The Sun.
London, England, 1837-04-25 00:00:00

mined by the blaze of incendiary fires in all the
agricultural districts ; and " glorious" too, if it be
glorious for a King of England to be compelled to
decline a visit to his loyal subjects in the City, lest
the unpopularity of his Ministers should be
too significantly made known to him 1 In his allu-
sions to the future, Lord ELLIOT is quite as happy as.
in his allusions to the past. Gloom, he says, hangs
over it. True, but it is a gloom perceptible only to
Tory optics. To them, indeed, the future wears a
most disastrous aspect, for they can look forward to
nothing but their own annihilation as a party. The
lease of their own political existence is not a lease
renewable at pleasure ; the term is almost expired, and
they must be prepared to turn out. Well, therefore,
may they deprecate the future .as much as they regret
the past. It is like the chambermaid, to whom old
COBBETT once so facetiously alluded, coming with ex-
tinguisher in hand to put out their farthing
rush-light. In speaking of Sir GEORGE MURRAY
as the intended candidate for Westminster, his Lord-
ship said, " that it was from no feeling of dislike, or
because they did not approve of Sir THOMA S COCH-
RANE, that they had selected another ; but simply ou
account of their not having sufficient confidence in his
political character." And yet •the gentleman thus dis-
paragingly spoken of—and by his own friends too !—is
one of the most consistent and straightforward of his
party ; while the new candidate for whom his claims
arc to be shuffled aside, has already been tried and
found wanting—kicked out, in fact, of the representa-
tion of Perthshire, because the electors of that county
had good reason to know that they could not place
" sufficient confidence in his political character !" If
Westminster is desirous of having a Tory for her re-
presentative, let her take Sir THOMA S COCHRANE.
He is worth a thousand IVIuRRAYs, with all their af-
fected moderation and glozing sophistry. Sir THOMAS,
we are convinced, will never make a pledge on the
hustings, and then take the very first opportunity of
breaking it in the House of Commons. He will never
unsay to-day what he said yesterday. Can Sir GEORGE
HURRAY say as much ? Let the indignant rejection
of his claims by Perthshire make answer for us. But
though unworthy to represent a Scotch county, the
Right Hon. Bart. is, it seems, quite good enough for
Westminster ! Indeed, he himself confessed as much,.
by the complacent manner in which he recapitulated
his political opinions, just as if he were already quite
sure of his election. But if we know anything of the
Westminster constituency, we are convinced it will
never select as its representative, the man who would
never have dreamed of standing on it's hustings, had
he not been previously turned out of Perthshire for
breaking the promise he had himself volunteered to
the electors of that district.

In glancing over the addresses—farewell and inau
gural—of the retiring and newly-elected Supreme Ma
gistrates of the United States, it is painful to observe
that, while the former studiously avoids the expression
of any opinion on the subject of domestic slavery, the
latter boldly avows his determination to resist every
effort to abolish so disgraceful an institution. Presi-
dent General JACKSON retires into private life loaded
with the benedictions of his fellow-citizens. The
soundness of his general policy, and the purity of his
patriotism,
will be remembered, when his hot-headed-
ness, dogged obstinacy-, and coarse vituperations will
be only recollected as entertaining traits of the diversity
of human character ; and therefore it is to be regretted
that a Supreme Magistrate, whose name will one day
be enrolled among the Fathers of the Republic, should
have tetired from public life without expressing a hope
for the abolition of a social tyranny which the oldest
despotisms in Europe scarcely dare to tolerate. In the
case of President JACKSON, the omission of such a
topic in his farewell address was evidently premeditated,
and, so far, was an offence against the freedom of man-
kind. The United States have no excuse to offer for
the perpetuation of the infamy of domestic slavery
among them. Allowing that it would be dangerous to
resort to compulsory measures to effect the emancipation
of the slaves—that the question is one of domestic legis-
lation, which can only be constitutionally adjusted by
the slave-holding States, independently of the authority
of Congress—that many of the slaves are wanting in
the amount of intelligence -requisite for the social en-
joyment and appreciation of the blessings of freedom ;
surely, in all these objections, there is nothing
which ought to he allowed to militate against
the employment of a conciliatory policy, having
for its object the protection of the slave-owners' pro-
perty, and the social improvement, with a view to the
ultimate emancipation, of the slave ? The Federal
Govermnent of the United States is rich and powerful
enough to effect all that is desired without having re-
course to force ; inasmuch as the great body of the
citizens, even in the Southern States, are only attached
to slavery, as an institution, to the extent which they
imagine it promotes their pecuniary interests. To such
a people, therefore, it would not be necessary to hold
the language dictated by an absolute and omnipotent
will, for the purpose of inducing them to perform all
act of national justice. All that would be required
would be a guarantee on the part of the Supreme Go-
vernment, that their interests, as created under existing
laws, would he protected in the changes that would
ensue ; and that proportionate advantages would be
conferred on such slave-holders as would appear among
the first to pronounce their slaves properly qualified to
be received as citizens of the United States. General
JACKSON, in his farewell address, advises his country-
men never for a moment to believe that the great
body of the citizens of any State, er States, can deli-
berately intend to do wrong. They may, under the in-
fluence of temporary excitement, or misguided opinions,
commit mistakes ; they may be misled for a time by
the suggestions of self-interest ; but in a community so:
enlightened and patriotic as the people of the United
States,. argument will soon make them sensible of their
errors ; and when convinced they will be ready to re-
pair them." If these be not mere words without mean-
inge---if the people of the United States poSsess only a
tithe of the intelligence attributed to them by their
venerable ex-President—where would have been the
danger of expressing a hope that a day would come
when America would be in a condition to follow the
example of England, in abolishing slavery, without de-
triment to the pecuniary interests of the slave-owners?
We now come to that portion of President VAN
BUREN'S address to the people of the United States
which embodies his views on the slave question. That
we may not leave ourselves open to the imputation of
misrepresenting him, either by accident or design, we
will quote the passage as published by himself:—
" The last, perhaps the greatest, of the prominent sources of
discord and disaster supposed to lurk in our political condi-
tion, was the institution of domestic slavery. Our forefathers
were deeply impressed with the delicacy of this subject, and
they treated it with a forbearance so evidently wise, that in
spite of every sinister foreboding, it never, until the present
period, disturbed the tranquility of our common country.
" Such a result is sufficient evidence of the justice and the
patriotism of their course ; it is evidence not tohe mistaken,
that an adherence to it can prevent all embarrassment from
this as well as from every other anticipated cause of difficulty
and danger. Have not recent events made it obvious to the
slightest. reflection, that the least deviation from this spirit of
forbearance is injurious to every interest, that of humanity
included? Amidst the violence of excited passions, this gene-
rous and fraternal feeling has been sometimes disregarded ;
and, standing as 1 now do before my countrymen in this high
place of honour and of trust, I cannot refrain from anxiously
invoking my •fellow-citizens never to be deaf to its dictates.
" Perceiving before my election the deep interest this subject
was beginning to excite, I believed it a solemn duty fully to make
known my sentiments in regard to it ; and now, when every
motive for misrepresentation has passed away, I trust that they
will be candidly weighed and understood. At least they will
be my standard of conduct in the path before me. I then de.
dared, that if the desire of those of my countrymen who were
favourable to my election were gratified, I must go into the