The Sun.
London, England, 1858-02-13 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY, FEB. 13, 1858.

Last night Lord PALMERSTON introduced the
promised bill for transferring from the East India
Company to the Crown the government of her

MAJESTY'S East Indian dominions.

The Com-

parry had already received notice to set their house
in order, and to be prepared to surrender the
anomalous functions which they had so long exer-
cised. But the details of the contemplated change
were withheld ; we had to await the penalised
.explanations of the Minister ; and although good
guesses were made, or possibly information oozed
out, as to the nature of the intended alterations, ;
nothing could be known with certainty by the
community at large, or even by the Leadenball.
street Board.

Everything is now revealed ; a clear and can•
did statement has been made, and we can cora-

pare the future Government of the Anglo Indian
-

Empire with that which is now in operation. The
great experiment has been made in the most
moderate manner. There will certainly be a vast
improvement on the existing state of affairs. But
the chief objections are rather for acts of omission
than of CollllDia3lol3. It does not go far enough.
Too much deference has been paid to the captious
arguments put forward by the Company and their
advocates, and the Premier has manifestly been
trammelled by specious but untenable positions',
which he has had sufficient firmness to capture by
direct assault.

It is not merely that the cumbrous machinery
of the double governments will be got rid of, or
that at last there will be full responsibility to the
British Parliament for the control and manage-
ment of a ve, important portion of the British
dominions, involving the welfare, happinesz., and
prosperity of one hundred and fifty millions of
our fellow-subjects. The prestige that will attend
the name of the QUEEN of Great Britain will be
as important amelioration. It must necessarily
be far more respectable, and exercise far greater
• political and moral influence with princes Exer
- ening indpendent sway, or in a certsin degree in-
dependent, than that of a company, nominally
incorporated for trading purposes, however
respectable its directors and managers may
be. Such persons would naturally feel
jealous of the interference of men, their
inferiors in rank and social position, while they
would feel no degradation in submitting to the

views and wishes of the SOVEREIGN of the United

Kingdom, who would be enabled to bring the
whole power and weight of her vast empire to
support her demands. The alteration may, in that
respect, be more apparent than real ; but we all
know how much depends on appearances, and the
weight and dignity of a name. It has been well
said by a contemporary "that the Board of Con-
trol represents a fact, which is the dominion of the
British Empire. The Court of Directors repre-
sents no actual power or living het. It is only

a tradition, existing by sufferance." Surely, then,
it is well that we should learn to call things by
their right names, a=re' no longer be trammelled
by obsolete, albeit respectable, "traditions."

We have already demonstrated that neither the
Directors nor Proprietors have any just cause of
complaint against the proposed alteration. Their
interest in the affairs of India is merely one of
s. d. All they have to look to is the payment
of the dividends guaranteed by the British nation
until the time when they may be redeemed on
terms already arranged and concluded. It is
really monstrous that persons entitled to receive
630,0001. per annum. for a term of 15 or 16
years, and then a capital of 12,000,0001.—double
their original investment—should also be enabled
to interfere with the destinies of 150,000,000
of human beings, or 25 persons for every pound
originally invested. All that the proprietors
really lose is the possibalty of obtaining cadtt-
ships in return for their votes at the election of
directors, and that is a demand which will scarcely
be sustained or ventilated in Parliament.

As to the provisions of the measure, they are
very simple. The powers of the Directors are to
cease and determine, and their functions are to
be transferred to a President and Council
of eight members, nominated by the Crown,
for a limited term of eight years, and not entitled
to sit in Parliament. Two are to be replaced
every second year. There will thus be the pos-
sibility of obtaining the services of eligible men,
and infusing new blood into the Council, while
there would be a sufficient tenure of office to pre-
vent them from truckling to the Executive for the
time being. The President and Secretary are alone
eligible for seats in Parliament, and they will go
in or out with the Government of the day. The
decision of the President will be final in political
matters, and properly so, inasmuch as he will be
responsible to Parliament and the country
for his conduct. But the members of the council
will have power to record their protests against
any measures which he may adopt contrary to
their advice. In financial affairs, however, the
President must obtain the assent of at least four
of the Council before any outlay involving an
increased expenditure should be decided on. A
moiety of the patronage will be vested in the Go-
vernment and the remainder in the members of
Council, so that the dreaded increase of patronage
will be comparatively trifling. Writerships will,
as at present, be given t 3 the successful candidates at
competitive exminations. The local patronage will
remain with the authorities in India. There can
be no jealousy in this respect. Indeed, Lord
PALMERSTON seems to have yielded too much to
the outcry put forward, and thus forfeited the
opportunity of improving the administration of
justice in our Eastern Dominions. The revenues
of India are to be applied solely to the purposes
of the Indian Givernment, and although the
Indian army will be transferred to the Crown,
there will be no changes in the conditions on
which it is embodied.

The debate has been adjourned to Monday, but
we cannot for a moment suppose that the louse
will refuse to sanction a measure, the chief objec-
tion to which is its extreme moderation.

In the good old times, before duelling had
become obsolete, and men had ceased to hazard
their lives in defence of their honour, it was uni-
versally considered that the same, or even more
extended, publicity should be given to an apology
than to the affront, for which it was demanded.
It was in that respect, at least, a sound and whole •
some practice—one that rendered the amende what
it ought to be, complete and satisfactory. Were it
otherwise many persons who heard of the iusult
would know noshing of its redress, and would re-
main under the erroneous impression that the in-
jured party had patiently swallowed his leek, and
submitted to the castigation previously adminis-
tered. One of the vexed questions in the arrange-
ment of these so•called affairs of honour was the
nature and extent of the publicity that should
be given to the explanation or apology, and it
was almost invariably settled in the way
above alluded to, viz., the same publicity to the
act of reparation as had been given to the offence.
The Emperor Lotus NAPOLEON does not, how-
ever, act on that sound principle. Although the
truculent addresses of the French military bullies,
designating Great Britain as a den of assassins,
and demanding its invasion and eren its destruc-
tion, were published ostentatiously in the official
journal, and thus recognised and adopted by the
EMPEROR, although the objectionable despatch of
Count WALEWSKI received similar publicity, the
Moniteur has maintained a total and unbroken
silence respecting that of the 6th of February,
which contained the tardy and inadequate expres-
sion of Imperial regret for the improper and
insulting publication.

IThis omission is the more reprehensible, inas-
much as no French journal would dare to publish
i the despatch, and the (xl.ensive and almost daily
I seizures of English neNi spapers would prevent any
exFensive circulation of the explanations given at
the British channel. The insolent sabreurs
who penned these mendacious and outrage-
ous documents may therefore remain
under the erroneous impression that their
threats had inflnenead the Parliament, and
people of Great Britain, and that they were still
sanctioned and approved by the EMPEROR and his
responsible ministers. The limited nature of the
apology should therefore be known to every
popular representative, before the bill for restrict-
ing and eventually subverting the right of sanc-
tuary to political exiles comes on for second reading
in the House of Commons. The waverers who
halted between two opinions and reserved
the right of future action, should know
how futile and inadequate was the apology
offered, and the 256 absentees should be stimu-
lated to a better performance of their duty on the
next division.

The Ministerial measure, as we have already
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existing law is amply sufficientr
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o punish
any any conspiracy, either to murder, or
to injure any persons, whether princes or private
individuals, at home or abroad. If life be lost,
the offender may be indicted as an accessory before
the fact, and we have at this moment a large re-
ward offered
for the apprehension. of an English
who is charged with a guilty knowledge
of the offence against the EMPEROR. Should Mr.
ALsoP be arrested, and there is every reason to
suppose that such will speedily be the case, we shall
have reason to know whether the existing law of
the land is really so defective as has been stated,
and whether it really requires alteration or modi-
fication.
The alteration of the nature of the crime from
misdemeanottr to felony, may be productive of
results far more serious than at present
supposed. On a charge of felony, any man
may be apprehended without a warrant, his
most secret papers may be ransacked, and ample
bail may be refused for his appearance. We can
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