The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-31 00:00:00

THE SUNrLONDON:_ SATURDAY EVENING; JANUARY 31, 1863.

than the last.
ae
hn da
nwoulde
uo
lndl yr
abaek ae
mwnarsteednofstlabour, for the next
And where's the remedy for this ever-recurring
abuse? Let the people answer through their Re-
a Ministrynd they
of
fh rtohueg hdtahye Ma
ri
en i s try
their.
eNwont
Pthree
sye.n t aTt
hi vee s
party, and no party can see any wrong in their own
Ministers, save when places are refused to pay their
friends for the freedom of election ! Nothing so
natural. The " other side" does just the same, and
the poor country has the rare choice of the frying
pan or the fire. Nor is the "system" confined
to the Dockyards—patronage is never too proud to
stoop, be the gift what it may. Place has charms
beyond rejection. Every little helps, as JACK
I would say, when asked what drink he would prefer
—rum or brandy—modestly settles the choice
by taking the rum while the brandy is being mixed.
I So the wedge of patronage being once in—the
scale of promotion goes merrily on. Hence the
long string of officers on the Navy list that leads
" from glory to the grave." Why, we have at
present from nine to ten Admirals for every ship of

ST. JAMES'S HALL.

CONCERT OF NATIONAL MELODIES.

The sixth entertainmeit of the series projected
under this title was givenat the above rooms last
evening, to a very full asemblage, and with the
most unqualified success. The principal vocalists
on this occasion were Sigror Guiglini, Mr. Lawler,
Miss Julia Elton, and Mss Banks—supported as
usual by Mr. Benedict's tble choir ; whilst the
harp executants again coisisted of Mr. John Che-
shire, Mr. Frederick Chatbrton, Mr. Ellis Roberts,
and their clever associates. The performance on all
hands was very excellent. The choir especially
distinguished itself—in a harmonization by Mr.
Land, of
of
Horn—and hn_haanrmd in
in g " ?htough the Wood" of
Charles
ther vigorous rendering of
torec
the noble old sea song of entries Dibden, " Hearts
of Oak," harmonized by h. G. Macfarren. Mr.
Ellis Roberts and Mr. Jain Cheshire were very
successful in harp solos on 'Wish melodies, and Herr
Ganz in a fantasia on the pano. Miss Banks found
full scope for her sweet voiie and true expression
in "The Last Rose of Sumner," and " Near Wood-
stock Town ;" and Miss Ei*on was very pleasing
in her two ballads, " The Minstrel Boy" and " My
Lodging is on the Cold Ground." The star of the
night, of course, was Signor Guigliii, who was never
in better voice, and sang some of Hs most favourite
airs with all that tenderness ant fervour which,
with the sole exception of Mario, leaves him with-
out a rival in Europe. His "Tu Warne," from the
Bohemian Girl, and his " M'appari Tult amer," from
Martha, were each a triumph in their way, and we
need not add were as vehemently as they were de-
servedly encored. Let us remark further to his
praise, that in each case the encore was assented to
with a readiness that did not detract from the en-
joyment of the compliance.

the line in commission, and as many more for every
hulk in ordinary. As for Captains and Com-
manders, we need not speak, nor yet of the poor,
neglected Lieutenants, whose number is legion, as
their ages are out of memory, with the hope de-

ferred that maketh the heart sick in their long look-
out for promotion—that day still being to them—

" The gay to•morrow of the mind,

Which never comes I"

They have no influence, and their merit serves
only to embitter more keenly the hopelessness of
their fate.

We are not surprised to find that the reading of
the Address in the Prussian Chambers should have
given rise to an animated debate. The excite-
ment with which a crowded assembly awaited the
coming discussion was heightened by the announce-
ment of a Message from the KING. It referred,
however, merely to a trifling increase of invalid
pensions—the KING was not wise enough to anti-
cipate the concessions to which he will in all pro-
bability be shortly driven. Herr VON PYBEL, the
chairman of the Select Committee, then proceeded
to read the Address, and spoke with remarkable
temperance and moderation of tone. He admitted
that the presentation of an Address had long been
a doubtful matter, but he maintained that the
document in question was not intended as a reply
to the Speech from the Throne, but rather as a peti-
tion of rights, and a prayer for the restoration of
the law. He insisted strongly on the right of the
Chambers to distinguish between the KING and his
Ministers ; and, referring to the rumoured intention
of Herr VON BISMARK to advise the KING against
receiving the address, he boldly asserted that in
such a case the Minister and not the Opposition
would be wanting in respect to the Crown. By
insisting upon this important distinction, the mal-
contents preserve a powerful stronghold. It proves
their desire to be governed by a constitutional
monarch in opposition to the rival claims of des-
potism and democracy. The personal respect and
loyalty which all sides expressed towards his
MAJESTY, though certainly somewhat unmerited, is
nevertheless highly commendable, and is a security
against those rash and dangerous extremes
into which reformers are often tempted to
rush. A remarkable fe ture in the debate
was the speech of Herr VON BENDA,
who in the name of his party, the Ronne faction,
gave in their adherence to the address. This is
important, as they had previouLly withheld it on the
ground that such petitions should have the assent
of the whole House. The speaker said, that the
Premier having now shown himself to be an undis-
guised Abolitionist, his friends had come to the
conclusion that an address of the kind proposed was
unavoidable. Other members followed, upholding
the measure and maintaining the constitutional
rights of the Prussian representatives. At length
Herr VON BISMARK, Premier, Minister of Foreign
Affairs and ringleader of the mischief, rose in his
defence. His speech was received at the outset with
profound silence ; but when, after admitting that
in other countries other arrangements existed, and
declaring that the existing theory, namely, the
much prized charter, was incompatible with prac-
tice, he went on to assert that compromise had been
offered by the Crown and rejected; and reminded
them that the Crown had, of its own accord, re-
signed the 25 per cent. of additional income tax it
Clad claimed, shouts of derisive laughter broke from
the indignant assembly. A voice cried, "The
Crown cannot resign what has not been voted by
the house ;" this principle, however, is not in ac-
cordance with Herr VON BISMARK'S theory. His
argument is virtually this: The three great parties—
theCrown and the two Houses—must agree to enact
a law. If they differ, compromise must be
aimed at. If the disagreement still continues,
the Crown must take its own course, through
its Ministers, and the Legislature has nothing
to do but to submit. How far this system
is reconcileable with constitutional government we
leave the Prussian people to determine. The refe-
rence of Herr VON BISMARK to the retention of
their salaries by the paid officials was as wanting
in logic as in good taste. He declared that the
acceptance of their customary salaries by the officials
in the ranks of the Opposition was a proof that they
considered the proceedings of the Government to be
constitutional, as if they thought the Ministry was
entering on illegal expenditure they would not be
entitled to a penny of their salaries. We do not
wonder that thi© astounding proposition was re-
ceived by the Chamber with hisses and marks of dis-
gust. Such trifling arguments, however insulting
to the Opposition, are of no great moment, the
fact of real importance is the resolute man-
ner in which Herr VON BISMARK upheld
the pretensions of the Crown, and flung down his
glove in the face of the Assembly. " I insist that
you are not entitled solely and exclusively to deter-
mine upon the expenditure of the State." " For
the rest I beg to assure you of our unshakeable de-
termination to stand by the Crown, and to protect
the SOVEREIGN against the unjustifiable preten-
sions you believe it incumbent on yourselves to
make." Such were his words, and they bode little
good. The speech of the late President of the
National Assembly was a crushing reply to the
lofty assertions of the Premier. With a quiet
satire he remarked that it was hardly necessary to
refute his arguments, since himself and his col-
leagues were about the only men in this quarter of
the globe who held such views of the elementary
principles of constitutional government. He re-
minded the House that no doubt was thrown upon
their right to vote the expenditure until
their refusal to assent to the new military
measures, upon which this startling discovery
was immediately made. He asked the Ministers
why, if, as they asserted, the gsrheraatnkbodfrom y of the
people were with them, they
dis-
solving the Chambers. He proceeded in a high.
svpr i
or
ei
et ee dd an ng ds mo af n
the
es t r
Ga in v
etron
md eennotu, n caen
and remind
despotic
them that never had the attempt been made with
impunitywiotuhl
dnot
whole
h the ea
r
to force absolutism upon a people that
w
oofaf ictitti :and that HERR VON BISMARK,
aeleihilu stemming the tide ofnery of Prussia at his
disposal, would not sue
popular will. This is the lesson which all despotic

dynasties have sooner or later to learn, and it is LATEST INTELLIGENCE
one which has al ways proved very unacceptable •
alike to the Hohenzollerns and the Hapsburgs.
The crisis is now becoming serious, and we are
disposal to agree with on,?, of the speakers who
expres his con viction that it was a quarrel of
which they had not yet sees the end. The aggres-
sive spirit which actuates fie KING and bis Minis-
ters appears to be uncheclod even by the sturdy
opposition they have provored. The resolution of
the Chambers is equally urdaunted, conscious as it
is of deserving and of possessing the support of the
people. The opening of tie Session has proved as
stormy as the most gloomy forebodings threatened.
It remains to be seen what will be the aspect of
affairs at the termination of their sittings, and in
what form that termination will arrive.

THE INSURRECTION IN POLAND.
ST. PETERSBURG, JAN. 31.

The Journal de St. Petersbourg of to-day pub-
lishes another account of the Polish insurrection,
which does not contain any fresh details. It con-
firms the news that numerous insurgent bands have
made their appearance at Bielsk and Byalistock.
The same paper publishes letters from Wilna, con-
firming the news from the province of Grodno, as
well as that concerning the general ch iracter of
the insurrection, which has already been tele-
graphed.

The Journal de St. Petersbourg adds:—
" Perfect tranquillity prevails in the military
district of Kiew."

WARSAW, JAN. 28, EVENING.

The insurgents have again received considerable
reinforcements from persons belonging to the
better classes of society.

Many persons continue to leave Warsaw to join
;hem.

A detachment of insurgents has been captured
by the troops near Piotrkow. Among them were
two Russian officers, who were immediately shot.
The Grenadier corps of Lithuania is advancing
by forced marches.
It is said that General Wisocki is among the
insurgents.