The Sun.
London, England, 1868-01-30 00:00:00

record of usurpation, till it finally resolved, that it
was the only power in the realm. Its course
is most instructive. Either by fcrce or the gradual
establishment of custom or precedent it absorbed to
itself the rights of the Crown. Working in the
other direction it slowly narro wed the suffrage, till
the circle became confined almost to the families
and friends of the members, and men walked about
with half a dozen boroughs in their pocket. Under
the plea of representing the people it succeeded
against the Crown, while it effectually barred the
people from any voice in the elections. It was not
till the nation rose against their so-called Repre-
sentatives, and insisted on Reform under a threat of
civil war, that the power was wrenched from the
hands of the usurping landed proprietors. Congress,
unless closely watched, will follow suit. If Mr.
JOHNSON be stripped of power while in the Presi-
dential chair, all future Presidents will wear their
insignia on the sufferance of Congress. The Secre-
taries are said to be but the PRESIDENT'S clerks ;
but thenceforth that PRESIDENT will only be a head
clerk himself. Congress will centralize the Govern•
ment at Washington, and in effect be the Govern-
ment issuing orders to a body of Executive officers.

How far this is in accordance with the Constitution
may be judged from a glance, at that document,
which distinctly invests the powers of the executive
in the PRESIDENT. The first clause of the second sec-
tion makes the PRESIDENT Commander-in-Chief of

the Army and of the Navy, yet the Bill passed last
Tuesday by the House seems to ignore this Consti-
tutional authority, taking from the PRESIDENT the
power of interfering in the South, and handing it over
to General GRANT, whom the Act styles Comman-
der in-Chief. A President, on taking office, swears

to defend the Constitution of the United States.
Mr. JOHNSON has taken that oath, and he honestly
believes that that Constitution is being destroyed
by Congress. But what is he to do? lie stated in
his Message, on the opening of Congress, that if he
considered the necessity required it he would take
the high responsibility of saving the life of the na-
tion at all hazards. If this meant anything, it sig-
nified his intention of thfending the Executive
power centred in him by the force of arms, if other
means failing. What power does the PRESIDENT
possess of carrying into effect this threat ? He has
proved himself to be obstinate in adhering to his in-
tentions and opinions, and courageous in enforcing
them. The telegraph has put us in possession of
the three bald facts—the reinstatement of Secretary
STANTON—the passage by the House of a measure
requiring a majority of two-thirds of the Judges of
the Supreme Court to render an act of Congress
unconstitutional ; and this bill on which we now
comment. How far has Congress as yet gone in the
direction indicated by the PRESIDENT towards the
point at which he would resist by force ? The time
is at hand when ANDREW JOHNSON must make good
his threat or present the miserable spectacle of the
plucked cock.—A nglo- American nines.

A COOL BAND OF BRIGANDS.--A band of 20
men, well armed and mounted on horseback, a
few nights since entered the village of Fuentelsaz, not
very far from Madrid, and attacked the house of Don Mar-
cos Martin, one of the richest landed proprietors of tb e
locality. They sacked the premises from top to bottom,
and killed the owner's son-in-law, who happened to be
sleeping there, and who made some resistance. The
repeated shots fired by the assailants roused the whole
village, but no one rendered any assistance, as when
the state of siege had been declared all the weapons
were taken away. The robbers retired quietly with
their booty, but eleven of them were the next day
arrested.

PROPERTIES OF THE METAL ALUMINIUM.—At the
last meeting of the New York. Lyceum of Natural History,
Professor Henry Wurtz, well known as the discoverer of
the peculiar value of sodium amalgam for amalgamating
gold ores, read a very interesting paper on some newly
discovered properties of the metal aluminium, an abstract
of which we find in the American Journal of Mining
as follows :—" The • author's numerous experiments
upon metals with sodium amalgam have revealed
to h:m new and surprising properties of aluminium, the
most abundant metal (as he says) upon the earth ; and
promising to be the most valuable. These new phenomena
once discovered, may, however, be readily reproduced
without the aid of sodium, and they were exhibited to the
Lyceum by Professor Wurtz, repeatedly and in various
forms. He first pointed out the wonderfully exceptional
nature of aluminium, never found native, and so hard to
detach from oxygen; yet, when detached, maui:esting no
more disposition to recombine therewith than gold. His
new discoveries solve this paradox perfectly. Ile first
proved that the surface of the metal is passive to quick-
silver, as he has before shown in native gold, iron, Sx.,
but that, wholly contrary to common belief, the internal
pasts of a piece of aluminium absorb pure quicksilver with
avidity ; so that a piece of rolled sheet is thus quickly split
into component laminae. The internal surfaces thus en-
filmed with quicksilver, lie then proved to possess most
surprising new properties. On exposure to air they at
once take fire spontaneously, and burn with evolu-
tion of heat ; a coating of hydrate of alumina; as
a bulky, feathery, or filamentary mass, being formed
with a growth so rapid as to be visible to the
eye, and under the lens wonderful to behold.
To condense the discoveries of Professor Wurtz we give
his new theory of aluminium, slightly altering the phrase-
ology for the sake of brevity. 1. Normal aluminium is is
the electro-negative or passive state, corresponding to
"passive iron," for example. 2. Quicksilver induces an
abnormal, active, or electro-positive state, precisely corres-
ponding to normal sodium and potassium. His experi-
ments have shown, as he has maintained in a previous
paper, that no amalgam of aluminium is formed;
and this newly discovered absorption of quicksilver
beneath the outer crust of the metal he believes to be per-
fectly analogous to the phenomenon of Professor Joseph
Henry's celebrated lead syphon experiment, in which a
solid amalgamated lead syphon conducted quicksilver in-
definitely through its internal pores from an upper to a

lower vessel. Prof. Wurtz's deductions from his own theory
are of high interest and importance. For instance, he holds
the idea that we may confidently hope, as one of the re-
sults of investigations in this new field, to obtain a
permanently passive form of iron; a discovery which, if
ever made, will be surpassed in practical value by fow
others; and he asks, why we should not now regard as
possible the discovery of sodium and potassium in their
passive forms, correspondit.g to ordinary aluminium—in
which case these metals could be handled with impunity,
and become articles of general commerce. Mr. Wurtz an-
nounces that his paper will probably appear in full in the
next number of the American Journal ode Science.
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Births.
BROWN—On the 28th inst., at 39, Clarges-street, Lacl9
Brown, of a son.
KENT—On the 28th inst., at Herne Villa, London-road, St.
Alban's, the wife of Thomas Kent, of a daughter.
SEDLEY—On the 28th inst., at Berkeley Lodge, AIPII3-
road, Regent's-park, the wife of Commander J. SodleY7
of a daughter.

Marriages.
RYLAND—BIDDLE—On the 28th inst., at Haddenham, Isle
of Ely, Mr. Joseph E. Ryland, of Mildmay-park, Lou'
don, to Emily, daughter of John Biddle, Esq.
SCARLETT—Low— On the 27th inst., at Sun Yale, Wre•
Searlett, Esq., Captain sth Dragoon Guards, to 110-1"
rietta Katherine, only daughter of John Low, of 611°
Vale, Kilruallock, Esq., D.L., county Limerick.
Deaths.

BETTINGTON -Ou the 27th inst., at Fern House, Cliftool
Joseph 11. Bettington, Esq., aged 55.
BERNARD —On tln, 27th inst., at Cheltenham, ~Villiatn R•
&mart], Esq., M.D., aged 76.
IlAnitisoN—At the Rectory, the Rev. T. T. Ilarrisollt
rector of Thorpe Murieux, aged 70.
of
JODI3ELL —On the 27th inst. Edward Edward Jodbell, b
Baytield Hall, Norfolk, late. Captain 18th Royal 106
and Major West Essex Militia, aged 54.
,11'
PEMBERTON —On the 27th inst., at Prospect Villa,
Laos
ton, Essex, Busick R. Pemberton, Esq., aged 60.
ULLEY —On the 28th inst., at 366, Strand, J. H. Tallel;
musical director of the Theatre Royal, Drury-la
aged 54.

- -
London : Printed and Published by WILLIA.O A.NDOV;;z,
of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at SUN (lace, 14°,.,, of
Strand, in the Precinct of the Sr soy, in the Cou''
Aliddleses..--Thuraday, January 30, 1868.