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Court , the cases of bigamy before Law Court and Police , and say what we know , about the working of the law even in these specific instances . Here is a woman in humble life who etrs apparently through insanity , and the marital remedy is to thrash her accomplice ! A nobleman is charged with falsification ; a reverend gentleman figures as plaintiff in a divorce case , and , in spite of the compliments paid to him by the adjudicating Peers , in
spite of the indifferent literature of the lady , you feel thatneitheryou nor the judges have penetrated to the true substance and merits of the case . It has not been brought out . The training , the feelings , the motives , the governing circumstances of all the parties—these remain perfectly unknown . There is a difficulty , an embarrassment , a grievance ; "justice" is done in a manner rough but not ready ; and the parties are remanded to a new state of misery according to law .
Compared with these domestic calamities , the disaster of the Orion is bearable . Better to be the victim of the wild fresh elements , than sink under these perplexing griefs at home . Such disasters in the open sea seldom happen without exhibiting some noble trait of human nature , like that of the little boy in this one , who refused the help of his tutor that it might be rendered to the women . A 8 the week goes on , the weather grows warmer : probably those icebergs that have been travelling down the Atlantic , crushing our ships and freezing the winds , have past forward on their way , and have at last left to us summer unchecked .
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Lord Stanley ' s long-threatened review of Lord Palmerston's blunders in the Greek affair took place on Monday evening , in a very crowded House , there being a general expectation that Ministers would suffer severely both in the debate and the division . The opening speech by Lord Stanley was as bitter and as eloquent as the worst enemy of the Foreign Secretary could desire . He gave a complete history of the Greek question from , the very earliest period , and , in doing so , contrived to place the meddling , quarrelsome , overbearing conduct of Lord Palmerston in the most unfavourable light . The various
cases of quarrel which have occurred , from that of Stellio Sumachi , the burglarious blacksmith whose wrongs Lord Palmerston insisted upon redressing , down to David Pacifico , the Portuguese usurer , were all succssively exhibited in the most ridiculous aspect . One case in which the Foreign Office had felt called upon to interfere , was to demand compensation for the wrongs inflicted upon certain Ionians , who complained of having been ill-treated by the Greek authorities at Patras . The story of their grievances was very heart-rending . These subjects of Queen Victoria , as appears from one of the blue books , " were
obliged , on account of the heat and the Jleas , to sleep in the streets , and the gendarmes compelled them to sleep in their houses or go to prison . " " For this unmerited ill-treatment . " Lord Palmerston instructed the British Minister at Athens , to demand from the Greek Government , for each of the flea-bitten Ionians , the sum of £ 20 . The most amu > ing part of Lord Stanley ' s speech was his reference to M . Pacifico's inventory . After stating that , according to all appearance , that gentleman was in very indifferent circumstances , he draws attention to the very large sum ¦ which he claimed as compensation for losses : —
11 His demand for the destruction of his furniture and property amounts to about £ 4 , 520 , and his claims on Portugal to £ 26 , 618 . It appears that the mob not only destroyed all his wines , china , and glass , but they carried off numerous copper stewpans—{ laughter )—and various other utensils . ( Renewed laughter . ) It appears , however , that they left a precise inventory of every item of furniture in the house , and of the value of every such article , down to every saucepan and pudding-mould—( a laugh ) , —and an account too of all M . Pacifico's
clothes , his boots , linen , stockings , jack-towels , and sheets . ( Laughter . ) But they left him also one sheet to hU bed , which he was enabled to produce for the purpose of proving the excessive fineness of three other sheets which had been taken away . ( Muchlaughter . ) Why , tho house of this M . Pacifico , who , as 1 have said , was trading on a borrowed , capital of £ 30 , is represented to have been furnished as luxuriously as it might have been if he had possession of Aladdin ' s lamp . lie states that he had in his
drawing-room" 1 Inrgc ccmch in solid mahogany , British work , with double bottom , one of which in Indian cane for flunmipr , £ 70 ; 1 bottom for the winter for the above , a cushion in tapestry embroidered in real gold ( Royal woik ) , £ 25 ; 2 pillows and cushion alao , for the back of tho whole length of the couch , in silk and wool covering , embroidered in real gold , as the bottom of the above conch , £ 7 ''); total for one couch , £ 170 . ( ' Jfaar , hear , ' and laughter . ) Now , 1 douht if any of your lordships have in your houses a couch of the same value . ( -1 laugh . ) Tt tn tho btuinonis were furnished on a scale of < qual iiiiignifi * i-iicc . The ir lurniture is minutely detciihrcl , but I will not go into tho ] tiwticular 8 . ( Laughter . ) I will only btuic that M . l ' aciuto had a double bod in
solid mahogany , with four pillars richly carved , 2 | yards long by 2 £ yards wide , with the back and the end carved , the crown in carved mahogany and carved frame , and a set of brass castors , worih £ 150 ; and that , he explains , With the greatest minuteness , that every utensil in the bedrooms was composed of the finest porcelain . ( Great laughter . ) How he came by these articles I do not know , but this is the bill of costs sent in to the British Government . ' "
He then proceeded to ridicule the conduct of the British . Government in pressing for the settlement of M . Pacifico's extravagant claims , and sending a fleet to enforce the payment of those claims within twentyfour hours . He contrasted the conduct of * the Greek Government with that of England , throughout the whole of the transactions , and animadverted in severe terms upon the unaccountable neglect of Lord Palmerston in delaying to forward instructions to Mr . Wyse of the convention entered into with France —a blunder which had led to the present estrangement between the two countries . He referred to the
territorial question between this country and Greece , and contended , that here also we had only shown weakness . After formally claiming possession of the islands of Sapienza and Cervi , after ordering our fleet to expel the Greek inhabitants and to take possession of these islands in the name and on behalf of the Ionian states , we were told by Russia that this claim could not be allowed , and now Lord Palmerston ¦ would be forced to admit that he had made a mistake , and that the claims which he had urged so strongly must be given up . In conclusion he moved
" To resolve that , while the House fully recognizes the right and duty of the Government to secure to her Majesty's subjects residing in foreign states the full protection of the laws of those states , it regrets to find , by the correspondence recently laid upon the table by her Majesty ' s command , that various claims against the Greek Government , doubtful in point of justice or exaggerated in amount , have been enforced by coercive measures directed against the commerce and people of Greece , and calculated to endanger the continuance of our friendly relations with other powers . "
The Marquis of Lansdowne contended that the practice of all countries , more especially of maritime and commercial countries , had been to protect their subjects in every part of the world , and , where protection was denied , to procure redress by force . In proof of this he referred to a large number of cases which had taken place during the last thirty years in Great Britain , France , and the United States . As to the claims of M . Pacifico , and the manner in
which they had been enforced , he still insisted , notwithstanding all that had been said , that the course pursued had been in no respect dissimilar from what had been done by other countries in cases of the same nature . He denied that M . Pacifico ' s claim had heen adopted positively and arbitrarily , or that the British Government had " peremptorily required the Greek Government to pay all that claim . It was only adopted as a claim for discussion . Nor was it true that the late transactions had disturbed our
friendship with Hussia . Upon many subjects Russia and England never were more friendly than they are at this moment . As regards the disturbance of our friendly relations with France , after a very unintelligible attempt to explain the matter , the Marquis stated that an amicable settlement was on the very point of being completed by the two Governments . In conclusion , he called upon the House not to embarrass the position of the Government with foreign powers , but to reject the motion .
Lord Abehdekn pointed attention to the fact that the Marquis of Lansdowne had not replied to what Lord Stanley said regarding Sapienza and Cervi . After a wholesale condemnation of our foreign policy , he said he was sure there was not one member of that House who did not agree with every word that Lord Stanley hnd uttered . Lord Cardigan , Viscount Canning , and Earl Haudwickk supported the motion . Lord Ward and Lord Eddishuii y opposed it . Lord Beaumont characterised it as " an un-English and hostile motion . "
Lord BnouGiiAM hoped their lordships would do justice to themselves in the public opinion of Europe by skaking themselves free from the recent proceedings in Greece . He confidently expected they would do so ; and , in saying this , ho bore testimony to the great ability and the peaceful sentiments of Lord Palmerston . The House having divided , the numbers were : — Contents—Present , 113 ; Proxies , ; 3 i>—160 Non-Content—Present , 77 ; Proxies , . 5 . 5—132 Majority against Government—37 .
The discussion on tho second reading of the Lord-Lieutennncy Abolition Bill in the Hou > e of Commons was chiefly remarkable for the doubts thrown out by Sir ltouuuT Perl , as to the advantages anticipated from the measure . Although he would not oppose the bill , he looked upon the experiment with some apprehension . He was nfraid that the removal ot the Lord-Lieutenant might have an injurious effect upon the administration of justice in Ireland . Ho questioned tho expediency of appointing a Secretary of State for Ireland , there being but one for England , Scotland , and Wales . Thevo might be some risk of
collision between the two Home Secretaries , and in the event of simultaneous popular commotions , which required that the military should aid the civil power it would be much better that there should be one man to take a combined view of the exigencies of the whole empire than that two men should be separately pressing the Commander-in-Chief to afford them military aid . "Would it not be possible , in the distribution of the functions of the new Lord Chancellor to transfer to him some of the present duties of the Home Secretary ? He advised " Sir George Grey to take upon himself the Irish Secretaryship , in order that one might direct the domestic affairs of both countries .
Mr . E . B . Roche , Mr . Napier , Mr . Moore , Mr . M'Cuxlagh , Mr . Reynolds , and Sir Robert Inglis opposed the bill . Mr . Sadleir , Lord Naas , Mr . Sheil , and Colonel Thompson supported it . Sir George Grey urged the importance of havin ^ a secretary of state for Ireland , present in the Cabinet , and able to watch over the interests of that country both there and in Parliament . Much as he desired to see unity of action in all parts of the empire , he did not think it would be possible for the Home Secretary to take upon himself the immense additional mass of labour connected with Ireland . He thought , however , that it would be extremely desirable , and might be practicable after a time , that an arrangement might be made by which the duties ofthe . se offices should be discharged by one man .
Mr . Disraeli considered the bill an unwise and ill-natured measure . If the Secretary was to reside in Ireland he must be its governor , if in England , he must depend upon subordinates , and could not be free from local influence . The House having divided , the numbers were : — For the amendment , 295—against it , 70 Majority against it , 205 . Lord John Russell called the attention of the House of Commons on Monday to the course of proceeding with respect to addresses to the Crown . In the case of resolutions of that House an opportunity
was afforded for a reconsideration of its decision ; but when an address to the Crown was agreed to , the advisers of the Crown must either comply with the address , or , if not , there would be a tendency to a breach between the Crown and the House of Commons , which it was desirable , except on very grave occasions , to avoid . It seemed to him desirable , in order to place addresses to the Crown on the same footing as other proceedings of the House , that the same course should be pursued as with addresses to th *» Crnwn in atiswpr to thfi Queen ' s Sneech : liamelv .
to refer them to a committee , who should make a report which might be reconsidered , and an opportunity would thereby be afforded to the House to express its opinion upon the subject on another daj r . For this purpose it would be necessary to alter the orders of the House . The important question of—How to promote the growth of Cotton in India ? was brought tinder discussion in the House of Commons , on Tuesday evening , by Mr . Bright , who moved
" That an humble address be presented to her Majesty , praying her Majesty to appoint a commission to proceed to India to inquire into the obstacles which prevent an increased growth of cotton in that country , and to report upon any circumstances which may injuriously affect the economical and industrial condition of the native population , being cultivators of the soil within the presidencies of Bombay and Madras . " The arguments by which he endeavoured to show the urgent necessity for such a step , were , the great importance of the cotton manufacture , which furnishes employment and subsistence to 2 , 000 , 000 of the population ; the evils arising from our depending chiefly on the United States for our supply of the raw material , and the benefits which India , as well as England , would derive from an extension of cotton cultivation in that part of our empire . In speaking of the efforts which have already been made to promote the growth of cotton in India , he said that £ 100 , 000 had already been expended for that purpose , yet with little or no result . Tho comrnitte of 18-48 expressed its belief that the climate , soil , and population of India justify the expectation that this country might thence receive large supplies of cotton , the great question is , what hindtrs those expectations from being fulfilled ? The main cause is the extreme , abject , and almost universal poverty of the people . He quoted the testimony of Rainmohun Roy and various writers , including one nf the American planters sent out by the Eust India Company , to prove tho depressed condition of the peasantry of India , the ruin of the landed aristocracy , and the exactions on account of the Government revenue . The poverty of the people , " Mr . Shore said , " was almost beyond belief . " The report of the select committee of 1848 stated that the cultivators in tho cotton districts in the west and south of India were in the most abject condition , dependent upon moneylenders , who extorted forty or fifty per cent ., and regulated prices at their will , lie found that the advances made by the Government of India , to enable the ryots to carry on cultivation , amounted to no less than £ 500 , 000 a-ycar . lie then proceeded vo
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290 ® tl £ 9 L $ &ttet + [ Saturday ,
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PARLIAMENT .
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Leader (1850-1860), June 22, 1850, page 290, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1843/page/2/
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