The Sun.
London, England, 1860-06-19 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, JUNE 'l9, 1860.

would be to push for the capital, in the hope I
that if he succeeded in obtaining command
of it, such a disaster would result in
our buying him off upon any terms he
might find it expedient for him to exact." Yet—
admitting this—the Royal Commissions do nothing,
suggest nothing towards rendering that " main
object" of an unscrupulous invader, that paiamount
prize towards the acquisition of which his every
energy would inevitably be directed—beyond his
reach, inaccessible to his enterprise, indestructible,
inexpugnable ! Now, Sir JOSHUA regards this,
without, so to speak, one instant's hesitation, as not
merely a startling, but as in a manner a fatal omis-
sion if allowed to pass uncared for. His reasoning
at the very outset is cogent, and even to our think-
ing irresistible. He maintains that—" If the
British Lion is to be bearded in his den [recollect
by the way that it was a den once upon
a time Galled, and that not by any
means so very long ago, called too by certain
French imperial Colonels, whose words were echoed
in the official lifoniteur, A DEN OF ASSASSINS !]
it would be to draw his teeth, to cripple
his power, and to humiliate him !" Unquestion-
ably Colonel JEBB is perfectly right in so arguing.
It is only an argument like this, indeed, that—to
use an expressive idiom—stands to reason. Sir
JOSHUA continues, in the enforcement of this
powerful argument, thus " The capture of
one of your naval ports would not effect
this object, or do much more than produce
permanent exasperation and temporary incon-
venience. No the path before the invading army is
clearly visible, even now, when looked to thus by an-
ticipation and hypothetically. It trends onwards—
as plainly as a pikestaff could point-it out—directly
upon the metropolis.
What we have to do, Sir JosHui (with
the foregoing conviction strong upon him)
clearly and succinctly indicates. The First
line of defence, he reminds us, is—THE CHANNEL.
For the guarding of which we have happily
already our noble Channel Fleet ! The Second—
MEASURES FOR OPPOSING A LANDING. This being
precisely the very line of defence cared for espe-
cially, one might say exclusively, by the Royal
Commissioners ! At least that portion of it ex-
tending from the Humber in a south-westerly
direction to Plymouth. The third and fourth lines
of defence Sir JOSHUA JEBB'S letter marks
out boldly and broadly; and they are
these—" one or more general actions," the
gallant officer should rather have said
one general action, or more than one, at a certain
distance, or at certain distances from the metro-
polis. And—beyond this—the traceing around the
capital successive lines of defence in its more
immediate neighbourhood. In regard to the " third"
head or section, that relating to general actions
in the field—is one that, of course, must always be
contingent upon the accidental development of the
.ampaign, and upon the particular genius or pecu-
liar idiosyncracy of the Commander-in-Chief. Be-
fore passing it by, however, for the purpose of ar-
riving at the " fourth" (the consideration of
which constitutes the gist of Colonel JEBB'S
letter) our gallant commentator upon the Report
of the Royal Commissioners, very aptly quotes the
opinion expressed upon this point by the late and
great Dake of WELLINGTON ; where speaking of
invasion his Grace observed that, " There is no
mode of resistance, much less of protection, from
this danger, excepting by an army in the
field capable of meeting and contending
with its;ijormidable enenmy." Then follows
Colonel JEBB'S most impressive and persuasive
argument replete with masterly suggestions.
To it in its entirety we would earnestly, direct the
attention of the general public, but more especially
that of our military authorities—sanguine that the
timely hints thus thrown out by this tried and
valued servant of the Crown may have
due weight in the oncoming deliberations of
the Legislature in the matter of our Defences,
and may receive all the consideration to which
they are eminently entitled at the hands of
her Majesty's Government. Sir JOSHUA, it will
be sufficient here to remark, insists upon the
urgent advisability of the first determined stand
being made within a distance not less than thirty
or forty miles from the metropolis; He then points
out the exact line of country—a line of country
so full of strong positions that he emphatically
declares it might be not inaptly desig-
nated the Torres Vedras of London ! This most
favourable and even formidable line, he writes
is to be found "in the escarpement of the
chalk range running westward from near Maid-
stone, towards Reigate, Dorking, Guildford, and
Farnham. At the latter point this general line,
after including all the strong ground in front of
Aldershott, might be advantageously thrown back
in the direction of Odiham and Reading, resting
its right on the Thames. Chatham and the river
Medway lie on the left, and would compel a hostile
force marching in haste from the south-east to take
the road passing through Maidstone. Keeping this
road they would soon find themselves at the foot
of Wrotham•hill, and would not be likely to
diverge to the right, because in such a case they
would come upon some of the proposed Chatham
defences, near Cobham. The whole of the ground
also on the left bank of the Medway is very de-
fensible; and, as the proposed work at Shooter's-
hill lies upon the old Dover-road, it may be as-
sumed that the high ground at Wrotham-hill
might be taken as the left of a line which in its
course westward intersects every road by which an
enemy could march to London from the most ac-
cessible parts of the coast." Having indicated by
which extracts the eminently practical character
of Colonel Sir JOSHUA JEBB'S suggestions, we
must now content ourselves with referring our
readers to the gallant officers entire communication.
Commending the public attention also, in the same
breath, to the patriotic propositions thrown out to the
same end by our earnest hearted correspondent
" Nauticus," who most wisely argues that what we
have above all things to do is to remain what we
have hitherto been, THE MASTERS OF THE SEAS !

It is the one grand moral of our glorious Patriotic
Song—that song the ringing chorus of which avers
hat so long as " Britannia rules the waves"—so
•" Britons never shall be slaves !"

MR. BENEDICT'S CONCERT.

Mr. Benedict's grand morning concert took place yester-
day, at her Majesty's Theatre, before a densely crowded
and most fashionable audience. Mr. Benedict's playing
was worthy of his music. The delicate and beautiful touch
and finished execution which have over characterised Mr.
Benedict's performances on the pianoforte, were never more
delightfully exemplified than in his rendering of his new
concertino, which was enthusiastically applauded, as it well
deserved, not only at the termination, but whenever " tutti "
afforded a plausible excuse for doing honour to the soloist.
Mr. Benedict, who, be it understood, plays the music
of others as well as his own, also took part in an in-
geaious, brilliant, and immensely difficult duet for two
pianos (on themes from Aleyerbecr's " Robert le Diable"),
with its gifted author, Herr Leopold de Meyer, with whom
it is not too much, though a great deal, to say that he fairly
shared the honours. Before quitting the subject of piano-
forte playing we must also record the brilliant success of
Miss Arabella Goddard, whose splendid performance of
Thalberg's fantasia and airs from Rossini's " Mose in
Egitto" quite equalled the best efforts of her male competi-
tors, and elicited rapturous applause. The " Stabat Mater,"
so far as the principal vocalists were concerned, was sung
to perfection, and equal praise is due to the performance of
the scene from " Othello," by Madame Borghi-Mauro and
Signor Mongini : to Madame Catherine Hayes, for her
chaste and musicianly rendering of Mendelssohn's beauti-
ful " Ave Maria."

OUR NATIONAL DEFENCES.