The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-08-21 00:00:00

FROM OUR LONDON CORRESPONDENT.

MONDAY MORNING.
A DREARY and profitless Parliamentary Session was brought
to a pointless close by the dull formality of a Royal commis-
sion on Tuesday last. The speech from the throne was re-
markable for the rambling tedium of its language, in which
little intelligence and scarcely more hope were conveyed to the

ears of a bewildered people. During the last few sittings
some show of business was transacted by HER MAJESTY'S•
faithful Commons, but it consisted of little more than a show,

and for a considerable period antecedent to the session's close
it was a difficult matter to obtain the attendance of as many
members as entitled the house to assume even the semblance
of business. The formality of prorogation itself had been

nearly spoiled by the paucity of members in the house, and,
if any mischievous or factious individual had directed Mr.
SPEAKER'S attention to the subject, it is more than surmised
that that respectable functionary must have found that there
was " no house" to follow him to the " bar of their lordships"
to hear HER MAJESTY'S gracious speech read in mumbling
tones by the LORD CHANCELLOR. Just immediately before
the foot-fall of " Black Rod" could be heard in the lobby of
the Commons, Sir DE LACY Evirrs seized the fleeting oppor-
tunity to lecture Ministers on the inadequacy of their prepa-
rations for a vigorous prosecution of the war, and referred
with some bitterness to the small amount of our forces in the
Crimea, as compared with the number of soldiers under arms
during the last two or three years of the great French war.
He also animadverted in strong terms upon the misfortune of
not having had a division in the Commons on some vital point,
to show to Europe and the world the miserable minority in
this country who are bent upon obtaining peace at any price.
He also passed a deserved eulogy on the organisation of our
foreign contingents. He praised the formation of an Ita-
lian brigade, suggested the raising of an Irish guard, and
insisted on the necessity and policy of arming a Polish
brigade. In answering the observations of Sir DE LACY
Evelis, Lord PALMERSTON admitted the force of many
of the gallant General's observations, and assured him
that his suggestions should have the best luttention of
the government. He also pointed out the fact, unpleasant
though it proved to be in the statement of Mr. SIDNEY
HERBERT, that at the commencement of the last great war,
as in the present, we were not successful in our efforts, nor
very well supplied with troops ; but that we improved in
both these respects as the tide of war rolled on, insinuating
rather than boldly stating that such was and would remain
the course of events in the present instance. An intimation
which, if it has any practical value, means that, after we have
been victims for a year or two to our own bungling and
inefficient arrangements, we will become more formidable foes
than our antagonists find us in our present condition. Having
delivered himself of this statesman-like announcement, au&
intimated that he bad already given. so many assurances that-.
he and his colleagues were bent on a vigorous prosecution a
the war, it could not be necessary to repeat them; it
would be found however, he said, that a promise of the.khtd
alluded to was included in the speech from the Throne. The
members of the lower chamber of our legislature then pro-
ceeded to the House of Lords, where the ceremonial of the
prorogation was completed.
The session just closed has been one in which the deficiensy
of legislation has been but one of the minor evils. It has
been singularly provocative of observation and regret, in the
tiresome though unintentional efforts by which the characters
of public men have been severely damaged, and in the course
of which the house itself has lost much of the national con-
fidence. It has been marked by a series of practical contra-
dictions upon vital points of policy. The Legislature, seized
with a panic zeal for the expression of public opinion, severely
and seriously censured and drove from office an executive in
which it had lost confidence, and yet refused to adopt the con-
clusions of its own committee on the subject. To this dis-
creditable proceeding was added the spasmodic attempts of
Lord PALMiIiSTON to snatch at popularity, which he threw
from him with an equally energetic levity and unconcern.
To dispassionate observers it is a matter forr, deep regret that
Parliament should have been tolerant of such conduct. Those
Ministers through whose imbecility the nation " drifted into
war," it is true, were driven from poutPT. But little or no-prac-
tical benefit was derived from that event. The acknowledged
abuses of our military administration have as yet received but
little if any amendment. Favouritism still reigns supreme.
Even the war department, concerning a reform in which so
much was said, is still under the control of divided functions,
the parties wielding which do not work in harmony together.
In the face of these indisputable facts, and in defiance of the ab-
sence of legislative enactments of importance, the speech which
Ministers have advised their Sovereign to close the session with
readsvery like a satire on themselves when they speak of the atten-
tion given by Parliament to " many measures of great public
utility." On reading such a compliment one is naturally
induced to glance over the record of these " many measures."
The history of the eight months' incubation presents a some-
what beggarly amount. They are found to consist of the
" Metropolitan Local Management Bill," the " Newspaper
Stamp Duty Bill"—an enactment already admittedly a failure
as regards its pretended object, that of diffusing useful know-
ledge among the people—the " Limited Liability Bill"
whose passage through Parliament was managed in such a
way as to be a disgrace to a deliberative assembly ; it was
delayed in its early stages, and afterwards forced through the
Legislature by dint of threats, and in the face of declarations
that time had not been allowed for considering its provisions ;
and many of its details are admittedly so imperfect that great
doubts are entertained by those who pushed it forward
whether even the intended principle sought to be established
by the bill has not been lost in the hot haste with which it
was pushed through its latter stages—the "Friendly Societies'
Amendment Bill," and the " Bills providing Constitutions for
our Australian Colonies"—the latter so singularly concocted
as to avoid all allusion to the colonies as integral portions of
the British Empire. Such is the imposing catalogue of the
" many measures of great public utility" upon which Minis-
ters hug themselves, and congratulate Parliament on " the
zeal and assiduity with which they have applied themselves to
the discharge of their public duties during a long and
, laborious session I" The legislative labours of the long

session appear to form a very small portion of the proceedings,
which have consisted, to a great extent, of revilings and accu-
sations, no inconsiderable portion of the time being consumed

in most unprofitable bickerings.
The session, however, is gone, garnished with the obsolete
fiction which affects to dismiss Noble Lords and Honourable
Members to their respective counties, there to exercise infia-
ences not less important than the discharge of their Par-
liamentary duties. No one is deceived in this, as everybody
is aware that those legislators who has not already gone
would be immediately off to the hill-sides, or to the sea-coast,
to the continent, or, in short, anywhere except the place in-
dicated in the Royal Speech. Ministers are now masters of
the situation for war or peace during the next six months, and
public anxiety on the subject is not much abated by the
promises of Lord PALMERSTON, nor the credit he has be-

spoken for himself and colleagues.
While the knell of the Parliamentary session was being
rung in the Ministerial ears, intelligence of great matters
was being transmitted for their special edification and de-
light. On the evening of Tuesday a telegraphic message from
Admiral DunnAs was delivered at the Admiralty ; and the
same day a similar message was communicated to the
MINISTER of MARINE in Paris. This message communicated
the welcome intelligence, that, on the morning of the 9th
instant, the mortar and gun-boats belonging to the allied
fleets had attacked SWEAEORG, bombarding the place with
the most complete 'success. The magazines and storehouses
of the arsenal were destroyed by a conflagration, which lasted
for forty-five hours. Nearly all the principal buildings on
Vargo, and many on Svarto, have been completely destroyed.
Minute accounts of the details have not as yet reached
the metropolis, but are hourly expected, and great joy
has been manifested by all classes. On Friday, Lord PANNURE
received a telegraphic communication, intimating that the
Russians, to the number of from 50,000 to 60,000, under com-
mand of General LIYRANDI, had attacked and been defeated
by the French and Sardinians, aided by some of the British
cavalry. The attack was made on Thursday morning, Orr the
position occupied by the allies in the Tchernaya. For some-
days previous rumours had reached the French to the_effeet
that the Russians meditated an attach on that position, which

they began at daybreak. The action was sharp and sanguinary

but ended in the complete repulse of the enemy, with a loss of

4,000 or 5,000 men in killed and wounded, ani in the.battle
400 Russians were taken prisoners. The loss on the part of
the allies had not been ascertained at the time the accounts

left; but it was stated to be much less than that of the ibis-
sians. The brief despatch from General NUMMI speaks in
very laudatory terms of the bravery exhibited by the English
cavalry and the Sardinians. A despatch from General SIMP-
soy, dated the 16th, states the intention of the besiegers to
_ _

open fire from the English and French batteries, at dawn on
the following morning. These tidings have diffused very
generally expressed satisfaction, and the prevailing observa-
tion is, " How gloriously these good news inaugurate the ap-
pearance of HEn MAJESTY QUEEN VicTonre. in Paris!" The
attack on the allies at the Tchernaya is looked on by military
authorities as tantamonnt to a confession on the part of
LIPEANDI of the straitened circumstances by which the army

in Sebastopol is beset. Such an operation, if attended with
even a trifling amount of success, must have proved a groat
advantage to the Russians, as it might have been the means
of aiding the garrison in the way of procuring supplies-of food
now said to be exceedingly scarce in the fortress, and its-moral-
effect must have been to sustain and even elevate the severely
tried courage of the besieged. In the desperate attempt to-
snatch these advantages-, the attack. was made, and as- we
see has failed ; what immediate effect this result may
have upon the operations of the- siege, it is not very
easy even to conjecture ; but that it must ultimately tell-
greatly in favour of the allies is a matter which does not adl
mit of doubt. To these advantages must also be added other'
important though not such. brilliant achievements in the sew.
of Azoff, recently obtained. by Commander OSBORNE, who.
has.destroyed great quantities of corn,- forage, and fish, alli
intended for the sustenance of the Russian army in the.
Crimea; the condition of which army must be daily becoming
more perilous and distressing. These repeated and signal
successes must have the effect of wearing out the spirit and
greatly impairing the resources-of Russia, which thus pressed
on distant points cannot fail to appreciate the prowess and
the might of those antagonists- she has so wantonly provoked
and aroused. •
One -subject occupies• general and almost exclusive attention
in every social circle of the English metropolis,- and is ac-
corded an equally important share of interest in that of
France. This event is the long-promised 'visit of HER
MAJESTY and Prince Ass-a 112, to the Emperor of the FRENCH.
At seven o'clock on Friday evening, Him • MAJESTY, and
Prince ALBERT together with the Prince of WALES and the
Princess ROYAL, embarked in the Victoria and Albert royal
steam yacht, and started at day-break en ..Saturday morning
for Boulogne, where the Royal visitors arrived at half-past
one o'clock the same afternoon, and were received by their
Imperial host with every demonstration of affection and regard.
The preparations for the-reception of HER MAJESTY have been
of the most gorgeous and tasteful order;- and while court
pageantry and Imperialand Royal display have- been lavishly
bestowed in honour of the• auspicious and: unprecedented
event probably no portion of the ceremonial has equalled
in interest and effect the • general enthusiasm of all clas-
ses-of Parisians. The city is literally crammed full of visi-
tors, and the influx of strangers has been such as to have sug-
gested the production of a new farce entitled "Paris too Lit-
tle," the farcical positions in which fail infinitely short of the
reality everywhere witnessed throughout the city. The hotel
and lodging-house keepers have become so thoroughly tired of
answering, in the negative, questions as to accommodation of
every sort for travellers or partial sojourners, that, forgetting
their national and customary politeness, they can hardly be
induced to give any answer at all to the thousands whom they
are constrained to refuse admittance to, and in all directions
"the ery is still they come." The English Sovereign is, it is
understood, to remain the guest of the FRENCII EMPEROR, or-
rather, as the reception bears out, of the. French nation, till.
the afternoon of this day week, when• the Royal pageantry-
will change to the - popular and exciting_ spectacle-of " For-
England, ho 1"
Politicians of every order and inclination bad largely in,
the speculative line as to the probable results of this intert-
change of state civilities. For its own,brief period of
ence, it casts all else into the shade. Genera/ politics, the war,
notwithstanding its recently stirring and gratifying events,
have yielded to the enthusiasm of the time, and even in sight
loving Paris the universal exhibition itself has "paled:-.its
ineffectual fires' before the more glowing glories of the Royal

visit. Some few of the croakers on both sides of the channel
regard the proceedings with undefined suspicions; but the
general anticipation is that of unmixed advantage to all parties
from the-more,closeiy-knitted alliance of constitutional Eng-
land with Imperial France. United as these two great coun-
tries naw are, in favour of European freedom, and in opposition
to the advancing dominancy of Asiatic tyranny, bright
prospects are opened for the future, and that future is happily
heralded by those soul-stirring successes which by sea and
land-have within these few. days attended the allied arms.
Fer the first time within the range of historical record, a.
friendly visit has been paid by a British sovereign to a French
potentate in the capitaLof France, and that visit has been
heralded and accompanied by events and circumstances the
most gratifying and happily suggestive.
While rejoicing and.pageantry form the staple topic of ge-.
neral conversation, other themes occasionally obtrude them-
selves on public attention, One of theses took place in. St.
Martin's Hall on Wednesday last, when a meeting was held
(r) val nie quuniani to peace or war."
On this occasion Livery limited number of the parties present
contrived to make a very warlike demonstration in favour of
peace. The Chairman, a Mr. HANII4TON, tolerably known to
the oratocracy of Southwark, kindled the fire in hiS opening
speech, which, judging from-its effects upon the audience, was
plentifully mingled with explosives. The next speaker was
Mr. BRONZERRE O'BRIEN, who, in trying to distribute the
oil of his eloquence over the agitated waters, seemed only to
add fuel to flame, and the general excitement created by him
and his predecessor found expressive outlet in a wild tumul.
tuary uproar. The two succeeding speakers showed more con-
ciliatory tact, and were rewarded by shouts of laughter and
derisive cheers. Stimulated by their success, a score of
speechmakers made simultaneous efforts to be heard, and were
rewarded by a tornado of hisses and abuse. At last, a resolu,
tion condemnatory of war in general, and of the present war
in particular, was proposed and seconded, and by some means
perceived and declared by the chairman to be carried, but not
before a valiant champion of "peace at any price" had nearly
superinduced a personal collision by shaking his fist violently
n the face of one speaker who did not so vehemently advocate
the peaceful doctrines of his opponent. After great noise and
fearful altercation, the meeting separated, having given con-
vincing evidence of the value of freedom of speech, and no
trifling indication of the wisdom of popular deliberation.
Events less stirring, though more suggestive, force
themselves on observation from distant points. From a
resolution adopted a day or two ago by the Town Council of
Edinburgh, it appears that failing health has compelled Pro-
fessor Ausoli to resign his chair in the University of that
city. The chair of the " Practice of Physic" in-the University
of Edinburgh has been held by Dr. W. P. Axasox since 1842
he having previously held the Professorship of the "Theory of
Physic, and Clinical Medicine" in the same university since
1821, having thus laboured in the discharge of his arduous
professional duties for the long period of thirty-five years.
Professor ALisor; is the elder brother of Sir ARCHIBALD
ALISON, Baronet, the celebrated historian of Europe. During
a long period of active professional life, Dr. ALISON was

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.