The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1833-05-07 00:00:00

Imperial Parliament.

HOUSE OF LORDS.

THURSDAY, MAY 2.

Petitions for the immediate abolition of slavery were pre-
sented by Lord Ellenborough ; by Lord Suffield (50in number,)
from various places in Cornwall, Kent, Sussex, Lincoln, York,
and the Isle of Wight; by Earl Fitzwilliam; and by Lord
Stanley, from Lancashire.
Lord TEYNHAM moved for copies of two returns which had
been presented to the House of Commons relative to the con-
sumption of malt and hops from 1832 to the present time.
The Earl of MA LMESBCRY moved for an account of the ave-
rage price of wheat for the last ten years, respectively ending
:nth April, 183.3.
• Mt, Duke of WELLINGTON presented a petition from ma-
gistrates, hankers, merchants, and others, inhabitants of Bel-
fast, for a gradual and safe abolition of slavery, and compensa-
tion to the planters. He had a petition to the same effect from
Edinburgh. The latter was signed by 2,468 persons, and was
well entitled to attention, no less on account of the respectability
• of the petitioners, than by reason of the justice of the sentiments
contained in the petition.
Adjourned at 7 o'clock.
FRIDAY.

A message from the Commons brought up the London and Bit,
mingham Railway Bill, with the Lords' amendments agreed to.
Petitions for the abolition of negro slavery were presented by
Lord Poltimore, the Earl of Radnor, Lord Deere, the Duke of
Devonshire, the Earl of Rosebery, the Marquess of Bath, Lord
Suffield (5) petitions,) from various places, the Duke of Nor-
folk, the Archbishop of York, the Earl of Roden, Lord Western,
Lord Gosford,,the Earl of Morley, and by the Duke of Sussex.
Lord Ellenborough presented a petition from persons in the
city of Edinburgh interested in West India property, praying
for compensation in case of any sudden or immediate measure
for the abolition of slavery being carried into effect. —The Duke
-of Richmond presented a petition from Burwash, in Sussex, for
• a reduction of the malt duty.—Lord Byron presented a petition
from Exall, relative to poor rates.
FOREIGN POLICY—FRENCH OCCUPATION OF ALGIERS.
The Earl of ABERDEEN, in pursuance of notice to that effect,
submitted to the house a motion having reference to a matter of
great public importance, but which, important though it was, he
. should not have brought under the notice of the house at the pre-
sent moment had it not been connected with considerations of a
personal nature. His first desire was to repeat, without a tittle
or shade of variation, his former assertion—viz. that the French
had entered into engagements respecting Algiers which had not
been fulfilled. He did 'not pretend to say that any convention
had been signed on the subject, or that any express stipulation
been entered into for the evacuation of Algiers by the .French;
but he contended that engagements were contracted which, in
reference to all the Powers interested in the Mediterranean, and
in the territorial arrangenacierits of that part of the world, were
calculated to allay apprehentsions that might reasonably have
existed. As he understood that it was not the intention of the
noble earl to object to the production of the papers for which
he should move, he did not think it necessary to detain the
'house at length by an explanation of the nature of the engage-
ments to which he had alluded. He should be perfectly satis-
fied, when the papers were on the table, to leave their inter-
pretation to any men of common honour and common sense.
He did not desire to detain their lordships with arguments
in favour of a motion which was not to be opposed, still
less did he wish to prolong the debate by endeavouring to
-produce an angry discussion by adverting to topics which were
Pot before the house; at the same time, he must remind the
noble earl that the fact of the dominions of Algiers being con-
nected with the Porte might fairly excuse him for inquiring
into the present state and future prospects of the Turkish em-
pire in consequence of recent events.—(Hear.) lf, however,
be abstained from saying a word snore on the subject, it was for
the reasons already stated: he did not want to interfere with
pending arrangements, and lie also hoped that at no distant day
an opportunity would be afforded to discuss the subject fully
when the negotiations should be before the house. Although,
in his opinion, the noble earl in many of his relations with
;:,reign states had acted under views most mistaken in their
nature, and likely to be most fatal to the interests and honour
-of this country, still he had no reason to know that on this par-
ticular subject the noble an entertained any views or opinions
different from his own. He gave the noble earl credit for being
;lolly impressed with the great importance of the question.
Should there be any noble ktrds in the house who were of the
naval profession, arid possessed personal knowledge or experi-
ence of that part of the world he would conficklitiv appcatto
teem; but the house would probably be satisfied as t 7) the great
importance of the territory in question by the testimony of
Nelson, Collingwood, and Exmouth. Indeed, it was only
necessary to cast an eye on the map,. and observe the position of
the territory, to be convinced that to see it in the possession of
any European power, more .especially of France, was a matter
that could not be contemplated without apprehension and
alarm. Could men see between 500 and 600 miles of coast at
the entrance of the Mediterranean, and within sight of Spain, in
possesson of France without an interest being excited in every
'country concerned in commerce ? The present was a great
step towards the completion of the ambitious project of Buona-
'liarte, for making the Mediterranean Sea the grand station for
the French navy. (Hear.) He could not but feel persuaded
that the noble earl was fully impressed with the importance of
the subject, and, so fat from wishing. to thwart the noble earl,
if anything that so humble an individual as himself could do
might be of service, nothing would afford him more pleasure
than to co-operate with the noble earl in any way for the satis-
factory settlement of the question. In conclusion, he moved—
That an humble address be presented to his Majesty praying
that his Majesty would be pleased to order to be laid before the
house copies or extracts of correspondence between his Ma-
jesty's secretary of state for the foreign department and the
English ambassador at Paris, in the year 183 E, relative to the
French expedition to Algiers ; also for copies of official des-
patches containing explanations of the objects of the expedition
forwarded by the French
.government to their ambassador in
London, and by him submitted to the English government in
the months of ;March and May, 1E330; and, lastly, for copies
or extracts of despatches from the English ambassador in
Paris to the government at home, announcing the intention of
the King of the French to fulfil all the engagements entered
into by the preceding governments relative to Algiers.
_Earl GREY, not intending to give any opposition to the pro-
duction of the principal part of the documents referred to by
the noble earl, should abstain from entering into any extended
discussion of this subject, nor did he imagine that their lord-
ships would think it expedient to enter into a discussion of a
subject of that nature, with respect to which further negotia-
tions must take place between this country and the government
of France. In a case in which a question was depending, ma-
terially affecting not only the interests of England and France,
but general European interests connected with the possession of
the Mediterranean, nothing but public inconvenience could
arise from forcing on premature discussions in Parliament at a
time when negotiations and discussions were pending. He
was far from imputing an intention to produce such embarrass-
ment to the noble earl. If he had himself to decide the ques-
tion, perhaps he should have preferred .a total silence on the
subject at present; but when the noble earl felt it to be his duty
to call for information showing the state in which the question
of the occupation of Algiers had been left by the late govern-
ment, it was but justice to the noble earl to admit that the ap-
plication could not have been urged in a more temperate and
judicious manner, or in a way less likely to produce embarrass-
ment or inconvenience. To the two first resolutions lie saw no
objection whatever. He should have liked, perhaps, to have
had the motion deferred, but as it had been made, the house
could come to a conclusion on it without any great puz,lic in-
convenience. He saw no inconvenience in granting the papers
referred to in the two first resolutions ; at least, none equal to
exciting an adverse discussion on the subject. To the produc-
ion of these papers, therefore, he trusted the house would give
its consent. The noble earl had given him a list of the papers
whichavere thought necessary; he did not know that any fur-
ther papers would be requisite, but if it appeared to him subse-
quently that it would be desirable to add to them, he would use
the discretion of doing so. To the first and second resolutions
he repeated that he had no objection ; but to the third, which
called for copies or extracts of despatches from our ambassador
at Paris to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, announc-
ing the intention of theliing of the French to fulfil all the en-
gagements of preceding governments relative to Algiers—to
this resolution he felt considerable objections. He had many
doubts as to the propriety of producing the information here
called for. He did not think that there was any paper in the
Foreign-office which strictly answered to the description con-
tained in the resolution; but there was undoubtedly a despatch
from a noble lord now in his place, dated Paris, rtith August,
and containing an account of a conversation that had passed
between the noble lord and the king of the French. Undoubt-
edly it was the duty. of the noble lord, in his capacity of ambas-
sador, to transmit to the government an account of that con-
versation; but there was some difficulty as to producing the
despatch. First, it purported to be a private conversation, and
was held on the 16th of August, at a period when the new go-
vernment of France bad not been formally recognized by this
country; so that the noble lord did not write as an accredited
ambassador, there being, in strictness, no such character in the