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Leader (1850-1860), 26th April 1856, Edition 2 of 2, Page 14, ;. ,,.;. THE G&iSSELIj COftTBACT. Warn v...

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      The Cabinet. When Lord Abebdeeit Surrend...

      - ^ ^ bnr iiltei W Bt )^ i 'iffcer V * t » H ^ ¦^ p & c ^ ic & s' b £ fch # ( * £ idiM © f ' iPe ' ac ' e W ^ ndt Ifeeii ^ claiteaf Td ' Wttsl the & e dis ^ ssions % on fe legislature , ' to be dtit short & fter _ . a few- platittfdgs on AH sides , i ;& to degrade & ^ foei * fclon > vvhich } to 1 be Fairly ittet ; mttst coWe ^& tt % & > owti $ & fe 6 ii , xtMettt real National 'iitfp ! aBe , with jpotitical ardour ' enlisted in the ^ au % > . At pre'sent , the Classes most intfer'Me ^ 'W -pMisMe ^ kaff reform stanS ' sftbbf ' £$ & 'their' officious advocates in tlfe 'House -df ' Cdmmons . " # Bere are their petitions 1 ? Where are their voiced heard ? It is true

      that the Jfrbspectusesof a "' League" flit ncfteelessl y front the * inetrbpoKs to the manu-^ dtiirizig towrisy Una ihat the system of corjjesjjibh & hg ; section ' s i & 'in cdixcsb of experimeiot ? . But all that is being done is ftfepaita'tdrf .

      . Wb Fllaeiabeb, [No!..3a8i:Sa3?Iie3! ^^

      . Wb fllAEIABEB , [ No ! .. 3 a 8 i : Sa 3 ? IiE 3 ! ^^

      ;. ,,.;. The G&Isselij Cofttbact. Warn V...

      ; . ,,. ; . THE G & iSSELIj COftTBACT . Warn verdict of " the public on the appeal of Messrs , JBC . and \]& .,. 3 p >/ <& Bi | s ^ ii , of the Begeni's ' Oi ^^ pro ] E > ab ^ jr be a § at ^ pliras ^^ f Etiat j ^ pnbunce <| by the jury : of jfc | jJB > jij & uv & b was a ^ ciised of ^ ayuig ^ beaten : hi £ ; wil ^ c > : t & tih . : ¦;¦ 'ft i ^ Tot guuiigr ,, and alie was ; ^ s !]^ " a » he ; Tpi ^* " $ te ^ si $ V " wiissEiffici succeeifll in- ; shoeing ttat -they are not so con-Sj ^ Gfuoii ^ ,., an # sin ^ ar in tneir conduct as Tira <& smeii , but Mm do so it the expense of

      ^ e ^ i ^ i ^ |^ eir , $ raae ; a n | £%£ ^ ay atfcL df ^ sppsing t ! he officialpersons ¦¦ y $ & had to deal ^ fb / Jh ^ n . They have pu ¥ , ibriarard a ^ inj ^ blefc ^ ieh ^ coicn ^ rises / p ^ rii p £ ^ the ; b ^ i ? ial ^ flwr ^ ppnde ^ ee < and th < iar own stpry . f / jPifiej caB ^ ibt ptea ^ ime ^ eriencei . / . ¦ ;^ " We have , " | hj ? y sayv ,: " b £ e n , in . the irpii ^ de : all our lr ^ , ^ an <^ % 0 ± & y ^ $± & % ^ so "iar ; as iriiia , is |& Km §| 4 "fjijs ; ptt ; ^^ i ) tir po ^ es pf m a ^ inery ^ a ^ . engj ^ prilig , ;' we . ^ npw our business as J ^ a ^ a ^ ^ neja in ., ^ eat ^ rifca ^ n ^** Abpu ^ T ^ oe ; , ^ ddle , o £ , la ^ t ^ y eiau ^ liie Gpyernm ^ it reqiure ^ a l ^ ige number of mortars ; persons who "hi ^ d" iatep , ppitracts proyed to have no power " , of producing them ; circulars were

      assiied y irpm V ^ pblwich Jtrsejfial , inciting iouiiaers % . maKei aI large niiinber of lueavy mfjptars j ^ i ^ a ^^^ afaiig , v ! Jb : e ^ ce usually . i M ^ lDr ^ hi ^ serviceiro prtar' ^ at 211 . io 23 Z , per ' ton ; 'Messrs ., Qbisseli , say , distinctly ; , | Hat"tVy were regu ^ sied ^ f the authbritie ' s *' Tb 0 manufacture ' . some of tne niortars . On © of the officers of the larsenp , ! sent the circular , and said that 24 J . per toin would be given . ' 32 he firm calculated tfyat their oim eo ^ t WoulS li ' A- 2 ftZ tiW 4 : ^ nVi Pl + UiJrr « riVA ^ ' o ' o 7 : . <„*; ¦

      P ^ # , , l | e . Xprd ^ naryf' price was , not iiaGre than ' 24 ? ^ , : iife ^ iiig ; to reiider assistance W ( Jpterrimerit at ' stjlcIqi a ; iime , and "having been entrusted with' extensive works- ! Tor tT ^ 0 pverhmeri ^ for so many year ' s , " they agreed . ^> iiaj ^; Men set

      t ^ ej to . Y . QrJk { they , niet with difficultiea 'that they' 4 id n , 6 h anticipiite ; and to complete fcnpir naifeai > s of ex ^ cutiori } tiiejr entered into fS ^ f ^ ^ S ^ v aMu ^ ^ tey were cer-. te ^ jOt iiaauuii ^ ^ cx prpnt py thp transaction . A-fter . itldliverin ^ tyi e c ' oiitra ' ci ; , ' 1 $ hey . received a ' farther prdei ? - Xn ' the' mean while ' they '•&*& ' ^^ miq ;'^ p ^ 60 i ^ | piW # ?^ i ^ | % ^ v' ^ t ^ 9 ^ P

      «/ they povired ^ in . two-thirds that way iaiid m $$ & tyi" $$ t 6 t > , e ^ ddtitig . td' gSih , a f ^ WyrfM'ft 6 F rJPPse of bdrmg , it hti $ "been , e ^ ste i . V ^ ij rfw twb'Koles' inVthi ' side ' s ^ br ittWfel b ' f me ' tiiickness : instead lot _ u ^ iVP ) DB ! tiofl > Ccmf cBpondenco rdladvo , to . thoiGhargea of . gr ^^ aaqii ^ tiMBoyMs of JPa ^ HaTnenl rt by , th « , War ¦ ilfef'T ™*™ - ISoIng * tiottiori bf fianfAiOftttdl IronworktLt London ,. Watorlow and Sona .

      Bfe ' c ©* of Metaliair ijhe > biack ,-fitted a neW piece artd i * wiih-JEg ^ bd ^ i ? 6 tepudingi atid then , after-* # atds saapped % her ? irod oif and polished the BurfacS . IA ihecneSanplaii of casting some biibble-holes Were < csaused in the face , and these were filled in with cast-iron- plugs . One ( dfithd moftars buTBt in proving ; ' of the three iEodrtars used with the brdinary charga , the first burst at the ninth disehargej the second at the tenth , and the third at the hundred And thirteenth .

      Hefe We have the explanation of Messrs . G-eissei / L themselves as to the making " , with the results . There can be no doubt that the uaortars were inferior both to the ordinary olass bf guch arms , and to the expectations of the firm . The introduction of a separate piece into ^ the breech of the rnorbar must have ten-ded to weaken it ) and the plugging of the flaws in the side was of course a serious defect . Nor , even as a repair , was it well executed . It has been said that this plugged part is reaSy it *<» jget than any * other part ; £ n assertion which denies i ; he nature of the 1

      l & etal ;' si & ee the constant ei ^ atision and ^ oni * action "bf two separate pieces of metal iaust telid ^ as it proves in factj ultimately to ibosen the pie < Je > inserted . In the present < jase , however , the hbleaw « re larger than the ^ M gs . fei ^ some instances they extended to the depth of abOUiribtir inches ; in two , they were of a ddm- ^ lieated form- ^ the ^ first hole opening into ^ second , ot even a third cham > ber ; and-in one instance , the plug was too -sibiall ia iis di & metei ? i : Such Were the pieces

      of artillery that such a firm ,- describing itself aS bine of tihe most Experienced and eminent iBvEnglandj Wbuld-hiftve jaratished our forces in ttie faee ' of the enemjrl In the official eyes , however , the great offences wese the fraud ; and concealment ; -and-it is Ifom these ^ two charges that Messrs . © arssEijiiseekprittcipaUy to Iree themselves . The plugging , they say , was not executed for purposes of fraud , but only in the ordinary process of ii < on raanufacture , in order to

      render the manufactured article f < neat . " ^ ow , We'hate'heard of plugging ^ for purposes of neatness , in ornamental firegrates . But however neat -the grate might look to the purchaser , the flaw ultimately beconaes anieyesorei Nor ia ineatness the grand object in artillery , If'manufacturers will thus treat the weapons of war-, may we not expect that

      neatness is sometimes wade to cover equally serious defects dn machinery , for manufactures and railroads ; , upon , whose cdm . pleteneas safety of life depends almost aa much as in thei casedfarfcillery . " 5 fetMessrs . GrBissd 3 i . ii ctell us that this is the usual mode . They affirxn that the plugging % as " as plain aa the spectacles ion a » imanta ' face •/ ' and they deny the concealment , on the ground thafc that method of finishing should have been treated ua a mafcber of course . Messrs . I . K . BatTNEi .

      and Johit 3 Towi # tB « y the eminent engineers , gave them a testimonial to combat the chtwge of fraud ; and hence we have rather an alarming -corroboration of the suspicions which we may entertain with > respect to enginea for factories and > railroade . iTlfcimatelyj the firm were ^ c ^ uibted ^ byithe officials , of-fraud , but nibt of > thoioonce » lraentj < Oinecase-df plugging was > pointed 1 outita 3 Mtr . Q ^ issaaiiiii in x ) eand ) he said thafc

      cember last ^ . ^) hen . -it had ibeen . iresorted . io by / lna foreman without his knowledge ji but by a / letter ifrom -the fia ? ia of the flfch . iwtst . y it lappeara ithat they ihad . verjy deliberately considered the process of , plugiging ,. and had endeavoured to givo it eojno degree of completeness ^ ftii incon ^ iatency 'of behaviour which certainly lookn like a desire to avoid , a full avowal . Tli © whole toiior of the correspondence , or * the side of 'the manufacturers , Ihowever , is ! to afcrengfchen the aesurauee that , throughout , they werd only

      fclfewing . the * ordinary maxims and-xoles of tradie .- ' If the contractors weu ^ thus aeting the officials" cannot be let off . If the manufacturers were thus exercising the shanpness of toade for the purposes of passing , off defective goods , the officials were acting like chapmen in the market , trying to beat down-prices and - trusting more to the binding of the contract than to the character of the men with whom they were dealing . If customers were

      not bent immorally upon obtaining goods without giving the equivalent for them tradesmen would not resort to practices of evasion in order to obtain covertly what the customer will mbt give openly . The process of adulteration , in great firms at least has grown xnp jpari possu with the progress of beating down . In former days , gentlemen piqued themselves on paying handsomely for what they got ; they now pay handsomely onlto the lender

      y money- , or to the tradesman who gives long credit on the money lender ' s principle . In those former days , tbo 3 the- great merchant and the great manufacturer piqued himself on his power to challenge the world td prove that any part of his wares were other than " sterling . " Sterling was the price paid by the purchaser , sterling the goods sold by the'maker ; and each would have thought his characteir- impaired by the discovery of '• , any trick or meanness in the transaction . If the maier has fallen off from

      that standard , so has the pitrchdser . The Government Reaches the lessoti to vendors by exposing contractors ; it teaches purchasers bj exposing itself as it has . If botk parties were to returii to the oid > plan , of doing , the thing handsomely , they would substitute a real gain ^ -the gaining of the thing wanted on each side—in lieu of the loss which both incur in the endeavour to cheat each other .

      Lobd John's -Frattjtr-Tc . In The Midst ...

      LOBD JOHN'S -frATTJTR-TC . In the midst of more stirring movements , we must not quite forget Lord « Tohn RusselIi ' s education plan , for its failure has a moral needful just now . The plan proves to be not the best measure for the purpose of the present day , for the hard reason that it is not carried . But we must look a little beyond this particular bill . " We have already shown that it would have secured three great results—the three greatest results that we from

      mag ^ ht expect any syste m of public education . It would have placed tuition within reach of any child of the community , it would have secured the . freedom for parents of withdrawing any child from sectarian , teaching while it would have placed within the reach of every pupil the knowledge of . tue religion which is the religion , of the land ; and it would have rendered available some of those charities which were left for educational purposes but which are totally wasted , and in

      some cases criminall y abused . No scheme oi public education which did npt secure at letist the , two first , of thpse results wpuld be worth anything , and , / although LprdV John ' s plan was full of faults , open San easy detection , the faults were as nothing compared to tlio attainment of those three objects . We bare Tbeon no eulogists of Lord Joiot ; we sec him now lying under all the discredit of failure ; Imt we shall not op . those Jaecounts withhold the utterance of pur belief , that if his plan ! had been fully carried out , we should luivo cofc from ib the chief objects -which wo require j roin any plap . whatsoever .

      Iu losing Lord John ' s plan , which wo refpe t , liayo wo the promise of any other ? To . And why not P How do wo stand with reference to other inoaaures ? Mr-Baiweq tells us that the Voluntaries arc

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), April 26, 1856, page 14, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_26041856/page/14/