The Sun.
London, England, 1858-03-11 00:00:00

URSDAY EVENING, MARCH 11, 1858.

lery, as well as calling out the resources of this colony, to
the advantage of both countries and gdveraments."
Horses for India are being daily sent from here. Col.
Apptrley, Mr. Roger 4, and those employed with them,
do all in their power to procure the best horses. Some
very fine animals have been sent off.. The My€!tery em-
barked in Table Bay 135 horses, and left for India on
the 19th January. The Ville de Metz, a French ship,
embarked at Port Elizabeth 90 horses for the Indian
service, and prcceeded to India on Thursday morning,
Jan. 21 The La one, Granville, Johanna Stoll, and
Viscount Canning, now lying in Table Bay, are being
fitted for the reception of horses, and will shortly leave
for India with further supplies.

THE LITERARY FUND.

The members of the Royal Literary Fund held
their annual meeting yesterday, at their house in
Bloomsbury-square. There was a very full attend-
ance of members, amongst whom were Earl Stan-
hope, Mr..Moncl/ton_ Milnes, M.P., Mr. Cardwell,
M.P., Mr. B. B. Cabbell, Mr. Charles Dickens, Mr.
Dilke, juu., Mr. B. Cooper, Mr. Robert Bell, Mr.
W. Smith, Mr. Tooke, Mr. Pollock, Mr. Black-
more, Mr. Reeve, &c.
The chair was taken by EarlSraerHoee, who com-
menced the proce, dings by expressing a hope that
in the discussion which might follow, every gentle-
man would get a fair hearing, that the debate would
be conducted with as much good humour and cour-
tesy as was consistent with the.state of the case,
and that gentlemen would, as far as possible, avoid
reference to extraneous matter. (Hear.)
The minutes of the last meeting were read and
confirmed.
The reports of the registrars, treasurers', and au-
ditors were then received. By 4ise t 'illaurer's report
it appeared that in the course of the east year 55
grants had been made preducing 1,7801., and that
no/. had been disbursed to a new class of grants.
On the motion that a vote of thanks be passed
to the honorary officers of the society for their
services during the pat year,
Mr. CHARLES DICKENS (whoi has lately published
a pamphlet complaining of the cost of conducting
the institution as compared with the amount of
relief distributed) said, that in reply to the very
graceful and- conciliatory speech of the noble earl
in the chair, he (Mr. Dickens) would promise not
to make a speech, but on the contrary to adopt a
course which he hoped would be acceptable to all
pasties. (Hear.) This might he thought by some
gentlemen present to be a romantic expectation,
but be ventured to indulge the hope that it would
lead to a practical end. On former occasions, the
majority of which, by the way, the members of the
General Committee formed a highly satisfied and
laudatory portion, had objected to kis drawing a
egehst
comparison between the working of the Royal
Literary Fund and any other institution in the
known world. (Laughter.) No such comparison
would pass his lips on the present occasion. On
the former occasions to which he had referred, the
dry details of figures were pronounced unpalatable,
arid the majority even resented any allusion to
them as tedious and out of place ; he should, there-
fore, on this occasion, merely state, for the benefit
of any gentleman present who might have attended
for the first time, that he would not venture into
amounts
durin
g the
the details of the last published accounts of the
society, as it would look like the wanderings of a
lunatic if he were to point out that the 41 checques
csiftlelye
society was equal to 45 per cent. of
pa s drawnte aby tinead so con their bankers s
for
h
yr costhad
each—(laie
the u
m t e
ofr )—r working i
the
society ore,wienre threedrawteens,
dth thatan the
the amount distributed in relief, although
only 15 new cases had been relieved, the
others being cases where the recipients of grants
had got them from one to eight times.
(Hear, and laughter.) He would, therefore, confine
himself to the simple assertion of the principle be-
fore the public, who were, after all, the real judges
of such matters. He would, then, fasten upon him-
self the responsibility of the distinct assertion of a
plain principle, and also fasten on the committee
the distinct assertion of another principle, equally
plain and manifest. The very moderat s amend-
ment which he ventured very respectfully to sub-
mit, was to the following effect :—" That the ac-
counts of the Literary Fund, showing a systematic
expenditure of from 40 to 45 per cent, in giving
away every 1001. of the funds were not quite
satisfactory ; that such an appropriation of the
money subscribed with a,-clearly defined object is
not quite right ; that its continuance as a distinct
feature of the Literary Fund is 'not so Consistent
with the professions of the -Literary Fund as to
tend to uphold that institution in the general confi-
dence of the public ; that its continuance should
not be sanctioned from year to year, and is now
protested against." That resolution would be duly
seconded ; it would be put from the chair ; it
would be negatived ; the persons who proposed it
would be satisfied ; the majority who disapproved
of it would be equally satisfied—(laughter)—and
it would then be proclaimed that the accounts of
the Literary Fund were quite satisfactory—that
such an appropriation of the money, subscribed
with a clearly defined object, was quite right—that
its continuance as a feature of the Literary Fund
was so consistent with its professions as to tend to
uphold it in the public estimation—that its con-
tinuanee should be sanctioned and that it was not
protested. against. 110 would confine himself to
accepting the converse of this proposition, and leave
the responsibility of the other on the committee. He
had, in conjunction with two friends, circulated a
pamphlet, iu which were set forth certain grave objec-
tions to the management and expenditure of the in-
stitution. If any champion of the society should,
upon his personal honour and accountability answer
him, and impugn the veracity of the statements,
he would undertake to prove them ; but neither he
nor his friends would be led into a general discus-
sion of matter not pertinent to the issue raised.
(Hear, hear.)
Mr. JOHN FORSTER, secretary to the Lunacy
Commissioners, briefly seconded the resolution.
Mr. MONCKTON MILNES entered at some length
into a defence of the General Committee, and-ob-
served that on a question of principle there was no
such word as "quite." Either a principle must be
right or it must he wrong. He submitted that Mr.
Dickens and his friends had not put the question
fairly. They had dealt in generalities which could
only be answered by going into details which the
public could neither appreciate nor understand.
Mr. D okens's mode of reforming the sooiety was
somewhat similar to that in which the sepoys en-
deavoured to reform the garrison of Lucknow—by
deotroying them. It was true the expenses of the
collection and distribution were large, but then they
were ever-recurring, and they would be just what
they were at present
the fund were doubled, or
if it were not half as large. The services of a secre-
tary who could deal personally with the delicate
and difficult cases which came before the board
were invaluable, and in his opinion it would be im-
possible to get such duties as their secretary dis
charged performed elsewhere for a salary of 2001.
per annum. He confessed that the committee who
had conducted the affairs of the society for so many
years with unimpeached honour, felt indignant
that anything short of corruption or dishonesty
was charged against them by Mr Dickens and
his friends. An allegation was made in the
pamphlet that grants of 1001. each had been given
to the widows of two members of the com-
mittee, whose husbands were in a position to leave
legacies to others ; but really these cases had oc-
curred 30 years ago (although the pamphlet did not
say so) ; and therefore it was unfair to hold the
present committee responsible for them, In con-
clusion, the hon. gentleman expressed a hope that
Mr. Dickens and his friends would forget their pre-
judices, and join with the great majority of the
members in making the society nu,re
useful and
more efficient for the relief of their suffering
brethren in the world of literature. (Hear.)
Mr. War. SMITH, Classical Examiner at the Lon-
don University, said he could not but feel regret
that gentlemen who held so high a place in litera-
ture as Mr. Chas. Dickens and his friends should
have connected themselves with so unworthy a pro-
duction as the pamphlet to which so much reference
had been made. He assured those gentlemen that
the General Committee were not blind to any re-
commendations that might be made to ensure the
greater efficiency or the better working of the in-
stitution ; but Mr. Dickens and his friends advo-
cated reforms in such a tone, and with such a tem-
per, that showed the world that they were the
enemies and not the friends of the society. He
denied that the grants were doled out in a penuri-
ous and grudging spirit, and that the recipients
were compelled to submit
to degrading conditions
before they could accept it ; as he could affirm that
the money was freely and generously granted in all
deserving cases, and that there were no humiliating
conditions annexed to its receipt. It had been urged
that the society should be governed wholly by lite-
rary men. Now, he must say that he could not
approve of this suggestion.
It had been tried in
other societies, and had failed. Moreover, literary
men were not the most competent in the world
to transact affairs of business, and it was just
passible, if there were DO lay controlling ele-

ment in the manageinent of the funds, portions
might go into :quarters where, perhaps, undue
influence might be brought to bear. He protested
against the attempt which bad been made to exclude.
the aristocracy, who subscribed largEly to the so-
ciety, from any influence in its manageinent, and
he urged upon the members to resist any endea-
vour that might be made to array class against class,
and to invest the management of the corporation
in the hands of purely literary men, as he believed
such a policy would be suicidal. (Hear, hear.)
The society had by a vast majority already decided
upon rejecting the propositions of the minority,
who, however, returned to the charge year after
year, and appeared resolved not to be convinced.
r. ROBERT BELL (the compiler of the British
Poets) also defended the committee in a speech of
considerable length, in the course of which he ob-
served that he was quite willing to give Mr.
Dickens credit for not doing that which he believed
to be right, andhoped that, in return, Mr. Dickens
would believe that the committee were equally dis-
interested and sincere. (Hear.) His solemn con-
viction, after the most careful consideration of all
the circumstances, was that Mr. Dickens and his
friends were wrong in principle and that the com-
mittee were right. The principle charge against the
committee was that the expense of collecting and
distributing the income of th'e society was excessive
—that it amounted, in fact, to 401. or 451. on every
100/. expended. Now this was not a fact, as in the
calculations made by Mr. Dickens, he included in
5321. charged for expenses the expenses of collect-
ing as well as distributing the fund. The total dis-
bursements in the past year were 5321., and the in-
come 2,6641. ; and therefore the cost of manage-
ment was rather under 20 per cent.' Charges of this
kind to be just should-be extremely accurate, and it
was absolutely necestary that facts should heti-km.ly
and distinctly understood. If Mr. Dickens thought
the expenses of management too large, why did not
Mr. Dickens, instead of dealing with generalities,
bring forward a specificresolution directed to a spe-
cial object ? The main expenses were for a house and
secretary. The founder distinctly laid it down that
there should be a house, and the general meetings had
sanctioned the appointment of a secretary. Why,
Mr. Dilke himself had moved the appointment ;
and it was Mr. Bruce, seconded by Mr. Dilke, who
had proposed the very form of testimonial which
was now objected to ! He denied that the income
of the society had fallen off since the appointment
of a secretary. The expenditure in the 17 years
antecedent.to the appointment of Mr. Blewitt had
been 1,0431. and the income 28,700/. ; but in the
17 years succeeding his appointment the expendi-
ture had been 13,0001. ; but the income had in-
creased to 39,000/. The difference between the
expenditure in the two periods was 2,9761. against
the latter period, but against this should be set the
increase of income, which amounted to 10,3501.
This appeared to him to be a very good way of in-
vesting 2,976/. Again it was said in the pamphlet
that the General Committee, taking advantage of a
word in the charter, had excluded the Council, but
in doing so they bad only acted in strict conformity
with *he charter, upon which they had taken the
advice of the most learned counsel at the bar. With
regard to the charge that a member of the com-
mittee had betrayed his trust by giving to a book-
seller a list of the names of the persons who had
received relief from the society, the committee had
no control over the actions of their members ; be-
sides,_ the transaction referred to in Mr. Dickens's
circular occurred 19 years ago, and the member
had been expelled for it. (Laughter.) The com-
mittee were equally blameless in the matter of the

two grants of 100(.-cash to the widows of deceased
members. The grants had been made in 1828 and
1829—(laughter)—and as well might a charge be
brought against Lord Derby because Sir Robert
Peel gave the Roman Catholics emancipation a
quarter of a century ago, as the committee be
held responsible for the affair in question. It
was next alleged that, whereas any man who
wrote any book, however bad, might apply to the
fund and obtain relief, no writer of periodical
literature -could be eligible ; but here again the
minority were at fault, for although it was not the
intention of the fount-ier that relief should he ex-
tended to the latter class of persons, the committee
considered themselves justified in departing from
the rule, and had, at his (Mr. Bell's) suggestion,
admitted the writers of periodical literature to a
particiption in the funds. (Hear, hear.) Objec-
tion had also been taken that the committee had
not granted loans or annuities to literary men.
' Now, in reply to that accusation, he might say that,
however willing the committee might be to .do so,
they ba-I not the power under their charter, and
therefore no annuitants bad been re-elected although
a resolatiou had been passed by the committee that
in certain cases a person might get a grant two con-
secutive years without making a fresh application.
Mr. Bell concluded by expressing a hope that the
contest would now be brought to a close, and that
the minority would accept as final the division
about to be taken.

The CHAIRMAN then put the resolution, when
there appeared—For, 14 ; against, 70 ; majority
against 56.
Mr. BURTON COOPER, Q.C., moving the appoint-
ment of a select committee to report upon the pos-
sibility of making any retrenchments without in-
jury to the efficiency of the institution.

Mr. POLLOCK opposed the proposition, because
it would be tantamount to a reversal of the deci-
sion just arrived at.

After a short discussion, Mr. DICKENS and Mr.
FORSTER urged the meeting to vote in favour of the
motion, as affording a chance of bringing the pain-
ful dispute to an amicable conclusion.
The resolution was then put from the chair, and
negatived by.lB to 66.
A ballot was then taken for the election of the
general committee, registrars, auditors, and trea-
surers of the society, who were re-elected without
change.

On the motion of Mr. CHAELES DICKENS, a vote
of thanks was passed to the noble Chairman, and
the proceedings terminated.

(From the Morning Post )
The annual meeting of the Royal Literary Fund took
place yesterday, and we regret to observe with a repeti-
tion of the attempt made for several years pest by a few
members, led by Mr. Charles Dickens, to coerce the
Ocrporation into the adoption of a course of policy in
regard to the administration of the Charity which has
been time after time formally negatived by the gieat
body of the society.
It in at all times a subject for regret, as well as for
animadversion, when a society devoted to the prosecu-
tion of literature or science, and still more when its
labours are directed to the more sacred duty of dispens-
ing charity to the unfortunate, is broken up into sec-
tions and parties, its strength impaired, and its efficiency
en 'angered, by the bad taste or mischievous propensities
of a few meu whose aim is rather the gratification of
their own vanity than the general good of the society of
which they are members. In such cases, no matter whe-
ther the object aimed at be accomplished, the injury in-
flicted upon the institution is more or less certain. Tee
public is easily led to- believe in a obarge affecting the
existing order of things ; it is at all times ready to listen
to attacks upon the credit and honesty of individuals ;
and it is therefore much more easy to disseminate a libel
than to remove the effects of it from the public mind.
Charges, therefore, embodied in highly offensive lan-
guage, and thrown year after year against a public body '
of nourable men, although intrinsically worthless, be-
come, from the mere fact of repetition, formidable. Few
not immediately interested in the matter will give
themselves the trouble to investigate the facts for them.
selves ; and, indeed, amidst the multifarious employ-
ments of an active life, we cannot reasonably expect them
to do so. There are few, we say, who will undergo this
trouble, but whose minds, predisposed to that which is
right, are, in spite of themselves, misled by the false
statements which, unaccompanied by any refutation,
year after year are laid before them, It is natural that
in all suck cases the influence of the power of evil should
prevail ; for, like potters' clay, the mind receives the
first impression ; and this, like much that left the
ancient potter's hands, may be exceedingly impure.
The effect, therefore, of the deliberate misrepresentations
of Mr. Dickens, who, by his own acknowledgment, is
the author of the pamphlet recently circulated, we fear
to be very great, and very prejudicial to the general
interests of one of the most noble charities of England.
Now, this is a question in which we have no personal
interest whatever. If the management of the Royal
Literary Fend be so vicious as represented by Mr.
Dickens and his supporters, we have no hesitation in
saying that it ought to be reformed immediately. No
honest man can have any sympathy with such an infamous
neglect of duty, such a perversion of the intentions of
the founder, and such a mal-adminstration of the funds
of a charity, as is set forth by Mr. Dickens. According
to his version of the case the Royal Literary Fund is a
tchoerpßoroaytaiolnßaristirlußchanaknd. aßsustcawnhdaatlowuisilly
public k
ow
are more known for what they have notilone a f
novelist,
theya
thas
a s are
conspired told that
withM r
0. e
rt
ain Dickens,
per s
otchtsi mismanaged
theetwi wbmoenasi ID-e -oanrgnawemdh think
eaansts
which is opposed gw intb
without
itst
hmespeulfhltioc
Will the public believe that those mis-
proper terms I
they have done, fartloitefaraciTaren,dtodgeettriumpean
which have been sedulously poured into their
statements
eesiwgnoraltdin
oefssoysui bnf olderabtt iihdotisnt tMu s Mr. from
il
Dickensthd could condes-
cend,
ctaalsetof"hti
zaaenliseevarxeteeintwttiothobooeuu courtesy
as a gentleman, to such an expedient for the pit
pose of exalting his own name, or of gratifying hie 01,13
vanity, as to seek to destroy the efficiency of a Society
established for the express purpose of affording relief to