The Sun.
London, England, 1856-07-28 00:00:00

General in charge of the supply of an army' in the -field,
founded on his personal knowledge, derived on the spot, of
his wants and resources, it seems clear that the responsibility
of that officer must be at an end."
In coneliuling our observations on the case of Commissary-
General Vilder, wo think it desirable to advert to certain pas-
sages of the commissioners first Report, in which it is stated
thut they do not mean to infer, from their notice of arrange-
ments which appeared to them to be defective, that that offi-
cer, or the officers of his department, failed to make any ex-
ertion of which they were capable to provide for the exigen-
cies of the public service, and that it is hut just to direct at-
tention to the unusual nature of the duties required of them,
under the following adverse circumstances :-
1. The army occupied, as it were, a barren island.
2. The department was without a sufficient number of
hands.
3. A great disaster was occasioned by tempest.
4. There were constant difficulties in landing the vast sup-
plies required for a large army, owing to the peculiarities of
Bala.klava harbour; and,
5. They advert to the breaking up of the road to the front,
and the impossibility of sparing from their military duties a
sufficient number of men to make it practicable to commis-
sariat carts.
On this trying state of things the commissioners remark,
with direct allusion to Mr. Filder's management, that " a
man of comprehensive views might, probably, have risen
superior to these disadvantages, and created an organisation
suited to the circumstances."
It is difficult, however, to believe that any man of even
the highest inventive resources and administrative capacity
could have effectually provided for daily and ever-increasing
demands, many of which, extending as they did infinitely be-
yond the limits of all previous commissariat administration,
were not, and from their very nature, could not be foreseen.
It was a great aggravation of these evils that the question
of where the army was to winter could not be decided and
made known to Mr Fildertill only a very few days before the
weather broke, and his difficulties had commenced.
It is in evidence that ho used every means to obtain the
earliest information on this point, with the express view of
making timely arrangements.
On the whole, therefore, we aro of opinion that Commissary-
General Filder's conduct in the management of his depart-
ment was not, and is not, justly liable to the unfavourable
animadversion, either express or implied, which is conveyed
in the report of the commissioners t and we humbly submit
to your Majesty that he does not appear to us to be justly
responsible, as regards the supplies, for the unsatisfactory
state of your Majesty's army in the Crimea during the winter
of 1854-5.
The terms of your Majesty's warrant did not appear to us
to call for an expression of eur opinion on any cas.s except
those of the five officers whose complaints we have already
considered.
But, in conformity with the directions conveyed to us in
a letter addressed by your Majesty's Secretary of State for
War to the Judge-Advocate-ceneral, we received certain ex-
planatory statements from Captain Leopold George Heath,
C. 8., R.N., which will be Polled In pp. 401 to 415 of the
proceedings and in the appendix.
Having been honoured with your Majesty's commands,
not only to report an opinion upon the matters referred to
us as set forth in your Royal warrant, but, also to submit to
your Majesty what, in our judgment, may best be done
thereon—
We have, in obedience to your Majesty's commands,
stated, in this our Report, our unanimous opinion on the cases
of the-under-mentioned officers :
Lieutenant-General the Right Hon. the Earl of Lucan,
K.C.B.
Major-General the Right Hon. the Earl of Cardigan,
K.C.B.
Major-General Sir Richard Airey, K.C.B.
Colonel the Hon. Alexander Gordon, C B.
Commissary-General William Filder, C.B.
And, in conclusion, we beg leave further humbly to sub-
mit to your Majesty that there does not appear to us to be
any ground for further proceedings thereon.
All which is most dutifully submitted.
ALEXANDER WOODFORD, General, President.
BEAUCHAMP, General.
G. H. F. BERKELEY, General.
JOHN BELL, Lieutenant-General.
WILLIAM ROWAN, Lieutenant-General.
W. KNOLLYS, Lieutenant-General.
J. PEEL, Major-General.
Chelsea, July 4.