The Express.
London, England, 1851-01-23 00:00:00

en, erpreliii.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.
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HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
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LONDON, THURSDAY, JANUARY 23.

WIILS the Cape of Good Hope is spoken of ns a
British colony, it is no longer the narrow field of Vs";
Bilusecien oriinal settlement—the eligible station
for refitting and refreshing Indian fleets—that occu-
pies the mind of the speaker. It is at last the whole
of that cart of Afr:ui that in situated to the south of
a line pining the Portuguese settlements on the
musters and western coasts of the continent. By the
principle. of international law recognised in Europe
and the United States, the colonisation of the whole
of this immense tract is open to England, and to
England txtluairtly. We are bound to remeet tie
native title to lands within it—to acquire lands fur
our coluniers by fair bargains with the aborigines
whom we fir.d in cceepation—but no other civilised
state except England has any right to formsettlemente
there ; arid every foreigner acquiring lands or eviler
fixed property there must be naturalised if he would

. .
aoqnire the fall fights o- citizenship.
South Africa has already become not a colony, bat
a colotiel group. In addition to thr colony, properly
so calied, there is the new settlement of Natal, and

there is the Orange Riese Sasertiguty, both Lasing
defiuite dirtiact atirsiuistrative orgssisstioos; there is

British esffraria, which, by the sitension of the mis-
sionary settlements and the influence of British ma-
gistrates, is imenaibly assuming the colonial charac-
ter and tLere is the Emigrant., Grens-Gebiet, in
. . .

-
which th• iodnwitabld boersare founding lucid and

civil instittrione, destined ultimately tole absorbed
into a &nth African provincial union. Even wittrn

the boundaries of the old cnony, two colonies may be
Mid to txat at this moment. The broad and barren

expanse of the Karroo is interposed between the
eastern and western districts, leaving only a
sorrow strip of fertile land, &rough which the
lines of road are extremely difficult, in the immediate
vicinity of the ocean. The overland route from the
western to tne eastern dis•ricts is immer.sely more
fatiguing and tedious than that by Ka, and the sea
. .

posing(' kiln/ only part ut the route'w,,icit the inland
settlers have to traverse. In addition to this the po-

pulatioos. of
.the eastern and sres'ern distric's ire

narked by charectrriatic differences. Perhaps the
noo-liritieb element in society exists to a greater ex- THE number of vacancies, actual and forthcoming,
tent in the hitter than in the former, but in the esaterre in the representation at the present time, is unseat:shy
districts the llECetiiiii• of a frontier life bays more' large even for the commencement of a new session of
thoroughly soimilated the Dutch and English sit- I Parliament.
terra in feelings and opinions, and in feelings and opi- Feist, there is South Notts, fir which the writ is
nions less c impatibls with the traditionary policy of actually out : and there the question of real or of
Downing-street than those which prevail in and ' sham representation will be decided in the course of
arouud Cape Town. In South Africa the elemeuts of ; a few days.
a federal union of provinces or states already exist. Next. there is a seat in Bedfordshire, also se'ually
The question "in whet relation is this infant ' tweet by the death of Lord ALFORD in the
empire henceforth to stand to the mother ooeutry ?" prime of his life: when accession to an enor-
is obviously one of immense practical importance. mous fortune had brought with it a due sense
A few days ago we stated our reasons for believing of its great responsibilities ; when experience
that this country has a deep and vital interest in per- was enlarging his heart and improving his head;
pet tiating the political, as well as the commercial, l and when a career of eminent public usefulness lay be-
union welt its colouie s. The relations of indepen- h fore him, and he was, to all appearance, resolute
dent erste* in the affairs of the world bear a strong Ito pursue it. By his decease regime' end con-
analogy to the relations of reties in the interval acientious ceeservatism hns suffered • loss which
aff.ers of a free *matey. The party in any free I act all the TeRELLS or the YOUNGS can sup.
nation which combine • within its ranks the greatest I ply. In Bedfordshire the usual territorial influence
amount of numbers, property, and intelligence, Titres- bears sway; the tnrits yield one seat to its duke,
sexily directs the national councils for the Lime bane. 1 who is "a whig and e onething more ;" and he returns
Every one of these elements is indispensable to the I the heir presumptive to the title. The other
ascendancy of a party. Intelligence without numb. ra seat they keep fur themselves; and it is now
is sure to be ont-voted ; and even flambe's, if not ; vacant. All Bedfordseire would unite in electing
possessed of wealth, can be brought to submission by Mr. PICK ; but, though active in the discharge of
a Fabian policy on the part of those who have pine. I the county duties of his station, Mr. PYM is content
party enough to **We them to " bide their time." h with a career of memo eitetious local u.efulnese, and
And so in the intercourse of free end independent !decline@ tae represent Bedfordshire ; so Colonel
states. The national banner which floats over the I OILPUE ia about to be returned, to neutralise by
greatest extent of peopled territory, turned to the his vote the liberal opinions of Mr. lIASTINOS
best account by the greatest amount of enterprising Run= ;at least that is all known of hint out of the
intelligence, ever will be the rallying point of the . county.
greatest power. Every Englishman, therefore, who' North Notts, though not actually vacant, is about
Sets that in his own country the rights of private to have one of its seats vacated by the retirement of
citizens are better understood and better maintained Mr. HOULDSWORTII, on whom age and infirmities are
than on the old continent, and the rights of weaker creeping. Mr. lIOULDSWORTU is a successful Men-
and lees civilised nations and races more respected I cheater manufacturer, who, aehievirg great wealth
than in the new, ought to aim at the perpetuation of while Manchester was yet in political darkness, took
that political union between the mother country, its to toryism and horse racing; and has for a long
colonies, and dependencies, which a10..e can ensure to series of years, by one of those strange freaks of for-
England permanence in its proud position as the fore- tune which remind us how readily in this country
most nation of the world. In the treat republic of fortune fuses into fashion, represented the most aria-
nations, as in any free state, tee mast enlightened tocratic spot in England. As Tet the candidates for
views are ilicg unless they command the de- the fortbcoming vacancy are not named ; and who
voted advocacy of the strongest party they will be depends, probably, very much on the
Regard being had to the young provinces of our result of the neighbouring content in South Notts.
South African settlements, and the increased rapidity In each of the three divisions of the realm a
and regularity of communication between them and I borough vacancy will occur as soon as parliament
this country. to which the first step has been taken meet.. In Dungarvon, by Mr. Saints substitution
by the establishment of ocean steam mails, the pre- of diplomatic for parliamentary life ; in Pontefract,
sect crisis of cur relations with them is intensely in- ; br the elevation of Sir SAMUEL MARTIN to the
Wresting. Nay, apart from the corsideratiens to bench of the Court of Exchequer ; and in the Falkirk
which we have just directed attention it possesses great boroughs by the succes-ion of Lord LINCOLN to the
importance. Even thoee who attribute little coesequeace dukedom of Newcastle. Here, then, we have a tolerably
to the permanent political union of a country with fair opportunity of testing current opinion on the
its colones admit that there is a period in the carter great qu.stions of the day in England, Ireland, and
of the latter at which such a union is all-important. to Scotland, and the turn three three elections is about
them. That period has not yet been passed by the to take is already apparent.
South African colonies. At the time of the American In two of them, Dungarvon and Falkirk, coated'
revolution the continuity of European settlement are probable ; in Pontefract no opposition to the only
throughout the "old thirteen" wan unbroken; their candidate who has hitherto been announced is at pre-
frequent ware with the French and Indians had at- sent talked of. In all, liberalism is likely to prevail ;
castor:red the provinces to act in concert—a de fse!o i however it may differ in shades or forms of expression.
union existed among them ; and the genius of or the nominal party flag under which it is waved
FRANKLIN bad established an adaiirably efficient for individual suceess.
system et postal communication. In South Africa, At Dungarvon, Mr. Meeente, of Cork, a gentle-
st the present moment, the elements of Earo- i man of the Irish repeal party, and consequently of
peen civil polity ran only be said to have ultra-liberal opinions, is again a candidate, for at the
tally developed themselves within the old colony:Hated '1 last general election Mr. Sam only averted his
sad the Orange River Sovereignty are yet is the ; pretensions by a majority of 18. But though he has
very infancy of settlement. British Caffraris and the , been in the field ever since Mr. SIIKIL's appointment
Eftsyrints Grins- Gebiet harem:seedy advanced so far.. to the Florence mission became known, he is now
And not only is there no community of civil organise.- I threatened with opposition. Not, however, by a
tion, no incipient federal action among these pro-' conservative—for conservatism is hopeless in Dun-
since., it is, in fact, only in the old colony that any- garvon—but by, it is understood, an English
thing deserrivg the name et political action can be , gentleman who has past claims on Irish constitu-
said to exist. A separation of these colonies from the I erciee, and who repeesents the possible, as Mr.
parent state at present would be premature, according I MAOUIRR does the impossible, in liberal opinions.
to the views of every theory, a:.d meat prejudicial to A contest at Dongervon under such circumstances
their interests. will be interesting, as tending to show whether the
Yet it is impossible to shut our eyes to the fact that ; row electoral law and its enlarged constituency is
we and they are threatened with such a premature likely to prove mote favourable to moderate and use-
@operation. In the existing temper of the Englisu ful than to extreme and toeless opioions ; though it is
public, no ministry will be allowel to retain these • not to be forgotten that at Dungarvon aristocratic
provinces within the imperial union by farce of arms. liberal influence is said to prevail, and that its inch-
Even if the people of England could be mad enough ; nations are towards whiggery, and against that
to tolerate such an attempt, the nature of the country , senseleas reminiscence of tee past and Ignis fatuus
would be sufficient to frustrate it. It is only by the of the future—repeal.
bond of mutual affection that England and South At Falkirk. Mr. Glonort LocH, a whiggisti libe-
Africa can be held together. And yet the restematie rid, and Mr. Jeates BAIRD, • conservative liberal, are
conduct of those entrusted with the colonial depict- the candidates ; the one a Glasgow merchant, and Doe
meet of government moms inexplfcible' except upon of a gentleman long and intimately couneeted with
the assumption that they wish to provoke the South the liberal party and agricultural improvement in the
Africans into a premature declaration of infers extreme north of Scotland; the other a partner in the
peadenee. largest Iron weeks is Scotland, at Garteherrie, near
We hare on former occasions called attention to Airdrie; both eminently qualified front position to
the ungracious manner in which the convicts were I represent these borough*. Mr. Loci' is plain and
withdrawn from the Glee, and to the silly and @Hen- r frank in the expression of his opinioni; he approves
sive ostentation of knighting a Caps purveyor for the hof the great principles which have sow become the
We heroism of running counter to popular opinion. I commercial back-bone, and, to give them fair
The same unwise peevishness is still obstinately per- play, is Prepared to enforce economy by his vote,
severed in. On the queatioc of the new ceestitudon t while Mr. BAL=D evades any committal of

*ls valile Ist b AN&
pbong y. • tvei sari ismielahnitillhe
liberal in the tratoughe titB net, of course, hesi-
tate; for Ike candidall who to good protestions add
sound .psisoiples. is is every way prefersble to one
mho NO so few principles that he is all professions.
But even in the event of Mr. BAIRD'S success, stupid
conservatism will bare no gain; and Falkirk in re-
turning him will only be exhibiting another example
of the gradual progress of constituencies from put
Nilto future intelligence.
So also at Pontefract. The liberal party could have
desired a fitter representative there than the son of
Lord WENLOCK, liberal though both father and son
are. But so long as these small boroughs depreciate
our parliamentary system, we must be thankful when
they are more susceptible of liberal than of tory in-
fluence.

In these three boroughs liberal opinions are thus
likely to be fully sustatr.ed at the forthcoming elec-
tions. In none of them dove protection dare to raise
its vacant head, or show its selfish face.

. -
The importance, however, of the South Notts con-
test far exceeds that of then boroughs; and to it we
shall confine our concluding, as to it we gave our
commencing, remarks. The success of the popular
candidate, Mr. BARROW, there, will give an impetus
to real representation in English counties far greater',
than the Reform Bill gave to boroughs. For, it will
teach farmers everywhere how easily they c'in return
' men of their own, and not of their landlords' choics ;
at how small a pecuniary cat, at how little
personal trouble, and at, in the present state
of prices and rents, with very little danger to them-
selves or to their holdings. The truth is that land-
lords are at the mercy of their tenants, if
the latter will only, to use a Highland expression,
"stand shoulder to shoulder like the Mix GREOORS."
Aad by their union it is not merely political inde-
pendence they will achieve; for, politically free, they
will be treated with respect, and attention, and con-
sideration by their landlords in the more interesting
questions of rent, of improvement, of leases, of game,
and of local expenditure. The squires new rule the
counties, because the tenant-farmers are politically
degraded; but let them once assert their political
independence and freedom, and they, the cultivators
of the soil, will be uppermost in all provincial affairs.
In Lord CUATHAM'S time it was to the counties he
looked for independent support; it was the county
interest that was liberal and independent ; and so it
will be again if the tenant farm-4, of South Notts set
their order on this occasion a good example. All
that is wanted for complete and speedy success is a
beginning ; and if &nth Notts will only take the first
step the rest of England will be soon on its heels, and
then we shall have a House of Commons worthy of
the nation.