The Sun.
London, England, 1869-06-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SA TURDAY EVENING, JUNE 21, L'_69

THEATRE.-ROYAL, HOLBORN.

TIM:EVENING, at 7.30, THE SMOKED MISER. After which,
THE ',SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL : 11 r. Barry Sullivan, Mr. J.
C. CoA ner, Mr. G. Honey, Mr. C. Coghlan, Mrs. HormannVezin,
Mrs. Ct. Horsman, &c.

PRINCE OF WALES'S ROYAL THEATRE.
Under the Management of Miss Marie Wilton

SCHOOL: Messrs. Hare, 11. J. Montague,
Additron, Glover, and Bancroft: Mrs. Buckingham White, Miss
C. Ad dison, and Miss Marie Wilton. After which, A WINNING
HAZARD. And A LAME EXCUSE.

LONDON, SATURDAY, JUNE 26, 18C9.

His Highness the Pacha or Viceroy of Egypt, now
the guest of England, has this afternoon witnessed,
as the especial guest of the QUEEN at Windsor, a
Grand Review of the British Troops in the Great
Park. A magnificent day, the presence of Her MA-
JESTY, and of the Heir Apparent, and of H.R.H.'s
Princess, together with the assembling there of a
vast number of civilians as spectators—combine to
render this an exceptional gala occasion during the
stay of his Highness in this country. Housed
in Buckingham Palace during his sojourn in
London, the Egyptian Viceroy cannot but
find himself somewhat more befittingly re-
ceived by the Court and by the Country
than he was at the period of his first visit to England)
when, by an accidental coincidence, he arrived simul-
taneously with his liege Suzerains, the Sultan Caliph,
ABDUL-AZIZ. Apart altogether from our remem-
brance of the noble hospitality with which the Prince
and Princess of WALES were entertained during the
time of their recent visit to Cairo, it is impossible
that we should not have, nationally speaking, a
remorseful sense that England has had in
some sort expiation to make to his Highness
the PACHA in her recollection of the paltry
manner in which he was welcomed (if his former
receptions here in the metropolis could really be
dignified with the title of a reception at all) when he
last entered the capital of the wealthiest and vastest
empire in the world. Only for the generous and
munificent, and we will even say princely, interposi-
tion of the Earl of DUDLEY, the nation would have
had the poignant consciousness ever since of having
allowed the Pacha of EGYPT to be housed at that
period in a public hotel, with the additional mean-
ness, and almost impertinence, on Vie part of
England, of afterwards paying her honoured (?)
guest's hotel bill. Happily, that disgrace-
ful recollection was spared to us by the op-
portune proffering, to the Pacha of EGYPT, of Dud-
ley House, in Park-lane, as his Highness's London
residence for the time being, by its noble owner.
Coming, as he does now, while the SULTAN is not
here, and while the QUEEN is, according to her wont
of late years, absent from her own metropolis, the
Viceroy finds himself at last treated en Prince by
the nation, and not by an indivilual, now that he
has placed at his disposal the Palace of the
Reigning SOVEREIGN. Throughout the whole of
the rest of his stay in England, it is earnestly to be
hoped that his Highness will be treated as alone
befits his own dignity and the reputation of England
for National hospitality. The QUEEN and Court,
the Government and the People, ought to vie with
each other in according to him the honour to which
he is in many ways so justly and so conspicuously
entitled.

THE new amendments of the Irish Church Bill
placed upon the Lords' papers ought to be carefully
studied by all persons who take any interest in the
great question now before the country. No greater
mistake could be made than to suppose that the
subject was settled, or approached anything
Hite a settlement, this day week. The only
point which was then determined was that the
Church was to be disestablished. All the rest will

have to be fought out, and with a far more doubtful
result than that which attended the battle in the
Lower House. There is not a point decisively settled
there by large majorities which will not be raised
again in the House where the Ministry has a
minority. Running down the list of amendments,
the substance of which we give in another column,
we find two important classes : those which affect
the disenclowment of the Church, and those which
affect the redistribution of the surplus funds. There
are others of minor importance to which the
Government will probably give way. Such, we take
it, is the postponement of the operation of the bill
for another year, so as to give time for the constitu-
tion of that new representative body which will
henceforth be charged with the government of the
Church. But concession will be far more difficult
when the Government comes to the amendments of
vital importance.

Taking the first class we have mentioned, we find
that if ➢linisters assent to these amendments they
will have to give to the Church the whole of the
private endowments between 16(30 and 1660, as well
as those subsequent to the latter date; that the par-
sonages will be handed overn, without charge ;
that in calculating the value of incum-
bents' incomes no deduction will be made
for the stipend paid to a curate; that in the event
of a living being worth less than £2OO a year the
incumbent will, nevertheless, receive that full
amount ; that curates, however short a time they
have served, are to get not less than £3OO in the way
of compensation, and £lOO a year up to 16; that any
land granted 2. s glebes by royal grant or letters patent
will be retained by the Church. In other words, as

Mr. GLADSTONE said, the " poor afflicted Irish Church"
is, after having endured the sufferings of JOB, to
receive JOB'S reward. Having been stripped by the
Chaldmns of Westminster, and left nakedand empty,
it is to be re-clothed and re-endowed far more richly
than before. How can the Government accept such
proposals ?
If these are inadmissible, what shall be said of the
amendments which refer to the disposal of the sur-
plus funds ? Of course, if the first are carried, we
need not trouble ourselves about the second, for
there will be no surplus funds to dispose of. But
assuming that the proposals of the three archbishops
and Lord SALISBURY are not pressed to a division,
or are defeated, what will Ministers say to the pro-
positions made by Earl GREY, Earl ItussELL, the
Duke of CLEVELAND, and Lord LIFFORD ? The
three first of them are influential Liberal peers, and
their action is therefore the more serious, represent-
ing as it does a serious defection from the ranks of
the Liberal party. Yet though backed by their
authority, and probably supported by not a few other
members of the party, we do not see how Lord
GRANVLLLE can agree at this late hour of the day to
adopt the policy of levelling up. That policy was
expressly denounced by the Liberal party on the
hustings last autumn ; the suspicion that. the Con-
servatives meant to adopt it did them irre-
trievable damage, and it was necessary to shelve
the Minister who first enounced it, by sending
him to India. To adopt it now would be
a breach of faith, unless, indeed, the
nation were itself to declare for it. But
he who supposes that there is the smallest chance of
such a change of feeling as that must know abso-
lutely nothing of the popular sentiment, nay, rather
the popular conscience, for it is much more than a
sentiment, We do not deny that there are some

advantages to be obtained from a concurrent endow-
ment. Among them would be the bringing of the
Roman Catholic priesthood more under the control
of the State. But for that very reason the priesthood
will not hear of such endowment. Even, therefore,
if the nation were as warmly in favour of it as it is
bitterly opposed to it, what good purpose can be
served by offering a gift which will be flung back in
the face of the giver ? Above all, there stands
the undeniable fact that the country, whether rightly
or wrongly, is opposed to any further experiments in
the way of a connection between the State and the
Church. For many years past the current has been
setting in steadily against the State endowment of
religion. It was never stronger than it is now. That the
Lords should think they are able to stem it shews
only how far off they still are from being in accord
with the nation.

As a nation we have long been famous for waiting
to experience the worst possible effects of a bad
system before attempting to reform it. Changes in
our naval and military organisation have often been
preceded by some great disaster. We have seen the
refusal to moderately extend the franchise result in
a very large extension, and the tradition
runs that the mismanagement and neglect which
lead to fatal accidents can never receive attention
until they have proved fatal to a bishop. In the
same way there is now too much reason to fear that
the OVEREND, GURNEY, and Co. prosecution will do
nothing more than conclusively prove what has been
proved again and again—that our criminal juris-
prudence is altogether out of joint through the lack
of a Public Prosecutor. It will be remembered that
the inquiry into the conduct of the directors who
invited the public to buy the insolvent discount
business was undertaken by a private individual, Dr.
TIIO3I. This gentleman had been a shareholder in
the company whose only business has been to pay
the debts of a priVate firm, and he was, therefore, a
considerable loser. He naturally felt desirous that such
a flagrant scandal should be exposed, but as he could
entertain no hope of recovering his losses, and as
very many families throughout England had suffered
from the same cause, the duty he undertook
was justly considered in great measure a public
duty. Much applause greeted his determination to
bring the directors before the LORD MAYOR. Seldom
has a case excited greater interest. The memorable
story of the two deeds, the endless tergiversations by
which the directors strove to conceal their real
position from the public, the remarkable
narrative by which Mr. WATRIN EDWARDS
secured a lasting fame at a rather high
price, are treasures of commercial history which
would have remained in secret but for Dr. THoM.
The decision of the magistrates to submit the case to
a superior court gave general satisfaction; for,
whether the directors be punishable or not, it
was clear that their transactions were such as to
demand judicial investigation.

It was hoped that this case would serve to shew
that there was a limit to the success of nefarious
transactions even in commercial life, but the hope
seems to have been premature. English justice is not,
it seems, to be brought to this course of plain sailing.
The OVEREND, GURNEY, and Co. case has come to
a deadlock. Dr. Thom, after spending a consider-
able sum of money without the remotest hopes of
benefit, except to the general public, hesitates before
committing himself to further cost. The examina-
tion before the magistrates involved outlay ;
the actual trial will be a much more serious affair.
Dr. THOM is not unwilling to do the nation's duty,
but he thinks that he might, at least, be allowed
to save the fees of counsel by pleading in
person. This the LORD CHIEF JUSTICE cannot
permit. Dr. THOM has applied to the Home Office
for assistance in the shape of counsel, but has been
refused, for reasons which Mr. BRUCE might gratify
a benighted country by explaining. The LORD
MAYOR has bound Dr. Tuom to continue
the prosecution in recoguizances of £5,000;
and there is a probability either that the
prosecutor mr.st continue a trial, the cost of
which he cannot and ought not to bear,
or forfeit the surety demanded by the City
magistrate. There can be no hesitation
in stigmatising this affair as a national disgrace.
It has been raid by some that Dr. ' TIIO3I
ought not to have opened the case unless
lie felt himself in a position to complete it; but the
slightest consideration will suffice to expose the
injustice of such a plea. Even if the trial become
the discreditable farce with which we are threatened
at present, the examination already gone
through will not have been in vain,
though far short of meeting the ends of justice.
Moreover, Dr. THOM might have justly concluded
that if he commenced the case the Government might
justly complete the work which ought never to have
been left to a private individual. If after all it
did prove finally impossible to persuade the
Executive or Judicature to take any notice of fraud
under the guise of commerce, the voluntary assist-
ance of the public might have been fairly ex-
pected.

A public subscription will be decidedly preferable
to the collapse which seems imminent just now,
but there ought to be no necessity for any
such course. It is within the power of the
Home Office to comply with Dr. THoM'S request;
and the refusal he has already met with, to
whatever motive it may be owing, cannot be
founded on want of authority. Indeed, similar cases
have already arisen, and the money for the prosecu-
tion has been supplied from the Treasury. The
Government spent £38,000 in prosecuting the
directors of the Royal British Bank ; and
surely the case of OVEREND, GURNEY, and
Co. (Limited) warrants even an economical
Ministry to undertake an outlay which would cer-
tainly be much smaller, There can be no excuse for
allowing such a prosecution to fall through. But
whether the fiasco at present looming in the distance
be realised or not, the duty of the Legislature to pro-
vide a public prosecutor and avoid the chance of such
scandals in future will not be the less clear. There
is abundant scope for a just medium between the
stringent public system of France and the absolute
encouragement held out to guilt in England.

The Viceroy of Egypt has felt himself obliged by
his numerous engagements to decline the invitation to visit
Manchdster.

A French provincial paper states that the Emperor
has announced to M. de Lesseps his intention to create him
Duke of Suez.

The improved weather of the last day or two has
materially brightened the prospects of agriculturists, espe-
cially in the Eastern counties. _ _

It was so dark in Manchester on Thursday that for
several hours gas-light was necessary to any one who
wished either to read or write. There was no thunderstorm,
no rain, and no fog.

On Wednesday afternoon a boiler explosion oc-
curred at the extensive ironworks of the Monkland Iron and
Steel Company, situated at Calderbank, about two miles
from Airdrie, whereby two men were killed and thre9
severely injured.

It is the intention of her Majesty, it is
stated, to confer the honour of knighthood on Mr. Meek,
who was mayor of York during the visit of the Prince and
Princess of Wales to York in 1866 ; and on Mr. Heron, the
town clerk of Manchester, for his services to the munici-
pality of that city for many years. .

The Bishop of Winchester is proceeding with his
case against the Rev. R. Hooker Wix, M.A., vicar of St.
Michael's, Swanmore, Isle of Wight, which will very shortly
come before the Court of Arches. Mr. Wig still persists in
continuing the objectionable practice against which the
bishop's monition was directed. _

•
Dr. Stanley, Dean of Westminster, has subzeribed
to a fund which is being raised to defend Mr. Voysey. The
Dean, in a letter be has written states that, while
strongly deprecating Mr. Voysey's mode of treating
Biblical and sacred suljects, he could not but be aware
that it is an exaggeration caused by equally reprehensible
exaggerations of another kind, and while at the same time
he condemEs and regrets ranch that Mr. Voysey's sermons
contains, he recognises in them no less a rare honesty of
purpose, as well as a humble and devout faith, which seems
to him to demand the utmost sympathy for the frame of
mind which bas led to '_results in other respects to be
lannatecl, . . .

OBTAINING REDRESS.

The following appears in the Herald;—" There are dif-
ferent modes of obtaining redress for injuries wrought by the
hands ofliON9 spaper editors. The Hon. F. Cadogan is trying
one—and the most recognised—an application to a jury
for damages. Lord Carington has, we understand, adopted
a readier and a moro decided remedy, the argunzentum
baculinwn. It appears that the noble lord was aggrieved by
some comments which appeared in a weekly paper, reflect-
ing not only upon himself, but on his father, and resolved
to have recourse to that last mode of procuring satis-
faction which the law takes cognisance of as assault and
battery. Wo have not a word to say in defence of the
provocation. Tho wonder is that it has been left to Lord
Carington to take it up. But we aro curious to see the
issue. According to some authorities we aro to have the
ordinary summons, from Marlborough-street, the usual de-
fence, and a fine. According to others, nothing less than
a meeting on Calais sands will settle the affair. There aro
folks so much behind their time and so weak-minded as
to think that the only way of giving a check to the forcible
language and tho physical. clemonstraticns in vogue now-
a- days is au invitation across the water, and a measure-
ment of twelve paces. At any rate it «•ill be interesting
to watch the denouement. At present the pccr Las the best
of it."