The Sun.
London, England, 1857-11-05 00:00:00

role I will take upon myself to extract from the fifth on
the list of the great English poets—
" Honour and shame from no condition rise
Act well your part, there all the honour 'lie's."
(Cheers.) It was mainly on that admirable and univer
sally recognised principle that, to my delight, T saw the
ceremony of this day conducted. I can well imagine that
a peasant or ayeoman, "acting well hi.: part," might find
in the acclamations of his countrymen and the applause
of those under whom he, had served, "where all the
honour lies." I can imagine that even a prince may be a
working patriot—(cheers)---that he may devote his high
intellect, his energy of mind and body to the zealous and
persevering discharge of important and interesting public
duties. (Cheers.) I can imagine, as 1 have said, that even
a prince may be so little dazzled by the luminous atmo
sphere in which he moves as to be able to see and to dis-
tinguish a meritorious ceneraie in the obscurest ranks of
the private force ; and I can imagine that even a prince,
not bound by the dignity of chief command, may, at a
moment of State exigency, sound with his breath the
bugle for recruits. These are things that, Republican st•
I am, I can imagine possible. Whether the imagining in
your better knowledge of men and things can be made a
fact among British princes it is not for me to determine
lam not one of the jury for the trial of that fact. I am,
as I have said, a stranger. You are the panel, and if yon
find that there happens to be among British princes one
of whom all these imaginings of mine in reference to in-
dividual merit become a plain fact, why your finding as
jurors of such a verdict would be conclusive upon the
judgment of those who hear it. (Cheers.) Reference
has been made this evening to one or two points to
which I may be allowed to allude. Sympathy has
been invoked from foreign nations in reference to the
state of affairs in India. I am not here to ,A peak as to
the extent to which my Government or the people of the
United States sympathise with the struggle of England
against India. That is not the thought I wish to express.
The thought that I wish to express is in reference to the
treatment that is to be dealt to those who have distin-

guish*LhowialvAltwiss-tba-field ofarime in, that unbappv
region. Now, crimes are of various descriptions. Mutiny
and murder are heavy crimes ; they are dark and gloomy
crimes; but they are crimes known to us all, and they
are crimes committed in almost every coipmeuity and
under almost every Government. Penalties are specifi-
cally provided for these crimes in the respective criminal
codes of various countries. Let such crimes be punished
wherever they occur according to the law. That is the

first and clearest prii:ciple of action. But there are
other crimes—crimes, at least, of another character—

which become so monstrous as to assume the attitude of

enmity to the human race, not merely crimes committee
with reference to the power of India, not merely crimes
inimical to England, not merely crimes inimical to Eu
rope and its civilisation, but crimes that constitute their
perpetrators what pirates are, what cannibals in th.
Fejee Islands are—(cheerB)—onemies of the human race
—(cheers)—and meriting, not from one nation, not from
one people, but from the whole of the human race, sum-

mart' and peremptory extirpation. (Loud cheers.) This,
as it appears to me, is not the language of any particular
individual or any particular country, but the language of
human nature; and although I am unable to say how
far such language may be concurred in by the great
body of my fellow-citizens on the opposite side of the
Atlantic, yet I think I know them well rough to say
that no language can be too strong, no words too im-
pressive, no foxes too sudden, no bl..ws too severe for
crimes such as those which have been perpetrated in
India. (Cheers.)
The LORD MAYOR next gave, "Her Majesty's Minis-
ters," and the toast was drunk with great cordiality.
Earl GRANVILLE, on rising to acknowledge the toast,
was received with cheers. He said—My Lord Mayor.
ladies, and gentlemen, I beg to thank you for the hon-
our you have done to the assembly of which I am an
unworthy member. I believe it is not necessary to dweli
upon the advantages of such an assembly in a mixed
Government like our own ; but I do feel that its popu-
larity must depend very materially upon the manner in
which its individual members discharge their duties. On
this occasion I think it must be obvious that ene mem-
ber of that assembly has set a bright eaample of readiness
to fulfil those duties which, as an Englishman, he owed
to the state. You have all heard the feeling terms is
which the Duke of Cambridge expressed his devotion to
that army in which he was brought up, and to which

he is so much attached. I feel it would be presurnptu
ous on my part, in the presence of so many of his heroic
comrades in arms, and after the significant homage that
has been offered to him te-day in the city of London, to
dwell upon his services in the field ; but I hope he will
excuse me if I refer, in contrast to the calmness with which
he spoke to-night, to the agony of mind in which his
Royal highness was when he entertained a doubt whe-
ther an appointment would be given him in the Crimea
which would enable him to risk his life in the cause of his
sovereign and of his country. The American Minister
referred in eloquent terms to the manner in which a print;
might engage in public duties, and you all know that
immediately after peace was restored the Dake of Cam-
bridge undertook the drudgery of a very laborious office.
(Hear, hear.) It is hardly possible, in referring to the
duties discharged by members of the House of Lords, not
to be struck by the responsibility which weighs at this
moment upon some noble lords who are many miles
distant from our shores. Among others I would men-
tion Lord Elgin. He was sent on an important mission
to the East. His instructions were precise. The means
placed at his disposal for attaining the object of his mis-
sion, if he failed to do so peaceably, were amply suffi-
cient for the purpose. On his arrival in the East he
found that a case had arisen which had been entirely un-
foreseen when ke received his instructions. A most
fervent appeal was made to him by the Governor-Gene-
ral of India to denude himself of those means which
were most likely to ensure his own success, in order to
enable the Governor-General to put down a mutiny that
had broken out in India. Not only did this request
prevent Lord Elgin from carrying out his instructions,
but it also deprived him of any immediate chance of
that personal distinction which he had a right to expect
to obtain very easily and rapidly. He, however, did
not hesitate one moment. In the most cheerful manner
he anticipated the wishes and instructions which were
forwarded by the Government when they became ac
quaintsd with the events in India, and he put the whole
of his available force at the disposal of Lord Canning.
Lord Elgin has by this conduct deserved—and I ven-
ture to say he has obtained—the approbation of his
countrymen. (Cheers.) There is another noble lord in
the East upon whom has rested a heavier responsibility
than has ever been sustained by any subject of her pre-
sent Majesty. Lord Canning did not, as has some-
times been said, solicit office, but when, after careful
deliberation on the part of the Government, the office of
Governor-General of India had been offered to him, and
when, after very mature reflection on his part he had ac
cepted that office, he proceeded to India, and devoted his
admirable habits of business to the promotion of every
possible material and social improvement in the great
peninsula committed to his charge. A dreadful event
happened—one which, as the noble duke has observed,
no one could have anticipated. As soon as that event
was known in England the attention of Englishmen was,
I may say, entirely absorbed by the proceedings in India,
and from that moment to the present every step taken
by the Governor-General was west anxiously criticised.
Sometimes, I must say, his conduct was very fairly
weighed, but at other times I think he has been assailed
with such wholesale censure and condemnation as it was
almost impossible for any one to have deserved. (Bear,
hear.) Now, I beg that I may not be misunderstood. I
think that no greater misfortune could happen to this
nation than that the public acts of public men should
not be exposed to the most anxious and severe criticism,
and I believe that those who criticise such acts with
ability and fairness render the greatest possible service
to the community. At the same time there is one short
compound word which will always have its effect with
the British public—l mean fair-play (cheers), fur
although they like to have public affairs discus=ed before
them in every shape, they postpone their final judgment
until they are in possession of all the facts and have
heard both sides. (Cheers) I feel that nothing would
be more improper on an occasion like this than to enter
into an argument or discussion upon points which must
be reserved for a very different tribunal. I feel, too,
that, as connected with the Government, it would not be
right for me to anticipate the views of that Government,
which must be officially declared upon every point of
Lord Canning's conduct. I think, however, you will
allow that it will not be altogether unbecoming on my
part if I venture very shortly to endeavour to cerrect some
misapprehensions as to certain facts, and to state other
facts which may help both you and the public to form a
just conclusion on some questions which have been raised.
A great many accusations have been brought against
the Government of India. Some of them are of a very
trivial character, others depend so entirely upon details
and circumstances of which we know absolutely nothing
that I will not allude to them. But there onend chargewhinh
which has been urged against Lord Canning,
a
appears to me one of the gravest chargesam ely, that
thact, could be
made against a man in his position—namely,
h
what
was
du t s
. d u nscn wand a
n i n d humanity,
interfered
with f forgotten gao tctee certain
ain sentimental
with those military authoritiesin whose hands the pun-
ishment of the mutineers must mainly rest. No 71, upon
this point the common sense of the public has fully
oken out. Both public writers and public speakers
Lire done so, and no one, I may say, has laid down more
forcibly than the Duke of Cambridge the doctrine that
it would be wrong in every point of view if condign
punishment were not inflicted upon men who have die-
graced the human form which they bear. I c innot help
remarking that upon this subject public opinion has been
oasne dw to be is
be not
o
actuated l3e o
f
b ourselves,
excitedves f eandel-
rwaht iofi ecannot
a bgee gentleman mp
ings—l mean the most respected ,linister of the United
States—who, as a disinterested observer, has justly said
that men who have committed crimes which prove them
to be the enemies of mankind at large ought to be r
x-
tirpated from the face of the earth. (Cheers.) I can
only say that, if upon a calm review of the course of
Lord Canning's administration, he should appear to
have given way to the maudlin sentiments to
which I have alluded, no feeling of personal friend-
ship would be sufficient to prevent me from expresa7