The Sun.
London, England, 1842-04-20 00:00:00

SEMMARY OF NEWS

AND
Vttbitr

" Who runs may read."

FOREIGN.

In the French sitting of the Chamber of Deputies, on Sa-
turday, a member brought up the subject of the complaints
lately made by the public papers on the administration of jus-
tice in the province of Constantine (Algeria), where, accord-
ing to the Gazette des Tribunaux, 44 executions had taken
place in a single year, on the capricious and cruel sentence
of one individual, and without the observance of any
of the customary forms of justice. Marshal Soult declared that
he had sent one of bis aides-de-camp to Algiers, with instruc-
tions to make every necessary inquiry, and to require of Gene-
ral Negrier, Governor of Constantine, to explain the illegal acts
with which he was charged. As soon as • the repot of his
aide-de-camp came to hand, the Marshal would communicate
the result to the Chamber.

The Madrid journal, Como: Nacional, of the:loth inst.,
gives the report that France intends positively to send in to
the Spanish Government her claims fot the debt of 1823, and
that in a very energetic note on this subject she has declared
that she will not give up one inch of her pretensions.
It is not true, as was reported, that the Prime Minister
Gonzales had signed with Mr. Aston the preliminaries to a
treaty of commerce.
The Corresponsal says that a letter from the Philippine
Islands of the 15th January confirms the deplorable results of
the violent measures adopted by the military authorities on the
recent revolt. More than 1,400 individuals had lost their lives.
The state of the wine trade at Oporto appears to have become
an object of much solicitude to the Government, and is likely
to have much weight with it in the negotiations pending
with this country for a new commercial treaty. The
Queen had appointed a commission of nine members,
for the purpose of taking into consideration and re-
porting upon the representation lately addressed to
her by the Mercantile Association of Oporto. In that re-
presentation it was earnestly recommended that no time
should be lost in concluding a new treaty with Great Britain,
founded upon the principle of reciprocity. The Duke of Pal-
mella had already had several conferences with Lord Ho vard de
Walden, but nothing further had transpired regarding the pro-
gress of the negotiations.
PARLIAMENTARY.

The Corn-laws exclusively occupied the Lords last night,
first with petitions, and subsequently with a motion of Lord
Melbourne's, calling on their Lordships to sanction the prin-
ciple of a fixed duty. Lord Ripon opposed Lord Melbourne,
and the Earl of Clarendon supported him by an able speech.
A long debate ensued, in which a great many of the most dis-
tinguished Peers took part, and which ended by their Lordships
rejecting Lord Melbourne's resolution by 207 to 71.
Lord Brougham afterwards lost two divisions on restrictions,
and against imposing any duty on corn, which was lost in both
cases by 96 to 9.
Their Lordships d:d not adjourn till Two o'Clock.
In the Commons Mr. Pryse Pryse and Mr. A. Lefroy took
their seats.

The Kingadare Inclosure Bill was reported after a division,
and a vain attempt on the part of Messrs. Godson, Brotkerton,
and Fielden, to protect, as they said, the rights of the poor.
On Monday, May 2, Mr. 'l'. Duncombe is to present the
National Petition, signed by snore than 3,000,000 of the in-
dustrious classes, and on the following day he will move that the
petition be taken into consideration.
Mr. M. Stewart, having put a question to Lord Stanley rela-
tive to emigration, the Noble Lord answered it somewhat in
detail, and in a manner to show that the New South Wales
and other 'colonies are now overstocked with labourers, and
that they at present want capital more than labourers.
In reply to Dr. Bowring. and Sir C. Napier, Sir Robert
Peel feelingly expressed his inability to govern Syria in addi-
tion to England, judging the latter task hard enough. Ne-
vertheless he informed the House that the Government had
remonstrated with the Porte against employing the Arnauts
in *,yria, and against placing Omar Pacha in the Government
of Lebanon.

•Mr. Ferrand, in a long speech, full of bitter accusations.
against the master. manufacturers, moved for a Committee to
inquire into their practices towards their workmen. Sir
James Graham moved as an amendment, that the Com-
mittee should inquire into the working of the law which
forbids the truck system, and after a Tharp and somewhat
personal debate, the amendment was adopted. Amongst the
master manufacturers there are no doubt many knaves,ande very
honest man will be glad to see them exposed. Sir J. Graham s
remark, however, that when the men are prosperous, they are
the masters of their masters, was full of wisdom, and explains
in one sentence, the real cause of the sufferings of the people.
The Corn-laws have cut up prosperity by the roots, and so made
the workmen the slaves of the masters.

The Solicitor-General for Ireland obtained leave to bring in
a Bill to assimilate the criminal law of Ireland as to the
punishment of death to that of England, and Mr. Hutt obtained
a Committee to inquire into the expediency of renewing the
Grinding Act.—The House rose at a Quarter to Eleven.