The Sun.
London, England, 1858-05-17 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MOND'AX E V ENING, MAY 17, 1858.

under the command of Capt. M. S. Whitmore,
were inspected at Brompton Barracks on Friday.
by Col. H. Sandham, commanding the Royal En-
gineers. They will leave Chatham this day and
embark at Portsmouth, on board the City of Man-
chester steamer, for the Cape of Good Hope, where
they relieve the 15th company, ordered home.
Lieut. F. W. B. Clements and Lieut. C. Crawford,
R.E., also embark with the 12th company.
Sir L. Loraine and Mr. W. N. Tufnell, mates,
R.N., passed their examination for lieutenants,
and received certificates at the Royal Naval College
last week.

Lieut. W. A. Smyth has been appointed to the
Ariel, and Mr. A. Price is appointed secretary to
Admiral Sir B. Reynolds, commander-in-chief at
Devonport.

for rewarding the boats' crewg. That society has
also offered to station a lifeboat in the locality, if
the inhabitants will co-operate with it in the un-
dertaking."

Government. That peril now impends, but the
remedy is in Lord Derby's hands. Lords Palmer-
ston and Russell head a new coalition in order to
obtain office, but the country support the present
Ministry. Their policy has been eminently success-
ful, and has gained them many friends. Were this
new cabal to succeed in thrusting the Government
out, they could not remain in long themselves,. Their
divisions are healed, the strife is merely suspended.
Of courseliberal professions are tendered for the pur-
pose of obtaining support, but the experience of the
last few years shows how pledges are violated and
engagements the most solemn set at nought. In
this emergency, were Lord Derby to retire without
a dissolution, he would leave the country without
a government. His assailants can only combine for
factious purposes—they do not possess the elements
of a powerful Cabinet. The public are waiting for
the opportunity to sweep away this scattered band
of intriguing politicians. Unable to direct affairs
with credit and success they coalesce in order to
prevent others from carrying out a bold, a wise,
and a progressive policy.

_
The popularity of Ministers and the progress
made during the last three monthEkin wholesome
legislation have induced the member for Loudon
and the member for Tiverton to lay aside their
animosities and biter jealousy. The old rivalry
is not however, extinguished, it is only smothers i
Hence their great object is to avoid a dissolution.
Lords Palmerston and Russell know better than
we can tell them that at the next general election
the old Whig party will be broken up. The bare
mention of an appeal to the people makes them
shudder. Yet this is the abyss towards whiei they
are hastening. Should success crown their intrigue
it will be to them but the forerunner of disaster.
The members of the House of Commons have a
duty to perform ; and if they fail, by an appeal to
the nation will the balance be restored. The elec-
tors are already preparing for the struggle. Lprd
Derby has but to give the word, and the majority
which he requires will be obtained. Let those
who have any doubt upon the subject whisper
" dissolution" in the ears of any of the Cambridge
House confederates, and mark the effect it will pro-
duce. They would not make wry faces, and de-
nounce such a constitutional appeal, if they did not
feel convinced that for them and their coalition it
means nothing better than total annihilation.

TESTIMONIAL TO TI Ig LATE FIRST. COM-
MISSIONEB OF PUBLIC WORKS.

Mr. Butler, M.P. for the Tower Hamlets, has
recently handed the following memorial to Sir
Benjamin Hall
"To THE RIGHT HON. SIR BENJAMIN HALL,
BART., M.P. LATE CHIEF COMMISSIONER OF HER
MAJESTY'S WORKS, 47;0..
" Sir,—We, the undersigned owners of property
within the borough of the Tower Hamlets, take
the present opportunity of expressing our
thanks to you for having originated and
matured many great improvements in the Royal
Parks of the metropolis, but more especially in the
Victoria Park, in which large masses of the indus-
trial c'asses of the people resident in the eastern
parts of London are so deeply interested.
" We are also much indebted to you for having,
after many years' delay by your predecessors in the
office you so recently filled—a delay which operated
to the serious loss and inconvenience of the rate-
payers—caused the important line of communica-
tion from Shoreditch to the Docks to be opened for
public use. We feel that it has not been usual for
gentlemen holding high official positions to identify
themselves by constant personal inspection of, and
take so deep an interest in, the improvements of the
eastern parts of the metropolis, and we therefore
desire to express to you our respectful opinion that
the duties of the office of Chief Commissioner of
Works, &c., were performed by you with great
zeal, energy, and ability, and in a manner greatly
to the advantage of the public.
" It is also a source of gratification to us to ob-
serve that, in the disposition of your patronage of
gatekeepers and other offices in the public parks,
you have selected as worthy objects of your consi-
deration those who have claims upon the public
service, and who bear the marks of their valour in
the late wars.

" We wish also to acknowledge the courtesy and
attention we have invariably received from you. It
is true that you may not always have conformed to
the application we may have made to you, but we
have always felt that you have decided imparti-
ally, and with a view to the public good.
"We have the honour to remain, Sir, •
"Your very faithful and obedient servants."
[Here follow the signatures.]
Sir Benjamin Hall's reply was as follows :
" Great Stanhope-street, May 13, 1858.
" Dear Sir,—l beg to acknowledge the receipt of
your letter containing a memorial from certain
owners of property and others within the Tower
Hamlets, and request that you will be so good as to
convey my thanks to the mem-rialists for the ex-
pression of their favourable opinion in relation to
the matters to which they refer.
"I certainly was most anxious during the short
pe'iod that I held the office of First Commissioner
of Pubic Works to improve the parks, to render
them still greater objects of attraction, and bene-
ficially to expend the moneys voted by Parliament.
With regard to the:appointments made during my
tenure of the office, I considered it to be my d ity
in the distribution of the little patronage at my dis-
posal to select persons who really had some claim on
the public service, and bythe appointment of whom
merit might be acknowledged, and a stimulus
offered to others to deserve reward.

"As you allude to the subject, I may mention
that in two years, ending January, 1858, I ap-
pointed 57 men who had served in the late wars to
places as park keepers, park constables, and other
somewhat similar offices, a•lmitting those only who
could produce with their discharge the most unex
ceptionable references from their commanding offi•
cers ; and these 57 gallant fellows wear upon their
breasts 49 Crimean medals, six Indian medals, one
Caffre war med ►l, one China medal, one Baltic
me lal, four medals for distinguished services on the
held, nine good conduct medals, one French good
conduct and long service medal, one French war
medal, and one Sardinian medal. They have also
139 clasps declaratory of the action in which they
have been engaged ; three of them wear the legion
of honour, and three others have that most noble
of all distinctions, the Victoria Cross, making a
total of 219 marks of honour possessed by these 57
men. _ _ _

" Of those who bad won the Victoria Cross, one
has the China medal, the French war metal, and
the Crimean medal with three clasps, and he now
occupies a new lodge at Holyrood-place. Another
has the Ghuznee men al, and the Crimean medal with
three clasps, and he lives at the new lodge at the
Marble Arch. The third has the Crimean medal
with 2 clasps, and is Chevalier of the Legion of
Honour ; he also occupies a lodge which has recently
been built in the long walk of the Regent's Park.
Thq conduct of these men has been most admirable,
and ',I am happy to think that I have had it in my
power thus to bestow places on persons who hare
so nobly discharged their duty to their Queen and
their country. With the renewal of my thanks to
the memorialists, and to yourself for the friendly
expressions contained in your letter, I remain yours
sincerely, " B. HALL.
" C. S. Butler, Esq., M. P."