The Sun.
London, England, 1868-02-15 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 15, 1868.

very high value upon their services, but it is to be
feared that the public will not appreciate them quite
so highly.
It is not only the finances of the country which
the Radicals arc prepared to adjudicate upon ; they
wish also to have a direct voice in the management
of the foreign affairs. They have been lately con-
sidering a resolution requesting the PRESIDENT to
demand the release of NAGLE and other American
citizens arrested by the British authorities for words
spoken and actions done in America. Should their
release be refused, the PRESIDENT is requested to
cease diplomatic intercourse with Great Britain. The
hero TRAIN is, we suppose, included in this list of
worthies, whose wrongs are to set two hemispheres
in a flame, and the compensation demanded for his
grievances will henceforth be put side by side with
the Alabama claims. The diplomatic situation
seems to give some concern to the citizens of Penn-
sylvania, for they have presented a memorial to the
Senate, praying for the recall of Mr. ADAMS. If
report speaks truly, Mr. ADAMS has anticipated
them by resigning his post, and we hope that his
successor will be equally competent.

The embarrassing i3ositior of the Cabinet, owing
to its discordant elements, has been clearly shown
by the publication of the official correspondence,
furnished by the Secretary of War, in response to
the resolution of inquiry. The PRESIDENT, on the
29th ult., ordered General GRANT to disobey Mr.
STANTON'S orders, unless authorised by the Exe-
cutive. General GRANT replied thathe should regard
the Secretary's orders as so authorised unless actu-
ally countermanded. Gen. GRANT has, in one sense,
reason on his side, but unless he communicates all
the orders he receives to the Executive, it is diffi-
cult to see how they will be aware of his intended
action. A Cabinet so divided against itself can
hardly succeed in carrying on the public business
without some open rupture or some perplexing
situation. The Radicals have reinstated Mr.
STANTON as an affront to the PRESIDENT, but the
position which the War Secretary holds is neither
dignified nor pleasant. The PRESIDENT, on the
other hand, is perpetually thwarted by his
subordinate without being influenced by him. It
is au arrangernem which is alike discreditable to
the Cabinet and unsatisfactory to the country.
General GRANT'S position between the two is un-
doubtedly an awkward one, and he has made it
worse by his trimming policy. By joioing
with the PRESIDENT, and pledging himself
not to resign his office as Acting
Secretary without giving him intimation of it, he
alienated the Radical party and misled the PRESI-
DENT. Becomi]g apparently uneasy at this result,
he suddenly threw himself into the ranks of the
other side, and by hastily surrendering his post to
STANTON endeixoured to ingratiate himself with
the Congress, and to escape the responsibility at-
taching to the prominent actors in the struggle.
Mr. JOHNSON had some reason to complain of the
sudden and unlooked-for desertion of hi 3 chief lieu-
tenant, which placed him at a considerable disad-
vantage with regard to the action of Congress. As
yet we hear no more of the feud ; but the fire, we
apprehend, is cnly smouldering. There is a ru-
mour that the PRESIDENT intends to remove Gen.
MEADE and to appoint General ROUSSEAU as
his successor. General MEADE has lately
shown a spirit of insubordination, and a
disposition to an arbitrary and oppressive
exercise of his power, which might very well lead
the PRESIDENT to WiSi for his removal. Still we
have no certain information on the subject, and the
last act which we hear of General MEADE'S is of a
more moderate character. He has ordered the offi-
cial advertisements to be given to all newspapers
in his district irrespective of politics—a change for
the better in any Radical leader, civil or military.
Free-traders will be glad to learn that there
are symptoms of a favourable alteration in the
West. The Americans, so far advanced in every
other department of political knowledge, and
carrying as they do their convictions to an extent

which startles Europe, are, nevertheless, obsti-
nately wedded to the old doctrines of Protection.
While England has long ago led the van,
while France has made considerable pro-
gress, while even Germany and Austria are
beginning to acknowledge that the heavier the
burdens the slower the progress of commerce,
America keeps up a tariff which is absolutely pro-
hibitory. There is a vast amount of interested op-
position to any change ; and there is also a great
deal of prejudice in the matter existing throughout
all classes. The truth, however, is slowly but
surely making its way, and can hardly be much
longer kept back. We find that numerous Free-trade
meetings have been held in Northern commercial

cities, a sure sign that Free-trade convictions are
extending among the people. America is espe-
cially qualified for a great commercial country ;
her vast extent, her abundant resources, her
powerful fleet, and the energy and enter-
prising spirit of her people, all mark her
out as a nation to whom of all others
Free Trade would be invaluable. It is only
marvellous that the Americans, resenting as they
do every check or burden upon public spirit or in-
dividual enterprise, should have so long cherished
the obsolete and exploded theories which even the
most prejudiced Governments of Europe are be-
ginning to cast aside.

THE LATE FIRE AT THE OXFORD
MUSIC HALL.