The Sun.
London, England, 1851-03-10 00:00:00

THE KAFIR WAR.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL said that he rose to answer
the question which had been put on Friday respecting the
Kafir war. The Government had received several
dispatches on the subject, one of which gave an
account of an ineffectual attempt of Captain So-
merset to join Sir Harry Smith. The statements
which had been received subsequently to that
date were contained in private communications to
Members of the House, and in the accounts of the
outbreak published in the newspapers.—(Hear, hear.)
A question had been asked about the extent of the forces
in the Cape. At the close of the last Kafir war the
number of men engaged in the colony were 3,303; at the
present time the forces of every description amounted to
3,699; but Sir Harry Smith had sent home the second
battalion of rifles, and orders had, therefore,
been dispatched from the War-office for removing
a regiment from Gibraltar to the Cape.—(Hear, hear.)
With regard to the expense °Cate proceedings, the House
was aware that in 1848 and 1849 dispatches were laid
on the table of the House, in which Lord Grey declared
to the colonists that in future they would be expected to
make provisions themselves for outbreaks of this nature;
and in another dispatch written no later than last week
this declaration of opinion was reiterated.—(Hear, hear.)
He thought it right to make this announcement, and in
sitting cl,wn he might as well add that there would be no
objection to produce the dispatches to which he had re-
ferred.—( Hear, hear.)
Mr. HUME wished to know what the real state of the
government of the Cape was? The declaration of the
Secretary for the Colonies would be applicable to the
Cape if the colonists were invested with the power of
self-government, but unfortunately they had never en-
joyed that privilege. Now, the colonists themselves
had openly declared, in public meeting, not only that
they had nothing to do with the last war, but that the
expenditure attending it was incurred by parties over
whom they had no control, because they were appointed
by the home authorities. " Give us," say the colonists,
" the management of our own affairs, and we are quite
ready to pay the piper, but not without."—(Hear, hear.)
It was very well fur Earl Grey to write letters; but did
he do what was his bounden duty, place the colonists in
a position to protect themselves? As long as Earl
Grey remained at the head of the deptitemsnt to
which he belonged, he would sink any Administra-
tion.—(Laughter.) Every one acquainted with
the Cape of Good Hope must know that with a frontier
extending some thousands of miles, it was impossible
for a person sent out from the Horse Guards to conduct
the government and affairs of the colony as well
us those who were resident on the spot. It would
be recolhcted that the inhabitants in every
village of the country met, and elected tour individuals
as delegate.' to consult with the Governor us to the
formation c.f a constitution. Sir Harry Smith told
those gentlemen the first thing they had to do
was to vote for a military establishment, but
they felt it their duty to reject that proposi-
tion, and the const quenee was that they were
compelled to throw themselves on their constituents,
who thought they had acted c3nsistently with the
powers given to them. Then at the largest meeting
ever held at the Cape two individuals were appointed
to come over to England and represent the feelings
of the colonists to the Government. These gentlemen
had arrived, and one of them had been in London three
months, yet nothing had been done by the Government.
In fact, the colony %%as now under the rule of a military
despot, inst•ad of a representative Government, and the
result would be that the whole surplus revenue of
the country would be swallowed up in the de-
fence of the colony, instead of being applied
for the purposes of education in this country. As long
as the affairs of the colonies were carried on in this reck-
less way, it was impossible the country could swim.—
(Laughter.) He meant by a country swimming when it
was able to pay its debts.—(Laughter.) He did think
it was true that some decisive step should be taken in
this matter; and, on that ground, he had been induced
to make these observations to the House.—(Hear.)
Mr. LABOUCHERE said he would only advert to
one part of the Hon. Member's remarks which was where
he spoke of the Government as being employed in
taking away from the colony all chance of obtaining a
representative government.—(Cries of " No, no.")
Sog far from her Majesty's Government having
only taken the first step in this matter three days
before the meeting of Parliament, an inquiry had been
going on several months before, the remit of which was,
that a representative Government, of the most free and
liberal nature, had been in contemplation. It was, there-
fore, far from just to hold up the Government to repro-
bation as stifling all attempts of the colony to obtain re-
presentative institutions.
Mr. ADDERLEY, though he did not entirely im-
pute it to the present Government that the Cape of
Good Hope had not long since obtained representative
institutions, yet stilt he thought that it was owing to a
want of concert between the Government at home ann
their officials at the Cape, that representative institu-
tions had not been established there, from the want of
which a large expense would now be brought upon this
country. He wished to ask the Noble Lord whether he
had taken it into his consideration that British Kafrarita
where these disturbances had arisen, was an entirely
different colony from the Cape colony, under a different
administration, and under different fiscal regulations?—
(Hear.) He hoped that the Government did net
delude themselves with the idea that they could call
upon the Cape to bear the slightest share of the ex-
pense. He had risen to ask the Noble Lord whether
a dispatch had been received from Sir H. Smith which
would enable the Government to lay oa the table of the
House the correspondence which had taken place on the
subject: of the newt institutions, since the time when
the letterseratent were first sent out up to the present
time.

Lord J. RUSSELL said that such a dispatch had not
yet arrived.
Mr. V. SMITH was afraid that the state of affairs
was not such as to allow them to enter into a discussion
at present on the'conduct of the Colonial Department.
If such dispatches had Leah received, be wiNhed to know
-.hen it was tie intention ef thc• Government to produce
them. At the close of 1848 a dispatch of Earl Grey
bad assured them that for the future the colonists should
be matte responsible for the expenses of any future war;
that it was tilo intention of the Government to bring io

a Bill for the promotion of free institutions in that
country, in order thet the colonists might take the
management of their own affairs. With free institutions
they might be able to pay their expenses, but 1:e was
quite sure that they could not do so without
teem. They had been assured from time to
time that measures would be taken for that
object, but no such measures had been intro-
duced. It was all very well for his Noble Friend
to say that this was not the time for the introduction of
those measures, but he believed that the only time for
the crisideration of them by the House was, that when
the colonists were in a state of suffering', and liable to
expense. The frontier had been unnecessarily extended,
and was, in feet, in a state wholly indefensible at the

present moment.
Lord J. RUSSELL could only say that the dispatches
should be produced as soon as they were received, and
with regard to the last observation of his Right Hon.
Friend, he believed that the frontier was now in a more
defensib!e state than ever it was before.
Mr. G. BA.NicES thought it strange that the informa-
tion should have been received respecting this war before
there were any communications with the Government.
He wished to ask whether there was not some officer
who could communicate with the Government in the ab-
sence of the Governor ?
Lord J. RUSSELL said that in the abserce of the
Governor, the Secretary of the Colonial Government was
their correspondent.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said
that the private leVer from which the information bad
been derived came from the Commissary of the Govern-
ment.
The subject then dropped.
IMMIGRATION OF PAUPERS FROM IRELAND.
Mr. BAILLIE COCHRANE wished to ask a question
which was of the greatest moment to the country. It
referred to the immigration of paupers from Ireland.
An inquest had been held by Mr. Carter on the
body of a child of Mary Connell. The verdict
was that the child, an infant of only four months
old had died from exposure to the weather
during its passage from Ireland. It was one of 750
passengers crowded upon the deck of the vessel without
any covering but the uir, each of whom paid only 2a. for
their passage. He had also understood that 1,000 pas-
as-noes had been brought over for Is. 6:3. a head. He
wished to know whether any measures bad been token
or were contemplated by the Government for the con-
duct of those vessels?
Mr. LABOUCHERE believed that icquiries had al-
ready been made, but if not they should be immediate!).
with a view to the rectification of thee abuies.
Mr. CARDWELL observed that the I,enelties fixed
by thei .I,:Ais_iostiutiotnutgoca
jets of Parliament were quite inaue-
quhater to suppress the evil of over-crepAdicig.
,Illritt'j)RduEee"ami Rilltt admitted that they but
he was
LUKE
Sir JAMES also slawd that the steps taken
by the Governmentwith . increase thorn.
•• respect to the over-crowding of
Mr. LABOUCup,RE _
mt. steam-boats were wholly Ft ffictect.—(Hear, hear.)
brought in to ernhrexe the
,ftioebre°fore toped this di:c'eupss"mould
a Eiil about
repeated that
subject, and he '
1.. n be kept up no
1(a-igen—(M ar, bear.)
The subject thenirepp,d.
COMMISSIONER OF SEWERS.
Sir B. HALL wished to ask the Rightme poanr.t mGeerni
tleznan the Secretary of State for the
a question
with refereuca to the MiAr(• Commis-
sioners of Sewers. By the report which bad just