The Sun.
London, England, 1839-03-05 00:00:00

Ey JE
ING EDITION

'-'. 3 Cite eapeake, and of the Pelican over the Argus.
, T' ais ha d produced
l, d. gam, aw on the British navy effects the more
‘,ll, e,,w((aitnild Menttethe re were no other instance of this effect,
t . returrosi, at the
the fact that when the Duke of Wel-
to an .victoriew - - conclusion of the war, after having
I the- -Nob the most important in the history of the world,
'e rJuke landed at the same time with Capt. Brohe ;
i 7,nd welt''. .vas the effect that these disasters had produced, that
i . qt".. Brohe, who bad won this single frigate action,
\ 4:-3 r.` calved with as much popular applause as the victor
():,4 nundred fights. This ought to have proved to the
A(' eniraltv the state of humiliation to which the British
0 ag had been reduced ; but if this state of things existed at
the close of the American war, did it not call on all con-
nected with the Admiralty to watch the present state of
' the navies of foreign Powers? The navy of France had
vastly increased, and their naval officers were men superior
to what they ever had been. The American navy had
' proceeded, and not gone back. These circumstances
called for the attention of the Admiralty. He had no
1 hesitation in asserting—for he did it on the authority of
some of the most distinguished naval officers in the service—
', that the present state of the navy was molt disgraceful.
The peace complements of the crews of her Majesty's
navy are absolutely too small for active service.
Ilia brother, Captain Berkeley, had read letters from vas
risers distinguished officers on this subject; he would read
ets from the letters of these officers, and throw him-
the protection of the House, because inasmuch as
was impossible for him to state the names of those offi-
cers to the House—for seeing what his brother, Captain
Berkeley, had suffered—he could not expose his friends to
'he hornet's nest which he had raised at the Admiralty.—
( Hear, hear.) Ile would read to the House extracts from
letters from five of these officers, and he would then
place the names before the Gallant Admiral, who would
uederatand the value of the testimony, and the distin-
geished position in which these officers were placed. The
first extract which he would read would be from an extract
of a letter called No. I—a letter which was not addressed
to Captain Berkeley, but to a third person. [The Hon.
7,lember here read an extract which expressed a hope that
Captain Berkeley would succeed in his endeavours, which
were absolutely necessary for the good of the naval
service—that it wa disgraceful to see the state of our ships,
Which were not half-manned, and would not hear compari-
aon with ships of other nations—and that it was disgraceful
to see such heavy masted ships with such small comple-
ments, that they were obliged frequently to have out the
crew to do duty which the watch ought to be able to do
alone—that almost all the ships were manned by an infe-
rior description of men, who would not have been received
at the last war.l He would next read them an extract from
No. 2. [Tlie Hon. Member here read the extract alluded
to, which stated that the writer had always advocated the
plan proposed by Captain Berkeley of manning the navy,
aed without which it would not be in an efficient state.]
The extract from the third letter stated that the ships
,re inadequately manned. The fourth letter expressed
,o accordance of the writer with Captain Berkeley's opi-
-7,:.,:). The hat extract which he should make to the House
e a; from a Gallant Officer on fareign service ; and he trusted
that the strong, yet homely, manner in which that officer
expressed himself, would produce some effect upon the
[The Hon. Member here read the extract, which
_ter stating the opinions of the writer were in accordance
aith Captain Berkeley on the subject of manning the
navy, proceeded as follows ;—‘b We had the other day a
s ,ip belonging to a foreign navy here ; we furled sails to-
gether, and they gave us such a dusting, that for the sake
of the honour of our Navy, I made an excuse to unbending
mils and keep them below until our friends had left us."]
Now, he put it to the House, whether Gallant Officers
should be exposed to such mortification es this, and whe-
ther it was not disgraceful that gallant officers and gallant
teen should be exposed to be treated in this manner ? He
would now come to the resignation of his brother to his
seat at the Admiralty Board. A Noble Lord who had
f ernerly been at the head of the Admiralty, had statedain
another place, that he, although he agreed in many respects
with the sentiments contained in Capt. Berkeley's published
letter, yet he could not approve of members or secretaries ;
and laa would say likewise, that the complements of the ships
had been increased nearly in the manner he had pointed out.
While this was in doubt, and while discussion was going on,
his brother aea Using every exertion in his power, as well
,at ; for the task he had undertaken was by no means
al easy one, for he was met by difficulties every where ;
in short he might say, Ego sum indefessus agendo, sed non
nova pe.ctis adest.—( Hear, hear.) His brother thought
that a, the secretary was privy to all the deliberations that
had taken place, he might express his dissent to them of the
COUTS,' pursued at the Board of the Admiralty ; and when
he found he did not agree with his colleagues he resigned.
The sacrifices his brother had made were welcome to him,
beeeuze by them he had obtained a great benefit for the navy.
Sir THOMAS TROWBRIDGE rose for the purpose
c (let%) ing that any necessity existed for the complaint
deb had been made by the Hon. and Gallant ',)ember
Chippenharn. The marines had been placed upon a
log with sailors, and were now entitled, to a pension
in 7 service, and they were also ent'aled to pensions
ding to any injuries that they might have received
in the se, %ice. He wished merely to estate this, because it
might be supposed, from what had been stated by the
Gallant Officer opposite, that the Ae.mirelty had not taken
tee claims of the marines into cansideratien. He regretted
exceedingly that his Hon. Friend?, the Member for Bristol,
should' have touched upon this subject till his Hon. Friend,
the Secretary for the Adruiralty, had introduced the Navy
Estimates, because he ( Sir T. Trowbridge) felt convinced
that the statements that he would make would have put
him right upon many points. Being one of the Board, and
coat who had been a colleague with Captain Berkeley, ho
eoefesaed that he ilia not expect that he should have stood '
in that House and have been accused of being a mem-
.bor of a hornet's nest. (Considerable laughter.)
He could assure the Honourable Member that there were
t 0 hornets' nests at the Admiralty. No persons ever worked
better together than the different officers of that establish-
!neat; and he firmly believed that when the facts were fairly
hnown to die public, Captain Berkeley would regret that
be bad left them at all.—(Laughter.) That, however,
ens Casaain Berkeley's own affair. lie could not now, and
never could, agree to large war complements in the
thee of peace; he agreed that there should be some in..
crease in the complements, but whether they should be
captains or lieutenants he would not now say ; but he
thought that when the House was made acquainted with
Vie scale of men now put into the ships in commission he
t ;ought the House would be satisfied that there was no
close for complaint. His Hon. Friend bad contradicted ,
himself in sonic material points—he had stated that the
eomplements had been disapproved of in every way,
end for a long period. Now the fact was that
the complements had been revised by a Commit-
tee of Naval Members; that Committee had been
renewed in 1837, and at that time the complements
were altered. The change of armament in her Majesty's
ships had been going on for some time, and it was found
impossible to make those changes without experiments ;
those experiments had only just been completed, and there-
fore when the armament was changed upon those experi-
ments, was the properptime to tiring forward the complaint
with respect to them. He would not now enter into the
question of the change of those armaments, becatese his
Hon. Friend the Secretary of the Admiralty, would do it
much better than he could. He would only say that be
did not hear that ill-will to Captain Berkeley which his
Hon. Friend the Member for Bristol seemed to suppose
he entertained. He bad seen Captain Berkeley since
tgnation, and he was now convinced that
et acted as he would have done, if be had had a
,:e more consideration.—(" No, no," from Mr.
Berkeley,) He ( Sir T. Trowbridge) teintended that he
had a right to make the statement be bad done, because
he-had it from Captain Berkeley hirsaaelf that he ought to
have resigned first, and written, his pamphlet after-
warda.—( Hear, hear.)
Sir GEORGE CLERK 'agreed with the Gallant
Admiral opposite that the Hoes, Member for Bristol should
have waited till the Secterary of the Admiralty had
brought forward the Navy; ?estimates, before he made the
statements he had doree.—(
_h. considered that the state Hear, hear.) He, however,
C ippenham were ments of the Hon. Member for
House. If he ur worthy ofthe
consideration of the
Lord, the Secresnary-
':rerstood what bad fallen from the Noble
had now b‘ee at-War, the Soldier and the Marine
rar'iaced on a much better footing • for the
were entitis,dafter twenty-one years' service, to 'a
pension
y
of 11d. or. 'ls. a.day. He was glad to hear this, as he
ak'a.l's 'acid it to be unwise
and. thatthaeny difference should
be ma as. e
Thie leasween the Marine Seaman.—( Hear. )
e timer was one most injudicious, and ill-principled;
or} considering that his late Majesty had always felt a great
'pal tiality for the marine corps, it did seem to him ( Sir G.
Clerk) to be a rather ungracious measure, to make this
harsh regulation, which came into operation on the very
day of her present Majesty's accession.
SirE. CO DR INGTON wished first to state thus much,
that he could vouch for the high character of the officers
of the corps.
Mr. F. H. BERKELEY said the Hon. Member for
Sandwich, in stating that Captain Berkeley had written
the pamphlet, because he resigned, was mistaken. His
( 7dr. Berkeley's) brother could never have said any such
;.eep.—(Laughter—for when he wrote the pamphlet he
,', sa not know that he was writing in opposition to the Ad-
miralty, hut in answer to Sir John Barrow's supplemental
chapter to his Life of Lord Anson. And, of course, when
told that he had been writing in opposition to the Admi-
ralty, he, like an honourable man, immediately resigned.
Captain GORDON said he regretted that a subject
possessing so much importance should have been brought
forward in such a way, that the sense of the House could
Lot be taken on the question.—( Hear, hear.)
Mr. lIORSMAN wished to draw the attention of the
:Admiralty to that great abuse in the navy—that of impress-
ment.—(Cries of " Question," and " Hear, hear.") Un-
less the Government showed a disposition to attend to this
subject, he should at no distant period bring it forward.
Mr. lIUME, being asked by the Speaker if be would
divide, said he should.—(ob, oh.) No answer, in his
opinion, had been given to his statements.
Mr. T. ATT WOOD said he had often had tocall the at •
t eition of the House to the eecroachments of Russia, whowas
at the bottom of all the proceedings, either in Africa,
Asia, or America, against the English interests and honour.
Now everybody knew that Russia had a formidable fleet in,
the Baltic, which fleet might now, perhaps be detained by
the. ice : but what security bad England that in the course
of next summer Russia would not find it convenient to
pick a quarrel with her, and had we a fleet competent to
meet the Russian force ? He (Mr. Attwood) cared not
whether Russia was our friend or enemy, but in either case
we ought not to suffer her to acquire power to injure us,
and thus deliver into her hands the dominion of the seas.
He believed that when the ice in the Baltic broke
11P, England would be in very great danger, and
therefore it Was that though be knew his gallant
countrymen would do their duty whenever they were
called upon, yet he protested against their lives being
needlessly sacrifice& —( Hear, bear.) He protested against
English ships half-manned being exposed to meet Rus-
alaan ships full manned. He never wished the British
Navy to be exhibited but on fair and reasonable terms, and
Could not bear the idea of five, eight, or ten English men-
of-war having to meet a Russia!' fleet of w t t • sail-
of-the-line. He wished to knew what theeeYl twenty-six
Admiralty in-
tended to do on the subject ?
Mr. WARBURTON said be hoped his Hon. Friend