LORD HOWARD DE WALDEN TO VISCOUNT PALMERSTON. Lisbon, May 20, 1838, (Received May 30).

MY LORD, I had an interview, on the 18th instant, with the Viscount de Sa da Bandeira, when I communicated to his excellency the contents of your lordship's despatch of the 12th of May, marked slave-trade,* and of which I delivered to him a copy. The viscount seemed hurt at this despatch, and remarked that he thought the communication of it peculiarly illtimed, at the moment when there was reason to expect that our negotiations were about to be brought to a satisfactory termination.

I replied, I should be very glad if that should turn out to be the case, and that, if the result of that day's conference should be the conclusion of the treaty, I would take upon myself not to render the communication of the despatch so formal as to leave a copy with

him.

After having reconsidered various points under discussion, as to details of articles, which had been corrected and revised repeatedly,

Printed in papers relating to the slave trade; Class B. Correspondence with Foreign Powers, pages 180 and 181.-Presented to Parliament on the 7th May, 1839.

we proceeded to discuss the question of making the slave-trade piracy.

I explained to his excellency that it was to the solemn declaration of the crown of Portugal, stigmatizing those engaged in the slave-trade with the brand of infamy, that the British parliament and her majesty's government attached so much importance; that, when in fact, the existing law of Portugal did enact, as the penalty of the slave-trade, a punishment such as might be considered of the secondary character, though not sufficiently severe, I did not understand on what principle he could resist the just expectations of Great Britain."

I pointed out to his excellency that slave-trade was declared piracy by the laws of Great Britain and of the United States; that Brazil had, under treaty, declared slave-trade piracy; that Spain had engaged to pass a law to the same effect, by assimilating her law in respect to the slave-trade to that of Great Britain; that in the Netherlands, slave-trade was punished with fourteen years in the galleys, under a law passed many years ago, when the feeling of Christendom against the slavetrade was by no means so strong and so universal as it is at present.

The viscount brought forward,

as objections, that piracy in Portugal was a capital crime, and came under an imperfect law in connection with high treason; and that it would therefore be necessary to enact a new law, to which he felt the greatest objection, with reference to the opposition which would certainly be entailed thereby to the ratification of the treaty by the Cortes.

I observed to his excellency that this very fact of the absence of a good general law relative to piracy would much facilitate the carrying through the measure in question; and that, when it was obvious to the whole world that in Portugal there was now a mania for legislating, the indisposition to submit to the Cortes a really necessary and effective law, on so important a principle as that proposed, connected with piracy, would be unintelligible.

The viscount then brought forward objections, such as certainly would be taken up in the Cortes, on the ground that the engagement by treaty to assimilate the legislation of Portugal to that of another country was unsuitable to her dignity. I explained to his excellency that in acting as Great Britain had done she was in fact only following the broad principle laid down at the congress of Vienna, and co-operating with all the powers in Europe for the extinction of the slave-trade; but that, if the wording of the article under mistaken feelings wounded any notions of dignity, I would consent to omit the expression assimilating, &c.," provided he would consent to the concluding stipulation of the proposed article declaratory of piracy.

To this proposition the viscount still objected; and on my pressing

him more strongly, and pointing out the mischievous effect and disagreeable consequences of the breaking off of our negotiations at this point, when the treaty might by this concession, be brought to a satisfactory conclusion, he said he could do nothing more on this subject without consulting his colleagues.

The viscount then revived the question of a guarantee to Portugal of her African dominions, to be given by Great Britain, in the shape of an additional article. I stated to his excellency that I had no powers to treat on the details of such a measure; that my official declarations laid down the basis of any engagements into which her majesty's government might be disposed to enter, and which ought to be accepted as sufficient.

His excellency, however, considered that a declaration to that effect, to be published simultaneously with the treaty, was not only of paramount importance to the security of the Portuguese colonial possessions in Africa, but that, accompanying the treaty, when presented to the Cortes, it would tend to mitigate and counteract all dangerous opposition which might be made by the opponents of the government to the ratification.

The viscount then delivered to me a project of an article, a copy of which I herewith enclose, and which although I declare it at once to be inadmissible, he requested me to take with me, and make my reflections on it against our next meeting. On Saturday I had another long conference, at which his excellency declared that the difficulties under which he la boured as to the piracy article were insurmountable. He stated

that no minister at this moment could venture to contract an engagement to pass such a law with a knowledge of the feeling which existed throughout the country respecting slave-trade, there being on one side active opposition to the suppression of the slave-trade, while total indifference was the characteristic of the feelings of the greatest part of those to whom the government must look for support as against the machinations of the advocates of the slave-trade.

There is certainly great truth in what the viscount states; but still with the prospect, as at present exists, of elections of a favourable character, I do not estimate the risk of opposition so high as his excellency does. But the viscount being party to a measure extremely obnoxious and injurious to the individual interests of certain influential persons, he is, perhaps, too much alive to the unpopularity which the act of signing a treaty for the abolition of the slave-trade will entail upon him with that party, and therefore overrates the chances of serious opposition in the

Cortes.

assistance which her majesty's government might be disposed to afford to the government of Portugal in the event of disturbances caused in the African possessions fomented and excited by those interested in resisting the operation of the law abolishing the slavetrade; but that I might, perhaps, if we agreed on other points, consent to sign a very general article, sub spe rati, as the basis of future negotiations. With this view I submitted to him the draught of an article, as roughly embodying my ideas on the subject, of which I enclose a copy.

In order to record the objections brought forward by the viscount de Sa da Bandeira, on the part of the Portugues government, to the required declaration as to piracy, I addressed a note to his excellency of which I enclose a copy, submitting draughts of two articles embodying that principle, either of which I proposed to adopt. In reply to this note the viscount has promised to make such a declaration on the subject of piracy as his excellency trusts confidentially will remove the only difficulty on the part of her majesty's government to accepting the treaty as it will stand on my departure from Lisbon.

I have, &c. HOWARD DE Walden.

Portuguese dominions in Africa' the treaty concluded between her most faithful majesty and her Bri*

tannic majesty, for the total abolition of the slave-trade, signed this day, her Britannic majesty promises in her name, and in that of her successors, as follows:

1. To guarantee to the crown of Portugal the dominions of that crown in Africa enumerated in article of the said treaty signed this day.

2. To furnish, in support of the guarantee promised in the proceeding paragraph, an effective assistance, both by sea and land, to the government of her most faithful majesty, whenever the latter may demand it from the British government, or whenever it may be demanded directly by the Portuguese authorities in Africa, from the British authorities in Africa or in India; it being, however, understood, that the governor-general of Mozambique may demand the said assistance from the governor of the Cape of Good Hope, or of Bombay, or of the Mauritius, but must

never require more than two ships of war and 500 troops for disembarkation; and the governor-general of Angola may demand the said assistance from the governor of the Cape of Good Hope, or of Sierra Leone, but must never require more than three ships of war and 800 troops for disembarkation. And that the governors of the other Portuguese settlements in Africa may demand assistance from the British governors in Africa; and that the latter shall be bound to supply it in proportion to the means at their disposal, and to the urgent need thereof.

The present additional article shall have the same force and vigour as if it were inserted word for word in the said treaty signed this day; and shall be ratified, and the ratification exchanged at the same time.

In faith and testimony whereof, the plenipotentiaries, &c.

foreigners, her Britannic majesty promises an effectual aid to the government of her most faithful majesty, when such aid shall be requested of the British government. The object, nature, amount, and duration, of such assistance shall be regulated by special engagements, to be the subject of immediate negotiation between the two governments.

Lisbon, May 20, 1838.

The undersigned, &c., having maturely weighed the objections

brought forward by his excellency viscount de Sa da Bandeira, &c., to the adoption of an article in the