The Sun.
London, England, 1868-08-15 00:00:00

LOATDON, SA7 URDAY, AUGUST 15, 1868.;

Mr. GLADSTONE has forwarded a communication
to the electors who signed the requisition asking
him to become a candidate for South-West Lan-
cashire, and announces that he has much pleasure
in acceding to their request. It is not likely that
any letter or speech of the right hon. gentleman
could be complete withotit his making some
suggestion, or finding some flaw in the
existing arrangements. In this document
referred to, we find that he mentions the omission
of Mr GRENFELL'S name in the requisition, and sug-
gests the propriety of that gentleman's claims to
their support being considered. It will be remem-
bered that, in his speech at St. Helen's, Mr. GLAD-
STONE laid great stress upon the superior manage-
ment of finance which distinguished his party in
opposition to that of the Conservatives. It has
been found upon examination that the right hon.
gentleman's wishes were more expressed in this than
any accuracy of statement. A few facts and figures
show that Lord Derby, in 1859, left the Income-
tax at fivepence in the pound, and that Mr. GLAD-
STONE raised it to tenpence, and that the only time
when the tax was fivepence, before 1865, was
under the opponents of Mr GLADSTONE, that
gentleman never having imposed it as that sum
during any year of his long financial supremacy.
It is also noticeable that in 1858-59 we had a
smaller expenditure than at any time when Mr.
GLADSTONE was Chancellor of the Exchequer, and
therefore the flourishes of rhetoric he indulges in
are not exactly founded on plains and sober fact.

Sir R. J. CLINTON has made a speech at Not-
tingham, which is a relief to peruse, in consequence
of its independence of tone and public spirit. The
hon. baronet declined to pledge himself to any
party, and had he been in the House of Commons
he would have voted for the Reform Bill, by
which means he would have supported the Tories,
but he had always voted independently of
any party. He believed, be added in
conclusion, that a member who pledged himself
to any party in the House of Commons would get
out of the difficulty which would otherwise attend
him of discriminating between good and bad. If
some candidates for election and members of Par-
liament acted in the spirit of the straightforward and
independent course here indicated, we should have
a better illustration of the saying, " Measures, not
men," and the country would reap the advantage
of remedial changes being brought about without
the vexatious party fights and factious manoeuvres
taking place, which waste time and compro-
mise the dignity of Parliament so greatly.
Mr. NEATE has issued his farewell address to the
electors of Oxford city, and gives a brief ac-
count of his reasons for supporting Mr. GLAD-
STONE'S resolutions on the Irish Church. Many
other addresses are also met with, and considerable
activity prevails, so that the electors will have
plenty of time and opportunity afforded them of
considering the pros and cons of the matter before
the momentous occasion of deciding arrives. With
one thing and another several changes will take
place in the representation of the new constitu-
encies.

The good people of Paris are again on the alert,
after their long respite from excitement. The
EMPEROR'S fete is always more or less looked for-
ward to as an epoch of rare importance, and if a
political crisis does not take place, the eager and
expectant think that it might, and all are on the
watch accordingly. Contrary to the advice of some
the EMPEROR was yesterday present at a review,
and the EMPRESS also appeared. No incident of
note occurred in the affair, which passed off very
well, and gave great satisfaction to a large crowd
assembled to witness the proceedings. The cheer-
ng, it is said, was considerable, and altogether the
day could not have passed off more successfully
than it did. Additional interest was im-
parted to the review in consequence of
the presence of Lord NAPIER of MAGDA LA.
He will leave to-day for the c Imp at Chalons.
liVe may regard this circumstance of a successful
service as all the more significant when we remember
that the EMPEROR was informed by those well quali-
fied to know that to hold a review in Paris just now
might bring about a manifestation. The total
number of troops reviewed has been roughly esti-
mated at sixty thousand, comprising some squadrons
of the Garde Nationale, the Garde Imperiale, and