The Sun.
London, England, 1856-10-03 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES.

Sir,—ln my letter to you, which you have suppressed,
I said that, while.declining the honour of fighting the
battle of Printing•house-square, I was ready to substan-
tiate my statement of the fate Lord Hardinge's part in
the battle of Albuera.

Col. Wade's authority has been adduced ; but Col.
Wade's letter was published in 1841, by Sir LowryCole,
together with a correspondence between himself, Lord
Hardinge, and myself, in which the whole matter in
dispute was discussed, and Lord Hardinge's pretensions
were vindicated. It is for his representatives, there-
fore, to sustain his cause ; but as they cannot be expect-
ed, and ought not to be called upon, to sustain such a
controversy in their present affliction, and while their
father's body remains unburied, I will show that Colonel
Wade's letter is not nacn e conclusive now than it was years
ago ; that is to say, not conclusive at all. However, be
it first remarked, that your writer has fathered upon me
a military ignorance which belongs to himself. I never said
Lord Hardinge " executed a manoeuvre" which Rained
the day, but that he urged an attack I Very different
things. Now for my statement.
All that I have published abort Lord Hardinge at
Albuera came from himself, and was given to me ex-
pressly for my history. Col. Wade could not know what
passed between Col. Hardinge and Lord Beresford ; he
could not even be sure of what passed between Col. Har.
dings and Sir Lowry Cole. Now, long after my third
volume was published, Sir L. Cole—whom I knew from
childhood—was met by me in the street, and asked to
write a letter giving his version of the Albuera affair.
This he refused; saying it was of no consequence, and I
found his only objection was that he had not been " or-
&red." This would be enough, it so much ignorance did
not prevail as to the essential difference between the
merits of Lord Hardinge's part and Sir L. Cole's part in
the battle.

Lord Hardinge's great merit was not so much the con-
ception of pushing the 4th division and Abercrombie's
brigade into renewed action, but in the resolution not
to let Marshal Beresford's desponding view of the
crisis prevail. He saw the battle might•still be won, if
all the spare troops were pushed on, arid decided for
Beresford that it should be so ; but it was "neck or
nought," and, had it been nought, Beresford's better
judgment would have been justly extolled.
Sir L. Cole, yielding to urgent exhortations, executed
one part of Hardinge's conception, as Col. Abercrombie
did the other parts, and with both it was an intrepid
resolution—with Cole morally so, as well as physically.
He had been posted with positive orders at an important
point ; he was menaced by an enormous body of cavalry ;
he could not see the exact state of the battle on the hill
above, but he knew it to be almost desperate for the
allies ; he could not know what reserves Soult had in
hand ; he could not be sure that an infantry column
would not sweep round the hill and join the cavalry, to
fall on his right flank. Yet with all these dangers star-
ing him in the face, he mounted the bill to attack more
than double, it might be three times, his own numbers,
supported by a powerful artillery, and already half vic-
torious. It was a great action, and so was Hardinge's
stroke of genius for which he has been long and justly
eulogised. W. NAPIER, Lieut.• General.
Sept. 29, 1856.

TLIE LATE P. M. VISCOUNT BARDINGE.

GENERAL ORDER.
HORSE GUARDS, Oct. 2,
The Queen desires to make known to the army her
sincere grief at the loss of that great and eminent soldier,
Field-Marshal Viscount Hardinge.
A few weeks only have elapsed since, yielding to the
request of the Field• Marshal, whose health had given
way under the arduous duties of his office, the Queen
reluctantly accepted his resignation of the chief command
of her army.
The a,siduous labour of a long public and eventful
career, during which Viscount Hardinge held some of
the highest offices of the State, terminated, too soon,
a life fertile iu resources, and of unwearied perseverance
and devotion to duty.
The Queen has a high and grateful sense of Lord
Hardinge's valuable and unremitting services, and in
his death deplcr,!s the loss of a true and devoted friend.
No Sovereign ever possessed a more honest and faithful
counsellor, or a more loyal, fearless, and devoted servant.
His Riyal Highness Commanding-ir•-Chief has the
gratification in publishing her Majesty's feelings and
sentiments (in which he sincerely participates) on this
melancholy occasion, and is confident that the army will
equally lament the lons of one whose whole mind was
applied to the promotion of their efficiency and welfare.
By command of his Royal Highness the General Com-
manding-iu-Chief.

G. A. WETHERALL) Adjutant• General.

The following circular was issued yesterday :
HORSE GUARDS, Sept. 25.
His Royal Highness the General Commanding-in-
Chief, with the view to relieve regiments from the great
expense now consequent on the necessity of employing
professed musicians (civilians) as wasters of bands, has
it in contemplation to recommend the establishment of a
large musical class as part of the education of boys sent
to the Royal Military Asylum, an& for the instrec!ion of
persons sent from regiments to qualify for bugle majors,
trumpet majors, and bandmasters, and where training
would require especial time and attention. .
No immediate benefit could be expected from the in-
stitution of such a class, but it may be reasonably hoped
that in a year or two many of the pupils would have
acquired sufficient skill to assist i❑ the work of instruc-
tion, and that after that period several would be eligible
for the situations named namely, bugle-major, trumpet.
major, and band-masters. A preliminary outlay of 5001.
or 6001. would be necessary for the supply of musical in-
struments ; andlit is calculated that 1,0001. per annum
would be afterwards necessary to maintain the class, in-
cluding the salary of the director, the necessary profes-
sors, and copying and arranging music, &c, repair of
instruments, and other incidental expenses.
There are now I]2 battalions of infantry and 26 regi-
ments of cavalry, exclusive of artillery, sappers, military
train, and 10 colonial corps. If every regiment would
pay an original subscription of Si. or Si. per annum to the
fund ample provision would be made for all expenses.
It is unnecessary to dilate on the expected advantages
of
,this proposition, but there is every reason to hope
that it will result in a great saving of expense to regi-
ments, awl tend to the permanent efficiency of regimen-
tal bands. His Royal Highness requests to be favoured
with your opinion on this subject.—l have, &c.,
G. A. WETHERALL, Adjutant-General.

The following circular-memorandum has been
issued to th© army at home and abroad :
HORSE GUARDS, Sept. 2G.
Commanding officers of regiments from the Crimea
will transmit, without delay, to the Adjutant• General
reports whether or not the men of their regiments are in
possession of their sha,koos, and, if not, to state in detail
the reasons for such, and the immures which have been
taken for obtaining them.

Commanding ()dicers of all regiments will send in a
report whether the equipment of their regiment is coin-
ptete and, it Po? E ta,+.o what articles are deficient,
and what are of now patterns and of old respectively.—
By command.
G. A. WETHERALL.

LECTURE AT KESWICK.—The Right Hon. J. Napier,
M.P., gave a very interesting lecture on Friday evening
last, in the new Lecture-hall, Keswick Mechanics' Insti-
tution. The subject of the lecture was " Labour and
Knowledge in connection with the Condition of the
Working Class." There .va4 a very respectable audience,
but only a thin attendance of mechanics, for whom the
lecture was specially intended.
An edition of the Dispatch will henceforth be pub-
lished every Friday, containing particulars of important
events, events, and price of the markets, funds, le"
up
Patt the
moment of going to press, and may be received
most distant parts of Scotland and Ireland h
Satur-
day. The pages of the Dispatch wilt be s
"al columns
to allow the introduction of nearly six
additional
in a new
in quantity, and the principal articles lyi-- i ht. clear type type that will not fatigue the N q
O-- r"auvertisement3
c.OOll the
as
Users, to insure the insertion of their
E.
in each of the four editions, should for yard them on
Thursday, or at latest before 10 o'cloc on Friday
morning. —Dispatch Office, 139, Fleft.fArce. '

" The operations of the year, although limited, with re-
ference to profit and loss upon the fire risks taken, have
been prosperous, and the comparative absence of losses dur-
ing the last nine months has been remarkable. The plate-
glass business of the company has been also most success-
condecled ; for although the competition has been
great, 4,(Q0 policies have been issued during the last year,
whilst from the prompt manner in which losses have been
paid, and the vigour with which new agencies have been
formed, the foundation has been laid for a business of the
most valuable kind ; and indeed, from this department alone,
placin g premiums against losses, young as is the business,
profits have been derived sufficient to replace the interest that
has been making efforts to obtain concessions from the Con-
tinent for the extension of the plate-glass business, and
agencies have been appointed for this purpose in Holland,
Belgium, France, and Northern and Southern Germaity. The
directors have succeeded in entering into agreements or con-
tracts with the following French fire companies, La Pater-
nelie, he Nor 1, Ls Confiance, and L'Etoile. By these con-
tr.icts your directors consent to take portions only of those
risks upon which the reassuring office is alsoplaced, and
upon which they keep at least an equal amount, and in
most
cases double the amount offered to this company. The direc-
tors have been taking risks from these offices now for the /list
twelve months, and have not yet in all that time had a sin glo
loss. Your directors, in seeking for the means of transacting
American business, made offers to the Beacon and to thy
Athenfeum fire companies for the purchase or amalgan Miens.
of the business already existing and business connections of
those companies, and aided by the ability and perseverance
of your manager, Mr. Sheridan, have succeeded in effecting
an amalgamation with the two offices referred to upon most
advantageous terms. The actual costin money has been com-
paratively small, the assets and liabilities of the two com-
panies very nearly balancing each other. The shareholders of
the purchased companies will have to sign the deed of this
company, taking the shares of this company with some few
exceptions at 7s. paid. The amount of capital required for
this purpose will be amply covered by the sum of 25,000(..
The number of a lditional shares for which your deed will have
to be signed to represent the above sum will beabout 60,000,
with in most cases a further responsibility thereon of 13s.
per share. The number of shares already signed for is 83,000.
The total number, therefore, when all the new shareholders
.hate signed wUI be 143,000 shikreholelersi* se-
tuely'signed for, with a responsibility-Of per share on
the bulk!of them. It will readily be seen, therefore, that the
directori were compelled to increase the capital of the com-
pany, for the purpose of admitting the 60,000 new shares,
and the directors thought, that instead of increasing the
capital to the amount actually required, it would be better to
increase the capital to the sum of 250,0001., inasmuch as the
directors anticipate a large demand for the shares of the com-
pany, and they cannot but admit that the larger the list of
shareholders the less the responsibility to each individual
shareholder, whilst the chances of new business from in-
creased connections are considerably augmented. These are
the. sole reasons for the call and the increase of capital, and
so far is the fact from their having been caused by m:sfor-
tunes or losses, that your directors, prior to the amalgama-
tions or purchases above referred to, could have repaid to
every shareholder 20s, in the pound, by dividing the assets of
the company, and the sum to be obtained by the sale of that
business. The directors point to this fact as a proof that the
shareholders' money has been judiciously expended, and that
the amount sunk in preliminary expenses could be easily rea-
lised. The income of the company is now estimated for the
ensuing year at the large sum of 50,0001, ; and if the expe-
rience of the past is to be relied upon, you have sow an
income which, after payino• losses and expenses, will not
only pay a much larger dividend than has yet been received
by the shareholders, but will also enable you to put by a
large sum annually as a reserve fund for future contingen-
cies. It will be necessary to invest the sum of 30,0001. in
Government securities, in order to compete successfully with
the great companies now doing fire business at home and
abroad, and which companies have made similar invest-
ments. For this purpose, should the new shares bo held
back, it is contemplated that •a,nother call of two shillings
per share will be necessary. In which case the call will be
made upon the shareholders of the three conjoined companies.
A call of two shillings per share will .produce about 13,0001,,
and your directors will have sufficient in hand, and already
invested, viz., 17,0001., to make up the sum to 30,0001. The
whole of this sum will be invested in approved stock, and not
one shilling of it will be used for any other purpose."
The CHAIRMAN, in a very effective speech, recapitu-
lated the 'mist salient points of the report, and concluded
by recommending that the same should be adopted.
Several questions were put by the proprietors as to
foreign business generally, which were satisfactorily re-
plied to by the managing director.
Deputations of directors and shareholders from the va-
rious local boards were in attendance to watch the inte-
rests of their constituents. Various inquiries were made
by them a 3 is the nature of the risks to be under-
taken, to which Mr. Sheridan replied in a manner
which seemed to remove any doubts which might
have existed in their minds.
Captain EDWARD MARSH, chairman of the Bath
Board, expressed his entire satisfaction with the state-
ment of the directors ; am did also the Chairman of th•
Southampton Board.
The CHAIRMAN then put the following resolution,
which was carried by acclamation :
"Resolved—That inasmuch as the number of share
holders required by the 13th clause of the deed of
settlemer.':, of this company in order to constitute
an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders
is now present, and inasmuch as the proper no-
tices of this meeting to increase the capital has been
issued to the shareholders, and inserted in the public
journals, and inasmuch as an increase on the capital of
this comps,ny is deemed expedient and necessary, the
same he, and i' hereby increased accordingly from the
sum of 100,0001. to the sum of 250,0001. And further,
that tile new capital be offered to the present sharehold-
' ers at the rate of ono share for every one share now held
by each such shareholder, all calls hitherto made having
been paid, but that each shareholder shall signify his
intention of taking such now shares within one month
from the date of the notice offering snob new shares."
It was stated that the income of the company was
50,0001, a-year.
The usual vote of thanks having been passed to the
chairman, the meeting was dissolved.