The Sun.
London, England, 1856-03-05 00:00:00

,5. -.1856.

with pureliiiiie Wahl', re.eriely the evil The
-would still remain, if officers could nut pie elreee shetild
their 'preferment bo pr,Odded for? It wee :slid that by
abolishieg purchase they would-alter the class from which
lhelr'regiments were officered. He did not think this
would happera, and he should be sorry to see it heppen. In
a country like this, whore institutions ware so free, no in-
centives to obedience come be spared ; and, the men who
were generally selected from the peasantry obeyed more
readily au officer whom they looked upon as a gentleman,,
in the navy there was no porch ise, but the officers of the
navy wore of the eaine class as those ref the , army—there
might, perhaps, be more sons of peers in the cavalry than
in other regiments. A system of selectiOngrowu up in the
navy whereby teen were selected from the top while seni-
ority prevailed at the bottom. But there were important
differencesi between the army and the navy. The latter
was not only a. fighting but a navigating b itly ; and it was
the same in peace as iu war. The case was totally dif-
ferent with the army; therefore the analogy did not hold.
Looking at the necessity of. the system of purchase, or
something in lien of it, and admitting the great inconve-
nience of intr,ducing a class of men who never gave their
minds to the profession, he very much oabted whether a
man ought to become a captain by purchase. Seeing the
large sums which were given for some ranks. sufficient to
shock the public mind, he thought it would be an advan-
tage upon the whole if purchase was put an end to. He
was a warm advocate for the educeti .n of officers, not so
much as a test of fitness as a means of training them.
That might be done either with or without purchase. He
certainly deprecated the handing over of this subject to
a committee of that house, for, in his opinion, there were
not anon& hen, members qualified to fol'ow the matter in
all its details, so as to work out a setisfactoa; conclusion.
He thought that a mixed commission composed both of
Civilians and military men would be very much better
adapted to meet the end in view—viz., the reformetion of
tho present system. Some hon. members considered the ap-
p.iintment of a commission as tantamount to a shelving of
the whole affair. Ha would, however, call tee attention of
the house to the fact that the last commission which was
appointed had altered the system of promotion, and had
otherwise effected greater reforms in the army than had
been introduced fora century previous. He trusted that
the Government would consent to a commission, and that
the lain. and gallant member (Sir De Lacy Evans) would,
if they did so, withdraw his amendment in favour of such
a proposal.
Lord PALMERSTON said—The question which we aro
now considering is one which has occupied the attention of
the public at iarge, and which uru-t have forced itself on
the serious consideration of all who have turned their at-
tention to military matters. Now, sir, I confess that fur
my own part my opinion in the abstract is against the sys-
tem of purchase. It is a system which nobody would pro-
pose to establish in any army now about to be created for
the first time. It is a system which exists only in the Bri-
tish army. It has no existence iu the navy; it does not ex-
ist in the artillery, it only exists by a sort of evasion in
the East India Company's service, and it exists in uo
reign army, I believe, iu the world. Hence, in the abstract
one's predisposition is against the continuance of the sys-
tem. But, on the other hand, it must be admitted that a
system which has existed so long as the system of purchase
in the British army is so interwoven with the arrangements
of that great establishment that it would, even graireiug an
iintnediatedesire to abolish it, require veryinattire considera-
tion to. determine how that stet) was to be effected, and
we must naturally expect to be met by great difficulties; '
and furthermore, it cannot be denied that the present
system—whether in itself good or bad—has by process of
time become associated with circumstances advautegeous
in some degree to the army in which it has grown up.
The evil which is always felt in an army where. promotion
goes by seniority is that there is accumulattel iti the higher
ranks of that army a great number of neon who, by age or
circumstances, are unfitted for the active discharge of the
ditties which belong to their station ; and, in order to avoid
that difficulty, in most of the coutinental armies arrange-
ments have been made for putting on the retired list officers
who have arrive at a certaiu rank aud attained a certain
age. Unless that is dune the army becomes overcrowded
in its higher ranks with offieere unfitted fer active duty,
and this was a greet evil inseparable from every army
where promotion by purchase does not exist. As my hon.
friend (Mr. Peel) has already clearly and fully explained,
the operatiou of the system of purchase is, that it relieves
the army front those who by age or infirmity are no longer
able to fulfil their duties,. and it, therefore accelerates the
current of promotion, and recruits the higher ranks with
men( younger, more active, and more able to perform the
duties which fall to their position. If, then, the system
of purchase wer tebolist ese difficulties would arise. In the
first 'lace some other system anus, be establishea by which
the saute :street is to be produced, that is to say, an arrange- e
silent must be devised by which officers who by age or in-
firmity have grown unfit for active duty should be remove
removed under conditions consonant with the services
which they have perforrned. Such a course must neces-
sarily involve some exPenee to the• country. lam quite
ce.tain, sir, that the country would not grudge any rea-
sewed., expense for such a purpose. Agsiu, these officers
who beve parches d their cewiaissione• must in some way
or other receive compeusatiou for the auras which tney
have expended; that w.,uld br an arraargement attended
with a very considerable expense. I doll% mean to say tb t
it would not be distributed over a long peeled of tisra , cud
it is pessible—indeed, I should thinkthet, if an adequate
it-rat:argument were proptieed, neither this house cbr the
country would be inclined to refuse to make the necessary
provision for such a plirpose, so long as they were assured
that such a stop Would be for the efficiency of the army. I
cannot, however, but think that some of the arguments
which have been used have boon a little overstraiued. Idea
not see in what way the system of purchase would preclude
you from ascertaining by examination that those desiring
commissions are competent to the duties of their profession.
I cannot for the life of me.understaud why you are not en-
titled to examine and require a certain amouut of cowpe-
;ency from an officer who buys his easigecy as well as from
cue to whom you give that ensigncy. Neither do I think
the system of purchase, jointly with an examination, would
alter the character and composition of the rank hem which
)ur officers a, o taken. Tentirely agree with the right hon.
4entletnan. (Mr. S. Herbert) —and it is useless to disguise
the opinion—that it is desirable the 13, itish army should be
Mitered, as a rule, by geutlernen—(hoar) —although en
loubt there are cases in which 'persons from the ranks may,
by singular merit and distinguished service, befitted to rise
GO the higher ranks of their profession. Indeed I think that,
generally speaking, in all armies it is the upper classes who
ire put to lead the lowere'and that it very seldom happens
,hat persons in the lower classes rise with comfort to them-
selves to a rank for which their previous position has not
iitted them. I think the house seems pretty well agreed that
the matter is one which ought to be iuquired into— (hear)—
and that it ought to be inquired into with a view of ascer-
taining whether some change could not be made in the inte-
rest of the service and of the public. Nov I agree with my
right hon. friend in his opinion that a committee of this
house is not the best instrument for conducting such an in-
fuiry. (Hear.) At the outset we are met by the fact that ihe
inquiry ought to be directed, not simply to the practice in
he British army, not simply to considerations purely eon
netted with our •own arrangementiabut, in order t, lay
the matter fully open for c msideration, that the body to
whom the inquiry is entrusted should ascertain whet has
been done ire other Europe in. armies. This i-i a kind of
duty which can be far better underteen by a commission
than by a committee. Slndeed my hon. and gall-tnt friend
who made this motion (Sir De L. Eve's), if I understood
him rightly, seemed a the conclusion of his speech dis-
posed, if her Majesty's Government would appoint a coin-
.nission, to waive his own proposal fir a committee. lam
quite rea ly to adopt that course - (hear)—and it' my ho
and gallant friend will therefore waive the motion which
he has made, I wit
,undertake, on the part of her Me-
jesty's Government, that a mixed commission, co sistin‘
~artly of civilians and partly of military men, sisal oe ao-
,ointed to pursue the inquiry, which was; iueee f, com-
mence t by the former commissioners, but was nst con-
ended by them, as they thought the terms of their com-
mission did trot extend to this subject. I should hope,
therefore, that after the discussion which has taken place
ny hon. and gallant friend will be content to leave the in-
quiry to be pursued by the commissioners in the way which
have suggested. (Hear.)
Sir DE L. EVAN'S hail listened with much pleasure to
the statements which had been made by the noble lord,
and, after what had fallen from him, ens willing te, accede
to his proposal and withdraw the present motion. He had
its° been greatly pleased with much which had fallen front
ihe right hon. gentl- man behind him (Mr. S. lierliert)
Hon. members opposite no doubt thought him (Sir De L.
Evans) a great Radical,: but he could assure them that he
unite concurred with the right Lon. gentlemen (.:Ar. S.
aerbed) in thinking that the army should be officered by
the class out of which its officers were at present chosen.
(Hear.) He had a high opinion of the gallantry of that
class, but he was anxious to see those who composed it go
into the army as a serious and important profession, and
not join it as a mere pastime. (Hear.) He could not
doubt but that our aristocracy, to their honour, would not
shrink from a system of examination. (Hear.)
The motion was then withdrawn.
TITHE COMMUTATION RENT:CHARGE.
Mr. R..PHILLIMORE obtained leave to brin in a bill
to regulate parochial settlements and to provide for itjuster
and more uniform rating of tithe commutation rent-charges
to the relief of the poor.
BLEACHING, &C., WORKS.
Lord J. MANNERS, on the pelt of Mr. Butt, obtained
leave to bring in a till to regulate the employment of
women and young persons in bleaching works.
TEA. DUTIES. •
Mr. MACARTNEY moved fer a select committee to in-
quire into the `alictimitenc s attendenfnpotitaking a large
quantity of tea duties out of bend oc the day whet' the
Chancellor of the Exchequer presented his budget of last
year, and which gave rise to the suspicion that some per-
sons in the Reveeue-office had givei. information.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER ridiculed
the idea on which this metier] was founded.
The motion was negatived without a division.
ANNEXATION IN INDIA.
Sir E. PERRY moved for some returns connected with
the annexation of Indian territories, in the course of which
he condemned the annexatiori of Oade.
Mr. V. SMITH had no objection to the returns, and re-
fused to enter into the question of Oude till the whole
papers on the Subject were ready to be laid before the
house.

After some remarks from Mr. OTWAY against the policy
of anntfiation, anti from Mr. KINNATRD, in defence of the
Goverhor-Gcneial. the returns were agreed to.
APPaLATE JURISDICTION OF' THE HOUSE OF
LORDS.
Mr. BOWYER postponed his motion on this Subject to
a future day.

C

F. `i

PA NI ES" SI'OOK

From the Official List.

(i~~ci
i-

PURI,I3HED EVERY FUE-41.A.Y ADD FRIDAY EVENI.N
LONDON, TUESDIY, MA.r.ca t, 1856.

GAS-LIBUT AND COKE COMPANIES.

leul amount
Plama,of Con2pany. I per of
Arift:llll. Slutte.

71.
51.
4. 1)5

s.

.•
Ditto !.-roviiirlai
rtrighton • •• •• •.
;ity of London •• •. to
(;ontinental (4th Cap.) . 10 '4.)
Equitable •• .• 21..105. 5,.) 0
iteat Central a/ per cent 13 0 0
Imperial .. • • 10, & .onus. 50 0 0
Independent ....• 5/ 40 4 o
London.. •••• •• 50 0 0
Do., Patl. Preferene.e 6. per cent. 25 ,^.•
Pco ix . •........... 4. poi' cent. 60
datcliff „ . 01. 100
United ,4eneral 10s. 50
Arestininster, hartered 4a per een^
Ditto, New •

20 0

aid, - Pric,

name of Company.

s. it

/0 0 0 204
2, 0 0 15
itio a

20 0'
all
all 11;4
all 85

o 16.
all

(;

0 10

WATER-W. diKS.

Dividend Amount
per of • Paid
Annum. hare.

.£ s. it. s. d.
East Londoti -
Grand Junction .... 4 . Der ent. 50 0 0 ail
Kent

Lamhetl.
New River Chnnpany .. 2 IN.
•outhwa: & Vauxhall A' per cnt.
West 31v4(11esex 5/. per cent.

Name of Company.

Flunt;erf'ord....••

Name of Compamy.

Pric«

100 0 n

100,0 0
61 a 0

BRIDGES.

Dividend Amount
per; ' of
Annum. Atiare.

Fait' . I Price

Le s. d
_

lastralasla.....

North American 51.
Commercial of London, -10'
Colonial

8. d

Paid

Pr c.

X s. A.
all

10nian.............. 6

20 0 0
25 0 0
25 0 0

bond. Char. }3Y., o.` ALM.

50 0 0
40 0 0

ail 0
20 0 0
20 0 0
10 0 0
25 0 0
all
22 10 0
35 0 0
1.) 0 0