The Express.
London, England, 1864-07-07 00:00:00

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Tin imam% BORN TO 0000 LUCK. Mr. D. Murray.
—And TUB MONASTERY Or 87. JUST. Mean. Vining,
Marston, Nelson, Ray, and Mellon; Mdlle. Stella Colas and
Mx Marston.

BEJTANNIA.

TITS MIMIC ABEL PLIW: or The Illeres Dreans—
CHRISTY'S COLOURED 0010:DIAWIL—bleedsmee Losebi-.1
and Constance.—And THE DOWNFALL Or PRIDE.

LONDON, THURSDAY, JULY 7.

ANY tolerably experienced and observant wit-
ness of the debates of Monday and Tuesday
evenings must, we think, have been more than
ordinarily impressed by the dominant tone of the
speakers on either side, and the pervading temper
and disposition of the House, in discussing
what we may call the theory of the future
foreign policy of England. Amidst the various
readings of despatches, and the wrangling
over detached sentences, and distorted
phrases, and tortured words, and wrested
dates--amidst the hubbub of hollow de- '
clamation and the clash of sword, and shield,
and spear in this battle-field of parties, there has
appeared in both camps a wonderful concert and
unanimity as to the latent and persistent causes
of all such diplomatic failures and embarrassments
as that which the Tory leaders are now bent upon
improving, as the preachers call it, to their own
advantage and to the reproach of their country.
Every speaker, whether habitual malcontent or
eager partisan, independent, aspiring, or disin-
terested, or simply disgusted, has expressed or im-
plied an unreserved adherence to the principle of
strict non-intervention on the part of the British
Government in the domestic politics of foreign
nations. Even the mover of the hostile resolution,
though swelling with magnificent ideas of the true
function of England as "a Conservative Power," is
fain, at least for the uses of the moment, to
abjure and abhor the liabilities and entangle-
ments of treaties, negotiations, and alliances.
Even the lively coadjutor of that Foreign
Minister whose celebrated Blue-book on
the affairs of Italy remains a monument of fuss
and failure, denounces more or less openly the
system of laying down the law for continental
Etirope from an official back street in West-
minster. Mr. COBDEN, who, though all listen to
him gladly, "dwells apart," struck home to the
common-sense of the country when he explained to
the House the pathology of these morbid intermit
tent fits of national humiliation, and demonstrated
the distinction between the defensive and offensive
resources of a great insular Power. Mr. Hots-
MAN traced the evil to its source in the constant
ignorance and apathy of the parliamentary mind,
which is content to be absolved from all respon-
sibility, and to slumber in the dark while the
Foreign-office is busy whistling for a storm,
until some fine morning the whole country awakes
with a start, and finds itself among the breakers
or upon its beam ends.

Parliament is not quite prepared to accept the
doctrine of ourcommercial and industrial Buddh;atr.
who recommend absolute political self-absorption
and complete diplomatic annihilation. It would
be almost as unreasonable as to expect •
bishop to desire the immediate and total aboli-
tion of sin and wickedness in this sublunary world.
But certain it is that a change has come over the
spirit of the House, most significant and most
surprising to a contemporary of Lord CASTLE-
REAGII, or even of Lord LIVERPOOL.
The coming of this change has long
been perceptible to silent watchers of
the moral atmosphere, and to all concerned in the
formation and guidance of opinion, What Prince
GORTCHAKOPP said of Russia at the close of the
Crimean war may be repeated with far more truth
and justice of the present state of the public mind
in this country—England se rceriettle. This
Dano-German question, or rather the useless
and unpleasant part this country has
most unwillingly and unwittingly taken in
tieing it into a diplomatic knot, for the sake
of afterwards, with equal cleverness, attempting to
untie it, has at least convinced us that we might
have avoided some discredit and much trouble
had we abstained from lecturing Germany and
advising Denmark, from doctoring dynasties, and
nursing little kingdoms, and generally minding
other people's business.

Denmark, however, has disappeared from the
debate which is to be renewed this evening.
Mr. BERNAL OSBORNE may possibly have some-
thing more to say about the claims of the
AL'OrRTENBI:EGB, and may, for the last time,
explain in an airy and popular style the
meaning of that German compound—"Schlea-
" Bat, to all intents and purposes
of the present debate, the Dano-German question
is dead and gone, and it will require all Lord
MAntESBURY'S vast information and acknowledged
akin to resuscitate it "in another place."
The question before Parliament and the country
now is the past and future conduct of our
foreign relations, the principles, the methods,
the course of action of our foreign policy.
A whole week will not have been wasted if our
representatives arrive at length at something like
'a correct understanding of their rights, and a fixed
purpose to fulfil their duties, let who will, or
who can, be in possession of the Foreign-office.

THE renewal of an effort to obtain settled legal
provision for occasional public holidays has re-
cently been noticed in these columnli, as well as
by several of our contemporaries, as an object
well deserving the consideration of the mercan-
tile and banking community. It will be remem-
bered that the general question of providing holi-
days for the nation has more than once been de-

II ;LE

bated in Parliament, both u a means ot.lpromot-
ing the more creditable and convenient celebilm
tion of important national event% aniwith tip
view of mitigating in some degree lbe labo-
rious character of the times by instituting peri-
odiosl days of general recreation. It is not a
matter for wonder if the project in its
latter form savoured too much of the pa-
ternal theory of government to find general
acceptance. But whether it was from this
cause or simply from ignorant* of the com-
mercial interests which are involved in the pro-
clamation of a dice runs, both the parliamentaii
discussion of the question which took place some
twenty years since, and the Committee of Inquiry
which followed, left the entire matter at the mercy
of the hand-to-mouth legislation which has sines
;been pursued. As the case now stands, the pro-
ceases of a special Act of Parliament are still
needed to enable the nation, or even the Metro-
polis, to honour its guests and enjoy its fetes with
a worthy unanimity. At present on such occa-
sions a large class of the community is left to the
compulsory transaction of business under circtun-
stances of great disadvantage and of unnecessary
risk. As often sa the streets of London are
thronged with an eager population, waiting to
welcome some illustrious guest, the com-
plaint is repeated that whilst the amount of
business which can be transacted at the banks on
such occasions is ludicrously small in proportion
to the staff which must be detained, it is sufficient
to put to serious and gratuitous risk the trustees
of money which has to be transferred under such
circumstances.

The proper office of the Legislature in dealing with
the whole question of public holidays is of course
of a regulative character, and consists in providing
for contingencies of • recognised order, rather
than in the institution of festivals. Few of us,
probably, have conceived how great are the com-
mercial interests which are involved in the impera-
tive suspension of badness for • single day. A law
on the subject, to be beneficial, or even harmless, in
its operation, must not create holidays, but recog-
nise those which are either already existent or of
which the occasion may spontaneously arise.
In conformity with these views the Bill to
which public attention has been directed addresses
itself to the admitted evils which are contingent
upon those occasional celebrations and holidays
with which we are already familiar, and offers spe-
cific remedies of a practical character. It proposes,
in the interests of the banking and, mercan-
tile community, to give the QUEEN in Council
power to appoint a public holiday, under certain
conditions, either in the Metropolis alone, where
such indulgences are more frequently needed, or
throughout the country generally, as the nature of
the event may determine. In order to guard
against an 'inconvenient use of the powers proposed
to be entrusted, it is provided that the power shall
be exercised only upon a public memorial, endorsed
by the Lord Mayor and the Governor of the Bank.
The more detailed provisions relate to bills of
exchange and promissory notes which may have
been drawn so as to mature upon the day ap-
pointed by the proclamation. As the loss of a
day's interest is here involved, a concession has
necessarily to be made by one of the parties.
Strict legal justice is perhaps unattainable in this
case, but looking at the balance of advantages,
taking the whole year round, in favour of the
holders of bills, who already profit by anticipated
payments whenever Sunday, Good Friday, and
Christmas-day happen to complete the term of
current bills, it would be an equitable arrangement
to extend the time of payment by one day. Such
is the proposal made by the Bill, and looking at
the infrequency of the occasions contemplated, it
may be regarded as the most practicable means of
adjusting a long•deferred public difficulty.

There are other matters of detail in the Bill
which bear witness to the solicitude for mercantile
convenience with which it has been prepared, and
the friendly assistance which its authors are un-
derstood to have received from persons of large
experience in matters of finance and commerce, on
which we need not now dwell. We trust that the
Early Closing Association, who have taken in hand
a question which is congenial to their ordinary
labours, and whose existence is a witness to the
power of moral influence to mitigate the pressure
of a commercial age, will succeed in their object,
and that a measure which respects the interests of
business whilst it promotes the worthier celebration
of our few national holidays will receive the
favourable consideration of the Legislature.

A Cabinet Council was held yesterday at the
official residence of the rust Lord of the Treasury,
in Downing-street. The ministers present were
Viscount Palmerston, the Lord Chaneellor, Earl
Granville, the Duke of Arun, Sir George Grey,
Earl Russell, the Right Hon. Edward Cardwell,
Earl De Grey, Sir Charles Wood, the Chancellor
of the Exchequer, the Duke of Somerset, the Right
Hon. T. Milner Gibson, the Earl of Clarendon,
Lord Stanley of Alderley, and the Right Hon.
C. P. Villiers.