The Sun.
London, England, 1855-04-02 00:00:00

THE MILITIA.

The men belonging to the West Somersetshire
stationed in Plymouth Citadel, and those belonging to
tie South Devon Militia at Devonport, have availed
tl-emielves most extensively of Lord Panmure's act of
grace which enables those enrolled prior to the 12th of
May, 1854, to return to taeir hones. Oa the receipt of
the anthcrity to discharge, they numbered 600 ; at the
presenttine the six companies can only produce, on
'
parade, about 30 men each. The Smith Devon Militia,
who have been carefully trained by Sir J. Y. Buller,
numbered upwards of 600, aud are new redueed.to about
The Militia Artillery, 400, commanded by Maio-
Peick, have lost about one-fourth.
The Government establishments, which extend several
miLA along the shores of the Sound and Hamor.ze, are
left in a very unprotected state. The number of militia
available for garrison guards dues nut exceed 100 ; re-
crnits en i idlers are employed, and every old man was
ralt.ld up. Neither are the regular forces in great
strength. Captain Middleton's company of Artillery,
N 0, of the 13th, coi,sists of about 100 men, and No.
3 company, of the 6th, is of equal amount. The depot
of the 31st Regiment, stationed in the Citadel, under
Captain Law, counts 280, among whom there is a great
preponderance of recruits. The Royal Marines at stone-
house, under Colonel Commandant Coryton, mustered
on Friday nearly 800. On Saturday 3 serjeants, 6 cor-
porals, and 50 rank and file, sailed in the steamer Avon
to join the fleet at Portsmouth. This condition of
affairs calls for immediate attention, for, in addition to
the proper sentinels at the numerous military posts, the
extensive Government works proceeding at the Keyham
steam yard and at Bull Point powder manufactory, re-
quire an efficient guard of sulJiers.
The following letter has been received from the
Horse Guards, by Colonel Brockman, who commands
the East Kent Militia, which wilt shortly embark for
Malta :
" The General Commanding-in-Chief has read with much
pleasure Lieutenant-Colonel Pipon's report of the inspec-
tion he made of the East Kent Militia on Monday, the
19th of March, and I have the honour to request you will
communicate to the regiment his lordship's entire satisfac-
ti..n at its discipline and efficiency, at the soldier eke man-
ner in which it has performed the responsible duties of
the important garrison of Woolwich, and the general good
conduct which has marked its residence there; these re-
sults are most creditable to the manner in which you have
administered the command of your regiment, and the
attention to their duties shown by both officers and
men."

We are requested to state that the fist Scotch regi-
ment of Militia which volunteered for foreign service
VVAi not the Renfrew, but the Dumfries, Roxburgh, and
Selkirk Regiment. On Saturday last the latter regi-
ment enthusiastically responded to the appeal of
gallant colonel, and at present awaits with eager impa-
tiencA the answer to the formal offer of its services.
The Duke of Lancaster's own Rifles have had the
option of re-enlisting, and receiving the additional
bounty of 1/. On Friday, the regiment, which is on
garrison duty at Glasgow, were informed of the nature
of their position, and tie majority immediately re-en-
listed. New volunteers also continue to make their
appearance, so that there is no danger of this regiment
being weakened.
The Carmarthenshire Rifles have now commenced
their 56 days' drill, and are making progress in the va-
rious exercises. The body is still much below its com-
plement, but it is expected, now that the men are ac-
tually together, that volunteering will become more
brisk. _ _

On Saturday a detachment of the Royal Lancashire
tillery Militia, consisting of about 120 men, rank and
file, and 22 officers, proceeded to the new battery at the
north end of Huskisson Dock, Liverpool, and were
paced on full garrison duty.
During the past week a considerable portion of the
men belonging to the North Durham Militia, on per-
manent duty in the city of Durham, having obtained in-
formation of the illegality cf their being embodied longer
than a period of 56 days, have held several meetings,
and on Monday there was some insubordination, which
was silenced by the colonel. But, unexpectedly, on
Wednesday morning, it appears, an order from the Home-
office to the commander reached Durham, ordering the
immediate dismissal of all those who had enlisted prior to
May, 1854. Accordingly, in the afternoon, the whole
regiment mustered, and those that were not liable to be
further detained, the greater portion of the regiment,
were disbanded. The same feeling has been manifested
at Barnard Castle among the men enlisted under the
Militia Act of 1352. -
The Royal Sussex Light Infantry Militia, now between
CO and 700 strong, were mustered in the Pavilion,
Brighton, on Wednesday last, in order that the colonel,
the Duke of Richmond, might ask the consent of the
men (enrolled under the act of-1852) to their permanent
embodiment. The noble duke addressed them in such
stirring language that, at the close of his address, the
men responded to it by hearty cheers. The result was,
that of the 400 men who might have claimed dismissal
on Saturday as the term of their 56 days' service has
expired, only 150 took that step, and the rest remain
permanently embodied with their comrades who enlisted
under the act of 1854. Even of those 150 it is doubt-
ful if all will carry out their intention.
The 3d Royal Surrey Militia, Colonel-Commandant
C. B. Challoner, are summoned to muster for training
at the head-quarters of the regiment, Kingston-on-
Thames, on Monday, the 23d of April.
On Thursday the Suffolk Artillery, according to the
instructions contained in the circular from the War-
office, were mustered at Ipswich, and the men were told
thatretu they could, if they pleased, re-enrol themselves, or
the 74ezr„..mcarding_holultiety3sonbwjlecll tie: being called out for 56 days in
say
theain
andoriginal
th the
w stipulation.
ho le
n f
at Landguard Fort,eHarw'ich Redoubt, and h
thoseeO ti
corpst o
i
sta-
tioned at Hull Garrison will return to their homes.
It has been decided by the authorities that the Militia
Artthilelezeinntelnrealn Generalat.nd shatl
and Board of Ordnance in the
lee
urdti t lo contradict
placed under the direction
of
sanieDmuabnlninerpasaptehreigreregcleste
u lar Artillery.
the men
a previous
statement to the effect that some of tli
to the 3d West York Militia had been demanding men belonging
their
discharge. There is no truth in the statement,

[ADVERTISEMENT.] THE WA% IN TUE EAST. -.pow.p „,
1.
PATENT P,ECONNOITRING GLASSES.— Messrs. S. and R.
07
ineLs, opticians, 39, Albemarle-street, Piccadilly. Obs'ervne-
- opposite the York Hotel. By her Majesty's Royal
Letters Patent for valuable and extraordinary improvements
in the most powerful and brilliant Telescopes, Camp; Race-
course, Opera, and Perspective Glasses, to know the distances
of objects viewed through them—of great importance to the
army, navy, and others. These telescopes possess such extra.
ordinary powers that some 33
inches, with an extra eye-
piece, will show distinctly Jupiter's moons, Saturn's ring,
au:l the double stars ; with the same telescope can be
seen a person's counter ants three miles and a half distant,
and an object from 16 1020 miles. They are of larger and all
sizes, with increasing powers accordingly ; while their vary-
ing from 4 to 6 inches enab:e ns to discover more than the
above, and the Georgian, with his g satellites, Sze.—The Royal
Exhibition, 1851.—Valuable, newly-invented, my small,
a Powerful waistcoat-pocket glass,the size of a walnut, by which
person can be Seen and known li miles distant ; they answer
every Purpose on the race-course, and at the opera houses,
country v...-•
" --enerY, and ships are clearly seen at 8 to 10 miles.
They are invaluable,
gentlemen, gamekeepers,
shooting, deer-stalking, yachting, to
sportsmen,
at:dgainekeepers, and tourists. Opera,
race-course, camp,
power.—Newly.constrn perspective glasses, with wonderful
transparent powereted Spectacle Lenses of the great-
estfrom this invention is, that '7
preserved and strengthened, aluaLle advantage derived
vision becoming impaired is
, and very aged persons are
enabled to employ their-sight at the most minute occu-
ing power—and they do not requiof
patiou—can see with these lenses
the frequent changes
a much has magnify-
-1 to the dangerous effects of furtheiporwe
unent tor deafness,
assistance. Deaf-
; ness —New Discovery.—The Organic Vibrator,
I nary powerful, ln
entirely different from all others, to Anr
naott perceptibleahe, church
i t
;
douf
etehe.
kind that has been, or probably over can anythingPass
pro
d
Being of the same colour as the skin, is
=tides deaf poisons to hear distinctly
' public assemblies; the unpleasant sensation of sin,,;,gann,,,l. at
in the ears is entirely removed; and it affords all the assists
ante that possibly could be desired. 39, Athemariolitrl
Piccadilly. Obeerre —oppeaito the Yerk Motel

ARRIVALS AT LINCOLN.
Janus, Kennyside Hero, and Slucebox.

MILTON.-Nell Gwynne and Queen of England leave
here this morning for Lincoln.

THE GOVERNMENT AND THE POLICE

FOR TOWNS.

The following circular has been received from
the Home-office by the may.ors of the principal
north country towns :

" Whitehall, March 28, 1855.
" Sir,—l am di'rected by Secretary Sir George Grey,
to inform you that his attention has Leen called to the
inadequacy of the police forces in many of the large and
populous towns in the kingdom.
" The consequence of this is, that while inefficient
provision is made to check the commission of ordinary
crime, the civil force is nearly powerless in the event
of any disturbance of the public peace. It is of great
importance that there should be a sufficient police
force in all large towns, not only for the protection of
life and property under ordinary circumstances, but
also with the assistance of special constables, for the
repression of any sudden disturbance of the peace,
without requiring, as has been too often the case, the
aid of a military force, to which recourse never should
be had un!ess when the civil power alone, duly organised
for the purpose, is unable to maintain the public peace.
A. military force should not be relied on as a substitute
for the police, but when called for by the magistrates in
cases of serious consequences, it should act only in sup-
port of the civil power.
"Her Majesty's Government feel it necessary to dis-
continue, as far as possible, the practice of posting small
detachments of troops in various parts of the country,
and their withdrawal renders it the more important that
an efficient police force should be maintained.
" Sir George Grey requests that you will take an
early opportunity of calling the attention of the council
to the subject, and that you will urge upon them the
necessity of taking prompt measures to place the police-
force of the borlugh upon a satisfactory footing. Sir
George Grey is confident that the council will be fully
alive to the importance of the subject, and that it will
receive their early and careful attention.

"I am, sir, your obedient humble servant,
" W. CowrEn."

CADETS POR THE ROYAL NAVY FROM THE COLONIES.
—Despatches- were laid before the Legislative Assembly
of Nova Scotia (xi the 26th ult., from which it appeared
that her Majesty had been pleased to confer upon Canada
the privilege of nominating two young men, and New
Brunswick and Nova Scotia one each, as cadets m the
Royal Navy ; and that Master Sydenham Howe, sun of
the Hon. Joseph Howe, had been appointed on behalf
of Nova Scotia.

HORRIBLE DISCOVERY.—We are furnished by a gentle-
man from Lafayette, Indiana, with the details of a
rumour current in that city on Thursday which fills the
mind with horror in view of the sufferings of the persons
to whom it refers. On the Saturday preceding the me-
morable storm of the 21st of January two families,
numbering 10 persons, moving from Southern Indiana
to Northern arrived at Oxford, the county seat
of Benton county, Indiana, about 40 miles north-west of
Lafayette, with two ox teams, and well provided with
necessaries for the road. They remained there through
the storm, and on Monday morning resumed their jour-
ney. Last Tuesday morning a man passing over a
prairie only about fire miles from Oxford came upon a
sight which filled him with horror. The carcases of
two oxen, from which the viscera had been re-
moved, lay upon the ground. Inside of one of
them were the frozen bodies of four children, and
in the other the frozen corpse of the mother,
with a nursing infant at her breast. Under the
snow was a heap of ashes, in which the iron of the wag
gnu showed that the party had broken them up, and
burned everything they had in them, in the effort to
save their lives. Not far from this spot was found the
Partydbiceadvo
killedub erecaa became inextricably body of the other woman of the party, partly concealed
in a snowdrift, and near her one of the men. The two
ebtuhrenrirmigenuphathdenirowt bagegTmfso:und. It is probable that the
Lae bleak prairie, and lost h •
it
teir
would
thatmind.
the Afterm e men
them, and then, accompanied by one woman, vainly en-
ntiaieshehlltderlteoftthaonsedfouroncduirne
aid to rescue their companions!
bad wandered off. There wvgaesranothingabout
t,wo ot other opxeern.
known about them than was accidentally nothing more iscommunicated
sons to indicate who they
.
by them during their brief stay at Oxford.—Chicago
LOVE CI:WM.—At the police-court, Hull, on Wednes•
day, a young woman named Hatinnh Banks affiliated a
press, Feb. 21.
orineoaefxethti,eitchaoebxtelyonvvin, involved
in the snowdrifts on
child upon a young man named Jonathan Watkins, and
several of the circumstances of the case provoked con-
siderable laugther. It appears that both defendant and
complainant were servants to Mrs. Lorrimer, a farmer
residing at Sunk Island, and that on one occasion the
toadfood
f
latter procured a toad, had it roasted, pounded into a
poorwtdhe purpose powder,
sad
int eonid emilatkoi
nmgi xi]
iimt
ov witheher. defendant's The
was roasted alive before the fire by one of the witnesses,
a young girl named Martha Stark, and the defendant's
si:iter was likewise aware of the circumstance. Defen-
dant get to hear of that and other plans to entrap his
affections, and fearing that they should be carried out,
he removed from the house, though he continued to visit
t!.e cot, stark :Ira • I,','
severely replialandeu by Air. Travis for roaeting the toad
alive, which be considered a very brutal act —Yorkshire
Ocrzetto.

Lord Palmerston at last has completed his Cabinet,
and perfected his Ministerial corps. New writs have
been again moved. Three Commoners—all, however,
bearing the title of " honourables," that is, members of
aristocratic families—are placed in important admini-
strative departments. Noble connexions and safe seats,
as usual, govern the Premier in his selection of pub-
lic servants. When is this exclusive and destructive
system to end ? Nepotism is an incurable disease
of the aristocratio body politic. the corrupt pro-
motion of nephews by the reigning Popes partly accele-
rated the Reformation. The French noblesse were
awfully punished for their greediness and their mono-
poly of public offices, places, and virtual sinecures.
The British Peerage ought to take warning. It is
not balsa century since it .lost the power cf quar-
tering its male and female younger members on the
pension lists. Sinecures, in which numbers of them
nestled, have ono after another ceased to disgrace our
times. With the exception of a few old "lives," enjoy-
ing compensation and expiring life interest, we see
the close of that provision for state paupers. But,
wise in their generation, our nobles as they lose one
indefensible means of provision for their poorer relatives
at the cost of the public, usurp an unfair title to the work-
ing offices of our public administration. Nor are any
places with tolerable salaries below their acceptance. We
have Ruesel le upper servants to the two Houses of Parlia-
ment, the Duke of Bedford enjoying a princely and accu-
mulating fortune ; the colonies afford an outdoor relief ;
and our despicable continental diplomacy yields an-
other workhouse for poor and wild youths, of which
the aristocracy now largely avails itself. In fact, no
office is too low, no income too mean, when better
provision cannot be managed. Not ten days ago we
commented on the income tax "special" inspectorship,
bestowed on Mr. A'Court, and the passing over old pub-
lic servants, incomparably better entitled and qualified.
We now come, to the acts of the past week.
It is far from our intention to be unjust or personal.
Mr. Edward P. B ,uverie is a man of merit, of industry,
and some official experience. He was two years Under-
Secretary of the Home-office, and since 1853 he has well
discharged the duties of Chairman of the Commons'
Committees. As a younger son of Lord Radnor, he is
a decided Liberal, and well instructed in the principles
of political economy. But why remove him from his
late equally well-paid office in Parliament, and thus place
the administration of the Board of Trade under the pre-
sidency of two noble families wholly unconnected with
trade and commerce ?

The Honourable Henry Bouverie William Brand,
made a L,rd of the Treasury, is only objectionable as
another instance of class patronage. Mr. Brand is an
intelligent man, perhaps worthy of a better working
office ; and Mr. Canning used to say, that the sole func-
ti ns of junior Lords of the Treasury were to make a
house and vote with the minister. This may be called
only a politic nomination—the borough of Lewis being
a safe return. But the❑ comes the third selection

from the Suffolk family, the Honourable James Ken-
neth Howard. This gentleman who, we believe, was
formerly precis-writer in the Foreign-office, and who
represented the family borough of Mahnesbury in the
two prAieding Parliaments, we have no wish to depre-
ciate. He is the fortunate successor of Mr. Kennedy,

the ex-commissioner of the Woods and Forests. We
do not dispute Mr. Howard's qualifications and agri-
cultural associations for his new office. We simply
point to all these instances as a curious illustration
•f the now notorious principle in the disposal
of patronage. All are "in the family way." Superior
merits and more plebeian claims are sacrificed to
the wants of our ari,tocratic governing class. Mr. Bou-
♦erie, we have already observed, has special merits of
his own, and the public service will never suffer in his
hands ; but whatever the qualifications of Mr. Howard
for 1,5001. a-year for life in the Woods and Forests,
would that honourable gentleman have been the succes-

sor of Mr. Kennedy unless he hed been the scion of the
House of Suffolk and the son-in-law of the Marquis of
Lansdowne? The venerable statesman has certainly
earned the grateful respect of his countrymen. But as
his only daughter will possess on his decease a large ani
Ample fortune, ‘l as it worth Cilia or creditable, to vest
such an office in the meanwhile, in his son-in-law, when
the Hon. Charles Gore, married to the widow of the
noble marquis's deceased son, Lord Kerry, holds the
first comm.ssionership ? Thus the two commis-
sioners of that department of the Woods and Forests
will be virtually brothers-in-law ! Lord Brougham has
rather indigi antly commented on the Commissioners of
Customs of Adam Smith, and the Excise appointment
of Burns, as jobs which could not happen again. We
are more reconciled to such like past national gratitude
than to the above modern distribution of places among
our younger nobility. Can we wonder that a member
of the House of Commons has given notice that he will
call the consideration of Parliament, after the recess, to
this appointment for the Lo-administration of our Woods
and Forests ? We last week indicated that the then va-

cant comnaissienership WES likely to be bestowed on Mr.
Henry Roberts, the ex-private secretary of the Duke of
Newcastle, and late under-secretary of the War Depart-
ment. This gentleman is reported to have refused it, as
less by 5001. a-year than his recent salary of 2,0001. If
such be the fact, we think Mr. Robert 'has disqualified him-
self for any further office, except a return to Jamaica.
But it is rumoured that the Duke of Newcastle, before
leaving office, left a " minute" guaranteeing to his pri-
vate secretary the right to a salary in some new office

equal tc the 2,0001. a year in the old one, should Mr.
Roberts be displaced by Lord Panmure, or any second
corner ! This singular and scandalous " minute," it is
said, will be the subject of a motion for a return, after
Easter, in the House of Commons. Verily a rc-orgsn'..
Ration of the civil service is needed, but certainly all the
"honourables" would successfully elude the ingenious
tests proposed by Sir Stafford H. Northcote, Sir C. E.
Trevelyan, and the Rev. B. Jowett. All the right hen-
ourables and honourables can spell and write ; and they
profess their capacity and accomplishments for our most
lucrative offices of public administration.—Daily News.

SOCIETY OF ARTS.—Tbe seventh exhibition of inven-
tions is now open at the society's house in the Adelphi,
and will continue so during the present month. It con-
sists of a collection of articles recently invented, patented
or registered, and comprises models of motive machines,
building contrivances and materials, hardware, naval
and mi'itary mechanism, philosophical instruments, ag-
ricultural implements and saildlt.rv, and articles for
n per-
amount of iugeuity of coatrivaoce vari,:ty of in-
vention, and it is as interesting as it is instructive. it
will well repay a visit.