The Sun.
London, England, 1844-09-17 00:00:00

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LONDON, TUESDAY, SEPTEISIIER 17. 1844.

Nothing in the world is so unreasonable as poli-
tical morality. Hypocrisy, in the moral intercourse
of social life, is odious enough, Heaven knows ; and is
always, when detected, as ridiculous as odious. But
political morality does not even affect to observe thr
mere appearances of those virtues, the distinct exercise
of IN hich it rigorously exacts from all with whom it
is brought into contact. It does not simply commit
the most atrocious frauds, violences, and iniquities—
on States and individuals where it has its own pur-
poses to serve, and they have not the art or the power
to resist its machinations—but it justifies them. It
broadly proclaims that its own ends justify all the means
that it may employ for their attainment. But whilst
it allows this latitude to its own principles of action,
it will not allow to its friends or its foes the slightest
r7ght of private judgment in adapting theirs to the
exigency of circumstances, however imperative. A
few months ago the journals of the United States
were loud and furious in their deprecations of the
ambition and reckless spirit of aggrandisement which,
according to them, had prompted this country to
allow British subjects to occupy the territory of the
Oregon. To that territory they claimed a priority ci
title—a title which has since been abundantly dis-
proved in the diplomatic State papers by themselves.
Produced in order to found it. But, at the same time
as_ they still do now, they urged on the annexation
f Texas to their own territory, in virtue of
pretensions much more lately originated. The pre-
text relied on for the annexation of Texas never con-
cealed for a moment the objects of occupying a terri-
tory, favourable beyond all others for the purposes of
a great slave entrepiit- between Africa and South
America, and of adding one to the strength of the slave-
holding States of the Federal Union. This flagitious
scheme for securing a majority to the southern States
against those of the north was advocated by the men who
were most unmeasured in their invectives against
England for its lust of dominion, and for the' inade-
quacy of its political institutions, as co-i pared with
those of the Union, to uphold the rights of human
freedom ! But the French were certainly disposed
to " go ahead" of brother Jonathan, altogether, in
this one-sided self-complacent, prejudiced, and incon-
sistent political morality. We have been greatly
amused with some passages in the foreign correspon-
dence- that has come under cur review, and which
bear very closely and with singular force on this
point.
For example. With the seizure and occupation of
Algeria fresh in the recollections of the FrenCh mind

(contrasted, as that is, in the mind of Europe at large
with the solemn recorded abjuration of all intention
.1.
to omupy, on the part of the French Government), it
is liss surprising, perhaps, than whimsical, to find the
Commeice giving us credit for no less a design than
to make, ',with I.'ussia, a partition of the Turkish
empire!! :We are to act with as much profligate
initlitice to the SULTAN, as the CZARINA did to the
unfortunate King of POLAND ; and the duplicity of
our diplomacy at the outset of these fine designs is

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