The Sun.
London, England, 1855-05-02 00:00:00

IMi)ERIAL PARLIAMENT.

SOUSE OF LORDS—(YESTERDAY.)
The LOED CHANCELLOR took his seat on the wool-
sack at
five
c''cl°StCOND READING. •
The Dursley and Midland Railway Bill was read a
second time.

THIRD READLNGS.
The following bills were read a third time :—Glossop
Gas, Monmouth Railway and Canal, Sheffield Gas,
South Eastern Capital, Bridport Railway, Ratcliffe Gas ;
and Bradford, and Halifax Junction.
The Earl of HARDWICKE moved for returns re-
specting the cost and conveyance of letters and news-
papers to Australia.
Lord BERNERS presented several petitions from
Gloucestershire praying for the closing
of public-houses
on Sundays.
The Earl of EGLINTON presented a petition from
Scotland- against the Maynooth grant.
Lord STANLEY of ALDERLEY presented several
petitions against the payment of church rates.
BURIAL OF THE DEAD.
The Earl of SANDWICH in presenting a, petition
from Huntingdon, praying that the law with respect to
the burial of the dead might be amended, begged to ask
her Majesty's Government whether any inspector had
been sent down to examine and report upon the state of
the burial grounds awl vaults in that county ?
The Duke of ARGYLL said the notice the noble
earl bad placed upon the paper was so indefinite that
there was no member of her Majesty's Government in
their lordships' house that evening that eould answer it.
Under these circumstances he hoped the noble earl
would repeat this question on another occasion.
After a few observations from the Bishop of
CSICHZEITEE, the subject dropped.
THE FLOATING BATTERIES.
Earl TALBOT begged now to ads the Minister of
War the question he had given notice of last night, with
respectto the floating batteries, namely,as to who was the
inventor or designer of these floating batteries, and also
Whether any experiment had been made to test their
strength, and also their applicability for the service for
which they were intended ?
Lord PANMITRE said he was unable to inform the
noble earl who the inventor of the plan was. The merit
of the project had, however, been tested, and the Go-
vernment being satisfied with the result had authorised
ethiadeption of the plan.
" The-Earl of HARDWICKE thought it was hardly
possible to receive a more unsatisfactory answer to a
question than that which had been given by his noble
friend opposite.: He had on that day proceeded to
Woolwich to inspect two of these ships, and, without
referring to the opinion of any other person, he would
venture to state what his own opinion was with regard
to the construction- of these vessels. The effect of the
mode of construction that had been adopted would be to
16Oiren the plates when they were brought under the fire
of a heavy battery, and , those plates being malleable,
would suffer in the way that-iron did under the hammer
of the anvil, and would begin to move about. They would
spread with the blows, and would be broken in all proba-
bility.— The deck was nine inches thick, and it was ori-
ginally intended to have plated it with iron, but he ap-
prehended that with a power of floating so indifferent,
they had not ventured to carry out the plan, and he
was sure that, if a parabolic shell were thrown on
the deck, it would go slap through her. The bulwark
*that was to protect the officers conducting the opera
tions when approaching the enemy's battery was imper-
fect; and the men at the wheel were also exposed to the
fire, because there was nothing to protect them but a
two-inch plank. The men at the guns below were pro-
tected by the iron plates, but the officers wbo were to
conduct the operations were exposed to a greater disad-
vantage than they woald be exposed to on board of an
ordinary ship.
Earl GREY complained of the conduct pursued by
the noble earl, and condemned the practice of dis-
cussing such questions in that house. The Govern-
ment were wholly responsible for the works they
were undertaking in connection with the war, and he
therefore considered that their movements should
not be hampered by any scientific descriptions and cri-
ticisms of this character.
The Earl of DERBY could not say that his noble friend
behind him was open to the attack that bad been made
upon him by the noble earl. It was said they should not
interfere when measures were still in progress, but those
gun-boats were completed, and were open to the obser-
vation or examination of any one. If he were not neein-
formed, those 5 gun-boats had cost something like a sum
of 300,000/., and before they went further it was important
that they should possess all the knowledge and informa-
tion that could be obtained from the professional ability
of his noble friend. His noble friend stated that he had
inspected them, and he pointed out various defects in
their construction.. He considered that. on the whole.
they were not likely. ep answer the objects of thcete who
designed them, and he asked whether those plans and
designs had been submitted to, and approved of, by the
scientific portion of the service in this country. If they
had been submitted to them, the heads of the scientific
department of the navy would be made responsible for
the success or failure of those batteries. (Hear, hear.)
His noble friend had pointed out the reason why he
thought they were not fit for the purpose intended, and
he warned the Government not to go head over heels in
incurring an enormous expense on a work which he
thought to be unscientific and of an unsati-factory cha-
racter. (Hear.) No subject could be more fit for di,
It was proposed by the Government to enter into a new
and experimental mode'of naval warfare, involving an
enormous expense, and the means which they adopted, in
the opinion of a man of professional knowledge like his
noble friend, were not calculated to answer the pur-
pose for which they were invented. (Hear.) As to the
construction of these gun-boats becoming known in
Russia-in consequence of the observations of his noble
friend, that was an idea that could not be entertained for
a single moment. The intention to construct th, se gun-
boats was perfectly well known in Russia from the time
when it was decided that they should be constructed,
and the Emperor of Russia would not obtain by the dis-
cussion any information that he did not already possess
respecting them. (Hear.)
The subject then dropped.
JURISDICTION OF THE STANNARY COURT
AMENDMENT BILL.
On the motion of the Lord CHANCELLOR their
lordships went into committee on this bill.
The clauses were agreed to.
CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY BILL.
This bill with amendments was reported, and was
ordered to be recommitted this day fortnight.
THE CAVALRY .IN THE CRIMEA. •
Lord VIVIAN moved for a return of the number of
men and horses sent or to be sent, as reliefs or rein-
forcements to the cavalry now in the Crimea ; regi-
-ments, or squadrons- from regiments, now in this
country to be 'employed on this service ; and date
of embarkation and rams of transports in which
• these reinforcements have been or are to be sent
out, stating whether sailing or steam-vessels. The
noble lord said he had, on a former occasion, moved for
a similar return, but be had been induced to withdraw
it on the assurance given by the Commander-in-Chief
that he was about to send out strong squadrons to the
seat of war. But he found that up to the present mo-
ment, certainly np to within a very few days, no squad-
rons had been sent, and no regiment of cavalry in this
country had received orders to reinforce the troops in
the Crimea. If our army was to take any part in the
operations before Sebastopol, it was most essential
that
that branch of the army, the cavalry, should be speedily
reinforced. (Hear.) He might he told, and no doubt
would be told, that reinforcements en
ha d-b. sent fro,n
India, and that cavalry would be
sent from- this e
try; but what he desired to know was, what
wereetehee-
means which the Government had of conveying 'these
troops 2 He feared lest the Government should be once
again " too late :" and he thought they would best -bow
that there was no ground for apprehension by stating
not only the force they were about to send out, but that
t ley were prepared to send them out in steam-vessels.
Lord HARDINGE said it was true that the noble lord
had on a former occasion asked for
Govern
information
eroeol at
et imv to the amount of force which thee
plated to send out to the Crimea, thatathteFthe
time he
(Lord Hardinge) heal stated that and
he thoughtbe,et
t wou
way of reinforcing the army serving in
'be by bending out additional squaerone for ea4achs of theld
regiments in the Crimea. He had reason to believe
sequently that it would be better to' send out two regi-
ments ; and he had had a consultation with his Royal
Highness the Duke of Cambridge, and he had his Royal
Highness's consent that, instead of sending out separate
squadrons of each of the regiments serving, it would be
better to send out the two regiments, the Ist Dragoon
Guards and the 6th Dragoons. The force of cavalry in
the East at present consisted of about 1,300 effective men,
and they would-be reinforced by'-about 750 troops, and
ealsoby the two- regiments coming from India, one- of
• which had already arrived—the amount of which would
be about 1,000 men rank and file. Thus there would be
in-the Crimea upwards of 3,000 effective cavalry, exclu-
sive of the two regiments he had referred to, if they
would be required, and they would be required without
doubt. The number of recruits now ready Was at least
1,000 men, and we had at least 1,500 horses between five
acid sir years old, and he was happy to say that the
regiments at honie willingly and cheerfully took on
tbennelvea to act as the instructors of the recruits, and
hereby rendered much service to the.country. Hehad
had the ad
easeecto_
ovantage of the advice 'of the noble earl, the
DuEe of et Cavalry, and of his Royal Highness the
More than Zridge, in making these arrangements.
and with respeetti:e reinforcements had already sailed,.
sent io steam vessels, the means of carriage, some were
sarily have to . but the remainder would neces-
The Earl of go
is
shiPS'
quite satisfied that there would be no in •
hoped the noble lord was now
stating the number of re
indiscretion his
in the Crimea, for fear it
should come to the ears of the Emperor of Russia.
returns as those when movettalw;aere repudiated such
Lord PANMURE said heeh
Parliament, and
though there would be no difficultyriel
these
especially force of the army, yet he thought it wanewing‘exact
as
cedent for Parliament to sanction sucliBr snot eaegood pre-
especially in times of war. The motion eser
bably, for the opportunity it afforded forsanicaitch'' pro-
planations ; and thei,e having been given, he tng
°Pea his
noble friend would not press for the returns he eau ae,
for. With respect to, the sending out of these cads"
reinforcements, he should say that every means !,,f dl
patch' should be used in conveying out these and all.
other reinforcements. At this moment every available
steam transport was engaged for our own troops or those
nur allies and if we were. compelled to have recourse;
to sailing vessels, it was because we 14c1 to oonyey,..not
to the
only the ca,,32ry
seat of war.
of
artillery, but this, infantry,
aThem a
at
ar Earl 0.
f t,LfaBbNeI3rBROUG.O impressed on the
Co
.111'Slhilk: the_ zooosjity. gaiAig 142117