The Sun.
London, England, 1853-07-19 00:00:00

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officers give evidence in its favour' and the opinion of
the commission has been disregarded. Great as these
resources are, they are still more formidable when :we
learn that the crews of the Mediterranean fleet can be
transported overland, and be at sea in the Channel' in
10 days. (Evidence of Adm. de la Susse, p. 83.) The
estimates of the sub-commission appear to have been very
carefully framed ; but, making all possible allowances
Tor the difference between men on paper and men on
board ship, it is yet impossible to doubt that the French
organisation places, at all times, a very powerful force
at the command-of the Government.

,
Vice-Admiral Hugon in' his evidence,* page 69, well
expresses the opinion of the French officers as to the
state of their navy :
" The fleet is extremely well cOmpoied ; it is in a better
state than it has been in for 50 years. The ships are well
fitted; the crews are well fed, well clothed,-and roomily
lodged; the officers have all the knowledge that can be
desired ; they have acquired, besides, a great deal of expe-
rience at sea ; the officers arc now really seamen, much
more so than they have ever been since the first revolu-
tion. The ships sail well ; their armament is excellent ;
what we should do is to maintain the actual system, My
fear would rather be that anything should be changed,
would forbid that the principal things of the marine should
be touched for at least 10 years to come."
The fleet of ships, he says :-
"Is entirely in proportion to the resources wo have in
the inscription maritime.' While the ships were being
completed (at the outbreak of war) the sailors would
arrive; the ships ready, the compagnies permanent&
would furnish their crows, and in a very short time they
might take the sea in a state to meet the enemy."
• Vice-Admiral de la, Sasso says,—...
" The number of men of the • inscription maritime' be-
tween 20 and 10 years of age amounts to 50,000 ; by add-
ing to these the men whom the recrutement ' and the
Infanterie de la Marine' could supply, France, in case of
a naval war, would have 90,000 disposable men, sufficient
to man all the ships of the fleet."
We might greatly multiply similar extracts, for such
are the universal opinions of the French officers, who
also 'very generally enlarge on the deficiency of orga-
nized means of raising seamen in England to meet an
emergency. Probably the French organization would
prove less perfect in practice than in theory, and we
have resources for obtaining men without resorting to
impressment, which, if known to the French officers,
are at least not referred to. Still it cannot be denied
that the due organization of ,our immense resources has
been greatly neglected ; and if we should incur disasters
from the measures which have been so carefully pre-
pared without our knowledge, or at least without pro-
ducing any adequate measures of precaution on our part,
we shall but reap the natural consequence of a perpe-
tually changing naval executive, trammelled by party
politics. No one would he responsible, for the fault lies
in the system, and extends over a period of 38 years. It
is most desirable to make employment in the navy an
object of desire to the best seamen in the country;and
the present Admiralty is doing good service in this re-
spect. Still the great difficulty is how to raise a great
body of seamen in case of war, and as yet .we have but
feeble and remote palliatives for a pressing deficiency.
(To be continued.)