The Sun.
London, England, 1868-02-19 00:00:00

ABYSSINIA.

In reply to Mr. FAWCETT,

Sir S. NORTLICOTE said they had carefully avoided
any alliance with Egypt in the proceedings that it had
been found necessary to take in Abyssinia. It had been
necessary to ask for permission to pass supplies co Egypt,
but nothing more had been done. The Egyptian troops
had been recalled from Massowab, and the report
of their further advance appeared to him, according to the
latostinformation from Sir R. Napier, to be altogether
without foundation. He had no knowledge that great
want of water existed.
Mr. MAGUIRE asked whether the Government had
any information relative to Ring Theodore going to the
prisonem, as reported in the newspapers.
Sir S. NORTIICOTE said he had not.
ADMIRALTY ACCOUNTS.

Mr. SEELY called attention to the correspondence re-
lating to the cost of building the Frederick William and
of repairing the Brisk and the Cadmus, and moved for a
select committee to inquire and report as to the application
of moneys voted by Parliament for the use of the Admi-
ralty ; and, secondly, as to the method in which the ac-
counts should be prepared for presentation to the house.
Lie gave a mass of figures in reference to the cost of
building and repairing ships, with the view of showing
that the accounts were misleading, and that the actual
cost both of building and repairing ships was much more
than as represented if the direct charges were all in-
clude/ 'X Qopaialinicruero of 1.661 reportocl that tilt)

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accounts of the Admiralty were elaborate and minute, but
not -to be relied on for any practical purpose. On these
;,crow ids he asked the house to agree to his motion.
Mr . CORRY answered the statements of Mr. Seely in
Jetai: '. The criticisms and statements of the hon. mem-
ber, I to remarked, were much exaggerated, and thereby
lost r such of their value. Fastening on a statement of the
hon. ; .nember's at Lincoln that the Frederick William had
cost A 282,000, and might have been built in a private yard
for :34,000, he showed that the Frederick William had
boeu ;tirst laid down for a two-decker and then converted
int," n three-decker, and from a sailing ship into a screw
stea 'nor. lie also showed by reference to the cost of re-
pairs of ships built in private yards as compared with those
built Tn her Majesty's: dockyards that the latter were the
cheap, st in the end. As regarded the accounts, the Ad-
miralty hail appointed a committee of three heads of de-
partmeL ts to devise a mode of making out the accounts
which would be more simple and easily understood, and
said he intended to submit their report to Parliament. He
however should not object to the select committee if its in-
quiries were limited to dockyard expenditure.
The motion wa;_s then agreed to.

Mr. Pim obtained leave to bring in a bill to amend the
law relating to the tenure and improvement of land in
Ireland.

The Habeas Corpus Suspension (Ireland) Act Con-
tinuance Bill passed through committee, a clause moved
by Mr. Bagwell, enacting that no prisoner should be de-
tained longer than three months unless a fresh warrant
was lodged for his detention, being negatived by 81 to 18.
The h use then adjourned.