Ptiatto mai Trorrritgz in Varliamtut.

PRINCIPAL 31118IMM2111 OF TUE WEEK.

Loam. Monday, Mitch L lard Herbs% llinistcrial Statement- Houssialleurnod until March hrs.

Horn oy COSITIONS. Monday; March 1. Ilo business of importance—House adjourned until March 12.

The Commons.

Hour of How of Meeting. Adjournment.

Monday 45 .... th 46m Sittings this Week, 1; Time, Oh 44in this Session 24; — 1335 30in

TIME-TABLE.

Monday

Sittings this Week, 1; Time, 15 20m this Session. 22; — 40h 46m

The Lords.

Hour of ' Hour of Meeting. Adjournment. 51% Sh 20m

Loan DERBY'S MANIFESTO.

The House of Lords met a little before five o'clock on Monday ; and the new Lord Chancellor, although not yet a perfected Peer, took his seat on the woolsack, and received many personal congratulations. The House was thronged with strangers and Members of the Lower House; Lord Palmerston occupying a conspicuous position at the foot of the • Throne. The late Ministers mustered in strength on the Opposition- benches ; on which side Earl Grey and Lord Wensleydale were seated.

The new Ministers and their supporters were also present in strength. The Duke of Cambridge sat on the cross-benches, and Lord Lyndhurst and Lord Campbell at the Clerk's table. After some preliminary business, the Earl of DEILBY rose, and made his expected statement as head of the new Government.* "I hope, my Lords, that in asking your permission on Friday evening to postpone until this day the statement which constitutional usage requires from those who fill the situation in which I have now the honour to stand, I shall not have been thought guilty of any disrespect to your Lordships. On the contrary, considering that during the whole of last week I was engaged

day and night in making those personal arrangements which are necessary on the formation of a new Government,—a task which I had not previously the slightest idea of being called on to undertake,—and that consequently I had not had a single moment for reflection on any matter not immediately

connected with those personal arrangements; and considering' too, the great importance of the subject, I thought it was more respectful to your Lord- ships that having only just acceded to office, and having only departed from the presence of her Majesty at half-past four o'clock, I should not come down here at five o'clock to lay before your Lordships what must necessa- rily, under the circumstances, have been but a crude and imperfect state- ment. Believe me, my Lords—and I say it with all sincerity—I address your Lordships from this place on the present occasion with no feeling of triumph or exultation. I am overwhelmed with the sense of my own in- competency to perform duly the arduous task which lies before me. I am overwhelmed with the sense of the magnitude of the difficulties which I must encounter, and of the questions with which I have to deal. But my satisfaction, my consolation, in feeling myself so unable to deal adequately with these great questions' is that indulgence will be extended by your Lord- ships and by the country to one who, having been called suddenly to office by the favour of his Sovereign, has certainly sought for it by no unworthy means and by no underhand intrigues. (Cheers.) "Before proceeding to enter upon public questions, I believe it will be proper that I should remind your Lordships of the course of events which have placed me in my present position. Your Lordships will all remember, that last Friday semught a vote of the House of Commons taken in a full House resulted in a majority of nineteen against the then Government, upon a motion which in point of fact involved a vote if not of censure at least of disapproval of the course which had been pursued by the Government upon a matter of great importance. Into the substance of that motion I will not at present enter, though it will be my duty so to do before sitting down ; but I rejoice to think, my Lords, that although that majority, was composed of parties certainly not usually in the habit of acting together in concert, but entertaining different opinions upon most subjects, I have not heard from any quarter upon the present occasion any of those taunts of combination and coalition which were so freely poured forth upon a similar occasion last year. For myself, I must confess that I never was taken more by surprise than by the vote of Friday week ; and for those with whom I have the honour of acting I can only .say that there was not the smallest step taken for the purpose even of securing attendance, or for inviting a single Member to remain in his place. The avernment having been thus placed in a mi- nority of nineteen acted in accordance with constitutional usage in at once tendering their resignations to her Majesty and her Majesty, as I under- stand, at once accepted those resignations. I believe that the noble Viscount lately at the head of the Government was with her Majesty at five o'clock on the Saturday, and in the course of that evening her Majesty did me the honour of summoning me to her presence. With her Majesty's gracious permission I will venture to state what took place during that interview. Her Majesty having been pleased to inform me that she had accepted the re- signation o her late servants, called upon me for my advice as to the course which she ought to pursue, and asked me whether, looking to the circum- stances of the case, r was willing to undertake the responsibility of forming an Administration. In reply to that gracious intimation, I took the liberty of requesting her Majesty not to press for an answer to her question on that day ; and I then proceeded to lay before her Majesty as fully and clearly as I could, without partiality and without any bias, what I conceived to be the state of political parties in the House of Commons,—an element in the question which I thought her Majesty ought to have clearly presented to her. I entreated her Majesty to take till the following day to consider whether she would think it expedient to call me to her councils; and I stated, that if upon reflection she should still continue of that opinion, my sense of public duty would render it imperative on me to attempt to execute the task which she was pleased to intrust to me. But at the same time I felt bound to add, that if upon full consideration her Majesty should be of opinion that any other person would be better qualified to form a sound and stable Govern- ment for the country, she should not for a single moment consider my po- sition, feelings, or interest, but take the course which upon reflection she should deem most advantageous for the country. On the following morning I had the honour of receiving a note from her Majesty, informing me that further reflection had fully confirmed her in wishing me to accept office ; and I felt then that I had no course to pursue but humbly to submit myself to her Majesty's pleasure. It may be said, that in taking that course I acted with precipitation and rashness : but I venture humbly to think that I was called on to act as I did by every sentiment of loyalty and public duty. (Cheers.) Having taken upon myself the responsibility- of forming an Ad- ministration, my next care was to endeavour so to form it as to secure the largest portion of Parliamentary support. "My Lords, I do not share in the opinion which was expressed some three years ago by a noble Earl not now in his place, that the state of par_ ties in this country was such that any combination might reasonably be ex_ pected, and that the leaders of all the great political parties might sit bar_ • The peculiarity of Lord Derby's new position hos induced us to place his in- augural speech on the file of the Spectator without any abridgment. moniously ill the same Cabinet. I do not go as far as that but it is un- doubtedly true that, as compared with former periods of our history, the line of separation between parties in the state is much less sharply and distinctly drawn than it used to be. Parliament and public opinion which Parlia- ment represents, are no longer divided by the broad lines of demarcation to which we were formerly accustomed ; but they are Separated by vast num- bers of small gradations which it is scarcely possible strictly to define. Persona call themselves now-a-days by so many different names—Tories, Conservatives, Liberal-Conservatives, Whigs, Liberals, and Radicals--and such are the niceties of distinction between some of these names, that I be- lieve there are no inconsiderable number of Members in the House of Com- mons, and perhaps in your Lordships' House too, who would find it difficult to say with which of all these they have the closest sympathy. The state of parties is very like the distinctions of the various grades of ranks in so- ciety at large. There is a broad interval between the highest and the low- est; but the gradation by which one melts into the other is so imperceptible that it is difficult with regard to social rank and to political parties in the state precisely to say where one commences and another ends. But I did think, that, desiring to form a Government upon a basis which should be Conservative in the truest sense of the word, but at the same time not in- disposed to measures of progressive improvement, I might hope to obtain the assistance of those eminent persons who, not belonging to the Govern- ment which we have succeeded, shared to such a degree the opinions of the Conservative party that they might not be deemed guilty of any incon- sistency in associating themselves with me in the difficult task which I had undertaken.

"Thus thinking, I applied to a right honourable gentleman and to two noble lords, members of your Lordship? House who I conceived might.uot

be indisposed to render me their assistance in House, such a Government as I have described. They did not, however, deem it consistent with their position to afford me such aid. I cannot, of course, find the smallest fault with their decision ; but, although I must undoubtedly regret that I have been deprived of the benefit of their assistance, I cannot regret that I made such an offer. Ravine., therefore, been thrown entirely upon the re- sources of those with whom I was more immediately and intimately con- nected, I proteeded to select such gentlemen as I thought best qualified to fill public offices with honour to the country and with credit to themselves. My Lords, in changes of this description—and more particularly when such changes take place during a session of Parliament, and still more at an earl period of the session—there are always inevitable evils to be encountered. In the first place, at such an important period of the session public business is very inconveniently interrupted from the necessity of new elections in the case of many Members of the Rouse of Commonswho may have accepted office. In the next place, some considerable time must elapse before those who are appointed to high offices have the opportunity of making them- selves masters of the various details of the departments to which they are called, and of taking up the thread of the tangled skein which may have been left by their predecessors. More especially is this the case with re- spect to a most important department—that of Foreign Affairs, over which my noble friend opposite [Lord Clarendon] has presided so admirably. In some eases, as my noble friend well knows, negotiations and discussions have been pending for a series of years, with the whole details of which the person who succeeds to office must be familiar in order to take them up with advantage. The case is the same with regard to other departments. "I understand that my noble friend opposite the late President of the Council [Earl Granville] said the other night that he thought it very desir- able that a period of three days should be allowed to her Majesty's Govern- ment, in order that they might make themselves masters of the business of their respective departments, and give the House an intimation of the policy which they intended to pursue. If the noble Earl made use of those ex- pressions, I must say that I certainly cannot pretend to such a speedy ac- quisition of knowledg-e or such rapidity of execution as may characterize my noble friend ; and I must frankly say, that at this moment I possess a very imperfect account of what has taken place in the different departments, and of the state in which they were found by the present Government. But, my Lords, knowing the vast drain which there must have been upon our mili- tary resources in consequence of the unfortunate war in India, and fearing what might have been the result of that unusual demand upon the resources of this country, which undoubtedly never pretended to be a first-rate mili- tary power, I did feel great anxiety to ascertain what was the state of the numerical force of the Army and the condition of the War Department ; and I should do an act of great injustice to the noble Baron opposite [Lord Pan- murel and to the illustrious Duke [the Duke of Cambridge the Commander- in-chief, if I did not say that it has not only afforded me e greatest satis- faction, but also the greatest surprise and pleasure, to find, after all the drain that has taken place, how respectable a numerical force is still in hand within the limits of the United Kingdom. (Much cheering.) I recollect the state of affairs when I took office in 1852; and in contrasting the nume- rical strength of the Army—and I may probably also add its efficiency—in 1858, notwithstanding all the demands that have been made upon our forces, with what it was in 1852, I say, in the first place, that it affords me an agreeable surprise to find the amount of military ardour and of readiness to enter the service exhibited among the population of this country.; and I must add, that the change which has taken place within the past six years reflects the greatest credit upon the Governments which have held office during that period. So long as the unfortunate war in India continues, there must, no doubt, be a heavy drain upon the military resources of this country ; but I trust, my Lords, although much remains to be done—al- though our labours are not yet drawing to a close—that we are beginning to see a favourable turn of events, and that the operations of Sir Colin Camp- bell, following upon those of the gallant officers who preceded him, have already struck terror into the great body of the insurgents. Much, un- questionably, yet remains to be done ; and I do not entertain for a moment any doubt that the continued exertions of the gallant troops of her Majesty, aided by the cordial support of the people of this country, will at no distant period put down the formidable insurrection which has lately raged, and which still rages, in some parts of India ; and that her Majesty's Govern- ment will then have leisure both here and in India, to apply themselves to the far more agreeable task of the pacification and reorganization of that vast portion of her Majesty's dominions. "The accounts which we have received within the last day or two from the coast of China lead us to expect that the unfortunate war in that country—if, indeed, it is to be called a war—at all events, that the unfor- tunate operations in that country—will be brought to a speedy termi- nation. Those operations, undoubtedly, are not unfortunate in their conclusion so far as we have arrived at a conclusion ; bat r cannot but entertain the same opinion as I formerly expressed—namely, that the war was entered into unadvisedly and upon insufficient ground. I never denied, and I do not now deny, that we had ample cause of complaint against and of quarrel with the Chinese authorities ; and, as we have taken the course of employing military force to bring the Chinese to submission, I cannot but cordially rejoice at the success which has hitherto attended her Majesty's arms. 'The_best result of that success, how- ever, I conceive will be, that it will give us the opportunity—standing in such a position towards China—of concluding with the least possible delay a safe and honourable peace, and will enable us to resume the benefits and advantages of that commercial intercourse for which alone it can be of the slightest advantage to us to maintain any communication whatever with such a country. The idea of territorial aggression, the idea of acquisition of power, the idea of doing more than obtaining adequate security for carry- ing on freely peaceful commerce, will, I trust, never enter the head of any Minister who conducts the affairs of this empire. (Cheers.) " I now approach a most important portion of the statement which I have to submit to your Lordships ; but with one exception I may deal with it in very general terms. I trust, my Lords, that in conducting the foreign po- licy of this country our aim will be to maintain friendly relations with all powers, great and small, with which we are brought into contact. I trust we shall maintain those relations without adopting either a tone of haughty intimidation or a tone of servile submission towards any Government. I hope that we shall carry on intercourse frankly and unreservedly with foreign powers ; that we shall carefully abstain from any interference whatever with the purely domestic affairs of any of them ; and that if, in any in- stance, a cause of difference should arise, we shall in public, as we should in private life, seek the first opportunity of arranging such differences by means of frank and unreserved but amicable communications. My Lords, if there should still remain, from that conflict in which several important powers were engaged some years since, any animosity between ourselves and that great empire with which we were at war, I trust such a feeling may rapidly and entirely subside, and that our relations with that power may speedily resume—if, indeed, they have not already resumed—the friendship and cordiality by which they were formerly marked. I hope, however, I shall not be regarded as unduly depreciating the value of our alliance with any country if I here express my firm conviction, that if there be one country with which, more than another, it is necessary for our mu- tual welfare and for the advantage of the world that we should maintain a permanent good understanding, that country is our nearest and most pow- erful neighbour, the great empire of France. (Loud cheers.) The geo- graphical position of the two countries, the facility and constancy of inter- course between their populations, their force respectively at sea and ou land, render their harmonious union almost a pledge and guarantee for the peace of the world; while those circumstances also render quarrel or coolness be- tween the two powers a matter of danger which may involve alarming con- sequences to the world at large. My Lords, for France this country can have but one desire,—that, remaining upon friendly terms with us, she should have within herself all the means of contentment, of wealth, and of prosperity. There is no country in the world blessed with greater natural advantages, none more fortunate in position and in climate ; and if there be one thing which is alone sufficient to make her and to keep her great, powerful, mighty, and happy, it is the absence within her own bosom of political con- vulsions. With regard to foreign countries, the peculiar form of govern- ment which best suits the people is, if not a matter of indifference to us, at all events, one into which we have no cause or right to inquire. Be it a limited monarchy, be it a republic, be it an empire, that government is best for France which best suits the disposition, the habits, and the affections of the people; but, whatever be the government, it is of vast importance te France, and it is hardly of secondary importance to Europe, that that go- vernment should not be liable to perpetual change, but should enjoy a con- dition of permanence and stability. My Lords, towards the maintenance of such permanence and stability I believe the life of that remarkable man who, elected by the voice of the French people, now presides over the destinies of that country, is of great and paramount importance. I will not go so far as to say that civil commotion and disturbance would inevitably follow upon any fatal attempt upou the life of his Imperial Majesty. But this I do say that his absence from the helm of the state would at this time seriously en- danger the newborn tranquillity which that country now enjoys, and which for the last six years it has enjoyed under his government. Therefore, my Lords, it was with a feeling as if all mankind had escaped a great danger— as if Europe was freed from an imminent peril by a special interposition of Providence—that the news was received of the late escape of his Imperial Majesty from a foul and murderous design. I need not recall to your Lord- ships the circumstances under which that dastardly attempt took place. Those cireumetances must have made too strong an impression on your minds to require any such recital. Suffice it, my Lords, to say, that there was- not one single attribute of aggravation by which a parallel atrocity could be attended that was not present in the details of this horrible crime. It was not only that by the basest means a highly important life was aimed at, but if you look at the time and the place in which the attempt was made—name- ly, when his Majesty was proceeding to the operahouse, and had arrived at the door of the theatre in one of the most crowded streets of Paris, sur- rounded by loyal subjects waiting to receive their Emperor with stela- mations and enthusiasm—above all, when at his side was the Imperial partner of his throne, exposed as a wife, as a woman, and an empress, to all the dangers which threatened her august consort,—you will see, my that no circumstance of aggravation was wanting to deepen the guilt those who, under such circumstances, committed the atrocious act of throw- ing under the carriage of his Imperial Majesty weapons of the most far- 'ridable and deadly character. The hand of Providence was visible in watching over the destinies of France ; but much innocent blood was shed, much calamity was caused to the people of Paris, much alarm was excited throughout the entire country. The effect, my Lords, of such an attempt and its happy failure was that which might naturally have been expected upon the minds of an enthusiastic and sensitive people. The peril which the Emperor and Empress had escaped doubled and trebled the enthusiastic feeling and the indignant loyalty which burst forth upon the instant. From every quarter were poured in addresses of congratulation and of thankfulness that lives so valuable to France and to Europe had been saved. Nor was it by France alone, but by the British residents in France, and by the inhabit- ants of various parts of this kingdom, that these feelings of thankfulness and congratulation were testified. But, unfortunately, my Lords, it transpired that among the small band of miscreants by whom this outrage was perpe- trated, were some at least, who, having been compelled to flee from their own country, had for a certain period of time been enjoying and abusing the hospitality of England. Supposing the circumstances had been reversed, supposing that her Majesty, going among her subjects with that frank con- fidence which characterizes her, knowing as she does that in the loy- alty and affection of her people she has her best and securest guard, and surrounded by a loyal and devoted multitude, had been exposed to an attack upon her Royal person while proceeding to the 0 erahouse in London,—what, I ask your Lordships to consider, would have been

the feelings of the people of this country, what would have been the indig- nation of the people of this metropolis ? And if it had came to their know-

ledge, as it undoubtedly would in such a case, that that dastardly attempt

was not the work of any native-born subject of her Majesty, but the precon- ceded design of a band of assasains who had abused the hospitality they re- ceived in a neighbouring country, I put it to your Lordship whether you

think that their censures and their indignation would have beenvery cau- tious or very discriminating ? I cannot therefore wonder, however deeply I

may deplore, that upon the news spreading through. France that this atro- cious deed was the act of refugees coming straight from England, with the enthusiastic expressions of loyalty and congratulation at the safety of the Emperor there should have been mingled, more especially from the army of France, some expressions which, seeing how unworthy they were as applied

to England, mina naturally have wounded the feelings of the people of this country. Under the circumstances, my Lords, I think that such expressions ought not to have been too nicely scanned, even if his Imperial -Majesty, with that frankness and candour which he has always displayed in his rela- tions with England, had not fairly avowed the regret he felt that such lan- guage, accompanying the manifestations of loyalty to himself, had been suf- fered to appear in the public papers, and thereby to create a just resentment in the people of this country. But, my Lords, I should be sorry indeed to think that those expressions, . whatever they may have been, truly repre- sented the calm and deliberate feeling entertained towards England by the great and noble army of France. I will not believe it, my Lords, for true valour never indulges in bombast ; and I should be surprised to find that those who were the authors of these intemperate addresses were in reality the most distinguished among those glorious soldiers of France who in many a hard-won battle on the fields of the Crimea fought and bled in honourable rivalry with their British allies, and have therefore learnt how to appreciate British bravery and British cooperation. "It is now more than a hundred years since we have had in England any of those civil disturbances which compelled many of the citizens of this country to take refuge in foreign lands. We cannot therefore judge (but we ought to make allowance for French feeling) how annoying and irritating it must be, and would be to ourselves, if in a neighbouring town on the Con- tinent we were conscious that many disaffected persons were concentrated together, entertaining the most hostile sentiments towards the Government of this country, and bent upon overthrowing it by the most treasonable de- signs. My Lords, although the oppression must be most grievous and in- tolerable which can justify any man or set of men in exposing their own country to the horrors of civil war, yet when that dreadful state of affairs arrives—when the sword is drawn in civil strife in defence of opposing prin- ciples—whatever may be our own predilections or our own opinions, we cannot but regard with respect and sympathy those to whom fortune has been unfavourable, on whatever side they may have struggled. Whether they be those who, from an unwavering sentiment of loyalty, stood to the last by an unpopular and ill-fated sovereign, or those who, from a desire to rescue their country from tyranny, have risen in unsuccessful revolt, if they have fairly and in the open field maintained their principles by the sword, at the risk of their fortunes and their lives, public sympathy will always follow them in their misfortunes and in their exile. Contemporary history may not be as indulgent, but posterity will do justice to those who from whatever cause have suffered in defence of doctrines which they honestly be- lieved to be sound and true. If we look back to the period of our own civil war, when men here contended earnestly and vehemently for principles truly and deeply implanted in their minds, and sternly upheld them in the field of battle—if we revert to those distant times and view them by the light of history, we can even now sympathize with the gallant and devoted Cava- liers in the days of their affliction ; we can sympathize with the stern Puri- tans, whose ardent love of liberty led them to prefer poverty and exile to the violation of their conscientious convictions. My Lords, there is no man, however warm an admirer he may be of that great deliverer William the Third, but looks with sympathy upon the faithful attachment to a fal- len monarch of many of the followers of James the Second. And coming down to a later, and happily the last, period to which I can refer in our own history for an illustration, even at this day, devoted as this country is to the house which now so auspiciously reigns over us, no man can look back without a feeling of sympathy and admiration upon the heroic and ro- mantic sacrifices made by the supporters of the unhappy Stuarts. But, my Lords, if we have this sympathy for men whose misfortunes have followed their open and manly defence of their principles by the sword, no such sym- pathy is due, and none is extended either by contemporary history or by impartial posterity, to those who, in order to attain their political ends, re- sort to the base and vile means which characterize the designs of the assas- sin. If there is one degree of infamy beyond that which attends the man who wields the assassin's knife, that infamy belongs to him who, lacking the only palliation of the assassin's guilt, the bold sacrifice of his own life, skulks in safety at a distance, and, plotting and devising crimes and assas- sinations, sends forth his wretched tools to perpetrate and suffer for deeds which he has the heart to conceive but not the boldness to execute. And these men call themselves the friends of liberty ! Why, my Lords, these men are the bitterest and most determined foes of liberty. They are those who cause every right-thinking mind to shrink from connexion with the purest and holiest cause, because they pollute it by the vile machinery they employ ; they are those who in their own country rivet the chains of slavery and oppression ; they are those who drive from their shores every upright and every honourable mind ; they are those who compel the treachery of the assassin to be met by the machinations of the secret spy ; they are those who by their dark designs make despotic sovereigns have recourse to measures more despotic still ; and by their conduct they do the utmost to destroy that liberty of which they presume to call themselves the consti- tuted champions. (Cheers.) Are men, then, who so conduct themselves— are men who thus abuse the hospitality and asylum which England affords them—are these men, whom the law of England protects and shel- ters, to commit crime among us with impunity ? No, my Lords, they are not. There's not a crime of which these persons can be guilty, there's not an approach to such a crime, for which the law of England does not provide. Not only assassination, not only conspiracy to assassinate, but even an in- citement to assassinate, whether by publication or by word of mouth, is an offence recognized by the law of England when the guilt of the accused person shall be proved. But it is naturally said, If these things are done —if these crimes are concocted in England and in London—how is it that the Government of England has not the power to prevent their repetition ? ' My answer is perfectly simple : but let me say, that I can understand that persons believing that Government had the means of so dealing with such supposed offenders might consider that we exercised an unfriendly part in not using those powers. Still the answer is plain and obvious. Although the law provides remedies for all those shades and colours of crime, yet the law cannot be put in force until the crime is established. Intention, unac- companied by any overt act, so long as the intention remains in the mind of the party alone conceiving it, affords no ground for prosecution. Of the great number of those whom misfortune has driven to these shores, the vast proportion I firmly believe are honestly and honourably obtaining a living in this country, and are performing the duty of peaceful citizens. Others there are, no doubt, who are engaged in pursuits which are of a menacing and dangerous description ; but these persons are all amenable to the law— if even the law does not provide a sufficient remedy—the moment that you have sufficient evidence to satisfy a jury of their guilt. But with us sus- picion is not crime—suspicion does not warrant the punishment of crime, an notoriety' is a word which is not recognized in our statute-book. It is, I think, owing to the total difference between the law in this country and in France in this respect that some misapprehension has been excited in France as to what the Government of England ought to do to meet cases of this description. Now, I do not hesitate to say that it is the duty of Govern- ment, so far as it is in its power, carefully to watch the proceedings of per- sons who may justly be suspected of illegal practices ; nor do I doubt that the late Government—or any Government that was ever formed in this country—would do its utmost, subject to the laws of this country, to protect a friendly nation against machinations and attempts like this. But in every case the evidence of guilt must be such as would satisfy a jury. To that tribunal every case must necessarily be brought. Before that tribunal the Queen herself is bound to plead ; to that tribunal she appeals for the pro- tection of her person • and it , in fact, so incorporated with your judicial

system that I cannot i

for a moment believe that it would enter the mind of any foreign sovereign to suggest even the possibility of an alteration in that respect in the jurisprudence of the country.. What, then, was the course taken by the lute Government, so soon as in was received of the attempt—and of the happy failure ' of the attempt—upon the life of the Emperor of the French? Her Majesty's Government—I think very pro- perly—directed their immediate attention to the consideration of the ques- tion whether the existing law was adequate for the protection of foreign sovereigns, or whether some more adeguate provision might not be called for. With this view, they introduced mto Parliament a bill, of the merits of which I shall at present say nothing. The first reading of that bill was secured by a very considerable majority of the House of Commons : but, most unfortunately as I think, simultaneously with the introduction of that bill a despatch was read from Count Walewski, which was unanswered at the time by her 3fajest3 'a Government, and which was laid before the public without either answer or exylanation. My Lords, I will not refer to any terms which are contained in that despatch. I have no doubt that it was the wish and sole intention of Count Walewski: to draw attention to the state of our law, and to ask whether that law was sufficient for the exigencies of the ease ; and, beyond question, if those views had been founded on a correct view of the case, there would have been a serious imputation on the law of this country. I think, if her Majesty's late Government had felt themselves bound to accept this despatch, that they would have acted more for the interest of the cause in which they were engaged, if—not entering into argument, contro- versy, or discussion—they had pointed out to the French Government the misapprehension into which they were apt to fall. It is idle to deny that the production of that despatch did produce a most unfavourable impression upon the discussion in this country. At the same time don't let me be mis- understood. It is most important to bear in mind, that the vote at which the House of Commons arrived had no reference whatever to the merits of the bill which was thrown out upon the second reading, and that they are just as free as before to pass the second reading if they please. It is im- possible to deny that the introduction of a political element interfered in a considerable degreee with a calm, impartial, and deliberate reflection upon the measure itself; but we must regard these questions in a judicial spirit, Now, what was the resolution that the House of Commons came to on the 19th of February ? Was it a resolution hostile either to the principles or the provisions of the bill? Was it a resolution adverse to all change in the criminal law of the country ? Was it a resolution which would give the slightest countenance to the atrocious act of conspiracy ? No; the resolution was this—[Lord Derby quoted the words.] The question, therefore, was not one as between Parliament and a foreign country. It was emphatically a question as between Parliament and the Ministers of the Crown. Upon that resolution being carried, her Majesty's late Government resigned office ; and the first duty which the present Go- vernment had to perform was to consider what course they should take with reference to the state of affairs which had been produced by that de- cision of the House of Commons. My Lords, her Majesty's Government came to the resolution upon which they will feel it to be their duty to act, in full conformity with the vote of the House of Commons and on terms of friendly conciliation, to point out to the French Minister the misinter- pretations and misconstructions which have been placed upon his despatch, and in the most amicable manner to request of him an explanation which may remove the painful impression now prevailing among the English people. (Cheers.) If I know anything of the friendly Se..ling which his Imperial Majesty has at all times shown to this country-if I know anything of his earnest and cordial desire to maintain the Bri- tish alliance which is as beneficial to the one nation as it is to the other—if I 'bear in mind how ready he has always been to listen to representations and counsels given in a friendly spirit and made in a friendly quarter—I am led to entertain the sanguine hope that the answer to the despatch which my noble friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs has undertaken to prepare and to transmit to France, will be such as to remove from the minds of the people of this country all irritation, and enable us calmly and deliberately to pro- ceed to the consideration of the important question of the amendment of the law. It is, of course, not desirable that I should enter into further details upon this subject at the present time. The course which her Majesty's Government may deem it their duty to pursue must in a great measure depend upon the character of the reply whic`i they may receive to their friendly. communication ; but I say without hesitation, that in the mean time it is their bounden duty—and it is one which they they will not shrink from performing faithfully and vigorously —to put in force the existing powers of the law for the purpose of check- ing by the strong arm of the law these dangerous and alarming conspira- cies. (Cheers.) At the present moment—and I speak therefore under some difficulty, because I should be very unwilling in the slightest degree to pre- judice the cases which are now pending before the courts of justice—pro- ceedings are being taken against a person named Bernard as a party Con- cerned in the conspiracy which led to the recent attempted assassination of the Emperor of the French. Another person, and I blush to say it, a British subject, is now a fugitive from justice under a similar charge. Against a third person, for the publication of a work containing instigations and in- citements to assassination, proceedings are pending before a British court of justice; and no further back than forty-eight hours ago the attention of her Majesty's Government was called to another publication of a similar cha- racter, but, as it appears to me, of a still more violent tendency ; and that publication also has been without a moment's hesitation placed in the hands of the Law-officers of the Crown. Should their opinion be that it affords reasonable and legitimate grounds for proseeutiont her Majesty's Govern- ment will not hesitate for a single moment in putting in force the existing powers of the law. For my Lords, with slimy desire to maintain inviolable now and for ever, under all circumstances, that right of asylum to refugees which it is the pride of this country to afford, without distinction of cause, of principle, or of opinion, I do say it is an intolerable grievance that per- sons who owe their life and their safety to the protection which we afford them should basely and ungratefully reward this 'country for the shelter and asylum it gives them by a course of conduct, by publications, by insti- gations to crime, which may have a most dangerous tendency towards em- broiling England with one of its most faithful and also one or its firmest allies. (Cheers.) "My Lords, if upon the present occasion I were addressing your Lord- ships at the commencement of a new session, and after having with my col- leagues had leisure to consider during the recess the measures to be sub- mitted for the consideration and approval of Parliament, I should of course feel it to be my duty to lay shortly before you what the measures were to which your attention was to be called. But your Lordships must be aware, that from the shortness of the time which has elapsed since we accepted office, it has been impossible for us to prepare anything like a programme of business to be laid before Parliament. The attention of the other House must no doubt be occupied for a considerable time with making those financial arrangements which are requisite at this period of the year for the purpose of carrying on the business of the country. There is however, one measure to which I think it my duty even at this early stage to advert, because it is a measure which upon full and anxious consideration her Majesty's Government have determined to introduce to the notice of Parliament. My Lords, it cer- tainly was my opinion, and it was the opinion of most of those with whom I have the satisfaction of acting, that while the state of India was such as it is at present—while a revolt, or rather an insurrection, was raging in a considerable portion of our dominions in the East—it was not expedient to divert the attention either of the Government or of the East India Company from the consideration of the matters which were immediately pressing to a discussion of any change in the constitution of the executive administration at home. But, my Lords, the House of Commons' by a very large majority —a majority, I believe, of 147 Members in a full House--affirmed the pro- position that it was desirable to consider the question immediately, mainly with the object of transferring to the Crown the authority hitherto exer- cised by the East India Company. I think that vote materially altered the position of affairs. It placed the Company in such a situation that they could not, after it passed, commahd the same amount of public confidence and of public support as they were entitled to receive previous to the de- cision of the House of Commons. Therefore, my Lords after the best and maturest consideration which we can give to the subject, it is the intention of her Majesty's Government to introduce a measure, which is now being prepared by my noble friend the President of the Board of Control, which we trust will effect most of the objects contemplated by the bill of the late Government, and which we hope will at the same time be free from some of the objections attaching to that project. Of course, it would not be expe- dient for me to enter into further details upon the present occasion ; the

measure, indeed, is not yet framed ; but I think it my duty intention say, even at i this early period, that n the course of the present session it is our to deal with the question of the government of India, and we hope also to pass a just and satisfactory measure.

"My Lords, it would be idle for me to enter into any general description of the opinions or the views which I hold upon public affairs. Such ab- stract declarations of policy are in point of fact of little or no use. They are mere words which may be construed into any sense, or, as sometimes happens, into no sense. I can only say, my Lords that the policy of the Government to which I belong will be that which I hope might naturally be expected from the composition of the Administration,—namely, that while we firmly and strenuously maintain the great institutions of the country, we shall not hesitate to propose and support measures of undoubted im- provement and progress, and to introduce, whenever necessary, safe and well-considered amendments. My Lords, there can be no greater mistake than to suppose that a Conservative Ministry necessarily means a stationary Ministry. We live in an age of constant progress—moral, social, and poli- tical. We live in a time when art and science are making rapid strides, when knowledge is daily more and more widely diffused. Our constitution itself is the result of a series of perpetual changes. Like the venerable old country-houses of England, it has been formed from time to time by succes- sive occupants with no great regard to architectural unifermity or regu- larity of outline, but adding a window here, throwing out a gable there, and making some fresh accommodation in another place, as might appear to suit, not the beauty of the external structure, but, what is of more import- ance, the convenience and comfort of the inhabitants. My Lords, in poli- ties, as in everything else, the same course must be pursued—constant pro- gress, improving upon the old .system, adapting our institutions to the al- tered purposes which they are intended to serve, and by judicious changes meeting the increased demands of society. This leads me, my Lords, to the last question upon which I shall have to trouble your Lordships—one of great importance and of great difficulty, but one which it is the duty of her Majesty's Government to consider. 1 mean the question which commonly goes by the name of Parliamentary Reform, or, in more fitting terms, which means the consideration and arrangement of the system of re- presentation in the House of Commons. My Lords, I am old enough to remember, and to have been in the Cabinet, not when the last Reform Bill was framed, but when it was under discussion and and when I look back to the violence of feeling, to the bitterness of political excitement and of party- spirit, and to the passion which accompanied the passing of that great and important measure, my wonder is, not that there should be in it defects and blemishes which the experience of twenty-five years has aptly brought to light, but that under such circumstances there should have been devised and earned through Parliament a measure which for so long a period has to a certain and no inconsiderable extent effected its purposes and satisfied the people of this country. My Lords, believing that, with all its anomalies and all its imperfections, that act has given to the country a representative sys- tem the result of which is a House of Commons which fairly and fully re- presents the feeling of the numbers as well as of the intelhgence and the property of this country, I should myself have been well satisfied if it had been the pleasure of Parliament that no legislation upon a subject so exciting should be called for or demanded from the Government. I cannot, however, exclude from my consideration the fact that for three or four years not only has a demaed been made, but a promise has been given by successive Go- vernments, of the introduction of a Reform Bill. This promise has been given occasionally even in the name of the Sovereign and in the speech from the Throne. My Lords, I must venture to say that I think it is a practice not deserving of imitation to appear in the speech from the Throne per- sonally to pledge the Sovereign to measures which have not been well and fully considered by her advisers,. and which they are not at once prepared to ly before Parliament. In my opinion it is highly inconvenient that from ses- sion to session a question of this importance and of this interest should be per- petually kept dangling before the Legislature, and that session after session it should behung up till a future day ; and, my Lords, having regard to the incon- veniences arising from this state of things, and to the promises which suc- cessive Governments have made, I have felt it my duty in conjunction with my colleagues to look into this important question. I will not pledge either myself or them to introduce either now or at any time a bill upon this sub- ject; I prefer to go beyond rather than to fall short of any pledgee or pro- mises which I may give in this House : but this I maysay, that as soon as the pressure of Parliamentary business enables us deliberately and carefully th consider the question, we will direct our attention to the defects which exist in the laws regulating the representation of the people in Parliament, and to the amendments which may be made in those laws; and that we will give that attention with the sincere and earnest desireto trifle no longer With this great question, but with the hope that we may be able in the next session of .Parliament to lay before the asgialature and the country a mea- sure upon that subject which may for a time settle a matter of such deep importance and which, if we cannot hope to please everybody,—which would indeed be a most extravagant expfttation,—may at least be accepted as a fair and reasonable measure by moderate, impartial, and well-educated men. (Cheers.) I am aware that in making this early announcement I am perhaps somewhat premature ; but I thought it was desirable that your Lordships and the country should at once know that, while we are not pre- pared in this session of Parliament to introduce or to assist in passing any measure dealing with so extensive a question, we are prepared at the very earliest moment practicable to give our diligent and anxious attention to the subject, with the earnest hope that that consideration may lead to a suc- cessful issue.

"I have now addressed your Lordships at greater length than I could have desired the observations which I have found it necessary to make upon my assumption of the important office which I have now the honour to fill. My Lords, I can only conclude, as I began, by assuring you that I deeply feel my own incompetency for the discharge of the duties of that office; but this I can truly say, that I bring to their performance an earnest and con- scientious desire faithfully and diligently to discharge them as in the sight of God and in the presence of the people. Small as I know my own powers to be, and great as are the difficulties I shall have to encounter, there is One who guides the destinies of all, and who from the efforts of weak and in- adequate performers can produce great and signal effects. Trusting to His guidance and to His blessing, I will venture to take upon me the charge which has been intrusted to me by my Sovereign ; and I fervently hope and trust, that, be my administration long or short, when I retire I may retire without a stain upon my public character and with the consciousness that I have not left England in a worse position than that in which I found her." (Prolong& cheering.) Earl GRANVILLE, leaving Lord Clarendon to deal with the French question, took the opportunity to pass in review and glorify the achieve- ments of the Palmerston Administration,—in the Crimean, Persian, and Chinese wars, the Indian mutiny, the commercial panic, and the law reforms of the late Government. He made sonic hits at political oppo- nents ; reminding Lord Derby of his excuse for declining office in 1856, when he held that it would be a mockery and disgrace to form a Minis- try with only 280 supporters in the House of Commons—a greater num- ber than the present strength of his party ; and expressing his surprise at the condemnation of the Conspiracy Bill and " the plan of Reform" to be found in Sir Fitzroy Kelly's electioneering address. Lord Gran- ville gladly caught at the opportunity of referring to our military pre- parations.

" One of our great difficulties in this respect has been, that while it was obviously inconvenient and inexpedient for us to produce to Parliament and the public details of military preparations which were in hand, our general assertions on this head were very often considered as mere mystified official statements which could not be tested or checked. We must therefore feel grateful to the noble Earl for his declaration ; and I am proud to be able now to state, in the presence of those who can contradict me if I am wrong, that, while our naval preparations are in all respects in a very satisfactory state, and are in some respects in a position which they have uever occupied before, our artillery, notwithstanding the drain made upon it, is equal and our effective strength of trained soldiers in this country is actually greater than at the outbreak of the Indian mutiny. (Cheers.) I think it will be satisfactory to the public to know this, and I mu glad to have this opportu- nity of first publicly stating the fact."

The Earl of CLARENDON said he discharged the duty imposed upon him by Lord Granville with very great reluctance. Much misconcep- tion, misrepresentation, and error prevails on the subject. It is supposed that the language of France has been insolent, and that an attempt has been made to bully us into changing our law. That is not so. When the late Government heard of the attempt on the life of the Emperor, the very first thought was to ascertain whether the existing law was suffi- cient, or whether it could be amended without violating the right of asylum. The question bad been referred to the Law-officers before Count de Persigny read to Lord Clarendon Count Walewski's despatch. "We felt it a point of national honour to pursue that course." It was due to the public opinion of France and of Europe. After the Govern- ment had come to this determination, N. de Persigny placed in Lord Clarendon's hands the despatch of Count Walewski, saying that the ut- most care had been taken to avoid not only insult, but any expression that might wound the feelings of the English people. "I told M. de Persigny, what I often said before to him and to Count Walewski, and upon more than one occasion had the honour of stating to the Emperor of France—namely, that no consideration on earth would in- duce Parliament to pass a measure for the extradition of foreign political re- fugees—that our asylum could not be infiinged, and that we adhered to certain principles on that subject which were so old and so sacred that they could not be touched. (Cheers) At the same time, I said that we required no impulse from without to set in motion the existing law against conspiracy, provided we had evidence to go upon, and that it had been from want of such evidence that hitherto the law had not been carried into effect. I also said that it had been a question whether the existing law was sufficiently compre- hensive or stringent, and that the whole subject had been referred to the Law-officers of the Crown, under whose consideration it then was. I moreover told N. de Persigny, that I had myself the day before written to the Atter- ney-General, inviting his attention to a certain point, and requesting an early opinion from the Law-officers of the Crown. Nothing could be more temperate, moderate, or straightforward than the conduct of M. de Persigny in this matter. I am sure that those of your Lordships who have the advan- tage of knowing that distinguished man must be aware that nothing could be more opposed to his inclination than to make use of insulting or irritating language. I told him that any attempt to insult England would be resented from one end of the country to the other. N. de Persigny said, We ask for nothing at all. We indicate nothing. The French Government has entire confidence in the good will of Eng- land towards France. The similarity of the interests of the two coun- tries renders it desirable that any course which may be considered prac- ticable should be adopted in order to prevent a renewal of these attempts.' Now, my Lords, with respect to the despatch of Count Walewski, upon which so much has been said, my noble friend does not appear to be entirely right. I am sure that I am as ready as any man living to maintain the honour and dignity of the country. I have read that despatch, and have been totally unable to find in it any insult to England, and I am certain that no insult was intended. In public as in private affairs it is always wise to observe the animus of those who address you, and never to take offence when there has been no intention to offend I really have been lost in amazement on finding that some persons have so misrepresented or mis- understood that despatch as to say that Count Walewski therein charges the people of England with preaching and practiethg assassination. Why, my Lords, the whole tenour of that despatch is precisely to the contraiy." Neither in letter nor spirit does it contain anything that can be fairly re- garded as insult or menace towards England. [Here Lord Clareneon quoted passages to justify his own interpretation.] With regard to the course pursued by the Government, Lord Clarendon admitted that he suggested it; that he desired to avoid angry controversy ; that he could not answer the despatch because its statements were "strictly true." It has been said, if that was sot why were the laws not enforced against the conspirators ? The reason 113, that there was a want of sufficient

evidence. The Government had received reports of inflammatory seethes —one not long ago advocating the murder of the Emperor of the French. But they could not lay hold of the author, because the French expressions used could not be sworn to. He could not, therefore, honestly say that as- sassination had not been preached in this country. He could not say, without disrespect to Parliament, that measures inflicting greater punish- ment would be resorted to. He therefore suggested to the Government the course which has been taken, as the best course that could be pursued. But though no answer was forwarded to Count Walewski's despatch, Lord

Cowley was fully informed of the views and opinions of the Government; and Lord Cowley made an able use qf those communications. "I thought

it would not be regular to lay upon the table the private letters which I ad- dressed to Lord Cowley ; but I think it is right your Lordships should have some idea of the nature of those letters, in order that you may be able to form a more accurate opinion of the despatch written liy Lord Cowley. I accordingly referred to them this morning, and will take the liberty to read one or two extracts.

"On the 21st of January I wrote to Lord Cowley thus—' The morel think of the whole matter, the more allowance I make for the feelings of the French, who believe themselves to be in imminent danger, and that Eng- land, if she chose, might put them in safety.. We know that that is not the ease, and that we cannot prevent conspiracies ; but this cannot be understood by men who are profoundly ignorant of our laws and customs, and who rea- son respecting England by analogy with other states, where police regu- lations and measures of public safety are always passively submitted to. Such men think only of their own perils and of the unfriendly obstinacy of Eng- land, in doing nothing for their protection. I have, therefore, been perfectly frank with M. de Persigny, and have spoken to him in the sense of what I have written above. He brought me today a despatch from Waleweki, which had been seen and approved by the Emperor. It was, I think, very moderate in tone ; much more so, I think, than ours, mutatis mutandis, would have been. It is impossible for any one to behave more loyalement and like a gentleman than M. de Persigny does upon this painful matter; for while he Is in a state of extreme agitation, and fully shares the feelings of his countrymen respecting the attentat, he makes as much allowance for our difficulties as you or I could do.'

"On the 23d of January I thus wrote—' The refugee question has been discussed in every possible form, and I may with truth say that there has been an earnest desire to do something which will both clear this country from unjust imputations, and, at the same time, give some satisfaction to public opinion in France, but the difficulties, when one comes to the prac- tical point of what that something shall be, are beyond imagination great, and everybody agrees that to ask for authority to send away every or any foreigner whom a foreign Government may suspect, or say they suspect, without even adducing any proof of guilty purpose, is utterly out of the question. We might just as well ask Parliament to annex England to France.'

"On the 2d of February I wrote—' A bill is to be introduced when Par- liament meets which will make conspiracy to murder felony; and you may rely upon it, that if the bill passes it will be amply sufficient for the pur- pose, and immeasurably better than if we possessed a power to send away people on suspicion : for what is to constitute suspicion or to make a man suspected ?—a denunciation from the French pollee? If so, it is clear that we should be perpetually asked to send away people on mere rumour, or perhaps the personal vengeance of spies, and that the only result would be ill-feeling between the two Governments. Parliament, however, would never grant such a permission, because, setting aside all other reasons, it would be inverting the fundamental principles of jurisprudence in this eonntry, where a man is always considered innocent until he is proved to be guilty, and we should have to propose that he be considered guilty until he could prove himself to be innocent. "And on the 4th of February I added—' What I foresaw has occurred, and the excitement, or rather, I should say, the indignation, caused by the publication in the Moniteur of the regimental addresses, is universal throughout the country. People here care nothing about abuse ; we are much too free ourselves with our pens and our tongues to think of resenting hard words; but that which no man here can or will stand is a threat, and there is no risk or danger to which Englishmen would not expose themselves rather than submit to menace."

After vindicating Lord Cowley, and taking great credit for the Govern- ment, Lord Clarendon commented on the current misrepresentation of the Conspiracy Bill. It is not a French nor an alien bill. "Even up to the last moment this error seems to have continued, because in the address of the Attorney-General we find it set forth that the bill is a violation of the principle of independent action which has hitherto been held sacred ; and my noble friend opposite said the bill was damaged by no answer being sent to this despatch, whereas there was a majority of 200 for that bill after Count Walewski's despatch had been received, and when it had become no- torious that no answer had been sent. Error and misconception have fol- lowed this bill, and everything connected with it, down to the last moment. There was one delusion which I rejoiced to hear dispelled by the Lord Chief Justice the other night, when he described the bill as an important amend- ment of the criminal law; he said he approved it, and trusted your Lord- ships would pass it when it should come before you. It has been said that the bill was brought forward for a particular purpose ; but it has never been disguised that our object in bringing it in so early as we did was to check these conspiracies against the Emperor's life. When the true character of this bill comes to be better understood, when it is seen to be a simple con- version of a horrible crime from a misdemeanour into a felony, I sin greatly mistaken if the warmhearted and generous people of this country will find any humiliation in passing a measure which will effect so proper a change in the law without the sacrifice of any one principle of our constitution." Lord ST. LEONARDS explained that he did not join the new Govern- ment, solely on the account of the state of his health.

. The House adjourned until the 15th March.

LORD Cesresme men Sin RICHARD BffTWELL.—In the House of Peers on Monday, Lord CAMPBELL vindicated his right to give in that House an *pinion upon an abstract legal question. He agreed that it is undesirable and irregular to notice, as a general rule, what takes place in the other House. He had thought himself bound to contradict the statement of the law imputed to Sir Richard Bethell, because he thought that if not cor- rected, it might lead to mischievous consequences. But he now said he be- lieved that Sir Richard Bethel did not make the statement imputed to him. New Warra.—At the short sitting of the House of Commons on Monday-, new writs were ordered, on the motion of Sir WILLIAM Joereee, for the Northern Division of Northumberland, in the room of Lord Lovable, who has accepted the office of one of the Lords of the Admiralty; for the city of Chichester, in the room of Lord Henry Lennox, who has accepted the office of one of the Lords of the Treasury ; for the borough of Enniskillen, iu the room of Mr. Whiteside, who has accepted the office of Attorney-General for Ireland.

BREACH OF PRMLIGE.—The examination of witnesses before the Se- lect Committee in the case of Mr. Butt was brought to a close on Tuesday. The principal witnesses examined on Saturday, Monday, and Tuesday, were Mr. Vernon Smith, Sir George Clerk, Mr. David Coffey, and Mr. Butt him-

self. Mr. Vernon Smith described his relations with Mr. Butt. They had interviews together ; a " private " correspondence passed between them. Mr. Butt pressed the claims of All Moored to the restitution of some of the lands taken from him when he was convicted of forgery, and suggested how un- advisable it would be to have any disaussion on the subject in the House of Commons. Mr. Vernon Smith was of opinion that the punishment inflicted on All Moored was excessive, and that something should be done to miti- gate that punishment. The Board of Directors prepared a despatch de- clining to take any steps to alter the decision in Ali Moorad's case. Mr. Vernon Smith altered that despatch; but his alteration he considered was a " mitigation, not a reversal of their decision." He had never heard that Members of Parliament of the legal profession who called on him received fees. He had heard they received " presents," but there was no instance of that kind within his knowledge. In a memorandum sent to the Board of Control it was stated that Mr. Coffey had appropriated 2000/. and 300/. In answer to Mr. Roebuck, Mr. Vernon Smith said that Mr. Butt did not ex- plain to him that he had received the money himself. Sir George Clerk said that Mr. Butt stated generally to him that Mr. Coffey had been misap- propriating funds belonging to the Ameer.

Mr. Butt's own evidence is of great length ; comprising a detailed account of his introduction to the Ameer, his interviews with the Ameer, Mr. Vernon Smith, Mr. Mangles, Sir James Hogg, Mr. Coffey, Sir Hamilton Seymour; of the steps he had taken in the matter, and the pecuniary arrangements he had made with the Ameer. He denied that he had refused to undertake the Ameer's business unless he were assisted ; that Mr. Coffey ever offered him 5000/. provided he obtained a restitution of the Ameer's lands; and that there never was any engagement as to pecuniary payment for Mr. Butt's services, either in Parliament, at the Board of Control, or in the India House. He gave an account of the money transaction. " It was suggested that the Ameer should return to India ; and when it appeared probable that the matter would come before the Indian Government, Mr. Coffey suggested that I should go out to India also. I at the time skid that it would be im- possible. Subsequently"' entertained the opinion that I might go out, and I made inquiries as to what it would cost to insure my life for 20,000/. An offer was afterwards made to me by the Ameer of a sum of 10,000/. if I would go to India. I replied, that it would not be worth my while to go for such a sum, nor did 'think that it would be worth his while to pay it to me Upon -subsequent consideration I determined to entertain the offer; and I told several of my friends in Ireland and in the House of Commons that

me conferred I afterwards erred with such an offer had been made to Mr. Edward Coffey upon the subject, and told him that he must procure the arrangement of all money matters, for I did not wish to speak to the Ameer upon the subject. I stated that I should require 3000/. to be paid before leaving, and the remaining 70001. to be secured upon bills." Afterwards Mr. Butt asked for 500/. "to test the sincerity of the juicer." He obtained 3001. Mr. Butt gave a minute account of the reasons that led him to Trieste, and of what he did there ; and how he expedited the Ameer on his way to India. He persisted in stating that the 10,000l. was promised to him truly and entirely for going out to India that if he had not agreed to go to India so much of it as had been paid would not have been given to him, and that if he did not now go to India he should feel himself bound to return the 2300/.

Mr. Butt told a curious story in the course of his evidence. A "mys- terious visitor" had warned him that a conspiracy was forming to charge him with a breach of privileges. That person said he did not wish to be known, and Mr. Butt did not identify him. Under cross-examination, Mr. Butt said that had the Court of Directors given a favourable answer to the Ameer's memorial, he was to have re- ceived positively nothing. In reply to a question fTom Sir James Gra- ham, Mr. Butt said, "I am not on my oath ; I wish I were ; but I most solemnly declare, so help me God, that no offer of a pecuniary payment was made to me until the proposal was made that I should proceed to India."

Sir James Graham—" You saw Sir James Hogg towards the close of the session of 1857." Mr. Butt—" I did." Sir James Graham—" Now, Sir James Hogg has in several parts of his evidence before the Committee expressly stated that you gave him to understand that if no concession were made you would make a motion in the House before the end of the session." Mr. Butt—" I never said that." Sir James Graham—" Sir James Hogg gave positive answers on that point. Recollect yourself. Can you state positively that you did not tell Sir James Hogg that you. would make a motion towards the end of the session if no concession were made." Mr. Butt—" I must say that Sir James Hogg has—I don't say misrepresented—but entirely misunderstood me. I never said to Sir James Hogg that I intended to bring the case before the House of Com- mons. What I stated was, that I had been in communication with the President of the Board of Control- and with Mr. Mangles, and had im- pressed upon them the mischief of having such a question discussed be- fore Parliament ; and, unless Sir James Hogg is a greater fool than I take him to be, he must have known it was impossible to have the question discussed in that session of Parliament."

On Wednesday the Committee deliberated on their report. It has not been made public by the Committee, as Sir James Graham said that would not be respectful to Parliament: nevertheless, it has found its way into print by other means. It is comprised in four resolutions. e 1. That Isaac Butt, Esq., (I-C., a Meraber of this House did not, as stated in the petition of Edward Lees Coffey, in or about the month of July or August 1856, corruptly enter into an agreement with his Highness Ameer Ali Moored Khan, or his agents, to the effect that the said Isaac Butt should for a sum of money, advo- cate and prosecute, in the House of Commons, with her Majesty's Government, and the Honourable East India Company, the claims of his Highness for the recovery of his territory, of which he had been deprived by annexation by the Honourable East India Company ; nor • in pursuance of such corrupt agreement have divers sums of money been actually paid by the said Ameer Ala Moored Khan to the said Isaac Butt.' 2. That Isaac Butt, Esq., in or about the month of July 1857 did enterinto an agreement with his Highness the Ameer All Moored Khan, to go to Indus to assist him in prosecuting his claim with the local Government of Bombay, in con- sideration of the sum of 10,0001., of which the said Isaac Butt received 20001., (1,0991. net,) and the remainder was to be paid in bills proposed to be drawn or accepted by the Ameer. 3. That Isaac Butt, Esq., did, in the period which elapsed from the month of June 1856 to the month of September 1857, advise and assist his Highness Ali Moored Khan, in prosecuting his claim on the Government of India, and with that view had frequent personal interviews in the year 1857, after the meeting of the present Parliament, with the President of the Board of Control, and also some communications with the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the East India Company, and with one other member of the Board, 4. That on the Ilth day of August 1857, Isaac Butt, Esq., received from his Highness Al Moored Khan a check for another sum of 3001., but it has not been shown to your Committee that such payment to Isaac Butt, Esq., had any reference to proceedings in Parliament.