The Press.
London, England, 1857-02-07 00:00:00

THE QUEEN'S SPEECH.

The SPEAKER reported that at the morning sitting
the Commons had been summoned to the Upper
House to hear her Majesty's gracious Speech
The right hon. gentleman then read the Speech as.
given in our report of the House of Lords.
Sir J. RAMSDEN moved the Address, and in the
course of his speech reviewed the principal topics
touched upon in the Speech of the Royal Commis-
sioners, noticing the omission of any reference to
our convict and criminal population, and expressing
a hope that the house would be speedily called upon
to record its opinion respecting a state of things
which, he said, was as disgraceful to the Legislature
as it was grievous to the community.
Sir A. AGNEW seconded the motion.
The SPEAKER having put the Address from the
chair,
Mr. DISRAFT.I then rose.•

Upon Mr. Disraeli resuming his seat,
The CHANCEIJAR of the EXCHEQUER rose, and,
while declining to follow Mr. Disraeli into the wide
field of our foreign policy, replied very briefly to his
remarks upon the finances of the country. As to the
future year, it was, he said, his anxious wish to lay
his financial statement of the probable expenditure
and the means for meeting it before the house at
the earliest possible opportunity after the army and
navy estimates had been presented.
A brief pause in the debate ensued, when—
Mr. GLADSTONE rose and said :

Sir, I confess it is with reluctance that I rise to address
you at the present moment. When my right hon. friend
left his seat to follow what I must call the comprehensive
and remarkable speech of the right hon. gentleman oppo-
site, I undoubtedly did suppose that we were about to hear
from a Minister of the Crown some notice of and some
reply to the very grave matters with which the earlier
portions of that speech was charged. I frankly own it ap-
pears to me inoonsistent with the respect due to this house
and to the country that when any member of this house
supposed to speak the sentiments of many other of its
members, in a debate on the Address, questioned the
foreign policy of the Ministers of the Crown in terms so
grave as those which have been employed to-night, the
Government should not vouchsafe one word of notice to
the charges that have thus been made. I was not aware,
when I entered the house, of the nature of the discussion
into which the right hon. gentleman was about to enter.
did presume—and it was an act of presumption for which
I am bound to apologise—to endeavour to catch your eye
immediately after the seconder of the address had sat
down, and I did it on the peculiar ground that I well know
important considerations of finance are at this moment
agitating the mind of the country; that I anticipated the
words of the right hon. gentleman in the feelings of my
own breast, because I knew there was one man at least in
this house who was especially bound both to be definite
and to be prompt in explaining to the house his views on
financial questions, and that I was that man, on account
of the position I held at the end of the financial year of
1853 ; therefore it was my desire not to lose a moment in
acquainting the house with the recognition wirch I felt
bound to make of certain obligations resting on me, and
resting also on the House of Commons, and for this reason
alone did I presume to rise in competition with the right
hon. gentleman.
At a period when the Speech from the Throne is occu-
pied almost from first to last with matters touching our
foreign policy, it certainly was my intention to have ad-
verted to several of the questions that had been raised;
but the right hon. gentleman, exercising his privilege as a
member of this house, has entered upon a very wide field,
and Las questioned the foreign policy of the Government
in its root and in its branches, and has made charges on
that subject which the honour of the Government requires
them to notice. (Cheers from the Opposition.) I again
express my regret that my right hon. friend, a Minister
and adviser of the Crown, responsible for that policy, and
having listened to the allegations made by the right hon.
gentleman opposite, should think himself justified in
omitting to defend what had been formally assailed. If I
understood the right hon. gentleman correctly, he said
there was some instrument or compact in existence by
which, unknown to the Parliament and the people of this
country, we had become parties and guarantees to Austria
for her Italian possessions.

Mr. DISRAELI, who spoke in a low tone across the
table, was understood to say it was important that
there should be no mistake as to his statement on
that point. What he said, or meant to say, was that
during the time that Lord Clarendon had the con-
ferences in question with Count Cavour, the Italian
dominions of Austna were guaranteed by a secret
treaty. The noble lord (Lord Palmerston) then
asked with what power. Then he (Mr. Disraeli)
said a secret treaty with France, but with the
sanction, approbation, and at the instance of
England.
Mr. GLADSTONE : I am very glad that I have drawn
that explanation from the right hon. gentleman, because
my belief is that many who heard his previous statement
on that point received, with myself, an erroneous im-
pression. But if it be true that a guarantee has been given
by France to Austria for her Italian possessions, with the
approval of this country and with the active concurrence
of this country, I must say, in my opinion, such a pro-

• For the report of the right hue. member's epeeeh we refer
the reed& to the Supplement.