The Sun.
London, England, 1830-05-27 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS-(LIST NIGHT.)

The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the
Woolsack at five o'clock.
The Earl of POMFRET took the oaths and hii seat.
Petitions were presented by the Duke of Gordon,
from Elgin, against the proposed increase of duty on
British spirits; by the Earl of Melbourne, from
Leeds, against the punishment of death for forgery ;
by Lord Calthorpe, from certain dissenters in York-
shire, against slavery ; by Lord Farnborough, from
Northumberland, complaining of distress ; by Lord
Holland, from the county of Dublin, against an in-
crease of taxation in Ireland; by Lord King, from
the parish of St. Luke, against the window-tax;
and by the Marquis of Lansdowne, from the
county of Dublin, against an increase of duty on
British spirits; and from Cornwall against slavery.
Earl BATHURST presented a report from the
Committee of Precedents appointed yesterday.—lt
was laid on the table.
GREECE.—PRINCE LEOPOLD.

Lord DURHAM rose to propose a question re-
lative to the Negotiations respecting the sovereignty
of Greece. He begged to ask the Noble Secretary
for Foreign Affairs when he meant to present the
remainder of the papers connected with that trans-
action, because in the present state of the case con-
siderable prejudice was created in the public mind,
which he was convinced would disappear when the
whole of the papers were laid upon the table. He
also wished to correct a statement which had been
made, he hoped inadvertently, by the Noble Earl,
when he laid the papers on the table, with respect
to dates and facts. The Noble Earl stated on
Monday, that up to Friday night his Majesty's
Ministers were not in possession of any document
which could lead them to believe that any thing was
likely to occur in the course of the negociations at
all affecting the ultimate result. He (Lord Dur-
ham) also recollected that on Tuesday, the 18th
instant, the Noble Earl, in answer to a ques-
tion of a Noble Marquis, said that the papers would
be produced on the following Monday, not in con-
sequence of the Noble Marquis's questions, but
because the proceeding had arrived at a stage at
which the documents could be produced. And yet

it did happen that on the 16th, two days previously
to that declaration, Ministers were in possession of
a document dated the 15th, from Prince Leopold,
announcing that they might expect his resignation.
In that communication Prince Leopold stated the
arrival of a despatch of the utmost importance—
namely, a declaration of the Senate and people of
Greece, that they would never consent to the ar-
rangements of the Allies. It was -therefore ex-
traordinary that the Noble Earl should come to the
House on Monday, and tell their Lordships that up
to Friday Ministers had no idea of any intention on
the part of Prince Leopold to resign. It was time
that an end should be put to all mystery on the
subject. It should be made known to the country
that the termination of the negotiations had no
reference to pecuniary considerations. It was a
great mistake to suppose that the pecuniary part of
the transaction had reference to the Prince himself.
The fact was, that it related only to the amount of
a loan which was guaranteed by the Allies. With
respect to the " pertinacity" with which his Royal
Highness insisted on the amount of the loan, it
should be known that it was actually the sum re-
quested by Count Capo d'lstria long previous to
the nomination of Prince Leopold or his negocia-
tions with the Allies. In conclusion, he begged
the House and the country to suspend their judg-
ment until the whole of the papers were before them,
when, in his conscience, he believed it would be in
favour of Prince Leopold.
The Earl of ABERDEEN said, it was impos-
sible that any one could wish more ardently than
himself that every thing connected with the transac-
tion were already upon the table. A portion of the
papers at present on the table comprised the proto-
cols of the conferences of the Plenipotentiaries of
the Allied Powers down to the 14th of May. On
the 14th of May, the Plenipotentiaries received the
assent of the Porte and of the Greek Government
to their propositions. Those papers were trans-
mitted to his Royal Highness Prince Leopold on the
14th. On the 15th, his Royal Highness sent the
Plenipotentiaries three letters from Count Capo
&Istria. Two of these letters were dated the 6th
of April, and the last was dated the 22d. Those
dated the 6th certainly described a state of things
calculated to excite great apprehension and alarm as
to the success of the work. Count Capo d'lstria
undoubtedly represented the state of Greece in a not
very encouraging manner to his Royal Highness.
But the letter of the 22d announced the adhesion of
the Greek Government. He (the Earl of Aber-
deen) answered his Royal Highness, that he felt
that the communication which had been made to
him of the assent of the Greek Government to the
protocol, must or ought to have dissipated any
alarm which he might have entertained from the
perusal of the letters of the President of a previous
date. That was on the 15th of May. He did not
say that up to Friday night he had no reason to
expect any change in the disposition of his Royal
Highness. Far from it. He said that at twelve
o'clock on Friday night he received his Royal High-
ness's decision to abdicate, but he also stated that,
up to a very few days preceding, the whole of the
negotiation turned on the point of the loan. The
Noble Lord seemed to think that his Royal Highness's
last letter ought to have been laid on the table with
the other papers. It was too much to expect that
that letter should be produced alone, unconnected
with any thing which preceded it. It should be re-
collected that he (Lord Aberdeen) was, in this
transaction, the representative of one of three great
Powers. Before he produced the letter, it became
him to consult with his colleagues of France and
Russia whether it would not be necessary to annex
the letter to a protocol of a conference. In fact, he
was not master of the letter to dispose of it as he
pleased; but if he could have done so, it unques-
tionably was too much to expect that he should lay
upon the table a letter which he maintained gave a'
most mistaken and erroneous view of the whole
transaction. That letter would create a different
impression from that which he was confident would
prevail when it came before the House accompanied
Stith the whole of the papers. He would not now
enter into the question of the negotiation of the
loan. Though he was not likely often to agree
with the Noble Lord, he was much mistaken if the
Noble Lord would have to complain of him for want
of fairness or candour in the manner of his producing
documents to the House. The more the subject
should be examined and explained, from the com-
mencement to the close, the more he (Lord Aber-
deen) would be satisfied. He would willingly have
his conduct, throughout the whole transaction, tried
by twelve men from that House, or any other part
of the country, and abide by their decision.—(Hear.)
In answer to the Noble Lord's question, he could
state that he had every reason to believe—and no
exertion should be wanting on his part to realize
that belief—that all the papers would be produced
on the day after to-morrow.—(Hear, hear.)
The Earl of MALMESBURY said, that the
papers had not yet been delivered to him, and de-
precated premature discussion.
Earl GREY said, that if the discussion were pre-
mature, it had been occasioned by the ex-parte pro-
ceeding of the Noble Secretary. The impression
made upon his mind by what fell from the Noble
Secretary on Monday certainly was, that up to Fr-
day last Government had no idea that Prince Leo-
pold would resign the throne of Greece; yet it now
appeared that on the 15th his Royal Highness ex-
pressed his objection to the arrangements, on the
ground that the territory to be surrendered to Turkey
was possessed by Greeks who must be driven out by
force of arms. The Noble Earl had told the House
that Prince Leopold's letter took an erroneous view
of the whole question. That was the Noble Earl's
opinion. His own opinion was directly the reverse.
The Noble Earl said it would be unjust to produce
the letter; but it could not be more unjust to do so,
than to produce the acquiescence of the Greek