The Press. — London, England, 1856-07-12 00:00:00

JULY 12, 1856. THE ENTRY OF THE G[A EDS INTO LONDON. i n s Guards made their entry into London on Wed. nesday. There was not so much excitement or enthusiasm among the people as such a ceremony under similar circumstances in any other country or capital would create ; but the Londoner is like the dull man in the play, "if he don't say much, be feels more ;" and, although the hurrahs and cheers were weak, feeble, and ill-connected, not a man in the vast crowds lining the streets for miles, from Nine Elms to Hyde-park, but felt proud of those noble columns as they paraded along, was glad to see them return once more to old London, and wa s individually ready to acknowledge their right to a hearty welcome. But, somehow or another, ye are not an enthusiastic people, and must gaze on a show until it is over before we can exactly appreciate its intent, or be ready to exhibit our gratification. The Guards, consisting of the Coldstream, Gre nadier, and Fusilier Guards, in all some 3,200 men, in accordance with the programme, had been brought up in the early part of the morning from Aldershott in four divisions, and were ordered to fall into line at the Nine Elms station shortly after eleven o'clock, when the march commenced in the following order : The Grenadiers first, commanded by Colonel Ridley ; next the Fusiliers, commanded by Colonel Walker; and lastly the Coldstreams, commanded by Colonel Drummond. The whole brigade was under the command of Major-General Lord Rokeby, who rode in advance. Major-General Crawfurd acted as divi sional commander, accompanied by Captain Stint, his aide-de .camp ; Colonel Foley, who brought the brigade home; Colonel Starkey, Captain the Hon. A. Egerton, Major Coke, Captain Wellesley, Major Baring, Colonel Lewis, Colonel O'Brien, &c. Each regiment was preceded by its pioneers and band, and, after the National Anthem, the first air played was "Home, sweet Home." The column marched in " fours," which had the effect of making the number of troops look larger than it really was, while a double line of spectators extended the whole way from Nine Elms to the Park, and as by far the greater portion accompanied the troops in their march, some idea may he formed of the immense mass of popula tion which was congregated at Hyde.park. The houses in Millbank-street and Abingdon-street were filled with fair spectators, who throughout the route were by far the most vigorous in their welcome. Several peers and members of the House of Com mons took their stations in front of the Houses of Parliament, from which they bad a good view of the procession. At the corner of Parliament-street bou quets of flowers wore flung from the balconies amongst the men. The Duke of Buccleucb, with his family and friends viewed the procession from a temporary seating, which he caused to be erected within the railings in front of his mansion in White hall, and this was pretty much the case with the other inhabitants of that locality. On the plateau of Charing-cross and Trafalgar-square there did not seem to be an unoccupied post; and here the utmost exertion was required to keep the line un broken. In Pall mall the club-houses were filled with members and elegantly-dressed ladies, who greeted the troops by the waving of handkerchiefs and scarfs. At the end of Pall-mall the Earl of Cardigan and other officers met the troops, and wherever the noble lord was recognised he was loudly cheered. In the Park, General Beatson joined the other officers, and throughout the day was a general theme of specula tion to the people, from his unique and remarkable military costume, as commander of the Bashi- Bazouks. Some would have it that be was a French man, others a Sardinian, and one imaginative indi vidual suggested that he must be no other than General Mouravieff himself. _ _ As the time for the arrival of the Guards ap proached, the crowd at the different points in the parks and before the Palace became so great and so eager that the police and the troops experienced much difficulty in keeping clear the space necessary for the progress of the heroes of the day. Within the gates of the Palace there was manifested as eager and as intense an interest as without. The balcony over the principal entrance had been pre parel for the reception of her Majesty, the Royal Family, and her illustrious guests ; and for at least an hour before the rattle of the drums indicated the approach of the troops the Queen herself, the King of the Belgians, several of the younger members of the Royal Family, and some of the ladies and gentlemen of the suite, could be seen through tho windows im mediately behind the balcony, eagerly watching for the appearance of the bayonets which carried the heights of Alma and withstood the flower of the Russian army at Inkermann. About noon his Royal Highness Prince Albert left the Palace for Hyde-park, and shortly after her Majesty the Queen, and her royal visitors, appeared on the balconies. A few minutes of suspense, and then the sound of the drums of the Grenadier Guards was heard, and the head of the column wheeled THE PRESS. into the Mall amidst the heartiest shouts they met with on their whole route. The troops marched straight to the Palace, and, entering the south gate. passed under the balcony on winch the Queen and royal party were standing to receive them, and left the inclosure by the north gate, marching up Consti. tution-hill into Hyde-park. As the troops passed through the inclosure they lowered arms, and the Queen graciously acknowledged the salute and waved her handkerchief, and bowed and smiled, the troops responding by very hearty cheers. In the Park were already collected the first and second battalions of the Grenadiers, and the second battalion of the other regiments of Guards, brought out to join their Crimean comrades upon this occa sion, so that so soon ao the first battalions had arrived, the entire brigade, including seven battalions, and in all some 5,5(X) men, stood collected together. About half-past twelve o'clock the heroes from the Crimea entered the Park by the gate at Apsley house, and on reaching the open space set apart for the review, they were marched by Major-General Crawfurd, under the orders of Major-General Lord Rokeby, to their appointed place in the intervals left in the line of columns previously formed by the battalion of Guards who had awaited their arrival, and who presented arms as they advanced. At the conclusion of this manoeuvre the whole brigade stood fronting Park-lane ; and when the amalgama tion had taken place among the several battalions the Crimean brigade was still easy distinguishable from all the rest by their soiled and dusky uniforms and the weatber-beaten look of the men. Major- General Lord Rokeby, Major-General Crawfurd, and Colonel Wood, Field-Officer in Waiting, having formally handed over to the colonels of the respec tive regiments the battalions composing the whole brigade, the troops on the ground for the rest of the day remained under the command of his royal High ness the Duke of Cambridge. His Royal Highness Prince Albert then proceeded to meet her Majesty, and to conduct her into the Park. . At half-past one o'clock the Queeen, accompanied by a numerous and august party, entered the Park in procession, escorted by a detachment of the Royal Horse Guards. Her Majesty was received by the Prince Consort and a numerous staff at Hyde-park Corner, and thence escorted to the saluting point, just opposite Grosvenor-gate, a detachment of Life Guards leading the way. The Duke of Wellington, as Master of the Horse, rode immediately behind the carriage which conveyed the Queen and her illustrious guests, and a brilliant group of general officers on the staff followed according to their rank and seniority, with a number of other general officers who were present, but not upon the staff. On her Majesty arriving at the saluting point the troops upon the ground presented arms, and the bands of the several regiments played the National Anthem. The royal party then proceeded down the line formed by the troops, and returning to the flagstaff, the horses were detached from the carriages com posing the royal cortege, and his Royal High ness Prince Albert and the Duke of Cambridge took up a position near the carriage in which her Majesty and her illustrious guests were seated. The group of general officers ranged themselves in line a short distance from the Queen, while immediately opposite the flagstaff were the bands of the several regiments, now formed into one. The whole of the brigade then broke into open column and marched past her Majesty in quick time, the band playing the spirit. stirring air of " See the conquering hero comes.* Throughout the whole of this manoeuvre the gallant bearing of the troops, and the precision of their movements, excited general admiration ; while the colours of each regiment, as borne past, many of them tattered and torn, and inscribed with the im mortal names of Alma, Inkc rmann, and Sebastopol, added now to the older watchwords of Corunna, Barossa, Talavera, Peninsula, and Waterloo, excited the crowd to rather a general cheer. After the bri gade had marched past it retired to its original position, and then advanced in line in close order towards the royal party, within a hundred yards of whom they halted, and saluted. The effect of this was magnificent, and had scarcely passed off when the word to "stand at ease, put their caps on their bayonets, and give a cheer for the Queen," was given, and the men took off their caps, raised them aloft on their muskets, and gave three hearty cheers. Immediately after this, the horses were re-attached to the royal carriages, and the Queen, graciously bowing to the multitude, left the Park in the order of her arrival. After she retired from the Park, a vast crowd of the humbler classes, who had been pent up for several hours behind the barriers along the northern side of the inclosure, broke over the palings, and ruOied towards the Crimean heroes, who were still formed in squares, and seemed not a little at a loss to account for this ebullition of popular enthusiasm. The Guards after a short time of rest were marched to their respective quarters, and the ceremony of the day was concluded. 663 6lettion FROME.—LORD EDWARD THYNNE has issued an address to the electors : In announcing myself to your notice as a " Conserva tive " (says Lord Edward 1, I hope and believe that I am not less liberal in my views and opinions than those who would arrogate to themselves the exclusive possession of liberal opinions. The true policy of every real Conserva tive must be to advance with the times in which we live, and I should be found a zealous supporter of every measure of useful reform and social progress which tended to the interests of my fellow-countrymen. The noble lord then states that he is against the May nooth grant, and in favour of any measure on Church rates which should provide a substitute for the present rate, and while it would preserve the buildings, allay the scruples of those who feel aggrieved. The noble lord concludes I cannot view the present position of the country as satisfactory, or one that an Englishman should be proud of. Having hardly emerged from one war, which, whilst it added glory to our arms, and proved the spirit of British soldiers, at the same time showed the culpable negligence of the Home Government, we appear to be fast drifting into another, from similar incapacity ; while the nation is insulted and lowered in the estimation of the world, and all discussion in the House of Commons is sought to be stifled. CALNE.—General Sir W. F. Williams, Bart., was, on Wednesday, returned without opposition for this borough, in the room of Earl Shelburne. The gallant general was proposed by Mr. W. Wayte, and Mr. B. Baily seconded the nomination. In returning thanks the new member, who was much cheered, said : My real motive in coming forward is to endeavour to serve you and to serve the country in this her present state of transition from war to peace, by advocating the preserva tion of those military institutions which cost us so much blood and so much mortification to re-establish after the commencement of the late war. I therefore hope you will consider that I do my duty if I pursue that course—if I try to protect those institutions which will protect you from future invaders, and make the name of England respected throughout the natzons of the world. As it is with indivi duals solit is with nations ; no great nation, however great in other respects, can with safety stand in close proximity with other nations, armed to the teeth, unless provided with similar means of defence ; and I am, therefore, quite sure that what I say will hold good, viz., that we should watch jealously over our military institutions. No person would think of going unarmed, with his pockets full of gold . among men whom he knew to be jealous of his personal character, and covetous of his wealth; and I am satisfied that you will agree with what I said when I landed at Dover, and what I have since repeated—that we should be careful above all things to keep ourselves in a position to preserve the wealth which the industry of ages has col lected in this country. Since the time of William the Conqueror—and he came to this country having some pre tensions to the throne—no conqueror has ever set his foot on our soil; and if we would continue to be able to make this proud boast we must not neglect our military resources. -------- Lord Shelburne, in his parting address to his con stituents, declared " that he was unable to resist the opportunity" of endeavouring to prove himself a useful public savant." THE RIGHT HON. GEORGE BANKES, M.P. for Dor setshire, expired at his residence in Old Palace yard at one o'clock on Sunday afternoon. The right hon. gentleman had been unwell for the last six weeks, but it was not until Friday last that his malady assumed a serious aspect. Since that day, up to the hour of his death, the right hon. gentleman gradually sank. The deceased gentleman was second son of the late Mr. Henry Bankes, formerly for many years M.P. for the county of Dorset. He was educated at Westminster School, and afterwards proceeded to Cambridge to complete his studies. He then adopted the legal profession, and was called to the bar at Lincoln's-inn in 1813. In 1922 be was ap pointed one of the Bankruptcy Commissioners, and was afterwards appointed Cursitor Baron, and had for many years been chairman of the Dorsetshire Sessions. He was Recorder of Weymouth. Mr. Bankes first entered on official life under the Duke of Wellington's Administration, when he was ap pointed Chief Secretary of the Board of Control, and in 1830 was appointed a Junior Lord of the Treasury and one of the Commissioners for the affairs of India. On the formation of the Earl of Derby's Govern ment, in March 1852, Mr. Bankes was appointed Judge-Advocate-General, which office he held up to the resignation of Lord Derby in . December the same year. Mr. Bankes entered Parliament on the Conservative interest as a representative for Corfe Castle, in 1816, and continued to represent that con stituency up to its being united with Wareham in 1832. At the general election in 1841 he was re turned to the House of Commons for Dorsetshire, which he has since sat for in the House of Com mons. Mr. Bankes was a strenuous supporter of the high Conservative principles, opposing the com mercial measures of the late Sir Robert Peel. Mr. Bankes married Miss Nugent, only child of the late Admiral of the Fleet, Sir Charles Nugent, G.C.8., by whom ho leaves a family of four sons and three daughters. .iil