The Sun.
London, England, 1869-08-04 00:00:00

The Standard remarks that the Rev. Sydney Turner
comes before us with his twelfth annual report as the
inspector of certified reformatories and industrial schools.
He shews that in the case of reformitory schools seven out of
every ten of those who pass through them do well, and
only two out of the ten relapse, while the remaining one
may be idle and unsteady, but is not actually criminal.
In the Northamptonshire school the proportion of good
results is as high as 96 per cent. ; that is to say, nearly
all the boys are rescued from a life of crime. Comparing
! the present occupants of our reformatories with those of
1858, it appears there is a great decrease in the number of
previous convictions. Hence the managers of these insti-
tutions have a much less hardened and depraved class to
deal with than formerly, and Mr. Turner argues that a
higher standard of success ought to shew itself. On the
other hand, it is a matter for regret that in as many as 78
cases during the past year the young offender had been
allowed to go on in his course of crime until he had been
convicted three times or more. Two of these youngsters
had actually been imprisoned ten times. It was rather
late to think of the reformatory, and hardly fair to test
its curative power at so advanced a stage of the disease.
Mischief may also be expected to result from associating
these Artful Dodgers with lads of comparative inno-
cence. The first Industrial School Act was
passed in 1E57, and the entire number of children
committed to such schcols since that date is
9,231. Of this total about two-thirds have been satis-
factorily disposed of, by being placed in employment,
sent to sea, or enabled to emigrate or enlist. The number
of inmates under detention at the close of last year was
5,738, being an incrcr se of 2,562 as compared with 1867.
Of the 2,488 admitted during the year, 99 were illegiti-
mate, ::22 1 ad lost Loth pr.rents, 1,000 lost either
father or mother, 287 Lad been v.holly deserted, and 95
had one or loth parents destitute or criminal. Only one-
third of the whole number had both parents living, and
able to take care of them. What a mass of
youthful
misery have we in these figures, and how clearly do they
indicate the connection between a neglected juvenile
population and the growth of crime !
The Post thinks that Mr. Fawcett exercised a sounc
discretion in withdrawing on Tuesday night his motion on
the subject of Trinity College, Dublin, after having
elicited the views of the Irish Secretary on the part of the
Government, and of Dr. Ball ou behalf of the University.
The time was certainly not opportune for pressing such a
motion to a division, and the member for Brighton may
rest satisfied with the assurance of Dr. Ball that he has
succeeded in disarming that animosity on the part of the
University which his prop( sale last year excited. To be
a truly National University, as Trinity College ought to
be, it is cei tahly indispensable that the proposed change
should be made. The Presbyterians of the North and the
Roman Catholics of the South have in this matter the
same cause for complaint. The Protestantism of Trinity
College has hitherto been pure Anglicanism. With the
disappearance of Anglicanism, as such, throughout the
country, that of the nniversity must equally vanish. The
only point really in issue is the period when the change
should not only be made in theory, but come into practical
operation. At present the Anglicans, as we may term
them, are in exclusive possession of everything. Some
time must necessarily elapse before vacancies will occur to
admit of the introduction of the Nonconformist element.
It has 1 een suggested, therefore, that forthwith two
fellowships should be created and conferred—the one on a
Presbyterian, the other on a Roman Catholic. This,
however, and other matters of detail are of but little
importance. The fact—on the significance of which it is
needless to dwell—to whicb we now direct attention is,
that the Fellows of Trinity College have virtually antici-
pated the blow which awaited them, and have declared
their readiness to admit Nonconformists to a share in the
government of that university.
The Daily News observes that it is not uncommon for
Ministers of State to dismiss a deputation with a few
vague and polite phrases. This is not Mr. Lowe's plan.
He never seems to be mere thoroughly at borne than when
receiving a deputation at the Treasury, and giving its
members a piece of his mind. Thus it fared with a depu-
tation which waited on him last Monday, with a request
for aid in maintaining Epping Forest for the use of the
people, by preserving it ' against encroachment from
the Lord of the Manor. The deputation invoked
Mr. Lowe's assistance, urging that he might so
employ the rights of the Crown as to support
the copyholders against the Lord of the Manor's
alleged aggressions. To this Mr. Lowe replied
that in his opinion the forestal rights of the Crown were
relics of feudalism, that in any case he should hesitate to
assert and enforce them, and that in this particular case
they could not legitimately be applied in the way desired.
Yet it is long since the Crown acted on the letter of its
rights ; and a Minister of the Crown now tells a deputa-
tion that those rights are " obsolete and feudal, " very
harsh and tyrannical." For giving expression to those
sentiments the thanks of every Liberal are due to Mr.
Lowe. On the other hand, the deputation failed to per-
ceive the consistency of letting the Lord of the Manor
serve his own ends through the medium of the
same law which Mr. Lowe had stigmatised in
strong language. This state of things is clearly
intolerable. A remedy for the mischief must be
found ;- and that must be sought, not at the hands of a
Minister, but from the Legislature. Meantime, Mr.
Lowe might strain a point for the public benefit. Till
legislation shall have redressed a wrong perpetrated in the
name of right, the powers of the Crown would be fitly ex-
ercised when employed provisionally to hinder Epping
Forest from being ultimately filched from the dwellers a'
the East-end of London.

The Herald comments upon the report of the Election
Committee, and especially on the recommendations of
the Conservative members. Mr. Hunt's proposal sug-
gested some expedients by which a modified system o'
ballot might be established, having in view the object
just set forth. The purpose of this, of course, would
be to obviate the frantic struggle for votes at the close
of a closely-contested election, a struggle which Fs
more productive of bribery than any other cause.
Another recommendation by Mr. Hardy, to the effect that
there is no proper machinery in existence at present for
enabling persons who suffer from the depredations of an
election mob to obtain compensation, and that the law
ought to be amended in this respect, is even less
likely to enlist the sympathies of Democratic par-
tisans than Mr. Hunt's resolution. From the efforts
of the Conservative party alone cant we hope for
any real amelioration of existing electoral evils.
All parties alike will agree, so far as words go, in desiring
a system of things under which every voter in the king-
dom should be free to recoil his vote without being
influenced by fear of any kind, without being any more
restrained from giving effect to his opinions by hisses in
the crowd than by frowns from his landlord or employer.
But the radicals know full well that they would lose
thousands of voters on every side under such a system.

The Prince of Wales has ',resented to the Exete:
Museum a mummy and coffin discovered during the progress
of sr me excavations recently made in Egypt, by command
of his Royal Highness, with the sanction of the Viceroy
of E3ypt. Mr. S. Birch, of the British Museum, pro-
nounces tho mummy to be the body of Amenhotpal, a man
prepared by the wax process. The coffin is covered with
hieroglyphical inscriptions, an explanation of which has
been supplied by Mr. Birch.

THE PORTADOWN MOM-I'llo inquest on the
body of the man shot by the police at the Portadown
riots was resumed on Tuesday. Several witnesses were
examined, and amongst them was Mr. Eaton, the resident
magistrate. After the hearing of the evidence, the inquiry
was again adjourned to Monday next, in coitiegronee of
Sub-Inspector Noonan, who commanded the conitabulary
on the night of the occurrence, having refusidt,o produce
an essential document tug_lie:llo...aoixim4liiil4 y 44,
tholnnector!Generil.