The Sun.
London, England, 1847-03-24 00:00:00

COMMERCIAL RELATIONS WITH CHINA

Viscount SANDON then moved for a Select Com-
mittee on the present state of our commercial relations
with China. lie was very gratified that he was saved the
trouble of entering into a lengthened statement of the
reasons which made this investigation necessary, as the
Noble Lord at the head of the Government had inti-
mated to him that it was not his intention to offer any
opposition to the motion. As he (Lord Sandon) did not
wish, therefore, to delay the House from proceeding
with the consideration of the Irish poor-law he would not
take up its time at present. He thought, however, that
the subject was one which required investigation, with
view to ascertain what the obstructions were to the ex-
tension of the China trade. He thought the labours of
the Committee would be attended with the best
results. Their relations with that country were
of a recent date, and he might say merely
experimental, and the altered circumstances which the
recent rupture had brought about made it necessary to
inquire what were the obstructions to the extension of
their commerce, and by what means they could be re-
moved. He would not, however, delay the resumption
of the discussion of the clauses on the Irish Poor-law,
but conclude by moving the appointment of a Select
Committee to investigate the subject.
The motion having been seconded,
Mr. A. FIASTIE said if the motion had gone directly
to the object at which it aimed, namely, the reduction
of the tea duties, he should have seconded it with great
pleasure. Looking at the character of the Chinese, and
to the jealousy with which they viewed the proceedings
of other nations, he feared that the motion as it stood
would not be productive of the good which the Noble
Lord seemed to apprehend from it. The Committee if
appointed should confine its inquiries to the tea trade
alone.

The motion was then agreed to.
PUBLIC WORKS IN CLARE.—CAPTAIN WYNN.

Mr. C. O'BRIEN moved the appointment of a Select
Committee to inquire into the conduct of Captain Wynn
during his employment in the county of Clare in the
months of November and December, 1846, and January,
1847, as inspector under the Board of Works, and
into the statements contained in the printed
letters of Captain Wynn and Mr. S. Gamble,
addressed to the Board, and laid on the table cf
the House, and report thereon ; and also to inquire into
and report whether the said Bonrd of Works have, or
have not, suppressed certain letters or reports made,
or alleged to have been made, by Captain Wynn to
them, on investigations held at Ennistymon on the
10th, and at Liscanner on the 17th days of De-
cember, 1846 ; and also certain letters, in pos-
session of the Board, connected with these subjects.
He said it would be in the recollection of the House,
that, on the 11th of February, he moved for the produc-
tion of papers relating to the conduct of Captain Wynn,
in his official capacity ; but they were only laid
on the table of the House two days ago, and he
found them so incorrect, incomplete, and confused, as to
be almost useless. He considered this most unfair con-
duct towards one who had occupied a seat in that House
for the last sixteen years, the more especsally as he
and his colleague had during that time supported
the present Government ; it was, therefore, most
improper that difficulties should have been purposely
thrown in his way, and that the Government should
support a public officer who had charged him (Mr. C.
O'Brien) with conduct which, if he had been guilty of it,
would have rendered him unworthy of a seat in that House.
The character of the House was embarked in this sub-
ject, and he hoped that the Secretary for Ireland would
reider some explanation of the circumstances of the
case.

The Hon. 0,-nileman then referred to letters

written by Captain Wynn on the 4th of February and
the 26th of November, 1847, page 209 of the Blue Book,
which stated that the landed proprietors rendered very
inefficient assistance to the relief committees. He would
say it boldly, that this charge against the com-
mittee over which he presided was calumnious and
false.— (Hear, hear.) When he wrote those letters he
had only been three weeke in the tout try. and could not
have known the workiug of even one half of the com-
mittees. The only reason for these calumnies was in
order to carry out the measures of the Government.
An outcry was - desired against the Irish proprie-
tors, and this was the motive by which he was
actuated, and be wished Hon. Gentlemen to know that
this was a way to get rewarded and to obtain public
money. It would arpear that the Glare Journal had
been purchased with the public money. The
next letter was dated on the sth of December of
last year, and was written by Captain Wightman,
of the Board of Works, in which they were charged with
being assassins. With respect to Mr. J. O'Brien, he
could, in his place, defend himself', but he (Mr. C.
O'Brien) happened to have a letter from the engineer of
the Board of Works, who was at the same time district
engineer and county engineer, and who was, of course,
cognisant of all the circumstances, and he had
fully stated his opinion that the charge was false.
If the Committee which he moved for were not able to
prove the assertions he had made, he would not occupy
a seat in the House again, but would resign imme-
diately. It was a most unfair thing for the Government
not to allow the Committee to be appointed. He had
constantly supported a Whig Government for a period
of sixteen years, and this was now the reward which he
received at their hands. He hoped, therefore, that these
serious charges, involving as they did his character,
would be investigated before a Select Committee, that
an opportunity might be afforded him of showing how
utterly groundless these statements were. One of the
letters which he sent to Captain Wynn—a mostim-
portant one, to which no answer was returned, but
for which he moved—had been suppressed. ,The
Honourable Gentleman then referred to several letters

and read extracts from them, among which was the

following:—" I have displaced upwards of 9,400 persons
chosen and placed upon the relief works in seven
baronies; and I have plactd upon the list the poor and
starving labourers, who had not been attended to be-

cause nobody had any direct interest in their welfare;
and I trust that this course will meet your approbation."
He particularly requested the attention of the House to
this statement, because when he was asked to furnish a

list he declared that he was unable to furnish it, although
he referred the board to it, well knowing it did not exist.
Now this was an imposition on the liovernment, and

was a fit and proper subject for investigation. He
called for a searching incist ry; he wanted no
favour, ho wanted nothing but justice, and he
did hope that the House would grant the
Committee which he sought, notwithstanding
the indisposition of the Government to grant one.
Major MACNAMARA said he would second the
motion of his Hon. Friend. He could not help com-
plaining of the course which the Government had pur-
sued upon this occasion towards himself and his col-
league.

Mr. LABOUCHERE said that he regretted very
much that the Hon. Gentleman did not postpone for a
very few days the motion of which he had given notice,
for he must remind the House that on the motion
of the Honourable Gentleman certain documents had
been presented to the House, and were now in the course
of being printed, and which, he could assure the House,
would be in the hands of every Member in a few days.
These documents threw great light upon all these trans-
actious, and the House would be able to discuss the ques-
tion with an accurate knowledge of the circumstances.
The Hon. Gaitlernan the Member for Clare had re-

minded him that the Government of which he (Mr.

LabouGhere) wus a membi.r had received general
support from himself and his colleague, and he
had said that it was but an ungrateful and

ungracious return on his part and On the part
of the Government to have taken a different

course on a question of this description from that
adopted by those Honourable Members. He could only
say that he certainly could have no desire to estrange
any supporters from her Majesty's Government
—a Government which had not so numerous a
body of supporters in that House as to make
him, as a member of that Administration, anxious
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referred to to alter the course which upon deliberation
he had felt it his duty to adopt. The lion. Gentleman
had complained of the delay which had been interposed
to the production of these papers, and said that
the Government did in some way wish to delay
their production. Nothing could be more erroneous.
He had repeatedly urged upon the Board of Works the
importance of having these papers immediately pro-
duced, but they were of that complicated and vola-
minous description, that it was impossible in a shorter
time to lay them on the table of the House. Whey