The Express.
London, England, 1852-09-18 00:00:00

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TO CORRIIISPONDINTS.
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LONDON, SATURDAY, SEPT. 18.

" Wsicren a CHANCELLOR: as the only duty of
" the office will be to reflect dignitympon those who
" elect him, no other qualifications than those of high
" birth, and a good position, necessary. The last,
" indispensable, as the electors will desire to make
" use of it, when ocedrequires. Duty- -none ; caps-
" bilities (with the above exceptions)—none. Salary
" —none. Judicious bottle holding between church
" parties—very requisite. Inquire at the University
" of Oxford."
Who is to be the fortunate candidate for this
vacancy remains to be seen, but there can be no
doubt that many of those who are named, will on
the day of election stand n•-where. Lord DERBY,
who has been mentioned, is surely of too
mercurial a nature to snit the heary in-
tellect of the Oxford Dons. 'there is also
a very prevalent feeling amongst these dignitaries,—
who are renowned for having the two eyes wide open,
when their interests are concerned, which are in-
variably shut upon all other occasions—there is, it is
said, a very prevalent opinion amongst this class
that Lord 'DERBY is not at all firmly fixed in the
very dangerous seat he at present occupies. Ile is
looked upon as a sort of political POITEVIN,
mounted upon • vicious protectionist ball, which
may chance to kick him off in a fit of
uneasiness. Mr. GLADSTONE is a great deal too
clever, for the electoral body. Ile would be leading
them into all sorts of strange places, where they
would be lost, and only be extricated at the price of
covering themselves with mire. Lord SHAFTESBURY
is for ever troubling himself about a class of people
who live in alleys and other such places to
which the sympathies of Oxford Dons do not
generally extend. In addition to this, he is incur-
ably low-church, and neither earnest high-church
nor low church point to degrees on the religions
thermometer, which indicate the temperature adapted
to the moral constitutions of the Hebdomadal Board
and their adherents.
There appears then likely to be a great difficulty
in finding a tit and proper person to represent the gilt
pinnacle placed at the head of the fabric of
Oxford Society. And the difficulty will be recog-
nised by a consideration of the qualification
enumerated above. It is not so enviable a thing
after all, for a person of high rank and distinguished
station to find himself in • position at the head of an
institution which, on account of its sins, is for ever
being brought to the bar of public opinion, while he
is condemned to an inglorious inactivity, forbidden
to aid or to suggest, and certain only to share in the
odium which must ever attend the actions of a set of
idlers, whose only work consists in adjusting
new drag-chains to the wheel of public opinion. I
The Duke of WELLINGTON certainly accepted the
office,but it was because he considered the acceptance
came within the strict boundaries of his "duty," to
which he was willing to become a martyr. He knew
that he was the " greatest man in the country." He
acknowledged in its full extent the proposition that
Rattner imposed duties as well as communicated
rights, and that the duties were in proportion to the
rights. Now, the University was an important insti-
tution of the country ; if the University, therefore,
required to be dignified by his presidence, he felt it
his " duty " to acquiesce. Had the office imposed
any performance upon him for which he was incom-
petent, he would have certainly rejected it. But it
was a sinecure, and he felt that, in giving the Uni-
versity the Mat of his name, he gave more than he
received.
There is something absurd in the excitement that
so frequently attends the election of a Chancellor,
whose duties, as we have described them, are se-
tually—nil. There is something rather revolting in
the fact of a large number of quiet persons
who have been doing more or less good in their
several parishes, deep in retired districts, being
dragged up to the University at the request of some
college don,—whohss not condescended to notice them
for years,—and entreated to save the country and the
church by voting for Lord A., or the Doke of B. It
is very sad to see these guileless ase driven half
mad with excitement by political eleschmee, sad in
danger of forgetting that Christian charity which
has been a shining light in the dark plias of via
and misery in their districts. These per lase gene-
rally vote with an entire ignorance of die real merits
of the question, and are led by the nose by bigots, or
those who usame a little bigotry for the purpose of
advancing their own interests. That the deeds& of
an officerv—who sense hut no ether purpose than
testing by his *seise the relative strength of
parties in the Uedeseiftyreetionbi have the
tact of interrupting the labeees sad disturbing
theco of stied al a body of men ;festally nn-
gagedinpastoral andece-polgical services, is melan-
y enough. One fast will be PA** to show
the inutility of the office of Chaneeller, tad the
amsequent absurdity and iniquity of ambles the
clothes of this Maar se an of public strife, as
must be the sees if the daisies came to a contest.
The Duke et Watimectrom wan elected in the year
1834, eighteen years age. In the yew 1837 he is re-
ported to he* spina them ia the liaise of Lords :
" I am ono et dm mho her. iallf qf opinion
Mat mats amalisratias Amid be mar, and shortly
after Berm Chew alhe ir/ the Uriarmwity. of Ox-
ford, I Awl • anwpatairstim rah the pmerstrep lady
en Ad sadVmt, reeessmomiti Wm Oa tab into
cesisiereeen tAs eirannadmwm• in which aratere
ral sad to edge swat amelisratiana as be
A -arect safe sad esesseary. I ham they
haws bed that subjest sir their memilimeedse ham
that time till now, tali I am antbselesd le sag that
they are on the era& Inwards iseldeg thus
and those amelierittione whist the mile triesthe
Earl of RADNOR) has so area* urged lam the
bora:
Is the next per the following more definite dais.
ments were made by the Dui s
" I have had some coaveratisti with the Heeds of
the University of Oxford, and was assured that there
existed • desire to review those statutes, and that the
work was actually in program. With respect to the
colleges, I have reosived mom* from several el
them that they are reviewing their statutes."
The DUKE, it was evident, had not quite made
up his mind that his office should be a
sinecure. He had not yet been able to relish the
taste, and enjoy the effects, of the University Lace
He made cue effort to brisk the charmed sleep that
hang over the place. He made, we say, one effort,
and was conquered. His speech was delivered in
1838, and, except in two trivial instances with
to the University, nothing had been done.
rltiTtihrd regard to the colleges, the result is actually
nothing. And this la fourteen year. since.
So moth for what the then Chancellor tried to do
and failed in. Would he have remained quiescent
had his life been spared to us? We have some very
stood grounds for believing that he would not. The
fact has become known that he was engaged up to a
very short period before his death in -the careful
of the admirable report issued by the
perusal
Oxford University Commission, and that he had
nearly completed the perusal of it when he died.
Now, it is scarcely possible that the DUKE should
not be struck with the utter want of similarity
twain the functions performed by the Unive2=
and those performed by it formerly. This
would appear remarkably prominent when he es*
the services rendered to the Uni
v
pared
ancient officers and those whoerlfeta
of the same name now. He would
And that the University was an association
of teachers (regents.) united by mutual interest
—that the legislature consisted et one house
only, in which all the masters oe teachers (rverdes)
had a seat—that being always at hand, they could
always be slammed at a moment by the gonad
of a bell—that a second house wee afterwards
formed, consisting of men who had sought the
license to teach more as an honour than as a pro-
lemice--that the Chancellor was elected by the
Whole body of the teachers, and called Rector echo-
larium. Now, here he would see actual signs of a
workbag body abeam to woutivo Aar to carry