The Sun.
London, England, 1851-05-14 00:00:00

TUE SUN, LONDON,

upon the diversity of public opinion was entirely
dissipated. Neither in Cape Colony itself, nor in the
mother country, could the community bo any longer
hoodwinked. The mask had been stripped off once,
and could never consequently be re-assumed. The
least observant spectator could not fail to recognise
on all hands the tokens of that overwhelming power
which reposed in the hitherto quiescent hands of the
majority, a power which they themselves appear to
have in no way suspected, and which promises hence-
forth to direct the energies of the local Government.
For this extraordinary change in the position of things,
the colonists have reason to be thankful to a

singular concurrence of circumstances, and among
these not the least remarkable, and not the least
effective, the appearance of the Cape Monitor as a
guide to the popular sentiments—a guide at once and
a mouthpiece. Those who are interested to examine
into the detailed occurrences which alternately led
to these very, fortunate revelations would do well,
we conceive, to refer directly to the volume of parti-
culars already specified=a volume in which will be
found collected together all the meat important facts
which in any way conduce to the late constitutional
changes effected in the government of our South
African provinces.

* " Cape of Good Hope Government and Legislation
Considered." Bvo., pp. 303. London : James Ridgway,
Piccadilly, 1851.

Whilst the Irish Brigade are pursuing their laud-
able policy in the House of Commons, obstruct ing
the business of the session by every species of guerilla
dodge, and voting black to be white, and vice eters4
with a patriotic pertinacity, their spiritual promprers
at the other side of St. George's Channel are keep ing
up the steam in no inactive manner. Petitions against
the Papal Aggression Bill are being daily manufac-
tured, and by the latest tidings of the preceedin,gl; of
the committee engaged in that congenial task,, we
learn that the soi-disant Archbishop of CASHEL, :and
several other Prelates of the Roman Catholic Chur ch,
gave directions to their clergy to hold simultaneous
meetings in their respective chapels on Sunday :la st ;
and, further, that a great number of petitions Ini we
been received by the committee, the welcome Fel !..o-
duce of these assemblages. The Right Revere nd
person who is known in Ireland by the title of t he
Roman Catholic Bishop of Raphoe hasaddressed to t ne
secretary of the committee a note on this subject, t be
significance of which is worthy of observation. Th us
runs the precious document :

" Letterkenny, May 11, 1851.
"Dear Sir,—ln reply to the circular forwarded to t he
Catholic clergy throughout Ireland, I beg to inform ye ur
committee that I have given directions to all the pan ish
priests of this diocese to have petitions signed this day at
their chapels, and to send them to Liberal Members f or
presentation without loss of time.
" I am, dear Sir, your faithful, obedient servant,
" James Burke, Esq." " fP. 11PGETTIGAlsr.
The value to be attached to the petitions whi ch
will be speedily poured into both Houses of t he
tLegislature in cart-loads may be appreciated wi th
olerable accuracy from the above specimen of
episcopal.rit interference. It is for the people of Gre at
Britain and theire
have
been
g o representativestte
n t to
up, jauoddg ewhhoowt h
et the e
os
re
deliberate
truth, an to be regarded in the light of free •or
ressions of public opinion. It is, in
priests is issued organizedareferhsoyarmsateechmeedaodbf- y
mandatehead-quarters.
.coeTrchieonß. 0
InTil
line
Catholic
meetings in their their prelates to ho Id
offer
not that we suppose 8111 :b
peremptory directionssey
lararboanuyr vtihoelenthcoeugtohttthhe
atir
consciences, or that th
anytoepvaeprnthiosLshrnesibipliut
ry.,
political discussion can, b
desecrate an edifice consecryated
ospoThtmool.
pries
: td,
pose of Divine worship. But
such an unhallowed idea seek for a
tit
to usurp possession of the mind of a
obedience, the grand principle of the order of
whose spirit now triumphantlyinrsipseirefsortthhewaictthio7l
its °i ;
the hierarchy of Rome, would
irresistible terrors, and claim implicit and unhe hit ac-
ing compliance with the behests of the au' peitior
authority. The tactics of the priest to carry or•,,t to
its desired extent the injunction imposed upo a him
are simple enough to involve no burdew ome
ifiasaytri
ripening
ucpierenc.iunlgar. He postswritten
no affiches on his chapel di iors ,
by
does he canvass his parishioners either
solicitation. or printed, or by viva • voce
While the dawn of the Sabi )ath
linthtooudta the petitionplacedthe . 1
devotions vi
of the sacred edi/1 is at c .o_o.r
None can enter to fulfil his
laid ; none can
hweibtheoiunit.tam.ffitexdinign
enterpcae;sing by the table on which i tis
to the document should hthisesanigynstiati aretry

press prior to the establishment of the Cape Monitor.
Surprising and incredible though this may appear,
it is altogether as true as it is remarkable.
The affairs of those possessions were as entirely
under the influence of the home Government as
could by possibility have been arranged ; and the
popular sentiments were as completely under the do-
minion of Cape Town journalism as Cape Town itself
was under the sway of her MA:ESTT'S Colonial Secre-
tary. But a single party could contrive, under any
circumstances, to obtain a hearing from the South
African newspapers. But one section of the com-
dmuucntoitrys. was
B arepresentedoneu
ri no the
ol peric oa
nn
ss oof
was t
ph
ee
ri
mr
ict ot
en d-
to blazon itself before the community in the pomp of
undisputed sovereignty and the arrogance ofunstifle
d
vociferation. Hence it was that those who were unac-
quainted with the real position of matters in that
quarter laboured for a considerable period under the
very erroneous impression that there was unanimity
where dissension alone existed, peace where there
were only broils, and contentment where there was
nothing but dissatisfaction.
Fortunately for the real majority of the colonists,
for those who had hitherto been without any means
of acquiring an organ for the articulation of their
sentiments, and who had, consequently, scarcely even
dared to cherish a hope of their ulterior triumph
over their antagonists, an opportunity was at length
afforded for the announcement of the genuine views of
the colony in reference to the numerous questions
involved in the problem of that among other Colonial
Governments. A volume relating to the matter in
question has within the last few days been issued from
the press,* in which the rise and development of this
opportunity are traced with the distinctness of au-
thenticity and the emphasis of a most earnest convic-
tion. Now that the attention of the public
generally throughout England has been directed to
the progress of events in Southern Africa, the
statements of the pamphleteer cannot but be wel-
comed as singularly opportune and acceptable, bear-
ing as they do at the same time upon their very front
the evidence of their trustworthiness. From them
may be seen the manner in which the dominant fac-
tion were at length deprived of their self•assumed
dictatorship. It will be seen, for instance, how on
the memorable resignation of the so-called "popu-
larly elected members" of the Legislative Council,
there simultaneously appeared before the colonists the
initial number of a journal, entitled the Cape
Monitor, in the columns of which were printed the
opinions entertained, not only by the minority, but
those also cherished by the hitherto obscure and
neglected body of the majority. It cannot be for-
gotten that about that period the Governor of Cape
Town appointed the remaining seven 'members of the
Legislative Council a Commission for the purpose of
considering and reporting on a new scheme of local
and representative government. In opposition to
this legitimate conclave were the four seceders,
already mentioned as the " popularly elected mem-
bers" of the Council, who formed themselves into an
antagonistic Commission, with a view to sketch the
outline of another and a very different constitution,
In the Cape Monitor, and subsequently in the
volume here alluded to, appeared the detailed reports
of these rival Commissioners for the discovery of a
really desirable constitution. From these reports
may be recognised the tendency of the views enter-
tained by the opposing parties in Cape Town Colony,
and the relative proportion of the majority before
then entirely overlooked, and that minority
which had hitherto reserved to itself an undis-
puted, an undeserved, and a most pernicious
supremacy. " That two opinions existed," says the
pamphleteer who has adventured upon the compilation
above noticed, " was long privately known, but to
utter a free opinion openly was attended with diffi-
culty, in consequence of the means of intimidation and
the inhuman threats which had been put forth under
the Anti-Convict Reign of Terror, the war of which,
it was publicly stated, should continue from genera.
Lion to generation." After the breaking up, how.
ewer, of the long-preserved silence all doub