The Sun.
London, England, 1865-09-13 00:00:00

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LONDON, WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 13, 1865.

The British Association has earried on its labours
with zeal and assiduity, and they are now winding
up with festive assemblies. The Mayor gave a
banquet to the members of the Association on Mon-
day, at which some interesting speeches were made.
Sir E. BELCHER made some appropriate remarks in
responding on behalf of the navy, and said that in
former days their ships were hearts of oak, and were
built at the sea-side, but that now the good people
of Birmingham know a great deal more about
" their iron walls than they did themselves." He
went on to say in an amusing manner that if asked
how they liked the change, they would say that
they did not like it at all, for the iron ships
prevented them from distinguishing themselves.
" If they took an enemy's ship they could not board
her, and when they were sick of firing at one ano-
ther, they could just head off and look at each
other !" Lord STANLEY returned thanks for the
House of Commons, and after paying a tribute to
the merits of Lord HOUGHTON, who was present,
and who, as an ex-member of that assembly, might
have taken the office upon himself, the noble lord
proceeded to make some observations on the
character of the House, which were distin-
guished for their truth and discernment. No-
thing, indeed, is more worthy of notice than
the capabilities which the House displays as
a body for finding out who is worthy of attention in
debate and who is not, and Lord STANLEY spoke on
this subject with the experience of seventeen years.
The noble lord afforded considerable amusement by
his definition of those wonderful orators, who are
supposed to be able to take the House by storm, hut
who never succeed in commanding the applause of
listening senates. These fluent speakers, he said,
were supposed to possess a great command of lan-
guage, whereas it would be truer to say that " lan-
guage has great command of them, because they
have about as much command of it as a man has
of a runaway horse." These heroes are left to
declaim to empty benches, and, on the other hand,
some man, who, perhaps, speaks in an uncouth and
awkward fashion, gains the attention of four or five
hundred members, because, as is here
stated, he really seeks to contribute some
new idea to the discussion that is going on.
This shows that there is great justice in the judg..
',lents of the House, and whenever its verdict is
pronounced for or against the ability and position
of a man aspiring to come forward prominently in
public life, it may be implicitly relied on, and the
public may fearlessly endorse it.
It is well known that Lord STANLEY has always
been in favour of " competitive examinations," and
on this occasion he observed, with great truth, that
the House of Commons itself is a ccmpetitive exa-
mination. Some years ago when people tried to put
down these attempts, it was said with a sneer,
"Why confine this system to clerks, and why not
have it for Chancellors of the Exchequer and for
Secretaries of State ?" The noble lord remarked that
his answer was then as it would be now, that
no one can possibly attain a leading position in the
House 'without having to go through some
such an ordeal as that referred to. A
career in the House is a trial of many things—it
is a " trial of physical strength and endurance, a
trial of patience and temper ; it is a trial of readi-
ness, of thorough and accurate knowledge, and,

last chief of all, it is a trial of common sense
and knowledge of the world." A better definition
could not possibly be given of the requirements
of a member, who seeks to do something more than
call himself one, mid those who aspire to success or
eminence had better heed the warning of Lord
STANLEY, and reflect that if he fails in any of the
particulars above cited, but more especially in the
last, he will not do for the House of Commons if he
should get anywhere else a seat. There is indeed no
royal road to distinction in that assembly any more
than there is to learning. None can deny the truth
of Lord STANLEY'S remarks, that there never was a
popular assembly in the world that commanded s a
much respect, and exereised so much power as the
English House of Commons. This is in part a
universally acknowledged thing ; it is felt by all
classes at home, and assented to by all nations
abroad, from the despot who shrinks from its com-
ments to the races struggling for freedom, who
both want its sympathy and wait for its approval.
Lord STANLEY represented the chief cause of this
power very fairly, when he said that it was because
there never had existed in the world a " legislative
body whose component parts were thoroughly inde-
pendent in social position and feeling." This is
precisely the secret of its security and strength, of
its success, and, what is of far greater consequence,
its services for good and greatness to the people. The
greatmajority of the House, asthe noble lord said, is
composed of men who have nothing to fear or to gain
from a Minister, and therefore they could " follow
a Minister without servility, and oppose him without
asperity." It is only perfect independence that can
secure the respect of the public, and enable any body
of men to do their duty to society, and the House
of Commons, by preserving this inestimable privi-
lege intact and inviolate, has conferred a benefit and
a blessing on its generation, and as such it will be
prized and estimated by all succeeding ones, for, as
Lord STANLEY remarked, there is no reason to fear
that the house will ever lose the position it now
holds in public opinion.

The opening of another Industrial Exhibition
has given Lord BELPER the opportunity of making a
sensible and kindly speech on the mental position
of the working classes. As lord-lieutenant of the
county of Nottingham Lord BELPER presided at
the inauguration of the Midland Counties Art and
Industrial Exhibition, held in Nottingham yester-
day. His lordship, after remarking on the wonderful
progress of invention, and the gorgeous display
presented by the great International Exhibitions of
1851 and 1862, observed that these industrial exhi-
bitions belonged to a different class. The term
" working-classes" could not be said with propriety
to be exclusively applied to any one class,
since all men had their duty to perform
and must work hard at it if they wished to dis-
charge it faithfully. But the chief thing which
struck him in these exhibitions was that they proved
that our mechanics and artisans were not exclusively
absorbed in the routine of their daily labour.
ADAM SMITH, many years ago, had spoken of the
engrossing nature of mechanical toil, and had
declared that too often a man's dexterity in his
particular trade seemed to be acquired " at the
expense of his intellectual, social, and mental vir-
tues." Lord BELPER very truly said that if this
was a true picture of the working classes sixty years
ago it was certainly very incorrect now ; and
the very progress of machinery has itself been an
education. ADAM SMITH'S assertion, that the
uniformity of a mechanic's or tradesman's life
renders him alike unfit and unwilling to defend his
country in time of war, has been sufficiently
answered by our bodies of Volunteers. The mental
training which these exhibitions indirectly confer is
no unimportant part of their good effects. An
artisan, looking round on what men like himself
have done, feels impelled to try whether he cannot
use something besides his chisel or his spade. They
form a new and interesting feature in our social
life, and, as they combine intellectual and artistic
instruction with recreation, they especially commend
themselves to the sober and practical Englishman.

Those who followed with interest the comments
of the French press upon the recent international
fetes will remember that special reference was made
to the honour paid in England to the memory of a
distinguished Frenchman, Lieut. BELLOT, whose
statue occupies a conspicuous position in the grounds
of Greenwich Hospital. Well deserved that tribute
at the hands of Englishmen, for he lost his life in an
English Arctic expedition, and the immediate cause
of his death was his attempt to save the
lives of some English sailors. His very presence
in those latitudes was dictated by the most
chivalrous feeling, since he had volunteered
his services on behalf of the search for Sir
Jorn FRANKLIN, and his death was deeply
lamented in this country. His countrymen have
just done equal honour to an Englishman whose
services were rendered not to one nation in particu-
lar, but to the world at large ; not to the men
of one epoch, but to the whole human race.

While this enlarges his claims on the general
gratitude it does not render the compliment which
France pays to England less graceful or less pointed,
for it is not France alone who has profited by
the labours of Dr. JENNER, nor was it in
France that he pursued his studies. Not
until 1800 was the beneficent discovery made
which so greatly curtailed the powers of the scourge
of the eighteenth century, made known across the
Channel owing to the war. The first pause in the
hostilities was taken advantage of by two of the
followers of Dr. JENNER, and earnest advocates of
the system. Drs. WOODVILLE and NOWELL
crossed over to _Boulogne, and succeeded in
speedily convincing the medical profession and
the inhabitants of the efficacy of vaccination, both
as a preventive and a cure ; a cure, at least, in so
far that it greatly diminishes the risk and virulence
of the disease, and obviated in'a great measure the
consequent disfigurement. France has now shown
that she has not forgotten these philanthropic
efforts by breaking through the general rule that
each nation must only commemorate its own great
men. This narrow and selfish theory is now, we
hope, laid aside, at least in countries so highly
civilisedEng iaLand so intimately united as France and
As a general rule in matters of science,
invention, or
philanthropy, he who benefits the
one confers an advantage on the other; and if
enlightened and liberal men are inclined to do
honour to the memory of a
public benefactor,
it is right that no national prejudice, no
petty jealousy, should be suffered to stand in
the way. So far back as the year 1857 the
Societe des Sciences Industrielles at Paris Con-
sidered a proposition that France should erect a
statue to the memory of Dr. JENNER. They
resolved to carry out the idea ; and, as to do so it
was necessary to obtain the sanction of the Govern-
ment, the compliment passed from a mere local
expression of feeling to a national tribute. It was
decided, of course, that the statue should be raised
in Boulogne-sur-bier, both because that city was
the scene of the English doctor's first experiment,
and also because it was situated in so great a
thoroughfare between England and the Con-
tinent. The French were naturally desir-
ous that Englishmen should s:e the statue,

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SIR,—To your readers who have not the oppor-
tunity of using with their plague-stricken cattle the
powerful remedy—hot air—known as the Turkish
Bath, I trust you will allow me to recommmend an
application of heat that has proved a boon to many
of my neighbours who could not bring their cattle
to my bath.
Swaith the animal in hot rugs, and pour over it,
at intervals of ten minutes, water as hot as it can
bear. According to its strength this may be con-
tinued from three-quarters to one and a half hours.
The operation should be preceded by washing with
hot water and soap. After removing the rugs wash
lightly with tepid water and dry well. Don't sheet.
Keep the patient in a dry, airy place, with access to
grass if possible. Boiled linseed should be given in
very weak cases, poured down the throat. Avoid
bleeding and physicing.
I had hoped to have tried the effect of heat on
the cattle plague, but am kept at borne with a
broken arm.—Yours truly,
J. E. SCRIVEN.
Bond-dile, Tynan, Co. Armagh, Sept. 11.