The Sun.
London, England, 1855-04-27 00:00:00

the manner in which the telegraph will be con-
ducted if it be not thrown open to the public.
The Government should, of course, have the
priority ; that is only just and proper, and none
could object to so reasonable a demand. But
why should so valuable a machine be suffered to
remain idle ? Why, in fact, should there be a
monopoly given to the Government, when the
chief value of the publication is to keep that
very Government up to the mark, and compel
it to discharge its duty honestly and efficiently ?
We have seen the efforts made to keep the nation
ignorant of what was taking place. We have seen
the inestimable benefits arising from the exertions
of an independent and unfettered Press ; and
iurely we should profit by the lesson we have
read, and strive to turn to the best advantage all
available means. If, then, arrangements be not
forthwith made for affording the use of the tele-
graph to the public, a gentle pressure from with-
out must be resorted to in order to expedite the
movements of a Cabinet made of such very
squeezable materials as that which now exists
under the presidency of Lord PAL3MISTON.

A worthy but unwise father was the sleeping
partner in his son's business. The result was his
appearance in a bankruptcy court with the loss of
all his hard-earned savings. The commissioner,
having borne willing testimony to the father's
character, added—" And I warn, from my ea-
perience, all in this court of the danger of sleep-
ing partnerships. In too many cases the dozing
partner awakes some morning to find that he has
parted with his all." The admonition is the very
one for our country at this hour. The country is the
sleeping partner in the great business of the War.
It finds all the capital, it allows others to pocket
their salaries, to do the work, or rather not to do
it, and to spend the money. Some morning, and
we think no distant one, it will awake and find
sixteen millions gone after all the other millions,
and well ifitsresiduary, army, too, have notfollowed
to theirgraves the army already buried at Varna and
in the Crimea. We shrink from being alarmists,
but we are alarmed ourselves ; and better that,
we all should be so than find ourselves brought,
before we are aware of it, to political and mili-
tary bankruptcy.
We regret, then, to say it, but we say it firmly,
that the Whigs have not as yet materially im-
proved upon the Coalition. The result at
Sebastopol may be better than our fears,
which we will not stay to indicate, but
we perceive no sensible difference between
PALMERSTON and ABERDEEN, between NEWCASTLE
and PANMIIRE, unless, indeed, it be that Lord
PANMIIRE stays at home with the gout, and the
Duke stayed at the War-office, through the hebt
of autumn, " not certain that Cabinet meetings
would have helped him materially," while his
colleagues were rusticating at their country seats.
The grand political feat of Lord PALMERSTON has
been the Vienna Conference. Austria was to
have commenced offensive alliance with the new
year. She flung out the bait of the Four Points;
it took, and long weary weeks of precious time
have been wheedled away in her capital—Austria'
staving off the day of decision, and befooling the
Western Powers, while Russia was protracting
the plausible neutrality of Austria, and gathering
materials to dismiss with the last contempt the
negotiators from the West. No doubt the Noble
Secretary for the Colonies, who " would take the
command of the Channel fleet, or perform the
operation for the stone," will come forward with
all confidence before the House of Commons, and
prove that he was a pleaipotentiar2 par excellence,
but—our readers must pardon the homely Eng-
lish expression—we know of none which conveys
the idea so perfectly—it is clear to all eyes that
Prince G.RTSCHAKOFF has sent his Lordship home
"with a flea in his ear." Never was imposition
more. obvious, compliance more weak, and ulti-
mate defeat more complete and ignominious. The
Third Point was the point on which all depended.
Russia and Austria shirked it successfully, made
it No. 3 instead of No. 1, mutually gained and
conceded the two points which rendered the
Western Powers of least consequence to Austria,
and then, after luring the Allies for two or three
weeks longer with bait No. 3, Russia laughs in
their face, and tells them they shall never have,
if she can help it, anything like No. 3 at all !
We are thankful for the main result, but we can-
not conceal the fact, that PALMERSTON, with his
Lord JOHN concurrent, have been as -much the
dupes of Russia as ABERDEEN with Lord JOHN
recalcitrant or restive.

Bad enough to have beguiled away the early
spring of '55 as of '54 in dalliance with Austrian
perfidy, but still worse is the unaltered routine at
home and abroad. How little has been done
which the poor Duke of NEWCASTLE had not set
agoing before he left office ! Yet never had a
dictator abetter opportunity. In the way of re-
forming the Services he could not have taken
a wrong step. The whole nation were anxious
for it. He might have superseded instantly
every drowsy sexagenarian, every man whose de-
partment had failed, and have filled their places
with the best men he could find, and none dare
have resisted. He might have cancelled with a
word the whole system of time-wasting forms,
have enforced real responsibility everywhere, and
have had a whole nation endorsing his orders.
But what of all this has he done ? He has tried
to shelter all abroad by commissions of inquiry,
and left all at home to obstruct public business by
their incompetency and arrogance. We have a
new managing director, and a few new directors,
but the Board is substantially the same, of the
same sort of men at least, the subordinates of the
working machinery are the same, the old cum-
brous and self-thwarting routine is preserved, and
our business, as we infer, - is still going. to ruin.
Yast sums of money are still being sunk, and—
no return,.

There is but one remedy for all this ; we have
urged its adoption before.. We most earnestly
hope that if our advice be unheeded, England may
not very soon find it out too late, too late at least
to avoid immense sacrifices merely to recover lost
ground. The remedy is, of course, for the people
to look to its own business. It cannot, indeed,
become the Executive and administer affairs itself,
but it can call its administrators to account, and
demand that right-hearted and competent ser-
vants take their place. Now is the proper time.
Immense supplies are being voted ; it will depend
upon the people alone whether these millions are
toasted or used. For years to come an effete and
selfish aristocracy may wear us out with redoubled
loans and enhanced taxes, while they will achieve
nothing better than mismanaged and futile cam-
paigns, and inglorious negotiations. Our pockets
wfveilirtnoi: be safe from the inroads of aristocratic
Chancellors of the Exchequer, nor will our aris-
t
e from itall2
aris-
tocracy esr really humble the despots whom they prt-
petio:ptetiett:ens
Ithqueuinnleets:estsh.e country arouse
now meet, and t.:l4leYthein the kingdom, and th,
on-electors too, should
be paid for in heavy peclleu:se s3l'
Commons f 0)
what end they
are eiected. •
%men ess nov‘will
disappointments, and ar3' penalties, bitter
unavaili
future will be as the'
Pan if tha
ne_ regm. . e
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