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Leader (1850-1860), 3rd March 1855, Edition 2 of 2, Page 2

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      Ftlhe Death Of The Emperor Nicholas, The...

      votes to support him against the 158 in favour oi the commission-market ; and a fact quite as great is the noble , soldierly , patriotic speech with which Sir De LacvE vajjs proved , from his knowledge on the field and his personalexperien . ee , the unjust , corrupt , ahti « ati » ual , ! aBBoldierl 5 « w' « Jting of the present system . As yet we are without r « Uts from SebaStopol or Vienna ; but the " indignation meetings"lbeld in various parts . ^ the coafltpy , especially an the active , north , show that fhe people willjbe very ill-prepared to view with leniency any more disastrous results of official negligence .

      A voice of another kind is rising . A meeting has been held at Manchester , confessedly the first of a series , to " prepare the public miad't -far -xt . peace on the terms now suggested by Russia ! This is confessedly the object of the speakers at that meeting—leading men in the once famous league 4 lie Wilsons , Hawsons , and Ashworths . An organised agitation for a disgraceful peace is commencing with that ; party , whuih , equally sriiall in numbers at first , set going tlie Anti-Corn-Law League . We doubt whether there will be the proportionately magnificent results ; but we do fear that there may be men in office , and not a few of -them , quite prepared to truckle to that Manchester 'party if it can inake itself strong ^ snough .

      It is not that Russia ; shows any sign of conciliating this country . The Manchester men remark that her agent has been " waiting for a month at Vienna y' but the Government of Russia has not been waiting . The preparations for a -war , the calling out of the entire militia , the aggressive movements on all parts of the frontier proceed ; and Sardinia is chastised by a Russian declaration of war , because she has joined the alliance of the Western Powers . Another blow to the Russian strength has come from the once despised Turks at Eupatoria , where Omar Pacha ' s first act is to repulse an attack of the Russian army in great strength . And

      the Emperor Napoleon , it appears now certain , will proceed to Sebastopol , probably to take the command in person . He is conscious , it is said , that he is responsible for pressing the Crimean expedition , and if so , 'his present step is at least not an ignoble way of accepting the ultimate responsibility . Interest thickens in that part of the world ; but there is no sign that " Russia" —be it Nicholas , Michael , or'CoNSTANTiNE that wears the title —y ields , South or North ; and for ourselves , we only . feel , solicitudetolearna jthajt ; Bntjsh _ jBtatesmen have been able to sustain their part in the North with a courage corresponding to the aroused spirit of their own nation .

      Discord has broken out in another part of the -world . Totally misconceiving fhe incapabilities of official coercion in the back parts of a colony , the Government of Victoria has attempted to enforce the fines fog gold licences ; the people burn their licences , organise themselves , and make declarations respecting the rights of English and Irish subjects : the officer of Government reads

      the Riot Act ; blood is shed on both sides , and the riot seems likely to become an insurrection . * f The Australian flag , " it is said , has been raised once more ; but the statement makes us doubt whether the Australians have fixed upon their flag , or , if they have , whether the gold diggers know it . The flag thnt wo have seen floating on the Thames displayed the Five Stars ; the " Southern Cross" is now raised as the standard of

      the Australians , though it would be quite as appropriate to tbo New Zealmidcrs . We doubt whether Australia has yet , like America , found her Mohawks or her Washington .

      194, - The Iibaidjeb. Lsat™Pay,

      194 , - THE IiBAIDJEB . LSat ™ pay ,

      The Ministry. Tnb Following Is The Compo...

      THE MINISTRY . TnB following is the composition of tho Ministry up to the present date . — JLord Palmbkston , JFirst Lord of tho Treasury . Lord Cranwoiitii , Lord . Chancellor . Lord Clarendon , Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs . Lord PANMcrnE , Secretary of State for tho War Department . Mr . F . Peel , Under Secretary for War . Sir Qbokqe Gkey , Secretary of State for tho Homo Department . Lord John Bcsseix , Sccrotary of State for the Colonies . Sir Gh O . Lnwrs , Chancellor of the Exchequer . Sir Cbabias ( Wood , Wtxot Lord of tho Admiralty .

      Sir W . Moleswsobh , Chief Commissioner ol Woods an $ Works . Lord Gba . nvji . eb , S ? rfl 5 ident of the Council . Lord C « SN 3 NG , » Postmaster-Generrtl . Duke Jiff Argyll , Xord Privy Seal . Lord flDuNCAN , Lord of the Treasury ., in the room of LaraTSlcho , retired . v , . « « . r * i VLard Sbanlky of Alderley , PwB ^ eat cof the Board of TIra . de . „ , _ __ , „ 3 ir . Vjbbrox Smi-eh , President of the Board of Control . ' „ _ . ~ { Lord Qshljsle , LaKt-Lietttcnant of IreJ « aB , upon the-Ba ^ gnation of'Ii « Ba'St . ^ Qermiins . i Mr . ' HoBSMAK , Chief Secretary for Ire and . Mr . Keogh , Attorney-General for Ireland . Mr . John David Fitzgerald , QC ., bolicitor'General for Ireland . The Duchy of Lancaster , and one or "two other posts , are , we believe , not yet filled up .

      The Baltic Fleet Of \8sa. Commander-In-C...

      THE BALTIC FLEET OF \ 8 Sa . Commander-in-Chief— Rear-Admiral of the Blue , the lion , Richard Saunders Dundas ,. C . B . Second in Command—Eear Admiral of the Blue , Michael Seymour . .,-, „ , Third in Command—Rear Admiral of the Blue , Robert Lambert Baynes , C . B . Captain of the Fleet—The Hon . F . T . Pelham . The fleet contains one ship ( the flag-ship , Duke of Wellington ) of 131 guns ; 1 Of 102 guns ; 6 of 91 guns ; 2 of 81 guns ; 1 of 70 guns ; 9 of 60 guns ; and 35 ranging from 3 to 51 guns ; the horse -power varying from 60 to 700 . The floating batteries are to be 5 in number , of 16 guns each ; mortar-vessels , 8 , of

      1 gun each ; steam gunboats , 28 , of 2 and 3 guns each . So , at least , says the Hampshire Advertiser , which adds : —" In addition to the naval forces of England , which are to consist of 100 steamers . Trance will send 50 steam-vessels and a powerful land armament , which-is now stationed ( says Galignani ) along the coast from Calais to Cherbourg . For the conveyance of these . troops and all the war ma-Uriel , the French Government have entered into a contract with an English company , the representative of which is at present in Paris—an arrangement which will have the advantage of leaving the vessels of war to act with all their power against the great Russian strongholds in the ~ Gulf of Finland . "

      Imperial Parliament. A Debate Took Place...

      IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT . A debate took place in the House of Lords , on Monday , on the second reading of the Criminal Justice Bill , which proposes to give Justices in petty sessions cognisance of all simple larcenies where the property stolen does not exceed 20 s . in value . At present , said the Loud Chancellor , there « re some ridiculous distinctions . Justices in petty sessions can try the stealing of a dog , but not of a duck ; of peaches or nectarines picked from the wall , but not of fruit that " has fallen to the ground . Lord Brougham-stated some-aggravated , results of the present system in its absurd delays . Sometimes prisoners are dismissed with a- nominal imprisonment of one day , because they have been

      already thirty or forty days in prison before trial . Last Lent , at Ay lesbury , the Lord Chief Justice had to try fifteen prisoners who had stolen property , in "the aggregate valued at 12 s ., and , therefore , averaging lOd . each . Lord Brougham also mentioned cases of three men , more than sixty years of age , sentenced at different sessions to imprisonment with hard labour ranging from four to six weeks , for stealing one farthing , one halfpenny , and one penny . In the same year , a man in his seventieth year was sentenced to tw elve months' hard labour at . the treadmill for Btealing to the value ot threepence . Probably thoro was aggravation in these caees , but they

      suggest the propriety of employing . professional assistance for magistrates who have to pronounce sentence . In five counties , containing a population equal to the one-tenth of England and Wales—namely , Somerset , Berkshire , Wiltshire , Hampshire , and Dorsetshire—out of 1500 cases tried at quarter sessions , 895 were larcenies under 5 s ., 450 under Is ., and 240 under lOd . In a similar proportion , it might bo calculated that of 15 , 000 offenders tried annually throughout England and Wales , about 12 , 000 are tried for larcenies under tho value of 5 s . By tho present law , expenses arc enormously increased and juatice is delayed . ordered to issue for

      New writs were on Monday tho City of London , in tho room of Lord John Russell , appointed ono of her Mujesty ' s Secretaries of State ; for Halifax , in the room of Sir Oharlos Wood , appointed Lord High Admiral j for Radnor , in tho room of Sir George Lewis ; and for ITorfarahiro , in tho room of Lord ^ Duncan , appointed ono of i ; ho Lords of the Treasury . ¦ Also for tho Montroso District of Burghs , in tho room of Mr . Joseph Hume . This writ was moved by Lord Palbikrston , who paid the tribute of a high compliment to Mr . Hume , reversing , in his case , what Goldsmith said of Burko , " who gave up to party what was meant for mankind . " Tho party-to

      which Mr-Hume devoted the labour of his life ^ a Jiis CCTattrjk-and beyond his country the general interests atf . mmftind at large . Sir Joshua Walmslei said thsttSVftr . Hume never made an enemy or lost i friend . SRe ^ frusted that a grateful people would no ' let theiOfflpOBtunity pass without a more fitting me morial-xworthyT * f Mr . Hume and the country . The «* my Estimates were continued in Committee of-Supfily on Monday ; on giving rise to . the usual conversations , both before the motion and in committee , 3 fr . Ftti « tt 7 H 4 mt forward the claims of Sergseatt ^ -Butlwsan , who Miad so distinguished himself ] au'd had "bean "mentioaefi by his General of Division ' Lord Palmkrston repeated the answer , tha t Lord Raglan-had authority . to promote one non-commissioned , officer in each regiment—the man selected in Sullivan ' s regiment perhaps being not less

      distinguished . Mr . W . S . Xindsay complained of immense effort-with little result in the transport service . He found a tonnage of 350 , 000 tons of shipping engaged in supplying our remnant of an army—a tonnage with which lie would undertake to convey the whole British army in the Crimea . He described a visit to the French Minister of War in . Paris , who sat in a room with a large map on which he mark ed th e positions of the divisions of the armies in Europe , and the same Minister had daily reports from the five directors of transport , infantry , cavalry , commissariat , and the medical corps , enabling him to know the state of every department and its stores in every place . The reply of Admiral Berkeley consisted in the remark that the vessels employ ed are in the service , not only of the English , but of the French and Turkish service , and they amount to not less than 100 , 000 men .

      Colonel 1- > unne called attention to the neglect of officers of Sandhurst in staff appointments . Out of 53 officers who have received the rank of brevetmajor , 41 were on the staff . The senior department at Sandhurst , replied Mr . Hardinge , can only accommodate 15 officers , and 9 of the recent brevet promotions have been from Sandhurst . Only 9 out of 50 rejoined Mr . Otway . Lord Hotiiasi pointed to other defects , even in the recent arrangements of promotion ; for example , an equerry of the Sovereign can "be appointed as a general officer when he has served eix years in that domestic capacity . The want of forage , and the ill-assorted provisions for the

      soldiers were amongst the subjects of complaint , Mt . Latakd and Mr . Duni > a-s stating particulars Mr . Layard found the horses literally eating each other ' s tails and manes off through starvation , standing in pickets for two or" three successive days in rain , hail , and snow . The men are exhausted ; they have got on to the sick list in order to have a few hours' rest . The want of hospital room in Scutari is still a grievance ; a ship with 300 sick men made the voyage from Balaklava to Scutari in two days , and then waited ten days to land a great number of the men . An extraordinary instance of management was mentioned by Mr . Dundas : —

      " When it was found that the inen on the plateau required vegetables , ... ., steamerL-l ^ rbLTlgpJL ^?! .... ?? . 1 !* .. ?? Constantinople to purchase some . On her return to Balaldava the captain could find no one to relievo him of his charge—no one would take the responsibility of receiving it . They remained on board until a strong remonstrance -was made to head-quarters , and then an order was issued by the commander-in-chief that tho officers and men should be allowed to go on board and take tho vegetables for paying for them . At thnt lime , however , vegetables were to be had on shore , though at

      a great price ; and as there was some difficulty in get- " ting on board few persons availed themselves of the permission thus given . Time went on , and tho great mass of tho vegetables began to rot , and , further representations being made at head-quarters , another order was issued—the order which ought to have been made at first—' that officers and men should be allowed to go and help themselves , without paying . Tho efl ' cct of this order was that , though a great proportion , of the vegetables had rotted , yet so much of them ns could be used at all was very soon got rid of . "

      Mr . Sidney Huudbrt explained the consequences under which certain societies had given aid for chaplains in the army . Originally it was proposed to send out twelve Church of England men , i'our Presbyterian ministera , and eight Roman Cutholic ministers—the Roman Catholics being tho proportion of about one-third , perhaps less . Certain religious societies wished to send out a larger Dumber , proposing 1 to pay half the expense , and the consequence was that the numbers sent out were doubled . Amongst tho votes passed on those days was 3013000 / for tho embodiment of tho militin .

      ,, . . Tho House having resolved into Committee m tuis bill , on Tuesday , the Lonu Chancellor stated tnnc ho proposed to reduce the jurisdiction which tlio petty sossions would have under tho bill from ws . to 108 . ; to reduce tho power of imprisonment from two years to ono year ; to enact that no conviction under tho bill should bo attended with any forfeiture ; to include the clectivo magistrates of the City of London within tho provisions of tho bill ; and to givo prisoners tho option of having their caeca aumnuiniy adjudicated on , or tried by a jury .

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), March 3, 1855, page 2, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_03031855/page/2/