The Sun.
London, England, 1865-08-11 00:00:00

what the community may hope to gain,
or what it need fear to lose from the
retention of Lord PAL3IERSTON in office and the
advent of LordDEnBY to power. Mr. FITZGERALD'S
analysis of the late election is a very clever
one, such indeed as might be expected from
one who deals with such subjects in so masterly
a style. He exposed the shifting policy of
the Ministers, and quoted Sir G. GREY'S
remarks upon the line which the Government
would deem it desirable to adopt in the event of a
Reform Bill being necessary. Mr. FITZGERALD
spoke out very sensibly on this vexed question.
He said he believed it to be for the in-
terest of the Conservative party to look the ques-
tion fairly in the face, and to insist that it should
receive " an early and constitutional settlement at
the hands of Parliament." This is very wise counsel,
and the Opposition had better take heed to it, for
they will be taking away a grand argument
from their opponents, and besides conferring a
benefit on the country by settling a difficult and most
irritating question. No member of the Govern-
ment has spoken out more liberally than Mr. FITz-
GERALD, and those who read his earnest and eloquent
speech will regret more than ever his absence from
the House, and trust that the time is not far distant
when he will be enabled to return to a sphere which
he is so qualified to adorn, and where his consider-
able talents may benefit the country.

The honours and dignities attending the posses-
sion of the great offices of State, have often been
declared by the wearers to be productive of more
annoyance than gratification. Kings and Queens,
it is true, must be approached with caution and re-
spect, and constitutional Ministers can relieve them-
_ selves from too troublesome or pressing applicants
by allusions to his colleagues, or hints about the
close scrutiny of the Parliament and the Press ; but
the fact of an easy position and comfortable emolu-
ments being in the irresponsible gift of another
party, is quite sufficient reason for the waiters on
Providence to try the chance of an appeal. When
an unfortunate individual combines in himself the
power of the Sovereign with the accessibility of the
civil Minister, he is not likely to have an easy time
of it. Probably the anticipation of this annoyance
never yet deterred a man from accepting the post
of PRESIDENT of the United States ; but it is none
the less certain that the position of the chief ruler
of the Republic is, during the first few months of
his term of office, very little to be envied. At the
beginning of every Presidency there is a general
movement among the place hunters in anticipation
of the coming changes. The tenure of most of
the Federal offices expires soon after the assump-
tion of the Presidency ; and as, of course, in a
pushing country like America, there are plenty of
aspirants for every place, and each candidate con-
siders himself entitled to present himself to the
PRESIDENT, supported by " troops of friends,"
the Head of the Republic has no easy time of it.
Addresses of interminable length, letters and mis-
sives innumerable, reach him every hour, while the
delegations, which he cannot refuse to see, present
themselves from all parts of the country. It must
be remembered, besides, that the PRESIDENT is ge-
nerally hampered by his own pledges, given
before his election, to friends and allies who
have helped him to the Presidency, and these
pledges they do not fail to remind him of
when the opportunity to serve them falls
in his way. Should he offend or disappoint these
partisans he stands a good chance of converting
them into a phlanx of enemies ; and although, un-
like an English Minister, an American President is
secure of his seat for four years, yet few public men
can afford to despise unpopularity. Besides the
open applications, every channel that can possibly
be employed to recommend, claim, or urge services
is tried, and secret influence or bribery of every
kind surrounds the President both in private and in
public. Among all these distracting elements there
is not much room to consider the exigencies of the
public service, and indeed the chief question to ask
appears to be who has the most influence or the best
interest. President ANDREW JOIINSON, whom most
people esteemed so fortunate in his political eleva-
tion, is just now occupying thiq somewhat unen-
viable position. Washington is crowded with place-
hunters, their friends and allies, while four dele-
gations from one city and three from another
represent the extent and pertinacity of the appeals
to which he has to listen.

All this may present a somewhat ludicrous pic-
ture to the looker-on from another hemisphere, but
it is no matter for jest. The consequences of this
wide-spread corruption and place-hunting are not
light ; they destroy all political honesty and
spirit, and render the service of the coun-
try a mere race for private gain, instead of
an honourable and elevating ambition. There are,
of course, in a great country like America, where
free thought and discussion and liberal education
readily develope the individual faculties, thousands
of enlightened and upright men ; and it has been
the common remark that this class is withdrawing
itself more and more from any competition for the
public offices. The natural result is that the great
questions of national policy and prudence are left t)
be decided by demagogues, who gain their influence
by flattering the passions of the multitude ; and in-
stead of the politicians tempering the excitement of
the people, they outbid one another in their efforts
to profit by it. It is not surprising that such a state
of things should have produced a civil war, but we
should be glad to believe that peace had brought
about any lasting reform.

Englishmen are never slow to acknowledge the
rights of property, and there is not much fear that
any extortionate, unreasonable claim will be coun-
tenanced by them. At the same time the old motto
" noblesse oblige" is a sound one, and it is not too
much to expect that those who enjoy the privileges
of wealth and high station will show themselves
capable of graceful concessions occasionally. The
great question of common rights is one which is
likely to occasion a good deal of discussion and dis-
sension in these railway extension and building
times, when land of every kind near the metropolis
is rising so rapidly in value. The only way to avoid
disputes, to preserve the rights of the people, and
to secure the owners from loss would be to settletho
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commons influence.
matter by Act of Parliament, and to bring all dis-
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dearly-cherished retreats of Hamp-
stead Heath and Epping Forest are in certain peril,
y is not confined to the
but it seems that the difficulty
immediate vicinity of the metropolis. A. letter has
just been addressed to a contemporary by a resident
in West Hertfordshire, complaining of the rumoured
intention of Earl BROWNLOW to enclose Berkhamp-
stead Common, which is part of his domain. It
is very much to be regretted in these days, when
bricks and mortar are covering every possible space
that a large tract of breezy common should be taken
from the public. It seems that there are some old
established rights in connection with the common
which Earl BRowNLow's agents propose to com-
pensate by giving up a piece of marshy land. The
whole facts of the case are not before the public,
but Lord BROWNLOW, we should th'nk, has land
enough, and to spare, to be able to dispense with