The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-07-23 00:00:00

HOUSE OF LORDS.--TUESDAY.

Lord FORTESCUE moved for papers respecting the
restoration to the commission of the peace of Mr. A.
O'Driscoll, an Irish rnag;strate, who, according to the
noble lord's statement, having on two occasions displayed
gross infirmity of temper, had been superseded on the
ostensible ground of ill health and old age, but restored
some six months afterwards.
The motion was agreed to after Lord WITARNCLIFFE
had stated that a memorial in favour of Mr. O'Driscolt's
restoration had been signed by three thousand persons of
all parties.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.—TUESDAY.
After several clauses in the Metropolis Improvements'
Bill,
Lord PALMEJtSTON rose to move for some returns re-
lative to the slave trade, and expressed himself desirous of
making some general observations upon that traffic, al-
though he understood that the particular returns he asked
for would not be refused by the Government. He be-
lieved that few were aware of the cruelties which the slave
trade still caused, or of the vast numbers of negroes an-
nually transported even now from the coast of Africa to
the islands and continent of America. Mr. Bandinell,
in his accurate work, compiled from official documents,
represented those numbers as amounting in some former
years to 130,000 negroes per annum ; Sir F. Buxton esti-
mated them at 150,000. Let any man imagine that he
saw that vast body of men moving to their frightful doom,
and what would his feelings become, if he should be
told that this was no single sight, but that a like spectacle
was repeated every year? Moreover, such was the waste
of life in providing for and accomplishing this great trans-
port of human beings, that for every individual so landed,
three must be calculated to have perished. To procure
these slaves, the undertakers of the adventure were ac-
customed to fire some peaceful village in the night, and
seize the startled and flying inhabitants. The caverns
where they sought refuge were besieged ; the springs and
wells were occupied ; and the fugitives were thus forced
to come'in and surrender. The children were then mur-
dered, to save the expense of maintaining them when torn
from their parents; and the adults were marched hun-
dreds of miles over the burning and stony desert to the
place of ernbercation. Multitudes perished on this jour-
ney ; and the path of the caravan was marked by thou-
sands of bleaching skeletons. The purchaser on the coast
selected the strong alone ; the weakly and exhausted he
rejected, and these last were put out of the way or left
to perish. Then came the horrors of the voyage, What-
ever the numbers which the vessel would probably carry,
the trader took caret° exceed them by a third or a fourth ;
as a merchant, sending a hogshead of Madeira to mellow
by a long voyage, added a quarter cask to make good in-
evitable waste,. Day after day the dead—too often living
also, if smitten with disease, and therefore likely to prove
unprofitable—were thrown overboard. In the hold where
the negroes were crowded the stowage was so stinted,
that all were obliged to lie -at length, with less room to
each captive than a man occupies in his coffin. In fine
weather, the grating of the hatchways were open; but, if
the rough weather
of _the came, these were necessarily closed, and
hold below became one of actual suffoca-
tion. A third of the n
of one ship with another,e were fcound, upon an average
to OK the voyage. It was
the duty of the British Government to extinguish these
atrocities. Treaties had made,been
whereby much had
been accomplished. Between France and England
mu-
tual sacrifices had been made in the concessionof the
right of maritime visitation. England, in return for the
services rendered by her to Spain, had obtained a treaty
from that country. With respect to Portugal, powers had
been obtained which were equivalent to the articles of a
treaty. The effect of these various arrangements with
the European states had
been a great diminution in the
numbers of negroes fromtransferred Africa to the plan-
tations of America. These improvements were the result
of the efforts of the late Government. It remained for
the present ministers to effect the same object with the
-United States; but there the result lead been a rctrogadc

bile. For this, perhaps, the present. Government might
not be to blame ; but at all events it was an unfortunate
state of things. Lord Palmerston then scouted as chime-
rieel and impracticable the plan of the present Govern-
ment for blockading the African coast. Much had lately
been heard of the cordiality subsisting between England
and France. The only fruit he had yet seen from their
union was the suppression of the efforts of liberty.to
Spain. He would rather behold those great oTheitries
united to free the slave than to enslave the free. If tiny
were to use their joint. influence in earnest with Brazil,
they might surely accomplish something. Sir R. Peel
had lately mentioned. as one of the motives for cocoon•
tering the toils of office, the hope of obtaining posthu-
mous fame. Such fame a British minister could obtain
only by serving England, or by serving mankind at large.
From serving Eneland the present ministers were very
much precluded by their peculiar position. They were
interdicted by their own supporters from the complete
disenihrslment of commerce. The full emancipation of
the Catholics from all their practical disabilities was an
ohject which they had not chosen to leave open to thedi-
selves. Education, on a large scale, was a blessing which
their followers would not allow them to bestow upon the
people. In the affairs of Europe they could not acquire
distinction for their country ; because they had long since
made their election that she should cease to hold that
front rank which until of late she had proudly occupied,
and drop astern to take up her berth in the wake of every
foreign Power. But it was st,ll open to them to abe lish
the slave trade; in that work they would be impeded by
none of their supporters. By achieving it they might ac-
quire immortal glory—by neglecting it, they would earn
for themselves a dishonour in comparison of which the
reputation of the worst of Governments would be en-
viable.
Sir R. PEEL observed, that the noble lord had a way of
exercising his powers at the end of each session, upon
some motion to which the most fastidious minister could
not object, and upon which, therefore, he had the advan-
tage of exhibiting his eloqu,nce, without the hazard of an
adverse division. In all which hid been said about the
enormities of the slave trade, Sir R. Peel said he fully
concurred, Viough he believed the numbers of imported
negroes had been a little overstated. Two nations only
were now opposed to the complete abolition of that trade
—Spain ant Brazil. If they would sincerely join for its
suppression, the object would be accomplished : without
their aid, it was almost impossible wholly to attain it.
He charged those two governments, therefore. with the
whole responsibility of the still continuing guilt. lie would
adjure them by the highest motives; but, if those should
be insufficient, he would warn them of the precarious
tenure by which their power was now held, and of the
proved resolve of the whole negro population to relieve
themselves front the state of slavery. That resolve of
theirs had been revealed under the influence of the torture
be slave insereents taken in several successive revolts ;
and it was fixed arid universal. With respect to the in-
vidious contrast which the noble lord had attempted to
draw between the late and the present government, he
would give furl credit to Lord Palmerston for the efforts
made by him When at the head of the Foreign Depatt-
ment ; hut he must assert the not inferior diligence and
earnestness of the present government. If difficulties
had occurred in the ratification of the treaty with France,
they were d•ffieulties wholly occasimed by that irritation
of French feelines which the mea-ures of the noble lord
had roused. He justified the instructions given to our
naval officers against any transgression of the principles of
international law. He vindicated the policy of block-
ading the African coast, by reference to the opinions of
officers who had served on that station, confirmed by the
deliberate judgment and high authority of Sir George
Cockburn. But, he did not propose a total discontinu-
ance of the force now employed to watch the Brazilian
coast. He adverted to Lord Palmerston's observations
upon the good understanding between France and Eng-
land, which he was sure could not be preserved by any
concessions discreditable to either; he expressed his deep
conviction of the importance of its preservation, and
condemned the conduct of those who attempted to dis-
turb it. France and England had, in this spirit of union,
made strong representations to Spain and Brazil, and had
declared their determination to insist on the fulfilment of
the treaties. His own wish was not to enslave the free;
on the contrary, he desired to see Spain, the country to
which Lord Palmerston's phrase seemed to apply, enjoy.
ing free institutions under a limited monarchy; he had
likewise the highest respect for the character of Espar-
tero ; but he was not disposed to any active interference
by England in Spanish affairs. The noble lord appeared
to have now made his motion, of which he had given no-
tice last March, mainly for the sake of his peroration ;
he, of course, could not suffer such a gem to remain in
obscurity. He could not take it with him into the coun-
try; if he had done that, he would have been repeating
the speech to himself all the autumn, as he(must already
have been doing all the last month. As to the unfetter-
ing of commerce, at all events the present ministry had
done more than its immediate predecessors, who had at-
tempted nothing until their last moments. As to the
emancipation of the catholics, surely he had not been
without his share in the advancement of that object.
And as to general education, his attempt of last year had
been defeated by his regular opponents, not by those who
generally supported him. The last avenue to fame
pointed out by the noble lord was the abolition of the
slave trade. To that object the government were
earnestly attentive; they would pursue it with the sin-
cerest zeal—but at the same time with a just and prudent
regard to the principles of international law.
The returns were agreed to.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.—WEnsEsnA.Y.

The Commons met at twelve o'clock.

Mr. Spooner took his seat for Birmingham, and was
much cheered by the tories as he approached the table to
take the oaths. _ _

The House went into Committee on the Poor-law
Amendment Bill, and went through the clauses from 37
to 55, when the House resumed.
In the evening, after forwarding a variety of minor bills
one stage, the House went into committee on the Metro-
politan Buildings Bill, and all the principal clauses, after
lengthened conversations, were adulated, and the report
was ordered to be received on Friday at twelve o'clock.
Adjourned at half-past ten.