The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-14 00:00:00

TRUE LOVE.

In all good hearts, love's root is in goodness. Deeper
than even love itself is that ideal sense of being satisfied—
satisfied in all one's moral nature, in the cravings of one's
soul after what seems nearest perfection. And though in
many cases poor human hearts are so weak, 3r strong—
which is it ?—that we cling to imperfectness, and love it,
simply because we love it, with a sort of passionate pity,
ever hoping to have its longings realised : still this kind of
love is not the love, which exalts, strengthens, glorifies.
Sooner or later it must die the death. It had no root, and
it withers away ; whereas, let there be a root, and ever
such a small budding of leaves, sometimes merciful nature
makes it grow.

Perhaps-the following glimpse of Christian, her
husband, and her family will best exemplify some
of her difficulties in—

A DIFFICULT POSITION.

Letitia and Arthur were thin, prim-looking, rather plain
children ; but Oliver was the very picture of a father's
darling, a boy that any childless man would bitterly covet,
any childless woman crave and yearn for, with a longing
that women alone can understand. A child who, beautiful
as most childhood is, had a beauty you rarely see. Bright,
frank, merry, bold; half a Bacchus and half a Cupid, he
was a perfect image of the golden age. Though three
years old, he was evidently still " the baby," and rode on
his father's shoulder with a glorious tyranny charming to
behold.

" Who's that ?" said he, pointing his fat fingers, and
shaking his curls that undulated like billows of gold.
" Papa, who's that ?"
Hardly could there have been put by any one a more
difficult question. Dr. Grey did not answer, but avoided
it, taking the whole three to Christian's side, and bidding
them, in a rather nervous voice, to " kiss this lady."
But that ceremony the two elder obstinately declined.
" I'm a big boy, and I don't like to be kissed," said
Arthur.

" Aunty told us, since we had no mamma of our
own, we were not to kiss any body but our aunts," added
Letitia.

Dr. Grey looked terribly annoyed, but Christian said

calmly—

" Very well, then, shako hands only. We shall be better
friends by-and-by."
They suffered her to touch a little hand of each, pas-
sively rather than unwillingly, and let it go. For a minute
or so the boy and girl stood opposite her, holding fast by
one another, and staring with all their eyes ; but they said
nothing more, being apparently very " good" children,
that is, children brought up under the old-fashioned
rules.

The father and bridegroom looked on, silent as they.
What could he say or do ? It was the natural and neces-
sary opening up of that vexed question, second marriages,
concerning which moralists, sentimentalists, and practical
people argue for ever, and never come to any conclusion.
Of course not, because each separate case should decide
itself. The only universal rule or law, if there be one, is
that which applies equally to the love before marriage ;
that as to a complete, mutual first love, any after love is
neither likely, necessary, nor desirable ; so, to any one
who has known a perfect first marriage—the whole satis-
faction of every requirement of heart, and soul, and human
affection—unto such, a second marriage, like a second love,
would be neither right nor wrong, advisable nor unadvis-
able, but simply impossible.

With power so well developed, and a style at once
so earnest and so interesting, we must look to the
author of " John Halifax" for some more ambitious
undertaking than this very agreeable but com-
paratively unimportant history of " Christian's
Mistake."

ACCIDENT AT BUTLER'S-WHARF.—AII alarming
accident, involving great loss of property, occurred
yesterday morning at Butler's-wharf belonging to Messrs.
Brandon Brothers, wharfingers, at the Waterside, Horsley-
down, by the falling of a newly-erected bonded warehouse,
five storeys high. Owing to the influx of business the firm
were compelled to warehouse cargoes of vessels before the
building was actually completed. Indeed, there were ma-
sons and bricklayers engaged in the place at the time of the
accident. Fortunately there was sufficient warning to enable
the people to escape. A loud cracking was heard in the river
frontage wall, and on the men looking upwards they wit-
nessed the floors bulging downwards, and they succeeded
in getting into the street, when the whole fabric fronting
the river fell into the water, bringing with it several thou-
sand bags of rice. The land side of the structure remains
intact. There were several extraordinary escapes. The pre-
vailing opinion as to the cause of the accident is that it was
I oocagionedby the excessive weight warehoused On the floors.

Rumoured Legal Changes.

(From the Law Times of Friday.)

There has been much gossip about contemplated legal
changes. It has been affirmed for the tenth time that Sir
Wm. Erle is to be raised to the peerage, vacating the Chief
Justiceship of the Common Pleas ; that Mr. Justice Wil-
liams will retire, and that thus two vacancies will be
created in that court. We can trace the story of the peerage
to no authentic source, and even if that honour, so well de-
served, should be bestowed, it would be no reason for quit-
ting the bench. A peerage and a chief justiceship are in no
way incompatible, according to social or professional eti-
quette, and the vigorous mind in the vigorous body of Sir
Wm. Erle will, it may be hoped, long continue to the coun-
try the benefit of his great abilities.
Until the office is actually vacated, it is vain to speculate
who will be the successor. The chiefships are in the ex-
clusive patronage of the Premier ; all the puisnes are pro-
moted by the Lord Chancellor. Neither Minister ventures
to interfere, directly or indirectly, with the patronage of the
other. The Attorney-General is, by custom, deemed to
have the preference of choice for a chiefship ; but the
Solicitor-General has no such customary lien. As a matter
of courtesy, it is usual to give him the refusal of Puisne
Judgeship. If ho prefers the bird in hand, he takes it, and
retires from public life. If he aims at something higher,
he trusts to time and chance for the Attorney-Generalship
and its contingent chiefship. The present Attorney-
General is not likely to accept even a chiefship in the com-
mon law courts. He aims, and with 'good right, at the
Woolsack. Whether, in his default, Lord Palmerston would
offer it to Sir Robert Collier it is impossible to guess. There
is no obligation upon him to do so. But the honour would
be well deserved.