The Press. — London, England, 1857-08-01 00:00:00

India and led to precautionary measures being taken. In fact, the Indian authorities had left India to the chapter of accidents. Lord J. RUSSELL said he had no wish that the house should enter upon this discussion, and, in presence of what had been rightly termed an awful calamity, he could not conceive anything less tending to the advantage of this country or of India than such a discussion, if it was to end either in a vote of tenure or a transfer of India to the Crown. Neither of these measures was proposed in the motion, which was only for the production of papers. Mr. Disraeli, he observed, had never ventured to say that the great mass of the people of India had suffered under oppression. It appeared to him that we had :trusted rather too much to Indian troops, and troops of one particular kind, and have had too large an army. lie thought that 50,000 Europeans and 100,000 natives would aff9rd a far better security than our present force. The first matter, however, upon which the Howie of Commons ought to pronounce an opinion was that the Government ought to be supported; he thought the house ought not to separate without expressing such opinion, and he accordingly moved by way of amendment an address to her Majesty, to assure her Majesty that. they will support her Ma jesty in any efforts necessary to suppress the dis turbances in India and in any measures required for the establishment of tranquillity. Mr. MANGLES dwelt upon the universal good feeling of the princes, landholders, and people of India. In the Punjaub, he said, the population were with us to a man. He denied that the Indian Govern ment had been warned of the state of the Bengal army, and characterised the mutiny as an exhibition of frantic fanaticism on the part of the sepoys. Mr. LIDDELL observed that the amendment was incongruous with the motion, and inquired of the Chair whether it was not competent to the house, without negativing the amendment, to agree to the original motion calling for information. No reply was given by the Speaker, and Mr. AYRTON moved that the debate be adjourned; but this motion was negatived, upon a division, by 203 to 79. Mr. DISRAELI replied I do not know what frantic fanaticism is, but when I listened to the chairman the other night I remember the hon. member who fills that mysterious and responsible office rising and telling us that his mission was to convert the whole of India to Christianity. (A laugh, and " Hear, hear.") I say that was frantic fanaticism. (Cheers.) Recommend me to this candid avowal of the Chairman of the East India Company, then, when our East Indian empire is in a state of emergency. (Cheers.) I now come to the answer of the right hon. gentleman the President of the Board of Control, which amounts to this—" You say we have had warnings of the state of the native army." I therefore expected that the right hon. gentleman would have adverted to those features of Indian society, history, and life, which I placed before the house, and the importance of which I endeavoured to trace. But the right hon. gentleman almost passed these circumstances without notice. He treated them as old stories. But it a because they have been heard before—because they are old storir— --Ruse they are permanent and enduring `-at I • • • - • causes of misrule—that f brought them before the house. ( Hear, bear.) If they had been the accidents of yesterday they would not. have produced the events that have startled the most powerful country of the world. But the great defence of the right hon. gentleman to the comprehensive view I endeavoured to take was a technical, red-tape, Treasury, worn out, and old-used argument. (A laugh.) The right hon. gentleman eats, " I will prove that we had no warnings. I will prove that we, the Government of Great Britain, that I, the Minister of India, was more com pletely ignorant of the state of India than you imagine." The right hon. gentleman spoke with all the simplicity that Mr. Hastings said was peculiar to Indian potentates. I thought it quite possible that the right hon. gentleman had no information on the subject, but with goodnatured irony I gave him credit for some. (A laugh.) At one time, indeed, I thought it possible that with this double Government—with this Cerberus to watch over the affairs of India, with the Government at Calcutta, the Govern ment at Leadenhall-street, the Government in Cannon row, and all the complicated contrivances of this vast machine — I thought it possible that the right hon. gentleman might succeed in obtaining a glimpse of light and some slight fragment of information. But I did not think it right to assume that in these events which have alarmed a country and endangered an empire there had been in official quarters the gross ignorance which appears to have pre. veiled upon these subjects. (Cheers.) The right hon. gentleman denies that he knew anything, and protests his ignorance with a plaintiveness that is irresistible, and a pathos that I yield to without further struggle and argument with a Minister who, so far as India is concerned, would lead us to believe that his Government is the moat purely ignorant Government, and also the most incapable (because there are some who believe that capability does not depend upon knowledge)—the most uninformed and most ignorant Government that ever presumed to influence the destinies of that country. ( Loud cheers.) He was told that this debate was of no use. The noble lord the member for the city of London, who was not a stormy petrel, but like a halcyon brooding on the water — (laughter)—when the Government was in difficulties, produced a soothing calm. The noble lord did not see the use of the debate. But had not he ( Mr. Disraeli) suggested something which might be useful—namely, a aDß!►Aiiejop to 19uire into the affairs 9f India? and Is, THE PRESS, AUGUST 1,1857. was not sure that the Government had not already decided upon it. But the right hon. gentleman said that for a royal commission they wanted a master-mind. He was not surprised at the right hon. gentleman asking the question where a master-mind was to be found. (Loud laughter.) But he would venture to say that for the head of a commission a mastermind was not required. What was wanted was, not a master-mind, but one who was capable of appreciating right and justice—(cheers)— and who would not sanction a violation of right, but would respect the engagements which we had made. ((sheers.) fie now came to his own motion. The right hon. gentleman had characterised it as a motion for a paper which did not exist, and of another which the Go• vernment would not produce. But the first paper had been the subject of a newspaper article, written more then a year and a half ago, when no idea of the present state of things could have existed. The report of General Sir Charles Napier, according to the noble lord the member for the city of London, was immaterial and insignificant. He had not seen that report, but those who had read it had assured him it was most material and moat significant. He thought it was of very great importance that it should be placed in the possession of the house, as it would convey most valuable information. Instead of having that acknowledged state paper produced, they were to have one of the dreary amendments which the noble lord the member for the city of London was continually pulling out of the dreary pigeon-holes of his mind—(laughter)— which nobody could understand, and nobody opposed. It was a vapid nothing, and it was most expedient, at such a crisis as this, to have personal opinions thrust upon the country. He should not contend any longer on what might be called a miserable question, whether two papers should be placed in the hands of the house, or whether the house would accept the commonplace which the noble lord (Lord J. Russell) had introduced to their notice. Enough for him that he had placed on record the opinions and professions he entertained, and the policy he would support. Lord PALMERSTON should not enter into the question at that late hour; he was satisfied to rest it upon the speeches of Mr. Smith and Mr. Mangles, which would serve as antidotes to Mr. Disraeli's opinions. The original motion was then negatived, and Lord J. RUSSELL'S amendment carried without a division. The orders of the day were then disposed of, and the house adjourned at two o'clock. HOUSE OF LORDS-TUESDAY. The Fraudulent Trustees Bill was read a second time on the motion of the Lotto CHANCELLOR. 3IILITIA BILL. On the motion for going into committee on the Militia Ballot Suspension Bill, the Earl of ELLEN. BOROUGH suggested that further progress with this measure should be suspended until the arrival of the expected news from India. Intelligence he thought might be received rendering necessary an immediate embodiment of the militia. . _ Lord PANMURE contended that no cause existed for delaying the bill, which was then passed through committee. vv On the motion of Lord REDESD.tLE, it was re solved that no new bill, not a money bill, or con sidered specially important, should be read a second time in that house after the 7th of August. Their lordships adjourned at a quarter to seven o'clock. HOUSE OF COMMONS-TUESDAY. At the early sitting the General Board of Health Bill WRY discussed in committee, and considerable opposition offered to the measure. Ultimately Sir G. GREY consented to convert it into a mere Con tinuance Bill for one year, and under this arrange. ment the measure was allowed to pass through committee. Lord R. GnosvEwou, on account of the advanced period of the session, withdrew his motion respecting the revision of the Liturgy. MILITARY EDUCATION. Sir DE LACY EVANS rose to move the following resolutions:— That in the opinion of this house a higher standard of professional instruction and more complete provision for it than hitherto deemed requisite ought to be established for the commissioned ranks of the army, but especially for the staff ; that this will be best promoted by recourse to competitive examinations of officers desiring to qualify themselves for the staff, by adopting the same principle with such qualification as may be necessary in examination of candidates nominated by the Commander-in• Chief for commissions in the cavalry and infantry, by preserving the present system of admission of cadets for the Ordnance Corps, by assured encouragements for proficiency and general fitness for advancement, and by appointment of commissioners, or a council of military and civilian mem bers, empowered to direct the measures for accomplishing these objects. The gallant general discussed each of the proposi tions at some length, and said that though there were some old fashioned objections still raised about a standing army, he believed if we had not some sort of a standing army the country would soon cease to stand by itself, and would fall under the power of some foreign State 743 Again, it had been said that we were a purely naval nation, and not a military nation; but when he glanced at the map of the world and saw how many places and what vast territories the British army was called upon to defend and guard he could not reconcile it with common sense to hold that we were not a military nation. If they looked back to the history of our army they would find some of the greatest achievements ever performed had been per. formed by our army. But, as it was small, it was sibs°. lutely necessary to make it as efficient as possible ; and if steps were taken to do justice to all officers by guarding as much as possible against favouritism, and by making arrangements to afford the highest amount of instruction to all classes of the army, then he thought that our army, small as it was, would be found adequate to its duties and invincible by any other. Sir F. SMITH admitted the great importance of securing a better education among military officers. He thought, however, that this education should be given a practical tendency, rather than be limited to intellectual and abstract knowledge. General WYNDHAM feared that competitive ex amination furnished a very inadequate test of mili tary efficiency : He thought there was a great deal more fuss about edu- cation in the army than was necessary. He had observed in the field that some of those who were possessed of great attainments turned out to be the worst officers. He firmly believed that the officers of the English army were quite as well educated as those of the French army, and that in the part of the service in which we were said to be most deficient—the staff—the deficiency was more owing to want of practice than to the want of education. General Wyndham suggested various improvements in our military organisation, such as the placing the chief of the staff and the quartermaster•general upon a distinct and separate footing. He wished also to see some general system of military organisation : This was not the time to discuss such a question, but he could not help saying that what we wanted was not such a general military organisation as fitted the Continent, but such a rational system as became a free country. What we wanted was regular militia, and reserves volunteering from that militia, which would form a constant source of supply of men for the army. Connected with this was the question of national defence and other considerations of great importance. if we were to go on as we had hitherto done we must always be too late—for this reason, that the Government on an emergency had to come down to the house to ask for money to get men, when the men ought to be ready to their hands. They never asked for money until they were in pressing need of the men. Sir W. Wim.rems, although he advocated the competitive system, yet hoped the military authori ties would continue to retain the right of nomination. He wished, too, to see a real bona-fide staff corps established, upon the French system. The questions of promotion by purchase and military education. were very intimately connected : Without purchase, there would be favouritism and affec- tion. He had seen more regiments of the line than most officers, and he had always remarked in what an extraor- dinary manner the system of purchase kept up the youth fulness of these regiments. In the scientific corps, where there was no purchase, the case was different. At forty years of age, he himself was only a second captain. No doubt, under the purchase system, there was a certain amount of vexation experienced when one man purchased over another; but that was nothing to the heartburning which was occasioned when an officer was put over another on account of some pretended superior►ty of talent or intellectual attainments. Mr. PALK wished, he said, that instead of adopting such a resolution as that proposed some principle could be adopted that would enable men who chose the profession of arms, and were without interest, to reap the rewards now obtained by patronage alone. Sir J. R tMSDEN said the Government were en gaged in preparing a comprehensive scheme of military education, which they confidently hoped would deserve the approbation of the house. The main features of this scheme were that the exami nation to which all officers nominated by the Com mander-in-Chief for direct appointments were sub jected would be more severe; that the examinations would be quarterly, in London, under the direction of the Council of Education, and that they would be conuucted by military and civil examiners. A plan was also under consideration for the amalgamation of Sandhurst and Woolwich. He added some of the details of the scheme so far as the Government had decided upon them, in which the competitive prin ciple would be adopted. Although the plan of the Government did not entirely agree with the resolu tion moved by Sir De Lacy Evans, he hoped, as the difference was only in minor points, and the Govern ment were acting in the spirit desired by Sir De Lacy, that he would not press the revolution. Lord STANLEY agreed that, as regarded the army at large, it was sufficient to establish a test strict enough to keep out men unfit for the military class, and that a certain number of appointments should be competed for. But he thought it most desirable that young men should not be induced to consider their professional instruction finished when they had entered the army, and that there should be examina tions at a later period. He rejoiced to hear that the new scheme of the Government admitted the • i A • oq