The Sun.
London, England, 1831-02-19 00:00:00

GREECE.

The Earl of ABERDEEN said it would be in their
Lordships' recollection that in the course of the last Ses-
sion of Parliament he had laid on the table certain papers
relative to the pacification and ,settlement of Greece,
among which there was a protocol of the several Powers,
by which the limits and boundaries t! e new Greek
State were determined. As the illustrious person who
was looked up to for the future Sovereign of that
country had declined the honour, and as the final ar-
rangement remained, therefore, incomplete, the several
Plenipotentiaries had, as he had on that occasion in-
formed their Lordships, joined in an assurance both
to Turkey and Greece that no change whatever should
take place in the line of territory which was then defined.
He should not, however, have called the attention of
their Lordships at present to the subject of Greece, well
knowing that the Noble Earl had more urgent duties to
perform, and more pressing claims to satisfy, had not his
particular attention been called to a report of a speech,
said to have been delivered by the Minister for Foreign
Affairs in Franee on this important subject. It
would appear, that in answer to a strong attack made
on the policy of his Government in the Chamber
of Deputies, the Minister for Foreign Affairs said
that the Affairs of Greece had occupied the fullest
attention of the French Cabinet, and that it was
owing to the French arms and to French intervention that
the freedom of that country had been accomplished. That
intervention he (the Earl of Aberdeen) supposed would be
considered rather an awkward word by the Noble Earl,
still the French Minister attributed the freedom of Greece
alone to French arms and intervention ; and it would ap-
pear that that individual also added that the frontiers of
Greece should be extended and new defined.—(Hear.)—
De did not mean to ask the Noble Earl whether this re-
port of the speech was authentic or not, but he tilt that
he was justified in inquiring if, after all the painful nego-
ciations that had taken place—if after all the assurances
given to the respective parties that the settlement would
not be disturbed—the Noble Earl had voluntarily opened
the subject again, and entered into, or was about to enter
into, any fresh arrangements? The question which he
meant to put was shortly whether there was any negotia-
tion now pending which had for its object an extension of
the Greek frontier ?

Earl GREY said that to the question put so solemnly by
the IN ob,e Earl he would have been able to have given a
more satisfactory answer than he was at present compe-
tent to do, had the Noble Earl thought proper to have
communicated previously to him the object of his inquiry.
Pie had, however, now no difficulty in saying that, as the
Noble Earl very kindly admitted, he had been so much
occupied since his entrance Into office with matters of
more immediate urgency, he had not paid the same at-
tention to the Greek question which he had to others
of comparatively greater importance; and he did not
know that any thing was passing at present in the, way of
negociation for the extension of the frontier of the country.
He did not state this positively, and it might be
possible that the fact was otherwise, and indeed he had no
hesitation in saying that in his opinion, if an extension of
the frontier could be accomplished with good faith ro all
parties, it would be very desirable to increase their limits,
and to define them in a manner more suited to the
new State than those that had been already laid down.—
( Hear, hear.) The Noble Earl had quoted a speech said
to have been delivered by the Minister of Foreign Affairs
for France ; but surely he could not call on him (Earl
Grey) to say whether the report was correct or not, or re-
quire any explanation of it at his hands.—( Hear.) Cer-
tainlyhe could not be called on to explain a speech de-
livered in another country, and by the Minister of another
Sovereign, the more particularly as it chanced that he had
not seen or heard of the speech in question until this mo-
ment. There was a particular passage about the inter-
vention and arms of France, to which the Noble Earl
called his attention ; but, however, much the Noble Earl
might be alarmed or struck by the phrase, he need but
remind the House that the " intervention" to which the
French Minister referred had produced all its effects long
before the present Administration had the direction of the
councils of the country.--(Hear.)—.Whether that inter-
ference was right or wrong, he and his colleagues were
in no degree responsible for it. Whether it be prejudicial
or otherwise to the honour and interests of this country,
be its effects what they may, the existing Goverrmebt
was in no sense accountable.—( Hear, hear. )_li making
the excuse which he had done for not giving a more de-
cided answer to the Noble Lord, it might appear that he
had been neglectful of his duty but he could only repeat
that he was pressed with more urgent topics, and that the
affairs of Greece had not appeared to demand his imme-
diate consideration.

The Earl of ABERDEEN was satisfied with what had
been said by the Noble Earl, and he only hoped that he
would be kind enough to give an answer when he had made
the necessary inquiries. The Noble Earl was mistaken
in the sense in which he referred to the word intervention.
He only meant to say that the word was ominous at pre-
sent, and he could not apply, it to the past, as he was well
aware the French intetference took place in conjunction
with cur own.—(llear.) He only meant to insist that
after this country had solemnly defined, with others, the
bound +ries of the new State of Greece, and had given re-
peated assurances to Turkey and to Greece that the terri-
tory should not be disturbed, it would be most irregular
to open the question again.

Earl GREY would be happy to give the desired infor-
mation at the first opportunity. He could not epee in the
principle which the Noble Earl had laid down, and it
would be found on examination that no Government had
ever yet acted upon it ; for it would be strange indeed if
both parties agreed that an alteration of terms would be
for their mutual advantage, that the subject could not be
opened.—(Hear.)