§ LORD CHELMSFORD,in rising to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs for the latest Information he has received as to the Condition of Consul Cameron and other Persons in Abyssinia; what progress Mr. Rassam has made in his Mission; and whether any and what Efforts have been made in addition to Mr. Rassam's Mission to procure the Liberation of the Prisoners, said: My Lords, I need not apologize for taking so early an opportunity of calling the attention of the noble Earl the Secretary for Foreign Affairs to a subject which should be interesting to everyone who has the honour and dignity of his country at heart, and who can feel sympathy for the sufferings of his fellow-creatures. It is now more than two years since a British Consul accredited to the Government of 282 Abyssinia was thrown by the Emperor of Abyssinia into prison, loaded with chains, and subjected to the most cruel treatment. This long interval of his imprisonment has been filled up by a sad event, the death of his mother, which was greatly hastened by her grief and anxiety as to the fate of her son. My Lords, there was a time when the mere statement of such an indignity being offered to one in our Consular service would have roused the indignation of the people throughout the country; but it appears we are learning gradually to bear these outrages on our fellow-countrymen, in foreign countries, with patience and submission. The first occasion on which this subject was called to my notice was in the beginning of last year, when some friends of the Consul applied to me to bring the matter before this House, stating their opinion to be that the original imprisonment of their relation was entirely attributable to the fault of the Foreign Office, and that the prolongation of his sufferings was to be ascribed to the injudicious course afterwards adopted by that office. My Lords, I was reluctant for some time to bring forward such a charge, as I felt it impossible for me to do so without first obtaining all the information that could be desired from the papers in the hands of Government. I therefore applied to the noble Earl at the head of the Government, who was then the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, to know whether he would grant me these papers, and I must say that the noble Earl then endeavoured, in every possible way, to deter me from bringing the matter forward. He warned me that if I attempted to agitate the question I should be answerable for the increased sufferings to which the unfortunate captives might be subjected. My Lords, with this heavy responsibility thrown upon me, I felt it to be my duty carefully to select such papers as would furnish me with all the necessary information, but which, at the same time, could not contain anything that could prejudicially affect Mr. Cameron. My Lords, the noble Earl, to my great surprise, still refused to grant me those papers without the consent of the House, and I was therefore compelled to trouble your Lordships with a Motion on the subject. Upon the discussion which took place upon that Motion, the noble Earl repeated his assertions that my interference in the matter, and my application for these documents, were calculated to increase the sufferings which had been 283 inflicted upon these unhappy prisoners. My Lords, I entreated the noble Earl to tell me which of all the papers I had specified would be productive of that effect, and I received from him a most singular answer—namely, that he did not say that the production of any one of the papers would be likely to aggravate the sufferings of the prisoners, but that the production of all of them, taken together, and the comments likely to be made upon them in the newspapers would have that effect. The noble Earl resisted to the last my application for these documents; I was compelled to divide the House on the question for their production, and by a bare majority I succeeded in obtaining them. I examined the papers carefully, and I am of opinion that they fully justify the friends of the Consul in the opinion that his original imprisonment was attributable mainly to the fault of the Foreign Office, and that they had taken a most injudicious course to obtain his release. I therefore felt it my duty to bring the question before the House. On that occasion the noble Earl said that
I had then, as on a former occasion, shown myself entirely regardless of the safety of Consul Cameron and the other persons imprisoned by the Emperor of Abyssinia if I could only throw blame on the Government.My Lords, this is a very serious charge, and I trust the House will believe me when I utterly deny that there is the slightest foundation for it. I felt for the unhappy captives most deeply. Indeed, it was impossible that anybody could receive the statement of what these prisoners had to endure with the indifference imputed to me by the noble Earl; and, considering that the relations of the Consul felt they had a right to complain of the conduct of the Government, a complaint which I thought was justified by the papers before me, I saw no reason why I should shrink from the duty I had undertaken of calling your Lordships' attention to them. I think upon that occasion the noble Earl might have been better employed in showing that the judgment I had formed on these papers was not well-founded than in attributing motives to me, of which, if they had existed, he must have been entirely ignorant. I shall not, on the present occasion, trouble your Lordships with a repetition of the sad history of the sufferings of these unfortunate prisoners, but will confine myself to the proof, as it appears to me, that all which has happened to them is to be ascribed, shall I say to the neglect or 284 want of judgment—I know not how to characterize it—of the Foreign Office; and that having been the original cause of those sufferings, the course taken is one which has proved, as might have been expected, an utter failure. When speaking of the Foreign Office your Lordships will understand that the noble Earl now Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (the Earl of Clarendon) is not answerable for any of these transactions. When they occurred the noble Earl was, I believe, not even a Member of the Government; he has only held the seals of the Foreign Office for a very short time. As I have always said, the whole of the misery which these prisoners have so long suffered, and which they are now suffering, is attributable to the fact of the Foreign Office having neglected to answer a letter which was sent by the Emperor of Abyssinia to this country, requesting that there might be mutual embassies between the two countries upon the footing of the Treaty of 1849, which was ratified and laid before Parliament. Consul Cameron in 1863 was upon the very best terms with the Emperor, and the Emperor thought it was a fit occasion to renew a project which he had long in view of cementing the friendly alliance between the two countries, and accordingly he sent the letter to the Queen to which I have already alluded, and which arrived in this country in February, 1863. That letter was unnoticed until the month of June, 1864—sixteen months afterwards. Upon the occasion of one of the discussions that took place on this unfortunate subject, the noble Earl (Earl Russell) said—may I say in a fit of unwonted candour?—he must admit there was some delay in answering this letter; but when I originally charged this delay upon the noble Earl, he rather smiled at my simplicity in supposing that a letter of that sort could be so easily answered. I will not, though encouraged by the noble Earl, do so much injustice to the united wisdom of the Cabinet as to imagine that a letter of any kind could take sixteen months to consider. I am rather disposed to think that the way in which the affairs of Europe and America were then pressing on the noble Earl occasioned him entirely to overlook a circumstance of such comparative insignificance as the indignities offered to a British Consul by a Sovereign to whom he was accredited. But be that as it may, it unfortunately occurred that the Emperor, about November, 1863, had his feelings 285 strongly excited against two missionaries who were in Abyssinia, and they were imprisoned. I do not mean at all to enter into their case; I shall confine myself entirely to that of the Consul. The Emperor had been in a state of great excitement because the letter he had written a year before had received no attention whatever. He was incensed at the slight and affront offered to him; he let loose his feelings on the Consul, and caused him to be imprisoned. Now, I say, as far as these facts go, that I am entirely warranted in the judgment at which I arrived, carefully weighing and considering all the circumstances, that the original cause of the Consul's imprisonment was the omission to answer the Emperor's letter. But the Foreign Office was aware in the month of June, 1864, of the consequences of this unfortunate omission, and the important practical question now is, in what manner they Bet about to repair the mischief that had been caused. I have always maintained this—that under the circumstances in which the prisoners were placed, and with the irritated and excited feelings of the Sovereign, it would be necessary that a mission should be despatched from this country, at the head of which an Englishman of some mark should have been placed, and that he should not have gone empty-handed, but charged with presents, the customary mode of approaching Oriental princes. When I suggested this on a former occasion, the noble Earl said that the notion of sending presents to the Abyssinian Sovereign was absurd, and it would only be an inducement to him to believe that the best way of insuring respect and consideration was to imprison a British Consul. I did not think that a very good answer, but I was obliged to accept it at the time. Will it be believed that since it was given the person who has been employed in the mission has been charged with very considerable presents, which he was intrusted to deliver if he were permitted to approach the monarch? Instead of sending a subject of this country at the head of the mission, the Foreign Office, most unfortunately, as I think, selected for this office a Mr. Rassam, who was the Assistant to the Political Agent at Aden—a man I have no doubt of very considerable ability, who had, I believe, assisted Mr. Layard, the Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs, in his interesting excavations at Nineveh; but to whom there was this most decided objection—even if he had ten times his ability 286 and all the diplomatic skill any man ever possessed—he was an Asiatic, and for that very reason just the person who ought not to have been selected. Am I justified in the anticipations I formed at the time, that this was an unfortunate selection? Mr. Rassam arrived at Massowah in August, 1864, and he has never yet been permitted to approach the Emperor. Shortly after his arrival the Emperor, curious to know what sort of mission had been sent from England, despatched two of his subjects to Massowah, to examine and inspect, and there they found Mr. Rassam alone, with no presents. I believe an English medical man had accompanied him, but he had gone on leave of absence, and had left Mr. Rassam alone. The emissaries immediately returned with an account which certainly did not induce the Emperor of Abyssinia to respect the mission. If the Government had been driven to this selection, if there had been no one else to appoint to this mission but Mr. Rassam, of course that would be an answer to all objection; but various applications were made to the Foreign Office for permission to go out on this particular mission. Among others, there was one from a distinguished military officer who had been engaged on very delicate diplomatic missions in the East—Sir William Coghlan. There were also other persons I might mention; but I think it quite sufficient to say that the selection made was not likely to be palatable to the Sovereign of Abyssina, nor to meet with his approbation. The Government, however, persisted in the selection of Mr. Rassam, and the consequence has been the failure of the mission up to this time, and from the last accounts received of the unfortunate prisoners it appears that they were still chained hand and foot. Whether there have been any occasional remissions in the severity of their confinement, I am not aware; but this was the account received respecting them down to so late a date as November last. I wish to know particularly what the Foreign Office has done for the purpose of supplying the deficiencies in the mission which they intrusted to Mr. Rassam. I understand that Mr. Palgrave has been sent out; but by the last accounts from him he had been at Cairo on six weeks' leave of absence, being satisfied that his services were not required to assist Mr. Rassam. With respect to Mr. Rassam, he has applied to the Emperor for a safe conduct, which he had not yet obtained. The Em- 287 peror of Abyssinia had gone on an expedition against rebels; therefore, many weeks or months must elapse before the safe conduct could be used, if ever it were sent at all. Now, I trust I have fairly stated the grounds on which I feel the deepest interest relative to this matter. I am most anxious to know what are the latest accounts relative to the condition of these unfortunate captives—for Consul Cameron is not the only captive—and whether Mr. Rassam has made any and what progress in his mission? I wish also more particularly to know whether any further effort has been made, beyond the mission of Mr. Rassam, from which we may indulge a hope of the liberation of these unfortunate prisoners at no distant day?
§ THE EARL OF CLARENDONMy Lords, I felt no surprise whatever that the noble and learned Lord, after the deep interest he has taken in the fate of these unfortunate men, should have, on the very first day of the Session, given notice of his desire to receive full information respecting the condition of these unfortunate men. He says very justly that the deep interest he feels is shared by a great many persons—we are all concerned for what has taken place; but I cannot help regretting the acrimony of the noble and learned Lord's tone, which I think uncalled for, and calculated to effect no benefit. The fact is, that up to this moment we do not know the real cause of Consul Cameron's detention. The noble Lord said it was on account of a letter not being answered in proper time, and we know that Captain Cameron has said that until the letter has received a civil answer he will not be liberated; and we know also that the missionaries and others have said that the cause of his detention is an alteration in the policy of this country towards Abyssinia. Now, though I admit there may have been delay on the part of the Foreign Office in answering the letter, the fact is that no great importance was attached to the letter, because the only essential part of it had been already answered by my noble Friend behind me (Earl Russell), who said that, before the Government could agree to certain things desired by the Emperor of Abyssinia, he must desist from the scheme of conquering provinces, and must ratify the treaty agreed to by his predecessor. The Emperor's answer was that he would not give up his schemes of conquest, and would not ratify the treaty.
§ THE EARL OF DERBYobserved, that 288 the treaty had already been ratified by one of his predecessors, and there was no occasion for the present Emperor of Abyssinia to agree to it, as it was in force.
§ THE EARL OF CLARENDONIt was not in force if the Emperor would not give force to it. Consul Cameron was directed to return to Massowah which were the head-quarters of his consulate, and to remain there until further orders. Unfortunately, Consul Cameron did not obey these instructions, or the instruction of the Emperor, but remained in Abyssinia; and it was to this his not having proceeded to Massowah as directed that all this distress and suffering have occurred. We know that the bearer of a letter from the Emperor of the French was thrown into chains because the letter was signed by M. Drouyn de Lhuys and not by the Emperor of the French. Our object was to prevent intermeddling in the affairs of the country, and when we found that Consul Cameron was mixed up with them a letter was written to him telling him to return to Massowah, and there to attend to his duties. This letter fell into the hands of the Emperor of Abyssinia, and, it is said, unfortunately caused the sufferings of the prisoners to be increased. The first we heard, not of the imprisonment, but of the detention of Consul Cameron, came by rumour through Egypt. It was, then, to be considered in what manner we should proceed—whether by force or negotiation, in order to effect the liberation of the prisoners. Now, to attempt to send an army across that deadly plain which separates Abyssinia from the sea, and to penetrate into the interior of the country through mountain passes and difficulties unknown, without any basis of operations or means of obtaining supplies, would have been a vain and idle endeavour. In such case the Emperor would have carried his prisoners further into the interior, or would have massacred them, while we should have sacrificed many thousand lives. Next came the question how should an attempt be made to attain the desired object by negotiation. The noble and learned Lord says that if he had been responsible for the matter he would have sent out an important mission, headed by a man of rank. Now I think that if he had been responsible he would have done no such thing, for it is likely that the members of that mission would have shared the same fate as Consul Cameron. We have evidence for believing that the Emperor of Abyssinia supposed that by 289 keeping these men prisoners he would coerce the British Government into his policy. Therefore, I think that every man belonging to such a mission as the noble Lord suggested would have been thrown into chains; and I need not say how much the difficulties of the case would have been aggravated by such an event. That Consul Cameron had fallen into a state of captivity was his own fault; but if the Queen had sent from this country an important mission, and if all the members of it had been thrown into chains, it would then have been necessary to adopt every measure to obtain their release, or the prestige of England would have been at an end throughout the East. When, therefore, in the case of the present prisoners we had to decide on the selection of an efficient agent, our choice fell on Mr. Rassam. I am at a loss to account for the hostility which the noble and learned Lord has now, and in the previous Session, displayed towards Mr. Rassam.
§ LORD CHELMSFORDI have invariably said that I had no doubt Mr. Rassam was a man of very great ability. My only objection to his appointment was—and I considered it a conclusive objection—that he was not a European.
§ THE EARL OF CLARENDONThe noble and learned Lord may have said that, but he has also always contended that he was an unfit person to be sent out on his present mission.
§ LORD CHELMSFORDOnly on that ground.
§ THE EARL OF CLARENDONOnly on that ground ! The noble and learned Lord could have said nothing more decisive—such language, I maintain, calculated to lead the Emperor of Abyssinia, if his words reached him, to think that to send Mr. Rassam on this mission was an insult towards him on the part of this country. The noble and learned Lord and the press have thus, I am sorry to say, done their best to second the failure of that mission. One would suppose, too, from what has fallen from the noble and learned Lord, that Sir William Coghlan shared with him the opinion that Mr. Rassam was not a proper person to select, but I will read to the House what it is that Sir William Coghlan really thinks of that gentleman. He says—
Mr. Rassam's antecedents, his status, and his qualifications are greatly misunderstood and misrepresented by a portion of the press of this country. He has been variously styled Levantine, 290 Greek, obscure Armenian, Turkish subject, nondescript, &c. In answer to these assertions it is but just to a very deserving public servant to say what Mr. Rassam really is. He was born at Mossul, of Christian parents (his brother is British Vice Consul there), he received his education in England, he is a gentleman in manners and conduct, and his qualifications for the peculiar line in which he has been employed during the last ten years cannot be surpassed. I speak with confidence on this point, for Mr. Rassam was my assistant at Aden during many years of trouble; a part of that time he held charge of our political relations at Muscat, and acquitted himself to the entire approval of the Government which placed him there. In short, Mr. Rassam's whole previous career well justified the expectation which Her Majesty's Government entertained in appointing him to the delicate and difficult mission on which he is now employed. The disappointment of that expectation is not attributable to any fault of his.I think your Lordships will scarcely, after that statement of Sir William Coghlan, be of opinion that Mr. Rassam was not a proper person to send on this mission. Besides, he was at Aden, near the spot, and much delay was obviated by his appointment. He was therefore ordered to go in charge of a letter from the Queen, and requested to put himself in communication with the Emperor of Abyssinia, and to ask for a safe-conduct. It was deemed necessary that he should do this; because if, being the bearer of a letter from Her Majesty, he happened to be put in chains and thrown into prison, an additional insult would be offered to this country. He, moreover, managed to place himself in communication with Consul Cameron, and was warned by him not to enter the Emperor's dominions unless he had a safe-conduct. This he succeeded in getting; but the document was of a somewhat suspicious character, inasmuch as it was not signed by the Emperor himself. He was, however, advised by Consul Cameron to accept it. Considerable delay took place in Mr. Rassam's departure for the interior while he waited for answers to the letters which he had written to the Emperor. The public at home became very anxious on the subject, and my noble Friend (Earl Russell) did accept the offer of Mr. Pal-grave, who was, however, informed that his mission was not to interfere with that of Mr. Rassam. It was afterwards represented that the Emperor might feel insulted if the two missions were to go out at the idea of having what he might suppose to be an inferior person, not the bearer of a letter from the Queen, sent into his dominions, and it was decided that 291 Mr. Rassam should proceed on his mission. I can assure the noble and learned Lord that Her Majesty's Government are as anxious as to the result of that mission as he can possibly be, and since he gave notice of putting a Question on the subject on the first night of the Session, I have received letters relating to it which I shall be glad to read to the House, although, I am sorry to say, they do not contain proofs of the deliverance of the prisoners. The first is from Colonel Merewether, and is dated Aden, January 21. It is as follows:—The Victoria returned from Massowah this morning, bringing news from Rassam up to the 8th of November, and from Cameron to the 28th of September. I enclose copies of Cameron's letters to Rassam; also one from Mr. Stern to Rassam. These letters from the prisoners were received by M. Munzengen on the 16th of December. The delay on the road was caused by the messengers being afraid of the cholera, which they were told was raging at Massowah. M. Munzengen adds that he had received no news direct from the prisoners later than the 28th of September. It was said that King Theodore had come to Godjan, and M. Munzengen thought the news was authentic. When the King had come so much nearer to Metemneh, Mr. Rassam could not delay to enter into communication with him, and M. Munzengen felt sure that decisive news would very shortly be received. It was given out that the King was taking the prisoners with him, but that required confirmation. Rassam will have told you all about his own progress in his letter to you. M. Munzengen reports that Rassam left Kasala on the 9th of November, and was expected to reach Metemneh by the 20th. Long ere this I hope he has had an interview with the King and effected the release of the captives. Dr. Beke arrived here on the 10th, and, as the Victoria was proceeding to Massowah on the 11th, I gave him and an Abyssinian priest he had with him a passage in her. Some of his stores had not arrived here yet, and he cannot go up country without them, he told me; so I hope before they reach him we shall hear of Rassam's complete success, so as to render any further attempts of Dr. Beke's unnecessary.The next is from Mr. Rassam himself. Mr. Rassam, writing from Kasala on the 8th of November, says—The head cameleer, who has been ordered to get camels for me by the Governor, hopes that we shall start this afternoon, or at the latest early to-morrow morning; if so, I hope to be at Metemneh on or about the 20th instant, five days later than I calculated upon when I left Massowah, as I did not expect to have had so much difficulty in obtaining camels.…You may get this letter about Christmas time, when I hope to be enjoying myself with His Majesty of Ethiopia. [This letter was received on the 7th of February.] I trust that I shall yet succeed in accomplishing what is required of me, and I have not the least doubt of that end through the good wishes of my friends.292 The next letter which I shall quote is from Mr. Cameron to Mr. Rassam, and is dated from Magdala Prison, Abyssinia, September 18, 1865. It says—We have had some trouble in getting comfortably through the winter, owing to the difficulty of getting provisions, but there has been no one ill except Rosenthal, who has been shut in for about ten days with neuralgia and sore eyes. I am stronger and better than I have ever been since leaving England. Please God, all may end well. Pray send the two accompanying letters to England, and God bless you, my brave Rassam, and grant that we may leave this horrid country together.Although, therefore, I cannot communicate to your Lordships the gratifying news that these prisoners have been set at liberty, it is still some satisfaction to know that they are in better health than could have been anticipated. I think the policy which has been pursued by Her Majesty's Government in sending Mr. Rassam, who is as fitted for the task as any could be, is better than would be the tempting of Providence by sending out agents who would probably share the fate of the captives already in the Emperor's power.
§ LORD CHELMSFORD,in explanation, disclaimed having said anything in hostility to Mr. Rassam, but quoted the opinion of Sir William Coghlan, to the effect that Mr. Rassam's endeavours had failed; that there was nothing for it but to make another effort from England; that the long delays which had taken place had added to the difficulty incident to this matter, but that that difficulty must be encountered.