The Sun.
London, England, 1855-11-20 00:00:00

(Front the Morning Herald of this day.)

The course recently taken by the Premier reveals
both his distress and the failure of his attempts at
relief. Only a state of the most frightful difficulty
could justify the extraordinary course taken by
Lord Palmerston, when he tried to seduce—first
Lord Derby's son, and then Mr. Gladstone's other
self, from the opposition benches. Neither of these
distinguished meu could have accepted his lord-
ship's invitation without the greatest peril to his
own character. They both acted prudently, as well
as honourably, in repelling his advances. A
Liberal paper published in Edinburgh thus describes
the transaction :

" Some accounts say that the Cabinet is divided upon
the subject of the war ; that the late Sir William Moles-
worth kept the balance inclined to the war side ; and
that the peace party, among whom the Duke of Argyll,
Sir George Grey, the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
and others are reckoned, are straining every nerve to
have a Colonial Minister appointed that will vote with
them for peace. I must say I do not believe in the
reality of either of these statements as the causes of the
delay. It is more likely that the policy of the Premier,
as shown in his negotiations with Lord Stanley, still
continues to guide him, and that he is on the outlook
for some man not now belonging to his party, who
will strengthen his Government in the House of Com-
mons, where it is at present uncommonly weak, or, at
all events, is utterly disproportioned, in oratorical
powers, to the formidable opponents which muster in
front and on its right flank. But it is plain that the
Minister's position just now is rather embarrassing."
This writer has evidently penetrated the seem-
ing mystery.

Lord Palmerston is an experienced leader of the
House of Commons, and he knows full well that
to get through a whole session with such a troop of
performers as his present company is wholly out of
the question. Here is the list :
PALMERSTON.
LEWIS. LABOUCHERE.
WOOD. F. PEEI.
GREY. COWPER.
SMITH. HALL.

We will venture to say that, for weakness which
is quite ludicrous, for imbecility which provokes
laughter, the present century has seen nothing com-
parable to this list.
But the utter impossibility of going on with such
a troop becomes more glaringly manifest when we
remember that they will hardly be left to break
down from mere incompetence. Facing them will
be . ranged, in different parts of the opposition
benches, the whole talent of the House of Com-
mons. We may arrange the principal names in
three columns :

Mr. Disraeli. Mr. Gladstone. Mr. Bright.
Lord Stanley. Mr. S. Herbert. Mr. Cobden.
Sir J. Pakington. Sir J. Graham. Mr.M. Gibson.
SirE.L.B.Lytton. Mr. Cardwell. Mr. Layard.
Mr. Walpole. Mr. Roundell Mr. Laing.
Mr. Henley. Palmer.
Mr. Stafford.

It is abundantly clear that in any contest of mere
ability, either of these three sections would be more
than a match for the whole Ministry. But what is
to become of a Treasury bench filled with Woods,
Smiths, Greys, and Lewises, when opposed to the
cross-fire of all these three parties ?
It is this desperate state of things, doubtless,
which leads to the report, which constantly re-
vives and re-appears, that " there will be a dissolu-
tion before Easter." We feel no doubt that that
very excellent judge, Mr. Goodenough Hayter, has
whispered his private opinion to more than one
intimate friend, that "it cannot be expected that
so ricketty a concern can last more than a few
weeks." "We must dissolve," he would say,
" before the end of March, or we shall be fairly
blown out of our seats."

The course is clear, then, for a dissolution ; but
it will be a dissolution of a new kind, and for a new
reason.

Heretofore a Prime Minister has only dissolved
Parliament in its fourth year when that Parliment
has proved refractory, and brought the wheels of
the machine of the state to a stand. If the country
is bent, for instance, on carrying on the war with
vigour, and if Parliament refuses the means, or
obstructs the measures of Government, then a fair
ground of appeal to the people is furnished. Tiso
Minister dissolves, and the people " know the rea-
son why."
But what if no such obstacle be interposed ?
What if Parliament refuses no supply, and gives
no
s
no tangible ground of complaint ? Can theNlis le
ter dissolve Parliament, merely because be bench,g°t
a batch of very dull fellows on the Treasury.t,and
wisdom is annoyed at the superior talent,theMinisterial
w'
wisdom of the opposition ? Will
candidates plainly say, " Lord
Palmerston has or-
dered a new election, in the hope
rid of Mr. Disraeli and Mr.Gladstone,
be and that
Mr. Bright and Mr. Layard may left out of the
h a reason as this be
new`Parliament ?" Can slue?
decently given to thertriiilk of the probable re-
And who can
calmly
ayPremier, indeed, who has
re-
sult ? We have
been one of the fpgrneomovrt men in the House of Com-
monsin his seventy-second year.
; but he
supporters_s and assistants we have got
And for his 11
t fellows that ever sat upon a
du
a set of the
Treasury bench.. dullest
they wish to remain there ;
in the face of an opposition com-
prising to do this,
*sine. at least ten times their talent, is not easy.
pri
They must, therefore, appeal to the country, and
ask the electors everywhere to get rid of all the
clever men I
Many of our readers will remember the system
by which election committees were struck some
twenty years ago. Thirty-three names were ob-
tained by ballot, and then each party had the
privilege of striking off eleven. As their object
always was to strike off the ablest men on the other
side, the residue was always found to consist of the
merest third-rate men. This operation was called
" knocking out the brains of a committee." In
like manner, if Lord Palmerston dissolves Parlia-
ment in March next, simply because his colleagues
are wholly unable to meet their antagonists in fairi
debate, his object will evidently be to "knock
out," if he can, " the brains of the opposition."i

(Front the Morning Advertiser of this day.)
We yesterday announced, and repeat the an-
nouncement to-day, that an Alien Bill for the ex.
pulsion of political refugees from our shores, is to
be brought into Parliament next session. There
can be no doubt of the accuracy of our information.
It comes to us from various quarters, all of them
of undoubted authenticity. It is something to be

made aware of the designs of Ministers so early.
The country is thus forewarned. It will be its own
fault it it do not turn its information to account.
It will have itself to blame if it lose a moment in
forearming itself. If ever there was an announce-
ment which ought to arouse the people of England
to a sense of their obligations to themselves, to
others, and to the cause of liberty, that announce-
ment is the one just made.
If the contemplated measure be carried, then
"Farewell, a long farewell," to the freedom of
England. Let Ministers but succeed in that des-
potic and daring attempt to destroy a right which
is one of the greatest glories of our Constitution,
and the next exhibition of their designs on the
liberties of the country will be in the shape of an
effort to annihilate the freedom of the Press: The
freedom of the Press is the greatest eye-sore to all
despotic Governments, just because it is the only
remaining safeguard for the liberties of the people ;
for the House of Commons has entirely ceased to
act as a barrier to the aggressions of Governments
on popular rights. So far as that body are con-
cerned, the most sacred parts of the Constitution
may be invaded and destroyed at any time. But
for the Press of this country we had long before
now been consigned over to the tender mercies of a
system scarcely less despotic than that which ezists
on the Continent. The country cannot feel, a suffi-
ciently deep sense of its obligations to a free and fear-
less, an honest and independent Press. But that in-
valuable institution, that mighty barrier against the
flowing tide of despotism in England, is now in im-
minent peril. We repeat, that if the right of asylum
to political refugees from other lands is to be abo-
lished, the freedom of the Press will as surely fol-
low as the darkness of night succeeds the light of
day. _

It is, therefore, of the utmost importance that
the people of England should at once rise up in all
their might and majesty to confront any Govern-
ment, no matter who may be its head, or of whom
it is composed, that will venture to bring forward a
measure which is not only in violation of the Con-
stitution, but which would prove both degrading
to the national character and utterly destructive
of the liberties of the country. If ever there was
an occasion when all those minor diversities of opi-
nion which exist among the friends of the popular
cause, ought to be buried in the dust, and a grand
national organisation be entered into with a view
to vindicate a great principle. and resist a daring
aggression on one of the most valuable of English
rights—that occasion is the present. Happily, we
are on the eve of a dissolution of Parliament, and,
therefore, the members of the House of Commons
are just now particularly accessible to popular in-
fluences. Let meetings be everywhere held for the
purpose of denouncing, in the strongest and loud-
est terms, the contemplated despotic measure, and
calling on all those representatives who have bees
returned by Liberal constituencies, to give a so-
lemn pledge that they will, by every means in their
power, endeavour to defeat the measure. The city
of London ought to set the example ; but if it fails
in its duty, then let Marylebone, Westminster, or
some other metropolitan borough, take the lead.
Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow, and all
the other great towns will forthwith follow, and we
shall, before many weeks have elapsed, witness
such an expression of public feeling on the subject,
as will deter the Palmerston Government from
carrying their intention into effect.

THE EXPORT TRADE OF THE NORTH-

BAST PORTS.

We had occasion a short time ago to notice the satis-
factory condition of the export trade of the north-east
coalpits, as shown by the Custom-house returns, pub-
lished in Brown's Export List. The returns for October
are equally favourable. The following is an abstract :

TONS OF COAL AND COKE COASTWISE.
Coal. Coke. Coal. Coke.
1854. 1855.
Newcastle
Shields 4,595 ... 4,778 ... 43
Blyth
Amble 5,835 ... 2,433
Sunderland 131,220 ... ... 136,794 ...
Soaham
The Hartlepools 17,150 ... 671 ... 106,286 ... 189
Stockton

Middlesbro' 11,812 .- -. 16,216 -. 118
TONS OF COAL AND COKE; OVER SEA.
1854. 1855.
_ _ _

Coals. Coke. Coals. Coke.
Newcastle 103,523 ... 7,327 ... 116,681 ... 7,052
Shields
Bly th
Amble 345 ... ... 2,149 ...
Sunderland 33,853 ... 1,635 52,440 ... 1,992
Seabam
The Hartlepools 25,531 ~. 2,398 ... 42,900 ... 2,123
Middlesbro 4,872 ... 1,921 ... 8,011 ... 2,517
The increase coastwise and over sea has been 89,824
tons of coal and 1,775 tons of coke. The goods (other
than coal and coke) exported over sea in the month of
October, 1854 and 1855, amounted in declared value to
the following sums :

1854.
Newcastle 268,969
Shields
Sunderland
Seaham —

1855.

£98,065
2,518
14,983

Stockton
The Hartlepool s 34,498
ddlesbro

215
66,216
21,725

£123,411

£203,822

MARKET NEWS.—(This Day).

HAY MARKETS.

SMITIIFIELD.—Meadow hay, 4/ 03 to Gi 104 ; clover ditto,
41 103 to 6/ 18s ; and straw, 11 53 Od to 1/ 103 Od per lord.
A. moderate supply and a steady demand.
CUMBERLAND.—Meadow hay, 4! 44 to 6/ 15 • ; clovoz
4/ 10, to 6/ 163 ; and straw, if 5; to 1/ lls por load.
Both hay and straw moved off steadily, at full quotations.
WHITEOH ATEL.—Meadow hav, 4/ Oa to 6 104; clover
4! 5s to 7/ 03 ; and straw, 11 13 to 11 104 per load.
Trade steady, at fully late rates.