The Sun.
London, England, 1863-09-16 00:00:00

noble earl at the head of the Foreign Department ?
It could not possibly be attributable to a delighted
sense on his part of a most adroit avoidance of
parliamentary annoyance in connection with the
ittle family incident already referred to. That
was a thing already past and done with.
Neither could it well have had reference to-day, in
any way, to what was yet more remotely past and
done with—to such incidents, let us say, as the
arrogant bearing assumed, by him, at different
times and in various degrees towards Den-
mark, towards Mexico, towards Brazil—towards
any State, in fact, that a British Foreign Secretary
might safely treat with arrogance. No, the sourca
of these sudden high spirits at Dundee must
surely be more recent. It must, clearly, be
same incident much more suggestive of a sense of
personal exultation. We have it ! Earl RUSSELL'S
vivacity is traceable to nothing less than a delighted
consciousness of his having again ventured, during
the holidays, upon doing what he could never have
had the hardihood :o attempt during the sitting of
Parliament—the truckling to the North, the
knuckling down to the insolent threats so often
indulged in from Washington, the perverse deter-
mination to interfere, at the behest of Mr. ADAMS,
in the business arrangements of Mr. LAIRD, the
shipbuilder, by detaining upon, a bare suspicion,
the steam rams, called for the nonce, El Toussoun
and El Monassir.

Among the many changes produced by the
is Ame-
rican war, the position of the Western States
the least interesting. While other S
upontatesathem,re
com-
plaining loudly of the demands made
and depreciating the continuance
hofho suffered
hostilities
while the fertile plains of the South have
all the horrors of invasion, the Western
arerapSidtlaytesare
ready with their men and money,
deve-
loping their resources, andartehewar.willing enoughßyone
of to
vote for the carrying on of
those curious turns of the wheel of fortune that are
sometimes to be seen in our prosaic age, the war,
so disastrous in its results, and so lavish in its
expenditure, has been to these Western States a
source of profit and prosperity. These agricultural
districts were in no flourishing condition at the
beginning of the war. Excessive speculation, that
bane of American trade, bad harvests, and other
causes had combined to load almost all landowners
with heavy mortgages. A sudden turn of the wheel
brought to them this opportune and profitable war.
The produce of the soil was ;eagerly sought for,
there was no fear of lacking customers for pork and
breadstuffs ! The change in the currency was still
more important than the increased demand for com-
modities. The easy terms on which money could
be obtained worke3 wonders for the embarrassed
farmers. Oppressive debts of long standing were
swept off in " greenbacks." No matter as to the
real value of the money tendered, the 'account was
paid in the currency of the realm, and no complaints
could be made. In other ways, too, the effect of
Mr. Chase's system has made itself felt. Ten years
ago there were not 100 miles of railway in all the
State of Illinois—there are now more than 3,000.
Building and planting, scheming and speculating,
are going on on all hands. On every side are the
signs of that busy commercial activity which tells
of a prosperous and thriving State. Still there is
no question but that these energetic and enter-
prising traders are going on, morally and politically,
as they do practically on their cars and steamboats
—going at a degree of high pressure that ensures
rapid progress, but also entails the risk of sudden
collapse and disaster. That the day of reckoning
must certainly come, perhaps at no distant
date, is an indisputable fact, and whether the
war will look equally attractive then, may be more
than questionable. Still it has been justly observed
that, however great or disastrous the crash may be,
the material evidences of prosperity will remain.
The lines of railway and other substantial improve-
ments will be there, whatever party rules at New
York and Washington, whether Union or Seces-
sion be triumphant. At present the motto seems
to be " take no thought for the morrow ;" and it is
no great wonder that, amidst such brisk and
thriving trade, and surrounded by the evidences of
commercial and industrial speculation, the go-a-head
New Englanders from the leading circles of the
West should be fully satisfied with the aspect of the
present. When the bubble bursts there will be, no
doubt, a revulsion of feeling; but, as yet, there is
no hesitation in paying the taxes, which are not,
indeed, rigidly enforced in the West, while Illinois
had contributed 135,000 men to the army up to
last December out of a population of 2,000,000. A
farmer, who was the father of ten sone, dezlared
that he Lad sent seven of them to the war, and such
sacrifices in an agricultural population are not
without their effect. Ili hen once the tide has
turned, however, and in place of a liberal supply of
paper money, always obtainable on easy terms, the
weight and burden of taxation begins to make
itself felt, and the enormous expenses of this ruinous
war are pressed upon the nation, there will be a
new element in the American strife and struggle.
The North-Western States, with all their agrieul•
tural wealth and moat natural resources, will begin
to feel that they have separate and individual
interests, entirely distinct from those of the North.
They will probably refuse to bear their share of the
expenses so rashly and lavishly incurred, although
they have not failed to profit by the tide at its flood.
The dismemberment of the once mighty United
States has becomo only a question of time, and
it is not unlikely that the unwieldy nation
may break into three—the North Western
provinces forming a State by themselves--
which, from size, wealth, position, and resources,
they are very well qualified to do. The centrali-
sation system which is being stretched to such un-
reasonable lengths is manifestly failing more and
more every day. Mr. LINCOLN may dream of abso-
lute sovereignty over South and West, but he had
better make the most of his dreams, since they will
never become reality. The secession of the West
has been talked or thought of—probably from
the prosperity it is now enjoying, and the conse-
quent content of the great body of the people.
England, however, is not the only country in
which the real test of conviction is to make a
demand upon the pocket. The Americans, reck-
less and lavish as they are of their money, re-
garding tremendous commercial panics, which we
upon as unmitigated and exceptional calami-
ties,
as are casual depressions of trade, will yet
be very unwilling to see their new found pros-
perity and importance melt away under the pres-
sure of taxation, and the collapse of liovernment
credit. Should the
Confederates capture Wash-
ington, Mr_ CRASZ'S greenbacks would be some-
thingo like the fairy money
f th
g into thorns and shrivelled
to the consternation 0f
their leeaovldes legends
ednadys:
break,turninr disappointed
possessor,
The owner of a handsome fortune in
these questionable securities may, by one of the
extraordinary fluctuations of War, rise up one
morning and find his greenbacks aro veritable
fairy money. Still by that system of compensation,
which runs through the universe, bringing evil
out of good, and chequering good with evil, the
horrors of this most deplorable strife have not been
altogether without effecting good, Apart from the
larger questions of social, political, and moral in.
fiance, the large sum of papa 'money afloat has