The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-16 00:00:00

Crimean report who were not members of the Legisla-
ture as was given those who bad seats in Parliament.
Mr. F. PEEL said he bad received a statement from
the Quartermaster• General, which he would lay on the
table of tha house.

THE ATTACK ON THE REDAN.
In answer to a question from Mr. LAyAnD,
Mr. F. PEEL stated that Generals Codrington and
Wyndham, and other officers who took part in the attack
on the Redan, had marlea report to GeneralSimp4on, on
which he founded his report, and which it was not
thought necessary to send home with the official re-
port. The reports of the above officers to General Simp-
son had been received by the Government, but they did
not deem it advisable to publish them.

OUR AMERICAN RELATIONS.
On the motiou for the house going into a comm ittee
of supply,

Mr. ROEBUCK rose and said, that in bringing forward the
motion of which he had given notice, it was incumbent on
him to make an apology to the hnuse. It had been stated
by the Government, through the medium of the noble lord at
its head, that the reason why the question did not appear in
the Queen's speech was, that as negotiations were going on,
they could not in fairness bring forward the whole case. On
that position the noble lord appealed to the house and said,
"Do you think in that state of things I ought to have men- '
tioned it to the house, and have brought forward an incor-
rect statement of the affairs in question?" Now he (Mr.
Roebuck) quite concurred With the noble lord that to have
done so would have been wrong; but as he believed that
silence might lead to that conclusion, he was determined to
break that silence. It appeared to him that before the pub-
lic of this country there was a most incorrect statement of
affairs, and he held in his hand the moans in some degree of
dissipating that ignorance, and of making this country ac-
quainted with the whole state of affairs. It was his intention
to give to the nation at large a correct statement of facts.
The noble lord had said that be had done all that a man of
honour could have done in the case between, us and America.
That we had apologised and expressed our sorrow for having
trenched on the law of America. Now if the facts were so
he (Mr. Roebuck) would be the first to support the noble
lord and his view of the case, but he believed they were very
different, and he had come forward on that occasion to en. .
lighten the ignorance of the world upon the matter, an igno-
rance which had been fostered by holding back all that mili-
tated against England to show that she had right on her side,
and that, in fact, our cousins on the other side of the water
were taking advantage of our position, and endeavouring to
force us, against our will, to make a sort of supplication to
them for peace when we were in the right. Now what wa • the
state of the case ? It was this. After the passing of the act for
foreign enlistment, the Government determined to enlist in
Anierica. Being unable to intercept the emigration from
Germany to America they went to America herself, and they
gave instructions to our authorities there to form a foreign
legion to be composed of persons enlisted in America. Tho
person employed was our Minister at Washington, Mr.
Crampton, and he was one of the persons ; the Governor of
Nova Scotia and the Governor-General of Canada were the
others, All three persons received instructions. The noble
lord had said that as soon as the Government had discovered
that by so doing they had given umbrage to the American
Government they gave instructions to our Minister to offer
the fullest apology. The noble lord said, "Could we 'do
more ?" If they had not done more, he (Mr. Roebuck) would
have answered the appeal of the noble lord, that nothing
more could be done. But they had done more, and he would
state that Mr. Crampton went from Washington to Nova
Scotia, and there drew up a sort of combination, with the
concurrence of the Govei nor of Nova Scotia, by which the
law of the United States would be contravened surreptitiously,
by which to obtain that which he dared not do openly. He
could prove directly atlethat he ass excl. He would state to
the house the American law mane subject. It was illegal in
the United States to enlist anybody there for a foreign state.
The parties accused had done something more than that,
Any person going to the United States, and inducing people
to leave the States for the purpose of being enlisted, did so as
contraventors of the law. This Mr. Crampton had done. He
had induced people to go to Nova Scotia to be enlisted. He
thought the American Government would not discover what
was taking place, but they did do so, and he issued a pro-
clamation from Nova Scotia, suggesting the means of
avoiding the law of the States, aud giving the parties
whom he employed a cipher by which to communi-
cate with him. He (Mr. Roebuck) held in his hand a curi-
ous document. It was the report of a case that was tried,
the United States being the prosecutors, against one Henry
Howes. The' iudictmeut possessed this peculiarity, it was in-
telligible. In the course of that case a statement was made
by a gentleman who was the Attorney-General for the dis-
trict, and who gave out that lie- was authorised to act as a
recruiting-sergeant, and that lie had beau to Nova Scotia, and
received front Mr. Crampton a paper which shows the decep-
tion that was practised. That paper professed to be for the
guidance of those who were to communicate to persons io the
United States the conditions on which recruits would be re-
ceived into the British service. First, that parties who should •
go to Detroit, Buffalo, or New England must carefully refrain
from anything that would be contrary to the laws of the
United States. Just as if you told a man to put another
under the pump, but be sure to avoid committing an assault.
This, however, showed that the law of the United States was
well known, aid that the acts proposed to be done were in
violation of it. Next, there was to be no embodiment or or-
ganisation attempted within that jurisdiction—and yet peo-
ple were persuaded to go there. Again no contract, ver-
bal or otherwise, was to be entered into. Now, suppose we
sent over to Germany, or elsewhere, and give out that at a
certain place a railroad was making, and men were wanted
as ‘• navvies," but at the same time intimated that they
would receive thirty dollars bribe if they enlisted (and en-
listing in the British army was contrary to the law of the
United States), what would be thought of that, especially
with such a proviso as this :—" Tho terms are to be stated as
matter of information only, and not as a promitte of pay-
ing ?" Was that consistent with the greatness and dignity
of the British Empire ? Ought we, as honest men, to put
forward such statements as that ? Again—the instructions
went on to say—" It is essential to success that no meetings
bo held at beer-houses, or places of that sort, inasmuch as the
attention of the American authorities would be inevitably
called to such proceedings, and they would be called attempts
to carry on recruiting in the United States." Again—he (Mr.
Roebuck) would ask was that a creditable display of English
honour, or in accordance with British honesty, thus to treat
the laws of a friendly power ? Fa' tier, it was to be borne in
mind, that legal proceedings, even if the parties eluded the
penalties, would be fatal to the whole measure of enlistment ;
a direction which clearly showed a__ consciousness of acting
contrary to the law. The evidence then went on—" Thepaper
you have just read was copied from the" original in the hand-
writing of Nr. Crampton I—Answer : It was.—And what
then ?—At this very time I received this cipher upon the sub-
ject of the recruiting business, I cannot swear whose writing
it was, but I believe it was Mr. Cr trupton's. I did not see
him write it, but lie handed it to me." And then the cipher
was given in. Now a war between this country and the United
States would be a war between brethren, the evils of which
would surpass anything the imagination could conceive.
Should it be sail that two great nations like these cou'd riot
live in the world at peace without one of them seeking to
break the laws of the other, regardless of honour, justice, or
truth ? We had been told that through ignorance we had
committed a breach of the American law, and thet we had
since made every amen.l that honourable men should or could
make ; but what would the world say when it was clear we
had done this thing with our oyes open, attempting ad the time
to evade laws that we preteirlecl to respect? The simp:c ques-
tion was, were those facts or were they not. As for the report
itself, it was a disgrace to the United States, because it
evinced throughout a violent hatred of England, and it is not
worthy of regard. But, on the other hand, it did contain
documents written by Mr. Crampton, and statements, still
uncontradicted, strongly reflecting on the British Govern- .
went. What he (Mr. Roebuck) now wanted distinctly to know
was, what were the iustructions given to Mr. Crampton. It
was there said that he was told not to break the law, aud in
the same breath that lie was to enlist men, which was clearly
a breach of the law ; anti also that in conjunction with Sir
Gaspard le Merchant, Sir E. Head, and Sir J. Howe, gentle.
men well known in Nova Scotia, a plan was laid by which
the law could be safely broken, and 30,000 dols. spent in en-
listing men who were afterwards discharged, which men could
have been got elsewhere for half the money. It might be asked
what good would result from that motion ? (Cheers from the •
Government side.) He perfectly understood that cheer, but be
wanted his question answered, and lie would answer it him-
self. He wanted such an expression of opinion from that house
as would convince the people of America that the English na-
tion w is no party to these dishonoerable proceedings. (Cheers.)
To show them that we feel we are brethren, though the broad
Atlantic divides us, that we sympathise with them in all their
generous feelings, that we are running the race of civilisation
and improvement with them, and not competing as hostile
races, that we are striving together for the general good of hu-
manity, and believe with their aid that the great work may be
accomplished, and that we feel that awar with America would
retard the advancement of mankind for centuries. The hon.
and learned gentleman concluded by a wish that some member
had taken up the question who could have done more justice
to it, but his feeling was so strong, and his heart so largely
interested in promoting the cause of humanity, that he could
no longer resist bringing forward what be considered at pre-
sent as the misconduct of the British Government. He would
Con) for copies of the instructions upon this Aubjec
therefore move (slightly altering the terms of his ortigtihnaatl mhaod-
been forwarded to Mr. Crampton.••
Mr. HADFIELD seconded the motion.
au
nbt
reyoandthisth
the
houseuuit
States upon the subject of the foreign enlistments. Now, in
Majesty's Government for not either the
glmenf ouet in the.
ed
m aLdoer d
this AmLoittliEo
aR ShTeOgNa
e,
ptrnaea
chhhoi
anv.
agnedn telaelmltdiaenm whog hhe r
has
by
this its country allusion to the
t place, I beg to remind the house that the American •
Queen's speeehd,ioirrerlattnidee psaretrsweue
n
the firs
Government itself—
Mr. ROEBUGK—I bog the noble lord not to misappre-
hend me. I found no fault with the Government, I merely
said they had not done it.
Lord PALMERSTON —I ase very glad to hear that the hon.
member draws a distinction between au assertion of what the
Government has not done and an animadversion upon what •
the Government has done. As he is very muck in the habit •
of animadverting upon what the Government does not do; I
trust the house will understand in future that the hon. gen- •
tlemau does not mean any censure by so doing. (Hear.) But
to continue what I was about to state to the house—the •
American Government themselves .did not think fit to lay
before Congress the correspondence relative to this ques-
tion, and the same reasons that actuated the Ainerican
Government have induced her Majesty's Government to
withhold this correspondence. Her Majesty's Government,
as I stated before, did think a few days before Parliament
met that they would have been in a position to lay it
before the house, but a few days preceding the meeting of
Parliament the American Minister came to my noble friend
at the Foreign-office with a long despatch, containingitgreaotf
variety of statements and assertions touching Tee
consuls in conduct
the consuls •
her Majesty's Minister at Washington,
and
various parts of the United States, assertions it was
made it impossible
to answer the despatch, and until that despatch was answered •
impossible to reply to without referring to the persons con- •
corned to know if they were true. That m
I declined .
it was impossible, on the one hand, to present to Parliament
t despatch., Sir, that was
the omitting that impor
unanswered statements, and, on the other, to present cor- ,
Government could not lay
these
t was why a"
the reason why
these papers before
of- the matter before to enter into a detailed discussion Par- •
in possession of the necessary data, That state -
ofliament were
• still remains, and we are net yet in a position - things, sir, her
the house, and that
It would be unbecoming M-
ajesty's of her I to reply to that note.
to answer such a note
Government one way or other - •
until they had accurately ascertained what
foundation there •
was for these charges. The same reason which made it our
duty to withhold the papers would make it our duty to re.
foss to give them piecemeal in the Way the hon. gentleman ,
proposes. I trust that a very short time will elapse before
we shall be in a, position to lay the whole correspondence be-
fore
the house, and then the house will see whether what 41.•
Majesty's Government, or her repeesentatives in, the-t:Tatted
iltatts, Lugo doge eutitl4 then, to mime or olio*.

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