The Sun.
London, England, 1859-06-29 00:00:00

men.

Slit CHARLES WOOD has evidently
nothing from adversity. Sixteen months in oppo-
sition have taught him no lesson of Prudence or of
Patriotism. He is the same identical Sir CHARLES
WOOD who has pocketted the public money during
so many years in return for bungling our policy,
and boggling our Administration. Scarcely has he
crossed the threshold of power anew—when he is
at it again—perversely committing himself and
his party Q 1 the shortest posssible notice, and with-
out the smallest possible hesitation, yesterday, as
recently as only yesterday, he indulges:Pe electors
of Halifax—in recompense, we presume, for their
intense want of appreciation in returning him again
to Parliament without opposition—he indulges the
electors of Halifax in the conrse of his speech from
the hustings with, what is popularly termed, a bit
of his mind. Says Sir CHARLES WOOD—to whose
discretion the government of our vast In-
dian empire has been entrusted by the
forethought of Lord PALMERSTON—says her MA-.
JESTY'S marvellous Fifth Secretary of State, only
yesterday, that he (Sir CHARLES WOOD) hoped the
German people would prudently, adopt the advice
of the New English Ministry—(of course nothing
of the kind was ever thought of by their predeces-
sors—yet somehow there is that unfortunate
blue book of Lord MALMESBURY'S to the
contrary nevertheless notwithstanding)—namely,
the earnest recommendation to keep out
of the war altogether. So far, so good. The aspi-
ration of Sir CHARLES WOOD—not a very original
one, as it happens under the circumstances—is
applauded to the echo : even the electors of Halifax
joining in the general acclaim in favour of Neu-
trality. But Sir CHARLES cannot, for the life of him,
leave well alone—even the well with truth at the
bottom of it. He adds, in his speech to the electors of
Halifax yesterday, this amazing intimation—that
" in the event of Germany rushing into the vortex,
our national interests, our national engagements,
may compel us to interfere." Whereat there is
an instantaneous roar even from the electors of
Halifax in the negative. Certainly the words are
sufficiently significant in themselves. Couple them
with some other words uttered by the same lips from
those same hustings, to that same auditory sonic
eight or ten years ago, and the bearing of the re-
mark becomes at once sufficiently obvious ! Alto-
gether the observation may be worthy, it
is quite true, of Sir CHARLES WOOD—
but is it worthy of England, is it worthy
of a Minister -of England—is it consonant
with the wishes, the instincts, the prayers
of the nation—will it be tolerable for twenty-
four hours to any section of the electoral
or non-electoral population ? We believe not,
in our heart, in our conscience—we believe
NOT. We believe that England will never
again consent, under any circumstances, to be
dragged into another iniquitous war for the paltry
interest of some petty cousin-german ! Should
that monstrous, that criminal, that inhuman and
unpatriotic policy, ever again be adventured upon
—not only will all the Sir CHARLES WOODS
in the realm be swept away like chaff from the
floor of the winnower by the breath of ptihlic
indignation—but he were a bold man, indeed, who
would venture to indicate what else might not
be the consequence!

" Kissing goes by favour." The promotions and
the patronage distributed even during the few
days that have intervened since the Coalition came
into power by that admirable compromise of prin-
ciples blending together at last the fortunes of
Canningites and Peelites—Whigs and Radicals—
all the joint stock promotions, and all the joint
stock patronage "go" to admiration. Mr. SMITH is
a Lord—a real live lord by the name style and. title
says the Gazette, of Baron LYVEDEN, of Lyveden, in
the county of Northampton. Mr. BLACKBURN—if
you can't find' his name, by the way, in any man-
ner conspicuous as yet in " Who's Who," you
may surely discover it shining henceforth like
a very beacon-light in the oracular roll of
" What's What"—Mr. COLIN BLACKBURN iS
to be a judge and a very good judge
he will surely prove himself• to be if only in the
ready acceptance of this proffered appointment.
Gentlemen—make your game while the ball's a-roll-
ing : make your game and back your own opinions
any time while the ball's a-rolling. It is a matter
of uncertainty whether the full complement of
Ministers can be filled up—whether Mr. COBDEN
will consent, upon his arrival from America, to throw
Mr. BRIGHT over for the Presidency of the Board
of Trade, a seat in the Cabinet, and the title of
Right Honourable—whether Mr. GLADSTONE, by
continuing to retain his seat for the University of
Oxford, will be able to continue in office as Chan-
cellor of her MAJESTY'S Exchequer. These things
are still problematical: But, n'inzporte : we are to
take for granted at once the existence of a strong
Government. Mr. DISRAELI is a myth, and his
united
party of more than 300 in the House
of Commons the merest fantasy. Mr. ROE-
BUCK has never avowed his antagonism to
-the Old Whigs and their proceedings. The
Opposition benches, when Parliament has re-
assembled, will prove as vacant as the halls of
Balcleutha. There is no such thing at all as a
blue-book revealing the foreign policy of Lord
MALMESBURY. That policy is, Of eourse, clearly
the policy of a philo-Prussian from. first to last—
although the said Lord MALMESBORY is proved
beyond a doubt to have assured the Court of Berlin
that no assistance could be expected from England
in aid of the warlike designs of the Germanic Con-
federation. It is perfeetly notorious that nothing
at all of any moment whatever was either done or
even attempted during the sixteen months existence
of the late Administration. There Iv as no Channel
Fleet in existence before they came in, it is true,
and there is a Channel Fleet actually afloat before
they go out—but still, in spite of this apparently
corroborative circumstance, it is a xaere absurdity
to talk seriously for one moment of the Navy
having been in any way at all, or to any extent
whatever reconstructed under the :management Of
Sir JOHN PAKINGTON. Then, again?, as to his gal-
lant colleague recently at the head of the other
branch of the public service—well, the best that
can be said of him is that during the time General
PEEL was Secretary of State for .W:ar, the army
was not quite in a state of disorga:siza tion. As to
the financial condition of the empire during the
late Government—why, is it not a monstrous fact,
in the first place, that the Into me Tax was

actually reduced in amount, according to agree-
ment, and in the second place that no new
tax was imposed by way of an additional incubus
upon the already overburthened population. Look-
ing to the Colonies again—of course we remember
how many of them were in mutiny against the mother-
country ! tiV e recollect, moreover, that nothing of
any kind whatever was adventured upon by the
right hon. baronet the member for Herts with a
view to their increase or improvement. Nobody
ever heard of a new rival contract with Australia.
Nobody has ever heard a whisper of any such name
as British Columbia,. The supposed exchange of
Albreda andyortendic is—be sure of that—a thing
altogether supposititious. As for Hindostan,
now that Lord STANLEY has for so many
months had the regulation of its affairs
—why the popular delusions in regard to
Hindostan thus situated, are they not really some-
thing pitiable ? Is it not quite lamentable to re-
flect that any half-dozen men of sense in England
can suppose for five minutes consecutively that the
Insurrection in Bengal has been in any way really
conquered, or that the Crown has yet been inducted
into power in lieu of the Company ? No—the
history of the last year and a-half goes clearly and
unmistakeably to prove this—that Lord DERBY'S
Government did Nothing, did not for that matter
even affect to do Anything. It was nothing better
than a ridiculous dream that they introduced a bill
for the regulation and reorganisation of the popular
regresentation. The Nation, the House of Commons,
hose at length awoke to the real state of the case.
They recognise that there is but one possibie
Administration, and that Viscount PALMERSTON
is its Chieftain. There is no longer at the same
time but one Heaven-born Minister—there are fully
a dozen, if not sixteen ! And foremost among these
new Heaven-born Ministers are those dear, charm-
ing, old Whigs who have magnanimously consented
to save their country—for a consideration. They
will rub elbows with the member for Ashton-under-
Lyne—they will sit cheek by jowl (if he will but
only let them) .at the same Cabinet Council Board
with the member for the Radical borough of
Rochdale—they will swallow their jealousy of
those smart young men formerly known as
" PEEL'S Boys," including among them Mr. CARD-
WELL, and Mr. HERBERT, and Mr. GLADSTONE—
they will do anything, sit anywhere, act anyhow, if
they can only be let in again to have the run of
half a dozen of the Government offices in Downing-
street, those omnivirous Whigs, official cormorants
like Sir CHARLES WOOD, Sir GEORGE GREY, Sir
CORNEWALL LEWIS, my Lord JOHN RUSSELL, and
all their minor associates, individuals like the
Right Hon. LOWE and the Right Hon. WILsoN,
having an insatiable appetite for place, patronage,
and all kinds of political and party perquisites.
This new omnium gather= Coalition Government
however, has the obvious advantage of being a
Company formed on the limited liability principle.
Its inauguration, we should bear in mind, likewise
marks that period which will be designated in the
annals of the development of the political arts in
England as the era of the Whig Renaissance.

VOCAL ASSOCIATION.—The last subscription con-
cert of the Vocal Association will be given do-night at St.
James's Hall. Mlle. Artot, the young French singer,
whose peculiar style has attracted so much attention, will
be among the vocalists, whose number will also include
Mdme. Lemmens Sherrington, Mdme. Enderssohn, and
Miss Stabbach. Herr Joachim and M. Mortier de Fontaine
will be among the instrumentalists, it being the latter gen-
tleman's first appearance in England. He is announced to
play a scherzo, by Mendelssohn, and a fugue, by J. S.
Bach, on the pianoforte, which will give the audience a
good opportunity of judging of his powers. Twelve ladies
of the Vocal Association will sing a part-song of Benedict's,
and the whole association will sing several glees and part-
songs. From the style in which these concerts are con-
ducted, and the attractions of the programme, we have no
doubt the last of the season will not be the least successful.
THE ROYAL POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTION.—We
observe with much' satisfaction that an effort is now being
made by the formation of a new company to continue to the
public the lectures and exhibitions of this eminently useful
institution. As the valuable lease and properties of the old
company are quoted at avery lowprice, there is no reasonable
doubt the concern will prove a good investment in a com-
mercial point of view. Its importance as a moral and
scientific school, happily blending amusement with instruc-
tion, cannot be overstated. The closing of the Polytechnic
would be a great public loss.
A MUNIFICENT GIFT.—F. R.. Magenis, Esq., a
yachtsman, has presented the munificent stun of £lOO to
the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Two or three
years ago Mr. Magenis liberally assisted the society in
stationing on a dangerous point of the coast a lifeboat,
which has been instrumental, during some fearful storms,
in rescuing 16 persons from an inevitable death by ship-
wreck.
POSTAGE STAMPS.—In order to discourage the
sending of coin by post, instructions were issued on Mon-
day that the officials at the chief district and branch offices
were to purchase postage- stamps from the public, joined
together in strips, or two adhering, pfoviding they are not
soiled or disfikured. The following is the scale :--£1 worth,
19s. 41d. ; 10s., 9s. Bd. ; 55., 4s. 10d, ; 2s. 6d., 2s. sd. ; ls.,
111 d. ; and for 6d., 51d.- wil be given.
PRICE OF GOLD.—The quotation of gold at Paris
is about at par, and the short exchangeon London is 25.12-1
per £1 sterling. On comparing these rates with the Eng-
lish Mint price of £3 17s. 101 e. per ounce for standard gold,
it appears that gold is about 2-10ths per cent. dearer in
Paris than in London. By advices from Hamburg the
price of gold is 419 i per mark, and the short exchange on
London is 13.14 per £1 sterling. Standard gold at the
English Mint price is therefore about 2 10ths per cent.
dearer in Hamburg than in London. The course of ex-
change at New York on London for bills at 60 days' sight
is about 110 per cent., which, when compared with the
Mint par between the two countries, shows that the ex-
change is in favour of England ; and, after making
allowance for charges of transport and difference of into- '
rest, the present rate leaves a small profit on the importa-
tion of gold from the United States.'
PILOTAGE.—An abstract of returns relating to
pilots and pilotage in the united kingdom for the year 1858
was yesterday printed for the information of Parliament.
The balance-sheet of the Trinity-house shows a total re-
ceipt of £9,944, and an expenditure of £9,141; making,
with a deficiency per account for 1857 of £1,030, a general
total of £19,171, and thus leaving an access of expenditure
to be provided for in the next account of £226. The total
sum received for the pilotage of vessels in and out of the
port of London last year amounted to £77,617 inwards, and
£43,018 outwards.
VALUE OF LAND IN WALES.—A sale of copyheld
estates, under an order from the Court of Chancery, was
held by Mr. Marsh, of London, at the Cardiff Arms, Car-
diff, on Saturday last, when, after a spirited competitiOn,
the result of the sale was as follows :—Lot 1, comprising
about 36 acres, and producing £35 per annum, realised
£1,700, or nearly 50 years' purchase. Lot 2, eight acres,
let at £Blos. per annum, £350, or about 40 years purchase.
Lot 3, producing £1 10s. per annum, £llO, or about 73
years' purchase.
EMIGRATION.—The number of emigrants who
sailed from the United Kingdom during the 44 years from
1815 to 1858 inclusive amounted to 4,797,166, of whom
1,180,046 sailed to the North American colonies, 2,890,403
to the United States, 652,910 to the Australian colonies and
New Zealand, and 73,807 to all other places. The average
annual emigration from the United Kingdom from 1815 to
1858 amounted to 109,026, and for the ten years ending
1858 to 261,865.
Two SEAMEN SUFFOCATED.—On Monday morn-
ing a most distressing occurrence took place on board the
barque Malcolm, Capt. Thomas Natt, of Newcastle, lying
moored in one of the tiers of Cookson'a Quay, in Shields
harbour, by which two of the crew have lost their lives.
The barque Malcolm arrived in the Tyne from Rochester
on Thursday, and the vessel being infested with vermin it
was deemed advisable to " stove it." Consequently, on
Saturday night two charcoal fires were lighted and placed
in the hold of the barque, strict orders at the same time
being given by the captain that the crew were to sleep in
the house on deck. From some reason or other, however,
it appeared that on Sunday night four of the crew, named
James Laing, James Prophet, Henry Jones, and Nrilliana
Wright, went from the house on deck, aft, and taking with
them a crowbar, wrenched the forecastle hatch off and went
below to sleep. This morning, about six o'clock, when the
mate called the men up, no answer was given, and some
person went below, when a most distressing spectacle was
presented to view. Two of the men, Laing and Prophet,
were lying dead, and the other two appeared to be in a
dying condition. Medical assistance was immediately
sought, and Dr. Coward was speedily in attendance, and
applied the utual remedies to Jones and Wright, but they
still remain in a very precarious condition. The bodies of
Laing and Prophet have been removed by the river police
to the union workhouse. Laing was 17 years of age, and
Belgium,
nfu dna
a native of Dundee ; Prophet was 18 years of age, and was
a native of Montrose. Jones, who still survives, is 21 years
o.f age, and is a native of Rochester; Wright, who is also
lving, is 20 Years of age,__ and belongs to Alloa.
REDUCTIONutrioye
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Belgium
thenceforward,
and
entrdhs the combinedPrussia,t
forwarded,o
the following countries, viz., Austria, Hamburg, Bremen,
Lubeck, Bavaria, Saxony, Wurtemberg, Mecklenburg-
Strelitz, Oldenburg, Luxemburg, and Brunswick, will be
reduced to 6d. per half-ounce letter, provided such postage
be paid in advance. Letters upon which the postage is not
prepaid will be charged with a rate of Bd. per half-ounce
letter, as at present. Registered Letters.— On and from
Gatage chargeable upon letters addressed, to
the same date the registration fee upon registered letters
addressed to any of the abovementioned countries will be
reduced from 9d. to 6d. each. No alteration will take place
Gotha-Saxe Meiningen, Saxe
iHnanth:vraert,eß°afden, Mecklanburg-Schwerin, or the countries
vßt
British
ss
et
which are included in the postalistrict of the Principality
of Tour and Taxis, viz., rankfort- ft,
cll'--4,Maine, Grand
Duchy of Hesse, Hesse (Electoral), Hesse Romberg, Nag-
.-. By
iiirsaue,imßaerusEsisenacSaxhe:CHoohn
bueigzollern, and Schwartzbur
°
command of the Postmaster-General, Rowland gill, secre-
tary.—General Post-ctUce; June 2T,