The Sun.
London, England, 1855-10-25 00:00:00

LONDON, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1855.

It has been positively asserted that the resigna-
tion of General SIMPSON of the chief command of
the English Army of the Crimea has been finally
accepted, and that he now only awaits the nomi-
nation of a successor. Many causes may have led
to this result. A constitution impaired by
arduous and almost incessant service in different
climes—the infirmities produced by long exposure
to a tropical sun—may have rendered it impos-
sible for the distinguished and gallant veteran to
encounter the hardships of a Crimean winter,
without being guilty of an act of virtual suicide.
Nothing but an imperative sense of duty induced
him reluctantly to accept the high position to
which the will of his SOVEREIGN, combined with
the voice of public opinion, had called him. No
other suitable appointment could be made at the
moment ; and, therefore, General SrursoN yielded
to the earnest demand, and retained it until
the first act in the stirring drama had
been brought to a conclusion, and the flags
of France and England floated over the half-
ruined towers of captured Sebastopol. When that
glorious triumph had been accomplished he
again solicited the much-required relief, and
sought the well-earned otium cum, dignitate which
the state of his health so imperatively required.
It is impossible to say whether he was in any
degree influenced by the unfair criticism and
malevolent calumnies that were so freely uttered
by a portion of the English press. We should
hope that the unfair and unwarranted censures
that were so improperly directed against his mili-
tary reputation could not have affected his con-
duct. They would, if at all taken into account,
Ty different result. But he
have produced a very
could well afford to despise such sarping com-
ments, and to have rested his fame on his own
exploits, fully and fairly appreciated by friend
and foe, with almost a solitary exception. He
might be well contented with the approbation of
his colleague, and of the Government, the army,
and the people of France, and all but those of
his countrymen who surrendered their indi-
vidual judgments to the " Jupiter imams" of
Printing House Square, and were prepared to
ostracise any General or Statesman who could not
succeed in propitiating the exacting oracle. That
of his Sovereign had already been signified in the
most unequivocal terms, by his promotion to the
rank of General, and his nomination as a _Knight
Grand Cross.of the Bath, the highest honour to
which a successful and meritorious General could
aspire. With these, we repeat, he may be well
satisfied, and need not swerve from his course in
the slightest degree to one side or the other.

Another matter may have had some weight.
The evils of a divided command have been repeatedly
alluded to. It would certainly be in no wise deroga-
tory to the honour of the English army that they
should consent to act under the orders O. f
the
brave Pzussoff, and that he should direct the
plans of the campaign, in which he would doubt-
less assign a just place to the English troops, on
whose unflinching gallantry he well knows he
may place implicit confidence in the most serious
emergencies. But SimPsorr, who had held a co-
ordinate command, could not properly be placed
in a subordinate • • position, and if PELISSIEIt were to
be invested with 'supreme authority, it would be
indispensable to place another and comparatively
junior officer at the head of the English troops.
be the co
' Whatever may
urse, we are satisfied
that the resignation has not been prompted by any
unworthy feeling at head-gars, or any hini
- that it would be acceptable to the Government,
but that it ka3 entirely proceeded from
General 1

SIMPSON himself. We trust that an efficient suc-
cessor may be selected, one of whose most
essential qualifications will be the moral
courage to disregard the unwarranted and
captious objurgation, and to maintain the
even tenor of his way, without thinking cr
greatly caring what the " Mrs. GRUNDY of
Puddledock" may think of his proceedings, and
who will look solely to the great object which the
Allied Powers have at heart, without being
actuated by any petty jealousy of the superior
opportunities that may be afforded to those with
whom he is co-operating, and whom it is his first
duty to sustain and support.

The anticipated arrival of Australian gold has
been realised. Nearly 900,0001. worth of bul-
lion arrived on Saturday by the Mermaid and the
Marco Polo ! But, as might also have been anti-
cipated, the greater portion, if not the whole, of
the amount has been taken on account of the
Bank of France, and but little remains to alle-
viate the distress or assuage the fears of those
who naturally look forward to a commercial crisis
of no ordinary magnitude, of which the Bank
minimum, rate of discount of 7 per cent., on bills
having more than 60 and less than 95 days to
run, may be regarded as the commencement. The
folly of those who adopt precautions when the
evil has actually occurred—who, according to
the old proverb, " shut the door when the steed
has been stolen"—has frequently been noticed.
In monetary affairs, it is the normal state of
England. We see a terrible financial catastrophe
" looming in the future," the veriest tyro can
point out the nature and causes of the im-
pending danger—can explain that, so long as the
price of gold is fixed, and that we are compelled
to purchase at a high price, when, in the language
of the Stock Exchange, it is "a mere drug in the
market," and to sell at the same rate, when there
is every symptom of approaching scarcity, serious
perturbations must necessarily ensue, paralysing
the energies of the industrious classes, and reduc-
ing to the verge of ruin the creators and producers
of national wealth.

Never was there a more ridiculous fallacy put
forward than that respecting the so-called " self-
acting regulator of the currency," which stimu-
lates undue speculation where it ought to be
repressed, and checks production when it requires
the greatest possible encouragement. It is acknow-
ledged on every side that the trade and commerc,.
of the country is in a very sound and health)
condition. That has been admitted in the most
distinct and unequivocal terms by the recognised
organ of the bullionists, and on such a point the
Times is an unexceptionable witness. But how long
can it remain so, with interest at the rate of 7 per
cent. charged on first-rate commercial paper ?
The Old Lady of Threadneedle. street will touch or
took at nothing of the second class, and, of course,
all the discount houses that follow in her wakt•
will demand, aye and obtain, a much higher price for
the pecuniaryaccommodation that must be obtained
at any cost ! The seven per cent. charged by the
Leviathan merely represents a very mitigated
form of the burden which must deprive merchants
and manufacturers of their whole profits, and
render them but too happy if they can contrive
to keep their heads above water at the sacrifice of
a considerable portion of their capital !
The interesting question, then, forces itself on
our attention, and cannot be shelved or evaded.
How long shall we suffer ourselves to proceed in
this downward course ? to what extent of embar-
rassment and suffering shall we condemn those
deserving of a better fate, through whose exer-
tions the sinews of war are to be provided, and
' the safety, honour, and welfare of Great Britain
secured during the existing emergency ? The
peril may be averted by prompt and judicious
remedies. A few months hence it may be too
late. Far more so, when Parliament shall be called
together to discuss the state of the nation, and
to legislate on matters of the most serious urgency.
Then we must quadruple the sacrifices, to bring
back the gold, which would now keep it in our
hands, or, what would be still better, to provide
an adequate substitute, which would permit the
domestic trade to flourish as it did during the be-
ginning of the present century, albeit a me-
tallic standard, or measure, and representative of
value was wanting. In the sister kingdoms a
small note currency is found with but slight me-
tallic assistance to perform all the functions of a
circulating medium—far better than gold does in
this portion of her MAJESTY'S dominions. In
Scotland and Ireland a sovereign, if obtained
from some wandering tourist, is forthwith paid
away or exchanged, and speedily finds its way
into the nearest Bank, where it is of real utility.
The canny Scotchman, who is generally just as
well able to take care of his own concerns as his
neighbour south of the Tweed, is always willing
to accept the " worthless rags," at which we are
told that the English butcher and baker would
turn up his nose. He knows that they possess
" the purchasing power "—and that he can, at
any time, through their instrumentality, satisfy
the demands of the landlord, or the tax-gatherer,
or any other claimant on his resources, or that he
may exchange them on fair and perfectly defined
terms for any commodity of which he may be in
want. He no more wastes a thought on their
intrinsic value than the English operative does on
the number of grains of gold which the sovereign
contains, or the nature of the alloy by which it is
fitted for circulation. The only point taken into
consideration in either instance, is whether it can
be exchanged without loss at the proper time ;
and when the answer is satisfactory, there is no
further scruple or difficulty on the point.
In October, 1847, the operation of the impoli-
tic and inequitable act of 1844 was virtually
suspended. After a protruded delay, Ministers
felt that the time had arrived when they ought to
attempt to restore confidence to the mercantile
and manufacturing community. The celebrated
letter of the 25th October was accordingly writ-
ten. Its effects were magical. The knowledge
that there was the power of escaping from the
terrible restrictions, saved the Bank and the coun-
try, just as the Providential discovery of the box
of one-pound notes had done nearly 22 years be-
fore. The panic wasat once allayed, and the formid-
able difficulty was surmounted. Then, and only
then, was the rate of interest higher than at this
moment. And so objectionable was the rate con-
sidered that the then Premier and Chancellor of
the Exchequer stipulated for a share of the extra-
ordinary profits. Now the directors are acting
on their own account, and taking what the Ame-
ricans term all
know that their "thete pur
term of
de r'
monopoly' fo t r h e
hmasse
pired, and are anxious to feather thnveeeirsa
nearly ex-
handsomely before they yield to any rival. But
the Government should be prepared to act deci-
sively, and to take on itself the responsibility
of such temporary means as may be required. It
is manifest that the increase of discount is not
I
sufficient, that something else is required of a
totally different character—something which will
check the exportation of the precious metals with-1
out paralysing trade. Mr. Hausa STANPILD has
recently pointed out a mode by which the diffi-
culty may be eueeessful,l7 eneountored, and per-