The Sun.
London, England, 1850-07-13 00:00:00

WINE TO ENGLAND.

Mr. Alderman THOMPSON wished to know whether
the Noble Lord the Secretary for Foreign Atfsirs
had recived aoy suisfictory answer from the Portuguese
Government to the remonstrance of the importers of
wine, the produce of Portugal, against the impost of 61.
per pipe levied on wine exported to England, when .6d.
per pipe only was charged upon wine exported to
America.

Lard PALMERSTON said communications had been
made to the Portuguese Government on the subject,
which was of considerable importance to the British
consumers, but he was nut able at present to state that
th- Government had received any satisfactory answer.
There could be no doubt that this difference of duty
was not only a great injury to the British consumer,
but also a great injury to the Portuguese wine
grower. The lion. Gentleman might be assur d that
11.-r Mak,sty's Government would make those represen-
tations which they thought most I,kely to induce the
Portuguese Government to alter +heir intentions.
SUNDAY LABOUR IN THE POST- OFFICE.

Mr. SPOUNER asked the First Llrd of the Treasury
whether it was the intention of her Majesty's Goverc-
m•mt to lay before Parliament the report of the Com-
missioners appointed to inq-iire into the working of the
Post office regulations respecting Sunday labour, tog,,
ther with the evidence taken before those Commis-
sioners; also, whether p.-rmissioe would be given to
any p irties who might require it, to produce evidence
betore such Commissi iners?

Lord J. RUSSELL said he would lay the report of
the Co'nmiision on the table of the House as soon as it
was made. With respect to the other vestion, he did not
think that it woul I be necessary for that Commission to
tak • any evidence except of a documentary charsctor.

TRIAL OF PA rt. - BARON ALDERSON'S

CUA RG E.

Mr. G. THOMPSON rose and said—Seeing the Right
Hon. Gentleman the Secretary of State for the Hume
D -p ,rtment in his place, I rise to put some questions to
hitn on a matter, as I c inceive, vital to the character
of the English bench, arid the administration of
critninil justice in this country. In the newspaper re-
pert of the proceedings at the Old Bailey yesterday,
during the trial of a person of the name of Pate, who
was found guilty (without any recommendation to mercy)
f a cowardly and brutal attack upon the ge-en,
I find certain words imputed to Baron Alderson,
who acted as judge, and passed sentence on the
prisoner. The Learned Baron is reported to have
said, white in the act of awarding punishment :—" Con-
sidering the station of your family and your own posi-
tion, the Court will not ixact the disgraceful punishment
of whipping upon you. Toe Court has some respect for
you, though you had no respect for others."—(lfear,
hear.) Now. Sir, as these are words of a most ex-
traordinary kind, and, if truly reported, do most se-
riously affect the character of ono of our judges, and the
equal tied just administration of the law, I wish to ask
the Right 1.1. m. Geutleme:i—first, whether he has seen
the. reports t) which I to 12r? if he has, whether be pur-
poses to communicate with Baron Alderson, with a view
if ascertaining their accuracy; and whether, in the event
of their correctness being confirmed, he will consider it
his duty to advise the Crown up.m the subject, involving
as it dues the honour, the dignity, and the impartiality of
the bench, and calculates, as the words I have quoted
obviously are, most seriously to impair the respect
hitherto entertained by the people for the administration
of criminal justice within this realm?—(Hear.)
Sir G. GREY—Sir, in reply to the question of the
Hon. Gentleman, I beg to state, that I have read the
report of the proceediega at the trial to which the Hon.
Gentleman has referred, but still I have not felt it to be
my duty to call upon the judge for soy explanation of
what he said in passing sentence—(Hear, hear)—be-
cause I do not feel myself justifi.-d to call upon any
judge to give reasons fur what he does or says in the ex-
ercise of his judicial functions.—(l Tear, hear.)
The motion for the adjournment of the House till
Monday was then agreed to.
MONUMENT TO SIR ROBERT PEEL.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL then rose and said—Sir, in
rising to move that this House do resolve itself into a
Committee on the subject of an address to the Crown,
praying her Majesty to be graciously pleased to di-
rect a monument to be erected in Westminster
Abbey to the memory of the late Sir Robert Peel, I
do not think it necessary to recall or relate to the House
the political history of that Right Hon. Gentleman.—
(Cheers.) I take it for granted teat this House would
be desirous to testify its sorrow at the loss the country
has sustained in the death of that Right Hon. Baronet,
—jlear, hear.) I take it for granted, because
for a day.
othnethevery first intelligence of that melancholy event.
House sponteneonsly agreed to adjourn its proceed-
ingscause the fselin—g(
allowedtrhe issPec t
country,
hasbein
Ivetarted
eeitpfyor
ofil eralerg,re t hear.)whi c
hltake prevailsit fconr
tgranted,his
subject,
observations,becffercathe nrgo
felt and generally expressed. --
(Hear.)rpacnsitnedg, because when I made
some
eldthat a public funeral
familythof the late Right Honour-
able Gentleman, to show
been held by the House, the the respect
which I made
in which be had
seemed to meet with unanimous
to add
an, that besides the
esteem which has
three fore:gn
general Sir, I c
may
e perhapstestimony beef
cboeuenntrimesanthife'reethdaveiebeen remarkable inemonstrations of
eledasththee interestevent
of the
(tOC haefrearcst) —atm
ra
rseimfeirLaisr character—(Cheers)—and
considered to to which
the United Kingdom than it does Europe and the world
at large. (Cheers.) Sir, I believe it is without
precedeet that the National Assembly of France
agreed to enter the words of its Presideot upon their
minutes to testify its respect for the character and
' sorrow at the death of a British statesman.—(Cheers.)
Thereore, viewing these circum,tences known to all
and felt by all, I cannot but believe that this
House, which has so often witnessed the exercise of
those great abilities with which he was endowed, will
be also sextons to place on reco►d some perrnamout tes-
timony of its respect for his worth and virtues. Sir, in
having stated these matters, it now remains to be consi-
dered in what way that testimony shad be conveyed.
I have referred to the proposal I made for a public
funeral, which we: at once declined by a Right Hon.
Gentleman who was a near friend and coadjutor of the
deceased Right Hon. Genslemae, and who informed the
House that the late Sir Robert Peel had male a special
request that his funeral should be private,—
(Hear, hear.) Of course I cannot think that
in the present instance such public acts will
apply as were accorded by this House to
testify its respect for the memory of Mr. Perceval.—
(Hear, hear.) It would be remembered that the House
agreed to make some provision for the family of thatigreat
men who had been so distinguished in his public services.
There remains, therefore, only what I mean to propose
—a public monument—by which we can show, or en-
deavour to show, our sense of the loss we have sus-
tained. Perhaps I may in this place state that her
Majesty,having been anxious to show the sense the Crown

entertains of the services rendered to the state by Sir
Robert Peel, desired me to inform Lady Peel that her
Majesty was anxious to bestow on her the same rank
as was bestowed on the widow of Mr. Canning.—
(Cheers.) I received an answer from Lady Peel, which
I immediately communicated to her Majesty, and that
answer was, that it was her own wish to bear no
other name than that by which Sir Robert Peel
was known.—(Bear, hear.) Lady Peel has intimated
that there is a special direction which has been left for
his family by Sir Robert Peel, that he desires that no
one of his family will accept any title or public reward
in respect of any services which he may be supposed to
have rendered.—(Loud cheers.) This is a stronger
reason why this House should desire that some testimo-
nial should remain by which this House at le sat may
testify its feeling with respect to an event so sudden, and
a calamity so great. I do not mean to enter into
any notice of the services of Sir Robert Peel, or of
the measures of which he was the mover. I
think it far better that I should refer to
the example which he lately gave in the Commission
which has been directed by her Majesty to consider the
mode in which the arts may be made to contribute to the
ornament of the House of Commons with respect to the
staotes that are to be placed there. A committee
of that Commission, composed of persons belonging
to different creeds, have considered that the two men who
ought to have statues erected to their memory there
should be John Hampden and Lord Falkland.
I imagine that what there gentleman who
were on the C immission felt was that they
were both men, who, by their splendid talents,
and by their own virtues, adorned the age in which
they lived, and that however different their
rank, however various their talents, they were
only animated by the love of their country.—(Hear,
hear.) Let us not wait till a long period
has elapsed before we take occasion of doing honour to
the departed statesman ; let us do now what was not
done till two centuries after the time of Hamp-
den and Lard Falkland. What I propose to
do is to follow the precedent adopted in the
case of Lord Chatham. When he died Co onel Bsrro
moved that a public funeral should take place in
honour of his memory. A gentleman who was then in
office in the Administration, to which Lord Chstham
was at that time opposed, suggested that it would be
better to have a monument erected to his memory.
That suggestion was immediately assented to by the
House, and Lord North, then the Prime Minister, who
came into the House before the debate was closed, gave
to it his concurrence. It is, perhaps, a remarkable
thing with regard to that event, that Colonel
13vri (6 who made it had been himself at one
time opposed as strongly as any politician could be
to the opinions of Lord Chatham. It is another
remarkable circumstance that Colonel Birr4
was introduced to Lord Chatham, and made
some apology for the severe language he had applied
to him, when Lord Chatham said he himself had used
equally harsh language to Sir Robert Walpole,
and he (Lord Chatham) was far from resenting
any language which had been applied to him by Colonel
Barre. I think that the conduct of Col. Barrb showed
that on an occasion of this kind we should rather en-
deavour to forget for the time that natural encounter
which the great interests of the country requires us at
other times to enter into, and that we should endeavour to
show, when we seek to bestow on the man who has
devoted his talents to the service of the country, that it is
not the time to consider his peculiar opinions or senti-
ments—(Hear, hear)—but rather that we should en-
deavour to show that we participate in the general
feeling of regret which pervades all classes through-
out the country on this melancholy event.
The House then went int•; Committee on the motion
of the Noble Lord, and on Mr. BERNAL putting the
question it was agreed to in silence.