THIRD READING. (Hansard, 7 August 1860)

§ THE EARL OF HARDWICKE

said, that, although the measure was one which was, 820 no doubt, calculated to effect some advantageous changes in connection with our system of naval discipline by detailing more minutely the description of punishment which would follow particular offences, yet there were some of its provisions which were not altogether free from objection. The main change which it was proposed by its means to introduce was to enable imprisonment to be inflicted in lieu of corporal punishment by the commander of a ship—a step which was, no doubt, in accordance with public feeling. "While taking that step, however, it was well that it should be borne in mind that when a fleet was in presence of an enemy, or in those cases in which it became of great importance that the strength of a ship should not be diminished, punishment must proceed pretty much in accordance with the old system. The Bill further provided that the punishments in question should not be inflicted until an inquiry, conducted by officers appointed by the captain of the ship, had been instituted, and it was by the clause which contained that provision, more than any other embraced in the measure, that a new system of government on board a man-of-war was inaugurated. Now, the first thing which the noble Duke at the head of the Admiralty would, as a consequence of the provisions of that clause be compelled to do, would be to regulate the manner in which the proposed trial was to take place, the modes in which evidence was to be taken upon it; in short, to arrange and define the system of procedure of a new tribunal, of the statements laid before which the captain of the ship was to know nothing until the Court reported, when he would be empowered to act upon the recommendations embodied in the Report or not, as he might deem fit. Under the new system a great control would, notwithstanding that option, be exercised over the discipline of a vessel by the tribunal to which he referred; while he could not help thinking that the best way to secure the soundness of that discipline would be to make the captain responsible for its maintenance, under the eye of the Admiralty and the Executive Government. The adoption of a different course would, he feared, lead to the existence of a state of things under which the authority of the captain on board his ship would be greatly impaired; while there was the additional objection to the clause that in small vessels—such, 821 for instance, as gunboats—considerable difficulty would be experienced in finding a sufficient number of officers to constitute the proposed tribunal. He might also observe that he did not look upon the Board of Admiralty as a good Court of appeal from the sentence of a court-martial, especially in cases in which they were called upon to review—being compelled to base their decision on written evidence—the sentence of a Court which had the entire evidence adduced in an oral form before them. Constituting the Board of Admiralty a Court of appeal, under such circumstances, was simply making it the supervisor of the decisions of tribunals more competent to pronounce an opinion on the questions which came under their consideration than the Admiralty itself. There was also another clause in the Bill under the operation of which a seaman might be dealt with for flagrant misconduct on shore in the same way as if it had been committed on board ship; to which clause he gave his entire and cordial assent. He should not further advert to that clause or to the measure generally than to express a hope that it might be successful in attaining the object which its authors had in view.

§ THE DUKE OF SOMERSET

said, that by means of the power which the clause which the noble Earl had last mentioned conferred, it was hoped a great improvement in our system of naval discipline would be effected. The clause relative to the institution of an inquiry before corporal punishment could be inflicted on a seaman, to which the noble Earl had more particularly alluded, would, he thought, be productive of this good result—that, while under its operation the discipline of the navy would in no degree be likely to be impaired, an additional inducement would be held out to the seamen of the merchant to enter the naval service; for entering into which they were at present deterred by the existence of corporal punishment. The clause would by no means take away in any important sense the authority which a captain exercised on board his ship, inasmuch as he might, as the noble Earl had already stated, set aside, on his own responsibility, the recommendations which might be contained in the reports of the proposed courts of inquiry. The transference to the Admiralty of the power to review the decisions of courts martial was merely a legislative sanction of a practice that already existed.