The Sun.
London, England, 1841-05-14 00:00:00

MORNING EDITION.

York and Limerick, praying for the restoration of the
n suppressed bi=hoprie:: in Ireland.
Mr. SCHOU CIELD presented a petition from a
congregation of Protestant Dissenters, against Church—
rat...s, and the jurisdiction of the Ecclesiastical Courts.
Mr. STRU L' presented a petition from Derby in favour
of the proposition of her Majesty's Government fur the
regulation of the import duties on- corn, timber, .and.
511,3111%.

`Petitions praying the House to make -no alteration in
the Corn-laws were pr.:..sente:l by Sir P. Campbell
Mr. Bratnston (9) from parishes in E ;sex ; Sir C. Bur•
rell from Sussex ; Sir John Tyrell from Essex ; Colonel
Rushbrooke from Norfolk, and Sir C. B. Were.
Colonel SALWEY presented petitions from Bridg-.
north, Broseley, Coal Port, Quatt, and Quattford, in.
Shropshire, praying for the immediate and entire aboli-
tion of the Corn-laws. These petitions, nutnerou.ily
signed, had been entrusted to him by the inhabitants of -
towns in a district purely agricultural.
Petitions praying for the entire and immediate repeal
of the Corn-laws, and generally in favour of the Govern
went measure, were presented by Mr. Collins ; from
the Mayor and other inhabitants of Carmarthen ;
Mr. M. Philips, from Manchester ; Mr. Dennis-
town, from forty-seven places in the West of Scot-
land ; Mr. W. Evans, from eight parishes in North
Derbyshire ; Mr. Wilbraham, Cheshire ; Mr. M'Aulay,
from two of the Guilds of Edinburgh ; Lord Morpeth,
from Wakefield,
.Ottley-, Leeds, and fifty other places in
the West Riding of Yorkshire ; Lord John Russell from
Belfast,. Stroud, and numerous other places ; Sir G.
Strickland, from 30 places in Yorkshire ; Mr. J. Parker,
from Sheffield ; Mr. Greg, 51 ; Mr. G. W. Wood, from
Kendal ; Mr. Ewart, Mr. Busfield, Mr. L. White, from
Sunderland, and by Mr. Hume.
Mr. C. DUNDAS presented a petition from the Mayor,
Aldermen, and Burgesses of the borough of Flint, stating
" That your petitioners have heard with great satisfac-
tion that it is the intention of her Majesty s Ministers to
propose to Parliament the amendment of the laws relative
to the importation of corn, by substituting a moderato
fixed duty for the present sliding scale ; , also to reduce
the duty on foreign grown timber and on sugar. That
it is their opinion this will greatly increase the trade, &c.
of the country, and be of signal service .to the labouring
classes. They therefore pray your Honourable House
do carry this measure into effect."

~.,, nn

LORD CARDIGAN.
Mr. MUNTZ said that in bringing forward the mete •'';
tion of which he had given notice, namely—" What
humble Address be presented to her Majesty, praying V•''
her Majesty to institute an inquiry into the conduct of ?'
the Right Hon. the Earl of Cardigan, during his •
command of the Eleventh Hussars, with the view
of ascertaining how far • such conduct has rendered
him unfit to remain in her Majesty's service," •
he wished to divide the House on the question before a
dissolution took place.—(hear.). He begged to state, that
in bringing forward the motion lie disclaimed all personal
feelings towards the Noble Lord who was the object of
it ; in fact, he (Mr. Muntz) never saw the Noble Lord.
He would not have brought forward the subject at all, if
he had not been requested to do so, some weeks since,
by a great many parties. Why they selected him
(Mr. Muntz) he knew not, unless it was that they
were aware of his being unconnected with any
party, and independent of all men. He lad hoped
that some older member of that House would take the
matter in hand ; but finding that such was not
the case, and feeling that it ought not to be put off
any longer, he was obliged to take it up himself.
Disputes in the ArMy were generally of a private nature,
but in the present instance they had become so numerous,
and of such a character, as greatly to disgust a large por-
tion of society. The immediate cause of his (Mr. Muntz's)
motion was the flogging of a man ern the Sabbath-day ;
but he• would not have considered even that a sufficient V ,
justification for his interference, were it not that that wets
but the last of a series of misconduct on the part of the
Noble Earl, which made it impossible to believe that there
was not something more culpable than neglect on his part. .
He understood that the Noble Earl Rad marched the men -
out to the Riding-School immediately after Divine
Service. for the express purpose of having a place fleet'
for the punishment of the private, and that the punish
ment had occurred very near the place of Divine
Worship, while the men were put into order
that they might witness the punishment. He had al-
ways considered flogging a disgusting exhibition—
(Hear, hear)—and he did think that we should imitate
in that instance the example of the French, Prussians,
and other nations, who had abolished it altogether.--
(Hear, hear.) There was a general feeling among the
public that the authorities at the Horse Guards
were not free from censure in the manner in which they
had dealt with the subject ; and that opinion was con- -
firmed by finding that one of the Captain Reynolds
was now on full-pay with leave of absence, and a pro-
mise that he would never again be called upon to serve .
under the Earl of Cardigan. The truth was that the
Noble Earl appeared to want the most necessary quali- V
fication for commanding men—the power of self-control.
In the course of two years, while the regiment was 3-0
strong, the Noble Earl had 105 courts-martial, and lied
punished 750 men, and there were not less than 90 ire is
at one time in Canterbury gaol.—(Hear.) During the
20 years the regiment was in India, and while
it was 700 strong, the punishments had been less
than during the two years it had been under
his command. During the Noble Earl's commend, in i
one month there had been more courts-martial and
more defaulters than in the preceding twelve months. In
the six following months, during which time the •
regiment was not under the Noble Earl's
command, there had been only two courts-martial. •
It appeared that he had refused Captain Reynold'
leave of absence, which he had previously given, on
the ground that the Court-martial at which Captain Tier
fluids was present had come to a decision contrary to las
wish. It was clear that the Noble Earl exercised the
greatest tyranny over his officers and men, and as a fire
fellow haci said to him (Mr. Muntz), "What can I do ? I-
might ride out and cut him down, but I would be shot for it.
If he (Mr. Muntz) were placed in the situation of Lb*
Noble Earl he should court inquiry ; at all events itwas •°,4
clear that there was need of inquiry, and he had certainif.
shown quite enough to establish ground for an inquirt-
Tbe Hon. Member concluded by submitting his motion.
Mr. SOHOLEFIELD seconded the motion.
Mr. MACAULAY hoped to b.: abe in a few .4
words to state to the House sufficient grounds for
dissenting from the motion of the Honourable
Member. His first objection was a very ob-
violas one. It was a national objection. He thought. ,fit
the Hon. Gentleman himself would admit that while thera
was no prerogative of the Crown, which that House was
not entitled entitled to offer its advice upon, yet it was necessary
that that advice should be guided by sound discretioa.
There were some cases, and they were nothing
but extreme cases, in which the House ought to give that
advice. In his opinion the rewards or punishments of
military men ought not to be the subject of discussion
in large assemblies ; they should be left to the Executives f•
He admitted, however, that there might be extreme cas44
in which such a course would be prudent .and proper, -H
but he must confess that this was not that case. •Ile
thought the course which the Hon. Gentleman wished the •
Crown to follow ought not to be pursued. In saying set
however, he begged it to be understood that he was not
offering any approval of the conduct of Lord Cardigan-
Of that Noble Earl he must say, however, that whatever
other individuals might think of him, he (Mr. Macaulay)
considered him one of the most unfortunate men of the
present time. He considered that his conduct had been ex-
aggerated into far greater culpability than it was entitled
to. Into that question, however, he would not at present
enter. But, taking the conduct of the Noble Lord to be
ever so bad, he thought the present motion most objec-
tionable in any way of considering it, because he thought
it was likely to establish a most dangerous precedent in
the present judicious system. What was the state of gen-
tlemen in the army ? They bought their commissions,
and they gave the best years of their life in the service
of their country. How, therefore, could it be expected ,
that gentlemen would hold those commissions if security
were not given to them. He thought that no officer should
be deprived of his commission, except in consequence of a
court-martial ; there might be exceptions to that, but
those exceptions could only take place when an officer
had done an act cognizible by a court-martial, but where
there were objections to the adoption of such a course.
The conduct of the Earl of Cardigan, in his opinion, did
not render him liable to a court-martial. If it was the
fact that Lord Cardigan had given the lie 0
several of the officers of the regiment, . such
conduct was subject to great reprehensiee'd
but it was his (Mr. Macaulay's) firm belief, that if t
Cardigan had been guilty of such practices, uo comPlatil
had been made to the Horse Guards. If the lion.
Gentleman was prepared to say that such con,"
plaint had been made to Lord Hill, and.
he • had • paid no attention to it, that would rendur
the case very different. With regard to, the 'unhappy
circumstance which- had taken place on Easter Sunday, •
he believed, however reprehensible such 'conduct was.--
no person in that House would state, thaU.s%
it subjected him -to a court-martial. • ThoW
opinions of Lord Hill and the Duke of Wellington wereett*
clear that it did not, though both those officers ad-e"
mitted the impropriety of that conducte but they .t
believed it to be a caucus ••oinissus which would subject':
the party to a severe reprimand. As to the prop• eie.
tion of the Iron. Member to substitute -a court ot-
inquiry for a court-martial, he must pro:rst against it„
as exceedingly improper and inconvenient, be--
cause when such a Court called witnesses before,
it, it -would itself, • without the power to examin
those witnesses, administer • the oath to them.
Was 'it tight that, in • consequence of evidenee s 9
taken,- before a tribunal so constituted, a punishment.
should be inflicted upon an officer, which, if' he •were,
a poor man, would, in a pecuniary point
view, inflict on him utter ruin, and which'' •
at all events, whether he were poor or Fiat*
would inflict upon his character such a stigma, as'
would to him be infinitely worse than pecuniar
ruin e—(Cheers.) What that the manner in whic
the 'officers of the Queen's army might to be treated.--
(Cheers.) He thought he had stated sufficient to induce
the House to negative the proposition.—(Cheers.)
defied Gentlemen to imagine any motive by which he,
could poSsibly be actuated in the course which he wos'
pursuing except a prOper regard for the duties of his ollic,c!..
Whet other motive' could lie have had for interfering 1"
belied' of a Nobleman which whom he had no' comic'
tion, whom he did not even know by sight, and of Wlo,l'i
all that he knew was that he was a 'decided enemy of
Government to whieli he (Mr. Macaulay) belonged, II:.
of those principles to which he bad always been atteecl
—(Cheers from the Opposition.)
Lord •G. LENNOX was . anxious to allude to --e-bnee; -
statement which had been made by the Right Hon
ab:e%eiliber for Birmingham. The Honourable
her
stated that the..',.Earl of Cardigt.id,!,TO
given the lie dir-ect ta ore of officers. Triatrtstrij
went he (Lord Gaenriox). We ul4 take Upon. himself : g
. ut
il
and then not at the heuti" of ;his trixt t,
in ,
tti:tleee4init pnlaetre7-L.-7e • e •-• • pad
rao fiiht to ring thitlervact,litzuse: ther

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