The Sun.
London, England, 1841-03-06 00:00:00

were well or ill founded ? An inquiry of that sort
would have satisfied the public mind. But Lord
Cardigan was one of the aristocracy—one of that body
who were, as the people believed, always shielded by those
in power of whatever acts they might be guilty. He ad-
mitted that the Press had in relation to this.affair been in
many instances ridiculously extravagant; but the Right
Hon. Gentleman was mi-taken if he thought he could set
public opinion at defiance. Had he been some subaltern
officer, an inquiry or a dismissal vvoull have been the con-
sequence. He complained of the Government for not
having instituted a Court of Inquiry.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL would only say one word as
to the Court of Inquiry. Each one of the facts had been
inquired into by Lord Hill as they had arisen. Every one
must believe that Lord Hill had acted iinpartially. and
after each case had been inquired into by him, any further
inquiry would have been contrary to the rules of the
army. He did not believe that Lord Cardigan hal
derived any advantage from his rank or coLnections.
On the contrary, he believed that conduct such a; his
would have been passed over by the press and the public
with very little notice in a mere simple Lieutenant-Colonel
of a Dragoon regiment —( Cheers)—who did not happen
to be a Peer of the realm, and from attacking whom no
great degree of notoriety could have accrued. So far
from his rank having shielded him, he thought it had only
contributed to increase the public excitement against hint,
and to give weight and magnitude to many charge=,
which, in any other case, would have been thought fri-
volous.—( Cheers,. )
Lord HO WICK had not anticipated that that painful
subject would have been brought under the attention of
the II ruse that evening. Ho did not think the answer
of his Noble Fr7ead altogether sati fattory. He meant
no strictures on Lord Hill, for in such a case tie Com-
mander-in-Chief had doubtless consulted with and been
guide I by the Government, and therefore they only were
responsible. He agreed that it would be the highesi.
injus.ice to dismiss an officer without a court-martial, and
alto that nothing could be more improper than to place an
officer on half-pay as a punishme:A. In a former un-
happy transaction relating to Lord Cardigan, he could
not but think a great error had been committed in placing
him upon the half-pay list, from the consequences
of which they were at the present moment in some measure
suffering. He thought that had been a most injudicious
determination that hid been come to in the case of Cap'.
Wathen to place Lord Cardigan on half-pay without hav-
ing given him an opportunity of being heard in his de-
fence. He did not think his Nobly F. lend had given
any reason for the non-apointmeot of a Court of Inquiry.
Nothing was more common than the institution of such
a Court, in cases in which the state ti a regi i eat was
unsatisfsc ory, in which the officers did not live in har-
mony togefter, aid in which the discipline was not credit-
able to the regiment. He did not doubt but that Lord
Hill had adjudiczted rightly in each of the cases which
had been suhmitte i to him, but the frequency of those
disputes rendered some inquiry into the general system of
the regiment necessary in eider to ascertain whe'her
those frequent quarrels had beet' occasioned by any want
of temper or discretion on the part of the Commanding
Officer. He could not forget the court-martial in the
case of Captain Wathen ; and the sub,equent restoration
of Lord Cardigan to fill-pay and the command of a regi-
ment made it necessary that an inquiry should be insti-
tuted in order that the public might be convinced that full
and ample justice hal been done to all parties
Further than this, it was notorious that when Captain
Reynolds was brought before the court-martial, he
pleaded in extenuation great provocation.. He (Lord
Howick) thought that the court-martial bad acted
properly in excluding the evidence with respect to the
provocation. If there had been a viol ation of di-cipline
on the part of an officer which no provocation could jur-
tify, that might have been aground for the Crown extend•
ing its mercy , but it was no part of the duty of the Court-
martial to inquire into it. He thought, looking at the
high character of all the officers in the regiment, it was
impossible that what had taken place should have been
passed over without inve,tig vion.—(Cries of "Hear.")
He thought the c curse that had been adopted
was highly unfortunate for the interests of the British
ar my—( Hear)--and if Lord Cardigan's conduct had been
such as he was willing to believe it was, he had been most
seri.usly ill u. •y withholding the inquiry. He believed
that such would have been most satisfactory to
the army ant t -nation at large. For these reasons, it
appeared to him, the course th a had been pursued in this
case was not satisfactory, and was net calculatA to pro.
mote the real interests of the British a-my.
Sir H. VIVA N had heard the speech of the Noble Lord
who had just sat down with regret. The Noble Lord had
blamed Lord Hill for not bringing the case of Lord Car-
di4an before a Court of Inquiry. Ha nought that Lord
Hill had acte.l in the only manner he could have done, and
ho believed that Lord Cardigan could hardly hare acted
otherwise than he had done. He had a high opinion of
Lord Cardigan as an officer, and at the very time that this
matter was going on, he had placed a son of his in that
very regiment, and that alone he thought would prove the
feeling he entertained towards Lord Cardigan. He was
sorry to hear what had been stated that night by the Noble
Lord.

Mr. HAWES regretted that the subject had not been
brought forward by a military man. It was said that there
were no means of inquiry in that House. According to
that, officer of er officer might be driven from his regi-
ment. and no redress be obtained. He believed that, had
not the commanding-officer possessed some other interest
hut that which at,achel to his office, the result would bare
been different. There was one way of treating the person
who had suffered under Lord Cardigan which he thought
had he ,n omitted. He regretted that the constitution of
the army had not admitted of gi:ing redress to the officers
serving under Lord Cardigan.
Sir 14 14 A P hi.] been said
by t Noble L.:rd the Secretary for the ColmieF, and by
the Right Han. Gentleman the Secretary at War. The
accusation in the present case was ag.inst Lord Hill rather
than against Lord Cardigan. He thought the statement
regarring Lord Cardigan was very exaggerated.—
(" Hear, Ivar," from Colonel Sibthorp.) He thought
there had been a cabal in the reg,m• nt. Wren Lord
Cardigan joined the regiment in India, the fir.t month
a'ter his arrival he was ,as,ailed by the public press. The
Gallant Officer then referred to an attack which had
bean made in one of the Evening Papers, and stated,
that upon Sir Henry Fane complaining to the editor, he
udeniited that the attack proceeded from an officer of the
11th Dragoons. He could show by various other cases,
did time permit, that Lord Cardigan was treated in a
manner equally questionable.
Lord HOWICK said that if proof were wanting of the
necessity for inquiry, it was furnished by what had been
stated by the Hon. and Gallant General,—( Hear, hear.)
With regard to the. form of instituting an inquiry, it had
not been denied either by the Right Hon. Gentleman the
Secretary of War, or by the Master-General of the Ord-
nance. In the former irihunal the same mistake had been
made as in the recent one, the matter was hushed up and
put an end to wi!hant being thoroughly sifted.
Sr DE LACY EVANS said no one could be sur-
prised, when they considered how delicate the matter was,
that no mi itary man had brought it before the House.
The allusion to what. had taken place in India, tended
greatly to strengthen the view which ha I been taken by
the Noble Lord the Member for Northumberland, as to the
necessity for inquiry.
M. HUME ei I not blame Lord Cardigan at all, hut
he blamed the conduct of the officers of the Horse Guards
and the Right Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Macaulay).
The vote was then agreed to.
The folloaing votes were then proposed and agreed to :
79,7151. for the payment of officers.
15,1481. for defrko-g the expenses of the Royal Mili-
tary Asylum.

15,8391. for defraying the charges of allowances for dis-
tinguished services.

133,0001. for the paymnt of genera officers.
67,000/. for defraying the charges of allowances to re.
duced 3nd retired officers.

60 608/. fur defraying half-pay allowances.
142,000/. f r ponsions to officers' wid,,wy.
A vote of 42,000/. for superannuations and retiring al-
lowances was then agreed to.
The CHAIRMAN then reported progress, and obtained
leave to sit agein on Monday.
Lord J RUSSELL said that on Monday he should
move the Order of the Day for going into a Committee of
Supply, when he hoped the Master-General of the Ord-
nance would be able to move the Ordnance Estimates.
Col. SIBTHORP inquired of the Under- Secretary
for the Hume Department whether a gentleman named
Vizard was appointed Solicitor for the Home-office ?
Mr. F. MA UL E answered in the affirrratiie.
Colonel SIBTHORP then gave notice that on Mon-
day he would move for a return of a copy of the warrant
for Mr. Vlzald's appointment—of the amount of his
s‘,lary—and the allowances made or payable to that indi-
vidual.

Mr. FOX MAULE said he would bring up the return
on Tuesday.

CoIoneISIBTHORP gava notice that on Monday
he should move for a return of the number of convict.,
distinguishing the age and sex, who had bees transported
beyond the seas during the last seven Sears; also a sim lar
return of those who bad not been sent out of the country,
made up to the latest possible period.
Th Lease and Relelse 8.11 then passed through Com-
mittee, and was rde. ed to be read a third time on M nday.
The other Orders of the Day sere then disposed of, and
the House adjourned at One o'Clock until Monday next.