The Express.
London, England, 1862-10-25 00:00:00

HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGIL

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LONDON, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25.

A CABINET MINISTER is • prophet not merely
in his own county. The Duke of Nawcatrims
has just been making a speech to the First
Nottingham Administrative Battalion of Volun-
teers, and we cannot doubt that the remarks im•
mediately addressed to the members of that corps
were intended for a much wider audience. The
interest of the Marin.= for the Cocorvias, and
former MINISTER for WAR, in the Volunteer ques-
tion can indeed be scarcely lees than that of the
Minister who is responsible in this country for the
direction of the force. The movement, which
commenced at home, was not long in extending to
our dependencies, and their defence is now
avowedly entrusted in a great and ever increas-
ing degree to Volunteers. Compelled thus to
official reflection on the subject, the Duke of
NEWCASTLE addresses his compatriots of Not-
tinghamshire with a far higher authority
than belongs to the mere owner of Clam-
ber and of Worksop Manor. Nor can
it be denied that in his speech he worthily fills
the part at once of • county magistrate and of a
minister of the empire. He has praise for the
Volunteers of Notts, and with the praise is mingled
advice and warning which are applicable to others
as well as to them. We congratulate the First
Nottinghamshire on the commendation they re-
ceived ; but we congratulate the country still
more on the fact that those addresses to Volunteers
are the most popular which are not wholly made
up of commendation. The healthiest sign in the
whole movement is that praise is felt to be de-
served only when it is combined with discriminat-
ing criticism. It is a proof that the youth of Eng-
land has taken to its task in no light holi-
day spirit, but that it is sensible of the
responsibilities it has assumed, and honestly
anxious to fulfil them. And the exist-
ence ef a fervent, deep-seated resolve thus
evidenced, gives us assurance that the counsels and
warnings which fall from the lips of the advisers
of the Crown will not return void, and that when
they come to be enforced by action they will meet
the thorough support of the whole body of
Volunteers.

These counsels were in the main directed to a
point which we have often before now brought
under consideration. They referred to the dili-
gence of the officers as distinguished from that of
the men—the distinction amounting practically
to this, that if the men neglect their duty there
will be no Volunteer army to take the field, while
if the officers neglect their duty, the Volunteer
army will in the field be annihilated. We shall not
now, therefore, reiterate arguments on a theme so
obvious, but content ourselves with quoting the
words in which the Duke of NEwessme showed
his appreciation of its importance. His Grace
observed—

if officers attended to their drill there was no fear of the
battalion becoming efficient; if they did not, it was impos-
sible for the battalion to come up to the mark. The officers
who did not attend to duty must necessarily labour under
great di,ulvautages when they were called upon to act.
There was no reason why this should be so now, seeing that
any officer could go to Aldershott, where, in a very short
time, he could acquire a good knowledge of his duty. That
he never could acquire by the mere study of drill books; but
if he would adopt the other course, the result would be of
immense advantage, not only to himself, but to the men
under his command. (Applause.) We had seen in another
country, where a great war is now waging, the lamentable
defect of a want of efficient officers. You might extem-
porise tolerable soldiers almost out of anybody. You
take a few undisciplined men, and place them among
those who are tolerably efficient.. The result is, they soon
come up to the mark. So they become to a certain extent
tolerably competent soldiers. But officers could not be
made in this sudden way—they require time, skill, and
study. Well, sow, look at that frightful struggle that had
bees going on for a year and a half—and was it not pitiful
to behold? He spoke not with regard to the army of that
country, because he believed that it was composed of as fine
a body of men as were ever seen—of as grand material as
over an army was composed of ; but what were their offi•
eon? He ventured to my that few of them were fit to
command a regiment, much less a brigade or a division.
He attributed that result to the fact that the men in com-
mand had not been trained to the work ; and it was against
such disastrous results that be would warn volunteer offi.
erns ci the imperative necessity of making themselves
=eters of their duty.

When opinions such as three are uttered by a
Cabinet Minister we are certainly justified in
believing that the Government of which lie is a
member must speedily take measures to relieve the
country from the apprehensions which he so war-