The Sun.
London, England, 1864-04-04 00:00:00

The Theory of the Dagger,

Sir Francis Head presents his compliments to
the Editor of The Sun, and requests he will be
pleased to permit the insertion, in his columns, of
the following letter:—
To JAMES STANSFELD, ESQ., M.P.

Sir,—ln a pamphlet entitled "On the Theory of
the Dagger," published in London by M. Mazzini,
he—after pointing out to the regicides of Europe,
"The dagger you can shape from your workmen's
files"—bestowed upon all instruments of that de-
scription, and upon the uses thereof, the following
benediction :

"From the dagger of the Vespers to the stone of Belilla
and the knife of Palafox, blessed be in your hands every
weapon that can destroy the enemy, and set you free
. Sacred was the dagger which Harmodius enriched
with roses. Sacred was the dagger of Brutus. Sacred the
stiletto of the Sicilian who began the Vespers."
In a letter published by the same writer demon-
strating the practical use of the dagger, he de-
lineated the following scene between himself and a
young man, Antonio Gallenge, introduced to him
as " one who was bent upon doing a lofty deed"
(the assassination of Charles Albert, King of Sardi-
nia, and whom he, therefore, not only considered
bat (without shame or repugnance) described as one
of those beings whom
"Providence from time to time lets loose upon earth, to
teach despots that the limit of their power rests in the hand
of one single man."

On proceeding to business, " I asked him," pub-
lishes il2, Mazzini, " what he required of me."
Gallenga replied, " A passport and a little money."
" I gave him a thousand francs." Subsequently,
on the day of the intended assassination being noti-
fied to Mezzini, and on his being asked, in addition
to the blood•money, to supply the weapon to effect
it, he described the interior of his studio as fol-
lows :

" A poniard with a lapis lazuli handle, a gift which I
cherished much, was on the table. I pointed to that.
Sciandra took it and went away."

Finally, in the limes of the 14th of January last
this loathsome murderer, as if to bestow upon the
world the last finishing touch to his self-executed
and self-admired horrid photograph (which at least
in this instance may truly be designated " justice
without mercy"), described his accomplice Greco,
the intended assassin of our generous ally the
Emperor of the French, as "an enthusiastic
patriot."
Now, sir, after having had the opportunity, first,
of reflecting on the published opinions, or rather
confessions, of Joseph Mezzini, and secondly, of
associating and confidentially conversing with him
thereupon for nearly 18 years (during a eonsi.
derable portion of which be actually lived under
your roof), you not only, in private life, openly
and deliberately commemorated your admiration
of his principles and practice by imposing upon
your only child the name of a man designated by
your own colleague, E trl Russell, " the assassin
Mazzini," but en becoming one of the lords of her
Majesty's Admiralty you consented secretly to
assist him and his accomplices, not by furnishing
the poniard which (as you well know) he was ever
eager to supply, but by giving to these miscreants
the cloak and dark-lanthorn use of your house for
the ill-famed purpose of circulating letters addressed
—as you have boasted as well confessed—to false
names.

At the trial of Greco, 'on the Procureur-General
of France, with calm dignity, stating—without a
single word of offence, or even of complaint—that,
upon referring to the London Directory, to ascer.
tain the owner of the house, 35, Thurloe•square,
from which the hired assassin of his Sovereign was
to obtain money—
d, It is not without sadness that I recognise the name of
a member of Parliament of England, who already had been,
in 1837, appointed to be the banker of the Tibaldi conspi-
racy against the Emperor's life."
Instead of instantly standing up (as you were
sagely advised to do by the 7itnes),
"To disentangle your name, and the name of the coun-
try, the House of Commons, and the Government from the
odious connection into which they had unfortunately been
brought,"
you not only rose to magnify the name and laud
the principles of Mazzini ; but, sad to say, another
member of her Majesty's Government deemed it
advisable to declare—
" That the most prompt and dignified way of vindicating
the honour of the country was to treat the accusation of the
Procureur-General with the contempt it deserved l''.
" Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,"
the House of Commons, in a moment of political
delirium, irrationally negatived the inoffensive, self-
evident,
and, to the French
people, conciliating
affirmation—
" That the statement of the Procureur-General on the
trial of Greco, implicating a member of that house, and of
her Majesty's Government, in the plot for the assassination
of our ally the Emperor of the French, deserves the serious
consideration of the house."
In its admire.b!e comments on this lamentable and
most extraordinary negation, which, logically, is
almost tantamount to a vote of confidence in

Mazzini,
We are really unable," wrote the Times, "to under-
stand the obliquity of natural feeling which still restrains
Mr. Stansfeld from expressing his deepest regret to the
House of Commons, the Government, and the country, for
having given occasion to their being placed in such an un-
pleasant position in the eyes of the French people ; and to
the Emperor of the French for having made it possible that
anything connected with him could be turned to such an
infamous purpose. We regret very much that the Govern-
ment, in their determination to defend a colleague, have not

taken a more generous view of their relation to the Emperor
of the French in the matter."

In the story book of the sayings and doings of
the Anglo-Saxon race, the few facts which almost
without comment I have just recited will always be
a painful chapter to read.
England has had dark pages enough in her

//
domestic history cruelties and follies n .
answer for. But inAll bar annals, from -
ning of what _ ...rye to be called
course with foreign nations, from the days,
foreign policy and a national character to snip*, s
she has never been so degraded and disgraced, in
the opinion of all civilised nations, as at this moment
she is, by the steps by which as a titled member of
her Majesty's Government, you have, to say the
least, so imprudently involved your colleagues in ,
general—the Queen's Admiralty in particular, and
the House of Commons, the guardian and defender
of the honour of the nation—in an apparent com-
plioity with the detestable principles and practice
of "The assassin Mazzini."
Totally unconnected with any political party in
England, but mourning river the tragedy of errors
you have created, I have the honour to be, sir, your
obedient servant, F. B. HEAD.
Croydon, April, 1861.

The following letter has been addressed to our
chief contemporary :

Sir,—Not for my sake, but for Mr. Stansfeld's sake and
in indignation at his name being dragged in again by the
French Advocate-G eneral in his speech of March 31, quoted
in your columns, I feel bound to trespass with a few lines
on your space, and to once more declare that never was any
money handed over or sent by me to Mr. Stansfeld for the
purpose of helping Greco, Tibaldi, Donati, or any other
in an
the attemptslightest ag
n against
e the
with Emperor's life ; that never had
he Greco, Tibaldi, Donati. or any
eaei nt
other known to me, implicating him possibly, directly, or
indirectly, to my knowledge, in any political schemes of
theirs.

No new fact is alleged in the speech concerning the
Greco affair.

Concerning Donati, I remember that an Italian of that
name was arrested on suspicion in Paris towards the end
of 1858 ; that he was harassed as usual by questions
about me ; that he persistently denied my having any
share in any scheme of his own; that he was, during
the inquiry, found dead in the prison ; whick mys-
terious fact the Avocet-Gineral astoundingly declares
a sad guarantee for the sincerity of his revelations.
No trial took place, no revelations were ever produced, not
a shadow of evidence against him or others ever appeared.
The things were merely known through vague reports
scattered in correspondences.
Concerning Tibaldi, the existence of a Tibaldi fund I
have already in a former letter distinctly denied. The
alleged documents are unknown to me. The quotations in
the speech, at all events, mean nothing ; they would not, if
genuine, in the slightest way implicate Mr. Stansfeld in a
supposed knowledge of that hypothetical plot or fund. The
first simply shows that 1 have friends whom calumny does
not estrange. If the second—" I have received the money,
and James will, of course, carry out your instructions"—
could ever be construed ,into a proof of an assassination
scheme, or of a knowledge of it, I should not know what to
pity most, human wickedness or human credulity.
Mr. Stansfeld has been to me a friend of 18 years' stand-
int

lg. He has been deeply and earnestly sympathising with
all my, Utopian once, now almost fulfilled, aspirations to-
wards Italian unity and independence. He has been, in
honesty and morality, helping, before his official capacity
traced out for him a new line of duties, the fulfilment of
those aspirations. Ha has often, at my request, contri-
buted his own share of money to subscriptions for poor
Italian exiles. He has sometimes paid, at my request,
money of mine for similar purposes, when I have been away
from England. He has tried to find employment for men
in need, whom I was recommending to him as to other
English friends. All that is known, avowed, honourable.
I have been using, accordingly, in the past his name and
address. Italians knew them, and were coming to him, in
my absence, for relief or advice. What of all this ? Where
is the slightest link between the affirmations of the Avo-
cat-General and the aim denounced ? Where the slightest
indication bearing on Mr. Stansfeld's connexion with or
knowledge of any unlawful designs ?
That I am carelessly and unconscientiously made a target
for the practising of the moral dagger men is no wonder to
me. I belong, and am rather proud of it, to a class of men
who must be persecuted by any despotic, conservative, or
French Imperialist party, in England or elsewhere, until
success crowns their efforts and wins applause. But if men
of Mr. Stansfeld's cast, avocations, and tendencies are, on
the faith of garbled foreign police reports and claptrap
melodramatic speeches of despotic Avocats-Gereraux, to
meet with the same treatment in the country which they
usefully serve, then there is an end of British lucid sense
and fair-play habits. A French Statesman once said,—.
"Give me any ten words in any man's handwriting; I
shall manage to have him hung." You had better write
those words on the threshold of your house, only stating
that they include the man's friends as well --I am, sir,
yours faithfully,
April 2.

JOSEPH MAZZINI.

Naval and Vilitary Intelligence

THE NAVY.

The Bulldog, 6, paddle sloop, of 1,121 tons and 500 horse
power, Capt. Charles Wake, sailed from Spithead on Sa-
turday for the West Indies.

The Dasher, 2, paddle, Commander Philip de Saumarez,
arrived at Portsmouth on Saturday from her station at the
Channel Island?.

The Geyser, 6, paddle, Commander Arthur T. Thrupp,
sailed from Spithead on Saturday for the westward.
The iron ship Hector, 34, Capt. George W. Preedy, left
Plymouth on Saturday to join the Channel Squadron at
Portland.

The screw steam gun vessel Ranger, 5, Commander W.
E. Gordon, left Plymouth on Saturday for the West Coast
of Africa.

The iron paddlewheel steamvessel Jackal, 4, Lieut. and
Commander Hugh Mc. N. Dyer, was appointed to leave
Plymouth yesterday for the coast of Scotland to protect the
fishery interest.
The iron troopship Adventure, Capt. Charles L. Waddi-
love, from Portsmouth, is expected at Plymouth to-day or
to-morrow to embark detachments for China.
The iron screw steamer Gazelle has been ordered to be
surveyed by the dockyard authorities at Chatham, pre-
viously to being purchased by the Admiralty to supply the
place of the Adder, paddlewheel steamer.
Rear Admiral Frederick's 7-inch gun has been received
and mounted for practice on board the gunnery ship Ex.
cellent at Portsmouth. It is anticipated that data having
a very important bearing upon the future arming of the
navy will be obtained in the competitive trials which will be
carried out between this gun and the 9 22 inch smooth-bore
(coil-built 100-pounder), their projectiles approximating in
weight.
The Lords of the Admiralty have given directions for
Gisborn's electric engine-room telegraph to be fitted on
board the iron frigate Achilles, at Chatham, the report of
the working of the apparatus on board the Royal Oak, in
which vessel it was fitted, having been exceedingly satisfac-
tory. The inventor is also to fix a mechanical telegraph
from the engine-room platform to each of the stoke-holes.

The operation of slotting and boring the armour-plates
which are destined to form the exterior portion of the Lord
Warden target, about to be tested at Shoeburyness, was
completed in the factory at Chatham Dockyard on Saturday,
and in a few days the plates will be fixed in their place, and
the target ready to be despatched to Shoeburyness. The
framing of the target has been constructed on a new prin-
ciple, and, should the experiments bear out the theory of its
designers as to its strength and shot-resisting poWsr, the
Lord Warden, now under construction at Chatham Dock-
yard, will be built on exactly the tame principle. In the
targets previously built the iron slabs have been simply
bolted to so many inches' thickness of teak timber, which
it is obvious would offer little resistance to the passage of
either the shot er shell after it had succeeded in penetrating
the outer plates. Acting on the now understood fact that
a slight thickness of iron inserted in the centre of the teak
backing will almost effectually bar the passage of shot, the
Lord Warden target has iron-plating liin, in thickness,
placed in the centre of the target, and on this is laid the
Sin, of teak timber to which the armour-plates are bolted.
The total thickness of iron and teak forming the target is
2ft. llin. The plates which form the exterior of the target
are two of those sent in by Messrs. Brown and Co., of the
Atlas Works, Sheffield, who are under contract to supply
the whole of those required for the Lord Warden. They
are of the best rolled iron, 30ft. in length by 4f. 6in. in
breadth, and each weighs between 7 and eight tons. As
soon as completed the target will be taken to pieces and
shipped for Shoeburyness,
where it will be re-erected by a
number of mechanics to be sent from the dockyard.
The following naval engineer officers passed their exami•
nations before the Rev. Dr. Woolley, Her Majesty's
Inspector of Schools, on the occasion of his recent official
visit to Portsmouth Dockyard, and have received second-
class certificates in accordance with the regulations laid
down in the Admiralty Circular No. 60, dated Oct. 12, 1863
—George Wynhall, engineer—J. H. H. Smale, acting chief
engineer— John Murdoch, 2d class assist engineer, and E.
E. Lewis, acting do.
The following appointments were made on Saturday at
the Admiralty :—Commander T. C. Bruce, to the Formid-
able, additional for packet service at Dover, vice Triscett,
whose period of service has expired—J. W. Reed, master,
additional to the Fisgard—Dr W. L. Gorden, surgeon, ad-
ditional to the Victory—F. Hyndman,
additional to the Formidable--and J. Prebble, assist pay-
master, to the 'lector. assist paymaster,

THE ARMY.
The 31 (Buffs) regiment of infantry will, it is reported,
shortly be transferred from Aldershot to Portsmouth, pro-
bably on the removal from the garrison of the 53d (Shrop,
shire) regiment.
The military invalids who arrived at Spitheld in the Nile
Indiaman from Calcutta on Friday last, as reported in Me
Sunof Saturday, were on Saturday disembarked under the
at
superintendence of Col. L. Shadwell, Deputy Quartermaster
Loyal
GeneralN ,oi
of
ttohr a Southwest Military
Hospital District,
Netley by a and conveyed to the
Govern-
ment steam tender. The Nile sailed immediately after•
wards for the Thames.

LONDON, MONDAY, APRIL 4, 1864.

Upon this day pre-arranged before the holidays
for the resumption of the business of the session
by Parliament it will certainly be allowed that
there is no lack of interesting and, some of it,
very important intelligence.
From the seat of war in North America the Aus-
tralian brings as tidings that General LEE has
broken up his encampment on the Rapidan, and
that he is said to be moving on the Shenandoah
Valley with a view apparently to an early attack on
the army of the Potomac.
From the seat of war in the north of Europe
comes, via Hamburg, the intimation that the Austro-
Prussian troops, in lieu of continuing their direct as-
sault upon Duppel, new propose turning the Danish
position there, or at any rate attempting to turn it,
by crossing over to the island of Alsen by means of
Austrian pontoons, everything already, it is said,
being fully prepared for that same formidable move-
ment.

From Paris we learn simultaneously, in re The
Conference, that—according to M. PAUL LIMAYRAC
speaking through the columns of the Coneitutionnel,
and seemingly with an air of confidence so impres•
sive as to indicate the announcement as having been,
If not directly authorised by the imperial Govern-
rent, at the very least what is called by oar neigh-
bours" semi-officially inspired"—we learn thus from
the Fretch capital, in re The Conference, that the
Government of his MAJESTY seriously proposes to
suggest at the
council-board of Europe the solu-
tion of the Danish Problem by an appeal to Universal
Sir:ll"P in the disputed llachies,to wit in Schleswig
and in holstein An announcement so strange of its
kind that the mere fact of its publication in the Con-
stinttionnel appears of itself to have caused—and no
v,o,dz,r—a sensation among the Parisians.
Simultaneously with these remarkable fragments
of information coming to us from such wholly diffe-
pass, there are others drop-
rent points of the cora
us at the name moment from other
ping in upon
directions altogether; fragments of intelligence there
last only second
in importance to those already
enumerated. A few of the more remarkable it may
be worth while jotting down, here, in a ronid
eltalogu. _

The Archduke MAXTMILTAT, then, to begin with,
i 3 announced as already on his way to assume his
newly created throne 'beyond the Atlantic, as
the
first Emperor of Mexico, all the difficulties hitherto
preventing him from doing so, having at length, it
is said, been removed.

Tho intelligence brought from the extreme north
of Europe to the effect that the Norwegian Stor-
thity; has j,ist been closed, is accompanied by a

renewed intimation from the King of Sweden and
Norway that those countries may be counted upon
by Denmark as fully prepared to go to her aid in
the event of any supreme emergency—any ewer.
gency, that is, indicating that the Danish Sovereign
and his People are threatened with being over-
whelmed by the superior numbers of their German
assailants.

A telegram from Rio Janeiro, brought hither as
rapidly as steam could bring it across the Atlantic,
carries to us the not unwelcome news from South
America that the Brazilian Government has con-
sented to recognise the mediation of Portugal be-
tween itself and the estranged Government of her
Britannic NIAJEsTy.

A Swiss Treaty with Japan is announced as
having been ready for signing at Yeddo on the sth
of February—though the treaty in question had
not been signed according to the latest tidings
received direct from Yokohama.

The transference of the lonian Islands from Eng-
land to Greece, news from Corfu defines as having
been formally fixed to take place on the 28th of this
month of April.

Accounts from Lisbon speak of the young King
of PORTUGAL as preparing to take his departure
from the Tagus on his projected visit to the Empe-
ror of the FRENCH at the Tuileries.

The most conflicting rumours still come, mail by
mail, almost telegram by telegram, from the Eter-
nal City as to the state of health of his Holiness—
the more alarming of these rumours, it will be suf-
ficient to say, being, as usual, grossly exaggerated.
While such are the tidings dropping in, fast and
thick, from all quarters in the shape of Foreign
intelligence—here at home are indications of what
are likely, to prove sources of no small amount of
popular excitement both within and without the
walls of Parliament.

GARIBILDI'S arrival yesterday at Southampton
may yet be rendered the signal (it is impossible not
to feel this), if not for a stormy political moyement
here in England, at any rate for what may even.
tually be developed into one more or less sffe.et-
ing the tranquillity of Christendom.

The struggle of the two great opposing Parties
in the House of Commons, long delayed but now
very imminent—it is impossible again not to recog-
nise this, too, as almost immediately before us—may
begin, in earnest, at any sitting, directly the busi-
ness of the sess;on shall have fairly recommenced
upon the re-assembling of the two Houses of the
Legislature.

Mr. ROEBUCK has not been idle during his holi-
days, and his address at Hull is a most excellent one.
It must have afforded great satisfac'ion to his
hearers, whits it reflects the highest credit on the
hon. and learned member. The text was a most
suggestive one. "Why should the science of politics
form a portion of the education of every English-
man?'' This is in itself an important subject, and
one that should be freely discussed by all competent
persons. There is no likelihood of one arriving at
the truth, if we only take up the study of politics in
a vehement hurry, or resort to the violent extremes
which party zeal and official excitement are apt to
engender. The real value of things can only be
ascertained by grave reflection, and the relative
position of events, their bearing one upon another,
must be considered calmly. It is, therefore, highly
judicious for a talented man like Mr. ROEBUCK to
bring these matters before intelligent hearers, and
they become impressed with the importance of this
change, or the desirability of that arrangement
much more readily than if they plunged in medics res
into the discussion on the eve of a contested election,
or while persons were angrily debating on the
merits of a difficult question. Mr. ROEBUCK'S
remarks were characterised by their modera-
tion, and this alone constitutes a very great
claim on our regard, for nothing can militate more
against the effect of one of these popular speeches
than their being imbued with a spirit of bitterness,
and setting class against class. It is a notorious fact
that Mr. BRIGHT has done considerable damage to
the cause of Liberalism by his determined, virulent
advocacy of this mode of diatribe. Incalculable in-
juries have been done to many really desirable mea.
sures by this vehement personality in discourse, for
all quietly disposed individuals naturally confound
the cause with the effect, and are put against the
introduction of plans whose origin seems to spring
from amid the horrors of Radicalism, and to breathe
the atmosphere of revolution. It is well worth
while to peruse Mr. ROEBUCK'S remarks attentively,
for a good deal that deserves consideration will be
found there. His theories were not at all levelling
ones, but he advocated the necessity of the people
becoming more worthy of the political power which
was their heritage by preparing themselves by
education for the high trust. How much wiser and
better it is for eminent politicians and skilled orators
to take this view of the subject than to argue as if
the poor were the natural enemies of the rich,
and vice versa. A heavy responsibility
must rest with those who thus misuse their Influence
end prostitute their powers in influencing the pas-
sions and rousing the jealousy of their fellow coun-
trymen. Mr. ROEBUCK'S remarks concerning the
education of women are also worthy of attention,
and there is great truth in this observation that
" the small wit that was employed against learning
in women was very silly and very mischievous."
Ito fully explained his meaning by stating that the
influence of a mother upon her children was most
important, and how could that power be rightly
exercised if the mother's intellect was not trained
and matured: Above all, there is reason in the
portion of the address which refers to the advan-
tages that would accrue to the people generally if
they were sagacious enough to measure the abilities
and morals of those they chose to be their represen-
tatives. It was the charlatan who promised to do
everything perfectly correct, for ignorance and
want of judgment are the opportunity for such de-
signing individuals, and they reap a rich harvest
from the gullibility of inexperience and conceit
combined. Mr. ROEBUCK brought this topic home
to the minds of those addressed by pointing out the
deplorable ignorance and superstition that prevailed
in many quarters. What with belief in witchcraft
and other gross absurdities, it is nearly incredible
to what devices people will resort to gratify their
morbid love of horrors and their insane notion of
excitement. Mr. ROEBUCK pointed the moral to
his hearers by this vigorous illustration. " Would
it be wise, safe, or sane, to put the destinies of
England into the hands of people like these." No
mistake can be more fatal than to assume that be-
cause a man isof the lower orders he is naturally and
necessarily unfit for taking part in the legislation of
his country, and selecting those who are to rule its
tactics and regulate its destiny. Another strong
contrast which Mr. ROEBUCK'S remarks offer to
those of Mr. BRIGHT, is the tone in which he treats
of America. Whereas the member for Birming-
ham strives:to brazen it out, and persists to the last
that all is right as regards his model Republic, Mr.
ROEBUCK more wiselyadmits that these transatlantic
squabbles have done much to damage the cause of
Liberalism, and have frightened and disheartened
many who had the true cause of freedom at heart.
This is certainly the way to meet with attention
from orni'd hearers, and to command the respect of
all wto peruse the remarks after wards. No one

will be convinced against his will, and if wild, un-
tutored listeners burst into a torrent of applause,
it by no means follows that conviction is carried to
the minds of those whose approval is worth posses-
sing. It is very agreeable to dwell upon such a
speech or address as that before us, and it would be
well if more such abounded, and especially from
those of avowedly Liberal principles. The cause
of reform would prosper much more if advocates
would acknowledge the merits of both sides a
little more, and not be afraid or ashamed to confess
when an error was committed, or an injury in-
flicted. Then there would be a better ground for
hoping that the day might not be far distant when
Mr. ROEBUCK'S elequent picture would be realised,
and the great people of England would be roused
to a fine conception of the great destiny awaiting
them, and surrounding nations would say of them
that they were a people to be reverenced, honoured,
and envied."

It is a sign of better times when the intelligence
which we receive from our Eastern Empire relates
exclusively to matters of domestic interest. When
the hill tribes are in arms, when the frontier is
threatened, or sedition is rife in the interior, we
hear nothing of social difficulties or political per-
plexities. When whole districts are parched with
drought and thousands sinking from famine, there
is little thought to spare for discussions in the
Chamber, or modifications in the criminal code.
When the financial prospects of a country are a
perpetual deficit the appointment of minor officers
of state sinks into insignificance. Therefore, when
topics of this mild and reflective nature form the
chief staple of the news from Calcutta, we have
good reason for hoping that no urgent or weighty
matter is pressing on the public mind. Such is,
indeed, the case, although the rumoured removal of
the seat of Government from the City of Palaces
must have given both Anglo-Indians and natives
enough to talk about for a considerable time. It
is, as we have said, a satisfactory sign to find the
most prominent place in the Indian budget of news
assigned to a debate in the Legislative Council on
the necessity of making some alteration in the ad-
ministration of the criminal laws. There is room,
it seems, for a second HOWARD. The number of con-
victs under jail control is something startling—the
result is, that in a large community the rate of
mortality among the fever-stricken patients is no
less than 20 per cent. ! One-fifth of these miserable
cletenus perish, principally, no doubt, by removable
agencies and the state of the jails, since the
passing of the Penal Code, which forbade the
old summary mode of whipping and dis-
charging a prisoner, gives no hope of a
better condition of things. In this strait it
has been proposed to revive the old custom of
ordering a culprit to receive so many lashes and
then to dismiss him, thus getting rid of a prisoner
whom the prisons cannot easily accommodate.
There has been of course a good deal of opposition
to this measure, one of the most eminent of the
opponents being Sir CHARLES TREVELIAN. But,
after some debate the measure was carried, con-
vincing arguments having been brought forward
on its behalf by Mr. ROBERTS, who introduced it
in the Council. During 1862 alone it seems that
10,000 culprits were imprisoned for offences for-
merly punishable with flogging, and the extra cost
to the State was two lace of rupees. The question
of expense ought not of course to exercise undue
influence in a matter which concerns the moral and
social welfare of the people, but competent autho-
rities declare that whipping has been found to be
the most effectual means of diminishing crime,
since it is the only punishment which. the Hindoo
really holds in dread. It must be borno in mind
that the new measure does not render flogging
compulsory but permissive, and, while reconmend•
ing its infliction on juvenile offenders, it leaves all
particulars as to its application to the discretion of
the local governments. Since our great object
must be of course to deter from crime, it is well
to consider what punishments aro most disliked and
dreaded by the lower orders, having due regard to
proper humanity. If imprisonment only tends to
foster the evils already existing, besides spreading
vice and disease to an alarming extent, it would
be false kindness and mistaken lenity to persevere
in thus crowding our gaols. The approaching
Budget was being looked forward with some eager-
ness when the mail left. There is unfortunately
not much hope of reduction, as Sir CHARLES
TREVELYAN has a deficit instead of a surplus to
deal with. Happily there is little fear that so
enlightened and energetic a financier wilt suffer
the public works to stand still. The advantages
which the further extension of the railway sys-
tem and the water works will confer upon India
will be almost incalculable. Already a refuge
from the heat and unhealthiness of Calcutta is
looked for at Dargeeling, which lies nearly due north,
and whose fertile soil has proved so profitable for tea
cultivation. It is hoped that before long Dargee-
ling and Calcutta will be but 18 hours apart, so
that the weary merchant or exhausted official
may, with this brief interval, exchange the malaria
of the city for the life-giving freshness of the hills.
The substitution of a more salubrious and central
spot for our present Anglo-Indian capital is a mat-
ter of great importance and interest, and we are
heartily glad to see the subject brought on the tapir.
In addition to the folly of retaining our hard worked
Governors and their council in the low, marshy, ill-
drained banks of the Hooghly, the glowing impor-
tance of our possessions in the north render it most
unadvisable to be so entirety out of reach of the
Punjab. In a few years we may hope railways will
branch from the one central spot, where the new
capital is situated, through the length and breadth
of India, while the wonder-working electric tele-
graph bears in an instant the warning of danger or
difficulty to the needful quarters. When we add
to this picture the cultivation of the present arid
wastes by means of an efficient water system, and
the reclamation of those waste lands so dear to Sir
CHARLES WOOD, we may hope to see India begin
really to assume her fitting place in the scale of
nations. Meanwhile, it is highly satisfactory to
find that the one source of wealth and prosperity
which concerns England almost as much as it does
India is holding out most encouraging prospects of
success, and that the cotton crop of the current
year is likely to excel all previous computations.