The Sun.
London, England, 1866-11-24 00:00:00

LONDON, SIITURAI Y, NOV. 24, 1866.

it appears by this time to be pretty certain that
the sway of the Emperor MAximiLIAN is now over.
There is nothing to surprise us in this intelligence,
and indeed it seems only strange that such an event
did not occur at an earlier period. No one can say
that there has been any hesitation displayed on the
part of the Emperor MUDIILIAN, for he has from

first to last exhibited an energy and a devotion
worthy of a better cause and a more satisfactory
issue. There has been no doubt remaining in the
minds of the well-informed for some time past as
to the end of this Mexican venture, and it is a
question whether any good has been gained by
thus prolonging the struggle. Certainly so
far as the Empress CHARLOTTE is concerned, it is
much to be regretted that this course was persisted
in, but there were perhaps reasons in the back-
' ground which we do not exactly comprehend or
divine. No one can fail to sympathise with
MAXIMILIAN in this his day of misfortune and de-
feat, and the more so that he has all along believed
that he could succeed if he was properly upheld,
but with the want of assistance he was compelled to
give up. However, while we admire the foresight
and respect the constancy of the Emperor of
MEXICO, common sense compels us to admit that
the Emperor of the FRENCH has taken a course
which cannot be gainsaid. Nothing was more plain
to himself or more evident to the world at large than
that the time had come when the effort to establish
an empire across the Atlantic must be abandoned.
No one can accuse the Emperor NAPOLEON of
cowardice, but he never errs on the side of hastiness
or exhibits signs of rashness. When he finds that
this plan is too uncertain or that project is too un-
safe, he relinquishes the one and bids farewell to
the other. In the present instance he saw, in com-
mon with the other politicians of Europe, that to
pursue the scheme would be to offend the Govern-
ment of the United States, although, if need re-
quired him to bear the brunt of their wrathful in-
dignation, he would not have shrunk from the en-
counter, but to do so without any real cause or impe-
rative claim would have been foolish in the extreme,
and, in fact, an act quite contrary to the course he
has consistently pursued to the satisfaction of his
own subjects, and the admiration of his contem-

poraries.
Of course no one imagines for a moment that
the giving up of the attempt to establish a domi-
nion under French auspices is due to any apprehen-
sion entertained about JUAREZ and his followers,
but the United States declared so strongly against
the affair, as soon as the war that raged between
them and the South was at an end, that it was
quite impossible to mistake their meaning ; and be-
sides this, it was soon seen that the French people
did not first take up the matter so eagerly as had
been anticipated, and after a while seemed to be
averse to it altogether. In the face of decided op-
position in America, and quasi support and coun-
tenance at home, no wonder that the EMPEROR was
induced to abandon the scheme, however reluctant
to do so, and however much he might regret what
seems, at first sight, to be a failure, his " first
failure,"' as it it has, indeed, been emphatically
styled in some quarters.
We must also take into account that the very cir-
cumstances which operated against the Emperor
MAXIMILIAN, and the chances of success to the
French undertaking, were all so many adjuncts of
great moment to JUAREZ and his immediate fol-
lowers, and he found an ally of unquestionable value
in the American PRESIDENT.
We have no doubt that great disadvantages to
the Mexicans will be the immediate result of the
retirement of the French from the scene of their
late exploits. Whatever may be the pros and cons
about the desirability of their interference, no sound
opinion can be entertained as to the social benefit
which their presence conferred on the inhabitants.
Order was established in a great measure, and the
fears that were previously felt with good justice
as to the safety of life and property were greatly
diminished, if not altogether abandoned, while
their rule was in force. All this was

done, we must remember, in the face of all
kind of discouragement, and in spite of constant
harassing in various quarters. No wonder, then,
that people should now inquire what will become
of the Mexicans under the new phase of their
affairs ? The responsibility of maintaining peace
and of re-establishing it will now rest with the
United States, and we hope that by vigorous mea-
sures and determined efforts the Americans will do
all that the Emperor MAximiLIAN desired, but
could not possibly execute, and that the end of this
vexatious strife and bitter antagonism may be that
a decided improvement will be visible in the state
and condition of Mexico and its inhabitants, for
they stand greatly in need of them.

The mail from the Cape of Good Hope gives us
some account of the state of affairs at the Antipodes.
Their political session, like their natural seasons,
comes round at a different time of the year from
our own, and while our statesmen and politicians
are enjoying their holiday, and the world in general
is lamenting the dulness of the time, the colonists
at Cape Town are full of active business. Both
Houses of Parliament, we are told, are proceeding
actively with the business of the session, and their
difficulties and disputes seem to be very much akin
to the perplexities of the mother country. There,
as here, there seems to be a great talk about eco-
monisiug the national expenditure, and a great deal
of difficulty in reducing theory to practice. The
Colonial Secretary, who is there the Finance
Minister, made his Budget Speech on Sept. 25, and
a long debate ensued upon the necessity of economy
in the administration of the public funds, and the
Estimates were referred to a selected committee,
whose report had not appeared when the mail left.
The measures under discussion, of course, stood
over during the interval ; but, as might have been
expected, they have occasioned a good deal of
debate out of doors. The Chambers at Cape Town
and Port Elizabeth appear to be actuated by liberal
motives, and to use their influence in favour
of
ue ann
underenlightened policy. They have had the tariff
ticonsideration, and while they agree
gs
o
in the main with theGovebronthmernetfupsrepd to supportposaltoim
pose import duties, they
the proposal to impose Customs duties on export,
and have ignored the principle of protection to na-
tbievheailaf diusattrhyo, iciooltown iyt. T
h s t a nhdon
i is to agitation
iu tsco'lsoloniny,e
if
pros-
per, must do so through commerce; and a restric-
tivetime
policy, however tempting for the it ,
will be
detrimental to its interests is the long run.
As an agricultural and pastoral country the
exports must form a most important
part of
its trade, and any obstacles put in their
way will be damaging to the very source to which
the colonists must look for wealth and prosperity.
We are glad to find the Chambers of Commerce
alive to the real interests of trade, and in this re-
spect, as in many others, our colonists may learn
from the hard won experience of the mother country,
whose trade and commerce have expanded with the
removal of successive restrictions. English de-
pendencies should not be behind continental nations
in profiting by our example, and in accepting the
doctrines of Free Trade, which are forcing their way
slowly but surely even among the most extensive
nations. The French have to thank the sagacity
of their EIt£EROR for the introduction of principles
which were at first received with great disfavour by
the merchants and manufacturers who have since
been forced to admit the advantages of the system
which they condemned. Even Austria has begun
to awake to the perception of the necessity of a
bolder and more liberal commercial policy, And it is

not a. little singular that the Americans, who are
so enlightened in many respects, have still so
much to learn with respect to Free Trade.
Happily the commercial prospects of the Cape are
at present satisfactory. The crops are reported to
be largely in excess of any previous year, and are
for the most part in a very promising condition,
while the wool-growers have had the best season on
record, so that there was greater activity and a
more sanguine spirit noticeable in all departments.
The Ministry has apparently a very easy task this
session, for we find that the Colonial Secretary, in
moving the second reading of a bill authorising the
Government to raise a loan for the construction of
railways, met with a very strong opposition. The
reasons urged against the bill are not stated, and
may perhaps be valid, but the extension of
the means of transit and communication throughout
the colony is very much to be desired.

The natives are quiet, though there has been a
domestic difficulty arising from their depredations.
It seems that some of the border residents, not being
satisfied with the protection afforded by the Go-
vernment, have formed a mutual protection society
to check the cattle stealing from which they suffer
so much. They have on a recent occasion over-
stepped the law, and have been called to account
by the Governor, who has instituted proceedings
against them. The affair has excited a great deal
of attention, but the general feeling is in favour of
the Governor. Altogether the aspect of affairs is
tranquil, and the prospects of the colony on the
whole arc satisfactory.

It is one of the most promising signs of our social
improvement that great attention is now given to
the care of our destitute and neglected children.
The numbers of these poor little outcasts may not
be quite so alarming as speechmakers occasionally
represent them to be, but they are sufficiently large
to produce a very sensible effect on the welfare of
the next generation. There are critics who find a
great deal to say against any benevolent efforts on
their behalf, proving very logically that the respon-
sibility of caring for them, training them, and
bringing them up as honest and industrious
members of the State, should be divided
between the parents and the Government. But as

generally happens in cases where we have to deal

with facts, and not with theories, logic and philo-
sophy do not altogether answer, and the result of
having trusted to what ought to be rather than
having recognised what is now felt by thousands of
men and women, who, as boys and girls, might have
been rescued from the workhouse, the asylum, or
the gaol. The treatment of these children is not a
question which bears delay. Time, which flies
fast enough with most of us, brings little
change in a year or two to the busy states-
man, the eager politician, the indefatigable man
of business ; but the lapse of a few years will trans-
form the child into a boy, the boy into a youth, the
youth into a man, and before we have settled which
course to adopt with regard to his education we
find him beyond control. When the Ragged Schools
were first established they were regarded by many
as a mere temporary expedient till something better
was thought of ; but a good many generations of
little scholars, reckoning by their brief time of train-
ing, have passed through those schools while the
better plan is yet undiscovered. It seems
but a short time since a few benevolent
gentlemen, moved by the necessities of the
little children who were too young for the ordi-
nary refuges and reformatories, but not too you ng
to suffer to sin and to starve, proposed the esta-
blishment of a " Home for Little Boys." Yet two
years have passed since the scheme was definitely
set on foot, and 90 boys are enjoying its benefits.
The " Home" is at Tottenham, but another is
being erected at Horton Kirby, in Kent, of which
the Princess of WALES laid the first stone. Her
Royal Highness has taken a true motherly interest
in the scheme, and has given: it every encourage-
ment. It is in every sense an excellent and
practical undertaking, and supplies a want which
has long existed, but which in the crowd of more
pressing and demonstrative claims has been over-
looked. The manner in which the details of the
scheme are arranged is highly satisfactory, and we
heartily wish it success.

We have all along thought that the Berlin Go-
vernment would not find it quite so easy as they ex-
pected to have it all their own way in the Chamber
of Deputies, and the experiences that have lately
been made seem to confirm the notion. The fact is,
that the Prussians are always very willing to sup-
port any one, and to push forward any undertaking
that they think will conduce to their own immediate
ends of self-aggrandisement or military renown, but
they are not quite simple enough to believe all that
a specious Minister says, or to sanction all
the unscrupulous acts he resorts to in the
course of his sinister proceedings. It is
with great satisfaction that we find a decided
affront has been put upon M. BISMARCK by the
recent decision of the Chamber. The motion of
Herr LUDER was agreed to by 126 votes to 122, the
terms of which were to the effect that the Govern-
ment should be censured for " the sale of the
Cologne-Minden Railway without the sanction of
the Chambers." We do not expect.that any direct
result will follow from this decision, but still it is
one of great importance, since it proves
that the Chamber will jealously watch over
its privileges, and also that it will not
hesitate to express its indignation at any de-
parture from the rules by those in authority. This
is the third or fourth time since the recent war that
Count BISMARCK has found the Deputies to be not
quite so pliable as he had imagined they would be.
Already the prestige of the war has gone by in a
great measure, and people are beginning to think
that they may pay too dearly for the much-coveted
prize they have acquired. Before long there will
not be wanting further proofs of this dissatis-
faction; but, considering the short time that
has elapsed since the Prussian Minister was
the hero of the day, we think that ho has encoun-
tered a good many lets and hindrances. The Mi-
nister of the Interior has declared that entire unity
reigns among the members of the Cabinet, and
that all that has transpired to the contrary is with-
out foundation. He said that no Goverrment can
be carried on without secret funds and so on ; he
gained his point, and the vote was agreed to. Alto-
gether we do not think that there is much to envy
in the position of the Prussian Ministers just now ;
but in all probability their leader's work has yet
to come when the North German Parliament
assembles.

The Rev. Mr. Spurgeon recently told the fol-
lowing story in ridicule of stupid preachers :
—A Yorkshireman, excusing himself for not attend-
ing church in the evening, said he never went at
night because he could not stand it more than once
a day ; and when asked why, he said—" Well, our
minister is a muff," and compared him to a mill,
which, going round on Sundays without any corn to
grind, went clicketty clack, clicketty clack. " Their
minister," he said, "had got into such a way
of going on that he could stop himself until the
time was up, and so he went on clicketty clack,
clicketty clack ! You know," the Yorkshireman
said, " he ain't a grinding anything •, there is no-
thing in it at all. Ile has got in the habit of going
on, and he does go on, but nothing comes of it ; and
that what I call being a muff."