The Sun.
London, England, 1853-08-17 00:00:00

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 17, 1853.

CANNING'S knife-grinder last evening addressed
the House of Commons in the person of Lord
Jonx RUSSELL. " Story, GOD bless you ! I have
none to tell, sir," might have been the Noble
Lord's candid avowal to Mr. SPEAKER, in lieu of
his elaborate but meaningless and most unsatisfac-
tory explanation. For, stripping his speech of
all its superfluous phraseology, the so-called dis-
closure made by the Leader of that branch of the
Legislature amounts, in point of fact, to no reve-
lation whatsoever. It concludes, indeed, with the
expression of a hope that before any considerable
lapse of time these difficulties in regard to Turk-
ish independence may be brought to something like
a satisfactory settlement. But circumstances, we
conceive, required from a British Minister at this
moment rather more than the utterance of an
empty aspiration. It might have been reasonably
calculated at least that the country would have
learnt something positive in reference to the pro-
bable issue of recent negotiations—instead of
being left quite as much in a state of uncertainty
as ever on the very eve of the Prorogation of
Parliament. We might not unreasonably at any
rate have conjecture]. that for once the tim-
orous silence of the ABERDEEN Coalition might
have been broken; that for once its pusillanimously
interrupted recensions might have been full, or,
at least as far as they went, explicit ; that for
once the language employed in its name might
hcliaov
tbeen
biena resolution,
ll essential respects worthy of the
Insteadand the
however,
euvt
ehro,netfy
beingo a
British Government.
thus charactero
ble only coonsisel, the e
mfor
speech delivered yesterday
was remar
in the House
by Lord JOHN RUSSELL,
ka
things considered, most Una,lts surprising and, all
arrantable reserva-
tions. Everything announced by the Noble
Lord last evening was already
known to the great mass of the po
i,puieratifectly well
No-
thing at all was added by him to
to the sum of
.popular intelligence relating to the precise
tion of affairs between the SULTAN and the Asitua-
°RAT. It was absolutely notorious, for "°-
example,
that the proposals forwarded from Vienna in the
name of the Four Powers were generally under-
stood to have been accepted by the CzAn, accord-
ing to the latest advices received from St. Peters-
burg. What it was desirable should be learnt
way---not the rumour of that acceptance—but the

. .._
nature of those propositions. Withholding
from us in the name of diplomatic expediency,
the information that could alone be viewed as of
any importance, the Cabinet of Lord ADERDEEN
imparts to the public, succinctly enough, a variety
of particulars with which the majority were al-
ready acquainted. England is still expected to
repose a blind and implicit confidence in the po-
licy of the Coalition Government, although the
Leaders of that Administration persist in with-
holding facts from the country such as ought
Theist
assuredly to constitute at this hour its only
rational justification. it is under these auspices,
moreover, that the Legislative Se.).-gion is brought
to the time when b
in otheo
rt
wh
olirdZsir
abaoreuttotob
Parliament, •
ever
.has been
fore a lythliao• whatever
anyi
hing
wi,loattiating
eluded between the : p
oseparate,
itiprorogued.vely
ob ne -
—before
Coalition Cabinets of Europe
has been distinctly
4, enunciated by the
of manly explanal i )11 and
Ministry in the way
of uncertainty, the nation TV' e at this juncture
complete and unconditional reliance
to
place
te
verity of the pacific views in the sin._
attributed to the
;;. Emperor NICHOLAS, as well as in the d
wise an
7'''./. -Patriotic policy of the Earl of ABrap,,,B -
2 most
bbysterious Administration.
t.,
Credit is to be attached to the pacific violin 0

the AuTocnAT—after the duplicity with which he
treated the Powers of the Continent in the mat-
ter of the Holy Places—after the arrogance with
which he insulted the Sublime Porte, for the pur-
poses of intimidation—after the insolent words
of MENSCHIKOFF, and the aggressive acts of
GoßrzscHAKoFF—nay, after the passage of the
Pruth and the usurpation of the Danubian Prin-
cipalities !

Reliance is to be placed in the foreign policy of
the ABERDEEN Coalition—when it is known that
that policy prompted the Divan to permit the
seizure of the Moldavian and Wallachian pro-
vinces by Russia, without the faintest effort at
retaliation—when it is seen that that policy
tolerated, with little more than an impotent mur-
mur, the Muscovite interference with the rights
of the Hospodar at Jassy—when it is understood,
moreover, that that policy is so arranging recent
differences between the Powers at St. Petersburg
and Constantinople that the SULTAN will concili-
ate the CZAR by more concessions than were ever
demanded by the Russian Government !
Entirely, though reluctantly, do we find our-
selves compelled to acknowledge the justice of the
condemnation pronounced last night, by the Hon.
and Learned Gentleman the member for Ayles-
bury, upon the members of the Coalition Govern-
ment. Cordially do we sympathise in the indigna-
tion with which Mr. LAYARD declared that, in the
management of this affair at Constantinople, Eng-
land had been degraded to the position of a second-
rate, and Russia elevated to the position of a first-
rate, Power in Christendom. Yes ! the melan-
choly truth glares through all this veil of pretended
victory—through all this haze and mist of minis-
terial self-glorification. Englandhas consented to a
disgraceful compromise, and is striving to con-
sole herself by calling it a triumph of diplomacy.
She has permitted Russia to commit the most
1 flagrant acts of injustice with impunity to herself,
but with loss of dignity to the rest of the nations
of Christendom, and with a virtual loss of inde-
pendence to Turkey. And all theae degrading
results of our policy are to be compensated by the
maintenance of international tranquillity—a peace
purchased by the most ignominious concessions made
to the lawless pride of the AUTOCRAT. No wonder
that a policy such as that elicits the eulogium of
those politic poltroons who are always running
a-muck after the Will-o'-the-wisp of Arbitration.
Any sentiments more disgraceful to the House
of Commons were, perhaps, never uttered within
the walls of that assembly than by the Hon. Gen-
tleman the Member for the West Riding
of Yorkshire, towards the close of yester-
day's discussion ! Sentiments derogatory to
the honour of Great Britain, and (from being
strictly in accordance with the acts of her Minis-
ters) injurious to her influence, and destructive of
the glory and the majesty of her reputation. Mr.
CARLYLE once spoke of Mr. COBDEN as a " politi-
cal bagman." It is deeply to be regretted that a
man of his eminent abilities should ever have
given that vulgar soubriquet the shadow of a sem-
blance of its applicability. If ever the sneer of
the Scotch Dreamer was justified, it was assuredly
upon the occasion of that speech delivered by
Mr. COBDEN in the House of Commons yesterday.
Talk, forsooth, of crumpling up the Russian Em-
pire like a sheet of paper ! Rather talk in future
of our cringing like stricken hounds before the
brandished knout of his Imperial Majesty the
AUTOCRAT !

Let it be observed that Mr. COBDEN closed his
most un-English remarks of last evening with a
panegyric upon the " peaceful policy" of.the Coali-
tion. Praise such as that was rathertoo bitter a pill
to be swallowed with anything like complacency by
Lord PALMERSTON. Accordingly we find him rising
on the instant to protest in words that burnt with
something of the warmth of his ancient fervour,
that encomiums like those lavished upon the
Ministry by the Member for the West Riding,
were, at least by one of them, promptly, loudly,
and indignantly repudiated. Alas ! the force of
that noble but impotent protest—noble in origin,
but impotent in influence—goes at this hour for
absolutely nothing. Mr. COBDEN is only too well
justified in commending as he has done what
he delights to designate the " pacific policy" of
the Coalition Government. The eulogium may be
instinctively recoiled from, it is true—but it,must
also be officially endured—by Lor I PALMERSTON.
After refusing to eat humble pie upon a memor-
able occasion, when the seals of the Foreign-office
were thrown aside like the veriest bagatelle—it
must be terrible to nibble, with a smiling face, at
the leek of a FLUELLEN.

It cannot be supposed that the reformers of the
landlord and tenant code will be prepared to yield
submissively to the spirit displayed by certain
hereditary legislators in opposition to the land
bills, and to the very great want of spirit exhi-
bited by the Premier on the same subject, to
which we directed the public attention last week.
Lord ABERDEEN apparently thought that he had
achieved a signal triumph when he persuaded the
dissentient Peers to abstain from a very striking
demonstration by utterly rejecting measures, the
fruits of constant labour for many years, and
which, if found practically operative, would have
done more to effect the complete tranquillisation,
and with it the regeneration, of Ireland, than all
the statutes that have been enacted since the
great measure for the removal of the civil and re-
ligious disabilities of our Roman Catholic brethren
received the Royal assent. He entreated with
humility, almost equal to that with which he would
have supplicated an Envoy from the CZAR, that
they should not be ignominiously kicked out of
the House—surrendering at the first appearance
of opposition all that was really in dispute, by
consenting to the withdrawal of all the bills for
the present session. He freely and willingly
pledged himself that if the several bills were read
a second time, it should be on the understanding
that they should proceed no further for the time
being. The enemy should be fierce indeed who
would refuse to assent to these conditions—
who would not allow a strong antagonist
to march out with all the honours of war
on surrendering possession of a still tenable for-
tress. What, in fact, more beneficial to the
cause of landlordism could they have accom-
plished than the withdrawal of the bills ? The
hereditary legislators are not desirous of coming
into collision with the representatives of the
people on trivial or insufficient grounds ; they
are too well aware that they must eventually
retire from such a contest, and a reckless deter-
mination to precipitate the crisis would only have
been injurious to themselves, not to their oppo-
nents. That *hich is gained by diplomacy is
far better than a similar acquisition by open
force, and the malcontents must have hugged
themselves with joy when they found the proposi-
tion emanating from the " excellent ABERDEEN,"
that all the measures should be tranquilly shelved
for an •
cfoereci.geg,pirtewseanst,,r
indefinite period. As there was nothing
in such a course binding them to any future pro-
ceeding,
of course, assented to ; and thus,
the occupiers of standsl the all-important question
we confess thate
of the future
between the owners and
although we cannot help a
soil in the sister kingdom.
unexpected terminatio:al3
feeling of temporary ointment at this very
the proceedings that
itenergeticallyistll carried on
have been so ably and
woiuur firm con-
that e bene-
ficialsince last November,
the rights
of the actual occupiers of the soil
viction that the postponemanednt
to the good cause,
will be
more clearly and better defined under
the
new legislation that is inevitable, and that at a very
early period, than under the measures thus shelved
for the time being. The popular cause is invari-
ably benefited by procrastination. A spirit is
excited among the disappointed suitors who have
justice on their side, which astonishes their op-
romn ts, and speedily leads to even more extensive
cone ssions than were de-nanded in the first in-
stan e. The myth of the cybi iie books was
founded on a thorough knowledge
nature ; and even within our own times we have
illustrated seen the principle powerfully iof human
in the
extraordinary impetus given to the demand for a
large and comprehensive measure of reform, by
the contemptuous refusal to confer the Elective
IFranehise on some of the more important mann-
14411ring towns in lieu of petty boroughs, by