The Sun. — London, England, 1847-06-11 00:00:00

..../ the lead that ould e in to The opi n i on o f t h e j u d g es on this que: tien was • " 3 be taken into consideration, for he d:d not agree with What es -, was said of these learned functionaries, - " ul e'Y, that their opinion was not to be valued, because they were men cf such microscopic w e that they could not comprehend any !treat subject. Ail t he Judges, s e eV( d, 1 seith ir- c Perr ' Perris, were favonr c t dared th at re no description r, of impei- ,, ohi , 9 wcient substit u t e f or transportation. The :len. Member jthusenticqe vvrig quoted the expressed opinion of Lord Denman, Mr. Inman, Mr. Justice Erle,and the Scotch Judges Who deprecated the abolition of transportatieti. Le Ireland to w hi c h h e wou ld now come , ther e was no part o ' the United Kingdom where the operation of this IDeacleasure would be so injurious, se'eere the punish ofMee transportation was so tench dreaded. The Irish Judges had expressed their opini en very strop, in favour of transportation In short, to his mind, no opinion could be so censlusive a gainst imprison me nt as th e opinion of Chief Justice e nnefather. He is not merely opposed to imprisen theut, but equally agaiust the system of solitary . impri a°lllnelit. Solitary imprisonment was, above all, hideous Bud odious to human nature. He had seen the model Priso n of Philadelphia, and it disgusted him. The syst em was tried in England with every effort to make it succeed, and yet what had been the consequences ? 1)r. °-93' and his colleague report, as the consequences of t he system, most evident symptoms of incipient insanity, the first appearance of the mind yielding beneath the' treatment. In many instances these synaptomi had been matured into confirmed insanity. This system had been established in almost every state in America ; it was popular upon its introduction ; but after having been !Lied, it w as a l most un i versa ll y a b o li s h e d i n favour of the s t ' lt e en nt system. He regretted to hear the Secretary of .5... ""' Say that the G ov e r nment had determined to adopt a mode O f p un i s h men t the most horrible to itc h , and suc h as h uman na t ure could not Ou Pport, Why, he asked, if they were to ;VOW the examp l e o f A mer i ca , s h ou ld t h e y b eg in at the e rla ng end? Why s h ou ld thi s c o un try n o t pi ofit by the th l o P! r ience of America? He had quoted the opinions of Judges upon the other system, how did they speak in r e f erence to the silent system? Thirty-one judges had • i firt e u consulted; twenty-three said they had no means 01 rg i ng of the system; four were adverse, and four spoke t.cjavour. He was surprised that they could hesitate. bites facts before them were such as Pentonville exhi- 1 e "'"o, and as had been witnessed among the convict, - unt out from that prison. Often the physical nature was L rostr ated--often the mind was debased and brutal - . bl i e d , if i t was not b ere f t o f reas on entirely. t. i tust say, that wh e n such evidence lay upon th. ute, end when he had known of his own knowledge hatthe separate system had failed in America., he hopee h her Majesty's Government would pause before they eeeosed this silent system upon the whole country ; it 7, 941 done in ignorance of the insure of man. When if 3 d had placed man in the world, and had tested his a periority, h e said, " it is not good for man to be e s :l e • " • -- (Laughter.) He saw some Members inclined la ugh, ( he did not think that that was a proper way t reat the a u th or ity w hi c h h e had quoted. He consi kvalr that th e p resent propos i t i on was a false step which to b ees made; for a Liberal Government who beasted t h i legard the popular voice, for that Government to arbi lge trary a system against the popular wish was a most "al proceeding. The Right Hen. Baronet had e t th ne,d transportation to be only placing the criminal etd e disposal of her Majesty's Government. Let them sni t ) ; i tul agine a clergyman passing sentence upon a cri to at; let him say, you John Thomas have been con ottuticted o f a heinous crime, and i t i s my d uty to pass )°u at the severest penalty of the law, namely, to place at the disposal of her Majesty's Government. Would Woul d that be a most l ame an d lamentable conclusion ; ie Z tll d unsettl e t h e public mind. And if an Irishman tithe person senten ced, he would say, why such a pa ter il lle at is not worse than being made a chalk clerk, ge e is at the disposal of her Majesty's Government. 0 711eved t h at if her Majesty's Ministers persevered . the " Measure that they would forfeit the confidence of 1/ People. ther. ite • su s • MILNES supported the Bill; they had tried %ee l . Ysta til of penal punishment in the colonies under. it se Y as P°' 6 ible phase and they had failed, and th• ref. n ailitei; Wise in the Government to introducea 1 ee que ll believed that they had tailed in course. h o i t ee a the distance of the colony, and not from ans t he those in office. e he system of assignment would. w u e life -blood of the colony to its very fountain, e d o as the very worst possible regulation that could he tatir e d - -it was fraught with evil and ruin. mode might might, and did appear to be, a very admirable tati ec cf s getting rid of offenders in the eyes of toreige atut e i s e ' u ut they soon began to discover thet it let traps! hu t eiSsregard of theinterests not only of the colony itself the future welfare of the unfortunates themselves szprweould not detai n th e H ouse l onge r, hut conclude to tl sing his th an k s to h er M a j esty ' s G overnmen t for tion.attemptThere to ch ange t h e present s y stem o f tr a nsporta ' , tat te e Was one subject, however, to which he d mut to direct the attention of the Right Hon. Gentle lihattos Secretary for the Home Depertment, namely, 4 11 4 1 Waa to be done with those prisoners who ha , rem g o ne the full term of imprisonment, and were Y to b e discharged. The number of recomm i tta l s 141'42 11° st erroneous—many of the prisoners having been d ote ? to be re comm i t t e d four, five, six, ten, and a t ett ,' times, and there had been some cases when 10441olittals had occurred to the incredible number et °Cet te ltit es. Surely this was an immense evil, and should de v i e rY a considerable share of attention, with a view to atat e e 9 ° ll se measure for the prevention of such a One_ of things. He knew the objections which might rOught against him with regard to the subject, and oo lthat seemed to have some weight, was, that if they tl ll "oured to improve the condition of the criminal, ,„7,7_Y . Would make his condition better than that of those FlitlEci% theal d r i g n su g mma o el u nl e t t „sat however, premium ( e m u u ? o ls_St . l committed no crime, and would, in consequence, it particle of truth, he thought should treat those unfortunate creatures n En a mission of crime. bu th t e e y veaif were treated in the other world, whet ninetyone who and h a d n changed a w n d from repentant joyf o r theforthere was _ gh had his evil courses that , (Hear, hear,)never gone astray.— thi s would support the Government in *measure, and he hoped to see the day when some furtherc reforms of a more extensive nature would be in troduced on the subject of criminal punishment. irOution of ei al . • P. MILES said that it was net a question of the transportation, but of the amelioration of at Punish ment, w hi c h was i nvo l ve d i n the present Plt auk's , lie considered that the change, at present i ( s ) ,F os ed, Was a hazardous experiment. It became tie es ; 91 7, therefore, tor them to consider how the system he y!ahoy had one system carried out there in 1840. Cap Ili M acconochie had changed that system for one of fteZ tl ess and mercy, and that again had been changed th e ; "other superintendence by Major Child, so that h tu f e Continual changes prevented any plan from having e sth a fair trial. In some of these plans the effect was holder to exclude hope from the criminal, than t e by h,, (31.1t a prospect of his bettering his condition. old conduct. The Hon. Member for Warwick tr, an that t h e j udges were against the a b o li t i on o f s thPortation, but he was of a different opinion, and held n °tight he could show from the evidence which he )4his h an d s t h at this was not the case. The Hon. tuber then read the opinions of Baron Alderson. anon all o f Rolfe, Baron Parke, and Mr. Justice Patterson. Whom were of opinion that the punishment should ea carried i nto effect for aggravated offences and hid been more a more s er i ous nature. H e w i she d t h e quest i on in teue ea More car e f u ll y considered, and th a t it it wa ed to aboli s h t h e punishment of transportation, a th g t e d be en i ntroduced for that purpose. He thought t o 1 : 1 1 :oposed plan was adding the premium of cru. ee ee 9 „ common offences, and from his own experi rapr of the salutary effects of the punishment in liti on e esing crime be could not vote for its abo- Wh 4 ";*_ prayed the Government to consider " they were doing, and as long as they had free in to?_e,adent labourers, not to employ on the public works thuneted criminals. The Hon. Gentleman then quoted th e ons of the governors of several prisons, to show l e e 'fleet of transportation as a secondary punishment 0 , deterring cr i me . H e did not, however, approve the entire mode at present adopted, of carrying out u c Punishment of transportation in the penal colonies ; but notwithstanding the evils of the system, he thought t he punishment should not be abolished altogether. Sir R. INGLIS gave the Government credit for the best intentions in the proposed plan, but he regretted that this step should be taken without more careful c onsideration and somewhat stronger authority to sup- Port it than had been brought forward. There were thirteen of the judges voting against the abolition of the punishment, and he believed Mr. Justice Perrin was ni e ,? c lY judge who had expressed an opinion in favour 'a aboliti on of the punishment. The Hen. Gentle Zan, the Under Secretary for the Colonies had (rioted o s e DPinion of Baron Alderson in favour of the abelition a ns Te Punishment, but he thought that he (Sir R. 11. th") could show trom his evidence that this was not sael e r ' a HAWES said that be had not quoted Baron rson to that effect. 'att. R mas INGLIS understood that he had quoted him en u authority, in favour of the abolition of the punish jues,t: At any rate they had the opinions of all the wi t of England and Scotland aeainst the abolition, thue the exception of Mr. Justice Perrin, and even he t er :gUt there were tome crimes of an aggravated na- Rtheir_ulini,yregard to which it should not be abolished. agreed with the Hon. Member for Somerset wilts": that they should not, in consequence of the evils t i e _!u a r at present accompanied the system of transporta ot`l,ebolish it altogether. The Hon. Member for Man de ue ee t Sr had stated that his quotation from Scripture had th u g treated with ridicule, but he (Sir R. Inglis) thought govt tip Could undertake to say, that it was not at the quoin an the ridicule was directed, but at the subse revert 9PPication of it.—(Hear, bear.) He would now • again J u dges, an to the opinions and the practices of the pronounced he would ask could the kites legally ter ms ev a senten ce o f i m p r i s onment for the sa me Thi s II": hue as they did for transportation ? ! t would I tt y clu ght was the great practical difficulty. .atroe ueee u e been far better had this subject been havevu through the medium of a Bill. He would bee n n the prerogative of the Crown, but it would Cha nges More satisfaetery to this country had these W it t h ey ' ll ?, Proposed been embodied in a Bill. As it t he dot h , re now discussing the subject inferentially d etail aving any opportunity or power of altering tha of the proposal. There could be no doubt vi ce ki.aPtain Macconochie had rendered great ser .t.,bee p.‘tir)ni3thhole ou ( n )f try, tra i n. 7 ,v h rt i a s tio e n fforts to render en e t effective, and la failure of thecould not 'Jo late st his s existing system 41 t e en : a 9 Land hauri The free inhabitants of Van Die tsgo, Inn again th a e t— , a gainst that c i in F and again, pro-, te e ertmi nals . s and being made the depository of anstrators of ue a d ult: of this ceuntry, and the consequence was, abl the law had experienced consider tr u e ts d l i p_udty in carrying out the prevailing system of "4"911 ' R 9 wa* hardly aware how there could be a division upon this question, hut should it be decided that there could be a division, he should certainly vote against the measure. Sir J. GRAHAM said he had been anxious before to address the House upon this important subject, an:l he was on'y prevented from doing so by an ncei d-w• !-,•!. b!= fornAe posttioti. to it;.oat i his ,iihject, af,,l he tire, p Irnoulaly rtaxious •to tike part in this debate. In the very outset he must express his regret, that her Ma jesty's Government had not; brought forward this mi'as,:re in such a form as to give the House an oppor tunity of exla-essing• . a direct. opinion upon it. Now, with regard to the first clause of this Bill, which gave power to the Crown to transfer the convicts of Treland to fin , country, he most decidedly objected to it. The Lord Chief Justice of Ireland had txpressNl himself azain,t .t, and there could be no doubt that the clause w:aild prove highly injurious. What effect would im pris.nL.not hare upon an Irish convict; but, above all, what effect would it produce, by lettin , ,r • the convict loose upon society in Irelend after the expiration of his time of imprisonment.—(Hear. hear.) He entertained no less objection to the other clauses of the measure, and particularly to that clause which transferred the pa tronage and control of the prisons of this country from the Secretary of State to the Prison Commissioners. It would transfer the responsibility from a Member of the Government, holding a seat in that House, to these Commissioners, who could not he present in that House to give any explanations that might be required cf them. But these matters of detail could be disposed of in Com- mittee. v The real matter for - them was to consider the question of transportation (Hear, hear)—and here he could not bu! join in the reeret expressed by his Honourable Friend the Member for the University, that her Majesty's Govern ment had not brought this question forward in a more formal shape. Now with regard to this question of transportation he must admit that at the time he left °thee he felt that the period had arrived when it was necessary , to suspend transportation, at least he felt that the extent to which transportation had been carried for the previoue five year must necessarily be sus pended. He should, therefore, have been prepared now to support a plan for suspending that mode of secondary punishment, but the House was not called upon to consider the question of suspension. They were called upon to consider its abolition rather than its suspension, and lie certainly was not prepared to support such a proposal.—(Hear, hear.) Before proceeding further he could not help adverting to a most important topic, to which his Hon. Friend the Member for the University nad also addressed himself. What, asked his Hon. Friend, was the state of the administration of the penal laws at this moment, upon the due administration of which depended the safety of life and property in this country? (Hear, hear.) It had been the policy of modern times a policy which he approved of—to temper the rigour of the criminal law—to administer justice with greater mercy than formerly, and to mitigate the sanguinary ,pirit which once characterised the criminal code of this country. He might say, speaking generally, that except in the case of the crime of murder, capital punishment had latterly been inflicted on no criminal, but he could riot conceal from the House the fact, that in proportion to the mitigation of the punishment there had been a corresponding increase in crime. The entries which had been prepared by the Home-office, proved this. In 1829, capital punishment was remitted with regard to the crime of forgery. In that year the number of commitments for forgery was 321. In the year 1841, the commitments were 514, and in the year 1846 they were 706, showing an increase of nearly double. Tne crime of arson ceased to be capital in the year 1827. In diet year the number of commitments ere 31 In 1836 they were 366, and in 1846 they rose to 581, being an increase of somewhere about 60 per cent. Again, with regard to that remarkably at trocieus crime of rape, which ceased to be capital in 1841. Iu that year the commitments were 319, but in 1846 - hey amounted to 597, being an increase of 99 per cent. Now did not these figures conviece them that they ought ro be cautions in their dealings with this question of transportation ? The only secondary punishment that e mild he sule,tituted for capital punishment was transportation ter life, and yet the House was called upon to iiholish even that. What could they substitute for it ? Nothing but imprisonment and seh tary confinement. Bet in the application of selitary , ! ,1 1 ,finetnent there was required great caution and in -psction ; sod even then it must he viewed with some jealousy.—(Hear, hear.) lie had, therefhre, arrived et the ceneei-to r that life and property %voted be tem dered more unsafe than they were at present, if the punishment of transportation were altogether abolished, and he seriously prayed the Government and the House to exercise extreme caution in dealing with this matter He would wish, then. to ask, should a change like this e neide unless by Act of Parliament ?—(Hear, hear.) The Act of the 51). of George the Fourth did not place any prerogative in the Crown to change the punishment, but rather left it in its power to superadd imprisonment. What was the punishment that they intended to adopt if they abolished transportation ? Lord Denman, whose opinion had been read to the House, and who also spoke the opinions of his brethren, deprecated the abolition of transportation. The Justice Clerk, the Chiet Common Judge in Scotland, said, that he regarded the punish ment as most valuable; that nothing could compensate c ol - its loss ; and that it would be most prejudicial to contract the class of elf -flees to which it was at present circumscribed. He would not weary the House by reading the opinion of the Chief Justice of Ireland. ['he Right lion. Baronet thtn read the opinion, which stated that he had no obj, ction to employ ing the criminal upon public works as a temporary expedient. He considered that convicts of the better class, and those engaged in unlawful associations, appeared most to dread it. The plan, since its first introduction, had undergone a considerable change, for it eves contemplated at the end of the imprisonment, the criminal should be exiled under Act of Parliament, but since that part of the sys tem had been abandoned, it was useless to argue it far her. But very severe observations had been passed upon Lord Brougham for his speech upon the measure, but he agreed with Lord Brougham' and he considered that originally the plan was open to all the objections which he had urged. Such a system would have shocked all civilised Europe. Now, what was the change proposed? "Deportation," why that would involve all the expenses of a penal colony. They should have convict establishments, convict ships, and -convict superintendents. It they adopted the sepa rate system, they would not have separate cells to confine the criminals, for the convictions of even one twelve months four thousand five hundred separate cells would hardly be sufficient. But he would go on to prove that this plan was not new, it had been tried, had been found to have failed, and did not prevent crime by inspiring dread.—(Hear, hear.) and had also been condemned by that House, he would read to them the opinion of the Justice Clerk, who reported upon its experiment as made in Perth. The Right Hon. Baronet then read the words of the Learned .Judge to whom he referred:—" The separate system which was at first looked upon with alarm, has now utterly failed to prevent offenders from again committing crime." Ile had stated that the plan was not new, that it had failed, and that it was condemned by that House. He would, therefore, read the able report of the Com mittee appointed in 1832, to report upon secondary punishment, which condemned the system in very strong languace. What was the great evil of society in France ? W hy, this very system of secondary punish ment, which threw back the criminals upon society after the short term of their vuhishment. This was admitted by all her stet, smen and politicians, and they should take care how they adopted a plan which had been teund in other countries so prejudicial. lewould also show the House the danger of precipitate legislation. It was supposed that the great difficultV was the want of labour in Van Diemen's Land. He had received a letter from a person of the highest authority. who assured him that the want of labour was not at pre sent felt, and that in a short time the colony would be clamouring for more convicts. They might mitigate the sentence on those who had behaved themselves well; but what was to be done with those who had not? Would they imprison them, or transport them for life? It was a qitestion fraught with the greatest diffi culties. He had thought it his duty frankly to point out the difficulties; and he was perfectly ready to go iuto Committee with the Bill, and to sugzest amendments whilst it was in that state, if the Government would state that during the recess they would take the whole subject of secondary punishment into consideration, and bring formed a measure next session, with the view of pertna nentlr settling the nature of that punishment. He was desirous that the Crown should retain the prerogative it had liituerto exercised ; but, at the same time, he was most unwilling that the law should remain in an uncer tain and undefined state ; and , t h er efore, on this understanding he should support importance. tbe Bill, though he considered it of minord compared with the great question inv olved in this is• cussion. In bringing forward such a measure he wou ld gladly give them every facility and a i d in his power to meet the difficulties of the present moment. Mr. C. BULLER felt at any time and on e very suli ject great di ffi culty in arresting the attention of_ f the House in rising after the Right Honourable Gen tlema.n, who, on this occasion, ba d brought or ward his great experience to bear up on the questi o n before the House. The measure had been fully criti cised, but no lion. Member had suggested a better p la n. But surely no one was so able to deal with the _ sub ject so well as the Hon. Gentleman who was connecte d ed with the Government during the administration o f which, all the difficulties with which they were now deal ing arose.—(Hear, hear.) The late .G overnm ent sus pended transportation altogether, as it was exp ressly stipulated that it should be discontinued to New Sou th Wales, Van Diemen's Land, South Australia — Lord MAHON—Norfolk Island ? Mr. C. BULLER—Yes, it was also suspended to Nor folk Island. He gave the Noble Lord the full b e nefit of that, as he believed no one, after the accounts which had been received from the island, would wish to see trans portation to that quarter continued.—(Hear, hear.) It was also discontinued to New Zealand, as an express stipulation was made by the English settlers that no convicts should b e sent t h ere . W e ll, transportation being suspended to those places, he was at a loss to know to what place they could continue to send transports. The Right Honourable Baronet asked where they would find cells ? but, in reply, he would also ask where the Right Honourable Baronet expected to find cells for criminals during the suspension of transportation f or two years,as proposed by the late Go vernment ? He (Mr. Buller) did not blame the late Go vernment for the course they had adopted, but he asked the House to extend the same indulgence to the present Government as they did to the Government which pre ceded them. When:ho present Government came into office, they we re compelled, with ou t d e l ay, to dec i de on the course wh ich they would adopt, and he thought they acted wisely in acting as they had done. The Right Hon. Baronet said that secondary punishment should be brought to > n intelligible point, The present discipline slisided itself into two branches—imprisonment in this country, and coercive pueishment in the country to which the prisoner was taken ; and the Government must prove that the coercive punishment must be inflicted in ,this country, and that exile must take place afterwards. The difference between the Right Hon. Baronet and the GO vernrnent was this, that the coercive punishment should h 2 secondary ; but he (Mr. Buller) appealed to , au• thorities, to show that the mode of punishment inflicted in the colonies had utterly and completely failed.' It was true the old assignment system in New South Wales possessed much of the reformatory principle inas much as it induced habits of industry and self reliance. The assignment system broke down because it was found impossible to inflict any punishment on the labourer so assigned, the employers being naturally anxious to meet their will in order to obtain as much work as possible from them, and in consequence of this the convict became much better off, and more comfort able than the labourer in this country, Persons were induced to commit crime in order to get themselves transported, fully aware that in that colony their wants would be much better provided for than in this country. He would be a bold man who would now say that the assignment system should be revived. After the failure of that mode of punish ment, a system of coersive punishment was introduced— Port Arthur, Norfolk Island, the road-gangs, and other modes. Then, again, there came a universal cry from this country, and from the colony, praying the House to put an end to this system of things, and describing the horrible state of things which existed there. The revelations from Norfolk Island were horrible and disgraceful to the British name. Some of the Honourable Members who had addressed the House had stated in what mode this system of punishment could be carried out, so as to avoid these evils. The Right Hon. Baronet (Sir J. Graham) had said that the system could be better carried out under more efficient control and management. Now he (Mr. Buller) contended that no better class of governors could be found to perform those duties than had had the management of this concern. The really great difficulty of the case was the enormous distance at which the colony was situated from this country. It could not be denied that it was an impcssibility to carry out a system of reformatory punishment in a co lony 16,000 miles distant from the mother country. He said that until the remedy was vouchsafed to them, the convicts would be better attended at home, under the eye of the Ministry. They were to remember that this question affected only a very few individuals at home, white the arrangement of society was such, that the colonies of New South Wales, and their other penal colonies would suffer dreadfully from the infliction of so great an evil. This was the main ground on which he rested his objections to the old system; that it filled the colony with a degraded system of slave labour, and that at a disproportioned rate. He was perfectly ready to admit that transportation was a severe punish ment ; the real tenor of it was, that the pri soner must spend his life, perhaps, in some distant and unknown country, and if the terror of exile was the real terror of transportation, then under the present system that terror would be equally forcible as at pre sent. A trightful state of things had been spoken of in France, as resulting from the liberation of the prisoners from the galleys, and letting them loose again on society. But it must also be taken into account that the punish ment at the galleys was, with the exception of Norfolk Island, perhaps the most detestable upon the face of the earth. When her Majesty's Government had to deal with this state of things, they were compelled to adopt immediate measures, and it was necessary to decide at once what course should be adopted, and he thought that the course which the Government had taken was a wise one. The necessity for that due deliberation had been imposed upon the present Government by the course taken by the last Government. The proposed system, if' not a perfect one, at all events went far to remove some of the evils of the present system. Mr. FITZROY KELLY said, while the Hon. Gen tle/ea', (Mr. Butler) had pointed out many of the evils of the present system, he had altogether, and ha regretted to say it, omitted to deal with the question in its legal and constitutional character, and he (Sir F. Kelly) felt bound to oppose the measure in its every stage. The object of this mea sure was to substitute for transportation, imprisonment rf loth terminate period, and then emigration. They ware at present quite ignorant of the extent of punish ment which they were to substitute for the well-known Punishment of transportation, which was to be exercised iv the Government, without even the authority of Parliament. And yet this very power was to be exercised under an Act of Parliament, the sth of George IV., but that Aet was passed for quite a different purpose. and he was satisfied that no lawyer would stake his legal repute in asserting that Govern ment could carry out this measure under this Act. Had any high legal authority stated that this measure was legal. There was a clause in the Act of Par liament to l•ogalise transportation, and so far from its being intended that imprisonment or anything else should be substituted for transportation, he would show that quite the contrary was the case. Her Ma jesty's Government claimed a right, which he contended was not legal. He would appeal to the House whether the House should give its sanction to an Act of Parlia ment which was in its very nature opposed to all the previous Acts of the Legislature. The sth of George IV. was passed with the view of increasing the severity of transportation, and yet under this very Act Govern ment claimed the right of abolishing that mode of secon dary punishment. A good deal had been said about the history of transportation, but he would not follow lion. Members into that branch of the subject. It was enough for him to know that grave doubts were enter tained as to the legality of this measure without going into the merits or demerits of the punishment with which it proposed to deal. It was enough for him to know that the measure was disapproved of by all the judges of England, Ireland, and Scotland, to induce him to call upon the House to pause before they adopted it. But there was another difficulty in the way of the passing of this measure. It did not define the nature of the punish ment to be substituted for transportation ; and until an Act declaring what it should be were passed, no judge of this realm would have power to pass sentence upon any criminal whatever, who might have subjected himself to the punishment of transportation.—(Hear.) He was not prepared to deny that there were at present many cases punishable by transportation which might be punished by something less severe. There were also many cases punishable by death, such as murder and arson, in which the next severest punishment to that of death was necessary for the safety of society. Did they wish to hold out insto , Kl of the punishment of transportation, an inde finite punishment. He called on them to pause before they gave a sanction to such a measure as this, which was unconstitutional in all its parts. He should not feel himself justified in going into Committee on this Bill, but unless he heard a distinct pledge from her Majesty's Government that this should be but a temporary measure; he would oppose - it in its every stage. Lord JOHN RUSSELL said, no one in this House can doubt the great professional ability of the Hon. and Learned Gentleman who had just sat down, and if this question was one in which we had to deal with the legal interpretation of words, I would be sorry to dispute with thasstHon. and Learned Gentleman. But I must say that I cannot fail to express my astonishment that the Learned Gentleman who is so well acquainted with his profession, in which he has attained so exalted and deserved a position, should have shown such a total ignorance of criminal law in this coun try.—(" Hear, hear." from the Ministerial benches ) He thought that not many years ago capital punish ments, for a considerable number of offences, had been remitted, and yet it had been urged that such a course was illegal. And in the case of many of the sentences of death, although passed upon the prisoners by the Judge, yet the same Judge immediately after wrote to the Se cretary of Srate, representing that it would be advisable to extend the royal pardon to the prisoner. Again, w upon ;s i n : uashr r p: e em s hn p sed : ae e l rdf t to transportation, why, the Hon. and Learned Gent )t l o— em rth a e n, when Solicitor-General, took it altogethercu osmm bringing e f n or d t twh two the e. e alar ws_ transportation in(tLoauc ni years—(Laughter, contempt— (Laughter)—making poaut and Hear, (Laughter)—making void the sentences of the Judges, and not even breathing to the Government that the course he was recommending was unconstitutional and illegal.—(Hear, hear.) Sir JAMES GRAHAM explained, that before he lef t office transportation had not, been done away with, and therefore the opinions of the law advisers of the Crown had not been asked or given. Lord J. RUSSELL had then been mistaken on the point But remission of sentences had been practised during many years, and bad been sanctioned by the authority and names of the most learned judges. Now, nothing so well resembled merely detention until they could be transferred to a fixed place, where they could be employed upon some public work as this, and the Act went on to state that they should continue there as long as one of her Majesty's principal Secretaries of State shall direct, or until he could be transferred or become entitled to his liberty, or until his return to prison may be directed. There he was to remain until the time when his sentence should expire. What was done under this Act was this, that those sentenced by the Judges were sent to the hulks, put to hard labour ac cording to a regular system which was adopted; but at length a period of four years was fixed, at the expiration of which, if they behaved themselves well, they would, according to the established practice, receive pardon from fler Majesty, signed, as usual, by one of the prin cipal Secretaries of State, and then the term of seven years, supposing a person to be sentenced for that term, was not carried into effect, but considered commuted, by confinement in the hulks for these four years. This ,y stem had been carried on from 1824 down to 1847, and during the time when the learned and eminent per sons he had mentioned held the office of Lord Chancel lor, and during the time many others learned in the law— being the law officers of the Crown—it came down to 1847, when the Hon. and Learned Gentleman spoke ; and yet during all that time no one raised a doubt as to the practice. And here were judges passing sentences of seven years, thinking that every man would be sent to New South Wales.—(Cheers and laughter.) Well, it was the constant practice for Secretaries of State—of Lord Sidmouth, Sir Robert Peel, and all others who had held that office regularly —to set at nought the sentences of the judges, and to send the pri soners , whom they had sentenced to the hulks. His belief was that such was not the intention of the Legis lature, and that it had been carried out by the several Secretaries of State, the judges knowing what was done; and he (Lord J. Russell) considered that the Act was a sufficient authority for its being done. Then the Learned Gentleman said, " You are making a great change in the practice, and you nowpropose that there should be imprisonment for a certain period, labour on the t e H publicoand Learned Gentlemen called works, an d a ticket of o i t, to 1 r'e 2 , E , il , ' a s h distant 1 colony, instead of the ancient:system. Why, he must say, that he did not believe that the Judge considered pug SUN, LONDON, FRIDAY EV_ENING, JUNE 11, 1847. ' that the sentence would be carried out in all its inte grity, when the persons they had sentenced were sent to the colonies ; it was quite impossible to do so, be cause the assignment system had been proved, as his Honourable Friend had stated, to be a system of slavery; and at Bermuda the convicts were employed at hard labour in the harbour. One judge, on circuit, might sentence two persons to transportation. One might go to Bermuda, and the other to Australia. They would undergo two different sentences, but' the sentence of the judge would not affect either of them, one way or the other. That was the change. When he was Secretary of State, he put a stop to the system of assignment, and Lord Stanley, when be came into office, propounded an elaborate system of probation, conjoined with labour upon the public works. But the Act was not changed. The sentence of transportation, wherever carried into effect, as the convict by despairing of acceding to the assignment system in New South Wales, whether on the public works in Bermuda, or whether on the system of probation in Van Dieman's Land, whichever plan was carried out the sentence of the judge remained the same. And then the Honour able Gentleman had stated, and others had done so before, that they were to have another system by which a certain period of time was to be spent in confinement here—that the employment of some on public works in this country, and of others on the public works in the colonies, was not only highly unconstitutional but illegal.—(Hear, hear.) One system might be wiser than the other, and more efficacious; but that there should be any difference legally between one system and anothei was what he was utterly unable to conceive.— (Hear, hear.) And then, with respect to tickets of leave, the Hon. and Learned Gentleman represented that a person with such a ticket might travel where he liked; but a ticket of leave like the assignment system, was a system of s evere restr i ct i on by the colonial law, and by means o f co l on i a l o ff icers; it was a system different from e x il e or b an i s h m ent, it might be a good or b a d one, b u t it was not a system in which the sentence of the Judge had any thing to do. The question is one as to what is the best system, when the sentence of transportation had been passed, of carrying it into effect ; and having stated thus much for the purpose of vindicating the Govern. ment from the charge of introducing a system at variance with the law, he was content to rest the defence of the measure upon the speeches of his Hon. Friend near him (Sir G. Grey), the Under Secretary for the Colonies, and of the Judge Advocate (Mr. C. Buller.) He thought that the system now proposed would be an improvement upon the pre• sent system. They must, he thought, adopt some system or another. The state of Van Diemen's Land—the horri ble accounts which were received from it would not allow the late Government to continue transportation with the same prospects as those which attended it some years before. Being abandoned, it was obvious that they must have devised, for the two years for which it was proposed to suspend it, some means of employment for the per sons who would have in this altered state of things to stop in this country. The Hon. Baronet the Member for Dorchester stated that there were not sufficient gaols for the imprisonment of all those who might be sentenced to transportation. If this was so, then they must have some subsidiary means, as, for instance, work in the hulks, employment of some kind in connexion with the public works, or of such a nature as to be industrial and reformatory in its character. He thought that as many years ago they had taken away the punishment of death for various offences, so in like manner they should do away with the punishment of transportation for other offences. But that change was not to be done without great deliberation, and it would have been therefore unadvisable to introduce in this session any Bills doing away transportation alto gether for a variety of offences, or for clearly defining to what offences only transporta tion should apply. With these explanations he trusted the House would consent to go into Committee of Supply. It had been too much the habit not to con sider that while they were enacting that certain colonies should be constituted penal settlements, they were for getting that in transferring crime from their own country they were thrusting upon the colonists the very off scourings of society. Strangers were then ordered to withdraw, and the House divided, when there appeared-- For going into Committee 124 Against it . 76 Majority —4B CORN IMPORTATION ACT. On the motion of the CHANCELLOR of the EX CHEQUER, the House resolved itself into Committee on the Corn Importation Act, when a resolution was agreed to for extending the importation of corn free of duty to the Ist of March. The House resumed, the resolution was reported, and was ordered that a Bill be brought in founded thereon. BATHS AND WASHHOUSES BILL. This Bill went through Committee, and was reported. LEITH HARBOUR AND DOCKS BILL This Bill was read a third time and passed. STOCK-IN TRADE EXEMPTION BILL. This Bill was read a second time. COMMUTATION OF TITHES IN ENGLAND AND WALES. Sir W. SOMERVILLE obtained leave to bring in a Bill to amend the Acts for the Commutation of Tithes in England and Wales, and to continue the officers ap pointed under the said Acts for a time to be limited. The Bill was afterwards brought in and read a first time. It was ordered to be read a second time on Mon day next. OUT-PENSIONERS (CHELSEA AND GREEN WICH BILL.) This Bill was read a third time and passed. POLICE CLAUSES BILL. The report on this Bill was brought, up and received. PASSENGERS ACT AMENDMENT BILL. This Bill was read a third time and passed, and several amendments agreed to. HIGHWAY RATES BILL. On the order of the day for the third reading of this Bill, Sir W. JOLIFFE opposed the further progress of the measure. The operation of the Bill was to throw the cost of what were mere parish roads upon the public. After a few words from Sir GEORGE GREY, The Bill was read a third time, and passed. The other orders of the day were then disposed of, and the House adjourned at Half-past One. PARLIAMENTARY DIVISIONS. (From the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Commons.) THURSDAY, JUNE 10. RAILWAY :BILLS. Motion made, and Q ues ti on propose d , " That a Clause shall be inserted in every R a i lway Bill i n th e present and every future session of Parliament, pro hibiting the payment of any interest or di v id en d in respect of calls (except the interest by way of discount on subscriptions pre-paid, agree ably to 8 Vic. c. 16, s. 24), out of the capital authorised to be raised in such Bill, either by means of calls, or of any power of borrowing contained therein!"—Amendment ioroposed, to leave out the words " in the present and every," in order to insert the words " introduced for the first time in any," in stead thereof :--Question put, " That the words ' in the present and every' stand pa r t of the Question." The House divided : MAJORITY—AYES, 70. Aglionby, 11. A. Graham, Sir James O'Brien, S. Austen, Colonel -- Granby, Marquis of Ogle, S. C. Brune, Walter Grimsditch, Thomas Ord, William Bannerman, A. Guest, Sir J. Owen, Sir J. Baring, F. T. Hamilton, W. J. Parker, John Bellew, H. M. Hastie, Archibald Peel, Sir Robert Bennet, Philip Hatton, Captain V. Prime, Richard Bentinek, Lord H. Ilildyard, T. B. Repton, G. W. J. Bodkin, William H. Hindley Charles Ricardo, J. L. Burke, T. J. Hodgson,Jtichard Seymour, Lord Busfeild, W. Howard, P. H. Shelburne, Earl of Carew, W. H. Pole Hudson, G. Stanton, W. H. Cavendish, G. H. Hume, Joseph Strutt, Edward Clerk Sir G. , Hurst, R. H. Thornely, Thomas Denison, J. E. James, William. Troubridge, Sir E. Douglas, Sir C. Jolliffe, Sir W. H. Waddington, H. S. Duckworth, Sir J. Lascelles, W. S. Warburton, Henry Duncan, George Lemon, Sir Charles Williams, W. Duildas, Admiral M'Taggart, Sir J. Winnington, Sir T. East, Sir J. B. Mileage, 11. Wood, Sir Charles Ellice, Edward Mitchell, T. A. Entwisle, W. Monahan, J. U. TELLERS. Ewart, William Mostyn, E. Tanen, IL FelMen, Sir W. Mundy, E. M. Somerville, Sir W. French, F. O'Brien, A. S. MINORITY—NOES, 27. Algarn, W. Clive, B. it. Pakington, Sir J. S. Bailey, Joseph Davies, D. A. Powlett, Lord W. Bailey, Joseph, jun. Fitzrnaurice, W. Russell, Lord C. Basket - vine. T. Gill, Thocnas Stansfleld, W. R. Beckett, W. Gore. W. 0. Strickland, Sir G. Berkeley. Craven Grogan, Edward Turner, E. illackburne, J. I. Hamilton, G. A. Yorke, IL IL Buck, Lewis W. llarris, Hon. Capt. TELLERS. Buckley, Edmund llornby, John Denison, E. B. Chaplin, W. J. Masterman, John namell,;C,, highly his gratified deposited His Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Saxe with the Weimar, attended by Prince Edward of Saxe Weimar Mackintosh'sH isioal engine iligb and Count Beust, honoured the Royal Polytechnic In stitutionposited here, called nume rous scientific wonders exhibited in the museum of the ne s s expressedyesterday hi Claasen's safety railroad, which, consisting of an addi tional rail (termed the guide rail), being a establishment, nd a model which m or more has particularly hee n lately placed in the centre of the line and elevated nine or twelve inches above the train rails. This rail being formed of wood or metal; under each carriage is placed two sets of guide m w se i l t f h wheels, each set consists of one horizontal and two ver tical wheels, so arranged that the horizontal wheel shall come within a very short distance of the upper part, while the verticle, which comes on either side of the guide rail, none of them, however, touching ao long as everything remains in perfect order; but no sooner has the carriage a tendency to run off the line than the vertical wheels comes in contact with the sides of the guide rail and keep it down in its position; or should an axletree break, a wheel become displaced, or a rail removed so that the carriage has a tendency to drop, as it were, from its po sition, the horizontal wheel then comes in contact with the upper part of the guide rail and carries it on in per fect safety. It is even shown by the model that two rails may be removed opposite the other, and still the truck will proceed in perfect safety ; this is a test, however, that we may say it would never be subject to in practice. FRENCH PEAS.—Some arrivals of peas have taken place from France, which, as a raw vegetable, are free of duty, and arriving at this early period, before the home crop has become sufficiently abundant to be very cheap, have no doubt met with a ready market, and have well answered the expectations • of the importers. The steamer Columbine, from Havre, brought 141 baskets of the article, and the James Watt, from the same port, 157 baskets, the produce of France. Other arrivals have also taken place, but there have been none, that we are aware of, from Holland, or any other of the Foreign States, so that, in this particular, our near neighbour, France, is first in the market. They are not considered so good as the peas grown in this country, particularly in the famous market gardens in the neighbourhood of the metro polis, but they are of very excellent quality, and at the same time that they command a fair, and, no doubt, a remunerative price, assist in bringing the vegetable into general consump tion at an earlier period than would otherwise have been the case, THE CIVIL WAR IN PORTUGAL. (From the Times.) PORTSMOUTH, THURSDAY EVENING.—Her Majesty's steam .ship Polyphemus, Commander M'Cleverty, arrived at six o'clock this evening from Lisbon and Oporto, with important dispatches for Lord Palmerston and the Admiralty, from the British Minister and Commander in-Chief at Lisbon. The Marquis and Marchioness Camden hare come home passengers in the Polyphemus. OPORTO, JUNE 7. (FRO../ OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) I have not had an opportunity of writing since my dispatch of the 29th in consequence of the strict orders given by the British Admiral to allow no communication with the shore. We are therefore confined to our over land couriers to Vigo, and even they are sent only. in the hope that the Lisbon steamer on its way home will con tinue to touch at that place, and take charge of the Oporto mail. As I closed my letter of tke 29th, the Gladiator steamer was clearing the Douro, Captain Robb having contrived, by unshipping the covers of his paddle-boxes and by other contrivances, to reduce her draught to 15f feet, and the expedition destined for the south had also got over the bar, the infantry being still on shore ready for embarkation at the word of command. The General in -Chief, Count das Antes, and all the members of the Junta, were present, and as the day was Sunday, and the weather propitious, all the inhabitants of Oporto were assembled at the Foz. Rumours of British armed intervention had been current for several days, as some part of the orders received by the Bulldog steamer had transpired, and the alarm became so great on the Saturday and the Sunday morning that a perfect panic seized the English, and no less than 230 of our fellow-countrymen, including servants and children, embarked in the homeward-bound packet, the Gladiator, and other vessels. I believe eighty-four of the lot fell to Captain Robb's share, not to speak of thirty-three chil dren, some being babies of ten d a y s o ld, so t h at t h e comforts of her Majesty's steamer were distributed on a scale never contemplated by her shipwright or the Ad miralty. Some people regret that floating cradles and a crew of able-bodied waiting-maids had not been provided for the occasion by the British Government, but these persons are unreasonable, and the duty was efficiently performed on board this new nursery for seamen with the ordinary resources of the fleet. At three o'clock the members of the Junta deliberated together on the possibility of the expedition being inter fered with by the British squadron off the bar, or by the ships under the immediate orders of the Admiral at Lis bon. It was suggested that the Gladiator had left the Douro; that numerous English families had embarked; that unexecuted menaces were never made by our Go vernment; and that all these circumstances clearly de monstrated the hostile intentions of the fleet. These suggestions were answered by an appeal to facts —that no threat unaccompanied by the qualification "probably" had been used either by Colonel Wylde, Sir H. Seymour, or Sir Thomas Maitland; that the latter, only two days previously, had reduced his order to Captain Salter, of the Mindello, to re•enter the Douro, to a simple " friendly advice," and that, in truth, up to that moment no distinct threat of seizure or stoppage had been made by any British agent. Under these circumstances the order to embark was given, and about five o'clock 2,400 men were drawn up in front of the house occupied by Das Antas—colours were distributed by his lady to one of the battalions—a speech was made by the Com mander-in-Chief--hearty vivas were given by the surrounding multitude, and the embarkation com menced amidst the greatest enthusiasm, both on the part of the troops and the people. While this was going on, the British squadron, consisting of a fri gate, a brig of war, and three large steamers, lay off the bar, a witness of all that passed, but no message was sent in, nor any order given, even under the shape of " friendly advice." About six o'clock the British Consul arrived at the Foz, and had an interview of nearly half an hour with Das Antas. The object of the Consul was to deliver a letter, dated the 28th of May, from Sir Hamilton Seymour, refusing to protect the commissioners whom the Junta had proposed to address personally to the Queen, for the purpose of having a national question decided by national means. Our Con sul, I have no doubt, advised Das Antas in a becoming manner; but lam positively informed that Mr. John stone did not declare that the expedition would be seized, or use any language unqualified by the word " proba bly." The interview being over, Das Antas himself em barked, and the Consul returned to town for the purpose of delivering to the Junta the letter alluded to of the 28th, as Das Antas had declined officially to receive it, on the ground that being Commander-in-Chief of an expeditionary movement he had for the time resigned his presidency of the Junta. The Consul did deliver the letter, and had at the same time a long conversation with that body; but I have reason to know without once ex ceeding the limits of advice, or converting " probability" into certainty. The letter is'as follows: " Lisbon, May 28. " I have had the honour to receive the letter which you did me the honour to address to me on the 26th inst. " It is with regret that I find how difficult it will be that my opinion should be reconciled with that which you ex press respecting the reception by the Junta of the offers of which Colonel Wylde was the bearer. " When terms are proposed to any party, it matters very little, as regards result, whether their terms be met with a positive refusal, or by counter propositions of an obviously inadmissible nature. " I had previously the honour of stating that the terms granted to the Queen of Portugal's subjects in arms against her Majesty's authority were, in the opinion of her Majesty's Government, acceptable and gracious; and a record now exists of the same views being entertained by the allied Courts principally interested in this affair. " The knowledge, then, which I possess of the feelings, as well of the Portuguese Government, as those of the Govern ments closely allied to Portugal, clearly does not warrant the expectation, that a negotiation between her Most Faith ful Majesty and the Junta can have been looked to. " Her Most Faithful Majesty took certain engagements towards her Britannic Majesty's Government—made known certain intentions towards her subjects; and the one and the other were placed on the same secure basis, the unques tioned good faith of your gracious Sovereign. " It follows from what precedes, that it would not be in my power to become a party to a plan which may have for its object the nomination of commissioners by the Junta, appointed to treat and negotiate with the Government of her Most Faithful Majesty respecting an extension of the concessions made by the Crown. " At the same time I beg to assure you—indeed the assur ance, I hope, is not necessary—that no one would more than myself rejoice on seeing a body of her Most Faithful Ma jesty's subjects, at present, and I am willing to believe from misapprehension, alienated from their gracious Sovereign, standing again before her throne. " Such respectful communication would, I feel confident, lead to the best results, and such it would be not only my duty, but my happiness to promote. "G. H. SEYMOUR." Thus closed the Sunday night, some degree of confi dence being given to the few English families remaining by a hint that nothing hostile would be done by our fleet in this vicinity, on account of the great value of British property in Oporto ; and that the expedition would not be disturbed till it reached Cascaes. In fact, on Monday morning, the whole of our squadron and the ships of the Junta were seen peaceably, and to all ap • pearance sociably, at 'anchor off the bar—" the wolf lying down with the lamb"—but a notice placed on the bar book soon altered the case, and we saw, as it ex plained, that the Portuguese fleet was in fact environed by the British squadron. The whole truth then became known, and it was found that, at 4 I.m. on Monday, Sir Thomas Maitland had captured the whole of the Junta's ships, and had disarmed the expedition. This was done in so offhand and characteristic a manner that I cannot do less than give the correspondence which accompanied it. The correspondence begins with the following sum mons to surrender from Sir Thomas Maitland to the Count das Antas : "Her Majesty's Ship America, off Oporto, May 31. "I have the honour to inform you that my orders are im perative to take possession of the Junta's vessels of war, troops, &c. If they do not immediately anchor near the America, I shall be compelled, however reluctantly, to use furce. "T. MAITLAND." Of course Das Antes, on receiving this letter, saw that he had no chance of escaping, and so, making a virtue of necessity, he struck his flag and wrote the fol lowing answer to Sir Thomas:— " Minden°, off Oporto, May , 31. " I have received the communication which your Excel lency has made me. Surrounded by forces so much superior to those under my command, I cons►der myself a prisoner of war. I protest most solemnly against this violent infraction of the laws of nations ; against war, without any previous de claration of !war, on a friendly nation ; against the greatest abuse of force ever made under circumstances of the greatest aggravation, which dishonours for ever the English nation. Your Excellency will ba pleasedito give orders as to the ulti mate destination of the force now under your command. " CONDE DAS ANTAS." Sir Thomas Maitland did not leave Das Antas long in ignorance of his intentions, and he proceeded at once to the disarmament of the troops in the following charac teristic manner:— " Her Majesty's ship America, off Oporto, May 31. " As the troops under your command are now prisoners of war, in order to prevent unnecessary bloodshed, I have the honour to request that you will give the necessary directions to them to lay down their aims, otherwise I must use the means in my power to oblige them to do it. " T. MAITLAND." This order was obeyed without resistance. I am told that one of our boats fired unnecessarily into one of the smaller Junta vessels, and that two men were killed; but as that affair is under inquiry, I will not more specially allude to it. I hear that one officer stabbed himself to the heart sooner than give up his sword, and that two sailors threw themselves overboard, one of whom had the good luck to swim to shore. The full extent of the news was not known till the afternoon of Monday. It, of course, produced a violent irritation in the town, and caused the remaining English subjects to reflect very seriously on their situation. The Junta, however, behaved admirably ; not one of them quitted his post, and by their orders strong patrols of cavalry and infantry were put in movement, with strict orders to protect strangers and to repress every symptom of disorder. Had the Junta shown the white feather, bad they consulted their personal safety and fled, I should not probably be alive to write this letter, nor any other of my fellow-residents. Towards evening the excitement which appeared during the day came to a head—groups of m en armed with heavy sticks were seen in various parts of the city; but the policeincreased well protected during the night that its activity, the bludgeon men were d isarmed,. and the awctasofsoinjury occurred. The people of Villa persons . known as Cabs alistas were few w er side of the Douro were not so fortu nate,Jn.ainy deserve credit for their eo for, according to the account which they notifb oeorabvt sea public anear. ai p tann e ntg i dThi forbearance, c ere e h: publish, and to the answers which they have given to such Englishmen as called on them, the letter of Sir Hamilton Seymour, declaratory of the final intentions of the British .Uovernment, though dated Lisbon, May 20, was not delivered to the Casa Pia (palace or. the Junta) till one o'clock of the afternoon of the 31st, exactly nine hours after the fleet and expedition were captured. This fact is so strange—it is so contrary to British good faith and repugnant to every feeling of fair play, that I have made minute inquiries into it; and I can state with certainty that the letter in question was not delivered by our Consul till after one o'clock P.M., on Monday the 31st, the capture of the expedition having taken place at 4 A.M., or just nine hours previously. It is argued that the intentions of our Government were no secret, that every one knew the capture would be made as soon as the Gladiator cleared the bar, that the flight of so many English families was a sufficient warning. But the Junta state in reply, that 1 suspicion is not proof; that the " friendly advice" of Sir Thomas Maitland to the Mindello calmed their appre hensions, and that acts of hostility are not committed by civilized nations without an official declaration of war. There is some reason in this statement, for either the Junta are traitors, and sent out their squadron and the flower of their army to be captured—or they placed con fidence in the friendly advice of Sir Thomas Maitland and the " probably" of Colonel Wylde. We cannot sup pose they were such bitter fools as to walk quietly into the lion's den—and the-non delivery of Sir Hamilton Seymour's letter till after the capture makes out a primd facie case in their favour. Leaving that matter to be explained in a satisfactory manner, as I have no doubt for the honour of the British name it will be, I give the letter of Sir Hamilton Seymour, of the non-delivery of which, before the expedition cleared the Douro, the Junta so much complain. " THE BEITISIi MINISTER AT LISBON TO THE CONDE DAS ANTAS. " Lisbon, ay 20. "It becomes my duty, w ith th e same views that dictated dictated my former letter, again to address you. " I beg, then, to apprize you and the Junta of Oporto, that a disregard on their part of the injunction to abstain from all warlike operations by sea and land, until reference shall have been made to the allied Governments, will be followed by measures which will be the prelude of any others of the same kind which may become necessary for putting a stop to a useless expenditure of blood in Portugal. " Her Majesty's squadron have in the first instance re ceived orders to close the port of Oporto against the egress and ingress of all vessels of war, and others engaged in war like operations, belonging to the Junta, and while the same measures will be carried into effect in the case of all other ports and harbours recognising the authority of the Junta, any other precautions which prudence may suggest will be taken to prevent all unnecessary collision. "It is my further duty, although the precaution is, I hope and believe, unnecessary, to apprize you—and I beg to do so in the most serious manner—that her Majesty's Government will holdthe Junta, both collectively and individually, as well as all officers, civil and military, of the Junta, respon sible forany the least act of violence towards the persons and properties of her Majesty's subjects. " I should state, in conclusion, that a discontinuance of all warlike movements on the part of the Junta's forces will be met by a corresponding cessation of hostilities on the part of the forces of her Most Faithful Majesty by sea and land. " I avail myself, &c. " G. H. SEYMOUR, "Her Britannic Majesty's Minister." The dispatch from Das Antas to the Junta, communi cating the capture of the expedition, comes in appro priately here, and is as follows: THE CONDE DAS ANTAS TO THE JUNTA. " Minden° steamer, May 31. " When I was prepared this morning to proceed with the expedition placed under my command, according to the order of the Junta, I received an intimation from the Commander in-Chief of the naval forces of her Britannic Majesty, close to the bar of Oporto, to anchor under the cover of its artillery. I required that the said order should be given to me in writing, in order that I might comply with my duties to the Junta as a soldier under its command, though obliged to yield to a superior force. I then received the accompanying notice from the Commander of the English forces. Under these circum stances, surrounded by several English ships of war superior to us in force, and my strength consisting chiefly of soldiers, fit to act on land and not at sea, I felt myself unable to repel force by force, and was compelled to lay down my arms, which I did, accompanying the act by a protest (a copy of which is annexed) against the unjust aggression made on Portugal. "I am, &c., " CONDE DAS ANTAS." The Junta at the same time addressed a formal pro test to the English Consul, but as this document is too long for your columns, I only extract the most pointed passages. After reciting the facts of the case, the Junta say, " We protest solemnly against this foreign inter vention in the domestic affairs of Portugal, which, as a nation free and independent, has an indisputable right to constitute itself politically according to the existing laws. We protect against this flagrant violation of the rights of nations." The Junta adds, "Yielding to force and violence, but still solemnly protesting, we assent to the armistice required by Sir H. Seymour, on the con dition contained in his letter, that the forces of the Government of Lisbon shall at the same time abstain from all hostilities by sea and land ; but, as before the receipt of the said letter of Sir IL Seymour the com mander of the British naval forces off the bar of Oporto thought proper, without any declaration of war, or previous intimation, to take possession, against the usage of civilised people, in a manner hitherto unknown, of the squadron and troops belonging to the Junta, we protest solemnly against the act, as one which vio lates all national law, and which we never could have expected from the old and faithful ally of Portugal." The Junta then say, "We are engaged in drawing up a protest to be addressed to all the Powers of Eu rope and the civilised world ; but, in the meantime, we call on you to restore to us the ships and soldiers of the expedition, because the orders of the British Go vernment apply only to ships of war and not to land forces. Secondly, because the pretext having ceased under which the ships were arrested, those vessels should be allowed to re-enter the Douro, and be placed in the position in which they were antecedent to the capture; and, thirdly, because the expedition was sent out under the faith of national law by the Commander-in-Chief, who obeyed orders given by the Junta in ignorance of the intentions of the British squadron. The Junta at the same time issued the following proclamation to the Civil Governor of Oporto for the conservation of order and the protection of strangers:— " The Provisional Junta, in the name of the nation and the Queen, command the Civil Governor of Oporto to publish the necessary orders that sJ strangers resident in the terri tory obedient to the Junta shall continue to enjoy the pro tection and guarantees hitherto received by them—no matter what may be the relations of the Government of the said strangers with the Portuguese nation—and that the utmost rigour of the law shall be directed against those who shall offend or injure such strangers as occupy themselves with their private affairs and do not interfere in domestic political questions. The Junta anticipates that all persons under its administration will in this important crisis afford indubitable proof of their advance in civilization." The Junta followed up these orders with the most energetic measures, and I am glad to say that not a single Englishman has had reason to complain of the slightest insult or injury. The people were much irritated on seeing their fleet carried to the south ward, each of our steamers having a Portuguese vessel in tow ; but the peace of the city was so well preserved that we walked about in full security, and even those who committed the imprudence of being out at late hours of the night reached their homes in safety. This good conduct was observed under the additional aggravation that Marshal Saldanha, in defiance of the armistice, advanced his head-quarters to Grigo within two leagues of the city, and his advanced posts to Campo Grande, only one league, and that a Spanish force had crossed at Valenta, from Galicia, and defeated with great loss the Junta troops stationed near that place. lam told that Sal danha, when remonstrated with for disregarding the armistice, said, that the orders for advance had been 1 previously given, and that he was glad to be near Oporto to assist the Junta in protecting the persons and property of strangers. I suppose the leader of the Spanish troops at Valenca will offer a similar excuse. The conduct of Saldanha does not escape criticism here—and men exclaim ag ainst the Duke who remained four months quiet at Oliveira, and never moved a step forward until he had the cover of an armistice, and found that the Junta lost 2,400 men in one sweep. The Marshal must not be too sure, for if there be not treason in the town, and the negotiation be broken off, he has not the means of reducing Oporto. The garrison was kept under arms for two nights in con sequence of Saldanha ' s approach the lines of the south were fully manned ; the - head of Villa Nova, and the river, protected by artillery ; and as the duty seemed to be cheerfully done, I should think the Marshal would not have been pleased with his reception had he attacked. The Valenca affair is more serious, the Junta troops suffered severely—a loss of 100 men is the minimum ; an immediate retreat took place to Ponte do Lima, and I believe that not one, but many, have come back to Oporto. I am very glad, before I close this letter, to say that I have had an opportunity of ascertaining whether Sir Thomas Maitland, the Spanish Consul, or the Duke of Saldanha, had conformed to the armistice now offered to be accepted by the Junta ; and I find that none of these persons have officially agreed to it. They contend that the armistice was proposed merely to give time for re ceiving the answers of the great Powers ; and that pur pose having been answered by the Bulldog's dispatches, the offer of an armistice terminates of itself. I believe, however, that friendly steps have been taken to induce Saldanha to suspend his onward march, and that while he appears to accede the Spaniards obstinately refuse. The sortie from Valenca is but the first effort of Spanish determination, and other troops will immediately pass the frontier, unless orders to the contrary have been given. I also find that the Junta are willing to accept the amnesty and the four articles ; and I therefore pre sume that our Minister and the Court of Lisbon will accept the offer, and thus terminate an affair which may lead to unpleasant consequences. I conclude my letter by giving you copies of an ad• dress, presented by all the British residents now remain ing in Oporto to the Junta, thanking that body for its protection of their persons and property in the present crisis ; and of an address presented to Captain Robb, of the Gladiator, previous to that officer having left the Douro:— "TO TIIE EX-MINISTER SENOR JOSE DA STLVA PASSOS. " Oporto, June 7. " The undersigned, subjects of her Britannic Majesty, re sident in the heroic city of Oporto, deeply affected by the generosity and kindness with which the excellent Junta, the authorities, the troops, and inhabitants of the said city have acted in so painful a crisis towards them, feel it to be a duty, no less sacred than pleasing, to make known the sentiments of gratitude by which they are animated. " The benevolence of a people of cavaliers fully justifies the confidence with which they have placed themselves under its protection. They are anxious to show by every means in their power the grateful sentiments by which they are animated— and they cannot refrain from offering to the All Powerful their humble but ardent prayers for the welfare, happiness, and prosperity of the great Portuguese family. " The undersigned avail themselves, &c. &c. " [ Signed by twenty-five British subjects now in Oporto.]" It is understood that the address has been voted, not from political motives, but as a well-earned tribute to the protection afforded by the Junta; and I know that many who have signed are well-wishers to the Queen. I now give the address to Captain Robb:— " Sir,—The u n d ers i gne d B r iti s h res d being informed that you are under ordersquit the Douro, With her Majesty's Ship Gladiator,on not i“eonporto, in this city, May 27 . • ta to llow you to cross the bar, without expressing the strong sense they entertain of the services you have rendered them, services still more grateful from your uniform kind ness and hospitality. " The protection you have so ably afforded them has been rendered most efficacious by the strict neutrality you have maintained, any deviation from which could not but have been followed by loss of influence. "They request the favour of you to convey their thanks, and this expression of their kind feelings, to the officers of your ship, and to those of the vessels which have been under your command. "'With every wish for your prosperity, in which they must ever take a warm interest, they have the honour to subscribe themselves, Sir, your obliged and obedie t it servants, ", [Signed by sixty-five British Residents.) " To Captain Robb, &c., her Majesty's ship Gladiator.' (FROM OIIR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) LISBON, FRIDAY, JCNE 4. The protocol signed in London on the 22d ult. has already borne fruits. Active and most effectual inter vention has taken place within eight days of the signa tures being affixed. Three steamers, a corvette, and eight smaller vessels, in the service of the Junta, with 2,400 men on board of them, have been seized by our blockading squadron at the mouth of the Douro, and are now within the Tagus, the vessels restored to the Queen of Portugal, and the insurgent division which filled them imprisoned in Fort St. Julian. In my last I mentioned the return of the war-steamer Bulldog to Lisbon, on the evening of the 27th ult., after a rapid voyage of four days from Portsthouth, with dispatches for Sir H. Seymour and Admiral Parker, communicating the signing of the protocol and the fur ther instructions. Not an instant was lost in trans mitting corresponding instructions by the Bulldog to the commander of our squadron at Oporto, who was directed (as I intimated in my last) to " make the blockade effective," in conjunction with a French ship of war. Within thirty hours after these instructions reached Oporto, a grand expedition which the Junta had prepared to sail for Peniche, about thirty miles north of Lisbon, and, disembark there, to march on the capital, in pursuance of the policy which I described in a former letter, and which designed to hustle Donna Maria off the throne and get her out of the kingdom before Lord Palmerston could have arranged with France and Spain as to the ulterior proceedings, sailed from the Douro, with Das Antas on board as commander in -chief, when they fell, quite innocently, into the hands of our blockading squadron, whose commander " stopt the way," and intimated that they could not pass. The expeditionary squadron chose to disregard this in timation, and was proceeding to pass out of the river when, of course, without firing a shot, which would have been madness, considering the superiority of naval force on our side, they gave themselves up as prisoners, with many protestations that " they y ielded only to constraint and force," and with a formal declaration that they surrendered to the Allied Powers, and not to the Queen of Portugal. This important seizure took place at sunset on the 30th ult. It was the more important because the three insurgent steamers which left Oporto about ten days since (as detailed in my last) had returned and formed part of the present expedition. The vessels seized by the allied squadron were the following ;—Steamers—Royal Tar, Mindello, Porto, corvette Eighth of July ; Merchant vessels—Florida Amizsde and Amor da Petrie, and six hiates—in all 12 vessels, having on board a force of 2,400 men of all arms, with 50 horses and two pieces of artillery, the military commander of the expedition being the Conde das Antes, and the naval commander an Eng lishman, named Salter, who deserted at the commence ment of this insurrection from the naval service of the Queen of Portugal, and has since been doing all the in jury he could to his adopted Sovereign. The prize was made on the bar in front of Oporto, and all the vessels immediately cast anchor. Das Antas was on board the Mindello steamer, and was allowed to remain there ; but Salter was removtd on board the Bulldog. Several of the most important amongst the insurgent leaders were likewise on board the vessels forming the insurgent squadron, and the leaders remaining in Oporto are for the most part Miguelites. The commander of the blockading squadron, in pur suance of his instructions, informed Count das Antes and the other leaders who surrendered themselves prisoners to the allies, that they should be immediately brought to the Tagus, where the orders of the British Minister and Admiral could be taken as to how they were to be dis posed of. Accordingly, they sailed for the Tagus, es corted by a sufficient force, including our fine steamers the Sidon and the Gladiator, and arrived here the day be fore yesterday. It became necessary to provide for their safe custody, and, after much discussion, Fort St. Julian, at the mouth of the Tagus, was determined on as being, all things considered, the most fitting place for the pur pose. The prisoners were disembarked there in the course of yesterday, Sir H. Seymour, Admiral Parker, and Colonel Wylde, having taken active measures to se cure the twofold object of their safe keeping and the best accommodation, with a view to their personal comfort, that could be obtained. Sir H. Seymour was especially engaged for many hours of yesterday and the day before in settling various difficulties connected with our occu pation of the fort as a place of secure and healthy custody of the prisoners, and as to i ts sanatory ar rangements, quite as much as the effectual garrisoning of it. The news of this important capture was carried to Lisbon by the Madrid Peninsular packet, which reached this in the afternoon of the Ist instant. It speedily be came disseminated through the metropolis, and pro duced a most extraordinary sensation, having taken every one by surprise, and filling the Queen's supporters with joy, and the adherents o f th e J un t a w ith dismay. The arrival of the vessels from Oporto followed shortly after the receipt of the intelligence, and it is impossible to conceive anything more brilliant than the appearance of the river, thus filled with ships of war and vessels of all descriptions. The question of the safe custody o f the prisoners immediately gave rise to extensive negotia tions and transmission of instructions between Lisbon and the mouth of the Tagus, about five miles distant, where the fleet of captured vessels and their convoy (nearly 20 sail in all) lay. The Spanish brig of war Soberano, 12, entered the river on the following day, bearing a portion of the crew of the captured corvette Eighth July ; and on the same day the Spanish cor vette Venus, 18, entered from Cadiz,:and the war steamer Isabel Segundo, from a cruise on the etiast. On the previous day, in addition to the captured squa dron and its convoy, our ship of war the Superb, and our brig Recruit entered the river from a cruise on the coast, as did likewise our war-steamer the Geyser, from Portsmouth in four days. It is impossible to describe the splendour of the scene which this most beautiful of rivers thus presented, covered with beautiful moving ob jects that seemed imbued with life, yet showed in their armaments such powerful materials of destruction, and lit up by a sun of incomparable brilliancy. Amongst the ships of war in the river were four Spanish, one French, and English almost innumerable. The landing and securing of the prisoners within the precincts of St. Julian's was completed yesterday after noon; they are guarded by a strong body of our marines. On Wednesday some 50 cavalry and 16 artillerymen went down in a steamer to conduct the captured horses and mules to Lisbon, and arsenal boats to bring up the armament, &c. The greater number of the captured vessels arrived here in a miserable state, short both of provisirns and water, which the leaders of the expedition, with the cus tomary negligence of the Peninsula, entirely forgot to put on board in sufficient quantity. Too many men were likewise crammed on board some of the vessels, and they arrived, like the human cattle of a slaver, ter ribly exhausted by the excessive heat and confined space. We have thus got a little army of prisoners on our hands, and will not perhaps find it so easy to get rid of them. Whenever set at liberty they may immediately proceed to make a fresh rebellion, of which their num bers would form a sufficient nucleus. The country must be in some degree re-organized before they are set free, and the Queen's army established on a footing of real efficiency. As the prisoners persevered in their con tumaciousness to the last, and surrendered, not to the Queen, but to the allies, it is probable that they will not get the benefit of the amnesty originally proposed. On Wednesday morning, two aides-de• camp, com missioned by Sada Bandeira, presented themselves at Vinhae's head-quarters, outside Setubal, offering to accept an armistice. Dispatches were instantly for warded by Vinhaes upon this subject to the capital. I am informed to-day that a steamer is to go to Oporto immediately with the two aides-de-camp of Sa who came over on Wednesday evening with Lieutenant Van sittart and an aide-de-camp of Vinhaes. It is understood that Sa proposes an armistice until he shall have received instructions from the Junta. A Council of Ministers was held on the arrival of these dispatches, and the feeling generally prevails that the proposed suspension of hostilities has been accepted. Amongst the prisoners captured at the bar of Oporto were some who had fled very recently from Lisbon and joined the Junta's forces. Two had done so only that other day. The Septembrists are puttingit abcut tha t Das Antes had been bought over, and, in short, sold them. Yesterday was Corpus Christi day, when the grandest annual procession of Portugal would, in ordinary cir cumstances have taken place, but the disturbed state of the country prevented it. The liberation of the Duke da Terceira by the Junta at the eleventh hour was a measure which, however for tunate for the Duke, is little to be accounted to their credit. The least consideration of the age, services, and distinguished character of the most eminent of the Queen of Portugal's subjects, makes his detention in aggravatedmp r o is n o t n hs b a by an act ty insurrectionary otfhme iorst refusal, inexcusable a tbtohdeye Dukeruferty nearly w h le eight h wu request six months back, to liberate 'de Palmdlla's the grey-headed old warrior on parole. A royal decree, signed by the Queen, and counter signed by all the Ministers, declares Setubal and the ports to the north of the Douro as far as Viana, to be under blockade. A conspiracy has been formed at Vizeu, which was to break out in insurrection. The plan, however, has been defeated by the activity of the authorities. A guerilla of about 500 men was formed in the country round, but could make no progress in consequence of being pursued closely by Baron de Ourem's column. The guerilla fighting has continued at intervals about Vizeu, Guards, and Coimbra. The works of the canal of Azambuja, for rendering the Tagus navigable about thirty miles from Lisbon, are still carried on by a company, of which the leading mem ber is the Marquis de Fayal. On the Ist information reached us that the Miguelite General, Povoas, in the service of the Junta, admitted in the Beira Alta, where he had been endeavouring to get up a pronuhciamietelo, that after the effective inter position of the three Powers resistance was hopeless, but that the appearance of strong resistance should still be continued, with a view to a more favourable trans action at the end. Baron de Ourem was still pursuing the guerillas of the Serra de Estrella, and several of them had returned to their homes. The exchange on London is 54i ; the discount on Bank of Lisbon notes is still at 2,300. The funds are