THE MARQUESS OF CLANRICARDE,who had given notice of his intention to ask, Whether the European Powers, who, in 1815, guaranteed the neutrality of certain provinces of Savoy, which had now been transferred from Sardinia to France, had agreed to meet in Congress in order to deliberate on that transfer; also, whether Her Majesty's Ministers would communicate to Parliament the basis on which the contemplated Conferences were to be opened; said, he would not, at that hour of the evening, make the observations which he had thought were very well called for by the present position of foreign affairs. He 333 would only ask his noble Friend who represented the Foreign Office in that House the first question on the notice paper, with regard to the assembling of Conferences upon the transactions which had recently taken place in the North of Italy and Savoy. An answer was lately reported as given by the noble Lord the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, in the other House of Parliament, who said that it was proposed there should be a Conference of several of the Powers of Europe on this subject. He now wished to know from his noble Friend whether the Conference had simply been proposed, and the answers to that proposal had not yet been given by the Powers to whom it was addressed, or whether they were to understand that the holding of such Conferences had been agreed to by all the Powers. On the other matters of which he had given notice, he would postpone his questions to that day week.
LORD WODEHOUSEThe answer I have to give to the noble Marquess is that he has correctly understood what was recently said in "another place" by the Minister for Foreign Affairs. The Conference proposed for the consideration of the cession of Savoy has been proposed, but is not yet finally agreed on; and the question is not yet definitively settled as to whether that Conference shall meet, or when or where.
§ House adjourned at a Quarter past Eight o'clock, till To-morrow, a Quarter before Five o'clock.