The Press. — London, England, 1855-08-11 00:00:00

AUG. 11, 1855. advantageously taken. " Amending Acts " that is, acts which repeal a part of some pre vious act, and put something else in the place of that part—are at best clumsy contrivances to do with the least amount of trouble that which must be done somehow. In some in stances, we fear, this method of patching an old blunder must still be retained. E.y.: sup pose that in the late Customs Act or Mercantile Marine Act, each consisting of some two hundred folio pages—each, in fact, constituting a little code in itself—a single clause be found defective, it is certainly better to amend the defect by a new law than to declare invalid, and then re-enact, the whole of that in ex istence. But these are exceptional cases ; and in general we do not hesitate to affirm that acts passed to amend other acts ought first to repeal the law with which they deal, then to restore, with the requisite corrections, so much as it is desired to preserve—to the intent that, the required statute being once found by the inquirer, there may be no further need of reference backwards or forwards, in search of earlier or later acts in connection with which that first found must be construed. None but those practically conversant with the Statute-book know how much its pages would be simplified, and search through them facilitated, by this one easy reform. A Board like that proposed need not cost more thatf 6,000/. yearly, making the most ample allow+ ante for that large item of " Sundries " which swells all public as well as private accounts. It would act as a filter for the muddy waters of Parliamentary legislation—a purifying in strument of which they stand in much need. THE INDIAN FINANCIAL STATEMENT. TUESDAY last was an eventful day for India — not on account of anything actually done for the amelioration of its condition, but because of the disclosures then formally made to the House of Commons. These were of a nature to render the continuance of the misgovern ment of the Directors for any lengthened term impossible. It is a satisfaction to us to be able to say that every word of these disclosures afforded the most complete confirmation of the charges which we have repeatedly made in the columns of this Journal. The deficit for the year 1854.5 was stated in round numbers at two millions six hundred thousand pounds sterling. The discrepancies between the asser tions of the Company's financiers as to the cash balances at different periods were held as showing the grossest incompetence, or, what seemed more probable, a purposed mystifica tion of the accounts, with a view to deceive the public. The new Five per Cent. loan, and all that related to it, was so entirely condemned that the Minister's only anxiety was to show that he was in no way responsible for it. The habitual resort to torture both in police and revenue cases was fully admitted, and the official report of the nature of this torture tallied completely with the descriptions which we sometime since gave. As regards the direc torial spokesmen in the House, and particu larly Sir JAMES HOOO, it was shown that they must be either utterly ignorant of the country which they have claimed a peculiar fitness to govern, or that they have wilfully violated the truth for the purpose of misleading the House of Commons. Never, perhaps, since the day they were born did the Direction cut so pitiable a figure. Both Indian Minister and Indian Secretary abandoned all defence of them, while the Ministerial supporters were most for ward in the attack. Mr. HENLEY expressed . . his abhorrence of the abominable practices in which their complicity was established, and Mr. WHITESIDE, quitting the subject of torture, and alluding to their judicial system, stated that he had never read such a farrago of folly, ignorance, and absurdity, as the decisions of their local courts of justice. Misfortunes, they say, never come single, and this extraordinary exhibition in the face of all Europe of the kind of Government to which the noblest dependency of the British Crown has been unfortunately committed followed closely on the heels of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the case of THE PRESS. the Kurruckpore Rajah, which was reported in the Times of the 3rd inst. In that decision it was shown that the Company, claiming to resume an enormous tract of land from its own lessee in perpetuity, had actually, after the claim had been repeatedly thrown out by its own servants, sent a judge down specially to give a decision in its favour; and that, having thus got a verdict under an arrangement by which defeat was impossible, it seized on the property, and has fur the last ten years held it against the lawful, and for the forty previous years the undisputed, owner. It was fortu nate for the Kurruckpore Rajah that his lands were Zemindarry, and that he had the means of maintaining this enormously-expensive and unequal contest ; for, had the lands been Enam or Jaghire lands, no appeal would have lain to the Privy Council, and he would have been entirely at the Directors' mercy. Or had he been a poor Zemindar, with right ever so clearly on his side, and power to appeal, the want of funds would have prevented his appealing, and so he must have been equally ruined. Those who have read the tale of this Rajah's wrongs, with the feeling of indignation which it is so calculated to create, will perhaps learn with astonishment that he is but one of the many victims dealt with by the Company within the last few years in the same manner, and the collective value of whose confiscated properties amounts to many millions sterling. It is clear that such a state of things cannot be allowed to continue unless the nation he prepared to forfeit all claim to justice, humanity, and the world's esteem. It is with great pleasure, therefore, that we learn that there is a prospect of the question being taken up with a view to its being brought before Parliament at an early period. The extent to which it may be necessary or feasible to intro duce changes into the system of government for our Eastern empire, it would be difficult at this moment to determine ; but this much is certain, that our native subjects in the Mo fussil must have some better protection afforded them for both their persons and their properties than exists at present. It is use less establishing a Legislative Council in India to improve its laws, unless we at the same time add tribunals competent to inter. pret them, and independent enough to give an honest judgment when the Government and a subject appear as plaintiff and defendant in a cause before them. LORD JOHN RUSSELL ON ITALY. THE only public character now remaining to Lord JOHN RUSSELL is that of Member for the City of London. We cannot congratulate his constituents on the acts of their representa tive. The master of criticism has said of HOMER that the poet occasionally slumbered. Lord JOHN'S late eccentric performances would almost suggest somnambulism as his normal state, unless, indeed, we are to assume that he has recently been under the influence of some deleterious narcotic. It is, at all events, inconceivable that a man once so distinguished as Lord JOHN RUSSELL should, while in the full possession of his senses, adopt a tone and a mode of action so fatal to his own career and damaging to the reputation of public men. The foregoing reflections have been gene rally forced on our consideration by the sen timents put forth in his speech on Tuesday last by our late Colonial Secretary; but in the few remarks we have to offer we shall confine ourselves to that portion only of his speech relating to the present state of Italy. Pom pously announced the day previous, probably discussed for a space of time in a family coun cil, his dissertation on Italy was evidently the topic on which he laid the greatest stress — the specific intended as the restorative of his fallen fortunes. _ Few feel more fully than ourselves the tin satisfactory position of affairs in the Italian States south of Piedmont We are quite ready to admit Lord JOHN'S assertions in this respect. We know that religious persecution exists in Tuscany. We know that men of 751 noble sentiments are groaning in the dungeons of Naples. We know that the Roman Go vernment is upheld only by a double foreign occupation. We know these facts; they have been almost a natural consequence of the events of 1848 and 1849, so much promoted by Lord JOHN'S colleague, emissary, and father in•law. But they have existed in far greater force than at present for the last five or six years, during which time Lord JOHN RUSSELL occupied the most influential offices in the State, and enjoyed every opportunity of supplying a remedy. While Europe was tranquil, while great interests were at risk, we have noticed undisturbed the occupation of Rome, according to Lord JOHN the prime cause of these various evils. " The balance "of power in Europe " was endangered thereby then quite as much as at present. Yet it does not appear that the Noble Lord ever attempted " in concert with the Govern " ment of France to devise some system of " government for those Roman States, con " sistent with the interests of the people, " and with the rules of justice." Since the last revolutions in Italy we re member but one mission, but one public step, having for an evident object the settlement of Italian affairs. We recollect in the year 1R52, during the Administration of Lord DERBY, that Sir HENRY BULWER, then our Minister at Florence, one of our first diplo matists, was despatched to Rome, where he remained for some months, occupied, as was known, in the discussion of public matters with the most influential of the Roman Hierarchy. . . _ This occurred but a abort time before Lord Totires accession to office as Foreign Minister. Yet we saw no further attempt made for a renewal or continuance of negotiation. Lord JOHN'S only known transaction in the field of Italian politics was his famous despatch in the case of the Madiai, wherein he spoiled a good case by an affected display of the erudition of a schoolboy. By what process of ratiocination, therefore, does Lord SouN RUSSELL consider himself en titled to offer advice such as that volunteered on Tuesday ? We have already stated our conviction that his faculties are dormant, but we recollect at the same time that houses have been set on fire by a sleepwalker. We trust that this act of incendiarism on his part has been unconscious. We rejoice to notice the little attention paid to his observations. They are calculated to place Austria in open hostility, to weaken, if not to endanger, the existence of our amicable relations with France, while they offer encouragement to schemes already fos tered by the wiles of the demagogue, and only too readily accepted by the inflammable spirits of the young Italians. It is already but too well known that the Monarchy of the Sicilies is in a state of almost open enmity to our policy and interests. It is a fact almost as notorious that the agents of Russia are acting in conjunction with those of MAZZINI and his crew, and exciting acrimony amongst the Italians against the interests of the Western alliance. The presence of the Aus trian and French troops alone maintains tran quillity in the Peninsula. We cannot view but with a thrill of horror the immediate conse quences of their departure—a sanguinary chaos of conflicting interests, evil passions, and enormous crimes. Situated as we now are, it requires but little imagination to con ceive how far more critical would be our position were Lord JOHN RUSSELL'S proposals to take effect—were Rome revolutionised, Naples in arms, and our ally Piedmont, the frontier State of France, a victim of contending factions. We thank GOD that Lord JOHN RUSSELL is powerless. We advise him, during the period of his disgrace, to take counsel with some more soberminded friend, and when he next appears in his place in Parliament to ab stain froin enunciating opinions so crude and theories so wild as to make us feel ashamed that he should ever have been allowed to hold high office in this country. THE CRYSTAL PALACE. THE Report of the Directors of the Crystal Palace Company shows that the enterprise has succeeded in some respects, and failed in others. The causes is