The Express.
London, England, 1867-03-26 00:00:00

THE PROPOSED NEW CLAUSE IN THE MUTINY

BILL.

The following is a copy of the new clause which
Sir John Pakington proposes to insert in the Mutiny
Bill, instead of Clause 22 :—" Every soldier shall upon en-
listment be placed in the first class of the army, and no
soldier in such elan shall, in time of peace, be sentenced
to the corporal punishment of flogging ; every soldier in
the first class shall, for the commission of certain offences,
to be specified from time to time in the articles of war,
be degraded to the second class of the army, and army
soldier in the second class shall be liable to be sentenced
by court-martial to corporal punishment not exceeding
fifty lashes for the following offences, viz., mutiny, aggra-
vated insubordination, or disgraceful conduct of an in-
decent kind ; every soldier, when Bening with a military
force in the field or on board ship, shall be liable to a like
punishment by court martial for any of the offences be-
fore enumerated, or for desertion, drunkenness on duty or
on the line of march, misbehaviour, or neglect of duty."
The restrictions proposed by Sir J. Pakington may,
the Times thinks, be accepted as a substantial improve-
ment. "The offences for which flogging will be retained
are such as must be punished with severity particularly in
distant and outlying stations. For mutiny, and even for
' aggravated insubordination,' the French military law not
only denounces the punishment of death, but not
unfrequently executes it ; and if care be taken that capri-
cious officers shall not be allowed to call anything they
please 'aggravated insubordination' there need belittle fear
that any substantial wrong will be done by retaining cor-
poral punishment is terrtwein over the most lawless
characters. Strict regulations should also determine the
offences which are to degrade a man into the second class
and render him liable to flogging. If the Mutiny Act is
henceforth to contain a section relating to this subject, it
should be as explicit as possible. The discrimination

ought not to rest on the unassisted judgment of a com-
manding officer, nor to be allowed to very in every regi-
ment; but whatever may be the statutes or regulations
on the subject, a great deal must rest with the officers
themselves. The returns show that courts-martial are
not apt to resort to corporal punishment ; and at home, at
least, where other punishments may be inflicted, we be-
lieve that corporal punishment might be abolished. It is
for the credit of the officers as well as for that of the men
that it should be so."

Mr. B. Hope, on Friday, will ask the Vioe-Pre-
sideat of the Committee of Council on Education whether
he is prepared to bring in a bill during the present session
to place Art Unions under the department of Science and
Art, as recommended in the report of the select committee
of last session, of which he was chairman.

On Friday, Mr. Lawson brings forward a bill to
provide for the winding up of railway compinke fa Ire.
land in certain caaea.

On going into committee of supply Colonel
Greville-Nugent intends to call attention to the conditions
of superannuation as affecting the men of the Irish eon.
stabulary, and to move, " That in the opinion of this
house it is desirable that every constable should be entitled
to a pension after 25 years' service."

It is Serjeant Barry's intention to bring under
the notice of the house the loss of life which took photo at
Dungarvan during the late W►terford county election,
and to move the following resolution :—" That whereas
it appears by the verdicts of coroners' juries, that two per-
sons were killed by a soldier or soldiers of the 12th Lancets
at Dungarvan during the late election for the county
of Waterton', under circumstances whichled in the one case
to a finding of manslaughter, and in the other of wilful
murder, it is not, in the opinion of the house, eatialactot I
that the conduct of the military on the occasion has not
been made the subject of further inquiry before any tri.
banal, either military or civil."

Next Tuesday Mr. Dent will call the attention of
the house to the sixth report of the Children's Employment
Cormuiarion, and move " That, in the opinion of this house,
the employment of women sad children in agriculture
should be regulated, as far es may be by the principles of
the Factory Actg."

Mr. E. Potter intends, on the motion for going
into committee on Hours of Labour Regulation Bill, to
move that the bill referred to a select committee.

In committee of the whole house Mr. Adderley
will move a resolution authorising her Majesty to guaran-
tee a loan of 3,000,0001., to be raised by the Canadian go-
vernment for the Intro-colonial Railway.

THE GOVERNMENT REFORM BlLL.—Least night
the Reform League held another meeting in Trafalgar-
' square, to expose and denounce the defects and short-
comings in the gofeniment measure. The weather was
again unfavourable, but the rain and wet stones seem to
have had little effect in damping the political ardour of
the unenfranchised for at eight o'clock, the hour fixed for
opening the proceemlinga, a great crowd had collected on
the spot, whose ranks were considerably reinforced as the
night wore on. Mr. Edmund Reales, the chairman of the
league, presided, and the speakers delivered their speeches
from the base of the column, the immediate neighbour.
hood of which was lighted up with flaming naphtha
iturners arranged upon wooden frames. On the motion of
Mr. Davie., seconded by Mr. Bannister, a resolution was
carried by acclamation condemning the bill, and affirming
the principles of the league ; and after thanking Mr.
Beaks for presiding, popular
reform leaders in parliament, the meeting, which
orderly throughout, broke up.

• ,••• •

TAATEST INTELLIGENCE.

(RTITTIVS TELEGRAMS.) _ _
THE NORTH GERMAN PARLIAMENT.

BERLIN,

In to-day's sitting of the North German parlia-
ment Article 6 of the Constitution was agreed to
unanimously. This article places under control of
the Bund all customs and commercial legislation,
monetary and banking regulations, the railway,
navigation, postal, and telegraph departments of
the different states of the confederation.

All amendments to this article were rejected in
consequence of a declaration of Count Bismarck
explaining the division of the vote of the Federal
Council. The 7th Article was agreed to by a large
majority.

Art. 7 refers to the right of declaring war, mak-
ing peace, concluding treaties and alliances, and
appointing ambassadors. War is to be invariably
declared upon invasion ; in other cases the
consent of the sovereigns of at least two-thirds of
the population is requisite.
The amendment of Herr Laaker to this article
was agreed to. The amendment of Herr Krutz
was rejected.

AUSTRIA.

VIENNA, Ittami 26.

The official Vienna Gazette of to-day contradicts
the statement of some newspapers, that General
Fleury had been appointed French ambassador to
the Austrian court in place of the Duke de Gram-
mont, or that he has been entrusted with the
mission of representing the Emperor of the French
at Pesth during the coronation of the Emperor of
Austria as King of Hungary.
The same journal publishes an article refuting
the objections of the conservative journals to
the convocation of the Reichsrath, in which
it says:—" The basis of the Austrian consti-
tution has been already laid down by the
October diploma and the February patent.
A revision of the constitution is only re-
quired to bring it in harmony with the constitu-
tional rights of Hungary. The government stands
firm on the ground of the constitution, and conser-
vative interests are not endangered by the con-
vocation of the Reicharath."

INDL% AND CELNA MAILS.
MARSEILLE.% Ktacn 25.
The Nyanza arrived at 8 p.m. The mails leave
for London at 10 p.m.

OUTWARD ama,CHINA, AND AUSTRA-

LIAN MAILS.
GIBRALTAR, MARCH 25.

The Chins, from Southampton on the 20th inst.,
arrived to-day at 5 p.m., and leaves at 8 p.m. for
Alexandria. All well. Has experienced heavy
weather.

AMERICA.
(IT ATLANTIC TELKORAPH.)

NEW YORK, MARCH 25, 6 r.m.•

The House of Representatives has n.rt yet agreed
with the Senate upon the period and conditions of
adjournment.

The Senate has passed a bill allowing American
citizens to sell war vessels to belligerents at peace
with the United States.

Violent gales have been prevalent along the
coast, and several shipping disasters have occurred.
The Inman steamer City of Washington and the
North German Lloyd's steamer New York arrived
out to-day.

COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE.

NEW YORK, 11Aftos 25, G P.M.

Closing 'prices 134. Sterling exchange
on London, 1081. Five-Twenty United States
Bonds, 109 ; Illinois, 115 ; Erie, 58. Cotton:
Middling Upland, 31i.

• Arrived in London at 10.23 a.m., Much 20.

MEXICO.

NEW YORK, MARcli 25, Evmeto.

Advices received here from Mexico announce
that the Emperor Maximilian had returned to
Queretaro. The liberals were preparing to besiege
QuiraEL