The Sun.
London, England, 1855-05-04 00:00:00

LONDON, FRIDAY, MAY 4, 1855.

To-morrow the " Administrative Reform Asso-
ciation" is to be brought into existence. Th(
public has been already apprised of its objects, an
all reasonable men -must agree that they are, jusi
now, of paramount importance. The Governmew
has been freely blamed, the military authorities
have been censured severely, the House which rt.-

presents, or should represent, the people, is re-
proached for its idleness, its apathy, and its false
courtesy to Ministers. The people should nov‘
take care not to show equal neglect of their owi
interests. An attendance of the right quality and
number to-morrow, at the " London Tavern, al
12 for one," is therefore a duty which Londob
owes both to itself and to the country at large.

We have no doubt that most serious conse-
quences depend on the character of to-morrow'f
meeting. If it be what it ought to be, it wil
modify immediately the counsels of the Cabinet,
will rouse the House of Commons, and will pro-
bably of itself cause many right men to be put
into the right places. From the time when the
League held their meeting at which the great
subscription was raised, the Corn Laws were
doomed. The Minister in office, and the Minis-
ter out of office, immediately began a race for the
Leadership of the movement, which they then
foresaw must prove successful. The commercial
nobility of London have now an opportunity to
do something equally worthy of them. If they
will but stand forward, and pledge the City to
100,000/.2 with ten per cent. paid up, the country
Will everywhere follow them, the Government
will strike to their earnestness, and Honourable
Members will understand the tenure on which
they hold their seats.

Every consideration impresses on us the value
of the opportunity. 'Even the PALMERSTON Cabi-
net and the Horse Guards have just shown that
they are susceptible to pressure. The officers of
the Indian army are now to take rank with the
Imperial army. The silly, and just now most
mischievous, abuse of generations is abolished with
a stroke of the pen. The way is now open for
commanders of recently tried capacity to be placed
at the head of our troops. But it will need almost
a tornado of public opinion to send these men to
the Crimea, and that simply because it will dis-
place some who ought never to have been there.
A meeting of London merchants, which cannot be
laughed at, is just the force needed to compel Go-
vernment to numerous similar modifications of
routine and aristocratic follies and blunders, and
to enforce the practical adoption of them, and not
their mere record on the foolscap pages of Down-
ing-street or of the Horse Guards.
It must be remembered, too that the small
13'1'14 41 the"
do its
duty House of Commons which is ready to
n do it only on the condition of
overpowering
.t popular support. The merchants
of London see
for his out-spoken frankness
LAYARD has met with
uk.zess to their brother mer-
chants in Liverpool.
or two gave tongue to perfectly trivial mistake
a whole
and Colonels, who revelled with (113:1°.k of
• placemen
for
delight In abusing
,Aecellgn to the 'real
Mr. LAYARD on an issue as
question as Sir ROBERT PEEL'S A
assassination was to Mr. ConnEN ant
,B 1. about
i-com
arguments. Mr. COBDEN, however, - 417
-lad the
people and their significant contributions at. hi.,
back, and he beat Sir ROBERT. And iflklr.
ARD have a similar demonstration to support him,
even the joking Premier will turn serious and be
glad to come to terms. Without such support, i
even ;
men raised up by PROVIDENCE for the occa-
s.on. will f
au. HEAVEN itself will not help those
who are
i°:1:11dolent or time-serving to help
the fitting
"If-sacrificing leaders of a good
MUM

We scarcely need mention that the future i s

lark indeed for England unless the propositions
.vhiat this meeting is summoned to endorse ba
weedily reduced to practice. We have never been
,nongst the croakers, but events must have proved
-a all that we have but the alternatives of a dis•
unourable and war-begetting peace, or of imme-
liate administrative reform. It would be cruelty
Lad folly equally to go on with old incompetent
1 generals, surrounded by staffs of equally incom-

potent nephews aid kinsfolk ;—with a commis-
Aariat, a civil service, and to a large extent a
Ministry too, equally inefficient ;—to go on sacri-
icing soldiers by thousands, and money by scores
,f millions, just because our incapables must be
:ept in office. The nation will not do
hat. We must either therefore put our
lead management to rights, or sick back
:upinely into an Austrian peace, and en-
joy the costly pleasure of keeping our useless
Jut costly aristocracy still on our backs. The

dternatives on which this meeting is sum-
uoned to decide are, in fact, costly failure and
Infamy, or, comparatively, cheap victory and
honour. We trust our fellow-citizens will muster
to their duty.

We may just mention that it will bo well th(
meeting should bear in mind, that though the
main question is not one of party politics, yet it
will be difficult to keep clear of political questions
dtogether. The writer of a spirited little pamph-
let, "Red-Tapism ; its Cause"—by One Behind
the Scenes (Ridgway), has pointed out how deeply
our political habits are implicated with the in-
efficiency of the public service. The persons
employed in it are so extensively introduced
for political reasons ; the successive politi-
zal chiefs have so little inducement to use
;heir influence to perfect at a great sacrifice
the service for their successors, and the diffi-
)ulty of dismissal for incompetency is, for
')olitical reasons, so great, that it is next to im-
Jossible our civil service should be what it ought
vhile political power must be bought by means of
it. Then, again, we have not a House of Com-
nons chosen by the voice of the people. County
Members are but the breath of the landlords, and
.he Members for small -towns are much the same.
t. real Reform Bill, with the Ballot, seems an in-
lispensable precursor of a House of Commons
vhich shall compel administrative reform. It
indeed, be singular if the War should cause

..he dropping of a sham Reform Bill, and originate
a real one.

Lord CLARKSTON last night attempted to dis-
Lrm criticism by the candid confession that their
Lordships might not consider the statement he
)ad just made respecting the negotiations at Vienna
•` either satisfactory or conclusive," even in the
imited sense in which he used the latter term,
lamely, as 't" to what had taken place." The
Noble Lord also declared that he was unable to
nform the house "of the course which Austria
ntends to take hereafter, and hoped that on this
articular point a prudent reserve might be main-
ained." In all other respects the explanation has
leen merely a rechauffee of what Lord J. RUSSELL
tad previously announced in the House of Com-
mons ; and that although the Marquis of LANS-
DOWNE had in the early part of the week declared
that it was of infinite importance that the earliest
possible information should be given to the House
and the country respecting the result of the
negotiations. All the information accorded, how-
ever, consists of a repetition of the stereotyped
Ministerial platitudes respecting the propriety of
maintaining " a prudent reserve !" A " prudent
reserve" is also displayed respecting the intelli-
gence from the Crimea, and on every other
point worth knowing ; so that, in fact,
the object of the Government is neither
more nor less than to reduce both Houses of
Parliament into mere cyphers, whose only duties
shall be to register the ukases and give vitality to
the propositions of the PALMERSTON Administra-
tion ! Well might Lord DERBY express his deep
regret at listening to such an unsatisfactory state-
ment from a British Minister—a statement which
left everything " in the same state of uncertainty,
vacillation, and hesitation," which they have re-
mained in from the very commencement of the
Eastern difficulty.
Although no direct or positive information could
I,e collected from the Foreign Secretary, much
'night be inferred from his " prudeL reserve."
It may fairly be assumed that the suspicions pre-
viously entertained of the good faith and honesty
of Austria are but too well founded, and that we
have nothing to hope (or fear, perhaps, is the
more correct phrase) from the active co-operation
)f that doubly-dealing Government. For nearly
two years the Western Powers have been bam-
boozled, and the same game is still attempted. All
the calamities that have occurred may be traced to
its timid or treacherous policy, and should France
and England still suffer themselves to be be-
f )oled, we may, in some three or four years,
heir that we are still " waiting for Austria," still
truckling to Germanism, sacrificing the national
honour and the national interests,•and imperilling
our very existence, in consequence of the defer-
ence due to an EMPEROR to whcm the House of
COBURG is anxious to pay the greatest possible
respect.

When, after the long and useless delay afforded
to the Russian Plenipotentiary, in order that he
might initiate the mode in which the principle of
the Third Point could be carried into practical
operaticn, the propositions of France and Eng-
land, supported by Austria, were peremptorily
and contumeliously rejected—when the sugges-
tions so tardily offered by Prince GORTSCHAKOFF
were found so unacceptable that the details were
not even taken into consideration, and Lord
JOHN RUSSELL and M. DROUYN DE L'HUYS had
departed from Vienna, the conferences were not
broken off, but merely "suspended." This ridi-
culous pretext was clearly tolerated for the
purpose of allowing Austria an excuse for
further procrastination, so that this year might
be wasted as the two last have been.
After going much further than they were justi-
fied in doing to conciliate Russia, Count Buor,
makes the notable discovery that " the means for
obtaining a peace were not wholly exhausted ;"
adding that "it would be the special duty of
Austria to discover some mode of attaining that
end, consistently with the engagements into which
she had entered with the other Powers !" Prince
GORTSCHAKOFF shows his appreciation of the
time that must necessarily be consumed while the
German cEdipus is puzzling his brain on the com-
plicated problem he has undertaken to solve, by
renewing the lease of his Palace at Vienna for a
term of six months more. Now, the very per-
mission to Austria to postpone the performance of
her solemn undertaking for a period so indefinite
assumes that there may be some middle course
more favourable to Russia that would be accept-
able to the Western Powers ! The CZAR will
clearly not accept that which he has already per-
emptorily rejected. He will not submit to ary
diminution of his power in the Euxine—when he
has refused to allow the perfect neutrality of that
sea, or to limit his naval force therein with-
in any specified dimensions. How, then,
can a safe or honourable peace be con-
clude -1? How can we insure the independence
of Ow Ottoman Empire ur the permanent tran-
quillity of Europe? It would require a " forty
marine power of credulity" to suppose that it
were 13(*Llible to do so. Our Ministers cannot be
3.f0 t plrVilad, 83 grossly ignorant, of the real state
I:airs as to credit the practicability of such a
Peace eve,' for a single moment. They must then
be conn • '
'vi.n,, at the fast-and-loose policy of Aus-
tria.
yieldirT,ris:ll4l,llel:ust under some sinister influence be
would they requPireeak
willingly to the deception,
es
else Iv 0111c1 the y
boldly and decisively ; else
faithft d pert ornaar" off his FRANCIS JOSEPH the
the &an e time, a veiy obligations, giving, at
intelligible hint as to the
certain c onsequencal of further procrastination on
his part $ ; else would they address him in the