The Express.
London, England, 1849-02-21 00:00:00

sdlausse had nothing to do with the rebellion. I will
admit Mat the mums of the rabellion were Lot casual or
seeseleasl; bet the mete string', I nuke that omission,
the muter alarm do I feel with respect to the audition ut
Ceylon, sod the more do I deprecate the mune that has
toss taken. I grant, then, that this was no casual tromp
--Nat it arose from no temporary or evaneseeht sense. I
take the ems on you own showing, as given in this despatch
of Lord Torringtoe :—" 1 /eradiate all the suppoied
sonnezios between Use taxation sad the rebeilion,
la whisk the olnerratioss of the teen tan, to the colony
while travelling through the country further confirm me."
I give you full credit for that, and will admit that it had
nothing to do with the rib -11 On. But I will take your own
wards, that there was a " duper seated Mile—that the
▪ "ad the mints, always trombones to the 'overmaster
med heeds to British rule, and, above all, indignant at thi
mime pinned towards diem respecting their religion bad
bra isaig beating forward to some pretext for appealing to
Isms. Tlion, eh, I say, taking that account of the rebellion,
that le banns ne with the greater apprehansion as to oar
Mien wa
ve of power is that colony. (Hear tsar.) Ido
tut VMS to say the absolute Metre of power by the sword
or by military force, but I mean that tenure consistently
with the content sad satisfaction of the people. (Cheers.)
We lave two greet classes opposed to us in that colony, in.
depeadently of the ignorant clues. We hen the priests and
the okieftains of the people. We have the priests ot a religion
which is down bed in anotherchispach se an apathetic religion,
net seeking convernons, not wishing to interims with the
tune of other', contested with the establishment of Chris.
tiaaity ; spat beck, but most &tritium's in sainting its own
rigida., and in guardir g against the violation of it. own pro
judieu That is the religion and those are the priests of
whom Lord Torrington ssys, and I think with great force ;
" After all, I mutt forget an expremion addrissed to me by
ens si the chiefs at • solemn C9SeefeSlS at the within of
Lundy list year, ' If you neither respect our re igion nor
have regard to our customs, what is the Inuit to us of Bri-
tish goverment ?' " (Hear, hear.) Now, sheerveobat is
the adders of a chief to the British government He says
mudsg of commercial advents's*, main( of pecuniary pri.
taus enjoyed by the li.ndiess on account of their submit.
mite to British rule ; but he ears," Thei • are two things we
held dim,--our religion sad our snow ; if you disregard
the one, end *bow no respect fee the ether, what advantige
have we from the British soversmest ?" (Cheep.) And
the gnome rye, sad says wisely, that that speech made •
% egt
dash hr. I wish that *bet impromion
had Ina semi MI that in the height of that rebel
Su
thesbettamilu natant of that chief bad MUMS
to the mind of Lend on. (Cheers.) Now, when that
rebellion was supgressed, he what mason were those priest.
and slow treated ? Ido not complain of your extending
is *SOS the same severity which which you did to others ;
but remembering that you had a relights to deal with in•
lens a iniethrener, recollecting that you had sec aristocracy
es heel with jealous of their customs I do ask you how could
lea reontelle it, 1 west say with w:adems, but with common
gum, to sheet a priest arrayed in his sewed robs'? (Load
"hews.) Or when you Indict transportatio• oa a since,
how can you thiok it nonseary to subject him lint be sorpo-
Tel punishment ? (Cheers.) Bir, it is impossible that I con
diner this gunas without giving vent to the hasp
whisk these two pregges in this trannetioa have left upon
aayy mild. If the priest had animists's(' an oath—if the
n were fiegreet, or the aeserity for maniple urges*
I eau undimmed the osesseity tor nitre ea • prier the
entrees riseur of the law ; ber in that country, with •
samediag to year own ahowiag, surely
tireasthe height of thily to bosh the whole of • religious
by
hisibeehsed Naiades capital pualehmest ea a pried in
his eassedetel rata. (en.) lf a priest had Ma con-
demn fee the MOM in Tipping, sad it were thought
anntry se isflict "capital punishing's epos him in the ordi-
ma dm or prim hoes, there would have bon • general
11 the ars were titorly loughs home to him
aliteiSe
justice of the sunset, al hough there would have
lees deep regret es the part of his brethren at the slur east
=their order by his dedeleationt Bat if you- had
to islet that you would not only punish the
but that y would stigrathe th profession
to which he belessoued• by kin eky Ida to the scaffold
la the dress ef his order, you would have converted the
haw' domed Into ale of Magnetics shared in by millions
of the people. (Cheers.)
_Now, making every al-
Inman fee the position of Lord Torriagtco, think.
lag it highly probable that extreme rigour was
nestaaary, thinking that we ate indebted to him for his
tuaifestai Loa of vigour and resolution, thinking that the
mealfestation of that vigour and resolution may have pre-
vented the rebellion being. so formidable as it would have
been had there been indecision end irresolution, still I think
It would have been perfectly possible for a man to reemitile
ads of rigour and authori y with the abstinence ham other
set. not merely not calculated to deter by their example, but
seeding to alienate from us the minds of a whole population,
already viewing our dominion with dissatiaroetios and
jealousy, and disposed t t resent an act which was sot merely
for the repression of • mime, but visited an injury on the
whole population by implicating the. in the disgrace at the
puaishogent. (Hear.) Sir, I send cost resibly give vent to
my feelings with respect to this twssaefss 'Mutt express-
ing the pain with which I have reed seeds portions of Lord
Torrimpon's despatches that have bees hid before the bolos.
(General cheering.)
After a few words from Mr. BOWMAN, laudatory of
the endue% of the Chief Jamie" of Ceylon, and expressive et
his satisfaction that the committee sought for was shout to
be granted.
Lord J. RUSSELL roe.. His lordship said : Although,
saw the able speech of my bon. friend the under monetary
he the admits, I do sot feel that the conduct of Lord Grey
metres any further vindication ,• yet, anteing with the
appoistsunt of the committee, I do think it necessary
set to pass wholly without notice some observations of the
hog. gentleman who brought forward this motion, as well as
some remarks which have been made in the course of the
debate. With respect to the boo. member for Inverness,
who spoke with • degree of personal bitterness I have seldom
seen equalled—(bear, hear)—l must say that he must have
taken great pains to casks himself completely master of tbe
onot, in order to compiles so completely as be did any facts
which might prove ferestable to the administration of
the secretary of state or the governor of Ceylon. (Hear,
tsar.) The hon. gentleman begat his speech by
"hating that this was • ens in which Lord
Torrngton flailing, when he arrived at Ceylon, that there
was • deficiency of reveals* to meet the upeaditore, thought
proper Immediately to 'Undue certain direct taxes. Now,
6k, the fact is, as de has. gentleman must have learnt from
the papers, and as my hon. friend has shown him, that there
were certain import and export duties in Ceylon, some of
which bad become so unproductive that the revenue derived
from them was unequal to the expenditure—more especially,
amongst them was the export duty on cinnamon and upon
coffee. There were various others of a like nature, most ha-
politic tans in the times to which they belonged, but more
especially so at the moment at which Lord Torrington so
oared the government of Ceylon. Then, air, so fat from
Lord Torrington idols:taking to act as • volunteer financier,
as the hon. gentleman states, attempting to introduce a new
system of taxation, the former Secretary of State bad given
&odious that the whole wren of taxation should be
inquired into. Sir Emerson Teased had sent
home a plan iif revised taxes, which bad been
examined and reported on by • gentleman deputed for that
purpose ; and Lord Torrington only had to consider how he
should any these, or similar propositions, into effeet.l
There is eisii remarkable circumstance too, of which the'
hon. patinas* took no notice, namely, that the production
of albs bad 'messed to such an extent, that there was
newiesselly great distress amongst the coffee planters. I
Ind that there liana been no export of coffee in 1823, the
upon had increased in 1845 to upwards of 16,000,000 lbe. ;
mad in 1848, to 30,000,0001 U. • and that, be it observed,
whea the whole consumption of this country was not more
them 37,000,000 lbs. It was 'know, therdsre, that whoa
the can Staten of Ceylon had to send 30,000,000 lbs. into
a sadist where they net West India eel. and foreign
Masse competing with it, there meet asessenly be •
grmtreducuon of price, and consequently soneiderable dingle
musget the planters. (Chum) Was it not wise then for Len
Torviagtou to diminish any burden whisk allasted that betty,
W to do that whin should ten to preiner inney and
heron the =ldeal= sad growth of the Wad ? (Chasm)
Well, bet the lea. gentleman tosig met gram ore to
'MI this part of the subject—ke manna sod entiodol
every fact which would lead the house to sages' that say
Isg of the kind had taken plus. He
T ea having done what be did soldirsCril=
al ressiliestag • system of direct taxation. Bat
Ora that, the hoe. gentleman, reedisejanthis illimaildle
, 'dative to the gun tax, omitted the pram*
Immediately bases in which Lord Tombs's* says
Met Sir Cohn bed proposed a gun tan emilmos,
mil that be ( )
_coaserriagnili dm views,
bed takennara top sad preeseded to carry Om i.e "AS.
Bat that mold net base suited the honApeationea'spur7
it mid an have navineed the heves that Lard
Mriugma was the author of that objectionable ordinance
*mho, he did not reed one weed ef that paragraph.
= beer.) Thee offor having whenother end
of Maus sad sendeur, the Ito-
asanble = onsladed kis sneak W bring's( the
nest mnionel dregs solar Lord Grey of [whet ands a
men Is the lessee Of Lori, in which he dhl net ghe a
Sir assent dander amegial which had hese pereated.
Having hedged la sort of miscotsetruetion, having
'appeared the truth in almod every Instance, he ends by
Imeedllny with non to a speech made by his is
the Heron dLora, of which none of us can have any soar
nee esseuat—(" Oh," sad a laugh)—l repeat it, of which
aire of us sea have say accurate econat. And you,
dr, had you been aware that hit was quoting • speech
wads is the House of Leeds would have been obliged
to nodes it as disorderly. (Hear.) The speech, moreover,
was I believe totally dAwest in Its nature hos what the
Mk sattersa describes it to have bees. The hon. gentle.
man _aye It was a wait to now that prosperity existed in
the Mad of Jamaica; I believe, on the catenary, that it was
... We to show that property had changed hands in
Jamaica, sad that many porous were taking propmg es
hue he she? purses of cultivation. (" Hear," sad sin 6t
• No, se !' ) Hut at all events Ido submit to :libber.
p rtisms that Utile lie is not capable of giving • in
ern of Lon Ovey's chen to Lord Torrir oret,
Lord Torriagton's ispr in reply to them, that tbe
shoal mot hand a 'Moo to this house epos the report if
f 'lnk is the Huss of Luis, with respest to the easing
stil lellopset of Mite umbers in this ham mo easy him
I eras sew te • areeperfal part of this vagod, M., the
lasonesties whisk soh pier in the Mad of CAOss.. The
boa Me.
gnationsa bas Amerind the 1a....._ atisa as idled,
to the Ming orilineges.
kk! Was the emelt ef • ohs
Lad MIAs le e g obeirkket
beteg, of hatred, se g &fie
of of Snide
rale, of feelings of ressatsent at the mat of adonden
1160111 to the prints, and to the head mangy
am relined to believe, that, kelvin," tim, =B,l,
may have been the immediate same ef the hisornedia 1111
took place, that the snout given by Lord Terdageria
corroborated as it is by various other mein is the in;