The Sun.
London, England, 1861-05-20 00:00:00

Doors open at half past 6—Commenoe at 7.

CANTERBURY - HALL CONCERTS
AND FINE ARTS GALLERY.
EVERY EVENING,
A Grand Selection from Verdi's new Opera,
UN BALLO IN MASCIIERA,
(First produced in England at this Establishment),
With a Chorus of Forty Voices.
Also, Verdi's IL CORSARO, never performed at any
her Concerts.
Solos on the Cornet-a-piston, by Mr. Levy.
The Comic Department comprises the Brothers Conrad (in
their new and inimitable entertainments), Mr. Wood and his
talented little Son, Mr. Marshall, Mr. Blanchard, Mr. Hol-
lingsworth, and Miss Rose Howard.
Musical Director, Mr. F. JONGHMANS.

TH E 0 X FOR D,
6. OXFORD-STREET.

Mr. LTIVIT, undoubtedly the best performer of the day on
the Cornet-a-Piston—Grand Selections (on the most complete
scale) from Dinorah, Martha, Stradella, &c., and other vocal
and instrumental music, by Miss Russell, the Misses Stuart,
and Miss Ernst, Messrs. Charles Greville, Fornari, Kimber-
ley, Bernard, Beaumont, Bervon, Huish, Signor Tivoli, and
Mr. Henry Herbert, with full band and powerful and selected
chorus, conducted by Mr. F. Jonghmans.—The following
Comic talent, Messrs. W. Randall, J. Blanchard, W. H. Wie-
land, Hollingsworth, E. Marshall, Harvey, and French, and
the Brothers Conrad in their latest and best entertainment,
every evening. Admission, Hall, sixpence; Balcony and
Stalls, one shilling. Private Boxes, 10s. 6d.

HIGII WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
THU DAY.—Morning, 9h. 58m.—Afternoon, 10h. 30m.
To-moßitow.-Morning, 11h. sm.—Afternoon, 11h. 34m.

THE WEATHER.—SUN OFFICE, MAY 19, 1861.
THERMOMETER, IN THE SHADE.
56—highest since noon yesterday.
40—lowest this morning and during the night.
52—this day at noon.

BAROMETER-30.40, rising rapidly.
WlND—Easterly, inclining to South—rather fresh; with
cloudy weather, and occasional sunshine.
MAI 20.

THEENOWETBE, IN THE MAIM.
:5 8 —highest since noon yesterday.
42—lowest this morning and during the night.
67—this day at noon.

BAROMETER-30.41.
WlND—North-Westerly—light and variable; with fine
sunshiny weather.

THE SUN.
LONDON, MONDAY, MAY 20, 1881.

Another curious American document appeart in
our columns to• day—of no less authority than
the opinion of Mr. C. M. CLAY, the United States'
Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of St. Peters-
burg, on the Anglo-American phase of the Civil
War in his own country. To Englishmen the
letter will appear rather more rhetorical than what
they would look for from a personage of such im-
portance, and charged with such responsible busi-
ness as a Minister Plenipotentiary—rather more,
too, of passion than of accurate statement and
unanswerable argument. Still it is a document of
considerable interest ; not merely because it appeals
to us directly, but because we must suppose Mr.
CLAY to utter the views and feelings of a large
part of the Americans, perhaps of his Government.
He first answers, as the reader will see, three
questions respecting the Free States and their cause,
and then three respecting the honour, the interest
and the safety of England in reference to it. " What
are we fighting for ?" he inquires ; but we can easily
imagine the reply of the Seceded States to all his
remarks. You are not fighting for " nationality"
they would say; for, we are not holding you as an
oppressed nationality diverse from ourselves,—
which is the accepted meaning of your phrase—
and keeping you down by force. You are fighting
on the contrary with a part of our common nation-
ality because, thinking itself ill-treated, it has as-
serted its right to separate Government. Yon are
not fighting for liberty, trial by jury, freedom of
speech and of the press, for we have all these, as much
at least of the two last, as yourselves. We never
parted with our Sovereign rights; we have the
power of life and death ; and we have an efficient
militia as the North will soon learn to its
cost. The gravest charge against them is the viola-
tion of the constitution of their own states themselves,
by refusing to submit the question of Secession to
Universal Suffrage antthe Ballot. As we showed
at length a few days ago, it is aristocracy and not
democracy which has broken up the Union. The
aristocracy which dares not face the Ballot-box,
and which uses at its will four millions of its fellow
men. Mr. CLAY also rightly enough characterises
the spirit of the American aristocracy, and the
deplorable consequences, could its principles but
triumph over the world.
Next he asks, " Can you subdue the seven re-
volted States ?" He has no do doubt on this head
" Of course we can"—when the whole seven re-
volted States contain a population less by a million
and a half than the single State of New York ;
when if all the slave States were to make common
cause ; when if all the Border States joined them,
the North outnumbers them by two to one; when
the Southern strength is diminished by the large
number necessary to guard the slaves; when the
money, when the navy, are to be found only in
the North, and when the whites in the slave
states are divided among themselves, who can
donbt that we can overpower the rebels
But can you govern when you have sub-
jugated ? A question frequently put. We do
mean to stdu , 'ugatehe replies. We go to deliver;
to put down not States only, but rebellious citi-
zens who now overpower
the lovers of the
Union and order. Such language
certainly re-
minds us of the French going to Rome to
deliver the people from a faction, and to deliver
them into the hand of the POPE. There is how-
ever, a real difference. It cannot be denied that
the Unionists are numerous in the Southern States

themselves, and that the political leaders for their
own purposes, and in a very clever way, have con-
trived to precipitate a conflict with the North in
order to prevent the people from calm and unpre-
judiced
consideration of the subject.
7 When Mr. CLAY undertakes however, to point
out to us what is right and best for
England, we
naturally feel even more at home in noticing his
opinions. We think we know our own interest in
the matter, and certainly no strife between nations,
or between sections of nations, has lately occurred

• frf'
k.•`< ", ~401.0tP. r 17' • it Lt Dltft
- - 0.•