The Sun.
London, England, 1809-05-25 00:00:00

,t
Majority of Lordtereelfer'ilQii.eti yinl'y toCa,
ptama
,- e Grant, of the oirtiviiiilifift'thr iiL 'id, to is hie!)
1,14,-LoSci 13;'had fieiti a jianied. Bet. this Was not
1,
.:ttie'eaii'','A.•friri'L'Aitidp ,441 id n, .t 'reniainoVer,him
-•`;tin that regirneot,'be,ele'cOmmorewitOwenty-four
' - other*Offieers appitintß to act under Ggrierdl Beres-
' forit in 'Portugal •Witat •,''pl-orstoted osse alf?urt her inthe' tritish service. • 'He therefore did not. stand in
the shoe of any Officer in the Britislcarmy, and its
heeppeared to be entitled- to he Royal Favour, 1;e
trusted the "House would not think it necessary to
call fur any further information on the subjea. It
was but justice to the present Commander in Chief
to orate, that ' he had nothing to, do with this trans-
., aaion, which was entirely arranged and notified be-
fo:e he came into office.
'Lord Teams' gave his warm support to the mo-
tion, and contended that Captain Grant was 'in-
, jured, since Lord Burghersh,. as it appeared from
the Gazette, was, only Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel,
geld to ill..his Major in the 2d West India Regiment—
,
fiserd Castlereagh said it was not so.)—,He would
-ewe take the Noble Lord's assertion across the table
as ereauthority, while otlical itilietnation was to be
had, and this it was the °hie& of the present motion
to procure. A double injustice appeared to him to
be done by the promotion of Lord Burgheish. . He
was not only put over the heads of Captains and
lelajors, but, by his Corritnission of Brigadier-Gen.
in the Portuguese service, he was placed above every
ColOnel in Sir A. \Vellesley's army. He admitted
toahe fullest extent what had fallen from the Noble
Lord on the subject of prerogative, as his speech,
in so far as. related to that part of the sublet".[,
• _seemed to be nothing more than a series of truisms ;
but in . cases' of. iettevice like tie present, the
. House would inquire into the advisers of these
aels. Fi'ons the Gazette it appeared, that Lord
Burgle:l4l's first commission in the I Itla Regiment
was dated 24th December, Ma, and consequently.
he was OW entitled to his promotion till December
rex', even according to the Duke of York's rsge.
lesion. (Lord Castlereagh said his first conenissiou.
was dated March 18u3). This %VASE point at which
they were at issue, aod it could only be settled by
producing the papers moved for. After guarding
himselt from any imputetion of personal disrespect,
lie ridiculed the expressions of Lord Castlereagh,
that Lord Burghersh Wag a rising young man; mid
letting a view of all his, volanteennge obtaining hia
',commissions without perchaie, and never having
eieen any regimental service, or even joined a regi.
•
- lam% as favours granted to him, concluded Ohm
thence, that lie was not entitled thereby to any fur-
Alter extension 'of Royal favour. It was an act of '
,flagrant injustice, and when the prerogative was de-
(*Mod into a wrong grant, it became the House to
procure Its reversal. ..
. Lord Cesreceeenn, in explanation, said, that
in entering in entering into. the Portuguese fietvirC,
Lord Burghers') and the other officers vacated their
regimental commissious in the British service.
Mr, HUTCHINSON expected, from the general te-
nor of the Noble Lord's speech, that he would have
. concluded by proving to the House that Lord Burg.'
bersh had , achieved some !salient exploit, which
those who supported the motion had overlooked,
and thus accounted for so extraordinary a promotion.
—He was far from thinking the Crownought to be 1
censured-for conferring a suitable reward on valour
wherever it might be tumid, He could wish every
general at the head of any army was not only per-
mitted to reward courage, but instructed-to be active
tied sedeloes in seeking those on is horn such promo-
,
Lion might with propriety be bestowedsas he thought
!tech condudt on the part of a General Officer might
not unfrequently.call forth those talents and exertions
Ohich now, cramped and depressed by the dreary
peosped before them, were in . a.dentuant stpte.—
The Noble Lord, to Isis great surprise, lad con-
cluded with nothing of the kind ; had pointed out
• • to them no particular display of valour and ability
which the House wets: not previously acquainted
with, to Account for a promotion so rapid. .The
service!) attire Burglsetsle , be admitted, deserved
a reword, but eare ought to be taken to avoid wrong
' ill the .e hole ,of the army. -, When be stated this,.
be hoped. it would not. be thought lie was infringing
onahe 'prerogative of the Crown, he was the last
• mar, that would entestain such a .wisle; lie trusted
that House would ever be found.ready :to go band in
• baud with the Crown in rewarding merit: But Witte;,
. out, meaning to say any thing that might detraa
from the merits of Lord Burghersh,;he thought dui,
circumstance bere nu its tace the Most flagrant- marks
ofanjustiee: The Noble Lord had, to prove the
propriety of promoting Lord • Burghersits brought
forward the case of General, Graham, but such a
comperisou he was not justified in making, as the
Y.eal;the merit of General Graham, .the.stgnal ser-
vices he bad rendered the country in the held, to-
.gether with the number of years heShad been in the
service, richly entitled 'him to the favour be had re-
ceived., But Lord Burghersh had not atone claims
on the country, and in • their thus promoting him,
they were ungrateful to the ermyt as they told it,
in,etreet, no one but Lord Burghers') merited are.
want for his services. The Speech of the Noble
Lord, when spread abroad; and read by -the Veteran,
; who, pining in honourable indigence, after being
perhaps, maimed in the service of his country, and
" who had spent. a long life its trie army ,wit hum ob-
. Wining a suitable reseenpence for his valour, would
' not be very palatable to him.
Lord CASTLEREAGH explained ! be had : not, he
,resid, compared' .Getteral Graham indiOdUally With
' Lord Burghersh ; he only Added to the case of that.
Officer to demonstrate to the HouSe, that the Crowns
might with propriety confer such a promotion what-
tivetemight be the standing vegulations of the army.
Lord Newatete supported the motion.'
- , Lord H..Perre said;' there were some principles
maintained in that part of the Noble Lord's weed),
where he professed to think it the duty of Ministers,
when persons of high 'rank t=hose this army for their
profession, to hold out to them. every -encourage-
ment,- which ‘'he felt himself . hound tit oppose.'
eaoght this to be the basis on which, 'in the present'
Situation of Europe, at 'a period When. British' sol-
diers was expedted to ad such an important ;etre
our army should be established ? By giving men of
high birth and effluence thfit tank in the 'army to
which they were not entitled by their metits, they
Beld:eut as enteetnyagerneet which, while 'drawing:
arsch persons into The army, had a tendeKetto drive
'. cant of it those on :Veletne the Country Otdatcheei :11iy

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