The Express.
London, England, 1856-04-03 00:00:00

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LONDON, THURSDAY, APRIL 3.

Ar the moment that peace with Russia is decided,
disclosures are taking place in the United States
which show that there is no danger of war in that
direction. Oor readers are well aware that we awes
admitted the probability of such a war; and we have
given reasons, from time to time, for our conviction.
These reasons are now proved to have been sound.
The most recent intelligence from the Statile lays open
some of the secrets of the South, and establishes the
fact of the reluctance of the alaveholding interest to
brave the struggle in Kansas, and the displeasure
of that party at all action which can provoke
a war with England. A political crisis and
change, like that indicated by the election of Mr.
Banes to the Speaker's chair, always bring(' SOW
features of social or political life into view. All on a
sudden a very large class of American citizens, whose
existence was never referred to in past days, when
such reference could possibly be avoided, has ems
prominently into notice, in consequence at cuss Of
the PRESIDENT'S management of the Kansas bagasse,
and of the new aspect of affairs in Kansas itself.
The non-slaveholding whites of the Southern States
have sprung into an instantaneous importance, in
which we, threatened as we have been with war,
have nearly as much interest ea their own country-
men.

The outside world has been accustomed to sup-
pose that the white citizens of the Slave States were
generally slavebolders. Seeing that a knowledge of
the alphabet and admission to public assemblies are
forbidden by law and custom to all who have negro
blood in their veins, it certainly seemed somewhat
strange that the censorship of literature should
be so very strictly enforced as that passages
from COWPER, Mrs. BABBAULD, and indeed all
our poets, essayists, and even historians, sad
above all, our moral philosophers, should have been
expunged from Southern editions; and that lecturers
from New England on literary subjects should have
been discouraged from visiting the Southern cities.
Noce but a few northern abolitionists were aware
that there was a body of citizens, out-numbering
masters and slaves together, who must be kept igno-
rant and prejudiced, if the "peculiar institution"
was to be preserved. A few abolitionists knew the
fact, because the "poor whites" of the Southern
States have little reason to be satisfied with things
as they are, and every possible ground for supposing
that the institution of slavery is the cause of the
adversity and social contempt in which they live.
Strangers from the North or from Europe are always I
told on plantations, in answer ts their natural
questions, that there is a disreputable clue infesting
the neighbourhood of estates and the outskirts of
towns—" poor whites," who are obliged to work for
their bread, and cannot mix with the landowners on
the cos hand, or with the coloured people on the
other. It is no marvel and no mystery to strangers
that work is disreputable where all the work Is
theoretically done by slaves; or that working men
should become really disreputable when made out-
casts at once from the capitalist sad the labouring
elms. And thus, visitors receive what they sr* told,
and think no more of the matter. By and by, how-
ever, comes the mons, revealing the startling feet
that the total number of alaveholders was is 1860 no
more than 347,626. Women sad minor are
In-
eluded in this number. If this's all, wbo are the whits
inhabitants ci the Slave States P Why, " the poor
whites.," as their proud fellow-citizens call them.
The census proves that these poor whites form saves-
tenths of the white population of the Southern
States. What are they about that we hear nothing
of them? How is it that members of Congress
never ems to allude to this great majority of their
ooestituents P How is it that everything is done in
the name of the small minority of the citizens of
these democratic republics? Present events are

answering these question, and giving aseuranes that
the world will hear much more henceforth of these
minims of ignored citir.ene.
Tte facts of their cue hitherto are these. The
alaveholdera having possession of the best soils, the
poor whites are driven to the steins soils,—son
sterile than the worst in countries where labour is
free. The state of society in which they live permits
social consideration to wealth alone, while labour, as
means of wealth, is discouraged. The landless
white* an well descended, for the most Bert,--fixen
the Huguenot exiles of France, or the Puritan otes-
fames of England ; and their fathers were honour.
able citizens before slavery bad eaten out all the true
respectability of society. From that day to this they
have sunk—in means first, and then in character,—
till the neediest of them tried the resource of emigre-
tioe. It is a received truth in the great Northern
eities that the rudest Germans, and the
moat ragged Irish immigrants, bring leas
mis-
chief and more respectability into the country
than the poor whites from the South; and districts
which are thickly peopled by them are thereby
marked as socially inferior to others. Nobody ex-
pects from Southern Illinois, for instance, the intern-
sense, integrity, and prosperity looked for where
this particular sort of people is absent. Yet these
are the people who are cow exlrciaing no small in-
fluence on the politics of their country, and conse-
quently on oar relations with that country.
When the tees to Eanses began—the flights of
immigrate from North and South, to see which could
est up a Government first—the slave interest sent
" poor whites" in great numbers. Not a few slave-
holders have taken the opportunity to sell off their
human stock, and appeal to purchasers to pay high,
as the money war for immigration to Kansas;
and, while some endeavoured to carry a por-
tion of their slaves with them, others have
thought it better worth while to rid them-
selves of "poor whits" neighbours by sending
them to represent the South in Kansas. Many of
them poor whites had really no conception of a state
of society in which labour is free. They had
travelled; they had never heard the North spoken of
but in terms of abuse; and they went to Hanna
honestly enough es advocates of Southern views. Bat
the sight, for the first time, of la COrrull) 6.11011 Ti•
has converted them, almost to a man. This oats-
etrophe—of the whole body going over to the party of
the free-settlers—has not tended to reconcile " the

South," u the slaveholders call themselves: to the
policy of President Pinon. They never did like his
warlike blustering. They never could endure the
idea of the annexation of our colonies, which would
give an overwhelming influence to the North. They
always dreaded a war which Amid lay open their
indefensible line of coast to attack from European
navies. They are convinced, to a man, that they
could mot fight us, while their slaves are on