied it would be of great advantage to the public service. There were 600 or 700 men, well trained, and fit to be sent to any part of the United Kingdom. His Royal Highness then read a document from Major-General Eyre, setting forth the admirable conduct of the men of the Tipperary Artillery, and their cheerful obedience to their officers, and that it would be a great loss if such a body of men could not be retained. Seeing, therefore, how well these men had conducted themselves, he was of opinion it would be a great advantage that such a body of well-trained men could be added to the artillery service, as they were in want of batteries in several parts of the United Kingdom. The arrangement was, however, given up, and he was ready to say that he had no desire to interfere with the practice that the officers of the Artillery should be well educated for their important duties. Still, in the case of the Tip • perary Artillery he was very desirous of securing the ser vices of so fine a body of men. He was bound to say that the officers of that regiment received the disappointment with the utmost good temper. After a few words from the Earl of DONOUGHMORE in reply, the subject dropped. CHURCH RATES. The Duke of MARLBOROUGH, in rising to call the attention of the house to the law relating to church rates,. said he thought their lordships would agree with him in thinking that it was now high time to endeavour to devise some plan by which this long-vexed question might be brought to a satisfactory conclusion. (Hear, hear.) The committee of their lordships' house appointed the session before last had given great attention to the subject, and although there had been but little time for considering the evidence laid before them, and the conclusions which they had founded upon it, still it was satisfactory to know that it had been the means of directing a large amount of public attention to the question. Its influence on the public mind, also, was seen in the fact that it had mate rially affected the majority in the other house, upon the bill for the total abolition of church rates. He might state one thing that came out before the com mittee of That house, which was that doing away with church rates would be a great injury to the Church. After referring to other portions of the evidence, he said that after the decision their lordships had already come to on this question, he thought he aright arrive at the con , elusion that their lordships would not give their sanction to any bill for the entire aboliti,u of church rates. As to the objection entertained by the Dissenters, it was not so much to the amount of the rate they objected as to the oppression resulting from being brought into the Eccle siastical Courts. The noble duke then referred to the evi dence of Mr. Toulmin Smith before their lordships' corn- mittee, portions of which he read at length. He proceeded to say that ho meant to propose that the power should be taken out of the Ecclesiastical Court as regarded enforcing the payment of tithes, and that the power should be trans ferred to the common law courts. He would propose this arrangement in the bill which he would lay on their lordships' table, and he hoped it would be acceptable in settling the question. He concluded by moving that the bill should be read a first time. The motion was then agreed to, and their lordships ad journed. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—(YESTERDAY.) LOSS OF LIFE ON THE COASTS. Mr. LIDDELL asked whether the Government had prepared any Measure for encouraging or assisting the construction of harbours of refuge on the coasts of the Unied Kingdom ; and whether it was their intention to bring the question before Parliament dur ing the present session, in accordance with' a' statement to that effect made by the First Lord of the Treasury on the 19th day of June last? The honourable member drew attention to the numerous shipwrecks that had taken place at Hartlepool, Shields, and elsewhere, and were ee -1 companiei with a great loss of life and property. He strongly advocated the construction of Harbours of Refuge, which he contended would ultimately prove economical in pre venting a vast yearly loss of lite and wealth. Mr. SLANEY hoped that if Government took the ques tion of harbours of refuge into consideration, the unpro tected state of the Welsh coast would not be forgotten. Mr. A. SMITH would be satisfied if the Government in timated its intention with respect to the parts of the coast which had been alluded to by the hon. member for North umberland. He could not help calling the attention of the Government to the expediency of employing the convict labour of Portland in the construction of a harbour of re fuge on the north-eastern coast. He would take that op portunity of asking the noble lord the member for Hastings (Lord H. Vane) whether it was his intention, as chairman of the committee on miscellaneous expenditure last session, to move for the re-appointment of that committee in com pliance with the recommendation in their report ? Mr. BLAKE said that in the interests of humanity rather than in those of his constituents, he must press upon the Government the necessity of forming harbours of refuge on the coast of II eland. The greater portion of English ship • ping going up and *down Channel passed near Waterford, which as a harbour of refuge would afford ample accommo dation for a large number of vessels. Many ships proceed ing from. America to Liverpool were wrecked off the Water ford coast, and yet by the outlay of a sum not exceeding £ 50 , 0 00 great facilities might be given to afford s h e lter in s tormy weather at W a t er f or d. Lord PAL M hon. member ERSTON—I can assure the house that her Majesty's Government are fully sensible of the great national im portance attaching to the matter which the has brought under our observation. (Hear; THE SION,I Loivr JoN, SAT URDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY '2B, 1861. hear.) We lament that so large AB. 'amount of property should be annually lost on our shore is- That, however, is a loss which falls on individuals, and they have means of in demnifying themselves to a certain extent by insurances and other arrangements. But we ler sent still more the loss of most valuable lives—(hear, hear) —the loss of some of the best seamen of the country, and that is a loss against which no insurance can be made and. no compensation can ' be obtained, and is, therefore, a dead calamity to the coun try. (Hear, hear.) But when we say that we are sensible of the magnitude of the evil we also cannot shut our eyes to the magnitude of the remedies which are proposed to correct that evil, and that which has passed in the short discussion we have just heard shows to what extent the demand would go. The hon. member who began the dis cussion confined his representations to the harbours of re- fuge on the north-east coast of England. Immediately afterwards another hon. friend of mine draws attention to the state of the Welsh coast. Another hon. member points I out how necessary it is to have harbours of refuge for tha Irish coast, and I have no doubt that my noble friend the mamber for Wick (Lord Bury) would be ready to insist on the extreme advantage of a harbour of refuge for the place I he represents. But those harbours of refuge would cost a very large sum of money, and I am sorry to say that her m - ,: , iesty's Government are not at present prepared to pro • pose t:. l Parliament to advance grants from the public re venue at all commensurate to the magnitude of the object in view. A. - !; the same time it is quito true that last session we did make a hedge that we would propose some measure this session, and my right hon. friend the President of the Board of Trade has a bill ready to be presented to the hou• e for the purpose of taking the first steps in this matter. The hon. member who spoke first urged that steps should be taken to improve existing harbours. That is a suggestion more within the scope of our means than the construction of new works, and I agree with the remark made by my hon. friend behind me with respect to the mistake which has been fallen into, of making these harbours of refuge too small. It is quite true that they are so, and that if you are to make - new hai boars care should be taken to make them large enough to meet all demands. As our shipping and commerce increase we must look forward to new de mands, but my right hon. friend has a bill ready, I believe, 'o be presented, the object of which will be to enable the Ex .thequer Bill Loan Commissioners to make advances both is England and Ireland to those who are willing to take money or: certain conditions for the purpose of improving existing harWurs. (Hear, hear.) The committee which the hon. nuebabe.. - who spoke first referred to made a propo sition which, I an/ afraid, has not been at all approved of, namely, that if the Government advanced money for the creation of harbours of refuge, the interest on part of the money so advanced should be paid by passing tolls. This is a proposition which, I belie 70, owners of shipping are not at all ready to acquiesce in. A bill will shortly be pre sented, giving to the Exchequer Loan Commissioners very large powers, for the purpose of making advances on easy terms to those willing to draw money from that source with the object of improving existing harbours. (Hear, hear.) is the case with regard to Rotterdam, to the consulship of which I recommended the other day a merchant of great respectability. The committee -recommended that there should be a classification of consuls; firstly, of those who should be never allowed to trade; secondly, of those who should be allowed according to circumstances to trade; thirdly, of those who should always be traders ; and fourthly, of those whose places should be abolished as va cancies occurred. I have endeavoured to give effect to that recommendation. (The noble lord here specified several appointments to the diplomatic service). Some of these changes have taken place under Lord Malmesbury and souse under me, and they show that there is no desire in the Foreign Department of the State not to give promotion in this particular service. Since the report of the committee of 1858 alterations have been made in a great number of places; 71 consular offices have been improved since July, 18.58. In many of those cases salaries have been given in stead of fees, and the fees have been transferred to the Treasury. This I think is the right principle which should be applied when places fall in. In 71 cases, therefore, these improvements have been effected; in 21 the consuls have been placed on a reduced footing. The increase of salary has amounted to £13,457; the decrease by abolition is £5,600, and by reduction, £3,400, reducing the net increase to £4,457. Well, there is a recommendation by the com mittee to which the hon. and learned gentleman seems to attach much importance. It is that with respect to consular students. But when the matter came to be considered it was thought that to appoint students to consulships would be placing young men of talent in a position in which they might remain a very long time without any chance of pro motion—a state of things disappointing to them and burden some upon the public service. We thought it better, there fore, not to adopt that part of the recommendation of the com - mittee ; but, on the other hand, there have been a great gmany of the lower class raised to a higher position. At the same time we cannot make an absolute rule even in this case, because vacancies fall in all parts of the world, requiring to be filled by persons possessing a special apti tude. For instance, the other day I received a deputation who wanted a consul at Abbeokuta, where a cotton culti vation is springing up. I believe my hon. friend the mem ber for 'Warwickshire was the chairman of one of the meet ings on that subject, and it is my intention to recommend the appointment of some gentleman to the place in question. I think I have now stated the main points upon which the committee reported, and their recommendations, and upon the whole we have endeavoured to keep to the spirit of those recommendations rather than follow exactly or ser vilely any one of them. I think the recommendations of the committee will lead to great improvement in the consular service, and they have already enabled the Government to do away with trading among the consuls in someplaces, and in various other places to give them an increase of salary. Her Majesty's Government desire not to increase the public burdens, but, at the same time, they wish to promote the efficiency of the consular or other branches of I he public service. (Hear, hear.) With regard to the correspondence which the hon. member for Bradford wishes to obtain, I have to state that I shall be most willing to give it, and it will be presented on Monday next, and I may further say that that correspondence is highly honourable to our consul at Charleston. He was placed in a position of great difti • culty, not being able to acknowledge the new Government which sprang up, but at the same time be did not neglect the interests of British shipping. THE CASE OF ANDERSON, THE AMERICAN plained of. The case was one arising entirely out of a treaty concluded, not between the colony of Canada and a foreign power, but between the Imperial Government and the United States. His noble friend stated in his despatch that Anderson could not be delivered up under the extradition treaty by the mere act of the law, adding that the case was one of the greatest possible importance, and that her Ma jesty's Government were not satisfied that the decision of the Court at Toronto was in conformity with the decisions which had guided the authorities in this country, and that in any case Anderson was not to be given up without in structions from this country. (Hear. hear.) No commu nication had been received from Canada since then, except the receipt of the answer to that despatch. With reference to the r, quest of the hon. gaulewan that the papers might be lid upon the table of the house, Le might say it was undesirable to produce them in their present incomplete state. But the question was not in the hands of any court either of this country or of Canada, but was in the hands of her Majesty's Government, and he thought they could not do better than leave it there. (Hear.) MARINE ARTILLERY VOLUNTEERS. Mr. NORTH asked the noble lord the Secretary to the Admiralty whether the Board persisted in their determina tion to refuse Marine Artillery Volunteers having facilities for practice afloat. Lord C. PAGET, in reply, said the Admiralty were not behind hand in their admiration of the Volunteers. The matter had been under the consideration of the Board whe ther they should comply with the request theyhad received to send one or more gunboats out to sea with Volunteers on board, in order that they might have the benefit of trial proctice at the great guns. It was fully admitted that that was desirable; but the Board on consideration declined to do so, in consequence of the expense that it would involve, which was very considerable. It would bo well if gentlemen who took such a deep and creditable interest in this matter would enc mirage men to enter the Navy Coast Volunteers, or else the Naval Reserve. The. Gofernment had certainly no desire to discourage the Volunteer movement. PACKET SERVICE. Mr. BAXTER, in calling the attention of the house to the state of the packet service, said he thought it right to state that ho was not connected with any party interested in the navigation of this country, nor with any steamboat companies; but he felt it was due to his own constituency, in reference to the very large sums of moneywhich the country paid for packet service, that the people should get full and fair value. The Cunard line of packets, for instance, entailed an expense on the country of £173,000, and the Galway line of packets, on the other hand, subjected the country to an annual expense of £78,000; in round numbers, no less a sum than a quarter of a million sterling, for this branch of the packet service. Now, that was by no means satisfactory, and it would be different if her Majesty's Government were to act with courage and decision. Then as to the competitive manner in which those companies performed their contracts, he did not think that the country ought to be called upon to sub sidise them. He was free to admit that subsidies might be considered necessary in such service in times past; but his position was this, and he thought it unanswerable, namely, that whenever they created competition on the ocean, those subsidies ought to cease. (Hear.) After a few words from Lord DUNKELLIN and Mr. GUEGORY, The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that his part was a simple one. He should not enter into a dis cussion of the general principles which ought to govern the conduct not only of Parliament, but of the administration with respect to this question of naval contracts. He agreed fully in the clear view of the case taken by the hon. mem ber, and on those principles the Government had acted since they came into office. He was asked what steps had been taken by the Government to compel the Cunard Com pany to act up to their agreement. He had received a re port from the Postmaster-General that day,'stating that the Cunard packet service was being performed satisfactorily. The vessels employed exceeded greatly the requirements of the contract, and they arrived and departed according to the agreement. He was not prepared to state exactly the sum of money actually paid to the Galway Company. He had been asked what were the reasons that led to the ex tension of time to the 26th of March, and if the company were prepared with a sufficient number of ships to carry out the contract at that period. He did not think the Govern ment were open to any animadversion on that point. The first official step taken in the house by the present Govern ment was to move for the appointment of a committee to in quire into the whole subject, and on the report of that com mittee the Government had acted. The Government were no parties to the original contract. They did not think it a wise or politic engagement, but after the report of the committee they thought it their duty to carry it out, and to extend, irrespective of any view of their own, every in dulgence to the company. It would not be fair on the part of the Government to exclude from their view the fact that much inconvenience had been endured by the company owing to the delay that occurred while Parliament was con sidering their case. (Hear.) On the 25th of October, the company made a proposal to the Government, that the ser vice should be only monthly until the 12th March, 1861 ; and that then a fortnightly service should commence. The Post master-General said he could only comply with this propo sal on certain conditions which the company, not beingin a position to fulfil, they requested, on the 7th of November, that the contract might be placed altogether in abeyance until the 26th of March. That application was considered by her Majesty's Government, who, although they thought it to be a very large demand, felt it to be their duty to accede to it, on condition that if at that period the company were not prepared to carry out the contract, it should then cease and determine. On the 24th of January the company undertook to carry out that arrangement, and they de spatched a ship on the 24th of March. As to any rumours respecting the transfer of the company's contract to some other company, he was totally ignorant of any such inten tion, and believed those rumours had no foundation in fact. (Hear, hear.) The motion for the adjournment of the house until Mon day was then agreed to at 10 minutes after nine o'clock. BURGH SCHOOLS IN SCOTLAND. Mr. DUNLOP called the attention of the house to the position of the teachers in the burgh schools of Scotland, under the law as recently declared by the decision of the Court of Session, in the case of " The Presbytery of Elgin v. the Magistrates of Elgin ;" and asked the Lord Advo cate, whether he intended to introduce any measure for relieving such teachers from the jurisdiction of the Church courts, to which they have been thereby declared subject, and generally to free the burgh and parochial schoolmasters from the necessity of signing the test of conformity to the Established Church. The LORD ADVOCATE admitted thatthe observations of his hon. friend were well-founded. In consequence of the decision of the Courts of Scotland the subject had been more than once under the notice of the house. In the pa rochial schools in Scotland, no one not belonging - to the Established Church could be a master. That rule only ap plied to county schools, the burgh schoolmasters not being subject to that test, and it was supposed with regard to them that the rule had fallen into disuse. By a recent judgment this had been found not to be the case. For three succes sive sessions measures had been brought forward to throw open the schools. On two occasions they were successful in that house, but unfortunately they were wrecked in ano ther place. Without giving any direct pledge, he might say that he intended to propose to the Government a scheme for education in Scotland, but it would depend whether he had better success than formerly if the measure could be introduced this session. CONSULAR SERVICE. Mr. DIGBY SEYMOUR. rose to call the attention of the house to the report of the Select Committee of 1858 on the Consular Service, and to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what steps had been taken to carry ' out the recommendations of that committee. The com mittee that sat on this subject recommended the adoption of a system of consular education and promotion, Oriental secretaryship (for which they had the excellent example of Russia), and consular studentships, by means of which young men, through a preliminary system of training, might be fitted for the efficient discharge of their duties. They also recommended that no man engaged in trade should be a consul, and that fees should be abolished. They also recommended that the number of vice-consuls should be gradually diminished, and that encouragement should be given to consular students to qualify themselves for the discharge of their important functions. It was recommended and adopted, that, in lieu of notarial fees, the consuls should have a fixed salary proportioned to the scale of expenses in the country in which they resided, and that a tonnage tax of one penny should be imposed on British and foreign shipping clearing out from any port. France had adopted a similar principle, but she exacted a larger sum from our vessels. The hon. and learned gentle man referred to the minutes of the Board of Trade of 1859, and complained of the Government setting aside the recom mendation of a committee of that house in relation to the duty on shipping for consular purposes ; also as regarded the privilege of consuls to trade. He would only call the attention of the house to one other point in the report of the committee, namely, that in which they recommended that young men should be taught the Oriental languages in order that they might be fitted for consular duties. CLEARANCE OF BRITISH VESSELS IN THE PORT OF CHARLESTON. Mr. W. E. FORSTER asked the Secretary for Foreign Affairs whether he had any objection to lay upon the table of the house a copy of the recent correspondence between her Majesty's Minister at Washington and the United States' Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, relative to the clearance of British vessels in the port of Charleston, South Carolina ? Mr. MONCKTON MILNES begged to state, as chair man of the committee referred to by the hon. and learned gentleman, that it was not the intention of that committee to levy tonnago':dues on shipping for consular purposes. And he must express his regret that the recommendation of the committee had been overruled by the Government, a course of proceeding which he conceived was very disre spectful to this house and detrimental to the public service. Mr. STEPHEN FITZGERALD said that, as a mem ber of the committee alluded to by the hon. gentleman, he could not allow that occasion to pass without making some remarks upon the observations of the hon. gentleman. The hon. gentleman complained that the recommendations of the committee of that house had been overruled by a sub committee. Surely it was the duty of the Executive Go vernment to attend to the organisation of the public ser vice, and he could not admit that the sub-committee, as it had been called, did overrule the decision of the committee of that house in one single item or particular. So far from over-ruling the decision of the committee of the house, the whole object of the sub-committee appointed by Lord Malmesbury was to give effect to its recommendations as far as possible. It was time the sub-committee made a re commendation on the subject of the tonnage dues. And why ? Because important evidence was brought before them on which they felt bound to recommend a plan to the Secre tary of State. He should consider a Government wanting in their duty who should not take so important a subject into their early and serious consideration. (Hear, Lear.) M INISTERIAL REPLY. Lord J. RUSSELL—I quite agree with the hon. gen tleman who has just spoken, that it is the duty , of the Exe cutive Government to consider the proposals made by coin- , mittees of the house with regard to branches of the Execu tive service of the Stale. Indeed, I cannot see how the Executive Government could carry into effect the recom mendations of a committee without going into them in detail, and seeing if they would,harmonise with the public service. The report of the committee is a very valuable report. Several ()commendations had been made, the spirit of which has been always kept in view by the Executive Government, and which had been carried into effect from time to time. At the same time, however, it would be impossible for the Executive Government,with a due regard to duty,, and without going into matters of detail, to adopt at once recommendations which might im pose a considerable charge upon the public revenue. We find in consequence of the report of the committee that Lord Malnaesbuiy very soon after the report of the commit tee stated to the Treasury that he had framed a scheme by which the condition of many of the consuls would be improved —that in many important places the salaries of consuls were insufficient and slight to be increased, but he added that the increase would amount to £12,000 a year, and the noble lord very properly thought it his duty to consider the pro position in detail in contemplation of such a large increase. When I succeeded to office I asked several official gentle men, and especially Lord Wodehouse, the Under 'secretary of State, their opinion with regard to the recommendations made by the committee. One of those recommendations was that consuls in the Levant should be British subjects. That recommendation we have endeavoured to carry out. (Hear.) There was another recommendation which would entail a very considerable burden on the country, namely, that consuls should not trade. I admit that the objection made by the committee on this point had weight, but there are many places where there is very little British traie. There you can get merchants of great respectability, but if £6OO, or £7OO a year to perform tle so larYoudguitvieestyhoe L u m pa s y o con siderable salary for ,veryvice. If, on the other hand , you offer £l5O or £2O O a year, lit ger you would not find any person of respectability to accept the terms. On the other hand yon will find men engaged in trade, men of the highest respectability, and who mix in the best society of the town, who would accept the smaller MILO. Such SLAVE. Mr. lIALIBURTON wished to ask the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies, for information as to the extradi tion of the American slave, Anderson, now in custody in Canada, and if he would lay upon the table copies of all correspondence that had passed in relation thereto between the Secretary of State for the Colonies and the Governor in Canada, and for all orders issued thereupon. He wished to ask for information respecting the extradition case lately under their . notice, which excited such great attention, and naturally so, from the sympathy all must have for a man in the position of Anderson. It would be in the recollection of the house that Anderson, being an inhabitant of the state of Missouri, in the United States, took the life of a white man, likewise an inhabi tant of that country, who endeavoured to capture him. The slave, having done this, succeeded in making his escape into Canada, but the relatives of the deceased man having sought him out, apprehended him under a law of the pro vince, in accordance with certain provisions of a treaty between this country and the United States. Under this law he was tried before the Judges of the Court in Canada; and—that he may not be misunderstood, or in a case which excited so much feeling, misrepresented—he desired to say that he offered no opinion whatever on the act of Ander son, whether it was murder, manslaughter, or justifiable homicide. Neither did he say whether the man was rightly or wrongly convicted in Canada, for in this ha had nothing to say for the rights of Missouri, or Canada, but to assert that a violation of the rights of the people of Canada took place during the adjudication of the case and before its final termination. An application was made in the Court of Queen's Bench in this country to bring him out of gaol in Canada, and have him brought to England, and the case regularly entered into. Now, in his opinion, there had been some singular features attending that trial in the Queen's Bench; and here again he begged to observe that he 'would make no remark disrespectful or derogatory to the judges of that court, whose learning, great ability, and imparti ality, entitled them to command the respect of all, (Hear, hear.) He believed the country ought to be proud of such a court, and any remark of his to their disparagement would only recoil upon himself. But though they were men of great learning, they were not infallible, and appeals from their decisions had been made over and over again to the House of Lords, by which they were reversed. Now in the case of Anderson, they evidently thought they were adjudicating on the terms of the treaty within their own jurisdiction. If such were the case one would suppose some reference ought to have been made to the law officers of Oho Crown as to the nature of the applica tion, and that the Attorney-General, with that great 'cal ning, ability, and impartiality, which he brought before evsry tribunal, would have been present. But instead of that, the application was made on behalf of a private party, and on the affidavit of a man with an unpronouncable name, whom ho believed to be a Pole, the case was put as a simple one of habeas corpus, and several precedents were cited, not at all applicable to the subject. This writ was issued to the jailor of the prison where the man was confined, as well as to the Governor-General of Canada He (Mr. Haliburton) believed that if the Attorney- General had glade the application, the decision would not have been what it was; but at all events it was one which created the greatest consternation among the people of the province. They complained, and in his opinion they were right, of a gross violation of their constitutional rights. No doubt the Court founded their adjudication on the treaty, hut the highest authorities in Canada denied the right of this country to bind them by a treaty. They had a judicature of their own, and a Legislature. They had a Court of Appeal, and the only way to set the Judges right was by an appeal in this country from their decision to her Majesty in council. That was the lawful and constitutional in Canada, but the idea of sea ling ou t a out of a he tt hecountry,m con and and from o f t h e under Queen'sth e jurisdictionto take e am appealing ofits n courts, Bench in this country, was preposterous. The indepen dence of the country was totally gone, and the constitu tional rights of the people invaded. He wished for his own part the proceedings had not been conducted illegally; because, after all, it would be very humbling for the officer to go out with his writ, and to receive such an answer as he would undoubtedly get. He will come home with his writ again just as he went out, and it was on that account he felt sorry for the irregular proceedings which had been adopted. 'rho fact was, that people in this country knew there was such a place as Canada, but that was all. It was just like his knowing Guernsey and Jersey but not Sark, because he never had been there. It was said the Duke of Newcastle, as Colonial Minister, sent out an order, but he should like to know by what authority he did so, and it was for that reason he wished to see the corre spondence ram 4 Le table. The noble duke was hi Canada last summer and saw the noble reception and heart felt enthusiasm with which the Prince of Wales was greeted, and he must know that such a people were not those who:would put up with a slight or an insult. With respect to this extradition, ho wished, in conclusion, to know whether the opinion of the. Crown officers had been taken; and also, whether all papers and correspondence referring to it would be laid upon the table of the house? Mr. CHICHESTER FORTESCUE said the house would not expect him to follow the hon. and learned gen• tlernan into all the subjects upon which he had touched in his speech. With reference to the conduct of the Duke of Newcastle, in his dealings with the Orangemen, he was glad to learn from the hon. =ember that an opportunity would be given to his noble friend to justify himself in anethor place. But the hon. gentleman had spoken to night in a tone of complaint which ho trusted would not be echoed in Canada, with reference to the efforts made for procuring to the fugitive Anderson the full and fair con firmation of his rights. The hon. member alleged that two invasions of Canadian rights had taken place; but that was a mistake. Ho did net conceive it to be his duty on the present occasion to enter into any discussion with re ference to the propriety of the Court of Queen's Bench issuing a writ of habeas corpus ; and if they had power to do se, whether such ought to be the state of the law. The action o f th e G overnmen t in the matter simply amounted to this :—A despatch was sent to the acting Governor-General in Canada, instructing him to be guided in his adion by his Canadian law advisers. The other allied invasion consisted in this — that his noble friend the Dike of Newcastle, with a promp titude which he had no doubt the country appreciated— (hear, hear)—dispatched those instructions of which the house was informed a fewlays ago by the noble lord at the head of the Government. It was a mistake to suppose that the effects of the judgraen in the Canadian Court was the giving up of Anderson to he United states authorities, for it only sent him back to pison. It was not within the pro vince of any "court in Cicada to deliver up a person to a foreign state, as Chief Julie° Robinson himself admitted. Hence it was that Andorsn could only be surrendered by a warrant under the hsnd tad seal of the Governor-General, and it. was with a knowSelge of-that fact that his noble friend had thought it neessary to send these instructions ' to the Covernor-(genoral)f Canada which had been com • RETURNS ORDERED. On the motion of Sir J. PAKINUTON the following re turn was ordeted :—Returta of the number of seamen and boys who deserted from the Royal navy between the Ist day of January, 1858, and the 30th day of September, 1860, inclusive. On the motion of Mr. LYG ON the following return was ordered :—Copies of two letters, dated the sth of December, 1857, and the 16th of February, 1858, with any plans re ferred to therein, from Sir It. Bromley, K.C.8., to the se cretary to the Commissioners of Public Works, relative to the concentration of the public offices, and of any replies thereto. MARRIAGE LAW AMENDMENT. Mr. M. MILNE S moved to bringin a bill to legalise mar riage with a deceased wife's sister. He apologised for in troducing a question which had been six times before the house, on the ground that it affected the happiness of thou sands of persons. He would not enter into the historical discussions connected with the measure, but would reserve them for the second reading. He would simply refer to the state in which the law was left by what was called Lord Lynd hurst's bill of 1835 ; but it was alibel on that noble lord to call it by his name ; for the measure which he introduced was simply a bill to limit the time within which those marriages might be disputed, and the measure was of a very different character when it left the house. (Hear.) Perhaps he hal as great a right as any one to introduce this measure ; for he had presented petitions from places in the county of York in favour of it, signed by no fewer than 55,434 pet sons—(hear, hear)—and of those, above 21,000 were of that sex who, it had been said, were to a woman opposed to the bill. (Hear, hear.) Of the petition on the other side which had been presented to the House of Lords by the Bishop of Oxford, said to be from the women of Eng land, an immense proportion of the signatures were written apparently in a man's handwriting. (Hear.) It was impos sible to deny that this was a question which affected the happiness of numbers of homes. The law had been left in a state not only contrary to the public sense ofjusticc, but of levalue Thacesty,ArriAgpa had gone on ever since the time of Ileury VILE., without any doubt as to their propriety. While a marriage of an incestuous character would at once have been made the subject of a suit in the ecclesiastical courts, these: marriages frequently occurred, without scan dal and without injury; and from the inquiries of the com !, mission in 1832 it appeared that there was hardly on reeord a single case iu which an action had been brought in con ! sequence of such marriages. The inference was that there was something special in those marriages, that they were I not repugnant to the ,reason and feelings of a Christian people, and that, whatever might be the condition of the law, it was thought that they might be contracted without any injury to society. It was impossible to determine what was the number of these marriages. That eminent divine, Dr. Adam Clarke, stated that in the Methodist body a large number of the preachers had contracted those marriages, without any scandal to their congregations. Those mar riages had been frequent, and the slate of the law was not unsatisfactory until t here arose that celebrated case of one noble family which brought this matter before public con sideration, while hundreds, and perhaps thousands of those marriages were taking place in other ranks of life. (Hear, hear.) The effect of the change of the law in 1832 was only to the advantage of that noble family, and a very few others, and to the disadvantage of the mass of the community. The law had begun, in injustice, in that discrin.ination between classes which was repugnant to the sense of Englishmen, and which he hoped would never be considered a sound basis for the laws of this or any other country. The effect of that law was to declare that per sons who had been married up to a certain day were legally married—that the children born up to a certain day were legitimate ; but that afterwards those marriages were inces tuous, end that the children born of them were bastards. Ile proposed to legalise these marriages in a simple form, which he trusted would not shock the most delicate con science. The bill provided that all marriages solemnised before the registrar should be recognised by the law as a civil contract and declared legal marriages ; but that no thing in the bill should affect the dignity, title, fortune, or arrangements dependent on the present state of the law. He slid not think that Scriptural objections to these mar riages weighed much in the minds of the English people. Twenty-one bishops admitted that there was no direct p•ollority in Scripture against such unions, and among them were some who were formerly the strongest opponents of the bill. The ecclesiastical part of the question, however, could be better discussed in the House of Lords than in this house. If the bill went up to the other house, backed by a large majority of the House of Commons, he thought the question would be very soon decided. It was his strong conviction that both in a natural and social point of view these marriages were some of the happiest which could be contracted. lie believed that the real and only question they had to decide was whether these marriages should be legal or whether they should uphold a system of concu binage. (Hear.) If any uneasiness was felt among a por tion of the people with respect to such unions, surely that was not a reason why they should perpetuate an injustice. He trusted that upon general grounds Parliament would ultimately adopt the measure. Above all, he hoped it would not be made a party question. He asked the house to allay the miserable anxieties which had so long existed on the subject, and to give peace to those susceptible minds that were disturbed in consequence of the present state of the law. In a word, all that he asked them to do was, by adopting the measure, to reconcile law and conscience to the British people. (Hear.) Mr. BUXTON seconded the motion. Mr. WALPOLE said the hon. member observed that he had heard that no opposition would be offered to the intro duction of the bill. No opposition, except in one single in stance, had been made to the introduction of such a mea sure, because when a member who represented a large num ber of people desired a measure to be considered, it was felt respectful to them that it should be laid on the table, and the fullest attention given to it. For that reason, if for no other, he would not oppose the present motion, nor should he have risen at all but that he wished to guard himself and the house from being supposed to assent to one or two pro positions which the hon. member had enunciated with per haps more latitude than he intended. He adverted to the act of that great jurist and statesman, Lord Lyndhurst; it really was not his act, but whether it was or not he would not stop to inquire; but he would inquire whether the hon. member's representation of that act, and the effect of it on the people of this country, was a fait representation. At the time it passed these marriages were what wore called void • able marriages, that was to say, that down to a certain time if n 6 person attempted to set aside these marriages, they were not void, but that it was within the power of interested persons as well as others, by applying to the court, to get them set aside and declared void, notwithstanding theparties had cohabited, and children been born. Now Lord Lynd hurst's act made this change in the law. It provided a re medy in those cases where marriage had been contracted, so as to prevent the bastardy of the children born after such marriage ; but instead of leaving the law in an uncertain state—which, with regard to marriages, is the worst state in which the law can be—it laid down a rule conformably with that which had been the rule of law and the rule of the Christian Church, that such marriages werenot in fact sanc tioned by the law of God. But his hon. friend complained, by an argunsentunz ad invidianz, that the law made a dis tinction between the rich and the poor—that it was a law in favour of a great duke. (Hear, bear.) He saw by those cheers that the distinction was felt to be sound. But was it so ? The law retrospectively declared that these mar riages should only be set aside down to a certain period, but not marriages contracted by a duke or peer, or any particular class of persons. (Hear.) These marriages were all placed on the same footing. Whether the law was good or not was not the question ; but he contended, without fear of contradiction, that it did not make a distinction between the rich and the poor. There was another point upon which the hon. member was not so guarded as he should have been. He said the bill was simply one to enable persons to contract marriages before the registrar. He laid down the proposition in the most general manner, saying that any person might contract marriage with any other, and that, provided the contract was made before the registrar, the marriage was good. Did the hon. member not assent to that version of what he stated ? Mr. M. MILNES—I propose to confine the bill solely to marriages with a deceased wife's sister. Mr. WALPOLE was glad to hear the explanation ; but the proposition of the hon. member applied to marriages generally. He used the phrase that persons ought to have liberty in this matter as well as in others ; and he ought not to have argued for general freedom unless he was pre pared to give a general power. (Hear.) If you mado a spe cial exception in favour of a special class, and grounded it on reason and morality, you might , substantiate a good case, but if you proceeded on the popular notion that there was to be no restraint on personal liberty in these matters, and that provided the contract was a civil contract a man was at liberty to marry what person he pleased, with the limita tion, of course, that there was no consanguinity between the parties to prohibit it, then see what a flood of immo rality you would immediately launch upon the people of this country. (Hear, hear.) He entreated the hon. member to consider the consequences of his measure, and to see whe ther, if it had passed, the Legislature would not bo bound to admit other marriages within the same arrangement. He should not argue against the bill on theory, still less on ecclesiastical grounds. The basis of his argument was this—that the last thing the nation ought to do was to alter the law of marriage, which was known to the country where it prevailed, especially when a moral and religious sanction, and therefore the best of all sanctions, had been given to it by the usages of the country, by the feeling of the people, and by the high moral state to which it had raised society. (Hear.) He should still more *depre cate any alteration in this law unless they were certain they could take their stand upon some intelligible principle,which should prevent them from extending the matter further thereafter. His firm belief was that they could not do this- His firm belief was that if the people of this country were fairly represented with reference to this question, they would say—" Keep the law as it is, give the greatest freedom you can, but protect the more provident who do not break through those obligations which, in point of fact, have con tributed more than anything else to the high moral position in which the whole country has been placed. Do not imperil them by imaginary notions of a general freedom to be given in these matters, unless you can prove upon grounds of mo rality that such freedom will not deteriorate the moral con dition of the people of England." (Cheers.) Mr. MILNES said ho thought he had satisfied himself that he had strictly confined his remarks to the case of mar riage with a deceased wife's sister. That was the subject to which, follov, ing the usage of the house, he had endea voured to restrict himself, and he had no apprehension that the provisions of the bill would be extended to any othor relation of life. He wished for no change whatever that was not required by some large body of public opinion in the country. (Hear, hear.) Mr. V. SCULLY said he thought this was eminently a question for the consideration of the hon. member's coun trymen, and still more of his countrywomen. He thought it was a woman's question, and that the house ought to be guided exclusively in the matter by the feelings of the women of the country. He had done all that lay in his power to ascertain what were the feelings of his own countrywomen on the subject. (Laughter.) They were unrepresented in that house, and he entirely surrendered his judgment to what he might consider to be their feel ings and instincts, for of course whenever a measure was passed in England it was likely to be extended to Ireland, and he had always found that they revolted against such a law. He had not descended into the lower classes of the community to ascertain what their feelings wero—(a laugh)--but ho should certainly take an opportunity of consulting the humbler classes of his countrywomen as to whether they did not still more strongly revolt against such a measure. But he should not presume to form an opinion on this subject contrary to the feelings and in stincts of his countrywOmen. (Laughter.) Leave was then given to introduce the bill. METROPOLITAN LOCAL TAXATION. Mr. AIRTON, in rising to move that a committee be appointed to inquire into the subject of the local taxation and government of the metropolis, said he merely desired to explain the grounds on which he asked for a committee. He feared the house had been lately so troubled with metro politan subjects, that they were not now desirous to have much of their time occupied with them. (Hear.) The house it would be also borne in mind had been troubled with another bill on the subject of local government and taxation in the metropolis, which was equally perplexing, and the question became more and more embarrassing. There was, for instance, great difficulty about the gas question and the supply of water, and about the state of the Thames ; and the Board of Trade had invited the house to take some steps in order to prevent the metropolis from becoming em barrassed in every direction by the operations of railway companies. It was desirable, therefore, there should be some properly constituted authority in reference to those questions. They had railway companies now creating ob structions in the navigation of the Thames. There were tolls imposed for crossing bridges, while they found that bridges crossing the river were being broken down. The Metropo litan Board of Works presented them with a schedule amounting to no less a sum than £15,003,000 of taxation and expenditure. Now, that was one of the great burdens which he was desirous to have a committee to inquire into. There was another point which he was desirous should be inquired into, namely, the question of local administration and juris diction. There wa , , fcr instance, one system of govern ment on one side of Temple-bar, and a totally different one on the other side. (Hear, hear.) He was desirous to see whether all those systems might not be so dealt with as to be brought into harmony. (Hear.) There was another great grievance as to the manner in which juries were summoned to serve. One man, for instance, living and carrying on busineis on one side of the bridge in London was dragged down to Guildford to serve on juries, and another, living on the other side of the bridge, was dragged into Kent also to serve on juries. He thought it desirable that these persons who lived in London should only be called upon to serve on Loudon juries. There were other matters which related to direct and indirect taxation, which were levied in London, and which it was:desirable a com mittee should inquire into. The City of London levied £60,000 or £70,000 a year in taxation, and no one knew by what authority the various taxes were levied. He should move that it be ono of the instructions to the committee to inquire by what authority these taxes were levied, and it was necessary also that the house should know by whom those taxes were collected, for what purpose they were col lected, and to what objects they were to be applied. This he must say, that no one had & right to levy indirect or personal taxes upon anybody when the parties were not satisfied how they were to be applied, He wished to have BIRT. COLVILLE.—On the 21st inst., H at S 42, Eaton-place, Lady Colville, of Cutress, of a son. Cuurrr.---On the 21st inst., at 25, Eccleston-square, S.W., the W if e of George Cubitt, Esq., M.P., of daughter. PAY NF.—On the 20th inst, at 10, Cleveland-terrace, Hyde park, the wife of T. B. Payne, Esq., of a son. MARRIAGES. ARMS TRONG—DENNE.—On the 21st ity3t.,...ltt the parish church of Littlebourne, Kent Colonel J. W. Arm s t rong, C. 8., to L aura , daughter of Denne Bernie, Esq., El bridge House, Kent. MUSPRA.TT—BAINES.—On the 21st inst., at Wandsworth parish church, Edmund K. biuspratt, Esq., fourth eon of James Muspratt, Esq., of Seaforth Hall, Liverpool, to Frances Jane, eldest, daughter of Thomas Baines, Esq., of London. the whole matter sifted to the bottom, and the ultimate ob ject which he had in view was that they should have an efficient local administration, and, above all, that a city like that of London should be represented fairly. He was de sircus to see an efficient representative scheme adopted, and with that view he begged to conclude by proposing his mo tion for a select committee in an amended form. Lord ENFIELD seconded the motion. Sir G. C. LEWIS said with respect to the Corporation of London, he might say that it was a subject which had been fully investigated by the commission, and though ho would not say it might not be possible to propose fresh changes in the constitution of the Corporation, he doubted very much whether any addition could be made to the facts already in the possession of the house. To that extent, then, he was ready to assent to the motion, and to anticipate useful results from it; but he did not understand that the committee was to hang up every measure of useful reform in the present year, especially one with reference to the coal duties, as to which legislation this session had become a matter of absolute necessity. Mr. LIDDELL said ho should have been glad to hear from the right hon. gentleman something like a promise that he would not listen to any deputations which might present themselves to him relative to the metropolitan coal tax until the whole question had been gone into and sifted by the committee. That tax was a most odious and unjust one, both to the consumers and the producers of coal in the north, to whose body he belonged. Ho had heard some un pleasant rumours abroad as to two parties who were very much interested in the tax. The corporation of the City of London and the Metropolitan Board of Works were strongly interested in the continuance of the tax. At the latest the liabilities to this tax would expire in MS, and the house ought to be extremely jealous of any undue influence by which the tax might be renewed. The motion was then agreed to. CLARE'S IRON VESSEL PATENTS. Mr. P. HENNESSY moved an address for copies of cor respondence which has passed since Nov., 185 g, to the pre sent time, between John Clare and the Board of Admiralty and the Surveyor of the Navy, on the subject of Mr. Clare's patents and plans for building iron vessels for the Royal Navy; and of similar correspondence with the Board of Trade and with the Treasury. Mr. Clare alleged that his plans of 1853, which he had patented, were those plans on which the Warrior and other vessels were built, and that the Government had not given him any compensation or fair play. He understood that the First Lord of the Admi ralty would object to the return, on the ground that the correspondence was very voluminous, and that it related to the subject of iron vessels generally. If that were the case, he should be willing to modify the terms of the motion, so that would it oomprise a return of the essence only of Mr. Clare's original plans, and of the decision of the Govern ment with respect to them. Lord C. PAGET conceived it to be his duty to refuse the return. There were no less than 80 letters from Mr. Clare ; and in the opinion not only of the Admiralty, but of the comptroller and solicitor of the navy, there was not the least foundation for Mr. Clare's claim. Mr. BENTINCK regretted that the return had been re fused, as this was not the first time that charges of a simi lar nature were made against the present and previous Board s of Admiralty. Without offering any opinion on the merits of the case, he thought there ought to be no objection on the part of the Admiralty to grant the return in the modi fied form which the hon. member had stated would satisfy him. Mr. JACKSON said this was a special case, and in jus tice both to Mr. Clare and the Admiralty the essential part of the correspondence ought not to be withheld. If Mr. Clare's plans had been used, then he was entitled to com pensation, but if his claims were without foundation it would be seen that his schemes were not worthy of consi. deration. He would not say what would be the effect on the minds of the public by the return, but he thought the return should be made. Sir J. PAKINOTON expressed a hope that the noble lord would accede to the motion in a modified shape. Lord C. PAGET said he would agree to the produotion of a portion of the return. Agreed to. POOR RELIEF (IRELAND). Mr. CARDWELL moved for a select committee to in quire into the administration of the relief of the poor in Ireland, which was agreed to. METROPOLIS LOCAL MANAGEMENT ACTS AMENDMENT. Mr. TITE obtained leave to bring in a bill to amend the Metropolis Local Management Acts. He said that the bill was similar to that brought in last year, but last year it was objected to by a committee of the house on the ground that it contained a clause which gave the Metropolitan Board the power of making provision for debts to which the board was liable. POOR RELIEF. Mr. VILLIERS moved for a select committee on poor relief, to consist of Mr. Sotheron Estcourt, Mr. Bazley, Mr. Ayrton, Lord Fermoy, Mr. Villiers, Mr. Walpole, Mr. Edward Pleydell Bouverie, Sir Arthur Buller, Mr. Keke wich, Col. Pennant, Lord Stanley, Lord R. Cecil, Sir W. Jolliffe, Mr. Lowe, Sir John Acton, Lord E. Howard, Sir G. Bowyer, Mr. Caird, Mr. Alderman Sydney, Mr. Lyall, and Mr. M. Milnes ; power to send for persons, papers, and records ; five to be the quorum. Sir J. PAKINGTON complained of so large a number being on the committee, and the inconvenience in conse quence which would follow to the public business. Mr. VILLIERS said he only followed a precedent, and, in point of fact, so many requests were made to him by hon. members that he could not aveid appointing so large a number. The motion was then agreed to. UNIVERSITY ELECTIONS BILL. This bill was read a second time, and the house adjourned at a quarter past 12 o'clock. COUNTRY MARKETS. LIVERPOOL—FEB. 22. There was an average attendance of town and country trade at this morning's market, and we had a limited sale for wheat, which may be quoted at ld to 2d per cental decline on Tuesday's rates. Flour was also a slow eale, at 6d per sack and barrel lower. Indian corn was inmoderate request, at 37s Od per 4801bs for best mixed American, and 38s 6d to 39s for white. Oats and oatmeal were dull of sale, and the latter 3d per load lower. Barley, beans, and peas at about the currencies of last market day. WAKEFIELD—FEB. 22. The supplies of grain here this week were moderate. To-day it is still difficult to make progress in sales, except for fine old English wheat. For barley the demand is not active, and at former values. In beans, oats, and shelling there is no alteration to note. Averages for the week . : Wheat _ 875 qrs., at 59s 311 Rye Peas Beans B4 — 42 s 10 Barley, ........ , 530 / 425; 1/d Oats — ........ —s Od EXETER—FEE. 22. A fair business was done in the corn market to-day, at about late prices : Wheat, white.. 6s 9d to 8s 6d I Barley.. 4 s 3d t o 5 s 9d Ditto red Os Od to O s Od i Oats 2s 9a to 3s Od Flour, fine, 38s to —8; seconds, 36s to —s per sack. CATTLE. There was a small supply of cattle driven in, and sales were at about last week's currencies. Fat beef,p score, Fs to 10s6d Ewes, per lb .... 6id to 71d Perk carcasea,do 10s to ilsOd Wethers, d 0...... 71d to 8d Sheep, per lb. Od t o —d Fat calves, d 0.... 6d to Oil Rough fat, 42d per lb. BRISTOL SUGAR—FEB. 22. The market has been more quiet this week, chiefly from the fact of consumers having purchased freely last week. There have been some sales of rum on a small scale, at prices about the same as those of this day se'nnight. [ADVERTISEMENT.] - Holloway ' s Pill s. —G oo d A ppet i te. —xcellent Digestion.—ln the majority of persons loss of appetite is the first indication of departing health—and should at once receive attention or actual disease will follow. For the cure of disordered digestion and liver complaints, Holloway's excellent Pills are probably un rivalled, certainly unsurpassed. The invalid will never experience disappointment or failure in the removal of hi s ailment by means of these purifying Pills. On reaching the stomach they immediately correct heartburn, flatu lency, and undue acidity ; they secure the secretion of perfect bile, and passing into the intestinal canal they pain,ge t irritation, y a o e i o t r o e i x t h s a n ;s t t u i o r a n. lca E t activity ty these rwithoutreasons n p producing o d Hollo way's Pills are peculiarly well adapted for a family aperient. DEATHS. CASTLEMAN.—On the 21st inst., at Chettle, Dorset, Edw. Castleman, lE Esq., dep.-lieut., aged 60. On the 21st inst.,!at M or d en, Surrey, Lance m CI Rs DAUTREY.—On the 14 thinst., at Islington, William Cox Dautrey, Esq., aged 77. 14 Chambers, Esq , aged 89. DYsox.—On the 20th inst., at 5, Lower Berkeley-street, Portman-square, General Dyson, Colonel 18th Bombay N.I. LAZARUS.—On the 20th inst., at 35, Norfolk-st., Strand, Benj. W. Lazarus, Esq., of Calcutta, aged 52. SMITHERS.—On the 19th inst., at Greenwich, theßev. Dr. W. C. Smithors, aged 65. LONDON : Printed and Published by MURDO YOUNG, at No. 112, Strand, Printer, at THE SUN Office, No. 112,Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the County of Middlesex, Saturday, February 23, 1861.