The Sun.
London, England, 1864-07-29 00:00:00

ridiculed the idea of such a body compromising themselves
in the mode in question.

MEXICO.

Mr KINGLAKE called attention to the state of our
present relations with Mexico, and moved an humble address
to her most gracious Majesty for the production of certain
papers in reference to the subject. He said it was rather
anomalous that the French invasion of Mexico, which re-
sulted in the occupation of only a small portion of the terri-
tory, should have led to 39,000 French soldiers being
stationed there.
Lord PALMERSTON said that the policy which was
pursued by this country was to enter into amicable relations
with every Power, whether a monarchy or a republic, when
either of their forms of government had been established.
Before the Archduke Maximilian went to Mexico the Go-
vernment of the country had declined to enter into any re-
lation or treaty with him, as being opposed to the practice
of government. However, when the people of that
cauntry recognised him. they then entered into
friendly relations with him. The principal ground
of complaint on the part of this country in regard to Mexico
was that it had hitherto been governed by some chiefs who
used their authority for the purpose of plundering and ill-
treating British subjects. With regard to a change in the
Government of that country, it must be remembered that a
large portion of the population were in favour of the same,
not being eati:.fied with Spanish rule, to which they had
been so long subjected.
PROROGATION OF THE HOUSE.

At a quarter past three o'clock,
Sir AUGUSTUS CLIFFORD, Usher of the Black Rod
summoned the Speaker and members to the Upper House
to hear the Royal Speech proroguing Parliament by com-
mission. The right hen gentleman, accompanied by seve-
ral members, 111‘n proceeded to the House of Lords, and,
after a short absence, returned.
The tl'EAli.Bll. having read the Royal Speech, the mem-
bers shook hands with the right hon. gentleman, which
terminated the session of 1864.

HOUSE OF COMMONS--Last Evening.
EMIGRATION (AM E RICA).
Lord E. HO WARD called attention to the subject of
emigration to the United States of America, in reference to
the prolongation of the war now raging in that country.
The gravity of the subject would be his justification for
bringing forward the subject at that late period of the ses-
sion. In consequence of his position as a member of the
distress relief committee at Glossop, one of the towns most
affected by the cotton distress, he found it became necessary
to have a census made of the population in that district,
and one of the elements of that census was the question of
emigration. He found that a large emigration had prevailed
from that district, and in the course of the inquiry he disco-
vered that it was also large from the cotton districts in gene-
ral. In 22 towns taken promiscuously from the cotton dis-
tricts—he did not know that they were the largest towns—
and in the course of a few months, setting aside single men,
of married men not less than 1,460 had left this country for
the United States, of whom not less than 780 had deserted
their wives, leaving 2,160 persons chargeable upon the rater.
Besides that, he had the names of fourteen persons who had
emigrated from one locality in Manchester within three
months, and of these not less than twelve had deserted
their wives and families, and probably most of these were
young and . newly-married men. these circumstances
showed that there must be come deep cause at work. It
would not meet the argument to say that these men had
emigrated intending afterwards to send for their wives and
families, because they knew that there had been instances
in which the manufacturers of America had sent for manu-
facturing hands from England, paying the expenses of the
voyage for themselves and their families, the agreement
being that this amount was to be deducted afterwards from
their wages. He had further to say that great caution was
exercised by those agents who took these people out of
the country, for they did not give written documents or
money until the emigrants were safe on board the vessels
which were to convey them to America. He would instance
another case, which showed how these emigrants were dis-
posed of when they reached the other side of the Atlantic.
He had a letter in his hand relating to the ease of a man
who was a private in the Manchester volunteer, This
letter was written by an officer of that corps, who stated
that a young man in his company had been decoyed to
New York. A companion of his had seen an advertisement
in a newspaper stating that young men were wanted in
Canada, and that they would have permanent employment
at the rate of 35s per week. An interview took place
between this young man and his agent, and the young
man agreed to go. The statement made was, that on ar-
riving in Canada employment would be obtained imme-
diately. On this understanding six men were induced to
go. On arriving at Liverpool conveyances were waiting to
take them to the ship. On getting on board the Virginia they
found that this vessel was bound for New York, but they
were told that on their arrival there they would be reshipped
for Canada, When they arrived at New York they were
provided with refreshments, and they were told that they
would be conveyed to Long Island. On their arrival there
two of the men enlisted at once ; this young made his
escape, and succeeded in getting into the hold of one of the
Cunard steamers ; and on his arrival at home declared
himself " a miserable victim of Yankee rascality." Nor was
that a solitary instance. There was a case now before the
Foreign-office in which a man named Macartney was landed
at New York with a letter for £lO. He was drugged, robbed;
and, while in a state of stupefaction, enlisted into the Federal
navy. He was not enlisted voluntarily. lie believed that on
all the large passenger ships sailing from Liverpool agents
of the Federal Government were on board with the view of
recruiting young men. He was told of such a case two
days ago in which an emigrant was treated by a person on
board an American passenger ship and invited to a house at
New York. He accepted the invitation, he was drugged
with whisky, and the next thing of which he became con-
scious was that he was a Federal soldier, He deserted, but
was captured, and placed in gaol. If they opened any news-
paper, and referred to the police-sheet, similar cases would
be found. He had seen the case of a man from Hull, who
had been taken to an island near New York, no doubt Long
Island, 'where he met with several other Englishmen, who
had been impressed into the Federal service, and it was
complained that those outrages were constantly committed.
There was the case of another man who was paid a
cheque for £4O, which sum he received from the Ame-
rican Government, and he was now in General Grant's
Federal army. He looked with great concern upon the
great emigration at present going on, and he advised the
large manufacturers to do their utmost to stop the flow of
skilled labour from their several districts. The noble
lord then referred to the circumstances that occurred
a short time ago in Ireland, and afterwards
read extracts from letters written by those who had
unfortunately been deluded into quitting England for
America, all of whom advised their fellow workmen to look
with the greatest suspicion upon all inducements to visit
ate United States at the present moment. It might be that
the wages given there would be larger than those in Eng-
land, yet the price of the necessaries of life were so enor-
mous that the lesser sum earned in England went further
than that to be obtained in America. Mr Justice Fitzgerald
in a charge he ga;'e the other day, referred to the terrible
frequency with whicie such acts were committed. Within
the last few days the no;;10 lord said some papers with re-
gard to this question had beer: Presented to the other house,
and copies had also been distributed amongst honourable
members, and he advised every hon. member who took an
interest in the question to read them, l.eling assured that
he would get up from their perusal with a Leart full of sore
row. The scene opened very much like a melOrama, only
he was sorry to say that the jocose part was very little in-
deed. The correspondence opened with an aceieunt
of two rascale. One of them pretended that he
was connected with some railway works in America,
' and the other (who would not be misrepresented by
describing his actions as such as would well become the
character of an imp of the devil) --(hear, hear) —plotted
and made the necessary bargains with the people. He ac-
cordingly deluded 120 men to leave Ireland on a false
representation of the work and the amount of wages to be
paid, but on board the steamer was a man who was almost
a match for him. One of the men wore his hat on the
side ot his head, and by that means contrived to disguise
the fact that he had but one eye until they were in the
middle of the ocean. Now, having but one eye did not
make the man a worse labourer, but it did a worse soldier,
and on the man Feeney discovering it he abused him
very much, showing that his real object was to obtain men
for the American army and not for railway works. (Rear,
hear.) When the ship arrived in the docks the men were
surrounded and dosed with whisky. Many of them were
placed in the police cells, and collisions were stated to have
occurred between the policemen and the recruiting agents,
and in the end several of the men who emigrated found
themselves, much against their inclination, in the Federal
army. They applied naturally to our consuls for advice and
assistance, and a correspondence took place bet ween our
consuls and Lord Lyons and the American Government,
and also between Lord Lyons and the Foreign-office upon
the subject. From that correspondence, which, as he had
already said, had been printed, it appeared that emigrants
were made drunk, inveigled into the army, and robbed by
the recruiting agents of the bounty, so that the sharks
who preyed upon them made largo profits; and many
of the scenes which Mr Consul Lousada witnessed at
Boston involuntarily recalled to his mind his experience/5
in Caba. It was, however, to be hoped that the publica-
tion of these facts would check the traffic. (Hear.) It
was stated that many of these speculators often cleared
500 dole and more by these transactions. The man Feeney,
who took this cargo of slaves out to America, was arrested
in Ireland on the charge of endeavouring to enlist men for
the Federal army, but he was released becauseitwha's
thought he produced proper and sufficient proofs that
s
enterprise was a legitimate one--that of procuring men
for a railway undertaking.. (Hear.) On the 7th of April,
184 Consul Murray wrote to Lord Lyons with regard to
the men taken out by Feeney, that there could be no
doubt there was a systematic attempt to get the men drunk
for the purpose of enbstingthem. The poor men
who left Blackburn under the direction
of Ainsworth,
whom they first sent outbe to Candadahad to
not tee if labour could be
found there, it was to hope
in shared the
fate, but Ainsworth had turned
up a wretched state at
Portland, and his scheme had failed. (Hear.) His object
in bringing the subject under the consideration of the house
was to ware his fellow- countrymen for the future against
these designing agents, and not for the purpose of making
any charge against the American Government. On the
3d of May, 1834, Lard Lyons, in a despatch to the Foreign
Secretary, stated that the number of British subjects serv-
ing in the United States army and navy was very conside-
rable. IThe most laborious, painful, and unsatisfactory