The Sun.
London, England, 1853-08-25 00:00:00

...
ject. The directors prohibited the filling up of vacancies,
and the Law Commission became extinct by the act of
the home Government, in utter contempt and disregard
of that law to which alone those directors owed their
own authority, and which it was their bounden duty to
iobey._

3: The various measures of law reform matured and

recommended by the Law Commission by an unparal-
leled succession of shifts and postponements have been
set aside by the home Government, or, to use the lan-
guage of an able and experienced servant of the company,
they have been "laid on the shelf." After reciting six
important measures recommended and prepared by the
Law Commission, Mr. Cameron, who filled with the
highest distinction the office of the fourth ordinary mem-
ber of Council, states that not one of these measures had
been carried into *Erect by the Government.
4. The last Charter Act (3d and 4th of William IV.,
c. 85) conferred a power of legislation on the Governor-
General and Council of India, unlimited except in re-
spect to certain specified cases, yet it appears conclu-
sively from the evidence of Mr. Cameron (2,074, 2,080,
2,084) that in more than one case an actual prohibition
was issued by the home Government restraining the
Legislative Council from passing certain legislative
measures without the previous sanction of the Court of
Directors. In the importrnt question of the lex loci for
India, the law was approved by the Legislature, sanc-
tioned by the Governor-General, Sir Henry Hardinge, and
adopted in its principle by two eminent judicial authori-
ties, Sir L. Peel and Sir Henry Seton, yet the directors
wrote, May 1, 1845, " We think it proper to desire that
no law declaring the lex loci of India may be passed with-
out being submitted for our approbation." This inhibi-
tion is considered by Mr. Cameron to be contrary to law.
5. The act of the 3d and 4th of William IV., c. 85,
sec. 103, expressly prescribed that for every vacancy in
the civil service four candidates should be named, and
the best candidate elected by examination. The de-
clared object of this enactment was that India was en-
titled to the highest talents that England could spare,
and that under the proposed system it was conceived
that young men would be sent out, superior either in
talents or in diligence ; yet these express enactments
were never carried into effect by the home Government,
and the former practice was persevered in, though ex-
pressly repealed by law. In 1837 a legislative sanction
was given to this practice, till then illegal. The act of
1837 is stated to have been founded upon an intention of
recommending to Parliament the abolition of the College
of Haileybury. No such proposal was ever made, yet
by its suggestion means were obtained to suspend the
system of appointing to the civil service by competition,
and the unrestricted private patronage of the directors,
which it had been the declared intention of Parliament
in 1833 to limit, has been during the last 20 years con-
tinued.

6. The 87th section of the last Charter Act provided
in unqualified terms for the unlimited eligibility of the
natives of India to all offices whatsoever, without exclu-
bion of any person on account of caste, colour, birth, or
religion. The declarations of the statesmen responsible
for the act of 1833 all concur in giving to this clause the
widest interpretation. It was described as a subject of
just exultation and pride that Parliament should have
passed this clause announcing "the only principle on
which India could be administered." Nor was it in-
tended that this should remain a barren declaration of

an abstract truth. On the contrary. The question
was asked, " Whether England could give knowledge
without awakening ambition, and whether it was meant
to awaken ambition, and not to provide it a legitimate
vent ?" The new and liberal system thus introduced
was strongly contrasted with that which had previously
existed, under which it was stated by one who had been
for many years President of the Board of Control, that
" instances were adduced of corruption and venality, but
these were the results of our own conduct ; duties of

importance devolved on the natives, without adequate
remuneration, either in rank or salary ; no reward or
promotion was given for fidelity." It was forcibly
asked, " Why complain of peculation and bribery ? we
made vices, and then punished them." Yet, after these
promises, and the enactment founded upon them, no
sooner had the statute of 1833 been passed than a regu-
lation which seems to have been carefully kept back
from the committee of both houses, was boldly an-
nounced, and has ever since been undeviatingly acted
upon by the Court of Directors, the distributors of all
civil patronage. This regulation neutralized the effect
of the 87th clause. The covenanted service of India
was declared to be exclusively confined to Europeans.
To the uncovenanted, or subordinate grades of the ser-
vice alone, the native subjects of the Queen were held
to be eligible. Thus, the unrestricted words of the
statute and the gracious intentions of Parliament have
been practically defeated. To no one office from which
the natives were excluded before the act of 1833 have
they been since admitted, though it is undeniable that
during those 20 years the natives have rapidly advanced
in education and knowledge, and, though in the offices
they have been permitted to fill the natives have given
the highest proofs of trustworthiness and of ability.
Because, the conduct of the Home Government to-
wards the natives, as above stated, rendered it expe-
dient to have guarded against a eontinuanceofsucahs
abuse by a declaratory and enacting law,
which has
been proposed and rejected, and the only security now
obtained for the fulfilment of the intention of Parlia-
ment is to be found in the unqualified declaration of the
Minister of the Crown, having the conduct of this bill,
" that no distinction between the covenanted and
') un-
covenanted service is hereafter to work the disqualifica-
tion of any native of India for public em loynient.
This declaration, when taken in connection with the
proposed admission of natives to Haileybury College
the powert
and to high,functions in India, coupled with
reserved to Parliament of amending the present
ea
thee
from year to year, will, it may be hoped, prevent

The conclusions of the commission are founded
upon the report of a sub-commission drawn up by
M. Collas, which states that when this transforma-
tion shall be accomplished, without counting the
13 old ships of the line, which will probAly have
been erased from the list of the fleet, France will
have 158 ships over and above the force here de-
cided on—viz., " 18 frigates," and 140 corvettes,
brigs, schooners, cutters, and sailing transports.
These, it advises, should be sold, and the pro-
ceeds applied to diminish the expense of the screw
fleet.

But if 19 new frigates and 36 new corvettes be
added to the 366 vessels which M. Collas in the
same report states the fleet to consist of in 1851,
the excess over the force specified by the commis-
sion will not be 158, but 173. A reference to M.
Collas's list of existing sailing frigates shows that 38
were afloat and 88 on the stocks, the latter for the
most part nearly ready for launching, the average
state of advancement towards completion being
17-24ths. The 19 frigates d grande vitesse are to
be entirely new ships the expense being expressly
calculated for this object, and not for conversions.
These 19 new ships being added to the 56 already
in existence gives an excess of 35 over the number
specified by the commission ; and if, therefore, 18
are got rid of (those recommended to be sold are
vessels of the old class, measuring only 1,000 tons
—smaller, indeed, than the new corvettes), there
would remain 40 screw frigates, and 17 large sail-
ing frigates, besides the 20 paddle-wheel steam-fri-
gates which are to be called " transports."
The expense of the transformation of the existing
fleet, of building 56 new ships, and of supplying
the whole with steam engines, is estimated at
90,706,000 f. ; of which 55,000,000 f. are to be ex-
pended in the alterations to be effected in the next
four years, and the remainder in the course of the
six following years.

It will be recollected that in 1846 the Chambers
unanimously voted 93,000,000 f. specially for creat-
ing the paddle-wheel fleet. This sum was to be
divided over a period of seven years, but in the fol-
lowing year the Minister stated, " that in mani-
fest harmony with the wish of the Chambers the
new ships should be proceeded with as speedily as
possible ;" and accordingly, the steam fleet was
completed within four years ; and within five the
commission of the National Assembly, with similar
unanimity, recommends that 90,000,000 f. more
should be expended in replacing it with a screw
fleet.

An ordonnance of the same year decreed that
the future naval force should consist of 326 ves-
sels ; but, in January, 1851, this number was very
largely exceeded. Among the larger class of ves-
sels there were 50 ships of the line instead of 40,
56 sailing frigates instead of 50, and 20 paddle-
wheel steam-frigates instead of 10, as fixed by the
ordonnance.

Experience, therefore, does not warrant the be-
lief, that, either those 10 years will elapse before
the screw fleet is completed, or that it will be
limited to the force specified by the commission.
It will, however, be more difficult hereafter to
ascertain what may be done in this respect, as the
list of ships in the navy, which has always hitherto
appeared in the Annuaire de la Marine, has been
suppressed in the number published in the present
year.
The commission, indeed, loudly complains of the
inferior quality and deficient quantity of the timber
in store at the arsenals, and passed a resolution that
the supply was " dessaserti, impuissant, et insufii-
sant." But, though great mismanagement had un-
doubtedly occurred, the opinion expressed as to the
insufficiency of the quantity was probably formed
in reference not so much to the ordinary consump
tion as to the great works the commission had in
contemplation. Several English officers well quali-
fied
to form an opinion have recently visited th
French dockyards, and they concur in the Opinion
that the , supply of timber is abundant and far
larger than in our own. At all events, a deficiency
so strongly and authoritatively stated is not likely
to remain long without remedy.
Again, the Government steam factories are at
present barely capable of producing the amount of
machinery that would be required within the time
specified. The factory at Indret can produce 4,000-
horse power per annum ; Cherbourg, Brest, Roche-
fort, and L'Orient about 2,000 more ; and Toulon
has only the means of repairing engines. But the
commission recommends that Cherbourg, Brest,
and Toulon should have the means of building and
repairing the largest engines, and we understand
that measures for this purpose are being vigorously
carried out. The sub-commission moreover states,
that the private establishments in France are in
" a condition to furnish the navy with all the en-
gines it can require ;" but if it were otherwise,
there could be no difficulty in having engines built
to an amount fully equal to supply any deficiency,
in England or in the United States. We are per-
suaded that no obstacles will prevent the speedy
construction of a powerful steam-fleet, and that,
according to the precedent already alluded to, it
will exceed in force, and anticipate in point of time,
the recommendations of the commission.

If such a force could be cheated, while we per-
sisted in building only sailing vessels or paddle-
wheel steamers, the consequences might be serious,
for our fleet must be equal at least in efficiency to
that of any assailant, and superior, numerically, in