The Sun.
London, England, 1864-10-25 00:00:00

4 , 4;
,
1.6en4 41t114,0
- •

LONDON, IUESDAY, OUT. 25, 1564.

Mr. BERNAL OSBORNE'S SpcCehee are always
worth listening to. We all remember the " wild
shriek of liberty" which he gave on being eman-
cipated from the thraldom of office. Surely, the
wrong man in the wrong place was never better
exemplified than in Mr. OSBORNE, when circum-
scribed by the red-tapism of the Ministerial routine
and compelled either to speak to order or to hold
bis tongue. The chief merit of his speeches con-
sists in their recklessness, their daring, dashing
style and spirit ; and all these advantages are
thrown away and lost when he cannot addresa an
Audience as the spirit moves him. At Liskeard,
the other day, ho was in:his glory, and the flow of
his eloquence seemed to be unrestrained and unre-
stricted. It was very unnecessary for him to give
an assurance that he would not Rhirk disagreeable
Enbjects, for he appears to delight in choosing the
most ungainly and ungracious themes that he can
find, and then speaking of them in a jeering or
(LAI int fashion. In the first placP, the non. mem-
ber began by ridiculing Mr. GLADSTONE, who had
not, he said, given a very clear definition of what.
U 1,3 CLvernment ought to de, 'lbis is true enough,
certainly, as also that the right hon. gentleman
was put forward as the " pilot balloon" for the
approaching general election. Mr. OSBORNE aptly
compared the dawn of last session to the atm°.
spheric state d!scribed by Admiral FITZROY as
s 4 very dangerous winds from very opposite guar-
:ers.' 110 was much eg%inst the notion of
making foreign policy 80 dominant that do-
mPstic policy becomes unLecded and parsed
bv. Some are in favour of this, it is
certain, and the taunt WAS riot groundless
which was contained in these words. " Many per-
sons console themselves by the rahetion that we
have lectured Germany, bombarded Japan, defied

the Ashantees, and bullied the Brazils!" There was
a touch of Mr. OSBORNE'S sharp observation in his
strictures, as to the manner in which the Govern-
ment uses the name of the EMPEROR of the French
eo as to suit their turn, and achieve the particular
objects which they have in view at the time being.
All this is very unnecessary, says the hon. mem-
ber for Liskeard, because the French Ruler has not
been brought up like other Sovereigns, and has
profited by past experience to learn the character
and temper of the English nation. It does seem
foolish that we should persist in changing all laws
and customs, in some way or other, on account of
this EMPEROR who knows our ways so well, and
has long sojourned on our shores. At one time the
laws of the land are to be altered to afford him pro-
tection from assasination, and at another we are
to be subjected to immense burdens to build forti-
fications to be protected from him. Such things
are, indeed, anomalies, and require looking into to
test their accuracy and reveal their inconsistency.
As for Poland, Mr. OSBORNE does not mince mat-
ters, he considers that the Government did very
wrong in raising hopes that could not be realised;
and designates their conduct in these matters as
" foolish, unmeaning, and criminal swagger." In
the case of America, however, he believes the
Ministery have done very right. He takes a
strange view of the question, however, for he be-
lieves that if the South succeed in being separated
from the North, the " greatness of America is set
for ever." Why this should be does not exactly
appear, nor how it will better the aspect of affairs
if the struggle goes on until, as he puts it,
the North " eventually make a solitude, and call
it peace." "Schleswig Holstein" Mr. OSBORNE
truly designates as a puzzling question, " a ques-
tion which bothers people's intellects and sets the
world astray." In the mazes of this labyrinth the
hon. member hes lost himself completely, and
therefore the less he says about it the better, but
of course such an opportunity must not be lost for
making a display. Mr OSBORNE seems to wish to
exemplify that the perusal of the papers on the
question had, as he said, almost made a " lunatic
of him" when he thus .discourses "It should be
understood that greater tyranny never existed
than that to which the Germans were subjected to
by the Danes, who filled their public offices with
Danish people, and even prevented the German
language from being spoken." These ill-used
people have only to wait till a few brief sands have
run to find out that they have exchanged a King
LOG for a King STORK. Mr. OSBORNE started
some of his audience by averring that if the
Pagan philosopher DIOGENES appeared in the
House of Commons to seek for a Tory party,
he might possibly succeed in discovering three
Tories, and these would be Mr. NEWDEGATE, Mr.
BENTINCK, and Lord PALMERSTON ! Although an
opinion is prevalent that Tory is a " horned,
winged, and tailed animal." Mr. OSBORNE does
not see why he should not be popular. Surely
plainer speaking could not be heard than we meet
with in this bold and comprehensive disquisition
on public affairs. " I hesitate not to :declare that
the Liberal party has not a flag or a leader, and
that we are in the Slough of Despond," says the
cynical but humorous speaker, and chafe as they
may at the definition it will take a clever man to
prove the contrary of what is here so strik-
ingly put forward. An illustration of his
party is given by Mr. OSBORNE in an
ornithological anecdote. An old lady once bought
a parrot, which was famous for saying " The bill,
the whole bill, and nothing but the bill. When
purchased, however, its loquacity gave place to
taciturnity, and she justly complained to the seller.
He replied, on hearing that it would not speak,
Oh no, but it's a devil to think." So Mr OSBORNE
thinks that the Liberal party are like to this par-
rot : they talked fast enough about the sins of their
adversaries when in opposition, but in office they
are dumb as to the nature of their own perform-
ances; " Well, we got in, and we're devils to think."
No bad account this of the artful dodges and low
devices by which the present occupants of the
Treasury Benches came to their places, and of the
manner in which they have comported themselves
since they have been in. In fact, this oration is
replete with anecdotical illustration, and with fees
quent repartee and reprisal. There is no doubt
we are told that Lord PALMERSTON is a tenant for
life where he is, and a covenant would seem to
be in the lease " without improvements." Mr. Os-
BORNE has always been particularly happy in his
exemplifications of striking points in public affairs
or distinguishing traits in individual characters.
When the present Premier was Foreign Secretary
he convulsed the House by describing him as " the
sweet little cherub who sits up aloft to keep watch
o'er the fate of poor hex," and the years that have
since passed do not appear to have detracted from
the pungency of his sarcasm- or the force of his
satire. In connection with his subject he quoted
from an Ode by a famous Whig squibber of last
century referring to an ancestor of the present Pre-
mier. It certainly is exceedingly appropriate and
may well pass for having been intended for the
present epoch in lieu of the past one. It runs
thus :

One, stanza more, and I have done—
May heaven preserve Lord PALMERSTON
And since for life he's in,
Wo must liko other sinners stay
Till death, or his, our sins shall pay
lho wages of our sin.
We understand that great laughter greeted this
quotation, which put a finishing touch to the many
witticisms and sharpshootings of the evening, and
enabled the hon. member to come off in flying
colours. In treating of this speech it must be said,
however, that Mr OSBORNE finds it easier to show
up other people's faults than to declare what should
or should not be done in particular cases. A dis-
course like this is all very well occasionally. It
lights up the dark vista of the political horizon, and
lends life and animation to what sometimes appears
a stagnant scene and dreary waste. Alen are put
on their mettle when they know such skilful lim-
ners are on the watch to detect their deficiencies and
comment upon their discrepancies of word and
action, and—

A chiel's among ye !akin' notes,
An' faith he'll prent thorn,
may be supposed to infuse terror into the hearers.
And let no false or faulty member of the Legisla-
ture flatter himself that he will escape the sting of
censure, or the complete exposure with which the
hon. member for Liskeard continues to visit political
delinquents. Certainly ho holds no very flattering
mirror up to observation, but his speech is sure to
be welcome everywhere, for nothing is so univer-
sally popular as a smart resume of events drawn
with the skid of a scientific observer, and filled in
with the touch of a masterhand. There is nothing
ever so dull to which Mr OSBORNE cannot impart
vivacity, nor anything so tame to which he cannot
infuse animation by the magic of his fancy and the
tone of his illustrations.

It was a very long time before those interested in
the welfare of the masses could conquer the preju-
dice which existed in many quarters against their
receiving any degree of education. It was argued
that a little learning was a dangerous thing, and
that the aequipition of any amount of knowledge
would make them turbulent and disaffected, covet-

one of the position and the wealth of their superiors,
discontented with their own lot in life, and rebellious
against the laws under which they live. For many
years the holders of these withstood the course of
national education, and even now many sensible
and well intentioned persons of the old school may
be proud to cherish them. Such persons are prompt
to attribute any popular outbreak, any evidence of
ill feeling or discontent on the part of the lower
classes to the influence of education, and it is vain
to argue that a proper degree of mental and moral
training has precisely the opposite effect. These
logicians have just now found an opportunity for
indulging in their favourite theories, and the strike
among the colliers in South Staffordshire has been
cited as a convincing example of the bad effect of
education on the working classes. To sueh an extent
has this argument been used, that it has been
asserted that many of the large employers of labour
in that district have recently withdrawn their sub•
scriptions for educational purposes, on the ground
that the instruction they received only increased
the readiness of the men to " strikes, It is not
surprising that this statement should have called
forth the well-known writer "S. G. 0." to do battle
on behalf of reason and knowledge. In a lengthened
communication to a contemporary he examines in
detail into the charges brought against the diffusion
of knowledge, and answers them very fully and
comprehensively. He has, of course, one powerful
and conclusive argument on his side—an argument
drawn from uncontrovertible facts. He refers to
the exemplary conduct of the population of the
cotton districts during a period of severe and pro-
tracted trial, and justly terms it " a great educa-
tional triumph." Had these hundreds of thousands
of ruined men and women been, he says, such as he
can remember them the state of things would have
been very different. There could scarcely be a
stronger argument in favour of the beneficial effect
of educating the masses, for the intensity of the
distress, the length of time which it lasted, and the
extreme uncertainty and gloominess of the future
during its darkest days, were sufficient to try the
philosophy of the boldest and the most patient. It
may be argued that a wise and kindly care was
shown in providing for the wants of the people,
and that contributions for their relief flowed in
with unprecedented liberality, but at the best the
sums distributed only amounted to two or three
shillings per head a week, and only supplied the
barest necessaries. Would uneducated, untaught
men have been contented to live thus throughout
the long dark days of a cold winter with little hope
for better times in the spring, and to live thus,
knowing that those near them were living in
wealth and plenty, without lifting a finger to seize
on what was not their own ? A century ago we
should have had bread riots, coal riots,Chartist out-
breaks on very much slighter cause; and the mar.
vellous tranquillity of the suffering districts has
testified as much to the cultivated intelligence of
the English workmen as to the force and fortitude
of the national character. And in truth the upper
and middle classes have but little to complain of on
the whole. The latter are generally more prone
to censure working men than those above them,
perhaps from being brought into more constant
and immediate contact. They see their failings,
and too hastily overlook the causes which lead to
them. They are indignant at the obstinacy, folly,
and improvidence often shown by the labouringclsss,
at• their blindness to their own interest even when
they are most bent on carrying it out in defiance of
their masters. The employers expect to find in the
mechanic or artisan a degree of prudence, modera-
tion, and foresight, not common among his own
class, and, because he is often disappointed in the
search, he sets all failings down to the excess of
education. Perhaps, too, it is not only what he
does not find but what ho does find that displeases
him, His workmen are too quick to detect in-
justice, too prompt to resist oppression to please him,
end he impatiently E xcldims that too much learn-
ing has made them meddlesome and discontented.
But a very little reflection might convince him of
the fallacy of such reasoning. Men require very
little teaching to fini out their own interests, and
the degree of acuteness and intelligence absolutely
indispensable to an English workman of the present
day would be quite sufficient to enable him to detect
any injustice towards himself without additional
training. The experience of all history proves that
the lower classes have been quick to discover and
to resent oppression, however low their standard of
intelligence. The lower ranks of the French pea-
santry were certainly not very highly educated in
the days before the Great Revolution, but that did
not prevent them from chafing under the oppressive
gabelle. In every age and country where the
people have been strong enough to show their
power, they have proved that they knew their rights
if they did not know how to exercise them. But
education has taught them also the rights of pro•
perty ; it has restrained the wild excesses into which
undisciplined strength is so apt to run ; it has given
the masses that self-respect which makes them
unwilling to degrade themselves, that intelligence
which accepts the laws as their protection as well
as that of their superiors. It is not over a body of
trained and thinking men that mob-orators and
demagogues exercise their fatal ensnaring influence;

it is not such men who are led by a word to deeds
of violence and bloodshed. Our educated artisans
and mechanics are dissatisfied with their wages and
refuse to labour ; but a hundred years ago, if 20,000
men had been incensed against their employers,
would this have been their only means of
revenge ? It is not less education we want, but
more, to render our working men amenable
to reason. " Education," said Lord BROUGHAM, in
a memorable passage, " makes men easy to lead but
difficult to drive, easy to govern but impossible to
enslave." If we aro to have unreasoning, unthink-
ing masses, we must have a corresponding force to
meet them ; we can no longer rely on that moral
power which made a disinterested gentleman able
to convince a Staffordshire mob the other day of
truths most unpleasant to them. It was education
that so enabled them to appreciate the unwelcome
facts which he laid before them as to the state of
trade that the Rtbston colliers resolved to resume
work ; it was not education that made their discons
tented fellows threaten them with ill usage if they
continued it. If the masters suppose that total
ignorance will prevent the men from speculating as
to the fluctuations of wages they are very much
mistaken. It needs little knowledge to enable them
to detect that the employers are much quicker to
find a plea for lowering wages than for raising
them; and with the sense of unfairness once
excited, rightly or wrongly, the struggle begins.

It is the masters' place to fiT the rate
of payment which he can afford to give, lea Ting
a fair profit on his trade, but the workmen
has surely a right to put a value on the labour
which is his capital, and in the very fact of com-
binations and trades-unions, there is a certain
guarantee for a fair claim. But as the progress
of knowledge and experience has taught em-
ployers to rely on time and expostulation to bring
men to reason rather than to attempt coercion
by legal penalties, so it has taught and is teach.
ing men to oppose their employers by vis inert( v,

rather than by active force. If they are slower
to learn the leston; if the dangeroue tendency to

settle all disputes by brute strength still blievi's