The Sun.
London, England, 1869-02-24 00:00:00

The debate in the House of Representatives,
on February 3, shows why persons who have
invested in United States Securities should under-
stand something of the Republic, that they may not
be deluded to their own detriment into getting rid
of their securities at the very time that they ought
to buy.

" Mr. HOLMAN (Democrat, Indiana) moved to insert a
new section, taxing the iuterest on United States Bonds
ten per cent. He reminded the House that at the last ses-
sion, by a large majority, the house had, ou motion of Mr.

. _
COBB, pledged itself to that principle.
" Mr. SCHENCK. suggested tint the House of Represen-
tatives was a mighty uncertain body, and that that vote
had been given on the ev3 of a general election.
"Mr. HOLMAN expressol his surprise that the Chairman
of the Committee of Ways and Means would find a parti-
san explanation for tho action of the House."

No Representative doubted the plain, unvarnisbel
truth of whit Mr. SCHENCK said ; but the mischief
is, that here people are deceived, supposing that
sort of talk really to mean action. The Democrats
played a desperate card, because they were in a
desperate strait ; but nil. played it to their own
injury, as the result proved? and as those who best
'knew the, people were all along convinced would turn
out to be the case. What principally tended to mis-
lead the English was the positive tone assumed by
the correspondents of most of the London daily
newspapers. The Star does not appear to have a
correspondent ; he of the Daily News writes essays,
not news ; the " occasional" letters of the others had
little influence, but there remained the Times and
the Standard, and it was their correspondents who
did the mischief. We know not what has become
of that interesting individual who wrote alternately
from New York and Washington to the Standard,
for his letters disappeared with the old year, a cir-
cumstance we regret, for he was a genuine Copper-
head, and gave the view of a large American sec-
tion in bright, lively colours, which were always
worth looting at, however little we agreed with the
painter. "MANHATTAN" was among the best of cor-
respondents, and his successor on the staff of the
Standard was no feeble imitator, though an imitator.
Like his predecessor the opinions put forward were
tinged with party colours when they ought not to have
been so tinged, doing harm in Europe, where we dare
say many a man has bitter cause to regret the in-
fluence they exerted on his investments. This cor-
respondent was prepared to stake his very existence
—so certain was he of the fulfilment of his predic-

tion—that the alternative would eventually be with
his countrymen, total repudiation—or greenback re-
demption. Acting on the principle we so heartily
condemn, that no quarter is to be shown to a politi-
cal foe, he perverted the meaning of the Republican
platform; and, while acknowledging that his own
party desired repudiation, he vehemently contended
that they desired it no more than the Republicans,
nor as much as the mass of the people. Now .he
must have known that the vote of Congress and the
action of the Republican party was influenced by
the sole desire to trim their sails so as to catch
every favouring breeze by which to get ahead of the
competing ship, while he stu liously ignored the fact
that not only were the mass of the Republicans op-
posed to repudiation in any form, but that a consider-
able section of his party were so also, all sound
argument urging a faithful discharge of every obli-
gation, and a liberal construction in favour of the
creditor of every doubtful point— that Congress
might be considered certain to see this, and that its
expediency would soon become evident to so acute a
people. There was not, however, a word to qualify
the unhesitating expression of his opinion. his
countrymen were fools and rogues ; they had sense
enough to sell as many Bonds as they could to Euro-
peans, so as to throw as much as possible of the loss
on foreigners, but they had neither the sense nor the
virtue to strive like men under a burden which they
could easily toss- off. Substantially the same view was
taken by the correspondent of the Times, but
he argued it in a way infinitely more damaging to
the credit of the United States. lie was a wolf in the
guise of a sheep, bleating piteously over the errors
of Republican ways. He was a seer with unbounded
faith in his own prophecies. What he told as about
to happen became history, and history is the record
of fulfilled. events. Ile took " careful surveys,"
he took all manner of " prospects" from " dismal"
to "cheerful," and he subjectel everything to a
minute analysis with an air of impartiality greatly
calculated to mislead the lamb-like English public.
The United States have to thank this man more than
any other living for the long delayed rise in the
Federal Bonds. A sharp, rapid upward tendency
would have annihilated the Democratic plea for
greenback re lemption, and with it their best cam-
paign argument. Impatient people could then
have anticipated what they desired, the funding of
the debt at an early period at a reduced rate of
interest, but the Times was an oracle in Europe,
and the Philadelphia correspondent, a strong De-
mocrat, declared its American predictions. Many
of our readers are aware of the effect among their
friends, and we could give numerous instances of
those who would not be reassured by anything we
said, but sold their Five-Twenties, convinced that
the ultimate end would be repudiation. The up-
holders of the credit of the Republic had to fight
against the depressing effect of a falling market and
a quotation for the Bonds of the richest of countries
similar to those of dishonoured or bankrupt com-
munities. This was fertile in breeding annoyance
in the States, and there is a terrible stimulant to
men to be dishonest where they are discounted and
dealt with as being dishonest. Those the Times
influenced to their loss have little cause tothank that
journal. The editor, ignorant of the drift of his cor-
respondent, allowed the great organ to be made the
tool of an American party, to the injury of its
readers interested in American Securities—a subject
we need not dwell on, as the full force must be felt
by themselves. We can only hope that our at-
tempts to rebut the Sayings of the Seer and to ex-
pose his prophecies by the touch-stone of events, may
have saved some of our readers from loss, for no
rise has been so rapid as that in American Securi-
ties since these letters—now of no use to the De-
mocratic party—have ceased to agitate the mind of
Europe. It is not without an inward chuckle we
so often record the cable messages from this corre-
spondent. Is it from a quiet sense of the ludicrous
that the Times makes him send these despatc.hes,
which sometimes overtake his letters, and in a
laughable way falsify his prophecies
? Some
readers may recollect a letter of his to which
of our
oewoef
took exception, analysing
the present
Representatives, and that not then fully elected, to
show that some four-fifths would vote repudiation
in some shape, most probably taxthe.
Here, however, is his latest telegram,totax
idoateterdestlasont
Wednesday:--" proposition
tNias,feated yesterday in the
United
s e ofS t aRt Representatives." B
re soeadnt as es
was

The Great Northern and Midland Railway Com-
panies have ignified their intention of discontinuing the
payment of church rates in conseql.u.enceof IthBe6 passing of
the Compulsory Church Rates Abolition Act, 8,.
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council's
sittings were resumed yesterday, when a new court was formed
by the attendance of the Lords Justice of the Court of Chan-
eery. Lord Justice Giffard sat for the first time as one of
the Judicial Committee, Lord Justice Selwyn presided. The
other members present were Sir J. Colville and Sir L. Peel.
The Friend of China says that the remains of
H.M.S. Rattler have been given to the Japanese as a reward
for the kindness shown to the crew of that ship. It is said
that Captain du Petit Thomas of 11.1.M.13 ship Dupleix will
be offered a C.8.-ship for his energy and kindness in reliev-
ing the crow of the same ill-fated 61112.
The great ocean race has been dcci led by the
arrival of the lunrin screw steamer City of Paris at Queens-
town one hour and ten minutes I efore the Cunard vessel the
Russia. Virtually it has been a " neck and neck race," as
the Russia left Now York one hour later than the City of
Paris, besides having bad a stoprige of one hour and twenty
minutes during the voyage to repair her engines.

Pro►essor Fawcett, MP., lectured on Saturday at
Brighton on the subject of national education. He said that
when the question of the Irish Church Lad been settled then
tational education would be the great question of the day.
In his place in the House of Commons he intended to op-
pose, as resolutely as he could, any proposition to levy an
educational rate unless that proposition was accompanied by
another giving power to local authorities to compel the at-
tendance of neglected children at school