The Sun.
London, England, 1855-02-16 00:00:00

BE-ELECTION OF MR. SIDNEY HERBERT

SALISBURY, Thursday.—The Right Hen. Sidney Her-
bert's seat in Parliament for the southern division of the
county of Wilts having been vacated, according to con-
stitutional rule, by his acceptance of the Secretaryship
of State for the Colonies in Lord Palmerston's Govern-
ment, the right hon. gentleman presented himself before
his constituents to-day in this city, and was re-elected
by them without opposition.
The writ having been duly read, and the act a;ainst
bribery, intimidation, &c., hurried through amid less
than the average amount of impatience on the part of
"the free and independent electors,"

Mr. A. PowELL nominated the Right Hon. Sidney
Herbert as a fit and proper person to represent the
southern diyision of the county of Wilts in the Commons
House of Parliament.

Mr. J. H. JACOB seconded the nomination of Mr.
Herbert.

The MGR BAILIFF then inquired if any elector bad
any other candidate to propose, and, no response being
made to his summons, he declared the Right Hon. Sidney
Herbert to be duly elected a knight of the shire to serve
in Parliament for the southern division of the county of
Wilts. (Cheers.)

. .
Mr. S. IiEEBBRT then rose to address the electors,
and was received with loud applause. He said—Mr.
High Sheriff and gentlemen, my friend Mr. Jacob has
reminded me that this is the fifth time that he has re-
commended me for your suffrages to represent you in
Parliament. lam not sure that he !has arithmetically
counted the number quite accurately, because I am sen-
sible of the fact that I have been a very troublesome
member to this constituency, and I owe them my apo-
logies on that account, for this is the third time that I
have stood before them as a candidate for the honour of
representing their in the existing Parliament. Gentle-
men, you are so well aware of the circumstances which
have given rise to the necebsity for ray now appearing
before you that I need not delay you long in making
any comments upon them. I believe that when, two
years ago, I entered the Government of Lord Aberdeen
I had your approbation in so doing. It was felt by you
then, as it was felt by me that, at a moment of public
difficulty and emergency no man who feels that he can
with honour serve the Crown and the public is justified
in refusing his assistance for that purpose. (Hear, hear.)
I think, therefore, that at this moment you will agree
with me that all who could in any way further the
public service were bound to contribute what aid they
could to this object. (Hear, hear.) There is no deny-
ing that the circumstances of the country at this moment
are critical ; there is no denying that the war in which
we are engaged with a mostpowerful enemyis one which
require at our hands the putting forth of every effort and
the exercise of every energy of which this country is
capable. (Cheers.) We have had that war to wage by
the instrumentality of an army which is one of the finest
and noblest that ever left the shores of England—which
never met the enemy except to conquer, but which, I
regret to say, has met with an enemy more fell, and more
dangerous to it, than the actual foe—that is, disease—
by which it has been crippled to a fearful extent, and has
had to undergo privations and hardships which have
bee* borne with a heroism almost asexampled, but which
may be and must be attributed to causes that require
searching investigation—(applause)—in order that the
proper remedy may be applied, and that the blame, if
blame there be, should fall upon the right shoulders.
(Hear, bear.) This inquiry it behoves the Government
,to lose no time in instituting. It has been the fashion,
perhaps too indiscriminately, to heap blame upon the
heads of those who are themselves engaged in carrying
on the operations in the Crimea ; and I say to those
who may think that this is deserved, that there are
others besides those who have been engaged in those
operations—that there are others besides those whose
business it is to minister to the wants of our army
who are to blame for these transactions. It is better
these,th rtherefore
howeverore Isubjectsuns
pa
a;ia alwaysttehaabti e
many
ito speaknof la y
be—hear,
h oplainlyshe ea
wr , theh
hear)—
ewahhr
a)o—vl
ee
been the most forward to decry what has been
dwointhe' and
to censure those who have been charged
ezeextions have been apt to forget how