§ MR. SERJEANT SIMONasked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether he is able to afford any further information respecting the claims against the Spanish Government arising out of the seizure of the "Lark" in 1872, and of the "Octavia" in 1875; and, whether there is any prospect of any early settlement of these claims?
§ MR. BOURKE ,in reply, said, that with regard to the Lark, our Representative at Madrid (Sir John Walsham) had been instructed on the 18th ultimo to direct the attention of the Spanish Government again to the claim made, and to call attention to the statement which had been before made of the claim for compensation of the owners of the Lark and the destruction of the vessel, and for the detention of the crew. He was desired to recapitulate the case to Senor Calderon Collantes, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, who was not in office when the last appeal was made and rejected by the Spanish Government. With regard to the Octavia, Her Majesty's Government had heard from Madrid that it had been delivered to the British Consul at Porto Rico. They had no information as to the number of the crew who were wounded, and the question of compensation as regarded the Octavia had not been raised.