The Express.
London, England, 1859-12-20 00:00:00

iONDON. TUESDAY. Dia 20.

Those who are accustoming the tax-paying public
to expect a demand on the part of Goi eminent for
ten millions sterling, to be spent in fortifying our
comets, may reasonably be expected to settle first the
question whether the. outlay will ever be required.
For our own carts, we doubt very much that such •
demand will be made in the coming session, or
even that at has been suggested that the Govern-
ment should make it. But however that
may be, the duty of Parliament is clear.
Before ..nother sixpence is spent upon fortifications.
the public ought to lomat upon two things. They
ought to be informed of the kind of danger to be
guarded against, and of the best means of doing so.
Let it be assumed for the moment that the attack
will be by land as wet as by sea. Ham the Govern-
ment t:. ;ermined the sort of fortifieatioss which will
be most useful and least expensive ?—bas it framed
any eatitnete of the number of men who will be re-
quired to man the new works, or any plan el
obtaining the requisite number? In short, bas the
Gov. r Linen' any general plea of National Defence?
Or ar' fortifications to be erected and money to be
spent u desultory and haphazard fashion, withoet
forrthcoght and without system If any new de-
fences are to be constructed, it certainly seems that
the araena:s demand the first sus t but if the en-
trance to such • harbour as Dartmouth is to be
protected by enormous batteries,tbscpsestion occure—
Where is this to stop It is confidently asserted
that new works are to be constructed at
the mouth of the Dart but this is
so it is difßc•lt t understand why every
landing place on the meat should not be protected
in a similar manner. It is well known that very
great authorities, and amongst them General SHAW
XR:irianv, have undertaken to put the country in a
state of permanent defence for a much smaller sum
than 10,000,0001., and to guarantee that except in
case of prepanng for actual invasion the expense
shall never exceed • specified sum. The probability,
therefore, is, that those who talk of 10,000,00 W.
have either no plan at all or hare adopted one which
is extravagant. And this suspicion is confirmed by
the feet that uo government has yet proposed any
general plan of defence whatever. ludeed, it is
our deliberate conviction that no such plan has yet'
been sanctioned by those at the head of affairs.

Now, let the public consider this. Military works
are proverbially expeniive. If any pet of economy
is to prevail, it is essential that the character and
object of those about to be erected should be dis-
tinctly explained. The data necessary for solving
the problem of National Defence are all known. The
solution must be bOlllO plan, and that plan may be
and ought to be laid before the nation. Un-
lees it is laid before the nation it is
utterly hopeless to control the expenditure
or to contend against extravagance. The plan of
def. ti.e must either be made public, or the public
must deliver themselves up, hand and foot, to the
War-office nod the engineers of the day. It will be
strange to tind any such acquiescence. There is no
mei ...Try for any each blind subrui.sion. The plans
of Nitmus. Defence adopted by France, by Belgium,
and by Austria are all thoroughly known. The
principine upon which they are (needed were pub.
Hely dwindled, and in the case of the twe
form. r, in the Chambers. The expense wee
estimated and provided for. There is, there.
fore, to ground for secrecy. On the other
hand, with secrecy it in impossible to exercise any
control over the expenditure; it is impossible to ascer-
tain that when the time comes the preparations will
be found t tticient. In the meantime, therefore, it is
to be hoped that the Government will net begin
any new works, but will prepare themselves to
state to Parliament some general plan of National
Defence, and the sum of money that will be required
to carry it into effect. The most extravagant meta

do not build without eoesetimes counting the coat.
As in the mode of raising the money, with Mr.
01.41P,TONIt for a Chancellor of the Exchequer, we
should think that whatever the preens form of hie
financial operation, it will be band on the principle
that the nation should pay for its wants as they arise.
If this is not understood, we shall certainly make
cur children the victims of theorist., red-tapists, and
jobbers. Of course, it will be said that then de-
letions works, being of n permanent nature, should