The Express.
London, England, 1851-10-24 00:00:00

mischievous system has been evinced—and the same
disastrous results will be seen to follow.
The first and cardinal error of our colonial rule is
• habit of mischievous meddling. The colonial
minister always, by a strange fatality, believes him-
self and his subonlinates in I /owning-street to pos-
eur exclusively all the knowledge and wisdom re-
quisite for managing the affairs of the colonists. The
persons whom he invoriubly believes least capable
of suggtsting anything of any weight or worth con-
cerning matters, are the colonists themselves.
The consequent* is, that in his office he decides upon
everything. Sometimes, indeed, curious blunders
are committed and on ignorance betrayed that a
school boy would be ashamed of. Still there is no
diminution of confidence, no softening down of the
haughty dogmatism which ever pervades official
statements, no hesitation in the eternal meddling
with whet' the unfortunate colonists are pest( red
from the beginning to the end of their lives. They
art capes:tell to hear and to obey, and should they at
✓ime unhappy moment forget their dependent condi-
tion, sod murmur some complaint, language is inad-
equate to describe the indignation of the minister, or
late, conception of the shameless audacity of these
miserable complaints.
Lord Gent, like his predeeessors, deems himself
.11 of infallible wisdom, and would probably a
w months h since have pointed to the ('ape Colony
as proof of the correctness of his policy, and the
happiness of those who have to abide by and live
sodur it. Now, however, he would find himself
usable to adduce this unfortunate province es an
illustration of his exquisite skill in ntling. Ruin
and misery are now rife in our possessions m South
Africa. 'the fierce Kenji, have out-generalled Sir
11. SMITH, end have di rented our troops: and we are
told that " Sir 111ARIll* Swint wishes for more men
from England," unlike his gallant namesake of
yam
No Will, my cos—ni.lo oat one man more.

lle wants 10,0110 men—a modest demand, and one,
if it be windy, which will arouse the !louse of Com-
sat:4M to a due sense of the utter ineomp,•tcnce both
of Lord Giti:v and his favourite commander. This,
be it remembered, is the hero act up as the rivul of
the gallant Sir C. NA
Seven months fouler, says Sir H. Stain, " I called
fur a rise en "fume of the colonists, and that call was
not reopened's! to. •Ihe colonists would not stir."
This is true. But has it ever warted to Sir 11.
SMITH, or to Lord Carr, to ask why the colonist.
were thus sullen and apathetic? If they make the
inquiry, Lard Cats will receive this reply: "You
blew deceived and oppressed us. You promised,
when pressed by the eolunists and the House of
Commons, to give us the power of self-government.
That promise you have broken. You have assumed
all power over us; you have erected, in place
of u constitutional government, a despotism of

„,
Lei w old we were determined, in your
Lour of need, to let you and England
feel that, without our aid, this colony can-
not be &remit& This we have done. You—
your general—your troops, have failed. Now, then,
we are rrady to step forward; hut we demand that
whits!' has been so wantonly withheld. viz., the power
to menage our own affair.. We insist that our lives
and fortnnes shall not be dependent upon the whims
and arrogant pretension of the Colonial Secretary,
but that we. being Englishmen, have that which is
can birthright—that to which our intelligence gives
its an unimpeachable title—a constitutional govern-
ment?' This is languw.,e to which Lord CHET
will soon be compelled to listen. The disasters
of the present war will excite the Howie
of Commons—the enonnons cost will enrage the
English people -men of all parties will combine
to denounce the weakness and obstinacy which have
led to such direful results. Mr. Insit %bit and Mr.
Comws will be found voting in the same lobby.
Mr. Cilvitsrost, and Mr. Itorin'ek will on this
matter agree, although it be one of colonial policy.
The fanners and the manufacturers will be ettualiv
ready to blame a system which has brought in such
a bill—and there will Ice no difficulty in pros ing that
the cause of all the mischief was the arrogant and
contemptuous proceedings of Lord Onzy himself.
Ile was low, warned of the danger: he was told
wherein lay the remedy for the mischief. 'llie expe-
rience of America and of our early colonies there, was
placed before him ;Ind to every remonstrence and every
suggest it so he turned a deaf cur. Experience he needed
not—suggestions were mere impertinence—he could
govern the colony better than could the colonists
themselves ; and it war should arise, he could con-
duct the war also. But war, it wits asserted by those
who spoke for hint, would not arise. The -Kaffir,
were subdued and humbled ; they dreaded the very
name of Sir 11. clear Saturn, and the colonists had
better confine their attention to their farms and their
Socks, and leave the business of government to those
no much more capable of conducting it. As if this
contemptuous conduit were not enough. he sought, in
spite of every remonstrance, to carry out his favourite
crotchet, and to force a convict 'copulation upon
the colony. We all know the result of that
wise experiment. But all its consequences
were not at once foreseen. Lord GREY certainly
was not prepared for them. Ile did not believe that
he would so soon need the aid of the colonists. and
therefore laughed at the anger which he had raised,
and treated with ineffable scorn the apathy with 11
which any call for aid might be treated. We have
now before us a full view of the effects of this con-
duct.
The colony, if not entirely ruined. is in great
danger ; advance for many years will be prevented;
great individual suffering and misery will septet the
settlers: and after years of confusion anal misrule,
we shall be compelled to do what nt the commence-
ment we ought to have done. We shall at last
give to the colony a constitution. lit that
constitution they will be enabled to manage
their own affairs. As legislators they will make
their own laws—as soldiers they will prove their
own defence. They will then become a thriving
colony ; and, as customers, be also u benefit to the
mother country.
The immedate cause of the outbreak that has oc-
curred, and of the disasters that have followed it, is
to be found in tens occupation of British Kattraria.
The Kaffir' knew full well that possesdon hr us was
destruction to them; they therefore resolved to rebel,
and are now, in fact, fighting for their very existence.
liar i AltltY SMITH in lialfraria is supreme as gover-
nor ; he foresaw that, in the colony. which was loudly
demanding a constitution, he would soon he subject to
the supervision of an msembly. lie therefore clung to
thenew acquisition—and in kis eagrrncsa to derk•nd it,
exposed the settled colony to the ruin which has
fallen upon it. It in place of all this arrogance and
blundering, Lord tinEv had, in the first place, ful-
filled his promise, and given the Cape colony a con-
stitution—if he had abstained from extending our
settlements until the colonists themscl%cs were
ready to co-operate in the work—had he besides
allowed the colonists to organise a milit,a force, and
employ it in their own defence. at their own expense,
and according to the direction of their own govern- ,

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