The Sun.
London, England, 1868-06-12 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

The Times observes that the Registration Bill brought
in by Mr. Hardy is a satisfactory redemption of the
pledge given by the Government to expedite the election
of a new Parliament. If it pass, as it doubtless will pass,
with little alteration, the great questions by what hands
the nation shall be guided, and what policy shall direct
the national progress, may be decided before Christmas.
There will, indeed, be no time to spare to accomplish this
according to the most favourable computation, but it
is of much more importance than is at first sight
apparent, that the fate of the Ministy and of
the Irish Establishment should be determined this
year ; and there has been some ground for appre-
hension during the last week that the decision would
somehow he postponed. If the issues were left untried
until February—if it remained uncertain till then whether
the present Government would continue in office or be
ejected—it would be impossible to prepare such a neces-
sary matter as the estimates till a later date, and the
elaboration of measures dealing with many questions
which urgently require legislative settlement would be
hopeless. Another lost session would be added to the
session now approaching its close, and it would not be
before 1870 that a responsible Mitstry would be enabled
to discharge their most appropriate functions. If
the Government proposal for accelerating the dissolution
be adopted, the new Parliament may meet on the Bth
or 9th December. It will be seen at once that the
holiday season is as good as gone. Members will have to
make the most of a few brief days at the end of August or
the first week in September ; but even then their joys will
be marred, and many in Scotland of among the stubble
will be found, like Mr. Clough's member, who

" Started, remembering sadly the try of the coming
election."

But it is evident that the Bth or 9th of December is nearly
tht last day to which the meeting of Parliament could be
deferred. After it has meet, a week will be consumed in
swearing in members and electing a Speaker before the
Royal Speech can. be delivered. This brings us to the
15th or 16th of the month. The object of the extra-
ordinary session would be lost if an issue were not at once
taken in the form el an amendment to the Address.
Allow the necessary number of nights for debating so im-
portant a matter, and it is plain that members will be
very hard-pressed to get to their homes again before
Christmas. Mr. Hibbert may, perhaps, succeed in se-
ething ~he quiet domestic festiVPal he so feelingly described
a few days sitac, and we hope he may enjoy it ; but
Irish members- may be caught in mid-channel as a
reward for their zeal in attacking or defending the
peculiar establishment of their island. Scotchmen,
we believe, do not know what Christmas is ; so we
need not waste any sympathy on Mr. Bouverie's distant
colleagues. The prospect of a debate which is to deter-
mine the course of Irish policy crowded together on the
rery eve of Christmas makes us, however, ask whether it
is" impossible to speed the opening of Parliament even
more than Mr. Hardy, on behalf of the Government;
contemplates as possible. The idea which has animated
the deliberations of the Cabinet is undoubtedly just. The:
have made it their object to curtail as little as possible
the time allowed for duly-qualAd persons to make their
claims and get placed on the register, so as to secure to
electors the opportunity of exercising the rights Parlia-
ment has conceded to them ; but they have proposed to
abridge the period of revision, and in this way complete
the register in time for an election in November. This is
a proper policy, and it is almost made necessary by the
further circumstance that Parliament is in arrear with the
Scotch Ileform Bill and the Boundary Bill.

The Post remarks that in one respect this
received with a feeling of satisfaction. It will put an end
to the condition of suspense to which the House of Com-
mons and the public have been so long condemned. For
some time both before and after the vote on Mr. Glad-
stone's Church Resolutions no one could say whether the
Government might not have recourse to the vexatious
expedient of a dissolution before the Irish and Scotch Re-
form Bills were passed. The Prime Minister was so
guarded and so oracular in his statement after his in-
terview with the Queen at Osborne, that no one could say
whether he meant to hold office until those bills were.
passed, or make an immediate appeal to the country:
The Opposition became impatient, and on the eve of the
Whitsuntide recess a question was put, which was praeki-
eally answered last night by the introduction of Mr.
Hardy's bill. Without giving his assent to that measure,
the leader of the Opposition virtually accepted it as a
substantial and Lona fide attempt to put an end as soon as
possible to the present anomalous condition of things. One
thing is quite clekar, namely, that the Liberal party have
made up their minds to leave the Government undisturbed
until the meeting of the new Parliament, and henceforth
during the present session their efforts will be mainly
directed towards bringing about that event as soon as
possible.

The Daily Nova notes that 3tr. Hardy appears to have had
two objects before him in the framing of his measures : to
hasten the dates at which a general election can take
pla9e and a new Parliament can be summoned, and to do
so without detriment to the rights of the newly-enfran-
chised voters. Full opportunity and abundant time must
be given to claimant,: and objectors. If justice is to be
done them, the steps preliminary to the revision of the lists
of voters do not admit of being shortened. But by increasing
the number of revising barristers the revision itself may
be got over in a less time than is now occupied by it. By
a change iu the manner of printing the list, and by
shortening the period between the royal proclamation and
the return of the writs from thirty-five to twenty-eight
days, Mr. Hardy holds that the new Parliament may
assemble about the end of the first week in December,
and proceed to business by the 14th or 15th of that month.
Of course their first business will be to try the strength of
parties, either on a direct vote of confidence or by some
gotion relative to the great issue on which the election
will have turned. One great debate and one decisive
division will be enough for this purpose ; and the victors.
Ixnd vanquished will be able to go home for Christmas.

As was to have been anticipated, the Herald says, the
House of Commons has thrown over the Boundary Com-
mission, and adopted the recommendations of the Com-
mittee. The report of the committee gave the Radicals
all they wanted ; and they naturally would be content,
after such a decision in their favour, with nothing less.
It is iille".now to discuss the question upon its merits.
Mr. Ililibert's amendment, substituting for the recom-
mendations of the commission, embodied in the bill
as proposed by the Government, the recommenda-
tions of the select committee, was adopted by the
House, or rather by the committee, and the bill passed
through that stage practically as altered by the select
committee. Of the consequences of this decision, so
insulting and so unjust to the able and honourable gen-
tlemen in whose appointment as commissioners the
House concurred, so unworthy of any representative
assembly making the slightest pretence to honesty and
straightforwardness,we will not now trust ourselves to speak.
It is enough to say that, with all respect for the predic-
tion of Mr. Lowe, who seems, however, to have reconciled
himself to all that he most abominated, we can hardly
believe in the election of a House of Commons which
will lend itself to such a contemptible breach of good
faith as the unreformed House of Commons committed
last night.

The Telegraph comments on the victory of the English
volunteers in Scotland. Twenty English marksmen,
selected to contend for the International Trophy, have
defeated their rivals on the Edinburgh range. The result
is gratifying to the Sauthrons, not only because the
match was fought out on Scottish ground, but because it re•
verses the verdict of last year, when the Northerners
were victorious at Wimbledon. The contest was very close
—the English twenty scoring 1,068, the Scotch 1,057,
the Irish 980. The weakness of the Irish team may
be attributed, in some degree, to the working of that rule
which caused the match to be shot off at Edinburgh. A
balance of reasons gives a preference to Wimbledon as the
scene of these friendly battles, because nearly every marks-
man likely to be chosen visits Wimbledon, whereas many
good riflemen are excluded from the list by the mere fact
that the shooting range is beyond the Tweed. It would
be fairer to 'all parties were Wimbledon fixed on as tlu
ground for the international matches. Although theEnglial
scored the largest total, the highest single score (66) was made
by Capt. Armstrong, who fired with the Irish twenty ; the
next highest by the Scotch marksman, Plenderlcith of
Peebles, who made 64. Besides these there were only six
whose total exceeded 59—Corporal Hepplestone, Sergeant
Bingham, Private Snclus, and Sergeant Barnes of the
English ; Private Grant, Scotch ; and Sergeant Knox,
Irish. The lowest score, 40, was registered by an Irish
and by a Scotch competitor. The lowest English scone
was 46. On the whole the shooting was good, and may l
taken as an indication that, weather permitting, the d'4
plays of skill at Wimbledon will be unusually fine.

An International Congress of History and Arch-
molo,s,ry will assemble at Bonn between the 13th and 20th
Septemlier. An exhibition of works of art and antiqui
ties is to tale place there at the same time.

THE REV. DR. VAUGHAN.—Our readers will aL
learn with the deepest regret that the Rev. Dr. Robert
Vaughan is seriously ill. He had been suffering for
several days past from congestion of the brain, and is now
lying, at his new residence in Torquay, in a comatose con.
dition. The gravest fears are entertained by his friends,
but there is still room to hope that this much-honoured
minister and veteran Nonconformist may be spared for
some further service to his denomination and the Chwch
at large.—English Independent.