The Sun.
London, England, 1853-02-14 00:00:00

and thereupon reimbursing itself for the outlay
required in the expedition by adding one or other
of the conquered provinces to the bulk of what
constituted already its dominions. Upon a re-
petition of hostilities from the same quarter the
Governor-General in Council has adopted a similar
course for the indemnification of his Government.
Therefrom—out of this very rational, and, all
things considered, very just and reasonable policy
—has grown up the vast system of our Oriental
dominions. Among the secrets of our successes in
its extension, as we have intimated, have been the
energy and promptitude which the Anglo-Saxon
authorities at Calcutta have repelled their eastern
antagonists. Unhappily, in the instance before
us, but little regard seems to have been had either
to this energy or to this promptitude. Through-
out the whole of the Burmese War we have shown
ourselves anything rather than prompt or ener-
getic. Having placed our forces, both naval and
military, under the command of officers who ought
in reason to have been long ago regarded as super-
annuated, we have looked on complacently while
they have been throwing away, one after another,
the most golden opportunities. Dilatory to the
last degree in their movements, they have
sacrificed time, and in sacrificing time have squan-
dered the lives of those placed under their authority,
exposing them at one moment to the dangers of un-
equal conflict, and at another to the decimating perils
of pestilence. As a natural consequence the old
Admiral in command died—while the old General
in command found himself crushed under the
weight of a by no means undeserved unpopularity.
After continuing the struggle against the Burmese
during several weary months, General GODWIN at
last drags the campaign to a tardy conclusion, and
the event is celebrated, as we have shown, by the
annexation of Pegu to the British territories.
Every sensible observer in the United Kingdom
must, of course, regard that annexation as merely
a preliminary step to the seizure of the whole of
the dominions of the King of AvA, by the all-
conquering arms of the Anglo-Indian Government.
An alternative—(the usual alternative)--has been
held out to the Burmese MONARCH by the
Governor-General in Council : the alternative of
the ruin and exile of himself and his race, by the'
total subversion of his Sovereignty, or of his ac-
ceptance by the renewal of his former relations of
friendship with the British Government. In all
human likelihood, the Court of Ava will recoil
from the mere notion of renewing any such rela-
tions of friendship, and striving by every imagin-
able means to dispute the British occupation of
Pegu, will drive the Government of Calcutta to
fulfil its threat by advancing upon the re-
maining provinces of the Burmese Empire,
and quietly adding them en masse to the
rest of our Oriental possessions. In speaking
• thus we are only taking the Past as a guide to the
Future—we are only threading the maze of pro-
babilities by the clue of experience. Hitherto
our quarrel with the Court of Ava has been its
refusal " to make amends for the injuries and in-
sults which British subjects have suffered at the
hands of its servants," and for which refusal the
Governor-General of India, in Council, resolved,
by force of arms, to exact reparation. This, re-
member, is the explicit avowal of the Proclama-
tion of the 20th of last December. Well, the
reparation has only been commenced, we take it,
by the annexation of Pegu—it can only be com-
pleted, in all probability, and that, perhaps, be-
fore very long, by the seizure of the rest of the
Burmese provinces, and their incorporation with
the territories already owning obedience to the
Anglo-Indian Government.

The Commissioners for inquiring into the state
of the Cathedral and Collegiate Churches are at
length beginning to enter in good earnest on the
important duties committed to their charge.
They have forwarded to the several Deans and
Chapters throughout the kingdom copies of the
Commission under which they are empowered to
conduct the investigation, together with a series
of interrogatories, to which answers are requested
by the 9th of April next. Suggestions, as to
the means by which the purposes of the Commis-
sion may be best attained, are also invited at as
early a period as may be practicable. These
interrogatories, although not quite so stringent
and searching as might be desired, will still, if
fully and satisfactorily responded to, necessarily
elicit much valuable information, amply sufficient
to warrant the future legislation which the serious
abuses that have sprung up during successive
ages so urgently, so imperatively demand. There
has clearly been a desire to spare the blushes '9l
some Rev. Pluralists, who, although in receipt of
incomes affording amply sufficient remuneration
for the entire devotion of their time and labour
to the efficient discharge of their capitular duties,
are yet enabled to accept other lucrative situa-
tions ; so that one branch or other of their eccle-
siastical labours must be neglected. We should
be happy to have a distinct account of the nume-
rous avocations devolving on the leviathan plura-
list, and the manner in which he provides for the
efficient discharge of his various offices. Nor
would a return, showing the distribution of time
byhis venerable brother-in-law, Archdeacon CROFT,
be an uninteresting document. It is, indeed,
wonderful how these much-wronged men contrive
to get through business which, from the remune-
ration attached to the various preferments, must
necessarily be of a very arduous character, re-
quiring much application and trouble on
the part of those who have so chivalrously
undertaken the onerous task. It would
also be desirable to have ascertained the
degree of relationship or connexion existing be-
tween the parties in possession, and the patrons
by whom they had been presented, so that it
might be shown that each of these preferments,
conferring not merely competence, but wealth, on
the fortunate occupants, were originally bestowed
on comparative strangers as the reward of literary
ability, that they might enjoy as a fitting reward
for unquestionable merit, the otium cum dignitate,
and that there was no appearance of nepotism or
undue favouritism in these appointments, as some
irreverent scoffers have more than hinted. It is,
however, a sound principle that no person is
bound to criminate himself and therefore it is, we
suppose, that these apparently pertinent inquiries
have been so studiously omitted.
The first head relating to the original, the pre-
sent, and the future contributions of the Chapter
will show, at the same time what were the inten-
tions of the founders of these institutions, and
how far these intentions have been carried into
practical operation, or ho or in what respect they
have been departed from, or the Statutes infringed
upon, and also the probable effect of the 3d and
4th Vie., c. 113, when the provisions thereof be-
came operative. It will be interesting to compare
the duties of the members and officers of the
Chapter in the olden time, and the residence re-
quired from each—and the definition given in the
Statutes of the term " residence," with the duties
and residences now required, and the understand-
ing as to what constitutes " residence " at the
present day. There might, under this head, very
properly have been an application as to the past
and present emoluments of the members of the
Chapter, and the proportion which each bore
to the total capitular revenues. But this
most important topic has been totally, we I
had almost said studiously omitted—an omission
the more remarkable, inasmuch, as the questions
" how are they paid ? what are their stipends and
allowances, statutable or other ?" are put in refer-
ence to the vicars, minor canons, and school-
masters ; and " what are their emoluments ?" in
reference to the lay vicar's clerks, and all other
statutable officers. It would almost seem as if it
were deemed expedient to limit the operation of
any capitular reform to the inferior officers, and
that prebendaries were a class too dignified
to be interfered with by Parliament. We fancy,
however, that Sir BENJAMIN HALL and the Mar-
quis of BLANDFORD will scarcely be contented with
defective information on the subject on which
legislation is most essential.
In addition to the queries relating to the va-
rious officers and the schools, there are others
touching the number and manner of the differevt
services, the state of the fabric, together with the
funds applicable to keeping it in repair, and the 1
amount actually expended within the last fourteen,