The Sun.
London, England, 1856-05-09 00:00:00

had the war continued, we should have heard of their
rendering most efficient and useful aid. He would avoid
all topics of controversy, and therefore say nothing of
the original formation of those foreign legions. But with
regard to their present position and their future pros-
pects, whatever objections there might have been to the
manner in which they were originally raised, he was cer-
tain there would be but one opinion that, the war bay-
ing been now closed, those foreign troops ought to be
dealt with liberally and generously. (Cheers.) They
had come forward to assist the British Government in
its hour of difficulty, and many of them would have ex-
posed themselves to consequences and placed themselves
in aposition more or less inconvenient and unpleasant to
themselves ; their relations with their own country had
been to a great extent interfered with by their enlisting
in our service. How we might be able to dis-
pose of them it was not for him (Lord Derby) to say,
but he did say that the country would approve and
would expect that they should be dealt with liberally by
ur Government. (Cheers.) There was another service
to which their lordships' attention had been called.
He meant that of those English country gentlemen
who, sacrificing their own private affairs, their domestic
ease and comfort, had exposed themselves to all the in-
conveniences and privations which were attached to ac-
tive service ; and those men who, having enlisted in the
first instance only for a casual and very temporary ser-
vice, within their own immediate neighbourhood, had
cheerfully responded to each successive demand upon
them, had been in embodied service, had cheerfully left
their homes and country, and efficiently supplied the
place of the regular troops in foreign garrisons, thereby
adding materially to the number of our forces at the
seat of war ; and he would venture to say that they
would have been only too happy, if her Majesty bad
thought fit to accept the tender of their further services,
and permitted them to share the perils and the glories of
war along with the regular troops, instead of acting in a
subordinate position. (Cheers.) He trusted that, now
he war was over, now that we had proved the efficiency
of the militia, when we had been enabled by this instru-
mentality to raise not less than 100,000 men, of whom
30,000 men had been already draled into the regular
army, and between 60,000 and 70,000 more remained, a
large proportion of whom, if the war had continued,
would no doubt have gone on to feed the army—he trust-
ed that we should not be in haste to dispense with the
services of that most valuable assistance to our military
force. (Cheers.) He knew that in time of peace we
could not keep those militia regiments permanently em-
bodied, nor did he think it desirable that we should do
so, but he trusted that we should not fall into the error
which had been committed on former occasions, of suf-
fering the staff and organisation of those regiments to
fall altogether into disuse and inefficiency ; that we
should not neglect to keep up, at all events, such a nu-
cleus of each regiment as might be called out every year,
or every two years, for a certain period of service, so
that the whole skeleton of the militia system might be
always ready to be filled up and completed whenever
occasion should arise, and so that we might keep alive
amongst the men the habits of discipline which had been
now acquired, and the military feeling which bad been
engendered, by the short period of service which they
had undergone. He quite agreed with the noble lord
the Minister of War, that both as to the militia and the
regular army it would be very false economy to do away
hastily with that which had now been established. Re-
ductions on a large scale must undoubtedly take place,
but whatever reductions were made in the numbers, let
U 3 keep up the efficacy of the system—let us keep the
organisation complete, and improve it —let us keep the
men and the regiments of our army, not as a mere
agglomeration of men and regiments, as they were at
the commencement of the war, but as a regularly organ-
ised, though not a numerous army, formed in brigades
and divisions, and habituated to act together, so that
whenever we should again be at war, numbers might be
all that we should then require. These numbers we might
depend upon it the spirit of the country would always
aff )rd ; but to make numbers effective and available, it
was necessary that we should have a complete organisa-
tion, and officers who were accustomed to act together,
and acquainted practically with the working of that sys-
tem by which, in time of peace, a model would be repre-
seater', on a miniature scale, of the organisation of an
effective army. (Cheers.) He would not detain their
lordships any longer, but he cordially agreed, as the
house and country unanimously would agree, in the vote
of thanks which had been proposed.
The Duke of CAMBRIDGE felt that, as he belonged
to the army, it would ill become him to add one word to
what had been said en both sides of the house, as to the
conduct of this war ; but, as having been present in seine
of the glorious scenes of the campeign—(cheers)---and
having been a witness of the hardships to which bete
officers and men were exposed in it, he might be permit-
ted to ray, that those hardships were borne with a cheer-
fulness and with an endurance which had reflected credit
on every individual of the men who were so circum-
stanced ; and he knew that it hal required all the energy
of mind and body, both for men in high position and for
the men in the lower grades ef the army, to go through
what that army bad to endure in November and Decem-
ber, 1854. (Hear.) And he was quite sure that all those
who had survived that portion of the campaign---that all
those who had gone through it and were now alive—
would feel grateful t their lordships for the compliment
which was now so handsomely and liberally paid them.
There was one tribute he was anxious to pay, and which
especially was what he had risen now to do. Allusionhad
been made to the services of the navy. It was correct, as
had been stated by his noble friend, that the navy—and
he alluded now to the navy in the Black Sea--had not
those opportunities of distinguishing themselves which
were given to the army; but the cause of that was that the
enemy, as hail been correctly stated, did not cheese to
come into collision with our navy. Wherever an op-
portunity was afforded to them, th-y had Len but too
anxious, too zealous, and tie de.lirous to avail them-
selves of it. having hirneelf seen the manner in which
the navy went into action on the 17th of October,
1851, before Selmitopol, he was sure that tiwate who
were engaged in that operation deserved and fully me-
rited the thanks of the house. But ferher, he could as
a witness assure their lordships that the services ren-
dered by tie navy to the army had been such that,
without the navy, and without their cordial assistance,
we could never have arrived at that happy result which
had been so fortunately attained. From the admirals
to the lowest grade in the navy, everybody had worked
zealously to supply the wants of the army ; and those
wants, it was well known, were indeed very pressing.
He thought that, if nothing (thee had resulted from this
war than the great cordiality and good feeling which
now existed between the two services, and this hearty
co-operation between them, it was a moot fortunate re-
sult ; and, on the part of the army, he gladly availed
himself of that opportunity of expressing his thanks to
the navy for their assistance. One more circumstance
he would allude to regarding the militia. He certainly
was delighted to find that the militia had not been
omitted in the thanks now given; for no doubt, although
they did not actually join in the operations of the war,
he was sere, from various. circumstances, that there
were many militia regiments which would have willingly
gone out as a body, and have joined the army ; and, no
doubt, the fart of those militia regiments volunteering
when they did was of the greatest assistance to her Ma-
jesty's Government, and of the greatest usefulness to the
country, as it enabled all those regiments which were
then in the 'Mediterranean to be fora girded to the seat
of war, and tat at a moment when matters were very
pressing. He therefore most cordially joined in the
hanks to the militia for their services, and having him-
self seen many of the militia regimeuta, he might be
permitted t ) assure the house that, with the exception
of their uniform, he should hardly hxvr, known, in many
instances, the militia reeiment from a regular regim-nt.
The Earl of CARDIGAN as a humble menebsr of the
army express, d the satisfaction wtich he was sure every
officer must feel at receiving this vote of thanks. He
would also add his tribute of respect to the late Lord
Raglan, that distinguished general under whom he
served, and under whose co.nmand all the great victories
and glories aequire,l by our army were gained. He
deeply regretted that node lord hod not lived to see the
reward of all his great services in the restoration of
peace. He was perfectly satisfied that there never was
a finer army than the British army which now et iod in
the Crimea, with regard to it; numbers, Pa discipline,
is organisation, and its efficiency. He would say, as he
believed with all their lordship', that tie viewed the re-
storation of peace with satisfactien ; he believed that
the war had beee carried on with vi tour by the G )vere-
meet, and that the peace was a safe and honourable one.

Earl GRANVILLE, complimenteel the illuatrieus
duke, who had himself c mtributed in no small degree to
the success of the war by sharing the hardships of the
soldier. He (Eitrl Granville) rose on the part of her
Majesty's Government to express their sincere thanks
to the noble earl (Earl of Derby) for the useful and elo•
quent speech he had just made ; not for any political ad-
vantage which it gave to the Government, but because
it showed the two services
that whatever betided in that
house they were safe from, party conflicts, and that they
might rely
confessed
grateful feeling
upon the
(Earl Granville) s of all parties. He
his speech was most!f.
esrseedfthat he thought that part of
graceful ont the part of the noble
lord when be spoke
joined this country because gallant foreigners who had
believedbs the war to be
a just one ; and he thought it they
ot:tst useful
.oto
the country to see the course pursued onmt
opposed
by those who were usually
of the noble earl
Government. In one point the speech
strengthened the hands of the Government—
regarded the disbanding of the army. Be believed as
views of Lis noble friend at the head of the W„ Dee the
ment were, not to encourage lavish expenditure, Jtar:o.
keep up an armed force which the wants of the county
did not require, but to keep up, at the least expenei,
that organisation which could best be developed if war
should again occur.
Earl GREY gave hit+ cordial assent to the vote before
the house, hut be could not concur in the spirit of his
noble friend's concluding obsereatioes. He was, be con-
fessed, alarmed when be heard hie noble friend, express
a hope that the house would not let the military power
of this country fall into the state it was on the last peace
on a view of false economy. He thought it was a wise
eeonomy, on the contrary ; for it was that which had
mainly contribnted to the success of the late war. He
(Earl Grey) had been always of opinion, however, that
the army had not been kept up in the manner it ought
during the peace ; but that the grants made by Parlia-
ment for the purpose were sufficiently liberal if properly
applied. That which was most remarkable in the war,
and which must have lid the effect of convincing Russia
of the impolicy of continuing it, was the extraordinary
resources,of this country, than which nothing was more
marvellous. These resources arose chiefly from the
wealth aectimtelated, and the science and skill developed
during the long peace, through the policy he had de-
scribed. Large vessels,. proof against artillery of the
heaviest character, had, beemoonstructed in three months,
and all through the Policy in question. The policy of
Russia had been, on the contrary, to prevent the growth
of prosperity in the nation, by keeping up an enormous