The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-02-14 00:00:00

FROM OUR LONDON CORRESPONDENT.

MONDAY MORNING.

IT is =necessary for me to dilate at any great length on
the certainty of war—its actual existence at this moment--
Beither is it required of me to notice the extensive and
active preparations for such a state as I see are being made
'by the government. Distinguished officers of both ser-
vices have paid numerous and frequent visitts to the
FOSEIGN SECRETARY since Thursday last. Sir CHA.S.
NAPIER, as I was the first to intimate some time ago
would be the case, goes into active command, and. General
EvArrs has the same orders for the land service. Both
officers look hearty for their years. They are known in
the services by the appellation of " Dare devils ;" the
General was a soldier of fortune, and made his way up to
his present high position by heading, when a young offi-
cer, several " forlorn hopes ;" he was determined to die or
rise in his profession. The Coldstream Guards, a fine body
of men, are now doing duty at the Tower of London, previ-
ous to a large section of them starting for the seat of war.
They mount guard on the ramparts of the ancient fortress
in forage caps, which give a very odd, as well asundignified,
appearance. Your readers are aware that the usual head-
covering of this gallant corps is a Iluge bear-skincap, about
two feet in height—most formidable in size ; and as incon-
venient. The frame-work is constructed of wicker, which
is covered with the costly skin of Bruin. This cumbrous
cap has been given in to the army accoutrement folks,
who have received instructions from the Commander-in-
Chief to cut it down in size, and so enable the soldier to do
duty with greater ease. The old cap, notwithstanding its
immense height, was not very heavy, but it caught the
wind, and was an impediment to the wearer. This is one
of many improvements in military costume which for
years have been loudly called for. I may mention that at
the Tower the issues of military stores are at present un-
precedentedly great. Large quantities of clean old linen
sheets are also selected for the hospitals ; their mournful
application may be easily imagined ; they are for the
wounded, and are the remains of the good old regime
when coarse linen sheeting was used instead of the cheaper,
and it may be warmer and more comfortable cotton or
long cloth, which cannot with safety be applied to gun-
shot or other wounds.

In the face of all the preparations—most expensive they
are—the PREMIER, who has a dread of war beyond any
man living, is holding out for peace, contending that, so
long as there is the slightest hope of the blissful state,
war is not inevitable. On the contrary, the noble Earl at
the head of the Opposition sees nothing but war, and a
fierce one. In this view he is supported by some of the
most sagacious Peers in the House. Lord DERBY told
Lord ABERDEEN on Friday night, in a tone and manner
never to be forgotten by those who were present, that he
(ABERDEEN) was the only adult in HER MAJESTY'S
dominions who held such peaceful opinions. The head of
the Coalition took the cut without saying a word, but
looked very black, as the saying is.
It may be interesting to know that the chiefs of parties,
in both Houses of the Legislature, have had meetings, the
result of which has been the evident quietness of the de-
bates; which have been—contrary to all expectation—tame
in the lowest degree. Ministers and thApposition—
though much cannot be said of either—are loyal, even
RIONAVD COBDEN and JOHN BRIGHT—no easy matter—
have held their tongues. Both sides have refrained from
making, or asking for disclosures, which might be prema-
ture and hazardous. It is the opinion not of one or two
sound statesmen, but of many, that NrcsoLAs would slink
ontof the war, could an opportunity be afforded him of doing
so with a good grace. Yea, further, that such an oppor-
tunity may be afforded to him. All that has yet been
done in the way of preparation may be deemed almost as
a finale to the naval and military displays at Spithead
and Chobham, last autumn. There are all sorts, or rather
were, all kinds of rumours in the city on Saturday after-
noon ; but the wags of the Stock Exchange, after a hot
luncheon, washed down with stiff old port from the wood,
to be had in the neighbourhood, are not very nice in con-
cocting, or slack in circulating their jokes, which are
always received—more or less. Such was that statement
which occupied a couple of hours before high change time
on Saturday, that Nick was willing to withdraw his horns
if he had indemnification for the expenses of his military
movements. Fudge ! Meantime, it is worthy of remark
that tallow, the great staple of Russia, has fallen in price;
so also saltpetre ; though some wise ones stated, a few
days ago, that it had risen in consequence of a larger sup-
ply being required in the manufacture of gunpowder.
Fudge again ! To my certain kowledge there has not been
an extra peck of gunpowder granulated at our mills for
the last two months over the usual averages of former
and peaceful years. It may be amusing to observe that,
probably, in our country's history, there never was such a
stock of gold coined, uncoined, and in dust, iu the Mint
and Bank depositories, nor so much gunpowder in our ar-
senals, and at Hounslow and Dartford, as are to be now
found there.
The proceedings of the House of Commons, in the
early part of the week, were diversified by one of those
displays which, for a good number of years, have been but
few. Breach of privilege ! These are ominous words,
one would think : they mean, however, less than they
say. The Times paper, it appeared, came out strong on
certain of the Irish party in the House and out of it.
Strange to say, they had a meeting, or rather a series of
groupings, in and about those very commodious and con-
venient rooms devoted to reading and writing, eating,
drinking, and smoking. Mr. ISAA.O BUTT, a good Conser-
vative, and one of the few really clever Irish members in
the House, was chosen to be the orator on the occasion ;
and, having called the attention of the House to the ob-
noxious article, moved to the effect, that the clerk read
said article at the table of the House, together with pre-
vious statements made in the Freeman's Journal, impu-
ting to the members of that House a trafficking in places
for money. The hon. and learned member said he should
CO attention to these articles as involving a breach of
the privileges of the House of Commons, and move for a
select committee to inquire into the allegations of such
trafficking. When Mr. BUTT came to the word "move,'.
there was a pause, it being thought that Mr. HAanisoN
the printer of the Times, and Dr. GRAY, the editor of the
Freeman, were to be "hauled up," as the phrase is. Mr.
Burt knows better practice, and, like a sensible man,
slightly wincing with others, and, I rather suspect, be-
lieving in part the imputations, calls for an inquiry rather
than for the appearance of printer and editor. When that
is the case, the usual course is that the printer of the of-
fending paper be " called to the bar"—of the House.
Except in two instances, this extreme course, during the
last twelve years, has not been adopted or enforced ; nei-
ther has the extremer proceeding of sending the parties
away in custody. One of these cases had reference to an
'individual whose name, for a long series of years, was as
-A much in the public eye as NAPOLEON BONAPARTE, during
471 the last war, or WELLINGTON'S, daring the last half cen-
tury—a name which, if pronounced now, calls up many
remembrances—JOHN JOSEPH LAwsoN, the well-known—
by name—printer of the Times. Mr. LAwsoN was never of
robust frame; delicate and gentlemanly in personnel, his
peculiar avocation, its demands upon him, his responsibi-
lities in a thousand different modes, increased the seeming
delicacy of his structure. He was, moreover, exceedingly
nervous, in the common application of that word. But he
got over his fright like a man. The other case was that
of Mr. BITTLESTONE, now an honour to the Bankruptcy.
Court, established not far from your busy town of Liver-
pool. Mr. BITTLESTONE was before the Lords, and
committed for some supposed breach of privilege, in
that always well conducted and well behaved jour-
nal, the Morning Post, then, as now, considered an
authority in their lordships' house. Mr. B. was committed
—to a handsome room, with a bed in it to be sure, in the
proximity of the peers' chamber. Here the incarcerated
editor received his friends. He had for his gaoler and
companion one of the gentlemen porters of their lordships'
house. I forget whether BITTLESTONE had to pay his
fees. I think they were remitted. These are, or were,
rather heavy,—say £4O—long or short the duration of
imprisonment. If the party should be of a penitent and
contrite spirit,—some good-natured member of the legis-
lature, such as Sir ROBERT HARRY INGLIS, the present
Earls of ELLESMERE and CARLISLE, after making a few
observations, move that the party be discharged, which is
always carried nem. con. BROUGHAM, easily nettled, used
to threaten such proceedings in fiery language upon every
occasion ;—the noble and learned lord, much to his credit,
cooled down long before the time for the culprit being
brought up. Lord DENMAN, the late Lord LANGDALE,
and JocH CAMPBELL frequently softened the ire of
HARRTI. O'CONNELL was frequently like BROUGHAM in
this regard : blustered away awfully in making a charge,
which rarely came to a head. O'CONNELL was tabooed
once. For several nights his speeches were not given :
BARNES of the Times, as ToM MOORE calls the late editor
of that journal, said the paper could not do without them •
O'CONNELL was given by the " leading journal," and was
instantly followed by the others. The remarks about
" breach of privilege," of course, do not apply to members
when they " fall into a breach." The offending member
leaves the house, most commonly followed by a friend into
the library, where an arrangement is almost sure of being
effected- The breaches of privileges, as applied to " stran-
gers" in bothhouses, are still very numerous,very stringent,
and some of them apparentl very trivial. Eating an
ge, for example, is a breach; you may suck one on the
sly, however, without reproach ; so also you may eat a
sandwich, as a horse eats beans in a nose-bag,—with your
hat before your face. A lorgnette is dreadful; if bino-
cular, and applied to any of their lordships or members of
the lower • house, immediate expulsion is the penalty.
Several distinguished artists, in these days of illustrated
works, have tried hard to make sketches secretly in both
houses, but have been foiled; others I know have resorted
to the thumb nail to carry away a lineament, and have
done so at their utmost peril. The famous H.B. (DoyLE
Pere) used to be a frequent attendant in both houses, but
carried away the likenesses of our legislators in his senso-
'um (I suppose that's the place). Hence mostly all the por-
traitslou see andhave seen—the late Duke of WELLINGTON,
~.
Lord BROUGHAM, Lord JOHN RUSSELL, DISRAELI, bIB-
TIIORPE, though -
likenesses at best. in many points capital, are conventional
When it first appeared in
t. WELLINGTON'S
Puneh nose, or BROUGHAM'S,
for example; bad tlie twig