The Sun.
London, England, 1859-12-30 00:00:00

Guide" has for tho time quite superseded that for the Drill

took.

Euryalus sails for Palermo on the 2d of January, and
Gannet for Athens.

Captain Vaughan, R.M., her Majesty's ship Euryalus,
proceeds to England by this mail, and the two Pronch ad-
mirals from China to France.

Prince Victor of Hohenlohe, having been posted out of
her Majesty's ship Scourge, proceeds to Trieste by next
_

THE PAKINGTON TESTIMONIAL.

After the despatch of our parcel from Worcester
on Monday evening, with a preliminary notice of
the intended presentation of a noble shield to Sir J.
Pakington, in recognition of his services for 24
years as Chairman of the Worcestershire Quarter
Sessions, the presentation was completed, the pro-
ceedings occupying until about half-past 9 o'clock.
As stated in yesterday's Sun, the chair at the
dinner was taken by Lord Lyttelton, who; having
given the usual loyal toasts, proposed "The Army
and Navy."

Earl BEAUCHAMP, in reply, said they had the
authority of the Prime Minister that the army
had never been in a more effective condition
than it was at present. That important movement
—the rifle corps—was exercising a beneficial effect
not only in this country, but also on the Conti-
nent. (Hear, hear. He felt it would be wrong
for him to detain them from proceeding with the
principal business of the meeting, but it world be
equally so if he abstained from mentioning that he
had been acquainted with the right hon. baronet
for a quarter of a century, and, having watched
carefully all his steps, had found that ho had ever
followed a straightforward line of conduct, not only
in his performance of the duties of the chairman-
ship of quarter sessions, but also. in the discharge
of the two important public offices with which he
had been honoured by his Sovereign.
Admiral HASTINGS, replying for the navy, said
it was now well known that the navy had not been
formerly so attended to as it ought to have been,
and the right hon. baronet by the attention he had
paid to it had done much good. (Cheers,) The
building of ships was now actively going on ; but
in the period previous to that at which the right
hon. baronet took office the state of the navy was
anything but satisfactory. It was then that for the
first time in line-of-battle ships the navy of Eng-
land was found to be inferior to that of France.
This was now altered, and he hoped the country
would soon be in a perfect state of defence:
The noble CHAIRMAN then proposed the toast of
the evening in a speech of some length, in which he
commented upon the services which Sir J. Paking.
ton had rendered to the country in his capacity of
Colonial Minister and First Lord of the Admiralty,
and as the promoter of national education. A more
loyal, consistent, or openly attached party man
than Sir 1. Pakington did not exist ; but in his ad-
ministration of the two offices with which he was
intrusted by the 'Crown he never allowed the
slightest trace of party spirit to manifest itself.
Lord Lyttelton, referring eo what had been.domo
by Sir S. Pakington durinethe time he held office
under Lord Derby as Colonial Secretary and First
Lord of the Admiralty, said, with reference to the
colonies, that having been in office only 10 months,
it was impossible for him to carry through any
number of important measures. On a Colonial
Minister entering newly into office he bad to
carry on a correspondence with many distant
colonies, and this Sir John had to do, and to
some of? these answers had not been received un-
til after he had left office; but he (Lord Lyttelton)
would repeat what he had said in Parliament on
the occasion of the passing of the great constitu-
tional Act which Sir John Pakington
,had matured
—the Constitutional Act of New Zealand—he would
repeat that he believed in respect of those great
principles of colonial freedom, by allowing our colo-
nies great share of self-government, that that
great measure was by far the most important that
had passed on colonial subjects for a Very long time.
(Hear, hear.) Then the subject of the disposal of
land in the Australian colonies had to he settled,
and, although Sir John Pakington was unable to
mature these matters and to carry through the
measure necessary for their accomplishment, it was
he who promoted the inquiries and corresponded
with the colonies of• Australia on the sitbject, and
laid down the breed principles upon which the
Australian Constitutional Acts had been regulated
from that time. (Hear, hear.) With regard to
Sir John's administration of the navy, without at-
tempting to go into details, and without gwelling
upon past shortcomings or defects of Others, he
would say that Sir John Pakington had done a
great deal—more than .was ever done by any First
Lord since the Reform Act—for -the improvement
and consolidation of our great naval !resources.
(Cheers.) The third public service to !which Sir
John Pakington had devoted much of his attention
was the great and intricate subject of the elemen-
tary education of the children of the poor, the end-
less ramifications of which had to do with almost
every- other interest of the country. It was a happy
thing for the promotion of the question that Sir
John took it in hand at the time he did; equally
true was it as regarded all three of these subjects
—our colonies, our navy, and education—that mere
party politics had little to do with them. But
nevertheless the question of the education of the
children of the poor was one of those insoluble pro-
blems of human nature towards whose sdlation ere
should never get nearer than an approximation.
'But considerable approach td wards the reconcilement
of differences had been niade, and they were indebted
. to Sir John as much as to most men for the clear re-
cognition of the two great principles of tOleration in
education, and local encouragement and support to
schools. Lord John Russell, too, had been an un-
questionable witness in favour of the importance
and excellence of the efforts of Sir John on this sub-
ject. After alluding to his local claims on the pub-
lic, the nob!e lord gave the toast,. which was most
cordially received.
The formal, presentation of the shield was then
made.
Sir JOHN PAKINGTON, on rising to return thanks,
was received with protracted and unbounded cheer-
ing. On its subsidence the right hon. gentleman
said—My Lord Lyttelton and gentlemen—if any-
thing could have added to the difficulty of the task
which now devolves upon me, it would arise from
the eloquent, the too flattering, the kind and feeling
terms, in which my noble friend in the chair has
done me the honour of submitting to you this toast.
I now rise to attempt the difficult, 1 may say the
impossible task of giving expression in language to
those deep ,feelings of respectful gratitude with
which my heart is filled. I have to thank you, not
only for the magnificent gift which has just been
presented to me, but for all that kindness, confi-
dence, and support which, throughout a iong series
of years, has enabled me to perform my public
duties in this county. The highest reward which
can attend the labours of a public man is to be
assured of the approbation and support of those
amongst whom his duties have been discharged ;
and that feeling acquires tenfold force when appro-
bation is entertained and kindness is expressed, not
only by those, as is my own case, amongst whom I
have laboured, but by those in the locality in which
I was born, and to which I am attached by every
tie that can strengthen the sentiment of local at-
tachment—by those in the midst of whom I have
lived from boyhood to advanced life, and Who aro
acquainted both with my public career and my pri-
vate character. (Cheers.) There are two circum-
stances connected with the ceremony of this evening
to which I must beg for a moment to advert, because
they give ma peculiar pleasure, and make this cere-
mony its gratifying to ma as it could possibly be
made. The first of these circumstances is, that this
beautiful present which I have now the honour to
receive from the county and city of Worcester, has
been presen!e3 to me by the hands of my noble
friend the lord
friend
hastoldy.ohaeuttheantanmty.
chairmanship ( C hee re. ) Mnyf noble
quar-
ter sessions commenced at a period when his re-
spected father was lord lieutenant of this county,
end I well recollect the kindness which I always
received from that noble lord, and the respect with
which I ever regarded him ; but my noble friend
who presides over this great meeting, and who has
just presented to me this splendid proof of your
good opinion, has occupied the high place of lord
lieutenant during the great majority of the years
that I had the honour of being chairman of the
sessions. We have constantly had the most cordial
intercourse. We have communicated upon the most
friendly terms throughout a long period of years
with regard to the affairs of the county. I enter-
tain for him those feelings of public respect and
private friendship, I may say of affeCtion, with
who know him ; and it
i
allto tho pleasure' which the
which i
nc nhe e a
great
reregarded
d t
d
proceedings of this day cannot but give me, that
my noble friend, should have been called upon to
discharge the duty which he has so kindly and ably
fulfilled. (Hear, hear.) The other circumstance to
which I would allude, is that I see around this
table—and I view it with unqualified satisfaction
—abundant proof that, as nip chairmanship corn-.
menced so does it now conclude under circumstances
which prove that no political or part spirit has