Leader (1850-1860), 24th February 1855, Edition 1 of 2, Page 177

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  Bessarabia from Turkey , and , eating like a canker into the , heart of Germany , established herself on its great arterial river , the Danube . We see how difficult it is to rouse and unite Europe in arms ; how difficult it is to stimulate Prussia—the very country most likely to be absorbed—to union and action , because her peril is so extreme that she has almost lost the hope of iexistence ; and therefore , when Lord Aberdeen's Cabinet determined on war with Russia , I think they came to wise and magnanimous determination , and it was the duty of the country to second them . " Mr . Lowe contended that , despite the results , the expedition to the Crimea had been well planned for the object Russians The _ _
  
  m yieyr an immediate success over the . landing was admirably managed , and a triumph was at once achieved . There commendation must cease , for the army m twenty-four hours should have been in Sebastopol . " The department whose duty it was to minister to the wants of the army , has utterly broken down . The General has not shown the activity and zeal we have a rig httoexpect . ( A Voice : " He is too old . " ) Well , perhaps so . I wish to say nothing harsh of that gallant soldier who l ° st an arm at Waterloo , and has since given his - $£ Blst energies usefully to the public service ; and perhaps it is hardly to be expected , that if we take a man from his desk , at which he has been sitting for thirty-five
  
  years , and at the age of sixty-four or sixty-five require him to enter on the stirring duties of leader of an army in a severe and active campaign , he should be altogether as- efficient as we should desire . . . Now , the question comes—what is the remedy for this state of things ? That it should continue would be intolerable and jpnendurable—inconsistent with our power , dignity , honour , nay , perhaps , with the very existence of this nation . We possess more of what is desired by mankind than other countries , and we must keep what we have with a strong hand , or a stronger man will come and take it away . The cankerworm which has caused the failure of this campaign , and which pervades every
  
  department of the civil and military service , is the vice of public patronage . ( Cheers . ') Merit is not promoted ; the only thing considered is personal connexion and favour . It is , indeed , humiliating that we who supply an engineer for almost every railway that is made , and for almost every steamer that is afloat , —who furnish the brains and the talent by which the affairs of other countries are organised—that we should fall so far below others , in this very respect when our own public affairs are concerned , and be so infinitely surpassed by what we have been in the habit of sjcornfully calling the barbarous power of Russia in the art of war , ~ in the art of keeping an army alive . " Acknowledging some merits
  
  for military service in the despotic system of Russia , the Emperor being able to dismiss and recal at a moment's notice , Mr . Lowe proceeded to say that he approved neither the remedy proposed by Government nor by Parliament ; that of Government was to appoint commissioners to take charge of every department of the army , leaving those in command just where they were . To continue in office a man acknowledged to be unfit , and to send another to take charge of him , was repugnant to common sense . It was as if , when they had a-horse-that could-notdraw-aJcart , _ they _ put on a leader to draw him and the cart too . ( Lazu / hter . ) He could not approve Mr . Roebuck ' s committee either ,
  
  though he had done him ( Mr . Lowe ) the honour to set down his name for one of the committee . He thought it could not make proper inquiry without having before it the officers and others engaged in the Crimea . It would not be just to enter into an inquiry touching their conduct without hearing what they had to say ; and it would not be of any use merely to find out that there was something which was wrong at home , without being able to trace it further . Another objection was , that it would interfere with and hamper the War Department at a time when of all others it could least afford to be bothered . Mr . Lowe drew a frightful picture of the work now to be done at the office of the Secretary of
  
  War , and said he was assured that the department was at this moment in a condition of the most hopeless and inextricable- confusion . It was impossible that Lord Panmure could do all that was necessary to be done , but at least he might be let alone , and not be worried by a committee . Moreover , a committee of this kind was moat objectionable , because it really transferred the duties of the Executive to the House of Commons , always a most dangerous thing ; and lastly , such an inquiry as was proposed would certainly involve statements respecting the French army which the Emperor of the French was desirous should not bo known , and would probably weaken our alliance with that country . He thought that when an officer did not do his duty the
  
  proper way was to recal him . But there was a reason which he believed operated with the Government to prevent the recul of Lord Raglan , and no doubt it was an important One . It was that he had acted throughout most harmoniously with our gallant allies , and had never by any intemperate sally or unnecessary opposition interrupted the excellent , terms on which they had acted with us during this campaign . The second remedy would be an entire rcconstitution of our military system , so that merit should bo the road to promotion instead of favour and seniority . At present an officer did little more than buy an annuity when ho entered the army , his pay being only interest on the money he in-Vested in the purchase of his commission , and he gave his
  
  services to his country gratuitously . At his death the Government appropriated his commission , instead of its being a benefit to his widow and children , so that , really , our present system was a premium upon cowardice . At present it was almost impossible that a man should rise from the ranks , whatever might be his merit , bravery , or good conduct , being the very opposite of the , system pursued by Napoleon , who said that every man ought to have the materials for a marshal ' s baton in his knapsack . A similar reform must be carried through all our civil departments . It was not reason enough why a man should be put at the head of the medical department that he had had the yellow fever half a dozen timeshad been ia . the West Indies , and served in the _ __ - . <¦• - ' t A j . T _ •_ J a 1 _ _!«__
  
  , Peninsula with usefulness , and was now a grey-headed man , who ought not to be disturbed in his old age . He would have public men prevented from making appointments , except the candidate's ability and knowledge had been previously tested by a sufficient examination . This would strike at the root of the evils under which we were now suffering . "Finally ( said Mr . Lowe ) , it is my wish , as I believe it is my duty , to support to the utmost the present Government . This is no party question , and I am prepared to say the same should the present Government be dissolved and power passed into other hands . We are at this moment in contact with all the Powers of Europe—who are either our allies our enemies , or in a position which a very slight influence
  
  may convert into the one or the other . It is of the last importance to our success or honour that we should exhibit an appearance of stability and constancy in the eyes of Europe . Neither is it easy to-overestimate the influence of the name of Lord Palmerstoh over diplomatic circles on the continent , or the importance thatis attached to his being placed at the head of the Administration . His name is a pledge of ' our determination to resist Russia to the utmost , and his fall would be regarded as a triumph of the principles of the peace party , whom foreigners believe to have a power they do not possess in this country . We must learn to put off party differences till the return of peace , and to present a firm and united front to the powerful enemy with whom we are engaged . "
  
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  TAXES ON KNOWLEDGE . The annual meeting of this society was held on Wednesday at Exeter _ JETall . The chair was taken by Mr . Milner Gibson , M . P ., who , after briefly sketching the history of the society ^ said , that the remainder of the " Taxes on Knowledge" must follow the advertisement duty . To partially effect this , a bill has been introduced by the Government for the repeal of the newspaper stamp , and having seen-it iirmanuscript , he would take leave to inform the meeting of the nature of its provisions . The Chancellor of the Exchequer—he was afraid he must say the late Chancellor of the Exchequer —had laid on the table the bill , which proposed , in the first place , to abolish the compulsory stamp altogether . It proposed that all printed matter up to the weight of
  
  four ounces should be capable of transmission by post at a charge of one penny for each transmission . ( Cheers . ) It _ further ^ . abplish ^ d . jthe _ jsecurity _ system altogether ( cheers)—that detestable " system ^ first established by Cas- " tlereagh , in the legislation known as the Six Acts . These were the leading provisions of the bill ; but there were clauses in it which had evidently been introduced out of regard to what might be called the vested interests of established newspapers . It had been contended that the privilege of retransmission was very much valued by existing newspapers , and the bill proposed to give them that privilege foT seven days from the date of publication , on such of their number as they chose to stamp , and to continue that privilege to them for the
  
  space of ten years . As a general rule this privilege was to be conceded where the weight of the paper did not exceed four ounces , but as there were some large papers , and one well-known journal which exceeded that weight , there was a clause in the bill providing that papers containing a certain number of superficial inches should , even where they exceeded the stated weight , still enjoy the privilege . The privilege was , as ho had before stated , to be seven days for each publication , and to last ten years from tho present date . These were the contents of the measure , which was of tho nature of a
  
  compromise with publications now existing He should have preferred a more simple measure ; but tho Government plan , while it was most favourable to tho established papers , which retained all their present advantages , yet effected two great objects—the abolition of the compulsory stamp , and the termination of tho system of securities . Should there be any opposition to this scheme , ho could only explain it on the hypothesis that there was a fear of the cheap penny newspaper ; and it was for the sake of that penny newspaper that ho supported the bill .
  
  A resolution for tho Repeal of the Paper Duty having been moved and carried , Mr . Cobden moved tho following resolution : " That this mooting has heard with satisfaction that a bill was Introduced last night by tho Government , to abolish tho compulsory newspaper stamp and tho security system , and to admit all printed matter to a cheap rate of postage . " Ho viewed this question as . being so important , socially , educationally , and politically , that lib for one should never rest until ho had seen it become
  
  the law of the land . When he first heard that the Chancellor of the Exchequer intended to bring forward the measure , he said , " ' Don't be too sure , there ' s many a slip between the cup and the lip , " but he little dreamt , when he said that , that within forty-eight hours the right hon . gentleman would have ceased to fill his important office . . He regretted his secession , but ' did not think that the circumstance would- endanger the safety of the measure , for Mr . Gladstone was a statesman whose convictions you could reach ; as a statesman he had a conscience ; and when once you had convinced j * _ - t _ _ _ . ** it . . 1 J -a if i _ __ •¦__ _/»¦_ . ¦ * ¦ j'L . i . 4-1 *«
  
  his understanding , you were sure to have his support , whether in office or out of it ; and holding as he did' the very highest rank in the House of Commons for eloquence , he would give the measure such aid , whether in office or out of it , as must ensure its triumphant passage through the legislature . He did not think it necessary on that occasion , seeing that there was a bill on the table of the House of Commons which recognised the wisdom and expediency of all they had been advocating , to go into a long argument to show the necessity of repealing the newspaper stamp . His right hon . friend the chairman had alluded to certain clauses in the bill . He
  
  cared nothing about an extra quarter of an ounce , if it carried off the opposition of a powerful organ ; neither did he care about giving a privilege for ten years . There was one thing upon which existing papers laid a great stress , but one which he did not think was of such very great advantage- —he meant the repeated transmission oi these papers by post without any renewed charge . The argument used in favour of this , that it was a great public advantage , was in his opinion a great delusion . People sent papers by post when they cost fivepence , because-papers were then a luxury which only the rich could enjoy on the fiffet day , while others must wait . But that would not be the case when newspapers were cheap . He had once asked an intelligent American what
  
  he saw in England that most reminded him of his being in an old country , and his friend replied that what most struck him was the notice stuck up everywhere , "Yesterday ' s papers at half price , " adding that in America nobody would have yesterday's papers at any price . That would be the case in England when a totally free press had free scope . People did not buy old clothes when they could get new ones , and neither would they buy yesterday ' s papers when they could get to-day ' sthey , would rather buy to-morrow ' s if they could get them . ( Cheers and laughterS )_ . There would be a newclass of papers altogether suited to a new class of readers , and selling alongside of the present papers would train a new class of future readers for the latter . The
  
  advocates of this reform had been assailed by individual organs of the press-in a way for which they were totally unprepared ; for when he first entered the arena of politics , those" very newspapers were his fellow-labourers in the cause of free-trade in corn . ( Cheers . ) But the very moment he proposed to make free-trade in newspapers from that moment they became Protectionists . ( Laughier . ) He had once brought great obloquy on himself by saying at a Yorkshire mechanics' institute , when endeavouring to induce the Conservative patrons to permit of newspapers being brought into the room , that what ^ he people wanted was news—facts—not leading articles . To r ~ that * ihnoc 6 ^ tion to gag the press , and it was added that he disliked
  
  leading articles because the papers trimmed him up from time to time . ( Laughter . ) He suspected that in prompting these reforms he should be creating more free criticism than ever , because he believed that in a few years there would be three times as many newspapers in England as at present ; and further , he believed that public men were all the better for the criticism they received , and that , on the whole , they got quite as good treatment as they deserved . (" Question" ) One point connected with newspapers had recently been broached in a pamphlet published by Ridgway , to which ho would just allude . In that pamphlet it was urged that all leader writers should put their names to their
  
  articles ; but all he could say was , that if any law were proposed such as had passed during the republic in France , ho for one should give his vote against it , although he was not quite sure that a newspaper did not have moro salutary influence when it was known who conducted it . Ho was sure that public men would not be half so useful if they spoke behind a mask . He looked to tho repeal of the stamp as calculated to produce equality between the London and provincial papers , and to give a local paper to any village in the country , and he had sufficient confidence in his countrymen to believe that in tho long run the best conducted papers would everywhere meet with tho greatest success . ( Cheers . ) , ., took it
  
  Mr . Bright believed that , whether they ns a question which related merely to a branch of industry , or as a question of a greater and higher character , they would find that there wore insuperable objections to the laws which regulated tho press ; and that those laws were discreditable to thorn na a i > cople , and disgraceful to tho Parliament by which they wore enacted . Let them treat it for a moment as a matter , of industry . He hold in his hand a copy of tho Times newspaper of tho day before . Tho bare cost of making tho paper , the material of it , was three farthings ; on that the Government imposed a tax of one farthing , or 88 per cent ., on tho value of tho paper—a Very high rate indeed compared with any other tax levied at present . Tho original
  
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  VEimv ± Bt 24 1855 . ] THE IiEAPEB . 177 ~
Citation
- Leader (1850-1860), Feb. 24, 1855, page 177, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2079/page/9/

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