The Sun.
London, England, 1857-09-02 00:00:00

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 2, 1857.

It cannot be otherwise than profoundly inte-
resting to recall at this moment to popular re-
membrance—by rapidly epitomising them in a
few words—the principal Facts connected with the
Rise and Progress, the creation and development
of the British Empire in Hindoatan. Exactly one
century has elapsed since the date of its founda-
tion. It was on the 231 of June, 11757, that
Clay; with scarcely three thousand men, routed
the enormous forces of SURAJAH DOWLAiI at
Plassey, thereby inscribing the name of the First
Victory upon that historic scrull afterwards em-
blazoned with so many glorious achievements. It
was on the 231 June, 1857, that the tenth Reg:-
merit of Native Infantry mutinied at Futteghur,
thereby completing the fatal disaster begun hardly
three months previously at B trrackpore.
A hundred years to the very day, we repeat;
separate from each other those two remarkable
occurrences. In the memorable conquest of
Plassey, our gigantic rule in Asia may be said to
have originated. By the contemptible mutiny of
that single regiment at Futteghur, the revolt of
an entire army, the great army of Bengal, may
be described as having been virtually consum-
mated.

It behoves every reflective mind amongst us to
consider in this imminent juncture in our His-
t4rY--What it was that Lord OLIVE'S Victory
really inaugurated ? What it is that this terrible
and disastrous mutiny of the Bengal Army is
threatening with destruction ?
Literally, it is nothing less than an Oriental
Empire—extending in geographical dimensions
over nearly 1,000,000 square miles, and coin-
prising within its limits considerably more than
100,000,000 of human beings a, it
le aggregate of
its population. Otherwise to express it, the Prize
now at stake is an empire yielding a net revenue
very little short of 30,000,0001, annually, lt is
a dominion spreading, directly or indirectly, over
the chief portion of that vast peninsula
stretching north and south from Cape Comarin
to the great range of the Himalayas,
east and west from the Dal ta of the
Indus to the source of the Burhampooter. A
stupendous region, computed to embrace an area,
in round numbers, very nearly ten times that of
France, and having a total boundary, by land and
by water, of more than 11,000 miles-4,500 of
which constitute one continuous line of sea-
board. It is a country, moreover, inhabited by
no less than a quarter of a hundred different na-
tions—twenty-five nations different in race, in
religion, and in language ! A heterogeneous mu!-
titude, already vaguely spoken of in generalities
as numbering considerablymore thanloo,ooo,ooo

To;

in the aggregate,—but really subjecting to the sway
of the sceptre wielded by Queen VICTORIA'S Go-
vernment, 161,000,000 altogether ! Namely,
41,000,000 under the category of the protected
or tributary States, and 120,000,000 (now that
Oude is absorbed into our actual territorial pos-
sessions by what is termed incorporation)
120,000,000 of the human family—there, in
India alone—under the heel of British domination,

During one entire century, therefore—i. e.,
from 1757 to 1857—this enormous Asiatic Em-
pire of ours has been in existence. During that
century it has been steadily, rapidly, appreciably
expanding and expanding 1 It has during this
hundred years been spreading itself far and wide
in all directions, so steadily, so rapidly, so appre-
ciably, that it has ultimately reached the magni-
tude we have here particularised—whether in re-
gard to its superficial dimensions, to its financial
resources, or to its numerical population. But—
scarcely has this first century of its existence been
completed, when the whole huge and complex
fabric is suddenly threatened with destruction.
Immediately 'prior to the Battle of Plessey,
viz., in January, 1757, the first battalion of Ben-
gal Sepoys ever heard of, was raised and officered by
CLIVE, out of a detachment he had just then brought
with him from Madras to Calcutta. THENCE
that enormous Native Army of Bengal, which has
recently revolted' (we may say it, alas I without
exaggeration) to a man ! An army—as such—
no longer in existence. Henceforth nothing more
nor less than a lawless horde of robbers and cut.
throats—bloodstained and infamous from their
atrocities—hid away for a while in their great
ruffian den at Delhi. There, in truth, they are
now brought to bay collectively. After a course
of absolutely unparalleled and some of them
almost unimaginable crimes—murder, and arson,
and rape, and torture, perpetrated under circum-
stances of even devillish inhumanity—these miscre-
ants may be said to have—there in Delhi—ga-
thered themselves together for the unintended
purpose of an aggregate expiation! For an invo-
luntary submission to a collective vengeance—
affording to ourselves a battu of Justice—the
certainty of a hecatomb of victims, victims sternly
and imperatively demanded to be thus sacrificed I
The storming and capture of Delhi will assur-
edly, of course, mark " The End " of the late
sanguinary catastrophe. But that END will only
then have its beginning I It will be an End, not
accomplished in a day—any more than that epoch
marked in the annals of Old Rome by the caba-
listic initials, the U. c., meaning simply and lite-
rally the Urbs Condita. Delhi fallen—the last
batch of the Ruffian Mutineers exterminated—
What will then remain to be done ? Rather,
what will not then have to be accomplished t
"A terrible wreck," as Maga has aptly phrased
it, will be the residue—a wreck the responsibility
of repairing which will then devolve upon us in-
stantly. From that moment must date the reor-
ganisation and the reconsolidation of our empire
in Hindostan. First of all the work of vengeance
—and then the work of reconstruction. The evil
destroyed—the good will then haveto be discovered.
Then—witt a due display of vigour and sagacity
on his part—Lord CANNIV:i may win for himself
(what we all wish him, so won) his earldom !
Then—throwing aside at last the plumed bonnet
that has fluttered already in the van of so many
glorious battles, Sir COLIN CAMPBELL, in his turn,
also may find his knightly hand closing at last
upon the bauble of a car onet—accepttble at least
as a symbol of repose and as an evidence of ap-
preciation. So confident are we of the inevitable
certainty of the ulterior triumph of the good
cause at issue, a cause in which Might
and Right are united—that even now we
are fain, as will tie seen, to anticipate in
each instance the probable award of the in-
fallible recompense. Consoled as we are at heart
through all the horrors of the present bloodshed
and uncertainty, by a profound conviction that
events will evolve sooner or later the final recon-
quest of the revolted Presidency 1 And that
from the day when that reconquest shall have
been definitively accomplished, will date a new
era for British-India, an epoch of peace and pro-
sperity—the fruits of good government.

There is a time-honourel proverb that illus-
trates the danger of relying on two distinot sup-
ports. The man who rests on double stools Las

no very safe reliance. England is at present in
that position with respect to the rival schemes for
telegraphic communication with India. Two
valuable projects are put forward, either of which
would be very acceptable if carried into execution
promptly and efficiently. But unfortunately the
advocates and promoters of the different routes
are at daggers drawn. They seem even more in-
tent on damaging their rivals than in advancing

their own interests. It is a rehearsal, on a small
scale, of the celebratsel "Battle of the Guages," and

,here seems t) be but too much reason to fear

that during the struggle the nation may lose the
chance of obtaining the invaluable aid of a tele-
graph to India within the present year, which
might easily be accomplished in either case, so as

to enable us t.) receive unnmunications.
The conflicting projects are those via
the Euphrates and the Persian Gulf, on the
one side, and on the other by the Red Sea and

the Indian Ocean. The English Government ap-
proved of the former, and gave it what may be
regarded as the indispensable encouragement of a
national guarantee of 6 per cent. Unfortunately,
however, political difficulties intervened, and the
SULTAN'S firman could not be obtained. It is
true that a little gentle pressure might yet get
rid of this impediment. But there was still an-
other very serious objection. There was to be a
land journey from Bagdad to Constantinople of
no less than 1,200 miles. This, it was calcu-
lated, might be accomplished in little over 6 days
by couriers, until a land telegraph could be com-
pleted across the intervening distance. It is ob-
vious that this c3mmunication might, at any
moment, be cut off, or that the telegraph, if
opened would be liable to constant destruction at
the hands of the wandering Arabs. These are
serious objections. It is obvious that they may
come intooperation at the most pressing emergency,
and England may find that through Russian or
other intrigues, or even in consequence of mere
wanton mischief, the instrument may fail in dis-
charging its all-important functions.

It was under such circumstances that the Red
Sea Telegraph Company was projected. They had
previously secured the necessary concessions from
the Turkish and Egyptian Governments, so that
there was no political impediment to delay the
Proceedings even for a single hour ; and when
once the tank of layinc, down the cables from Suez
to Aden, and eventually' to Kurrachee, the point
n at urally selected in both instances, was completed,
there would be but little danger to be apprehended
from any human obstacle. The land portion of the
work would only be 240 miles from Ale
Alexandria to il
Suez, and that through the Red Sea and Indian
Ocean would be virtually under our own con-
trol.
At all events we should have only
natural difficulties to encounter, and these
are far less formidable than what might arise
from the maokinations of our enemies. The

cost to bring India within a week of England
by the Euphrates line is estimated at 400,0001.,
by the Red Sea to Aden at 300,0001. The com-
pletion in the former would, however, be far less
expensive than in the latter case, which would cost
the further sum of 400,0001. to complete the com-
munication to Kurrachee.

In such a case, however, a hundred thousand
pounds, more or less, is of comparatively trivial
importance ; and were we compelled to choose be-
tween the conflicting schemes, we should have no
hesitation in awarding the preference to that by
the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. But we have no
difficulty in saying that both should be fully and
fairly carried out. We might thus " make as-
surance doubly sure," and be almost certain that
one or the other would always be available. We
can fully appreciate the advantages arising from
having one line to Trieste and another to Mar-
seilles ; and surely it would be infinitely more
important to have a double line of communication
with India, particularly under the existing cir-
cumstances of that country, and the struggle
that must be maintained for years to come.
It would seem, then, to be sound policy
to proceed with each line simultaneously, and let
them enter into fair competition the one with the
other, ensuring the shareholders in both instances
a fair, remunerative dividend for their outlay by
the guarantee either of the English Government
or of the East India Company, which will speedily
for all practical purposes become synonymous.
"Both, then, are best," and it will, as we.,have
said, be sound policy to let both proceed. Should
hostile tribes or nations intervene, we shall have
the Red Sea line to fall back upon ; but if, on
the other hand, storms or tempos's should injure
the submerged cable, we'shall not be left in the
lurch so long as the communications between
Bagdad and Constantinople remain open. As to
the mere X. s. D. phase of the question,
it is not to be considered for a single mo-
ment. Free and instantaneous communication
with the most important parts of India will be wor th
more than the aggregate cost of both, although
it were quadrupled. In place of 700,000/. it
would have been worth ten times the sum to have
received the melancholy intelligence that arrived
on the 27th June, a month sooner, and to have
anticipated the subsequent tidings in a similar
manner. The news of the inflexible resolution of
the British nation to maintain its position in
India, and to fully avenge the atrocities per-
petrated on English women and children might
have prevented the spread of the mutiny, and
averted many of the heartrending narratives that
now horrify the nation, and excite a demand for
vengeance throughout the length and breadth of
the land..

The Marquis of Dalhonsie, accompanied by the Ladies
Ramsay, purposes to leave this country early in the en.
suing month for Malta, in order to pass the approaching
winter in that island.
The Marquis and Marchioness of Salisbury have taken
Eastington House Bournemouth, fur some weeks, for
the purpose of sea-bathing.
The Earl Granville left town yesterday.
Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston left town yes-
terday for Broekett Hall, Herts.
DEATH OF VISCOUNT BALGONIE.—We regret to learn
that Viscount Balgonie, eldest son of the Earl and
Countess of Leven and Melville, died on Saturday last,
after a protracted illness, incurred while doing service
with, his regiment in the Crimea.
DEATH OF VISCOUNT lIINTON.—We have to record
the death of Vi count Hinton, second and eldest sur-
viving son of the Earl and Countess Poulett, which
occurred on Saturday last, at Hinton St. George,
Somerset.
The True Brit on, now 80 days on her voyage from
Melbourne to London, has 30,400 sovereigns on freight,
in addition to the 61,803 oz. of gold previously men-
tioned.
The 123,0001. in gold announced last week by the In-
domitable, from Australia, reached London yesterday
afternoon. A portion will, perhaps, be sold to the
Bank.
About 50,0001. worth of silver has reached London
within the la-t day or two from Boulogne and Antwerp,
per the steamers Rhine, Panther, and Clarence. The
imports of the metal from the Continent, however, are
now upon a more moderate scale.
The Suisse of Bern says reliable accounts received from
Prussia state that the health of the king inspires serious
uneasiness. He had an attack of apoplexy some time
ago at Pilnitz, and a second one only a few days since
at Potsdam.
THE JOHN AND LUCY EMIGRANT SHIP.—The Jahn
and Lucy (part of the Black Bell line) arrived safely at
Sydney in the beginning of May, with 400 passengers
on board, all in a healthy state. -
MILITARY SAVINGS-BANKS.—The number of deposi-
• tors in these banks on the 31st of March, 1855, was
9,880, and the balance due by the public 146,5241. The
total amount of the fund from these banks up to the date
of the account (August 1857) was 177,8411.
IMPALEMENT OF A YOUTlL—Yesterday morning as
William Cross, aged 14 years, residing in Kent street,
B >rough, was endeavouring to scale a wall, he accident-
ally slipped, and fell a considerable depth on some iron
spikes, which entered' his body. He was conveyed to
Guy's Hospital in a dangerous state.
A MAN KILLED AT THE IMPERIAL GAS WORKS.—
YeAerday, a man named John Finch; aged 42, who was
engaged at the Imperial Gas Works in arranging the
tackle for lifting some iron-work intended for a gasome-
ter, was struckon the head by so me part of the machinery.
He was taken to the London hospital, where he died in
a few hours from concussion of the brain.
We understand (says the Edinburgh, Courant) the Ad-
miralty is about to make a survey of Lochlomond at an
early date. Those well acquainted with this beautiful
expanse know that sunken rocks rise up near the surface
during the dry season at many points, but the exact
position or the exact number of these hidden dangers have
never been properly ascertained or duly marked off.
The letters from Paris mention that M. Auguste
Thurneyssen, the well-known banker, and one of the
directors of the Credit Mobilier, hasbeen declared by
the Tribunal of Commerce liable for the debts of his
nephew, Mr. Charles Thurneyssen, who failed for more
than 600,0001. and absconded in May last. The judg-
ment produced an unfavourable effect on the price of
Credit Mobilier shares.

SOUTHWARK ELECTION EXPENSES.—Yesterday Mr.
R. A. Pritchard, returning officer for the borough of
Southwark, puhiished his statement of the expenses in-
curred by the candidates at the election in March last.
From this document it appears that Mr. John Locke,
M.P., expended 3,880/. 7. 7d. ; Sir Charles Napier,
M.P., 1,2191. 14s. ld. ; and Mr. Apaley Pellatt, who,
was unseated, 6481. 3s. lid. The document concludes
by stating that Mr. Mayhew has declined to furnish art
abstrect of his ( lection expenses.
REMRESENTATION OF GREEWICH.—A circular has
been distributed amongst the supporters of Mr. J.
Townsend, convening a private meeting, to take into
consideration the present position of the borough in
connexion with recent events in the Court of Bankruptcy.
A. meeting of the friends of Mr. Montagu Chambers was
held last evening, and it was unanimously resolved to
request that gentleman to become a candidate in the
event of a vaeancy. Mr. Alderman Salomons is already
in the field, and two other candidates are spoken of.
TAVISTOCK ELECTION.—Owing to Mr. Byng having
accepted the Chiltren Hundreds, prior to his becoming a
candidate for the county of Middlesex, a vacancy has
been occasioned in the representation of this borough.
Mr. Arthur Russell—a scion of the house of Bedford—
at once entered the field as a candidate. He addressed a
meeting of the electors on Saturday evening, but did not
by any means come up to the Tavistock standard. A
second meeting was held on Monday, at which a resolu-
tion was passed appointing a deputation to wait on Mr.
Russell, inviting him to a public meeting of the electors,
and to withdraw from the contest, should he be so re-
quested by the majority of el ectors then and there asiem-
bled. A requisition to Sir W. Clay is in course of signa•
tore, requesting him to allow- himself to be put in norm.
nation.

ATTEMPTED SUICIDE BY TICKET-OF-LEAVE CON•
vier.—Yesterday forenoon a man named John Rich-
mond, aged 49 years, residirsa in Poplar New-town, was
taken to the London Ho- pital with a severe incised
wound in his throat. He its a ticket-of-leave convict,
who had been transported for 14 year for an attempt to
murder his wife by cutting 'her throat. She recovered,
and he was tried and con victed for the offence, and
sometime since he returned to England, but he was un-
able to obtain employment, -which preyed heavily on his
mind, and in a moment of despondency he obtained a
clasp knife and inflicted thto injury on his throat. The
wound is serious and his recovery is doubtful. Toe
wife of Richmond is in poss e ssion of an independency.
PRICE OF GOLD.—The quotation of gold at Paris is
about 5 per mills premium,, and the short exchange on
London is 25.20 per 1/ st,erling. On comparing these
rates with the English Min.t price of 3/. 17s. 104 d, per
ounce for standard gold, i t -appears that gold is nearly
4 lOths per cent. dearer in Faris than in London. By
advice from Hamburg Ile price of gold is 423 per
mark, and the short exchange on Londonis 13.31 per 11.
sterling. Standard gold at the English Mint price is
nearly 1-10th per cent. Nearer in Hamburg than
in London. The course cif exchange at New York on
London for bills at 60 da ye' sight is 1091 per cent.
which, when compared with the Mint par between the
twogold
icrouonantruiasi,j shows.,l that the the exchange is slightly
chargesin vo u
rateor oftransporte neg a
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and ; a
trifling nd:
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the making allowance
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