The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-03-28 00:00:00

Etberpoot -taitharto

PROM OUR LONDON CORRESPONDENT.

MONDAY MORNING,

TH211.3 Was a comp late lull in the usual haunts of poli-
ticians throughout the whole of yesterd:y, forming a
curious contrast to the excitement of that day se'nnight.
The reason is, that the public mind is made up. The
"coming event" by the telegraph of Friday was corro-
borated beyond all mistake, misrepresentation, exaggera-
tion, or quibble, by the return to the metropolis of the
Hon. Captain BLA.CKWOOD from St. Petersburgh, between
ten and eleven o'clock on Saturday night. Quick as the
voltaic battery the CZAR'S unceremonious rejection of the
last offer of France and England ran through the metro-
polis. In a few minutes it was communicated at the
Mansion-house, where the Earl of CLARENDON, the mi-
nisters, and foreign ambassadors were dining. The Satur-
day Mansion-house banquets usually close at eleven o'clock
—the last one was rather abrupt in its termination, and
every guest was aware of the cause in the Czin's deter-
mination. Another message conveyed the intelligence at
the same moment to Buckingham Palace, where there
was a large evening party, a dinner having been given
previously, at which the Duke of CAMBRIDG9 was the
chief guest. It was considered very probable that the
royal duke would have dined with Viscount HIEDINGE

and their mutual friend, Coant WALEWSRI, the French
Ambassador, and divers soldiers for the East, at the Man-
sion-house, but for the proceedings at Christ's Hospital,
in which the royal duke was chosen president of
that ancient foundation, in preference to the LORD
MAYOR. His Lordship was the first to take the initiative
as regards the war in the East, and about an hour only

before the news brought by the QuEnN's messenger was
communicated, his lordship said, referring to our long
peace, that he much feared, that peace was now at an end,
and that the present day (Saturday) might be regarded as
the last of that tranquillity with which Europe had been
blessed for so many years. At the banquet, either by

mistake, or otherwise, there appeared to be a rather

mal apropos feeling for a moment existing. Three or
four speeches were made stuffed full of "epithets of war,"
instantly on the back of them the BISHOP of LONDON'S
health was proposed. The bishop, though a churchman,
likes a smart contrast, and came out rather successfully as
returning thanks for the " Ministers of Peace." There
are all sorts of rumours touching the treatment of Captain
BLACKWOOD at St. Petersburg. The EMPEROR was not
in the capital on the gallant messenger's arrival, but at a
place two or three days' journey distant ; hence, in part,

the delay. At all events, " I have no answer," was the
laconic return. The Russian people are represented as
wound up to the highest pitch of religious enthusiasm.
They believe they are right ; their blind devotion to the
EMPEROR is stated to recognize no bounds. I am not
now referring to the feelings of the nobles ; the intelli-
gence brought by Captain BLACKWOOD has to do with
the great mass of the population, and the military.
Though the newspapers have said nothing at all, or as
little as nothing, on the important point, the fact is the
same, that at a recent meeting of ministers Lord PALMER-
STON suggested,—hinted—broached a topic, as bold as it
undoubtedly will be advantageous to the British arms in
the East, and it may be a lasting profit to England.
The fortified Turkish port of Gallipoli has been ceded by
the SULTAN to the British government, as a naval and
military station for the force of this country. Look at the
map, and the incalculable advantage of Gallipoli will be at
once perceived. It is situated at the mouth of the Dar-
danelles, commanding ingress and egress between the Me-
diterannean and the Black Sea. Time out of mind it has
been a great shipping port, to which English and other
vessels resorted. Situated on a long and narrow tongue
of land, running from the Turkish mainland, with a
command as above mentioned. Two thousand men sta-
tioned in the fort of Gallipoli, can withstand any attack
from the land side, the breadth of the isthmus being about
a mile and-a-half. In short, no ship could sail up to Con-
stantinople, or return from the Turkish citadel, if the parties
in possession of Gallipoli were to oppose it ; and the con-
tinued possession of it by the English would almost neu-
tralise the advantages that Russia would gain by the oc-
cupation of Constantinople. Gallipoli was the first place
taken in Europe by the Turks in the fourteenth century;
it was taken from the Greeks, the king then being in
Constantinople, and the Turks have held it ever since as
the ordinary station of the Ottoman fleet in time of peace.
A conversation of momentous import occurred in the
House of Peers on Tuesday evening, at the instance of
the Earl of ELLENBOEOUGII, touching the government
supply—not contract, as it at present unfortunately
happens, for the ends of just and swift punishment—
touching the recent supply of fodder for our artillery horses,
now on their way to the scene of action. A few words
on the subject may be interesting—they are drawn from
the first source, and are not much in reference to the dis-
cussion itself in the Lords, but rather being upon the
grand question of government supplies, contracts, and
some news thereanent. First, however, let ns treat of the
artillery horses. They are chiefly of the Cleveland breed,
thorough English,—brown or black—white or light gray
never; these are marks for the enemy, and to be avoided.
Of all the horses in England, from the " high mettled
racer," your Flying Dutchman, and so forth, including
every species down to the humble nag, the trained artil-
lery horse is the most valuable. Good blood of the sort,
sound in wind and limb he has passed veterinary manipula-
tion ; now comes the drill, which makes him invaluable,
for action, rapidity of motion, acuteness, beating out of
the field the boasted trained horse of France, the more
proudly spoken-of horse of Austria and of Prussia. Drill
continues more or less according to the aptitude, or intel-
ligence rather, of the animal; by degrees he is accustomed
to the roar of the cannon, in Woolwich marches, distant it
may be comparatively, in his earlier practice ; gradually it is
brought nearer and nearer, till at last his acme of perfec-
tion is reached. The intellect of a higher order of
animals, we are told, is sometimes reached through the
stomach. In the field of battle, in front of the deadly
breach," there the trained horses stand; in a twinkling
slip goes the loop—they are unhooked from the field
piece, and free to bound like the wild horse of Mazeppa—
but they don't. The " nose bag "—the military one—is a
chef d'oeuvre in its way, with its little elastic cane border;
this is placed on the ground—the animal eyes it. Moons,
or somebody, sings aloud in praise of the eyes of the
-gazelle; for docile intelligence, with a dash of cunning in
it, the eye of the artillery horse is beyond compare !
Well, the horse is not long in dipping his month—bit,
and bridle-leather flaps on his chest—into the bag of
provender—a toss, and it is fixedon his head. Boom!
goes the cannon ; they are in the heat of the action. Fire
away is the order ; each succeeding roar from the mighty
gun within a foot of the horse is answered by a quiet
look round—a harmless pricking of the ear—another
toss of the nose bag, and munch ! A change of
position is commanded ; in a second twinkling, on
goes the loop, and the huge piece of ordnance is drawn
to the new point of 'vantage. When hard work of
this description is expected, the horse is kept a good
while beforehand without food, even almost to ex-
haustion. He pays all the more attention, they say.
Such is our trained artillery horse. Such glorious crea-
tures, upon whose life or death, it may be, depends the
destiny of nations, by the merest accident were saved, but
the other day, from death by fire or poison before they
landed to meet a foe ! The cause ? A desire for filthy
lucre on the part of the miscreant who supplied the fodder.
Has wickedness since the beginning of the world gone
further ? No, no. I remember some time ago tasting
" preserved provisions," a mere particle on the end of a
fork; it didn't pass the epiglottis; the horrible flavour
remained in my month for many hours thereafter, making
all condiment hideous! Readers may recollect the con-
tract, when our brave sailors, on having the preserved
" tins" of meat opened, found bits with " hair on them,"
together with all unutterable filth. It was suggested then
that" tasters," sworn, should be appointed; commissioners,
in short, to be present when the barrel-bulk of the provi-
sions was being packed ; that they should taste a portion
of the bulk, and see it afterwards, portion by portion, her-
metically closed. With fodder the process is much more
simple. A very dull nose indeed can detect the difference
from the sweet smell of hay and the rotten. Combustion
would undoubtedly have occurred had STURGEON'S hay
been shipped; but probably the horses might have been
previously poisoned. Let there be sworn Government
tasters?' Why does the East India Company give a
thousand a year to that saffron-coloured man, with the
chalky tongue, for tasting their teas ? He can tell at a
smack of his lips the difference between Pekoe and Hyson,
Twankey and Souchong ; a chip of Bohea he detects at
once. Mere mercantile precaution, that a chest of inferior
may not be palmed off for one of superior ; and until this
is done by the Government, garbage for ever !
Jon Hume, M.P. for Montrose, deserves the desecra-
tion of thousands of poor hard-working clerks, warehouse-
men; porters, mechanics, artizans, railway people; and
people of all working orders —nearly--save the " vera
ink," Wording to HUME'S vernacular, which I do not ob-
ject to. Jos is now getting on for eighty years of age, still
;tiff, bluff, and rugged as he always was : he has called
Reformer—Radical, indeed—the poor man's friend
riir fifty years, and, oh sorrow and shame ! the poor have
taken him at his word. I never thought JOSEPH HUME
a friend of the poor man, or of any man, other than him-
self That be has been going on with cheese-paring
.re-
form in the House of Commons for a life-time, moved for
returns more costly in their production than the tax he
had in his eye for abrogation, is most true. In any great
question, JosnPH Hymn's heart becomes shrivelled—con-
tracted as his mind, if he have one. He will take care of
working men's pence, for a penny monument, (and good
enough, too,) Joann! HUME, while
in memory of the founder of our modern
curse, PEEL and the Income Tax.
he had yet a character to make and. sustain, attended
working men's meetings, took chair oftentimes thereat,
and gammoned them ;
filing with the talked big about
othersreform. in parlia-
ment—it gave a colour to his'sadom
ex-
pense of his election. Middlesex to wit. Sprung tr
mealy the lowest grade of society, he made his large for-
tune at a time when India was worth going. to, and when
saltpetre, gunpowder, andothersimilar materuils,were even
in more request than at present. He:became a nabob without
diseased liver ; returned to England,—now bestrides an
exquisite horse—keeps a beautiful carnage ; nay, further,
I have seen himbut
pay for a box at the French plays;
that he considered "as
lassies.". All this is well. Low
a French lesson to the
• Low origin and refined taste,