The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-01 00:00:00

r *saner possible, by qualifying first lieutenants to sit
' iron ezases that came before courts-martial. They were
quite as capable of discharging the duties of judges as
yourag men of twenty-two who had purchased their
cora .missions. The Hon. Gentleman then quoted some
«lease 3s in which great injustice had been done to officers
t he navy charged with non-observance of the rules of
the Admiralty, in consequence of the great delay which
toc,k place in the holding of courts-martial.
Colonel FOX said he did not think it quite in order
fir the Hon. Member to bring forward a subject which
ocerirred fourteen years ago without notice, and when
the "Board of Admiralty had just entered into the per-
torn lance of their duties.
Admiral DUNDAS said that, if the lion.:Mem)Jer
Ivo uld move for any papers with reference to thet",ans-
fiction, he would be happy to furnish them to the rsi
ouse.
Mr. WILLIAMS said that he was imputing blasne to no
vermin whatever in the matter. He was merely 'stating facts
"which he called upon the Government to disprove. The Hon.
:Member then alluded to the case of anottirr court-martial,
Nwhich had been held contrary to the rules 'of the Admiralty,
upon Lieutenant Bridge ; the: result of wh4,cls was that the young
.officer was dismissed from his ship in a, manner which was per-
fectly illegal. All he -wanted was, thee, there should be some
check upon these presceeclines, and that with reference to the
sentence of courts..martial, the navy should be placed upon the
same footing ast'se army.
An Host. ItY_earea ls. here moved that the House be counted.
Strangers. were then ordered to withdraw. There were,
however, 40 Members present.
Upset. our re-admission to the gallery, we found Mr.
'WII-1..1.AN1S on his legs, still addressing the House upon the
subijerst of the navy. The Hon. Member then said that he had
to apologise for trespassing so long on the attention of the
riotase. He would not have done so upon ant; other subject
than the present.
Mr. WARD was quite surprised to hear the speech of the
Iflon. Member. He had quoted the cases of two abuses fo
:authority, which occurred thirteen and sersn years ago, as
reasons why the whole system should be eh-Aged. He should
only say that the subject should receive tise early consideration
of her Majesty's Government.
Captain BERKELEY said that t
s. much worse than had been referred
;ne case referred to was
to by the Hon. Member.
The crew of the vessel had kickei. up a row" with ti.e Turks,
and they were taken by 'ASS Turkish authorities, and
brought to the Commodore's enip, where the case was inquired
into by the captain in pres epee of the lieutenant.
Sir S. COCKBURN said that the statement of the Hon.
Member—that there ..as no appeal from the sentence of a
court-martial—was.. incorrect. As to courts-martial not being
competent auttssisties, he admitted that they were not so
learned in the lesw as the barristers and judges of Westminster-
hall. They were courts of honour, as well as courts of law.
There w'sre a number of quirks, and catches, and flaws, which
were treaen advantage of in the one case, but were not allowed in
the other ; and with reference to the case of Lieut. Bridge, it was
snowed that he had insulted the Vice-Consul, but upon his re-
turn home the Admiralty considered the case, re-instated him
to lois position, and gave him the command of a ship. The
14 on. Member was only incorrect in his statement that the Ad-
rniralty had sent out a ship with a post-captain, in order to
'complete the number necessary for a court-martial, for it so
happened that there were enough captains on the station; and
as a proof there were enough, the captain of that ship did not
sit upon the court-martial at all. He warned them not to
meddle with the discipline of the navy.—(Hear, hear.)
Captain PECHELL reprobated the present system as
pursued in the navy. When a court martial is held at the
present time, the parties are sent few to the captain's cabin,
and the evidence is taken down by the clerk, but the accused
is not allowed to be present. Sisch was the course pursued in
the case which was alluded to 'by the Right Hon. Gentleman,
and it could not be denied but that it was the source of the
greatest hardship.
Sir CHARLES NAXIEIs said that he had always under- k
stood that there existed a. great superiority in courts-martial as
held in the navy to those in the army.—( Hear, hear.) In
the one case the r
sccused was kept in confinement until the
sentence was esanfirmed by the Commander-in-Chief, and
whether the party was condemned or acquitted, he was obliged
to remain i 4 'confinement until the sentence came back ; and
more ths-4 that, the Commander-in-Chief had a power to order
that a rele.sion of the sentence should take place. Well, what
a pow er was that to place in the hands of any person.—( Hear,
hear.,_) But such was not the case in the navy.—(Hear, hear.)
COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY.
`The House then went into a Committee of Supply.
On the vote of 154,9381. for defraying the expenses of the
disembodied militia in Great Brita'n and Ireland,
Mr. HUME thought the militia should be put on a proper
footing or disbanded altogether, and wished to know whether
the Bill referred to some time ago by a Right Hon. Member of
the late Government was to be proceeded with for the regula-
tion of the militia, or what was to be done ?
Mr. FOX MAULE said that the present Government did
not intend to adopt that Bill, but the whole question would be
inquired Into, and steps taken to place the militia in a complete
state of efficiency.
Mr. WILLIAMS expressed a hope that something would be
done to make the body efficient.
Captain HARRIS said, that if the militia were not placed
in an effective condition by the present Government, a Select
Committee of the House should be appointed to ascertain what
steps should be taken for that purpose.
The vote was then agreed to.
80,8004 was voted to defray the superannuation allowances
of persons formerly employed in the public service.
5,5001. was voted for the pensions of the Dutch officers'
widows.
The following voter were also agreed to :-
I'Bsol. for the National Vaccine Institution, 3,0001. for the
:Refuge of the Destitute, and 11,5001. for the subsistence of the
Polish refugees.
On the vote of 7,0511. for the purpose of defraying various
small expenses chargeable upon the revenue of the Crown,
Mr. WILLIAMS objected to the grant of 40/. charged for
the purpose of granting gowns to a class of persons subsisting
on charity, and called bedemen. He wished to know whether
the charge was a permanent one, and if so he should object .
to it.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that the
grant was formerly made by Charles the Second, and it was
chargeable on the revenues of the Crown. The sum was for-
merly 108/., and it was now only 40/, so that it was on the
decline.
Mr. HUME did not see why Charles 11. bad a right to make
any perpetual grant. He had gray ted to the Duke of Rich-
mond the sum of Is. on the duty on coals, and the Government
were afterwards ohligid to buy it up for 795,0001., giving a
revenue of 19,5001. to the Duke of Richmond.
The vote was then agreed to, as were also
The sum of 3,1721., to defray the expenses of the Dublin
Foundling Hospital; 13,226/. to defray the expenses of the
House of Industry ; 1,000/. to defray the expense of the Female
Orphan House.
2,5001 to defray the expenses of the Westmoreland Locke
Hospital.
The following votes were next as to :-
1,000/. for the Lying-in Hospital, Dublin.
1,500/. for St. Stephen's Hospital, Dublin.
1,5004 for the House of Recovery, Dublin.
5001. for the Hospital of Incurables, Dublin.
5,700/. for certain Protestant Divinity Ministers in Ireland
(the regium donum).
3,400/. for the expenses of the Commission appointed to
digest the Criminal Statutes.
35,0001. for the execution of Public Works in Ireland.
7361. for the expenses of the Shannon Commission.
1,0001. for the repairs of the British Ambassador's house in
Paris. After a few words from Mr. WILLIAMS, who thought
the Ambassador was paid well enough to pay for his own re-
pairs, was also r.greed to.
The following votes were then agreed to :-
12,000/. for completing the building of the British Ambas-
sador's house at Constantinople.
50,000/. to defray the expenses of steam navigation to India
by way of the Red Sea.
15,500/. to pay the British volunteers in Canada.
364,801/. to defray the expenses of the commissariat de-
partment.
32,400'. for half-pay pensions in the commissariat de-
partment.
The House then resumed, and the report was ordered to be
brought up on Monday next.
JOINT-STOCK BANKS (SCOTLAND AND IRE-
LAND) BILL.
The report on this Bill was brought up and agreed to,
SPIRIT LICENSE AND DUTIES BILL.
This Bill went through Committee.
The House resumed, and the report was ordered to be
brought up on Monday.
COURT OF COMMON PLEAS BILL.
On the motion of Sir GEORGE GREY, this Bill was
read a second time, and the Bill was ordered to be committed.
The Burial Service Bill was read a third time and passed.
ASSESSED TAXES.
On the motion of Si DE LACY EVANS, a copy of the
List of Defaulters in payment of Assessed Taxes for the year
1815, ending the sth day of April, 1846, and payable (in
order to election qualification) on or before the 20th day of
July, 1846, or two following days, furnished in compliance
with the 12th section of the Act 6 Vic., e. 18, by the asses-
sors or collectors in the City of Westminster ; and, if any
reasons for non-receipt of these taxes in each or any case can
be assigned, the same to be stated; and similar copies of the
same list for the City of London, and boroughs of Finsbury,
Brighton, and Southampton, were ordered to be laid before
the House.
The following Bills were brought in by Sir W. SOMER-
VILLE, and severally read a first time, and ordered to be
read a second time on Monday.
Bill to continue an Act to amend the laws relating to Loan
Societies.
Bill to continue the exemption of inhabitants of parishes, town-
ships, and villages, from liability to be rated as such, in re-
spect of stock in trade, or other property, to the relief of the
poor.
Bill to continue the Copyhold Commission.
Bill to continue certain Turnpike Acts.
Bill to continue an Act for authorising the application of high-
way rates to turnpike roads.
The other orders of the day were then disposed of, and the
House adjourned at a Quarter to Twelve o'clock.

CONSECRATION OF PADDINGTON CHURCH.—On Fri-
day morning the Bishop of London consecrated the new
radert,_cleiadi.catehd to the Holy. Trinity, in the Bishop's-road,
perpendicular
sTottivautrch is an elegant structure, in the
and is a great
ytle of the period of Henry the Sixth,
hood. It has been erect:Z a rapidly improving neighbour-
cos.t of 13,0004 exclusive of
orsamental work. The It t
rated by the Bishop to the irk'atity ILA, has been nomi-
ZoT Yesterday
STEAM-BOAT COLLISION oN
oui:it:
morning, about eleven, a violent c
two Greenwich steamboats, one of the Wateriatltrgen
and the Syren. The steamers were proceeding, with ,anY
sengers, in opposite directions, between London and %tali-
wark-bridges, when the steamers came in collision with great
force, throwing the passengers from their seats on the
decks in the greatest state of fright and alarm ; the Water-
man steam-boat was immediately stranded on the banks
of the Surrey side of the river, and most fortunately it was
low water at the time, or she would have filled and sunk,
and, probably, occasioned loss of life. The Syren was driven
out to the middle of the river; several of the small steam-
boats immediately came up to the assistance of the passen-
gers and took them on board; and from the eagerness
great that it was with great
of the passengers to get off the Syren, occasioned by the ac-
cident, the rush was so
difficulty that many personswere that
from falling into
the river; but, notwithstanding the great fright and confusion
which prevailed, and the sudden collision that took place, no
lives were lost. Both the steamers are very much damaged.
PUBLIC BATHS AND WASIIHOUsEB.--The com-
mittee for the formation of public baths and washhouses in
the north-west district of London.
have announced their
intention to open their establishment in George-street,
Euston-square, on Monday next. The prices fixed on are
such that there will be few who cannot avail themselves of
the conveniences which have been provided for them by
voluntary contributions. There is a first, second, and third
class of baths, cold, warm, shower, and vapour. The third
class, for men or women, will be only one penny for cold or
shower, and twopence for warm or vapour baths. In the
washing department, a
itub, boiler, hot and cold water, dry-
ing-machine, mangle, rwis, &C., may be and for two
burs at the charge Qt. tyropeace.