The Sun.
London, England, 1827-11-24 00:00:00

in its strictly official or technical sense, we never
thought it entitled to credit ; because we did not
suppose that Ministers would have the hardihood
to brave that tempest of public indignation,
which could not but have arisen if they
had this week superseded and disgraced in
the customary forms, and without any addi-
tional information, the Commander whom,
no longer ago than last week, they had held up
as the proper object of national gratitude and
esteem, by conferring on him one of the most
splendid honours in the power of the Crown to
bestow. Yet from the midst of these official
contradictions, or rather evasions, it is not dif-
ficult to extricate the truth. That Government
have disgraced Sir E. Codrington is not the less
a fact, although it has not yet taken the step of
formally superseding him. The mission of
Sir John Gore was a measure which the
organs of Administration were compelled either
to deny or explain. If the gallant Admiral
could have been smuggled out of the coun-
try it would have been well—but as this was
obviously impossible, the only course which re-
mained was to let out the truths connected with
his mission—truths, as unwelcome to the people
of England as they are discreditable to the Go-
vernment, by slow and cautious degrees. Ac-
cordingly, on the evening which immediately
preceded the departure of Sir John, we find one
of the organs of Administration admitting, with
manifest and avowed reluctance, that the object
of his mission was to collect, on board the flag
ship of Sir E. Codrington, further information,
and to require of him further explanations as to
the circumstances which led to the battle of Na-
varin, in order to enable Government to judge
whether, as a Government, it can or cannot ap-
prove of the conduct of the British Commander
in that engagement. This was the first step in
the progressive disclosure. Yesterday morning,
that is to say, two days after the departure of Sir
John Gore, we collect, from another confidential
organ of Administration, a further particle of
information, viz. :—That he has been sent to
convey verbal instructions to Sir E. Codring-
. ton, for tic regulation of his future con-
duct. These two pieces of information are quite
reconcileable, and are both, we have no doubt,
entirely correct ; and their result is, that Sir
John Gore, although it is by no means to be
understood that he goes out to supersede Sir E.
Codrington, does in fact go out for the twofold
purpose of investigating the past conduct of that
Officer, and of regulating, by verbal orders, his
future conduct. 1 his, we admit, is not to su-

persede Sir E. Codrington technically; but it is
in effect to supersede him, and that in a manner
the most degrading and ignominious. We do not
hesitate to say, that whenever these objects of
Sir John Gore's visit are unfolded to Sir Ed-
ward Codrington, the latter, whatever may hava
been his errors, must, if he possess one re-
maining „park of the spirit of a British Officer,
resign his command, and demand a public
enquiry into his conduct. The leading Minis-
terial Paper tells us that so highly does Govern-
ment estimate the services of Sir E. Codrington,
that a Peerage w4uld have been bestowed upon
that Officer, if any precedent could have been
found of such a reward for a naval exploit per-
formed before a declaration of war had been
issued. We fully credit this assertion. We do
not doubt that a week or ten days ago Ministers,
if they could thereby have beguiled the country
into approbation of the Navarro atrocity, and of
the base and foolish Treaty out of which it
sprung would willingly have created Sir E. Co-
drington, had such an elevation been possible, a
Prince of the Blood. It affords us, we own,
at the same time, a rather unexpected gratification
to find an authorised organ of the present Ad-
ministration recognising any value or importance
in the old-fashioned formality of a declaration of
war.—Morning Post.