The Express.
London, England, 1852-01-29 00:00:00

Iligh lb outworks. be armed with some handrail
gum; wild the citadel heights hare fifty guns i thsl
Idielle smarted bye largo redoubt.
nag are very formidable obstacles, but drws this
mimes statement show the real state of the twee P.
Dever is • seaport, situated between two high cli*
the valley between which leads to London. For-
mer! the entrance of the harbour was protected by
two known as the Amherst and Towns•
bend, both on the water level,—and by Arch-
/Mr sslissbe, which,--situatcd to the side towards
INlsktsPstib Cliff,--raked the entrance, and Mao
commanded the sea weetwards. But the barb=
requiring attain impseismsets, the Amherst and
lbermbeed batteries ware palled down, sad • cer-
Mils mese was isft newer the town, where a battery
was to be ibeseed. Now • shore battery is not an
expensive thing; it is not supposed to withstand an
actual attack, but merely to do u much damage as
possible, whilst shipping is still at a certain distance,
or whilst boats are being tilled with men
for disembarkation. A simple earthen battery

woad, then/ore, answer every purpose, bit
from neglect, or —as the Ordnance would
espbdn it—through want of funds, the space in-
tended to have been occupied by a battery is still
vacant and desolate, neither useful nor ornamental.
Lately, also, a railway terminus has been erected at
Dover, and iu the full belief that for the future no-
thing was to appear near our shores more alarming
than pleasure excursionists from Paris, the terminus
was allowed to be erected so as to cut off all the
flanking fire from Archeliff Fort towards Dover, and,
instead of its projecting well out, as it used to do,
and raking the sands, it is now thrown back and
comparatively useless—the few guns which it pos-
sesses looking westwards out to sea, in the direction
of Shakespere's Cliff. As if that memorable block of
chalk wanted protection against attack, rising,
though it , some hundreds of feet perpendicularly
from e sca.does

The defences of Dover. therefore, are confined to
the citadel heights and the castle. The latter dating
from the days of Jtatus C.v-ssit, situated on the cliff
to the right of the entrance, consists of a keep and •
series of batteries, extending down to the seaside.
With the exception of a salute fired from the keep
on the arrival of the Ques:s from Ostend, and the
late experiments with the magnetic wires from
Calais, we doubt very much whether these guns have
ever been used. Instead of a hundred, there are
certainly not fifty, many of which are carronades.
But this is not alt. Instead of the place being gar-
risoned by artillery, it is occupied by a line regiment,
the guns are left in the care of the winds of heaven,
and there is sot a single gunner on the premises.
To the left of Dover is the citadel. This consists of
splendid field works covering the whole cliff, com-
manding the town, harbour, the military road which
leads up the valley, and is protected towards the
castle by a strong redoubt. But earthen parapets
without guns are rather harmless, and though they
may servo as boundaries to adventurous cattle, or as
pleasant rambling grounds for boys on a Sunday
afternoon, they certainly will not much doter sangui-
nary marauders should such desire to venture near
us. But where are these guns? In Woolwich
Warren surely. Now, when the whole country
is occupied with the grave question of our national
defences,—when the government very well know that
day by day the public arc clamorous for some pre-
cautions to be taken,—we have the key of Eng-
land, as it were, totally undefended. Guns are
not moved and mounted in • day or in a week. To
put that citadel in a state of defence would take the
small force of artillery which is in tho redoubt a
whole month, working day and night. As this citadel
commands the castle, the latter is useless were the
former taken ; and by landing towards Folkestone, the
latter might be captured without a single shot from
the castle being able to prevent it! Is not this a pretty
state of things? and we may well ask " A Soldier
why cannot the landing be made at Dover, and an
intienchnient be completed on Dover heights? for
an enemy would find things ready made, and have
nothing to do but to mount his guns and man them.
And are not the French fully aware of this
matter ? Is there a spot along our coast
which has not been visited by military tourists,
and is there a stone on Dover heights which they
are not acquainted with ? Portsmouth and Ply-
mouth have a formidable defence in their men of
war, but large vessels cannot lay off Dover, for it is
a dangerous place, and merchantmen do not much
like the straits of a windy night. Yet we think
there would be no great difficulty in mooring a
floating battery. When danger is said to be staring
us in the face, it is not a time for dull and slow con-
sideration, but for action. The Ordnance may wish
to put Dover in a state of defence, but what arc they
waiting for ? Where are the Ordnance store boats,
which arc kept and paid for the purpose of conveying
guns? and what is the use of keeping hundreds of
these guns stored at Woolwich, for the amusement of
royal and noble visitors from London, when we aro told
to expect a very different style of visitor from abroad?
Indeed, the guns in Dover Castle are but small ones,
and very different things from French siege guns,
which—known in England by the name of Musies
and DuNtimis--appear too valuable to be exposed to
the seabreeze. We pay dearly enough for our
inefficient ordnance, and as we pay so much for it
those in whose charge it is seem to think it too
precious to be made useful.
Surely these are times for asking why so few
artillerymen are stationed at • place like Dover. At
present there are not enough to man the guns
actually mounted, and the whole force is very insuf-
ficient to keep in order the guns which are supposed
by the public to be mounted. But whose fault is it?
Nobody s, of course. Nobody is responsible, and so
the work goes undone. The Premier will refer any
questioning Member of Parliament to his honour-
able friend the Secretary-at-War; the latter,
declining the responsibility, will throw it on
the Clerk of the Ordnance, who will reply that he
merely regulates the estimates and that such informa-
tion must be obtained from the Master-General. That
gallant officer has his hands tied by the Board of
Ordnance,--one of whom has to supply the guns,
whilst another gives him the order for that pur-
-1 use. As to the men, as long as the guns are kept
in depot at Woolwich, the artillerymen are kept there
to look after the guns—a duty which could be as
well and more profitably performed by the police.
If we mistake not, these idle weapons are at present
watched by both forces, so that the police may
throw any blame on the soldiers, and the latter
return it on the police—a little reciprocal arrange-
ment which is too advantageous to be lost sight of.
This is merely another of the series of ill-manage-
ments consequent oa the division of authority and
responsibility. No man would subject himself to the
imputation that through his neglect such a port as
Dover was left entirely unguarded; but when it is
nobody's fault, neglect becomes an easy matter.
There is no reason for surrounding ourselves with a
Chinese wall, but really we do not see why our very
doors should be left open to admit any housebreaker
that pleases to walk in. As the Ordnance is a body
that does not trouble itself about this matter—
perhaps the public voice will find somebody that
will. Let us insist that proper use be made of the
forces we pay for.

CLAIM' OF ST. PANCRAS P.XIIISR TO PARLIA-
REYRR,ENTATION.—Yestertiay, at the meeting
nt St. P Vestry, held in the Vestry-hall, adjoLing the
workhouse. T. Eld Baker, Esq., senior churchwarden, in the I
chair; Dr. Gregory brought forward the following ressilu-
That it is expedient that this vestry do petition
both branches of the legislature, praying that in any bill
which may he brought In for a reform in the Commons
House of Parliament provision may be made that the
parish of St. Pantries be constituted a separate borough,
with the privilege of returning two members." Several
gentlemen spoke in suppor. of the resolution, which was
carried, with only two dissentients out of a large vestry.
TIIE CULTIVATIoN Or 11.r.mp, an a somewhat ex-
tessive scale, is to be attempted, during the approaching
I season, by some enterprising and public spirited persons of
Plymouth, in that neighbourhood and Dartmoor.
EMIGRATION.—Yesterday a return to parliament
wgp printed, showing that the total number of persons who
emigrated from the United Kingdom during the live years
I tram IRIS to IMO inclusive was 1:2111,447. '1 ne number
; despatched by the Colonial Land and Emigratigin C•immis-
gime rs in the period no. 53,131, and the estimated number
who emigrated at their own rest in the mime time Sal
1,163,1 a.
COLONIAL EXPENDITURE.— Yesterday a parlia-
i mentary paper was printed, from which it appearsthat the
; colonial expenditure by fire it Britain, in the year Pll7-18,
was 3,1101,13A1. I Is. iti.; and in 1141'4-19 it amounted to
3,180,3131 Bs. Pd.
ADULTV.RATED PF.FFER.—Yesterday, at a session
of the Court of Inland Revenue, S onuel Lind.. y, grocer,
of the lower Marsh. Larrilieth, was litp•l (on
rem • let i.,n) for hiving sold adulterwed peppi r ; and Kir-
nett II irnett, of Aliolillmieivstreet, Whitechapel, was tired
2.'i fur a similar offence.

THE EXPRESS, THURSDAY EVENING, JANUARY 29, 1852.

Lobet Oarcerne, who are to be transported to
Cayenne.
An erratum in the Munitemr states that in the list
of senators, instead of " the Marquis de Pontis"must
be read "the Marquis do Porto, former er of
France; and instead of the " Marquis de Croi" must
be read " the Marquis de Croix."
M. Auguste Chevalier, secretary of the President,
is appointed secretary-general of the Consul d'Etat,
with a salary of
_ls,ooofr.

M. Baroche, vice-president of the Council of State,
has appointed his son Ernest, who is clerk in tho
Foreign-office, his chcf cabinet.
A credit of 20,000 fr. is opened to the Minister of
Financo to defray the expenses of the Court of
Accounts.

The Monileur contains a decree authorising the
anonymous societ♦ formed at Paris under the deno-
mination of the company of the Western Railway,
and approving the statutes of the same. The society
will be h Id to remit every six mouths an extract of
the state of its accounts to the Minister of the
Interior, to the prefects of the departments traversed
by the railway, to the prefect of police, to the
Chamber of Commerce, and to the clerks of the Tri-
bunals of Commerce in whose circumscription the
exploitation will take place.
The Prince-President has received from the King
of Sardinia the letters which put an end to the mis-
sion of Count do Galling as Minister Plenipoten-
tiary. At the same audience in which these letters
were presented by M. de Galling, the Chevalier
Provana do Collegno handed to the Prince his cre-
dentials as successor to the Into envoy.
The President of the Republic was present at the
representation of Guillaume Tell at the Grand Opera
the night before last. He was accompanied by
Marshal Exelmans, General Rognet, his aide-dc-
camp, M. de Pcrsigny, the Minister of the Interior,
and Colonel Ney de la Moskowa.
It is announced, says the Pattie, that the grand
public fetes will take place in Paris on the 22nd,
23rd, and 24th of next month.

Aaron d'Arsen, Chamberlain of the King of Hol-
land, has just arrived in Paris on a special mission.
M. C. E. David has just left Paris for Austria and,
Italy, on a special mission.
The squadron of evolutions under the command of
Admiral de la Stine, consisting of the Ville de Paris,
the Valmy, Henri IV., Ilayard, lens, and Jupiter
ships of the line, Corner and Sane steam frigates,
and Caton steam corvette, sailed from Toulon on
the 21st. After passing the night and next day
at sea, the squadron anchored in the night of the
22nd off the Des d'lly&es, where they will remain a
few days, in order to exercise the men at the guns.
The Uranie, of 60 guns, was lying in the roadstead
of Ilyeres when the squadron anchored. The
Gencreax, which is to take on board some of the
prisoners sentenced to transportation, left the harbour
of Toulon on the 21st, and anchored in the outer
roads.

M. Leon Vidal, long known as a zealous Bona-
partist writer in the Bulletin de Paris, has been
appointed by M. de l'crsigny chef-de-bureau of the
department of prisons at the ministry of the interior.
M. Vidal formerly held en office in that ministry,
from which he was dismissed by the provisional
government.
The Bulletin de Paris, of this evening, says that
manuscript journals from abroad are sent into France
by post, and spread false reports and hostile senti-
ments. It feels certain that the government will not
permit the circulation of these hidden calumnies,
fabricated on the other side of the Rhine and the
British Channel.

The Bourse opened with firmness, and a rise of
50e. was attained, but a reaction took place. which
ended in the Five per Cents, falling from yesterday
15c., closing at 102440. The Three per Cents. fell
Sc., and closed at 65.15. Bank of France shares fell
10c. Railways fell slightly.