The Express.
London, England, 1853-09-21 00:00:00

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TONDO V, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21.

LORD JOHN Russets has been receiving honour
from the people of Greenock in the shape of an ad-
dress, and returning an equivalent in the form of a
speech. There has becu a lamentable dearth of
useful utterances lately. Have public men been so
thoroughly exhausted by the labours of their last
session that they must needs sink into a sort of col-
lapse? Some of the few who do talk, open their
mouths to so little purpose, that the world wonders
why they took the trouble to speak at all. Mr.
Dint %EU, for instance, treated his constituents to an
oration, which appears to have been modelled upon
an aftcr•dinner speech of a l'rotectionist fanner.
Lord Jerrie Itussua. has done something more
manly than his rival. He spoke sensibly on
most of the subjects he chose for illustra-
tion. There was a great propriety in the
reformer who was one great agent in passing
the Reform Bill, reminding his Scotch friends that
at the time when he first visited Scotland, and was
receiving his education in that country, there was
nothing like real representation in that part of the
empire. Popular elections, which were even excep-
tions elsewhere, had no place in Scotland ; and the
freedom of the press was but a name. A politician
who has taken a leading part in the movements
which have led to these changes may well look
back with pleasure upon the past and be excused
for adverting to it with pride. There was an
appreciation also of the true source of the greatness
of this kingdom, in the speaker's remarks upon the
effect which the character of the people has upon the
nature and stability of their institutions. With re-
ference to institutions which have failed in other
countries, and to liberties which decayed without
bringing fruits to maturity, lord Jona said truly,
" There is this difference between those countries
and this, that here there is such temperate enjoyment
of freedom, such forbearance in pushing rights to ex-
tremity, such well-considered appreciation of the
value of liberty, that institutions derive all
their force, and all their grandeur, from
the character of the people among whom they
are inlroduced." In perfect accordance with
this sentiment were the remarks upon some of the
obstacles which our very privileges throw in the way
of benefits which despotic governments are sometimes
able to improvise abroad with captivating energy. "Our
very freedom," said his lordship, " stands in the way oe
many regulations which are of themselves beneficial;
and where, in a foreign country, where despotic rule
prevails, you will, find there is an obligation to provide
for the good ventilation, for order, for the mainte-
nance of measures of police, of that which con-
tributes to the health of the population in
a city, our people—naturally I must say, and I
find no fault with such jealousy—object to the inter-
ference of any central authority, and when the
matter is left to their own government, do not al-
ways provide for themselves those measures they
should provide for the good of the people." This is
true and significant. It is certainly provoking
enough to see nuisances accumulating in courts and
lanes and wharves, which seem placed there
for tho very purpose of tempting tho ad-
vent of cholera. It is vexing to find that
the people themselves do not come forward with
enough promptitude in such cases, and that the Go-
vernment cannot do all that is needed. We may sigh
to think that what a town council will not do, and
what a central authority is not powerful enough to
do, would be accomplished by &LOUIS NAPOLEON, or
any continental despot, at the price of a few words of
proclamation. But it is refreshing at the same time
to remember that a power which would make such
short work with any vested right in • nuisance
would assuredly be the greatest nuisance itself.
An authority sufficiently powerful to make us
clear our streets at the point of the bayonet,
for the prevention of cholera, would not hesitate
about using the same bayonets for worse purposes.
Government is a very admirable thing in its way, but
it is very easy to get too much of it. A ruler who
begins by forcing benefits down the throats of his
subjects has prepared the way for making them
swallow doses of a different nature. We are, it is
true, very behindhand in many respects, but wo are
content to wait until the eyes of all aro opened to
the fact, and then we shall reform ourselves. Until that
time comes we may bear the burden of our folly,
which, heavy as it is, is still preferable to the worse
things endured by our neighbours. It is a burden
lightened by the knowledge that it will cease to be
irksome the moment we are wise enough to mend our
ways. The education question to which Lord Joule
alludes is one which Lours NAPOLEON or the Emperor
of AUSTRIA could settle by an order in council, but
which appears in England likely to wait for a settle-
ment for years. This is a sad prospect, but it would
be still worse to have a stereotyped system forced
upon us which would admit of no expansion except
at the hands of the Government. Let us then, when
we are reproached with not " pawning a strong
Government," rejoice over the imputation—content
with the reflection that "strong Governments"

are rather more celebrated for exercising their
strength for the benefit of themselves than of their
subjects.

With the allusion to Turkey Lord JOHN'S
audience was very justly pleased. The painful
consideration suggested by the speaker's expres-
sions, is, that the words are in such unpleasant
contrast with the deeds. It is very well to
hear Lord Jou:4 RUSSELL reminding his audience
that England has many times stood forward
to resist oppression, to maintain the independence of
weaker nations, to preserve to the general family of
nations that freedom, that power of governing them-
selves, of which others had sought to deprive them.
We are charmed to hear a British statesman say that
this is not the time to abandon any of those duties
towards the world which Great Britain has hitherto
performed. Every one will imitate the Greenock
assemblage in cheering the speaker for his decla-
ration,—" I certainly should be the last to forget
that if a peace cannot be maintained
with honour, it is no longer peace, but a precarious
truce, to be denounced by others whenever they may
think that an opportunity has occurred to enforce by
arms their unjust demands, either upon us or our
allies." All this is very manly talk, ►ut is it any-
thing more? Is it anything but "words, words?'
Will what the Government does correspond with
what some of the members of the Government
affirm? Who would imagine that the above
gallant declaratior.s contain the sentiments of
a member of a Government which came
forward to mediate, when France had already
mo% ill—which by its hesitation gave its ally an op-
portunity fur hesitation—which flattered the Turks
with promises of protection, and now by continued
d.luy stems to be wilfully playing the game of
Itussin? These are anomalies which the Ministry
will find it difficult to explain; but, until they can,

friends might advise a judicious reticence on the sub-
ject of Turkey. Lord Jowl RUSSELL can be silent
when he chooses; as, for instance, in the
present case, on the subject of Reform in
Parliament, upon which most persons expected he
would hale something important to say. Let is
hope, however, that this speaking out on the subject
of Turkey is a prelude to a more vigorous policy, and
that the Ministry will avoid the disgrace of having
first given but a temporary and hollow support to a
weak ally, and then lift him in the burglarious
hands of an insolent and remorseless enemy.