The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-06 00:00:00

INDIAN OFFICERS.

Major JERVIS asked the Secretary of State for India
whether any, and, if so, what steps had been determined
on with a view of finally remedying the grivances under
which the officers of the local army of India had so long
laboured ?
Viscount CRANBORNE said it was proposed to offer
some remedy, but it:was extremely difficult to explain what
that remedy was, without trangressing the bounds given
in answering questions. In brief, one of the remedies was
to allow all officers belonging to the Indian army before
the amalgamation to join the staff corps without going
through any kind of examination ; and with respect
to the bonus system, it was proposed to appoint a com-
mittee in each Presidency to inquire into the amount paid
by each officer as they retire, and to ascertain the pay-
ments he had made, which payments would be returned
by the Government to officers, but without interest.
THE ENGLISH JUDGES.
Mr. GRAVES asked the Attorney-General whether it
was the intention of the Government to take into consi-
deration the necessity for increasing the number of
Judges, and the re-arrangement of the jurisdiction of the
Cour. s.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said the subject was one
of extreme difficulty, but was authorised by the Lord
Chancellor to state that during ;lie recess his most anxi-
ous attention would be given to tn.' state of judicial
business, with a view of devising some remedy fur the
more speedy disposal of business.
THE CHOLERA.
Mr. J. A. SMITH asked the President of the Poor-law
Board whether, viewing the extensive outburst of cholera
in the eastern districts of the metropolis, the Government
were prepared to allow Parliament to separate without
providing the means of summary interference in cases
where the vestries may neglect the enforcement of
sanitary precautions, or may omit or delay the neces-
sary arrangements for the care of the sick, and the
_sepa-
ration of the healthy from the dying and the deac.l
The hon. member took the opportunity of stating!o w
loadand the miserable position of matters in Betloin
and Poplar at the present time with respett
wore lying
and dying of cholera. In many houses bodiesy
without any means being at hand for theirss solepo and other
and in the latter place there were open
existence
without there
extremely dangerous matters in Is tilheg,uo.ad
psHtoe
nt would take
hoped the Goverume
being any stringent power to dealewxu.sho
of things.
alter such an alarming state msuecahentiivatetesrste.
At thenin g of
in themetropol
s.
were treated
Mr. AYRTON condemned
i o
the wain whichpe the poor
the
session great effort was made to arrest the disease in cattle
by l Tug
a rate, but that was not the course adopted
when uman beings were being. struck down by cholera.
He thought it of the utmost importance that the rich
should be at once called upon to come forward and alle-
viate the poor.
Mr HARDY said the guardians had no power to deal
with the public health, that power was with the vestries,
which were not under the poor-law board. He believed
the vestries were making great efforts to deal with the
matter, and he believed their hands would be greatly
strengthened by the Public Health Act, which would re-
ceive the assent of Parliament to-morrow. During the
recess he should devote his anxious attention to the sub-
ject, with a view to alleviate the distress which prevailed
in different parts of the metropolis.
Mr. HENLEY thought there was still time to pass a
short act to remedy any defect which might be found to
exist.

Mr. NEATE said he bad suggested long ago the pro-
priety of the Government. bringing in a bill to enable them
to make advances for sanitary purposes.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he did
not think it at all wise to hastily introduce a measure alter-
ing the law upon which their 'hole local administration
was founded.
The Bubject then dropped.
THE BANK ACT.

In reply to Mr. Alderman SALOMONS,
Who CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said they

had no power to infringe the law, but if a representation
was made to the Government with respect to the letter ad-
dressed by the Government to the Bank of England some
time ago, that representation would be most carefully con-
sidered and an answer would be returned. He thought
that a far more convenient and proper course than stating
off hand in reply to a question the views of the Govern-
ment on the matter.
INDEMNITY BILL.

This bill was read a second time, and the standing
orders being suspended it was passed through its remain-
ing stages.

NEW MEMBER.

On the motion of Col. TAYLOR, a new writ was ordered
to issue for Carmarthenshire, in the room of Col. Pennant)
now Lord Penrhyn, called to the House of Lords.
EXTRADITION TREATIES ACT AHENDMENT

BILL.

The house then went, into committee on this bill.
Clause 1 was agreed to
• _ _

Sir F. GOLDS'SIID moved an additional clause to the
effect that nothing in the bill should be taken to autho-
rise the extradition of persons for political offences.
LEFT SITTING,I

THE CHOLERA.

-

On Saturday 41r. Thomas Fowell Buxton, Chair-
man of the House Committee of the London Hos-
pital, Mr. Samuel Gurney, M.P., Vice-President,
Mr. Joseph Sebag, a member of the House Com-
mittee, and Mr. William J. Nixon, House Governor
and Secretary, had an interview, by appointment,
with the Lord Mayor at the Mansion-house, with
the view, if possible, to interest, through him, the
corporation of the city of London in particular and
the citizens generally in the present state of the hos-
pital and the excessive and increasing demands
upon its resources, consequent on the outbreak of
cholera in the eastern part of the metropolis. The
Lord Mayor had readily granted the interview and
listened to the statements made by the deputation
with the deepest sympathy and interest.
Mr. T. BUXTON said they had given up one-third
of the hospital or the whole of one floor exclusively
to cholera patients, and in consequence of it being
necessary to have one nurse to every three patients,
they had been obliged to increase their staff of
nurses, in addition to superintendents, many of
whom rendered their services gratuitously. The
number of patients admitted into the cholera wards
from the 10th of July to that morning, the 4th of
August, was 365, of whom 299 were suffering from
cholera and 66 from diarrhoea. Of these 97 had
recovered, or 48 from cholera and 49 from diarrhoea;
158 had died from cholera and 8 from diarrhoea, or
166 in all ; and 102 remained in the wards, 93
of them afflicted with cholera and 9 with
diarrhoea, very few of whom were convalescent.
The number of out-patients treated during tha
same period in the receiving-room of the hospital,
the cases not being severe enough for reception
into the establishment, were 6,251, the attendance
on. whom involved extra labour and cost. MEI
cholera staff of the hospital consisted at present
of five resident medical officers, 35 day nurses, 35
night nurses, and four men employed by day and
two men by night in other departments. The entire
expenditure of the establishment had been increased,
for extra diet and stimulants to an extent beyond
all previous experience in hospital treatment, includ-
ing extra issues of wine and brandy to nurses, pa-
. tients, and labourers. This year they were to have
publicly opened a new wing of the hospital which
they had lately built, and though they had been
obliged to forego the intended ceremonial, which
would probably have resulted in a large addition to
the funds of the hospital, the completion of the new
building had been most fortunate and opportune at
this time when so much additional space was wanted
by the extraordinary influx of patients and medical
men. It had been perfectly astonishing to witness
the zeal of the medical staff. At first there was a
good deal of fear of contagion, but much of that had
been abandoned, and all the authorities of the
' hospital, with many others, had volunteered their
services in the emergency. Two nurses had died
and one was ill now, but the former were extra
nurses, and slept out in the neighbourhood of Beth-
nal-green or other places where there was cholera ;
so that the authorities of the hospital hoped the
death of the two nurses was no absolute proof of the
disease being contagious. It was frightful to wit-
ness the sufferings of many of the patients in the
hospital. Fortunately, when the disease reached
the state of collapse the suffering appeared to cease,
but in the earlier stages it was fearful. Many of the
people who were brought in were just skin and bone,
and they came in poisoned, as it were. They (the
deputation) had called upon the Lord Mayor in
the hope that he might be able to lay their case
before the corporation with a view to a grant
from its funds.

Mr. NixoN, the houselovem. &Alitlizaztion
could not be found in the hospital.
Mr. S. GURNEY, M.P., observed as a sad and sig-
nificant fact that on Friday last there were as many
as 30 bodies in the dead-room, and people could
not be got to bury them. They had since got 16 of
them buried ; but on Friday the demands on the
staff of the establishment were so great that time
could not be found for the interment of the dead. A
very great proportion of the patients were German
sugarbakers, large numbers of whom lived in that
part of London.
Mr. SEBAG, a member of the deputation, observed
that it was astonishing to see the number of little
children in the wards of the hospital. A great ob-
ject of the deputation, he said, was to obtain the
advocacy of the Lord Mayor in the Court of Com-
mon Council in the emergency.
The LORD MAYOR said he should be doing the
Court of Common Council an injustice if he thought
they required any advocacy of his on such an occa-
sion. This was a question of humanity—(mar,
hear)—and he had no doubt the corporation would
cheerfully respond whenever an appeal was, made
to them in such a case. They had always done so
in similar cases, and he was sure they would not be
wanting on this occasion. There was great distress
in the east of London, irrespective of that caused by
cholera, amohg the families of men out of work, and
those people were thrown upon local charities for
relief. • He had received two or three deputations
on the subject, but he had been cautious about
alarming the public. He thought, however, the
time had now arrived when the merchants, bankers,
and other principal citizens should be invited to join
in a subscription towaris the relief of the prevailing
distress. As respected the corporation, they were
now in i•ecess, and would not meet again until.
September. There would be much difficulty in
convening a meeting of Common Council at present,
when many of them were probably out of town ;
but in the meantime the position of the hospital was
ha
aa rt
hd
ol yr
istoi
ebs a
hd a asd wiselyi m ig might
appealed appear
taot
tflhr so t
public,sight . Ta
nhde
he observed that by the aid of the newspaper press,
considerable sums were flowing in from day to day.
Mr. GURNEY, interposing, said they that morning
received 170 letters containing donations, raid they
could not be too thankful for the liberality which.
was being shown them.
emer-
gency. Privy
LORD MAYOR said the public were much in-
debted to them for their great
energy
in the m
py
Council-office,
geney.liew
anasthden going from there tothe
would take an opportunity of
mentioning what he heard from the deputation.
He was inundated with letters about sanitary
matters, and people seemed to be alarmed at the
existence of anything that might produce malaria.
From all he could hear the disease had mostly
attacked people who had but little stamina, and
those who from their poverty, had but little to eat,
and that litt:e probably bad in quality.
The deputation then took their leave.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE—This Day.
.0-- --
LONDON, Aug. O.—Wind this day at noon.—South-
Westerly ; moderate breeze and cloudy weather, with
heavy rain.
FALMOUTH, Aug. 4.—Whad FvArrived—lndia,
from Philadelphia. Aug. s.—Arrived Sarah Payson,
from Matanzas.
CLYDE, Aug. 4.—Wind W.N.W.—
from from Bilboa.

BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.
GRAVESEND, Monday Morning.
Arrived, Aug. s.—Lady Wharnaiffe, from Barbadoes;
Eagle, Nymphen, and Elba, from Quebec ; Melody and
Watersprite, from St. Lucia ; Cromwell, from St. Anne de
Tamaulipas ; Baona Madre, from Taganrog; Eurone, front
Lagos ; Magdalene, from New York ; Arabella, from Bt.
Jago de Cuba ; Leonia, St. Cuthbert, and Remembranoef
rom Qroustadt ; Amy limo, from Jamaica.

BENEDEK'S RETREAT.

(From the Times' Military Correspondent)
VIENNA, July 30•

When the Army of the North retreated on
Olmutz after its defeat at Koniggratz, Benedek's in-
tention was to call together his shattered forces and
give them rest behind the line of forts till their
strength should be recruited and their spirits re-
vived, and then either take the field against one of
the Prussian columns, or lie in wait for an oppor-
tunity of cutting off their communications; but
though Ohnutz is well provisioned to enable its gar-
rison to stand a siege, food enough for a large army
could not havebeen accumulated from the surround-
ing country, and the communication with Vienna
must have become very difficult, if not completely
cut off. This was probably the reason why he re-
ceived an order to bring his army back over the
Danube, and place his corps under the command of
the Archduke. After despatching by railway as
many troops as possible, with their baggage trains,
stores, and artillery, there still remained the greater
part of five corps to be conducted to Presburg, for
the Prussians had by this time occupied so much of
the country that a direct retreat upon Vienna was
impossible without fighting a great battle, and this
the state of his army forbade.
The Ist Corps was sent to occupy Prerau and
prevent the 4,500 Prussians known to be some-
where in the direction of Troppa from descending
upon the railway and destroying it. This measure
was taken about the 12th of July, and the corps re-
mained in the position assigned to them until they
were joined by the Bth Corps on the 15th.

On the 14th the 2d and 4th Corps left Olmutz,
and proceeded by way of Tobitschau, Kajetein,
Zaimeck, and Ilradisch, meeting with slight resist-
ance easily overcome at Tobitschau, and marching
the rest of the way to Presburg without oppo-

sition.
On the 15th, the 6th Corps marched by way of
Weiskirchen and the valley of the Beckzwa, without
being molested by the enemy. On the same day
the Bth Corps, and Benedek himself with his Staff,
left the lines to follow the course taken by the 2d
and 4th Corps on the previous day. The Prussians
were known to be in the neighbourhood, and the
orders were that this small army was to hold itself
prepared to meet the enemy at any point along the
route that he might select for an attack. How this
order was carried out I leave your military readers
to judge from what follows. In front of the
column was half a regiment of Lancers ; then a
brigade infantry ; after that came four batteries of
artillery of reserve, then train, and finally the bulk
of the corps, the other half regiment of Lancers
bringing up the rear. One of the most obvious
precautions in marching through a country where
the enemy may be expected to appear is to throw
out cavalry patrols and infantry skirmishers on both
flanks, to give timely notice of an enemy's advance;
but this important. duty appears to have been ne-
glected, or only half executed, for the Brigade Weber,
which marched on the right flank of the column, was
too far to the rear, and the cavalry division of Prince
Taxis marched from Olmutz at 8 a.m., three hours
after the infantry, and did not come up until too
late to be of any service. This was no fault of the
cavalry leader, for he only obeyed orders. Benedek
and his Staff rode near the guns.
Disposed as above, the column marched on, and
the cavalry in front had already passed through
Tobitschau, when the head of the column was at-
tacked by a Prussian force, which delayed its march,
whilea battery of guns took the whole road under its
fire, being posted on the rising ground a little to
the right of the column, and near its front. At the
same time two squadrons of Prussian Cuirassiers of
the Guard appeared advancing over the brow of the
hill, also to the right, but abreast of the Austrian
batteries on the road. Benedek himself ordered
three batteries of artillery, one after the other, to
come into action against the Prussian guns, so they
advanced into the cornfields on the right within 300
or 400 yards of the cavalry, whom they supposed to
be part of the division of Prince Taxis, in spite
of warning voices among the officers of the Staff,
who knew that time had not yet allowed the Austrian
horse to come up. Whatever doubts there may
have been as to the nationality of the force on the
bills were soon solved, for the first squadron of the
Prussian cavalry charged the Austrian batteries,
not vigorously, but at a slow trot and with ranks
that wavered and undulated at every step—" not
at all beautiful to see," as an officer on Benedek's
Staff expressed himself in conversation. Now, the
- - " is accompanied by a small cavalry
detachment, intended to act pal 4.1 j
as orderlies, partly to lead spare horses, and the
number present at this critical moment was barely
40, some of whom had horses to lead, while others
carried on their saddles the light luggage needed by
an officer for a few days' campaign. But, few and
encumbered as they were, some of them were unable
to draw their swords, they were animated with a full
belief in the superiority of the Austrian cavalry, a
belief which had become assurance through a know-
ledge of the almost invariable success that has at-
tended the Austrian horse in all its :attacks upon
Prussian cavalry alone ; so the Staff Dragoons, with
led horses, baggage, undrawn swords and all, flung
themselves recklessly upon the Prussian flank just
as it had passed between the guns whose drivers re-
treated rapidly with the limbers. Many of the Staff
officers joined in the melee, which was soon settled
by the retreat of the Prussian Cuirassiers to rejoin
the second squadron which had not mustered up
courage to support their comrades. A-few minutes
later four new squadrons appeared to swell the
numbers of the Cuirassiers, when they charged
again, and this time captured two of the batteries,
which were quite unprotected. As infantry was
accumulating on the Prussian side, the Bth Corps
formed front to the enemy in line of battle, but
about this time Prince Taxis came up and re-
ported that two Prussian corps were advancing
to attack, so the Austrians withdrew to the left
bank of the March by a bridge at Dub, in the
direction of Prerau, where they arrived after a
march of 21 hours from Olmutz, driven from their
intended line of retreat, and with another unsucess-
ful affair to brood over. It is painful to have to re-
late the gradual demoralisation of brave troops, but
I am compelled to say that the infantry had by this
time lost all heart. They had been taught that their
rush was to be irresistible, and they had piled up
hecatombs of slain in front of the first Prussian po-
sitions in their gallant attempts to verify the belief,
but they had failed—signally failed—to drive back
those lines topped with spikes and fringed with im-
movable steel and perpetual fire. The odds were
always three or four to one against them, even if the
numbers of men were equal ; what now remained
but to creep home to Vienna, and tell their Emperor
that his children had been faithful unto death, though
so cruelly beaten, and to warn him that they could
not win under the conditions placed before them ?
Every messenger from Vienna was charged to say
on his return, " Make peace, or the army will be
annihilated." Every spirit was oppressed by the
gravity of the situation. Every heart failed for fear.
And yet not all. Prince Rupert's cavaliers were never
more confident nor more reckless than were Edel-
sheim's llussars and Lancers. how they dashed at
anything in
the anal)of cavalry. that appeared, how
they harassed the enemy ied nt3 0 - and protected their army's
retreat, how they
t tempt the Prussian horse-
men to engage with "Blacken
Waffen," and how
completely (whatever the Prussian may say)
they established the superiority the Austrian horse,
will some day be described byoa
than mine. For the present it must
re eloquent p
in
suffice to giveen
their
the opinions of Prussian themselvesofficers
conversations with parlenzentaires and Austrian
officers with whom the truce has brought them in
contact. "We cannot sufficiently praise your
cavalry and artillery, but for your infantry we have
learnt to care nothing." Dashing achievements
seldom fall to the lot of artillery ; but who cam re-
fuse the hero's crown to the bOy lieutenant who,
sole survivor of the officers in his battery at Konig-
grata, was ordered by an aide-de-camp to retire his
guns, and simply answered —" How can I ? I have
only 12 horses, and about one gun detachment Wt."
He succeeded, however, in dragging away two
guns.

On the same day or the next there was an alarm
of Prussian Hussars near Prerau, and Col. lar-