The Press. — London, England, 1855-03-31 00:00:00

MARCH 31, 1855. The Purchase System and the Staff By an Officer. London : Ridgway. Hart's Annual Army List, 1855. London: Murray. THE medical faculty are not the only persons who are seized with a periodical mania in favour of one particular remedy. The military re formers are just now suffering under a similar enthusiasm for the abolition of purchase in the army, and are, as usual, blind to every other suggestion for the remedy of admitted evils. The subject is one that has occupied much attention since the last war, and on which even the most competent authorities have differed. It is only recently, however, that it has been proposed as a cure for evils produced by the grossest mismanagement in every department—mismanagement arising from the incapacity for his duties of every member of an incongruous Government, and from the "wretched, rash, intruding " vanity which forced men unfit for second-rate clerk ships to undertake the administration of a mighty war. It made, surely, little difference whether the officer had purchased or been promoted by supposed merit who found him self deprived of shelter and food by the delay , or even the quarrelling of the authorities at home. The origin of purchase in the army is at bast but a matter of curiosity, let we should have been glad if "An Officer had given the authority for his opening assertion that it arose during the reign of Charles 11. That private corruption may have caused high commands to be given for money, and that Charles him self was ready to offer anything as an equiva lent for that commodity, there is no doubt, but Charles at no time was " determined to keep 44 up a larger force than was consistent w:th " the interests of the country" by means of any other purchase than the subsidies of Louis and the grants of the Parliament when under any pretence they could be obtained. We are disposed to agree with the Duke of Wellington 'that purchase began with the Revolution, being probably in imitation of a practice of selling commands nut previously unfrequent in the Low Countries. With respect to the evils of the system as it exists, it is strange to find in the pamphlet before us that these are almost wholly arising from the abuses which have been allowed to creep into it by the giving and receiving sums in excess of the regulation price, in defiance both of the Queen's Regulations and of the statute 49 George 111., which makes such sales on retirement a misdemeanour. All the blemishes on which " An Officer " rests his case against the purchase system are clearly abuses, and whatever be the merits of the argument against it, they constitute none of them. Of the system itself the Duke of Wellington's opinion, condensing all that can be said in its favour, is worth preserving : In point of fact, the promotion of the officers of the ammy by purchase is a saving of expense to the public, and /highly beneficial to the service, although it falls severely .upon individuals. It is not the practice of the officers at the head of the army to refuse to those desiring it the permission to sell their commissions which they have pur chased. Neither is it the practice of the officers at the head of the army to refuse permission to sell their com missions to those under the rank of lieutenant-colonels of regiments who have served for twenty years, although they have not purchased their commissions. These officers would probably be bereft of all means of subsistence upon their retirement from the service, reit .dered necessary by their advanced age or loss of health. They would endeavour to remain in ( and could not be re moved from their situations in the service) rather than ex pose themselves to want. The permission to sell their commissions to younger, more active, healthy, and energetic and better qualified men, relieves the service from a burthen, at the same time 'that it throws none upon the State in the shape of remune ration, reward, or provision for men worn out by the length and arduous nature of the services required from all British officers. It is the promotion by purchase which brings into the service men of fortune and education, men who have some connexion with the interests and fortunes of the country, besides the commissions which they hold from his Majesty. It is this circumstance which exempts the British army from the character of being a " mercenary army," and has rendered its employment for nearly a century and a half, not only not inconsistent with the constitutional privileges of the country, but safe and beneficial. Lord Raglan gives a similar opinion as the result of his judgment, and in fact the case becomes one very similar to others in our civil constitution where the pecuniary test THE PRESS. is made one—a bad one, perhaps, but the most convenient—of regular education and trained intelligence. In the question as to military promotion, however, the great diffi culty is to find a substitute for the system which now prevails. This "An Officer does not attempt. To say that officers are to be promoted by merit is to say nothing; for merit is so indefinite a term that, with the exception of gallantry in the face of the enemy, it will seldom be accorded by the voice of unanimity to one individual, and the objec tion to the present system, that officers are discontented at seeing others promoted over their heads by purchase, must become doubly strong when the neglect arises not only from the re, any:tate (loud, but from the alleged existence of some individual inferiority. In the marines and the ordnance, according to the evidence of Lord Raglan, merit has come to signify simply seniority, and these are the arms of the service in which promotion is slowest, and in which the superior officers are so aged as to be unfit for active duty. Thus wo find that in the marines the service of a colonel reaches to fifty-two years, of a lieute nant-colonel to forty-seven, and a captain to twenty-nine. Then as to promotion from the ranks, we hold the suggestion to adopt the French system as wholly im practicable, considering the present materiel of the British army. In France young men of the lower ranks of life look to the army as a profession ; in England they have adopted it hitherto as a necessity ; and every commanding officer knows that not unfre quently the most courageous man in the ranks would be the last whom he would wish to see promoted to a mess-table or to wield power over his fellows. The suggestions on " The Staff" are reason able and sound. It is, indeed, an anomaly that that portion of the army charged with the administration of its government and direc tion in the field should not be prepared by any regular and especial course of study or training except four years' regimental service. There are, if we recollect rightly, valuable suggestions on this subject in " Napoleon's Conversations with Las Cases." If this little pamphlet deals with some of the defects of our army, the second work, " Hart's Annual Army List," is a noble re cord of gallant and effective services, whether in spite of, or in consequence of, the system. In our " little wars " in which we have been so frequently engaged some of the most pe rilous services have been rendered by our troops, and this full and satisfactory work gives, from authoritative sources, a record of those of the most distinguished officers, and complete lists of all corps, imperial and colonial, with the institutions connected with the army. The index is copious and correct, and altogether the work (now in its sixteenth year) is the most satisfactory list of our military establishment published. PEBIODIC.AL WE can only glance at the contents of those maga zines which have reached us this month. Blackwood is certainly an excellent number, the table of con tents embracing some able articles upon various subjects. "The State of the Militia" thoroughly exposes the lamentable inefficiency from the mis management of the Government of that admirable reserve force. Deficient in numbers and wanting in discipline, left by the Government even without the means of acquiring instruction in their several duties (for it is here quoted as a fact, that one drill-sergeant last month was considered by the authorities as sufficient to instruct and drill a regiment of four hundred men!), the effectiveness of the force is entirely neutralised, and, unless some stringent measures are forced upon the Government, the militia system will be ruined, and the force become utterly useless to the country, by the con catenation of eminent blunders which the late and present Ministry have committed. "How to Dress Him" is a cleverly-written paper upon the manifest absurdities of the present system of clothing in the army. " Psychological Inquiries" is an able review of Sir Benjamin Brodie's interesting little volume, while " Charles Dickens," "Canadian Notes," " The Death of Nicholas," are full of interesting and instructive matter. The charming romance of " Zaidee " is also continued, and " The Story of the Campaign" is brought down to the late attack of the French upon the advanced redoubt. 311 The Dublin University Magazine of this month, continuing the subject of the " Barrier States of Europe," gives us the history of Poland in a few pages, and, without solving the question of the re constitution of that country, decides that an lade pendentbarrier state from the Baltic to the Euxine is the only security that we can hope will realise a last ing peace, and for ever prevent the further encroach ments of Russia. There are also sonic good literary re - views,Grote's "Greece" and "SI iers Political Sketches," among others ; while the fourth part of the " Dra matic Writers of Ireland" includes reminiscences of Murphy and Hugh Kelly. Some light and amusing tales, and a poem upon a Scotch legend, contribute their share to sustain the character of this magazine. In Fraser we have more literary reviews than any thing else, good enough in their way, but scarcely the staple matter for the pages of a magazine. Yet we have one political article upon Lord Palmerston, the Committee, and the Conference, in which these three subjects are summarily disposed of in a few pages. The other matter is light and amusing, the review of the " Oxford Essays" being the best. The Fifth Part of the Royal Gallery of Art has also been issued. It contains three engravings from pictures of the royal collection at Osborne. " A Summer Noon: Hampton Court," by Wingfield, engraved by Conzen ; "Ariel," by Townsend, en graved by Sharpe; and "The Gate of Metwalleys, Cairo," by Roberts, It.A., engraved by Challis. The engravings are certainly not of a very high excellence, but the work bids fair to form, when concluded, a fine collection in itself of engravings of works of a high class in art. The Angler and His Friend; or, Piseatory Colloquies and Fishing Excursions. By John Davy, M.D., F.R.S. London : Longmans. DR. DAVY, in this elegant little treatise upon the de• lightful art of angling, mingles with his observations more practical remarks than we have hitherto met with in works upon the same subject. The whole art of fly-making, as well as fly-fishing, culinary hints, observations upon the present defective state of the law with regard to private fisheries, and remarks upon travelling and travellers, are introduced in the conversations here recorded, which abound also with poetical descriptions of scenery, and accounts of piscatorial successes and disappointments in the English and Irish lakes. Not, the least interesting portion of the book is that which c(•ntains Dr. Davy's remarks upon the natural history of the different fish which he pursues : their marks and peculiarities, their migratory tastes, and the precautions necessary to insure success in artificial breeding, are all dis• cussed in a pleasant and practical tone. Of the senses of fish, Dr. Davy decides that they possess five in common with mankind, of which that of sight is the most acute and of touch the most obtuse. He represents all the species as voracious, and as desti tute of " natural afiection" Hence, I think, on the score of s.osiitiveness, you need have no compunction of conscience in becoming an angler ; and were you acquainted with the habits of fish in all their details, you would, I am sure, be quite at ease on the sub ject. I allude now to the two great Ilmotions by whieh as individuals they are supported and their species male tinned ; vix., their mode of feeding and of breeding ; both carried on in the most inhuman way, according to our ideas of humanity. Take the example of a trout : its food is entirely animal matter, and its favourite food living animals, which it sieres and swallows entire ; and so in discriminately voracious is it, that, with the exception of the poisonous toad, there is no living creature that comes in its way it will not devour, from the frog or mouse to the common fly and gnat, from the slimy slug to the stony incased larva, and not even sparing its own kind, it being no uncommon occurrence to take a large trout with a smeller one in its stomach In manner of breeding they can hardly be said to show any parental affection, at least the salmonidte. Their eggs are deserted, after having been properly deposited in • suitable bed of gravel, left to the mercy of chance to be hatched, and the young fish conseqnently never know their parents, who, Baturu-like, often feed on their helpless offspring. Fish undoubtedly sleep : As to sleep, fish, I believe, do rest and " steep their senses in forgetfulness," and this probably more by night than by day. I am led to this conclusion from obser• vations on very young fish. These, •bent the darkest part of the night, when confined in glasses so as to be easily seen, I have noticed immoveable, resting on the bottom of the vessel, and quite regardless of an approaching object, not stirring till they have been almost touched; so different in this respect from their manner when awake by day. Perhaps their hours of rest vary in some measure according to their age and wants : probably old and large fish, like the larger carnivorous beasts, the lion and tiger, rest by day and then sleep; we know that night is their principal &eft ing•time. We have not space for more extracts, but we cor dially commend Dr. Davy's pleasant conversations to every angler, as much for real practical information as for lively description and agreeable adventure. Velasquez and his Works. By William Sterling. London: J. W. Parker and Son. Tana life of Velasquez has already partly appeared in the pages of Mr. Sterling" previous work, "The