The Sun.
London, England, 1865-12-15 00:00:00

liance can be placed which does not redound to the

credit of Governor EYRE and of all who acted in
concert with him. All other accounts turn out to

be a jargon of inconsistencies or a tissue of false-
hoods from beginning to end. First and foremost
in the list of exaggerations and misrepresentations

comes the letter which was said to have been written

by GORDON in his last moments. In this he de-
clared that he had just been told that he was to die

in an hour. After this it certainly seems strange

to find that he was allowed two days to prepare for
the execution of a sentence which was carried out
with all the formalities of martial law. We were also
told by the frenzied members who addressed the pub-
lic meeting, that the court-martial which was held
upon GORDON was composed of subalterns, and its
proceedings were conducted in an unorthodox fashion.
We do not suppose that these indignant parties
will be satisfied to learn that they are wrong, but
at any rate the impartial and unprejudiced por-
tion of the public will be glad to learn that such
an account was totally incorrect, and that no
fault is to be found in the management of the

matter. Brigadier NELSON was six hours examining
the documents before he put GORDON on his trial

at all, and the trial itself lasted for a very long

tune.

All the details connected with this important
event must now be in the knowledge of the Govern-

ment if they have not the documents relating thereto,
which it is to be hoped they have. There can be but
one course open to them at any rate, and one line of
action which the public will expect them to pursue.

All that they know must be at once and unre-
servedly put before us. We can allow no shuffling,
no talk of etiquette or precedents. The character
of some of our colonial authorities has been grossly
maligned, and justice can tolerate but one remedy
—that is, let all the facts be brought to light,
and let the nation judge for itself. It is said
that it will be necessary for the Colonels to return
immediately to Jamaica in company with Sir
HENRY STORKS ; but surely the departure of the
latter could be delayed for a short time, in order to
afford these gentlemen an opportunity of enlighten-
ing us on subjects in which we feel so deep
an interest. Had the scandal-mongers in this
country let us alone, we should have been quite
willing to allow the Government to do as they
liked, and carry out their red-tapist notions to the
uttermost. But as things have turned out, as the
Prime Minister has consented to further the ends
of intolerance, and lend his potent aid to intoler-
ance, it becomes a bounden duty on the part
of our rulers to be made known as speedily
and completely as possible.
It is in England, and not in Jamaica, that anxiety
is felt. In the colony they are quite satisfied with
whathas been done. But in the name of consistency,
and for the sake of justice, let those be the first dis-
abused who have rent the air with their clamours
for vengeance to be wreaked on the offenders who
dared to call murder by its right name, cutting up the
bodies of their victims, mixing their brains with the
rum they drank at their orgies, were acts not worthy
of mention by the righteous and zealous flocks who
congregated in such numbers to the meetings and
assemblies; but calling the authors of these foul acts
to account, and making rebellion and sedition as
crimes, these were unheard-of offences. Every possible
circumstance seems to combine against the peace
of these enthusiasts, and militates against their re-
putation for judgment and veracity. The Maroons
rendered great assistance, but the Governor was much
censured in this country for having had recourse to
their aid. In Jamaica, however, a very different
opinion is entertained of that as of other matters of
moment. The people of Kingston made quite a
Jae day of their visit to that town en route to
their various destinations. Thus on all sides we
find contradiction and confutation of the absurd
reports, the unwarrantable declarations, and the
wanton attacks that have been made upon the
policy of Governor EYRE and his allies. The over-
righteous sects must bear in mind that they are con-
demning not alone one man, but one who
aided him, and the Assembly of Jamaica into
the bargain. Earl RUSSELL must, indeed,
feel deeply mortified at the result of his
tame acquiescence to the arbitrary demand
of the intolerant multitude who encompassed him.
Had he waited three days he might have saved
himself from reproach and the Goverment of Eng-
land from the obloquy of giving up the defence of a
faithful servant to the unscrupulous demands of a
bigoted sect. As it is, he must recall to mind an
occurrence of his earlier life, when upon some occa-
sion of moment he wished to " meddle and muddle"
as usual, and Lord MELBOURNE, then Prime Minis-
ter, exclaimed, " Why can't you leave well alone ?"
Had Earl RUSSELL followed this advice now, and
allowed Mr. CARDWELL to take the management of
his own department, which he was well qualified to do,
how different would the result be now. It is always a
very bad principle to act upon to give way to pres-
sure from without, without a very strong reason
exists for so doing, and in this instance of Gover-
nor EYRE every claim of justice and reason were
against the proposal of suspension being carried out.
Lord RUSSELL had better have resorted to his old
expedient during the American war, and consulted
the legal advisers of the Crown. They could have
told him that the laws of England consider a man
innocent until he is found guilty, and it is not ex-
pedient for the authorities to cast aspersions upon
him before all the evidence is brought forward.

The opening of the Hungarian Diet is a matter
of no small interest, not only to the immediate
subjects of the Austrian EMPEROR, but to the
various populations of Europe. Never since 1848
has England especially failed to watch with the
closed attention the progress of free thought and
constitutional government in that country, and
although the unsuccessful termination of the Magyar
war and the cruel and arbitrary exercise of despotic
e
t way of powerthe by Austria have put formidable obstacles in
people, there has always been ground
for hoping and
in store. The eon
believingduetotfhaAtubstertitaerwdaasyss were
sufficiently
enytleyt
opposed to the spirit of the age to be certain
to plunge her sooner or later
into serious
perplexities, and she now finds herself forced to
endeavour to conciliate that very people whose
former aspirations for constitutional liberty she so
harshly repressed. The address of the EMPEROR at
Pesti' is modest in tone, and evidently intended to
induce the representatives to come to his rescue
and extricate him if possible from the dilemma in
which he finds himself placed. He quietly in-
formed the Diet, in the course of his speech, that
he wished them to keep as their principal aim
the unity of the Empire and the position of Austria
as a great Power. This anxiety as to the posi-
tion of Austria was manifested more than once
in his address. He recognised the necessity of the
autonomy of Hungary so far as it did not
interfere with the unity of the Empire and the
position of Austria as a great European Power.
The Diet was further told that one of their prin-
cipal objects must be the revision of the laws of
1
848, which must be modified, as they were in-
compatible not only with the um •t y of the Empire,
but with the ri •
ghts of the Sovereign. Neverthe-
legs the •
Primary aim of FRANCIS JOSEPH was
evidently to conciliate the refractory Magyars,
and as such they
seem to have accepted it, for