complish. I hope, therefore, to hear from the noble lord either a contradiction of the objections I have stated, on the authority of sir James Lucas Yeo, to making Sierra Leone the destination of the captured negroes, and the place of residence of the commissary judges, and the commissioners of arbitration; or an assurance that he has it in contemplation to remove them all to some other situation, more eligible both in point of geographical position, and salubrity of climate.

Lord Castlereagh observed, that in settling an establishment on the coast of Africa, for the adjudication of captured slave ships or the civilization of negroes, government had, in fact, no option. They were obliged to take Sierra Leoneno other suitable place being found. Cape Coast Castle and other places, which had been mentioned, were fully inquired about, and it was ascertained that none of these places could be fixed upon for the establishment alluded to by the hon. member, with safety to the object in view, to the protection of the negroes, in consequence of their defenceless condition, and their contiguity to the popu lous districts of Africa. Hence the establishment was made at Sierra Leone, the internal organization and general circumstances of which were, he was happy to say, very materially improved of late years. The noble lord concluded with assuring the hon. member that government had not come to a determination upon this subject without duly considering the letters of sir James Yeo, to which the hon. gentleman had referred, as well as every other information that it was practicable to obtain, and that had any bear

Castle on another mission; and we shall probably obtain more real knowledge of the internal state of Africa from that quarter in the course of two years, than has been obtained for a century past: while from Sierra Leone, we obtain none whatever. In another of these answers, we are told that Sierra Leone presents the gratifying spectacle " of a community of black men, living as freemen, maintaining themselves by the ordinary pursuits of agriculture, commerce, or some mechanical art;" but, unfortunately for the veracity of this statement, within a few days after it was printed, some papers respecting the deficiencies of the civil list were also laid before the House, in which appeared among other items, bills to the amount of more than 30,000l. drawn from Sierra Leone, for the maintenance of those very captured negroes who are said to maintain themselves. Not to detain the House with more comments upon these answers, I shall only state that I have seldom met with more misrepresentations, fallacies, and falsehoods, within the same compass than they contain; and it does seem extraordinary that they should be received and acted upon as official documents, at the conferences at Aix-la-Chapelle, without being authenticated by the signature of any individual, but described merely as answers from the African Society in London, and from Sierra Leone who the African society are, I know not. We have indeed an African Company; but these certainly are not their answers; for I understand they gave answers of a very different nature, and which were not laid before the plenipotentiaries at Aix-la-Chapelle. We have also an African institution, who maying upon the case. perhaps now be denominated a society; but I do think that some persons should have made themselves responsible for the truth and correctness of these answers, which have been permitted, in this anonymous character, to influence the minds of the assembled ministers and sovereigns ROMAN CATHOLIC CLAIMS-PETIof Europe. I can allow for the partiality TIONS OF THE IRISH PROTESTANTS IN which gentlemen who have long taken an FAVOUR OF.] The Marquis of Downinterest in Sierra Leone may feel for their shire presented the petition of the Proown favorite bantling; and for their wish testants of the city of Dublin, and also to nurse it up into that maturity and con- another petition from the Protestant nosequence which it never can attain; but bility, gentry, freeholders, &c. resident this partiality ought not to be indulged in Ireland, in favour of the Roman Caat the risk of sacrificing those laudable tholic claims. The noble marquis said, that and important objects, which the bill now the petitions were most numerously and before the House, and the convention on respectably signed. The resident Prowhich it is founded, are intended to ac-testant population thus came forward to

The bill was read a third time, and passed,

HOUSE OF LORDS.

Monday, March 22.

solicit relief for their Roman Catholic brethren. Having been present when the petitions were agreed to, and at several other meetings which had the same object in view, he was convinced that it was far from the wish of the parties to promote any angry discussion. Catholics and Protestants appeared to him to be equally animated by a conciliatory spirit. He must also observe, that looking at the general state of the country, at the situation of our foreign relations, at the state of the Papal see, and the temper of the Catholics themselves, he thought no fitter time could be chosen for calling their lordships attention to the subject of the petitions he had submitted to their consideration. He sincerely believed that the Catholics were as well disposed as any other body of men in his majesty's dominions possibly could be to the British constitution and form of government. By the wisdom of parliament, many franchises of which they had been deprived were restored, and he trusted that those which were still necessary to place them on a footing with their Protestant brethren would be conceded to them. The spirit which animated the Catholic body was proved by a resolution passed at a late meeting, in which they expressed their determination to rely on the justice of parliament, to continue to be guided by a spirit of conciliation, to avoid feuds, and to promote education upon the most liberal principles.

not to claim any privilege, but to pray that others might be relieved from disabilities, the existence of which might, upon a narrow view of the question, be regarded as advantageous to themselves. The petitions were signed by the great body of the Protestant landed proprietors, and also by the most eminent merchants of that city, emphatically styled the Protestant city. In that city the memory of William 3rd, that truly Protestant monarch, was held in the highest veneration. Yet, consistently with that veneration, the inhabitants of that city came before their lordships to ask as a boon the removal of the disabilities under which their Catholic brethren labour. Surely they formed a body of persons well qualified to judge whether the measure they called for was one which could be adopted with safety. They came before their lordships, to give evidence that their neighbours, though professing a different faith, were, in their opinion, worthy of being invested with the same political rights as themselves. They prayed that their countrymen should not continue to be the only Catholics in the civilized world excluded from their rights. If there was any foundation for alarm on this subject, it was among those who had signed the petition that that alarm might be expected to be found. If there were any persons who still seriously believed that the admission of a limited number of Roman Catholics to seats in the two branches of The Earl of Enniskillen could not con- the legislature, and to a limited number sider the petition as coming from the great of civil and military places, to be given at body of the Protestant interest of Ireland. the discretion of a Protestant government, The names of many of the principal Pro- would threaten the establishments of this testant landholders did not appear as sub-country in church and state, those persons scribers. Not a single landholder in the county in which he lived, one of the most Protestant counties in Ireland, had signed it. He should probably soon have occasion to present à counter-petition.

The Marquis of Lansdowne not having signed the petition of the Protestant landholders, considered himself called upon, in consequence of what had fallen from the noble earl, to state that he was one of a great number of landed proprietors not residing in Ireland who fully participated in the sentiments of that petition. He would have readily signed the petition, had it been thought proper for him so to do, as a non-resident proprietor. If any body of petitioners ever were entitled to respect, it was those who had signed this petition-men who came

must acknowledge, that it was upon the petitioners the first danger would fall. They were the persons who must stand in the front of the battle, and encounter its greatest dangers. Yet, with that sharpsighted view to their own interests which any apprehensions as to the risk of life and property infallibly gave, they had signed this petition. No petitioners were ever more entitled to be heard with attention by their lordships.

The Marquis of Buckingham said, that he also would have signed the petition, had it been within the scope of the petitioners to have the signatures of landed proprietors who were not resident in Ireland. He hailed the petition with the greatest satisfaction, considering it as a great step gained in behalf of that liberal

spirit of conciliation, which it was so eminently desirable should be extended to our Catholic fellow-subjects.

The Earl of Darnley expressed his satisfaction at the manner in which the spirit of conciliation which animated the Protestants had been met by the Catholics, and hoped that their demands, for which justice, humanity, and policy equally pleaded, would be granted,

Ordered to lie on the table.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
Monday, March 22.

COPY-RIGHT ACT-PETITION OF THE LONDON BOOKSELLERS.] Mr. Lambton begged to state the substance of a petition that had been intrusted to him by that respectable body the booksellers and publishers of London and Westminster, praying a repeal of the copy-right act. It was enough to mention the names of Messrs. Longman and Co., Messrs. Baldwin and Co., Messrs. Rivington, Mr. Murray, and Mr. Mawman, to secure it attention; in short, it had been signed by all the respectable booksellers of the metropolis. The Petition was then read, setting forth,

"That the petitioners presented their humble petition to the House in the last parliament, respectfully stating the grievances which they endured from the operation of that part of the act of the 54th of his present majesty, intituled An act to amend the several Acts for the En'couragement of Learning, by securing the Copies and Copy-right of Printed Books to the Authors and their Assigns,' which enjoined the delivery of eleven copies of every book and volume for the eleven libraries therein mentioned, which after the passing of that act should be printed for sale,and humbly praying for relief; that the petitioners said petition was referred, with a number of others, to a select committee named by the House, who examined many witnesses concerning the matters therein-mentioned; and whose report, together with the minutes of the evidence taken before such committee, was laid upon the table of the House, and ordered to be printed; that the petitioners humbly submit, that the grievances which they have experienced from such delivery have been fully shown on such evidence; it appears thereby, that the actual cost of the books delivered by the house of Longman and company, since the passing of the said act, in July 1814, to the month

of April 1818, was about 3,000l.; and that another bookseller, Mr. John Murray, had lost 1,275., by the books he had delivered during the same period; it also appeared, that the delivery of eleven copies of only five works, namely, Dugdale's Monasticon Anglicanum,' his History of Saint Paul's, Portraits of Illustrious Personages,' Ormerods's 'History of Cheshire,' and Wood's Athenæ Oxonienses,' would amount to 2,198/.14s.; and that the delivery of eleven copies of only one work, Dodwell's Scenes and Monuments of Greece,' would, at the trade sale price, be about 275l.; the petitioners will not intrude on the attention of the House, by stating the various injurious effects on arts and literature in general, which this delivery is stated, in such evidence, to have produced, as well as on the property of the owners and authors of books; but they earnestly state, that if the grievance is manifestly great on high-priced books, it is not less individually severe in its general amount on the usual publications of the year; and the petitioners humbly submit, that the increasing custom of printing English books abroad is an additional urgency to the petitioners to solicit the House to remove from them the burthen of delivering these eleven copies, which so manifestly tends to increase the price of English publications; the petitioners therefore most humbly pray, that the House will be pleased to grant them such relief as to the demand and delivery of the eleven copies of books for the libraries in the said act mentioned, as in its wisdom shall seem most expedient, and more especially, by repealing the clauses of the said act which enjoins the delivery of the said eleven copies, excepting one copy to the British Museum."

Ordered to lie on the table.