The Sun.
London, England, 1857-03-17 00:00:00

your agent has planged you into a war, the expenses of
which you cannot calculate, and the horrors of which
cannot be toll, if be is to receive assistance to the extent
of dissolving Parliament if Pa-Hamm' does not ceneur in
his proceedings—you are giving the most exorbitant en-
couragement,)tnosibhialisttyy
taoctsiovner,yanadgentliteywoaunteionfpploryopenure of einr
seiedeerrys
dp atrhts ocfotnhdeu
gctloobfey.
your agent
threoare.)ntißreu i
entirely
bflyamouslcsys:
if you thought the papers quite justified his prudence,
and showed that hp was the fittest man to conduct your
affairs, why Fiupersedo him ?—(hear)--why commit the
inju-tine of sending out a person to take the authority
out of his hands? (Hear.) I know not whether the de-
termination to send out thatsuperseding officer was come
to before or after the division in the House of Commons;
but in either case it affords to the majority in that house
an ample vindication of the course which they pursued.
If it was the intention of the Government, previous to
that debate, to supersede Sir J. Bowring, in the first
;Agee they ought frankly to have said so; and such a
declaration woula have put an end to the whole quarrel.
In the next place, the intention of the Government to
supersede him would argue the foregone conclusion in
their minds that t! e papers which they had produced
did not justify his conduct. E that judgment was only
formed after the decision of the House of Commons had
shown them what was the sense of the representatives of
the country, I say the House of Co vinous performed a
signal service in compelling the Government by their
vote to do that which they ought to have done irrespec-
tive of any such vote. (Hear) In either case the vote
of that !neje ity is amply justified, if it only resulted in
the fact of having induced the Government to supersede
Sir J. Bevvrirg's authority. The moment the majority
was declared, there arose the cry of a factious combina-
tion, of an unnatural coalition, of an unprincipled at-
tempt to oveethrow the Government—then arose charges
the most revolting to the feelings of every honourable
man—chargei which I pronounce here to be base and
unfoundel--charges which I no not think that any of
your lordehips will erer have the c iurago to stand for-
ward and support and express. (Cheers.) Fur myself I
will only say, and I say it on the word and honour of a
peer and a gentleman, I do not know, and I have not
known, any coalition, or any combination, or any agree-
ment, or any undertaking with regard to those votes and
those motions between any persons not professing pre-
cisely the same opinions in either house of Parliament. I
have distinctly and solemnly declared that I have been no
party to any combination, and I have as emphatically de-
claret my solemn conviction that the vote which was ar-
rived at in the House of Commons was the result of no
combination, of no concert, still lass of any desire to co-
alesce against her Majesty's Government for political ob-
jects, but that it was the spontaneous expression of opi-
nions, reluctantly expressed by many hon. members,
with regard to the officials in China. I hope what I have
stated will carry conviction will it—at all events to the
minds of all thosb with whom I have the honour of a
personal acquaintence.,and I trust it will also carry con-
viction to the minds of many more to whom I am not
personally known. But I will proceed to state to your
lordships facts which I think will convince the most ecep •
tical that there could net be au adhesion of that kind.
Your lordships will, perbap', have done me the honour
of recollecting that upon the first night of the session,
from the information which I had seen in the public
papers, I expressed my great anxiety with regard to the
position of affairs in China. I expressed great doubt
as to the legality and prudence of the course which
had been pursued, and my great apprehension that
that o )nrse would be productive of signal disasters.
Shortly after the papers were laid upon the t :LI) of the
house I made it my duty most carefully and anxiously
to examine the whole of them ; and, having done
so, I found that the information which had been fur-
nished by her Majesty's Government only strengthened
and confirmed the impressions which I had received from
the information which I had seen in the newspaper I
gave notice accordingly of my inteetion to bring forward
a resolution on the subject, and at the same time asked
her Majesty's Government to furnish 'toe with some
other papers ; and I must do my noble friend (thinerl
of Clarendon) the justice to say-that he made no objection
to the production of the dOcuments for which I a,ked,
and I thank biro fur the readiness and courtesy with
which he furnished all the necessary information on the
subject. Having read those papers, I came to the conclu-
sion that it was my bounden duty to bring the question
under the consideration of your lordships. I did not men-
tion that intention to more than three or four of theme is -
dividuale who are most intinoatelyand politically connected
with me; and until the time I came into the house and laid
the resolutions upon the table, I believe I am literally
correct in saying that no human being bad seen those re-
solutions, or was responsible for ono syllable which they
contained, (Hear.) Well, my lords, what was the result!
If the House of Commons is to be accused of a factious
coa'ition and an unprincipled cembinationa are your
lordships to escape scot free Why is not the same charge
and the same imputation to be made here, because we
were in the minority and not in the majority.l I believe
the charge to be as true with regard to one house as to
the other. I brought forward the question, an by whom
was it supported ? Not or ly by 'gentlemen who ordi-
narily sit on the same side with me, but by two noble
earls opposite (the Earl of Aberdeen and Earl Grey), by
the Comptroller of the Exchequer (Lord Monteagle), by
a noble earl than whom there is no man a more staunch
supporter of her Majesty's Government, a more decided
Whig of the t 1d echoul—Earl Fitz (Hear, hear.)
I said I had had no combination and no concert with
any person previous,to c ming into the house and I
spoke the literal and exacttruth ; but when I came
into tug house I took the opportunity of showing
to my noble and learned friend (Lord Lyndhurst)
the resolution which I intended to propose, and
I was fortunate enough to receive his entire approval.
There was at the time sitting by my noble andoearned
friend a Whig peer—a man of great eminence and dis
tinction, and a moat cordial supporter of her Majesty's'
'Government—who asked if he might be allowed to see
the resolution. I said, " Certainly," and placed it in his
hands. Re read it carefully, and asked if I had any ob-
jeetion to strike out ono epithet I said "no," and drew
my pen through it, observing, " Now that I have altered
may resolution to suit your convenience, I presume I shall
have your vote." (Laughter.) That is the only combina-
tion of which I know, and a proof that it was net very
offensive to the Government is to be found in the fact that
slime that hour Ear! Fitz e illiam has been appOinted lord
lieutenant of the West Riding. (Hear, hear.) Shortly
after I had given my notice in your lordships' bowie, and
at a time when the House of Commons waceoccupied and
its attention altogether engrossed by the - discussion of
the budget, a right hon. friend, with whom I am in con-
stant intimate political communication, asked me if I did
not think the sal ject of China was a very desirable one to
bring before the House of Commove, intimating that he
wished to take that °ounce. I said I quite concurred in
his opinion—that I thought it was impoisible to allow
the case to pass over ; but I advised him not to give any
notice on his part until be had communicated with one
or two of his politic d friends, and mere especially with
my right hen. friend the avowed leader of the Conserva-
tive party in the anise of Commons. My right hon.
friend returned some 24 hours afterwards., and said, "I
hove acted upon your advice, and have given no notice,
but I am sorry to tell you that Mr. Cobden has taken the
case out of our hands—he has stepped in between us and
given a notice on the same subject, and consequently
has prevented me from bringing it forward." He further
said—and I concurred in his remark, and it may serve
to show what a coalition and combination existed at the
time—he said that the fact of the subject being brought
forward by a person from whom he entirely dissented in
politics wool I indispose some of those who acted
with him politically to give the proposition their
support., (Heir, bear.) We have it on the authority of
Mr. Cobden himself—a gentleman with whom I have
not the slightest personal acquaintance, and with whom
I never exchanged in my life a word on any subject pub-
lic or private—we have the declaration of Mr. Cobden
that before he brought forward his motion he oirnmuni-
catti with no one except his intimate friend Mr. M. Gib-
son, the hon, member for Manchester. WW, my lords,
are I to vindicate myself or my friends against the charge
of combining for the purpose of effecting the overthrow of
the Government with Lord J. Russell, with SirF. Baring,
with Lord R. Grosvenor, and other of the most distin
guiehed and faithful adherents of the Whig party They
all voted in the majority, and are, I presume, according
to the scandalous reports in circulation, to be considered
accomplices in that base and infamous coalition. (Hear.)
Why, my lords, that majority comprised many of the
supporters of her Majesty's Government. It comprised,
with the exception of those actually in the Government,
' I may venture to say ever man of note of every party in
the House of Commons. (Hear, hear.) One party of
these gentlemen, who go by the term of "Peelitee,"
but who do not always act in very great concert with
each other—(a Mauch)—Mr. Gladstone, Mr. Sidney
Herbert, Sir James Graham, and Mr. Cardwell—all
joined in the majority—three out of the four naturally
more disposed to support the Government than to adopt
the politics of the opposition. I will put by Lord John
Russell, Sir Francis Baring, Lord Robert Grosvenor,
and the Whig party. I suppose we shall hardly be
charged with combining or coalescing with Mr. Cobden
.and Mr. Gibson, or on the other hand with Mr. Roebuck
the*representative of the extreme Radicals. '(Hear, hear,
and a laugh.) The very extent, the very absurdity of
the supposed combination, is its best refutation. I
can understand, for political objects, two parties not
very materially differing from. each other in general
views of polity, and thinking that between them they
might be able to carry on the affairs of the Government
—I can imagine their sinking points of minor
difference and combining for a political object. But
that such a combination should be formed of five
different parties, all differing from each other widely
with regard to almost every political question, is a
monstrous absurdity, and ought to be sufficient to settle
the idea of combination, (Rear.) My lords, this cry of
combination and coalition is nothing new. tis usually
the resort of a Government when it finds public opinion
in Parliament too strong for it. Now, what is Parla-
ment to do ? If a case is submitted to it in which the
conduct of Government is impugned, and that case is
supported by all the gentlemen of one political opinion,
it is a party question, a trial of strength. It is nothing
more. No reference is made to the merits of the case,
but it is a mere trial of strength between the parties.
Bat if among the opponents of the Government you find
those who are its habitual and warmest supporters, you
turn round and say it is a factious combination, an un-
principled coalition. (Hear,) But I have heard it said
that the strength of the case was so great thateven many
of those who are Conservatives felt bound to uphold the
policy of the Government. I have never questioned the
judgment—l have never questioned the discretion—still
less the motive of those who voted on that occasion
in opposition to their •parly. I have assumed that they
did so from the couviction that the case was such as not
to call for a vote of censure. Some reasons were given by
those gentlemen which do not appear to ice to be very
conclusive as to the merits of their votes. We were told
they could not vote against the Government which bad
made such excellent ecclesiastical appointments. I con.