The Sun.
London, England, 1854-08-09 00:00:00

14,

sint,

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9, 1854.

The Secretary at War told the country the
other night in the House of Commons that it
ought to be satisfied with the blockade of the
Russian ports—that instead of clamouring after
unattainable victories, it ought to rest contented
with the fact of thatblockade--ablockade described
by him as complete and effectual. Yet when this
vaunted blockade comes to be examined, it is
found, in the Black Sea, at least, to be neither
complete nor effectual. It turns out, indeed, to
be so incomplete and so ineffectual, that a Russian
vessel of war, the Vladimir, has contrived to
leave Sebastopol, to steam boldly across the
Euxine, to advance even to the mouth of the
Bosphorus, to skirt the Asiatic coast there sinking
sundry Turkish ships laden with corn, to carry
off two coal-vessels from Heraclea, to very nearly
capture the British steamer the Cyclops, and then,
after satisfactorily completing this most daring
exploit (wonderfully daring, seeing that the Black
Sea boi.e upon its waters all the while the mighty
Beets of France and England), quietly to return
to its original place of safety—[the place so com-
pletely and effectually blockaded]—Sebastopol.
After that—the less we hear about the blockade
of the Russian ports, at any rate in the Black
Sea, the better ! Why, perhaps the most dashing
thing that has yet been effected since the outbreak of
the present war has been accomplished, brilliantly
and successfully accomplished, by the chief officer
of a Russian war steamer, the brave captain of
the Vladimir. Honour to whom honour is due.
It is the right, in this instance, of the captain of
the Vladimir. It is the right.,9l the daring and
almost foolhardy sea-captain in the enemy's navy,
Who could thus set at defiance all the terrors of
the Anglo-French maritime armament. If ever
" pluck" deserved the recognition of a Sove-
reign, that displayed in this remarkable expedition
by the captain of the Vladimir has merited reward
from the hands of the Russian AUTOCRAT.
However, if praise is due to the captain of the
Russian war steamer, what dispraise is not due to
the officers of the allied vessels of war entrusted
with the blockade of Sebastopol? Assuredly the
exploit of the Vladimir—not an empty
exploit,
observe, but one having important results, one
leading to the destruction of several vessels laden
with corn, and to the capture of two vessels laden
with coal, and tending to turn the whole of
the vaunted Anglo-French blockade of the,
Russian ports into ridicule—assuredly, we
of the Vladimir is in no
say, this exploit
way calculated to enhance whatever satisfaction
may have been felt by the country at the fact, as
it was called, of this same boasted blockade ! It
is not precisely corroborative, this event, of the
justice of the remark made the other evening,
almost petulantly, in the House of Commons, by
her MAJESTY'S Secretary at War. We might
venture, after this, to hint to Mr. SIDNEY HER-
BERT rather to sit mumchaneo henceforth upon
the Treasury bench, than to indulge, in reference
to the so-called blockade of the Russian ports, in
idle braggadocio and ridiculous fanfaronade.
Remembering what has been done, in spite of
the combined fleets, by the Russian
war steamer,.
.
the Vlafilaux 7--the. country cannot possibly be satis -
fled with the blockade, as (if we are to believe Mr.
SIDNEY HERBERT) the one grand and all-sufficient I

result of our enormous and expensive maritime
armaments. The blockade proves simply to be
an absurdity, to be an idle word, to be altogether
ineffective—if, as is now notoriously known to be
the case, a Russian paddle-wheel steamer can do
all we have been mentioning, can approach the
very mouth 'of the Bosphorus, and then, after
being within an ace of capturing an English ship,
return unharmed, and with the- glory of no mean,
or fruitless exploit, to its safe anchorage in the
harbour of Sebastopol.
It is with the knowledge before us of what has
been done by the Vladimir, that we see the days
of August flitting by, and the winter approaching,
and the campaign of 1854 necessarily drawing to-
wards its close, and the Legislature rapidly near-
ing the date of its prorogation. And now at the
very tail of the session, we find the Times this
morning, on Wednesday, the 9th of August,
1854, asking the question—" Who can answer for
consequences, when the business of the country
is so inefficiently conducted I" A pretty ques-
tion to put certainly, just two or three days be-
fore the beginning of grouse shooting, just close
upon the eve of the termination of the annual
labours of the Legislature. Why, it is precisely
what we have been insisting upon for months,
while our contemporary has been recommending
the country to rest contented with the very pro-
ceedings it now declares to be worse than unsatis-
factory.

The delays that have taken place from first to
last, indeed, are something absolutely deplorable.
They have conducted us into the second week of
August, towards the close of the Parliamentary
session, and there they leave us—with news from
the Black Sea, not of the capture of the Crimea,
but of the exploit of the Vladimir—and with
news from the Baltic, not of a victory at Cron-
stadt, but of private theatricals on board the
Duke of Wellington ! Well may the country feel
dissatisfied with the progress, or rather with the
no-progress of the war, now that autumn is on
the eve of giving way to winter—well may the
popular discontent, not loud, but deep, agitate
the community at large from one end of the country
to the other, by reason of the sins of omission and
commission making up the aggregate guilt of the
ABERDEEN Government.

Sir CHARLES WOOD is a man of honour. 110
has redeemed the solemn pledge last year given to
Parliament, and submitted a statement respect-
ing the finances of India, and the progress of the
AnglO-Indian territories. But how, or under
what circumstances ? What opportunities have
been afforded for the redress of Hindoo
grievances, to criticise his explanations, or to take
the opinion of the Legislature on any deficiencies
or errors discernable therein? Some fastidious
persons may conceive that the Right Hon.
Bart., in brining forward his Budget on the Bth
of August—just four days before the prorogation,
to abuse "the number of whoso members varied
from 11 to 13"—a House, too, already ex-
hausted by a protracted sitting—was but follow-
ing the example of those
"Juggling friends"
" That palter with us in a double sense,
That keep the word of promise to our ear,
And break it to our hope."
These scoffers may assert that for all prac-
tical purposes the information afforded by
the well-paid functionary might as well
have been conveyed in the form of a
pamphlet or blue-book. That consuming the
public time, it could not be said he occupied " the
attention of the House," was, under the circum-
stances, perfectly useless, and might just as well
be avoided. But as we have said, Sir CHARLES
was a man of
,strict honour. He deliberately
gave the promise, and would perform it, although
iu doing so he might make himself simply ridi-
culous. It is true, the temptation afforded by
the opportunity of proving for two hours and a
half—for inflicting his dreary eloquence during
that protracted period even to "a beggarly ac-
count of empty bonches"—might have had some
effect ; but we are disposed to attribute the exer-
tion to a higher motive, and a determination to
keep his word to the very letter. Otherwise a pub-
lication of the speech iniende,d to be delivered by
" the Dictator" of Hindostan would have been as
beneficial to all intents and purposes, and in one
respect far more advantageous, inasmuch as it could
not have exhibited in so strong a light the cul-
pable carelessness, the profound indifference, of
the Imperial Parliament to matters of the most
vital importance to the welfare and prosperity of
one hundred millions of people.
We confess that we cannot concur in the glow-
ing eulogiums so freely bestowed on the adminis-
tration of the Right Hon. Baronet by the very
few who had patience to listen to his tedious ora-
tion. All the particulars we heard respecting the
state of Indian finance was to the year 1851-2
that being the latest period to which we had a
complete statement. The Right Hon. Baronet
could neither be praised nor censured for these
matters, which occurred previous to his connection
with the important department which has been
placed under his control. We have the results
of the subsequent years in round terms, that
of 1852-3 showing a surplus of 639,4651., and of
1853-4 (the only year for which the Right Hon.
Baronet and his colleagues could be held in any
degree responsible), which shows—not a surplus
—but a deficiency of 872,3351. The first point
then for which such extravagant commendation is.
bestowed, is that he has contrived to change
,a
surplus continued during several successive years
into a deficiency not far short of a million sterling ! i
We certainly cannot see the propriety of the 1
praipe—although the miserable financial antece-
dents
of the Right Hon. Baronet might have quite I
prepared us for such a result.

But what are his anticipations forltbe coming
time—to what improvements does he look for-
ward ? All the comfort we can obtain is being
told that " on the whole he by no means despairs
of future years, although when there is so
large a deficit staring one in the face it
might appear at first sight to be somewhat
disheartening 1" This is certainly by no means
a cheering prospect. Nor does it by any means
improve when we enter into a consideration of
the various details. On these points we shall
merely give expression to the views of the Right
Hon. Bar net himself, so that there can Le no
di-ipute on the point. He tells us " that in the
great item of the land revenue, which furnishes
by far the largest portion of the revenue of India,
there can be no increase. With regard to Be--
gal, the terms of the settlement preclude any pos-
sibility of increase from that source. In the
north-western provinces, where the leases are
granted for a long term of years, and in Bombay,
where the land is also leased for terms of years,
there cannot, at any rate, until the expiration of
those leases, be any increase of revenue from that
source ;" and with regard to Madras, he "is
afraid, so far as the land revenue goes, that, .
whatever may ultimately be the case, the first
operation will result in a reduction 1"
So much for the land revenues, the auguries
auspicious respecting
e even
e whichn
Next cbcayon
tshcaercelmyestbe
sanguinedeemed
amountingNVoodi t e .tos thea 0
notp
FOURi t
L L Irevenue,oN s
On the averagmee
STERLING ; and of that he declares that " there is
au estimated deficit for this year," but " he thinks
it likely that the demand for opium from China
wilt not materially diminish, and that the revenue
may by possibility be maintained," As to the salt
e
monopoly, so greatly complained of by the people
of Hindostan, and which has so strongly excited
the indignation of the home community, wex areted
merely told that the vote carried by a decisive
majority in the Commons House of Parliament
was "an ill-advised one." But nothing is said
respecting any alteration or modification thereof ;
while of the Customs revenue, he (Sir 011' ELES
Woos) fears " that, until the exports of India
etcan be materially increased, we cannot exp t any.
great augmentation from that source."
So much for the finances of India, under the

direction of that brilliant "financier" who has
earned an undying reputation for his management
of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom, and
respecting whom very gloomy previsions must have
been imagined, if the sad reality can be deemed
satisfactory to the friends of India.

It appears that Ireland is not the only place
where " abductions" can take place. We have
also had one on this side of St. George's Channel,
' of a very tame and common-place character when
compared with the daring attempt of Mr. JOHN
CARDEN, but not the less mischievous on that ac-
count, or deserving of less serious attention. Mr.
CARDEN'S was the highway robbery of abduction
—the stopping of his intended victim on the public
roads, and forcibly taking possession of her person,
without deeming her own consent indispensable.
The other was the mere "petty larceny," or
" obtaining under false pretences," the young
lady not having attained the age of legal assent,
or being capable of contracting the marriage into
which he had betrayed her.
In the English case, Mr. JOHN ATKINSON, a
young man of respectable appearance, aged 23
years, was indicted for the abduction of a girl,
aged 12 years and 3 months. The prisoner was
the organist at the parish church of Appleby,
and also engaged as music master at the school in
which the young lady was a pupil. He took ad-
vantage of his position to whisper " soft nonsense"
in her ear. The familiarity came to the know-
ledge of the mistress, and he was discharged from
his situation. , But a clandestine correspondence
was carried on through the instrumentality of
one of the female servants, and an elopement was
arranged with the very precocious young lady.
This was duly carried out, and the parties married
at Sark Toll-bar. A speedy interruption was put
to their anticipated felicity. The schoolmistress
had caused a rapid pursuit of the fugitives,
and the newly-made Benedict was taken into
custody at Carlisle, and removed from the blandish-
ments of his blushing bride.
Now this may be, as described by a morning
contemporary, "a very sneaking affair" when
compared with the more brilliant exploit of the
Irish Hero. It is, however, not the less mischie-
vous on that account, and inasmuch as it might
possibly find more numerous imitators, should be
the more earnestly condemned—the more empha-
tically repudiated. What could be more painful
to the feelings of a parent than to find his
innocent daughter corrupted by a depraved
scoundrel, and carried off during her infancy
from the establishment to which ho had
confided her for educational purposes. Her
wealth, her beauty, her accomplishments, all
wasted on an unworthy wretch, who had delibe-
rately violated the trust reposed in him. We
cannot, then, look on it in the same point of
view in which it is regarded by our Contemporary,
more especially as it is said that the marriage is
binding, and that the wretch has succeeded in his
object, not merely securing the person, but the
property of the young lady, amounting to no less
than 10,000/. sterling.
Mr. CARDEN justly received the extreme
penalty sanctioned by the law for his abortive
attempt. He was sentenced to two years' im-
prisonment, with hard labour, although he failed.
JOHN ATKINSON, the organist, only got nine
months, without hard labour, at the end of which
time he may claim his wife and her fortune, heed-
less of the sufferings of her family, or that the
mind of her father has failed under the trial. He
will receive an ample equivalent for his sufferings,
and there is, therefore, nothing to deter others
from following his example, except the universal
condemnation of the press, and of the community
in general.

PROROGATION OF PARLIAMENT.

[FROM A SDPPLEMENT OF THE LONDON CriFTTE OF LAST

EVENING.]
Palace of Westminster, Lord Great Chamberlain's-oboe,
August 8, 1854.

All Peeresses, on announcing their intention to be pre-
sent on the occasion of the prorogation of Parliament, on
Saturday, the 12th inst., will have places reserved for
them in the House of Lords, if the announcement be made
at this office before 5 o'clock on Friday the 11th instant.
Peers' eldest sons will have tickets for the Peers' eldest
sons' box, forwarded to them, upon a written or personal
application at the office.
No strangers can be admitted except by a ticket from
the Lord Great Chamberlain.

The doors will be opened at twelve o'clock.
WILLOUGHBY DE DIM; G.C.

TEE " COUNT OUT" LAST NIGHT.

List of Members in the House of Commons when
counted out on Tuesday night :
Sir John Shelley Si- Charles Wood

Mr. Duncan _
Mr. Brotherton
Mr. Thornely Lord Palmerston
Mr. Hume Mr. Mowbray
Mr. Pryse Loveden Mr. Heywood
Lord Mulgrtve Mr. Hadfield
Mr. Danby Seymour Mr. Seymour Fitzgerald
Mr. Michell Sir George Goodman
Mr. Robert Lowe • Sir Erskine Perry
Mr. Vincent Scully