The Sun.
London, England, 1868-02-26 00:00:00

"THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 26, 1868

NM -
the Chancellor of the Exchequer had received
her MAJESTY'S commands to form a Ministry,
and was at present engaged in that task. Fol-
lowing the usual order of things on such
occasions, Lord STANLEY proposed the adjournment
of the House until such time as the necessary ar-
rangements could be completed. He expressed his
regret that the debate on Ireland should have to be
put off, as the subject was one of so much import-
ance ; perhaps, indeed, the most important that
could take place just now. Friday next is the day
fixed upon for the re-assembling of the House,
which is not a lengthened period under the
circumstances of the case. Mr. GLADSTONE,
in his usual happy style, signified his approval
of the arrangements, and expressed his regret,
which he felt sure would be universally shared,
that a career "so long, so active, and, in many
respects, so distinguished as that of
_Lord DERBY,
should have been brought to a close by the failure
of his bodily health and strength." The right hon.
gentleman also added that, by a " singular destiny"
the noble lord had been called• upon to make this
statement to the House ; and co it was indeed. It
is quite an event in the annals of Ministerial changes
and Parliamentary history for a son to announce to
the House the resignation of his father, and that
for himself to hold high office, and to be in the
opinion of many well qualified to succeed to the
vacant place. Lord MALMESBURY, who was,
of course, able to speak with more freedom upon
the event of the Premier's resignation, expressed
his deep regret, and that of his colleagues, at the
loss of the noble earl. We hope, however, in com-
mon with Lord MALMESBURY, that the rest which
Lord DERBY is now to have will recruit his
strength, and enable him to enjoy better health and
more freedom from his painful malady than the
cares of State and the leadership of the party have
enabled him to do. Lord RUSSELL, with that
right feeling which always distinguishes our politica
leaders, intimated his regret at the announcement
which Lord MALMESBURY had just made ,to the
house, and declared that no difference of opinion
on political matters could ever alter the sentiments
of regard and esteem which they entertained for
the noble earl. "In the eloquence with which he
defended his opinions the records of Parliament will
bear immortal testimony, and of course history
must , deal with his relation to public ques-
tions." Lord RUSSELL only gave utterance
to the wishes of both Houses and the
public at large when he trusted that before
long Lord DERBY might be enabled to appear again
among them, and freed from the trammels of official
life, and the burden of grave responsibility, again
delight them with that clear and eloquent language
of which he is so great a master. We learn that
Lord DERBY has often declared that he did not
himself care for office, and no doubt he did not de-
ceive himself when he made that declaration ; but
were it otherwise he would have ample cause to
forget any disappointment he might feel when
he reflects upon the high regard in which he is
held. Some wit has exclaimed—

" HI were a statesman rd rather instead
Have the epitaph living, the epigram dead."
And the noble earl who has just resigned the Pre-
miership has in some respects realised this wish, for
he has been able to hear what a high place his
intrinsic qualities of worth and excellence have
gained him in the esteem of all, to find the zeal
of political animosity become extinct, the strife of
Parliamentary rivalry be put aside, and all that a
universal ktestimony might be afforded of his
merit. We may reply, affirm, and feel convinced
that the verdict of popular opinion will sanction it
now, and the judgment of posterity ratify it hereafter,
that no public man in this country ever tendered his
resignation of the high office of Premier who ranked
higher than Lord DERBY in the esteem of his
Sovereign, the sympathy of his contemporaries, and
the general regard and respect of the community.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is certainly
to-day the right man in the right place. But how
many would have said otherwise a few years ago ?
Mr. DISRAELI s career is alike an honour to himself
and to his country, for he is a shining in-
stance of what a man may accomplish by
by ability and perseverance, and an illustration of
the possibility of self-made men rising to eminence
and distinction. We feel convinced that Mr. DIS-
RAELI will meet with all possible sympathy and
congratulation, and that those of all shades of
opinion will acknowledge that he has won for
himself a well-deserved position, and we can with
the more appropriateness express our satisfaction
at the consequences of this change of Ministry,
while we regret the cause, because we have always
been among those who appreciated the bril-
liant talents and recognised the high capacities of
the right hon. gentleman. Those who by their own
unaided exertions can master difficulties, overcome
prejudices, and finally gain the goal, deserve well
of their fellow-countrymen, be their politics what
they may. They are among the leading spirits of
their generation, and they will occupy a high place in
their country's history hereafter. Mr. DISRAELI
was always felt by those initiated into affairs to be
the chief man in the Ministry, and during Lord
DERBY'S last tenure of office he has been especially
distinguished for those qualities which go far
to create admiration and inspire confidence.
He is the pilot who weathered the storm
of the Reform question, and brought the vessel safe
into port; he is, besides, the leader of his party,
which wanders in as dreary a desert of Opposition
as any set of public men in the records of Parlia-
ment. It is no rash venture or moonshine undertak-
ing then that is now undertaken, and the new
Premier has a powerful support in Lord STANLEY,
the noble lord at the head of the Foreign-office,
being in himself a host to any Administration. In
many respects quite dissimilar to his father,
Lord STANLEY has won for himself, by his
more solid than brilliant attainments, a high
place in the regard of Parliament, and
inspired great confidence in the country. In fact,
as we said before, many have assigned to him the
place of Prime Minister upon the resignation of
his father, and, no doubt, he is quite fitted for the
arduous responsibility of such a position. At the
present time, however, the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer is the fitting one for such a post; and con•
sidering his services in last session, and his high
place in Parliament, and with the party he leads,
we do not see how he could have held office under
any other than Lord DERBY himself with anything
like appropriateness. It is not improbable that Lord
• STANLEY may occupy a place of great importance
and lead the party in the House of Lords, for some
change is required there since Lord DERBY cannot
hold his wonted place. But all these are supposi-
tions that must be left to time and experience to
...tfirm or contradict. Amid the mingled feelings
~-ith which we regard the intelligene3 last night
imparted to Parliament, we cannot but rejoice that
Lord DEI:Br has so fitting a successor in one
who, for long years, has acted in concert with
him ; and we feel convinced that the
noble earl could not have fixed upon one to
whom he would more willingly and confidently
have resigned the trust reposed in him. Let us
Ihope that Lord DERBY will long be spared to his
family and his friends, and that he may occasionally
take part in the affairs of that House as " prefect

of debates,•" for we can ill afford to lose him ; and
his high spit it of independence and chivalric sense
will be now, as ever, of importance to influence the
character of ,ur public life, and impart the convic-
tion that they e ii something to ask for beyond and
above all conmiderations of place and party, and all
thoughts of si 31f-interest.

The long-t/nreatened crisis in the United States
has at length been brought about by the dispute
concerning, the Secretary of War. We learn by
the Atlar.tic Telegraph that yesterday the house
of Reyresentatives appointed a committee of two
formally to impeach the PRESIDENT at the bar of
the Senate, and a committee of seven to prepare
the articles of Impeachment. Later news from
Washington announces that THADDEUS STEVENS
and Mr. BINGIIAM, the two members appointed by
the House of Representatives for the purpose, for-
mally impeached President JOHNSON yesterday at
the bar of the Senate, being evidently determined
to lose no time in pressing the matter forward.
The Senate ordered the appointment of a Select
Committee to consider the subject, and the matter
waits their report. The long-pending quarrel be-
tween PRESIDENT and Congress has now assumed
an exciting and momentous aspect. It is a trial of
strength, and the whole country will watch the
issue with the deepest interest. We see the imme-
diate effect of the crisis in the price of gold, which
yesterday was 1421 ; and the general disturbance
aLd agitation which mast result from such an event
as the impeachment of the PRESIDENT will probably
send it up even higher. The Radicals adopt an
original method of restoring tranquillity and
confidence. Every one in the States is
complaining of the disorganisation of the
country, the depression of trade, and the lack a
public confidence ; and they attempt to remedy
these evils by stirring up fiercer animosities, by
endeavouring to overthrow the Government, and
by bringing forward a political motion of such
moment that even in tranquil and confident times
it would be a firebrand in the nation. The re-
moval of STANTON is, of course, the ostensible
reason for this desperate move. Mr. JOHNSON, as
we heard a few days ago, took matters into his
own hands, and dismissed the Secretary of War
from his office, appointing in his place
Mr. TetoMAS EwING. With characteristic
determination, the PRESIDENT, in the midst
of the excitement respecting the impeach-
ment, sent the nomination to the Senate, and with
it a message intimating that the removal of Mr.
STANTON was no violation of the Tenure of Office
Act, and expressing a wish that the constitu-
tionality of that act should be tried before the
Supreme Court. The Tenure of Office Bill, in
right of which STANTON still holds to his disputed
office, is an act of Radical creation, and very re-
cently new. It forms no part of those old consti-
tutional enactments which Americans have always
cherished and obeyed, but belongs rather
to that deliberate scheme for the limi-
tation of the Presidential influence and
authority, and for the complete ascendancy of
the Legislature over the Executive, which the Ra-
dicals have been steadily pursuing during the last
two years. This bill itself, like most of the recent
Radical enactments, is open to serious criticism ;
and it is more than probable that the Supreme Court
may pronounce it unconstitutional. The Recon-
struction Act upon which the Republican party
plume themselves has already been declared by com-
petent authorities to be decidedly illegal ; and if a
perfectly unbiassed tribunal could, in these days of
faction and party feeling, be found in the States,
there is little question but that they would revoke
most of the recent legislation. For the PRESIDENT
of the States to be deprived of the power of ap-
pointing and removing the members of his own
Cabinet is a preposterous doctrine, and one which
in calmer times would have met with the ridicule
it deserved. If the Radical enactments are really
in themselves unconstitutional, the PRESIDENT can
hardly be impeached for breaking his oath in dis-
regarding them. On the other hand, the Radicals,
who having committed themselves to this desperate
act, will doubtless strain every nerve to secure the
victory they crave for before the legal question is
tried. The PRESIDENT stands firm, and so does the
obnoxious Secretary. Both are immovable except by
actual force, and the issue rests with the Senate.
By the Constitution of the States it is necessary for
two-thirds of the Senate to concur in the conviction
of the PRESIDENT, and it is more than doubtful
whether the Radicals, eager and active, and un-
scrupulous as they are, will be able to secure it.
In the House of Representatives there would be no
difficulty, and if the condemnation and disgrace of
the PRESIDENT depended on the Lower House it
would be merely a question of days or hours. The
Senate, however, is differently constituted. Its
members are on the whole less vehement, less revo-
lutionary, and belong less to the class of
professional agitators. Their social position an-I
surroundings make them less amenable to the in-
fluences which carry away the Representatives, and
if it includes among its members, like most American
assemblies, some turbulent and reckless legislators,
who look only to the promulgation of extreme
theories or the temporary triumph of some party
manoeuvre, it has a larger element of moderate and
middle-course men. These men, though professedly
belonging to the ranks of the Radicals, will be pro-
I bably slow to countenance such a desperate move.

The PRESIDENT'S tenure of office is draw

ing to a close. A few months more,
however much they dislike bim and his

policy, can be easily borne ; whereas the impeach-
ment of the chief man in the States, on the autho-
rity of a bill whose own nature is doubtful, will, in
the present situation of affairs, produce the most

serious and perhaps dangerous effects. It may even
be the first step to wards a newer and more fatal
civil war—it may lead to the overthrow of that
cherished form of Government which Americans

have fought for more than once—it may tend to the
ultimate subversion of the liberties of one of the

great free nations of the earth, and to the destruc-
tion and dismemberment of the nation itself.
The PRESIDENT'S position is strengthened by the
recent publication of the GRANT correspondence.
His own version of the story is supported by all
the members of his Cabinet who were present at the
interview between himself and the General ; and
the defence which GRANT makes against the charge
of double-dealing is not very substantial. IVith
the Radicals, however, he has no need for defence.
He is a hero and a patriot, and his chances for the
Presidency are loudly discussed by the Radicals.
Circumstances have been too strong for the reticent
politician, and he now finds himself committed to
Republicanism. Ilis chances with the general pub-
-1 c, however, are not improved by the recent trans-
action. He is the subject for jests and squibs of
all kinds of laughter-loving critics. One of these
has gained great circulation. It runs as follows :
" You lie," says Johnson—
U-ly-sses Grant."
If' this .is a specimen of the American estimate of
their military statesman, General GRANT'S chances
of the White House are but slender.

In our account of the fire at Covent-garden yes-
terday it was a lodger named Lob;oit who lost his life, and
not a lady.

nORRESPONDENCE FROM PARIS.'

(FROM our. OWN CORRESPONDENT.)
TUESDAY, Feb. 25.

The "conspiracy of silence" has, I have reason to
believe, become almost intolerable to the Imperial Govern-
meat. The Ministers have utterly failed to shew how the
papers can discuss the speeches of the Legislative Body
without incurring the risk of being again mulcted in DIO
fines, and yet they are galled because the papers—several
of them, at least—refuse the perilous attempt. In a word,
the Government is in a dilemma, and there is no way out
except by confessing that the last prosecutions:of the press
were a lamentable blunder. But this conspiracy of
silence has invaded the Chambers. Emile 011ivier, the
only prominent member of the Opposition who ever
shewed a desire to conciliate the Government, has con-
spired in this way against the leader of the Arcadians.
Having quoted the invectives against the arocats deputcs
in the Pays, of which M. Cassagnac is the editor, he
descended from the tribune without replying co it. This is
the offence. He has been called upon to explain his dis-
dainful silence. He has refused, and the probability is
that he will be " calle•d out." A leader in the Pays tells
him that "he should have the courage to give satisfac-
tion " for his " insolence." Perhaps, like Saint-Beuve,
the honourable advocate-deputy does not accept the
" suppression of an individual" as the settlement at a
question.

The "24th felvrier " has passed peaceably. Private ban-
quets have celebrated the anniversary of the Revolution
of 1848, but nothing has transpired to create uneasiness.
It is said that in some quarters the police were reinforced.
As I anticipated a few days ago, the jury of honour in
the Kery efguen affair have decided that there was no ground
whatever for the imputation made by M. Kervdguen
against the Sik:e and the Opinion Nationale. It happened,
however, that when M. Ravin rose in the Chamber to
pr flounce the verdict of the jury, the deputies on
the Right rose to leave the room as if by arrangement.
The President thereupon declared the sitting at an end,
in spite of the vigorous protests of the Left. Why, if the
accusation were made publicly, should the acquittal not
be public ? Surely, it was not because it was Opposition
j urnals that were charged with taking Prussian gold.
A son of Prince Gortschakoff is said to be in Paris. He
is about to marry the daughter of the Hospodar Couza,
late of Roumania. The bride is reputed to have a dowry
of £2,200,000 sterling, from which it may perhaps be
sui posed that Prince Couza did not serve the It oumanians
for naught.
The Civil Tribunal of the Seine at Paris has been called
open to decide a question relating to the sepulture of
G ral Delva, the former Primo Minister of President
Se: ' .uque, who has just died at Paris. The General's
‘w wishes him to be buried at Paris, but his eldest son
desires that his father' body shall be entombed in the
fan. .ly sepulchre at Hayti. The decision has not yet
been given. General Delva has left 3,000,000 francs.
M. Stephan, the director of the Observatoire at Mar-
seilles, has just announced the discovery of new planetoid.
It is a star of the eleventh magnitude, and is found at
present in the constellation Leo, a little to the west of
Regulus. This is the ninety-sixth of the smaller planets.
Four of the students vh I were arrested for manifesta-
tions after the representation of "Kean," at the Od6on,
have been sentenced to periods of imprisonment of six,
eight, and fifteen days, and two months respectively.
Good news for oyster-eaters. A correspondent at
Ostend writes to the Organe de Namur that a marvellous
bed of oysters has just been discovered on that coast. The
English fishermen have exhausted the beds from Dunkirk
to Calais. During one of the late storms a fisherman
was driven by stress of weather as far north as
Ostend. He was trailing his nets to prevent drifting
too rapidly, and when they were drawn up he was de-
lighted to find that he had a magnificent take of oysters.
He delivered his cargo to a courricr to carry to London,
and returned in the night to the same ground. He met
the same success. Now for several weeks an abundant
harvest of oysters has been drawn from these beds. After
the secret was discovered, other boats flocked to the spot,
and now some 180 to 200 are fishing off Ostend. Latterly,
the strong north winds have prevented the courriers reach-
'ng the Thames, and the people of Ostend have been
regaling themselves with des huitres a bon marclte.
Fresh beds continue to be discovered daily. The beds
extend for the space of , four leagues, and the number of
)ysters upon them seems to be incalculable. The French
I,nd Belgian fishermen are preparing to share the good luck
)f the Englishmen.
As experiments in ii-iipophagy have been made in
London, it may be interesting to state that the acquired
taste for horseflesh is extending in Paris. There are now
seven boucheries whence it is regularly dispensed. Dr.,
Leblanc, member of the Academy of Medicine, has been
consoling the Parisians with the assurance that, unlike the
flesh of the ox, the older the animal the better the meat.
An account lying before me says : " Boiled le choral is
rather dry; but dressed d in mode, like beef, it is exquisite,
especially if you give it time to cook before a slow fire."
The famine in Morocco, Tunis, and Algeria is said to
nave passed its worst phase. Rains have fallen at last,
grass has reappeared, and the flocks and herds will, it is
to be hoped, not only be saved from extermination, but
by their milk, one of the main resources of the population,
greatly assist in ameliorating the two or three months
which must elapse before the next harvest. According to
official reports, the prospects for the next year are now
favourable

The Paris correspondent of the Times states tnat the
hinperor is wearied beyond measure by the long and
tedious debates on the Press Bill. He is reported to have
declared, in a fit of impatience, that he would appeal to
the country by a plebiscite to sanction his next liberal
measure, and not to a Chamber which seems bent on
thwarting him.

The Pope has made a sensible demand of the Russian
Government. Before receiving its representative, he has
exacted the withdrawal of the ukase against the Roman
Catholics in Poland and the recall of the exiled bishops.

Recent letters from Spain announced a frightful increase
in banditism. Assassinations have been reported during
the last few days from several points of the Peninsula. A
rich landed proprietor in Valencia was murdered and hor-
ribly mutilated in his own house, whence the bandits
removed all the valuables. A priest in Santa Anna,
Badajoz, was assassinated in his parsonage. The cure of
Guils, Barcelona, was actually thrown into the fire and
threatened with being burnt alive if he did not give up
his money. In this way the wretches obtained his whole
fortune—sixty-four ounces of gold, valued at 5,370 f.
According to the Telegraph a Royal Commission has
been appointed to inquire into the system of courts-mar-
tial, their powers and practice, and into the nature of
military punishments generally ; the commissioners being
Instructed to suggest such improvements as they may think
desirable.

The Daily News anticipates with certainty that the
estimates of the English Government for 1868-9 will set a
good example to Europe in the diminution of public
expenditure under the head of armaments. The navy
estimates will, it is stated, while providing for an addition
to our ironclad naval squadron in the next financial year.
shew a large pecuniary reduction.
Until the House of Commons reassembles on Friday
afternoon, when the Ministerial interregnum is expected
fo terminate, the public must be content to remain satis-
fied with speculation as to the personnel of the new
Cabinet. Generally speaking, the morning papers, of
whatever shade of opinion, appear gratified that Mr.
Disraeli has been sent for by the Queen to become Prime
Minister of England. The Liberal papers, without en-
dorsing his past policy, and still declining to express approval
.f his political principles, seem glad the Premiership has
for once got out of the hands of the great governing fami-
lies, whether Whig or Tory, and transferred to a member
of the lictuse of Commons who has made his way in the
world with unremitting energy and by the power of his
intellect. There is a desire to give Mr. Disraeli the utmost
fair play in his new and trying position. Since Sir Robert
Peel resigned office, in 18.1 G, the distinguished post of First
Lord of the Treasury has not been held out of the ranks
of the nobikty. In twenty years it has passed successively
from Lord Russell to Lord Derby, from Lord Derby to
Lord Aberdeen, from Lord Aberdeen to Lord Palmerston,
from Lord Palmerston to Lord Derby, from Lord Derby
back again to Lord Palmerston, from Lord Palmerston to
Lord Russell, from Lord Russell once more to Lord Derby.
Ilere, for a while, the long succession of nobles is at
an end, and for the first time since August 1827, when
Canning died, a plain " Mr." is the First Minister of State
in Great Britain.

There are many conjectures as to whether Mr. Disraeli
will follow the precedent set by Sir Robert Walpole, by
William Pitt, and by Sir Robert Peel when he formed his
first Administration in 1835, and unite the office of Prime
Minister with that of Chancellor of the Exchequer. To
this it is objected that either of these high posts is quite
sufficient for one man to undertake, and that more espe-
cially the Chancellorship of the Exchequer is very different
now from what it was thirty years ago. Sir Stafford North-
cote is named by general consent as Mr. Disraeli's sue-
cesscm as Finance Minister, if he can be spared from the
India Office under the pressure of the Abyssinian expedi-
tion, of which he has had the arrangement from the
beginning. Failing Sir Stafford, there is Mr. Ward Hunt,
the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, who does his work
well, and is a favourite with the House. In times like the
present, when there are no startling budgets to construct,
no surpluses to dispose of, and no reductions of taxation to
make, Mr.
,Hunt, with a little guidance from his chief,
might make such a Chancellor of the Exchequer as to give
satisfaction in "the City," whore a safe man is preferred
to a brilliant innovator,

LATEST INTELL MENCE.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

TILE ABYSSINIAN EXPEDITION.

Sir Stafford Northcote has received the following
telegram from Sir Robert Napier, dated the 6th of
February :

" Major Grant, whom I had deputed to Prince
Kassai, has been well received by the Prince. My
letter and presents were suitably received in au
open Durbar, attended by 2,000 chiefs and people.
Owing to the Prince being engaged in certain cere-
monies, a private interview had not taken place.
The people around the Prince seem to be well dis-
posed towards us, and the women of Adwa received
the mission on its entry to the town with a hearty
neer in honour of its arrival. No complications
are to be apprehended."

AMERICA.
(By Atlantic Telegraph.)
WASHINGTON, Feb. 25.
The liguse of Representatives appointed to-day
a committee of two formally to impeach President
Johnson at the bar of the Senate, and a committee
of seven to prepare the articles of impeachment.
President Johnson has sent to the Senate the
nomination of Mr. Thomas Ewing as Secretary of
War, and also a message in which he maintains
that the removal of Mr. Stanton was no violation of
the Tenure of Office Act, and expresses the wish
that the constitutionality of the Act should be
tested before the Supreme Court.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 25 (Evening).

Mr. Thaddeus Stevens and Mr. Bingham, the
two members appointed by the [louse of Repre-
sentatives for the purpose, formally impeached
President Johnson to-day at the Bar of the
Senate.

The Senate ordered the appointment of a Select
Committee to consider the subject.
NEW YORK, Feb. 25.

Five hundred thousand dollars in specie were
shipped on board the steamers that left for Europe
to day. _ _

Gold, 1421. Sterling exchange on London, 110 k.
Five-Twenty United States' Bonds, 1882, 111 k ;
ditto, 1885, 109 ; Ten-Forty Bonds, 104 Illinois,
138 ; Erie, 69. Cotton—middling upland, 22kc.
Petroleum--standard white, 261 c. Corn—old
mixed, $1 26c. Flour—extra State, $lO 30c.