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    Mat 5, 1855.] „___ THE LEADER. 413

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    THE SEBASTOPOL COMMITTEE. MONDAY. Captai...

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    Imperial Parliament. The Sardinian Conti...

    houses had no roofs in many cases ; there were pools of water upon the floors ; and the people were living upon potatoes and seaweed . One case had actually come under his ( Mr . Ellice ' s ) notice . A poor man was in the most destitute condition , and , by his advice , applied to the board for relief . What did the board do ? Why , they took away from this poor man ' s wife one-half of an allowance of Is . per week , which she had up to that time been receiving , and gave it to the man . The sheriff had taken some pains in this particular case ; but the apathy and inert opposition of the board had been too much for him , and he gave it up in despair . In another case , the horrible state of want to which his family were reduced had driven a man mad . " The Board of Supervision did not inquire into this matter until nine months afterwards ; and they then sent their own chairman , Sir John M'Neil—the man who was in fact the board , and upon whom , if upon any one , the blame of the existing state of things rested . The report which Sir John made out , Mr . wiin wui enimou ui uutu

    expire , and transferring the business of the latter Court to the former , giving it the power to add to its decree of sale a parliamentary title . As the business of the Court of Chancery would be by these measures much increased , it was necessary to provide a local Court of Appeal ; and this was the subject of the fifth bill , which did not create a new Court or a single new judge , but would afford the suitor an opportunity of a re-hearing of his cause before the Lord Chancellor , assisted by retired judges . The last bill modified the stamp duties to meet the altered practice of the Court . —Mr . J . D . Fitzgerald opposed the bills , and said that all the abuses described by Mr . Whiteside had been reformed by the Act of 1851 . —After a brief discussion , the debate was adjourned for a month . The Dissenters Marriage Bill was read a second time ; and the Income Tax Bill a third time , and passed .

    junee cnargea ueing me . He concluded by stating that by the present bill he proposed to introduce inspectors having the same powers and the same duties as those officers possess in England ; and that these inspectors are to pay periodical visits to the places within their district , giving notice of their intention to do so in order that paupers and othershaving complaints to make might attend before them for that purpose . The Lobd Advocate thought there was a good deal of exaggeration in the speech of Mr . Ellice , and , although he di £ not mean to deny that the law might be amended , it was unwise , he said , hastily to disturb the existing settlement . His simple objection to the bill was , that while it would not secure the object in view as regarded the appointment of special inspectors , the provisions of the present act authorise the Secretary of State to appoint such officers . Sir John M'Neil and the Board of Supervision had had a very difficult task to perform ; and the sweeping charges against them were , in his opinion , not deserved . Without pledging the Government , he recommended Mr . Ellice to leave the matter in their hands . Mr . Christopher joined in this recommendation : and , after a short discussion , in the course of which the conduct of Sir John M'Neil was defended by Mr . C . Bruce , Mr . Ellice withdrew his motion , being satisfied with the assurance which had been given that Government would take the subject into consideration . SUNDAY TRADING BILI-. I / Ord Robert Grosvenor moved the second reading of this bill , which was supported by Lord Ebrington , the Marquis of Blandford , Sir George Grey , Mr . James Macgrecor , Sir J . Sheli . ev , Mr . Chambers , Mr . Kirk , and Mr . Masterman ; and wns opposed or objected to by Mr . Wilkinson , Mr . Doscombb , Mr . J . G , Phillimore , Mr . Hadfield , and Mr . W . J . Fox . The arguments for the measure were based on the principle that the amount of Sunday trading which goes forward nt present is a desecration of the Sabbath : the chief argument against it was to the effect that the suppression of trading on the Sunday morning would be a great hardship to the working classes , who receive their wages so late on the Saturday night , that they are unable to market until the following day . —The bill was read a second time . —Mr . Duncombe then moved that it be referred to a select committee ; but this was opposed by Sir George Grey , and the motion was withdrawn .

    LAND AND A 8 SE 8 SED TAXE 8 DIVISION BILL . ]\ Ir . Frewkn , in moving the second reading of this bill , explained that its object is to facilitate the formation of divisions for which meetings of the Commissioners may bo held under authority of the Treasury . The Chancellor of the Exchequer was not aware that any considerable inconvenience was felt from the arrangement under the present law , and he therefore , and upon other grounds , objected to the further progress of the bill . If it could be shown , he said , that the present law is seriously defc ctive , ho would undertake , on the part of the Government , to introduce a . measure to remedy the defect . —The bill was supported by Mr . SrooNFit ; but wns rejected , upon a division , by 125 to 35 . Tlie Intestacy ( Scotland ) Bill passed through committee . COUUT OF CHANCERY ( iRKLANI )) . Mr . AVhiteside moved the second reading of a scries of bills , the object of which was to adapt to the Irish Court of Chancery the beneficial reforms which had been introduced into the English Court . The first of theso bills abolished the Mastor ' s-olHce altogether . The second amended the practice and course . of proceeding of the Court upon the model of I the English Court . The third bill altered the law relating to the appointment of receivers ; it consisted of matter of law , which was assimilated to that of England , and of matter of regulation . Tho fourth bill provided for tho sales of estates , by engrailing upon the reformed Court of Chancery all that was good in the Encumbered Estates Court about to

    Mat 5, 1855.] „___ The Leader. 413

    Mat 5 , 1855 . ] „___ THE LEADER . 413

    The Sebastopol Committee. Monday. Captai...

    THE SEBASTOPOL COMMITTEE . MONDAY . Captain Milne , of the transport service , was re-examined , and furnished the committee with several details relative to the Commissariat transports . He stated that the number of large steam-vessels now emploj'ed is 113 , and the number of sailing vessels 103 . The sum of money expended in this service during the past year was 3 , 000 , 000 J . In answer to Lord Seymour , the witness acknowledged that it would have been more economical to purchase the vessels at once ; but then , he said , the Government had not the means of manning them . In consequence of complaints made in the department , returns were ordered to bejnade by the senior and commanding officers as to the proper performance of the service , the regulations for which were read by Captain Milne and put on the committee records . When the Admiralty chartered vessels for the transport service , the owners undertook to supply the troops with stores . In consequence of complaint about the Trent and Kangaroo , the Admiralty caused inquiries to be made , and had power to inflict a fine on the owner of the ship , if there was any irregularity or insufficiency in the supply of stores . Several other eases had occurred in the course of the last eighteen months , and the Admiralty had refused to pay the money . The master and mate of the Robert Lowe were changed on giing out from Portsmouth ; but it was not reported to the Admiralty . If the crew did not know of their cargo , it was the fault of the owner . Every v ^ psel was bound by its charter party to have an authority on board to give , on arrival of the ship in harbour , an account of the ship's cargo . The witness admitted that the Admiralty ought to have taken notice of this breach of the charter party , and that it was answerable for not having done so . When the Prince was lost , the Admiralty did not know what the Ordnance had put on board , but they could ascertain through the Ordnance . He could not say whether it was a transaction of the Ordnance , or not , that some portions of iron bedsteads were sent out in one vessel and some in another , and that ultimately they never met . ( TJatigh ( er . ~ ) It was certainly desirable that the legs of bedsteads , to be useful , should meet the bedsteads themselves . In the month of August , Admiral Boxer complained that he had not a sufficient staff to perform the duties . The Admiralty then pent out the Harpy to be attached to him . If , as had been stated in the papers , a vessel was sent to purchase boots and shoes with a cargo of them actually on board , the Admiralty were not aware of it , and , from communications he had received iro HuiuoriLie bucii trans

    m me » , ue uuuevuu uu - action had occurred . Supposing the sick and wounded , in being conveyed from Balaklava to Scutari , had suffered dreadful hardships , the fault -would be that of the principal agent of transports . lie had of course heard of the horrors of the sick transport ships ; but he was not aware that any official intimation of them had been received at the Admiralty . Ho then read a letter from Admiral Boxer to Lord Raglan , written in January last , in which the admiral asserted , that while he was at Constantinople he had used his utmost exertions to render the landing of tho sick and wounded as comfortable as possible , but that there was a want of men to carry them to the hospital . The Admiralty never received any re' quisition to provide hospital ships : ships ought to have beon fitted for tho purpose . " Then you are not aware , " asked tho Chairman , " that Dr . Andrew Smith represented early in the year that such ships ought to bo provided ?"—I nover heard of it till this moment . " Whoso duty was it to tell you ? " —It was the duty of tho Commandor-in-Chief to communicate , through tho War-ollico , with tho Naval department . No doubt , tho ' difficulty with regard to bedding was owing to tho want ' of stores of thoso articles in Balaklava . ' I Sir J . Pakington . — "The suggestion was made Jvy Dr . Andrew Smith to tho War Department ; was any sent from tho War Department to you ? " — I never heard of any . For what was wanted out there , it was tlvo duty of the Cominondor-in-Chief . Lord Soymour . — "If tho wharfs at Scutari were insufficient as landing places , whoso duty wan it to report tho fact ? " [ In explanation , witness read uu extract front a

    letter from Admiral Boxer to the Secretary of the Admiralty , in January last , referring to those wharfs . He stated that he called the attention of Lord Raglan to the necessity of providing proper wharfs for landing the sick and wounded early in the year . One was partly Constructed , but was washed away in November . In a strong south wind boats could not go alongside the principal landing-place ; the . only landing-place at Scutari . sheltered from the south wind was between two and three miles from the hospital , which was a great objection . } To Mr . Drumraond . —If any horses sent out in transports died in consequence of being placed too close to the engine , he had never heard of it . Several of the horses soon went mad on the passage , and were obliged to be shot ; but that was not owing to their exposure to the heat of the engines so far as he knew , but to some internal disease of the horses themselves . He believed it was owing to the horses not being able to stale . * A portion of the sitting was then occupied by a f \ lost * - * eciAn 1 ia 4 ' « ktaaw * Ctv t \ V > nWlao I i * OTral •* r < % v > ^ xrw \ f \ itrOO

    recalled , Mr . Roebuck , and Mr . Layard , as to an alleged mis-statement by the latter of a phrase used by Sir Charles on a former examination . It appeared , however , that Mr . Layard had only put an interpretation upon it which Sir Charles had not intended , and that he had omitted to quote some subsequent phrase of a qualifying nature . Captain Tallon , commander of the Sea Nymph , was next called , and deposed to having taken out from this country for the Government , a cargo of provisions for the use of the army , and , among other things , twenty-four casks of boots and shoes ; that he had made repeated attempts to land the boots and shoes at Varna , Eupatoria , and Balaklava * , but to no purpose , the commissariat authorities , and also those of the Quartermaster-General at those places , refusing to receive them , on the ground that they had no authority to do so ; and that between the latter end of October and the beginning of November his ship was kept dodging about the Black Sea with those boots and shoes on board . At length , on the 8 th November , he succeeded in shoving them ashore at Balaklava —( a laugh )—into one of the Quartermaster-General's stores . Captain Hilyer , one of the naval brigade in the Crimea , gave evidence as to the superior condition of that brigade during the winter , as compared with the state of the troops generally , which he attributed to the brigade being mostly picked inen , to their being wellj 3 easoned , and to their having had their food regularly and well cooked . TUESDAY . Sir John Burgoyne , under whose superintendence the engineering works before Sebastopol were carried out , gave evidence on Tuesday chiefly with respect to the want of a proper road from the harbour to the camp . He was of opinion that great evils arose from the absence of such a road , though not so many or so bad as the public supposed ; but the army could hot spare the men for the work—they were wanted in the trenches , which it was necessary to make at once , or the Allies might have been disastrously attacked by the Russians . If , however , Lord Raglan found the force insufficient for making the road , he could have sent home for men . Navigators would have been useful , and it would have been a better measure ' if early in November 1500 " navvies" had been sent out to make the road , than the subsequent construction of the railway . He did not attribute the deaths and loss that occurred in the commissariat to the state of the road ; but undoubtedly the state of the road increased the amount of work . No doubt the carts and horses often stuck in the deep mud ; and soon after he

    ! got before Sebastopol , he found the horses of the commissariat overworked and in bad condition . The generals of division complained of the excessive work the men had to perform . All this was the fault of our military institutions , which in the field were notoriously insufficient . The commissariat , he considered , was not equal to tho requirements . He heard no complaints about the tools ; but there might have been a few accidental exceptions that were bad . The great mass of the tools is provided by tho Ordnance , and under a system of contract . Thiit system is to take tho lowest tender , provided it is made by a respectable manufacturer . Many of the tools used in the Crimea came from Malta , where they had been stored' for many years . Tho witness concluded his evidence by giving some technical opinions upon military matters . WKDNKSDAV . Mr . Grant , for thirty years in the service of tho Admiralty , and in the Victualling « nd Transport departments , entered into . various details concerning tho system of tender-taking by tho Admiralty , and tho amount of htoros sont out to tho troops in tho Crimea . Referring to tho assertion that , aftor some of tho tenders had been 1 accepted , tho accompanying samples had been changed , ho said that no one could change tho samples without breaking tho seals . Tho head messenger had charge of ' ' thorn uiVtil the individuals who owned thorn came for ! them . IIo did not recollect of any representations having been made as to change of samples or unfair play with them , or of complaints on tho part of tho public that , this had taken place ; and ho conscientiously boliovod that no unfair play had taken or could take

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), May 5, 1855, page 5, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_05051855/page/5/