The Express.
London, England, 1855-04-10 00:00:00

is decidedly ay all the prises are
eepressed by the aristocracy.Me aristocracy. are
Oil. and overpaid, for their petite serviess ; but
sway middle-oleis man who andert•km to terve his
esestry is a political °amity tLeapecti* to-de so
without hew reward. As Ibleg es this gleam is up-
held, it will indeed be difficult to allure the meet com-
petent cases of the middle slam into public life.
There can be so mere egregious fallacy than that
by which the English public is deluded into acqui-
escence in exclusive aristocratic rule—the pretext that
it is served gratuitously. No man gives his services
for nothing, unless those services are so utterly worth-
lees es to make it woeth nobody's while to pay for don.
If a servant—either public or private—is sot paid
directly, be will pay himself indirectly. A man, who
pays himself indirectly and clandestinely, is pretty sure
to overpay himself. There is no balancing accounts
with him; for it is impossible to say how much he
gets ; and then—the assumption being that he
serves gratuitously—be gives himself airs whenever
the quality of his work is called in question. Unpaid
sinless are the dearest of all. The aristocracy
psi= to serve their country gratuitously as
illaistsas of state if all the jobs they are
onathi by their official positions to perpetrate,
in belmlf of themselves, their relations, and de-
ment% were counted up, it would be found
that they are exorbitantly overpaid. The landed
mobility and gentry prams to serve their country
gratuitously es justices of the pesos ; and they
pay themselves by perverting the administration of
jastico to @steam the pride and self-will of their
clam, and to quarter their hangereon upon the public
puree. The purchasers of commission would have
us believe that as their professional pay rarely
equals in amount the interest they might
obtain by lending their money, they, too,
serve their country gratuitously. But look-
ing bask upon our national history, and seeing bow
many colonial governorships, tailoring calamities,
diplomatic appointments, int., have been obtained
by the high-born traffickers in military rank,
we are driven to the conclusion that here also unpaid
services are the dearest of all. Let an end be put
to this delusive system. Let all who serve the pub-
lie in civil or military capacities be fairly paid ; let
each men only be employed as can work efficiently ;
and let no more mon be employed than
us memory. Such a reform would give
us * better army; a better local administra
ties of justice; a better executive Government.
Ms beginning must be made with the central admi-
hilmstive Government; for, so long as it is conducted
os to sham gratuitous system, officials will uphold
*at eyeless in all other departments, if it
Itele or to keep themselves in countenance.
le pa for this reform at the hands of
*MI lAD have been brought up in the system,
mid wits profit by it, to folly. The middle clango—
urs siesatsd and politically powerful medico of the
poills—atast take the task in band if it is ever to be
They can do it if they will ; they
:11111=4.11hrliainentary and Municipal Reform,
the Abolition of Slavery, and the Abolition of the
Corn Law, and they an also carry Administrative
Reform. The wretched war mismanagement shows
that they have not a moment to lose in setting to
work. They must shake off their excessive love
of lords; and they can do so. Humanists
and foreigners laugh, not without reason, at the peer-
age-worship of the English middle classes; but when
Peers outrage the feelings, or encroach on the proprie-
tary rights of Englishmen, the insult or encroach-
ment is resented with an energy of which every
other European people is incapable. Adminis-
trative Reform means, in the first place, free acme to
the high offices of State for competent men, whatever
their birth or connexions. It doss not mean exclusion
of worthy Peers, bat it means admission of worthy
commoners. It is for the Howe of Commons to effect
the reform; and it is for the electors, on the first
opportunity, to return a House of Commons that will
set earsestly and energetically about it.—Doily News.

THE NEWSPAPER STAMP.

The memorial of the prophecies of th. Yorkshire
motes, which we published last Friday, sup-
plies mother argument in favour of the plan pro-
posed by the Csascatt.oa of the EXCHEQUER in
reforesce to the Newspaper Stamp. The evidence
h the more valuable as it is unintentional. It h
dear, when the parties interested cannot agree as to the
teems spot which postal privileges ought to be am-
mild to the press, those terms had better reeds
axially as they are at present. And it is prod*
for this reams that we have supported the proposal
of the CHANCELLOR of the Brom:atria. On Free
Trade principles we are bound to approve of the
removal of a tax which tends to mocopoly—and the
newspaper stamp does so by preventing small
capitalists from entering the field as rivals to the
proprietors of existing newspapers. Oa prised-
plea of expediency also we think that the
Meister lase acted wisely "in leaving to news-
papers the same postal privileges es they now
ealwe, and in allowing other serials to obtain
similar privileges on complying with similar condi-
tion. The demand of the Thew, that a penny—or
eves a halfpenny—should be the maximum, or
rather tho only poatal charge upon a newspaper,
whatever its weight, and the application of the
country newspaper proprietors before alluded to that a
halfpenny should confer the privilegeshow the manner
is whisk the Casscatioa of the Excavate& would
lave bees pressed if he had not laid down a fixed and
attain vela We will only observe in passing that
neither suggestion seems to be founded enemy principle
of equity. Oa the contrary, if any alteration is made,
it would seem to be fairer that a sliding scale 'height
be established, beginning with a farthing or a half-
penny on smaller serials, and increasing gradually
with the size of the paper, seeking the aid of the
Pt:steaks. But to every line, wherever it may be
drawn, there may be objections. Whatever period or
limit be fixed to confer a privilege--as that of 21
years for the majority of an individual, for instance—
must be arbitrary and in some cases apparently un-
just and inconvenient. We accept, therefore, the
existing limit as the best, and think that the CHAN-
CELLOR of the EXCHEQUER has been liberal in not
restricting it to that which existed up to the abolition
of the advertisement duty, as the reason foe taking
off the supplement stamp will now caw to exist. The
suggestion of adopting a stamped envelope, to be
used for the transmission of centupled papers, opens
the door to vast inconvenience ; whereas the marked
distinction which will exist between stamped and an-
stamped papers will prevent that contagion which
would otherwise arias in the different issues. Bach
can will know whether be desires a paper for his own
reading or to share it with a distant friend, and be
will be able distinctly to give his order. If an vs-
stamped paper might be transmitted through the
Post-offloe at the ease price as a stamped one
there wield in effect be no differmeo, and the prep-
tical malt would be that all papers would be un-
stomped, with a corresponding hindrance to
their eirmalatioa. The cheap paper is designed
especially for local circulation, and he that as
p will be requisite, and &Way by
head will be easy ; bat at greater &teases
we much doubt whether distribution can be
Anted at a lower average sharp than Id. pee