The Sun.
London, England, 1859-03-09 00:00:00

CAPITATION GRANT.

Sir A. AGNEW asked the Vice-President of the Com-
mittee of Council whether it was his intention to propose
the extension of the Capitation Grant to Schools in Scot-
land?

Mr. ADDERLEY said that the subject was under con,
sideration, and it was proposed to extend the grant in ques,
tion to Scotland.
ATLANTIC TELAGRAPH COMPANY.

Mr. BERKELEY asked the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer whether, in the event of certain conditions being
accepted by the Atlantic Telegraph Company, it was in-
tended to confer upon them exclusively a guarantee or sub-
vention, or whether the same privilege would not be
extended to any other company that might be the first to
establish an efficient line of communication across the
Atlantic ?

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said it
was not the intention of the Government to grant exclusive
privileges to any particular company.

AUSTRIAN MILITARY DESERTERS.

Mr. BOWYBR asked the Under Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs, whether it was true that military deserters
and other subjects of the Emperor of Austria were being
or• had been lately received and enrolled as soldiers by the
Sardinian Government; also whether her Majesty's Go-
vernment had received any information regarding the ob-
ject of that enrolment, and had offered any and what ad-
vice to the Sardinian Government on the subject with re-
ference to the preservation of the peace of Europe ?
Mr. SEYMOUR FITZGERALD said it was much to
be regretted that the Sardinian Government had adopted
the course alluded to, and her Majesty's Government had
given that Government advice not to have recourse to any
act that would lead to an interruption of the pacific
arrangements that were being made by the European
powers.

LANDED ESTATES COURT (IRELAND).
Mr. J. FITZGERALD asked the Chief Secretary for
Ireland whether it was the intention of Government to re-
commend the appointment of a third judge of the Landed
Estates Court (Ireland), in the room of Judge Martley,
lately deceased, having regard to the return contained in
Parliamentary paper, 83, of the present session.
Lord NAAS said that no judge had been appointed,
but the matter was under consideration.
PREPAYMENT OF LETTERS.

Mr. RICH moved that while this house would support
measures for the correction of any abuses of the privilege
of transmitting letters through the post without previous
payment, and for the gradual restraint of the practice
itself, yet it considered that the order by the Postmaster-
General of the 27th day of January last, under the autho-
rity of a Treasury warrant of the 29th day of January last,
which absolutely deprives the public of this privilege, by
directing that all home letters posted after the 10th day
of February last, and not prepaid should be opened at
the Post-office and returned to the writers, would expose
individuals to serious inconvenience and injury : and
further, that the compulsory prepayment of foreign and
colonial letters, under like penalties, required revision.
The hon. gentleman, after a few observations, withdrew his
motion.

JOINT STOCK COMPANIES.

Mr. COX moved for leave to bring in a bill to empower
Joint Stock Companies who were unable to register with
limited liability, under the provisions of the Act 19 and 20
Vic. c. 47, to do so on or before the 31st day of December,
1859.
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL said the hon. member
had fallen into an error with reference to this subject, be.
cause there was really no practical impediment to public
companies registering. A bill would come from the -Upper
House with reference to the consolidation of the laws relat-
ing to the winding-up and registration of all public com-
panies ; and he trusted, under the circumstances, the hon.
member would not press his motion.
Mr. COX said he would accede to the suggestion of the
right hon. member.
The motion was then withdrawn.
THE CHARLES ET GEORGES.
Mr. KINGLAKE called the attention of the
house to the correspondence respecting the Charles
et Georges; and moved for an address for further
papers relating thereto; viz.—Copies of despatches
and documents sent by or communicated to her
Majesty's Government respecting the deportation of
negroes from the Mozambique Coast, including the de-
spatches from the British Minister at Lisbon to the Por-
tuguese Government, dated respectively the 22d day of
July and the 17th day of Nev. 1857. Of all the corre-
spondence which has taken place up to the present time
respecting the Charles et Georges between her Majesty's
Government and Mr. M'Leod, now or late her Majesty's
consul at Mozambique : Of the message of the 16th day
of October, which is described in Mr. Howard's Despatch
of the 21st day of October, 1858, in the following words :-
-" A further message, of the 16th instant, from the Earl
of Malmesbury respecting his former advice to drop the
prosecution ;" of any instructions respecting the Charles et
Georges which may have been addressed by the Earl
of Malmesbury to Lord Cowley in the interval between
the 18th day of March, 1858, and the 3d day of October.
He considered that, notwithstanding anything that had
been said to the contrary, it was highly important that this'
subject should be taken into consideration, and from such
consideration it was not their duty to shrink at the present
time. In the reign of Queen Anne the port of Bombay
was ceded to this country, and in that session the Govern-
ment entered into a treaty by which they bound this coun-
try to defend the Portuguese against foreign hostilities.
That treaty was found to be too vague, and another of a
more definite character was entered into. Subsequently, in
1810 and 1815, when the country was flushed with its
success in arms, to which the Portuguese soldiers had con-
tributed, an engagement was entered into, by which the
antecedent treaties were confirmed, and this country
bound itself to carry them out in their integrity.
Of ccurse it was understood that these treaties
were to be binding only when the Portuguese were threa-
tened with danger, or engaged in hostilities which had not
been provoked by any improper acts on their part. In 1810
the Portuguese prohibited the slave trade being. carried on
north of the line, but in 1836 they deemed it expedient to ex-
tend that prohibition to their territories south of the line as far
as Mozambique. The hon. member here entered into a nar-
rative of the circumstances connected with the capture
of the Charles et Georges. Before that seizure
the proceedings adopted by the crew of the vessel in
approaching so near, or within the prohibited limits,
was denounced by the British consul, and at
his instigation a cruiser was sent out by the Portuguese Go-
vernment. The Charles et Georges wai captured, and the
captain being convicted according to the laws of Portugal,
was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. On the 6th
of May, 1858, the Foreign Secretary was informed that
the claims of France, in reference to the matter against
Portugal, was assuming a verb* serious form; and what
he complained of was, that notwithstanding that informa-
tion, Lord Malmesbury took no notice of the matter until
October The hon. member then entered in detail into the
subsequent proceedings that had taken place in refer-
ence to the capture of the vessel, and repeated his
condemnation of the conduct pursued by the Government,
which he considered as most unjust towards Portugal,
considering the treaties that were existing with that coun-
try. The hon. member also read extracts from the diplo-
matic correspondence which took place on the subject. The
inaction which continued during seven months was one of
the causes assigned by France herself for the serious com-
plications which the affair assumed. He blamed the subse-
quent conduct of Lord Malmesbury in ordering a small force
to the Tagus. He should have sent a sufficient force or none

at all. Such as it was the force did not leave England till
the middle of November. Further efforts were now made

by our Government to submit the matter to arbitration,
which would he believed have been successful all any previous
period, but the Imperial decision was taken, and it was now
too late. Lord Malmesbuoy throughout acted neither with
France nor Portugal, but took a course of his own, which it
was for the house to say whether it approved or not.
Referring to the despatches of the Foreign-office, he blamed
Lord IVlalmesbury for sacrificing the honour of England by
suggesting subterfuges under which Portugal might deliver
up the vessel. This, he contended, was a grievous sacrifice
of honour on the part of England. Portugal, on the other
hand, had acted throughout with great deference to this
country, and dignity on her own part.
Mr. BUXTON seconded
sinthe motion. The Government
was wrong, not in refusing to stand by Portugal at all
moment.
hazards, but
If our in not urging mediation at the earliest possible
Government had done its duty the com-
plications which ensued would have been avoided. The
French Emperor could not have refused the offer of media-
tion if it had been urged at the proper time. It was not till
the matter was settled that Lord Malmesbury broke out
into lively complaint against the French for not submitting
the matter to arbitration.—

in one point of view,
he Ntrarig.
might
bFeIcToZnteGnEtRtALO
leaDy saide that,debate where it now ptood3