The Sun.
London, England, 1869-01-30 00:00:00

Tht; beat Shilling Pit in London.

QAVED AND SARDANAPA LUS. —NoncE.—
kJ To-night, S TURDAY, Jan. 3•), will be p: sitively the Last
Night's performance of these immensely successful pieces at
St. George's Theatre, prior to their reproduction with entirely
nc.Av Scenery and increased stage convenience, particulars of
vrhich will be shortly announced.

ROI-AL AMPIIITHEA FRE AND CIRCUS,
noLBovN.
Continued Changes. New Programme every Evening. Ad-
ditional artistes. New Acts and Fresh Novelties. Signor CAS-
T ELLO'rfI in his thrilling and unparalleled Ladder Act, and
i nor LEIIONI, the Elastic Wonder, every evening. Increased
r., r Lotions in the performlnce of the Great CARRE Troupe,
introducing Ilerr Oscar Carr, and his magnificent stud of F:lty
HorFes. 'the lang:hter
.provoking Clowns, Burgce.s
uni Loyal, in a series of witimstealltes: novel and new. In ad-
-I:tion, ;1 spectacular hit of Pantomimic Extravagance, entitled
11E M liVEL OF ELECTRICITY, in which the whole
strength of the establishment will t4he part, besides 250 troops
and beautiful ponies. Doors open at Seven, commence at half
past. Morning Perf.)rmancea Monday, Ihednesday, and Satur-
day, commencing at Ilalf-past Two.

"CIE "SUN" NEWSPAPER.--(1. R. GLENIE,
Sporting Library, 4. Connaught-terrace, Edgeware-road.
leliver3 the LATE EDITION of "THE SUN " at the earliest
oess.ible moment after leaving the press. He is able to deliver
Jopica in Town, the Suburbs, and in many parts of the. country
at a co.nparatively early hour the same evening, say 40 miles by,
9.43 o'clock
Orden by poe punctually attended to.

LOJVDON, SATURDAY, JAN. 30, 1869.

-- -

The Chancellor of the Exchequer is coming out in
a new character, and speaks to the country, through
his provincial audience, in a more genial strain than
is hia wont, and with niOre enthusiasm than might
have been expected from so. stern a critic as the
right hon. gentleman has often proved himself to be.
This is encouraging, at any rate, and justifies the ex-
pec`ation that all is not so bad as has been pretended
in the mysterious regions of the Exchequer. Curio-
sity is awakened and ir.terest excited by the dis-
course of the hero of the Gloucester Banquet, be-
cause it is his first appearance in public in the capa-
city of a Minister. Same men of mark have not
proved successful administrators, and in passing
through the ordeal of official life have wrecked the
reputation they had previously acquired in other
spheres of distinction. So far as we can judge, such
is not likely to be the fate of Mr. LOWE, and politi-
cians of all shades of opinions may rejoice at the
prospect of having the dry details and uninteresting
catalogue of figures put before them by a master of
oratory. At first sight, a brilliant debater seems
rather lost in the Chancellorship of the Exchequer,
but both Mr. GLADSTONE and Mr. DISRAELI have
contrived to adorn the rugged road, and doubt-
less their successor will emulate their example.
In some respects the task before the right hon.
gentleman the other evening was not so easy as might
be supposed by the uninitiated. It is a wise saying
which admonishes that the moment of success is the
moment to leave off, for too many people spoil the
effect of their triumph by unduly expatiating ott the
theme. As the first public exponent of the principles
of the new Government, Mr. Lowe has not had a
very light burden entailed on him, and therefore the
satisfactory style its which he has acquitted himself
of his responsible duty is the more to be appreciate&
got that his discourse may not be subjected to criti-
cism with a fair chance of discovering weak points of
argument, and a shade too much perhaps of self-
sufficiency, but it is under the circumstances not un-
rorthy of the speaker or the occasion. The avowed
object of the entertainment at which he was the
honoured guest was to celebrate the triumph of
Liberal principles iu the county of Gloucester, and
in hs skilful bands the subject was made the most
of. It was not an unmixed satisfaction, however,
after all, because Gloucester has been the exception
and not the rule to the majority of English counties,
they having declared iu a remarkable manner for the
Conservatives. Mr. LOWE excited the interest of his
audience by informing them of the absorbing
character of the occupations of the other
members of the Government. It turn d
out that they were all too busy to attend this celebra-
tion of the achievements of their party, and had fixed
upon him as the one with most leisure on his hands.
This was strange, because, as their delegate himself
observed, he was not generally considered to " have
the easiest berth among them." Be the cause of his

solitary appearance what it may, when put on his

trial, Mr. LOWE had to unfold the future policy of
himself and his party. They would have been repre-
sented as full of good intentions had he not remem-
bered in time that people " seldom get credit for good
intentions except when they have done something very
wrong or very foolish ; and if he had not had some very
vague recollection of the destiny which awaits good
intentions in the future." Neither could he say much
about the actions of the Government, because glorious
though they no doubt would be, they yet remained
to be performed. We need not follow the right hon.
gentleman through those elaborate passages of his
discourse, in which he dwelt on the purpose that
would animate his colleagues in their adaptation of
the old " worn-out" cry of justice to Ireland to a new
and better meaning. When the scheme of the Govern-
ment is before Parliament it can be better appre-
ciated than in preliminary sketches and isolated de-
tails.

Mr. LowE declares that the preservation of peace
is the earnest desire of the new Administration,
and that the best efforts of the Cabinet have been
directed to the accomplishment of this important
purpose. Like many other remodellers of ancient
usages, however, he seems to be better versed in the
knowledge of what others should not do, than
he has intimate acquaintance with what he and his
friends should do. Perhaps if the negative policy
which Mr. Lowe lays down as the law to govern
foreign policy were extended to home affairs, the re-
sult might sometimes be more satisfactory to the
country and more creditable to the candidates for its
favour. " The only way in which peace can be pre-
served is by not thinking ourselvescritics and censors
of all the world, but leaving them to ju lge what is
best for themselve;, ansLzonly e.equiring that we
should be treated with that respect which we are
willing to extend to them." A third subject which
engages the anxious attention of the Government is
that of economy, and the public will rejoice if Mr.
LowE's emphatic declaration be verified in respect
to the desire of the Ministry, not to mar the effi-
ciency of the services. The principle on which they
are to act is that of concentration, but, as he him-
self observes, their laurels are all as yet to be won
in this field, and it is to be hoped that they may
wear them, because much be done of a remedial
character, provided they are not too ready to overlook
the means by which they reach their desired ends.
It would have been more propitious for the new
regime if the Government had waited for Mr. LOWE
to foreshadow it to the public in his comprehensive
style, instead of allowing its heralds and precursors
to be the small savings and paltry interference which
are insignificant in themselves, but not in the effect
they produce and the irritation and bitterness of feel-
ing which they engender.
The most entertaining part of Mr. Lowe's speech
was its concluding portion, when he addressed him-
self to the department exchtsively his own, and in-
troduced his friends to a new phase in the life of a
Chancellor of the Exchequer, that of being inundated
by letters, which contain not the supposed requests
for the repeal of old taxes, but suggestions .for the
imposition of new ones. Despite his desire to be
guided by public opinion, the new Chancellor of the
Exchequer confesses to the heresy of despising it in
this particular, because his beau-ideal of the happy
occupant of his post is that of a man who does nat like
to impose new taxes, but to take off old ones. Although
he has not had an extended experience, it cannot be
said that his conclusions are very erroneous ones in
this respect, or that he will fail in finding followers
to his creed. When Mr. LowE declares that in the
present highly-developed state of taxation he should
as little think •of taking credit for invent-
ing a new tax as for inventing a new torture,
we imagine
.the glorious fature before him, all
the sublime heights to which his financial genius will
soar; but be soon dispels the illusion by confessing
that his wings are very closely clipped ind.eed, and
his expressions must not lead any one from fact to.
fiction. The Abyssinian war is likely to cover a
multitude of sins in the way of shorteemings and
non-performance of promises, but the country will
'not begrudge to pay the " small bill " to which he
refers as the stumblingblock in the path of his bene-
ficient projects. Mr. LOWE concluded his eloquent
speech by an indignant protest on behalf of Mr
GLADSTONE. lie denounced the course pursued by.
the " noble person" who declared that Mr. GLAD-
STONE was unscrupulous and insidious, and a man
actuated by the meanest feelings of revenge, "as a
person who said he would destroy every country
gentleman he saw, and kept his word, which, I am
happy to say, can hardly be literally true, and who,
having been expelled the, University of Oxford,
wishes to disestablished the'ltiiih Church out of sheer
spite." Without entering into all the particulars of
this charge, Mr. LOWE suggested to the " noble per-
son" that the next time he spoke on the subject he
should inform his hearers where and to whom Mr.
GLADSTONE sail that he would destroy the country
gentlemen, or that he would avenge himself
by the disestablishment of the Church of Ire-
land? Many of these who are opposed to the
Chancellor of the Exchequer in politics, and in other
matters also, will agree with him in his opinion of
this attack, and approve of his spirited vindication of
the characters of our public men. " They are not,"
as he said, " things to be lightly sported with ; the
public has an interest in them; and if they do not
respect them for their own sake, they ought to do so
for the sake of their country." The Government
have no cause to doubt the wisdom of their choice in
selecting Mr. LOWE as their pioneer in the path of
progress, for he has shown a bold front, and sought
no adventitious aid by disguising the real difficulties
of their position, but has frankly acknowledged them
in the spirit that at once defies and disarms criticism.

RECENT revelations seem to shew that the poor
are the last thing which the guardians of the poor
guard. In this they only too faithfully represent their
constituents. The opposition bythe Holborn guardians
to the establishment of pauper infirmaries has already
been noticed as indicating the obstinacy with which
the ratepayers
:resist all attempt to relieve the horrible
sufferings of the sick poor which have been revealed
by recent investigations. A story is now going the
round of the papers which shews what manner of
men these ratepayers are. In the. Isle of Dogs,
London, there has grown up a large district called
Cubitt Town. During the inflation of all kinds of
enterprise which preceded the great collapse there
was a large demand for shipwrights on the banks of
the Thames, and Cubitt Town owed its origin to
that demand. Since Black • Friday it has almost
entirely ceased, and the population has been
reduced to the direst distress. The workman who used
to have a house to himself and family, is now
compelled to huddle in one room. The
res angusta donti is destined to become
narrower still. - Ile has to sell off one article
of furniture,. after anothg, and to feel grateful
so long as he has any left;;,. When all is gone. there
is the workhouse stone-yard and Bd. a day, 4s. a
week, out of which ls. Gd. has to go for house-ren'—
room-rent, rather. Through the circles •of this
Inferno a man named SPENCE, his wife, and their
infant have just passed. They had been connected
with the iron-shipbuilding works which had closed
in consequence of the crash at the "Corner House."
They had betaken themselves to a miserable room,
whence the furniture had departed piece by piece
until there was nothing left but a small box on a
broken chair to serve for table; two:broken trays
(not wanted.
,for food,' for 'food there was .none).