The Press. — London, England, 1855-05-19 00:00:00

the Cabinet would have been summoned arid would have assembled in less than forty-eight hours. It is not merely the importance of events that requires a Cabinet Council to be held, but when there is some object to discuss and some determination to be arrived at. When the army landed in the Crimea the Government was of opinion that Sebastopol would fall by a coup de main ?—That was the general belief. When the army came round to the south and found the place too strong to be so taken, was not that a matter for the Cabinet to meet and discuss ?—I do not know that any fresh instructions could have been given to the generals in consequence. The Minister of War was in London, and if he had had any difficulty he would have summoned the Cabinet. Did not the fact of the city being found stronger than was anticipated, and the army having to lay a regular siege to it, completely alter the complexion of the expedition?— I think not. If you had anticipated that Sebastopol would have re quired a long siege would you have thought it right to de spatch the expedition so late in the year ?—As I have said, the instructions for the expedition were sent out in June, and we had no reason to suppose they would not have been carried into execution earlier than they were. At the same time, when the expedition did sail, it was in sufficient time. Did you not think it was too late in the year to under. take the expedition ?—I do not know. The generals had perfect discretion not to undertake it at an unseasonable time. The delay arose, I should say, not entirely from want of preparations, although, I believe, there was not sufficient boats, but that want was not the principal cause of delay. Was any proposal made by Lord J. Russell or any other Etember of the Cabinet early last year for a consolidation of offices ?—No ; I had a good deal of discussion with Lord J. Russell and other members of the Cabinet upon the subject. I came to the opinion, as I believe Lord J. Russell did also, that it was not a fit time to carry those plans into effect. Lord J. Russell, then, opposed the consolidation of offices ?—No; on the contrary he recommended it, but after a good deal of discussion and consideration we came to the conclusion that it was not desirable at that time. In answer to various questions, the noble earl stated that he could not remember whether it had been proposed to give the War Minister the assist ance of a military secretary. Lord Aberdeen after wards said : Although the appointment to the War Department had been approved by Lord J. Russell and the whole Cabinet, early in November, to my great surprise, Lord J. Russell wrote to suggest that the Duke of Newcastle should be removed, as he was not satisfied with the conduct of the war by the duke. Previous to that date had Lord J. Russell made any ob jections?—Not a syllable. The CIikIRAILN.—I suppose your lordship has no objec tion to produce such parts of the correspondence as have not yet been made public ?-4 can have none. I can't say 1 I desire to produce it. It is a disagreeable personal discus- sion, objecting to a colleague, of which I should not have said a word if Lord J. Russell had not said what he thought it right to say. The correspondence would show my rea sons for retaining the Duke of Newcastle where he was, and why I did not agree with Lord J. Russell. Did not Lord J. Russell say in the house that he had left the Government on account of " the horrible and heartrending" accounts from the East, and by so doing attributed to some extent the occasion of those accounts to the want of a proper management of the War Department? —At least, that was the inference the public drew. I thiuk it would be a very erroneous inference to draw. When Mr. Roebuck gave notice of his motion Lord J. Rus sell wrote to me, saying he could not oppose the motion, and as it inculpated or affected the conduct of some of his colleagues he felt it his duty to resign his office. That wan the first I heard of it and to my great surprise. General PEEL.—Did any correspondence take place before November ?—No. The correspondence to which I allude began early in November, and finished about the end of the month or the beginning of December. Had the Government obtained all the information neces sary before the sailing of the expedition for the Crimea?— We obtained very various information, leading to very different conclusions, and it was not easy to ascertain the r espective degrees of credit to be attached. On the whole I think the most correct information we received was, in this country, from a gentleman who had recently been in the Crimea. His information turned out to be pretty cor rect as to the amount of the Russian force and the state of the country. Then you think as much information was obtained as authorised the expedition ?—That was the opinion, I be lieve, of the military authorities. I presume the condition of the army in the East was, after November, brought under the notice of the Cabinet? —lt was, but very late. I believe a great deal of the dis tress and difficulties existed before we had any official notice of it. We had information from private so irces and from the public papers before we had any official information of it. In your o?inion, should the Cabinet have been furnished with that information ?—Certainly ; anything which re quired a remedy from this country. To whom does your lordship attribute the neglect of not having furnished that information ?—The authorities on the spot must of course be the persons whose duty it was to complain of anything that was amiss, and to endeavour to remedy it, if necessary, from home. About what period was the Cabinet informed officially of the state of things in the East ?—lt WAS very gradually at first; not receiving any official information, the statements were naturally mere or less discredited, but they gradually became confirmed, and then we arrived at a knowledge of THE PRESS. the real state of the army. We were in ignorance longer than we ought to have been of the state of the army in the East. The CHAIRMAN.—Did you not obtain complete informa tion through the newspapers ?--We obtained a good deal from them, certainly. In answer to Lord Szyxoua the noble earl said, he re garded the separation of the departments of the War and the Colonies as a sufficient measure for the time, but only as initiatory of other changes. Lord SEYMOUR referred to the evidenoe of the Duke of Newcastle, who said he was dissatisfied with the system of all the great departments under him.—The noble earl said the Duke of Newcastle might have expressed such dissatis faction to him in general terms, but he made no repre sentation upon any particular subject. The Duke of New- castle might have said the Board of Ordnance wanted re organisation, and there was a general opinion to that effect. The Minister of War conducted his business at his (Lord Aberdeen's) official residence, and declined to assume the responsibility of the Commissariat Department until the business of that department could be conducted under the same roof which covered his own office. Was the want of houseroom the only reason why the Commissariat Department was not transferred to him until the 22nd of December ?—Yes ; the only reason; but, al though the details were not referred to him, he gave direc tions before that , whenever he thought fit to do so. Do you think it desirable to keep the Secretary-at• War as a Cabinet Minister ?—I do not think it is indispensable, but on the whole, upon the present occasion, I thought it very desirable. Do you think it advisable to retain the office to main tain a control over the expenditure of the army ?—Un doubtedly. You would keep it a separate office, and not merge it in the Secretary of War?—Yes. The committee have met more than once since for the purpose of considering and preparing their report to Parliament. A MEETING OF PROTESTANTS VMS held on Tuesday at the Amphitheatre, Liverpool, Dr. M'Neill in the chair, to discuss the propriety of continuing the en dowment of the College of Maynooth. The chair man earnestly opposed the grant, quoted the opi nions of several bishops against it, and denied the statement recently made by Mr. Horsman in the House of Commons, that it was understood that one of the objects of the Act of Union was the establish ment and support of an endowment of Maynooth. The Rev. Hugh Stowell, after denouncing the insi dious efforts made in behalf of Popery, moved a re solution to the effect : That, as a matter of history, the pecuniary assistance origin ally rendered by Great Britain to the College of Maynooth was not au annual grant, but merely a donation in aid of the funds of an institute established by Roman Catholics themselves; and that as a question of policy the continued and increased support to the College of Maynooth has proved at, utter failure. The resolution was carried, and another to the fol lowing effect was also adopted:— That, as matter of principle, the national endowment of the College of Maynooth is at variance with the spirit of the British Constitution and opposed to the laws of Almighty God, and therefore dangerous to the best interests of the State. A petition to both Houses, founded on the resolu tions, was then agreed to. THE drawings contributed by the royal children to the Patriotic Fund were sold on Monday according to announcement. The Princess Royal's drawing was purchased for the sum of 250 guineas. The Prince of Wales' brought 55 guineas, and the remain ing drawings by the Princess Alice, Princess Helena, and Prince Alfred, 30 guineas each. These interest ing works have become the property of persons who attach a genuine value to them, so that they will not be made objects of speculation ; and the owners have considerately allowed them to remain at Bur. lington-house, where they will be exhibited during the season. Many very interesting drawings have been added to the collection since the exhibition has been opened in Burlington house. THE officers engaged in organising anew regiment of militia, to be called the 6th Lancashire, have sworn in 1,253 volunteers for this service, but of the summonses issued to these men for drill 758 have been returned from the Post-office marked "Not found." Some of these men, it is hoped, may yet turn up ; but there is reason to believe that the greater portion have given false names and addresses, and that they have thus taken the first instalment of the bounty without intending to fulfil their con tracts MERCANTILE LETTERS from St. Petersburg men tion that since the breaking up of the Vienna Con ferences fresh life has been given to the overland trede in Russian produce, and that the Government are taking active steps, by the repair of roads, &T., to organise it as thoroughly as possible. At the latest date several thousand casks of tallow were being despatched. A PETITION is in course of signature amongst the members of the Stock Exchange praying that the committee will abbreviate the period of business on Saturdays by . , one hour—that is to say, advocating the official termination of business at two o'clock, and the closing of the house at three o'clock on Sa turdays. As a further step towards the adoption of the Satin day half-holiday system this movement de• serves encouragement. SATURDAY, prtign Curtsy,Ottrt. FRANKForrr, May 14. THERE is no longer any middle course pursued by the representatives of the Diet. Germany is openly and not covertly Russian, and falls back upon the spirit of the Congress of Vienna in its reliance upon Muscovite protection. In other respects, the worthies whom M. de Benkendorf had formerly purchased for the Prussian market have received orders from Prince Peter of Oldenburg, and a " marionette" spirit of pseudo-independence has been hatched to act against Prussia and Austria in case of need. For the present the seeds of disaffection have been sown and are growing with luxuriance. With the ghost of the kingdom of Poland in phantasmal mockery, and with a substantial domination over the German princes, the Emperor of Russia can and will bid defiance to Europe. The folly of the Crimean expedition, without adequate means, has long been felt here ; and when even Sebastopol may fall, the only effect would be to secure the Black Sea, which is already controlled by the allies. Upon this point the Ambassadors of France and England did not sufficiently insist. The diplomatists of Frankfort ridicule the humble position of the allies at the Conferences, in being compelled to take the initiative whilst actual masters of the Euxine. Lord John Russell and Lord West morland were outwitted. By placing Austria in the presidental chair, she became freed in effect from the compulsory clause of the December treaty to act offensively against Russia; and the adjournment of the conferences sine die does not displace her from the continuous office of a presiding umpire. This is the more especially evident, tad demoa strated by the motion of Earl Grey in the House of Lords, and by that of Mr. Gibson in the Commons. The Whig movement is a plot and intrigue to embarrass the Conservatives, and is well constrved in Germany, with the further avowal and private declaration of M. de Bismarck, M. de Prokersch- Osten, and the members of the Diet, that Austria, by the acts of the Plenipotentiaries and the English Parliament, is released from the obligation of offen sive operation against Russia. The Whigs in England affirm that means have bee' neglected by the allies to secure peace, and that Russia offered fair terms for negotiation. Lord John Russell was aware of the nature of the something about to be proposed by the Russian Plenipotentiaries, and quitted M. Drouyn de Lhuys upon a precise under standing thereon. And this he made known to M. de Bnol. M. de Bnol, as a matter of precon certed course, coincided with M. Drouyn de Lhuys in the propriety and acceptability of the Russian propositions, having previously ascertained," peraria," the dispositions of the English Plenipotentiary. After these two movements, the first at Vienna, and the second in England—but consequent the one ou the other—how can England demand the armed inter ference of Austria against Russia ? The answer is simple and unadorned. She will properly say, "We agree to the propositions for peace which the Whig Earl Grey and his bosom friends, Mr. Bright, Mr. Cobden, and Mr. Milner Gibson, and Lord Sohn Russell, pardessous main, and M. Drouyn de Lhuys openly consider to be fair and equitable. We have fulfilled our mission honourably, and without reservation, and we will not be entrapped into an act of injustice against our old ally of Russia, which is disapproved by the Whigs in the English Parlia ment." The Coburg policy is triumphant. It is " vue et approuvee" at the Diet of Frankfort. But the Emperoz Napoleon refuses to be cajoled, and is greatly displeased with Lord John Russell. In fact, the motion of the Whigs, his inveterate opponents—always excepting Lord Palmerston, who is of a doubtful gender in politics only—is directed, point blank, against the warlike spirit of France and the Conservatives in tho English Parliament. So far the Whig proceeding has been unsatisfactory to Germany, by demonstrating to France that the " entente cordiale" with England depends upon the Conservatives and the people, as against the Whigs singly, minus Lord Palmerston. The strength of the Conservatives, would they but act, is well known at the Diet; and they judge rightly that the Protes tant feeling is not likely to permit Lord John to bow the knee to Buol, and suck holy water from his fingers' ends without some political result; and all this, together with the hearty reception given to the Emperor in England, makes the Germans feel insecure in their Muscovite position. Still, as the probability of the " volonte de fer" being excited increases, so in proportion do they incline to fall back upon Russian legions. 'there can be no mistake that the failure of the conferences in pacific result, the incapacity and glaring insincerity of Lord