The Sun.
London, England, 1854-07-18 00:00:00

THE GATHERING.

Yesterday afternoon witnessed a great •gathering in Down-
ing-street. Lord John Russell had summoned his friends and
the general supporters of the Government to meet him in the
official atmosphere of Whitehall to hold a kind of council of
war upon ministerial difficulties, intentions, and prospects.
There was a large assemblage of M.P.'s, each tint of liberalism
being represented, from the veteran radicalism of Mr. Hume
to the most aristocratic tinge of family Whiggery. The occa-
sion wag important, and the subject really at issue still more
so. The meaning of the meeting was that the Coalition is in
danger of a split up, their chief rock ahead being, of course,
the conduct of the war. It was quite natural that great in-
terest should be excited in the minds of those present respect-
ing what might, what would, and what ought to be said. It
was known that the Tories were to muster strongly in the
evening to make the vote for tho expenses of the new War
Ministry a peg on which to hang want-of-confidence speeches,
embodying various damaging criticisms on what has hitherto
been done, or been neglected, by the Aberdeen Cabinet. All
these nuclei of difficulty, that float about in political waters
to clog and hamper ministerial arrangements, were evi-
dently present amongst those who yesterday assembled
in Downing-street. Why had not Lord Palmerston
been appointed to the post of Minister of War ? Was
it Court or Cabinet influence, or was it the Duke of '
Newcastle's amour propre, that has stood in the way
of so natural an arrangement ? Why was Sir George
Grey, a cold and fish-blooded family Whig, brought back
again to office ? Why were to be hampered with an Austrian
alliance, when the war could be so far more simple and easy
in its conduct, and so far more sure and honourable in its
conclusion without Mettornich's dangerous help ? Why were
the troops kept for months in a state of inaction, and the
fleets kept floating in idleness ? Would Lord John Russell
open his heart and explain any of these things ? Would he
go forward in obedience to the popular voice and will, and
so secure new esteem and popularity, or would he slide back
into his new Coalition shell and lose a further portion of the
goodwill which the nation bears him for past services in the
popular cause ? Such might well be some of the many suppo-
sitions of the company who assembled in Downing-street.
Lord John Russell soon put all surmises to rest by his speech
—prepared for the occasion, and based ou two main proposi-
tions—first, that all present should vote at once, as a matter of
course, the estimate for War Minister, because, secondly,
the Cabinet would shortly want more money for carrying on
the war, and that the real question of confidence or no confi-
dence iu the Coalition should be taken next week, when such
money vote should be presented to the House of Commons.
Iu other words, the matter stood thus—" Put off the in-
tended discussion and trial of party strength this evening, be-
cause in a few days we shall have ' a little account' for settle-
ment. When we present it, if you veto the money, you will
sanction our proceedings and policy ;
if you do not, such vote
will of course be a vote of want of confidence in the Cabinet
as at present constituted." This was a very dexterous way of
putting the case to a mixed company such as that which yes-
terday assembled at the call of the Minister. In the first
place, it tided over the difficulty of the hour. It beat at
once the Tory muster of last night. It put off the evil day
for a week at all events and then proposed the trial of party
strength upon the broader issue, whether or not the House
of Commons will vote money to the Coalition to carry on the
war in their own way, or whether by refusing the money
they will risk the stoppage of the war altogether at a moment
when delays are fraught with a thousand evils. Mr. Vernon
Smith might cavil, Mr. Horsman denounce, but Lord John
was dexterous, and Mr. Sidney Herbert polite, whilst Lord
Palmerston's silence was, perhaps, more eloquent than his
voice could have been. Of the hundred and seventysnine
gentlemen present, the bulk were evidently convinced at once
that the only thing to be done was to follow the leader who
had called them together, and if an independent leader like
Lord Dudley Stuart felt bound to interrogate, or a plain-
spoken Reformer like the member for Montrose raised his
voice in exhortation or in criticism, or as a peace-maker,
their objections were-the more readily smoothed away by the
' clear understanding that the leader of the House of Commons
would be no party to the conclusion of an armistice, and
Vienna. On the contrary, there never has been a moment
since the commencement of this war at which the belligerent
Powers were resolved and prepared to prosecute their enter-
prise with greater activity. The delays which aro inseparable
from the opening of a campaign, from the extreme difficulty
of obtaining the means of transport, especially in a barbarous
country, are at last overcome. The Russian defences at the
Sulina mouth of the Danube are reported to have been at-
tacked and destroyed by five British and French steamers.
A considerable detachment of French troops start for the
Baltic ; while the main expeditionary. army, under Marshal
St. Arum'''. and Lord Raglan, must have reached the Danube
in time to support the last energetic and brilliant operations
of Omer Pasha. To talk of negotiations—and especially of
negotiations on so flimsy and unsatisfactory a basis as the
last communication from St. Petersburg—at the moment
when the belligerent Powers are just beginning to reap some
of the advantages which they have a right to anticipate from
the vast sacrifices and their long forbearance, is au ab-
surdity of which no man in Europe, except the King of
Prussia, can bo guilty. The King of Prussia himself must
be aware that he has lost all credit and influence with
the Western Powers and with Europe, and his Envoy
in London, who went through the formality of pre-
senting his credentials to her Majesty yesterday
would give uo sanction to anything other than a vigorous pro-
secution of the war until a.peace could be secured upon a broad
solid, and honourable basis. Tho effect of explanations such
as these—given as they were with official authority, and ut-
tered in the atmosphere of Whitehall—may be easily imagined.
" Things went off satisfactorily," and although reporters were
not admitted to record verbatim the two hours talk, and
every M.P.'s mouth was sealed by a promise not to communi•
cate anything that transpired to the newspapers, the public
have here au amplo summary of the Downing street confer-
ence. Tho result was seen speedily enough when the House
of Commons opened for business. No places were taken,
There were no full benches_no preparations for a field night.
Lord J. Russell was permitted to state what he had publicly
to declare about the War Ministry without serious challenge
or debate, and in place of a fierce
passage of arms between
Tory Opposition and Coalition Ministers a comparatively empty
House subsided into a monotonous discussion about the fa-
vourite electioneering sin
of Bribe The War Debate is
postponed till next week, and till then the Ministry have a
respite. If the required Vote of Credit is given, we may ex-
pect Parliament to rise early in Austust, but that rising will,
.
ry
we trust, be merely an adjournment, and not a lengthened pro-
rogation. If all the money that may be asked for is not grant-
ed by the House of Commons, Parliament cannot be prorogued
in the usual way to February, since the Chancellor of the
Exchequer has not cash enough to last him for six mouths.
It rests, therefore, with Parliament to decide how long they
will leave the Aberdeen- Cabinet in full possession of the
strings by which the war
permit the Coalition to manage the war in secret and beyond
the reach of Parliamentary check. War cannot be waged
If money
without money. is 'managed—how long they will
for six months' war is granted—
Lord Aberdeen will have his will unchecked for ball a year—
time long ouough for winning or losing everything. If
ssmethiug ou account " only is
Com-
mons may again have a chance of expressing au opinion upon
the subject before it be too late. What will they do ?—Daily
News. given, the House of

FATAL ACCIDENT AT THE ROUSE OF LORDS.—Yes-
terday Mr. Bedford, corrianotsunte,errafzWs3e,stminster, held an
fdafaat‘ylVltiihlnialegsi fllrn: mels
The deceased
themg roof of Hospital, tHal ,ourelative
Lordsto theon
who lost his life
inquestd
vhe r;
et
otdhungeiosi
was, it appeared, in the
employ of Messrs. Easton and Amos, and in consequence
of a large tank containing 1,660 gallons, which this firm
had recently erected on the roof of the House of Lords,
having commenced leaking, it was necessary to raise a
shoot upon the roof in order to carry the water off from
the building. In order to do this deceased was, between
three and four o'clock in the afternoon of the day in
question, engaged with two others named Edwards and
Collins, Having succeeded in
raising the shoot by
means of a hand line, deceased ascended to the top, and
stood vpon the wall (about 18 inches wide) for the pur-
pose of pulling it (the shoot) nearer to the required
spot, and had hold of one end for that purpose, when
from the wet weather his hands slipped, he stumbled,
and fell from thence to the ground, a depth of 56 feet,
striking violently against a scaffold and a girder in his
descent. He was immediately conveyed to the above
hospital, where it was found that his right arm was
dreadfully fractured both above and below the elbow,
and the right thigh also severely fractured. The com-
bined effects of the injuries and the shock resulted in the
poor fellow's death on Friday morning. This frightful
catastrophe has unhappily rendered the poor widow
completely deranged. Verdict, "Accidental death."
SPECIAL PRIZES FOR THE PARIS UNIVERSAL EXHIRI•
TION OF 1855.—A notice from the Department of Science
and Art has been issued, which states that 40 prizes of
the value of Si. are to be awarded to those students who
take medals in the greatest number of stages in each of
the Exhibitions. Twenty prizes are to be awarded in the
Autumn Examination of 1854, and twenty prizes in the
Spring Exhibition of 1855. These prizes are to enable
the most deserving students to visit the Paris Universal
Exhibition of 1855, and each student will be required to
make a written report of his observations on that Exhi-
bition. They will be awarded among the students of all
the schools of art throughout the kingdom.
BRITISH MUSEUX.—Yesterday a return obtained by
Mr. Evart was printed, showing the purposes to which
the sum of 3,0001., granted for the purchase of coins
and antiquities in the year ended the 24th March last,
has been applied. The sum expended for coins and an-
tiquities in the year ending the 31st March was 2,1541.
17s. 6d. There are liabilities to 5201., leaving a balance
of 425/. 2s. 6d.