Sir J. Hay on Friday se'nnight raised the question of
the cession to France of the Gambia, a self-sustaining colony with 20,000 inhabitants, who are strongly opposed to the transfer. Mr. Monsell made a long speech in reply, dwelling on the worth- lessness of the colony, on the failing revenue from ground-nuts, on the lands offered us in exchange, on everything in fact except the power of the Colonial Office to sell British subjects to a military despotism. He, however, promised at last that the cession should not be completed without a Parliamentary vote,—which, however, if asked for at this stage, must be granted, as we cannot upset what will then be a treaty. The whole transaction is most dis- creditable to the Office, which evidently thinks that British subjects without votes have no more rights than so many horses, but can be sold whenever a sale seems to the department likely to be profitable. We wonder if the Queen ever so much as heard of this treaty, or if it was left entirely to Sir F. Rogers.
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