The Sun.
London, England, 1863-06-17 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS,

TIMES.—The Duke of Cambridge, in his place in
the House of Lords, has given a frank explanation
of the position in which he found himself when
called upon, as Commander-in-Chief, to review the
proceedings connected with the arrest and death of
the unfortunate Sergeant-Major Lilley. When
those proceedings became known to the public the
emotion, as Lord Shaftesbury truly observed, was
most profound. The story appeared absolutely hor-
rible, and everybody looked with natural anxiety
for the action of the chief military authorities in a
case so flagrant. These feelings were intensified
when it was gradually ascertained that injustice had
been committed from beginning to end, and that
Sergeant Lilley, who had been deprived of life by
the cruelty of his imprisonment, was imprisoned
not only illegally according to military law, but on
a charge which had no foundation, and which not
an attempt was made to prove. Under such circum-
stances the public asked whether nothing was to be
done, and whether some account was not due from
those who had been engaged in transactions so flag-
rant, To these questions replies have been already
given in the House of Commons, and the Duke of
Cambridge has now explained exactly what, as
Commander-in-Chief, he was enabled to do, and
what has been actually done. The public will re-
ceive this statement with great satisfaction. It
shows not only that the Commander-in-Chief has
the power of acting in the matter, but that he has
the intention also. Lord Hartington must have
overrated the difficulties of the case when he said
that it was " impossible" to do anything more than
had been done. As we understand the Duke's ex-
planation, the interference of the Home authorities,
though so unusual as to be all but unexampled, is
not actually impossible. He has been inactive not
for want of power, but lack of authentic informa-
tion. It takes a long time to conduct an inquiry by
question and answer between India and England,
but when the truth is known there exists authority
enough for turning it to account. Usage has estab-
lished the Indian authorities in a species of inde-
pendence, but that independence was at once in-
fringed when the Duke's Minute was despatched to
Calcutta. When there was power to censure, and
to place as it were upon record a sentence of con-
demnation by suspending an ulterior judgment
over the heads of inculpated officers, there was
obviously power to do something more. In fact,
something more has been done. After all that was
said about the dead-lock of the case and the impos-
sibility of moving, a new Court-Martial has been
ordered, the effect of which must necessarily be to
reopen the entire case from beginning to end. With
this prospect of justice we may reasonably be satis-
fied. The case has not, as was feared, been with-
drawn from cognizance by the operation of tech-
nical difficulties. There is no bar to furthet in-
quiry. The Secretary for War followed the Com-
mander-in-Chief in his observations by stating that
" every step would be taken by the Government
to insure that the inquiry should be conducted in
the most open and fair manner, in of der to secure
the ends of justice as between all parties." The
public desires nothing more than this ; it has only
been apprehensive of getting less. There is one
point, however, which we regard as of the greatest
importance, and which was urged by Lord Shaftes-
bury in the debate. He "hoped the inquiry would
take place in England," and added that " it would
he most unsatisfactory if it were transferred to
India. We are entirely of this opinion. No mere
considerations of expense or trouble ought to stand
in the way of this decision. India is no place for
such an inquiry, nor will there be any confidence in
the investigation or its results unless it is conducted
at home. On this condition we are willing to sus-
pend all further judgment. We hope that every
possible opportunity of self-justification will be
given to all who are implicated in the matter, but
we wished to see the whole truth brought to light
before a tribunal from every touch of suspicion.
This alone will set our authorities right with the
public.
Pos'r.—lt is no doubt extremely vexatious to a
neutral State to find its commerce crippled in con-
sequence of the quarrels of its neighbours ; quarrels
moreover, in the issue of which it may not possess
the least interest. But so long as the present code
of international law meets with the acceptance of
the world, peaceful nations must consent to the in-
conveniences imposed upon them by the less pacific
members of the great community to which they
belong. The American war has now lasted more
than two years, and during that period no less than
two thousand five hundred miles of coast have
been declared to he closed against the commerce of
the outer world. From all that coast line, extend-
ing from Chesapeake Bay to the mouth of the Rio
Grande, in the Gulf of Mexico, both egress and
ingress have been almost completely cut off. Of the
effects produced upon the staple of English manufac-
tures by the blockade it is needless now to speak.
With hundreds of thousands of our operatives re-
duced from independence to penury, from comfort
to absolute want, it is not surprising that our feel-
ings should bo soured against those who have
brought upon us so much evil, and that we should
cast about to discover some pretext for evading ob-
ligationshappened whichthpartegsosessoti on
so frequentlyus. Hence it
has
mooted respecting the efficiency of the blockade of
the Southern States, and that arguments, which
under other circumstances would at once be dis-
missed as idle, command, at least for a time, atten-
tion and respect. But, in truth, in all questions
which concern the strict observance of the American
blockade, and the rights claimed by the cruisers of
the Federal Government, our own interests do not
exclusively point in the direction which Lancashire
cotton spinners or their representatives believe they
do. We are now neutral, but we have not unfre-
quently been belligerent, and may be belligerent
again. But when at war there is no people in the
world which benefits more by the exercise of those
maritime tights accorded to belligerents than the
British nation. It is, therefore, even when regarded
from a selfish point of view, our interest to admit to
the Government of the United States the fullest lati-
tude in the exercise of its belligerent rights—even
though their operation should for the moment tell
heavily against us. It may be a great present hard-
ship to be deprived of cotton; but it is infinitely
preferable to be in want of that commodity than to
purchase it by evincing a disregard for those rights
in others which we have over and over again, on
previous occasions, claimed
in to exercise ourselves.
We would not he justifiedallowing the Federal
Government to strain its privileges as a belligerent
against ourselves ; but neither should we on the

id

other hand press our immunities as neutrals beyone
that point affixed as their boundary by international
law. These observations are induced in consequence
of the rather singular exposition of maritime inter-
national law made on Monday evening in the.
House of Lords, by the Marquis of Clanricarde.
He laid it down, on the authority or an American.
Secretary of State, that a blockade should be con-
fined to particular ports, and could hot be extended
to a line of coast, and that of necessity the assumed
blockade of the greater portion of the eastern coast
of the United States was illegal. No principle,,
however, has been more clearly established than
that a Power may keep in blockade as great an
extent of coast as it pleases, provided such blockade
is efficient. It is needless to observe that this prin-
ciple has been frequently acted upon by this country
wh n at war, auc', should the occasion present
itself, will be acted upon again.
HERALD.—The vote of Monday evening, which
has acquired for the higher education of the country
the site and buildings used for the Internationale
Exhibition, was not one of those decisions which.
might have been expected to have elicited so warm,
a debate or so near a division. In sober fact there
was nothing else open to the House. It was placed
in circumstances where practically no discretion
was left it, for the result was of the logic of events
and had been prejudged by the very necessity efi.
things. Hence Mr. Gregory's long speech ,was.
marked by an utter oblivion of the whole question
of merits, and amounted to no more than some very
emphatic " abuse of the defendant." Grant all that
the hon. member for Dublin alleged against the
contractors, managers, directors, and secretaries
concerned in the societies and institutions brought.
under review—what then ? Grant that the " clique
established at Kensington" is " self- seeking,cravinge
meddling, flattering and toadying," and that" these
managers are well known for exclusiveness, class
combinations, servility, and extravagance," and are
either hunters after honours and court favour, or arD
small clerks who have promoted themselves into.
commissioners, councillors, or dispensers of honours
in science and art ;" in what way does all this vitu-
perative description meet the well-established facts
in the higher educational necessities of the country?
The National Gallery is one of those tight fits which
menaces the suffocation of the two arts it was
meant to encourage. Our Collection of NaturaL
History insists on an asylum, which cannot reason-
ably be denied it. A Patent Museum is of
urgent necessity; and the annual receipts from the
Patent Office leave an unapplied surplus sufficient
to pay for its erection. Then there are such collec-
tions as that in Lincoln's-inn-fields, left by Sir J..
Soane; the collection of old masters at Dulwich;
and of portraits in Great George-street ; the
Museum of Naval Models at Somerset House; with
some collections at Whitehall and elsewhere, whose
public value would be trebled by their union,
some of which require to be at once removed by
the Government, and the rest are open to removal.
under the easiest of Government arrangements. It
would be easy to sum up the hundred reasons which
show that not only must something be done, but
something on a large scale, to meet the require-
ments thus growing upon us by the rapid develop-
ment of art and science, and the equally rapid dif-
fusion of a popular appreciation of their uses ; but
no better demonstration, perhaps, is needed than
the fact of Ministers coming down to the house, a
year ago, and undertaking the _esponsibility of ask-
ing for a vote of half a million of money for a con-
struction to receive the existing collection of natu-
ral history. If we were at our prayers for a con-
cession to meet such exigencies we could hardly
desire anything better as a gift than that we might
acquire ready at our hand the edifice used for the
International Exhibition on terms making it ours
at about half its value. By the bargain made by
the house we practically receive as a present the
quarter of a million.contributed by the visitors last
summer, and which, under a recent arrangement, is
made to cover, within £BO,OOO, the cost of the
original construction. We obtain the land again
at a price less, probably by one-half, than what a
like space as eligibly situate would have cost any-
where else ; and the only question really that re-
mained to puzzle the good sense and exercise the
high principle of members in the discussion of Mon-
day night was, whether they would consent, under
the appeal of much argumentative statement and
great oratorical eloquence, to take the goods the
gods had been thus liberally purveying for thew.

COUNTRY MARKETS.

V

LEEDS—TUESDAY.
Today there was a moderato supply of English and
foreign wheat, which sold at the extreme rates of the pre-
vious week.

LYNN—T
There bas been a fair busi
at fully laEt week's prices.
White 46s to 50s
Red .. 44s to 45s I
Beans .36s to 38s
New —8 to --8

'UESDAY.
inesa doing in wheat to-day,

Barley. .'....32s to 34s
Grinding ..26s to 30s
Oats
Peas —s to —5

MARKET HARBOROUGH—TUESDAY.
White wheat, 49s to Ks; red, 43s to 46s per 36 stone.
Malting barley ,at 33s to 378 per qr.; grinding, 30s to 32s
per 30 st. Oats, old, 26s to 275; new, 22s to 24s per 21
st. ; beans, 32s t 6 39s per qr. A great change is visible in
the growing crops, the late rains having done wonders,

LIVERPOOL—TUESDAY.
At our market to-day there was a good attendance boat
of millers and dealers, and wheat experienced a more active
demand, the depression of Friday being fully recovered.
Oats were very depressed. Barley and peas only saleable
in retail. Egyptian beans rather firmer. Flour met onll
a moderate sale, at a decline of 6d per barrel on the week•
Indian corn has declined 3d to 6d per qr on the prices of
last week.

SHEFFIELD—TUESDAY.
Red wheat, per load of 3 imperial bushels 15s Od to 16s 0(1
White 9) 2os Od to 21s 04
/
New red l7s Od to 18s Od
New white :, ,
II l9s Od to 20s OGI
Beans » )7 los Od to 19$ Od
Peas, per qr 45s Od to 56s Od
Grinding barley, per qr 30s Od to 32s 04
Maltineditto, „ 34s Od to 38s Od
Oats 2ls Od to 27s Oct