The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-19 00:00:00

LORD CARDIGAN'S FLOGGING

ON SUNDAY.

How the character of the man is marked in this pro-
ceeding. The apdroval of the sentence arrived on
Sunday morning, and so eager was the Noble Colonel
for the execution of it that he could not wait even till
Monday, but the S ibbath must be desecrated by a
punishment after prayers!
What 2 sequence to the voice of prayer the sound of
the lash !--the scourge after devout supplication,—the
groans of the sufferer after the lessons of mercy.
The Bishop of London has counted the boats that
have passed under Fulham-bridge on a Sunday. Did
they profane the holy day more than a hundred lashes ;
and what will the Right Rev. Prelate, who has borne
such loud testimony against the sins of green-grocers
and pastry-cooks, say of the desecration of the Sab-
bath by the Noble Colonel of the Eleventh? Is keep•
ing open a stall a less scandal than flaying a human
back? Is plying the butcher's trade less allowable than
plying the cat-o'-nine-tails ?
Lord Cardigan's defence will probably be that the
rich man is a; much entitled to his pleasures on the
Sunday as the poor man, and that he sees no more rea-
son why he should forego one ministration to his enjoy-
ment than another, and that the work of the hands
that wield the cat-o'-nine-tails must be as much at his
command as that of his French cook. One appetite,
however, can wait, though the other cannot ; and, for
the sake of public decency at least, Lord Cardigan must
learn to postpone his gratifications in the way of punish-
ments for forty-eight hours, when the approval of the
sentence happens to arrive on Sunday morning.
We have hitherto opposed every Bill for the better
observance of the Sabbath ; but as we are far more
hostile to the introduction of bitterness in the violation
of the Sabbath, than to the introduction of bitterness in
the observance of it, wo will promise to give our best
aid in support of a Bill to prohibit flogging in the army
on the Sabbath-day.
It may be remembered that we lately showed that
the severities of Lord Cardigan had first been exercised
on the privates of his regiment, and that, when checked
in that direction by Sir C. d'Albiac, they were trans-
ferred to the officers. From the present sign we infer
that the officers have a respite ; it would be too im-
prudent to open fresh quarrels with them just now, so
the men are to have their turn again, and to mark the
eagerness for the punishment, by suffering or seeing the
infliction of it on the Sabbath.—Examiner.

It is with extreme regret that we find ourselves un-
able to contradict the statement in the Chronicle of a
soldier in the 11 th or Prince Albert's Own Hussars
having been flogged on Sunday last at Hounslow Bar-
racks, under the orders of Lord Cardigan. We feel
it due, however, to state, that the announcement in the
Chronicle, for the honour of British officers, met with
no credence at the Senior United Service Club. The
officers believed that the Chronicle must have been
imposed upon. Unfortunately it was not so, for
the punishment was, in fact, inflicted on the Sab-
bath. We own that at first we shared in the
general disbelief, but inquiries made in the proper quar-
ter compel us to say that this horrible outrage has been
committed. We know, however, that the subject has
already engaged official consideration, and we await
with confidence the result. Abstaining from any re-
marks upon this shock to religion and humanity, can
we avoid noticing the disgusting insult which Lord Car-
digan is said to have offered to a detachment of the
14th Dragoons? They were ordered to witness the
punishment. How for different is the conduct in France
—a military country ! There, when in garrison punish-
ment is to be inflicted, detachments from each regiment
are ordered to attend, and these detachments comprise
only those me❑ whose bad conduct renders it expe-
dient that they should witness it as a lesson to them
selves. The well-conducted men are always exempted
from attending ; and this exemption is deemed a great
mark of honour.—Observer.