The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-26 00:00:00

THE SUN. LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, DECWWBER 26,M1863.

delectable, whether in prose or in verse. Witness
this in regard to the former his " Mahogany Tree,'
his " Cane Bottomed Chair," or his " Peg of Lima-
vaddy." Witness it, in regard to his prose, among
his miscelloneous trifles, his description of a first
night with a Child at a Pantomime—several of
the choicest of his Snob Papers, nearly the
whole ":;,of his (for the most part inimitable)
jottings by the way as Mr. ROUNDABOUT. We
have been tempted to give precedence, thus, to his
wonderful powers as the most carelessly conversa-
tional and discursive of Humourists, because, in
regard to those peculiar qualifications of his as a
humourist, we are disposed to regard him as
standing quite apart from all other humourists, as
quite matchless in his way, among the masters
of our literature. But to that literature, he has
the glory of having contributed
n
noble and highly elaborated master
oe
rvte
.epioereethan
e.
Ai oneeeter
estimate of a great writer and ofh s works
was penned we believe than one pu never
was forth
the
yesterday in the Times and transferred last evening
to our columns from those our chief contemporary.
The three works upon which THACKERAY'S repu-
tation will rest are, beyond any doubt,
the very
Vanity Fair,"
a‘cl "The Newcomer." the "History
three r eHe
etehreyr E
s sp
ec
ified—" io
fined
d—‘
,"
and
It
was the first of those three that of itself, immedi-
ately upon its appearance,
made THACKERAY'S
reputation, as a great novelist, as a great satirist
and humorist. It transformed him at once after a long
and laborious, and at the very outset of it, an obscure
apprenticeship to literature, from a mere miscella-
neous contributor to the periodicals, daily, weekly,
monthly, and quarterly, into one of the very fore-
most writers of his time. It gave him a prominent
and a permanent place at once among the most
distinguished Authors of the Victorian Age. That
position he has since secured to himself in per-
petuity. He has carved out his niche in our lite-
rary Walhalla. Perhaps the most nearly perfected
of his masterpieces is the second among the
three already specified. It is—that " History of
Henry Esmond"—in every way an exquisite per-
formance. Yet in the third of THACKERAY'S three
greatest novels, in his two volumes of " The New-
comes," he has contributed to English Literature the
noblest, the loveliest of all his creations in the
character of Colonel Newsome. It is a creation as
complete in its way—and one in every way as
charming—as the Uncle Toby of STERNE, or as
the Sir Roger de Coverley of STEELE and ADDISON.
In one particular—probably in several particulars,
but in one we are absolutely certain—Mr.
THACKERAY'S genius was by the vast majority
even of his admirers, altogether mis-apprehanded.
Granted that it was inevitably the genius of a
satirist, it was one far more gen;al, more kindly,
more gentle in its humanity, more tender in its
inner sensibility than the world at large deemed
it to be. It was a genius that, even where most
caustic, was never cynical. "With THACKERAY, the
satirist's flying shafts of ridicule tickled into laugh
ter—never rankled like those of SWIFT, poisoned
with a malignant and even devilish scorn, or like
those of ROCHEFOUCAULD, barbed with a poignant
and wicked wit. In signal evidence of his generous
temperament, he was throughout life the kindliest
of critic. The inimitable genius of the greatest of
all our English Humourists, CHARLES DICKENS,
had no more cordial appreciator than the very one
who approached him the most nearly amongst his
own contemporaries, namely, THACKERAY. Blun-
dering adulators of THACKERAY might bring him
into invidious comparison with that great Master-
Humourist—not so THACKERAY himself. THACKE-
RAY was the one at all times the most cordially to
recognise the truth that no such comparison could in
reason be instituted, that as a humourist, as the
greatest among all those great humourists, who can
at their own pleasure command our tears and our
laughter, CHARLES DICKENS among English
novelists stands apart, beyond all comparison. Yet
—echoing that truth from the written and spoken
criticisms of THACKERAY himself—we can,
with
that simple but emphatic proviso, recognise as
the very next among modern humourists the great
writer recently deceased.

The finding of the court martial which was held
for the trial of the charges against Col. CRAWLEY
is in every way most unsatisfactory, and it will have
been with unfeigned regret that many have perused
it. It seems most extraordinary that such a deci-
sion should have been come to, and it is one which
is in every way most detrimental to:the future well-
being of an army. It has established a sort of pre-
cedent, as it were, for the harshest and hardest
measures to be dealt out to those of an inferior
grade in the army. The most ardent advocates of
Colonel CRAWLEY can hardly deny that his con-
duct towards the unfortunate Sergeant-Major
LILLEY was fraught with the most unhappy issues,
and surely it would have been as well to have inti-
mated something of that sort in the terms of the
finding. Those who have carefully perused, and
well weighed over the circumstances of the case as
disclosed in the trial, will feel that the decision
lately come to by the Court on this subject, is a
remarkable one. It is enough to excite the
strongest feelings of indignation to reflect that
a man, who was proved to have acted
in the manner in which the Colonel did,
should be thus exonerated from all blame and
sheltered from all censure. The tidings will go
forth to the army ; it will be heard with feelings of
shame and humiliation. It was not proved even
that an offence had been committed which would
have justified the detention of the Serjeant-Major
in his close confinement, and therefore the severity
to which he was subjected was doubly blameable.
It comes to this, that, if it is to be tacitly agreed
I,(_lthat officers of a certain rank and associated
w 11 those of unbounded influence, are to have
their _
. eaalpractices winked at by those in autho
rity, am .
It..
" the general feeling of the public calls
for an inquiry,nt that they are to be judged by a
different
'ward to that of meaner individuals,
it is time that
theau whole system of our Army be
r
'' reconstructed. It may be
very
convenientto adopt measures of expediency,
and attempt the
smuggling system in matters
. 7-` or even more important
things ;
that
but when it is a matter concern money, ;1„..,
of life and death,
a question
' of truth and jowite
, and an affair of
such magnitude as this one referred to, such lax
regulations and convenient subterfuges will not do.
If the statutes of the army are so Constituted as to
acquit entirely an officer who has been proved to
have acted as Colonel CretwLEY
has done, and to
have abstained from interfering to liberate a pri_
soner until all interference was too late, the sooner
such statutes aro altered the better,—the more
creditable will it be to an army and the more cue.
ducive to the interests of our soldiers. It is hard,
indeed, if those who are to fight for us in every
quarter of the globe, and to be banished from home
for half a lifetime in some cases, cannot share the
protection that we accord to our criminals. In no
convict prison would such a case as that of Sergeant
LILLEY have been passed over in silence, and no
officer of the prison would have escaped severe cen-
sure, if he avoided the very possible chance of
dismissal. It is right that all should be shielded
from
injustice,
but if
de, an army sho ld
a preference is to be
mau come before our pri-
senors. The friends of the unfortunate subject

so mismanaged,
othf ata,lithtohuigshdtihsceusisciqounirmyahyasrhesetenassured, however,
Court Martial. The memory of h
the public feeling will not ratify the decree
ho
the
him wo sleeps in
his far off Indian grave will not pass away at the
bidding of authorities, and his wrongs will survive
in the recollection of all advocates of honour,
truth, and justice. It is on an occasion like this
that we have cause to lament that the regulations
of tho army and the navy are not more similar.
The Admiralty have more power over the Courts
Martial than have the Horse Guards. They are
not compelled to sanction the findings, however
unsatisfactory they are, and incomplete they may
be. It is earnestly to be trusted that this subject
will again be brought forward when Parliament
meets, and, if nothing can be done to rectify the
evils of the case, that measures will be adopted to
prevent the occurrence of a similar calamity. Forms
and ceremonies are idle things after all, "a
breath can make them as a breath hes
made ;" but the principles of justice are
eternal and immutable, and no public institutions
can be at all approximating to perfection where
they are not the ruling spirit and the inspiring
motive. In the sight of God and man they are
of the utmost consequence, and all rules and regu-
lations which do not support them in their in-
tegrity are worse than nothing. It was objected
at the first that this trial should have been in
London, and certainly the result has proved the
truth of the allegations of the demurrers. If when
our soldiers are wronged they and their friends
can receive no better satisfaction than this we may
as well live in the strongholds of despotism, and
submit to the stringent decrees of tyranny. It is
not in accordance with the spirit of a free country
that such an inquiry as that which has just been
instituted should terminate after this fashion. It
would be difficult to determine on what pretext the
Court can fully and honourably acquit the Colonel.
One thing is certain, the public will not long
remain quiescent if such is to be the management
of our army. The upholders of precedent, and the
favourers of redtapism may go too far. If such was
to have been the ruling spirit that influenced the
trial, the nation might as well have been spared the
expense of it. It does not appear that there is any
substantial difference between the details of the
case as related in the house and as testified at
Aldershot ; the difference consists in the manner
in which they were received. The members of
both houses of the Legislature were indignant
at the recital. The Court appears to have
reserved its censure for the witnesses of the prose-
cution. The only consolation is that the adage may
prove true which says that, " out of evil cometh
geed,', and that some sweeping changes may be
made and extensive alterations instituted in
the mechanism and management of our army.
If such results should follow, all the sufferings of
LILLEY will not have been in vain, and his death
may not be altogether so deplorable an affair to
reflect upon as at present. It would be difficult
to say whether the course adopted by the autho-
rities is more unfair or impolitic, bat the feeling
of the English people, so strong against all op-
pression, will never sanction its infliction on the
bravemen who go forth to swell the ranks of its
army. If this affair is settled by head quarters,
it is in a manner which makes it worse than
before, for the authorities have gone out of their
way to bestow approval in a case which had
called forth unmitigated censure, and given rise
to feelings of universal indignation. This is not
the way to serve the interests of the army, or to
maintain the principles upon which all laws
should be founded; neither will such decrees gain
the respect or confidence of the country.

The latest intelligence from Denmark is of con-
siderable importance, and confirms the worst fears
of the friends of Denmark ; while the conduct of the
English Government, as represented by the pub-
lished telegrams, is in the highest degree discredit-
able and dangerous. " Russia and England," it is
said, "continue to exercise a pressure upon Den-
mark." Why has England identified herself with
Russia when the interests of Russia are openly
opposed to the strength and independence of any
Scandinavian Power ? Both Powers represent that
Prussia insists upon the abolition of the November
Constitution, in default of which she will withdraw
from the London Protocol of 1852, whereby war
might ensue. Prussia insists. It is something new
that one party to a treaty or a deed of ar.y kind is at
liberty to read it according to his own interests, and
that the others are to admit his right to such deci-
sion. The pretext for breaking a solemn national
obligation made but a very few years back, and
fresh in the memory of every one concerned, has, as
we prophesied, been easily found, and Prussia now
looks forward to making a comfortable addition to
her dominions after the fashion of Posen, Silesia,
and other of her provinces. She sees little in her
way ; and if she ever feared English opposition to
her ambitious schemes, she need do so no longer.
England and Russia, we learn, have declared that,
in case of war, they would not assist Denmark.
This is plain speaking; and henceforth treaties
drawn up under the superintendence and with the
sanction of English Ministers may be held as so
much waste paper. This is indeed a lame and im-
potent conclusion to Lord P- ALMERSTON'S out-
spoken words in the British Parliament—words
which have proved to be mere empty sound. Such
a course is opposed alike to English feelings and
interests, and is part, we suppose, of the new sys-
tem of foreign policy, which may henceforth be
known as the RUSSELL code. If Prussia is to be
suffered to withdraw from the Treaty of 1852,
and to make war upon Denmark be-
cause she refuses to abandon the Constitution,
universally popular among her people because the
English Government refuses to support its ally,
the last shadow of our old prestige abroad will be
gone, and henceforth Prussia herself may be more
feared than England. At Copenhagen meanwhile
affairs are in a state of most anxious uncertainty.
The KING wished to obtain a suspension of the
obnoxious constitution, and proposed assembling
the Rigsraad, just prorogued, for the purpose of ob•
taining their sanction to such a measure. The
Ministers, of whom the able and patriotic M. HALL
is President, refused to assume the responsibility of
such a step, and declared that they would accept
war in preference, even should Europe leave Den.
mark unaided. The Ministers were probably in-
fluenced by the consideration that no concession
on their part short of a complete abnegation of
Danish autonomy and independence would satisfy
the greed of Prussia. Every point yielded has been
the signal for a fresh demand. The withdrawal of
the patent of March is followed by a demand for the
abolition of the November constitution—the evacu a-
tk'n of Ho!stein is the forerunner of a threat to
withdraw fromfrom the treaty which guarantees the
King's succession. Prussia knew what she was
doing evert
when her proceedings seemed most
reckless and
defiant, and counting on England's
non-intervention,zeapdtatfoepr mbyorsatelpprineshsuerredoenmDen-
mark,their she has
to this. difference with
the resignations, which
bhinhevene Dbauennejansbhlaellcient: Ministry,
owing
gh
is Majesty has yet
M. BALL is a
_o supply their
places. The
he possesses in
nreastiigonnatitlioniosoof the
il]
I:ol3iuncihstry
asof

a high degree that firmness and patriotism so essen-
tial at this crisis. We cannot but hope that the old

Ministers will resume their offices, and that King
CHRISTIAN will not add to the difficulties and com-
plications which beset him on every side by the
selection of now and untrained advisers, Hol-
stein is, of course, enthusiastic, not being wise
enough to see that the other members
of the German States are not all so very well con-
tented with their rulers and their Governments,
that they should be objects of political envy.
Prussia herself is a curious specimen of model inter-
nal organisation, and the idea of her Ministry taking
up the cause of disaffected subjects and pleading
misgovernment as an excuse for intervention, would
be ludicrous, if it were not so serious. It is an
instance of the old adage about Satan reproving
sin, and Herr Von BISMARK had better remember
that he is setting a somewhat dangerous example.
Prussia, by her present conduct, is incurring a
real danger. Though England may refuse to recog-
nise every obligation, there is another great
Power , who may find in the
"idea"rlessof
Danish timorous
independence the pretext neces-
saryoe
in de ofp w
for an amalgamation of the Rhenish
provinces with the domains of the Emperor
of the FRENCH. Prussia is rushing headlong into
war, not foreseeing what that war will probably
bring for her. Her English friends, wiser than she
is herself, are anxious to preserve her from such a
risk—more anxious than they are to maintain the
honour and fulfil the duties of their own country.
But this may be carried too far. Whatever may be
Lord RUSSELL'S theories, however much we may be
bound by diplomatic entanglements or dynastic
alliances, the total abandonment of Denmark will
not be permitted by the English public. The voice
of popular indignation will make itself heard even
by courts and cabinets, and the approaching sea-
sion will put some awkward obstacles in the way
of Prussian aggression and Whig subserviency, if
it reflects in any degree the sentiments of the nation
it represents.

MR. JUSTICE SHEE,

(From the Law Times of to-day.)

Lord Westbury has done a great deal more than
given us a good Judge—he has affirmed a great
principle, and established a precedent. It is now
dec'ared, not in words only, but by act, that reli-
gious creed shall not bar the path to professional
promotion—that English lawyers shall be free to
worship God after their own fashion, without being
therefore subjected to exclusion from the honours
they may win by their ability and social worth.
Let all due praise be given to Lord Westbury for
this achievement. It was not an easy one; it required
some moral courage, for influential remonstrants
were at his ear, and a numerous class among the
uncultivated public were sure to be wrathful. But
he has already reaped the reward of his resolve to
follow the dictates of his own tolerant, because
larger and well trained, intellect; the praises that
have been awarded are much greater, and the abuse
really less, than could have been anticipated. All
the journals whose praise is worth having, without
distinction of party, have raised a shout of applause,
avowedly because they look upon it as the confirma-
tion of the principle of religious liberty ; while the
only fault finders have been the few narrow-minded
organs of readers still more narrow-minded than
themselves, and even they have muttered feeble
complaints with bated breath.

LATEST INTELLIGENCE.

AMERICA.

SOUTHAMPTON, DEC. 26.

The Hamburg American Company's screw steam-
ship Saxonia, Capt. N. Trautmann, from New York
at 12 a.m., on the 13th inst., arrived off Cowes at
.5.50 p.m., and went on to Hamburg.
She brought 16 passengers for this port and 44
for Hamburg; 90,000 dols. for England, 1,500 dole.
for Hamburg, and a full cargo.
Her news is anticipated.

Fine weather and variable winds were experi-
enced the greater part of the voyage. Off Sandy
Hook the Saxonia passed the American ship John
M. Wood ; in lat. 47.40 N., long. 34.3 \V., the ship
Lady Millon, of London, bound east; arid off Port-
land the clipper-ship Scarsfelt, bound for Hong-
kong; the American ship, 3d pendant 6,251, and
the English ship, 3d pendant 6,590, bound west.

DENMARK.
RESIGNATION OF THE MINISTRY.
COPENHAGEN, DEC. 25.
The Ministry have tendered their resignation,
which has been accepted by the King.
Russia and England continue to exercise a pres-
sure upon Denmark. Both Powers represent that
Prussia insists upon the abolition of the November
constitution, in default of which she will with-
draw from the London protocol of 1852, whereby
war might ensue.
England and Russia have also declared that they
would not in such a case assist Denmark.

The King wished to obtain the sanction of the
Rigsraad to a suspension of the constitution, and
to assemble that body for the purpose. The Mi-
nisters thereupon declared that they could not
assume the responsibility of such a step, and would
rather accept war, even should Europe leave Den-
mark isolated.

Several members of the Right have been asked
by the King to form a Ministry, but have all de-
declined.

HAMBURG, DEC. 26.

Advices from Copenhagen arrived here state
that Sweden advocates the withdrawal of the
November constitution.

It was believed that a Ministry would be found
by Baron Scheel Plessen, Herr von Criminil, and
Count Maltke.

The King observed yesterday to the officers of
the army and navy that he hoped still to preserve
peace in accordance with the constitution.
It is said that his Majesty will visit the army on
Monday.
It is stated upon good authority that the fortress
of Rensdburg and the tete-du-pont of Friedrich-
stadt will be evacuated, the latter being razed.