The Sun.
London, England, 1861-05-09 00:00:00

peo]

THE SUN, LONDON, TIMRSDA'

their acceptance--giving them in the name of Lord
ELGIN one of a purely exceptional character. The
latter was there at the hospitable board of the Royal
Academy in no public capacity whatever. His
name, in point of fact, could not strictly be coupled
with any particular department. He was no
longer one of her MAJESTY'S Ministers as he
had been at the period of his last departure
from these shores : when—it will be borne
in recollection—he went forth in the direc-
tion of China still retaining his ministerial posi-
tion conditionally as her MAJESTY'S Postmaster-
General. His Grace the Duke of ARGYLL doing
duty in that capacity for his noble colleague, until
such time as it become apparent that the Earl of
ELGIN must really hasten onwards to his remote
destination—when Lord STANLEY of Alderley be-
came Lord ELGIN'S successor at St. Martin's-le-
Grand. The noble earl moreover was there, at the
Royal Academy Banquet, not any longer as His
Excellency Her Britannic MAJESTY'S representative.
He sat at the board presided over by Sir CHARLES
EASTLAKE, simply in his own individual character.
Yet was his name, when given forth from the chair
as " a toast" early in the evening, greeted with en-
thusiasm—with cordial and earnest enthusiasm—by
the distinguished company by whom he was then
surrounded. It was recognised, that now doubly
historic name, as that of a man who had more than
once, and upon each occasion, in a very singular
and signal manner done good service to the Crown
and to the country—not merely by presiding, during
several consecutive years, with remarkable ability
over one of the greatest of our Fifty Colonies, namely,
Canada; but who had more recently upon two
memorable occasions brought to a happy close a
war raging at the opposite extremity of this hemi-
sphere between England and the most populous
empire upon the surface of the globe, that vast
country of China, peopled by no less than
400,000,000 inhabitants. . .

And yesterday, after all these recognitions
of his good deeds vouchsafed, to the Earl
of ELGIN since his return homewards,
yesterday, to complete all, the noble lord was
entertained at a magnificent banquet, given in
his honour by the Right Hon. the LORD
MAYOR of London in his capacity as the chief
magistrate of our great metropolitan corporation.
In expressing his acknowledgments to the assembled
company last evening at the Mansioh-house, Lord
ELGIN happily disclaimed on his own part, in so
doing, any intention whatever of vindicating his
recently successful policy in the Far East, in the
limited space of time that can be suffered to elapse
between two glasses of wine at a convivial
assemblage. Besides, it so happens in his
instance, that any such attempt at cramming

an Iliad into a nutshell, would have proved to every

one present a matter of entire supererogation. The
story of the late Chinese war is, in all its varied
details, "familiar in our mouths as household words."
It requires no further repetition. It is known in-
timately. And—what is better still—it is fully and
cordially appreciated. Not an Englishman, worthy
of the name, but recognises clearly the honour due
to the diplomatist who had there, in China, at
Pekin, the conduct, on the part of England, in con-
junction with Baron GRog, on the part of France,
of those momentous and ever-memorable negotia-
The capture of the Chinese capital,
or, at any rate, the triumphal entry
into it of Englishmen and Frenchmen
beaded by their respective ambassadors, long after
he ignominious flight of the Emperor HIEN-TUNG
nto Tartary : that renowned and unprecedented

:ions.

entrance of the allies, but particularly of the allied
ambassadors, the diplomatic representatives of the
allied French and. English Sovereigns—is a fact, a
historical fact not one atom more completely known,
or more thoroughly appreciated, than the other and

far greater fact that there immediately sprang out
of it, that other fact that, thanks to Lord ELGIN
and Baron GROS, terms of peace were dictated by
England and France—at Pekin—to the haughty,
and hitherto at once insolent and inaccessible
Chinese Government;! Supposing Lord ELGIN
were now to abandon public life altogether and
to retire into the seclusion of home tranquillity, he
has already inscribed his name and fame indelibly
upon the national annals, he has earned for himself
a conspicuous and most honourable niche in the
British Walhalla. But—it is a satisfaction in
his regard to bear in particular remem-
brance the circumstance that—having done
all this, having completed these numerous
remarkable achievements—he is still in the
prime of his life, he is still in the full vigour
of his maturity. Many years we may still hope are
yet reserved for him, and through him for his
country—that is to say, many years during which
he may win fresh laurels for the enhancement of
his already distinguished reputation, and during
which either at home or abroad the British Empire,
he has already served so well and so frequently
may profit by his rare gifts both as a diplomatist
and as an administrator.

THE COUNTESS OF DERBY'S ASSEMBLY.—The
Countess of Derby gave her second reception last night at
the family mansion in St. James's-square. A numerous
and brilliant company graced her ladyship's saloons by
their presence.

Mr. Cobden has arrived in Paris, and alighted at
the Hotel Meurice.
TAXING MASTER OF TIIE HOUSE OF COMMONS.—
The office of Taxing Master to the House of Commons has
been conferred on Mr. Charles Frere, Examiner for Stand-
ing Orders to the two Houses of Parliament.

The death has been announced of Mr. James
Malcolmson, one of the senior directors of the Bank of
England, and head of the great Bombay firm of Forbes,
Forbes, and' Co.

DEATH OF MRS. AGNES BAlLtIE.—The an-
nouncement of a recent death has caused some sensation in
society. Mrs. Agnes Baillie, the sister of Joanna and Dr.
Baillie, is dead at the age of 100. A letter of Mrs. Bar-
bauld, dated in 1800, tells of the outburst of Joanna's fame,
a year or two after the anonymous publication of her
"Plays on the Passions :"—" a young lady of Hampstead
who came to Mrs. Barbauld's meeting with as innocent a
face as if she had never written a line." At the time of
the Treaty of Ghent, Mr. Clay, the American commis-
sioner, was advised to call in Dr. Baillie, as a physician of
long- established fame. A quarter of a century since Joanna
and Agnes had settled their affairs precisely alike, and ar-
ranged everything, each for the other, wondering how the
survivor could live alone. They lived on together till long
past 80; yet Agnes has been the solitary survivor of her
family for so many years that it was a relief—though still a
reluctant one—to hear that she was gone. With those
women—simple, sensible, amiable, and gay in temper, and
of admirable cultivation, apart from Joanna's genius—a
period of our literature seems to close ; and we are all weak
enough to sigh at times over what is inevitable.—Once a
Week. _ _ .

THE GREAT NORTHERN HOSPITAL—The fifth
anniversary festival of this institution was celebrated yes-
terday at the Albion Tavern—the Right Hon. the Lord
Chelmsford in the chair. After the usual loyal and patriotic
toasts, that of the evening was given, when his lordship
made an eloquent appeal in aid of the funds of the hospital,
which, in consequence of the great number of patients re-
sorting to it for treatment, had not only been quite ex-
hausted, but a debt of £1,300 had accumulated. It was to
relieve the valuable institution of this incubus that he soli-
cited ad from the guests. The appeal of the chairman was
responded to by the visitors subscribing upwards of £350.

LA,GND._F
REATRPoIm2
ALI, OF SNOW IN THE WEST OF ENG-
Ve
xe dt
rnacosrdd
ny
a. —r y Tchi
ri sc u
nn
sotranni
cn
eg w f
e xPve
snow storm in May. From five o'clock till noon the fall
was continuous and steady, and in some parts of the country
quite two feet of snow covered the ground. A rapid thaw
o ahe ea;
rienced the very
set in in the afternoon and little trace of winter is now re-
The oldest inhabitants speak of a similar visita-
rioainnsloning. 0 half a century since, but very few of the present
generation remember it. The weather this evening is cold
—wind S.W.
Snow fell in Southampton yesterday morning.

N. F.ECIETE.R,

The Princess's is still thrice every week crowded
with an enthusiastic audience hanging breathlessly
upon every syllable that falls from the lip, upon
every look that gleams from the eye, upon every
emotion that plays over the mobile features of this
incomparable Artist. M. Fechter, as Hamlet, is
not only at this moment the " sight" of London, it
is one of its most exquisite and elevating sensations.
Those who have not witnessed this extraordinary
performance, those who have only read of it, or
who have seen the photographic representations of
the Great Actor as he appears in the character,
cannot form to themselves even the most glimmer-
ing notion of the effect produced upon the spectator
by it, as a manifestation, not so much of consum-
mate Art as of pure and unsophisticated Genius. The
character of Hamlet has now for the better part
of three hundred years been an inexplicable enigma,
an inscrutable mystery to all the Shaksperian
critics who have descanted upon that dramatic,
intellectual, metaphysical Marvel in terms of be-
wildered admiration. - Beholding M. Fechter's
impersonation of Hamlet—everything enigmatical,
everything that before might have appeared mys-
tically incomprehensible and incoherent and at times
even absolutely inconsistent in the character, fades
out entirely, melts away altogether. The character,
the temperament, the whole wondrous idiocyncracy
of the Danish Prince come out at last clearly and
vividly before our recognition—Hamlet, as imper-
sonated by Mr. Fechter, is enshrined for ever in
our memory as " one entire and perfect chryso-
lite !" And how he looks it ! At his first
entrance upon the stage you are disappointed.
As he sits there moodily below the royal dais, with
his head and his glance bent downwards, com-
muning with himself dolefully over the memory
of his dead father—you hardly think him worthy
of the ideal Hamlet. Forgetting, perhaps, for the
moment, that Hamlet is thirty, you fancy he lacks
adolescence and even comeliness. But—wait till he
rises, till his glance is raised, till he speaks ! Wait
till you see the cloud and sunshine of profound and
varying emotions flitting over that pale face—down
either side of which streams down that blonde
yellow hair that flows luxuriantly upon his shoul-
ders ! Wait till you hear the vibrations of that
dulcet voice, thrilling so often and so tenderly with
the tears zn it—Wait! Through all the five acts yon
follow his every movement (and his movements are
so full of grace !), his every glance (and at moments
his countenance appears so strikingly handsome!)
his every tone (and they are so perpetual in their
mutation, and so often and so deliciously vibrant
with pathetic tenderness !)—summoning him before
the drop scene at the close of each act, and particu-
larly before the green curtain, at the close of
the fifth, to receive the meed of public applause,
and (it is so, we are satisfied, with each one of the
public) of almost personal gratitude—in crashing
rounds of acclamations. We do not in writing
thus in any way exaggerate. The impersonation
of Hamlet by
M. Fechter is exquisitely noble and
beautiful—it is a histrionic. masterpiece. We can-
not often see him for our tears. We long
to grasp that hand that never moves without
revealing some new grace of gesticulation. • The
imagination is haunted afterwards on leaving the
th eatre by those thrilling accents and that alternately
beaming and mournful countenance. And the
general admiration excited by Mr. Fechter's
Hamlet is in no way diminished, we may
be quite sure of this—it is incalculably enhanced
and intensified by the recollection that the
Great Actor who has now come over to London, in
order to show to delighted crowds of Englishmen
how Shakspere ought to be acted, and how among
all the characters of Shakspere that marvellous
tragic part of Hamlet ought to be delineated—is a
Frenchman! The impersonation of Hamlet by M.
Fechter, when viewed in the light of that astonish-
ing recollection, rises to the dignity of a rare intel-
lectual achievement. But it is far more than that
--it is immeasureably more than a mere source of
wonderment as a psychological phenomenon. There
is a living soul breathed into this remarkable creation
—that vitalising spirit which is the one essential
endowment of every really Great Actor—the living
soul orpuro imrs.d waociwaatianalalda waning_ Agnocia.ted
with Mr. Pechter in the performance, week after
week (upon every Monday, Wednesday, and Fri-
day) at the Princess's, of this Tragedy of Tragedies,
we ought to mention the name, if only
en passant, of Mr. Hermann Vezin, as an ele-
gant and impassioned Laertes, noting in rt.-
ference to the Claudius of Mr. Ryder that it is—
as it is almost always with Mr. Ryder—at once
painstaking and picturesque. But M. Fechter's
Hamlet, like the sun at noonday, outshines all
the stars by its dominating brilliancy. It is
nothing less, we repeat, than an achievement, and
we marvel no longer when we have once gazed upon
it through our tears, we marvel no longer that it
produces so profound a sensation upon every even-
ing of its performance.

EbT NE WS .1

CIVIL WAR IN AMERICA,

:RECEIVED BY THE NORTH BRITON, YIA LON-

DONDERAT.)

NEW YORK, APRIL 26, P.M.
Four New York regiments have arrived at Wash-

ington.

The capital is supposed to be strong enough to
resist any attack.

The route from Annapolis to Washington is kept
open by Federal troops.

The Baltimore railroad communication is still
interrupted.
Fort Smith, in Arkansas, with property of the
estimated value of 800,000 dols., has been taken by
the State troops. The Confederate flag has been
hoisted on the fort.
The Governor of New York has made a call for
21 additional regiments.

The public buildings in Washington have been

barricaded.

The Governor of Delaware has responded to
President Lincoln's call for troops.

(LATEST BY TELEGRAPH TO PORTLAND.)

NEW YORK, APRIL 27.

The steamships Fulton and Glasgow have sailed
for Europe—the former with despatches for the
British Government.

The Federal Government is chartering all the
available steamers for transports and gunboats.
The steamer Kedar has been chartered..

The Union sentiment in Maryland is arousing.
In some parts the people threaten to hang their
representatives if they vote for Secession.
The Southern troops are reported to be march-
ing on Washington in detachments.
Planting is neglected in the South.
The growing crops are in danger, from want of
cultivation.
The North Briton left Portland Maine on the
27th ult. She passed the United Kingdom on the
6th inst.

COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE.
NEW YORK, APRIL 27.

The stock market is firm. The following are
the latest quotations :—lllinois Central, 571 ; Erie,
21 ; New York Central, 73Z- ; Exchange on Lon-
don, 105 to 1051. Cotton firm ; middling upland,
14c.

Breadstuffs advancing; provisions quiet; beef

firmer.

NEW ORLEANS, APRIL 26,
Cotton nominal; middling, 11c. to lie.
Freight ld. per lb.
Exchange unsaleable.

MURDER OF COUNT TELERI.
PESTH, MAY 8.

In to-day's sitting of the Lower House, 111
Ghyczy, the President, confirmed the mournful
tidings which had circulated in this city, thal
Count Teleki had been found murdered in his resi.
dence.

The house, on this announcement, raised a cry of
despair, and several ladies in the galleries were car-
ried away fainting.
M. Deak, in a voice nearly stifled by emotion,
proposed that the sittings of the house should be
adjourned until Monday next. -
The city is highly excited.

It is alleged that Count Teleki committed suicide,
but this statement is doubted.

MARSEILLES, MAY 9.

Advices received here from Constantinople to the
Ist inst. state that Oilier tha
following week for Bosnia, accompanied by a dele-
gation composed of one attaché from each Embassy
of the great Powers.
A French steamer had proceeded to Beyrout to
bring back the International Commission to Con-
stantinople.

- .
Prince Garatschanin,who was in Constantinople
on a special mission from Servia, claimed from the
Porte hereditary rights for the reigning family of
Obrenovitsch.

TURIN, MAY 9.
Prince Carignan and the Chevalier de Nigra are
shortly expected at Turin.
The appointment of the Commander de Martino
as Lieutenant of the King of Naples has been de-
cided upon. He will soon proceed thither.

THORN, MAY 8.

Extraordinary sittings of the Council of State
have taken place for several days past at Warsaw,
on account of some peasants having refused to per-
form the forced labour required of them.
The latest news announces that in some districts,
however, the peasants are less refractory.

FRANCE.

PARIS, WEDNESDAY EVENING.

In to-day's sitting of the Corps Legislatif several
members of the committee on the Treaty of Com-
merce complained of the manner in which the Go-
vernment was proceeding in reference to the duties
on the exportation of rags and drills, as the duties
established by the Franco-Belgian Treaty of Com-
merce did away with the amendments proposed by
the committee. _ _ _

Several Government bills were laid on the table,
one of which was for opening a credit of 45 million
francs for great works of public utility, and another
for issuing bonds, amounting to 104 million francs,
repayable in thirty years.
BOURSE, May B.—The market continues heavy,
but without any further decline in prices. An ex
pectation of an advance in the rate of discount by
the Bank of England rather acts unfavourably on
the market. Threes, for the ACeount, are now at
69f 20c. Railway Shares dull, and with a deoline
on some of the lines.

The following were the last quotations:—
ft per per Cents ... 96 25, Credit Fancier 997
Do. wad month.... —'Belgian 41 9B
3 per Cents
Do. end month 69 301 Roman
Bank Shares 69
2890 —1 Austrian
Credit Mobilior.... 701 2.5 ; Spanish Threes 49
Do. Account 7OO I Rome Debt

ronrecl the Dane, Count of Elsinore,
Bentley.

2 vole.

This is a very interesting narrative of the adven-
tures of a singlar man—it is told with spirit, and
the reader cannot be otherwise than delighted with
its stirring recital. This story has before appeared
in the pages of the " Dublin University Magazine,"
hence it will be familiar to many, but these will
no doubt be glad of an opportunity of renewing
their acquaintance with its attractive sketches.
One cannot help.feeling interested in the character
of Lars Vonved, and, indeed, he is not at all like
the generality of outlaws, as there is nothing des-
perate or revengeful in his temper. If anything
could have excused such a life as he led, it would
have been the cruel persecutions to which he was
subjected. There is not so much recorded here of
the life at sea, as most of the incidents occurred on
shore. The events of the second volume are most
exciting, and the manner of Vonved's escape is very
remarkable. He had been before imprisoned, but
had contrived to elude the vigilance of his captors
by various ingenious devices. On this occasion the
united skill and strength of many were exerted to
prevent any escape till the renowned outlaw should
have expiated his crimes by a cruel:death. When
the fatal hour arrived, and the messengers of doom
went to execute their fatal purpose, they found
that a more merciful herald had preceded them, and
that Lars Vonved was extended before them in the
slumber that would not yield to their stern sum-
mons. The news spread like wildfire over the city,
and the expectant crowd dispersed. The friends
were permitted to remove the body, and it was uni-
versally supposed that the career of the melafactor
was over. A different scene was being enacted on the
great waters, where the departed hero had per-
formed such deeds of prowess, and ruled with so-
vereign sway. "Descend to the great cabin. What
a scene is here. On the table upon a pile of bed-
ding lies the form of Lars Vonved, unchanged in
appearance since the morning appointed for his
execution. Dunraven looked up and caught the
anxious eye of Bertel. They sighed with mournful
significance." 'Tis invain to ponder o'er this dim
parchment, muttered Bertel. ' Very vain ' re-
sponded Dunraven, ' and even could you discover
the key to its impenetrable symbols—of what avail ?
The countess" and he lowered his voice, and
glanced furtively at Amalie, " has already told us
what he said,—and he alone could read that fearful
scroll.' Aye,but think you LieutenantDunraven,'
gravely muttered Bertel, " that in the terrible agi-
tation she must then have experienced she may not
have misunderstood or forgotten." No, sir, my
life on it, neither, he told her that this mysterious
powder would, if taken as he intended to take it,
according to the secret instructions on the parch-
ment, immediately after she had quitted his dun-
geon on her last visit, thrown him into a profound
lethargy—a counterfeit of death, such as no man
could possibly detect. This trance, this apparent
total suspension of all sensation, was to last pre-
cisely forty-eight hours, and in that interval we
were to obtain permission to remove his supposed
corpse, and thus insure his ultimate safety. All
has hitherto come to pass as he foresaw. See, is it
not death's twin sister, and he motioned towards
the rigid form of his beloved leader and friend.
Ay, but is it not death indeed and not merely his
dread semblance." We have no right whatever
to fear that, responded Dunraven in a tone which
was not quite so confident as his words, little more
than forty-seven hours have elapsed since he has
been outwardly inanimate, and a strange sharp
cry, piercing but not loud, broke from Amelia, and
when they hurried to her side she was standing
with arms extended and her face bent closely over
the marble lineaments of her husband. They at
once beheld the cause of her intense emotion. A
gentle dew was breaking from the pores of Von-
ved's face and forehead ; his eyelashes quivered
slightly, yet very perceptibly ; the deadly pallor
of his features had disappeared and given place to
a faint roseate tint. He lives—life is returning.
Minutes are hours now to the group around the
reviving form of the outlaw. Dunraveu drew
down the sheet and chafed his breast. Mads Neil-
sen rubbed his feet and cherished them against his
bosom, sobbing and ejaculating with savage vehe-
mence. Time flies ; and yet they all think time an
eternity ! He lives ! Hush! his limbs quiver !
His eyes are opening ! He is growing warm ! He
moves his fingers ! He lifts his arm ! He is alive !
His eyes are open. He lives. lie sees—he knows
us ! His lips unclose ! He will soon speak.
Saved ! He lives ! And so it came to pass in the
degree indicated by the ejaculations above quoted
from the thousands that were uttered, that Lars
Vonved recovered life and consciousness; and just
when the forty eight hours expired he heaved a
long deep sigh, gazed steadily around, and flung
his arms aloft like a giant awaking from sleep.
Nearly every man of his devoted crew by this
time were thronging around him in the great
ruihin. and the sternest old sea-dog of them all
wept like a nervous -worn.o for unutter-
"Lb]a joy and thankfulness. " Life I I live ;
I thank God Almighty 1 live r Such were the
first words uttered by the lips of Vonved the
Dane." The conclusion of this tale will doubtless
take many by surprise, as instead of horrors all be-
comes bright and splendid in the new path opening
before the recovered hero, and the last page leaves
him reinstated in his honours and restored to his
position. It recalls to the mind of the reader the
scene in Scott's " Lady of the Lake," where the
King presents the outlawed chieftain to his
astonished courtiers, and exclaims—

" Ask nought for Douglas, yester even
His prince and he have much forgiven,
And Bothwell's lord, henceforth we own,
The friend and bulwark of our throne."
Amalia, the wile of Vonved, displayed a spirit that
was worthy of the illustrious race whose name she
bore, and in the hour of peril she was a true heroine.
An extraordinary sketch of summary retributive
justice is given in the account of Mads Neilsen's
vengeance on the betrayer. The wretch deserved
his fate, for no one can ever sympathise with
treachery, and Nealen's lingering death on the
lonely coast might be a suitable termination to
many such miscreants. Another striking scene is
the end of a worse betrayer, for he belonged to
Vonved's own crew. Jorgen' Neilsen was the bro-
ther of the intrepid Made, and it was a dreadful
blow for that devoted follower to learn that
his own relation had betrayed his beloved
chief. The doom for the traitor was to
" walk the plank," :n other words, to be consigned
to a watery grave, on the instant of discovery.
The
scene where Vonved's astonished and indignant
followers doom their recreant comrade to his dread-
ful death is a very impressive one, and described
with great ability. It is not often we meet with
such vigorous delineation of character and such
vivid illustrations of events as abound throughout
this remarkable work. It seems to blend romance
and reality together in a marvellous manner, and
seldom is a more attractive hero found for the
novelist to depict in glowing colours, or the reader
to study with admiring delight, than the intrepid
Rover of the Baltic, the descendant of the renowned
race of the great Valdemar. Those who would
peruse an entertaining narrative cannot do better
than possess themselves of this stirring and striking
romance. " Vonved the Dane" is superior to many
of those nautical narratives that have been so much
in vogue of late years, and its chief charm consists
in its life and animation. The author enters eagerly
into the spirit of all the eventful occurrences, and
dwells con amore on the peculiarities of the chief
actors of the tale. The scenes on board the vessels
are graphically described, and are, moreover, replete
with that energy and enthusiasm that is so espe-
cially and essentially to be desired in any transcrip-
tion of .the actions of the bold and free.. The
men who trod the decks of the " Skildpadde"
and the " Amalia" were of the stuff of
which heroes are made, and no enemy would like
to encounter such opponents, while the king whose
navy comprised such defenders might reckon him-
self impervious against all attacks. This brilliant
sketch of a Danish Romance may be confidently re-
commended to the notice of readers, and its strange
and stirring recital will certainly attract their at-
tention, awaken their interest,
admiration. and excite their

Ara ; or, Now to Manage a Colony. By J. W. B.
Money, Barrister-at-Law. 2 vols. Hurst and

Blackett.
Very little is generally known in this country
respecting the internal administration of the Dutch
colony of Java, and that little is mostly prejudicial
to the Government of Holland. Tyranny in the
rule and monopoly in the commerce are the two
prevailing impressions, and the idea of gathering
probably be esteemed
.
any suggestions from its management with regard
to our Indian Empirewould
preposterous by our Indian legislators. Neverthe
less the author of this work, after personal inspec-
tion, careful study, and consultation, not only of
Dutch, but English, French, and German mer-
chants yesuaing,there, has arrived at very different
conclusions. 'I he administration of Java he con-
siders to be admirably adapted to the native cha-
racter, equitable in its principles, and bear-
ing the satisfactory testimony of general con-
tent and prosperous finances ; and in many re-
spects he thinks we might pursue the same system
with great advantage to our Indian Empire. The
contrast between the state of the two colonies is
somewhat startling. The following facts are
worth the consideration of the practical financier :
"The state of India in 185,1 was too exceptional to afford
a fair comparison, and I have, therefore, taker each coun-
tryas it stood in 1556-7, thelaq and most prosperous year
of normal tranquillity in India before the rebellion. Java
is as different from the rest of Netherlands India as our
Indian territory is from the ptlye states i Ai1iC199444,

The fair comparison, therefcre, is between Java and Madura
on the one side, with 10,800,000 of population, yielding
nearly the whole revenue of Netherlands India, and on
the other side, the English territory in India, with 132
millions of population, yielding nearly the whole revenue of
British India. The Indian area is 16 times larger than
Java and Madura. The I ndian population is 12 times that
of Java and Madura. The Anglo-Indian revenue is only
four times that of Netherlands India. The land tax per
head in India is one-third heavier than in Java, and forms
three-fifths instead of only one-tenth of the revenue.
Revenue without taxation gives in Java, per head, 13 times
as much as in India. The Java revenue per head is three
times that of British India, with one-third less pressure on
the people. Unproductive expenditure in India absorbs
over two-thirds, instead of one-third of the revenues as in
Java. One-fourth of the revenue in Java is employed in
reproductive works, instead of only one-ninth as in India,
giving a beneficial expenditure per head at least seven times
greater. The whole Java expenditure is per head double
that of India, and yet !eaves a yearly net surplus of one-
fourth of the revenue instead of a yearly deficit. On two
heads only is the comparison apparently against Java.
The home charges in Holland are heavier per head
than the home charges in England, which is but
natural with the smaller country. The former only come,
however, to one-seventeenth of the Java revenue, while the
latter absorb one.twelfth of the Indian receipts. The in-
terest on the debt in Java is three times as much per head
as the interest on the Indian debt before the mutiny. But
the Dutch East Indian debt is not a proper charge on
Netherlands India, and the interest on that debt, being a
mere reduction of the Java surplus revenue paid to Holland
ar tribute, makes the amount of the debt, principal and in-
terest, immaterial to either the rulers or people of Java."

The discontent of our Indian subjects, notwith-
standing the disinterested principles of justice on
which we endeavour to rule them, should also, he
thinks, weigh in the balance. 11e attributes. this,
in a great measure, to our having applied the
systems and theories of advanced civilisa-
tion to semi-barbarism, thereby suddenly pass-
ing over the gradual progress of five or
six centuries. Our refusal to recognise
the native prejudices of rank and caste he depre-
cates, thinking the interference with that which
they hold so sacred to be premature and impolitic.
He was the more disposed to institute comparisons
between our East Indian possessions and
Netherlands India, from the fact of having tra-
velled direct from the one to the other. He had.
resided for some years in Calcutta, and had been in
the habit of inquiring into the native ideas, wishes,
and grievances, while the discussion which our sys-
tem of government underwent at the time of the
transfer had familiarised him with its principles.
A trip being advised for health he quitted Calcutta
in 1858 and visited Java, knowing at that time
nothing of its government, and having no idea of
studying it. Before leaving India he made in-
quiries and found that the English information on
the subject of the Dutch East Indies was generally,
limited to Sir Stamford Railles's account, written in
1815. " The impression seemed to be that the pro-
duce of the island, beyond what was necessary for
the consumption of the people, was still taken by
Government under severe penalties, that such por-
tions of the spices as exceeded the: demand were
still destroyed by the Dutch to maintain a higher
price for the remainder; that no trade with
foreigners was allowed, and that the natives were
oppressed by forced labour and other hardships and.
exactions." All these impressions he found, on per-
sonal acquaintance with the colony, to be mistaken,
and it must be remembered that he consulted
not only the Dutch authorities, but
the English Consul long resident there,
and the merchants of various nations resident
in Batavia, among whom he found a singular coin-
cidence of opinion, both of praise and blame, regard-
ing the policy of the Government. The charge of
secresy brought against the Dutch is altogether
unfounded, as ample details and full particulars of
the state of the colony are yearly published officially
in Holland, and as the mother-country has the satis-
faction of receiving a yearly contribution of about
£3,000,000 from the colony, the statement of the
Colonial Minister to the States-General is a matter
of great interest, and much attention is paid to the
internal welfare of the islands. The Home Govern-
ment has to present a full account of the agricul-
tural, commercial, industrial, and social statistics of
the colony. Any idea of secresy was universally
scouted by the inhabitants, and they remarked that
they could not be expected to publish their
documents in English, and consequently but
few of us know any thing of their proceed-
img,s. Mr. Fraser, the resident British Consul,
assured the writer soon after his arrival that how-
ever true the general English idea of the Dutch
Colonial Government might be of the old Dutch
East India's Company's system, it is perfectly false
with regard to the present administration of Java
and its dependencies. The complaints with regard
to the treatment of foreigners, the refusal of all
civilising tendencies to the native, the discourage-
ment of his education, and the actual prohibition of
any attempt unconnected with Government to con-
vert him prom his debasing creed, are all well
founded, and mar the general character of the
Government. The great feature of the present rule
is the culture system, which was introduced by
General Van Deu Broscb, who was Governor-Gene-
ral of the colony from 1830 to 1834, and converted
it from a state of discontent and bankruptcy to its
present flourishine, condition. He made large ad-
vances to contractors on most favourable terms, on
condition that they should build the mills and pro-
cure the necessary machinery for manufacture,
undertaking to have a sufficient amount of the
requisite raw material ready for them. The rent
for the Crown lands, which occupy nine-tenths of the
island, is paid by labour—one day in seven—and
this system the author considers much the most
profitable and easiest to enforce when dealing with
Orientals. The tenants were ordered to plant
one-fifth of their lands with the necessary crop
according to the old Eastern custom, by right
of which the landlord directs his tenants' crop.
The natives' inveterate idleness was taken into ac-
count, and great advantages were given to those
who carried out the plan successfully. The supe-
rintendents were, in every case European, of intel-
gence and education, and the result soon exceeded
the hopes of all concerned.. We have not space to
give a full account of the working of the system,
which continues with modifications up to the pre-
sent day, but must refer the reader to Mr. Money's
interesting narrative. Some points in it will not
please the English mind, but its striking success,
and the satisfaction of the people show that the
principles on which it is based are congenial to the
Eastern character. It must be observed that the
private trade of Java is unrestricted. With the
exception of opium and salt, the Government mono-
polies, the growth and manufacture of all articles
is free. The cottiers on the Crown lands are for-
bidden to sell their contract crops except
to the contractors of the Government, which
purchases them at a fixed price, and thus repays
itself for its advances. The author writes as fol-
lows respecting the exports and imports :--
"The disproportion in the value of imports and exports
requires remark. Under ordinary circumstances, a country
should no doubt receive back, either in goods or money, the
value of what it sends out, whereas Java only receives back
in goods and money about two-thirds of that amount. The
other one-third is avowedly tribute to Hollandlpaid by Java,
as explained in the preceding chapter on finance. While
admitting the tribute, the Dutch assert that in no other
manner could it be paid so beneficially to Java, which has,:in
fact, enriched itself by the same process that has yielded this
tribute to Holland. They say that the undeveloped resources
of an Eastern country leave but a small:margin of produce
for export, beyond the consumption, and that consequently
the imports can only attain to the same figure las that
margin. This is confirmed by the former imports and ex-
ports of Java, and the present trade in and out of India,
all which average from 4s. to ss. per head per annum. The
Dutch say, on the other hand, that the resources of an
Eastern country developed by European capital and skill,
soon produce so enormous a margin beyond consumption,
as to cause the condi ion of the people to be much im-
proved, even where they only receive a portion of the value
of the increase. The present Java exports are the surplus
produce of the country, raised equally by native labour,
European skill and Government advances. The return for
that surplus produce may roughly said. to be made, one-
third to the native
imo labourer,one-third
r worth
oneot-third dot
h..
two-thirds
rtdhse
DutchoEf
Gut
hrooevpeeerax:
grotty n for its advances of capital in
Pmm;aearvnst master
without Holland
he oloalrulbeatm:wda rihnbii remaining
the greater portion of such surplus
produce would have remained hidden in the soil."
The great difference it will be seen between the
English and the Dutch systems is that the former
trusts entirely to private capital, and the latter to
Government. Without abandoning our own plans
we might profit by some hints from the Dutch, and
at least carefully study the system which produces
a surplus revenue instead of an Indian loan. It
must be remembered, however, that our system
has not been fairly tried, owing to the dis-
couragement shown by the Company to enter-
prising settlers of every description. In one
respect we are already following the example of
the Dutch,:in employing the native chiefs in posts
of honour and influence. The very last intelli-
gence received by the Overland Mail tells us that
the system which has been tried with success in
the Punjaub and Oude, of entrusting native gen-
tlemen of rank with magisterial and revenue
pewcrs, has been introduced into the North-West-
ern provinces by the Lieut.-Governor. This will
have the effect, it is said, of restoring the aristo-
cracy to their true position.
When Mr. Money told his Dutch friends, in
answer to some question, tlaat " we did not govern
the people through any native chiefs, but directly
under ourselves, though Ir.dia was full of native
chiefs of high family and of large fortunes, with
immense local interest, the conversation usually
ended with a shrug or a polite intimation that our
people must be easier to govern than theirs, or the
rebellion of 1857 would not have been the first
rising of a body of nobles dissatisfied at being de-
prived of all legitimate share in the government of
their awn countrymen, but left with large means
of mischief as landowners, and as feudal lords over
numbers uf devoted vassals and retainers." The
lengthened accounts which are given of the sys-
OW of criminal justice and police, of civil justice;