The Sun.
London, England, 1863-08-28 00:00:00

THE SUN. LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, AUGUST 28, 1863.

provers to gain ground, and not all Herr VON
BISMARK'S epistles can hide the fact that he is
seeking to shelter himself in a forest of words
from the condemnation he merits.

The Prorogation of Parliament and the dispersion
of its members gives an opportunity very willingly
seized upon in various quarters, for meetings of
different characters in different parts of the country.
Freedom of discussion upon every possible topic
has become an essential element of the British Con-
stitution, both physical and political ! and by the
active agency of the Press with its

-" thousand tongues,
Its throat of brass, and adamantine lungs,"

the voice of popular opinion is daily rendered
audible in every quarter of the kingdom. Science
and Politics, Agriculture and Manufactures, Law
and Literature have their various arenas for the
open discussion of their necessities, the various
exponents of their especial rights and wrongs and
requirements, and it is right and just that so it
should be. By general and open discussion not
only does every individual matter of pnblie inte-
restore receive more elaborate attention and m
judicious development, bat by the generalh aphuibtleicoaf-
tion of such very diversified information,
thought are daily and hourly encouorafgethde
andpeople.
sti-
mulated among the great body
This truth must be apparent to all who consider the
subject. It becomes very eviadnenyt
oonneevoefntahceudrseoirly
glance at any impression of
organs of public opinion. At the present moment
first and foremost among the public meetings
of general interest and importance is the
great assembly now collected at Newcastle,
at the welcome bidding of the British Association.
The second day's proceedings of this venerable
Institution were rendered doubly attractive and
important by a masterly discourse from the eloquent
lips of Sir RODERICK MURCHISON, in which he
gave a brief but emphatic summary
countrymen
f the
great geographichalwhi oar
riscovnewriee of modern
times, in eh
have borne such a prominent and distinguished
part. Alluding also to the resources and develop-
ment of Australia, the learned orator very judi-
ciously remarked, that the Mother Country was
happily not likely, in this instance, to become
estranged from these, her powerful and extensive
dependencies, because, wiser than in former times,
she treated them and would continue to treat
them in a more liberal and considerate spirit. "It
has been truly remarked by a recent Governor of
Australia," said Sir RODERICK MURCHISON, " that
the loyalty of Australia is a hcmage to the en-
lightened rule of England of which her states-
men may be proud." Sir RODERICK'S speech
is a study in itself. The student and the lover of
geographical research will derive great plea-
sure and profit from its perusal ; while
even a cursory glance will convey to the ge-
neral reader, for we hardly think that the general
reader will dare to venture upon more than a cur-
sory glance at its mysteries, even that brief
glimpse will afford him matter for thought
and wonder, and he may perhaps regard
the world as even a greater place, and science as
even a more marvellous study than he had before
believed ! In another direction, at Leicester, the '
agriculturists have been holding their assemblies;
in on: of which, Lord BERNER% in returning thanks
for the toast of the House of Peers, very naively and
ingenuously admitted that during the last session
he did not think that in the way of legislation either
House had done much to boast of !—a sentiment
likely to meet with a very unanimous assent
throughout the country ! Air. HEYGATE,
in following his noble friend, strongly
urged upon the agriculturists a more extended
spirit of inquiry, and a more general encourage.
ment of the diffusion of agricultural knowledge and
information. This advice was most judicious and
well-timed, and we trust it will be cordially responded
to and very readily acted upon by our farmers and
agriculturists. The good of one and the good of all
are synonymous terms in the prosperity of the
great body politic, and every discovery and im-
provement in agriculture and every other art only
becomes more valuable by extension, and its bene-
fits become redoubled as they become further
developed and diffused.

At the recent meeting of the Central Relief Com-
mittee, under the able presidency of the Earl of
DERBY, it was boldly stated by Mr. ASHWORTH
that the Cotton Supply Association could promise
a supply of cotton for 1864, equal to 41 days' work
per week for the Lancashire mills. This promise
is no mere -visionary hope, no ingenious illusion,
but it is based upon the crops now actually known
to be growing. The statistics which Mr. ASH-
WORTH brought forward in support of this view
were admitted by the Chairman of the meeting to
be most important, since, if their calculations were
accurate, nearly five days' work per week would be
supplied to the mills without any assistance from
America ; whereas he reminded the meeting that
we have hitherto been dependent on American
cotton to the same extent that we are now able to
dispense with it—that is to say, five-sixths of our
supply has been exclusively drawn from American
cotton-fields, and yet we are able to look forward
to working five-sixths of the usual time with mate-
rial drawn from totally different sources. Among
the countries mentioned as likely to contribute the
most efficiently to our aid, some surprise will pos.
sibly be felt to find the Turkish dominions. No
less than 350,000 bales, equivalent to 250,000 bales
of American cotton, aro expected from that quar-
ter. If this be the first fruits of the improved
Turkish Government we have heard of, it is cer-
tainly very acceptable and appropriate. The
Viceroy of Egypt is ales said to express con-
siderable interest in the cultivation of cotton,
and the encouragement thus afforded
pro-
bably something to do with thedifferent
figures
representing Egypt and the rest of the African
continent. Exclusive of Egypt, the African supply
is not reckoned at more than 10,000 bales, though
this must not be taken as a sample of the capabili-
ties of the soil or climate, when we recal the days
when all Europe drew its cotton supply from
Africa, through the medium of the Spanish and
Portuguese traders. Egypt is to furnish, accord-
ing to the calculations made, 50,000 bales addi-
tional this year, while a considerable increase is
expected to take place in the Brazilian supply.
1:11e more important change, however, is to come
from India. Sir CHARLES Wows has, it seems,
been able to blame the bad season of 1862 for the
errors of long-continued neglect and perversity, and
is fain to alter the lugubrious view in which he
once looked upon Indian resources.
to be expected from The increase
the large tracts of land added
to the cultivation both this year and last will pro-
and the import anticipated from our
than 250,000 bales.
duce, their effect,
once unheeded colony is no less
express their
The manufacturers felt called upon to
opinions with decision and confidence, owing to the
depressing and unfounded fears indulged in
One of these gentlemen some persons. en expressed
his conviction that the whole of Lancashire nu • ght
be at full work in two or three years, without a
bale of the required article being received from
America, supposing
the war to be still in full force.
That these observations were Landed oa Act is

proved by the satisfactory accounts received by the
members of the Cotton Supply Association,' and
read at their recent meeting. A letter from Turk's
Island, which was produced, stated that the Caicos
Islands, now lying idle, were well adapted for the
cultivation of cotton, and that many years since large
quantities of it were grown and shipped to Eng-
land. Lands capable of producing very good cotton
might be purchased at a low rate, so that one of the
great difficulties attending the capitalist in India is
unknown. A beautiful sample of yarn, spun from
the native cotton of Jamaica was received and exhi-
bited at the meeting. This cotton is perennial, and
would, it is thought, grow well in all tropical coun-
tries. The samples forwarded from Western Aus-
tralia are also of a very high order, and it is re-
marked that these specimens have never been
surpassed by any in quality. There can now be no
longer any doubt that the question of sufficient cot-
ton supply is merely a question of time, and that
too
us
re
sveelrvaelsdifferent
the
countries,plant wwihllorseeadcoilnynaedcatipotni twseitlfh
its
or the g e cultivationntle m
ea matternat of
t he
re
cen t paramountmeeting ting interest.spo spoke
One
of of the
probable arrival of a sufficient quantity of cotton to
provide for 41 days' work weekly directly after
Christmas; We trust that such may be the case,
and that our manufacturers and millowners, who
have had such bitter cause to regret their total
dependence on one source of supply, may receive
from India, Australia, Egypt, and Brazil, full and
satisfactory proof that the marvellous plant which
has contributed so greatly to our national wealth
and prosperity is by no means restricted to one
latitude or to one kingdom in its development.

THE CONGRESS AT MALINES,

(From the diforiting Herald.)

The Catholic Congress at Mechlin, thrown into
tho shade as it is by the meetings of potentates and
diplomats who have the power as well as the will
to make their opinions respected by others, is yet a
phenomenon in modern history which cannot well
be overlooked by those who have at heart the social
well-being of the age. Here, in a solemn old
clerical town of Belgium, are met together a multi-
tude of influential men, laymen, priests, and bishops
of the Catholic Church, from every nation,

and speaking every language, for the purpose of
discussing the present position and prospects of
that great religious community whose interests
they have so much at heart. This meeting is some-
thing very novel. It does not speak with authority
like one of those ancient councils, having power

to bless and to ban, to make or overturn Popes,
to put kingdoms under interdict, to condemn
the tenets of an Arius, a Huss, or a Luther.
It is called upon to witness no secession like that
of Spires, to put its seal to no new doctrine like
that of Trent. It has no authority whatever, but
consists of a number of religionists who sympathise
heartily with one another, and speak of their com-
mon concerns, each in his private capacity. Such
meetings take place among Protestants, and are
characterised, as we know, by a display of polemic
zeal which is justifiable so long as it does not
trench upon the bounds of ferocity. The Roman
College of the Propaganda busies itself chiefly with
such remote countries as China and Japan. The
followers of Ignatius, though some old ladies in
England are still afraid of them, are now-a-days
almost as harmless as lions with their teeth drawn
and claws cut. It was not so much on the question
of enlarging the borders of their Church that these
Catholics conferred together at Mechlin, but on
the means of preventing the threatened diminution
of her influence throughout the world. The first
proceeding of the Congress was to present as affec-
tionate and loyal address to the Pope, who replied
by sending his benediction by telegraph. There is,
therefore, nothing at all mutinous in the spirit of

the meeting. It is not met to dis2.uss theological
questions, nor matters of Church government. In

other affairs the authorities at Rome have no objec-
tion to concede the right of private judgment,
accompanied and followed as it is likely to be by a
display of private munificence. The system of the
Church has always been so elastic that it stretches
or contracts according to the temper of the age.
The Congress at Mechlin spent a considerable
portion of its time in discussing the means of
supplying what it considers to be a great want.
It is a curious thing, but it seems that the Roman
Catholics of Europe have not one respectable
newspaper. Were we to number the potentates,
nobles, and commoners who belong to the rival
Churches, we should find that a majority was to be
classed as professing the tenets of the elder cora
munion. But the Romish Church is almost unre-

presented in the Fourth Estate. There are, in
Rome, Paris, Vienna, Turin, and London, some
extreme and violent organs of the "clerical party,"
which do more harm than good to the cause which
they profess to serve, and certainly do not express
the views of enlightened Romanists. Besides these
prints, which can be easily numbered on the
fingers, the Church has few on its side, for even
to show it sympathy among ,the newspapers of
Catholic countries. The majority of them incline
to " liberalism," which is generally opposed to
" priestcraft," and their editors are reported to be
Gallios, who think all religions very much the
same. The speakers at Mechlin were in favour of
establishing an international Catholic journal, the
mission of which should be to promote by all means
the influence of the Catholic Church, The curious

thing about the proposed print is that it is to uphold
religion and liberty together. The natural union of
the Catholic religion with an advanced form of
liberalism is the favourite theory of the able and
eloquent spokesman of Catholicism in France, M.
de Montalembert. When he arrived at Mechlin
a deputation met him at the railway station.
When he entered the rocm where the Congress was
sitting the members rose all together as they
would have risen to a king. M. de Montalem-
bert made one of his earnest and almost passionate
speeches, in which he advocated the acceptance of
the revolution without arricre pensce, Modern
Catholics everywhere, except in Belgium, made the
great mistake of regretting the anciens regimes.
These have one fault which cannot be redeemed;
they are dead and gone. The Church, said the
speaker, must be reconciled with the democracy.
The free Church in the free state, things supposed
occasionally to be incompatible, are all that M. de
Montalembert desires for the regeneration of so-
ciety. By his speech at Mechlin he has already
brought down upon himself the wrath of the clerical
press, already
irritated, and not unnaturally, by the
scheme of the liberal Catholic newspaper. We wish
every success to this organ. After Montalembert's
Af r from
tCardinal
nlglrriessesmi ahlile
hi ns
speech in favour of democracy there was an oration
n
pu
cr ah
d ofd r
et
sosl
eesr awt i
were
delivered by such men cannot be said to have passed
off without eclat.

ORIGIN OF MYTHOLOGICAL FABLES. The
generations that built up mythology, it has been
very recently and very ingeniously suggested, had none of
the language by which we at once settle the character of
external objects. They could not say that the sun was a
heavenly body, for they had no comprehension of the eis-
tinction between heaven and earth, and still less any con-
ception that answered to body. They saw a beautiful thing
moving above them, the presence of which brought cheer-
fulness, and the absence of which brought gloom. How
were they to express their feelings ? The only language
they had for bright, beautiful moving things, causing pro-
found alterations of feeling, was necessarily derived from
the expressions used about men. Tha step from this to
speaking as if the thing spoken of were a man is very easy:
for all people love to put their vague feelings about what
interests them into some definite shape, and no means of
attaining this definiteness with regard to the beautiful mov-
ing thing instinct with human activity and power was so
natural as to speak of it as a glorified man. The thought
of such a being once formed, fancy loved to paint what he
would be like ; and as the same process was going on in
runty directions, the being thus evoked had to take his
place among others like him, and then the pleasure of de-
v'sins incidents, and of inventing characters, prompted the
e _i
creation of the whole family history of the dwellers of
iC)acYtraPus., Such, stated in a brief, bold, and very itnper-
way,ui, be said to have been the history of
FX.7449legy,

and one or two foreigners. As, however, it was
impossible, even under a Russian system of go-
vernment, to keep in prison people against whom
net the shadow of a chance could be found, a
sharp-witted policeman from St. Petersburg sug-
gested that revolutionary pamphlets should be
slipped into the pocket of every person arrested, a
device which has been adopted with great
success. This, however, is only used as a last
resort, for the police are seldom at a
loss for pretexts. Thus on the 18th inst.
M. Skrzymowski was arrested because he had on a
cap of a new shape, and the next day P. Pielecki,
because a carving-knife was found in his house.
The most frequent cause of arrest is neglect to take
off one's cap or hat before the Grand Puke Constan-
tine. The Grand Duke himself is the most zealous
pursuer of those who offend in this particular.
Scarcely a day passes but he finds some one in his
walks through the city, who voluntarily or involun-
tarily, remains covered before him. In these cases
he invariably turns to the Cossacks of his escort, and
orders them to seize the refractory Pole there and
then. It was in this way that an American officer,
named Edmund Bernard, was arrested in th• gar-
den of Lazienki. He was taken to the station-house,
and interrogated by Lewszyn, the Director of Police,
to whom he exhibited his passport, and explained
that he did not know the customs of the
country he was in. Apparently these customs were
not at all to his taste, for immediately after his libe-
ration he left Warsaw.

The police of the capital is to be largely in-
creased. The city was formerly divided into two
districts ; it is now to have four. Every sub district,
in which hitherto there were but 40 policemen, is
to have 240, and there is to be an inspector for every
600 inhabitants.

A letter from the palatinate of Ayustow describes
an atrocious act of brutality committed by the
Russian troops. It appears that an estate called
Durable was on the 11th occupied by a detachment
of Polish cavalry under Col. Rychlevrski. A picket
of this detachment was on that day being relieved,
when it was suddenly attacked by a squadron of
Russian hussars. Alicewiez, the commander of the
picket, immediately fired a pistol to warn his com-
panions,and then with his three men advanced to join
them. Unfortunately his horse fell, and the Russians
being by this time upon them, end, calling to them
to surrender, the Poles gave up their arms. The
Russian commandant then ordered them to strip.
The Poles obeyed, no doubt thinking that the
object of the officer was to ascertain whether they
had any more arms about them. When this was
done, the commandant turned to the Cossacks and
exclaimed, " Kill the rebels." A terrible scene
ensued: the Cossacks, after inflicting dreadfal
wounds on the naked Poles, cut off their heads and
mangled their bleeding bodies. While this butchery
was going on, a youth of 16, named Szcrkniewski,
unable to bear the sight, ran across the street to
the house of Count Ronikier. The soldiers imme-
diately pursued him into the house, and, entering
the room where he had taken refuge, cut off his
head and ears and tore out his bowels. This young
man was a clerk in a private office, and had no
connection whatever with the insurgents.