The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-12-18 00:00:00

or economical by the Duke of WznnrsGros—he carried on
hostilities on the principle of a " little war." This pet hobby
of the right hon. gentleman he was forced to dismount from,
but not before he had entangled the nation in an expense,
through mismanaged'resources, tenfold as great as that which
a vigorous prosecution of the war would have entailed upon
the cctuntry ; 'While he also caused, throUgh the same means,
an expinditure of brave life such as no country can afford to
throw away. Having accomplished this much, he was smitten
with a sudden fit of conscientiousness, and could not on any
terms consent to remain iin—inaber of any Cabinet which
allowed the_elite the illustrissinsi viri of its composition to be
told the truth by the country, or the House of Commons, or
an committee which that house might appoint. Repudiating
the Cabinet which would not shield him from the scrutiny
which condemned his shallow, if not absolutely treasonable,
policy, he has taken up the dignified position of an itinerant
lecturer at popular institutions, and contents himself,
for the present, with wordy efforts to ruin the con-
stitution he was only too successful in injuring as a minis-
ter. He now counsels the abandonment of our colonies, as he
previously mutilated the war preparations, in obedience to the
behests of a cheese-paring and candle-end economy, and a
strongly-suspected partiality for Russia. To men who have
only common sense for their guide, and reason for their moni;
tor, it seems inexplicable that one who so stoutly insists upon
maintaining the integrity of Russia, and defends as inviolate
the territorial thefts which she has recently committed, should
in cold blood, and as the pastime of a political leisure, only lest;
mischievous than public employment, advocate the dismem-
berment of the British Empire. Yet, such is the course
adopted by the Right Honourable Member for the University.
of Oxford. He shrunk with horror from the bare idea of a
dismemberment of Russia during the debate on the Vienna
Conferences, yet he unhesitatingly advocates the propriety of
stripping Great Britain of her colonies, while he, also, it is
well known, aspires to seize the helm of-public affairs, in the
ministerial crisis which he and his friends strive so hard to
bring about.
-While the Ministerial break-up seems imminent and inevit-
able; there are not wanting many who, in the working of the
movement, still see rather the indications of a Parliamentary
dead-lock and a dissolution. Of this belief are Many of the
leading Rads of Manchester, who, with the proverbial sagacity
which is supposed to be peculiar to the pig-headed tribe, see
right into the wind's eye of the political horizon. Those
gentlemen, disgusted with the anti-national policy of the
Right Hon. T. M. GIBBON, and the right nothing Joux
Mama; are preparing the seats of those gentlemen for new
occupiers. Such individuals, ever in extreme, have cast their
wooing glance upon Lord PaLattEnsToar, and mean, it is said,
to nominate him in opposition to the pugnacious peace Quaker.
True, his_ lordship repudiates the connexion, and, with that
ascerbity of banter which forms a constitutional feature iu his
character, says, in answer to the request of having such honour
conferred upon him, "Me go to Manchester to meet Jarrx
BRIGHT ! not likely ; Ihave too much of him in the House of
Commons." The " knowing, ones "of cottonopolis, however,
never understand a negative at bargain-making in its negative
sense, and entertain no belief in the veracity of politicians.
They apply their ordinary rule to the present case, and, in the
refusal of Lord PALMERSTON, see only one instance more of
political coquetry, and infer that in saying no he really means
yes. Strong in this complimentary conviction, it is said they
will in reality put his lordship in nomination. So much for
having acquired the character of a political joker.
Considerable additional light has been thrown on many of
the disputed points of the Crimean war, and on the opera-
tions of the Allied armies immediately preceding that expe-
dition, by the publication of a " Sketch of the War in the
East from the departure of Lord RAGLAN to the capture of.
Sebastopol." It is from the pen of Mr. WOODS, late special
correspondent of the Morning Herald, at the seat of war,
The judicious letters of this gentleman produced a great and
r'deserved effect in relation to the conduct of the war, as that
was
,delineated in his nervous but not querrulous despatches.
The substance of his remarks have been by him carefully
digested, and, in the work which he has just published, he, as
already said, lets in new light upon many of the dark and
dim spots which tinge, though they do not tarnish, the bright
course of events in the Crimea. He directs the rays of his
concentrated sagacity upon the early movements of the
campaign, demonstrates the inadequacy of preparation at the
time it was undertaken, and incidentally makes out a strong
case of incapacity against Lord RAGLAN, as its conductor.
He denounces the encampment on the swamps of Devna,
where the British Army suffered so severely before the
expedition to the Crimea was undertaken—censures the
inadequacy of the transport accommodation, which led to
such frightful loss by the want of tents, of ambulances, of
proper medical stores, and by the want of baggage animals.
He also condemns unmeasuredly the lateness of the season
at which the expedition was undertaken. In all this, un-
fortunately, there is nothing new. It has all been seen and
heard and declared before ; but Mr. WOODS does not confine
his remarks and investigation to matters which have been
already inquired into. On the contrary, in his narrative the
reader becomes for the first time acquainted with circum-
stances of vital importance, which, if they had "an ear and
understanding," have hitherto; 'at all events, had "no
tongue." Of this description are his comments on the
Battle of Balaklava, in which lie tells us that but for
Sir Conn:- CAMPBELL disobeying orders, or rather counter- 1
manding an order of General AIRET'S to withdraw a most
important field battery, the Russians would have succeeded in
seizing the town which it was the main object of their attack
to effect. He also points out the unhappy results of those un-
seemly bickerings which early showed themselves between
the Earls of LUCAS and CARDIGAN, declaring, however, the
former to be the better officer, and attributing to his caution
alone the fact that the Light Brigade was not annihilated
through the rash impetuosity of Lord CARDIGAN in the first
affair of the Bulganak. He casts the chief portion of blame
in reference to the fatal Light Cavalry charge at Balaklava on
the mistake of Lord RAGLAN in issuing his second order,
before he was aware of his first having taken effect. He
severely stigmatizes the carelessness of the British comman-
ders in not paying attention to the repeated representations
of General EVANS as to the insecurity of his position, and
holds the assault at Inkerman to have been induced by a cul-
pable neglect on the part of the commanders of the British
army. The battle, he maintains, to have been without plan or
stategy on their part; and to have been in all respects, and in
every sense of the word, a "soldiers' victory." In his narra--
tive of campaigning incidents, Mr. WOODS is peculiarly effec-
tive; but of these an abundant supply has already been served
up to an•admiring or indignant public. While fully exculpa-
ting Captain Cul/anis from blame or responsibility in regard
to the loss of the Princes, he confirms, in the main, every
particular of the gross mismanagement which led to such
frightful sufferings and disasters in the British army during
the winter. His reference to Captain CHRISTIE'S death is
thus concluded :—" As I have already stated, Capt. CHRISTIE
died of the ordinary Crimean fever, which was then commen-
cing to show itself among the Allies. A ' broken heart,' as it
has been sometimes alleged, had nothing whatever to do with
his death, for up to the last hour of his life he was confident
of refuting the charges against him. But to this day our
transport captains—than whom it would be difficult to find a
more public-spirited, zealous, and upright body of men—una-
nimously regard Captain CHRISTIE almost as a murdered
man, and as a scapegoat of the government, who. unhesita-
tingly sacrificed him that others might be saved." This
book of Mr, Weans' is making, as it was certain to do, a'
great sensation among all ranks in the metropolis.,

The musical event of last week was the re-appearance of
Jurary LINT), whose fascinations have lost none of their charms
in the person of Madame JENNY GOLDSCIMIDT LIND,
whose revived song crowns the musical history of the present
year. __ On Monday right last this matchless, vocalist appeared
at Exeter Hall, and poured forth in mellifluous strains and
warblings the dulcet melodies of HAYDN. She appeared ire
the oratorio of the " Creation ;" and was, welcomed with a
truly English fervour by a crowded and brilliant audience..
The pure, simple, and expressive style of her vocalization was,
as heretofore, striking and delightful,. Her exquisite natural
organ, tutored by art, and directed by a taste intuitively pure,
found scope and captivating exercise in warbling such en-
chanting melodies as " With verdure. clad." In welcoming
this old and all but idolized, favourite, the musical world
of London, both amateur and professional, on Monday night
at once performed a duty and received delight. Madame
GOLDSCHMIDT returned to them the same earnest, simple-
minded, and accomplished daughter of song, as when she first
won their affections and received their plaudits ; if changed in
anything—a fact not wally perceived—she is considered by
many to be improved. To-night she sings in " Elijah," the
music of which some unaccountables prefer to that of the
"Creation," on which occasion another bumper and another
triumph are of course awaiting her. Early in the year she
starts on a short provincial tom; in the course of which your
readers will be delighted to learn she is to visit the "Queen
of the Mersey," where, without doubt, as before, she will meet
with a kindly greeting and a hearty welcome. In the metro-
polis great diversity of opinion is expressed regarding her ;
but it is the diversity of admiration, and is in itself the highest
compliment which can be paid. Some express themselves in
favour of one peculiar beauty in her style, some of another,
but all concur in her general and unapproachable excellence.
Her powers of voice and execution are unimpaired, while those
higher attributes which depend on the developement of genius
and the cultivation of the intellect are present in, if possible,
still greater force than before. The grace, sweetness, and
brilliancy which first captivated her auditors, continue still to
enthral them in a silken spell, and at the present moment she
is hailed, as she as ever been the " Queen of Song."