The Sun.
London, England, 1864-12-08 00:00:00

the sight of the Durbar must have convinced them
of the extent of our power and resources. Sir
JOHN LAWRENCE showed his usual good sense in
surrounding himself with all the pomp and circum-
stance of State on that occasion ; he knew how
such display would influence the native mind; and,
however uncongenial to his natural disposition, he
felt it was only befitting his rank as representative
of Queen VICTORIA, and his power as Governor of
her vast Indian possessions. So on his return
journey he acted on the same principle. While in
motion he travelled with all the rapidity of modern
civilisation, but when he halted he surrounded him-
self with the magnificence of Eastern royalty. At
Benares he paused to invest one of the native princes
with the Star of India, expressing at the same time
his sense of the Rsjell'e consistent loyalty. This
is a wise measure, and proves to the natives that
Englishmen are no longer anxious to keep them
aloof. The Viceroy has now reached Calcutta,
and met his Council, who will have some
work to do in repairing the damage inflicted by
the late cyclone. We are glad to find that the
Government of Bengal has already taken steps to
avoid the recurrence of so terrible a catastrophe as
then occurred among the shipping. A committee
is to be appointed to inquire into the state of the
moorings in the port of Calcutta ; and it is be-
lieved that the screw pile system of mooring ships
will be introduced. It is very certain that a
thorough change is necessary in the arrangements
of a port which is at the best of times liable to be
visited by hurricanes and cyclones of a violent na-
ture,if less overwhelming than the last. It is notice.
able that the greater part of the vessels that broke
away did not break from their moorings, but car.
ried their moorings with them, a sure sign that a
change is needed. We learn from Brigmarish that
a violent storm has visited the Coromandel coast,
destroying all the telegraphs, including the span
across the Kietua, and converting Masulipatoun
into a rain by an inundation. The rumour is that
thousands of lives have been lost, but it is to be
hoped, as the accounts are very vague, that they
have been greatly exaggerated. It is evident,
however, that the storms on both sides of the
Indian coast have been of exceptional severity, and
the weather of an unusual character. Sir H. ROSE
has started for Nepaul, where he expects to sound
the native feeling with respect to the Bhooteas
and their conduct. The British Indian force
which is now •n route for Bhootan is to be divided
into four columns, which propose to cut off
all communication between Bhootan Proper
and the outer world. The country is extremely
barren and rocky, altogether dependent on the out-
lying provinces for the necessaries of life, so that it
is expected when they are thus besieged in their
hilly fortress, the arrogance of the Bhooteas will
speedily diminish. In other quarters of India,
however, there are sounds of war and commotion
with which we have happily nothing to do. The
chiefs and khans of Western Affghanistan have
been so incensed by the treatment which UFZUL
or AFZUL KHAN has received at the hands of his
brother, the Ameer, that they have called upon the
latter to release UFZUL and to recall AZRIN, who has
fled the country, and to restore to them their share
of the paternal property, threatening, that if the
Ameer refused compliance, they would invade
Cabul. Whether the Ameer will heed this warn-
ing remains to be seen. If he relents it will be from
mere motives of policy, since he has proved that
he has not forgiven his brothers their assault upon
his throne. The news from Cabot, also, brings us
intelligence of the battle which took place between
the Russians and the Kokanees at Huzrut, Suoltan.
There was a severe fight, but the Russians were
victorious and took possession of the fort, a fact
which is direfully important as showirg the in-
sidious encroachments of that Power in Asia.
England had need to keep a close watch
over her possessions, since Russian emis•
saries and Thissian agents are quite capable
of fostering another mutiny, and would not
scruple to alienate the people from their British
rulers, by painting in glowing colours the blessings
of the paternal government of the CZAR. We are
glad to see that railway and telegraph lines are
being busily pushed forward, since such means of
communication are invaluable in times of danger
and uncertainty, and the more active correspon-
dence is kept up between the different parts of the
Empire, the more correct and enlarged will be the
views taken at the seat of Government and trans-
mitted to this country. Ignorance and indifference
have been the root of half our troubles in India ;
they have impeded the progress of Christianity and
civilisation, and have placed unnecessary obstacles
of opinion and feeling between us and the natives.
It is but very lately that Englishmen have awoke
to a sense of their responsibilities towards the
densely-populated Empire over which they rule,
while even now they aro more than half insensible
to its immense commercial value to them were its
capacities properly developed. Unfortunately, the
system pursued at our India-office disgusts able and
energetic men with the public service, and throws
part of the responsible posts into the hands of idle
and indifferent men, or men of mere routine. A
man of intellect and spirit resents the treatment
which he too often meets with, and murmurs
loud and deep are now resounding through more
than ono branch of the Anglo Indian service,
both civil and military. This is not the way to
ensure our supremacy or to fulfil our duties. Every
inducement should be held out to those beat fitted
by capacity and character to benefit the country to
retain their posts. There are already enough hin-
drances in the way in the exile and the danger to
health—a danger which we are grieved to see is
now depriving us of two valuable public servants,
Sir HERBERT EDWARDES and Sir C. TREVELYAN.
We may hope, with the advance of knowledge, and
the enforcement of sanitary laws, that Anglo.lndian
life may lose some of its risks; but at any rate it is
undesirable in the best of climates to disgust men
with their profession if we want the work' well
done. Under these circumstances Sir C. WOOD had
better look to his laurels; for we trust, when Par.
liamcnt meets, he will have to bear a sharp scrutiny
on some points of his recent administration of Indian
affairs.

The speech of M. VON KAISERFELD in the lower
Chamber of the Reichsrath is doubly welcome, both
as being of intrinsic merit, and as being also most
applicable to the exigencies of the case before him.
It is a welcome and refreshing sight to see a man so
decided in his tone and spirited in his style in a
place and under circumstances which might well
have conduced to far different utterances, or at least
to silence. Nothing is more praiseworthy than to
exhibit a bold demeanour in the face of tyranny
and oppression, and the address before us breathes
the very spirit of defiance to the encroachments that
are daily gaining ground among the Austrians, and
gradually but surely subverting the better prin-
ciples that are promised to revive and restore the
constitution. Indeed, the discourse reads more
like a speech in the House of Commons, and
reminds us of the strong and spirited harangues
of the French Depaties rather than those of the
solid Germans. Every sentence we meet with
rings out with a clear sound that speaks straight
to the convictions, and carries the thoughts al-
ways to the desired end, When we find in a