The Sun.
London, England, 1855-07-14 00:00:00

E. B. LYTTON. They could not, in fact, compro-
mise their own characters, by supporting one,

icity and insincerity.

The trcachery might

noL have su,prised thew, but they were
terribly shocked at the exposure, and naturally
dreaded the reproaches of their constituents if they
should endeavour to screen the detected offender.
Although the nominal Premier treated the matter as
amere bagatelle, a new edition of "Much Ado about
Nothing," it is probable that he felt greatly de-
lighted at the gentle pressure, which supplied an
adequate excuse for getting rid of his aspiring
and insubordinate colleague—one who acted in
direct opposition to his instructions, and notori-
ously aimed at the highest position in the Cabi-
net. Having, however, "condonnel" the offence
he had cummitted at Vienna—having, although
fully conscious of the deception practised on Par-
liament and the country by Lord JOHN RUSSELL,
lavished praises on the conduct of the deceiver,
he could not consistently abandon him in the pre-
sent instance without some plausible pretext,
and that has been afforded by the judicious in-
subordination of the minor officials and waiters
On PROVIDENCE.

The resignation has therefore been tendexed—
and so far as lies in Lord PALMERSTON accepted.
It has not, however, as yet been officially an-
nounced in Parliament, nor can there be any
authentic information as to the results—whether
the ex-Plenipotentiary goes alone, or whether he
is to be accompanied by any, and which of his
sympathising colleagues. We must patiently
wait until the Royal pleasure has been
taken, and the game of " the irrespon-
sible Cabinet-makers" at home and abroad
made known. Great events 'may be at hand, and
the country must be fully prepared for any alter-
native that may follow. Whatever may occur,
we are convinced that the People will stand
by the Constitution, and not sanction the
irresponsibility cr im mobility of Ministers,
although put forward on the most " Coburg"
pattern, or in accordance with the wishes of the
petty despots of Germany.

The great question now to be decided at pre-
sent—for we shall not anticipate matters that may
not arise—is what will be the effect of the resig-
nation of the ex-Plenipotentiary on the motion
of Sir E. B. LYTTON and Mr. ROEBUCK, on the
questions of " want of confidence " and of " cen-
sure." That of the Hon. Baronet the member
for Hertfordshire is first to be disposed of, and is
that which will chiefly be affected by the altera-
tion ; for that of the hon. member for Sheffield
cannot be in any way influenced by the change.
It may be asserted that the terms of that motion,

aiming directly against the Colonial Secretary,
will be satisfied by his secession from office.
But not so ! The other Ministers, by al-
lowing him to continue a responsible adviser
of the Crown so long after his return from
Vienna, and after they knew that he was advo-
cating an inglorious and transitory peace, have
participated in his offence, and deserve to share
his punishment. Reliance can no longer be
placed on their sincerity, when they connived at
Ind endeavoured to screen his duplicity. The
proposed resolution is substantially aimed at the
entire Cabinet ; and albeit the chief offender Las
already been sacrificed, the nation will not accept
the scape-goat for the sins of the party.
No further concealment will be tolerated, the
cloud of mystery must be completely dispelled.
It must be clearly ascertained how it was that
when he so contumaciously disregarded his in-
structions—when in place of acting as an ordi-
nary Plenipotentiary, a mere delegate to give
expression to the views of his Government and to
convey propositions for their approval, he yen-

tured to act as if his opinions were decisive, and
that whatever he approved of must be sanctioned
by his colleagues ; he was still not only permitted
to retain his place, but beslavered with praise by the
Ainister whose functions ho had usurped. It is
manifest that he must have had some powerful
support within the Cabinet, and we are justified
in demanding the nature and extent of that sup-
port, and the names of those by whom it was ac-
corded.

But even that will not suffice. Those who,
while cognisant of his deception, also joined in
dinging dust into the eyes of the Parliament and
the people, must also share in his condemnation,
tnd in the censure which such un-English con-
duct has so pre-eminently merited. There was,
in the first instance, what Mr. DISRAELI, in his

well-timed motion, truly described as " uncer-
tainty of conduct and ambiguity of language"—so
much so as to show how great has been the escape
from the course earnestly advocated by the ex-
Plenipotentiary, and as declared fully considered
by the Cabinet ; and, secondly, the joining him
in inducing the nation to suppose that ho had
always insisted on the limitation of the Russian
fleet, " a standing menace to the integrity of the
Ottoman empire and the peace of Europe."
The people of England have already expressed
their opinions on their humiliating and disgraceful
conduct, and it remains fur their representatives
to record their opinions on Monday next. We
trust that they will not endeavour to shrink from
or evade the imperative duty.

The Eastern Papers, Part 15, which were laid
on the table of the House by Lord PALMERSTON,
on Thursday evening, and which were made the
pretext for postponing Sir E. B. LYTTON'S motion
until Monday, only place the misconduct of the
ex-Plenipotentiary and of the Austrian Govern-
ment in a stronger light than it had previously
been regarded. They completely remove the faint-
est shadow of excuse for the strange tergiversation
and palpable disregard of orders evinced by Lord
J. RUSSELL, while they show that Lord CLAREN-
DON was not always of opinion that there was no
ground for censuring Austria for her disregard of
the obligations imposed on her by the Treaty of
the 2d December. They will, indeed, be evidence
on the bill of indictment to be preferred on Mon-
day, and which cannot be withdrawn, notwith-
standing the resignation of the chief delinquent.
The two first documents, which are from Lord
CLARENDON to Lord J. RUSSELL, and both dated the
same day, the 3d April last, are of great importance.
They prove that, even at that early period, Aus-
tria was already trying to evade the performance
of her part of the Treaty of the 2d of December,
by putting forward illusory propositions, which
they were well aware could not be acceptable to
I the Western Powers.

It will be in the remembrance of our readers
that it was on the 26th of March that the
negotiations on the two first points being
concluded, and the so-called interests of Austria
and Germany satisfied, Count BuoL proposed
passing to the third basis of negotiation, and
that the protracted adjournment took place
for Russia to take the initiative. Then it was
that the cloven foot was suffered to peep out,
and that symptoms of vacillation became but too
palpable. The despatch from Count BuoL to
Count COLLOREDO was then read, in which the
Austrian plan was developed, and which formed
the subject of the first paper.
Lord CLARENDON then told the Austrian Am-
bassador that he had listened to Count Bum's
equal surprise and concern, as it
despatch ant
nothing
thh
iN:i'ig th
short of an announcement that Aus-
tria would not adhere to the Treaty of the 2d De-
cember if the Western Powers persisted in carry-
inq the basis into effect, for Count BuoL must