The Sun.
London, England, 1864-07-28 00:00:00

Ministers need never have had to bear the brunt of
the one Great Debate of this expiring session—they
need never have " come to the scratch" of that for-
midable and, at one time for them, really alarming
division--a division that resulted, it still seems,
to many, by little else than a fluke of good luck,
in a clear majority of Eighteen in an immense
House. If only Mr. LOWE and his brethren of the
Educational Board coald have been induced to leave
it alone when the inspector's reports were brought up
for their examination—not for their revision, observe,
but simply for their examination—Lord ROBERT
CECIL would have lost his happiest opportunity for
so worrying that little cluster among our Adminiss
trators as to constrain Mr. LOWE himself, in a sort
of a tiff of virtuous indignation, to give in his re-
signation ! If, again, the Minister for " Parks and
Palaces" once upon a time, in our more sylvan days,
of "Woods and Forests"—if he, too, could have
been persuaded to leave it alone quietly in reference
to that, again and again, rejected Court notion of
handing over the National Gallery in ;toto
to the Royal Academy, relegating the na-
tional collection of pictures and sculpture
to a bran new site at the back of Burlington House
(as so much nearer to those dear, detestable Bromp-
ton Boilers in the south-eastern corner of South
Kensington)—Ministers then, again, in regard to
that little matter, would have escaped another of
their recent vexations. No : there is not a doubt
about it—the plan of plans for holding office com-
fortably during an indefinite period, is to "leave it
alone"—that is, of course, not office, but what have
hitherto and quite erroneously been supposed
to be the duty or prerogative of the holders of office.
Lord PALMERSTON has found it answer, whenever
he has been allowed to try it, since the formation
of this his second and longest Government. Look
at the very question of Parliamentary Reform, for
the effectual carrying out of which that Govern•
went was actually called into existence. He has
left it alone, And his so leaving it alone has suc-
ceeded to admiration. Parliamentary Reform is
now nowhere at all as a " vexed question." Mr.
BRIGHT has long ago given over that systematic
agitation of it, in great Speeches at monster meet-

legs, that agitation by him of the Great Question
of Parliamentary Reform, by which week after
week, month after month, several years ago, he was
wont to "'fright the isle from its propriety!' Pas
de :tile was the axiom of TALLEYRAND. It is vir-
tually that also of PALMERSTON. The Veteran
Premier can't endure the overzealous. And he has
so far infected his most energetic colleague, the
hitherto most conspicuous and most energetic among
all his colleagues as a Reformer—meaning, of course,
Earl RUSSELL—by urging the latter at last to his
memorable utterance (an utterance indicative of
his resignation—as a Reformer, not as a Minis-
ter :)—his ever-memorable utterance of those four
now notorious words "Rest and be thankful!'' The
great mysterious problem of problems at the Cir-
cumlocution Office, has long since been solved, to the
entire satisfaction of the whole race of Barnacles, that
arch-problem seemingly of all Administration under
their auspices—How Not To Do It. The most
popular author of our age, the most delightful genius
of our time, has celebrated the peculiarities of this
profound system of Government in one of his later
masterpieces. How Not To Do It has, happily for
the whole race of Barnacles, if for no one else, long
since been discovered. It is the province, it is
the recognised privilege, it is the pre-ordained
prerogative it is, so to speak, the metier, the forte,
the one purpose in life of Lord PALMERSTON to
apply it ! Or, at any rate, to see—if Ministers can't
leave it alone altogether, that, at the very least,
they should do so as much as possible.

Lord ELLENBOROUGH'S speech, the other evens
ing, was an admirable vindication of the rights of
nations, and it was also an exposure of the very
fallacious course pursued by our Government. The
Danish question has now become a very painful
topic, most distasteful to those whose shortcom-
ings have been so manifest, and distressing to
those who witness with horror and regret the
diminution of their country's influence and the
decadence of her high and honourable spirit in
the part she has been compelled to play, Lord
ELLENBOROUGH is a well known debater of great
fluency, and an orator of considerable powers, but
even he had a hard task to invest the details of
this hackneyed question with life and vigour, and
to infuse into his discourse a vivid energy, and a
spirit worthy alike of the speaker and his subject.
He succeeded to admiration ; and it is a source of
satisfaction that at the eleventh hour of the ses-
sion we have heard this brilliant and effective dis-
quisition on foreign affairs uttered by one who is
not only a skilled politician and an effective orator,
but a man who is thoroughly embued with the
true old English spirit of fair play and the love
of independence. Perhaps the conduct of our
Government has never appeared worse, and been
more conspicuously shown forth than in this ora-
tion. There was not the hurry and excitement of
a debate of great moment, nor the keen watch-
fulness as to the issue of a close division, to spoil
the effect or interfere with the attention of those
who heard, and those who read the speeches, and
therefore the remarks of Lord ELLENBOROITGEC
became all the more telling, and they will remain
impressed upon the memory as among the last
utterances of the session that are worthy of notice.
In a masterly manner did the noble lord expose
the fallacies which have marked the arguments of
those who have been guidieg affairs during this
srisis in the affairs of Europe. He mentioned the
absurdity of the excuse given for the nonfnlfiiment

of the conditions of the Treaty of 1852 under the
plea of a change of circumstances, This reason
cannot hold good, and the excuse made
as to the
right of a people to choose its evi".l rulers, Lord
ELLENBOROUGH forcibly denour,eed as
quite un-
tenable and preposterous. T.'
ne aspect of things at
present in Denmark and ;ler Duchies is quite dif-
ferent to the state of affairs at the time when the
Duke of WELLING'I'ON recognised the right of the
French people to choose their own Sovereign. The
French people are sure to impress their character
upon their Government, but it is very different
with a State like 1-reo'stein. Truly did Lord ELLEN.
BOROUGH say Vint it is impossible for their wishes
to be accorr'..ed without disturbing the balance of
power in all parts of Europe, We have as yet but
a gliremering of the fact, but before very long there
will be ample proofs of the folly and perversity
which have marked the course pursued by our Go-
vernment ; and it is not likely that the present gene-
ration will see the termination of the evil brought
about
re by many conflicting causes. There is the
greed of Prussia, the arrogance of Austria, and the
e d
mistaken policyof Denmark in giving up too readily
atflrsttoth e demands of the invaders. The chief
cause of all this misery is, however, the unworthy
attitude assumed by England from the outset. Lord
ELLENBOROUGH, in his analysis of events, forcibly
dilated upon the extraordinary nature of the con-
duct of the German Powers, and stated it to be his
conviction that at the commencement of the contest
they had entertained no idea of proceeding to such
extremities as have lately distinguished their course,
but Were induced to go on and increase in arrogance
in consequence of our tame and dispirited demean-
our. Also the strictures passed on the attitude of
our Cabinet at the Conference are moat striking,