The Express.
London, England, 1855-12-31 00:00:00

fit, Oxpreoo.

TO CORRISPONDINTS.
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SIGH WATIS AT LONDON lIIILDOS.
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Twoosamr—iiiiede, 716 5iii.........A115en50. 416 14s.

LONDON, MONDAY, DEMIBER 31.

Taw is a very prevalent misomeption that
requires to be corrected. People are continually
=Wag and speaking about oar Minister for War.
The truth is, that there is as Minister for War at
moat, bat merely a very meritorious first clerk at
the head of the War Department. The friends and
admirers of Lord PAHNIIRE cannot find fang age
strong 'sough to express their admiration of his
unremitting industry. This praise has bees well
earned. The Roble lord is punctual in his atteadance
at his cure; he labours from morning till night; not
a letter addressed to him remains unread or un-
acknowledged; he overhauls all accounts. The time
and exertion devoted by Lord Panama to the
public business is enormous. But what comes of it?
Nothing, or worse than nothing. By every mail
from the Crimea we receive additional proofs of this.
The huts for the winter shelter of the soldiers have
been forwarded without the felt to °over them; the
soosequem is that they are not water-tight. On
the 9th of the present December one regiment we
mild name had got only two huts erected, and others
were as badly off. The Land Transport Carps, we
are given to understand, has just bees broken up;
the reason assigned is, that having been left without
the necessary means of conveyance it mild not have
been moved nine mile' into the interior. We hear
daily of transport vessels remaining for inconceivable
lengths of time anchored off Balaklava, be-
cam the owners gain by every additional day
they ars out. Leave of demos from the Crimea
"on urgent private affairs," is more lavishly granted
than ever. Turning to the departments under the
War Office at home, we find numerous changes, bat
no improvements. New modes of registry and
book-keeping are introduced, which, without en-
suring clearer views of what business has been trans-
acted, pusele and perplex the clerks. Deserving
officials in the central departments are appointed to
provincial charges, and vice versa ; that is, men are
removed from positions with the duties of which
they are familiar, to paillasse where they have even
the formal routine to learn. All this is the cons,-
gems of having at the head of the War Depart-
ment a man who insists upon doing himself what he
alight to leave his subordinates to do, and thus
leaves himself no time to superintend the
working of the whole machinery, and spar those who
are indolent, while he checks those who err—in other
words, of having a mere first clerk in lien of a
Minister for War.
Any psrsoa acquainted with Lord l'atoruaz's
antecedents can easily account for this. He has at-
tained to his present position amply in virtue of his
seniority in the ranks of hie party. Before he
inherited his title and estates, Lord Pam= me—
tros eiremetams most honourable to him—a very
poor man. His party felt themselves bound to do
something for hiss, and ha was early placed in lucra-
tive subordinate offices. not so much from any be-
lief that he was competent to discharge their
duties, as from a knowledge that he needed
the salaries attached to them. Being found to possess
• great amount of plodding industry, and sufficient
intelligence for the transaction of ordinary bagfuls
is ordinary times, he was promoted from one appoint-
ment to another according as offices fell vacant; and
thus by degrees he reached a position which, in con-
formity to the etiquette of party, is understood to
give sea of a certain rank an irresistible claim to the
Tory highest Awe, simply because they have filled
in eacoession a number of others of lees, importance,
sad have been a certain number of years in
the public service. Lord PAZIKII7II became in
this moaner Minister for War, without either the
grasp of intellect, the versatility of mamma, or the
power of causing hie views and aims to be weveght
oat by others, which are the real qualificatioss of a
statesman. A man of his calibre would have proved
but an indifferent Minister for War, even in the
met pacific and easy-going times. Bat the office has
been thrust upon lard Folsom—or Lord PAIMUILZ
has been thrust upon the offico—at a crisis when it is
necessary to carry on an arduous war, at a great dis-
tance, and at the same time reform the whole of our
military organisation, which has been allowed
to lapse into a state of most disgraceful
inefficiency. For this Lord PANKIIILE is
not to blame. He is what nature and the
training of circumstances have made him. That he
should have no suspicion of his own deficiencies is
a amemary osamoquenoe of these deficiencies. As he
has not one statesman-like quality about him, he is
of necessity incapable of understanding what is re-
quired in a statesman. When the office of Minister
for War was offered to him he naturally accepted it,
believing that he could discharge hie duties as well
se another. Thy responsibility for Lord Paxson's
shortcomings rests upon those who, knowing what
be is, placed him where he is.

gpt Court.

WINDSOR, D.O. 29

The Earl of Clarendon and Colonel Sisals (Cold-
stream' Gouda), late Military Beeretary to the Com-
aaader•tn•Cbiet is the Crimea, arrived yeeterday afternoon.

ea a lilt to bra Majesty.
The limn potty ladaded the Dachau or Heat, the
Prisms Royal, Primo Ernest of Leiaingen, the Belgic
Wainer and Madam, Van de Weyer, Lady Panay Howud,
Lady Allred Paget, the Rut of Clarendon, Sir Gouge
Cowper, Bit Jamas Clark, Mr. sad Lady 'roam Bailie,
sad Colansl Steels.

TM bead of the Grenadier °suds played dans( dinner.
TM followiag had the bosom of Ming invited after
Caner :—Lady Corollas Buriagtes, Major Gmerel Hoe.
Charier sad Mrs. Grey, Colossi lies. C. B. sad Mrs.
Phipps, Colossi sad Ledy Emily Seymour, the PtOTOli 01
Ilea, Mr. Beaker, awl Mr. Gibbs.
♦ assiell pees:masa took plate is the ~snug.
Her Majesty's primate baud was is atteadaarn, soder the
&maim of Mr. Anderson.

Prises Albert, semayealed by Prime Essen of Wain-
sea, went eat sleeting this isomiag.
TM Pauses Royal sad Primes Alin, Prime Arthur
mad the Prfaesesse Helms sad Louisa, drove oat fa ems

amines.
The When et Wass sad Prises Alfred west to Laudon
this themes, sad attested Mr. Paredey's lecture, st the

Royal Institution.
Sir Omsk* Resthim, mildest of the Royal Andes',
•d Mr. ialibt. ismetary, bad au audience of hoe Majesty.
The Berl et Clareades sad Colonel Busk (Coldstream
Grads) have left Ms Castle.

Titers 11111 so adolltkat to the royal disaor party.
Suoomr, Dec. 30.
The a.r.a sad Prima Minded divine molar this
morales. I. the pinto shape' oldie Castle.

Dawatebee frees Ow Chwastee et the AuWelles Odisise 1
owl New Logue. eel ere beta the Genesee et Hello-
Ind. were nosiest% ow lets/day et the CoketaLuelet. 1