Page:Men of the Time, eleventh edition.djvu/474

regiment, was educated at the Charterhouse, and graduated B.A. in 1830, as a wrangler, at Trinity College, Cambridge. He was returned in Aug., 1837, as member in the Conservative interest for Ipswich; and having changed his opinions, resigned his seat, and appealed, in 1839, once more to his constituents. He was defeated, and remained for some time out of. Parliament, having in Sept., 1839, contested the borough of Cambridge, without success. During this interval he entered into the great movement which had for its object the abolition of the duty on corn, and became one of the most successful orators of the League. In 1841 he was invited to stand for Manchester, and after a close contest with Sir George Murray was, in July, returned for that important constituency. In 1846, at the conclusion of the Anti-corn-law agitation, when Lord John Russell had taken office, and declared that his general policy was to carry out to their natural consequences the principles of free trade embodied in Sir Robert Peel's legislation, the minister thought to strengthen his government by obtaining the aid of some of the leading members of the League. Mr. Gibson was accordingly appointed Vice-President of the Board of Trade, which office he held until it was thought that his connection with the Government might embarrass him in his relations with his constituents. In April, 1848, he resigned, and identified himself so completely with the "Peace party" during the struggle with Russia, that he was defeated at Manchester at the general election in March, 1857, but was shortly afterwards returned for Ashton-under-Lyne, which he represented till Dec., 186S. In 1859 he was appointed President of the Board of Trade, with a seat in the Cabinet. Mr. Milner-Gibson took an active part in urging upon Parliament, and in other ways promoting, the repeal of what have been designated the "Taxes on Knowledge;" viz., the newspaper stamp, the advertisement duty, and the excise on paper; and his public services in this respect were recognized by a testimonial in 1861. Mr. Milner-Gibson, who was made a Privy Councillor in 1846, resigned the Presidency of the Board of Trade on the dissolution of the Russell ministry in June, 1866. He unsuccessfully contested Ashton-under-Lyne in 1868.

GIERS, Nicholas Carlovitch, a Russian statesman, was born May 9 (O.S.), 1820. After passing through the course of science at the Imperial Lyceum of Czarskoe Selo, he entered the Asiatic Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, being then 18 years of age. In 1841 he was attached to the Russian Consulate in Moldavia, and in September, 1848, he was sent by Imperial order to the head-quarters of the Russian troops in Transylvania during the Hungarian campaign, as a Diplomatic official under the Commander-in-Chief, General Lueders. For his untiring industry and the zealous fulfilment of his duties in this capacity, he was made a Court Councillor, and received the Order of St. Stanislas of the fourth class. On his return from Transylvania in 1850, he was sent as First Secretary of Embassy to Constantinople; and thence, in 1853, he was transferred to Roumania as Director of the Chancery of the Commissary-Plenipotentiary in the then Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia, where he remained 12 months. On war breaking out with Turkey he was attached to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and despatched in 1855, with important instructions, to the Governors-General of New Russia and Bessarabia. In 1856 he was created a Councillor of State and appointed Consul-General to Egypt; and, after two years, in the same capacity to Wallachia and Moldavia, re-