The Sun.
London, England, 1865-03-11 00:00:00

" AN IRISH GENTLEMAN."

Mr. HENNESSY asked for information relative to the
law in Ireland in consequence of a most extraordinary
statement which appeared in the newspapers this morning.
This statement was to the effect that on Monday last a
man named Patrick Doyle was convicted at the assizes at
Kilkenny of vagrancy and sentenced, in the absence of
bail, to some years penal servitude. That conviction took
place on an act of Queen Anne, and he thought it was bb-
solste. _Before the same judge who presided at the

assizes at Kilkenny a man was convicted of personating
a postman and stealing a letter, and was sentenced
only to a month's imprisonment, on the ground that he
had not been employed by the Post-office authorities. He
would expect information on this subject fr. 3,11 the Secre-
tary for Ireland on a future day.
Mr. ROEBUCK said he found that the party was con-
victed of the offence of being an Irish gentleman who
would not work. (Great laughter.)

NEW ZEALAND.

On the motion of going into committee of supply,

Mr. A. MILLS called the attention of the house to the
state of affairs in New Zealand, and moved an address to
the Crown on the subject of the war in that colony, but
said that in consequence of an alteration in the policy of
Government towards the colony, he would not press his
motion. However, he condemned in strong terms the con-
duct pursued towards New Zealand by this country.
Mr. ROEBUCK denounced the cry that had been got up
on this subject as one of the shams which should be ex-
posed. He contended that in prosecuting conquest and
colonization this country had extended English
civilization, and referred to the aboriginal state
of America when it was inhabited by a cruel
savage and vindictive race, as a proof of his assertion, and
the advantages effected by the dominion of a civilised
nation.

Mr. BUXTON, at some:length, denounced the policy of
this country towards New Zealand
Mr. ADDERLEY remarked that, whether successful or
not, the attempts of the Imperial Government to enable
the Maories to live peaceably with the settlers were cre-
ditable to the country. The anomaly in New Zealand was
that we had invested the colonists :with self-government,
without making them responsible for self-defence. Upon
the whole he considered the future of the colony as full of
promise, now that a new policy had been inaugurated, and
he hoped ere long to see rising in the South as well as in
the West, a great English colony, self-governed and self-
reliant, and England ceasing to think that colonial connec-
tion involved that kind of dependence which only had the
effect of crushing out all spirit of enterprise.
Mr. MARSH regretted to say that it was too true that
the natives of New Zealand had been supplied with arms
by English merchants, though he could not say what
" manner of men" they were. Referring to the statement
that the Maori population were continually being dimi-
nished, he mentioned that the diminution was greater prior
to the settlement of the islands, than it had been since.

Mr. CAVE approved of the change of policy recently
introduced. By making the colonists hereafter fight their
own battles they would be more inclined to live peaceably
with their neighbours, and the natives would have a better
chance of fulfilling a destiny that would be worthy of so
fine a race.