The Sun. — 1863-06-17 (London, England)

THE COURT-MARTIAL ON CHARLES THOMAS.  Mr. HIDFIELD asked the Secretary to the Admiralty whether his intention had been called to the proceedings of a court-martial held on board her Majesty's ship Victory, at Portsmouth, on Charles Thomas, a seaman, charged with insubordination and using offensive language to a boatswain, who had ordered the liberty-boat to leave before its appointed time, when the prisoner was returning to his ship, after the expiration of his leave of absence to get married ; and if so, whether it was true that, under the circumstances of that case the prisoner was adjudged to be reduced to the second class, to receive forty-eight lashes, to be imprisoned in Winchester Gaol for two years, and then to be discharged with disgrace from her Majesty's navy; and whether he would lay the proceedings of the court upon lee table of the house. Lord C. PAGET said the hon. member was misinformed with respect to some of the particulars of the case. In the first place, the hon. member was mistaken in his assumption that the sailor Charles Thomas was prevented merely by accident from returning to his ship ; that was not so, for according to the evidence of the other sailors in the boat, they did not quit the shore until the appointed time, and Themes was not down in time to go on board, However, he afterwards found his way to the ship, and then he showed himself very indignant towards the boatswain in charge of the boat, and used most violent, offensive, disgusting, and insubordinate language towards that officer, and towards the captain of the ship. His offence was so grave that it Was naturally thought requisite he should be tried by courtinertial, and accordingly he was so tried. The second inaccuracy of the hon. member was in statingthat the prisoner ha(' been on leave of absence to get married. Now, the priaboeneeti ° prisoner himself set up no such defence ; he stated that he had evidence to see his brother, and had got intoxicated. But ties of the other sailors was that he was sober when he made As to the 1180 of the very gross language charged correctly stated bsentte,nce of the court-martial, it had been " Hear, hear") by hon. member. (Ironical cries of , Were:as bound to say that courts-martial, like individuals cries of " Hear, hear.) occasionally liable to err—(ironical erring erring on the side of leniency, and eometimer Itng on the side of severity. (Hear, hear.) At the earner irareev,. the proceedings of all courts-martial came underptpleeenea tihtn,,ton of the Admiralty, of the Admiralty were and it not unfrequently ha able to exercise the blessed privilege the oonbt that in tigate the sentences upon prisoners when it and to mi appeared to them sentences were too harsh ; and he leaa not the present case the Admiralty would have of exercising their mitigatory privilege, (Hear, hP„P:r)tEtY ho believed the house would agree with him that, whatever t arrangement the Admiralty might make, whatever mitigation of the sentence might be enforced, it should be clearly understood that that mitigation was not the result of the interference of that house. For it certainly would not conduce to the discipline of the navy i fthat housewere turned into a court of appeal from decisions of courts-martial. (Hear, hear.) Such being the circumstances of ptrhoecase, he hoped the hon. member would not press cian as duction of the proceedings ; and the more esp under the Naval Discipline Act, the prisoner woulde bY , e entitled, after an interval of three months, to a copy of the sentence and the proceedings of the court. Mr. HADFIEL D expressed a hope that some means would be devised for preventing the publication of such inaccurate statements. Lord C. PAGET said he sincerely wished he could prevent misrepresentations of the kind appearing in newspaper ; and, as he was on the subject, he might observe, in reply to a question put to him by the right hon. member for Kilmarnock (Mr. Bouverie), that there was not the soltinr teet foundation fur a statement which had appeared the day in the papers relative to a sailor having been ordered to prison for three years, and as having committed suicide in co usequence. The only suggestion he had to offer  was, that when such statements reaehed hon. members they should bring them forward in that house, in order to afford him the opportunity of correcting them. (Hear.)