The Sun.
London, England, 1862-06-06 00:00:00

COMMON COUNCIL.

Yesterday, at 12 o'clock, the members of the
Common Council held a meeting at Guildhall for
the despatch of business, Alderman Finnis presid-
ing. There was a numerous attendance both of
aldermen and commoners.

LORD CANNING.
Alderman SALOMONS, M.P., pursuant to notice,

proceeded to move a resolution in reference to the

late Governor-General of ludia. If, he said, that
resolution had called for any power of eloquence or
of persuasion, he would not have put himself for-
ward in the position he had assumed to occupy ; but
having on a former occasion had the pleasure to
originate a motion for the admission of Sir John

Lawrence, one of the coadjutors of Lord Canning,
to the freedom of the city of London, he thought it
would not be disagreeable to the Court, while it

would be agreeable to himself, if he sought the
honour of nominating Lord Canning for the highest
privilege which it was in their power to bestow.
(Cheers.) On his way there he had been asked if

he had any communication with Lord Canning on
the subject. He regretted to say that at present ,
no stranger had an opportunity of communicating
with his lordship, for he was confined to his
residence by severe indisposition, and had not yet
been able to appear in the House of Lords. The rule
of Lord Canning, extending over a period of six
years, was destined to form a most interesting page
in the history of this country in connection with
India. He went there at a time when India was
still under the government of the East India Com-
pany, and remained several months before any event
occurred to interest the English people. A change
had taken place in the mode of arming our military
force there, and a notion had begun to prevail in
the Bengal army that a particular substance was to
be used for lubricating the Enfield rifle, which
many of the Eastern nations regarded with horror,
associating with it, as they did, the loss of caste and
degradation of their religion. Murmurings were
heard and not much attended to until one regiment
mutinied ; that regiment was disbanded, and with
that it was thought the example of disaffection
would end. Shortly afterwards, however, the people
of this country and the European population in
India were astounded by the mutiny at Meerut, still
fresh in the public recollection. At that time the
army of England had been weakened by the Crimean
war, and that of India was reduced to the lowest
possible ebb, a very large portion of it besides being
in the Punjab, then lately added to our territory.
Regiment after regiment mutinied and in most in-
stances the officers were murdered. The Indian
army had been marked by one great peculiarity,
seeing that it was more plebian than that of her
Majesty. The then Government of India, being
that of a company of English merchants, its pa-
tronage was distributed very much among the
middle classes. There was, therefore, hardly any
family or class in the kingdom which was not more
or less identified with the Bengal arm, mustering
some 80,000 men, and hence the great number of
people in this country who were affected in their
tenderest family relations by the prevailing disaffec-
tion. It should be said to the honour and force of
character of the British people that, notwithstanding
all the munitions of war which the rebels in Delhi
had at their command and their superior numbers,
Delhi succumbed to the constancy and bravery of our
troops before they had been reinforced by a single re-
giment from England. Luckily for us a portion of
the army destined to serve in China was inter-

cepted on its way, and afterwards played an im-
portant part in the suppression of the mutiny. One
might well imagine the anxiety of the Governor
General at that crisis, in dealing with a rebellion
of such alarming import. On him devolved the
responsibility of restraining and punishing the
atrocities and barbarities committed by the muti-
neers, and at the same time to curb the revengeful
feelings of our own countrymen, provoked by the
massacre at Cawnpore. Tried as he vs as, more
perhaps than any other savant of the Crown had
ever been in a distant dependency, he was also
assailed both in India and at home. At Calcutta
he was censured becaused he refused to confound
the innocent with the guilty ; but, in spite of ad-
verse comments, he held that his duty was to inflict
punishment on those against whom crime had been
proved, and not against the general mass of the
native army—many of whom were away on leave—
who might only be suspected of crime. At home
such was the anguish of the people that many re-
garded a Hindoo simply as a person on whom we
were justified in wreaking vengeance. At one time
the sobriquet of" Clemency Canning" was applied
to the Governor-General ; but Lord Canning had
lived to convince those who assailed him how much
they had been in the wrong, and he left Calcutta
with proofs of devotion from all classes of the
people, such as no previous Governor-General had
experienced. He (Alderman Salomons) would read
from a Christian publication in India an extract
which, though anonymous, was supposed to be from
the pen of the Bishop of Calcutta, who was pecu-
liarly able from his position to appreciate the cha-
racter and career of Lord Canning :—"
No doubt it
was absolutely necessary and most just that swift
and stern punishment should follow upon treason
and murder. But had the popular outcries which
then prevailed been suffered to guide the policy of
Government, it is certain that a deep stain would
have rested on the fair fame of England in the
n
eyes of foreign nations, never regarding her with
too much goodwill, and in the judgment of pos.
terity also. Among the resolute men who saved it
from this ignominy,
and to whom it is due that the
whole history of this mutiny will be to future gene-
rations a noble example of calmness and Christian
moderation instead of Pagan vengeance and cruelty,
a bright instead of a dark page in our country's
annals, the very foremost place belongs to Lord
Cann!ng." (Cheers.) In all the addresses to Lord
Canning,
alike from the European and native resi-
dents
in Calcutta, he was described as the saviour
of India,
ur.rl as having done great things not only
for the Crown, but fer the natives of India them-
selves. (Hear, hear.) "It is with mingled feelings
of respect and gratitude," said the natives of Cal-
cutta, in their address, "that we call to mind your
humane and merciful conduct to our unfortunate,
misguided countrymen,
exercised at a time when
by most men the principles of moderation would
have been forgotten. We are grateful for the many
liberal measures Which have adorned your adminis-