The Sun.
London, England, 1855-05-21 00:00:00

guar that he should address the house on a notice of
motion, hut under the pPeuligr c;re-TM,Q,an,..l nl the,

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its members, he hoped the hour. iv
that courtesy which he new claimed. (dear, hear.)
The house would remember that, on the motion for ad-
journment on Friday last, the hon. member for Ayles-
bury (Mr. Layard) made some comments, and in a most
pointed manner alluded to him (Sir J. Graham). He
had not the slightest intention of addressing the house
on that occasion ; but the allusions were such that he
thought it absolutely necessary he should rise in his
place. He bad not had access to any official docu-
ments, and he had no opportunity of referring to
dates, and without the least premeditation be addressed
the house, according to his impression at the moment.
He stated what he strongly believed, that, considering
the freedom of debate in this house, that hon. members,
in exercising that freedom, should use the utmost caution
▪ with respect to the accuracy of the statements they
make, and also that it was incumbent on them, when any
error in any statement they make should be brought to
their knowledge, they should take the earliest opportunity
of correcting it ; and he was of opinion that unless that
• course be pursued by all bon. members that freedom of
debate would be brought into disrepute in that house.
Now, without any opportunity being offered him by the
hon. member forAylesbury in private, orany explanation,
and this being the very first day of the debate to which
he referred that the house sat, the hon. member (Mr.
Layard) thought, and thought rightly, that there was an
error in the statement which he (Sir J. Graham) made
on Friday last—to his surprise the first intimation he
received was reading this morning in one of the public
papers a letter signed by the hon. member, not giving
him (Sir J. Graham) in his place in the house any
opportunity of tendering an explanation. He stated also
that when any explanation should be required of any
hon. member with reference to any error he might have
been led into, he did not think want of courtesy in ad-
dressing him was any excuse for that member not ac-
knowledging his error. He was strongly impressed with
the opinion that the statement made by the hon.
member for Aylesbury had been made in the session
before Christmas. He bad no opportunity of looi.ing at
authoritative records at the time he made his statement.
[The right hon. Bart. here read a re rtion of Mr. Layard's
letter on this subject, published in to-day's Times.] Now
fortunately for bun (Sir J. Graham) he was in a condi-
tion to show that the error (pointed out in that letter)
was perfectly unintentional on his part, if it were neces-
sary to give that assurance with proof ; but before the
Sebastopol Committee he produced the original document
from the Admiralty, in which order was given to inquire
into the conduct of Captain Christie, which order was
dated the '2Bth December, 1854. (The right lion, baro-
net read the order, which alluded to the grave error
comcsittsed by Captain Christie in sending some Turki-h
troops t Balaklava instead of to Enpatoria, and with
reference to his general conduct.) That was the order
which be produced in the original bef ire the committee.
After the conclusion of the debate on Friday he had
reason to believe he had made an incorrect statement,
and he wrote to the Fiat Lord of the Admiralty
asking him to furni•-li him (Sir James Graham)
with copies of the official documents, which, how-
ever, he had not received, hut, on referring to
the letter he had read before the Sebastopol
committee, and the des'patch to Admiral Lyons- on his
assuming the command of the flaet, and that his
power extended to the dismissal of any officer under
him, he found it bore date the 3d of January ;
and though he had not seen the official answers to that
order, he had no doubt the removal of Capt. Christie did
take place in consequence of that order. He had now
stated to the house exactly the error he com-
mitted in that respect. With reference to the trial
of Captain Christie by court-martial, wher than
that he should appear before the Sebastopol Com-
mittee, he begged to say—and he spoke only from
recolh-ction—that Admiral Lyons having removed Cap-
tain Christie from his command, and appointed another
officer as his successor, the Admiralty had reason to be-
lieve Captain Christie was about to call at Malta on his
return to England, and the Admiralty were of opinion
that, under the circumstances under which he had bee n
removed, it would be fairer to Captain Christie that
he should have the opportunity of vindicating his
conduct before a Court-martial, i,sued the order fur his
return from Malta to Balaklava early in Februa, y. Again
before the appointment of the Sebastopol Committee, he
(Sir James Graham) had the strongest opinion that
the fairest course -to be adopted towards Captain
Christie -was that his conduct should be submitted
to a trial by his brother officers, who would be able
to sympathise with his feelings, and beet understand
the real merits or demerits of his conduct, and that was
the only object he (Sir James Graham) had. He thought
the only reparation he could make for an error he had
committed, was to take the earliest opportunity of stat-
ing that error to the house—(hear)---and if what he hail
stated had inflicted any wrong on the hon. member,
these in his place he stated his regret, and acknowledged
his error. (Hear.) The bon. member bad done that in
a printed paper which he could not do in the house : be
had imputed, motives to him (Sir James Graham)
to enable him to screen his conduct, which
be assured the house was quite alien to his
feelings. The cause of the hon. member's conduct in
doing so he (Sir J. Graham) would not stop to inquire
into. It was to be regretted the hon. member should
have imputed deliberate falsehood to him, but he threw
himself on the indulgence of the house, after having bad
the honour of a seat in it for 37 years, whether he could
for one moment venture to impose on the house in the
manner the hon. member bad imputed. (Hear.)