The Sun.
London, England, 1864-02-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LOISPON, FRIDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 2E% 1864.

Memorial to the Duke of Newcastle,

To His Grace the Duke of Newcastle, K,G,, her Majesty's
Principal Secretary for the Colonies.
Your memorialists regard with the utmost alarm the pas-
sage through the Legislature of New Zealand of a bill con-
fiscating all the lands of rebellious natives, and authorising
the Government to take possession of the lands of loyal
natives upon the payment of compensation. As a part of
the same scheme, a bill has been passed empowering the
Colonial Government to raise a loan of £3,000,000 sterling,
to be repaid by the sale of the confiscated territory.
Your memorialists believe that, for its sweeping and in-
discriminate chardcter, this measure stands without a paral
Id in the history of modern legislation ; that if it be en-
forced it will inflict an indelible blot upon the British name;
and that, in the language of an honourable gentleman who
opposed it, " its inevitable effect will he to drive the natives
of the north island into a state of hopeless despair and
rcbsllion."
That your memorialists have not exaggerated the scope
and object of the bill is proved by the following extract from
the Colonial Treasurer's speech, delivered on the second
reading of the Loan Bill—
" If we take the total area of land in the rebel districts,
it will be found that it amounts to eight and a half million
acres, and wa have obtained information from persons
well acquainted with the districts and the quality
of the land, that one half of it will be available for
settlement; therefore we have for settlement 4,2.50,000 acres.
If we deduct from that the quantity required for the loca-
tion of European settlers and natives, there will be a balance
of 3,000,000 for sales, reserves, and for the preservation of
the territory of those loyal natives who may not be desirous
of disposing of their lands. I said there was a balance of
3,000,000 of acres, and supposing we set apart 500,000
acres for roads and reserves, and 1,000,000 for land that
may be retained by the loyal natives, it will still leave
1,500,000 for sale. Of course it would not be desirable,
if it were even possible, to dispose of this land at once;
but by bringing it into the market judiciously,
it appears to us that 1,500,000 acres economically
dealt with and properly sold, will realise, at the very
least £2 per acre, and £3,000,000 will be obtained at the
time these arrangements are completed."
It is but too obvious from this explanatory statement, as
well as from the terms of the bill itself, that nothing short
of the absolute confiscation of all the lands owned by the
rebel tribes is contemplated by the New• Zealand Govern-
ment, and that this policy has received the deliberate sanc-
tion of the General Assembly.
Your memorialists would remark that no kind of grace
is offered to natives who may be willing at once to lay down
their arms ; that there is no attempt to define the various
degrees of guilt, and to apportion the punishment equit-
ably; and that there is a total absence of that clemency
which ought ever to be exhibited by a civilized nation in
its dealings with a subject race.
There is grave reason to fear that the Confiscation Bill
will have an effect the very opposite of that which its sup-
porters anticipate. The many thousands of natives whom
it will render homeless wanderers, will scarcely allow them-
selves to be driven forth without an effort to avert their
doom ; and against the estimated proceeds of the sale
of confiscated territory must be set the probable cost
of another war, into which it is more than likely many
now loyal tribes will be drawn, from a natural feeling,
of sympathy with their outcast brethren. In express-
ing their fear that a policy of confiscation will lead to
the indefinite prolongation of hostilities, and the ultimate
extermination of the whole of the Maori race in-
habiting the north island, your memoi ialists do but echo the
opinion of men of high position in both houses of the New
Zealand Assembly,
Your memorialists protest against that pertion of the bill
which empowers the Government to take the lands of loyal
natives (even upon the principle of compensation) as being
contrary to the express terms of the treaty of Wai-
tangi, whereby " the Queen of England confirms
and guarantees to the Chiefs and tribes of New
Zealand, and to the respective families and individuals
thereof, the full, exclusive, and undisturbed possession of
their lands and estates, forests, fisheries, and properties,
which they may collectively or individually possess, so long
as it is their wish and desire to retain the same in their
possession." Loyal natives having been guilty of no offence
against the law, any attempt to forcibly deprive them of
their lands is manifestly a violation of the treaty, and an
act of usurpation.
Your memorialists would remark, as an additional rea-
son why lenity should be shown to the natives, that
while they have been guilty of acts of war, which
none of their friends desire to justify or palliate, there
has been much in the conduct of the colonists and in
the acts of the Colonial Government towards them, especi-
ally in connection with the late unfortunate land war in
Taranaki, to excite the alarm and arouse the passions of a
suspicious and semi-civilised people. The natives, more-
over, are entirely unrepresented in the New• Zealand
Legislature; and although the treaty of Waitangi nomi-
nally invested them with all the rights of British
subjects they have been practically treated as a separate and
an alien race.

In conclusion, your memorialises humbly pray your
Grace to advise her Majesty to withhold the royal assert
from the bill confiscating the native lands in the disturbed
districts of New Zealand.
Signed on behalf of the Committee of the
Aborigines' Protection Society,
SAMUEL GURNEY, M.P., President.
R. N. FOWLER, Treasurer.
F. W. CRESSON; Secretary.
London, Feb, 17, 18G1.

The Bombay and Mauritius Mails.

The Peninsular and Oriental Company's screw
steamship Poonah, Capt. G. C. Sparkes, arrived at
Southampton at 10 a.m. yesterday, with the heavy
portion of these mails, in charge of Mr. Ronayne, of
the General Post-office. She brought 55 passen-
gers (viz., 19 first-class, 17 second, 12 children, and
7 deck), among whom were his Excellency Rain-
andrainandrain, his Excellency Rainiferingia, and
the Rev. Mr. Duffas (interpreter), the Madagascar
Embassy, from the Mauritius; also, Capt. Main-
prise, R.N., and Lieut. Bromilow, R.N , from
Malta ; Capt. Crealock, 95th Regiment, from Gib-
raltar, &.2. On freight the Poonah had 10 cases of
valuables, 276 bales of siik, 30 cases of indigo, 95
boxes of oranges, and 48 packages of general mer-
chandise.

The Poonah left Alexandria on the 12th inst.,
Malta on the 5 th,and Gibraltar on the 20th. Between
Alexandria and Malta she experienced strong winds
from N.N.E. and fine weather; thence to Cape de
Gatte, moderate head winds; to Gibraltar, fresh
westerly gales; along the coast of Portugal, fine
weather and light easterly winds; across the Bay
of Biscay and up Channel, strong easterly gales and
heavy sea.

• On the 20th the Poonoh signalled the bark Mi-
chael Miller and the steamer Havrocordator, both
bound east; on the 21st, off the Burlings, the Royal
Yacht Club steam yacht Campanera, bound to
Corunna ; and on tae 22d, 70 miles north of Cape
Finisterre, the Peninsular and Oriental steamship
Pera,from Southampton on the 20tb, with the India,
China, and Australian mails, bound to Gibraltar.
Her Majesty's ships
Royal Oak, Cossack, Meannee,
Marlborough, Firefly, Resistance, Phcobe, and
Hydra were at Malta on the 15th; and the Racoon
and gunboat Procris at Gibraltar on the 20th. The
Racoon, Captain Count Gleichen, nine days from
Malta, arrived on the 15th. The Orontes, Capt. H.
Hire, six days from Spithead, arrived at Gibraltar
on the 14th, with detachments for the garrison, and
left during the night of the 15th for Malta, pro-
ceeding thence to Corfu, where she would embark
the 2d battalion 6tt Regiment for the West Indies,
and return thence to Spithead with the Ist battalion
14th Foot. The Magicienne, Capt. Armytage, from
Mazagan and Tangier, arrived at Gibraltar on the
17th, and left at 4.15 p.m. on the 18th for the east-
ward.

Sir Moses 11i ontefiore and the gentlemen who
accompanied him on his mission to the Court of
Morocco returned to Gibraltar, from the coast of
Barbary, in her Majesty's ship Magicienne, on the
17th inst. It is satisfactory to know that the efforts
of Sir Moses Montefiore on behalf of the Jews in the
Sultan's. dominions have been fully successful. He
has obtained an Imperial edict, the effect of which
cannot fail to improve the position of the Jews of
the interior, and otherwise to advance the cause of

Letters from the coast report that the number of
persons killed by the explosion of a powder maga-
zine in Morocco (as reported previously) is esti-
mated at 901

A letter from the Spanish African fortress of
Alhucemas describes the assassination by the Moors,
on the 24th of January, of the crew of two Spanish
boats, consisting of eight persons, who had left
Alhucemas for Cape Morro for the purpose of col-
lecting the coarse grass (esparto). While passing
some small islands near the Cape, a Moor swam off
and invited them to come in and purchase vege-
tables. On reaching the shore the Spanish party
was attacked at close quarters by a number of
Moors, and all were massacred, The murderous
attack was seen from Alhucemas, and on being re-
ported to the Governor, he opened with his artil-
lery upon the Moors, though apparently without
effect. The dead bodies of the murdered men were
subsequently recovered and interred by the autho-
rities of Alhucemas.

A letter from Malaga received at Gibraltar
gives some details of the seizure in that port of the
British steamer Princess for a breach of the Cus-
tom-house laws. The Princess, from England bound
for Ancona, put into Malaga for coal, and the mas-
ter reported her in ballast. She was detained a day
or two while the master obtained, through the tele-
graph, from his employers in England a credit to
enable him to purchase the requisite amount of coal.
When the arrangement was completed the usual in-

speotion of the vessel by the officers of the port took
place, to verify the description the master had given
of her lading. By a mere accident it was discovered

that she had a false hold on which the ballast was
deposited, and that beneath this, in her true hold,
were stowed a quantity of arms and military stores.
The hater are said to comprise 6 rifled cannon for
mountain artillery, 3 guns of heavy calibre, 4,000
sabres, 1,000 Minie rifles, a number of pikes, and
400 uniforms, The master of the Princess is impri-
soned, and it is believed the steamer and cargo are
liable to confiscation for the violation of law. Hos-
tilities in the north of Europe and the clandestine
transport of arms in the extreme south would seem
at first sight to have no connexion. But the steamer
was bound to Ancona, and it would not be a very
wild conjecture to suppose that her cargo was
destined for some southern province of Austria, in
anticipation of the opportunity which ooming events
may present. _

Exchange quotations at Gibraltar were as follows

—London, 90 days' date, 50 3-16 to I ; Paris do.,
5f 28c; Marseilles, do., 5f 29c; Genoa, do., 5f 31c
to 32c ; Madrid, eight days' sight, par to i pm.;
Cadiz, do., 1 die. ;
Seville, do., die. ; Malaga, do.,
par to dis. ; Barcelona, do., "3-, Pm. ; Almeria, do.,
par; Valencia, do., par; Alicante, do., par. Pre-
mium on five-franc pieces, one per cent. pm.
The following British merchant steamers had
arrived out at Gibraltar :—Feb. 15, the Powerful,
Captain J. Hughes, 11 days from Newcastle for
Alexandria ; the Orontes, Captain H. Mathias,
eight days from Liverpool, for Malta ; 16th, the
Demetrius, Capt; W. Folland, seven days from
Liverpool, for Malta;
17th, the Ellora, Capt. W.
C. Angove, 51 ,days
from Southampton, with mails,
&c., for Malta and Alexandria ; the Tripoli, Capt.
J. R. Bell, six days from Liverpool, for Palermo;
18th, the Europa, Capt. T. Partridge, six days from
London, for GenoacLeghorn, &c.;
the Cadiz, Capt.
J. Russell, eight days from London, with Govern-
ment stores; the Hawthorns,
Capt. I. Rose, eight
days from London, for Alicante ; 19th, the Persian,
Capt. S. Pyne, Big days from Liverpool, for Genoa,
Leghorn, and Naples.
The British bark" William Leckie, Captain G. B.
Best, from Sunderland, with coals for Callers, ar-
rived at Gibraltar on the
13th leaky, making five
inches of water per hour, The bark Pelican, Capt.
A. Freeth, from Newcastle for Rhodes, arrived at
Gibraltar on the 13th, and the schooner Bezaleel,
Capt, W. Vincent, from Cardiff for Gibraltar, on
the :Bth, both laden with coals.

THE SHAKSFEREAN TERCENTENARY CELEBRA-
TION AT STRATFORD ON-AVON.--Os Wednesday
last, at the meeting of the committee, the mayor (Mr. E.
F. Flower) in the chair, it was announced that the following
gentlemen had accepted the clßce of vice-president ;—Lord
Sudeley, M, Victor Hugo, M, Antonio Panizzi, Sir Frede-
rick Madden, Professor Owen) and Mr. Howard Staunton.
The mayor stated that Mr. William Stirling, M.P., and
Mr. J, Beresford-hope, had consented to act on the
Monumental Memorial Committee, and that a deputation
is coming to Stratford on Monday next to decide upon a
suitable site for the memorial. The committee now in-
cludes the Earl of Carlisle, LG., the Earl S omers,F.R.G. S.,
Sir Robert N. C. Hamilton, Bart., K.C.8., Sir Coutts
Lindsay, Bart., Mr. Charles Buxton, M.P., Mr. Robert
Bell, F.R,S.L., Mr. Layard, Ma),, Mr. William Stirling,
M.P., Mr. J. Beresford Lore) Mr. Theodore Martin, Mr.
C. L. Gruneisen, Mr. GamVer Parry, Mr. Tom Taylor,
Mr. John Ruskin, and Mr. Alfred Tennyson, D.C.L. (Poet
Laureate). The estimate of Mr. S. H. Mountford, of Wor-
cester, for the supply of refreshments during the festival,
was considered and agreed to. The building committee re-
ported that the work at the pavilion was advancing satisfac-
torily; that the building was nearly roofed in, and would
shortly be ready for the decorator.
ANOTHER OVERFLOW OF tHE THAMES.—Owing
to the continuance of the strong north-easterly
wind having driven a large body of water in the Thames,
and being full moon springs, the water rote far above the
usual height, Overflowing the river banks in several places
at high tide. The water nearly topped the wharves at Bil-
lingsgate and the Custom-house, and a number of wharves
on the south side of the river were inundated. In the
afternoon and in the evening workmen were employed in
taking precautions to prevent danrge should another over-
flow take place to-day,

Mr. Sala's First Interview with President
Lincoln.

(From the Daily Telegraph.)

Mr. Lincoln does not stand straight on his feet,
but sways about with an odd sidelong motion, as
though he were continually pumping something
from the ground—say Truth from the bottom of
her well—or hauling up some invisible anchor. It
gave We the notion of a mariner who had found his
sea-legs, and could toe a line well, but who had to
admit that there was a rough sea running. First
he pulled at one gigantic glove, and then at the
other; first inclined his puissant head to one side,
and then to the other; but he never drew himself
up to his full height. Perhaps he thought of the
ceiling, and was reluctant to bring it down on the
heads of us Philistines. My interview with him
was of very brief duration, and was mainly made
up of commonplaces. Of course he said that he was
very glad to see me, that he hoped I liked my stay,
that I had come at a critical period, and that the
country presented a very different aspect to that
which it once had: Mr. Sumner informed him that

I purposed " illustrating' in public what I had
seen in America. " Ah," said the President, " in-
deed ! with the pencil or the pen ? There is a good
deal to illustrate just now." I hinted that the pen
was my vocation. Neither more nor less took place.
I saw that Mr. Lincoln had no wish to tell me any
stories, or to talk politics; and after another tre-
mendous squeeze of the hand from him, I retired
from his presence.

My presentations were not, however, at an end.

I was taken to the centre of the apartment, where
standing in a circle of ladies, was one short, plump,
and well-favoured, and attired in a velvet dress of
royal purple, profusely trimmed with pearls and
lace. This was Mr& Lincoln. I had the honour
to shake her hand; but it was a little hand, and my
crashed digits were spared another painful ordeal.
I think I can give almost a shorthand writer's re.
port of my conversation with Mrs. Lincoln. After
the first salutations she said :

"Do you keep your health, sir P"
I replied that I was happy and thankful to say
that I enjoyed tolerable health.
" How long have you been in this country, sir ?"
she asked. _

I said that I had been seven weeks on the
American continent,

"How long do you conclude to remain, sir ?" she
went on. _ _

I replied that I hoped to remain about seven
months longer.
The President's wife was then good enough to
ask " how I liked the country." I replied diplo-
matically, that it was large and very wonderful.
Now ensued a deep and, to me, embarrassing silence.
I didn't know what was to come nest, and I don't
think Mrs. Lincoln did. At last she spoke again,
and once more in the interrogatory form :--

"And yon keep your health, sir ?"
I answered this kind inquiry as best I might,
when, fortuitously, it occurred to me that some
years ago in Russia, having to go into much bet-
ter society than I am in the habit of frequenting at
home, I had sought the assistance of a dancing-
mistress, and, at the outlay of about fifty roubles,
learnt a series of bows or " reverences," for grand
occasions. I gave Mrs. Lincoln the very lowest of
these reverences. It is a wonderful bow, and, if
you don't tumble head over heels before you arrive
at the climax, a very impressive one. To effect it
properly your nose must very nearly touch the
lowermost hem of the garment of the lady to whom
you are rendering homage. I went down and down,
till, I dare say, Mrs. Lincoln wondered whether the
Britisher would ever come up again ; but when I
rose to the surface, triumphant, and with a deter-
mination of blood to the head, I could see she was
not displeased. I hope she may preserve a favour-
able remembrance of my bow, if not of me.
I moved slowly away, but could hear the Pre-
sidontess asking the next gentleman who was pre■
sented to -her whether he " kept his health."
" Do you keep your health ?" evidently serves Mrs.
Lincoln in the stead that " Est-il possible ?" used
to serve Prince George of Denmark.

Extraordinary Charge of Setting Fire to a
Ship.

We have lately published an account of the aban-
donment at sea of the ship John Linn, laden with
cotton, by her captain and crew, who reported that
they left her in a sinking state. Soon afterwards
she was fallen in with by a foreign vessel, the Deo-
gaum ; the captain of which said he reluctantly aban-
doned the vessel as he could have brought her into
port if he could have spared a crew. Now comes an
extraordinary part of the affair. The Liverpool
Courier of yesterday says:—" Our shipping infor-
mation of today has the following—' Some of the
crew of the Deogaum report that they set fire to the
John Linn before leaving her.' It is unnecessary
to say that the captain's report, which has already
been published, says nothing of this, and until some
further communication is received from him no
comments can be made. But we may state
that three vessels which have arrived this
week report passing cotton apparently burnt, in
positions corroborative of the report. The John
Linn was abandoned on Jan. 1 some distance from
Barbadoes, at which island the craw were landed.
The day on which the Deogaum fell in with her is
not given, but the position was lat. 20 N, long. 38
W. The cotton now reported to have been passed
by other vess2ls was as follows :—Jan. 14, lat. 20 N,
long. 40 W, a number of bales of cotton, apparently
Bombay, which looked black, as if from smoke, but
did not appear to have been long in the water, by
the ship Redan, at London ; Jan. 19, lat. 17.45 N,
long. 41.10 W, one bale of Indian cotton, which had
not been long in the water, by the Persia, at Ply-
mouth; and Jan. 25, lat. 19 N, long. 43 W, three
bales of Bombay cotton, apparently not long in the
water. When it is also considered that the ten-
dency of the current would be to take them in the
very direction they appeared to be going, at least
some tinge of probability is imparted to the remark•
able story now set on foot by the crew."

Confederate Seamen Charged with

Piracy.

At the Liverpool Police-court, yesterday, Warren
Quinsey, alias Wilson, and G. P. M'Murdoch, alias
Kelly. both seamen;werc charged with piracy. No
evidence was offered, and the prisoners were re-
manded. We understand, however, that the follow-
ing are the facts of the case :
About the 16th of November last, the schooner
L. Gerity sailed from Matamoras for New York,
where her owners resided. She was commanded
by Capt. Nicholas, and had a crew of six men. She
had a cargo of cotton, valued at about 60,000 d015.,-
and six passengers, including the two prisoners. On
the night of the 17th Nov. the L. Gerity was forci-
bly seized by the passengers, who sent the crew
adrift in a boat, while it is stated that the steward,
who offered some resistance, was murdered. The
prisoner Quinsey, on this, took possession of the
schooner, and carried her over to Brownsville,
where a Confederate collector gave him suitable
papers. The vessel was then re-named the Eureka,
the old name being painted out, and the Confede-
rate flag hoisted. They next sailed to Belize, where
the authorities refused to recognise the Confederate
flag. The prisoner Quinsey then substituted the
British ensign, and entered the port. Here they
disposed of the vessel and cargo for 70,000 dollars.
Subsequently Capt. Nicholas and his crew reached
Belize, but he found that a portion of the cotton
had been sent to Liverpool, and that the captors of
his vessel had decamped. Thinking that some of
the captors would come to Liverpool, he sailed for
England; and having—under the extradition treaty
—received a warrant from Sir George Grey, he
communicated with the local police, by whose as-
sistance the prisoners were apprehended in an eat-
ing-house in Park-lane. They had some property
belonging to the owners and captain of the L.
Gerity in their possession, and were also armed with
six.barrelled revolvers.—Manchester Guardian.

PARISIAN SYMPATHY FOR THE POLES.—At the
lecture given by M. St. Mare Girardin and M. Legouve, in
the Salle Barthelemy, in behalf of the fund being raised for
the wounded Poles, the crowd was very great, more than
10,000 people failing to obtain admittance.