The Press.
London, England, 1858-10-16 00:00:00

THE PRESS, OCTOBER 16,1858.

994

" the solid masonry of our ancient legislation."
How much of that " solid masonry " would re-
main, if our law ofreal property were remodelled
upon what the Noble Lord deems the " principles
"fit to be adopted in an enlightened age," might
be a curious question. We need not, however,
discuss it at present, any more than we need be
at pains to show that such a codification as
that adumbrated by his Lordship's "example of
what he would wish to see" would encounter more
formidable obstacles in the attempt to pass it
through the Legislature than he anticipated
when he assured his Liverpool audience that it
" would be sanctioned by Parliament, not indeed
" without debate, but without serious delay."
His second illustration of the question of codi-
fication, the Noble Lord took from the criminal
law, entering largely upon the statistics of crime,
and upon penal and reformatory institutions.
This is so vast a subject, and was so largely
handled by him, that we cannot, as we had inti-
mated, follow him into it now, but must reserve
for a future opportunity our observations re-
specting it. Meanwhile we must own that we
derive no inconsiderable comfort from the con-
viction that the work of codification—a work in
itself unquestionably as desirable as it is difficult,
and which, we feel assured, cannot be much
longer delayed—will be in the hands, not of
social philosophers, but of Conservative States-
men.

power in a country to deal with its subjects with
reference only to their secular concerns, is the
idlest fancy that can enter into the mind.
If, however, it be said that we are here putting
a strained interpretation upon the doctrine in
question, and that all that Lord STANLEY, and
those who agreed with him, meant to convey by
it was that it is the duty of Government to put
all theological belief upon a perfect equality, and
that a Government, as a Government, departs
from its true functions when it favours one kind
of religious faith more than another, we are still
at a loss to conceive how these gentlemen could
bring themselves to join the deputation from the
Missionary Societies. We know well enough
that Sir ISlowrox Pwro, who formed one of the
deputation, and the party who think with him,
are labouring hard to establish this principle in
England ; and, well knowing that not one of the
nonconformist sects can have the slightest claim
to be placed in the position now occupied by the
Church of England, they are labouring, not to
raise the position of those sects to the higher level
of that Church, but to bring down that Church
to their own level. We know that for this object
they have long laid down the principle of what
they call " religious neutrality," as applicable to
this country, and that they will approve of any
doctrine, provided only that it contain this their
favourite maxim—and they will do this without
reflecting that it also contains some other conclu-
sions which are at once both monstrous and
absurd. But if, according to the construction of
the British Constitution, the Government is
bound to favour the Established Church—and if
this be a false principle, against which it is men's
duty to contend, and if possible to set aside—
because a declared position with regard to
matters of theology is not within the sphere
of Government—and if the Government have

no right to favour one form of Christianity
in these islands above another then we
ask those gentlemen who clamour for this
neutral principle being adopted here with what
kind of consistency can they ask for a dif-
ferent principle to be applied to India ? how can
they join a deputation of Missionary Societies to
a Minister of State, to ask for favour to be shown
to Christianity in India ?
If their principle be a sound one, it is equally
applicable everywhere; and if the British Go-
vernment is wrong in favouring the Church of
England more than it does the Romanists and
the nonconformist sects, it can have no right to

favour the religion of JESUS CHRIST in India
above the heathen idolatries of the Hindoo
superstitions.
Lord STANLEY, it must be admitted, is con-
sistent. No favour to Christianity in India
must, in his view, as we understand it from the
expression which he has up to this time
given of it, be shown by the Government,
which is bound to preserve perfect " neutrality "
between the dogmas of BnAmAn and the revela-
tion Of CHRIST.

For ourselves, we do not hesitate to avow our
conviction that this is a course not only in a
religious sense wrong, but in a political sense im-
possible. Admitting it, however, to be not only
possible, but, in a worldly sense, wise, rather
than that this nation should adopt it in all its
broad significance we should at once declare that
if Christian England can only retain dominion
over India by adhering to it, it would be far
better for her to sever the connection at once
than to retain it, at the expense of what appears
to us nothing short of dishonouring her Redeemer
and her God.
Having made this unequivocal declaration of
our opinions, we can afford, without our motives
being suspected, to argue the question upon the
lower ground of policy and worldly wisdom. We
care not, then, to hide our opinion that the pro-
fession of " religious neutrality " on the part of
the Government will not succeed in gaining the
confidence and loyalty of either the llindoo or
Mussulman populations in India ; nay, more, we
do not believe that any attempt on the part of
the Government to act on the principle of
" religious neutrality," in spirit and in truth, will
prove more successful for that end.
We readily, however, admit that we think
that it is clearly demonstrated, by the facts
recorded in the Blue-books, that the greased
cartridges were the immediate cause of the
mutiny. We think that there were many other
causes, somewhat less immediate, which more

powerfully contributed to bring about that out•
break. But in admitting that the greased cart-
ridges were the direct inciting circumstance, we are
well aware that we concede the point that a zeal
for their religion, and a dread lest they should
be surreptitiously deprived of the privileges
which they believed that it conferred upon
them, was the incentive to those deeds of
horror which seemed to indicate that the very
nature of their perpetrators had changed from
what it was before. We are also well aware
that the not unnatural commentary on these ad-
missions is :—" Behold the fatal consequence of
" even apparently tampering with the religious
" belief of the natives ; persevere in the same
" course, and you will have India in rebellion
" from one end to the other." This may not
be at first sight an unnatural, but it is never-
theless a conclusion based upon very superficial
views. We admit that if the Government
by its acts creates a general impression on the
minds of the natives of Hindostan that it is its
intention to do its best to subvert their religion,
to make them forcible converts, or to compel
them to do, or to entrap them into doing acts,
whereby they imagine that they will lose their
cherished privileges, a rebellion against British
dominion is likely again to burst forth ; but we
contend that the creation of such an impression
depends upon a great many more considerations
than can be comprised either under the profes-
sion or the practice of "religious neutrality."
Now, no doubt the cartridges were the actual
lever whereby the rebellion was raised; but the
lever would have been utterly powerless had it
had no fulcrum to rest on. What then constituted
that fulcrum ? We will mention the three
ingredients of which it appears to us it was chiefly
composed.
I. The wars which had been waged with
Affghanistan, with Scinde, with Burmah, and
with China, together with the wars which Eng-
land was then waging both with China and
Persia, had given rise to an idea in the native
mind that the British nation had formed a deep
design to make England supreme master of
regardless of the rights of the native sovereigns
and their subjects. Hence a general feeling of
alarm in the native mind.

2. The Governor-General, Lord DALHOUSIE,
had openly proclaimed that the policy of annexa-
tion was, on every plausible ground, henceforth
to be the policy of the British Government. Of
this policy Sattarah and nude were examples.
3. The most valued and the most sacred rights
of the Hindoos were set at nought, by the Govern-
ment refusing to acknowledge the rights of adop-
tion—rights deeply affecting the interests of the
Hindoos in this world, and, as they believed, their
destiny in the next. Hence arose the fiend-like
hatred of NANA SAHIB to the ruling race, which
eventuated in horrors that appal the heart.
By these acts the native mind was prepared to
suspect every thing done by their rulers. It was
well known that the principle of "religious neu-
trality " had been put forth by the Government,
but the Hindoos looked upon it as a pretence.
We do not mean to approve the ill-advised and
injudicious efforts of both officials and officers,
who in their capacity as such sought to make
converts to Christianity. We do not think that
it is a wise mode of setting to work to make
converts to the doctrines of the Gospel, that it
should be preached by men who wear the garb of
authority ; but we believe a great deal more im-
portance has been attached to these proceedings
than they deserve. If the Government, by its
general policy, had not aroused the suspicious
nature of the Hindoos, the particular exertions of
individuals, albeit men in authority, would have
had comparatively little effect upon them. But
the acts of the Government had generated an
atmosphere of distrust around all their Indian
subjects. While they were still in the state
of irritation and dissension into which they
had been thrown by the deposition of the
King of DUDE, alarm was created in the
minds of the sepoys composing the Bengal
armies, by inquiries, made by order of the
Government, into the tenures of land in Oude—
land in which both their families and themselves
were deeply interested. It was then that the
ominous word " confiscation " passed in audible
whispers through the Bengal army, and great was
the discontent which arose.
By this series of improvident acts, com-
bustible materials were accumulated; and upon