But that is not the contingency I allude to. From the
moment I apprehended a winter campaign in the
Crimea was inevitable, from that moment I made
provision for the supply of warm clothing and other
things. He (the duke) was not aware that the efficiency
of the service was impaired by any forms or vouchers
required in communications with Lord Raglan. Great
complaints were made as to those connected with the
commissariat, and he appointed two officers to prepare
new forms of a less complicated character than those
that went out with the army. He thought the present
system of audit, without reference to expenditure, was
necessary, as calculated to check dishonesty. There
were inconveniencies attaching to them, but he was
afraid that if they were removed great abuses would be
introduced, and that the public would be at the mercy
of dishonest servants. The maps of operation sent from
the Crimea were not so good as those drawn by the
French engineers; not for want of good men in the
British engineering corps, which contained some of the
first in the world; but the fact was, the maps were not
well done; not because he supposed the government
had expended a large sum in mapping during peace.
The circumstance was to be debited to the Board of
Ordnance, but it was only fair to say that the
engineering officers were fully absorbed in the operations of
the siege; and that it did not arise from any deficiency
of talent in the corps. He (the duke) had recommended
that the appointment of legal adviser to the ordnance
should not be filled up; but subsequently he found it
necessary to withdraw the recommendation. He was
not aware whether Lord Raglan sent an officer to Lord
Stratford to make arrangements with reference to
supplies for the army; but Lord Raglan communicated
with Lord Stratford on all requisite occasions. All
requisite steps were taken by means of recruiting
and reserve, to maintain the army in effective strength,
under reduction by loss in battle and disease.—
Being examined as to the manner in which the members
of the cabinet had attended to their duties, the duke
said: There was no meeting of the cabinet in August,
after the prorogation of parliament, or in September,
although that was an exceedingly important period of
the campaign. There were one or two individual
members of the cabinet absent from London during the
whole of that period; but he thought it was unfair to
ask him who they were. Besides, if he endeavoured
from his imperfect recollection to state exactly which of
the cabinet ministers were absent from London during
that period, he might run the risk of doing injustice to
individuals. He himself never left his post in London,
except for a very short time, when he was called on to
attend Prince Albert to the camp at Boulogne. It
would have been no doubt more agreeable to himself if
the whole of the cabinet ministers had been in London
during that time, and it would also have relieved him
of some personal responsibility which otherwise attached
to him. He believed Sir James Graham remained at
the Admiralty during the whole of the time in question,
except when he was visiting the outports, or when he
was in attendance on the Queen at Balmoral. He
necessarily undertook, on his own personal responsibility,
several measures in reference to the campaign, when
his colleagues in the cabinet were out of town. Had the
events of the campaign, however, taken such a turn as
to make it necessary to change the whole character of
the campaign, or to take any other important step, he
should, of course, have summoned the whole of his
colleagues to town by telegraph. In regard to appointments
in the army in the Crimea, the duke said that
he had never made any official remonstrances to Lord
Hardinge on this subject, but he had expressed his
opinion privately and verbally to his lordship on some
of those appointments. Most certainly no suggestion
was made by him to Lord Hardinge in reference to any
appointment, which was not acted upon. He would
never have tolerated such a thing. If his suggestions
as secretary for war had not been immediately attended
to, he should have resigned his office. His opinion was
that the whole staff system of the army in the country
was erroneous. His belief was that we ought to have a
staff of the army something like that of the continental
armies; without that the evils of the existing system
would never be removed. He stated to Lord Hardinge
at the time that he had omitted to consult him before
appointing Lord Lucan to the command of the cavalry
brigade, but not in the way of remonstrance, that having
been done inadvertently. The duke concluded by
expressing his belief that considerable advantage would be
obtained by an examination of the French military
system, and from the assimilation of our own to it as
much as possible. Some time ago, with that view, he
appointed a commission, composed of three officers, to
make inquiries into the subject upon the spot, and he
believed those gentlemen had made their report to his
successor in office, Lord Panmure.

On Thursday, April 26th, a considerable part of the
sitting was occupied in hearing explanations from Mr.
Potter, of the firm of Potter & Price, relative to the
huts supplied to the army. Commissary-general Smith
was then examined, regarding the transactions connected
with his department.

The Return of the Quarter's Revenue was published
on the 31st of March, five days earlier than heretofore.
By the act of last session the quarters are now to end
March 31, June 30, September 30, and December 31.
As this is the first quarter in which the new arrangement
has been carried out, it is five days short of the
usual period, and, to prevent any erroneous inferences,
a proportionate reduction has been made in the
corresponding quarter of last year. Till this arrangement
was made, the year in the revenue table was always five
days behind that in the accounts of the expenditure.
They are now brought together, and the treasury
receives and pays money for the same years and quarters
—that is, beginning and ending the very same days.
The net increase on the quarter ending March 31 is no
less than £4,384,308; that on the year ending the same
day is £6,312,624. The increase in the quarter's Customs
is £221,060, arising upon sugar and tea. In the whole
year the increase is £295,725, and arises upon sugar and
tobacco; the receipts upon corn, tea, wine, and some
other articles, having somewhat diminished. In the
Excise of the quarter the increase is £211,284, caused
chiefly by malt. In the whole twelvemonth the increase
of the Excise is £1,077,578, that on malt being, as we
are informed, £820,000; that on spirits, £420,000; and
that on licenses, £70,000; so that, but for a decrease in
hops and soap, the increase would have been two or
three hundred thousand more. The Stamps of the
quarter and of the year exhibit severally the increase of
£54,944 and £176,131, arising from the duties on legacies,
successions, newspapers, and fire insurances. In the
Land and Assessed Taxes of the quarter there is an
increase to the amount of £95,595, while on the year there
is more than that amount of decrease. It appears that
the collection of these taxes has been rather slack latterly,
and it was only during the last quarter that it became
more prompt. The most important figure in the table
is £3,798,612, which appears as the increase in the
Property and Income Tax of the quarter, the increase in
the year being £5,137,334. This is chiefly owing to the
double income tax, but it is said some part of the increase
may be referred to the circumstance that there was
unusual delay in the assessments of the last year, 1853-4,
so that the present year has the benefit of considerable
arrears. In the Post-office there appears to be a regular
increase, observing the same proportions in the quarter
and in the year, being £46,000 in the one, and £230,000
in the other. The receipts from the Crown Lands are
less by £123,316 this year than last, owing to inevitable
fluctuations in this department. The general improvement
more than equals the expectations on which the
late chancellor of the exchequer founded his budget.

NARRATIVE OF LAW AND CRIME.

At Marylebone police-office, on the 27th ult, Mrs.
Mary Ramsbotham, wife of Dr. Ramsbotham, the
eminent physician, was charged with Stealing four
cambric handkerchiefs. It was stated that she went to
the shop of Mr. Moule, a draper in Baker-street; while