The Press. — London, England, 1856-05-31 00:00:00

F MAY 31, 1856. India tend to show that it is likely to afford any exception to this universal rule The frontier of the north-west, and the country of the Moplahs, for instance, are the two parts where this violent system has been chiefly tr►ed, and they are precisely the parts where the irritation against us is the greatest, where the spirit of resistance to us is the strongest, and where the lives of our officials are the least secure. Indeed, in scarcely any other quarter has assassination ever been resorted to, while in those quarters an opportunity of revenge is never spared. We do think that the Government would do well if, taking these things into consideration, it were to try the opposite policy, and have the honesty for once to retrace its steps. Sir CHARLES NAPIER was very successful in deal ing with the Beloochies of Scinde, a people of Arab descent, like the Mopbilis, and who had as little scruple about shedding human blood But in his treitment of them, though he showed a wonderful vigour, there was !lashing inhuman or even unkind. On the contrary, he on all occasions displayed the greatest regard to their feelings and the readiest inclinations to redress their gliev ances and to listen to their complaints. He dealt with them as brave and generous men deal with other brave and generous men whom the fortune of war has placed in subjec tion to them. And in such cases those usually prove the warmest friends and the most loyal subjects who are possessed of the m st fiery and the boldest hearts. For a governor who really understands his business the most diffi cult people to deal with are those so sunk in apathy and misery and abjectness as to have no hearts, or passions, or spirits on which to work. If we are to trust the evidence of another great soldier, Sir COLIN CAMPBELL, the wild tribes on the north-west frontier would not be less easy to deal with if only treated in the manner in which men of their free and in dependent character will alone submit to be treated —that is, with justice and with con sideration for their feelings and for the posi tion which they previously held. It is by such a mode of dealing with them only that we can hope to bring them within the pale of civilisation, a pale which must he made attrac tive instead of repulsive if we would win to it men like these. It is on such grounds, and not out of any sympathy with the proceedings of these people, that we think it might be well if some inquiry were instituted into the cause of these perpetually recurring outbreaks among tl►e tribes on the Peshawur frontier and the Moplahs of the Malabar coast. It is very easy to asc►ibe them to a natural turbulence and impatience of rule, but Sir COLIN CAMP- Emu was not of that opinion in respect to the former races ; and for the constant outbreaks of the latter we have also heard, from good authority, a very different cause assigned. In the former case we have over and over again pointed out that the true causes of resistance were the taxes put by us on salt, the attempt to raise a revenue from lands which had pre viously been held rent free, and the aboli Lion by force, and without compensation, of tolls to which the tribes had been entitled time out of mind In the case of the Moplahs we have heard of proceedings on the part of the revenue officers and their establishments wholly indefensible, and which were quite suff►cient in themselves to account for—though, of course, they could not justify—the resist ance that has ensued. Nor is there anything intrinsically improbable in this statement, for if torture could be used so long in the Madras Presidency without its being known to the Government, there is no reason why other in tolerable grievances should not exist there; and it is in the Madras Presidency that the Moplahs reside. If the several Governments of India would only duly perform their func• tions by inquiring into the complaints made to them, and correcting what they find to have been done amiss, they would effect ten times more for the civilisation of the people, and for the prevention of disturbances, than by milking laws such as those we have denounced. The enactment authorising the burning of rebels' corpses is one t'►at ought to be at once repealed, as calculated only to be THE PRESS. productive of the worst passions in the na tives, and to excite in Europeans, as an act of vengeance, feelings of horror and disgust. THE CARLTON CLUB. THE discussion at the late annual meeting of the Carlton Club attracted much interest, on account of it giving a precedent for other clubs to follow in a similar case. There were strong expressions of opinion elicited as to the impropriety of gentlemen remaining members of a club when they are politically antago nistic to the principles of nineteen-twentieths of its members. There was no peremptory decision come to in the shape of a positive rule, because after such an expression of sen timents the members of the Carlton Club felt that amongst gentlemen it would be unneces sary It is also our own conviction that such questions can be solved only by " the spirit of " a gentleman," and when the overwhelming voice of any company signify that the presence of a particular person or persons is distasteful (not to use other epithets), lamentable must be the want of self respect which intrudes against hostility, or meanly accepts a con temptuous toleration. The remarks of the Earl of EoLtNroN, the Earl of NIALMESBURY, and of Sir JOHN PAKINGTON were of great im portance. The latter happily alluded to " the busy class of gentlemen who made " themselves most offensive to the club." Sir JOHN PAKINGTON used the plural number, and subsequently the Earl of EGLINTON, in a spirited speech, referred in strong terms to those who during Lord DERBY'S Government " had not scrupled, as members of the Carlton " Club, to write systematically against it." We are not aware of any " class of gentlemen " who have been guilty of such practices, but " Mr. ABRAHAM HAYWARD," it appears, has so often vented his spleen under the collective " we" of journalism, that he considered him self a noun of multitude, took up the case of " the busy class of gentlemen," and stood for ward to speak in their—that is in his own— behalf. The unemployed Queen's:Counsel had at last found a client. He acted as his own advocate, and confirmed the professional proverb ap plicable to such a case. Mute at the Bar, without a voice in Parliament, the es-Lycurgus of the Law Magazine had got a constituency, and he stood up to represent it. But " Mr. ABRA HAM HAYWARD" was never meant by nature for an orator; and his want of success in pleading the cause of " the busy gentlemen "—repre sented by a solitary unit—shows that the at torneys have shown a sound sense in never burdening him with briefs. MOORE, in the last volumes of his diary, mentions a person " who was better kno‘'n for his culinary " articles " than for other compositions ; and Mr ABRAHAM HAYWARD may have the " busy " powers required for writing " sys tematically," but he has neither the faculties of a public speaker nor the discretion of an advocate. He failed utterly in trying to ad dress the Carlton Club, as he has failed in other pretentious efforts. His place in juris. prudence, in belles lettres, in journalism, in public speaking, cannot be now mentioned in any discussion without reference to MooßE's wicked remark on " the busy gentleman " who was " better known for his culinary articles." So little satisft .ctory was the reception of " Mr. ABRAHAM HAYWARD" by the audience, who did not hear his speech at the Carlton Club, that he has fallen back upon his usual resources, the newspapers. He has penned a letter stating, in affected swagger, that " he had " always avowed his articles, and offered to " be personally responsible for them." Every one knows " the busy class of gentlemen " who, in other times, tried to rise in the world by th HAYWARD has employed to promote his decline in public estimation. He is a bad logician in trying to shelter himself under such a plea. Why did he not address the public in his own name ? Why did he not openly stand upon his own principles, and not endeavour to give his private animosity and miserable disap pointment some show of public opinion, by " systematically " producing it in a newspaper ? Mr. HAYWARD is a man without original genius of any kind. He has no wit, no glow of imagination, and not the least power of attracting readers. For years he professed to be a juridical writer, but where are the legal productions of his pen that can take rank with the writings of his contemporaries. In what departments of exertion has Mr. ABRAHAM HAYWARD ever won " a name," except as a motley med dler in law, in politics, in periodical litera ture, journalism, in cookery ?—in none of which, except the last, has he attained any success. He is, we believe, quite competent to re•edit Mrs. GLASSE'S book of receipts, being well versed in kitchen knowledge, though he has no more pretensions to be ranked with FRANCATELLf, or SOYER, than with the successful forensic, political, or literary contemporaries who have distanced him in the race for fame. We are glad, therefore, for the sake of the general question, applicable to all political clubs, that the recent discussion has taken place at the Carlton. The explosion of cheers which followed the significant remarks of Lord EGT.INTON and Sir JOHN PAKINOTON required no commentary. We are glad also that the Earl of MALMESBURY'S statement about Lord DERBY having taken his name off Brookes's. several years ago, has gone forth to the public. We sincerely trust that it will be accepted as a precedent, more decisive than the ambiguous course of Mr. PITT in leaving his name on the books of a club which he carefully avoided, and to whose members he was politically opposed. According to the latest information from Wash ington, Mr. Marcy, the Secretary of State, has refused to give the American shipping soy instructions respecting the payment of the Sound dues, leaving it to the discretion of every master passing the Sound, or the Belts, to pay the dues or not. A Cabinet Council was held at the Foreign-ofEce last Saturday ; all the Ministers were present. The Council sat three hours. A Cabinet Council will be held this afternoon at the Foreign-office. Viscount Sydney has been appointed Lori Lieu tenant of Kent in the room of the late Ear, Cowper. Mr. Bright is at present at Inverary in the High lands, where he intends to reside for a short period. Sir James Meek, C. 8., formerly Secrete)) , to Lord Keith, and Comptroller of the Victualling D.part ment of the Navy, died last week at Ilfracnnibe. Sir James, as secretary, was present during th t interview between Lord Keith and the Emperor Napole..n whtu the decision of the British Government con( ernil z the Emperor's destination was intimated to hire t,y Lord Keith. Sir James Meek was also confide, fully em ployed by Sir Robert Peel in 1841 to collect on the Continent certain statistical returns of agricultural produce and shipping. Mr. George Russell, of the Treasury, has been appointed Assistant Secretary to the Board of Works, in the room of Mr. Thornborrow, super annuated. Mr. Rivers Wilson, of the Treasury, has been appointed Private Secretary to Mr. James Wilson, in succession to Mr. Russell. Lord John Russell's intended break-up of his estab lishment in town, and retirement for a lengthened period abroad, has been asserted and denied during the week. Mr. Ballantine and Mr. Parry will, shortly be made sergeants •at-law. Mr. Baron Platt, whose Revere indisposition vented him going last circuit or appearing during this and the previous term, said tendered his resignation. Mr. W M.P., is already spoken of as likely Baron of the Court of Exchequer. A new planet was discovered on', at the Radcliffe Observatory, Oxford, the fiist assistant. It is a little tenth magnitude. Mr. Pogson sa, midnight on the 23rd, but the sky fore he could obtain a satisfactory • 507 the use of such means as Mr. ABRAHAM .- 1_ • 1 t !or a lengthened and denied during ill, it is understood, indisposition pre- appearing in court m, is said to have Watson, Q.C. and ely to be the new Thursday morning prd, by Mr. Pogson, e brighter than a iw the planet about ty clouded over be- observation.'