slave-owners compensated? How had the poor iaw been subject to abuses? What was the nature of the poor law amendment act? Who succeeded Lord Grey as prime minister? What miscellaneous measures were passed by Lord Grey's ministry? Describe the principal foreign transactions of this reign? What new pestilence appeared in England?

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

VICTORIA TO THE END OF THE RUSSIAN WAR,
A. D. 1837-1856.

Rebellion in Canada-The Chartists-Riots in Wales and Kent-Chinese War-Peel Ministry-Anti Corn Law League-Repeal Movement in Ireland-The Scottish Disruption-Repeal of the Corn Laws-Improved Social Legislation-Railway Mania-The Irish Famine-The Electric Telegraph-French Revolution-Chartist Discontent-Irish Rebellion -Repeal of the Navigation Laws-The Cholera-Hungarian Refugees -Death of Sir Robert Peel-Popish Usurpation-Great ExhibitionWreck of the Birkenhead-Burmese and Kaffir Wars-Russian War. 1. CANADIAN Insurrection.—WILLIAM IV. died on the 20th of June 1837, and was succeeded by his niece Victoria, daughter of the Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III. On the 10th of February 1840, she married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The first year of her reign was disturbed by a rebellion in Canada, which broke out in November, when the rivers were closed by ice, which prevented the arrival of troops from England. Although the insurgents were supported by strong bodies of sympathizers, and with munitions of war from the United States, the revolt was suppressed after a few sharp encounters. To prevent the recurrence of similar outbreaks, the provinces of Upper and Lower Canada were united into one, and the seat of goverment was 10th Feb. transferred from Quebec to Montreal, and afterwards } 1841. to Ottawa. In the following year, the north-eastern boundary between Canada and the United States, which threatened at one time to cause serious differences, was defined and settled by treaty; while the Oregon boundary discussion was terminated by mutual concessions in 1845.

THE CHARTISTS.-The year 1839 was disturbed by the proceedings of the chartists, a political body deriving their name from the "charter" of liberties which they held to be essential to good government and the wellbeing of society. The discontent attained its crisis towards the close of the

year, and

an extensive outbreak was organized, which fortunately was confined to South Wales, where the town of Newport became the object of an attack that was defeated by the energy and firmness of the mayor and a small body of soldiers stationed at one of the inns. The ringleaders, Frost, Williams, and Jones, were condemned to die, but their punishment was commuted to transportation for life. In 1840, a lunatic named Thoms, also known as Sir William Courtenay, misled a number of country people in Kent, and induced them to follow him. He shot a constable, who was about to arrest him for a breach of the peace; and the commander of a detachment of the 45th regiment, who had been sent in pursuit, met with the same fate. On the fall of their officer, the soldiers immediately fired upon Courtenay and his band, eleven of whom, together with their leader, were left dead on the spot.

2. CHINESE WAR.-For many years the East India Company, as well as private merchants, after the opening of the trade, had been carrying on a very lucrative commerce with China in opium, one of the staple productions of the Indian peninsula. The Chinese government, alarmed not less by the drainage of silver specie than by the frightful ravages caused by this poisonous drug among its subjects, had prohibited its importation, and forbidden its use in the empire under the severest penalties. As the people of China were still ready to purchase opium, the merchants gave but little heed to these orders, and a most extensive contraband trade was opened for the sale of the forbidden article. Some of the Chinese officials were not less ready to close their eyes against this infraction of the law than the merchants were to continue the interdicted commerce. At length several cargoes were seized by the Chinese authorities and destroyed, and British subjects, charged with attempts to contravene the regulations, were imprisoned. The commissioner, Captain Elliot, had also been deprived of his liberty. Such an insult could not be overlooked: satisfaction and reparation were demanded by the home government and refused, upon which, in April 1840, war was declared against China. Canton was immediately blockaded, and the city and island of Chusan occupied by an Anglo-Indian garrison. In the following year, Canton was attacked, and just as the besieging troops were marching to storm the walls, the city capitulated, and, on payment of a ransom of six millions of dollars, the British army was with

drawn. Meantime the war was going on in the north; Amoy was taken after a sharp struggle, and erelong Sir Henry Pot29th Aug. tinger dictated the terms of peace under the walls of 1842. Nankin. China ceded to Great Britain the island of Hong Kong, consented to pay an indemnity of six millions of dollars in ten years, and renewed her commercial relations on a freer footing, four other ports besides Canton being opened to foreign traders.

3. SYRIAN WAR.-While the arms of England were thus triumphing on the eastern shores of Asia, its western coast also became the scene of hostilities which, although glorious to our flag, had nearly caused a European war. After Mahomet Ali, the pacha of Egypt, had massacred the turbulent Mamelukes, he directed his attention to Arabia, where the Wahabees were plundering the country, and stopping the annual pilgrimages to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. These he soon reduced, and afterwards restored the Syrian provinces to order. He ruled its anarchical tribes with a rod of iron, but the country rapidly improved under his administration. It was no unusual thing for a Turkish pacha, when he had the power, to throw off his allegiance to the sultan, merely recognising a nominal authority by the payment of a small tribute. This was the course adopted by Mahomet Ali, but the sultan determined to lower the pride of his vassal, and declared war against him. The victory of Koniah, in Asia Minor, had some years previously opened the gates of Constantinople to Ibrahim, the pacha's warlike son. The Sultan Mahmoud then applied to Russia for help, which was freely A.D. granted; but the Russian auxiliaries did not withdraw 1832. Juntil, by the treaty of Hunkiar Skelessi, the keys of the Dardanelles were placed in their hands, to the exclusion of the other European nations. England, France, and Austria protested in vain against the prohibition until 1841, when by a special treaty the straits were again closed against all foreign war vessels. In the meantime, Ibrahim withdrew his troops, and the convention of Kutayah terminated the differences between the sultan and his powerful subject. These events took place in 1833. Hostilities recommenced six years later, when Ibrahim gained the battle of Nezib, on the Euphrates, over the Ottoman general, Hafiz Pacha, which was soon followed by the defection of the Capitan Pacha,

1839.

24th June who went over to Mahomet with all the Turkish fleet.

At this juncture the sultan died, and the five great European powers once more interfered in the quarrel. The jealousy and different views of the mediating powers, especially of France, soon put an end to unanimity of action; and accordingly, on the 15th of July 1840, the plenipotentiaries of the four other governments, in conjunction with the envoy of the Sublime Porte, signed the treaty of London, binding themselves to employ force, if necessary, to compel the pacha to accept their terms. The latter, relying upon the support of France, would listen to no arrangement, and an English fleet was sent into the Mediterranean to enforce the treaty. On the 19th of September, Commodore Napier, under the orders of Admiral Stopford, bombarded Beyrout. After allowing the governor time to surrender the place, the firing was renewed on the following morning, and the city reduced to ashes. The other harbours along the coast were also compelled to yield, and on the 3d of November the allied fleet appeared before Acre, which after a brief cannonade surrendered to a Turkish and Austrian garrison. Napier now hastened to Alexandria with a considerable force, and prepared for an immediate bombardment of the city; when the pacha, convinced of the hopelessness of continuing the unequal strife, consented to evacuate Syria and give up the Turkish fleet, the British commodore guaranteeing to him the possession of Egypt. After some delay, all differences were arranged, and Mahomet remained pacha of Egypt, which title was made hereditary in his family.

4. The Whigs, who had been upwards of ten years in power, with the interruption of a few months at the end of 1834 and the beginning of 1835, had for some time been struggling with a strong opposition in parliament, and receiving little support from the country at large. That their strength might be fairly tried, parliament was dissolved on 23d June 1841; but the elections proving unfavourable to the ministers, a new cabinet was formed with Sir Robert Peel at its head. Opinions in favour of free trade and the abolition of taxes on food had now made considerable progress, and they were partially adopted by the new ministry. On the 29th of April 1842, an act was passed for modifying the Corn Laws, which was followed by a measure for reducing many of the duties on imported goods. As the national income had been falling off, and was likely to be for some

time reduced rather than raised by the alterations just noticed, it was necessary to find some other means of revenue, and, accordingly, a tax was laid on property and income, applied to all persons having £150 a-year and upwards.

The almost unprecedented distress arising from a succession of deficient harvests caused the year 1842 to close amid general complaints; but trade revived, and the revenue increased in 1843. Great exertions were made by the AntiCorn-Law League to spread their opinions and influence the public mind. This body sprang from the party which had for many years supported the principles of free trade. It had its origin in Lancashire, and Mr Cobden, a calico printer of Manchester, was its most conspicuous leader.

5. REPEAL MOVEMENT.-The same year witnessed the rise, progress, and decay of alarming political movements in Ireland. A numerous body of the people had never been reconciled to the Union, considering it to be destructive of their independence, and regarding the restoration of the national parliament as the only means of imparting prosperity and freedom to their country. The agitation for Repeal first became serious after the passing of the Roman-catholic Relief Bill in 1829; a parliament was promised in College Green in Dublin within three years; and an association was formed by which popular passions were awakened, and the whole. country convulsed. With various alternations of fortune, the movement was kept alive, until Daniel O'Connell announced that 1843 was to be "the great repeal year." As soon as the machinery was put in motion, the agitation made rapid progress. A general contribution throughout the country, called the rent, which had averaged only £50 or £60 aweek, suddenly rose to £200 and £300, and the total of the year was £48,000. Monster meetings, attended by countless multitudes, were held in various parts of the country, and the agitators, growing bolder, appointed one to be held at Clontarf, near Dublin, on Sunday the 8th of October. This was prevented by government; and O'Connell with five of his colleagues was prosecuted. They were condemned to two years' imprisonment; but on appeal to the House of Lords the sentence was annulled upon a technical point. The agitation soon afterwards declined, so as to be nearly extinct, until it was revived in a new form in 1848.

6. THE FREE CHURCH.- -The year 1843 will ever be