The Sun.
London, England, 1850-06-26 00:00:00

THE SUN,

Verary and despotic countries, or to countries
re courts of justice are so organised as to be
oi
flkler the control of the Government; but they have
Ply stated that in all countries our subjects are simply
sliare that protection which the law of the land
past them. 1-deny that proposition.—(General cheering.)
':"Y that it is a doctrine under which no foreign Minister
der yet has acted. It is a doctrine which the people of Er,-,-
41will never suffer any Minister to act upon.—( Hear,
,7,1%) Do I mean to say that British subjects abroad are
alto above law, or to be exempt from and taker. out of the
'ePe of the laws of the land? I mean no such thing—l
flitend for no such principle. Where the law is applicable,
:lish subjects are bound to have recourse for redress to the
'sans which the law of the land affords them. That is the
%ion which our legal advisers have given in innumerable
;slances, and upon that principle we have founded our re-
'es in cases where our aid and interference have been ap-
'„sd for. 1 have beard mentioned, with regret, aspersions
4:t upon the character of the legal advisers of the Crown,
Jll a quarter from which they ought not to come; those
ZPersions were cast by a person who has been himself in
st office, acid who must have known, not only
knowledge, independence of mind, but also the justice of
eaement that qualify the individual who holds the office of
een's Advocate.—( Rear, hear.) I should have thought
iEd hoped that the knowledge possessed of those qualities
a man who had been in the Foreign-office would have
Protected the Queen's Advocate from those aspersions.—
Rear.) Sir, I may be departing from the strict orders of
Se House in what I have just said, but I felt it due to an
uourable public servant, on an occasion like the present,
(J„speak in favour of and in vindication of his character.—
4ear, hear.) If our subjects abroad have complaints
ituinst individuals or Governments who are liable to the
proceedings of courts of law, no doubt it is to courts of
1118tice British subjects ought to apply, but there are an
Yllinity of cases in which either there is no confidence
41 those tribunals, or the tribunals, from their composition
nature, are not of a character to inspire us with any
I:'.'Pe or confidence of obtaining justice.—(Hear, hear.)
:",any of those tribunals are so completely under the con-
;•01 of the Government that justice cannot be expected.
'here are also nominally constitutional Governments,
,'there the tribunals are not free. But who is to be the
Judge? The British Government or the Government of the
state from which you would expect redress?: I will take a
ease which occurred not long ago, and one in which I am
sure the people of England would not hold that a British
subject was to be amenable to the laws of a foreign country.
am not now going to talk of the power of sending a man to
Siberia, nor of a country the constitution of which vests arbi-
!sty ower in the Sovereign, but I shall state a case that
u,aPpenped not long ago in Sicily. There a decree was passed
, at any man found with concealed arms in his possession
acould be immediately brought before a court-martial and
and, if convicted of the offence, shot upon the spot.
there was an innkeeper at Catania brought before a court-
kartial, and charged by two officers of police with this
offence. They stated that they discovered in an open stable
41 his yard a knife, and this was considered to be a concealed
, weapon. The examination having been ended, the counsel 1
for the prosecution said, " I give up the case. I think it
as evident that there is no proof that either this knife be-
longed to the man accused, or that, if it did, he was aware
• that it was in the place where it was found." The counsel
'teethe defendant stated, " Such being the opinion of the
counsel for the prosecution, it is unnecessary_ for me to go
iatoeany defence. leaver the matter in the • hands-of the
.The •Court• pronounced the defendant • guilty of
lie Oriferice'Charged against him, and the tiext,anoroing the
lean was- shot. Now, I would ask what the people of
,England would say if any of thern were left to seek redress
fla stitch a'tribinilil as that?—(Elear, hear): Yet tfilit elan
I'(as executed according to law, he 'hiving beeri'ddelared
flay &lief 'offefee by one of th-eteihniials dins .country..oee doettine)ielharrediSse eslionld leesoieglit• ihrotighthe
'counts and-laws efethecouittry where thdstr.dourts-were free
?aiisciel hut t thee are AniberleSs tesses 'Where, iteletitiett eube
Jests were confined to courts of law 'for I redress;' they would
be deprived of that protection which they are entitled to re-
ceive.—(Hear, hear.) Then the question arises as to hew
that rule applies to demands made upon a Government. I
ought here to remind the House, and I shall do so in the
shortest possible manner, of the nature of our relations
with Greece, and the state and condition in which Greece
has been, because that state and condition is a material
element in the consideration of the propriety of the course
ere have taken.—(Hear, hear.) It is well known that the
Greeks revolted from Turkey in 1827 or 1628. England,
France, and Russia determined to interpose, and they em-
ployed forcible means to bring Turkey to acknowledge the
atdependeuce of Greece. Greece was in 1830 and 1833, by
protocols and treaties, erected into a separate and inde-
pendent state. And whereas, from the year 1820 up to the
time when the protocol of 1830, on which the treaty of 1333
was founded, Greece had been a Republic, and governed by
Assembly and President, the three powers were deter-
Mined that Greece should have a monarchy. But while, on
the one hand, the British Government consented to this
arrangement—(l do not say consented, because it was
its own opinion that Greece should assume that
form of Government)—on the other hand it was of opinion
that Greece sould have a constitutional Government.
The British Government would not consent to place
Greece under a more arbitrary form of government
tean that from which it had revolted. Consequently,
when the three powers, in the exercise of that function
devolved upon them by the General Assembly of
Greece, chose a Sovereign for Greece, he then being a
minor, the three powers, in announcing to the Greek nation
the choice they had made, announced, at the same time, that
that King would, in concert with the representatives of the
people, give them a representative constitution when he
became of age. That choice was ratified by a decree made
by the King of Bavaria. It was agreed that, during the
minority of the King, the question of the constitution should
be Suspended, and that, when he became of age, he and his
people should arrange the form of the constitution. When,
'however, he became of age, no constitution was given. There
was &disinclination on the part of those who advised him to
'fulfil that' engagement.- The Goveinment -of England, in
aerioncways .and. through various channels, -expressed its
cpinion that that engagement ought to befulfilled.—(liear,
rheare) Opinion§ of a different kind reached, the royal
year from other quarters.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") Other
,cOuntries naturally—and I say this without any imputation
against them—preferred their own form of government.
Each Government thinks its own, form the best, and
Wishes to see it extended elsewhere ; and, therefore, it is not
from any intention to cast reproach on Russia, Prussia, or
Aostria that I say that those three Governments being at
that time entirely despotic,- their advice was given and influ-
ence exerted to prevent. the King of Greece from granting a
representative constitution. We thought that in France we
might have found sympathy with our opinions, and also sup-
Port and advice. We were unfortunate in that respect. The
„Government of Frauce, though not at all undervaluing con-
etitutionalinstitutions, thougkt that the time was not yet
come whed Greece was ripe for a representative Govern-
ment. Bavaria leant to the same side, and, therefore, from
the time the King of Greece came of age to several years
afterviards, the English Government stood alone. We were
-anxious for the fulfiment of an engagement to which
all the other powers were, either adverse or not, equally
edesirous to see fulfilled. That placed us in a situ-
ation which, to say the least of it, exposed us to dis-
favour on the part of other Governments. I do not think
• the people of this country will be of opinion that we ought,
fir the sake of obtaining the good will of the Greek Govern-
' ment, t have departed from the principle which we had laid
down.—( Hear, hear.) People talked of the antagonistic
influence that existed at the Greek Court, and stated that
our Minister and the Ministers of foreign Courts differed
as to which should have the appointment of nomarchs and
minarchs, but that is a mistake entirely at variance with the
facts. Our Minister Sir E. Lyons, never, from the time he
went to Greece till the time he left it, asked for any favour
df the kind, and therefore there could have been no contest
of that mean, low, and petty description referred to. The
only conflict was about that which I stated, namely, whether
Greece should have a representative constitution, while the
influences of other powers were exerted the other way.
One result of the absence of constitutional institutions was
that the whole system of government grew to be full of
every kind of abuse. Justice could not be respected while
the tribunals were at the mercy of the advisers of the
Crown. Finance could not be expected to be in any order
when there was no public responsibility on the part of
those who either collected, spent, or accounted for the re-
venue. Every sort of abuse was practised. In later times
in Greece, there has prevailed, on account of the daring
habits of the people, a system of appropriation —(Laugh-
ter)—the forcible appropriation by one man of that which
belonged to another—a thing very disagreeable to those on
khom it is inflicted, and exceedingly injurious to the social
condition of the people, and calculated to impede their pros-
laity. In fact, what a foreigner would call " brigandage"
erevailed among them. The police of the Greek Govern-
ment practised abuses of the grossest description.—(Hear,
hear.) And if you wanted any evidence in support of that
assertion I should appeal to the Hon. Gentleman who just
est down, who, in a pamphlet which most of us have
read, has detailed instances of barbarities practised by
the police which are most revolting.—(Hear, hear.)
I have here the depositions of persons who have been sub-
jected to the most abominable torture which human inge-
nuity could devise—torture inflicted on both sexes—(Rear)
—torture of the most revolting and disgusting kind.—
( Hear.) Moreover one of the officers of the Government, a
man of the nameof Zeno—who was at the head of the pe-
;ice, was in the habit of inflicting the most diabolical tor-
:urea on the unhappy people of Greece, as well as upon
Thrks and other foreigners. This man, instead of being
punished as he deserved, not only by the laws of nature but
also by the laws of Greece, for the perpetration of these
atrocities, not only escaped punishment, but was actually held
ia great favour. Well, Sir, then this being the state
of things, we had in Greece, and have always
had, a great number of persons whom we are
bound to protect. There are, in almost every town
of Greece, a great number of Maltese and lonians
there are also a certain number of British subjects. It be-
came the practice of those Greek authorities to make no dis-
tinction between these Maltese and lonians and their own
;Greek subjects. We shall be told, I know, by some, "No
foreigner has a right to be better treated than the people of
the country ; and if the people of the country were liable ;to
,have heavy stones placed on their breasts, and persons
dancing upon them—if they are liable to have their heads
tied to their knees, and in that position are to be swung like
pendulums and bastinadoed as they swing—if they are
liable to have every sort of horrible practice inflicted upon
them, foreigners have no right to be better treated than the
natives—(Hear, hear, and laughter)—and therefore we have
rib business to interfere. We may be told that, but that
is not my opinion, and I think it. is not the opinion
• of any reasonable man. —!(Hear, hear.) Well, Sir,
then I say, considering the case of these lonians
-for whom we have demanded reparation, the House and the
country must look to the stateof things in Greece, and to the
'practices which are going on there, before they can come to a
;right conclusion as to the step which we took in demanding
compensation, though, indeed, it was scarcely more than a
nominal compensation, something in the nature of a compen-
elation, which would be an acknowledgment that such things
should not be done in future.— (Hear, hear.) Sir, I am sorry
to say that these cases have been discussed elsewhere in a
spirit and in a tone which I think was not befitting the per-
sons concerning whom the discussion teek place, nor thosee in
whose n
whose presence it took place.—(Hear, hear.) We h
grave matters treated with no little ridicule in a grave as-
sembly. We have had these claims dealt with lightly,
jocosely, and grave men have been kept in roars of
laughter for hours together, because of the poverty of some
of the persons concerned—because of the misery
religion
of another.— (Hear, hear.) As if, because men were poor,
• they might be bastinadoed and tortured with impunity 1—
(Lond cheers.) As if, because men happened to be born in
Scotland, they might be injured without redress—(Hear,
hear)—or, because their religion happened to be that of the
Jewish persuasion, they were fair game for any torture that
a foreign power might choose to inflict upon them !
(Cheers.) Sir, it is an old saying, it is one that has been
often repeated, that a very moderate share of human wisdom
is sufficient for the guidance of human affairs. But there is
another truth, which is, that men who aspire to govern man-
kind ought to bring to that task generous sentiments,' com-
passionatieesympaehies, and .noble and elevating Flews.—
(Cheers). Now, Sir, with regard to the case, I will first take
that which I think would first present itself to the mind of
an Englishman—l mean the insult on the part of the Greek
authorities to one of her Majesty's officers.--(Hear, hear.)

Time has been when men who aspired to public station would
have thought it their duty at least to vindicate the honour
of the British navy. Times are changed.—(Loud cheers)
It is slid, " What is that? They were only taken out of
their boat; a set of armed men were taken up to the guard-
house, but they were soon let out agaea ; why should you
trouble your heads about that ?" Why, Sir, did we ask
anything extraordinary or unreasonable for that? What
we asked was an apology.—(Cheers.) I really thought I
should not live to see the day when public men in England
would think that a demand of an apology for an arbitrary
and unjust arrest of a British officer and of -British seamen
in the performance of their duty was a demand " doubtful in
its nature and exaggerated in its amount."—(Cheers.) Now,
Sir, is that the case ? Circumstances have been alluded to
with regard to that case which were connected with it, but
which do not form part of the statement of the case itself.
The case itself is well known. A son of the British vice-consul,
being on board the Fantome, was taken ashore by a coxswain
in a boat; he was landed on the beach, and escorted to his
father's house. The coxswain, on his return, was taken up by
the guard. The guard r ent down to the boat, and, finding men
with arms, the guard wcunded one of them with a bayonet,
and they took them prisoners and carried them to prison.
After a certain time, by the interposition of the vice-consul,
they were then released, and returned to their ship. The
excuses were altogether misstatements.—( Hear, bear.) But
the gist of the excuse was this, that the guard thought that
this boat belonged to the Spitfire, and that they had been
seen landing rebels, one of whom escaped. Well, Sir, the
fact to which all that referred was this :—lt was the practice,
and has been and still is the practice, of the Government
of Greece, instead of punishing the brigands by which that
country is infested, to amnesty and pardon them from time
to time.—(Hear, hear.) It is even supposed that the
officers of the police frequently get shares of the plunder.—
( Hear, hear.) But that is a matter of opinion. The fact of
their being never punished and always pardoned is matter of
notoriety. This has given so much encouragement to this
system of plunder that they go about in armed bands, and
sometimes they actually occupy towns. Well, of these
bands there was a leader of the name of Mereditti, aho
came with a band of armed men to take Patras. But in
hitras there was a governor and an armed force to a
certain extent. The governor and the armed force, either
thinking that they ought to follow the example of their
governor, decided not to resist the banditti—perhaps con-
sidering discretion the better part of valour, they fled, leav-
ing the town in the hands of the banditti. The people of
Patras, however, did not at all like that result. They found
themselves deserted by their natural protectors, and threw
themselves on the foreign consuls. They begged and en-
treated the consuls to intercede and make some arrangement
which would save the town from pillage. It was finally
agreed that Mereditti should forego his contemplated pillage
of the town on payment of a certain sum—l forget the
amount. The money was collected and deposited in the
hands of the vice-consul. Mereditti and his band march
down to the sea-shore, for the purpose of embarkation in a
British man-of-war. When the governor, who bad retired
in the manner I have mentioned, thought that the band was
prepared to embark, he bethought him that it woule be a
fortunate thing if he could attack the rear guard of Mere-
ditti. And it was intended to induce the commander of the
vessel to betray the band to the governor. But the officer
said, "No ; there is not only honour among thieves,
but there is honour to thieves."—(Hear, hear, and
laughter.) You have asked us to make this arrangement,
and we gave 'von a guarantee that 'we should protect ,
these men." The people of the town .agreed tor
give Mereditti about half-the sttm which he originally asked.
Well, this was the circumstance which M. Rondopulos al-
luded
to- when he said that it was not known whether ornot,,
it was the vessel containing this armed 'bead that was about;,
to be landed—that was the excuse offered for arresting a
British officer and British seamenin the performance of their
duties. This was an, insult to.the:etritesh navy, which the
Government of .any other country would probably have re-:
garded in a different way.e—(Hear.) Well, Sir, then we-boners'
to these lonians. And fflst I take the 'case of those who
were plundered ,in the Custom-house. These men in their
boats pass near to this Custom-house. They see a person
habited in the garments of a Custom-house officer. They
naturally obey his orders. But when they enter they are
told that they are in the hands of a bandit. They were
plundered in the Castom-house, and not only plun-
dered but stripped of their clothes and beat. Well
then, Sir, I say, do not tell me that this is a case to be com-
pared with British subjects travelling through Terra-
cina, for instance, and insulted by banditti ; and that in such
cases the Government of this country did not think of asking
for compensation from the Italian Governments. I say that
if a Government do not protect its own Custom-house—
(Hear, hear)—if a Government permits an armed band of
robbers—robbers they were, for they were banditti—and
allows foreigners to be robbed and beaten in that Custom-
house—l say thatesueh a Government should be called up n
for redress.—(Loud cheers.) Well, 1 think our demand was
a moderate demand. We asked for nothing but an indem-
nity against the injuries that had been sustained by British
subjects. We simply asked for that of which they had been
deprived. Then we come to the case of the other lonians.
It appeared that, on a festive day, they, according to the
fashion of the country, had exhibited flags iu front of their
houses. But the police came and said they must be re-
moved. But the removal of the flags would not satisfy the
Greek authorities. These lonians were arrested, manacled,
and thumb-screwed—(Hear, hear)—and in that state they
were marched off to prison. It had been said, " How
could they take a person to prison by any other"
manner except by conducting him through the streets.
Why, it is true ; but then there was no necessity for taking
them through the streets which did not lie in their way.
For the purpose of parading them before the gaze of the in-
habitants they were taken through all the streets of Patras.
Then it is said, " 06, you say they were thumb-screwed ;
but what of that? They were not maimed for life—hew
could you call for Ivey compensation for them ? If they
were maimed for life you might complain, but as long as
they were not so maimed—the mere fact of being thumb-
screwed and being compelled to take a pleasant evening
walk—(Langhter)—why, for that surely, no claim for
compensation can be made." Sir, I am of a different
opinion.-(Cheers.) I do not think that thumbscrews! are
like gloves, to be put on and taken off at any time one
pleases. Sir, the facts that I have stated, namely, the
torture by the Greek authorities of British subjects—l
think it is necessary we should put our hand upon this case,
and require that a moderate compensation should be pro-
vided for it, and which has not yet been provided. These
lonians had committed no offence ; they were dismissed, no
charge being piov"ed against them. As to the two men who
had been whipped by the Greek authorities in the pre-
sence of persons who had deposed to their treatment,
there was.' ample -evidence that they had committed no
act of infringement whatever of the laws of Greece. Com-
pensation was duly demanded in this case, not merely be-
cause of the injury which they had received, but as a token
that we should have protection for British subjects.—(Hear,
hear.) Well, then, we come to the case of the Fantome. It
is said that Mr. Finlay was a " canny Scotchman," who
speculated in land, as it is said—who bought his land in the
cheapest and sold it in the dearest market.—(Hear, hear.)
It was clearly a case demanding inquiry, and a guarantee
that the same case should not occur in future. Now, Sir,
we undoubtedly by our law, and by the law of .dl countries,
if it is thought necessary to take land for public purposes,
for a line of public communication, for any great national
work—why public utility overrides private rights to this ex-
tent, that the owner is compelled to give up his property;
but then he is entitled to have his property fairly valued,
and to receive what may be the true and proper amount of
that value.—(Hear.) He is not compelled to take that which
the person who in such case desires to have possession of his
land chooses to give him, but he is allowed such an amount
as is adjudged to be due by him by an authorised valuer.
But this land was not taken for any public purpose. It was
taken for .the private enjoyment of the King of Greece..
Well, Sir, I am sure nobody who wishes well to Greece, or
who takes an interest in the welfare, of the youthful Sove-
reign of a young state, would say that it was not fitting that
there should be a residence proper for royalty in Greece, and
that those who happened to have land near the site which
was chosen for the palace ought not to give up the property
but upon being paid.the value of that which was taken from
them. Mr. Finlay never had any objection upon that
ground. Mr. Finlay was perfectly ready to give up his land
upon being pain the proper value of his land. Well, then,
is there any reason in saying that because some years before
he had bought this land at a cheaper rate than that at which
he offered it. he was not entitled to have a price given him
proportioned to the increased value which a difference of
circumstances had occasioned ?—(Hear, hear.) Why,
Sir, the commonest principles of justice between
man and man would necessarily lead you to this—
that you shall not inquire what was the value of his land
when he bought it. It might have fallen in value. The
only question that had to be considered was, what
was the value of the property at the time it was taken from
hini.—(Hear, hear.) I must say that, in my opinion, all
who feel an interest in royalty must have read with extreme
pain the proceedings on this subject. I cannot help recol-
lecting how different was the conduct of Frederick the Great
is a similar case. An humble individual happened to pos-
sess a plot of land included in the site which Frederick the
Great had chosen for the completion of a magnificent place
for the residence of monarchy. The owner of this small plot
of land, on which he had a windmill, refused to part with
it, and the windmill and the plot in question were ulti-
mately included within the confines of the palace grounds.
Frederick the Great pointed with pride to the windmill, and
rejoiced that he had the happiness to rule over people who
knew and were determined to maintain their rights.—
(Cheers.). • Well, Sir, what was the conduct pursued by
the King of Greece on this subject? For fourteen long
years Mr. Finlay was driven front pillar to post, and put
off by every sort of shuffling and evasive excuses, and de-
prived of all compensation for his land, unless lie chose to
take a turn totally inadequate to its value. Well, in 1843
came the revolution. Up to 1843 the Government of Greece
had continued arbitrary. The king declined, under the cir-
cumstances which I have mentioned, to grant a representa-
tive
constitution. In 1843 the patience of Greece was ex-
hausted. They rose in Athens, and extorted by force that
which had not been granted to reason. When that revolution
came courts of justice were established, which were not
in-
dependent, because the judges are not only liable to be dis-
missed at the will of the sovereign, but to be removed from
court to court, so that anycourt may be, and often is, packed
for trying the case which is to be brought before it.—(Hear,
hear.) In 18 t 3 there were courts to which Mr. Finlay might
have appealed. In these courts he had no confidence with
regard to transactions which ha happened before the
volution. Mr. Mr. Finlay, therefodre, reaped no benefit front
the change of government. - But then. I heaasserted rd it
most triumphantly, distinctly, and positively
that when • Mr. Wyse made his demand the Greek
Government the claim of Mr. Finlay was abeolutely
finally, and conclusively settled. (Hear, hear.) Sir, that
was by no means the case. There had been, indeed, an
agreement made for arbitration, and a most curious sample it
was of the manner in which things are carried on in Greece.
Mr: Finlay said, "I will refer this to arbitration." "It is a
subject," they said, "for arbitration; name an arbitrator
yourself, and we shall name another... Mr. Finlay, who has
been stated to be a " canny Scot," looking well into the
future, foresaw the possibility—which might, indeed, have
-struck even a man not so far north as he—(Laughter)—that
the two arbitrators might possibly differ; he therefore hum-
bly suggested that an umpire should be appointed. (Heate)
The Greek Government said, "You are quite tight; we see
exactly how it is;. we will appoint an umpire."—(Laughter.)
But Mr. Finlay, being a very sensible man, did not like to
commit his case to the keeping of three men, two of whom
were to be appointed by the Greek Government. And if
that arbitration had been gone into, no doubt Mr. Fin-
lay's claim would have been finally settled. But by the
law of Greece an arbitration so appointed must pronounce its
award within three months; or if it did not, the matter
dropped to the ground, The Commissioners could not make
their award without the production of certain documents,
which could only be furnished by the officers of the Greek
Government ; but by some unfortunate circumstance they
did not furnish them—(Hear, hear)—and the arbitration, as
a necessary consequence, fell to the ground ; and, therefore,
at the time when Baron Gros came to examine into the mat-
ter, he found matters perfectly in the same state that
they were when Mr. Finlay first complained. Baron Gros
was. at first astonished, and he said to Mr. Finlay,
"Whyyetis'claims- beet been' subjected to.arbitretion, the
matter is settled, why have you not received your money?"
Mr. Finlay replied, " I did not know that it was so, or that
even a sum was fixed as the amount of compensation I am
to receive." On further examination, it appeared that the

matter was really in the same position in which it s before
it was referred to arbitration.—( Hear, hear.) N waow, that
was a case in which we made no specific demand.—(Hear,
hear.) We only asked that Mr. Fiulay should receive the
value of what the land might turn out to be worth; and the
sum ultimately agreed upon was that which the two arbi-
trators had fixed between them, splitting the differences
of amount which one thought was only adequate and the
other sufficient for satisfaction of the demand. One of
these arbitrators had been appointed by Mr. Finlay, and
the other by the Greek Government. (Hear, hear.) I
do not think in this case, taking these circumstances into
consideration, that the claim was unfounded in justice.—
(Cheers.) Well, then, we come to the claim of M. Pacifico,
which has been the subject of so much unworthy comment.
Stories have been told involving the honour, and
imputa-
tions have been cast out against the character of M. Paci-
fico. All I know is this, that after the time to which these
stories relate, the Portuguese Government had appointed
M. Pacifico their consul in Morocco, and subsequently at
Athens; and I do not know that it is likely that the Por-
tuguese Government would have selected a man to have
filled these offices upon whom there rested such grievous
imputations as is now alleged. For my part, Ido not
believe them ; but I say, as has been said by those who
have taken part in this debate, that I do not care what his
character may have been or what it is.—( Hear.) I can
never admit that because he may have done wrong at some
former period, he is for all eternity to be injured with-
out the right to obtain redress. The rights of man turn upon
the case in question, and it is nonsense to say you will not
give him redress for any injury inflicted upon him, because
on some other occasion he may have done something not in
accordance with the principles of justice.—(Hear.) Now,
what happened to M. Pacifico? Why, in the middle of the
town of Athens, his house—which, I must be allowed to say,
was not that wretched house which some persons have de-
scribed it—but no matter what it was—if it was a cabin or a
palace, it had a right to be safe from injury, and should be
protected—(Cheers)—that house which in early days had
been the residence of Count Ormsturm, the chief of the re-
gency, and which was situated in the middle of Athens,
within forty yards of the great street of the capital, and a
few minutes' walk from the guard-house, was entered by a
mob. They send for protection to the British legation; ap-
plication is made for that protection to the Greek Govern-
ment; but no protection is afforded. This mob, in which
were found soldiers and gendarmes, who, if their officers were
absent, were, nevertheless, bound to preserve peace and order
—this mob, headed by the sons of the Minister of War, not
children, but young men of eight and twenty years of age,
enjoyed themselves for two hours in gutting the house of an
unoffending man, and destroying and carrying away every
single thing which it contained, leaving it a perfect wreck.
Is that a case in which a subject was entitled to redress? I
humbly think it was.—(Loud and continued cheering.) I
think that there is no civilised country in the world where a
man has sustained such a grievous wrong, not to say any-
thing of the personal insults offered to his family, that he
would not expect and seek redress from some uarter or
other.—(Hear, hear.) M- here was Pacifico to q
seek that
redress? The Greek Government neglected its duty—it did
not pursue those judicial inquiries which it might have done
for the sake of finding out and punishing the aggressors.
The sons of the Minister of War were pointed at—they
were told, "Search that house, and you will find part of the
jewels of M. Pacifico ;" but no, they refused to take any
such steps; they told M. Pacifico that he must appeal to
theepurte_of,justice. What was he to do? Was he to
prosecate aniob of 500 persons ciiminally Where were
his witnesses? His family were hidingeanallyieg, hi order
tp ayojd the outrages with, which they' were threatened.' M.
pieifico,st afee that he cisfid to(theltattirptaiiiion of
'an pnglish• friend.' 'lt- vrai' Only to ftivr eef the leaders
'that he &mid apply evidinee suffiaittet -to eonYiet them
- before' it tourf aof Justice; `b whet latitfaction ::coaid 'it
have been to him to have prosecutedetriminally Ike The
Wrong had been committed. -Re ',did not yittnt.reyenge, he
Wanted redress. Criminal prosecution was therefore oat of
the question. To say nothingsof thwebanees
_against, him
under a Government where the tribunes were at the mercy
of the judges, who were themselves liable to be removed at
the pleasure of the Government, if he were to prosecute for
damages, what were his hopes of snccess? If he had chosen
a particular individual for prosecution, see his difficulty. No
one man had taken all that was destroyed; and suppose he
was able to point out some particular article which had been
taken ; after the trouble of an expensive lawsuit, his legal
advisers informed him that if the party were a rich man he
would be sure of an acquittal, and if he was a poor man,
from whom was he to look for payment ?—( Cheers.) Well,
then, this is a case In which the Greek Government have
neglected to give that protection which they had it in
their power to afford, and who will say that this was
not a case in which we were entitled to call on them
to make some compensation?—(Cheers.) I think the
claim was founded in justice—the amount we did not pre-
tend to fix.—(Hear, hear.) If the Greek Government
thought the sum demanded was exorbitant, and that a far
less sum would have been sufficient, that would have been
a question open to discussion. But the Greek Government
denied the principle of redress. When Mr. Wyse made his
demand, all he reouired was that it should be settled or put
in the way of settlement, and when the.periodewas limited to
the space of four and twenty hours for the Greek Govern-
ment to decide, nothing more was desired, and no particular
amount of money was sought. All he wished was, that a
claim fairly and justly due should be treated in a fair and
equitable manner. Well, then, after these claims had been
treated by the Greek Government with subterfuge—in a
manner wholly unsatisfactory or with pertinacious silence
—it was at last forced upon us that we were either to
abandon these claims altogether, or, in pursuance of a
notice which we had given two years before, we were to
insist upon them by force. It has been said, Sir, " Oh,
what an ungenerous proceeding 'to employ so large a
force against so small a territory."—(Hear, hear.) Does
the smallness of the country justify immunity for its guilty
acts ?—(Hear, hear.) Is it to he held that because a country
is small and weak we cannot apply for redress for the
injuries it inflicts upon us?—(Hear, hear.) Why the small-
ness and weakness of the country make our generosity the
snore apparent in employing a force which would render re-
sistance impossible; or is it seriously, to be supposed that our
subjects shall suffer- without redress because we have Such
ample means of obtaining it for them ?—(Cheers and
laughter.) Well, then, was there anything so ungenerous
in sending this imposing fleet, which would make it palpable
to all the world that resistance was out of the question ? On
the contrary, it was mere consistent with the honour and
dignity of the Government on whom we made the demand
to send an armament which.would show the vanity of resist-
ance. It would have been an indignity if we had sent a
frigate and a sloop of war, or any force which they might
have thought it ,possible to have measured their
force with, 'or to which they would not have felt
it dignified to yield. Therefore, so far from being pen
to blame for sending the force which happened to be on the
spot, I think that circumstance ought to be matter of satis-
faction to the Greek Government, as it removed the hiuni-
liation they would otherwise have experienced in being
obliged to give that which they had so long refused. Well, ,
then, did we in the application of that force either depart
from established usage, or do anything which pressed harshly
upon an innocent unoffending nation? I say innocent and
unoffending nation, because it was against the Government,
and not the nation, we made the claim. The course pur-
sued by Government in cases like the present, where an in.
jury has been inflicted for which redress is refused, are either
of the three following :—The first is commonly called re-
prisal—that :is, seizing something of value and holding
it by way of deposit ; or, if necessary, applying it by way
of compensation for the wrong. The second is a modi-
fied operation of war, such as a blockade, a measure
very frequently adopted by all states and governments.
The third course is the commencement of actual hostilities
and the adoption of such measures as have been pointed out
by some other countries—for instance, by France, when out
e
demanded redress for injuries sustained. By the bye, who
Hon. Gentlemen complain of the peremptory manner in
which the demand was made, I merely wish to call the ant-
tention of the Heine to a case in which the French nation
were involved, which happened no later than the year 1848.
There was an insurrection at Naples. The great street of
the town was filled with barricades, and the troops had to
force them. -To do so they had to occupy the houses
upon the right and left as they forced one house after
another. They forgot or neglected to fasten the doors after
them, and they were followed' by the lazzaron , who com-
menced to plunder all before them. Some of these houses
were the property of Frenchmen, and they complained to the
French Minister, who immediately put himself in communi-
cation with the French Admiral Godat, who happened to be
lying with his fleet at Naples. What does he do? He lays
his ship broadside opposite the Palace, and writes a note to
say that he has been called upon for protection by. the
French inhabitants. This letter is dated " half-past one
o'clock," and states, unless he receives a satisfactory answer
that the Neapolitan Government will, guarantee them
full
protection by three o'clock, he will proceed to enforce
it.— (Cheers and laughter.) Sir W. Parker acted with
the. greatest moderation. He began with reprisals—he
did not begin with a blockade—he wished to avoid
all interference with the commerce of other countries;
and he made these reprisals in a manner in which
they had not often been effected. The Government was
the offending party, and he took possession of the vessels
of the Government. The reason that other nations pre-
fer to seize vessels belonging to the country are very
obvious. Vessels belonging to the Government are gene-
rally armed, and vessels which are so may feel it their duty
to use them—this involves the possibility of bloodshed, so
reprisals are generally effected upon commercial vessels,
which are not ammunitioned, and where the probability of
resistance is not so great. In this instance we began by
seizing the armed vessels. As this was found not suffi-
ciently to answer, he laid an embargo on all vessels, which
implied that he had • a lien upon them, and ordered
that they should not quit their ports. As these means
were still unsuccessful to obtain his end, he was
obliged to make reprisals and seize soma merchant
vessels, which he did to a limited number, avoiding as
much as possible, or than it was absolutely necessary, in-
flicting injury on the commerce of the people or of other
nations. They had been told that he had seized a
number of fishing-boats belonging to the poor. He knew
nothing of the circumstance, and did not believe it.— (Cheers.)
The embargo did • not extend to fishing-boats or vessels of
small tonnage employed in the coasting trade.—(Hear, hear.)
In that state of things the French Government offered their
good offices. We readily and cheerfully accepted them, and
by a note, dated the 12th of February, we stated the grounds,
the conditions, and the extent to which they were to be ac-
cepted. There could be no mistake about the matter, as we
took as a precedent the course- which- had been pursued on
the sulphur question when Mr. Thiers was in office.—(Hear,
hear.) In that case it was arranged that all hostilities were
to be suspended the moment the French Minister was autho-
rised to negotiate. In this case the moment the offer was
sufficiently made and sufficiently accepted instructions to
the same effect were to be issued. In both cases we could
not release the ships that had been captured, because, if
we had done so, we should have given up the position
in which we stood. It has been stated that some misunder-
standing arose between the Governments of France and
England in the course of the mediation and good offices. I
cannot say that there was any misunderstanding between
Drouyn de l'Huys and myself, because it will be seen by
his statements in the French Assembly that he clearly under-
stood the grounds on which these good offices were accepted,
and he repeatedly states, " England gives up none of her de-
mands, none of the principles of her demands, and the only
questions our negotiator is allowed to discuss are questions
which do not involve the negation of the principle of the de-
mand." What were the questions? Why the amount of
money to be received by M. Pacifico and Mr. Finlay ; not the
question whether he was to receive anything or nothing.—
(Cheers.) A question arose, What were the circumstances
on which the good offices were to cease ? It was distinctly
understood upon my part, and that of M. Drouyn de l'Huys,
that Mr. Wyse was not to take it upon himself to say when
this mission had failed, but when Baron Gros announced it
himself:—( Hear, hear.) It was further agreed, specially, on
the 9th of April, if a difference arose between Baron Gros
and Mr. Wyse on those points which Baron Gros was com-
petent to discuss, that lie was not to stand out on his differ-
ence, and if he did not think it possible to give way, in that
case he, was to refer home for instructions. • And it is now
said that it was very wrong of me not to . bave'sent out to
Mr. Wyse information of the understanding to which
I had come with M. Dratlyn de l'Huys. In the first
place, I had sent, on the 25th of March, instructions which,
if acted upon, would have rendered further reference unne-
cessary, for at last, when Baron Gros and Mr. Wyse came to