The Sun.
London, England, 1855-02-22 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

RESIGNATION OF MR. GLADSTONE, SIR J.
GRAHAM, AND MR. SIDNEY HERBERT. •
- (From the Times pf this day.)
We purposely abstained yesterday morning from ad-
verting to the dissension which was already known to
exist in the Cabinet, because we were unwilling to anti-
cipate and to expose the humiliating spectacle of a Go
vernment divided almost as soon as it had assumed the
responsibilities of office, and some faint hope was still
entertained that more prudent and patriotic counsels
would yet prevail. That hope has not been fulfilled, A
Cabinet Council was held yesterday before the early sit-
ting.of Parliament; and the result of this meeting was
that Mr. Gladstone, Sir James Graham, and Mr. Sidney
Herbert announced their intention to relinquish their
respective posts in the Administration. The motive as-
signed for this resolut.on, unjustified and unexplained by
any circumstances which did not equally exist when Lord
Palmerston formed the present Ministry, is stated to be
the strong objection entertained by these gentlemen,
both in principle and in practice, to the inquiry by a
select committee of the House of Commons into the pre-
sent state ofithe army, and into the causes of the disas-
ters in.the Crimea. But, if this be the only ground of
their secession, it appears to us, and we think it will
appear to the country, quite insufficient to explain their
conduct. The vote of the House of Commons on Mr.
Roebuck's motion destroyed Lord Aberdeen's Govern-
ment, and established, by an irresistible majority, that a
Parliamentary inquiry should be made into the causes of
these misfortunes. Opinions may be divided on the
expediency of such an inquiry, and we know that
among those who voted for the motion of Mr. Roebuck
many foresaw the difficulties which would attend such
an investigation. But this much is certain—that the
will of Parliament and of the people of England
was never more clearly expressed than in favour of
this inquiry ; the nation feels that it hai a right
to ascertain the causes of a calamity which has sacrificed
an army and tarnished our military reputation ; and,
though it may be difficult to conduct such an inquiry
with prudence and success, it would be incalculably
more dangerous and impracticable to attempt to refuse
it. This proposition was self-evident when Lord Pal-
merston took the Government, and-Mr. Sidney Her-
bert, in his address to the electors of South Wilts on his
re-election last week, distinctly admitted the necessity
of inquiry. Indeed, we question whether any man
could show his face on the hustings at this moment in
any part of England who should be so bold as to deny
it. This being the known state of affairs, the vote
which st.iod recorded on Mr. Roebuck's motion, and the
impending nomination of his committee, were the first
topics which must have engaged the attention of the
new Government and of all its members. On the first
wind of this inquiry Lord John Russell decamped, and
the Duke of Newcastle soon afterwards retired ; but
Mr. Gladstone, Mr. Sidney Herbert, and Sir James
Graham took, or retained, office under Lord Palmerston,
without having made up their minds to stand by him
during the very first difficulty which awaited him. Of
all imaginable courses, this appears to us to be the least
defensible and the most absurd.