The Sun.
London, England, 1840-02-01 00:00:00

not on the Naval force, but en the great interests of
the Empire. It was not, however, his fault, and it re-
quired
some longer time to make explanations than mere
assertions. He would now come to the real question in
deleate. He would not stop to inquire whs ther his mo-
tion had been brought forward for the purpose of placing
labourers on the other side, or whether it was introduced
in order to offer gentle violence to that Chief whom
Right lion. Gentlemen opposite called their leader, but
whom they disdained to foilow.—(llear, hear, from the '
Ministerial benches.) As the object of the motion wes to
place the party opposite in office, and as that would, in
his opinion, be injurious to the best interests of the
country, ha would unhesitatingly oppose it. He
would, however, confine himself now to one subject,
which was, in his opinion, of paramount importance.
That subject was what the Right Hon. Baronet opposite,
the Member for Tamworth, stated last year was the most
difficult question be should have to contend with—he
meant the state of Ireland. It had been no small satis-
faction to him, that, in the course of the debate, they had
not heard more accounts of the misery of that country,
which had occupied so prominent a station in former
debates. The Hon. Member for Bandon himself abstained
from citing any cases of the kind ; and the Noble
Lord the Member for Tyrone, though he saw danger
in the condition of Ireland, had admitted the fact.
He took it as admitted by them that this state of things
was not produced by the fear of military power, but by the
presence of fewer troops than was ever retained in Ire-
land. The Noble Lord ( Lord Stanley) last night re-
proached the Government for not keeping a sufficient
force in Ireland to ensure peace, in case of a change of Go-
vernment. He wondered the Noble Lord did not perceive, if
that statement were true, it would be the bitterest reproach
to his own party. In his opinion it seemed such would be
the 'effect of the accession of the Right Hon. Gentleman to
power, that it would require a large military force to retain
Ireland in its present state of tranquillity, while the pre-
sent Government Lad the proud boast that it could pre-
serve that country in tranquillity without external force,
and simply by the hold which they had on the confidence and
affection of the people.—( Cheers.) He wondered what the
prospects were that tranquillity would continue if the
Right Hon. Gentleman came into power.—( Cheers. ) He
must say that the representations which had been made
on his side the House, though somewhat anxiously denied
on the other, of the violence that had prevailed during the
recess, excited on this subject feelings of alarm. He
thought that the fierce attempts which had been made to
rouse bigotry and hatred, not only against the
Catholic religion, but also those who professed
it, and who were the great majority of the
people of Ireland augured ill for the peace of that
country, if that party should accede to power. He was
aware these principles were denied by the Righ Hon. Ba-
ronet the Member for Pembroke (Sir J. Graham), and he
doubted not, by the Right Hon. Baronet the Member for
Tamworth ( Sir R. Peel). Sorry should he be, if he whir
must, from his talent and his station, ever exercise great
iufiuence in the country, could hold or sanction opinions
so subversive of the best interests of his country, but the
Right Hon. Baronet could not escape the consequences of
being the leader of a party. Of how much of the vin.
'once of their supporters, was the present Government
held responsible? And just as the Noble Lord (J. Rus-
sell) was held responsible for violence which he disclaimed,
so, however such doctrines were disclaimed by the Conser-
vative leader, he could not escape this necessary conse-
quence. And then, he asked, what prospect was there of
tranquillity on his accession to office, if such were the opi-
nions which the excited feelings of the country would attri-
bute to him. He (Mr. Wood) had no apprehension that
500,000 men would arise in arms at the accession of a
Tory Government; but he believed such a Government
would be carried on contrary to the wishes of seven-eighths
of the population of the country ; and he confessed he
thought such a state of things would be dangerous to its
tranquillity and peace, and that a sacrifice of privatelfeeling
—ho had almost said much evil—should be incurred be-
fore a risk of such magnitude was incurred —( Hear, hear.)
Before he sat down be wished to guard himself against,
misinterpretation of what fell from a gentleman who bad
addressed the House on the subject of further Reform.:l
He believed his Noble Friend was opposed to the doctrine'
of the Ballot, not because it was not one of the principles
of the Reform Bill, but he was opposed to it in itself. He
was also opposed to the extension of the franchise, because
he thought that it would be most inexpedient, especially
in the present temper of the company to agitate the ques-
tion again ; and when he remembered how the Reform
Bill went beyond the hopes of all and even the wishes of
no inconsiderable section of the Reformers of the day, he
thought. that it ought not to be lightly disturbed. He
thought, however, that the spread of education through-
out the country might render a revision necessary, but it
ought not to be disturbed for the mere love of change,
since this effect must, at least, arise from the agitation of
the question, that all useful legislation would be suspended
in the struggle. He would ask Gentlemen who held more
e:itreme opinions, were there not questions enough Olt
which Reformers were agreed without ureing those on
which they differed ? Were there not questions, such as
those proposed by the Hon. Member for Lambeth, on
prison discipline, and laws of various kinds, to which their
attention should be directed ?—the improvement of the com-
mercial interests of the country, and the relaxation of the
pressure of the Corn-laws, and whether it was not better to
pursite a real and practical good than that which was vi-
siouary"? Were there not even within the limits of the
Reform Bill reforms constantly needed on which all were
agreed—a measure for the improvement of registration,
which the Government had taken up in a large and ex-
tended sense, and to which the Right Hon. Baronet had
promised his assistance, which, however, he feared weuld
be more limited than he could well wish? Were not
these objects by which the end would be obtained for
which those gentlemen were striving ? It was his convic-
tion that the amended system of registration would indi-
rectly extend the franchise more than the measures which
those Gentlemen proposed. That course he would urge
upon them would not be inconsistent with the advocacy of
those inewrcs upon which Reformers differed, and would
contribute to the improvement of legislation more than any
other, • and leave' untouched the great principles of the
Reform Bill. He wished they would devote their attention
to subjects such as these, and thus acquire confidence from
those parties in the State without whose support they could
not effect their object.—( Cheers.)
Sir J. GRAHAM explained that what he had said, and
ha repeated it, was that at no period in the history of the
country had naval patronage been so prostituted to political
purposes as within the last five years, and that be knew
no officer who stood a contest at the last election above
the rank of a lieutenant, who was not either on full pay,
appointed to some command, or filling some situation.--
( Loud cries of " Spoke, spoke," " Order, order.")
Admiral ADAM was surprised at the explanation of the
Right Hon. Baronet, which was totally different from
what it ought to be, and inconsistent with facts
(Cheers ) He bad stated what was true to the letter,
viz., that Sir James Gordon was removed from Chatham
Dock-yards, but had mis-stated the reason why. Sir.
James Gorden was appointed in 1832 by the Right Hon.
Baronet himself, and if it were possible to eulogise him in
stronger terms than those used the other night, he would
employ them now. Therefore, besides the personal M-
tachment to Sir James Gordon, they had every motive for
keeping him in that situation, if it bad been consistent with
the rules of the service, but it was not so.—( Cheers.)
When the Right Hon Baronet made the appointment, Sir
James Gordon was a Captain, and Chatham was aninfe-
rior dock-yard to Portsmouth and Plymouth. When
change was made by the Right Hon. Baronet in the
Civil Department in the Navy, he appointed Capt. Mait-
land—having first offered it to him (Admiral Adam)—
to Portsmouth Dock-yard, and did not remove Captain
Ross from Plymouth because he had been appointed to
the Pacific ; the rule then was that Flag Officers should
auperintend the Dock-yards at Portsmouth and Plymouth,
and a Captain that at Chatham. At the time of the change,
Sheerness, as well as Chatham, were held by Sir James
Gordon, which made it inconvenient. An alteration was,
therefore, made, and another appointed to Sheerness, and,
therefore, Chatham was not suitable to Sir James Gor-
don ; and why ? Because he was made a Flag Officer in
the general promotion which took place in January. Sir-
J. Gordon came to him almost with tears in his eyea to state
that he was removed from his appointment, and he com-
miserated with him much, for he had a large family, and
his means were not great, though his services had been ;
but it would have been incompatible with the rules of the
service to retain him.

An RON. MEMBER asked when the rule was made.

Admiral ADAM—It was first made then—( Ironical
cheers)—because it was considered not to be a proper
place for a flag officer to be in But the Right Hon.
Bart's insinuation that he was removed that Captain Cla-
veil might be put there—(lronical cheers)—eras a misre-
presentation, for the situation was previously offered to Sir
John Pechell, and if he had accepted it how could Sir
James Gordon have been removed to make way for Capt.
Clavell?—(Clicers.) Then as far as related to Capt. Plum-
ridge taking part in the Falmouth election, he said in the
first place, that his appointment took place in January
1837, and the election not till six months after ; and at
that time there was no expectation of such an event. In
the month of July, Capt. Plomeridge Was invited to be-
come a candidate for Falmouth. A communication to the
elf ct that he was about to do so was made to Lord
Minty, who, on the 17th of that month, wrote to him re-
specting. it; but, before the letter reached Falmouth,
Capt. Plumridge pledged himself that he was obliged to
go to the poll. The contents of that letter were, that if
ho became Member for Falmouth, he must give up the
command of the Astrea. Afterwards there was a report
that Sir R. Rolf was to be made a Baron of
the Exchequer; and then, again, came an invitation
to Captain Plomeridge to stand. And what was the course
the Admiralty pursued? A letter was written to him
.cautioning him that the Admiralty considered such an
office would be incompatible with his present appointment,
which, if he were returned, he must resign.—(Cheers. )
This completely disproved the inference attempted to be
drawn, that the appointment was made for political pur-
poses.—(Cheers.)
Mr. MA CLEAN began by saying that he considered
the confession of the Government, that they had ceased
to possess the confidence of the House in last May, was
abundant justification for the present motion, corroborated
as it was by the declaration of the Right Hon. Member for
Edinburgh (Mr. Macaulay) t his constituents ; that the
Government would be found not, as they once were,
triumphant, on the support of the people, but wholly de-
pendent on the support of the Crown. He then charged
the Government with the guilt of the late Chartist dis-
turbances, either from their weakness in not suppressing,
or their wickedness in encouraging them. The answer to
that charge, he was aware, would be, that Chartism
originated in the agitation against the Poor-laws ; and that
this agitation had begun on the Conservative side. On the
contrary, he contended that even long before the Noble Lord
(J. Russell's) Liverpool speech, he had been, or ought to
have been, cognizant of inflammatory speeches and sedi-
tious publications—( Hear, hear)—and two supporters of
the Government, the late Member for Birmingham (Mr.
T. Attwood), and the present Member (Mr. Muntz), had
used violent language to the people without any notice
being taken of it. Then as to the Poor-laws particularly,
the agitation against it had been commenced by Mr. D.
W. H irvey, who had since been presented with a place—
(Hear, hear)—not to mention the Learned Memberforl