The Sun.
London, England, 1855-02-05 00:00:00

own natural powers—well ! He may be an ex-
ceedingly useful and efficient Minister, or he may
be a very dangerous one. It would be essential
that before any new combination were entered
into that some assurance should be given that
he would not abide, with such perverse obsti-
nacy, by certain fiscal crotchets, which have given
deep offence to the great body of the nation.

Lord PALMERSTON must take especial care on
these points, if he desires to form a strong and
lasting Ministry. Every indulgence will be ex-
hibited—the utmost cordiality displayed. But
he also must take care not to abuse the kindness
of the people, or consent to the undue oppression
of the present generation for the sake of posterity.
It will net only be necessary to carry on the War
vigorously and efficiently, but to abstain from
placing the whole of the burden on the present
generation.
This evening we shall probably hear respecting
the progress and chances of success of the Noble
Viscount. We trust that they may be satisfac-
tory ; but we must once more impress on all our
leading politicians the necessity of making large
personal sacrifices for the general good—of not
merely abstaining from any decided opposition,
but of lending active assistance to those who are
striving to extricate their SOVEREIGN from the
dilemma in which she is placed.

The State Papers of M. DRountDs L'Huvs
have long attracted public attention. He has
invariably dealt with the subject under consider-
ation for the time being with a sound practical
common sense, combined with a keen discernment
of its salient points, that placed it in the clearest
and most satisfactory point of view. He pos-
sesses a happy facility for dispersing the mists
which obscure the true state of affairs, and bring-
ing the light of truth to bear thereon in full
effulgence. His able exposures of the NESSELRODE
fallacies have long been duly appreciated,
and he has now added to his claims on the confi-
dence of the EMPEROR and people of France by a
masterly refutation of the untenable claims put
forward by Prussia for readmission to the general
Conferences from which she has excluded herself
by her own vacillating and temporising conduct.

The Circular which the French Minister has
addressed to the representatives of France at the
different courts of Germany is indeed au instruc-
tive document, well worthy of perusal by every
person desirous of judging correctly respecting
the position in which Prussia, once considered one
of the Great Powers of Europe, has placed herself,
and from which she refuses to make any proper
effort for her own extrication.

It is not, in fact, the acts of the other Powers,
or of any of them, that have excluded Prussia.
She has withdrawn herself from the association ;
she has refused to advance on the only ground it
was possible to traverse ; she has declined to put
her aetia and words in complete harmony with
those into whose society she now seeks to intrude
herself, 'without giving any assurance of a change
of policy ! The moment she does so she will be
cordially welcomed—the arras will be opened to
receive her; but she must take the initiative
herself. She must abandon the policy that pro-
duced the isolation, before the isolation itself is
removed. She must make choice between the
belligerent parties, and boldly and manfully decide
the banner under which she will array herself
before she can be listened to. As a friend, or an
enemy, she may be dealt with ; but not as a sus-
picious neutral, on whom raobody can place any
reliance.

Regretting deeply the causes that have led
to such a demonstration by the French Go-
vernment, we fervently rejoice that it has been
made. Prussia must now resolve on entering
into an alliance with Russia or the other Powers.
It is only by declaring her policy distinctly and
unequivocally, that she can re-open the doors which
her previous conduct had hermetically sealed against
her, and which she can now only re-enter as an
active partisan on the side of the Allies. It is
Prussia that is endangering the stability of the
Germanic Confederation. It is she alone who can
restore its coherence, and give it the vitality which
1 it so urgently requires.

Lord STANLEY must share with Mr. MILNER,
GIBSON the honour of the approaching abolition of
the Newspaper Stamp. Without wishing to de-
prive the latter gentleman of one fraction of the
honour due to his unflinching perseverance, and
unwearied Parliamentary efforts, we believe ho
would be forward to acknowledge the decisive
value of Lord STANLEY'S services. They Are so
much the greater, because the great party to which
he belongs were, previously to the Noble Lord's
first manly letter on the subject, understood to be
opposed to the change. The majority of Mr.
GIBSON'S party were, on the other hand, in favour
of it. Timid Whigs like Lord JOHN RI7SBELL, or
quaking papermakers like Mr. ALEXANDER CowAN,
indeed shrunk from the diffusion of cheap political
knowledge, or from endangering the course of the
paper monopoly ; but the great body of Liberals
were, of course, in favour of removing every
impediment in the way of diffusing political
knowledge. Mr. GIBSON', therefore, had
but to speak the views of his party, while Lord
STANLEY had the task of converting his. We
liar o no doubt li. Lac to a ldrfiv extrnt succeeded,
and the public may thank this young nobleman
both for Mr. MILNER'S late invigorated efforts
and for Mr. GLADSTONE'S clarified vision on the
question. Without doubting for one moment the
sincerity of the latter gentleman's convictions, we
must think that the course taken by the son of
the Earl of. DERBY convinced the Chancellor of
the Exchequer that the right time was come. He
saw that if he did not appropriate tho proposal of
a popular measure the next Conservative Ministry
would be sure to do so ; or that possibly Mr.
GIBSON and Lord STANLEY, joining their forces,
would carry it without him.
We are led to these remarks by the appearance
of another letter on the subject from Lord
STANLEY, as a supplement to our weekly con-
temporary, Tha Press, which we think it due,
both to the Noble Lord and to the intrinsic
merits of the letter, to reprint in The Sun
to-day. It displays the same unmistakeable
character of thorough and most intollige nt con-
viction as his former one. It was written in
reply to a pamphlet entitled " the Newspaper
Postal Stamp," and is certainly a model of close,
logical, and, we must think, unanswerable rea-
soning. We must be permitted to say that it is
quite refreshing to see the heir of the house of
DERBY asserting as axioms the most liberal and
soaunande r , indeed, which principlesiee in
icl u
discussingi
at
putthisco
question—in
of
a
manner,
mere
Whigs to the blush • •in d scores
, indeed we think the tone of
Lord STANLEY'S discussion,
both of this subject
and that of Church Itatos, will
go far to raise
greater expectations from the house of DERBY
than that of BEDFORD. The opinion '
gains ground
that Whigs talk about reform bills, and give us
aristocratical ascendancy in disguise, but that the
Conservatives redress practical grievances. we
should much more expect a man who follows
out principles to their consequences, like Lord
STANLEY, to become a supporter even of
the Ballot, than that " Democrats in Opposition