The Sun.
London, England, 1855-03-06 00:00:00

.•

himself master of the Frenchlanguage,andstudythe /14.7..7.-- ,11.--"°"\;.,
tern adopted in that country. He had lived many I. '
.-740.1,
_,rv•••a'cti4
with officers attached to the etat-major in France,patV i.,,,.-:,.. - •,..,:ti., ~:-. .
4411„
from his experience, he did not. hink it would be 1.-if.e4x_l*- 7 y:.,'3,;4.09:0,
matter to adopt. that system in the English army. kr:-., 7:1-,,,, 0. • .1p::, #4:::=1
*
Mr. 0. STANLEY was glad to hear that the Gov'ern-'1:•;" ,
,-• 4•14,;.,
moot intended to take 'the whole question Of army orgNivr: .7* . -.4,
_W:_•..j
isation into their careful consideration. • -1464,
Mr. OTWAY could not eopccive how, with the eller,: N , ....
rnous lois of wealth which had occurred in the Crimea, • r
the Government could any longer continue to treat the _._
question of the education of the officers of the army as a
mere money question.
..
After a few words, the purport of which did not reach ;,,.:....f..•
the gallciy, from Capt. BELLEW, . ' .... lilii..-;_
Mr. J. G. PHILLIMORE warned the house against '-o.'•
rushing hastily into extremes on the subject of the educa. .••• 41-..
tion of the officers of the army. The cases of the Duke of ",-.)-17'
Marlborough and of Marshal Saxe, neither of whom could ._ . .
scarcely write his name, and of a great proportion g the
greatest French generals, afforded evidence that education
was not essentially necessary to the making of good get,.
nerals. •

Lord PALMERSTON said—There is no doubt much
truth in what the hon. member has said, but the case
comes to this-7when you apply a test of qualification for
a partioalar employment, you will take care not to employ
a test applicable to another totally different employment.
It is quite true that the attainments which qualify a man
to be a good officer are not the same which would qualify
a man to be a learned professor ; and if you require your
officers to pass an examination which will quakily these for
a professorial chair, you will certainly commit a great
error. Upon the other hand, great advantages would arise
from taking care that upon each step of promotion an offi-
cer should keep himself up to proper progress in the attain.
meats belonging to the profession of which he is a mem-
ber. The qualities which constitute a good general arc qua-
lities which must be inborn in a man. The combination of
qualities which make a great general is one of the rarest
which occurs in the moral constitution of man. My belief
is that you will find a great many more men fitted to be
successful statesmen than men suited to take command, and
who have all the foresight necessary for the performance of
the duties attaching to that station. At the same time it
is highly important that your officers should keep up and
make progress in their profession; and those examinations
which have been alluded to aro examinations which I think
ought to be tests of military knowledge. It would be de-
sirable that that test should not only be applied upon the
first entrance into office, but that the officers should also
understand that unless they occupy their minds and per-
fectthemselves in those matters which are essential to a
proper performance of military duties, they will not gain
such promotion as they are desirous to obtain. (Hear.)
Colonel KNOX suggested the desirability of adopting to
some extent the system pursued in the French army with
respect to the formation of the etat-major. By compelling
young men to serve for a limited time in each branch of the
service more general knowledge connected with the army
would be obtained than from any system of examinations,
however numerous or searching they might be made.
Mr. 111014 stated that after the satisfactory explanation
of the Government he should not press his motion.
The motion was accordingly witndrawne and the house
went intireonafintee on the eenigr- -•• '-
ORDNANCE ESTIMAA.- •
Mr. MONSELL, in moving these estimates, observed
that, though they were much larger than had ever before •
been demanded, the house and the country were only too
painfully aware of the reason. He should commence with-
the supplemental estimates of 1,200,0004 The first vote,
267,0001., was for barrack supplies, of which 129,5191. was
required for barrack bedding at the new hospital at Smyrna •
and for the establishment at Malta. For greatcoats 3,1061.
was required and for boots and shoes 54,3751. Some re-
mark had been made with regard to the quality of the
boats and shoes, and also with respect to their size. Not-
withstanding it was complained that they were too small,
the Government, in sending them out, had taken the pre-
caution to select only the two larger sizes. He attributed
the fact of their being too small to the circumstance that
the men wore more than nne pair of stockings, for certainly
the boots supplied to the soldiers in the Crimea were con-
siderably larger than those worn by the men at home. The
next item was 234,8601. for camp and miscellaneous stores,
and of this 124,9061. was required for tools, a large portion
for warm clothing for convalescents in different hospitals,
and 92,0541. for camp equipage. The next vote was for
1,000 huts, 54,8001., and 19,0111. for stable huts that were
finished within 18 days of the time ordered. For
hospital huts, which had been completed within 14 •
days, 2,0001. .sere required, cud for huts for 3,030 sol-
diers of the Foreign Legion at Heligoland, which had
been finished within 10 days of the order, 13,9311.
The next vote was •382,5001. for warm dalLg. On
this subject there had been a great deal of con-
troversy. All he could say was, the warm clothing was
sent out by gentlemen who undertook to supply that, and.
that undertaking was, in his opinion, =lied out with
groat celerity and ability. As au instance of the de-
spatch used,- he would mention that when the intelligence
of the loss of the Prince arrived in this country, within
two days a similar amount of clothing to that which had
been lost was supplied. The house would be surprised to
bear the enormous extent of the shipments of this article.
In the month of November 130 tons were sent out by the
Government, and 344 tons by Messrs. Hayter and Howell;
in December, 234 tons by those gentlemen, and 752 tons
by the Government ; and in January, 180 tons by Messrs.
Hayter and Howell ; and 309 tons by the Government.
The second 'point ho desired the committee to consider was,
whether the clothing had been supplied economically. It
had been supplied in great haste and under the most
urgent circumstances, and everybody who had had to do
with it had felt that their great object was not price, but
time, and this bad been the essence of all the contracts.
Calculations had been made, from which he came to the
conclusion that the amount paid over and above a fair rca.
seeable price at which the goods could have been supplied.
under ordinary circumstances was VI per cent. Ile was
also convinced, after a searching inquiry, that the warm
clothing sent out to the Crimea was, generally speaking, of
excellent quality. A great deal had been said as to the
mode in which the things sent out had been packed. It
had been stated that the transport-ship Robert Lowe had.
conveyed medical stores to Scutari, but that they could
not OR their arrival bo delivered, as they had been placed
under heavy cylinders for powder. A committee had in-
quired into this case, and had unanimously reported that
the charge was unfounded, and that it was impossible, be-
cause the great cylinders were of such enormous weight
that they wore obliged to be packed in the hold of the ship.
The neglect in this case, and also in another in which goods
were sent to Balaklava, was not on the part of those who
packed the goods, but of those who had to deliver them on
their arrival. The next item in the estimates was that of
25,0001. for the factory for the manufacture of Lancaster
shells. It would be in the recollpstion. of the committee,
that this shell was first submittO to the Government in 7.
1852 ; a variety of experimati'were made, and before the
invention was quite ripe it was considered desirable that it • ---
should be made use of. It was necessary in the structure
of the shell to use a Nasmyth hammer ; and in the first in•
stance, because the experiment had not been sufficiently
tested to warrant the erection of a large factory, the con- •
struction of these shells had been very expensive, each shell .
having had to be reheated It times, in consequence of there
being only one of Naamytles hammers in use, and some
1,800 shells had been made, each of which had cost 61. In
November Lord Raglan transmitted a report from Colonel
Lake which was extremely satisfactory, and the Govern-
ment immediately decided that a large number of shells
should be produced with as little delay as possible. He
(Mr. Monsall) had the advantage of a consultation with Mr.
Nasmyth, who most liberally placed his factory at Manches-
ter, at the disposal of the Government ;' but, on con-
sidering the plan that would have been required there,
and the plant already at Woolwich, that gentleman came
to the conclusion that it would be more economical for the
Government to proceed with their • own factory. This
was accordingly stone, and in two months, owing to the
exertions of Sir C. Fox and Mr. Henderson, the factory
was erected. It was now at work, producing GO shells
per day, and would very soon produce 100 per day ; and
these, instead of costing 61. each, would only cost 11.165. 2d.
The next vote in the supplemental estimates was for
15,0001: for the gun factory at Enfield, but in the esti-
mates would also be found the further sum of 40,0001. for
the same factory; and he would therefore at once explain
the grounds on which he asked for these sums, amount-
ing in the whole to 55,000!. It would be recollected that
hot session there had been a committee for the purpose of
considering a proposition made on the part of the Govern-
ment for else erection of a large factory, intended to pro-
duce 150,000 muskets per year. The committee were un-
favourable to the erection of a factory on a large scale,
and recommended ono on a limited scale, which would
serve as an experiment as to the advantages likely to ac-
crue from a large factory, be a check on the prices of con-
tractors, and aloe a resource in times of emergency. Three
gentlemen of great experience—Colonel Burn, Captain
Warlow, and Mr. Anderson—then went to America for
the purpose of making inquiries and investigations.
These gentlemen were authorised to spend 10,00(1. in the
purchase of machinery in America. Shortly after they
went to that country they communicated with him (Mr.
Monsili) en the subject of the machinery they had witnessed
there. Colonel Bern wrote, stating that the snore they
had seen of the operation of the musket machinery in Ame-
rica,and the extraordinary effect it produced, the more
they were convinced of the absiiluto necessity of a radical
change in our system, and of our establishing a complete
and permanent organisation to enable us to secure a con-
tinuous supply of the best article at a cheap rate. Colonel
Burn also observed that, though the woik of the machinery
at Springfield, in Massachusetts, and at Ilerper's Ferry, in
Virginia, differed in certain respects according to the skill
u terc
ofe muskets in all their parts was r
yet the
operations were so perfect that au
i
made between
them quarterly, and that the result was found to be the
same as if they had been all prod ne el by one engineer only.
Subsequently Colonel Barn applied forperrnheion to spend
a larger amennt that, the 10,0;01. first specified in the pur-
chase of machinery in America. and the Government upon
further consideration accordingly authorised a total expen-
diture of 17,0031. for this purpose. When these gentlemen
returned home they brought with thorn an elaborate and
lucid report, detailing the results of their investigation.
In this document they stated that their anticipations not
only as to the rapidity with which the muskets could be
menufactrired, but r s to the lowness of their cost, were
more thahrealised by what they had witnessed, and they
expressed their conviction that the experiment of establish-
ing a musket factory in this country would prove signally
successful. The comnaittea then considered the size of the
factory that should be erected, and ultimately decided that
it should be one capable of nianufacturing 50,000 muskets
per annum. They found upon calculation that the seine
staff and nearly the same quantity of machinery would be
requisite fon manufacturing 25,000 muskets annually as
d
would be necessary to manacture double that number;
and that if they had determined upon having a factory only
adequate to furnish the smaller supply the machinery
would have to remain idle for half the year. Plans were
therefore prepared for a factory sufficient for thepholue-
tion of 50,000 muskets a-year, the situation selected for it
being at Enfield, and the first estimate of the cost of its
erection was 30,0001. In deference, however, to the sug.
geslons t. •of the gentlemen who had visited America, an en-
largement was afterwards resolved upon, and the actual
outlay for the building amounted to between 43,0001. and
41-,000/. The cost of the machinery contracted for in Ame-
rica was 17,0e01. ; and about .9,00J1. worth mare was con. , •
tracted for after the return of those gentlemen, making •
26,001/.—an amount very nearly corresponding with the
supplemental.
estimate of 25,0001. taken last year. During
the months of October, November, and December there
was a lamentable deficiency in our supply of small arms, •
to obtain which the Government were obliged to resort to, - •
the markets of other countries, and the Minister of War,
' in the emergency that had arisen, authorised the Board of
Ordnance to enter into contracts for the erection of the
factory. The building was now in progress at Enfield, and
the factory would commence operations about the begin,
ning of next July, and be able, no doubt, to manufacture
a cnsiderable, quantity small arms in the course of
the present year. Passing from the subject of the supple- •
mental estimate, he' came next to general. estimate for the
year. The increase in the estimate for Ordnance stores