The Express.
London, England, 1867-06-22 00:00:00

HIGH WATIM, AT LONDON lIRIDON.

fms Zat7:77Ati;;;;•.
111-Mosaow—llonatig. 611. 4335.......Attern0un, tia. a.

LONDON, SATURDAY, JUNE 22.

Tuxes was certainly no reason why Lord STRAY-
TOLD DE REDCLIFYZ should apologise for bringing
the ease of the British captives in Abyssinia before
the House of Lords feat night. If there is no way
of helping our unfortunate countrymen, it is still
impossible to forget them, and it is by the fre-
quent revival of the subject in the discussions of
Parliament and the press that public attention must
be kept alert and ready to seize any opportunity
that may arise for interfering effectually in
their behalf. Unfortunately for us, it seems
easier to avert the greatest of European
dangers, to appease the angry passions of
two great military nations, and secure the
peace of the Continent, than to obtain justice
for our fellow subjects who are unjustly and
cruelly held captive by a petty potentate who
presumes on his remoteness and inaccessi-
bility. Two of our Governments have appealed
in succession to the interests, the pride, the
humanity of the Emperor Tusonoas, whose sus-
picions and distrusts have, however, hitherto pre-
vailed over what we must suppose to be the
dictates of his better nature. Mr. Raman,
who was sent out some two years ago the
bearer of a letter from the QUEEN, to pro-
cure the release of Consul CAMERON, is now
the sharer of that gentleman's imprisonment,
and with them sixteen other persons entitled
to British protection are confined. Subsequently
to the imprisonment of Mr. RABSAM the EMPEROR
promised to release the entire number if some
English artisans capable of assisting in the con-
struction of certain works on which he had set
his mind were sent out. The men were pro-
cured and sent to the neighbourhood of the
country, but our Consul at Aden, looking at
all the circumstances, and principally at the
refusal of the EMPEROR to release his prisoners,
would not allow them to proceed. It would appear
from what Lord DERBY said last night that some
slight hope still exists of a successful result of
the communications that are still proceeding ;
but after all that has passed it is impossible to feel
sanguine. On one point we believe all Englishmen
will be agreed: it will not be right to bring any
more of our countrymen into dependence upon
the good feeling of the Emperor THEODORE.
The mission of Mr. Raman, dictated by
humanity, has only resulted in increasing the
number of claimants upon our sympathy and assis-
tance. In some quarters a discussion is taking
place as to the advisableness of preparing a mili-
tary expedition for the purpose of obtaining for
ourselves that j untie° which the EM r 'mon km hitherto
denied to our reasonable and courteous requests, and
also of showing that there is no part of the world
SO difficult of access that its Government may
safely defy our power. This is a suggestion not to
be heedlessly put aside, but assuredly it is one not
to be adopted without the utmost circumspectionand
deliberation. Sound policy demands that our poli-
tical relations with countries so difficult to reach as
Abyssinia and so little capable of rewarding en-
terprise when attained should be reduced to a
minimum. In this case, however, we have to do
with a remains of our older policy. The captives are
not so many travellers or traders : two of them at

least are official persons in the service of
the QUEEN, one of them is the bearer of a
' letter to which her MAJESTY'S name is appended.
No mere calculation of difficulties ought to deter
the Government from following up its ami-
cable but unsuccessful negotiations with the
Emperor THEODORE by active and energetic mili-
tary measures ; but the question is, whether the
most successful result that can be hoped for
would justify the country in sending out an expe-
dition in which probably a hundred times as
many men would perish as there are cap-
tives to be rescued. The decision turns
mainly upon the obligations we are under