The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-09-04 00:00:00

A

either re?ormed or aunreformed,,l-either with or with-
' out an admixture of the laity. It ignores the very
existence of such a body... 'But, "it is hoped that
Parliament may, at no very distant period, be induced
1 to address the Crown for the appointment of a Royal
1 Commission, in which Laity may be combined with
Clergy ; so that what is for the good of all classes
may be settled by The wisdom of all, and a proper
basis laid for sound Liturgical Reform." Another
Westminster a,ssembly of Divines in the nineteenth
century ! And what would be the composition of
such a Commission i? Would it not, in all human
probability, take its complexion from the views of the
Prime Minister of the day P Would not such a
Commission, issued under the Premiership of a
GLADSTONE, be a very different thing from one
issued under that of a PALM ERSTON P Commissions,
we know, may be so managed as to ensure any report
that is desired, by him with whom the nomination of
their members. rests. However, let us suppose the
work of the Commission concluded, and its report
agreed upon : the next step would be to embody the
recommendations of the report in a bill to be brought
before Parliament. And will the Society dare to say
that Parliament is a fit body to reform .the Prayer
Book, even supposing- it to need reform ? Would
any sect in the country, from the Papists to the
Plymouth-Brethren, submit to such a tribunal, Under
similar circumstances ? Would not the. mere

attempt to enforce such submission upon the

weakest of them all raise an' outcry from one end
of the land to the other ? Audi even supposing that
the Church, instead of being " the Church," were
' but one sect among many, is it to be endured that
she is to be deprived of a liberty which all enjoy ?
She, who, by her enemies' confession, is equal in
point of numbers to all the rest put together, in fact
very much more than equal, anti in point of wealth,
intelligence, and education, infinitely superior. But
the whole thing is too absurd to bear serious argu-
ment. The mere introduction of such a measure into
the lower house would turn it into a bear-garden, and
carry the worst dissension into every parish and
family in the land. However, as we have said before,
we have no fears with regard .to the .efforts of this
Society ; and we only discuss its objects because we
feel that, unless thoroughly expo,ied, it may be the
means of misleading some well-Imeaning but, ill-
informed individuals.

All that we require is, that the rayer Book may
be left as it is. It is an anchor whit 'h has kept the

good ship steady, while all around hav, e been drifting
in different directions ; and the purport which it has

so well answered, we trust it will conth me to answer

for many an age to come. Upon th e particular
alteration which the Soeiety proposes we would not

speak hastily ; but may have Soniething m ore to say

upon this part of the subject, when we shall ' have had
more time to consider it than we have yet been able

bestow upon it.

FROM OUR LONDON CORRESPONDS NT.

MONDAY MORI ING•
SHORTLY before midnight of Monday last, the Qui, IEN of
England, having taken farewell of her Imperial host, NA u ac-
companied her to Boulogne, went on board the Royal Vit ioria
and Albert steam-yacht, accompanied by Prince ALBERT, ' who,
the preceding day, completed his thirty-sixth year, and al 'ong

with the Royal children set sail for Osborne, at which t, hey

arrived early on the following day. The Royal visit and the
ceremonial pomps attending it have come in all respeets to • a

gratifying and prosperous issue. The Imperial host had min th

to contend with in conferring due eclat upon the festivitie 3.

Glorying, as he has himself told the world, in the title of a

parvenu Emperor, upon his own shoulders rested the respon• •
sibility of offering to his Royal visitors such a reception asp
while it should not be unworthy of their distinguished rank,
should likewise be such as would reflect honour on the taste,

the judgment, and the high position of the nation which has
chosen him for its ruler and head. Shunned by the
legitimist rulers of the continent, scarcely less sedulously
avoided by those who in France are surrounded by

the prestige of ancient lineage, and of family distinction, he
was, to all appearance, destitute of the means by which to
supply the absence of a brilliant court. The great men of the
early empire had died ont—the ancient noblesse held aloof—
the higher men of the Republic, including LADLIIITINE, and

his associates, kept away—and those of note who have clung
to him, and aided in furthering his fortunes, were absent at

the call of duty. Thui left to himself and his resources, he
boldly undertook the task, and proved that, where a powerful

mind is bent on the attainment of an object, its achievement
is a certain result. The occasion itself added much to the

chances of success. The selected host of the greatest consti.
tutional monarch in the world held a position of 'vantage,

whence it would be difficult to dispossess him, and he knew it.
- - -

Falling back on his own resources, and the willing service of
his people, he was able to offer to the QUEEN of ENGLAND
such a welcome as was never before accorded to a foreign
sovereign. To invest every place and surround every object
with an air of welcome, and so to honour his illustrious
visitors, was the EMPEROR'S aim. To secure this no expense
was spared, and its attainment was perfect. Admirably dis-
ciplined taste was brought to bear upon the task, and its em-
ployment resulted in a splendour and magnificence of effi3ct
such as one generation rarely sees repeated, the completeness
and beauty of which is almost unknown within our island
home, rich as it is in material wealth, and ungrudging of its
application. Splendid though the preparations were, and
successful their result, their value as a series of courtly
pageantry was their smallest claim to notice, and will consti-

,ute their briefest tenure of endurance in the public me-

mory. That must be, sought for, and will be found chiefly in
the interchange of national good offices, and the growth of
mutual esteem between the people of the two most
civilised countries in the world, united, for the first
time, in a common endeavour to restrain the inroads of
aggressive barbarism, and for the spread of civilisation and of
social freedom. Such a union is of happy augury for the-
_ . _

peace of Europe and the progress of intelligence. If denied.
the brilliancy fostered by despotic pride, and a stranger to the
hollow artifices which too often surround the thrones. of,
monarchs, these national celebrations were distinguished by a
cordiality of friendship and a unity of feeling which will be
productive of greater benefits to both France and, England
than has been attained from all the intercourse of all their
sovereigns. Even in the eyes of courtly spectators the visit
is one of deep interest to the ruler and the people of France.
NAPOLEON 111., the head of that state, the ally of Great Bri-
tain, at first the guest and now the host of Queen VICTORIA,
Occupies a place equal to the representatives of ancient dynes.
ties. The recognised equal of the sovereign of the British
empire, he need no longer court the forbearance or solicit the
favour of any European potentate. In the estimation of his
own subjects, not less than in the eyes of Europe, his power,
and his claim to honour and dignity stand declared and solid.
Old-established prejudices have given way on both sides, and
QUEEN VICTORIA, the honoured guest at the palace of St.
Cloud, paid a visit of posthumous respect to the tomb of the
first NAPOLEON at the Hospital of the Invalides. This visit
appears to have given great satisfaction to the French, and is
especially commented on in the Maniteur. "No one of her
visits," says this journal, "produced a deeper impression. As.
the review had lasted till very late, her MAJESTY was no
longer expected at the Hotel des Invalides ; nevertheless she
determined on going there, notwithstanding the lateness of
the hour. The QUEEN arrived, consequently, at nightfall, fol-
lowed by a numerous staff, surrounded by the veterans of our
old wars, who had hastened to meet her, while she advanced
with noble composure towards the last resting-place of hint
who was England's most constant adversary. What a spectacle!
How many remembrances with all the contrasts they brought
up to the mind ! But when by the light of torches, the glitter of
uniforms, amid the strains of the organ playing " God save the
Queen," her MAJESTY was led by the EMPEROR to the chapel
where the remains of NAPOLEON lie, the effect was overpower-
ing and immense, the emotion profound; for every one was
reflecting that this was no ordinary homage offered at the
tomb of a great man, but a solemn act, attesting that the ri-
valries of the past were forgotten, and that now the union
between the two peoples had received its most signal conse-
cration." The event itself, the scene, and the circumstances
were all calculated to arrest attention and to awaken thought.
Perhaps no other spot in the universe was so appropriate to
ratify the terminatku of those insane and sanguinary scenes
of strife which had for centuries disturbed and torn both na-
tions as that in which the dust of NAPOLEON, once so agi-
tated with dislike and hatred of the British name and race,
now finds a rest so placid and profound. On the whole, so far
as human judgment can determine, the Royal visit to Paris
has been conducive to strengthening the newly-entwined bonds
of affection between the two nations. A great pledge of .na-
Cc:mai esteem has been mutually exchanged between the people
in the persons of their respective sovereigns ; may it continue
and extend for the benefit alike of monarchs and peoples
The whole proceedings at Paris tend to foster this expectation,