The Sun.
London, England, 1854-02-25 00:00:00

Rest

THE COJI_JAVDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE

BALTIC FLEET.

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It is strange, that although all the appointments con-
nected with the military expeditionary force to be sent to
the aid of the Turks from England have been officially or
semi-officially published, some time, no such direct mention
of the naval Corninaioler-in-Chief and his divisional flag-
otficerA has as yet been made. It is true that one or
two papers have, now and then, through their port
correspondent's letters, mentiored the names of divers
officers whom they have heard as likely to be en-
trusted with the important and responsible post of
Comm. ',oder-in-Chief. Taus we have had the Earl
of Dundonald, Sir George Seymour, Sir Charles
Napier, M. F. F. Berkeley, and others put forward
for a post certainly in our estimation far more important
than that of any military charge in such service as
operations against Russia, but we believe the wish has
been father to the thought in one quarter which has so
pertinaciously denied the honour to the third men-
tioned officer in the above list. However galling it may
be to that journalist to find himself so ill-informed on so
interesting and important a matter, it is nevertheless a
settled thing that Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Na-
pier shall command in chief the Baltic fleet. Lord John
Russell most doggedly supported his old and pettishly
fulminated charge of want of discretion against the gal-
lant Admiral, and opposed his appointment with all the
power at his command, but that power was obliged to
succumb to the power of those who knew Sir Charles
and his worth better than Lord John, and words
ran very high upon the question, so high indeed that
we are informed Sir James Graham threatened to re-
sign if the appointment of Sir Charles (which was the
crioice of the Board of Admiralty) was not ratified !
Thus placed on the horns of a dilemma such as he never
expected, Lord John "struck" to the heavier force of his
co-Minister, and left his gallant adversary of the pen and
sword "master of the situation." That Sir Charles
Napier is the man for the occasion is widely conceded in
the navy ; he is highly spoken of by most officers who
know his true characteristics or who have served under
him, and he is peculiarly adapted for making the
.service
on which he is going popular and palatable among all
other classes in the fleet. He is capable of doing good work
himself, and be will take good care those under him
also do their duty. He is no chicken at war's ex-
periences, as the following epitome of his brilliant
exploits, given by the Admiralty in the Navy Esti-
mates now before the house, will amply testify :
Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Napier, en-
tered the service Ist of November, 1799 ; was pre-,
rooted to the rank of Lieutenant 30th of November.
1807 ; Commander, 30th Nov., 1807 ; Captain; 22d of
May, 1809 ; Rear-Admiral, 9th of November, 1846 ;
Vice-Admiral, 28th of May, 1853, As Lieutenant of
the Courageux, in March, 1806, was present at the cap-
ture of the Marengo and Belle Poule. When Com-
mander of the Pultusk, cut out a Spanish merchant
vessel from under the batteries of Porto Rico, and
in the Recruit, 18-gun brig, fought a severe
action with the Diligente, French corvette of 20 guns,
when he had his thigh broken. Served at the reduction
of Martinique, in February, 1509, and distinguished him-
self by the gallantry he displayed in scaling the walls of
Fort Edward. In April following assisted in the Re-
cruit at the capture, of the French ship HAupoult,
of 74 guns, which ship he closely engaged. As Captain
of the Thames, in 1811, performed an act of great gal-
lantry by running into the harbour of Porto del In-
freschi, on the coast of Italy, silencing the fire of eleven
gun-boats, and bringing out a convoy of fourteen
merchantmen. In November the same year, he car-
ried the heights at the back of the harbour of
Palinuro, and assisted in the • capture and destruc-
tion of ten gun-boats and twenty-two -feluccas. In
1812 assisted at the attack on the Port of Sapri, and the
capture of 28 trading vessels. In 1813 took possession
of the Island of Ponza, under the fire of heavy batteries.
In the Euryalus, in 1813, captured La Fortune, and
drove the Balleine on shore in Calvi Bay. While still
serving in the Euryalus, assisted in the brilliant expedi-
tion under Captain James Alexander Gordon against
Alexandria, and was present in subsequent opera-
tions against Baltimore. Appointed to the Powerful in
1839, and din the following year hoisted a pendant as
Commodore of the first class. In September .of that
year effected a landing at D'Journie, armed the moun-
taineers, and defeated a body of Egyptian -troops at
Kelbson, The same month captured the town of
Sidon, and made 3,000 prisoners. In October defeated
an Egyptian force under Ibrahim Pacha, at Beyrout.
Was second in command at the attack on St. Jean
d'Acre, and subsequently, in charge of a squadron,
landed at Alexandria, and concluded a convention with
Mehemet Ali. In 1847 hoisted his flag in the St.
Vincent employed on particular service, and struck
it in April, 1849. Has been actively employed afloat as
a commissioned officer about 19 years." We have al-
ready said the Duke of Wellington, 131, is tu" be the
flag-ship. The admiral's staff we may be enabled to give
in our next.—liampshire Advertiser.

One of our daily contemporaries has again an-
nounced the appointment of Vice-Admiral Sir Charles
Napier, K.C.8., to command the Baltic fleet. We
believe the announcement is made without any au-
thority, other than that of those very few with
whom " the wish is father to the thought ;" and
who, it is said, have been giving out at Ports-
mouth that no less than four Cabinet Ministers will
resign if Sir Charles be not appointed—namely, Lord
Palmerston, Sir Wm. Molesworth, the Duke of New-
castle, and Sir Jas. Graham. Moreover, the fact, as re-
ported at the clubs, that Sir James Graham had for the
first time admitted Sir Charles to an interview on Wed-
nesday last, has been interpreted as the actual appoint-
ment.—Morning Herald.