The Sun.
London, England, 1866-04-30 00:00:00

r'77
gfig .4nu.

LONDON, MONDAY, APRIL 30, 1866.

As the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER will have
risen from the Treasury Bench almost immediately
after our first impression has gone to press, for the
purpose of explaining to the House of Com-
mons the intentions of Her Majesty's Mi-
nisters, consequent upon the division of Saturday
morning last—when the second reading of the Re-
presentation of the People's 'bill was secured by a
clear majority of Five, out of a House,
including
Tellers and Speaker, of 6'36 altogether—we pur-
posely refrain from making any comment whatever
upon the rumours afloat at the moment of writing.

The Royal Commissioners have at last completed
their labours, and. Mr. MAL-LE and Mr. GURNEY
have returned to this country, so that in a short
time the public will be in possession of their report.
Sir 11. STORKS will remain for some time longer
in Jainaica. Their task has been a most
lalwriene
be temiZelled ' and it is satisfactory that it should
by this time, and not delayed as
some had antkipatta
. until after the close of the
Parliamentary se
841°n• We do not doubt that
sufficient will alsl3ekr in the decision of the Commis-
sioners to justify „to
in Parliament, and
ate inquiries being made
silence will have any rate the time for
gone b
excuse made for more explanation
ti-t was always the
.10u, that all must
wait until the close of the in which was ing place. The manner in which the Commissioners
have conducted their protracted in7al2l-
- is
said to have given general satisfaction iu jam:mica
and that speaks well for their management, because
theirs was an invidious work, beyond all doubt,
and-
they had to establish themselves under circumstances
of great difficulty. Eight hundred witnesses were
examined, and when we remember that Jacque
were recalled . and examined two or three
times, we may form something of art esti-
mate of the magnitude of the investigt.tion.
The secretary to the Commission still rem ains in
Jamaica to collect and arrange the docume. ats for
the Appendix, which in itself will be a very' large
volume. It is said that the Royal Coraraiss,i, oners
are unanimous in their opinion of the affair they
have investigated. We confidently expect th. %t Mr.
EIRE W 1 •
11 be entirely exonerated from All the

accusations which were brought against him, but
if any adverse decision be come to in some respects,
it must be borne in mind that those who
arrived in the island after all was tranquil
could not possibly have been in the position to
judge of the state of the case like those who were
in the midst of the outbreak. Another thing that
should be thought of also is that the very correct-
ness of the plans of the Governor and his auxiliaries
in a great measure prevented the outbreak from
being so apparent, because its suppression was so
complete and effectual. Had a brief delay taken
place in the execution of decisive plans, there
would have been no shadow of doubt remaining as
to the nature of the affair.
Addresses have been sent to the Governor from
Baptist dissenters, to which his Excellency has made
suitable replies, stating that he receives with satis-
faction the assurances they have given of their sor-
row at the riots which took place. Sir H. STORKS
very wisely adds that he desires the labouring classes
to understand that their best course will be to con-
tinue the pursuit of honest and continuous indus-
try, and that the Government " is resolved to up-
hold the law, and strictly to maintain the rights of
property while protecting the interests of the
labourer."

It is now believed beyond all doubt that the
UNDERHILL meetings had a great deal to do with
the disturbances that took place in the island. Mr.
HosAcK gave most important evidence on this
point. This gentleman also stated, as many other
witnesses have done, that the quickness of the strong
measures adopted saved the island from a general
rebellion. Witness said --was in the island
during the rebellion of 1832, but he thought the
danger to the white people last autumn was in-
finitely greater. Martial law was then imposed all
over the island. Mr. HOSICK'S evidence is
very important, and he spoke out with much
force and decision. He said the ordinary tri-
bunals could not have dealt with the offenders in a
sufficiently decisive manner, and indeed he thought
the amnesty proclamation was premature. When
the rebellion broke out he thought that GORDON
was at the head of it.
It is curious to notice how much GORDON was
connected_ n every one's mind with the outbreak.
Mr. LEE, of Kingston, stated that he told GORDON
of the outbreak, on the 12th of October, and said,
" GORDON, I am afraid your agitation in St.
Thomas in the East has led to this," to -which the
other answered, " No, my friend, I never gave the
people such advice ; I only told them the LORD
would send them a day of deliverance." Could
anything be more mischievous than to make
an observation of this kind to ignorant and
infatuated men. Another incident worthy of note
is, that GORDON mentioned that he had tried to
persuade the Baron not to go ; this looks as if he
had anticipated something ominous to occur at the
vestry meeting. It was said by some that GORDON
had asked for a postponement of his trial, but
this has been substantiated by no one, and is
therefore, no doubt, an unfounded statement. A
decisive contradiction has been given to the story of
the three prisoners being shot at the Plantain
Garden River Post Office. Ensign CULLEN and Dr.
MORRIS distinctly denied having had any-
thing to do with the affair mentioned.
It is an extraordinary affair, but there is no
accounting for the tales which black and coloured
witnesses will make up, and their ingenuity is most
surprising. Their assurance in this case has
been very great, for they fired upon the parties
implicated, and thus there could have been
nprsnns or mistaken identity. No
doubt this strange story will have iunuenc,eu Lilt;
Commissioners in giving implicit credence to their
narratives of the cruelty of the officers and others
which have not been directly substantiated afterwards.
In St. Thomas in the East a gentleman had the
foresight to examine the grave of a negro said to
have been shot by the soldiers, and only found a
heap of clothes and other things in lieu of the sup-
posed victim. It will be a satisfaction to the public
to obtain the report of the Commissioners, but we
must remember that much of what has been painful
to all parties in Jamaica would have been avoided
had our Government shown more sense and consi-
deration. In seeking to propitiate a clique at home
they forgot what was required of them, and nothing
can extenuate their conduct to Mr. EYRE.

The Cuba brings us news to the 18th inst. from
New York, and to the 17th from St. John's and
Montreal. At the latter the excitement and anxiety
respecting the Fenian movements continue unabated,
and with reason, for the preparations and demon-
strations of the brotherhood are still decidedly war-
like. The Governor of New Brunswick expressed
the general feeling of the country, when, in adress-
ing the volunteers who continue to assemble in good
numbers, he said that if the Fenian conspiracy was
a hoax, it was one of the most serious ever con-
cocted. The colonial authorities are at all events
prepared to act with suitable energy and decision,
and it is believed that the in-coming Ministry
at New Brunswick will follow the example of the
Imperial Government in Ireland, and suspend the
Habeas Corpus Act. They will be supported in
their efforts by the Home Government, since we
learn that the ship Simoom has arrived at St. John's
with the Ist battalion of the 22d Regiment from
Malta. There is evidently good reason to be on
the watch, since Government detectives have re-
ported that the Fenians have fifteen vessels nearly
ready for armament on Lakes Erie and Michigan,
besides schooners and transports loading field artil-
lery. Colonel WHEELER, late of the Confederate
beenaclrmotpisyyi,nohffaastchtere
th arrested at Cornwall, Canada. A
ernealiandanogaetrhowf
theas fFoeuhniadnumpoovnemhiemnt.
that the sudden termination of the great war left so
many officers and men trained to warfare, expert in
military organisation, idle, and ready for the first
chance that offered them a renewal of the excite-
ment, and possible profit, of a fresh campaign. It
is always difficult for a soldier to beat his sword into
a pruning-hook, but there were many attendant
circumstances which rendered it especially difficult
for the American soldier to do so. For the
Southerner especially, who had only the prospect of
obscurity and political degradation at home, how
tempting was the opportunity of winning fresh
laurels and striking out on a new career. Unfor-
tunately neither North nor South are sufficiently
well-disposed towards this country to regard this
fir,eienniadlly poffoNevnecre.as arrnhye-
breacl of faith against a
thing more than a
American Government, who must be well aware
ofakthinisatendency in their countrymen, deserve, there-
fore, very great praise for honestly insisting upon
the and
taking precautions
observance of the neutrality laws,
precautions to secure it. They have char-
tereda steamer to send a company of regular troops
firnosmtrulletoirolan to to Eastport, which appears to be a
grand Fenian
trality law stronghold, and they have forwarded
8 should
instructions
calstaruicthtloyrietniefsortcheadt. the
Generalneu -
MEADE and his staff have also proceeded thither, it
supposed that their visit
dFbueeittnlyigaant
tahffeaifirssh.
eriTehseis Ualnsoitteod
assembles has some
at referenceE astp o rtto,
tates squadron for
and remain there until the excitement has subsided,
so that we way reagonably hope the
=1414 will

again be disconcerted in their plans, and will find
that discretion is the better part of valour, as they
did once before. At the same time Government have
acted very wisely in supporting the colonists
promptly and efficiently. We are glad to find that
three gunboats are about to be despatched from
Plymouth, and a convoy is to convey their heavy
arms.

In the midst of all these preparations for defence
it is not quite certain what the intentions of the
Feniaus are. They are mustering iu some force
along the New Brunswick frontier, and they hold
meetings and receive arms in several towns along it.
At Calais, Maine, they are also showing some
symptoms of activity, and they have just held
a large meeting there, which was addressed
by DO AN KILLIAN. This gentleman appears quite
willing to undertake the settlement of any trouble-
some international question. He said that the
Brotherhood numbered one million of men, and
that they would continue to hold meet-
ings along the border until the compensa-

tiou question was settled. If the people of
the provinces revolted against the scheme they would
assist them. This is a piece of somewhat gratuitous
kindness, seeing that the people of the provinces
have already shown that they are quite
capable of defeating the Confederation project, if so
disposed, by the ordinary constitutional methods.
But in fact the presence of the Fenians is likely to
have a directly contrary effect, and has already done
more to forward the scheme than any arguments
or remonstrances from England or the sister colo-
nies. There is very little doubt that it was the Irish
element of the Brunswick population which pre-
vented the passing of the Bill through the Legisla-
ture, and it is probable that the reason why the Fe-
nians have so persistently directed their movements
towards the New Brunswick frontier is that they
are conscious that they have a strong body of allies
and sympathisers on the other side. The recent
events will, however, have opened the eyes of those
who suffered themselves to be talked over or in-
fluenced by interested parties, and we may reason-
ably hope, with the advent of the new Ministry, to
see the way cleared for the fulfilment of this wise,
prudent, and constitutional scheme.
In the States themselves affairs continue tran-
quil. The PRESIDENT is daily gaining strength
among the people. He has shown his wisdom in
remaining quiet, trusting to time and reflection to
bring malcontents to reason. There appears to be
little doubt that the next election will give him a
very different Congress. The natural tendency of
the war was towards Republicanism, and almost
every election strengthened the extreme party. Now,
however, affairs are very different, and in spite of
the eagerness of the New England party to get rid of
the PRESIDENT by impeachment,the inevitable changes
in the popular representatives will be strongly in his
favour. Even the Reconstruction Committee ap-
pear to find matters have gone too far, and the
testimony which they have submitted to the house
respecting the condition of the South is, on the
whole, favourable. Ex-Vice-President STEPHENS
has testified that the people of Georgia are very
anxious to resume their constitutional position in
the Union. This, in fact, must be the next step,
and we can hardly believe that the great body of
the people in the North will long consent to what
is in fact a virtual dismemberment of the Union
which they prize so highly, and a surrender of the
great aim and object which they set before them
in the war.