The Sun.
London, England, 1863-04-25 00:00:00

THERMOMETER,

••• ••••• •-• • •
Highest since Noon yesterday.
Lowest during the night
This day at N00n.~
Wind—N.Westerly ; light, with fine weather.

kIIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
Tina DAY.-11orniug, 6h. 29m.—Afternoon, 6h. 50m.
To-mounow.-Morning, 7h. 17m.—Afternoon, 7h. 47m.

gilt #l6' 1,71.*CW4

LONDON, SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 1863.

The long debate on the seizure of the Alexandra
is full of interest, and it is important to note that
the Government seem determined to adhere to their
mischievous and mistaken po'dcy. Mr. HORSFALL
spoke to the point, and with great discrimination
said that he wished to bring before the house an
individual case of hardship. It was the act of her
Majesty's Government that he now complained of,
the act which had done serious injury to the owners
of the Alexandra. He had received a communica-
tion from Messrs. FAwCETT and Co., stating that
the vessel was their property, and had been built
on speculation. These gentlemen had received a
notice that the Alexandra was " exchequered " for
being equipped, furnished, and fitted out with the
intention of being employed in the service of persons
exercising, or presuming to exercise, the powers of
government in a foreign state. Now he (Mr.
HaRsFALL) would show that this seizure was not
justified under the Foreign Enlistment Act. He
quoted the opinion of the Solicitor-General, who
said that it was a great mistake to suppose
that the act was made to prevent all commercial
dealings in ships of war with belligerent countries;
he also added that " the United States Government
had no right to complain of the Act in question, as
it is enforced in the way in which English laws
were generally enforced against English subjects—
that was, on evidence, and not on suspicion; on acts,
and not on presumption ; on satisfactory testimony,
and not on the mere accusation of a foreign Minister
or his agents." Mr. HORSFALL could not have
brought forward better evidence ; and if that law,
as here explained, was carried out, there would be
an end to all these vexed questions, since it is on
suspicions and anonymous information that all the
proceedings of the Federal officers are founded.
Messrs. FAwcETT and Co, forcibly put the case in
a letter to Mr. HORSFALL, in which they stated
that this was an anomalous state of things, " for
they might, without question, supply whole bat-
teries of field-pieces, with carriage equipments com-
plete, to known agents of the Fedex ale, whilst they
were not permitted tobuild or complete an unarmed
vessel, because it was supposed that she might ulti-
mately, by re-sale, become the property of the Con-
federate States." Surely this state of things is a
scandal to our Ministers, and they should be ashamed
to hear it said of them in the House of Commons.
The letter Mr. HORSFALL referred to contained a
postscript, which alluded to an order given to
Messrs. FAWCETT to furnish shells for the
equipments of field-pieces. The order was
given by General FREmoNT. Mr. HORSFALL
emphatically said that "the people of this country
liked even-banded justice, if they were to have non-
intervention and strict neutrality, why not stop the
shipment of arms to the Federals when they stopped
the building of vessels which they supposed might
ultimately fall into the hands of the Confederates.
The hon. member wound up his observations by
stating that the country would not be satisfied with
this course of partial proceedings, and he called
upon Government to do justice to the owners of
the Alexandra. The Attorney-General endeavoured
to elude the recessity of answering an awkward
question by declaring that it was very inconvenient
to enter on a subject while it was sub judice. Now
this is exactly the line of defence that was before
suggested as likely to be adopted by the occupants
of the Treasury bench; but while they may con-
gratulate themselves on their ingenious arrange-
ment, the public will call these tactics by the right
name, as a paltry subterfuge, unworthy of the
Ministers of the English people. A great injury is
inflicted on our merchants, and they are not per-
mitted to know what are the charges against them.
Mr. WHITESIDE forcibly stated this great injustice
to the House, and asked if the Government meant
to introduce this new principle that when
a crime was charged against a party, he was to
be told that he would learn the nature of the
accusation at a future time. The learned gentle-
man
added that,. If depositions were made against
the meanest criminal in
to be furnished with the land, he had a right
copies of the information ;"
and. so for as matters stood now, the case was