The Sun.
London, England, 1854-10-03 00:00:00

THE LATE COURT-MARTIAL.

The following correspondence has passed between
Colonel Garrett and the Duke of Cleveland. We
do not think that the gallant Colonel has taken
much by his motion.
No. I.

" Ramsgate, Sept. 13.

" My Lord Duke,—The death of a near relation has
brought me this day from my regiment to Ramsgate,
and on my way down your Grace's letter, addressed to
the Mayor of Windsor, published in the Morning Chro-
nicle of this day, came accidentally under my notice ;
and as it has been made public by your Grace's consent,
I have the honour to request that you will favour me
with certain information en points therein referred to.
"Your Grace has contributted a certain sum for Mr.
Perry's use, because you consider he has been made a
victim of an unjust cabal on the part of his brother
officers, to gain favour with the commanding officer of
the regiment. On this observation I hare no remark to
make at present.
" After stating that you know nothing more of the
evidence than was published in the morning papers,
which you have carefully perused, your Grace makes,
among others, the following observation :---` If, there-
fore, youths in the lower ranks of regiments are allowed
to practise every sort of riot, drunkenness, and de-
bauchery, and no notice taken of it by their comn.ander,
are they to be made the victims and he to be let off scot
free, when by his own culpable negligence he has been
the sole cause of it, for such is this case with Colonel
Garrett ?'

" I was myself debarred from gaining any information
on Mr. .Perry's second trial except through the news-
papers, by being an evidence, and therefore excluded
from the court. I, therefore, request to be informed
whether the observation refers to two youths, viz.,
Mr. Greer and Mr. Perry only. There is not a tittle of
evidence as to drunkenness and debauchery except
against these two. If it is intended to apply to others
than them, 1 request your grace will favour me by
pointing out that portion of the evidence that bears on
others than Mr. Greer and Mr. Perry o❑ these points,
or what evidence your grace has found that justifies the
unwarrantable observation made in the shape of a
question, viz., Is it the opinion of any man, civil or
military, that such an officer should continue in com-
mand of a regiment which he has publicly disgraced ?'
I write in haste to save the post, and request your
Grace will favour me with an answer addressed to
Windsor.

" I have, &c.,
"R. GA.RRETT, Colonel 46th Regiment.
" His Grace the Duke of Cleveland, K.G."

No. 2.

" RabyCastle, Sept. 20.

" Sir,—The reception of your letter this morning
somewhat surprised me, written, no doubt, hastily, and
in a moment of irritation, which a little cool reflection
will make you sorry for having done. You seem either
not to know, or to have forgotten, that every English-
man is at liberty to form his opinion, and to make
that opinion known, upon the conduct of any public
man whatever in his public capacity. If, there-
fore, I express my opinion as to your unfit-
ness to be a commanding officer, you have no sight to
ask me to detail to you upon paper my reasons fur
coming to that conclusion, were I merely a civilian, but
still less have you a right to make such a request in. a
military point of view from your superior officer, which
you are aware that I am. I therefore must decline an-
swering your question further than to say, the evidence,
taken as a whole, upon the late court-martial at Windsor,
justifies my opinion that the interior discipline of the
40th Regiment, as regards young officers, has been for
some years in a- most disgraceful state. This is too
notorious, from what has transpired, to be denied ; but
you seem to assert that such a circumstance does not
arise from any negligence on the part of a commanding
officer. That may be your opinion, but you have no
right to question me for holding a contrary one ; and
that my opinion is shared by the public at large, I think
ii sufficiently manifested by the numerous subscribes to
the fund raising for the relief of Mr. Perry, amounting,
I think, to upwards of 7001., and all in very small sub-
scriptions, with the exception of one front one other
nobleman and that of my own.

"I an, &c.,

" CLEVELAND, Major-General.
"Colonel Garrett, commanding 46th B,egimeut."

No. 3.

" Windsor, Sept. 22.
"My Lord Duke,—l have the honour to acknowlege
the receipt of your Grace's letter of the 20th instant,
written in reply to mine of the 18th. I will commence
by informing you that cool reflection has not made me
sorry for having so written, although your Grace tells
me I shall be.

" Ought I to be sorry for asking why you have passed
insulting remarks on me and my regiment ? Should not
rather your Grace feel sorrow at having so done, and
that, too, in a most public and, as it would appear from
the tenor of your letter to me, in a premeditated manner ?
"You tell me I have no right to ask you to detail to
me on paper your reasons for coming to the conclusion
that I am unfit to be a commanding officer, if you were
merely a civilian ; but still less have I a right in a mili-
tary point of view, as being my superior officer.'
" Does your Grace mean to say that any officer who
happens to be senior to me in the service is warranted in
acting towards me as you have done, unless he has due
authority for so doing, and that I have no right to ask
his reasons I must take leave to repudiate such a
doctrine.

" Your Grace informs me that you therefore must
decline answering my question further than to say that
the evidence, taken as a whole, justifies your opinion,
that the interior discipline of the 46th Regiment, as re-
gards young offioers, has been for some years in a most
disgraceful state, and that this is too notorious, from
what has transpired, to be denied.' I know of nothing
that has transpired to justify so unwarrantable an asser-
tion.

" It is now more than 15 years (since the early part of
1839) that I have uninterruptedly been in command,
either as a major or a lieutenant-colonel of the service
companies, or the depot, or the whole battalion of the
46th Regiment, at home and abroad. During that time
I have only been absent once from commanding at the
confidential half-yearly inspections. I have, therefore,
during that time had the interior economy of my com-
mand closely investigated and scrutinized some 28 or 30
times by a succession of experienced and impartial ge-
neral officers (to the number of 18), all of whom have
arrived at conclusions the very reverse of those of your
Grace. _ .

"Having set yourself up as my judge (self-constituted),
and pronounced me unfit to be a commanding officer, it is
natural I should ask myself what opportunities you have
had of gaining military experience ? You have informed
the public, in your letter of the 10th inst., that it is
derived from having served in every regimental rank,
from cornet to lieutenant-colonel, and that you served
in that latter capacity for two years in command of the
75th Regiment.' I believe your Grace entered the
service at the age of 27, in July, 1815 (the war being
then over), and in nine years (in 1824), you obtained
the rank of lieutenant-colonel, which, with the two
years you were in command of the 75th Regiment, will
make your full-pay service amount to some 11 years,
. and, probably, from being in Parliament, little, if any,
of it was on foreign service. As you have unscrupu-
lously pronounced me unfit, and my regiment for
years past, as regards young officers, to have been
in a disgraceful state, I think I may be permitted
to doubt whether your military experience imparts
any value to such opinions and assertions. What
weight ought they to have when contrasted with
the reports of the numerous general officers, who, being
duly authorised, have pronounced my regiment, in all
its branches, to have been in a most efficient state of
discipline
" Your Grace, in your letter to me of the 20th inst.,
refers to the ' opinion of the public at large, which is
manifested by the numerous subscribers for Mr. Perry's
fund, all in small subscriptions, with the exception of
one from one othei-
nobleman, and that of your own.'
your opinion as they have,
libyadsimyoplllyr Gra c e manifested
offering aand had refrained from
insulting my regiment and myself, it would have been a
'natter of iiilgrc;ice to tie whether your subscription
donation,
had been for ten times a greater a:mount than it is ; but
what I. and they complain of is, that you have made that
the occasion (and
you alone) of stating that my regiment
had bean publicly disgraced, and that I was the cause.
" to your second letter to the Mayor of Windsor,
dated the 14th inst., you ment'oned a certain Memo-
randum issued from the Horse Guards on a late occa-
sion as being most excellent. There is an appendix re-
lating to duelling (a practice which, ten years ago,
would have brought such a matter as the one now at
issue to a speedy settlement), and pages 16, 17, 18, and
19, contain observations which merit- your Grace's con-
sideration, viewing you in the light in which you have
desired to place yourself—viz., as a military officer.
"In page 20 the 16th Article of War is 'quoted,