The Sun.
London, England, 1857-02-05 00:00:00

THE WEATHER AND THE PARKS.

-
The opening of the Houses of Parliament has caused a
great influx of members of the nobility and gentry to
the metropolis, most of whom have visited the different
royal parks to witness the thousands of persons who were
enjoying the exhilarating; exercise of skating. From +he
early hour of eight in the morning the carriage-drives in
Hyde-park were literally studded with the rich equipages
belonging to the aristocracy, filled with members of the
nobility and their friends.
The announcement that a night skating match was to
come off can-ed a considerable number of ladies and gen-
tlemen to congregate upon the banks of the Serpentine,
and not fewer than 15,000 persons were upon the ice.
The Royal Humane Society's icemen were distributed
over this river by direction of Chailier, the secretary,
and Mr. Williams, the superintendent, and by the pre-
cautions thus adopted many lives were saved.

The thermometer at the Royal Humane Society's re-
ceiving house at Hyde-park during Tuesday night re-
gistered 26, being 6 deg. of frost. At 9 yesterday morn-
ing the mercury rose 1 deg., and even at noon in the sun
the quicksilver rose no higher tha❑ 33, being only 1 deg.
above freezing point ; but it did not stop at that point
long, and at 5 o'clock last evening the glass had gone
down to as low as 30 deg., and the mercury was then
gradually descending, showing that there was every
chance of the present severe weather continuing. The
wind yesterday was north-east, and the weather remark-
ably fine.

The proceedings upon the Serpentine were of a vety
animated character, and comprised many matches of
fancy, ornamental, and sharp skating, in which a great
many gentlemen and ladies, as well as a large number of
soldiers belonging to the Royal Horse Guards (Blue), and
Scots Fusiliers, took part. A great many prizes were
won during the day. At dusk a large number of linen-
drapers' assistants, belonging to the early closing move-
ment, proceeded to the Serpentine, and with lighted
links disported themselves upon the ice for hours. The
reflection from the flambeaux had a singular and at the
same time picturesque effect. Mr. Superintend ent Wil-
liams, upon seeing so great a number of persons upon
the ice, had a number of icemen sent out in case of any
accident taking place ; but it was some hours before the
parties could be induced to leave. Not lees than 10 per-
sons were removed to the Royal Humane Society's re-
ceiving-house with severe out heads, by falling
ice, or by being cut by the points of skates, where their
wounds were dressed.
's —Seven
THE LONG WATER IN KENSINGTON-GARDEN
i.uponhteir
ladies, ventured upon the ice, and abouthlem e4n
thousand persons, including several elegantly-s=cyl
I gentle-
injured by falling. A. great many
persons were much
for hours upon the ice, and severalnumber of fashionable
men belonging to the Skating Clubs themselves
hurt by being tripped up.
upon the frozen waters
was the Countess of
lduringadiesatl also skated very v
amongstery r
oa Afcwerht greatuael7lye
patent skates.
Desert, who wore a pair b
_A. out, -3,000 ladies and gentle-
men,ent open the
ice yester-
day, RO
and also
' na took place of any Importance.
day, but no irnmersto
Ten thousand skaters and
THE REGENT'S PARK,
11)
:elll-About
soldiers, w
sliders went upon the ornamental waters in this park
yesterday, and a great number of parties were injured by
being thrown down upon the ice, and cut about the head.
THE VICTORIA. PARK had several thousand persons
upon the ice yest a
neerday, and the Royal Humane Socie'y
h sent down w set of apparatus in case of accidents"
occurring ; but nothing
taken place. yet of a serious chat auttr has
The Parks at Clapham and Hampstead were both well
attended by skaters and sliders.

EXECUTION AT LINLITHGOW.—Tiis
Peter M`Lean suffered the unfortunate man
extreme penalty of the law
INCO
on Monday morning at Linlithgow.
ME TAX MEETING AT eIIELSEA.—A. crowded
meeting against the income tax was held last evening at
Lloyd's
M d's Assembly Rooms, Chelsea ; Mr. R. Malins,
~ .P., in the chair. Resolutions in savour of the
immediate removal of the "war N.," and condemnatory
of indiscriuninattly taxing precarious and permanent in-
comes were carried unanimously. Messrs. West,
Hawkins, A.rchbott, and other gentlemen, took part in
the proceedings,

DAVIDSON v. DUNCAN.

Now we are not going to question the correctness
of this decision in point of law, and indeed it per-
' fecfly accords with what we have always under-
stood to be the present law of libel, but we do most
strongly dispute the policy of that law as applied
to the publishers of newspapers. The journalist
who of his own mere notion, and maliciously, pub.
lishes libellous matter ought doubtless to suffer for
it. Such a man abuses and prostitutes the power
which he wields, and converts it into an odious en.
gine of oppression. But the case of "Dawson T.
Duncan" is very different from this. It in
merely the case of a journalist publishing
in his newspaper the proceedings of a meeting
,
which might, so far as appears have been.
attended by all England, if all England could have
been squeezed into the room where it was held. In
presenting the report to his readers, Mr. Duncan
only did what they expected, and required at his
hands, and what they would hare severaly repro..
bated him for not doing. How is the journalist
in such a case to reconcile his duty towards his
readers with his duty as expounded by the sages
of the law ? Again, look at the monstrous bard..
ship inflicted upon the publisher of a newspaper
by requiring him to ascertain that every report
of every meeting shall not contain a tittle
of libellous matter. Why, in that case,
the proprietor of every journal of frequent
publication ought to retain counsel for the
purpose of perusing and advising upon every re-
port of a public meeting before it is inserted
in his newspaper, for it is by no means always easy
to distinguish between fair, temperate criticism,
and libel. One action for libel, in which moderate
damages only were recovered, might otherwise
sweep away a large portion of the year's profits.
Another very preposterous consequence might
follow the present state of the law. There are
some words, which, when spoken at a public meet-
ing, would not be slander, but which would be-
come a libel as soon as they were transfered to the
columns of a newspaper. Thus the original utterer,
who no doubt entertained some feeling against the
personwith relation to whom theywerevoken, would
be liable to no penalty, but the journalist in whose
paper they were innocently, and, perhaps, unknown
to himself, reported, would find himself liable to an
faction for libel. We may be told, perhaps, that
private character is of so much consequence that it
ought to be protected at any cost. The fact, how-
ever, is that the reputation of merely private per-
sons is rarely assailed in a public meeting. It is
usually some act done by a man in a quasi public
character, which exposes him to the withering scorn
and unsparing denunciation of the platform orator,
and such a man's reputation becomes public pro.
perty, to be freely canvassed and criticised by his
fellow-citizens. And even where this is not the
case—where the person attacked holds no public
office and has never meddled in public life, it would
seem that his appropriate remedy is not against the
journalist who is the innocent cause of spreading
his adversary's misstatements, but against his ad-
versary himself. Damages recovered against the
former will neither save his wounded repu-
tation nor gratify his spleen, for he has
really no cause of quarrel with the innocent
publisher. The most effectual redress which can be
afforded him by the journalist is the publication of
a denial of the charges brought against him, toge-
ther with any proof which he might be able to ad-
duce of their falseness, which would circulate as
the charges themselves • and, until such publics.
tion had been requested and refused, no action
should be allowed to be brought. Unless the law
as laid down in "Davison v. Duncan" be altered,
the position of newspaper proprietors, publishers,
editors, and reporters will be absolutely intoler-
able, while the public will sustain a very consider.
able loss in not being allowed to receive accurate
reports of proceedings in which they may feel
deeply interested.—Leeds Mercury.

RECENT PROMOTIONS IN T7ll ORDER
OF THE BATH.

.
(From the Naval and Military Gazette.)
In our observations, last week, upon the anomalous
and unjust distribution of the Order of the Bath, we al
laded to Rear-Admiral the Hon. Sir R. S. Dundas hav-
ing been promoted for the bombardment of Sweaborg,
which work we considered was only half done—and it is
not the only time we have expressed ourselves to that
effect ; for assuredly, when the news first reached us, we
felt something more than disappointment that the line-
of-battle ships did not go in and take advantage of the
destruction produced by the fire of the mortar and gun
boats, and our impressions on that occasion were after.
wards confirmed by the opinions expressed by the Grand
Duke Constantine relative to that bombardment, on the
arrival of her Majesty's ship Cressy at Cronstadt. Since
our last, however, a much-valued correspondent has
written to us upon the subject. As he is well
acquainted with the locale of Sweaborg, and the diffie
culties of approaching that fortress, his communica-
tion is entitled to undoubted attention ; and we
must acknowledge that the manner in which he has
brought sundry facts to bear upon his assertions have,
on an attentive and impartial perusal of his statements,
materially modified the views we previously entertained
of Rear-Admiral the Hon. R. S. Dundas's tactics at
Sweaborg, and bad we been in possession la't week of
the circumstances stated in our correspondent's letter
we certainly should not have animadverted as we did on
the fact of Sir Richard's not following up his first suc-
cess ; still, we must maintain that the service, good as it
was, so far as it went, was not of the character and
stamp required to meet the intentions of the statutes of
the order, as laid down by George IV., and detailed in
our last number. If, indeed, we compare Sir Richard
Dundas's achievement in the Baltic with the more than
useless attempt at Sebastopol, then, indeed, there can be
no second opinion as to his deserving the distinction he
has obtained pre-eminently ; for what he did he did well
—so well that his friends and the country could not but
be annoyed and disappointed at his not carrying his suc-
cess further—and in ,these days of half-measures his
conduct seemed but an additional confirmation of the
vacillating and doubting spirit which appears to have
seizei up-In all our commanding officers, both naval and
military, duricgithe Russian war.
But contrast the bombardment of Sweaborg, and the
reward it has obtained for its commander-in-chief, with
the dashing and perilous enterprises of the last great war
—en' erprises so chivalrously daring as to call forth the
necessity for the extension of the highest order but one
in the land ; since nothing but so ancient and time-
honoured an institution could do juAtice to the brilliant
achievements which shed such Ware on the reign of
George 111., and which order, in its extension, was
purposely so framed as to render its abuse impossible to
any honourable-minded mini,try ; when, therefore, we
say we compare the attack on Sweaborg (an attack, be
it remembered, carried on in comparative safety, and
suggested by a very talented officer), with the deeds of
last war, executed, too, with such inferior means to those
lately put in requisition—when we place the past and
the present in juxta-position—we cannot but still adhere
to our opinion that the bestowal of the Bath for Swea-
borg was not in conformity with the regulations and re-
quirements of the order; though truly, if Sir Richard
Dundee was not entitled to it, assuredly all the others
had not even a shadow of a claim compared with him ;
and certainly it the late disgraceful distribution had even
a semblance of fairness towards the officers engaged,
both in the Black Sea and the Baltic Seas, Sir Richard
Douglas was more entitled to the G.C.B. than his name-
sake in the Euxine, for he obtained a real, though im-
perfect success, while the other as surely sustained a
defeat.

We trust the Commons of England will call upon the
First Lord, when Parliament meets, to explain and jus-
tify his lavish and illegal distribution of an order hitherto
so highly prized, but now rendered worthless in the eyes
of all who know its recent history. We shall be glad
to know on what plea he will attempt to vindicate the
promotion of Beat-Admiral Freruant'e, as well as that
of his own brother-in-law, Rear-Admiral
the
ee 11Foirns.tWL.0Fra.
Grey ; for, as the case stands at present, it is one too
tgross
recklessto admitad
uthe
is
hsolingehstte st
anteidea f f oaf.
oul palliation.it jsai f
for
which
fich
all
the Admiralty Board is famous, this is wholly and
utterly unjustifiable, and we trust it will rank conspi.
cuous amongst the matters for which h
will have to give an acclun, in the House of Commons.