The Express.
London, England, 1853-11-28 00:00:00

MILITARY.

THE BREVET.—We find upon inquiry that the case
alluded to in our Saturday's paper under this head, is more
extraordinary than was supposed. When the officer in
question applied to purchase what was called an unattached
lieutenant.colonelcy, he was told he should be permitted,
but a form of declaration was sent to him, which he was
required to sign and return, stating his readiness to serve
on full pay if called on. This was evidently intended as
provision against the expected attacks of the member for
Montrose; it was to enable the Horse Guards to say, " We
took care not to sell to any man who did not previously
declare his readiness to serve." When the brevet came out
in 1846, the officer, being absolutely the first upon the list
of lieutenant-colonels for promotion, was surprised to find
himself left out. On remonstrating, he was told it was
because he had not after his promotion sent in his declara-
tion of readiness to serve on full pay. He replied, it was
because by special direction of the authorities, he had sent
it in before. The Horse Guards denied their own act ; but
they offered the officer to put his name on the list of colonels
in italics, which implied his selling kis half-pay. He replied
that he was put the age at which half-pay was by regula-
tion allowed to be sold. To which answer wu made, that
this could be got over." From this the aisinces was
clear; it was to induce the officer to sell his half-pay.
Next week would have appeared in the Gazette " Fits-so-
and-so to be lieutenant•colonel owe So-and-so, permitted to
sell his halflay." Upon the late occurrences in the East,
the same officer, who was the negotiator of the treaty with
the Arabs, which was the first public act in which the Slave
Trade was written down Piracy, and is probably the only
man in the service who could address an assembly of Arabs,
write a proclamation to call the faithful from their deserts,
and publish a book on military subjects in modern Greek,
wrote to proffer his services, and received what appeared a
friendly answer. But when he subsequently advanced the
limited request to be placed as a colonel in the expected
brevet from the date thereof; he was assured that he
should never appear on any future brevet. Of course he
will not repeat the regaled, and his claim must henceforth
be for restoration to his proper place in the brevet of 1846.
The subject is one which interests extensive classes, and we
trust it will not be lost sight of. In the meantime we call
upon the officer to correct this-statement if inexact, and if
not, to furnish us with further details.

The General Commander-in-Chief has issued an
order, that the habit of allowing men to appear, throughout
the day, in the streets of the towns and place, where they
are quartered, dressed in their fatigue or undressed cloth-
ing, may be discontinued; and that all non-commisaiened
officers and men going beyond the precincts of their bar-
racks, between the hour of morning parade and that of
evening. roll-call. be henceforth required habitually to
appear in their full uniforms, with their sword or bayonet,
belts, or forage cape, if preferred.

FINANCIAL SITUATION OF BELGIUM.—The Belgian
government haajust published the situation of the Belgian
treausury on the Ist September last. The public debt of
Belgium is composed of the ordinary debt arising from the
financial arrangements with the Netherlands; the financial
arrangements with the city of Brussels ; the loans made for
repairing the losses caused by the events of the war of revo-
lution, for the wants of the ordinary service in 1830 and
1831, and for the eventualities of the events ef 1848, &c.
The nominal primitive capital of the ordinary debt amounts
to 675,039,263 fr. 74c.; on this capital there has been paid
off a sum of 183,130,190 fr. so that the nominal capital of
the ordinary debt now amounts to 392,009,1731 r. 40c. The
extraordinary debt, created for the construction of railways,
roads, canals, &c., amounts to a nominal capital of
262,037,658 f. 40c. Of this sum there has been paid off
34,490,4681. 50e., leaving a nominal capital of 227,557,189 f.
90c. The ensemble of the Belgian public debt has, there-
fore, been in nominal capital 837,066,9221. 14c., on which
au there has been paid off 217,520,538 f. 84c., so that the
total amount of the capital of the public debt may be now
considered as 619,546,363 f. 30c. The l dotation car-
ried to the budget for the payment of the interest and the
sinking fund of this debt amounts for the ordinary debt to
16.275,7601. 64c., and for the extraordinary debt to
14,063,9913 f. 10C.

IRELAND.

_ • _

DUBLIX, ov. .
A notice which appeared in the GawttNe
of?last
night, removing the crime and outrage proclamation
from districts in the County of Down, which had
been in a disturbed state, appears to give a kind of
official contradiction to the rumours which are spread
of the prevalence of ribbonism in that quarter. The
portions of the county of Galway which were under
a similar ban have also been relieved from it.
At a (Vjetspier given by the Belfast Harbour Com-
missioners on Thursday, Sir John Young said—
I need scarcely tell you that the weight and amount of
the duties incumbent on the Irish government have been
very much curtailed, and its functions grestly limited and
reduced. The principal part of the functions of the Lord
Lieutenant of Ireland now consists in the preservation of
order, and the due administration of the law. The other
interests of Ireland have been happily merged in the general
interests of Englsnil, and in that department rec-ive the
attention which they demand. The Lord Lieutenant's func-
tions, therefore, are now mainly confined to the preservation
of peace and the administration of the law ; but I may say
that, in a sincere desire for tho welfare of Ireland, Earl St.
Germans yields to no other man in the empire. (Cheers).
In returning thanks for his own health, Sir J.
Young took occasion to speak in warm terms of the
wonders achieved in Belfast and the North, by the
enterprise and labour of the people.
An alarm, originating in some way which does
not clearly appear, has prevailed for the last three
or four days among the depositors in the Dublin
Savings' Bank, as to the security of that establish-
went; and with the fatal experience of tho
Cuff•street Bank so recent in their memory, it is not
to be wondered at if a comparatively trivial cause
would produce a panic of that nature. The calls on
the bank on Wednesday and yesterday amounted to
some forty thousand pounds; the Trustees have this
evening put forward a statement that the Dublin
Savings' blank has now invested with the Commis-
sioners of the National Debt 273,8001. Bs. 3d.,
together with a cash balance in its favour in the books
of the Bank of Ireland of 1,4.11/.lls. ld.; which,
after the deduction of 273,800/. due to depositors,
leaves a surplus of 1,431/. 19s. 4d., in addition to
valuable premises in Meath-street and Abbey-street.
This statement Liars the signatures of Arthur
Guinness, the chairman; and of several others of the
most respectable merchants of Dublin.
The anniversary meeting of the Royal Flax Society
of Ireland was held in Belfast yesterday, the Earl of
Erne presiding, and a very full statement of the
prospects and operations of the society was read by
the secretary. Particular am ss was laid upon the
present position of political relations with Russia, as
an argument for the necessity of encouraging the
home production of flax. In 1848 there were 53,863
acres of flax under cultivation in Ireland ; in 1849,
60,314 acres ; in 1830, 91,040 acres; in 1831, 138,619
acres; and in 1832, 136,009 acres. In the present
year there were 17,5,495 acres under flax in Ireland,
being an increase of nearly 29 per cent. over last
vear's crop, and of 220 per cent. over that of 1848.
Estimating the value of the crop at 151. an acre on an
average, we find that from 800,0001., which the flax-
growers realised in 1848, the return this year has
risen to 2,040,135/. In the provinces of Wester,
Munster, and Connaught tho produce this year is 22
per cent. over that of last, and 436 over that of IBIS,
the growth having steadily. advanced from 2,683
acres in 1118 to 14,279 acres in the present year.