The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-14 00:00:00

LONDON, MONDAY, DEC. 14, 1863.

As Mr. COBDEN took occasion to remark the
other day, in his most intemperate letter to our
principal contemporary, out a very
few weeks
more reassembled.
Reasons and Parliament will have
easons there are in abundance for its early
p
reassembling ! Foremost among these, the
extraordinary pass to which our Foreign
:Relations brought have been by h MAJESTY'S
A 3itztionSecretary of State for that Department.
many
4irectiono remarkable, in its way, in
run: that (not by any means
unnatura,ll3.)
ti (not altogether unfounded)
got about recently among the Clubs, to the effect
that Earl ItussELY aul
L h either been constrained
to resign, or had Again
a_l:erversely resigned him-
self, of his own freewill
as
much
mischief
as he
possiblyer
once more done
aailly could to the Admi-
nistration of he had
ability contrived to become
else might b© thought of the
presars
'Whatever
these who are not among the
avowed
number 'oiC.abinet by
partisan supporters, there can hardly b,
opinions
as to the coursa Dow for some time persisted Pin
icos
in by the noble Earl the Foreign Secretary_ That
course has been marked out for himself
by

one vvl io is notoriously as self•willed as he is un-
questif mably and most irritatingly self-opinionated.
It has been, at one and the same time, the develop-
ment and the exaggeration of a policy as feeble in
acts :as it has been loud and ostentatious in lan-
' guag e . How Not To Do it is the key to the
whole) mystery of it, as it is in effect,
scan :ding to our Great Humourist, the clue
thro' sgh the whole labyrinth of Circumlocu-
tion. Precisely, as in the matter of Reform, Earl
Rust SELL now superciliously advises the nation to
Rest and be Thankful—so does he now cynically
affect to assume a very grand bearing, indeed,
es the representative abroad of English Public
Opi.nion,'a very grand bearing, indeed, in the man-
ner of his diplomatic correspondence! Idlitshneeng\ovtiitah-
tions, first with one foreign power an
grossly
another, always ending meanwhilem either in
a fiasco
or in a collapse. Everybody reme h
he blundered in the matter of Schleswig-Holstein
months ago. We all have a painful recollection of
the anti-climax closing the noble earl's exchange of
despatches with Prince GORTCHAKOFF in regard to
the affairs of Poland. While, as for his
American policy we can but still look painfully
askance at that truckling towards the Federals evi-
denced by the precipitate embargo laid neon certain
steam rams in a shipbuilder's yard at Liverpool I
To Lord RUSSELL we are indebted for an excess of
irritability that has, at one extremity of the earth,
led to a rupture of friendly relations with the
Brazilian Government, and to an excess of ,
passion that has resulted, at the opposite extremity
of the earth, that is in Japan, to the lamentable and,
for England, most discreditable destruction, in cold
blood, of the unfortunate city of Kagosima. Finally,
as the last achievement of Earl RUSSELL in
his capacity as chief at the English Fo-
reign Office, was the result of the recent
correspondence between the Governments of Eng-
land and France, in regard to the EMPEROR S
proposition of a Congress. A correspondence so
closed that England may be said, thereby, quite
plainly and accurately to have assumed a wholly ex-
ceptional position in regard to France—the position,
that is, of a sneering cynic who goes out of his
way to be guilty of a gross rudeness where nothing
certainly has been in any way called for but the
extreme of courtesy. England may be quite
right—probably is quite right—in declining to take
part in a Congress—but, at any rate, she could
have intimated that, as her decision, without doing
so in a manner almost insolent, beyond any doubt
of it to the very last degree most irritating and super-
cilous. Remembering all which pleasant illustra-
tions of the agreeable consequences of our having
Lord RUSSELL in authority at the Foreign-office,
we cannot but feel an inexpressible satisfaction in
reflecting that Parliament wile now, in a very little
while longer, have come together in February.

It is an old saying and a wise one, that extremes
meet, and we may see some illustration of the
truism every day. In no case is its accuracy more
vividly shown than in the similarity existing
between despotisms and democracies in many im•
portant particulars. The tyranny of the few or of
the many tends to much the same result; while
constitutional law and civil liberty suffer nearly as
much from the one as from the other. The avowed
enemies of freedom are scarcely more dangerous
than her professed friends—the emphatic protesta-
tions of the Red Republican do not prevent him
from following in the steps of the irresponsible
dictator. The experience of all history tends to
confirm this doctrine, for independent and outspoken
citizens incurred as much risk in the days of Liberty,
Equality, and Fraternity, as under the rule of the
veriest despot that ever wielded a sceptre. By
common consent the dominion of the friends of the
people has been styled the Reign of Terror; and,
indeed, it would seem as if the elected sovereigns
often feared opposition the most—possibly from the
feeling that, being supposed to represent the
sentiments of the populate, any suggestion that
they were not adequately fulfilling the wishes of
the majority must be especially dangerous. The
inconsistency of a Republican Government issuing
arbitrary laws and confiscating the civil rights of a
people, has been latterly strikingly evidenced in the
proceedings of the Federal Government. The sus-
pension of the Habeas Corpus Act, the imprison-
ment of peaceable citizens who had dared to lift
their voices against the war, the expulsion of Mr.
VALLANDIGHAM-a man of sufficient note to have
been elected Governor of a State—have all afforded
matter for surprise and regret on this side of the
Atlantic. By the latest intelligence it would seem
that despotism has proceeded a step further, and
that the last onslaught has been made upon the
freedom of the press. This step, which is
always the herald of oppression, is doubly
remarkable in a country like America, in
in which the liberty of the Press has long
been allowed to degenerate into license. The tone
of the American journals, however little in accord.
ance with the manners and customs of this country,
has always been singularly free and outspoken, and

the American people are accustomed to commen'

on men and measures which we should consider
libellous. The muffling of the press is, therefore,
an extreme measure, and it is, too, strange that it
should be deemed necessary when the great body
of the journals has been devoted to the cause of the
Government. So universal was the feeling for war
with the South, that any journalist who ran counter
to it had no chance of obtaining a livelihood ; even if
his printing-office were left standing, he would
have no sale for his papers, and American mobs are
by no means patient of opposition. It has been
charged against the press and the pulpits of America
that they have inflamed the passions of the people,
that they have, for the sake of winning popularity
and position, stimulated the popular frenzy instead
of striving to counsel moderation and peace. Yet
the arbitrary doings of the Federal authorities
appear to have outstripped the subservience of the
and an enforced conscription, probably the
Preeartor of
many more, has given occasion to the
edict all
been g:lttd_ to. At Columbus, Kentucky, there has
excitement owing to the enforcement of
a COMlCripti,u
larder issued by General HURLBUT.
The same coolta
levit:tder, who is apparently deter-
he strong hand, promulgated
e close of last month, pro-
an mined
orderto ph, _
at
newspapersi,
418 department from discus-
isures or polic Y of the Government—
Is inbgi t
ti nh ge
Pert,onally responsible for
the violation of the order. \\Thet,
the editors to be held
Nether this arbitrary
strictures on that
' is not
decree
enforced conscription state
was called forth by 507
but such was
probably the case. lt is a dark d,
for Anaerica
when such decrees are issued. The Northern States,
in fact, are under martial law thoughgwv r
tied by
the authorities,
civil and own leaders, and
military, hesitate at nothing.
Such incidents adord
liberty
which curious commentary on American
which some of our professing Liberals would
do well to study. The persistency itb,
which the leaders of the Manchester school endea-
vonr still to advocate the superiority of the
an-
satlantic ways and manners is really Tx
singular in
the face of such facts. Mr. COBDEN, who is never
at a loss for a word against the press of his own
country, would probably approve of the cause by
which editors are to be held responsible for any
infraction of the order. Such a stipulation is cer-
tainly more just and reasonable than the decree

which visits the political offences of the manager on
the printer; but the Americans had better take care
that their military despots do not go a step or two
further, and imitate the example of Prussia a little
more closely. In fact, Herr von EISMARIC would not
be altogether out of place in the LINCOLN Cabinet.
The same obstinacy, the same dogged determination
to reduce his opponents to his will, the same over-
looking of popular rights, the same political short-
Y e
nyrkl
iaenrel easi
little
andl
ena
Wdr a
etcanhst
oeeh
uri
di
enough
delibe-
rate i
itcbo
ienon-f,
st ihge h
not eduGdgmenhri enn
its
he:
ent andrEi,atgohora-a-head" suicidalt
otherwiseo i
araltthe
common. It is to be regretted that 'men in our own
country,es
rwhpoesc,et position and antecedents entitle
them to should persist in advocating the
excellence of American institutions, apparently
entirely oblivious of the fact, that men must draw
their own conclusions from such acts as these, and
that those conclusions are not likely to be favour-
able to the training which produces, not only such
readers, but the men wllo suffer them. In a brief
note, addressed to the Marquis of HARTINGTON,
referring to his recent speech at Haslingden, Mr.
COBDEN takes the opportunity of disputing the
accuracy of tie observations made by the noble
lord as to Vac, principles of American education, and
the defects in the national character which have
been exhibited in the great struggle. The substance
of tidese remarks expressed the views of a good
many sound Liberals in this country, and few
such will, we trust, be found to applaud the
barbarous and tyrannical spirit in which the
Northern States have carried on the war. America
is no doubt passing through a time of grievous trial.
A struggle of Titans is going on, whether for right
ends or for wrong, and the acts of both sides must
not be harshly judged. Still, with every disposition
to leniency, Englishmen have stood aghast at the
tales which have reached them of the doings of
their own kindred race. It is as if the war were
being waged in a spirit which dispensed alike with
the chivalry of ancient times and the humanity of
modern days, and the triumph of success or the
mortification of failure are alike darkened by harsh
disregard for the amenities of civilisation. If the
Union founded by WASHINGTON and supported by
a host of great and liberal statesmen is to be sup
ported by means like this, then, whatever the suc-
cesses of the Federal arms, its glory has indeed
passed away. If the great Republic, the boasted
land where royal, ecclesiastical, and titled tyranny
were things unknown, is to owe its supremacy to
the gagging of the press and the invasion of the
rights of citizens, then let the patriots of America
cease to hope for the future of their country, for
the great strongholds of constitutional law, free
thought and free speech, will have been sacrificed
to a vain ambition.

Whatever oar posterity may think of the pre-
sent age for the good it is doing, they must admit
that it is one of enterprise, and that, too, of a
gigantic character. We are running a race of
rivalry in the art of construction, and destruction to
match. We are building or inventing machines of
wonderful capacity for good, while our restless
genius is busy in forging engines to test their merits
with a heartiness of daring and ingenuity worthy
of a better purpose. The universal idea seems to be
that nothieg old can any longer be worth caring
for, because in the pride of our might we can pro-
' duce new models altogether beyond comparison. It
1 is so with our ships as with our guns. Our " hearts
of oak," that for ages have stood the battle and the
breeze and triumphed on the deep, must now give
place to (mother substance—long familiarly sup-
posed not likely to swim, far less to bear our thun-
ders over the stormy wave or battle with the foe.
But now all these things are undergoing a change,
and that a rapid one. How far it may prove for the
better, time alone can show, for it is idle to predi-
cate, however confident may be our belief. Then,
again, we are not even agreed upon the best mode
of carrying out our new ideas, for the manner is as
novel as the matter, so much have circumstances
changed the nature of enterprises. Some are for
capacity, others for strength, and all for speed, in
the construction of our ships. But the how and
the wherefore seem to puzzle even the expertest in
the multitude of our discordant genius. Invention
spurs on one party, while consideration moderates
the other. Everyone's idea is naturally the most
likely to answer, especially in his own opinion, but
the right course probably lies in the medium.

The difficulty is in the decision, so each rides on his
own hobby for better or worse. Perhaps one cause
of their diversity of opinion lies in the fact that they
are all more or less bewildered in the dilemma of
applying or endeavouring to work out the new

-naprovements by running is the groove of their old
ideas, from which they find it rather difficult to
disentangle themselves. Still it would be idle to
advise, for the very reason that any suggestion not
in unison with the " dear novelty" would be scouted
as unworthy of notice, for a genius is as stub-
born as he is inventive, and glories in carrying
out his own conception to the very letter. It is the
glory of his heart and idol of his ambition—he must
be all or nothing. If he fail he will persist, and if
he succeed alt is right, but even then he will do
something better yet, and so he may, for progress
is the very nature of invention, and hence the won-
derful achievements of science now, in comparison
with former times. But there is another question
that enters into the progress of improvement, and
that is cost. We may buy gold too dear. Eco-
nomy is necessary, in large as in small undertak-
ings. It is an axiom founded in the very works of
nature, and the art of man can have no better au-
thority to guide his course. Whether the immensity
of our present undertakings be in strict accordance
with our necessities remains to be seen ; but if we
can obtain our actual requirements at a lesser cost,
it behoves us to be more careful in our expenditure,
for the loss or waste of the present may be no con-
solation for the future, however it may prove a
warning. Now in shipbuilding, whatever can be
saved is gain, provided the saving do not impair the
efficiency. The public have been scandalised for
some time back at the expense of our royal dock-
yards, as compared with the character of our great
private establishments. But even in the latter,
reforms may be made, not only for their own ad-
vantage, but also for that of the public. Now, it is
clear that if any private firm can accomplish any
saving in the management of their concerns, self-
interest will induce their ready acceptance of any
reasonable plan that may promise such benefit.
No doubt prejudice may operate partially to influ-
ence this judgment, but that, too, will yield to rea-
son and time, and the public will eventually pa-
tronise the cheapest because it is the best, and the
best is always the cheapest in the long run, as ex-
perience has ever proved. We will not pretend to
decide on one mode of building in preference to
another, but we like to give fair play to all comers
es r
in the way
of publicity, and that as much for tht.
Public
Rood as for the undoubted and worthy ad-
schem vanta° of the inventor. Among the many
of l one has been sent to
much for
us, despereoposed ate' ina
of Special coesideration, as
professed ecotnony, as for
"
it.
its impartiality am f
reedom from prejudice.* It is

* New Mode of phildn
and Economy aibining
Strength
with Facility
Mac egor Skinner, of Construction." By A.
Captain, It.N. Foiarth edition. Re.
vised,
Narcud Ward and Co, Belfitat,
gr