The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-21 00:00:00

MORNING EDITION

COMATOIJOIZE SIR C. NAPIER,
K.C.8., AT LIVERnOL.
I Prom the Liver pool Times of yesterday.)
'LANDING OF THE COMMODORE.
NA' v 2 have previously intimated, it was expected that
order for the melea e of Commodore Napier from qua-
krlllstinc would have been received on Sunday morning,
e that he would have landed about eight or nine o'clock.
_ft ereat number of persons, including several military
leiltt Laval officers, consequeetly congregated on the pier-
bead et et an early hour; but their expectation of see tog
ttad welcoming the hero of Sidon was not then realisee.
itne course of the day, it was confidently stated that
k
the long-anticipated
reerni"'' og-antieipated release would be in Liverpool on
and arrangements were entered
teinto at
between Sir Charles and the Managing Committee
kortgeglaedit g should take place at tea o'clock yesterday
e_Pc Nionelay morning the town bore evidence that the
elewereeboratihe of some joyful public event was at hand. Guns
lied :I'M; bells were ringing; the Royal Standard of Eng-
",aunted in the breeze on the front of the Town-hall;
,A"'l the vessels in the docks were gaily and lavishly deco-
`leolwith their many-coloured and countless flags. Large
lit' ea of people began early to assemble on the pier
iau/ and the Town-hall was also surrounded with a con-
lie;?rable number of people. The arrangements entered
1,,T Were, however, in some degree rendered nugatory,
big by the Commodore's impetuosity of spirit, or by
443 desire to escape as quickly as possible from his con-
ther"ot on board the Oriental. It was intended that
Mayer and Nlaneging Committee should have re.
to ,the
,the gallant Officer at the pier-head, precisely at
clock, and that a large body of the po-
d' should have been drawn up to receive him with
ktille honour, and accompany him to the Exchange; but
Vaut en hour before the aointed time, Sir Charles
trPier arid his naval friendspp having received intimation
tLC receipt of the order for release, got on board a
Government
tender, the Redwing, commanded by
t!Ptain Tudor, and landed at St. George's Pier, at a few
4414 es after nine o'clock. A deputation of gentlemen,
ii-v'ne with them a band of music, was ready, notwith-
teding this anticipation of the appointed time, to receive
1, lir,Uharles Napier ; and Mr. Whitty, the bead constable,
tg a body of police, was also present ; but the gallant
e,raroodore seemed to fancy that their protective services
unnecessary, and three, himself in the midst of the
ti;tlEed multitude, who gave him an enthusisstic recep-
-1,4"4i persons,y the deputation, the police, and a
:rorvil of and preceded by the band, playing
ts,ti° the conquering hero comes," the Commodore pro-
-441 to the Town-hall, and on his arrival there, he
theye addres. ed the dense crowd of persons congregated
feel,' lie thanked them for the hearty and hospitable
tiee-14 which he had received on first landing in his na-
reaoPortry, after his return from Syria, and said that the
(ection of their kindness would de ell with him to the
th; day of his life. Sir Charles Napier and his friends
e,`° entered the Town-hall, and spent a short time in
wareraation with the gentlemen assembled there. At ten
,peloek he left the Town-hall in the Mayor's carriage, and
160egreeted on his departure with a shout of applause from
crod,
htAt one o'clock, accordingto appointment, the Mayor
cl members of the Town Council, together with a num-
r of other gentlemen, proceeded to the Adelphi Hotel,
Care Commodore Napier had established his quarters,
10,..the purpose of presenting to him the address agreed
I„itiuY our municipal body. Amongst those present were
Chl'rsGeneral Napier, the brother of the Commodore, Sir
°8• Usher, and several naval officers. The gallant Sir
tarless on entering the large room, was greeted with a
and of applause.
e 0 °° Mayor formally introduced the Commodore to the
14-14ey, and then, turning to him, begged to content-
' e him on his arrival in this country, after having achieved
41'ries brilliaet victories which would hand down his
„, ale to posterity, and on havir g brought a short but sue-
,
th 'el war to a termir ation by an honourable peace. He
tZ ad nlrt , and presented to the Commodore, the
'awing address :
" To COMMODORE SIR CHARLES NAPIER, K. C. B.
We, the Mayor, Aldermen, and Burgesses of Liver.
t°tti't beg to offer you our sincere congratulations on your
si,„ '1 in this ceuntrr. We gladly avail ourselves of this
we re ot expressing the high admiration with which
tle regard your vaour as a warrior, and your ability as a
Jotiator,,and oil declai ing the feelings of pride and sa.
bl,;action with which we hail your return alter a career of
Lry, whereby the naval supremacy of her Majesty's arms
been upheld, the best interests of commerce sustained,
the peace of Europe preserved.
Your example %sill have its influence on the distin-
t:l'hed service to which you belong ; and, under the di.
r.eti°o of Commanders like yourself our navy will be
ae,l to maintain the honour and independence of our
te. rY4 and to promote the happiness and peace of the
zed world.
,Given under the Common Seal of the Borough, the
loth
of April, 1841."
pl 'r CHARLES NAPIER replied that it was with very great
lesore that he received this mark of kindness from the
kattelor aed Corporation of Liverpool, and he thanked the
ah. Party gratefully for the very flattering manlier in
thloh he had been received in this town. He was sure
for any services that he had been able to perform,
l,,ther as a military or naval man, or as a negotiator, he
'received an ample reward in the kindness extended to
on that day. He was glad to say, that after a very
Ott peace, the're was no reason to be apprehensive of the
44er 11 service of England having fallen into decay ; tor it
was in a more efficient state than at present. The
'Paige
in which he had been engaged, though short,
teal been one in which he had never seen displayed more
ski And courage than was displayed by the British navy,
laire,,e,,te were really many officers who were as able as
" to have carried on and brought to a successful
'e the operations in which he had been engaged. Should
=Wart take place, he was quite certain that officers would
i'Ways be found who were able to carry it on with glory.
h!1 conclusion, he agaie thanked the company for their
flintiness, and wished every prosperity to Liverpool.—
"-',,,°11 and entlitoiestie cheering.)
'he MAYOR then inv.ted the gentlemen present to ac-
tPany Sir Charles Napier and himself to the Town-
tll, there to partake of some slight refreshment. Before
t:tving the Intel, however, the Gallant Commodore pre-
ma`'llthef at the balcony, underneath which a great
)4itt of people had assembled, and was received by them
I,opoilehement applause. He addressed to them a few
t, of acknowledgment for their hospitable and hearty
i,e'Ption, and then, accompanied by the Mayor, the
theWo-clerk, and the other gentlemen present, as well as
'f 411 immense concourse of people, he walked to the
After the company had partaken of some
eAleshment, the Commodore was conducted to the large
4;`-erooru, from one of the windows of which he
ue addressed then e
assembled in the area of
4,t Exchange, amounting to sever thousans. Te
61/14ese which commenced at the moment that Si
iCarles presented himself having subsided, he said that
atWas quite impossible for the Mayor of Liverpool to have
hoatlht him to a moe appropriate place than he neigh-
arhgood of Nelson'sr monument tor the purpose cf tbank-
trothem for the very great kindness which he had received
re them. He hoped and trusted that as long as they
titi'd, us long as they were Englishmen, and as long as
eieY were sailors, they would find men ready to emulate
e.lson, and to defend the honour and trade of their cowl-
Fie had been obliged to work double tides that day,
Al they would therefore not expect him to say much then.
t'he had to do was again to thank the people of Liver-
-001, and to assure them that he should never forget the
kt, Leelion which they had shown to Lim.—( Applause.)
commodore Napier then visited the Exchange News-
h°Aelo and the Underwriters'-room, at both of which places
i` was exeremely well received by the assembled merchants
t'f4otherss The demonstration of feeling was throughout
pia general and popular kind, and in no instance partook
4 party cha,acter.
PLTBI, IC DINNER TO THE COMMODORE.
a,, t.e public dinner to Commodore Napier took place, ac-
tjd'ne; to announcement, at the Amphitheatre yesterday
e.e,°lng. The company began to arrive shortly after five
silock, and before six o'clock, the hour fixed for the corn-
4ipeerneet of the dinner, the provided seats were nearly
th Occupied. The issue of tickets was limited to 650, and
lk2 Whole number, we believe, was disposed of. The
I,,,kes were filled with an assemblage of fashionably dressed
Crii!,est who added lustre to a scene which was in itself most
tly.tient. The circle of the amphitheatre was boarded
Cr,e so as to be on a level with the stage. Across the
ani on the line usually occupied by the footlights,
i,,.alplaceei the head table, and there diverged from it, at
angles, backwards, a number of small tables. The
%I.ele 'ea' occupied by a number of long tables also placed
%%right elegies with tee principal table. Suspended around
I,:d In front of the stage were about a dozen of flags and
quileers. Two beautiful small banners bore the inscrip-
b-,tit " Napier and Victory ;" a third, on which were
kneed t be arms of the Commodore, had also his motto—
t Lteady, aye ready," and was headed " Napier ;" a
land b, similar to the others, had on it the words " Eng-
t‘harl triumphant." At the back of the stage were hung
pftee lar4e banners ; the subject of the first was the Death
Nelsen, and its inscription was, '°England expects
efettY man to do his duty ;" the second contained the arms
t'iverpool, and the third the Duke of Wellington on
44ebacle, with the lines—
" The defender of old England's rights—.
Tne hero of a hundred fights."
k °ls the, centre of the principal table was suspended the
4'141 standard of England, and bereath it were two silk
ei!ss bearing in golden letters the names of " Cape St.
6cent, Busaco, Ponza"—and " West Indies, Beyrout,
@Orts St. Jean d'Acre." In other parts of the Amphi-
thatre there were hung other flags. Amongst the company
Nere were present Commodore Napier, Major-Gen. Na-
er, Sir Chas. Shaw, Capt. Sir Thos. Usher, K C. 11.,
q‘"'•/3., Licuts. Pritchard, Tudor, Patch, Hancock, and
cen, le, ; Capt. Paley, of the 10th Foot, Liverpool;
Zvii
pn''eutenant Cannon, R. M. ; Colonel Wallace, H. E.
"; Lieutenant Ponsouby, ditto ; Paymaster Pen-
Vi„-gt, and Manekzu Cursetzu, a Parsee merchant. If
NI were to attempt to chronicle the names of the princi-
tit local gentlemen present, we should have to form a list
61,0 early all our influential and well known public men,
uoth parties. His Worship the Mayor, Thomas Bolton,
:1 presided.
14'°,1inaodore Sir Charles Napier, Major-Gen. Napier,
eei other principal guests, accompanied by the Mayer,
toered the Amphitheatre about twenty minu'es pat six
eri°ick. They were greeted with a burst of enthusiastic
/4°,lg consinued applause.
ben, the gallery were stationed Mr. P. Stubbs's military
4,-rebst.together with a company of handbell ringers, styled
ee4.0.2 Victoria. Harmonia's Youths." They are nine in
ceb 'ler. and are from Oldham. A company of very ex-
etteteer glce-singers was also engaged, and added most
11_141Y to the pleasure cf the evening.
WA e dinner, which was provided by Mr. Lynn, of the
tingeu Hotel, was such as would have done that dis-
forrsPurreted caterer credit, even though the period allowed
Ite4,,FParatiOn. had been much greater. The wines were
Di ant.
,j);;,:, tier concluded at half-past seven, and Non nobis
Th sehaving been sung by the professional gentlemen,
hu e
enr,eren!siameN rose, and after having called for a
rs said that the first toast which he should have the
vut 14 proposing was ono which, whether it related to

their duty as subjeels or their gallantry as men, would
be received there with the greatest satisfaction. He there-
fore proposed the health of " Her Majesty the Queen,
Duchess of Lancaster—(Tremendous cheering)—and may
she lung be the grxe and ornament of the Court which
she now adr rut."—( Renewed cheering.) " God save the
Queen" was sung by the professional sirg. re, the band
and whole company joining in the chorus. When the
words " confound their politics" were repeated, an attempt
was made t..) get up a cheer, but it was speedily sup•

pressed.
The CitatitmAx rose ag in and begged to propose the
health of Pr.nee Albert and the Princess Ro}al.—(Three

times three.)
Glee—" Hail, smiling morn."
The CHAIRMAN eft,n-watds gave " The he clth of hrr
Majesty the Queen Dowager aed the other branches of
the Royal Farnily."—( Loud cheers.)
The CHAIRMAN called again for a bumper. The next
toast, he said, which he would have. the honour of pro-
posing was one which related more immediately to the
business of the evening, which was to receive with hearty
congratulations the distinguished gentleman whom they
had the honour to entertain.— ( Loud cheers.) They were
honoured that evening with the company of Commodore
Sir Charles Napier. (Tremendous cheering.) His
achievements in the East were fresh in their recellectiun,
and were more like witchcraft than the action of a human
being. He had achieved, in the period of one short
month, what in former wars required years to accomplish.—
( Cheers.) He believed he had been forty years in the ser-
vice of his country—( Loud cheers)—and from his youth
upwards he had been distiegui:lied for bravery, for
courage, and for an enterprise which would carry his
name down to posterity as one of the greatest commanders
the British nation could boast of.—(Loud cheers.) He
had attained paramount victories in the West Indies,
Cape St. Vincent, the coast cf Portugal, and more re-
cently in taking of Beyrout, Sidon, and Acre.—(Tre-
mendous cheering.) Although he (the Chairman) in
the abstrrct and individually was not favourable to
war, yet if occasion arose, for the honour t f the coun-
try and for the interests of the country, which made it
necessary for them to take up the swot d, he hoped that
the it arms would to conducted by men like the dis-
tinguished gentleman they had then the honour of meet-
ing with.—( Applause.) In past periods, and in periods
in the recollection of most persons present, they had
had Nelson in the navy, Moore in the army, and they
had then living the Duke of Wellington—( Reiterated
cheering)—and their guest, Commodore Napier._
( Treancedous cheering.) He was proud in enumerating
those distinguished commanders, because it justified the
hope that, whenever occasions arose, there would be found
good and true men to take the places of those who had
gone before them.—( Applause.) Their friend was cor-
rect in his habits, possessed of an acute and decisive
judgment, well acquainted with the modern arts of war,
and whenever occasion has arisen, in the discharge of his
duty, with that knowledge, that skill, that decision, he
has been permitted to bring the rear 'aces of his mind to
act, and commanded those under him with a success
which has accomplished the late victories, hoeever im-
possible they might have appeared. In addition to these
qualifications, he (the Commodore) had a still higher
claim upon them for his excellent good sense as a nego-
tiator. With a seund 016 enlarged judgment, not wish-
ing to make t' c must of the persons he had vanquished,
and with jut and considet ate views, he had proposed
plans which had teen euefia wed by the parties; and as
the cud of all wars was peace, and as a very short war
had brought about peace, when they had been threatened
with tle beginning of a long and expensive war—that
consideration would fully justify them in thinking that
that country was greatly indebted to the discretion and
bravery of their guest who acted on that momentous ec-
casien. With regard to the Pacha of Egypt, although
an opponent on that occasion, he (the Chairman) might
be justified in alluding to the generous act which that in-
d.vidual rrmittel to be performed, and from which the
country derived great benefit. He alluded to the gene
runs conduct in permitting the mails to go to India whilst
they were at war with him, and which entitled him to the
admiration of every Briton, and every just and noble-
minded man in the coutary.—( Applause.) In enume-
rating a very few of the acts and of the conduct of the
distinguished iecividual whom be had the honour of in-
troducing, he was conscious that he was unworthy of ren-
dering justice to the meri s of the great commander, and
he was sorry thst the chair was not filled by one who could
do greater justice to the guest who now honoured them,
but however unworthy he might regard his abilities, he
would yield to none in sincerity and thankfulness for the
great services which he (the Commodore) had performed,
and which entitled him not only to the gratitude of every
person present, but of every individual in the country, He
(the Chairman) might seem niegerdly in his praise, but
he was not so in his heart, and hoped they would a'-
tribute any defect on his part to his being unaccustomed
for any length of time to express his sentiments in public.
The hearty manner in which they had received the distin-
guished Commodore must be highly gratifying to that ta-
lented gentleman, especially so as there were co many ladies
there to do him honour.—( Applause.) If an opportunity oc-
curred of those ladies expressing their opinions they would
have a flood of eloquence.—(Cheers.) He would not
invite an invidious comparison, which would annihilate him
altogether, but would join in the sincere thanks they were
about to offer to their guest. He begged to propose
" Our distinguished guest, Commodore Sir Charles Na-
pier. May our commanders emulate his courage in bat-
tle, and his skill and decision in the service of his coun-
try ; and may their efforts, like his, ever terminate in the
right result of war—honourable peace. '—(Tremendous
and reiterated cheering.)
Commodore Sir CHARLES NAPIER arose amidst a re-
newal of the animated applause, and of the waving of
ladies' handkerchiefs, and said that it was a very usual thing
for persons, when placed in a position similar to that in
which he then stood, to say that they could not find words
to express their feelings, and to thank the company for the
honour conferred epon them ; but when he looked around
him, and saw 600 gentlemen who had done him the ho-
nour to receive him in that distinguished manner; and
when he looked, too, at that circle of Lancashire witches
(Cheers)—who had thrown around their spells to charm
the hearts of all—aye, even the hearts of the deaf and
dumb—who could wonder that he should be unable to find
words to express his feelings, to make known his gratifi-
cation at the manner in which he had been received in this
commercial town, and to thank the company present that
evening for the manner in which they had received his
health ?—( Cheers.) This, how ever, was not the first time
that be had been in Liverpool. He had the honour of
paying a visit to the town, some years ago, in company
with Marshal Soult, that illustrious warrior, who had
been fighting all his life against England, but whe, when
the sword was sheathed, was received in England
with that enthusiasm which so distinguished the
English character. He did not think that he should be
going too far in saying that the manner in which Liver-
pool received Marshal Soult was one of the chief causes
of the preservation of peace between France and Eng-
land.—( Very marked applause.) But if this town had
received in such a manner Marshal Soult, who had been
fighting all his life against this country, it was not sur-
prising that they should receive him (the Commodore) in
the manner they had done, considering that he had been
lighting all his life in the service of this country.—
:le had been placed within the last few months in a very
peculiar position. He was in the Mediterranean at the
time toe insurrection began. It was an insurrection against
his friend, Mehemet Ali. He might tpe that term, for he
was proud to say that Mehemet Ali was his friend. The
Pacha did not understand the proper way of governing
and managing Syria. He did not receive proper instruc-
tions and information; and the consequence was, that he
managed them in the oriental way, which was net exactly
the way in which our brother Christians in Syria liked to
be managed. They rebelled, and Mehemet Ali, a vigo-
rous and resolute man, determined to pot them down.
Ile therefore sent a great force against them, and, spite of
our Ministers and bureaus succeeded in putting down the
insurrection. This was done in the most moderate man-
ner that he (Commodore Napier) ever saw. Nceruelty was
practised, with the exception of one day. He did not be-
lieve that a single act of outrage was committed against the
inhabitants of Syria. That insurrection was certainly pro-
ductive of benefit ; it expedited the Ministers of this and
other countries in the signing of the treaty of the 15th
July, for the liberation of the Syrians from the tyranny—
for so he must cad it— of Mehemet Ali. He then hap-
pened to be senior naval officer on the coast of Syria. The
treaty arrived on the loth of September, and there was little
time to lose; it was necessary to carry the thing through
at once—( Cheers)—for the greatest of all evils
was an European war. They had double tides to work.
He was placed in the position of both Admiral and General,
and was obliged to act up to the best of his knowledge and
ability ; and he was happy to say that in the course of one
short month they succeeded in driving a large force,
amounting to about 100,000 men, from Syria, and in
liberating the inhabitants of Lebanon.—( Applause.)
But the business was not then over. They had a very
small force—there were about 10,000 Turkish men—
whilst Mehemet Ali mustered between 50,000 and 60,000
troops. Shortly after the taking of Acre, he sent six sail
of the line to Alexandria. The winter was then coming
oft ; and he took on himself what was truly a very great
responsibility, for he was destitute of instructions or advice
from the Government at home, or from his superior
officer, and proposed to Mehemet Ali peace. After
three or four days' discussion—not like the usual dis-
cussions in such cases—( Laughter and ebeers)—terins
were settled, and in four days peace was made, and an
agreement signed. He then thought that the war in
Syria and Egypt was at an end. But when the treaty
agreed to between him and Mehemet Ali was sent to
Constantinople, it was repudiated by the Porte; it was
protested against by the Ehglish Ministers, and upset
by the authorities in Syria,—denounced as hasty and
unauthorised by the Commander-in Chief, and abandoned
without reflection, and all the business was obliged to be
done over again from the beginning. But he hoped
and trusted that he might be permitted to claim that
Syria had teen evacuated—perfectly evacuated; and this
notwithstanding* the improper terms sent to Mehemet Ai
—terms that it was impossible he could accede to without
setting the whole country into rebellion and discord, creat-
ing dissensicn in his faintly and mutiny in his army and
navy, and he was right in rejecting the terms with scorn,but
the liberal part of the terms he received ; be abandoned his
monopolies, and gave up slavery—( Cheers)—and all that
he asked was that he should be left in quiet possession of
Egypt, in order that he might devote his whole energies to
its civilization : " For," said Le," I have given up all ideas
of conquest." It was his ( Corn. Napier's) duty to say
that he believed the Pacha was honest and straight-
forward in his conduct ; that from the beginning he acted
with the most perfect sincerity. He surrendered the
Sultan's ships, he victualled the fleet; he ordered his
army to evacuate Syria, and put the country in a po-
sition to obey the Sultan. But the Porte was ill-advised
in the matter. Their commander had secret instructions
to examine into the strength of the army of the Pacha,
and if it were found weak to attack him, and if strong to
let him alone. A brother officer of his (the Commodore's)
named Stuart, and C.,lonel Mitchell, protested against
the act of the Porte, and fortunately it was not carried
into effect. Syria was evacuated, Mehemet Ali retired
into his country, and certainly had a right to expect jus-
tice at the hands of the sultan, and of the foreign Powers