The Sun.
London, England, 1859-01-24 00:00:00

THE WEATHER.-Sux OFF/CE, JAN. 23.

THERMOMETER, IN THE SHADE.
55—highest since noon yesterday.
45—lowest this morning and during the night.
47—this day at noon.
BAROMETER-29.38, a fall of nearly an iach since yes-
terday. _ .

Wniu, South-Westerly; fresh and stormy, with rain.
It blew a gale since yesterday afternoon.

JAN. 24.
44—highest since noon yesterday.
39—lowest this morning and during the night.
46--this day at noon.
BAROMETEIIe-DOWII to 29.24, now np to 29.74.
Wixn, Westerly; light, with fine weather.

THE SUN.

MONDAY. JANUARY 24, 1859.

A National Gallery worthy of England is one of
the requisites among all our proposed Metropolitan
Improvements. There are more reasons for this
one improvement than for almost anv other that
could be particularised. It is desirable, of course,
that the toll-bridges across the Thames should as
speedily as possible be opened freely to the traffic of
the metropolis—that Southwark-bridge, Waterloo-
bridge, Hungerford-bridge, and Battersea-bridge
should be as unobstructed as London, Blackfriars,
and Westminster. It is desirable again that Hol-
born should be cleared of Middle-row and the i
Strand of that abominable block of tenements
wedged in between St. Mary-le-strand, and St.
Clement Panes, and constituting the south
side of Holywell-street. There is something
clearly to be said in favour of a river street
being opened between the Thames and St. Paul's
Cathedral. The advisability of turning to some
satisfactory account the site of the Old Fleet Prison
and the site of the Old Cattle Market, and Smith-
field might also be very easily demonstrated.
There is a good and valid reason to be given for
each of these long-looked-for metropolitan
improvements. But for the construction of a new
National Gallery not one reason alone can be
adduced, but a variety of reasons, any one of which
is of itself sufficient. In the first place this par-
ticular improvement would necessitate the removal of
one of the most glaring disfigurements of the capital.
In the next place it would enable us at last to turn
to our advantage the most superb site of all in the
British metropolis—according to Sir ROBERT
PEEL'S memorable. phrase, indeed the finest site in
Europe--the accuracy of which phrase, however,
we are disposed to question, remembering the Paris
Place de la Concorde. Again, the projected struc-
ture, that of a National Gallery worthy of contain-
ing the art treasures of England, would afford
us the opportunity of having that build-
ing at last solely and exclusively what
its title intimates that it should be. The
Royal Academy would no longer occupy one.
half of it. The National Gallery would be the
National Gallery, and not simply, as it has been
hitherto—just exactly Half of the National Gal-
lery. The Royal Academy would be constrained
at length—as they ought to have been long since—
to find a home elsewhere. THEN would come what
we above all hope to witness, the concentration of

the new building devoted to nothing else but'
a National Gallery of all the, manifold
collections of paintings belonging to the com-
munity, and hitherto scattered about the metro-
polis. The Dulwich Gallery, of course, would
remain the Dulwich Gallery, precisely as Sir JOHN
SOANE'S museum in Lincoln's-inn-fields would re-
tain its store of pictures intact, including among
them some of the most famous masterpieces of our
greatest English painter, WILLIAM HOGARTH.
But, at any rate, the removal of the Academy from
Trafalgar-square, and the consequent increase of
space in the new National Gallery—even supposing
(what we do not seriously for one moment
anticipate) that the existing site of the old edifice
will not be in any way expanded—must enable us
at last to bring together in the same edifice, or in
immediately contiguous structures, the collection
known already as the National Gallery Collection,
the TURNER Collection, the VERNON Collection,
and the SHEEPSH.ANKS Collection. For the time
being a casual house has been found for these
magnificent works of art under the roof-tree
of Marlborough House. But Marlborough House is
the destined residence of the Heir-apparent to the
Crown. It is expected that his Royal Highness
the Prince of WALES will return from his unworthy
sojourn in the Eternal City about midsummer. It is
certain that the ensuing month of November marks
the 'epoch of his coming of age, that being the
eighteenth anniversary of his birth, by which
time courtly etiquette requires that a Prince of
Wales should have a separate establishment.
Marlborough House, then, must very speedily be
vacated. The national property in the shape of
rare, and some of them priceless pictures,
must be removed betimes. Whither ? An incre-
dible rumour says to a building now being hastily
constructed at a cost of £4,000, at the back of the
Museum at South Kensington. We cannot will-
ingly believe the accuracy of this assertion, given
though it is explicitly in the Daily News, in the
shape of a communication from a correspondent. It
is inconceivable, after the positive decision arrived
at last year by the House of Commons—a de-
cision distinctly adverse to the removal of
the national collection of pictures to Kensington-
gore. Immediately after the preliminary labours
of the approaching session—as soon as possible, in
fact, after the meeting of the Legislature on the 3d
proximo, we trust that Lord ELCHO will elicit
from the noble lord the Chief Commissioner of
Parks and Palaces some clear understanding as to
the intentions of Government in regard to the
particular building referred to as now in rapid
course of construction—in regard to the future
destination of the art treasures at present in Diarl-
borough•house—above all, in regard to the most im-
portant question of all, namely, when we may hope
to possess upon its present site a National Gallery
worthy of its designation.

Mr. BRIGHT has not been enabled to make up
his mind respecting the abolition of the monopoly
in money. He does not even comprehend what a
large number of his constituents complain of, or
what they wish to be done. He, therefore, does
not feel competent to teach Parliament or the
country on the abstruse question to which his
attention has been drawn. We readily admit the
heavy demands on the time and attention of the hon.
gentleman, involved by the preparation of the elabo-
rate bill for Parliamentary Reform which he is about
to bring forward, and the provisions whereof he
has already clearly and explicitly explained, and
could scarcely anticipate that he would take charge
of another measure of even greater magnitude.
But Mr. BRIGHT represents an influential and im-
portant constituency, which has ever evinced the
deepest interest on the all-important question of
monetary reform. The people of Birmingham have
protested more strongly than almost any others
against the iniquitous and impolitic money
laws, which cripple industry, and lead to greater
losses in times of general peace and tranquillity
than would be occasioned by an expensive war.

The Honourable Gentleman is not a Parliamen-
tary novice ! He has fairly earned his political
spurs, and ought to be thoroughly acquainted with
all the leading questions, however abstruse or
difficult. JOHN BRIGHT is " a representative man,"
one who is well qualified to direct public opinion,
and to become an instructor of the community at
large. It proves beyond the possibility of doubt
the terrible apathy and indifference that prevails,
when he can avow that he does not comprehend
what is complained of. What would he have
thought of the person who, aspiring to a seat in
Parliament, albeit with far less pretensions and
abilities than those which he unquestionably pos-
sesses, would have declared that he did " not com-
prehend what was complained of," with respect to
a far less grinding monopoly—the tax on cereals—
or that he would be prepared, when the question
came before the House of Commons, to give it all
the consideration in his power? Would he not have
denounced the apathetic individual with all the
indignant eloquence with which he is so remark-
ably gifted, and expatiated on the impropriety,
to use the mildest phrase, of his daring to become
a candidate for a scat in the Legislature until he
had become acquainted with the great constitu-
tional questions that must attract its attention ?
When such a man as JOHN BRIGHT professes
ignorance, what can we expect from the multitude,
whose interests are so greatly involved that their
welfare and happiness, or indigence and misery
depend on the accurate solution of the problem ?
It was not by Parliamentary inquiries conducted
before carefully-selected committees, whose reports
might have been considered as foregone conclu-
sions, that the battle of the corn laws was gained,
or " The League" achieved its memorable triumphs.
No, it was by indomitable determination and inde-
fatigable energy the people were instructed.
The want of equity and justice in the law
which taxed the industrious classes—those who
gained their daily bread by their daily labour—was
lucidly explained. No plea of ignorance was put
forward—no want of comprehension of what was
complained of. There was an oppressive law giving
a monopoly to a certain favoured class, and the
general demand was that it should be uncondition-
ally repealed, as every enactment must be which is
not consistent with the feelings of a free people. If
a like course be adopted with respect to the money
question, a similar result will inevitably follow.
The memorialists who forwarded the address to
Mr. BRIGHT are not "hard calculators," but clear-
headed men, who fully understand the magriitude
of the grievance under which they are suffering,
and the nature of the remedy required to produce
a perfect cure. They complain of the mo-
nopoly in money, and " desire to repeal
the Act of Parliament that permits it." This
is plain and straightforward. There is no shirking
the point. There were a variety of suggestions
put forward with respect to the corn laws. We
heard of " sliding scales" and other elaborate
systems that were to work wonders, but what
proved really beneficial to all was the total abro-
gation of the mischievous law, and the establish-
ment of free trade, or unrestricted competition in
bread stuffs.

At present every pressure is far more than doubled
by tho stringent regulations of the Act 0f1844, Ifgold

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