The Press.
London, England, 1857-09-26 00:00:00

the appellation. Symptoms have appeared
that some persons wish that Lord ELGIN
should be " written up." As journalists we are
opposed to the system of " writing up " or
" writing down." A system of puffery is as
vilifying to the public press as a system of
detraction. As events progress we should not
be surprised at a shower of invectives against
Lord CANNING, to be followed by a fall of
panegyrics on Lord ELGIN We shall dis-
regard both, and judge by facts. Lord ELotx
is almost avowedly " a professional states-
man."
Lord ELGIN has been before this time
taunted by more than one political connec-
t tion with guiding himself on the principle of
" Wha wants me ?" And it would be amusing,
should this question be asked by him at
Calcutta, if GEORGE CANNING'S son, with a spice
of his father's humour, were to answer in the
same dialect, " Nttebody."

CHINA.
WE are all familiar with those curious circum-
stances which take place upon the stage,

whereby gentlemen are led to doubt their
personal identity, and adventurers almost
succeed in walking off with heiresses and ob-
taining the fortunes of old gentlemen by a
talent for imitation and a considerable gift of
impudence. This contrivance, indeed, is not
without some foundation in fact. If a person

were to go about the world resolutely assert-
ing that he was somebody else, he would
always find people to believe him. And if his
pretensions could only be disproved by writ-
ing out old documents, he might very likely
carry his imposture to the grave. This is the
game which the Government organs are play-
ing at the present moment on the subject of
China. The public has been dreaming for
the last six months, and is but now awaking
to tho truth. It turns out that it was the
Opposition, Mr. COBDEN, Mr. DISRAELI, and
Mr. GLADSTONE, who were SO clamorous for
hostilities with the Celestial Empire, and Lord
PALMERSTON and his friends who warmly de-
precated them The latter are of course de-
liOted to find out how totally useless they
have proved, and point to it in confirmation
of their own sagacity with wonderfully natural
exultation. "China is shelved." The war
was superfluous—could be taken up and laid
down at any time. We told you so all along.
Were we not right? Are we not always right?
Such is their language now, and we willingly
admit that it is of a piece with their general
behaviour. But for all that John Bull, we
think, will take a little more convincing yet,
and will he very apt to mutter, like Christopher
Sly, something about " small beer."
There is a class of persons especially nu•
merous among the weaker sex who, Kapp,
what may, have always one exclamation ready,
" that they told you how it would be," no
matter that the occurrence may be entirely
attributable to themselves ; that they can
forget at their convenience, and with a mar-
vellous appearance of sincerity claim credit
for their wisdom in foreseeing what they pro-
tested before heaven and earth would never
bo the case. If Materfamilias suggests a
transition from the blue room to the brown,
and Paterfamilias catches cold in consequence,
" she told him how it would be." If the hus-
band objects to bad cookery, and the wife is
indignant at his sinfulness, when indigestion
ensues, " she told him how it would be." To
this style of ejaculation there is of course no
logical reply. A man who says that grass is
blue cannot be argued out of his opinion; and
the best that can be done with such persons
is to treat them like wayward, but harmless,
children. The case, however, is somewhat
changed when this style of procedure is in•
troduced into public affairs, and Government
acknowledges or repudiates its own policy
according to its success or failure. A cele-
brated caterer for public amusement one)
travelled through a foreign country with a
lady who took part in his performances.
Whenever she produced a sensation he pro-
claimed her as his wife ; whenever she failed
he disowned that particular connection. The