The Sun.
London, England, 1863-06-06 00:00:00

WORTH,

Lord ST. LEONARDS, in asking a question, according
to notice, of the Secretary of State for the Colonies,
took occasion to allude to the debate which had lately
taken place in the other house upon the subject of the
Royal Victoria Asylum, and complained of the manner
in which he had been alluded to by his right hon. friend,
Sir John Pakington. The committee of ladies, of whom his
(Lord St. Leonardo') daughter was one, had objected to the
manner in which the lady superintendent and the chaplain
had conducted the asylum, and they had called for the re-
moval of both these officers. The Royal commissioners had
not enforced the recommendation of the ladies' committee,
and seven of the ladies had resigned in consequence. His
right hon. friend had said that he (Lord St. Leonards) had
taken up the question very warmly becanse his daughter
was one of the ladies' committee. Probably he had taken
up the matter warmly. It was his habit when he felt
strongly to speak warmly, but his interest in the asylum
was of older date than his daughter's connection with the
ladies' committee. He had been ona of,the Royal commis-
sioners from the first, and he had been chairman of the
executive committee for two years. Having recited the
complaints which the ladies had made against the manage-
ment of the lady superintendent and the chaplain,in causing
a girl to be placed in solitary confinement, where she died,
in causing a girl of 16 to be whipped with a birch rod, in
sending girl to be mesmerised, and in permitting girls to go
to London without proper care, his lordship said that he
still retained the same opinion upon all these matters. But
as he and the ladies' committee had been over-ruled, he at
once submitted, and subsequently he had met and acted
towards the chaplain and the lady superintendent precisely
as if nothing had occurred. He considered that to be one
of the duties of subordination. He wished to ask the noble
duke whether any steps had been taken to obtain a new
committee of ladies, for he thought the asylum ought to be
always under the control of such a committee.

The Duke of NEWCASTLE was sure his noble and
learned friend did not expect him to enter into the per-
sonal matters to which he had referred as being in dispute
between him and the right hon.gentleman (Sir J. Peking-
ton,) As to the question of his noble and learned friend
he (the Duke of Newcastle) was not a member of
the executive committee of the asylum. He was only one of
the royal commissioners. He could therefore only say that
of the 12 ladies who formed the original committee five con-
tinued to act, and he believed they visited individually from
time to time the asylum. (Lord St. Leonards shook his
head.) His noble and learned friend shook his head as if h
denied the statement. Well, that only proved that his noble
friend knew more about the affair than he (the Duke of
Newcastle) did, and therefore could rather give than receive
information from him. (A laugh.) However, all he could
say was, that the executive committee would meet on Tues-
day next to consider what steps should be taken to increase
the number of the ladies' committee.
The matter was then allowed to drop, and the house ad-
journed at 20 minutes to 8 o'clock.