The Sun.
London, England, 1847-06-01 00:00:00

AND PORTUGAL.

Mr. B. OSB'JRNE wished to know from the Noble
Lord the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, whether
the protocol, which appeared in the papers of this
been
entered respecting a convention which had
entered into by this country with France, Spain, and
Portugal for an armed intervention was authentic, and
whether he was prepared to lay it on the table of the
House ?
Lord PALMERSTON replied that the Noble Lord
the Member for Lynn had intimated to him that he in-
tended to ask the same question, and also several others
upon the same subject. As far as the perusal of the docu-
ment enabled him to judge, ho was in a position to state
that the protocol which had been published in the papers
was a fair and proper translation of the one agreed to on
Saturday week. He had no objection whatever to lay a
copy of it on the table of the House.
In answer to questions put by Lord G. BENTINCK,
Lord PALMERSTON replied that all the papers re-
ferring to the proposed intervention would be laid on
the table of the House in a short time, when the
grounds which had led to the intervention would be
set forth. There had been a British naval force
in the Tagus, but no 'collision had yet taken place
between them and the insurgents. As it would
not be possible to go into Committee of Supply, if
at all, till a late hour to-night, he hoped the Hon. Mem-
ber for Montrose would pospone his motion.
Mr. HUME said that he was unwilling to postpone
his motion beyond Friday, when he expected the papers
would be laid on the table of the House. He would,
therefore, postpone his motion till that day, if he ob.
tained an assurance from the Government that this
should be the first order of the day then.
Lord J. RUSSELL intimated that the remainder of
the estimates would be taken on Friday.
Lord JOHN MANNERS asked if there had been
any information received by Government respecting a
collision between the British troops and the Portuguese
insurgents?
Lord PALMERSTON said there had been no infor.
mation to that effect.

Mr. HUME said, that under these circumstances he
would take the discussion upon the subject that evening,
and he hoped that one of the remaining items in the
supplies would be postponed, that he might have an
opportunity of bringing it forward.
Lord J. RUSSELL said he was quite ready at any
time to bring on the discussion, if the papers connected
with the subject were laid on the table. He could not,
however, permit himself to fix a day till the papers
were in the hands of the Members of the House.
Mr. HUME would like to know from the Noble Lord
the Secretary for Foreign Affairs what were the papers
which could not be ready. He thought a few days were
surely sufficient to have them in readiness.
Lord PALMERSTON said that every possible expe-
dition would be used in getting them ready, but in trans-
actions such as these a great amount of correspondence
necessarily passed, and it took some time to prepare it
to be laid before the House.
Lord GEORGE BENTINCK said,perhaps the Noble
Lord would also consent to lay upon the table of the
House the proclamation of the Queen to her subjects.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL said he should have no ob
jection to lay the proclamation before the House when
the other papers should be produced; but he hoped
the House would not come to any decision upon
the subject until the matter was fully before them.
There were the offers made by other Powers which the
House could not be aware of, and he therefore did not
want to give any papers which would merely suit the
object of Honourable Gentlemen who asked for them.
Lord JOHN MANNERS suggested the charter by
which the Queen of Portugal held her throne should be
included in the papers.
BUSINESS OF THE SESSION.

Mr. PiiikT desired to know what business the

Noble Lord the Prime Minister intended to proceed
with, end what to abandon ?

Lord JOHN RUSSELL—In answering that question,
I beg to remind the Hon. Member that I stated on Fri.
day, after having given notice what would be the busi-
ness I should propose to take in the present week, that
I would state further on this day what course we intend
to take with respect to other Bills which are on the table;
and I think it will be better that I should take those
different Bills in the order in which they now stand,
than answer at once the question which the Hon. Mem-
ber has put. One of the first Bills in the orders of the day
is the Registering Births, &c. (Scotland) Bill. I stated
with regard to that Bill, and another which is connected
with it, before the holidays, either that they should
come forward this day or be taken into consideration
next Monday; but what I now propose to do is, seeing
the state of business, and seeing the great objections
that have been made to these Bills in Scotland, to fix
them for Monday next as the first thing to be taker.,
and that my Rigbt Hon. Friend who brought them for-
ward should then state their general purport, and the
reasons for which he thinks they are not liable to the
objections which have been made to them in many
quarters, and state also what is the shape in which we
should wish them to stand; and, after that, we propose
not to proceed with them during the present session of
Parliament, but leave . them for further consideration in
Scotland. With respect to another Bill which stands
for to-night—the Ecclesiastical Commissioners Bill—l
think it absolutely necessary for the duly carrying on
the business before that Commission that some amend-
ment should take place in the composition of the
Commission; but, at the same time, I find that the
particular mode in which we have proposed that that
amendment should be made has met with strong oppo-
sition from persons of the greatest authority in the
Church; and, therefore, I mean likewise to leave that
Bill for farther consideration, and to see whether I can-
not by some other mode, or, if necessary, by persevering
in the present proposition, carry, in a future session, a
Bill for the purpose of amending the mode of conducting
the business of that Commission, affecting, as it does,
not only the property of the Church, but affecting great
numbers of laymen in this country.—(Hear, hear.)
Next, with regard to a Bill which has excited a good
deal of discussion out of this House, and to which many
objections have been stated, but which has been now
put into another shape—l mean the Railways Bill—we
propose to take the second reading of that Bill on Mon-
day next, unless this urgent question respecting Portugal
should interfere. On Thursday in next week we should
propose to proceed with the English Poor-laws Adminis-
tration Bill, which is already fixed for that day; and on
the Monday following, the 14th, we propose to go into
Committee on the Health of Towns Bill. Those are the
principal Bills which now remain for the consideration
of the House; and this disposes of the time up to the
14th of June, and answers the question of my Hon.
Friend. He asks whether, that Bill being liable to
many objections in its details, we mean to persevere with
it? My answer is, that we do think that Bill of very
essential importance, and I trust that, though it may
create a good deal of discussion in this House, the
objections do not affect the principle of the Bill, and that
we may be able to arrange the details in Committee;
and I do hope to see it carried in this session.—(Hear.)
Sir R. H. INGLIS wished to ask the Secretary of the
Home Department what were the intentions of the Go-
vernment with regard to the Bill which was to regulate
the stocking trade.
Sir G. GREY said that he intended to move the se-
cond reading of that Bill this evening.
Mr. E. DENISON said that he had heard with some
regret the avowal of the Noble Lord that the Bill for the
reformation of the Ecclesiastical Commission was with-
drawn for the present session.
Lord J. RUSSELL said that if the Hon. Gentleman
would bring forward his motion' 'without impugning the
conduct of the Commissioners, he should not oppose it,
Mr. J. COLLETT wished to know whether it was the
intention of the Government to create a new bishop or
bishoprics this session ; and whether they were to have
seats in the House of Lords?

Lord J. RUSSELL said that the Government intended
to introduce a Bill into the other House of Parliament
for the purpose of repeating part of the Act for uniting
the Bishoprics of Bangor and St. Asaph, and also for
providing a new Bishop for Manchester. It was not
intended to add to the seats in the House.

Mr. C. BERKELEY said he had received a commu-
nication from the First Lord Commissioner of Woods
and Forests informing him that he was as yet unable to
give him an answer to his question respecting the Wel-
lington statue.—(Langhter.) He should like to know
when the Noble Lord would be able to answer his ques-
tion.
Lord J. RUSSELL said that he understood the Noble
Lord would be able to answer the question on Tbur*day.
ARMED INTERVENTION OF ENGLAND IN