The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-07 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

The Star thinks that the advocates of cheap postage
must now be satisfied, since after sixty-four members have
been found to stand against a combination of parties in
defence of a halfpenny postage for books, packets, and
newspapers. the topic cannot be trifled with. Mr.
Mundell& tells us that it actually pays to send batches of
circulars intended for English destinations abroad to be
posted. He tells us of 400 circulars being despatched
abroad to addresses in this country for 3s. 3d., which, if
put into the post at St. Martin's-le-Grand, or anywhere
in England, would have cost .£5. Such anomalies as these
cannot possibly be defended. To name them is to mark
them for removal. All testimony chews that, having
once got the idea of the penny postage from us,
foreign countries have developed it to an extent and with
a nicetS, which we have never achieved ; and that cheap-
ness—the leading idea of our penny post system—has also
been the leading idea of the foreign improvements upon it.
A newspaper goes from Palermo to Aberdeen for a less
fee than would frank it from Fleet-street to Hornsey.
This proves, not that the Italian Government have adopted
a whimsically low scale of charge, not merely that the
British Governmenthave given a foreign Power by treaty
advantages which they do not reciprocate, but that our
Post Office, with all its efficiency, has not grasped the I
real extent of the service which it may render to the I
public. The question of bulk is undoubtedly a serious one, but it is too late to permit it to stand between us
and a copious extension of the parcel service of the Post
Office.

The Post considers the condition of Ireland, and affirms
that we must not blame the Irish constabulary, who have
repeatedly proved themselves to be an active and intelli.
gent body, for failures which are in point of fact inherent
in the circumstances under which they are placed. The
suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act was directed ex.
elusively at the Fenian agitators, and with the extinction
of Fenianism—properly so called—it was finally imagined
that no further necessity would arise of resorting
to so harsh and unusual a measure.. But the
fact is that these recent agrarian outrages, as they are
called, are virtually only a different symptom of the same
inveterate disease, that they owe their impunity to
the same causes, and that they require the same treat.
ment. Severity has been tried in Ireland, and severity
has failed ; liberality—reckless liberality—has been tried,
and that, too, has failed. Why not combine the two ? Give,
and give liberally, those concessions which they can fairly
claim to the just demands of the Irish people ; but while
you concede so much with one hand, let the other restrain
with prompt severity the excesses of a set of ruffians whose
hearts, if they have any, your legislation can never reach.
The time is ripe for a strong and decided policy. Mr.
Gladstone, a Liberal Premier, at the head of the largest
majority which has been seen in the present century, need
not fear the assaults of any political detractor; and the
author of a measure so broad, so wise, and so truly Liberal
as his Church Bill, cannot he accused of a disposition to
resort unadvisedly to tyrannical measures. Sweep away
the " alien " Church, restore religious equality—go further
if you like, and modify the laws which adjust the relations
between landlord and tenant—but be as s' r ing as you are
wise, and fortify the hands of the officers of justice by
another temporary suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act,
till yon can afford to the loyal inhabitant of Ireland some
security from acts of personal violence which are a stain
and a disgrace to our boasted civilisation.

A VERY CURIOUS PEOPLE.—The Ameer of
Affghanistan is described, by one who had the best oppor-
tunity of judging, as a clever well-informed man, with
considerable knowledge of European politics. But his first
experience of Anglo-Indian drawing-rooms is said to have
greatly surprised him. " The English," he remarked,
" are a curious people ; they can fight, work, and bear
hardships as well as any of us ; but when they are in
quarters just look in what good order and how clean they
have everything." He then contrasted this cleanliness
wit:. the needless dirt he had left behind him at Cahul.

The Times remarks that an objection urged by Lord
Salisbury against a provision of the Habitual Criminals
Bill shews a misconception of the real principle of the
measure. The bill empowers magistrates to prohibit for
It year the grant of licenses to beerhouses by whomsoever
at the time kept, in the event of two previous convictions
having been obtained against former keepers. Lord
Salisbury argued that this was to make a landlord respon•
sible for the character of his tenant, and asked why the
same principle should not be applied to all other kinds of
property. It is certainly true that the provision makes a
person innocent of the particular offence charged liable.
in some respects, for it. But it is undeniable that a
landlord has it far more than anyone else within his power
to secure his property against being made a stronghold for
marauders against the peaceably disposed. Under the
circumstances contemplated by the bill of open war
having been long waged against society from these localities,
a proprietor can hardly complain if society, in the exercise
-of its duty to protect property generally, brings pressure
to bear upon him to co-operate with it more energetically
and directly than would ordinarily be his duty. When
Lord Salisbury can discover other kinds of pro
perty equally of a nature with the premises in
question to be made instrumental to crime, and also
equally capable of being marked as having been so
applied already, it will be time to consider whether their
owners should not have the like obligation laid upon
them.

The Standard complains of the manner in which Irish
Churchmen are dealt with, and declares that if anything
could be more shameful than the iniquity of this contrasted
indulgence to Popery and harsh dealing with Protes-
tantism, it would be the way in which Mr. Gladstone has
Suet the exposure of his injustice. " Very well," he says,
enforce my pledge, if you will ; recall the Maynooth Grant,
in toto, if you like ; but I will revenge myself by robbing
Trinity College of every sixpence it possesses." Such is
the menace he holds out to us through his respectable and
influential organs in the press. As if there were
the least relation between a parliamentary grant and
corporate estates enjoyed for centuries by a private society !
As if the exaction of the fulfilment of a promise connected
by Mr. Gladstone himself with the disestablishment of the
Church could afford a plea for the vindictive spoliation of
- a college whose only offence is its connection with the
Church and the support of Mr. Gladstone's opponents !
What must be the feelings of the Irish Protestants under
such aggravated wrong and insult and injustice as this?
What can they think of the Parliament which can tole-
rate such proposals ; or how must they regard the rival
Church which is to be " conciliated" by such lavish indul-
gence, while theyare treated with such unmerited insolence
and unfairness ? And what will be the state of Ireland
when the consummation- of wrongs like these shall have
effectually alienated from the English Government its
moat reliable supporters, and inflamed the hearts of the
plundered Protestants with that resentment towards their
Boman Catholic countrymen which men of spirit and
sensibility cannot but feel towards those who have been
elevated by their degredation and enriched by their spoils;
!who triumph in their wrongs and insult their helplessness;
who have brought about this robbery and assisted in it in
deliberate violation of solemn engagements, of reiterated
pledges, of every obligation that could bind the consciences
of Christians or the honour of gentlemen ?
The Times, in discussing Mr. Graves's speech in favour
of cheap postage, thinks it unreasonable that because a
penny was the charge fixed for an ordinary letter in days
when the post was hardly used at all for the conveyance
of printed matter except a few newspapers, therefore the
smallest coin for which the Government will carry any
communication, written or printed, is still a penny.
The; consequence is that England instead of being in
the van of postage progress has fallen into the rear.
Foredgn countries give special facilities for the circulation
of printed matter, whether in the shape of newspapers,
literary magazines, or circulars of every kind. The post-
age of a circular in France costs one centime, in Italy two
centimes, in Spain less than a farthing. The postage on
mewspapers is equally low. 'ln France one-fifth of a
penny carries a letter even into Algeria. In Tuscany,
the Netherlands, Brazil, Portugal, the charge is only one.
fourth of a penny, while in Switzerland it is one-third of
a penny. Many other instances equally remarkable could
be produced. There are few English travellers in the
United States who have failed to observe not only the
number of newspapers, but also their wide diffusion. In
a moderately-sized town of one State you will find at any
public room papers from every other State, many of them
published at places of no great importance. The cause of
this is the special facility which the Government gives for
the transmission of printed matter. Newspapers are
taken at the lowest possible rates, and within certain dis-
tances a number of them are carried gratis. Small publi-
cations, such as magazines and serials, have similar
advantages. If this can be done over an immense territory
where, notwithstanding the enterprise of the people, the
means of communication are still in a rude state, how
much better can it be done in these small and and thickly-
populated islands, where there is hardly a village which
cannot be reached in two or three hours from a neighbouring
railway station ! There is ample evidence to spew that
the high postage acts as a powerful hindrance to the
spread of intelligence. Even if a certain loss were incurred
by the giving of new facilities, it would be a wise policy to
submit to it, for, though no one will despise the surplus
.derived from the Post Office, still a gain on this depart.
ment ought to be a consideration second to that of efficient
service. If every newspaper were carried for a halfpenny,
it is impossible to over-estimate the advantage to all
parts of the kingdom, and especially to the rural districts.
The immediate consideration of the Government has been
promised, and the arguments in favour of further reform
are so convincing_ that there can be no doubt of the
result.

Prince Arthur's visit to Ireland is another attempt to
make amends for the Royal neglect of which so much
complaint has been made. Last year the Prince and the
Princess of Wales visited the Irish capital. The welcome,
given to them was most enthusiastic. That given to the
younger son of the Queen was not so fervent. Cordial it
was beyond doubt, but not so markedly so as to give
universal pleasure. The Conservative journals, indeed,
profess to find it cold, and draw, therefore, the inference
that the policy of the present Adminiidration is not looked
upon with favour by the masses. The Times attributes
this Coldness in a great measure to the absence of military
display.
The Government steam-tender Vivid, with the Prince
on board, entered Kingstown harbour at seven o'clock, on
Monday morning, having left Holyhead at three a.m. A
royal salute was fired from the Royal George guard-
ship, the yards were manned, and cheers such as sailors
only can give, gave the first genuine greeting to the
royal visitor. The morning was fine, and the Prince
had an opportunity of leisurely surveying the pic-
turesque scene presented by the harbour, with
its vessels gaily trimmed, and the town, which
soon began to look bright and animated as
flags and ensigns floated over the principal buildings, and
the inhabitants hastened down to the shore to witness
.the
landing. This was arranged to be made at the Carlisle
Pier, which has recently been undergoing some repairs,
and was reopened on this occasion of the Prince's visit.
simple. A covering of waslaid
l andac e
The preparations for
ctrhiemson
disembarkation
cloth wereat thef ewp
where his Royal Highness was to land, a guard of honour
of the Grenadier Guards, with their band and colours,
was drawn up along the pier, and the C battery of
artillery, under the command of Captain Whynyates,
took up a position on the east pier. At a quarter before
twelve o'clock his Excellency the Lord-Lieutenant arrived
from Dublin by special train. The Vivid had meanwhile
left its moorings and come alongside the pier. The Prince
displayed on his breast the decoration of the Order of St.
Patrick. The Lord-Lieutenant on his arrival proceeded on
I board the yacht to bid a cordial greeting to his guest. His
Excellency was accompanied by Lord Charles Bruce, the
Earl of Howth, Lord Otho Fitigerald, M.P., Sir Bernard
Burke, Ulster King at Arms ; Major. General Cunyng-
hame, Colonel Wetherall, Under-Secretary; Colonell,:'ield-
ing, Colonel Lke, Mr. Courtenay Boyle, Assistant Private
Secretary; Col. Forster, Master of the Horse, &c. A number
of the directors of the Dublin and Kingstown Railway, and
and other officials were present, together with a deputa-
tion from the Town Commissioners of Kingstown,
who came to present a congratulatory address. This
address was framed on the stereotyped model, ex-
pressed loyalty to her Majesty, and hoped (to express its
effect simply) that his Royal Highness would enjoy the
visit. Prince Arthur merely expressed his acknowledg-
ments. At twelve o'clock his Royal Highness landed,
with his Excellency Lord Spencer and the members of the
household, and, amid the cheers of the spectators, took
his seat in the special train which was in wait-
ing alongside. A signal was given, and the battery
sent forth a peal of homage, which was responded
to by the guns of the Royal George, whose yards were
etarNtvedestwiaithhdo.urotwdetlaeyrni, aninuds.inHtewreelvtehme inzotreds
also manned, and the band played the National Anthem.
Civic officers, were in waiting, together with a number of
spectators who were admitted by special favour to the
platform. Of course there was the address from the
Dublin Corporation to be received, and a reply to b 3 made.
Both were short. The address, besides bid, in; him wel-
come, and hoping that he would be pleased with
his visit, said: "The Irish people always look with
the greatest satisfaction on any event that brings
them into close personal relations with the sovereign or
any member of her family, and we are confident that such
friendly intercourses must greatly conduce to strengthen
those feelings of loyality and esteem which are the truest
supports of the Throne. Your august mother, our Queen,
in her life and actions, has placed behre her children, as
well as her subjects, a noble example as the centre of a
family circle and ruler of a great emp:re." Prince Arthur,
in reply, thanked the deputation for their expressions of
loyalty to her Majesty and esteem for himself. Of their
loyalty he was well assured, and would commit their good
wishes to the Queen his mother. From her he had learnt
to take the deepest interest in all that concerned Ireland.
On descending into Westland-row his Royal Highness
was welcomed with respectful demonstrations by the mul-
titudes in the street, who manifested great anxiety to see
their illustrious visitor. The troops, which were here
drawn up, presented arms, and their band played the
National Anthem. Along the route, which was embel-
lished with flags at various points, his Royal Highness was
warmly greeted, and cordially acknowledged the saluta-
tions he received. Shortly after one o'clock the Royal
party arrived at the Viceregal Lodge, where his Royal
Highness received a hospitable welcome from the Countess
Spencer.

On Tuesday be went to the Punchestown Races. The
attendance, we are infcrmed, was nearly as large as on
the visit of the Prince of Wales to the course. The day
was dull, but not wet. Prince Arthur and Earl Spencer,
with a large suite, left the Viceregal Lodge for Lunches. town at twelve o'clock. The Prince remained on the I
course until six o'clock, and rode around it durin.- the day I
in company with Earl Spencer.