The Sun.
London, England, 1869-03-24 00:00:00

TIE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, MARCH 24, 1E69

of fanatical antagonism which in former times has so
often and so lamentably kindled the flames of insur-
rection and civil war. For once a religious question
has been argued calmly, dispassionately, and with
the most equable deliberation. The contest—manly,
strenuous, and prolonged—has come to an end. At
this the first important stage of the Bill's advance-
ment, it has had its issue. The result is.even beyond
our hopes or our most sanguine expectations. But upon
the side of the victors there is no sign whatever of
irritating exultation. The Liberal Party are so
strong and so united upon this question of the Irish
Church, that they have no inducement to wound the
feelings of antagonists so completely vanquished
as, within doors, the members and, out of doors,
the supporters, of the Conservative Opposition.
Lengthened and outspoken though the debate
has been, upon both sides of the House of Commons
not one unfair word has been uttered by either party
throughout the whole discussion —not a single sar-
casm has to be regretted—not one solitary shaft of
acrimonious ridicule is left behind to rankle where it
was ungenerously driven home. The last night of this
memorable and historical discussion was worthy in every
sense of its three remarkable predecessors. Commenced
by the Right Hon. Member for the University of
Cambridge, in a speech that appears to us not simply
foreshortened, but absolutely truncated and re-
duced to a very torso, probably by re ;son of the
consideration enunciated by Mr. WALPOLE last
,svening, in his very first sentence, when he said,
" After the remarkable character of this
debate, already prolonged for three nights,
and especially after the speeches of the right
hon. and learned gentleman the member for
Dublin University and of my hon. and learned friend
s_._ sse.e.„-ses 1 f.. 1 senulfl be unins-
cm the questio❑ before the House"—the debate was
sustained with admirable effect immediately after-
wards by the Right Hon. Member for Tam worth, in a
speech which has been described by one of our con-
temporaries as a historico-philosophic disquisition,
but which was more than that, especially towards the
close, when Sir HENRY BULWER addressed himself
to the subject under discussion in words befitting at
once the orator
.and the statesman. After nine
other members had taken part in the debate,
the last of them perhaps the most zealous
and impetuous among all the leading an-
tagonists of the measure before Parliament, the
discussion was wmthily closed by an elaborate ora-
tion from the First Minister of the Crown—an
oration not inappropriately preluding as swingeing
a majority i❑ as large a House as ever endorsed the
or inions of a Prime Minister or sustained the policy
of his Government.

WE do not suppose that any one of our readers is
likely to confound two different things, admiration of
Sir ROUNDELL PALM Blt and admiration of Sir
R oUNDELL PAL3IER'S arguments. In these days of
dishing political opponents, by taking leaps in the
dark, personal self-denial is too rare for us not to
eulogise it; and the member for Richmond has per-
formed an act of great self-denial. It is something to
have surrendered the highest prize Of the prof cssion just
as it came to his hand ; it is still more to have severed
himself from the party and from the leader with
whom he has acted, and with whom he in the main
agrees. These are sacrifices which fortunately are
not required of many men, for the many would not
be able to make them. We cannot altogether regret
that they have been required in this instance,because
the alacrity with which the requirement has been met
will do something to restore the moral tone of the
political world, which has been sorely lowered by the
events of 1866-8. And yet it is difficult to
understand how Sir ROUNDELL could have deemed
the sacrifice necessary. After reading his speech,
and noting the small amount of divergence there is
in it from the Ministerial plan, we can remember no
sacrifice so great for so inadequate an object since
the day when Mr. G LAnsToNE left Sir R. PEEL's Cabi-
net on the Maynooth question. Sir IZo UND ELL PA I.NERIL
approves of disestablishment, approves even of partial
disendowment, so that the question at issue between
him and his former colleagues is one of pounds,
shillings, and pence only. He endeavoured, indeed,
to shew that there was a principle involved in his
dissent from the bill. But the principle is so evanes-
cent, so etherial, that it vanishes like vapour before
the light and heat of debate. In fact, so far as
there was any force in the argument at all,
it rather made against him who used it. For
instance, if it is right to take away the endow-
ments of the Church from the parishes where there
are less than 200 Protestants—where, that is, the
Protestants are too few to maintain a church and
services by voluntary contributions—a fortiori,it must
be right to take them where a Church has
a large number of adherents capable of
supporting the Church. Mr. GLADSTONE'S bill has
nothing to do with numbers. It simply takes the
revenues in a lump, leaves the Church with such
portion as properly belongs to her (the funds accruing
from private endowments), and, finding that these are
amply sufficient for the wants of the Church, appro-
priates the remainder of the revenues to a work astruly
religious as preaching sermons, and which offers this
great advantage, that it enables them to be administered
in a way wherein Irishmen of every creed can parti-
cipate.

" Tim light warn't gone out none the more in
Heaven," said STEPHEN PAGE, in the Brierley coalpit,
when the last candle was extinguished. The event
justified the feeling of trust with which the rough
collier, when the hope of earthly aid had vanished,
confided himself and his beleaguered companions
to a more infallible protection. Thirteen men and
boys were engulfed five days and nights in the depths
of a coalpit without light, food, water, or even air,
and yet twelve have been brought up weak, but safe,
to the surface. Late on Tuesday night the workings
of the Brierley Colliery were inundated, access to the
shaft closed up, and six menand boys on one side, and
seven on the other were imprisoned. The former
party were informed of the inundation by a rush of
choke damp_ They hurried to the bottom of the shaft,
but were cut off and driven back by the flood, which
rose higher and extended furtherup the passagewhich
led to the opening. The choke damp conveyed no
warning of the flood to the larger party on the other
side of the shaft. They worked on, finished their turn
on Wednesday morning, turned their steps to
the mouth of the shaft to be drawn up as usual, and
found all access to the means of escape blocked by
the rising water. The flood rose for fifteen hours,
geadually driving the men back into the recesses of
the pit, where the ground was higher. Then it ceased.
The race for life had previously commenced. The
catastrophe was known above before the party of
seven were aware of it, a vast concourse from all the
region round about gathered on Tuesday night at
the pit's mouth, and from that time until
Sunday morning the steam -pumps furiously
strove to overtake the water. For fifteen
hours the water gained upon the pumps. The
prisoners had to recede step by step, for they kept
close to the edge of the flood. They knew that the
pumps were at work, and the splash of the
machinery every now and then refreshed the polluted
air. The last candle died out after the thirteenth hour;
but the light " warn't gone out none the more in
Heaven." The pumps began to gain upon the flood,
and then the dreary task of watching its subsidence
commenced. The water rose by feet, but went down
by inches. The men were without sustenance; and they
marked the ebb of the water by bits of coal, measured
the time by a watch which one of the men had, and
calculated the chanches of getting out—speedily
giving themselves up for lost, as their friends above
had. One man went mad, broke away from his
party, and perished. The rest preserved their reason,

and spent their time in

tope]

wa'

work of the pumps, and hopefully praying, in prepa-
ration for what they felt must be the end. They all
held many prayer meetings ; and the consolation of
religion, they tell us, did much to support them
through this time of despair.
_.... _

Meanwhile the race for life went on above. The
crowd had little hope that any of the prisoners would
be brought up alive ; but the work went on, and the
water slowly went down. At times it decreased at
the rate of five inches an hour, but more often four;
and one hundred hours were past before the bottom
was reached. Then the men could not be reached.
The foul air prevented the rescuing party from
reaching the bottom, and defeated several attempts.
At length the subterranean lifeboat—a raft which
was taken down in the cage—reached the level of the
water, and the gallant crew pushed out into the side
of the pit where the ground was higher and the water
lower. Here they found four men and one boy sitting
on a rampart of coal just clear of the water ; and the
whole party were brought up safe to the top, amid
the frantic applause of the multitude. The man who
became insane completed this party. The raft went
down again, but the other division of seven on the
opposite side of the shaft could not be reached until
Monday morning. Then they, too, were all saved ;
even one man who had been left behind when his
companions moved from one place to another, and
who was thought to have perished, was brought
up—the last of the twelve. But for the
mental derangement of the single lost collier, this
most marvellous story would have ended without
the loss of a single life. Human nature could endure
no greater suffering than was experienced by these
men dying slowly of hunger, cold, and the poison of
the atmosphere. Human nature could exhibit no
greater fortitude than that which preserved in these
uncultured colliers the hope of mercy when the hope
of life was gone.

AN/,
fat
t 4 it, 4441 4'.

HER MAJESTY.

WINDSOR CASTLE, March 23.

The Queen, accompanied by Princess Beatrice,
and atte❑ded by the Duchess of Roxburghe, drove
out yesterday afternoon.

w ikeerd dj e sdtryo'v ein the
accompanied by Princess Louise,
Prince Leopold and Princess Beatrice also went
out. grounds this morning.

His Highness the prince Hassen Pacha and
suite, accompanied by Colonel Gamble, honoured
the Royal Christy Minstrels last evening with their
pres•Jnce at the St. George's Theatre.

LATEST INTELL MENU

(REU"'ER'S TELEGRAMS.)

ARRIVAL OF TROOPS.

PORTSMOUTH, Marc'! 24.

The Indian troopship Serapis, Captain Soady,
from Alexandria and Malta with troops, arrived
here this morning.

AMERICA.
NEW YORK, March 23.

Gold closed at 1314 ; the highest quotation dur-
ing the day was 1314, the lowest 131. Sterling
exchange on Loudon, 1081; 5-20 Bonds, 1882, 118 ;
1885, 116 ; 1865, 113 ; 10-40 Bonds, 1051 ; Illinois,
140 ; Erie, 35, ; cotton, midland upland, 281 ;
Petroleum, standard white, 31 ; Flour, extra state,
$5.95 6.55 ; corn, old mixed, 89.

QUEENSTOWN, March 24.

The National Steamship Company's steamship
France, from New York, arrived off here at 6.30
this morning. She landed passengers and pro-
c ;e, led for Liverpool. All well.

ITALY.

BRINDISI, March 24.

Ihe Adriatic and Oriental Company's steamer
13:indisi has arrived here froin Alexandria, after a
passage of 89 hours, having experienced very bad
weather. She brings 20 passengers, 11 of which
arc English.

PARIS, March 24

Yesterday the Emperor presided at the Council
of State, on which occasion he delivered the follow-
ing address It is the duty of the Government
resolutely to satisfy the just desire for improve-
ment, and firmly t) repress all subversive
theories which are both unlawful and culpable.
Many improvements have already been effected,
but when the hidden wounds of the most prosper-
ous wounds are probed beneath an appearance of
prosperity, many undeserved cases of distress are
discovered. Great problems still remain to be
salved, and their solution requires the co-operation
of the whole intellect of the country. The suppres-
sion of the system of NVOI kmen's books (livrets) will
complete a new series of measures in favour of the
working classes. Ido not anticipate being able to
overcome all prejudices and to diarm all ill feeling.
I do not reckon upon increasing my popularity,
but I hope to acquire fresh energy to resist evil
passi,in. When all useful improvements have been
effected, when everything has been done, order can
be maintained with more authority, since power
will then lean on reason and the satisfaction given
to public conscience.

BoURSE, March 23.—Three o'clock.—The market
closed as follows :-
44 per Cent.
End of month... -- Italian Fives 56 10
3 per Cent
End of month 7O 25 Mexican Loan ... _—
Credit Mobilier
End of month... 280 Spanish Threes
Credit Foncier ...1482 50 Home Debt —
End of month... Deferred —
RAILWAYS. Cash.
Orleans • ... 960
Northern ...• ll7O
Lyons and Mediterranean
Southern.— 6121
Western
Eastern
• •
Sardinian
Austrian .......................... .
Lombard
................
North of Spain
Saragossa ....................
Roman

THE ARCHBISHOP OR YORK ON
CHARLES DICKENS

The Archbishop of York, in declining an invitation to
the banquet to bo given in Liverpool; on the 10th of April,
to Mr.,Charles Dickens, writes:—"l much regret to say that
being engaged with my confirmations, it is quite impossible'
for me to bo present to do honour to one of the greatest
writers that have adorned English literature. Mr. Dickens's
genius naturally commands admiration; but, if I am not
mistaken, lie has another claim upon his countrymen
quite as strong, for I do not believe that any writer has
done so much to promote kindly and charitallp feelings
between the different classes of society, and Urns, in the
great popular movement which is taking place around us,
Mr. Dickens has performed indirectly a considerable politi-
cal service. This I should have been glad to say in public
in your great town, but I cannot make the opportunity."

LOSS OF THE BAI?QUE:CIIINA:AND NINE

LIVES.

-

Intelligence has been received in Liverpool, from New
York, of the loss of the barque China, nine lives, and the
fearful sufferings of the crew. Captain Leward, of the
British barque W. H. Jenkins, on December 29,
when in latitude 4G'4G, longitude 20, fell in with the
wreck of the barque China, of Cardiff, apparently
abandoned, whole seas sweeping her decks, and a heavy
gale from N.N.W. blowing at the time. Some men
were discovered sitting on the forecastle deck. The
vessel was then hove to and the boats lowered,
and six men and the second officer were rescued, after
a hard struggle against the wind and sea, the
unfortunate men having to be lowered over the jibboom
into the boat, as boarding the wreck was impossible.
The second mate died two hours after, from exhaustion,
he, poor fellow, having been on the wreck
fourteen days, living on nothing but a piece of
pork, and what water they could catch. They
saw three vessels pass them within hailing distance, but
none of them offered to render assistance. The captain
of the China, the chief officer, and seven of the crew were
washed overboard and drowned some days before the W.
H. Jenkins came in sight.