The Sun.
London, England, 1858-06-12 00:00:00

that we could not with confidence upon any predictions
as to what might occur in the future. (Hear, hear.) He
desired peace as ardently as the hon. member for Bir-
mingham himself ; but he was convinced that the true
mode of securing tranquillity was for our Govern mint on
all occasions to use firm and dignified language, and that
they could not do unless they felt that our defences were
adequate to the magnitude of the interests which had
to be protected, and to the importance of this country
in the world. Having heard with great satisfaction the
statement of the right hon. gentleman as to the termina-
lion of negociations at Naples, and many of the difficul-
ties in that matter having arisen from the suspension of
our diplomatic relations with that country, he should be
glad to bear that the whole affair was at an end, and
that those relations bad been resumed. (Hear, hear.)
Colonel FRENCH asked the right hon. gentleman the
First Lord of the Admiralty when the commission upon
manning the navy would be issued. The names of the
members had for some time been known at the clubs. It
was said the commission was to con'ist of Lord Eiard-
wicke, Admiral Martin, Lord Chandos, Mr. Litei4ay,
Mr. Cardwell, Mr. Green, and Capt.in Shepherd. He
hoped that the usual course would be followed, and that
his hon. and gallant friend (Sir C. Napier), who moved
for the appointment of the commission, would also be
pieced upon it.
Sir J. PAKINGTON—The bon and gallant admiral
who commenced this discussion complained that although
three weeks have elapsed since he moved the appointment
of a royal commission to inquire into the manning of the
navy, it has not yet been issued. The commission is now
ready, the list of members is complete, and if there is
any further delay, it will only be such as is required in
order to comply with the various forms which must be
gone through before the commission can be made public.
With regard to the statement that the names have been
currently talked of in the clubs, I can only say that such
ought not to have been the case. I have never communi-
cated the names of those who were likely to serve on this
commission, except in confidence, and only in cases in
which such communication was unavoidable. How it was
that the names became known I cannot tell, but I have
no hesitation in saying that they ought not to have been
known. I have not authorised their publication, and I
will repeat what I said when a similar statement was
made by an hon. and gallant officer behind me (admiral
Duncombe, that at the time he madejthat statement one
of the names had not been officially settled. Consider-
ing the difficul'y which every hon. gentleman must
know attends the formation of a Royal commission, the
anxiety the Government must feel to appoint the
most competent persons, the fro. iency with which it
happens that those who are applied to are unable to
serve, and the fact that in this case the Whitsuntide
holidays immediately followed the adoption of the reso-
lution for the issuing of the commission, I hope that the
house will feel that the lapse of three weeks has not been
an unreasonable delay. (Hear, hear.) I will now say
a few words in consequence of the extent to which the
hon. and gallant admiral opposite (Sir C. Napier) and
my hon. friend the member f Norfulk (Mr. Bentinok)
have in the course of this discussion referred to the state
of the naval defences of this country. After what has
been said by my right hon. friend the Chancellor of the

Exchequer, in every word of which I most heartily con-
cur, I shall say but a very few words. My hon. friend
the member for Norfolk, referred to what fell from me
two or three months ago in moving the navy estimates.
I then stated my opinion, which I am now fully prepared
to repeat, that it was not becoming the dignity of this
country, it was not consistent with its safety orsecurity,
that our coasts should be left so destitute of naval de-
fence as they had been during the winter months in con-
sequence of the detention of so large an amount of our
forces in China and India. (Hear.) I entertain these feel-
ings now as strongly as I did then ; but, in expressing
them, I do not thereby intimate the slightest doubt of
the loyalty and good faith of our ally the Emperor of
the Fla nch, or intend to convey either to this house or to
the pubic that I sympathise with the alarms of which I
have heard alai great regret. (Hear.) If any such feel-
iegs prevail in the public mind, it is undoubtedly Lateral,
and perhaps right, that they should find utterance in
his house ; but at the same time I Lel, and I hope
the house will feel, that we cannot too strongly depre-
cate either speeches in this house or articles in news-
papers which tend to excite alarm in the public mind
when there is no jest ground for such a feeling. (Cheers.)
I think hon. members will agree with me that the
only result of Ella/ speeches and such articles will
be to create two great dangers aLd evils—panic and
alarm—in the public mind in this city, and too probably
irritation in the mind of our allies the French, whom it
is our desire and our pcicy to conciliate in every honour-
able way. (Hear.) Consistently with these feelings,
and consistently with the opieion I have a'ready ex-
pressed that it is not becoming the dignity of England
that we should be without naval defences on our chores,
I can state that the present Government have from
their accession to office exerted themselves to the ut-
most to make those defences effective, not from any
alarm, not from any doubt of the loyalty of our allies,
but from a feeling that this country ought under a'l cir-
cumstances to be prepared for any emergency which
may arise, I am happy to say that the hon. and gallant
admiral in the course of his speech underrated— uninten•
tionally, I am sure—the naval power of this country ; and
am bound to statetlaatlat this time we coutd at the shortest
notice assemble in the Channel a fleet which would I be-

lieve, be able to cope with any that any other Power
of Europe could send out. (Hear.) I feel it my
duty to make that statement, hoping that I shall not
be understood to imply any alarm, but the reverse
The house has heard from my right hon. friend how
satisfactory is the present state of our foreign rela-
tions ; and, in conclusion, I desire to say that while
on the one hand, the Government feel it to be their
imperative duty to take care that the naval dcfencus
of this country shall be satisfactory, and shall be
worthy of its dignity and power, on the other we are
no less desirous of adopting with regard to all foreign
Powers a policy so conciliatory as to make any resort
to thosa defences quite unnecessary. (Hear.)

THE ARREST OF CAP rAIN JUDKINS-THE
CONSUL GENERIL OF BELGRADE-COM-
PENSATION TO THE ENGLISH ENGINEERS.

Mr. HORSFALL, in calling the attention of the
house to the arrest of Captain Judkins, of the Royal
mail steamer Persia, in New York, on the 16th of May
last, said that though Captain Judkins had been libe-
rated on bail, he was bound to go back to America in
order to stand his trial. Captain Judkius in obeying
the sanitary laws of New York—a case of smallpox
hating occurred on beard his ship—refused to permit an
American custom-bousa officer to go on shore, and for
this he was arrested. The peculiarity of his case was
this, that while obeying the law of the state of New
York he violated the law cf the United States ; but it
was extremely hard upon Captain Judkins that he
should be made to suffer from this nAlflict of the Ame-
rican laws. The Mayor of New York said that it Cap-
taM Judkins Lad acted otherwise than ho had he would
have subjected himself to punishment b 9 fine and im-
prisonment. He hoped that her Mai sty's Government
would u,,.e their friendly interference to have this un-
just proceeding against Captain Jtidkins quashed, and
what was of still more importance, to prevent a recur-
rence cf auy similar proceeding. (Rear.)
Viscount BURY, referring to the telegraphic dn.:patch
which stated chat an attack had been made on the EMU
Consul. General of Belgrade on the 7,,1a of June, asked
whether the Government had received any inforwa ion
on the coAject ?
_ _

, .
Mr. RIDLEY asked how much had been granted by
way of cotupen-ation to the two English engineers, and
whether the Kiog of Naples had granted the compensa-
tion of his own mere motion, without the concession cf
any third party ?

Mr. S. FITtGERALD said that the Government had
no knowledge of the circumstances connected with the
case of Capt. Judkins, but from the statement of the
hen. gentleman there could be no doubt that he was
placed in an unfair position. His case would receive the
anxious attention of the Government, and every repre-
sentation, such as his hon. friend desired, would be made,
and he had the fullest confidence, from the administra-
tion of the law and ihe sense of justice prevailing in the
United States, that Captain Judkins would receive en-
tire satisfaction. (l-leer, hear.) With regard to the
attack on the British Consul at Belgrade, her Majesty's
Government had received•a similar telegraphic message
to that referred to by the noble lord, and immediately on
receipt of that message her Majesty's Government sent
a telegraphic message to Mr. Colquhoun, the British
consul at Bucharest, to proceed to Belgrade to inquire
into the circumstance, and to take such steps as might
be necessary. (Clteetee) With regard to the third quest-
five, ho could not say—because he possessed no know•
ledge of it—whether any communication had parsed
between any other powers and the court of Naples. He
could only say that the redress afforded was in answer
toacategorical demand made by the Foreign office, and
sent by a messenger, who was directed to wait ten days
for a reply, and to return at once if no satisfactory reply
was given. (Elem., hear.) A satisfactory reply was
given, and the sum paid as compensation to the engi-
neers was 3,0001. (Loud cheers.)
THE INDIAN DOCUMENTS.

Sir E. PERRY hoped th t he noble lord (LordiStanley)
would reconsicLr his decision with respect to the Indian
despatches, and that he would publish alone he had re-
ceived without waiting for their arrival in an official
form.