The Sun.
London, England, 1869-08-24 00:00:00

CONGRESS AT ZURICIL

At the commencement of this month, the Oh inter-
national Congress of Societies for the Pre-vention of
Cruelty to Animals held its sitting. The chief subject
discussed was the transport of cattle by rail. Several
improvements in the mode of conveyance, and in the
treatment of cattle were suggested, and plans were pro-
posed to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. It was
also resolved to petition the various governments to enact
laws for the protection of useful birds.

BRITISH FEELINGS TOWARDS TILE
COLONIES.

(From the Anglo-American Times.)

The British are better qualified to found Colonies
than to retain them ; to conquer countries than to
hold them. A residence for generations in an island
where communication was difficult begat an insu-
lar pride and prejudice, and the British strucure
of society is such as to aid the influences hostile t 6
amalgamating distant- provinces into an Empire.
There is a selfishness, an indifference, a strong
tinge of contempt with which England regards her
colonies, sooner or later sure to end in the sort of
estrangement, which now hasprodnced its fruit in the
Australias. There is not, nor never has there been
any attempt on the part of England to regard the
Colonies as an integral and really equal part of
the national domain, seen, as the national feeling
is generally best seen, in the tone of society. No
English lady likes to acknowledge that she ever re-
sided in Tasmania. To call an English woman.
living in Australia an Australian, is to offend her.
" Who is Mr. So and So ?" oh, he is a Colonist ;"
a charge, by the way, frequently brought against
Mr. Lowe, the present Chancellor of the _Exche-
quer. The comic papers used it readily as a
weapon ; it was the sharpest retort in the mouth of
him who smarted under that gentleman's sarcasm. A
British officer feels little grateful to the Ijorse
Guards if posted to a Colonial corps. A Nova
Scotian baronetcy is an honour not highly prize I,
and any family who settles in the colonies is con-
sidered as broken-down, burying their conspicuous
failure in an uncouth land. It is sufficient to settle
Vie book of the author, the picture.of the artist,
'or the dusLtn of the architect to stamp upon it
" Colonial," and it seems apropos of the p sition
when we read advertisements in the metropolitan
papers, " Clothes purchased for the Colonie?."(!)
Sonetime ago we zketched the career of, perhaps, one
of the most gallantate] successful of the Civil servants
of India during the mu itty, who earned for himself
the highest mend of praise awardel to any officer dur-
ing that tryingpetiod. In the compreheusivedespatch
detailing the suppression of the revolt, the Viceroy,
the late Lord CANNING, placed JOHN CRACI:OFT
WILSON'S name first on the list of those he desired
to bring prominently to the notice of the Govern-
ment,* "„because he has the enviable distinction of
having by his own obstinate courage and perse-
verance saved more Christian lives than any man
in India. Ile did this at the repeatedly imminent
peril of his own life.- He has since left the service
of the Indian Government, and is retired to New
Zealand, whither I respectfully hope that the favour
of the CROWN may follow him." Vain hope ! Judge .•
WILSON had buried himself in a colony, and his
fate, so faras reaping the honours conferred on others
for less distinguished services, was thereby sealed.
Many men, scarcely heard of in India, have since
been decorated with every ceremonial, receiving
such dignity as the Star of India can confer ; but if
Mr. WILSON did not know, he ought to have known,
the English custom, for it is the British traditionary
policy which alienated the Thirteen Colonies and
split the Empire; and which is now alienating the
Auitralias. The proceedings ofPrinceALFRED in the
Galatea seem to be a fertile source of discontent.
His gifts charged to the nation, the return presents to
him kept by himself, while a powerful ship of war
is converted into his yacht, in waters red with the
blood of colonists fighting for their existence. There
she lies fitted for war, but the theatre only of
gaiety on the very. spot where a colony maintains a
desperate struggle, while bitterly complaining that
she is left by the mother country to maintain it
alone. The young prince is blamed for not even
surrendering a. sufficient amount of time from his
amusements to humour a gathering of the Maori
chiefs, who, in their usual style of " corrobory,"
wore out his patience with long-winded speeches,
songs, and solemn, wearying proceedings. But the
object was important to conciliate these indepen-
dent savages, especially at such a junctUre, and the
colonial press censure hi.tißoyal Highness for cut-
ting short the entertainment and doing so little to
disguise how much he was bored. The contrast is
certainly striking between a Prince on board a
powerful war ship making holiday times iu the port
of a colony where massacres were constantly occur-
ring in the vicinity, while the Imperial Government
denied to the defenceof the young settlement any por-
tion of theexpense or of theforceit furnished for that
young gentleman's entertainment and education.
Such a ship as the Galatea would almost of herself
have been sufficient, the colonists 'assert, to put
an end to the war ; but she was not available
to preserve the lives and homes of mere colonists,
however ready to carry on a tour of pleasure a son
of the SOVEREIGN. While Great Britain has an
undeniable right to employ the ships she builds and
surports unaided by Colonies, as she pleases, if it
was her desire to preserve and cultivate those sym-
pathies which can alone unite into one so widely
scattered an Empire, she would not furnish this
matter for the comment of the Colonial press. But
the nation is indifferent. I's wide empire, on which
the sun never sets, is a mere boast to inflate the
British bosom with pride; it is Lot a sentiment
penetrating the Statesman, making a spring. on
which his action hinges ; is is not the decp-seated
it is a mere vanity which
of the people ;
vanishes when tried by any of their social tests. The
A nglo-Sax on succeeded in establishing sett letnents
not England. They grew from the habits, energy, and
greed of individuals. When first founded the
settlers were men deeply imbued with all the pre-
judices of the Britisher, and loyalty for and love of
his Fatherland. Though his children inclined to
almostas much loyalty, which would have been quite
as much had they been encouraged, it is not in
human nature, or at any ratein Anglo-Saxon nature,

* Extract from the London Gazette of Fridny: Oct. 7,
180. India Office, Oct. 3.