The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1858-03-09 00:00:00

DORSET COUNTY EXPRESS

DORCHESTER, TUESDAY, MARCH 9,1868.

HONESTE AUD.4I.

IN the House of Lords on Monday the Earl of
DERBY made his promised statement of the
Ministerial policy. After describing the cir-
cumstances under which he had undertaken the
Government of the country, he complimented
the late Ministry on the efficient manner in
which they had kept the army up to its full
strength notwithstanding the drain which the
Indian mutiny had entailed upon it. He ex-
pressed a hope that the mutiny was approaching
its end, and that the recent success of the British
arms in China would afford the opportunity of
making an honourable peace, and of re-establish-
ing commercial intercourse. The foreign policy
of the new Administration would be directed, he
said, to the maintenance of friendly relations
with all Powers, great as well as small; and if
differences should arise it would be their
endeavour to arrange them by a frank explana-
tion. Of all our alliances he considered that
with France to be the most important, and the
most necessary to the peace of the world. The
best Government for France was that which
represented the national will, but it was of
importance to all that, whatever that Govern-
ment might be, it should be permanent and
solid. It could not be denied that that per-
manence and solidity depended on the present
EMPEROR, and therefore it was that he re-
joiced at the failure of the late attempt at
assassination. He considered that great al-
lowances should be made for the language
called forth by such an outrage. The despatch
of Count WALEWSKI contained expressions which
while they were not so intended, might yet be
construed as making imputations against this
country, and it was unfortunate that it had not
been answered. The intention of the new Go-
vernment was to enforce the existing law, to send
an answer to the despatch of Count WALEWSKI,
and then to consider whether the law could be
altered with advantage; while at the same time
they would maintain inviolable now and for
ever, and under all circumstances, the right of
asylum which this country affords to foreigners.
As to the general measures of the new Govern-
ment, his lordship said that as a large majority
of the House of Commons had approved of
legislation on the subject of India at the present
juncture, the Ministry would shortly introduce a
measure which he hoped would satisfactorily '
settle the goverment of that country. In regard
to Parliamentary Reform, the Ministry were
prepared to direct their attention to the subject,
and in the next session they would bring for-
ward a measure which he hoped would be ac-
cepted as fair and reasonable by impartial and
moderate people. The whole policy of his Ad-
ministration, he said, would be conservative of
the great institutions of the empire, and progres-
sive as regarded every improvement and deve-
lopment of the resources and energies of the
country. The House then adjourned to Monday
the 15th inst., and on the same day the House
of Commons, after transacting some formal busi-
ness, adjourned to Friday, the 12th inst.

LORD DERBY has made the statement which
was somewhat anxiously looked for, and which
proves to be of a nature remarkably concilia-
tory, as it affects the diversity of political
parties. He is disposed to walk in the steps of the
late Ministry; he will adopt most of their mea-
sures, with only such modifications and improve-
ments as will tend to their greater perfection,
thereby securing for them the greatest possible
share of public appreciation; and, more than all,
he has promised to become a Reformer, and so
to comport himself in his new character as to
prove that the Reform question in his hands
is one that will not be "trifled with." Looking
at the tone of the speeches adopted by the late
candidates at the hustings, whose re-election
was rendered necessary by their appointment to
office, it would really appear as though this so-
called Tory Administration were bent upon bid-
ding pretty high for the confidence of Parlia-
ment and the country. Lord STANLEY tells us,
it is idle to suppose that the course of legislation
in these times can be made to assimilate in any
great degree with the legislation of twenty-five
years ago; and the declarations of Sir JOHN
Parurrarorr, and of the new President of the
Poor Law Board, are very much to the same
purpose. But if so many good things are,
beyond question, in store for the satisfaction of
the great Liberal party, and really and truly in
conformity with the spirit of progress, how is it
that Lord DERBY has failed to recruit his slender
forces by the welcome addition to his Cabinet of
some of the distinguished members of that party
whose views he intimates a desire to carry out?
How does it happen that with all these advanced
notions of Liberalism, and a proclaimed resolu-
tion to act up to them, Lord DERBY is compelled
to fall back upon the identical little band with
which he formerly declared himself unable to
carry on the business of the country? The
truth is, that although his Lordship may for
some reason or other entertain now a different
opinion as to the success of his Administration,
all his old opponents to a man still retain their
opinion as to his inevitable failure; and there
seems to be very little doubt that the feeling of
the country is in unison with this latter view of
the matter. However, the country is content
patiently to wait for an opportunity of judging
more decisively upon this important point by
the forthcoming measures of the Government,
rather than from the recollections and antecedents
of the men themselves. Nevertheless, there are
and must be greet misgivings felt throughout

theegnintrj,. tie 'lndies Bill with which the
Nintir cabinet is to proceed forthwith will, in
the outset of their career, present sonie rather
formidable difficulties. With rege.fei to the Con-
spiracy Bill, the position of that question and
of parties in relation to it seems to be singularly
arininaloua ; and both the anticipated measure,
and its reception by the public, are of an exceed-
ingly dubious character. But something it to
be done in the way of amending ear laws—that
is when certain trials tow pending shall have
proved them to be insufficient. In the mean-
time the offensive dispatch has been answered,
and in a way perfectly harmless. It has not
provoked a declaration of war; neither has it
offended the dignity of the country by falling
short of a becoming spirit and demeanour. In
fact this "answer" is now a nullity; its time is
gone by; it is forced, artificial, and valueless.
But the House of Commons had already done the
business far more effectually; the spirit of its
debates and the results which have flowed from
them have taught France a lesson which no effort
of diplomacy, with an infinity of red tape, could
ever accomplish. As to future legislation, with
the view to the accommodation of NAPOLEON
111., that, as we have said, is made to depend
upon circumstances; and there certainly seems
to us no need of any of that violent hurry in the
matter which was displayed by the defunct
Ministry, since the persons implicated in the
late dastardly attack could not have been tried
under the new enactment, but must have been
disposed of under the law as it existed at the
time of the outrage. We have seen many com-
ments on the state of the law as it applies to
these cases, and it has been sometimes very
confidently affirmed that "no man can presume
"to declare what the state of the law really is,"
and that, therefore, no man can pronounce
whether it does or does not call for amendment.
We are ourselves very far from subscribing to
this opinion, particularly when we reflect upon
the observations made by such men as Lord
CAMPBELL, Lord BROUGHAM, and Lord LYND-
HURST. We believe, on the contrary, that a
man will be found, on the proper occasion,
capable of declaring what the law is; and it may
be looked upon SA extremely doubtful whether
the authoritative exposition of the law, which is
to be expected on that occasion, will not be such
as to reconcile our legislators and the country
with the powers exercised under it. Should
this turn out to be the result, the DERBY
Cabinet will be spared the trouble and the risks
almost inseparable from the attempt to carry a
Conspiracy Bill through Parliament; and the
India Bill must then form the staple of legisla-
tion during the broken session. As to Parlia-
mentary Reform, that is a question very
adroitly deferred until the ensuing session—that
is the rock a-head which threatens danger.
Therefore it is that Reform is spoken of as a
thing coming suddenly upon the DERBY
Cabinet, and a boon which it is beyond all
reasonable expectation should be offered during
the early months of its existence. Yet the
outlines of some such measure appear to be
already sufficiently developed to justify the assu-
rance that Lord DERBY'S Reform Bill, when it
does turn up, shall be no sham. The reason for
the delay is, therefore, inexplicable, and is only
too likely to beget serious doubts as to the
validity of thew promises. A Reform Bill under
the auspices of Sir FITZROY KELLY, Mr. Ma-
RABLI, and Lord ELLENBOROUGH, with their
well-known predilections and invincible antipa-
thies to the inevitable requirements of a
sterling measure—such as the extension of
the county franchise—is certainly not looked
forward to with much hopefulness. But the
question is, whether it will not be possible for
Lord DERBY to go further in this direction than
Lord PALMERSTON would have gone. It has
been held to be capable of much doubt whether
the Reform Bill of Lord PALMERSTON himself
would have been a measure, or a fair instalment
of such a measure, as would meet the require-
ments of the times, and satisfy the expectations
of the people. This is a point upon which the
Liberal party ought now to come to some gene-
ral and distinct understanding, in order to
obviate the risks of divisions in their body,
which are only too likely to be brought about
by the tactics of rival statesmen. Should the
DERBY Cabinet hold together till next year,
their declarations on the question of Reform will
be useful as leading to the prompt adoption of
sounder measures than any which the ex-
Premier or Lord DERBY may be disposed to
give us. In the meantime the business of Re-
formers should be well understood and agreed
upon. It is now time that the many anomalies
of the representative system should be effectually
dealt with, and that the claims of the unrepre-
sented should be urged in a firm and uncom-
promising spirit ; but we are free to confess that
we can see nothing in the composition of the
DERBY Administration which inspires us with a
lively hope that any of these great objects will ,
be successfully accomplished by them.

DORCHESTER PITCHED CORN MARKET, March 6.
—The supply of wheat at market to-day was quite
equal to the demand, and the prices of last week
barely realized. Barley and oats nominal. The
seed trade is beginning to open—red clovers and
rye grass are plentiful, quality good and prices
reasonable.

LOCAL BOARD OF HEALTH—In our third page
will be found a report of the proceedings of the
Board on Friday last. The object of the meeting
was to receive and consider a very important report
which had been ordered a month previously to be
furnished by the engineer, Mr. Whitehead, relative
to the state of the public works under his manage-
ment, and as to the heavy expenses which have been,
and it is feared yet remain to be, incurred in connec-
tion with these works. Although no report was
forthcoming, the conversation which arose on the
subject will probably be read with interest.

POPERY. —The annual meeting of the Dorset
Protestant Society will be held at the Townhall, on
Tuesday evening, when the Rev. T. W. Knipe will
give a lecture on "Modern Romanism Abroad."

COUNTY CONSTABULARY. Sergeant Edward
Lewis, of Corfe Cattle, has been promoted to the
snperintendency of the Cerne division, in the room
of the late Superintendent Hunt • and P.C. 48
Steed Hitch, of Piddletown, has been raised to the
rank of Sergeant in the County Constabulary.
FIRS.—On Friday night about twelve o'clock,
just as the residents were going
,to bed, a fire was
discovered at the Three Mariners Inn, in a small
room adjoining the bar. The casualty might have
been serious had it not quickly been detected, an
old beam at the back of the mantel piece having
ignited, and the structure altogether being of an
antiquated description composed largely of wood.
Very little damage, however, ensued.

MESMERISM AND CLAIRVOYANCE—It Will be seen
by reference to our advertising columns that Mr. G.
Bernardo Eagle, "the Wizard of the South," will
give four entertainments at the Townhall this week,
when, probably, from the attractiveness of the pro-
gramme, and the acknowledgerl talent of the per-
former, large audiences will attend.
It appears that in the Department of Works and
Public Buildings last year, the sum of £3,013 WAS
granted out of the public money for the new office
of the Duchy of Cornwall.
NEW BILL ON THE LAW OF LIBEL. —Lord Camp-
bell's amendment of the law of libel, recently intro-
duced into the House of Lords, makes an important
addition to the privileges of the prima No statement
in a faithful report of the proceedings in Parliament,
or at any meeting convened by sheriff's, mayors, and
other publie functionaries, or held underan authority
of an Act of Parliament, or for parochial purposes,
will henceforth render the publisher liable to an ac-
tion. The responsibility of any statement sup-
posed to affect personal character, or otherwise
injurious, will rest on the speaker.

-EAST SOMERSET RAILWAY.—The report of the
directors of this company states that they have s
with the Duchy of Cornwall for the purchaseorg
land required for the construction of the line, which
completes the agreements for land up to Shepton Mal-
let. The contractor has made steady progress with
the line, which will be completed within a short time
of the period originally proposed. Terms have been
Franged with the Great Western Company for work-
ing the line, by which the interest on the debenture
debt of this company will be guaranteed to be first
paid out of gross reoeipts. The capital account shows
a total reoeipt of 441,968 up to the 31st of December
last, of which £33,837 had been expended, leaving
£5,6215 deposited with the Amountant•General, and
a balance of £2,504 at the bankers'.

. . . .
Owing to the drift of mho* Occaskiried by the fall
and high .of Tuesdiy; the Lorieillin Mails fromri
Dorchester to Sheihothe *atedtytd otd tllie(4l'
too hours on Wednesday wording. The driver of
the mail cart was snowed sip between Cerne and
Dorchester, and had to walk a distance of nearly
four miles for assistance to dig out the cart. Mitch
snow fell between Christchurch arid Doichestet.
Tag Bccirea.—The Brit aPpsreat eipiitsot ildf the
Moon with the eliTi will ho visible di Doi-abattoir ciii
Monthly Moining neat at 11.27 and it will end at 2.5
p.m. ; Weymouth, 11.27-2.4; Lyme Regis, 11.25-
2.2; Bridport, 11.26-2 3 ; Yeovil, 11.27-2.4; Sher.
borne, 11.27-2.4; Stalbridge, 11.28-2.5 ; Shaftes-
bury, 11.29- -2.6 ; Blandford, 11.29-2.6. Smoked
glass will be useful to those who desire a eight of the
remarkable astronomic phenomena on the occasion.

COUNTY PETTY SESSIONS, Shirehill, Saturday, March
6.—(Before B. Williams and W. L. Heaning, Esqrs.)—
James Sherwood, landlord of the King's Arms Inn,
Piddletown, was summoned for having his house open
during illegal hours. Sergeant Hach said that on Sun-
day, the 26th ult., while on duty at Piddletown, he
visited defendant's house and saw four persons there at
17 minutes to 6in the afternoon. Three of these were
in the bar and one in the tap-room. One of those in the
bar was smoking, and had part of a glass of beer before
him; there were two glasses of beer and two screws of
tobacco on • sideboard close by. Three of the men
belonged to Piddletown, and the other to Piddlehinton.
Defendant did not deny the statement, but believed he
could open the house at the time, in accordanCe with
his lioense. He himself had been to church both morn,
lug and evening, and the offence was nominated quite
innocently. The magistrates informed defendant that
there was • difference between the license and the law,
but the license was still defined by the law, and the
Bench had no power to alter the matter. About a fort-
night ago the judges had decided that public houses
must not be open between three and five o'clock Sunday
afternoons, irrespective of church service The Chair-
man said all knew how respectable defendant's house
had always been. Fined 10s., and costs, ea.—George
White was summoned for being drunk and disorderly at
Stratton. P.C. Cookeram said that at Stratton on Sun-
day evening, at 7 o'clock, defendant came along the road
very drunk and abusive. On the officer telling him to
go home, defendant said he did not care for the con-
stable. Another man was with defendant, and after
they had gone on, the policeman following, he found de-
fendant stretched in the road. After this the defendant
was fighting at the Bull Inn, Stratton. Defendant ad-
mitted that a drop of cider had overcome him. Fined
is., and costs, 4e. fid.