The Sun.
London, England, 1858-06-28 00:00:00

T StrN, LONDON, MON DAY E V - j'7:TTE

the position will ro-f,ained, "13 in the case of
Chundaree, which has just been recattured by
Sitrries brigade sent from Gooner.
Nor does the fact that Gwalior has been at-
tacked and plundered by the insurgents, in any
degree affect the accuracy of the statement.
While so many gangs of predatory miscreants are
roaniieg through the country, ripe for mischief,
but unable to accomplish anything that can ma-
terially affect the ultimate issue of the contest.
We also learn that after the relief of Shah-
jehauporo by Brigadier JONES, ho was surrounded
by masses of the enemy. This was on the 15th
of May, on which day Sir COLIN CIIIPBELL left
Bareilly with the whole of his disposable force,
reaching S4abjehanpore on the 18th. The 23d
he drove back_ the enemy, capturing Mohundee
(qy. Moulbie), and that on the 26th Sir COLIN
CAlirsuLL occupied Jellahabad, on the Futtehghur
road.

It is said that Oude is still disturbed. The
rebels again approached Lucknow. It was not
thought, however, they would venture on an at-
tad., as ne ciiy i fully defended, and the garri-
son very strong. It can scarcely be ai►i.i.l;pa:ecl
that those who failed to destroy the small garrison,
encumbered as it was with helpless women and inno-
cent children, while they were in occupation of the
entire city and had the native population at their
side, could now succeed in achieving any great suc-
cess. Where so large a portion of the landowners
have already made their submission or are anxious,
r in legal phraseology, to " purge their contempt,"
a, far smaller body held their own for a series of
mouths against far greater odds, and we care little
for the despairing demonstration made by those
whose fidelity to the rebel cause could no longer
be relied on, and all of whom would be anxious
to accept ally amnesty that might be offered.

A new light has broken in on the Palmerstonian
journalists. They have made the brilliant dis-
covery that the India Bill will actually pass ; and
czpress their delight at the result, which they
more than insinuate is due to the forbearance of
themselves and the veteran Viscount. Indeed,
they claim credit for the entire measure which they
once so unsparingly denounced. They are also
discovering sundry mares' nests respecting the
causes that have compelled the mastication of the
unsavoury leek by their ancient PISTOL. Father
Thames comes in for his share of the blame.
Right Honourable and Honourable Gentlemen
have deserted their posts and abandoned their
constitutional functions rather than breathe
the pestiferous atmosphere engendered by the
abominable alluvia arising from the sweltering
mudbanks and contaminated waters of the modern
Cloaca maxima. They have, like truant school-
boy; made holidays for themselves, not con-
ceiving that anything of real impor&ance remains
to be accomplished.

We should gladly give the parties ilia benefli
of these alleviations of their unutterabret griefs, i

it would in any degree promote the cleansing of li
the silent highway. The grievance in that case
is, however, too flagrant to require such adventi-
tious aids. The nuisance must be abated, itithough
Parliament might transfer its sittings to more
salubrious distrie'. The real causes, howevor, of
this modificati)n of views—of this " singing =tall"
by the Palmerstonians—are the decisive defeats
which ho, their Leader, received on Friday even-
ing. The minorities of 62 and 93 respectively
were heavy blows and great discouragements to
the party. They proved beyond the poisibility
of doubt that the real Liberals would not march
titlguah Coventgewith their self-elected leadetrs.
1.31./Ula r IJE 11Y buu vs.

discretion was the better part of valour, and that
there was no longer any use standing up to ;be
raade a " chopping-block" by his more youthictl
and more vigorous opponents ; and therefore we
hear of the expediency of hurrying the remainf:ng
clauses through the House, in order that ample
time may be afforded to the Lords for the mho
consideration and full discussion of the measure
in all its details. It was but very recently that
these organs of public opinion considered it ina-
possiole that the bill could receive the Legislativa
sanction during the present session, trying to ex-
cite the wrath of the Peers at the alleged slight
—now, by a daring act of " grand and lolly
tumbling," by a piece of tergiversation scarcely
exceeded by any ever exhibited by these ce?c-
brated performances, all has been changed, and
the Hibernian fete of " turning one's back upon
oneself," celebrated by Sir BOYLE ROCIIE, has bowl
acc3mplished with unequalled celerity and cooln es6t.

Mr. GLADsToNE will take the sense of the House

on Tuesday. The point which he is desirous of
carrying being that the first members of the
Council should be nominated in the bill, or, in
other words, that all should be elected by the
House of Commons. This was the original inten-
tion of the Government, so far as the nominated
portion of the body was concerned, and very
unexceptionable names were put forward—names
which will, in all probability, be still seen
amongst the members of the first Council.
It is, therefore, clear that there would bo
no very serious objection to such a proceed-
ing. But some difficulties have arisen which
he will fairly state, and we have but little doubt
that a majority will acquiesce in the wisdom and
propriety of the decision fivally arrived at. The
matter, after all, is of comparatively trivial im-
portance, and, whatever may be the result, can-
not tarnish the laurels won by the Ministry, or
impair the debt of national gratitude fairly earned
for their statesmanlike, jucliciouP, and constitu-
tional mode of dealing with a question deeply
aacting the interests of both England and
India.

The Thames will at length be cleansed. There
is not a doubt of it. According to the phrase of
our neighbours across the Channel—C,'est un fait
accompli. Or, according to the homelier phrase
of our cousin across the Atlantic—we may hence-
forth speak of Dirty Old Father Thames in his
capacity as Dirty Old Father Thames, as—a gone
coon ! Again, in a few months—by the time this
planet of ours has made another circuit of the
us hope, really and trulj and confi-
dently hope, Lilac, once mare, the loveliest of all
the rivers of England will be, what the charming
English, poet truly called it in the days when he
lived upon its banks and loved the flow of its
pellucid current, " the silver winding Thames."
Latterly it has been—the yellow stinking Thames.
It has been a loathsome eyesore wel'ering to and
fro between the Towers of JuLtus and the new
legislative palace at Westminster. It has been
literally a river no longer, but a noisome open
sewer of the most gigr.ntic dimensions, steaming,
reeking with the breath of disease wafted from its
foul surface by evary current of air over the
nioA densely-populattd city in the world—mean-
ing, not the City Prcreer, with its 129,000 inha-
mts, but the capital of England, the metropolis
of the British Empire, peoiled by no less than
from 2,500,000 to 3,000,000 ! During the
more intense summer heats of June it has threat-
ened to become to truth once again The Silent
highway, with a. deadly significance. The Asiatic
Cholera has sptpang into existence out of its poi-

eonons atm:There, A halo, stalwart fish-porter
has been seized with the cramp upon the ;
_ -

margin of the filthy stream, and been carried off
blue and livid, a few hours afterwards, to the

parish dead-house. The judges of the land have
been sickened by the pestilential vapours floating
into the halls of justice—until the chief judge
among them all, the Lord Chief-Justice of Eng-
land, has deliberately said, from his place in the

House of Peers, that unless some remedy were

speedily found, the Courts could not posaiLly con-
tinue to lit in London, but must adjourn, as they

had been known to do upon occasions of yore, to

Oxford or S. Albans. Traffic upon the River

Thames—rather, we should call it the Sewer
Thames—has lttterly (and no wonder, truly) been
diminishing appreciAbly. The river steamers—
we beg pardon, the sewer steamers have plied up
and down with only a ghostly sprinkling of adven-
turous passengers. Among these rash voyagers,
one unfortunate—as his Grace the Duke of Bye-
C LEITCH mentioned in the House of Lords on Fri-

day evening—had been so affected by nausea that
he had actually vomited over the side of the
veF9el. Maiß, que d;able alla;t it faire dans eetie

galore ! Othera had beeu cualied Liuting c 7 nhorp
_ _

from the decks of these same wretched sewer
steamers. Parliament itself has "nosed" the evil
at last—and literally with a vengeance. For,

again we say, the immediate and effectually clean-
sing of the river is a thing at length avowedly
foredoomed. Lord JOHN MANNERS, as Minister
of Public Works, has said it. Others of lis

Ministerial Colleagues have corroborated his,suffi-
ciently explicit, and most conciliatory and encou-
raging assurance. Mr. DISRA.ELI, Lord MALUES-
BURY, the Earl of HARDWICKE, the Marquis of
SALISBURY have declared, as plainly as words
could declare, everything that this matter of
really vital import has secured, and will retain,
as it has ling imperatively demanded, the most
serious attention of Her MAJESTY'S Government.
B_aides, what were the concluding words ut-
tered on Friday, in the House of Commons, by
one of the very best Ministers of Public Works
England has had for many a long day, one of the
most energetic, and laborious, and conscienti-
ous of our administrators What said Sir
BENJAMIN HALL at the conclusion of his remarks
upon this important question ? He declared with
characteristic frankness that he would be happy to
afford any assistance in his power to the Noble
Lord, his immediate successor in office—with
a view to the speedy putting down of this mon-
strous and intolerable nuisance. That it remains
to be put down is no fault of Sir BENJAMIN'S.
Trammelled like the rest of those about him with
the trammels of red-tape, lie was just snapping
assunder the crimson bands of routine woven by
millions upon millions of yards, and afterwards
intertwined and interlaced in inextricable con-
fusion in the great manufacture of Circumlocu-
tion, when all his toils went for nothing, and Sir
BENIAMIN HlLL—ono of the only men of real
worth and efficiency then in office—suddenly found
the cards snatched from him and shuffled up over
for a fresh deal at the very moment when the
game was in his hands. Recollecting all Sir BEN-
JAMIN HALL had done during the comparatively
brief interval when he presided over the Public
Works department—remembering how he had
schooled himself into one of the most able and
accomplished chiefs of that hitherto neglected but
most important department—we could almost
find it in our hearts to regret that he, in regard
to Public Works, might be an exception in the
Executive ; that this particular administration
might no more than the Master of -tha Rolls, or
- - - a aInV

way upon, the changes of Government.' At any
rate, by such an arrangement, we might have
secured ourselves from the inevitably bad results
of getting everything into au active and admirable
state of preparation merely to the end that we
should scatter all those preliminary labours (just
upon the eve of their consummation) to the winds
of heaven—beginning again de novo ab 'bathe, at
the risk of finding a responsible office passed from
hands the most efficient to hands the most ineffi-
cient. Happily Lord JOHN MANNERS has resumed
his former position as Minister of Public Works
with an incitement to resolute exertion not pos-
sessed by him in 1852—that of a noble and
laudable emulation provoked by his patriotic pre-
decessor. In the Noble Lord's own patriotic de-
votion to the duties of his office we have every
reliance. Of his efficiency we are sanguine that
the Community may so have proofs clearly demon-
strative. May these hopes be speedily and sig-
nally realised!
The new Minister of Public Works must bear
particularly in recollection the inspiriting assur-
ance volutiteered by his able predecessor in office,
the spontaneous promise of his cordial and mag-
nanimous co-operation. it will be well to remem-
ber, moreover, what was said on Friday in allu-
sion to the same pressing need for active mea-
sures of reform—the serio-comic but most truth-
ful remark made in reference to the necessity of
at once cleansing the Thames, by his grace the
Duke of NEWCAsTLE. " Lot the Government
be courageous iu this matter," said his grace :
"It is a great opportunity for them to earn die-
, tincticn, for Parliament is completely at their
feet, and if they choose to save it, Parlia-
ment will be only too happy to be saved."
What says the old proverb—" Many a true
word spoken in jest." It is a great oppor-
tunity and Parliament is, in this matter,
completely at the feet of her MAJESTY'S Govern-
ment. Nothing, we do seriously and solemnly
believe, will be regarded by the Lords and Com-
mons as an adequate reason' for not inatiasiiately
setting to work to clean the. River Thames . fcom
its present surchoorgq with odious abomina-
tions. As to the mere question of cost—suppos-
ing the change to necessitate an expenditure of
any amount, however apparently extravagant that
amonnt, the House of Commons, we are satisfied,
would pronounce to be in no respect unreasonable.
Whatever the amount required for the work to
be done, that amount will be forthcoming. London
—the wealthiest city in the world—can as-
suredly afford to get rid of its filth, no
mater how many millions may be needed as a
preliminary to that essential and beneficent under-
teking. ...L'Ac.:,:rding to the very highest estimate,
this first and foremost of all our public winks Li
the capital of Eaglaud would involve an outlay
of from 3,000,000/. to 4,000,0001. Supposing
it to necessitate an outlay of 5,000,0001.—nay,
supposing it to require the expenditure of
10,000,000/.—the happy result of such a dis-
burrement would surely be worth it. It is not,
however, in any .way a question of cost. It is
simply a question as to How the sewage of the
tneteopoli a may be diverted from the Thames, and
conveyed along one or more -grand subterranoous
channels to the sea Most Effectually. THAT we
must have decided at once without any further
delay, without having any more plans and cour.-
terplans drawn, and docketted, and tied up in
red tape, to be duly pigeonholed and forgotten.
It is just one of those old Rornaii Republican
Emergencies, requiring a Temporary Dictator-
ship for the good of the Commenwealth. A little
despotic power infused opportunely into this par-

ticular department of the pubic service, and
rightly applied—promptly, resolutely, energeti-
cally—Sella do a world of good to London and
very nearly 3,000,000 of Londoners. 0 for
the sweep of this Herculean Reform-0 for the
swift cleansing of this monstrous Augean abomi-
nation ! It is an earnest application from three
millions of people, which will result, we confi-
dently believe, in one of the not least memorable
or least meritorious good works which will be
recorded as having been happily and opper-
tunely effeAed by the Earl of DEItB7:S Admi-
nistration.

" Not without a substitute,"—that is now the
grand cry of the High Church petitioners against

the Abolitiob of Church-rates. What an advance

from the days when we first enlisted in the ALE-

Church Rate Battle ! Then it was denied that it

was any hardship for a Dissenter, or even an

infidel, to pay Church-rates. He got much good,
it was said, from the Church, and was taxed with
ingratitude because he could not appreciate the
good be received, and with impudence fn. pre-
tending that he, quite out of the lure of apes-

tolical succession, was doing himself any good to

Old li•s P,e7 CP9 and
his Sunday schools, his -traots and hiS bibles. It
was all schism, and schism was the worst of social

poisons. We who ventured to think that one
Christian was as good as another, although he did
not use our prayer-beck, or do homage to our
mitre, hardly escaped the imputation of Atheism ;
still we did think that men who contributed large
sums of money to support their own worship, and
whose chapels and schools were largely attended
by the poorer classes, and who obviously did
emercise a very beneficial influence over them,
were rather hardly dealt with by their follow
Christians in this matter of Church-rates. We
felt that we, in their place, should grudge a Alia
ling forced from us by Christians of anothe r
variety of creed ; and we have, therefore, from
the beginning demanded the total exemption of

Dissenters from Church-rates. That is now
every one's creed ! Hardly a High and Dry
Churchman, or an old Tory of the right divine
school, now exists who is not willing to exempt
Dissenters. Gladly would all parties let off
Dissenters on their " signing themselves Di -

senters."
That day, however, seems to be past. Statesmen
do not like creating stronger lines of demarcation ;
they would rather amalgamate than create sects.
Dissenters, too, do not exactly relish the proposal ;
there seems something patronising and paltry
about it ; and it wont do. So pure and simple
abolition has been sent up to the Lords—it shows
indeed a measure of progress which is most re-
assuring to the advocates of civil and religious
liberty. Now all the plaints and supplications of
the pro-rate party are directed to getting, if they
can, a substitute. Well, let them name a sub-
stitute. The simplest one is to put their hands
-) their own pockets—one which, we think,
would prove superabundantly sufficient. When
we look not only at what Dissenters are and have
long been doing, not only at what Roman Catho-
lics do, not only at the late splendid subzcriptions
of the Free Church both for ministers at home
and missions abroad—but when we look at the
noble church extension efforts of last year, and
see splendid, or modest, or humble new churches
rising up everywhere, and provided with clergy-
men too—we say it is vain and trifling to tell
us that the -Ciburch of England cannot keep its
own churches in repair. It needs no legal help—
" the substitute" is the collection at the doors,
or the circular t.,,?,411q neighbourhood, or the call
on tun anoll el and moo
than enough. t2hrow the maintenance of the
fabric of the chureies, and the incidentals to wor-
ship, on the liberality of the people, and the former
will be put in better repair than they have been
in for years, and the latter will be improved too.
Better than all, the people will take, as people al-
ways do, an interest in what they have supported
by their money.
If churchwardens, however, do need enabling
powers, by all means let them have them. Any-
thing but any modified form of the tax itself, let
that and all the belonging to it go, and go
completely. We have little acquaintance, however,
with ecclesiastical law, and it well may be, that
churchwardens and vestries will have less power
to collect money and apply collections, or to
charge rent for pews and the like, than
Dissenters new have—by all means give them
any powers they have. Why should not each
parish meeting be empowered to raise money in
any way it pleases, and to disburse it as it will.
We repeat our advice, however, to all parishes
which dare do it, to petition without a day's
delay. Every petition should be sent to the
Duke of SOMERSET, er to some lord who will
present it by the let of July, at latest. The
Government, it is certain, are willing to do some-
thing; what we know not yet. It will be better
in proportion to the number of petitions.

MINISTERIAL AND POLITICAL MOVE-

MENTS.

Parliament, it is now eupposed, will be prorogued by
the middle of next month. The Queen, it is said, is
desirous to visit her daughter at Berllo, and scruples to
leave so long as the Legislature is in session, as the
royal assent is required to so many bills.
The attack of gout from which the Ertl of Darby has
been suffering fir some time has abated during the last
few days, and his lordship is now aide to leave his room.
His lordship fully ex.)ects to be able t 3 resume his at.
tendance in the House of Lords in the course of the
week. Owing to the illness of the noble Premier, his
dinner parties have been postp-med.
The Earl of Mahneebary received a largo circle to
dinner on Saturnay evening at his mansion, Whitehall-
gardens.
The Archbishop of_Arrnagh had a numerous party to,
dinner on Sa,wrday eeening, at his grace's house in
Chandoe-streer, St. James's.
Their Royal frglanesses the Duchess of Cambridge
the Hereditary Grand Duchess of Meckletsburg Strelitz,,
and the Princess Mary, honoured Lord Raver sw3rll
with their company at an afternoon fete on Saturday at
Percy's Cross, Fulham. The royal visitors ,were at-
tended by Lady G.raldine Somerset and Lady Caroline
Oust. A brilliant circle of the aristocracy assembled at
the party, and most of the foreign Ministers and the!r
lad,oe
The Duchess of Manchester, the Mistress of the Rubes,
had an assembly on Saturday night at her mansion
ii
Stanhope-dreet, Park-lane. Nearly all the leading
members of the beau monde were present.

Tie Drury Lane Italian opera will be varied nighty
by.the pi rforrnance of the most favourite works of the
Italian and G'e.rman composers. To-night wo are to
have the never-tiring "S;neambula," Viardot
Garcia ae the Amine, and Naudin as the Ovine'. Oa
:7 11.? " Perteei" Tell be repeated with Persian'
as Elviia; and Aa -J ‘: !--..
day ; whilst "Don Giovanni" will be produced as early
as possible.
"The Merchant of Venice" is to be the piece de re•
sistance at the Princees's, preceded by a new farce,
entitled "Dying for Lave," which is announced for pro-
duction this evening.
At the St. James's, Maiterne Ristori appears this
evening in Racine's tragedy of " Pt l Ire."
Mr. Bucllstone'e season of five years' uninterrupted
performances at the Haymarket will be brought to a
close in another forteight. Durit g the present week
"An Unequal Match" will be repeated every evening
(except Wedne-dae), "B ex and C Ar," " A Striking
Wid iw," and "Tee D_al She," will be the after-
Mr. Webster and the Adelpbi company perform six
nights longer at the Sadder's Wells Theatre. " Janet
Pride" and "The Middy Ashore" will (e performed on
the first four nights of the week. There will be a chanee
of peifermances on Friday, for the benefit of Maclaine
Csleste, and on Saturday for the benefit of Mr.
Webster.
Mr. acid Mre. Berney Wiliianes conclude their
engagement at the Sarrey on Saturday next, The pieces
announced for every evening until Friday are "Rory
O'More," "An Hour at Seville," and "Latca from New

2 8,

ST. -.TAMES'S -THEATit

If further proof wore needed thatMadarao Ristori
posses es the Oft of true histrionic geuius, it would
be indisputably afforSed by the manner in which
she developed the meagre, bald, nerveless character
of " Ottacia," play of that title, last
Friday evening. She infused power, interest, and
dignity into a part which carries little identity with
grand tragic matclial ; and considering that the
role is destitute of all the high qualifications of
dramatic co tstituents requisite for the scope of such
talents as thoq) exhibited I,y Madame Riettori, the
impersonation was wonderful, though we must
frankly declare that we hope the energy of this
great actress will not be again wasted on such un-
satisfactory "stuff" during her litnied number of
appearances. No play ought to be tedious or dull
with Madame Ristori for its leading feature, but we
suspect that many of the audienco on Friday even-
ing ext;eriencod a strong tendency to obey the
playful demand often made on each other by chil-
dren—that of "opening your mouth and shutting
your eyes."' The tragedy. was, in fact, wearisome,
and while the repertoire of the dramatic muse
yields so many characters of vital and exciting in-
terest, we shall not expect to hear of Alfieti's
" Otlavia" being repeated.

MISS ARABELLA GODDARD'S MATINEE

MUSICALE.

The last of these attractive performances was
given on Saturday last at Willis's Rooms, exciting,
if possible, greiter admiration of the gifted
1-‘-qn Nfi-s Goddard's exe-
cution of 6,:hubett,,, • • 6 ,•"
for the first time in public, was perfect and en-
chanting ; combining the various and difficult ex-
pressions essential to the correct irrerpretation of
the work, with unprecedented correctness. The
delicate tenderness of the Andante movement—the
rich and sparkling vivacity of the Scherzo, and the
precision and vigour of the concluding Rondo,
were alike exquisite and truly effective ; affording
ample evidence that Miss Goddard is an artiste
of real spiritual power, and thOroughlT qualified
to fill the high position she has attained. The
variations on an " Original Air" for Tenor and
Pianoforte, in which Herr Joachim shared the
honour with the fair pianistc, was beautifully
played, and elicited marked applause, as did also
Beethoven's " Grand Sonata in A Minor," on the
same instruments. A " Quartett in E Fiat," by
Dassek, was admirably rendered by Miss Godela,rd,
Herr' Joachim, Herr Giffrie, and Signor Piatti.
The latter gentleman is unquestionably among
the very first performers on the violoncello, his
purity of tone and precision of instrumentation
being all that the most highly educated ear can
desire. We congratulate Miss Goddard on the
eminent success of her series of c incerts, though
we experience a degree of regret at their ter-
' mination.

VOCAL ASSOCIATION, ST. JAMES'S-BALL.

This talented Association will give anothor and last
concert at this hall onWedne3day evening next, and
presents in the programme some items of alluring
interest to the lovers of fine music. Metalelssohn s
Hymn cf Praise, "Lobgesang," will be performed,
and doubtless in a manner that will do full justice
to the compo:tition. "Mozart's Concerto in E flat,
for the Pianoforte," will will .be played by Mr. C.
Halle, and Herr Joachim will give his " Ovei tut e
to Henry the Fourth," for the first tine in Eng-
land. These attractions, with the support of Miss
Louisa Pyne, Miss Stabbach, Mr. Montem Smith,
the Vocal Association Chants, perfec; Madrigal
singing, and the eooductorship of M. Benedict,
will warrant the issuing of a card of invitation, on
which may be announce;!, " Apollo at Home."