The Sun.
London, England, 1869-02-08 00:00:00

POLITICAL ITEMS.

A rumour . prevailed in London —on Friday night
to the effect that the Premier was suffering from sud-
den indisposition, and was therefore unable to leave
his room. This statement is now authoritatively
denied. Mr. Gladstone, it seems, is in good health,
and able to attend to the business of his office.
That he will not want a policy those who have so
valiantly challenged him to bring forward one may
be well assured. Not to mention the Irish Church,
the criminal question, and the County Financial
Boards, measures on which the country has been
promised "action," the Government, by its very con-
struction, is pledged to carry on several other
reforms. The Star is enabled to state that they
have resolved to adopt the Universities Tests Aboli-
tion Bill of Sir John D. Coleridge.

The John Bull says that the proposed banquet to
her Majesty's late Ministers has been postponed owing
to Mr. Disraeli's inability to attend consequent on
the death of his brother. In default thereof, Corn-.
mander Pym is devoting his festal energies to getting
up a dinner to the honour of Lord George Hamilton,
M.P. for Middlesex. The gallant officer has, much
to the regret of our contemporary, chosen a Wednes-
day in Lent as the feasting day. Mr. Disraeli's be-
reavement, we may add, permits him to continue
the policy of silence he has so discreetly
observed since he left office, the policy which led
Lord Stanley and Mr. Hardy to disappoint the
Cardiff - banqueters by absenting themselves from
their table.

The silence policy was much condemned at Glouces-
ter the other day. The Liberals of the town, when
they held their banquet, had Mr. Lowe to " draw ;"
but not one of the Conservative gods would come
down when the Conservatives had a dinner. The
diners had to be satisfied with Sir Michael Hicks
Beach, Sir George Jenkinson, M.P., and one or two
local magnates. These, however, appeared to
be in very good spirits. They had no idea
of giving up the Irish Church as immediately
lost. A large number of Governments would
probably rise and fall before Mr. Gladstone's
measure would pass. There was a great impression,
however, that the Church would ultimately go. Sir
M. Beach described the present Government as Jews
and Infidels, Papists and Puritans, Ritualists and
Dissenters, every form of unbelief and extreme
belief, banded together in an unholy alliance for the
perpetration of a special piece of plunder. The
description was not original, but it was "telling," and
therefore, we suppose, fulfilled its end. Colonel
Lees, who was defeated at the last Gloucester
election, offered to fight the battle again when
required.

Mr. Powell, the Conservative candidate who
defeated the Adullamite Lord Andover at Malme.s-
bury, has been celebrating his victory in the cus-
tomary way. In an after-dinner speech, the new
member denied that there had been intimidation,

and challenged Lord Andover to petition against him.
He said that the Liberals were " going ahead too
fast," that they " wanted to deface everything, the
House of Lords, the House of Commons, and the
Constitution, and, to tell the truth, " God only knows
what they do wish." How it came to pass that Mr.
Powell was able to reveal that which is known only
to Deity, the hon. member did not explain. It must
have been satisfactory to his fellow-diners to know
that there were " good men and true " on the Con-
servative side prepared to resist such a state of
things as he described.

The Army and .ZVavy Gazette confirms the state-
ment that Mr. Trevelyan resigned his post at the
Admiralty in consequence of his not very discreet
speech at Hayrick. Mr. Gladstone did not accept
the resignation, and Mr. Trevelyan thereupon
expressed to the Commander-in-Chief his regret in
a manner which was at once accepted by his Royal
Highness.

THE LATE GENERAL ELECTION.
The amount of "m )ral" that has been got from the
general election is something astonishing, especially
when the diversity of it is borne in mind. Mr.
Dudley Baxter draws one conclusion, while his
opponents draw a totally opposite one. To one mind
the present system fails in that it does not return
the lower class; to another it is defective because
all the great men are not returned. has the mind of the first-named class
one would
; Lord
Mr. Mill
Campbell of the second. The
provide machinery for turning out working
men M.P.s ; the other would like for more certainty
that men of genius should be returned. Mr. Mill's plan
has been communicated to the public through the
Legislature, and in various other ways. Lord
Campbell is now propounding his in a series of letters
to the Post. His complaint is this : that a small
constituency can, and in some .cases does, prevent the
return to Parliament of a man whom the Dublic (as a
whole)) wishes for. The State, with " unmeasured
liberality," imparts to every constituency the power
of appointing representatives—and these for the
empire at large—without retaining any veto.
Thus, a popular Premier, a Secretary of State,
an Attorney-General, &c., &e., are kept out of
office simply because of a local whim. This same
uncertainty is an evil in another direction. Politics
are a life-long study. A good M.P. can be ob-
tained only after years of training. Yet, by limiting
this training, by excluding a promising man from
Parliament, just when his education ought to be
carried on, the class from which statesmen must
spring is made small. Under our present system,
therefore, according to Lord Campbell, the public
will is not carried out. M.P.'s are not properly
trained, and the result is that there exists a general
desire to obtain what (as in the case of non-aristo-
cratic members of the Cabinet) the present system
prevents.