Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-10-24 00:00:00

LORD HATHERTON ON THE NATIONAL
DEFENCES.

In his capacity cif -Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire,
Lord HathertOn attended an inaugural dinner of the
Handsworth Volunteer Riflemen fast week. During
his speech, in reply to the toast of his health,
Lord Hatherton said—Gentlemen, this is not arr imj
.proper occasion to observe that there has been
undoubtedly for a long /course of years, and espc-
cially for the last two years, a deep-seated feeling
of uneasiness and distrust, . because of the defenceless
situation of this country. This feeling pervades
not merely Men of the class" I am addressing ; it
exists equally in the highest and the very lowest
classes of society, proving how sound in substance that
society is. I believe it is a feeling that supersedes every
political feeling Whatever ; and I believe it will be found,
in next session of parliament, that the main question
will be, not " What do you think of this or that fran-
chise ?" but " What are your opinions about the defences
.of the country ?" That will be the question of the next
few years. lam sure I need riot say anything in detail
as to the actual condition of our army and navy; but I
may cursorily observe with respect to the army that such
is its condition is organisation and substance, and such
is its insufficiency of men, that if a sudden quarrel were
to take place with our neighbours across the channel
to-morrow, we should not have a single man in the
field if our garrisons were supplied in the way they
should be.. We should require 15,000 men for Ply-
- mouth, 10,000 for Portsmouth, and 10,000 for the Isle of
Wight ; besides these we should have to man our lines
at Chatham, and put smaller military forces into other
garrisons, so that when all this was done we should not
have a single man to place on the field. It is absolutely
necessary that the truth should be spoken. Across the
Channel a Government exists of which I say nothing,
but of which we all know that secrecy is One of its
elements, and that its power is immense. It can,
man a force, either on land or sea, at the shortest
pocqihlo notice. We can rlo nothing of the sort. We
can do nothing except by the operation of a Par, '
liamentary vote; the vms once passed cannot be ex-
ceeded ; and six or nine months may elapse before
additions can be made. It is absolutely necessary, there-
fore, that the people shouldunderst and their position, and
forego all minor or party considerations for .the purpose
of giving their representative authority to. do whatever
may be necessary in their estimation for the defence of
the country. (Cheers.) We all feel, however, soldiers
though we are, that our first hopes must rest on the effi-
ciency of our navy. (Hear.) That has ever been the
arm of this country, for on no other can we rely for its
safety. What is its condition ? I believe we have
at this moment a better navy than we have had for
years, but it had fallen into a most discreditably low
condition. lam old enough to have served upon
a committee in the House of Commons in 1817
and 1818,. the object of which was to ventilate
the different departments of Government, and see
what could be done in the reduction of expendi-
ture. I remember that when we came to the navy
estimates Lord Castlereagh presented himself, and
said he came at the request of Lord Liverpool to
inform us what the views of the Cabinet were with
respect to the strength of the navy at that period. He
laid it down that at no period could this country ever he
safe 'unless it were able to put to sea at the shortest
notice a fleet at least equal to that of any other two
Powers. For a very short time a fleet of that descrip-
tion was maintained ; but we know how it has dwindled
away until at length the country has been excited by
alarms, and we are now spending millions in restoring
it to its proper position as a steam navy. Now,
the navies of the two countries may be equal, but
there is one point, I regret to state, in which we
are inferior. I believe that France could now put
into the Channel 'a
larger fleet, in a shorter period
of time, than it is in the power of England to
do. Considering the vast resources of this country,
the 'immense foreign possessions it has to defend,
our vast wealth at home, and our, great population, I say
that if any disaster were to be permitted to befall this
country. by means of its navy, it would be the greatest
disgrace that ever fell on any country in the .history of
the world. (Hear.) I believe there is no effort that
England is not prepared to make--7-there is no pecuniary
sacrifice we . would not submit to—for the purpose of
avoiding such a disgrace. (Cheers.) Consider what
would happen if we had an equally balanced action in
the. Channel. We might be invaded at every point, and
a large army might take the field, while we have such
inadequate resources to meet it. (Hear.) Or even if
our navy sustained disaster and defeat, it Would not be
necessary for France to invade England. We should be
already conquered. She could blockade our ports; she
could prevent the entrance of food or raw material. If
she were mistress of the Channel for a few months, she
would be mistress of half the world. Therefore it is
that the influence of the represented should be hrought
so bear upon the representative, in order that the House
of Commons may see it is your desire that the honour of
the country should be protected. (Cheers.) Do not let
it be supposed that I at all undervalue the volunteer
movement. I understand, on the authority of the very
best officers—those who have had the la:gest experience
—that, carried. on as it is now, it cannot fail to render
the most important services to' Government in the
ease of sudden danger arising. The volunteer artil-
lery will enable Government to diSpense with a vast
number of troops in our garrisons that must otherwise
have been detained ; and I believe that, even with the
restricted discipline which can only be maintained by
solitary companies, yet that, connected with regular
troops, they might be made available in a short time
for most important services. This is the opinion of
Sir John Burgoyne,—a person of the highest authority.
But I hope that a good deal more than this may be
done. We must have a considerable increase of the
army, or the militia must be made more effective.
There is no sufficient reason why the old con-
stitutional
resource of the ballot,. with a modifica-
tion suiting it to the altered circumstances of the
country, may not still be resorted to. Nine-tenths
of the surface of these islands are of rural cha-
racter, and in those parishes there is no more reason
now than there was fifty years ago why the ballot should
not be had recourse to. I would suggest that an act of
parliament should direct the Lord-Lieutenant and the
deputy-lieutenants to assemble yearly for the purpose of
determining in which parishes the ballot should
take effect, and which parishes should be exempted.
I would have the latter parishes assessed to their
quota of men, and if they declined to raise them
by. such means as they find available, I would
have them assessed to such amount in money as
a body of commissioners might declare. I have
mentioned this before, and have never heard
an objection to it. lam confident that in the manufac-
turing districts of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Stafford-
shire' the adoption of some plan of this kind would
work well. (Hear.) As to the permanent expense
which must be incurred by the country for the purpose of
putting the army and navy one good footing, I hope the
country will be induced to look at the subject in the
light which Lord Lyndhurst, sheddinc, on it the last
rays of his lengthened wisdom, regarded it last session
—as an insurance for the purpose of protecting us from
a possible necessity, instead of having .to,-add, by a pro-
longed struggle, £200,000,000 or £300,000,000 to the
national debt: (Cheers.)

E.uRLY, WlNTER.—Thursday night and Friday. we
have had unmistakable signs of an early winter in
heavy fall of snow.,—Armagle Guardian.

TI:IE CHANCELLORSHIP OF THE UNIVERSITY OF GLAS-
GOW.—From the resolutions passed at a meeting of his
supporters, held on Wednesday, it appears that the no-
mination of Lord Brougham to this high office is to be
vigorously supported.—North British Daily Mail.
SIR JOHN MAeNEILL.--The Edinburgh Courant
states that at the meeting of the general council of the
Edinburgh University on the '2Bth, the Right Hon. Sir
John Mac Neill, G.C.8., will be proposed for election as
the assessor to represent the general council in the
University Court.
THE LATE WRECK OF THE DUKE OF RICHMOND
STEAMER.—The Board of Trade has instructed the
lector of Customs here to institute an inquiry into the
circumstances connected with the late wreck of the Duke
of Richmond steamer.--Aberdeen Journal.
THE GOLD DISCOVERIES IN TASMANIA.—The
City Article says—The last accounts received from Tas-
mania state that, although gold had been discovered,
there was still, however, no certainty that it existed in
quantities sufficient to yield an average remuneration
for labour, such as may be obtained at any of the ordinary
mining districts of Victoria or Nevi South Wales.
MRS. MALAPROP IN SMALLCLOTHES.—" Aw ken,
nothing what my fine words mean," said a frank South
Northumbrian labourer ;•" aw niver use them but when
a' fa' in wi' the grand folk ; they understand them."
One of the
"grand" looked into his cot one day, and
inquired how he did. He replied, " Sir, aw tiv had a
serero andaNi'4 very precarious by the fire."
1 head Obsereer.