The Sun.
London, England, 1845-06-04 00:00:00

LUNATIC ASYLUMS BILL.

In answer to a question from Lord ASHLEY,
Sir JAMES GRAHAM said be should move tho next read-
.ng of the Lunatic Asylums Rill on Friday next.
SIR HENRY POTTINGER.

Mr. HUME, in rising to move for a Committee of the
whole House to consider the following resolution, " That an
humble address be presented to her Majesty, that she will be
graciously pleased to grant such a pension as she may think proper
to the Right lion. Sir Henry Pottinger, Bart., K. C. 8., as a
reward for his eminent public services, an especially for
having, as her Majesty's Plenipotentiary in China, brought
the war in that country to a conclusion by a peace alike
honourable and advantageous; and to assure her Majesty that
this House will make good the same—said he regretted that her
Majesty's Ministers had not saved him the trouble of bringing
the matter before the House. He was aware that the motion
implied a degree of censure on the Ministry, but, never-
theless, he thought a public officer who had performed very
important and responsible functions to the satisfaction
of every one, was entitled to some reward for his
services. It might be asked whether it was at the request of
Sir Henry Puttinger, or any of his friends, that he had brought
the subject forward, and his answer was, that he had never
had any communication with Sir Henry' Pottinger,
or any of his friends, and all he knew of the gallant
officer lie had gathered from the public sources of
information. Whatever might be the result of this motion, it
could not be said that Sir Henry Pottinger was responsible
for it. The House would bear in mind that the opinion he
now entertained of that gallant officer, was not an opinion
formed in this or last year, for it was an opinion which
he had ventured to submit to the House on the
14th day of February, 1843, when Ministers brought
forward a motion of thanks to the military and naval com-
manders who had conducted the war in India. On that occa-
sion he ventured to ask the Government to move a similar
vote if thanks to Sir Henry Pottinger and those who had been
employed with him in the expedition against China,
but the Right Hon. Baronet opposite deeply re-
gretted that he could not concur in such a motion.
Without casting any reflection on Sir H. Pottinger's successors,
he would ask them to look back to the career which they
adopted, which gave rise to anything but hopes of an amicable
arrangement. So great was the disappointment of her Majesty's
Government that they were obliged to look around them for
some individual possessing experience. There was no one
appointed to that important command who had filled the duties
entrusted to him so much to the satisfaction of the public officers,
and so highly to the honour of the country, as Sir H. Pottinger.
When they found his conduct hailed by the people of England,
Ireland, and Scotland, was a remuneration too much to look for?
At this moment Sir Henry Pottinger had only 4191. per
annum to support the honours which have been conferred
upon him. It was the custom of this country to reward those
who were the leaders of the armies of the country, while those
who were the means of bringing about peace were almost
always forgotten. The warrior was rewarded largely, while the
pacificator and the man who was the means of putting an end
to hostilities were passed over, and were unnoticed. This was
one of the reasons why he had felt it to he his duty to bring
this matter under the consideration, of the House. He had
done so without any communication with Sir Henry Pottinger,
having been induced to do so from a sense of justice to that
great man. He had known Sir Henry Pottinger for many
years, both in hies private and public capacity, and he could
assure the House that his conduct would bear the fullest investi-
gation. While he was anxious to protect the public purse from
any improper expenditure, he would say that withholding from
officers in her Majesty's service that remuneration to which
they were justly entitled did great injury to the service. The
Hen. Gentleman then referred to Parliamentary returns, and
to other documents, to show that pensions had been granted to
those who had filled diplomatic offices. Sir Henry Pottinger
was sent to China, not as an ambassador, for this country
was not at that time on friendly terms with the celestial empire,
bat to negotiate for the restoration of peace, and he performed
the important duties which devolved upon him more success-
fully than others who had been sent out with a
similar object in view. No one had been able
to accomplish so much, and those services were
both recognised by the country and the Government.
The Gallant Officer's business was to effect a treaty with
the Chinese authorities, and he was enabled to fulfil
his mission almost to the direct letter of the law.
Everything pointed out to him was accomplished by
the influence he gained over the Government of China. It
was the opinion of those who were in China at the time that
no ether individual could have obtained the confidence of the
Chinese authorities as Sir Henry Pottinger did. Was it no-
thing to think that he was the first man who had ever been
able to complete a commercial treaty with China? Surely
then he was entitled to hope he had made out a sufficient case
for calling support his motion. There were
many
men
because he was a man of certain
upon
distinguished,the Househteot
opinions they refused him honours and votes, or even a pecu-
niary reward. They hsd already drawn a line of distinction
between civil and military officers—should they not now break
through that rule arid grant a reward which was deserved?
He thought he had made out a fair claim to the House, and he
begged to conclude by submitting the motion which he had
already read.
Lord SANDON seconded the motion, and said he would
shortly describe what there was in the services of the gentle-
man, whose conduct had been under discussion in that House,
to warrant Parliament in conferring extraordinary rewards
upon him. He would briefly allude to the manifold meritorious
services of the Gallant Gentleman, which he had rendered
under peculiar circumstances, and at great pecuniary sacrifices
and loss of nealth. He had finished a war in China, under
circumstances of great pain to himself, and under stipulations
of so important a nature as would drown the recollection of the
cause of its commencement in acclamations to him who had
effected so glorious a termination. He bad preserved the
honour and character of his country in a manner that no other
man was capable of performing. He could not think that
such services should be met with only a trifling pecuniary re-
compence.—( Hear.) For services neither precisely civil nor
military, which opened to the world a free traffic with the
most industrious people in the world, it was not sufficient to
award a yearly comparatively trifling sum.—( Hear, hear. )
With regard to services of another nature he would
not rely simply on a priori circumstances, he
would look to the opinion of the whole mercantile world as to
the growing intercourse arising from the treaty with China,
effected by the Gallant Gentleman. He would also look to the
great moral results arising from these negotiations, which, no
doubt, would lead to the cultivation of Christianity among the
Chinese people. He could not think that the Government,
under these circumstances, would refuse to give him an ample
recompense for the dangers he had undergone, and the difficul-
ties he had overcome, and the pecuniary sacrifices he had made
in the public service, in effecting so much good. And he
would call upon Hon. Gentlemen connected with the Crown,
to come forward more freely in reward of services so ines-
timable.
The question was then put from the chair.
Sir J. HOBHOUSE did not anticipate :any objection to the
measure. He considered that the present was a special case,
and it would be almost impossible for any individual to render
in a similar imanner such highly meritorious and useful services
as had been rendered by Sir Henry Pottinger—(Hear)—and it
was unlikely that any future occasion would arrive for which
the reward for services, now about, to be awarded, would con-
stitute a precedent. On the return of Sir Henry Pottinger,
in ill health, to the seat of war in the East, he had made two
stipulations only with the Administration—one was, that he
should not have any colleague to act with him in his high capa-
city, so that the responsibility might be left to himself ; and the
other was, that the directions given him by the Government
should be private, and no stipulation whatever was made for
the reward of the services he should render. Sir H. Pottinger
was willing to leave the reward for those services entirely in
the hands of the Government. Lord Aberdeen, at a public
meeting, in describing the merits of the Gallant Officer, had
said, so great was the confidence of the Government in him,
that he had been left in China to act almost entirely on his
own discretion. There was no hyperbole in saying that the
distinguished services and high honours of Sir Henry Pottinger
fromaccepting a subordinate presidency as a
would He was entitled to far higher peeremclinuede
and erhaitme from
reward.
enterionr
re-
wards. He say that the present income of the Gallant
Officer was so ill-proportioned to his high station, that he
ornament.—(Hear, to which
hear.)
could not live in England in a manner becoming his condition,
he
and d
would
d
at fromg rgreat
t an g
nam th
eant
".
The Hon Baronet then read a list of the different towns in the
United Kingdom and in the colonies, which had presented
votes of thanks to Sir H. Pottinger, for his services in China.
In nine hours the names of 14,000 working men, in Man-
chester, were affixed to an address expressive of their admiration
of the great good he had conferred on them by re-instating the
trade between China and this country- He was elected a
member of a number of corporate bodies, and the City authori-
ties presented him with the freedom of the City of London and
a gold box at an entertainment at Guildhall. Lord Aberdeen
had stated, in speeches in relation to the affairs of China, that
he had for three years been in constant communication with
Sir H. Pottinger, and that it was right to declare that his con-
duct in China gave him just claims on his country—that as
difficulties arose he was able to overcome them by
the firmness and energy which he displayed.—( Hear,
hear.) As to the immediate benefits which he had