The Sun.
London, England, 1850-04-08 00:00:00

t She is chiefly laden with New Zealand Kauri con- his regiment was received kindly by his commanding
officer, introduced to his brother officers., and became
.
tract spars, for Government ; but has, in addition, 150
the case of anaval assistant-surgeon. That functionary
tons of copper ore and lead ore, from Port Adelaide immediately a member of the meas. But he would take
was received with the same degree a kindness and
7 tons of tallow, from Melbourne, Port Philip ; and
courtesy, but he was turned into the cockpit. The com-
-20 tons of sperm oil, 40 bales of wool, and 3 bundles
of leather, from Auckland. She has also 1 package of
panions whom he met there were not much above
gold dust from California. thirteen years of age, for that was the age at which
January 8, off Cape Horn, spoke the barque Der-
cadets were received. He slept in a hammock, and was
went, built at Hobart Town, for London ; March 6, obliged to perform his ablutions in the presence of these
the American ship Powhattan, for California; and boys. He had no separate cabin to retire to, nor servant
March 9, the American ship Columbia, fur Boston. to wait upon him, and thus he was precluded from
following his studies in the way in which a profes-
sional person in his position ought to do. The
more zealous and anxious he was to progress in
knowledge the stronger he felt his dogredation, and it
was to be borne in mind that his profession was one in
which a thorough acquaintance with arts and sciences
was necessary. But what was the cockpit? It
was an apartment in the hold of a ship where
the sun never penetrated, nor where even day-
light entered, and its occupants lived in an altogether
impure and artificial atmosphere. The interruptions
and annoyances to which an assistant-surgeon was
there subjected was an antidote to study, to deep
thought, or to serious application, and the consequence
was, they broke his spirit, destroyed his self-respect,
and not only his self-respect, but also his self-confidence,
which was the first requisite to success in all great
undertakings. If they destroyed the stimulant of emu-
lation, who among them would tread the Leaten path of
life to attain an eminent position in any particular pro-
fession? These :surgeons, therefore, became care-
less and indifferent, and left the ship on the
first convenient opportunity. With the pay of
assistant-surgeons he had no fault to find, and his notion
did not involve any additional expense to the Govern-
, meat in the shape of additional pay. But the rank or
f position which was awarded to them on board a ship was
a perfect mockery. He might be told that they held the
rank of a lieutenant in the army or in the marines, but
, the facts showed that this was not the case. A first or
I second lieutenant in the marines vent into the ward
1 or gun-room, but an assistant-surgeon had to put up
with the cockpit, although by education the
latter was equal to the former.—(Hear hear.)
He might be told that there was no room for these
assistant-surgeons, but he disputed that. Separate
, cabins had been given to the carpenters, and the Ad-
miralty had been compelled to find room fur other
officers. Formerly the schoolmaster and school-
, master's assistant messed in the cockpit, but it was
' found that the youngsters did not treat their master with
that respect that was due to him, and the Admiraliy
changes the schoolmaster for a naval instructor, giving
him a higher rank and,:a berth in the ward-room. By
that means the service had received a superior class of
men, who were in every way competent and qualified to
attend to the moral and religious instruction of the
young men. It had been the same with
the engineers engaged in the steam navy. At first the
Admiralty placed that class of officers in an inferior
position, but eventually they were forced to change their
rank and increase their accommodation. Now, it it were
1 necessary for a man dealing with the machinery of a
i steam-vessel to have superior comforts and a superior
rank, how much more necessary was it fur them
to deal liberally with men who had the care of so
delicate a machine as the human frame. Under the
existing system who could wonder if there was an in-
ferior class of men in the service, or that they were not
treated with that respect which their station entitled
them to ? A friend of his recently told him an
anecdote, which would serve to show what re-
spect was entertained for the opinion of a
naval surgeon. A captain commanding a British man-
of-war received a wound in his leg after a sharp con-
test, and his ship surgeon advised him to have his leg
amputated, declaring that he could not lire a day
without it was removed. The captain, however,
refused to take the advice, and having the
wound bandaged up, he made for the nearest
port, where his leg was dressed, and so far from ampu-
tation being necessary, ho soon recovered, and was now
walking upon his two legs.—(A laugh.) There were
other points which ha could bring before the House in
support of his motion; but, without detaining the House
further, he thought he had stated sufficient to
show the necessity of a change in the system.
He did hot make this motion in behalf of the assistant-
surgeons, for he was not acquainted with a single one,
nor had he had any communication with any of the
body. It was from a pure, honest, and conscientious
belief that there was an injury done to the naval service
generally, that he made this motion, and he hoped
the House would have no difficulty in agreeing to it.
Admiral DUNDAS admitted that there was room to
increase the accommodation of assistant-surgeons, but
he could not agree with the Honourable and
, Gallant Gentleman that there was a paucity of applicants
for the situation of assistant-surgeons, since there were
no less than 263 applicants on the list at the
present moment, iwhile since the increase in their
pay the efficiency of assistant-surgeons was equal
to that of assistant-surgeons in the army.
Every ship in the service had a cabin twice as large as
any other in which the assistant-surgeons might read
and study. For himself, he believed the best surgeons
now in the navy were those who had been brought up in
the cockpit.
Mr. HUME was obliged to the Hon. Gentleman who
had brought this subject forward. The question was
whether the navy, as a public service, was not entitled
to have as able men as the army could obtain ?
No man would go to the navy as a surgeon who
could find employment in the army.—(Hear.)
The system of accommodation fur navy surgeons
seemed to him a gross injustice to the service generally,
inasmuch as it tended to degrade the surgeons. The
Gallant Member (Admiral Dundas) had said there were
few or no complaints made against the present system
by the assistantsurgeons in the navy themselves; but it
was n( t likely those men would dare to make many
complaints when they found even admirals snabbed
—(A laugh)—by men at head• quarters. He (Mr. Hume)
would support any motion ehich had for its object the
amelioration of the position of assistant-surgeons in thu

LMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

(THIS EVENING.)

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
The SPEAKER took the Chair at Four o'clock.
NEW MEMBER.

Lord SEYMOUR, the new Member for Totnes, took
the oaths and his seat. The Noble Lord was introduced
by Lord Marcus Hill and Mr. Fox Maule.
CONSIDERATION OF REPORT.

The report upon the Kew and Petersham Vicaraze
Bill was considered and agreed to.
SECOND READING.

The Leicester and Hitchen Railway Bill was read a
second time, and ordered to be committed.
PETITIONS.

Mr. MUNTZ presented a petition from the Mayor and
Corporation of Birmingham against a Bill introduced
respecting sanitary improvements in that borough.
Mr. DUNCAN presented petitions frown Scotland
against the Marriage Bill, the church-rates, and Sunday
labour in the Post-office.
Mr. WILLCOX presented a petition from surgeons at
Southampton, praying that an inquiry might be insti-
tuted into the condition of assistant-surgeons in the
navy.
Mr. LUSHINGTON presented a petition from Derby
against compulsory aid to the Established Church in the
colonies.
Sir W. VERNON presented several petitions against
the excise duty on paper and the newspaper duty.
Mr. FULLER presented a petition in favour of ex-
tending the County Courts Bill.
Captain BERKELEY presented a petition from tailors
in Gloucester praying for an inquiry into the "sweating
system."
Mr. W. J. FOX presented a petition from the editors,
reporters, compositors, and others employed on The Sun
newspaper, in favour of his Bill for secular education.
The Hon. Gentleman also presented several other peti-
tions from different parts of the country to the same effect.
Mr. HENRY presented a petition from Manchester
also to the same effect.
Mr. MUNTZ presented petitions from places in Lan-
cashire against the
-church-rates and in favour of a Ten
Hours' Bill.
Mr. MACKINNON presented a petition, numerously
signed, from the metropolis against intramural inter-
ments.
Mr. BAILLIE presented a petition against the attor-
neys' certificate duty.
Sir W. SOMERVILLE presented a petition from a
place in Ireland against the Irish Fisheries Bill.
Mr. C. LEWIS presented a petition in favour of an
extension of the County Courts Act.
Lord CASTLEREAGH presented a petition from the
county of Down against the Tenant-Farmers Bill.
Mr. HUME presented a petition from attorneys resid-
ing in Lincoln against the attorneys' certificate duty;
also a petition from Glastonbury, in Somersetshire,
against taxes on the diffusion of knowledge,
Mr. MOODY presented a petition from a place in
Somersetshire against the Secular Education Bill.
Mr. BRIGHT presented a petition from Glasgow
against capital punishment; also a petition from Mar-
gate praying that the penny postage might be extended to
letters crossing the ocean; and a petition from Barnsley
and another place against the application of public money
for the Established Church.
Mr. COBDEN presented a petition from Liverpool
against this country purchasing Danish forts on the
coast of Africa.
Mr. LABOUCHERE presented a petition from An-
trim against the Marriage Bill. •
Mr. M. GIBSON presented a petition from a place in
Lancashire to the same effect.'
RE-APPEARANCE OF MR. DISRAELI.

Shortly before half-past four o'clock Mr. Disraeli
entered the House, and took his seat in his
usual place on the Opposition benches. The
Honourable Member looked exceedingly well, con-
sidering his late severe indisposition, and several
Members in his immediate vicinity gave him a cordial
shake by the+ hand. The Hon. Under-Secretary for the
Colonies (Mr Hawes) crossed the House to congratulate
the Hon. Member for Buckinghamshire on his recovery.
NOTICES OF MOTION.

Mr. DISRAELI, in rt ference to the motion of the
Noble Lord the First Minister of the Crown, which the
Noble Lord had fixed for the 12th inst., for a Committee
on Public :3alaries, begged to give notice that it was
his intention to move, by way of amendment, a resolution
ta the effect that the House was in possession of all infor-
mation regarding public salaries,and that a Parliamentary
Committee of inquiry would under these circumstances
only lead to delay. It was therefore the opinion of the
House that Government ought upon their own respon-
sibility forthwith to introduce any measure necessary for
effecting any, reductions in our national establishments
consistent with the efficient discharge of public services.
Mr. HUME gave notice that to-morrow fortnight he
should move a resolution to the effect that it was the
opinion of the House that all articles now subjected to
customs' duties should be admitted duty free, so that the
importation of manufacturing produce might be placed
on <qual footing with that of agriculture.
Mr. HORSMAN gave notice that, in the evert of
the Committee on Public Salaries being appointed, to
should move that it be an instruction to the Committee
to extend its inquiries to the income of the Ecclesiastical
Commissioners.
AUSTRALIAN COLONIES.

Sir W. MOLES WORTH called the attention of the
Hon. Member, the Under-Secretary for the Colonies,
to certain resolutions which bad been officially published
in Australia, and which were to the effect that any new
constitution to be established for the Australian colonies
ought to be based upou the principle of a double
chamber, and the Government of the colonies assimilated
as much as possible to that of the mother
country. Ile wished to ask the Honourable
Gentleman whether the Colonial-office had received any
information with regard to that resolution, and if so,
whether he had any objection to lay it before the House
before the debate on the Australian Colonies Bill came
on again.
Mr. HAWES said copies of the resolutions had
been transmitted to the Noble Lord at the
head of the Colonial. Department, but they
were proposed by a private member of the local
legislature to be moved at a future meeting
of the Legislative Assembly, and the Govern-
ment had nothing whatever to do with them.
How they came to be published in an official
form he really could not tell, but he should have no ob-
jection whatever to produce the dispatch.
Mr. DIVETT thought it right to add to this answer,
that he gathered from communications which be had
received from the colony that the vast majority of the
colonists were opposed to these resolutions.
ECCLESIAS nem, COMMISSION BILL.

navy.

The House then divided, when there appeared—
For Captain Boldero's motion ... 48
Against it ... 40
Majority in favour of the motion ... —8
On entering the gallery we found Certain BERKE-
LEY on his legs speaking to the same point. He
maintained that the present system saved as-
sistant-surgeons many incumbrances which they were
now spared. In the Royal Marines, in which many
young men entered, who had to borrow from their friends
tor their outfit, and after their introduction into their ser-
vice, had expenses forced upon them by which they were in-
volved to an inextricabie extent, and were obliged to leave
the service. This would probably often be the case with
naval surgeons if they were placed in a similar situation.
He would maintain most honestly that this attempt to put
assistant•surgeons over the head of their superiors in
rank would be attended with very great evils, and would
inflict one of the greatest injuries on her Majesty's naval
service. He wished to know why the Honourable
and Gallant Member did not, when in office,
endeavour to induce the Admiralty of that day to make
the new arrangement which be now proposed ? He
imagined, however, that they were as much opposed to it
as the present Board of Admiralty. If the opinion of
naval officers were taker, he was convinced
that it would be decidely against the motion of the
Honourable and Gallant Gentleman. Allusion had
been made to the fact ef the engineers of our naval
fteamers having separate cabins, but the necessity of
such an arrangement was obvious, because, when the
weather was boisterous and the lives of the
crew were in danger, the engineer had to be
up at all hours of the night, and therefore re-
quired accommodation which other officers did not.
He denied that naval officers had any desire to give less
accommodation to assistant-surgeons than their position
and education required, and said be should give his de-
cided opposition to the motion.
Captain BOLDERO replied.
Sir FRANCIS BARING said there were serious
and practical difficulties to the carrying out
of the motion of the Honourable Member. If
there were the means of giving this accommodation
of course there were would be no objection to it ; but
that such means :did not exist was :proved by the
report of the commission which had sat upon this
very subject, and which had reported that
there was no room for additional cabins
The report, however, suggested certain other improve-
ments in the accommodation of assistant surgeons which
had been fully carried out, and which it was thought
woul cabins unnecessary. However he should not put
the House to the trouble of dividing again, but though
the House would agree to the resolution, he was very
much afraid that it would be impossible to carry out its
object.
Mr. HUME said it was perfectly true that the report
of the Commission stated that there was not sufficient
room for additional cabins, while the other improvements
which the report recommended bad greatly benefited
the medical officers of the navy, but it should be
remembered that since that report bad been made room
had been found for no leas than three cabins.
The motion was then agreed to.
ILLEGALITY OF REPRISALS.
Mr. ANSTEY then proceeded to call the attention of
the House to the illegality of reprisals when made by
officers of her Majesty's navy, without the
authority of an order in Council. Adverting to the
Grecian affair, he said he did not dispute the legality of
the claims, but he complained rather of the informal
manner in which they bad been enforced.
He deprecated the course that had been pursued
by the Government in this case, because they
had advised her Majesty to place her royal
actingprero gativ at the
ireddinsptoisoanl of
of
.Amdmr.irawl
Wyse, he
exercised by her Majesty
under thealluded to the prerogative of declaring war or peace,
which he asserted could only be
with the advice of her Privy Council.
(LEFT SPEAKING.)

In reply to a question fro; Sir E. BUXTON,.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL said .there were two Bills
which the House was alrta-ly in Committee upon,
namely, the Australian Colonies Bill and the Irish Par-
liamentary Electors Bill, and it was desirable to push
forward the Stamp Acts Amendment Bill, on which he
proposed the House should go into Committee on Fri-
day ; that being so, he would scarcely be able to proceed
with the Ecclesiastical Commission Bill tilt Monday.
- Mr. LIORSMAN asked whether the Noble Lord could
fix any day for proceeding with the Ecclesiastical Com-
mission Bill?
Lord J. RUSSELL thought Monday, the 22d; at all
events it would bo the first that would be taken up after
the House had disposed of the Australian Colonies Bill,
the Irish Parliamentary Electors Bill, and the Stamp
Act.

NAVY ESTIMA.TES.-NAVAL ASSISTANT
SURGEONS.

On the motion for going into Committee on the navy
estimates,

Captain BOLDERO presented several petitions from
_he surgeons, lecturers, and students in the different hos-
pitals in London, praying. that;the assistant-surgeons in
the navy might be placed on an equal footing with
surgeons and the army.
The GALLANT MEMBER then moved a resolution to
the effect that the accommodation provided for the as-
sistant-surgeons on board her Majesty's ships of war is
inadequate and insufficient for securing the full benefit
of their professional service. He wished to have a fair,
full, and liberal consideration of this question, and he
would endeavour to lay before the House such
facts connected with it as would lead them to
a proper conclusion. The medical profession were
toad
in their complaints that naval assistant-surgeons
were not placed on an equal footing with surgeons in the
army. This arose from a systematic and unwise
of neglectdog r practised
ading
tho
medicaltowards
profession,
an insult upon the assistant-5251°n
in-
jury and injustice to the naval service and of
wl,aich had the effect
uvrieegoeteart large. It would
eons, and an
necessarygoesti
on. forTh
There
mw a s
unpootn be
ee
documents which were already
the 3 ear 1805 surgeons in the From
on an equal footing with those in the army, and i
a commission had been appointed by the reigning 1838
11
starch to inquire into the subject, which recommended
the same course. This recommendation had been
beforeoal3vryo tfande sufficientbinenetoonu s
e.rb lgrdiui.nntmog theeibl
be
ordered to he carried out by an order tin Councilen
of her present Majesty; and he would ask gentlemen on
the opposite side connected with the naval administra-
tion, why these orders in Council had not been
carried out ? He found that in a Committee of
the House appointed to inquire into naval ex-
penditure, a report bad been presented in which it
was stated that the surgeons in the navy were
each placed one rank below the army surgeons. This
report also showed the great injury which such a state of
things elTccted upon the characters of men employed in
the service. The Admiralty had found out this, and
had actually offered the University of Edinburgh I
the appointment of naval surgeons, but the Uni-
versity had refused to avail themselves of that
offer while surgeons •in the navy were placed in their
present inferior position. What would the Government
do in case of a war ? They could not send press-gangs
into the universities to get surgeons, and it was pretty
evident that men of character would not present them-
selves. He would contrast the position of two young
men educated together, and perfectly equal in their
qualifications as surgeons—one of whom was ,
fortunate enough to get an appointment in
the armLiaand the other BO unfortunate as to be I
appointed to the navy. The first on joining

TAXATION.
Our legislators, of all parties, are just now playing
at " fast and loose," " hide and seek," with the
country on the question of reducing taxation, and
cutting down the expenses. First of all, there is
the Tory motion for a repeal of the Malt-tax. We
believe this most emphatically to be a " Maltese
cross" of the highest class with a ♦engeance. It is a
mere factious battering-ram for knocking down a
Ministry. It means no remission of taxes to the
extent of a half farthing. It promises no diminution
of expenditure to chime in with the lessened revenue
of tne empire. Its significasion is much more simple.
It only stands for, Exeunt the Whigs and enter the
Country Party, who would immediately find some
excuse for keeping things as they are, or, if they
really did remit the malt-tax, would raise the
inceuW-tax to ten per cent., or intercept all trade