was

stance. The commission established in virtue of a certain convention that was entered into after some negotiation. That convention grew out of a threat of force on our part. Where force was absolutely used, there there was something to quicken the progress of an investigation like this. But this convention grew out, and was the consequence, of orders that were despatched for the seizure of Spanish property, in consequence of the negation of the British claims on Spain. When it was recollected what the condition of Spain now was, it might be inferred that it was extremely difficult to obtain the settlement of any of those claims. The noble lord and the house might rest satisfied, that on the part of the British government no energy would be left unexerted to procure a speedy adjustment of these claims on the one hand, and to effect any reasonable compromise on the other.

The house went into a committee upon the conduct of Mr. Kenrick. Mr. Denman addressed the house at some length, and concluded by submitting the following proposition:

"That this committee is of opinion, that the allegations contained in the petition of Martin Money Canfor have been substantially proved.

"That the said petitioner preferred his complaint to William Kenrick, Esq., one of the magistrates for the county of Surrey, relative to the loss of a ram, and required a search-warrant, to recover the ram as well as its fleece, both of which were in the possession of William Beale, the brother of the said William Ken

rick's bailiff, but that the said William Kenrick refused to grant a search-warrant, or to take the depositions of the petitioner.

"That the said William Kenrick, in this respect, appears to have neglected his duty as a inagistrate, in not inquiring into facts of a suspicious character; and that his subsequent conduct, in causing the said petitioner to be arrested, and commanding and ordering him to be searched, was illegal, arbitrary, and oppressive, and a gross abuse of his authority as a magistrate."

The first resolution having been read, Mr. Peel replied, and concluded by moving-" That this committee, after hearing the evidence brought in support of the allegations of Mr. Canfor's petition, and the counsel for Mr. Kenrick, do not think it expedient to recommend any further proceeding in reference to that petition."

Mr. Canning supported the amendment, and Mr. Tierney and Mr. Holme Sumner opposed it; but after a few observations from several members, the amendment was carried without a division.-Adjourned at a quarter to two o'clock.

House of Lords, July 1.-The Earl of Liverpool rose to call the attention of their lordships to the state of the jurisdiction of the house with regard to appeals. In consequence of the immense arrears of appeals which had accumulated, their lordships found themselves, a few sessions ago, called upon to consider whether some means could not be devised for facilitating the administration of justice. A committee was appointed to consider the subject, and that committee made a report

in

in the session before last. What the state of things then was, would be seen by reference to the first paragraph of the report. It appeared that the number of appeals and writs of error then existing in arrear was 225, out of which 150 appeals were from Scotland. This number, in consequence of the accumulation which was to be expected in the course of each succeeding session, rendered it probable that the house in the ordinary course of its proceedings would not be able to dispose of the appeals in arrear in a less period than five years. With respect to appeals, the committee found that those from Scotland were not only the most numerous, .but that they were of the description which occupied the greatest portion of the time of the house. The question of arrear was the difficulty which their lordships had to encounter; for if the arrears could be got rid of, it would be easy to decide future appeals in the ordinary course. To facilitate the decision of cases from Scotland, an endeavour had been made by a change in the legal proceedings to separate questions of law from questions of fact. This measure, the effect of which must be very advantageous, was just coming into operation; so that their lordships might be confident, if they once got rid of the arrear, that they could go on prospectively without any difficulty. The report of the committee contained a number of valuable suggestions. Among other things it was recommended, that a certain number of their lordships should attend daily from nine o'clock to five, for the purpose of hearing appeals. Objection had been made to compul

sory attendance; but this course was finally adopted, and their lordships had had the advantage of the able assistance of a noble and learned lord (Gifford), who had devoted much of his attention to proceedings in appeal, and in particular to the law of Scotland, on which it was so often necessary to decide. The beneficial effects of this arrangement were soon felt on its coming into operation in the course of last year. At the commencement of last session the number of appeals was 282, and of writs of error 74, making altogether 356. During the session, 186 of these appeals were gone through, above 40 of them having been struck off; so that at the end of the session there remained only 170 undisposed of. But their lordships had to look, not only to the number of appeals they decided, but to the number of new ones which were brought forward in a session. The number which had come in on the commencement of this session was

52.

The number of appeals then standing was 201, and of writs of error 28, making only 229, instead of 356, as at the beginning of the preceding session. Of this number, 229, their lordships had already disposed of 126; so that there remained only 103 undecided; if their lordships proceeded in this manner, by the end of next session there would be left only 26 or 27 appeals undecided; but whether that number, or 30, or a few more or less, it was evident that by going on they would completely conquer the difficulty which once appeared insurmountable, and that this would be done independently of the improvement of the law of Scotland, which

would

would render less probable so great an accumulation of appeals from that country in future. It had been said, however, that this arrangement would only give occasion to more appeals being brought. He did not think so. If their lordships once showed that they were capable of promptly discharging all the judicial business which came before them--if no delay was expected, so many appeals would not come before them. The decrease of appeals during the two last sessions fortified him in his opinion. In 1823, the number brought was 59. In 1824, the number was 39, and in the present session of 1825, only 29. He now proposed, that of the five days of every week, which a part of their lordships sat to hear appeals, one day should be appropriated to the hearing of those which should come in the course of the existing session. If this arrangement were commenced next year, it would probably have a considerable effect both in disposing of appeals, and in taking away the inducement to the bringing of them. The result of their lordships' decisions might also be stated. It appeared that out of 86 appeals brought during the session, 63 had been affirmed, 17 reversed, and 6 remitted. The arrangement which had been adopted, his lordship said, had, generally speaking, given great satisfaction in Scotland; and after expressing his sense of the credit due to the committee for originating the plan; to the house for carrying it into effect; and to all persons who assisted in its execution; he concluded by moving for certain papers relating to the state of appeals, which were ordered.

The Earl of Rosslyn expressed his great satisfaction at the measure which had been adopted.

House of Commons, July 1.Colonel Lushington presented a petition from several officers of considerable rank in the East Indian army, interested in the distribution of the Deccan prize-money, and signed by Sir John Malcolm, in favour of the appointment of the Duke of Wellington and Mr. Arbuthnot as trustees.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer was glad to hear the expressions of the petitioners. Never were men so severely treated as the trustees had been. They knew well what obloquy would attend the discharge of a duty so difficult. They were aware that the most extravagant expectations were entertained by both officers and men, as to the amount of the booty. They knew that the claims made were too exorbitant, comprising, as they did, two millions of money; and the expectation of being paid even for the public buildings and palaces. Any other men would have shrunk from such a responsibility. The Duke of Wellington had been advised to have nothing to do with it: but with a magnanimity not surprising in him, he considered that no man in the service could be better acquainted with that army, and the whole of the circumstances of the capture, and therefore no man was better qualified for the task than himself. And from first to last, since he had taken the subject into his hands, he had been met by nothing but obloquy and misrepresentation, reproaches and calumnies, the most unfounded and the least deserved.

Dr. Lushington, notwithstanding

the

the warmth of tone and expression adopted by the right honourable gentleman, persisted in the assertion which he had made on a previous evening that the behaviour of the Duke of Wellington and Mr. Arbuthnot, as trustees of that booty, had been most unprecedented. He was surprised at this new zeal of justification on behalf of that noble duke. And then the petition which his hon. and gallant relative had just presented from whom did it come? From a part of Sir Thomas Hislop's army, which army had called upon him to make that representation which the petitioners, parties interested, now ventured to reprobate in their commander-in-chief. Did it not look as if this petition had been got up in consequence of what took place a few nights ago, with a view to giving the right hon. gentleman an opportunity to make that extraordinary defence of the duke? What was the information upon which these petitioners proceeded in reprobating their commander-in-chief? Did they know any thing of the difficulties which impeded the final adjustment and distribution of the Deccan prizemoney? If they did, how came it that they had not imparted any of that information which was so desirable for the case? Would his gallant relative undertake to say, that until signing this petition, Sir John Malcolm had ever been heard of in the transactions? He repeated what he had formerly said, that the trustees had conducted themselves in a most unprecedented manner; and that if they did not alter their determination, and put themselves in commucation with the cestui que trust, the

1825,

greatest injustice would be done to the whole body of the captors.

Sir H. Hardinge complained of the mis-statements and calumnies of an anonymous pamphlet published against the Duke of Wellington. The fact was, that until 1823 the trustees had nothing to say to the distribution of the prize-money. Since then, Sir Thomas Hislop had been required to give in a list of the claimants, which was not delivered till the 5th of June. So far the fault of the delay was attributable to Sir Thomas Hislop. The fact was, that both the Duke of Wellington and Mr. Arbuthnot had laboured indefatigably in the business on behalf of the soldiery and officers of that army, for which no man could have a higher regard than himself. He was sorry that he was not in the house on a previous evening, when the hon. member for Montrose presented a petition upon the subject, and the hon. and learned civilian opposite took occasion to say that a certain written answer given by the Duke of Wellington was impudent and insolent in the highest degree. Why, to be sure it was easy for gentlemen in their places to give utterance to expressions with respect to others who were of too high dignity to notice them, which they would not venture to use to the members of this house, or at any rate could not use them without incurring the responsibility of a sharp reply. He did not wish to curtail the liberty of speech which any member might think proper to claim for himself; but it really was difficult for any friend of that noble person to listen to such language without retorting his own words

upon the member who would venture so to use it.

Lord Folkestone spoke to order, in negligence of which the gallant officer had taken upon himself to refer to a speech made upon a former evening by his hon. and learned friend, although he had not heard it, and was, as he verily believed, proceeding upon a statement of it by no means correct. Sir H. Hardinge contended for his right in meeting the assertions made by the hon. and learned gentleman.

The Speaker spoke to order. Mr. Canning thought that the situation of his gallant friend was particularly hard. He had risen to defend a noble friend of his from an attack which had been made in his absence, upon a petition, of the presenting of which no regular notice had been given, and he was met by the forms of the house. Had his gallant friend possessed a little more of parliamentary tactics, he might have effected all that he wanted without interruption. He might have said, "I have read somewhere that expressions were used by somebody towards the Duke of Wellington," and he might have gone on to make his comments at pleasure.

Sir H. Hardinge thanked his right hon. friend. It did certainly appear to him, that as the practice of the house in allowing the discussions to go abroad in newspapers, had caused the circulation of the calumnies, so he ought to have as fair an opportunity for answering them. He denied, then, on the part of Mr. Arbuthnot, that there ever was a design of appointing his son, who was a minor, in his place. The statement was

false and calumnious. Mr. Arbuthnot's youngest son was 26 years of age. He had taken the opinion of the law-officers upon the right of appointing his son an agent, and he was informed that there would be nothing illegal in it. Such a system of clamour and calumny excited against men engaged in a business so arduous was highly to be deprecated. The soldiers had been taught to expect most unaccountable heaps of wealth. They actually looked to be paid, as it appeared by the abominable pamphlet which he held in his hand, for the public buildings and palaces of Deccan. As well might the Waterloo army expect to be paid for the Tuilleries; or those of the Peninsula to be paid for the palaces of Lisbon and Madrid.

No

Mr. Hume could not see what reason there was in the petition for the warmth and agitation which had taken place. It was not delivered entirely without notice, as the right hon. secretary for foreign affairs was pleased to assert. notice could be given to the Duke of Wellington and Mr. Arbuthnot; but the chancellor of the exchequer was sufficiently forewarned, as being the properest person to receive that information. He must contend still for his opinion, that the trustees had misconducted themselves in their refusal to give information, though they were ready to receive it, and in their other refusal to communicate with those who were the most deeply interested. He wondered at the exaggerations which were attributed to the petition. In what part of it did the petitioners lay claim to the price of public build