The Sun.
London, England, 1842-07-30 00:00:00

DANISH CLAIMS.

Mr. HUTT rose, but he was rendered almost inaudible
from the noise occasioned by Members leaving the
House. He said he would detain the House a
very short time. He could assure the House that
it was with considerable reluctance that he had
been led to bring on a new subject at so
late a period of the session, but the parties who had en-
trusted the case to his hands; felt that their interests
would be prejudiced by delay. The Danish claims had
existed sincei, 1807. In that year an expedition was
fitted out, for the purpose of guarding the Danish
fleet, by this Government. The Danish Government
naturally felt exasperated by such a proceeding,
and reprisals took place, and the Danish Government
confiscated the book debts of certain British subjects ;
and, proceeding further, they seized all British
vessels and British cargoes, which they were en-
abled to lay their bands upon. In regard to the first
of these, compensation had beta granted ; but
the Crown had refused to make compensation to the
other parties, on the ground that they were involved in
the same situation as the subjects of all other nations,
whose property fell into the hands of enemies at the
first outbreak of a war. , On the other hand,
these parties said this was not a true description
of the case, as the war had not taken taken place
at the time of the capture of their property, and
they were not apprised whether they were reprisals.
That was the view taken by the claimants themselves,
and that was the light in which he looked at that
subject. The point for the consideration of the House
was, whether or not the course that had been pursued
was a declaration of war.—(Hear, hear.) It had
been maintained that the Government of Denmark
was, at the period to which he alluded, at war with the
Government of this country ; that the Danish Govern-
ment had seized upon British property by way of
reprisals, and that therefore war had commenced be-
tween the two States. The late Attorney-Gene-
ral the Member
,for Worcester, who had made
the most elaborate and complete defence of this
case, was of opinion the war had actually com-
menced. But, unfortunately for his Learned Friend's
argument, no such document as had been alluded
to had been found in the office. It was true
that a document had been found in the office
which was considered as a declaration of war,
but the document was not looked upon by the Sovereign
of Denmark, or the people of that country, as such a
declaration. That document emanated from a small
town in Denmark, and it was signed only by
the authorities of that town. It was therefore
with great astonishment that he had heard
his Learned Friend the late Attorney-General describe
that document as a declaration of war, It was not con-
sidered so by Denmark nor by the authorities iuthis coun-
try. Now, with respect to the facts of the case. A Danish
vessel, called the Orion, was captured in the year 1807,
and the subject of the legality of the capture was
brought before the Admiralty shortly afterwards.
Lord Stowell had decided that any vessel taken previous
to the month of November was not a prize of war.
Neither the Danish Government nor the British Go-
vernment had ever considered that we had been at war
previous to the declaration of war by the Govern.

C l~teml

. -
justly entitled to the vompi3nsation v iit y
sought. But even though they had not such a title as
could be strictly enforced, the House would recollect,
that the equitable right of the parties had been admitted
by themselves upon various occasions. He really thou:At
they would now be hardlyjustified in reversing-their own
repeated decisions. And after the Heist lid :ilinve,
.the claitns, it .would no: b,come the G-iv,rnin
of this great country to shelter them elves unler for
or technicalities, in refusing. them. They s:iould con
sider what was due to the dignity of the House of Gen •
mons, and not decline,to accede t•i the repeated mod-
festations of its wishes. He would aot press the subject
further upon that occasion. He • should. only sti,
that if compensation were 4.ili-nied to these pariie,.
such a course would be discreditable to the Go-
vernment, unworthy of the character •of Yariittin~ o;.
and would remain a scandal on the tumid,
of this country. lie would say no more npvii the sub
ject, and would not press any motion ctingt it. 11:•
should not have brought the matter under the consuls
ration of the House that evening, in the midst of thy
many public questions which called fir their
deliberation, and in the present unsettled slate or
• their finances, were it not that the parties interested
felt that their case might be pri-judiced
observing a total silence. He had introduci:d
the subject, principally for the purpose of reserving th,
rights of parties; and in order that 'it might not be sup-
posed upon any future occasion that they had abandonei
their claims.
Mr. HUME was glad that his. Hon, Friend did not
intend to press his motion. In seconding that moth),
he was anxious to make one or two observations. This
question was one in which the natitnial honour
was concerned, and it had been longer • before
the House than any other. Twenty-three year,,
ago he (Mr. Hume) had first divided in favour of these
claims. Then the whole of the claims were refused.
Since then, after a lapse of twenty years, two-this tls
those claims had been granted, and one-third only 11(11V
remained. After three decisions of the House in
favour of those claims, faith ought to have been
kept with the claimants. He thought that both
the late Government and the present Government iet
refusing justice to these claimants, were wrong. If then,
were any error in regard to dates, that ought not to stand
in the way of their doing justice. In the estimates
for the present year they had voted a sum of
10,0001. to settle some Portuguese claims, which
were due in 1810. Therefore, the length •of time which

had elapsed ought not. to prevent justice from being done.
Her Majesty's Government were willing to pay
away money where there was no claim, but
they refused to pay a just claim. This obstinate
denial of justice was discreditable to the Government.
They had voted a sum to liquidate the claims of M.
Sampayo, which had accrued from 1808 to 1814. There
had been no objection made to pay' the foreigner, why
should there be any objection to pay the English claimants?
He hoped that the .Government would see the pro-
priety of taking the question into their serious consi-
deration before the next session, and would
pay the last third due to the Danish claimants ;
who would, even if that was paid,' suffer severe less,
inasmuch as they-would -only have been paid the princi-
pal, and have lost the interest for thirty•five years.
The CHANCELLOR of :the EXCHEQUER, un-
derstanding that the Honourable Gentleman had
brought forward his motion merely with a view
of entering his protest, thought discussion unne-
cessary at present, and would therefore not
enter into the merits of the case. He (the Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer) had already expressed his opi-
nion on those claims, which expression'of opinion had
not been given merely since he sat on that side of
the House, for when he had sat on 'the other side
he had supported the then Chancellor of the Exchequer
in his opposition to these claims. He agreed with the
Hon. Member for Montrose, that if a claim was a just
one, length of time could be no bar to its admission, but
he could not agree-that because they had voted a sum
of money to M. Sampayo, that, therefore, they ought
to vote a sum of money to the Danish claimants.- The
claim of M. Sarnpayo was admitted; ; the
only question in debate was as to amount, in the
ascertaining of which time of course had been occupied.
The discussion of the Danish claims rested upon a dif-
ferent footing. He could not admit the justice of those
claims. The concession of them would involve the
country in incalcUlable expense on. some future
occasion.—(Hear, hear.) He could not find anything
in the law of nations to justify these claims. When the
Hon. Gentleman brought the subject before the House,
he would go fully into it ; but understanding that the
Hon. Gentleman did not mean to press his motion, he
would not go further into the question, which could only
be further discussed to the interruption of other business.
The motion was then withdrawn,: -
SINGING CLASSES.

Lord PALMERSTON wished to ask, in refeence

to what had fallen from the Right Hon. Baronet the
other evening,. whether it was his intention to propose
any grant in, the supplemental estimates
,for the singing
classes in Exeter Hall.

Sir It. PEEL would repeat the observation he had
made on a former occasion, in reference to these
classes, which were principally for the: instruction of
schoolmasters in 'singing.—(Hear.) In his opinion
it would be a great public advantage to afford increased
encouragement to the education of those persons in
singing ; but he was not prepared to move any specific
vote for that purpose during the present year.
There were various claims from different parts of the
voutitrylm 42,1q13itvt : it was one that required inverti
gation 'eoniiiireAqion, and the Government would

not Iv prepart'd to pr'npose any grant this year.
• AERICAN CORN.

Mr. THORNELY said he had received statements
from several merchants connected with the American

trade. It seemed that they had learned from the reports
of the debates in Parliament, that the Right Hon.
Baronet (Sir R. Peel) had lately asserted, on the autho-
rity of Mr. M'Culloch, that no great amount of corn
could be imported from America, and that the principal
importation into this country would be from Dantzic.
These merchants stated they laboured under great disad-
vantages from the operation of the sliding scale. They
also wished the Government to be reminded that there
was a paper laid on the table of the House in February
last, from which it appeared that the _exports of the
United States, from the year 1790 to the year 1838,
of wheaten flour alone had been 1,100,000 barrels per
annum ; and they state that if they were exempt from
the operation of the sliding scale they could supply this
country with a considerable quantity of provisions. One
of these gentlemen stated that he would_ import corn if
there were a fixed duty, but that now not knowing
whether the duty would be Bs. or 18s. per quarter, he
did not venture to import it. It had been said, on the
authority of. Mr. M'Culloch, that America herself had
imported corn, but that occurred only in the year 1837,
and then it imported only 500,000 quarters;
that was an unusual circumstance, and even at
that time exportation .. was going in many of
the American ports. He had thought it right
to make these statements because many gentlemen
had been under the apprehension that the Government
had not properly considered the subject. He was sure
that the Right hon. Baronet at the head of the Govern-
ment must be as anxious as any to increase our trade
with the United States of America.

Sir R. PEEL said of course he could only answer for
himself, and this would be admitted by the Hon. Gen:,le-
man, that supposing in any one year, from particular cir-
cumstances, there should be a failure of the harvest in
America, and 'they should import corn to any great
extent, no inference could be drawn from this
casual circumstance. It was of great importance
that they should extend their trade with the
United States ; but there was this inconvenience in dis•
cussing these questions in the House of Commons, that
when any one corrected what he considered an exagge-
rated statement, he was supposed to entertain an opinion
the very opposite to it. Thus, because he had doubted
some statements of the probable amount of the
importation of corn from America, it was thought he
had been represented as believing that no corn would be
imported at all from that country, and that he had told
the agricultural interest that no such importation would
take place He believed the statement to be an exagge-.
ration, and that was all the observation he had made.
He did not entertain the opinion that had been as-
cribed to him, for be believed that. flour would be
brought into this country.from the United States under
the existing law, and in considerable quantities ; and he
should be sorry if the law should interfeie with the
trade in flour and provisions between the two countries.
Mr. EWART said lie had understood the Right Hon.
Baronet to say that considerable quantities of eorn and
flour would be imported from America under the exist-
ing law. Now if the law (lid not have that effect, they
should have a claim on the Right Hon. Baronet for the
re-consideration of that law. lie should bear in mind the
declaration the Right Hon. Baronet had made this day.
Mr. WILLIAMS said that from what he had seen of
the country, he believed that a considerable quantity
of flour and provisions, the produce of the western States,
would be brought in. But of course the cost of
the transit would be very great. It was not generally
known that the Americans were the largest consumers
of articles of clothing in the world. They were the best
clothed people he ever saw, and he had been through
most of the countries of Europe. An American would
deprive himself of almost any comfort rather than not
be well dressed according to the average opinion. There
never was a more favourable period for their entering
into a commercial treaty with America. America was
on the eve of making a change in her tariff, but there
was a strong party there most anxious for an increased
interoourse with this country, and if her Majesty's
Government encouraged that disposition they could
establish a favourable treaty of commerce.