The Press. — London, England, 1857-02-14 00:00:00

THE WEEK. If it is not easy to account for the origin of the Persian war, it is more difficult to foretel its result. Upon all sides, in the Paris journals and in the London Ministerial prints, we are assured of the pacific disposition of the SHAH, and of the desire of Russia and France to bring about peace ; while in Parliament, Lord PALMERSTON and his colleagues resist every motion for the production of papers, on the plea that negotiations are pending at Paris between FEROUK KHAN and Lord COWLEY. In the midst of these agreeable Ministerial anticipations, a despatch from Constantinople states that General CHAMBERLAYNE, with his division of 5,000 men, and accompanied by DOST MOHAMMED, had reached Cabal, and was in full march for Herat. This intelligence is remarkable ; for it is only a few days since we were as sured that Gen. CHAMBERLAYNE'S force had advanced into Affghanistan for a special purpose ; that it had fulfilled that purpose, and retired. The next telegraph informs us that the division is en route for Herat.' What material effect this intelligence, if confirmed, will have upon the negotiations anti the negotiators, wo have yet to learn. It must inevitably lead to fresh domplications, and may possibly involve us in a war from which extrication with credit will be a difficult task. If we advance upon and recapture Herat, the appearance of a Russian con tingent upon the Persian soil would seem the natural result of the hasty and ill-considered policy of our Government. Meantime, we wait with some degree of interest for the confirmation or contradiction of this reported march of a modern European army from Cabul to Herat. _ The publication of the Chinese despatches this week only con firms every unprejudiced mind of the illegality and injustice of our cause, and of the direct violation of international law by the British authorities on the spot. The affidavits of the seamen who swear to the fact of the hauling down by the Chinese of the British colours then flying at the peak of the lorcha, prove nothing against the Chinese, as in the first place it is admitted the vessel had no right to fly British colours, and in the next to fly any colours at all, because such an act on board a vessel at anchor was contrary to the regula tions of the port of Canton. Every step in explanation of this lament able affair tends to the conviction of both the Government at home of an obscure and unprofitably subtle policy, and its subordinates abroad of the most intolerable duplicity, and the most unscrupulous violation of all law, justice, and truth. The article in the Moniteur of last week upon the union of the Principalities has excited much remark, as evidencing a certain diffe rence of opinion upon the subject between the Governments of France and England. The question whether the Danubian principalities shall or shall not be united is a practical question of grave importance. The Present point in dispute is how the people shall be governed—a point worth contending for ; as to who shall govern, that is a question of secondary importance. It has no necessary nor immediate relation to the first. The Principalities desire a Government; when that is assured, a Governor will be found. But the security of the first point does not depend upon the settlement of the last. It is incontestable that two provinces, peopled by ono race, identical in language, religion, and traditions, would be more powerful and better able to develop their vast resources it' united, than divided. Iu this case the peoples desire unity, the Porte is not opposed to it, and Europe gene rally favours the proposal upon the broad ground that it. is for the mutual and material interests of Turkey and the Principalities that the Government of the latter should be based upon fundamental principles—securing, on the one hand, the preservation of the rights of Turkey ; and, on the other, such stability of Government as would give that tranquillity to Moldavia and Wallachia which the political position of Europe and the peculiar circumstances in which the Prin cipalities are placed indubitably require. The question is one of future feebleness or future strength to the outlying provinces of the Ottoman empire. Which would the better insuro the safety of Turkey from the aggressions of her powerful neighbours appears to be a problem not incapable of solution. Lord CRANWORTH is like Penelope. He undoes by night all that he accomplishes by day. In Westminster-hall the LORD CHANCELLOR is the very useful Judge which Mr. MALINS described him to be. He gets on with business, is an acute and patient expounder of prece dents, and altogether does as much for the dignity of the law as any two judges out of three are likely to effect. But the moment he gets into the House of Lords his useful qualities are at fault. He gets entangled and mystified; and, were his suggestions adopted, future Lord Chan cellors would probably have double the amount of labour entailed upon them in escaping from the consequences of his abortive legislation. Both his person and his office are thus brought into contempt, and the reputation he may have acquired as a judge destroyed by his blunders as a jurist. In former times, before Equity became a wholly written science, many points would arise for decision, demanding the exercise of much higher mental qualities than the me re com p ar i son o f p r ecedents. Under such circumstances, tho discharge of his purely legal duties was eminently calculated to train a Lord Chancellor for the consideration of comprehensive questions. Now the case is the reverse. And Lord CRANWORTH's language, from the beginning to the end of the dis cussion on Life Peerages, showed how completely his mind was un fitted to grapple with broad principles. lie kept. urging precedent after precedent, while higher minds were ready at once to declare that in such a case, such precedents as he could adduce, granting their tech nical correctness, were utterly beside the mark. All this be could THE PRESS. not see, and it is the same limited range of vision which prevents his success as a law reformer. He only sees one thing at a time, and not the whole of that ; and regards law as a conglomeration of acci dents, rather than one great system. In his position we require a man who can generalise. Lord CRANWORTH is a good dissector; but his skill is only mechanical, and he cannot rise from the contempla tion of particulars. Lord PASMURE'S popularity with the army is notorious. He seems still, however, desirous to increase it. It is rumoured that for the purpose of bringing down the army estimates as low as possible ho has resolved to compel those officers who have been receiving field pay during the last year to refund the extra allowance. If this bo true, it is a new feather in his cap, and the British soldier will have additional reason to be grateful that his Lordship's sense of duty overcame his private inclination, and led him to take upon himself the charge of their interests. • Thursday evening was fertile in explanation. Besides the secret treaty scene—the effect of which no comment could heighten —we had the apology of that "sweet youth," Sir ROBERT PEEr.. With what delight must our veteran Premier contemplate the progress of his latest and most promising pupil—se videt in puero. He sees himself reproduced in his most jaunty and flippant days, and has the satis faction of knowing that the line of speakers of which he may bo said to be the founder is in no danger of becoming extinct. In his hottest years he could never have exceeded Sir ROBERT either in the insolence of his offence, or the impertinence of his apology. For in what does the apology consist? It is merely a recapitulation of the insults offered. " I'm told that you have called me a swindler and a thief," says Ato B. "It is true," replies A, with marked emphasis. " that I did " callyou a swindler and a thief, and I don't think I was wrong, but, if I " have said anything offensive, I beg to apologise." This is exactly the character of the speech delivered by Sir ROBERT on Thursday last. Nothing is retracted, nothing is explained, nothing oven is softened down. The narrow nature and coarse taste are perfectly apparent, through all his affectation of good humour. This assumption of jocularity upon grave topics is well enough in those who are real wits, though even here it is rather excusable than justifiable. But nothing is more absurd than the very common device by which superficial men seek to disguise their own shallowness. As a sneer is the highest mental effort cf which they are themselves capable, they would have all the world believe that no higher one is ever demanded. As patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel, so is wit the last refuge of a fool. He who can do nothing else can at least grin. If he cannot talk sense, he can at all events talk slang. And rapid utterance united to continuous laughter will always go down as smartness, as long as the impostor avoids personality. But the moment he falls into that, ho at once provokes a collision; his veil is torn from him, and he stands revealed in all his natural poverty, without even a pun to cover his nakedness. The Prince DE DONE has already answered his assailant in a style that would not long age have demanded notice of a totally different kind. Impunity, of course, breeds audacity, and the readiness m ith which Sir ROBERT has repeated the insult when he could do so with safety, exactly marks him out for the very man who would have been the first to apologise in the face of a more dangerous alternative. Sir ROBERT very wisely said not a word concerning his pitiful remarks upon the Empress of Russia. Even he was thin-skinned upon this point. Even he was dimly conscious that the first assembly of gt..ntle men in Europe would never have tolerated any vindication of that breach of their code. He held his tongue in the right place on this occasion, and won a parting cheer by an adroit and sudden appeal to those feelings on which his whole speech had been an outrage. We do not imagine it possible that the House of Commons can accept the Budget promulgated by the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER last evening. We listened with attention to that statement, and ad mired the ingenuity with which Sir G. C. Lewis endeavoured to establish that the country ought not to be dissatisfied with excessive taxation, as trade and commerce flourished under the burden. But such reasoning is little likely to induce tire Legislature to acquiesce in an addition to the expenditure of fully six millions more than pre vailed previous to the war. One of the leading objections to the present scheme is, that it entirely overthrows the compact of 1853, providin g for the entire extinction of the income tax in 1860. On that point the House of Commons must have a full debate, and must come to a well-considered decision. The extravagant expenditure proposed, will not only perpetuate the income tax as originally fixed by Sir ROBERT PEEL, but it will prevent the immediate reduction of the war duties on tea and sugar. The income tax will be altered so as to render it, contrary to the opinion of all sound financiers, less general than at present, but no comprehensive plan is submitted for modifying inequalities so grievously complained of. We can here only give the general impression made on our mind by the statement of the CHANCELLOR of the ExeuEeuEs. While repudiating the settlement of 1833, he yet proposed a scheme of his own to run over a number of years, though it is ridiculous to suppose that a future Parliament or Ministry could consent to be bound by Sir G. C. LEWIS'S proposal. The plan is not exceptional, neither has it any elements of perma nence. In opposition to it must be determinedly set a return to the financial arrangements and expenditure of the year previous to the war. SATURDAY, 156