The Press.
London, England, 1858-03-20 00:00:00

THE PRESS, MARCH 20, 1858.

In the discussion on Thursday upon the punishment inflieted
upon the rebels in India, Mr. Burrox adduced some remarkable facts
in support of his assertion that it was not murder, but " a mere set-
ting aside of allegiance; which entailed upon the natives the punish-
ment of death, and this view was confirmed by Sir HICNBY RAWLINSON,
who very appositely remarked that, though we had now been con-
stantly fighting for ten months, and winning great victories, there,
was literally not a prisoner of war in our hands. Without wishing to
trench upon the inevitable demands of military law which justly decrees
death to every rebel found with arms in his hands, we may be per
to observe that the time is passed for bloodthirsty re.
prisals. The great rebellion of 1857 is contracting itself into
a war for the defence of a single province against us. Our object
is, the conquest of that province ; and the question is, whether we
shall the more easily attain that object by the wholesale execution of
disarmed adversaries, or • by measures in which humanity and
firmness shall supersede severity and crime. What need
have we now of the deaths of men who throw themselves upon our
mercy ? By such a system we weaken our influence, and lay the
seeds of a sullen discontent which sooner or later will ripen into
insurrection and bloodshed. It is by the firm but temperate use of
the power which has changed hands, and by the feeling of security to
which this moderation gives rise, by the protection it promises, and
the prosperity its fosters, that we caii alone hope to conciliate the
natives of Oude, and conform them to our rule. It is better for uF.,
if we are to retain the country, to lay the foundations of our rule upon
the solid ground of popular goodwill, than attempt to base it on a
soil soaked in blood and misery.

The reception of Lord EGLINTOUN by society at Dublin shows how
well Lord DERBY chose a Lord Lieutenant for Ireland. All parties
have joined in welcoming the present Viceroy to a second term of
office, and the " monster levee " which greeted the Noble Earl was fol-
lowed by a most brilliant Drawing-room, in which the beauty of Ire-
land was admirably represented. The circles in Dublin look forward
to a most brilliant Viceregal period for Lord EOLINTOUN. His frank
and genial manners are peculiarly suited to please a generous people
like the Irish ; and it is no " State secret " that Lord EGLINTOUN has
always appreciated the finer instincts of Irish character. The nomi-
nation of the new Chancellor has given great satisfaction. Lord Chan-
cellor NAriEit was the first man at the Irish Bar; for ten years he re-
presented the University of Dublin, and his Lordship, while engaged
in practice, was repeatedly taken special to the House of Lords. He
is a jurist of great attainments, and a philosophical lawyer, well quali-
fied for taking a great part in practical amendments of the law. The new
Irish Attorney-General has already distinguished himself in office by
bringing to justice at Nenagh the murderers of the late Mr. Ewa;
and the Right Honourable and Learned Gentleman showed remark-
able tact and energy in that arduous prosecution. There cannot be a
doubt that Lord NAAS will make an efficient Chief Secretary for Ire-
land ; and the other appointments are also well filled. We observe
that the Morning Post has attacked Lord DERBY on account of his
former antagonism to the late Mr. DANIEL O'CoENELL. But Lord
DERBY, unlike Lord J. RUSSELL, never insulted the Roman Catholics
with a " Durham Letter," and his views on the " Irish Church " are not
different from those expressed by Lord PALMERSTON, who stated that
the Act of Union was a complete bar to the opening of the Irish
Church question. Lord DERBY is not bound to give appointments to
the (self styled) " Liberal Protestants " of Ireland ; but we have no
doubt his Lordship's promotions will be made with a fair claim to the
pretensions of qualified candidates. We challenge the Morning Post
to say a word against Lord DERBY as an Irish landlord ; and it would
be very easy to draw a contrast between the qualities of Lord DERBY
as an Irish landlord and some of the notabilities mentioned by the
Morning Post. But comparisons in such oases are—what the proverb
says.

By the Gazette Return of the Bank of England, just issued, we
find that the notes and bullion now in the hands of the Bank amount
to nearly thirty millions

Bullion and Coin
Notes

£30,290,010
In November last, during a few days, the same items fell below ten
millions.

Mr. RALPH OSBORNE has again come forth in CONGBEVE'S character
of If-throesld, and has sought to produce effects by composing a cent°
of old points. His speech on Monday night was made after a careful
study of Lord MACAULAY'S ingenious and brilliant performance at the
Edinburgh hustings in 1852, when Lord MACAULAY contrasted the
sentiments entertained by various members of the Protection party.
It is quite enough to have that sort of thing done once and well; and
after Lord MACAULAY'S adroit cross-readings we have no patience for
the second-hand wit of Mr. RALPH OSBORNE ; for the whole framework
of his speech on Monday is old, with modern scraps of Hansard hung