The Sun.
London, England, 1863-07-11 00:00:00

SUPPLY.

The house then went into Committee of Supply.
The first vote was £3,750 for the ecclesiastical commis-
sioners, which was agreed to.
The next votes agreed to were-
-110,917, for temporary commissions.
£17,015, for compensation and superannuation under the
Law Ameniment Act.

£9,744, for fisheries in Scotland.
£23,928, for local dues on shipping under treaties of red',•
prucity.
£2,000, for trustees of manufactures, Scotland.
£1,920, for salaries of inspectors of corn returns.
£BOO, for adjusting boundaries of counties and parishes in
Ireland.
£686, for electric telegraph between Malta and Alexan-
dria.
On the vote £23,455, for the preparations for the celebra•
tion of the marriage of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales,
Mr. F. PEEL intimated, in reply to Mr. A. Smith, that
it was not usual to charge the Civil List of her Majesty
with extraordinary expenses of this nature.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER explained
that the death of the Queen Dowager, and in one year of
the Duchess of Kent and the Prince Consort, threw some
heavy charges on her Majesty, which, being addressed to
her liberality and affection, were responded to with ex-
traordinary liberality. Thus no charge, which would have
been justifiable, had been made on the country. (Hear.)
Mr. WILLIAMS thought that the revenues of the
Duchy of Cornwall should have been charged with this
outlay.

Sir G. GREY supported the vote. Ho was
satisfied the country would not object to the payment of
this sum out of the public purse. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. SMITH said he believed there was a balance of
£B,OOO in hand, which should have been made available.
Mr. WALPOLE deprecated inquiring into the mode in
which her Majesty expended the money voted to her for
the maintenance of her state and dignity.

Sir H. WILLOUGHBY objected to the opening of the
theatres at the public expense.

Sir G. GREY said the precedent of her Majesty's mar-
riage was followed.
The vote was agreed to.
On the vote of £3,781 to defray certain charges formerly
made under the head of civil contingencies,
Sir J. JERVOISE deprecated the expenditure on ac-
count of the vaccination of sheep because of its inutility. Ho
moved that £434 108, in respect to examining sheep and
experimenting thereon be disallowed,
Sir R. PEEL explained that the Government had deemed
it well to appoint inspectors in various parts of Ireland.
After some discussion the vote was withdrawn.
THE BRITISH MUSEUM.
Mr, WALPOLE then proposed the remainder of these
votes. He said the vote for the previous year amounted to
£99,012; this year it stood at £90,541, exhibiting a dimi-
nution of £8,4714The house had already votedl2s,ooo, and
he now proposed that the vote of £65,541 should be granted.
The right hon, gentleman explained the nature of the vari-
ous branches of the expenditure. The right hon. gentle-
man the member for Buckinghamshire (Mr. Disraeli) had
been elected to fill the vacant trusteeship. He hoped that
the trustees would take his suggestion that the museum be
opened in the evening into their consideration.
Mr. LOCKE advocated the opening of the museum on
the Sunday after divine service. The working men did
not care to go there in the evening after a severe day's
work. (Hear, hear.) If it was good for them to visit the
museum in the evening, surely it was likewise good for
them to behold its glorious contents on the Sabbath. Better
to let the working classes visit the museum on the Sunday
than to drive them to the public-house. (Hear, hear.)
The Kensington Museum was clearly adapted for being
opened in the evening; not so all parts of the British Mu-
seum; so that he preferred to see it opened on the Sundays
instead. He had made himself well acquainted with the
desires of the working classes, and they were decidedly of
opinion that the Museum should be thrown open to them
during certain hours of the Sabbath. A gentleman did not
object to take his friends through his picture gallery on the
Sabbath ; what harm, then, could accrue to working men
visiting the public picture galleries and museums?
Mr. MITFORD said there were many difficulties in the
way of opening the Museum on Sundays, but he hoped the
trustees would well consider the subject.
Mr. CONINGHAM objected to the opening of the
Museum in the evenings, because he believed the pictures
at South Kensington were materially injured by the gas.
Lectures among the various specimens could not fail to be
interesting. He regretted there was still no hope of a cata-
logue, and trusted the magnificent collection would not be
separated.

Mr. KINNAIRD supported the opening of the Museum
in the evening.
Mr. WALPOLE said the Museum could not, with safety
to the collection, be opened in the evenings. Had the
trustees seen their way to a change in this direction, they
would have gladly adopted it, but great deterioration
to the collection would be the result of the appli-
cation of gas-light. The books of the Atheriasum
Club were partly injured by the library being lit with gas.
Mr. BOUVERIE—They were destroyed.
Mr. WALPOLE enquired if those who favoured the
opening of the Museum in the evening had reckoned the
expense of lighting and assistants. With respect to open-
ing the Museum on Sunday, the house had decided
against it, and the trustees could not themselves take a step
opposed to the principle on which the other public institu-
tions of the country were conducted.
Mr. AYRTON said that the building was particularly
adapted for gas-lighting, and that it could be accomplished
without danger to the collection.
Sir J. TRELAWNY said there should be an end to this
competition between public bands and public institutions
for pre-eminence on the Sabbath by the opening of the
latter.

The vote was then agreed to, and the houso resumed.
The sitting was suspended at a quarter to four.
The House resumed at six o'clock.
Mr. MASSEY brought up the report of supply.
MALTA DOCK.
Sir J. HAY gave notice that he should on Monday ask
why the papers with reference to Malta Dock, laid on the
table of the house on the 15th June, and recalled for amend-
ment, was not in the hands of menthe's. (Hear.)
LIEUTENANT TINL IN G.
Col. SYKES gave notice that he would on an early day
call the attention of the house to the circumstances attend-
ing the death of Lieut. Tinting, of her Majesty's ship En-
counter, at the siege in China.
MR. ROBERT REDMOND BELSHAM AND THE
CONFEDERATE AUTHORITIES.
Mr. BLAKE remarked that, according to the informa-
tion that had been furnished to him, a Mr. Belsham, a
British subject, went some time since to reside in Alabama,
and, in consequence of his refusal to serve in the Confede-
rate army, he was, in the month of April last, dipped three
times in a tank of water, with a view to compel him to
serve,s and that on being asked on each time whether he
fourth time, he, in order to save his life, con-
would serve or not he repeated his refusal, but that, on be-
ing
ed
dippedto searve under protest. The case was stated to her
Majesty's
representative at Boston, who directed her Ma-
se n t
jesty's consul at Richmond to inquire into the circumstance.
He had further been informed that in consequence Mr.
Belsham had been sent to Montgomery, in order that his
case might be investigated. Since that time Mr. Belsham's
friends had heard nothing of him, and the object he (Mr.
Blake) had in view was to find out what had become of
him. (Laughter.) His question was whether the remon-
strance addressed by the British consul at Richmond, by
direction of her Majesty's Minister at 'Washington, to the
Confederate authorities, against the compulsion exercised
upon Mr. Robert Redmond Belsham, a British subject, at
Montgomery, State of Alabama, to force him to serve in
the Confederate army, had been attended with effect ;
and whether there was any objection to state the sub-
stance of whatever communications bad been received from
Lord Lyons on the subject.
Mr. LAYARD said—l beg to state that the case of Mr.
Belsham has been brought to the notice of her Majesty's
Government, but the hon. gentleman is under a misappre-
hension when he says the case was brought before Confe-
derate authorities under the direction of Lord Lyons. He
had no official communication whatever with the authori-
ties of the Confederate States, and nothing, therefore, was
dune under his directions; but Mr. Moore, the British con-
sul at Richmond, did make a representation to the Confe-
derate Government with regard to the case. Mr. Belsham
was, as he states, cruelly treated ; indeed, he was exposed to
torture to compel him to take service in the army of the
Confederate States, Unfortunately, Mr. Belsham's case is
not the only one, several similar cases having been brought
to our notice; but it is right to state that they have taken
place at a distance from Richmond, and the Confederate
authorities have expressed their regret that they should have
taken place. (Hear, hear.) A bill was brought before the
Confederate Assembly which, if passed, will empower the
State to enlist foreigners in the Confederate army, but that
bill was rejected, and a committee was appointed to inquire
into the treatment of British subjects, imprisoned mostly
for refusing to serve in the Confederate army. Mr, Moore
made representations to the Confederate Government, in
respect of these cases of cruelty and illegality, and it was
well known that, in consequence of those representations,
the Confederate Government suspended Mr. Moore's exe-
quatur and he was obliged to leave the States. Her Ma-
jesty's Minister eventually sent instructions to Mr. Moore
to make strong representations to the Confederate Govern-
ment, but they did not reach him until atter be had left the