The Sun.
London, England, 1868-04-21 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIABIENr

HOUSE OF COMMONS—LAsT EvErznici

The SPEAKER took the Chair at 4 o'clock.
NEW WRITS.

On the motion of Colonel TAYLOR new writs were
ordored to issue for Lincolnshire, Eastern Division of
Kent, and Radnorshire, in the place of Sir J. Trollope,

Sir B. Bridges, and Sir S. Walsh, called to the House of
Peers.

A new writ was also ordered to issue for Leominster, in
the room of the Hon. A. Walsh.

REGIMENTAL COURTS-MARTIAL.
Sir P. O'BRIEN said he had learned that, sinco ho had
placed h's question on the paper relative to the case of a
sergeant-major of the Grenadier Guards, that substantial
justice had been done, and he should therefore withdraw
his question.

_
JOINT STOCK COMPANIES.
On the motion for going into committee of supply,

Mr. SiOLLET2 (Tailed tho att•3ution of the house to

the very unsatisfactory manner in which certain joint
stock companies had for the last eight years performad the
functions entrusted to them of supplying irrigation to

public lands in India from their own funds, so far as the
pecuniary results of their operations hail b3en com-
municated to Parliament. The hon. gentleman took

the •opportunity of referring to the subject of the negotia-
tions which had taken place on the part of the Govern-
ment with a view to, the purcaase of stock of the East
Indian Irrigation Company at par, when, according
to the honourable member, the markot value of
the stock was 25 por cant. dis. It was quite
true he said that the offer had been refused, but that he
believed was solely occasioned by the hope that still yet
far better terms might be obtained. The subject of
Indian Irrigation was in the Madras Presi-
dency most inordinately misrepresented, and, with
a view of showing the way the thing was

worked, he would just refer to the Madras Gazette, which
published the amount expended by oue set of irrigation
works in that country at £23,000, and set down the profit
received at the rate of 664 per cent. and 720 par cent. per
annum. He was astonished at that state of things, and
on sending to Madras to ascertain whether those figures

were true or false, he received au answer that the

whole thing was a gross exaggeration. He strongly con-
demned the practice of Government lending money for the
purpose of jobbery in irrigation works, by such com-
panies as the Madras Irrigation Works, and the East
India Irrigation Works, the former of which
collapsed after no more public money c )uld be got, and
the stock of the latter was almost unmarketable ; at least
Such was th• position before the Government offer was
made. The hon. gentleman concluded by moving,
" That the system adopted by the late Secretary of
State for India, Viscount Halifax, and continued by the
present Secretary of State for India, of supporting in their
present position these companies of adventurers in enter-
prises unsustained by private credit through means of
enormous grants of public money drawn from the Indian
Treasury is impolitic, and should be discontinued."
Sir S. NORTHCOTE could not assent to such a reso-
lution. It was not to bo expected that works of irriga-
tion were undertaken for the advantage of all, and it
was net to bo expected that the return would
all at once repay the cost. Ho thought in the long run
they would prove highly remunerative, although they
would not realise the sanguine expectations of their
promoters. He felt that the greatest advantage would
result in India from a properly planned system of irriga-
tion. His opinion now was that guarantees to Indian
companies should be altogether done away with, but
with respect to the irrigation works in Orissa and
Madras they were in a state that would produce the best
possible effect. 'With respect to the first undertaking
he did not think the hon. gentleman imputed jobbery to
Lord De Grey and the Indian Council, but if an error of
judgment had been committed the hon. gentleman had a
perfect right to hold his own opinion. With respect
to what had been done in Orissa, he thought that
they had been the means of alleviating much of the
misery which existed during the famine. Then as far as
regarded Behar the company held the concession for a
great work, and being without the means of doing it they
were just in the position of keeping others from doing
it. The company proposed to wait until they
had a return from the works at Orissa be-

fore they went on with the works at Behar,
but the Government of India, thinking that not a satisfac-

tery Y arrangement, wrote requesting ..the Govern-
ment to make certain overtures to the com-
pany. In all that the Government had done,
they had acted within the recommendation of the Gover-
nor-General of India. The offer made to the company to
purchase their works was solely for the benefit of India, and
because they seemed totally unable to carry on the works
—the Government altogether objecting to grant a guaran-
tee. He could see nothing in the proposition that had been
made which merited the condemnation the hon. member
had been pleased to pass on the Government. All they
had done was to offer to a sot of gentlemen the money
they had spent in the construction of their works, with
£50,000 for winding up their establishment. The works
were constructed for the general benefit, and although
they were not at first so highly remunerative as was ex-
pected, yet the erection of the works would be, and at no
distant date, one of the greatest benefits that could be con-
ferred on India.
Mr. KINNAIRD and Mr. J. B. SMrrH made some remarks
on the same subject, and in the end Mr. SMOLLETT with-
drew his motion.
Mr. WA.TKIN moved for a committee to inquire into
the condition of Ceylon and the action of its Government,
basing his motion on the decay and depopulation of the
colony, and on the injudicious system of taxation, of which
he gave numerous proofs.
The motion was resisted by Mr. A.DDERLEY, who main-
tained that the only cause of complaint that the colonists
had was being compelled to bear a fair share of their mili-
tary expenditure, and showed the inaccuracy of some of
Mr. Watkin's statements as to the decay of the colony.
Mr. Alderman Lusx. and Mr. GORST supported the mo-
tion, and after some observations from. Mr. CHILDERS it
was negatived without a division.
Subsequently the house spent some hours in discussing,
in Committee of Supply, the first class of the Civil Service
estimates—those relating to public works and buildings.
No great progress was made, the first six votes only
being agreed to.
The Boundary Bill was read a second time.
Several other bills were forwarded a stage, and the
house adjourned at 25 minutes to 1 o'clock.

THE FENIAN TRIALS.

(Continued from our First Edition of yesterday.)

In compliance with the sugvstious contained in
that letter, various successful efforts were made
to obtain various quantities of powder, and ap-
plication was made to the witness to allow a barrel
of powder to be sent to his address. To this
he objected. Besides the letter referred to the
witness deposed that Murphy had received other
letters in secret ink. On the night before the
explosion he attended a meeting, at which English,
Barrett, and William Desmond were present.
In all there were about 12 present, and they
had in their possession six or seven pistols.
Murphy saying that he had a barrel of powder
all right, asked what was to be done for a
truck, when Fallan went out, and when he re-
turned said it was all right. Captain
Murphy arranged for the meeting the next day
at Desmond's house at half-past 3 to proceed to
Clerkenwell to endeavour to release Burke. On the
following night he saw Barrett, with several others,
in a public-house, and, walkingpart of the way home
with him, asked how they got on with the barrel.
To this Barrett replied that the captain had failed to
light the match, but that the next day he would
blow the prison to hell. Up to that time
Barrett had gone by the name of Jackson.
After the explosion at Clerkenwell, at which
he himself was not present, the witness saw a man
named Patten in one of the rooms of his house.
Later in the evening he saw Barrett at the Welsh
Stores, Warwick-street. He then noticed that his
whiskers and beard were shaved off. Joking him
about the loss, he stated that he had shaved them
off so that he might not be identified.
An application was made to postpone the cross-
examination of this witness until to-morrow, owing
to the brief time that had elapsed since the counsel
for the defence had been instructed. The Lord
Chief Justice said he thought it would be better to
adjourn until to-morrow.
The witness Mullany observed that when at the
police-court he said he knew more than he had told,
he referred to the letter from Burke.
The evidence of Mr. Buggins, who found the
stave of the barrel on the roof of a house in Roso-
man-street, and that of the police-inspector Am-
brose, who received it, and an officer named So-
combe, who found another stave, was then taken,
being merely of a formal character, and the court
adjourned, the jury being delivered into the custody
of the bailiff.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE—This Day.

GRAVESEND, Monday Morning.

Wind, W.S.W. ; fine.
Arrived—La Hogue, from Sydney; Rhine steamer, from
Boulogne.

DzA.L, Tuesday Morning.

Wind, W.S.W., strong.
Passed—Raby Castle, of Loudon, from the west, for
London.