The Sun.
London, England, 1868-12-03 00:00:00

THE AMERICAN MINISTER.

The Pall Hall Gazette thus refers to the stories about
Mr. Johnson losing confidence with his country-
men :—" A long letter from the London corre-
spondent of the New York Tribune appeared in a
contemporary yesterday with regard to Mr. Reverdy
Johnson's recent speeches. The writer seeks to prove that
Mr. Johnson has given great offence in his own country
by his cordial tone and friendly expressions towards Eng-
land. There is truth in this, but the proof now adduced is
nearly all from sources bitterly antagonistic to Mr.
Johnson. The Tribune hates England, and has no affec-
tion for the present Minister. The other papers quoted by
the correspondent (except the Times and Nation) are all
notorious for the violence of their anti-English prejudices.
Extracts from the Tribune prove nothing, but it is now past
all doubt that Mr. Johnson has not satisfied all classes of his
countrymen by consenting to meet Mr. Laird and other
similar acts. It was forepen that much complaint
would be the result, and probably Mr. Johnson knew
that it would come. lie has, however, done his, duty
according to his view of an American Minister's
duty in the present relations between the two countries,
and assuredly he is not the sort of man to be frightened
by the abuse of the Tribune. Ile has had
to bear with that for a good many years past, and
we doubt whether our climate has injuriously affected his
nerves. Mr. Reverdy Jehnson evidently decided on his
course after due deliberation, and if his Government do
not like that course he will not be left to gather its
opinion from the dogmatic assertions of newspaper corre-
spondents."

MR. REVERDY JOHNSQN AND MR.
BRIGHT AT BIRMINGHAIM.

Mr. Reveray Johnson, having met Lord Stanley at
Liverpool and Mr. Disraeli at the Mansion House, on
Wednesday met Mr. Bright at Birmingham, the " central
metropolis of England." Throughout he cried " Peace
and good-will " between England and America. He
repeated even more strongly that all cause of
uneasiness between the two countries was removed. He
did not for a moment seem to doubt that his work would be
concurred in by his Government. In commencing his
speech he passed a high eulogium on the character and worth
of the two gentlemen who had cheered his country when it
was passing through a crisis—Messrs. Bright and Cobden—
and approved the policy of free trade which they had
inaugurated. His utterances, however, about the capture
of merchant ships at sea, are worth quoting. " You had
not long since what was called, I believe, a Social Science
Conference in this town, and among other subjects in dis-
pute was the propriety of exempting private property
on the ocean from capture. What I said upon the
occasion to which I have alluded at Liverpool was that
that was undoubtedly a relic of the barbarism of former
times. It was held that private property on the ocean
should be liable to capture—as I collected from some of
the theses read at the Social Science Convention (a sin-
gular name to give to a Convention)—was but a relic of
barbarous times, and that the existence of the doctrine was
calculated to avert war because it would render war more
terrible was altogether erroneous. War more terrible !
Why, in the name of God, with our present implements of
war, how can war be more terrible? With their use, if war
should arise between the nations of Europe, and they could
meet on the field of battle with 100,000 or 500,000 men,
and they should have a dozen of these engagements, such
nations would be depopulated. It is supposed that in the
late great conflict in our country we lost, on both sides, in
dead and wounded— the wounded being rendered useless
for all the purposes of life-1,000,000 men within four
years. The loss of property arithmetic can hardly calcu-
late. But suppose a war between our two nations about
the Alabama claims, or the rights of naturalised citizens,
how would the account stand when it came to be

ABINGDON
ANDOVER
AYLESBURY

ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE

ANGLESEA
BRECONSHIRE
BARNSTAPLE

BRIDONORTII
BANBURY
BATH

BEDFORD

BERWICK

BEVERLEY

BEWDLEY
BIRKENHEAD
Buourra Haat