then possess for the transport of troops; but though we
could gain time in transport, we could not save much
money; and the nine months of unhealthy season
remain. Our large steamers draw too much water to
allow of their proceeding far above Rangoon; and if
smaller steamers be used to take them higher, or to tow
gun-boats, those cannot be used to carry the cattle which
are necessary the moment the army leaves the banks of
the river. Then, in the last war, Rangoon was attacked
by surprise, and was taken by 10,000 troops; and the
great Pagoda, which was the protection of it and the
key to it, was unoccupied and unfortified. Now, there
is a great army; the old town has been razed, and
rebuilt four miles away from the river; and the Pagoda
is fortified and stockaded in every direction, and rises
200 feet above the river, commanding it with 100 guns;
and we take but 7000 troops in all our force. There
are home anxieties too. European regiments are taken
from Fort William and Fort St. David; so that, in front
of the Nepaulese, we are withdrawing the only regiment
which we have to defend Calcutta. In the last
war it was the personal influence of Sir Thomas Munro
alone which enabled the government to withdraw from
the Madras presidency 28,000 men, including Europeans:
such a step would be more difficult now. The
Madras army may be needed in the kingdom of Oude;
the King has not yet complied with our demands; and
the Arabs occupy Hyderabad, and all the forts around
it. "I remember, with regret," said Lord Ellenborough,
"certain passages in the recent history of the Madras army
which make me doubt whether we can despatch a large
force of it from that presidency on service beyond the
sea. The Bengal soldier is accustomed to leave his
wife and family in his native village when called into
active service, but the soldiers of the Madras army take
their wives and children with them into the camp; so
that when they go beyond the sea all their families form
a village, which is left without means of support.
When I arrived, some years ago, at Madras, I found
two regiments there, I will not say in a state of mutiny,
but so disinclined to proceed to China, that it became a
matter of deep anxiety and apprehension to the government;
and the cause of this disinclination was the
terrible state of misery and distress in which the wives
and children of the men of the regiments which had
already sailed for China were left. I see, my lords, no
alteration in the regulations of the service which can
relieve these persons from the distress which they suffer
when their husbands and fathers proceed beyond the
sea." But he would assume, for he doubted it not, that
we have entire success in the war. The result would be
the entire dissolution of the Burmese empire; and then
the governor-general would become subject to great
and serious pressure as to the policy he should adopt.
Enterprising British merchants would urge him, now
they have exhausted the teak forests on one side of the
river, to enable them to acquire those on the other side,
and extend their trade with Rangoon. The Calcutta
press is urging that an overland route to China might
be opened from the north-eastern frontier of Burmah,
if we annexed the whole empire. The Bengal army
remembers the great career which the conquest of the
Punjaub opened up to it, and is looking forward
naturally to the new field for its great talents and ambition:
and part of the civil service partakes in the hopes and
aims of the army. But the annexation of Burmah, or
even of any part of it, would be essentially a false
position; and we have seen that such are not to be
maintained permanently, with the greatest ability, and
the most perfect equipments of our armies. "A false
position is as dangerous to an empire as it is to an army,
and always ultimately vindicates its power over those
who sin against the first principles of true policy. I
feel, my lords, perfectly satisfied that the annexation of
Ava, drawing in that direction a large portion of the
vital resources of the British empire in India, will
naturally impair both its civil and military strength.
It is because I entertain these apprehensions of the
consequences of the military occupation of Ava, and of the
fatal effects of our most complete success, that I request
you, my lords, to call on her Majesty's ministers to
produce such papers on this subject as can be produced
without detriment to the public service, for the purpose
of making us acquainted with the causes of this war."—
The Earl of DERBY said at once, that there would be
no objection to produce such papers as had been asked;
but he proceeded to make a statement calculated to
allay the anxieties of Lord Ellenborough. The
substantive features of his explanations were—that the
expedition now on its way to the Burmese shores, or
already on them, is not intended to be one against
the capital of the country or into the interior; but only
to strike a blow against Rangoon and Martaban, which,
by striking terror into the minds of the Burmese, and
by showing the efficiency of our forces, would induce
them to make terms honourable to the British Government.
The second time Commodore Lambert entered
the Irawaddy he only made the same demands as at
first; and now, on his third and last entry, he bore word
to the King of Ava, that if he would express his regret
for what had occurred, and would pay a sum to
reimburse the expenditure caused in our preparations,
hostilities would be suspended and peace restored. Lord
Derby concluded by observing, that "if the steps taken
shall not be sufficient before the rainy season to induce
the Burmese authorities to tender their submission and
to enter into terms of peace, then it will be for the
governor-general to consider what steps it will be his
duty to take in the arduous struggle which will then be
forced upon him." Lord Ellenborough might be quite
sure that he himself was not more anxious than the
government to avoid a war, "and what they would
consider an inconvenience, a great misfortune, and a
disaster, the compulsory annexation of the great Burmese
empire, or even a large annexation of territory in Ava,
to our dominions."

Lord BEAUMONT brought forward the question of
the Foreign Refugees in this Country, and trusted
that the government would adopt the principles laid
down by Lord Granville, and that it would refuse to
play the part of an eavesdropper, dogging the heels of
every foreigner who arrived in this country, and
departing from that hospitality which England had ever
shown towards unfortunate exiles. The noble lord also
entered into the case of the missionaries recently
expelled from Austria, and concluded by moving for
papers relating to that expulsion.—The Earl of MALMESBURY
entered into explanations connected with his recent
despatches to Prince Schwarzenberg, and with regard
to the foreign refugees, declared that the hospitality of
England should not be denied them so long as they
proved themselves worthy of it.—After some observations
from Lord GRANVILLE with regard to the correspondence
which had passed between himself and the Austrian
government, Lord Beaumont withdrew his motion.

The Duke of NORTHUMBERLAND stated, in reply to
Lord Monteagle, that the government had received no
official intelligence from Plymouth as to the Loss of the
Birkenhead Steam-Frigate.—After some observations
from Lord ELLENBOROUGH, who spoke in terms of
reprehension of the way in which official secrets were
betrayed in India, the Earl of DERBY moved that the
house at its rising should adjourn until the 19th inst.—
The motion was agreed to, and their lordships adjourned
accordingly.

On Monday the 19th, the house met after the recess.
The LORD CHANCELLOR introduced a bill for the Abolition
of the office of Master in Chancery. It was
intended by the bill to reduce the number of Masters to
five, and to confine their jurisdiction to the winding up
of all business at present before them. The noble lord
adverted also to a second bill in preparation, for a more
general improvement in the administration of the law.—
Lord CRANWORTH spoke in favour of the principle of
the bill, and Lord CAMPBELL, in expressing his concurrence,
declared that the great root of all the delay in
Chancery was the constant reference of causes from
equity to common law courts, and back again.—The
Lord Chancellor explained that the bill in contemplation
would contain a proviso calculated to effect a partial
remedy of that evil. The bill was read a first time.

On Tuesday, the 20th, the Marquis of CLANRICARDE
drew the attention of the house to the Maynooth Grant,
and having compared the statement made on a former
occasion by Lord Derby with that made a day or two
ago by the Solicitor-General, wished to know distinctly