The Sun.
London, England, 1869-12-15 00:00:00

OMIT OP THE PITIILIO JOURNALS

The Times asks, supposing the better class of races are to
be credited with only a tithe of the mischievous effects,
both to horses and men, which are attributed to them,
what we are to expect from the paltriest parodies upon
them—from the wretched little hole-and-corner races
Which are scarcely known even by name to any but pro-
? Coed sporting men, but are got up chiefly to put money
into the pockets of a few innkeepers and a crowd of
" sharpers ?" They are described by the expressive title of
"Publicans' Races," and belong to the class denounced by
Sir Joseph Hawley and Mr. Chaplin in their joint letter
on Two-year-old Racing, as the class of which "gate-
money is avowedly the object." Unluckily, the mischief
they do is not confined to those who attend them. Every
householder and pedestrian in their neighbourhood 1,
exposed to attacks from the ruffians whom they bring
together, and who cannot be expected to forego what
opportunities may occur of combining a little criminal
business with the pleasurable pursuit of sport. We arr
told that "robberies in the neighbourhood are of nightly
occurrence," and that such a " state of terror" prevails
during the races that in ono instance a neighbour went so
far as to " have his grounds patrolled by well-armed men."
A correspondent, who has himself had the dubious satis-
faction of having his own ' premises " tried " by sporting
housebreakers, suggests a remedy in theory at least very
simple. The races are got up by publicans for the sake of the
"gate or entrance money." At one meeting•alone £6OO
was in this way taken. By refusing licences, therefore to
these publicans the magistrates would assail the evil at
the fountain load. The refusal would, doubtless, be jus-
tifiable enou4since a publican who encourages races of
this kind is as great a nuisance to a neighbourhood as one
who keeps a disreputable or noisy nighthouse. But it is
not easy to see how in practice the encouragement could
be brought home to any particular man. He could always
keep himself in the background, and, though really the
promoter of the race, and perhaps the person most inte-
rested in it, could be represented by friends beyond the
magistrates' reach. We fear, therefore, that our corre-
spondent's grievance is not so easily remedied as he
imagines. But still he has done good service by exposing
its real character, and bringing it before the public.

If it is true, remarks the Standard, that Pius the Ninth
is bent upon proclaiming the dogma of the Pope's personal
Infallibility, it is hardly possible but that such an inten-
tion should create the liveliest interest among the Roman
Catholic Governments. In such a matter it hardly becomes
Protestants to intervene, except as critics. The affair is
only ours indirectly, as marking the spirit of the Roman
Church, and the character of its pretensions. A Church
which is to become " greater than Heaven," of which the
human chief, who is at the same time a temporal prince,
is to be endowed with Divine attributes, introduces.
it is true, a new element in the political not less
than in the religious world. It is certain that the
last thing of which the bishops, who are represented by
Dr. Manning, are thinking, is to act consistently with the
necessities of the times; and to the "legitimate aspira-
'rations of modern nations " they have shown themselves to
be supremely indifferent. They interpret the one great
duty of the age to mean the repression of the spirit of
science. The want of the times they hold to be the
crushing of all opinion which is not theirs. And of modern
nations they believe that the most legitimate aspira-
tion is to possess an incarnate God at Rome,
who shall reign, through his bishop, over al
the temporal and spiritual affairs of the earth.
That the promulgation of the dogma of Papal
infallibility will cause even the Roman Catholic Princes to
modify their relations with the Pope is certain. No inde-

pendent nation can consent to the assumption by Rome of
an authority which would hereafter make her the supreme
dictator of half the civilised world. France, of all countries,
will not tamely submit to such a subjection; and if Dr.
Manning andthe Jesuits insist upon carrying out their wild
projects we may safely calculate that whatever increase of
divinity there will be to the Pope, there will be, at least, a
corresponding falling off in the human part. The infalli-
bility may come, but the Zouaves will go; and what then
will become of Ultramontanism?

The Daily Hews refers to Mr. Galton's remarkable work
on " Hereditary Genius,", and says that he has produced
a number of statements which would be well-nigh
incredible were it not for the careful accumulation of
statistics by which he endeavours to sustain them. Some
of his conclusions, whether correct or not, are, to say the
least, curious and suggestive. Mr. Galton has calculated
that in Great Britain one person in each 4,000 is eminent,
one in 1,000,000 illustrious ; so that fame, whatever it
be worth, is of extremely difficult attainment. The few
men who climb the steep "where Fame's proud temple
shine's afar" do so at the loss of many an honest pleasure,
and at the cost of many a heartache. Genius, however, is
not repressed by such considerations. It must have its way,
however arduous that way may be; and as a proof that the
hindrances of English social life are "not effectual in repres-
sing high ability, the number of eminent men in England i ;
as great as in other countries where fewer hindrance.
exist." Mr. Galton's opinion of the monks of the Miildk
Ages is apparently more favourable than MI opinion of
modern divines, who, he says, are " on the whole an ailing
body of men," and have wretched constitutions. Yet s,,
strong is his belief in the muscular vigour of men of
brain, that he undertakes to pick out of the group of
divines mentioned in his pages, as out of any other group,
." an eleven ' who should compete in any physical feats
whatever against similar selections from groups
'of twice or thrice their numbers, taken at haphazard from
equally well-fed classes." Mr. Galton's challenge shews
that he is utterly opposed to the once popular delusion
that men who follow intellectual pursuits are generally
unhealthy. Certain it is that the men who within living
memory have been most famous in the departments of
learning, literature, and science, have, with few exceptions,
been remarkable also for muscular strength and sound
physical development.

The Telegraph observes that Mr. Odger is determined to
go to the poll for Southwark, and wonders if it can im-
press upon the other Liberal candidates the wisdom of
retiring ? The artisans named for this borough have with-
drawn in favour of Mr. Odger ; the chairman of his com-
mittee is Mr. Allen, Secretary to the Amalgamated
Engineers—the most powerful organisation of working
men in the United Kingdom. To Mr. Labouchere we
make the first appeal, for his position differs
widely from that of Sir Sydnoy Waterlow.
'The question is more than local The middle
class candidates ought to retire for reasons far
beyond any connected with Southwark itself.
They will confer a great boon on the Liberal party by
making way at once, and cheerfully, for a working man.
Let them look at the question fairly. The present House
'of Commons, without exception, is composed of upper and
middle-class men. It must, moreover, be borne in mind,
that, in Mr. Odger will be the only working man in Parlia-

xnenti, he will represent, not Southwark alone, swarming
with artisans, but, indirectly and in an intelligible sense,
title whole of the working men in the United Kingdom.

Many members of the House, though nominally connected
with a single constituency, indirectly represent
some important interest. We have advocated a
preliminary ballot among the candidates, to decide who
shallOcome to the contest with the united goodwill of the
Liberal party. Mr. Labouchere has, it is true, accepted
that view; but, since the other candidates cannot be
brought to it, we shall not regret that Mr. Odger—per-
aonallyeeligible and respectable in every way—has deter-
minodith go to the poll. It is the duty of every Liberal,
nada/ e-class or otherwise, to support him ; and it is the
bounden duty of the three other candidates to withdraw,
Aral not to risk a Liberal defeat. Should a Tory get in, the
'blame will lie, not on the shoulders of Mr. Labouchere,
whom we bind to his declaration of Tuesday night, but on Sir
Sydney Waterlow and Sir Francis Lycett.
The Government, says the Post, need not apprehend that
the measures of preparation against the possibility of an
'outbreak in Ireland will entail upon them any charge of
precipitancy. Public opinion has for many days past
begun to characterise the position of the Government in
Ireland.na one of hazardous apathy, and to stigmatise the
policy-ea the Executive as a policy of dangerous delay,
fouiadred on an unreasonable reliance upon the power
and influences of conciliation. But, if there be
ground for the opinion that the Government have
been somewhat tardy in recognising facts, it must
'in fairness be admitted that, now that they have claimed
recognition, they have been met in a comprehensive and
effective manner. It was not unnatural that Mr. Glad-
stone should be reluctant to come to the conclusion that a
measure of justice had failed to fulfil the expectations
v hich many people had hung upon it, and that a policy of
conciliation had not proved equal to the repression of exhi-
bitions of discontent amounting to declarations of dis-
loyalty. Now, however, that events and circumstances
have satisfied Mr. Gladstone that not only hope Las
not been realised, hut that peace and order are in
dan:-.;er of actual disturbance, the measures taken by the
Government are such that no fault can be picked in them,
and they are in every respect so thorough and so complete
in organisation that they will at once .convey assurance to
the loyal and industrious of efficient protection, and carry
conviction to the turbulent and the disaffee:;ed that the
Executive, backed by the whole power of the country, is
determined at whatever cost to prevent if they can, to
put down by force without reseave or reticence if they
cannot, offences against the laws, be they what they
may.

A Dublin correspondent telegraphs :—The steward
of Mr. Hornidge, Castletown, Westmeath, is reported to
have been tired at and severely wounded.

A GASOMETER OVERTURNED IN THE

GALE.

An extraordinary contretemps occurred on Monday
evening, about six o'clock, upon the premises of the Cam-
bridge University and Town Gas Works. The wind, which
had been very strong all day, had then increased in violence
ro such a degree that the largest gasometer attached to the
works was completely capsised, and many thousands of cubic
feet of gas escaped instantaneously. Although there
was no light of any kind within thirty yards of the
gasometer, the nearest light instantly illumined the gas,
and an immense flame of firo rose to the heavens,lighting up
the sky in the most vivid manner. The utmost alarin was
felt in Cambridge when this became apparent, but happily no
explosion took place. The flame, however, caused a fire en the
premises, and it was at one time feared that it would reach
the remaining gasometers. This, however, was fortunately
prevented by the ex-el-Lions of a large number of the inhabi-
tants. An order was at once sent for the public street
lamps to be put out all over tl:e town. The new gasometer
which was blown over was only recently erected at a cost
of X 6,000. The flame as it ascended was seen for many
miles round the fens.

THE ALLEGED INFRINGEMENT OF
COPYRIGHT.

Vice-ClancellorJames delivered judgment on Tuesday in
the case of Jarrold v. Heywood, in which the defendants,
two brothers engaged in educational pursuits were charged
with having pirated very extensively from a work of Dr.
Brewer, entitled " The Guide Book to Science," &c., in a work
which they had published under the title of "The Hand-
Book of Science." His Honour said the plaintiff com-
plained that in a great part of defendants' work they had
taken substantially from the work of Dr. Brewer, although
they had altered some of the language. This was denied
by the defendants, but they admitted that they had used
a doctor's work amongst others for school purposes, and
that the books they had consulted amounted to between
fifty and sixty, and that from the nature of the works of
himself and that of Dr. Brewer's, there must necessarily
be an identity in design and similarity in language.
It was apparent that the defendants had consulted Wells
and other writers, and that they had been engaged in the
compiling of a work. He considered that where a party
used works which had been nublished, and were open
to the public, it could not be said that he had been
guilty of piracy. Having referred to portions of the
work of the defendants on the subject of light, fog, the
Lakes of Killarney, echo, tides, monsoons, &c., and having
quoted from the text of the work, he said he was quite
satisfied that the defendants must have consulted books
other than Dr. Brewer's, and there was proof of substantial
literary labour on their part. His verdict, acting as a jury,
was that no piracy had been committed, and that plaintiff's
bill must be dismissed with costs.