The Press.
London, England, 1858-03-06 00:00:00

THE WEEK.

THE re-elections of her Majesty's Ministers have been the
principal subject of interest in the past week. The
various addresses delivered to their constituents by the noble-
men and gentlemen who have recently accepted office ought surely
to be satisfactory to the nation. They appeal to the two quali-
ties of which every Englishman is more or less conscious of possess-
ing—the love of the Anglo-Saxon race for pressing onward ; the reve-
rence of the British people for their traditions and institutions. To
ourselves, however, who for nearly five years have given our consistent
support to the Conservative party, it is a matter of peculiar gratifica-
tion to find on their accession to office au many of the views we have
been in the habit of enforcing accepted and corroborated. The great
mystification which has been effected through the medium of the
term "Liberal," and the fact that neither is Consetvatism essentially
obstructive nor progress essentially Whiggish, have been exposed
and illustrated in the speeches of Lord DERBY and Sir JOHN PARING..
TON. The views we have steadily put forward on the subject of Par-
liamentary parties have been succinctly and eloquently repeated by the
learned Judge-Advocate, and the policy we have recommended in
relation both to China and to India has been stamped
with the approval both of the Premier himself and his
able and popular son. On domestic legislation, the Re-
form Bill, and the Conspiracy to Murder Bill, enough has been said
to satisfy reasonable expectants. Lord DERBY has frankly declared, as
Mr. DISRAELI has often declared before him, that he could have been

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well satisfied had no new Reform Bill been demanded ; and they

both ground this opinion, not on the fact that any great principle is at
stake in the giving or the withholding such a measure, but simply on
this,—that perpetual political change is injurious to the national
character and the healthy working of the Constitution. As, however,
no principle is at stake, and since, as Lord DERBY admirably laid
down, it is highly undesirable that promises should be continually
held out in speeches from the Throne which are never realised, he has
judged it not inconsistent with his duty as the Leader of the Conserval ive
party to prepare such a measure of Reform against next session as may
offer same chance of finally concluding the question. Of the Conspiracy
to Murder Bill, Lord STANLEY has pointedly declared that the present
Ministry are in no way committed to Lord PALMERSTON'S own measure,
and do not intend to be bound by its provisions. Acting on the opinion
of Lord CAMPBELL that the law as it stands is sufficient for all our

purposes, they will wait the issue of proceedings now pending, before
they introduce any measure to the consideration of the House. Had
they refused to support the first reading of Lord PALMERSTON'S Bill,
they would have become liable to the charge of hostility to the
Emperor NAPOLEON. But had they also refused to support the amend-
ment of Mr. GIBSON they would have done worse, and have incurred
the charge of indifference to the dignity of Great Britain. They sup-
ported the first reading of the Bill for the sake of one principle—they
supported Mr. Gunton 's amendment for the sake of another. But the
first vote did not pledge them to adopt the measure of Lord PAL-
MERSTON any more than the second did to abstain from any measure
of their own. The present Government must be prepared for the
fictitious calumnies, and the unfounded imputations, circulated by an
angry enemy. But the Conspiracy to Murder Bill will not be the
same as Lord PALMER4TON'S, let the Tunes be as rampant as it will.
The question, we believe, will be referred to the Judges. But the
Conservatives are free to choose their own course, and we doubt not
will succeed in settling the present difficulty in a mauner consistent
with the honour of their country, and the friendship of ,the French
nation.

The peculiar delicacy of the questions now under discussion
between the Governments of England and France, and the vast
importance of a satisfactory solution, render it more than usually
necessar3 to preserve silence while those questions are still pending.
We are cognisant of some progress already made ; but it would
answer no good purpose to describe unfinished negotiations. The
state of the weather, too, which has prevented the arrival of the usual
mails on two days of this week, operates to increase the otherwise
inevitable delay. Still it is most probable that by the meeting of Par•
liament some step may have been taken which will indicate the
expected result, and which may be stated to both the Houses.
These negotiations will be greatly facilitated by the continuance
of Lord COWLEY at Paris—a circumstance most acceptable to the
French Government, and which tends to make a final and satisfactory
settlement comparatively easy.

Lord STRATFORD DE REDCLiFFE, we regret to say, has decided on
relinquishing his post at Constantinople. lie will, however, return to
that city for a short period, to take a formal leave of the Sultan, and to
close in a proper manner his public labours in the East—labours which
have redounded equally to the advantage of the country which he so
ably represented, and to his own lasting honour.

To Naples Mr. LYONS, the Secretary of Legation at Florence, has
been directed to repair without loss of time, in order to aid in every
legal and proper way the English engineers now under trial on the
charge of treason.

Our friend—we are sorry we cannot say our fair frienl—the Globe,
is not unnaturally mortified at the failure of all its political prophecies.
First of all, it was absurd to suppose that Lord DERBY would form a