THE EARL OF ROSEBERY, in asking the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether the French Government has yet communicated the estimate, promised in the Note Verb ale enclosed by Lord Lyons in his Despatch of 3rd December 1883, of the number of persons to whom the Bill for the deportation of recidivists is applicable? said, that, as his Question was directed to a practical object, he only wished to state the case very briefly. The Question referred to matters of very great importance—namely, the deportation of French convicts to Islands near our Colonies in the South Seas. In the Blue Book on the proposed annexation of New Guinea and the Conference on the subject held in Australia, there was a Note by Lord Lyons on this subject in reference to communications he had with the French Government in regard to the grievances of our Colonists as to the importation of French convicts. No one could be more aware than he was of the extreme delicacy of saying one word with respect to a foreign and friendly Power on the subject of the deportation of convicts. But that Note had caused dismay and horror in the Southern part of Her Majesty's Australian Dominions. In the Blue Book it was suggested that the excitement about this matter in Australia was possibly exaggerated. He wished to say emphatically that it was not. During the last 40 years, since the last shipload of English convicts was sent to Australia, there had been no feeling in that country comparable to the excitement existing there now. The noble Viscount near him (Viscount Sherbrooke) would remember the agitation that prevailed then—in fact, pars magna fuit. Since that time the population had doubled, and the present excitement was more than double in intensity. He hoped the noble Earl would be able to give them some assurance on this subject; and if the French Government had not redeemed their promise to send some figures on this subject, he would suggest that some courteous intimation might be made to them to the effect that the subject was one which largely interested the inhabitants of a portion of 1003 the British Kingdom, and that further information was desirable.
EARL GEANVILLE, in reply, said, he was not surprised that the noble Earl, who had had so recent an opportunity of making himself acquainted with our Australian Colonies, should have thought it right to call attention to this subject, and to the strong feeling which existed in the Colony. He believed the noble Earl had not, in the slightest degree, exaggerated the sentiment and the feeling of sympathy in the Colonies with regard to the Mother Country, or their intense alarm as to the possible emigration of foreign convicts from any neighbouring settlements. The noble Earl might be perfectly sure that Lord Lyons, acting under our instructions, was neglecting no opportunity of bringing before the notice of the French Government the feeling which existed in the Australian Colonies on this subject. The noble Earl was quite right in saying that this question was mixed up with questions of International Law in a way which created a certain amount of difficulty and embarrassment; but it might certainly be expected from a friendly country like France that it would not, without very cogent reasons, take steps which might cause the exasperation which, undoubtedly, now existed in the Colony. The Government had not received the estimate of numbers referred to by the noble Earl from the French Government; but in a recent conversation the French Foreign Minister verbally assured Lord Lyons that the intention of the Government was to send the great bulk of convicts to French Guiana, and only a small number to New Caledonia, and these were to be selected from among men who had been trained to manual labour, and who might, therefore, be serviceable in the Colony.
THE EARL OF CARNARVONsaid, he was aware that the question was one of delicacy; but his private information was such as to satisfy him that the noble Earl who had asked the Question had not overstated or exaggerated the strength of the feeling about it in Australia. He had reason to think that the number of criminal refugees who had found their way into Australia was rather large. It was important that the French Government should be made acquainted with the tension of feeling that 1004 this question caused, and with the fact that there was always a risk of some strong measures being taken by the Colonists which would place both countries in considerable difficulty. He trusted that the Government, in their communications with the French Government with reference to this question, would use what diplomatic pressure they could, and would not treat the subject as if it were of small importance.
§ House adjourned at Six o'clock, to Monday next, a quarter before Eleven o'clock.