The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-02-02 00:00:00

their country, or their country's cause.
The more we reflect upon the history of the
Crimean Commission, and the s'_-.1).-iequent doings
of the Govemniexit: in reference thereto, the
appointment and protracted sittings of the
Chelsea Commission, its' report to Parliament,
and the subsequent acts of the Government
towards that class of officials implicated in Sir
JOHN M'NEILL and Colonel TULLOCH'S report,
together with the evident design to pass over in
studied silence the important facts brought to
light by the latter, the more are we of opinion
that a piece of greater public injustice was never
perpetrated in any country or by any govern-
ment. Furthermore, it appears to us that, instead
of rewarding Sir JOHN M'NEILL and Colonel
TuLLocH as they justly merited, the obvious
course of Lord PALMERSTON and his colleagues
has been to pass them over unnoticed, and
thereby imply a censure upon the official conduct
of the Commissioners which they themselves
appointed. It is true that Lord PALMERSTON
and Lord PANMURE have each said a something
in commendation of the labours of the Crimean
Commissioners, but the time selected and the
terms used in expressing that commendation lead
reflecting minds to doubt the sincerity of either
the one or the other, and to think that it was, as
one of our Glasgow contempDraries truly and
pointedly remarks, " only a little soft sawder,'
"'alike unworthy either of being offered or
" accepted." In this view of the case we are
fortified by the obseivations of SirJortN M'NEILL,
who, in his reply to the address from Liverpool,
makes the following cutting statement :--
" What objects with reference to us and to our
" report may have been contemplated by her
" Majesty's Ministers, in the course which they
" thought proper to pursue, I do not pretend to
" know or to understand ; but whatever their
" intentions may have been, their proceedings
" appear to have produced a very general im-
" pression that the acknowledged fidelity of our
" report was not in accordance with their
" wishes, and the feeling thus produced must
" effect the disposition of the country to entrust
" to the Executive any enquiries connected with
" the army that may hereafter be called for.
" This is a result which, with reference to con-
" stitutional considerations, they, as Ministers of
" the Crown, cannot be supposed to desire.
This is a bold but justly-merited castigation
of the Government for its treatment of men who
have done so much and such signal service to
their country—men to whom the military credit
of the country was confided, and who, during
their short but memorable official career in the
Crimea, wrought wonders in removing the nume-
rous abuses of the army, and devising ways and
means for promoting the. health and comfort of
the British soldier when campaigning in the
inhospitable climes of an enemy's country.
As the matter now stands, it is the duty of
Parliament to take the whole subject up on an
early, day after its re-assembling. The emphatic
and indignant protest of Sir JOHN, M'NEILL and
his colleague against the flippant attacks of a
subordinate in the Government, and the ungene-
rous silence of the PREMIBa and his colleague,
Lord PAwmuitic, who despatched them upon their
irksome, painful, and, as it has turned out, thank-
less, mission, cannot remain unnoticed. Mr,
ROEBUCK, who made himself conspicuous about
the mismanagement of the British army in the
Crimea, has a duty to perform on this important
question. As the mouthpiece of the Adminis-
trative Reform Association in the House of Com-
mons, he cannot remain silent, for, as the " leading
journal" emphatically remarks, "The interests of
" the nation demand that men employed in a
"public service should not be exposed to injury
" from the ill will of any class or profession. If
" Sir JOHN M'NEILL and Colonel TuLLoca be
" not righted, there is an end of all good to be
" expected in any future inquiry in which men
• " dependent upon the Government may be
" engaged."
In' conclusion, we are gratified that the town
of Liverpool has been the first to speak out on
this important topic. From both the address
and the replies thereto we anticipate favourable
results, and hope it will satisfy the country that
no reliance can be placed in the Government if
the capabilities and conduct of the aristocracy as
public servants are called in question.

THE LICENSING 'SYSTEM AND 'THE BILLETING OF
SOLDIERS.---A. short time ago we noticed some of
the evils to whiah the . Licensed Victuallers and
Publicans of the United Kingdom are subjected
and promised to return to the matter. We are
reminded of that promise from the fact of a deputa-
tion from the Liverpool Licensed Victuallers,
Association having waited, on Saturday last, upon
William Brown, Esq., M.P., J C. Ewart, Esq.,
M P., and 3. Bramley-Moore, Esq., M.P. The
deputation comprised Messrs. H. Danson,
',T. Atkinson, W. Coward, G. Howe, and T. Carter.
The object of the deputation was to call the atten-
tion of the above named members of the Houae of
Commons to the vexatious system of billetting
soldiers. The deputation, having fully explained
the object of their mission, received from each o f
the honourable members the most satisfactory
assurance of the interest 'they will take in the
matter brought brought before them. Mr. Brown
assured the deputation that it was not his intention
to bring in a bill to throw open the trade of the Licensed
Victuallers; asd that the report NW s in the hands of
Sir George Grey since eaAy, in . last Session. Mr.
Ewart made -a positive declaration, that at pre-
sent he was not at all prepared to support any such
measure, but on the contrary, he was an advocate
of the present system, Mr. Bratuley Moore stated
that both subjects should have his best attention,
and that, as far as was consistent with his duty to.
the public, they might depend upon his support,
The deputation are to wait upon Mr. T. B.
Horsfall, M.P., on the same subject. These
two subjects are matters of no minor im-
portance to the public' at large. The evils and
enormities of the billeting system have become un-
bearable, and it is but due to such a class of respect-
able tradesmen as the Licensed Victuallers of the,
United Kingdom that their instant reform be
effected. We shall have something to say-on both
the subjects broached by the deputation on Satur-