The Sun.
London, England, 1851-10-02 00:00:00

Qtr
-"w'd Mita

LONDON, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1851.

Place noise has given such universal satisfaction as
Of all the appointments which have recently taken
that of Colonel REID to the governorship of the
island of Malta. The public has hailed that appoint-
ment not only as a well-deserved reward bestowed
on a meritorious officer for his successful exertions in
connexion with the organization of the Great Exhi-
bition, but as the earnest of an intention on the part
of her MAJESTY'S Government not to suffer to pass
unnoticed or unrewarded the men to whose zeal, as -
duity, unflagging energy, and untiring exertions, the
great success of the Exhibition is to be mainly attri-
buted. To Prince ALBERT is due the honour of
having been the original propounder of the magni-
ficent, the sublime idea, of collecting under one roof
the industrial products of every region of the world,
of enabling men from every nation under heaven to
inspect and study the works of the industry of every
other nation, and by such inspection to compare their
own products with those of other countries, and thus
to correct, to improve, and to modify their modes of
manufacture, so as to attain much nearer to perfection
in the products of their own industry, than but for
such an opportunity it would have been possible for
them to have attained. But the victories of peace,
resembling in this respect at least the victories of
war, cannot be won by the general alone, he
must have the assistance of a staff of able
and zealous officers, and of an army of well-drilled
and well-disciplined assistants, who not only tho-
roughly understand his plans, but are able and will-
ing to completely carry them out, or his finest ideas
can never be realized, and his best laid plans will prove
abortive. But for the assistance of an admirable staff,
and of able and energetic assistants, the Great Exhi-
bition of the Industry of all Nations would never have
achieved the perfect success which it has achieved, a
success unparalleled in the history of any similar at-
tempt—a success unmarred by even the shadow of a
failure in any even the smallest of its details. And
this success has been achieved solely by the energy
and perseverance of the men who undertook its orga-
nization in overcoming obstacles which to persons of
less talent; of less zeal, of less faith in themselves, of
less decision, would have been insuperable. Scarcely
had the site been proposed, when the managers of the
Exhibition were assailed by a storm of Parliamentary
opposition that would have daunted any men of less
firmness than themselves. Then arose pecuniary
difficulties of no ordinary character. These were at
once overcome by the liberality of some individuals
among the Royal Commissioners, whose spirit of
self-devotion on the occasion will not be soon
forgotten by the public, nor, we trust, be
suffered to pass unacknowledged. We pass
over the difficulties which at one time threat-
ened to arise out of the choice between the
various plans offered for the erection of the building,
because from the moment that Mr. PAXTON'S pro-
posal for the erection of a Crystal Palace of Art was
propounded it was universally accepted by public
acclamation ; on this point the Commissioners had in
reality no choice left to them but to ratify the unani-
mous decision of the public. We cannot, however,
but remember the prophecies of the croakers. A
building of glass—it will never stand, it must break
down beneath the weight of the articles placed on the
floors of the galleries—it cannot be made water-tight,
all the goods in it will be spoiled by the wet—it will
never be finished in time ; —such were a few of the
vaticinations of those who were
" Willing to wound and yet afraid to strike."
Nevertheless, as time wore on these prophets found
that the building of glass was finished in time, that
it did not break down beneath the weight of the
articles placed on its floors, that it was as water-tight
as any ordinary building, and that the goods depo-
sited in it were not spoiled by wet. Then we were
told that it would be impossible to be ready to open
the Exhibition by the Ist of May, and we believe that
some even of the Commissioners themselves had
serious doubts on this point, and would not unwillingly
have consented to a postponement of the day of open-
ing. Had such postponement taken place it would have
been on every account greatly regretted, the first act
of the play would.have been confessedly a failure, the
prestige, of the Exhibition would have been gone, and
no after success could have compensated for such a
misfortune. Thanks, however, to the almost super-
human exertions of Mr. THOMAS BELSHAW, and the
other gentlemen to whom the internal arrangements
of the Exhibitionwas confided, the morning of the Ist
of May found everything prepared, the pledge which
the Commissioners had given, not only to their own
SOVEREIGN but to the inhabitants of the world at
large, was fully redeemed, and on the Ist of May, 1851,
the Exhibition of the Industry of all Nations was
opened by the RULER of the British Empire. Since
that period the career of the Exhibition has been one
of uninterrupted success. Every day from 50,000 to
70,000 persons, and upwards, have been congregated
together within the walls of the Crystal Palace ; men
from all nations of the world have been here gathered
together, men whose Sovereigns tell us that in their
own ccuutry the musket, the bayonet, the dungeon,
the rack, the gallows, are necessary to keep them in
order, whilst here a few policemen, " with bits of
stick in their bands" (which bits of stick,
be it remembered, they have never once
had occasion to use), have been found
amply sufficient for the preservation of the peace ;
not a soldier has been seen within the precincts of
the Crystal Palace, save as a visitor. The pilferings
which have taken place have been as nothing, and in
every instance the pilferer has been promptly taken
into custody, and as promptly punished ; whilst, not-
withstanding the temptation held out to thieves by
the exposure of valuable articles in the Crystal Pa-
lace, and by the influx of strangers into the metropolis,
the calendars of our criminal courts have never bean
so light. That great credit is due to the people
themselves for these most gratifying results we glory
in admitting, and we shall, whenever the people are
libelled and called ugly names as an excuse for ex-
cluding them from our public and national build.
ings and gardens, take care to remind their libellers
of their conduct during the Great Exhibition; but
great credit is also due to those who organized such
an admirable system for the protection of the pro-
perty of the exhibitors, and for securing the comfort
of the visitors as to render it unprofitable,
if not impossible, for the professional thief
to pursue his avocations within the pre.
cincts of the Crystal Palace, whilst, at the; same
time, the perfect freedom of action of the honest
lesisiter was never once interfered with in the least.
Les all who were engaged in planning or carry-
hi
!nft Out Male admirable organization, from the
ghost to the lowest, the gratitude of the country is
especially due.
We, in common with the public ge-
nerally, hail in the a
1' u
p intment of Colonel REID the
earnest of a desire 0
n the part of the Government
to acknowledge and
reward b
patrona the y a judicious use of their
ge merits of those toe
t whose exertions the
unprecedented success of thiseat exeriment s t
be mainly attributed, whilst,
e trust , the Commiis-
o

goners will see the propriety of rewarding by a pa-
cuniary
present, cut of their large surplus, the highly -
deserving but very ill.paid services of those viho h Ave
been employed in an inferior capacity. It is not
improbable that on some of those members of the Com-
mission whose position in life is such as to preclude
the acceptance, on their part, of any office, some
honorary distinction may be conferred ; we would
most respectfully suggest that the ceremony of con-
ferring such distinction should take place in the
Crystal Palace itself. In days of yore the knight who
had distinguished himself in battle was dubbed
knight-banneret upon the field; let Peace also have
her knights bannerets.

The question at issue between the Government and
simdry boards of guardians in Ireland is creating in-
tense sensation in that country, and in truth it is one
more worthy of notice than the fantastic tricks of
the Defence Association, or the ground and lofty
tumblings of " PAUL, Archbishop of Armagh, and Pri-
mate of all Ireland," or of his worthy colleague, "the
Lion of the tribe of Judah," who rejoices in affixing
his signature to sundry documents under the name,
style, and denomination of " JOHN, Archbishop of
Tuam." A large sum of money—no less than
4,000,0001. sterling—is involved in the decision that
may be arrived at, and there is at stake something
even more important than mere pecuniary considera-
tions, viz., the integrity and good faith of a portion of
the inhabitants of the United Kingdom. We
would not see any of our Irish brethren classed
among the repudiators whose names are held up
as scandals and reproaches, which stink in the nostril s
of every civilised nation. We would not see them
associated with the drab coats and broad brims of
Pennsylvania, or the cloaks and sombreros of the Spa-
nish hidalgos ; and yet a further exhibition of wrong-
headedness on their part may array them with the
very worst of those who have already acquired an
infamous notoriety.

Every allowance is to be made for those who, with
the inclination, are yet utterly unable to satisfy the
liabilities for which they are responsible. No reason-
able indulgence that can be demanded should be re-
fused to such persons ; but there are sturdy debtors
who set their creditors at defiance—who dare them to
do their very utmost, who must be dealt with in a
very different manner. The man " who can pay and
wont pay, must be made to pay ;" and there
could not be a more injurious precedent to
establish, or one fraught with more dangerous
consequences to the community, than that of per-
mitting an audacious defiance of the law—a clearly
expressed resolution to resist its enforcemont in every
possible manner—to have any effect on the minds of
those charged with the duty of seeing it carried into
execution, at least any effect beneficial to those as-
suming a position in every respect so improper and
indefensible. The QUEEN'S General could not treat
with armed rebels. The show of resistance should be
abolished before any negotiations could be entered
into. In like manner, the QUEEN'S Minister cannot
listen to the remonstrances of those who, while hold-
ing official rank and station, refuse obedience to the
existing law of the land.
The poor-law guardians of the county Mayo have
had the rather doubtful honour of " taking the bull
by the horns," and the remonstrance addressed
through the chairman of a meeting of the guardians
of various unions in that county to the First Lord
of the Treasury, has elicited a reply, in which the
arguments put forward are disposed of in a very
summary, and at the same a very masterly manner.
We take it for granted that his Lordship intends that
his letter shall be received as a general answer to all
who have made similar communications ; for we find
that the only response given to the resolutions of the
Clare boards was a mere acknowledgment of their
receipt, without any observations thereon. It is, in-
deed, amply sufficient for that purpose, for the prin-
ciples recognised by the Government are clearly and
distinctly laid down, so that there can be no possibility
of misconception or mistake.
After declaring that " the Government is at
all times ready to consider applications for post-
ponement of payment, founded upon grounds which
the Treasury can fairly entertain," the PREMIER pro-
ceeds to show what it is that the Mayo guardians are
really endeavouring to effect, "seeming to consider
that it is for them to decide what Acts of Parliament
should be obeyed and which should be disobeyed—what
the Legislature ought to have done, and what it ought
not to have done," and upon such opinions declaring
their determination to resist the execution of the law.
He then, without condescending to notice the parti-
cular mis-statements on which the resolutions were
founded, briefly recapitulates the circumstances
under which the debt wrs contracted—the total
failure of the potato crop—the liberal assistance of the
English nation, afforded without any hesitation as to
the causes which, if they did not produce, at least
rendered the effects of the calamity a thousand times
more formidable than they would otherwise have been.
That assistance was rendered not only by public loans,
but also by voluntary subscriptions, in which the
enormous sum Of HALF A MILLION OF POUNDS
STERLING was raised for the relief of Irish distress ;
while 8,000,0001. was advanced by the Imperial
Parliament for the like purpose. At the time when
this latter sum—about one-sixth of the net revenue
of the kingdom—was voted, it was distinctly under-
stood that the entire amount was accepted as a loan,
to be subsequently repaid to the Treasury. A more
liberal view of the transaction was subsequently
taken ; one-half the debt was remitted. The sponge
was applied to 10s. in the pound, at the suggestion of
the creditor, and for that which was to be satisfied
the utmost indulgence was afforded, as much as forty
years being given in some instances. The local
boards, by whom the debt was contracted, being dis-
solved with the circumstances that led to their
existence, the duty of collecting the necessary funds
for meeting the instalments was transferred to the
poor-law guardians in the various districts. These
gentlemen, in Mayo, Clare, and other localities, have
refused to strike the rates for the repayment of any
portion of the liability, while Lord Joliet RUSSELL
thasive clearlyililve
determinedpointed
to
uc
rosuures.e w
Th ibceh the 1
'' I e
eMinisterialu
policy is clearly indicated in the following paragraph
from his Lordship :
"In particular districts the pressure of poor-law re-
lief is so great that some postponements of inimGdiate
payment to Government may be fair and equitable; but
it is impossible for the Treasury, even in the interest of
Ireland, to sanction the doctrine that every loan made
for public purposes is to be subject to repudiation, ac-
cording to the will of the local bodies who may be
charged with the collection of the sum to be repaid. It is
obvious that among other evil consequences of allowing
such a doctrine to prevail, would be this—that the
House of Commons would never sanction another loan
for Irish purposes, however clear the public advantage
to be gai&.ed by such expenditure.
" I request your Lordship to submit these considera-
tions to the board of guardians over which you preside.
Upon other grounds they may have a case deserving
attention."
It should be maturely considered by the different
boards, before they decide upon a fruitless and un-
availing opposition to the law. By so doing, and
letting their passions be kept under the control of
their reason and judgment, they will save themselves
and their respective constituencies enormous expense,
annoyance, and inconvenience. Let them be well
aware that rebellious boards can be dissolved, and
vice-guardians appointed in their place, who will
strike any and every rate that may be required, or
that even, if such a step should not be resorted to, a
mandantus from the Court of Queen's Bench would
compel obedience ; and that when the rate is once
made there are many efficient modes of enforcing
Payment. Let them once see the folly and absurdity
ofeannetvereing on a hopeless contest. Let them appeal
ad tnisericordianz, and not in terrorem, and if there
be y
foundation for
indulgencepetitions,nafortheirwili b
that
theeyfreweliyll findabd
willingly nglyaccorded.

that TEE QUEEN'S COLLEGE, BIRMINGHAM.—We learn
the Queen has been graciously pleased to present to
this institution a full-length portrait of her Majesty, to be
placed in the new College-hall. A public meeting will be
held on Monday, the 6t, in occasionn-hall, which has been
handsomely granted fort he by the Mayor, to ac-
knowledge in suitable terms this special mark of Royal
favour conferred on the town and county.
ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS.—
At the (Sept.
meeting of the Comitia Majora, held on Tuesday,
30, the following gentlemen, having undergone the necessary
examinations for diloma, were admitted members of the
College :—Dr. Ilabershon, Finsbury-circus • Dr. Barron,
Thomas-street, Southwark, Dr. Parker, Condon Hospi St.
tal
also Dr. Thornton, Norwich, was admitted an extra-licentiate.; SURREY NEW COUNTY GAOL.--yesterday the
newly-erected house of Correction, on Wandsworth-com-
mon, was opened for the reception of prisoners. It is on the
cellular principle, the tame as VolltollYillo, and i 4 calculated
for 70 prisoners.