The Sun.
London, England, 1853-07-12 00:00:00

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SU2T OFFICE, Seven o'Clock.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS-(THIS EVENING.)

The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack
at 5 o'clock.

The Earl of HARDWICKE presented a petition
from the county of Cambridge, praying for the repeal
of the malt tax.

Lord KINNAIRD presented several petitions in fa-
vour of the Combination of Workmen Bill.

Lord CAMPBELL said he wished to take that oppor-
tunity of stating his opinion on the bill before he left
town for the circuit. He thought the bill was wholly
unnecessary, as the law as it now stood was
excellent, and amply sufficient to protect the rights of
the workmen.

Lord BROUGHAM presented several petitions from
workmen employed in Scotland, in favour of the bill
respecting the arrestment of Wages in Scotland. The
noble lord stated that it was not his intention to pro-
ceed with the bill this session.

THE TURKISH QUESTION.
Lord LANSDOWNE wished to ask the noble lord
at the head of the Foreign Department whether he had
received a copy of Count Nesselrode's note in the Rus-
sian language. The noble and learned lord took that
opportunity of stating that the reply of the French
Minister for Foreign Affairs to the note of Count Nes-
selrode fully bore him out in the statement which
he made the other night, and he wished, therefore, to
ask, the noble lord whether he agreed with him in think-
ing that there was no similarity between the position
of the British and French fleets in the Turkish waters,
and that of the Russian troops in occupying the
Turkish provinces. Such, he believed, was the
notion entertained by the Russian Court, and
since a noble lord elsewhere had dissented from the
construction which he placed upon this passage in the
note, he should be glad to know if the noble lord oppo-
site concurred with his noble colleague.
The Earl of CLARENDON said his reply to the first
question must be in the affirmative ; and with regard to
the second question, it certainly was true that the note
stated that the Russian forces would not withdraw from
the Danubian provinces until the French and English
fleets left the Turkish waters. This was the construc-
tion which he placed upon the particular passage to which
the noble and learned lord referred. There, however,
could be no comparison between the situation of the
two forces, and no doubt the noble lord elsewhere
fell into error from not having an opportunity of seeing
the document until last night.
Earl FITZ WILLIAM wished to know if the Govern-
ment had received any information of the Austrian troops
having entered Bosnia ?
Lord CLARENDON said dispatches had been re-
ceived from Vienna to the 7th inst., and they made no
mention of such information. The Austrian troops had
not advanced beyond Peterwaraclen, and the Austrian
Minister in London thought the report must have origi-
nated in mistake..
The subject then dropped.
[LEFT SITTING.]

HOUSE OF COMMONS—(THIS DAY.)
The SiAliEli took the chair at 12 o'clock.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

The Lords' amendments to the Electric Telegraph
Company of Ireland ; South-Eastern Railway (Reading
Extension, &c.) ; and Warrington and Altrincham Rail-
way (Stockpolt) Bills were considered and agreed to.
The Crowe's Disabilities Removal Bill was read a
third time and passed.
The Banbridge, Drblin, Newry, and Belfast Junction
Railway, and the Weeport Port and Harbour Bills were
read a third time.
The Archbishop of Canterbury's Estate, and the
Pemberton Leigh's Estate Bills were read a second
time.

Mr. SECRETARY at WAR moved the appointment
of a select committee to prepare estimates of the charge
of the disembodied militia of Great Britain and Ireland
for the year ending the 31st day of March, 1854 :
Mr. Secretary at War, Viscount Palmerston, the Judge
Advocate, Mr. Walpole, Mr. Ellice, Mr. Vernon Smith,
Major Beresford, Mr. Wilson, Colonel Maule, Colonel
Lindsay, Mr. Wilson Patten, and all colonels of militia.
—Agreed to.
Mr. KERSFIAW presented six petitions against the
Education Bill.
MERCHANT SHIPPING BILL.

The house then went into committee on this bill, on
clause 29 ; the discussion on Capt. Scobell's proposition
to omit the clause which permits vessels to be manned
entirely by foreign seamen was resumed.
Admiral WALCOT supported the omission of the
clause, as he considered it would tend, if carried, to
break up the Mercantile Marine of this country.
Mr. INGHAM thought that after the repeal of the
Navigation Laws, when the British shipowner was
exposed to open competition, it was only fair and just
that he should be allowed to man his vessel in the most
efficient manner possible. He intended, however, to
move a proviso th...t this shwa. 70. et extend to *Aaa
coasting trade.
Sir G. PECHELL supported the clause, as he did
not believe it would lead to the slightest inconvenience
in manning the British navy. He believed it was quite
impossible to man a ship efficiently with none but
foreigners.
Mr. DIGBY SEYMOUR believed that this clause
was the most redeeming feature of the bill ; and he
should cordially support it.
Mr. DUNLOP supported the amendment.
Sir G. TYLER opposed the clause.
Sir J. GRAHAM said he had given to the question
the grave consideration which it merited. Previous to
the repeal of the navigation laws, it was confidently
predicted by a number of gallant officers examined be.
fore a committee of the House of Commons that it
would lead to the utter ruin of her Majesty's navy.
What was the real state of the case, he need only refer
them to the last returns to see. It was only after hav-
ing agreed with his colleagues with regard to the aboli-
tion of the clause, that he had brought forward the pro-
positions lately laid on the table of the house to give
additional benefit to the seamen of her Majesty's service.
The one could not be carried out without the other.
The race of competition was now a very close one,
and the British shipowner must not carry any more
weight in the race than was absolutely necessary. He
was convinced that they could not do anything for the
advantage of commerce, which would not also redound
to the benefit both of the Mercantile Marine and the
Queen's service.

Mr- WILLIAMS was as ardent a foreigner as any
man in that house, but he thought this clause was carry-
ing the point rather further than was necessary.
Admiral BERKELEY said that the state of affairs
had very much changed, since the time that hon. and
gallant officers who opposed the clause, had had experi-
ence in the manning of the navy. In their times, the
best men in the Royal Navy were drawn from the mer-
chant service, but that was not the case now. The nur-
series for able and thorough seamen were quite changed.
If he had not been perfectly convinced of this he should
not have given way to this clause.
Mr. G. HUDSON thought that full and fair oppor-
tunity ought to be given to the British shipowner to
compete at every advantage with shipowners of other
countries, and he should vote for this clause.
Mr. HENLEY regretted that the Government should
have fixed the discussion of a question of such gravity
and importance for a morning sitting. He had great
sympathy for persons engaged in the shipping trade, and
if he were only influenced by a consideration for their
interest, he should have had no difficulty in coming to
a decision as to how he should give his vote on this
occasion. But the interests of the seamen must also be
looked to in deciding this question. It resolved itself,
he believed, into what was the rate of wages to be paid
to the seamen ; and the course which the Government
proposed to take seemed to him to be this, that,
instead of giving the seamen the fair amount of wages
which tempt him to enter the Queen's service,
they exposed him to competition with foreign seamen in
the mercantile service in order to beat down wages and
force him into the Royal Navy. What was wanted
was not so much to increase the number of British sea-
men, but the numbers of the seamen of the best quality,
such as were most fitted to make able men-of-war's men.
It would be impossible to have skilled seamen unless they
took care to have them properly brought up. Able
seamen did not, even then, receive either in the royal
navy or the mercantile service, anything like the amount
of wages which skilled labourers in other trades ob-
tained. He could not help thinking that the tendency
of the bill would be to decrease the number of appren-
tices training for British seamen. In time of war they
must have recourse to the seamen in the mercantile ser-
vice to man the royal navy, and he doubted much whe-
ther the bill would increase the facilities for obtaining
them. The two services were, unfortunately, antagon-
istic. Why they were so was a problem which had yet
to be solved. He saw no reason himself why the
Queen's service should not be the most popular in the
world. If its unpopularity was owing to a matter of
money, he thought the pay ought to be increased, for it
was only necessary in peace to have a limited number
of men, and why should these not be picked men ?
(Hear, hear.) Believing that the public safety
ought to overrule every other consideration, and
doubting very much the policy of the clause, he
should certainly vote against it. (Hear.) He did no t
think any case had been made out of the necessity for
an alteration of the law. _

Mr. CARDWELL said the real question was, whe-
ther they should increase or decrease the number of sea-
men in the navy. He contended not only that all high
naval authorities in 1849 approved of the change, but
that the experience of the last three years of the repeal
of the Navigation-laws showed its absolute necessity.
As to the number of apprentices in the navy,
he could state that, shortly after the decrease
commenced, the number began to rally, and it had
since continued to increase up to the present time. In

.....
1850 the number of apprentiCes who entered the service
was 5,056 ; in 1851, 5,275 • and in 1852, 5,845 ; and
on the first six months of the present year the number
was 3,731. He readly admitted that this was a ques-
tion of wages, but he could not understand why any
special protection should be given to sailors, which was
not possessed by other labourers. At the present time
seamen were leaving the American navy and entering
the. British service, and they would not do so
unless greater advantages were held out to them.
No less than 5,000 had entered the service since Decem-
ber, and he believed that now we had 8,000 more sea-

men at our disposal that we had before the repeal of the

Navigation Laws. He therefore thought we might dis-
miss from our minds the idle fears entertained as to the
proposed change, and might safely apply to this branch
of the service the sound, healthy principles which were
applied to the other branches of it, and had been found
to work well. The state of the world at this moment
was such that they might safely make the transition
without any apprehension, and without any inconveni-
ence or injury to the interests which it was proposed to
protect. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. LIDDELL considered that the objections urged
to the clause had been satisfactorily answered by the
President of the Board of Trade. He was bound to say
that the apprehensions which were entertained of the
repeal of the navigation laws had not been realised, and
he thought he should only do his duty to his consti-
tuents at Liverpool, and promote the interests of the
country at large, by acceding to the proposal of the Go-
vernment.

Mr. MITCHELL supported the clause.
Mr. HEADLAM protested against the injustice of
the attempt to enable captains in the Royal Navy to
withdraw men from the merchant service.
Mr. HASTIE approved of the clause. Under com-
petition with the world our ships had improved in con-
struction and sailing qualities, and if we exposed our
seamen to the same competition, he believed the same
result would manifest itself, and that they would be-
come a better class of men.

Mr. WILCOX considered that, if they passed
the clause, they would not employ one English
sailor less nor one foreign sailor more, nor
would they lower the rate of wages ; but they
would do this great good—they would' put a check on
that. disgraceful and wholesale desertion which now took
place among British seamen abroad. He objected to
that part of the clause which enabled shipowners to
employ foreigners as masters of their vessels. The ship-
owners of the country would not consider that a boon,
for he believed it would not be resorted to except for
sinister or unworthy purposes.
Captain SCOBELL replied, and the committee di-
vided, when the numbers were--

For the clause 142
Against it 36
Majority
The clause was then agreed to, as were also clauses
up to 37, inclusive. ,
The chairman then reported progress and obtained
leave to sit again on Friday at 12 o'clock.
The house adjourned at four o'clock until six this
evening.

The house resumed at six o'clock, and was
[LEFT SITTING.]

THE LONDON GAZETTE

(THIS EVENING.)

LORD CHAMBERLAIN'S OFFICE, JULY 12.

Orders for the Court's going into mourning on Thurs-
day next, the 14th instant, for his late Royal Highness the
Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, viz. :

The ladles—towearbla.7:isiii, fringed or plain linen,
white gloves, necklaces, and ear-rings, black or white shoes,
fans, and tippets.
The gentlemen to wear black, full trimmed, fringed, or
plain linen, black swords and buckles.
The Court to change the mourning on Sunday next, the
17th instant, viz.:—
The ladies to wear black silk or velvet, coloured ribbons,
fans, and tippets, or plain white, or white and gold, or
white and silver stuffs, with black ribbons.
The gentlemen to wear black coats, and black or plain
white, or white and gold, or white and silver stuff waist-
coats, full trimmed, coloured swords and buckles.
And on Thursday the 21st instant, the court to go out
of mourning.

FOREIGN-OFFICE, JULY 5.
The Queen has been graciously pleased to appoint George
Benvenuto Mathew, Esq., now her Majesty's Consul at
Charleston, to be her Majesty's Consul at Philadelphia.
The Queen has also been graciously pleased to appoint
Robert Bunch, Esq., now her Majesty's Consul at Phila-
delphia, to be her Majesty's Consul at Charleston.
FOREIGN-OFFICE, JULY 8.
The Queen has been graciously pleased to appoint Fred-
erick Hamilton, Esq., now First Paid Attaché to her Ma-
jesty's Legation at Vienna, to be Secretary to her Majesty's
Legation at Stuttgardt.
FOREIGN-OFFICE, JULY 11.
The Queen has been pleased to approve of Mr. John W.
Howden, as Consul at Bermuda, and of Mr. James Keenan
as Consul at Hong Kong, for the United States of America.
The Queen has also been pleased to approve of Mr.
Oliver John Williams, as Vice-Consul at Harwich, for
his Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-
Schwerin.

CROWN OFFICE, JULY 11.
MEMBERS RETURNED TO SERVE IN THE PRESENT
PARLIAMENT.

Borough of Tralee—Daniel O'Connell, Esq., of No. 20,
King-street, Saint James's, in the room of Maurice O'Con-
nell, Esq., deceased.
Borough of Liverpool—Thomas Berry Horsfall, Esq.,
and the Hon. Henry Thomas Liddell, in the room of
Charles Turner and William Forbes Mackenzie, Esqrs.,
whose election for the said borough has been declared void.