The Express.
London, England, 1868-05-30 00:00:00

THE WEEKLY PRESS.

The Saturday Review observes that if the House
of Lords should, contrary to expectation, pass the Sus-
pension Bill, the final extinction of rights in Irish bene-
fices will be accomplished some months earlier ; but, on
the other hand, there is some advantage in the habit of
instinctive resistance to great organic changes. Institutions
incomparably more valuable than the Irish establithment
may perhaps be endangered by the discovery that ancient
possession affords no security against modern innovation.
Mr. Gladstone's proposals may be just and expedient, hut
there is, perhaps, more foundation than Mr. Disraeli sus-
pects for his frequent warnings of the ceisis which may
be produced by the ►bolition of the Irish church.
The unreformed parliament has overthrown many abuses
which seemed Inveterate, and Englishmen may with a safe
conscience accept Count Montalembert's compliments on
the sound discrimination which has led them to destroy
nothing but eviL The new constituencies will perhaps not
be equally cautious, and, for a time at least, they will be
impatient to reap the fruit of their unaccustomed exercise
of political power. When the Irish church is disposed of,
some other class or corporation will probably become the
object of attack. The contingent risk supplies no reason
for maintaining a mischievous system, but it suggests
some excuse for the probable scruples of the House of
Lords.

Discussing the report of the Royal Commission on the
Irish Railways, the Examiner concludes that, whether the
government purchase or not, there is one course which in
common prudence it ought no longer to persist in, and
that is the advancement of loans for the promotion of
railway enterprise, a course which, though hitherto only
entailing a moderate amount of loss, is consistent neither
with sound policy nor safety to the exchequer. The
account, as it at present stands, gives the amount of
loans to Irish railway companies at 2,i77,3641., and of re-
payments at 1,488,124 W., with 12,000 r. arrears of interest.
The only question then that the government is called upon
to consider, is whether the circumstances of Ireland are so
abnormal or exceptional as to justify such a departure from
general principles, and to make it a matter of imperial
policy for the executive to become the proprietor of the
Irish railway system. The Etantiner would have no heal•
tation in answering affirmatively, if the change could be
brought about and the whole Irish railway system acquired
at an expense not absolutely ruinous.
The hpeetahw says that Mr. Disraeli has involved Lord
Mayo—who had hitherto been free from the arts of politi-
cal intrigue—in a not very creditable attempt to disavow
the proposals of his first speech this session on Irish
policy, so far as they discovered an intention to endow
Roman catholic institutions. It Is no longer convenient
for the government to be burdened with any proposition
that would be odious in the eyes of the extreme protes-
tants, and Lord Mayo has accordingly tried to explain
away his ostentatiously avowed plan of "levelling-up" and
so equalising the position of tte churches,—but of achiev-
ing this "by elevation, not by confiscation." Certainly,
" elevation," in contradistinction to " confiscation," would
appear to indicate bestowing property on one aide, instead
of taking it away on the other. But Lord Mayo now
wishes to make it appear that the endowment proposed for
the Catholic University in making his first " confidences"
to parliament on March 10 was a mere annual grant, and
that in other respects his own idea had been to " elevate"
indeed, but not by giving property to the catholics, only
by conceding them official honour and equal con-
sideration, as, for instance, in respect of the chaplaincies
of gaols and so forth. The Spectator can only say that
Lord Mayo's memorandum of the 14th March, on the plan
for a catholic university—(and of the intention of endowing
it that memorandum expressly speaks)—the whole tenor
and language of his speech, and also even the whole tenor of
Mr. Disraeli's speech of the same debate, when the Prime
Minister boasted mysteriously that he believed hims If on
the eve of a policy which should " heal the sorrows of
afflicted centuries," will I save on careful critics an im-
pression of pure amazement and incredulity at the character
of the interpretations of their former declarations which
are now offered.

The London Review, in considering the Dish policy of
the government, remarks that the attempt to bolster up
the government of a minority can only lead to delay ani
result in obstruction. Whatever may be Mr. Diaraeli's
inclinations, he cannot carry his party with him in the
measures which alone can or ought to satisfy Ireland. The
last few weeks have proved that be is powerless to repeat
with respect to the sister country the game which he
played sucoessfully under cover of Lord Derby's name and
influence in regard to parliamentary reform. If that be the
esse,it is surely the obvious duty of everylriah member who
professes to represent the mass of his fellow-countrymen,
to do all be can to assist rather than retard a change of
government which will place the reins of power in the
hands of a statesman who is willing, and who will have the
power, to carry out on the broadest scale a policy of full
and complete justice to Ireland. In return for the support
which the English liberal party are ready and eager to give
to such a policy, they base a right to expect that Irish
constituencies will not stultify themselves by again send-
ing to parliament men who may vote in the right lobby on
the single question of the Irish Church, but who are on
eery other occasion found thwarting the friends and sup-
porting the enemies of the measure of lasstablisbmcnt
and disendowmect which they profess to desire.

The committee which has charge of the break-
fart to be given by the members of the Liberrl raity to
Mr. Bright, 31.1'., net pesterday, and &aided upon
bolding it either in the Philharmonic-hell or the Alm-
andra Theatre. Ladies will be admitted to the gallefee.
WHIT MONI,AY REVIEW AT PANSHANGLA.—EarI
Cowper has for wane time been organising a volunteer re-
view at his seat, Panaheoger Park. The abandonment of
the review on Monday at Windsor, has now itdueed
several seeps to enter for Panshanwer, and them wi I pro.
be* be a lad of wan 2,000 or 3,000 volunteers.

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