The Sun.
London, England, 1868-11-09 00:00:00

THE CRUISE OF THE GALATEA.

A great deal has been said of the " Duke of Edinburgh'b
book." That book is now issued, but there is only one
part of it the Duke of Edinburgh's—that in which he
describes his elephant hunt in a letter to the Prince of
Wales. " Here," says the Daily News, "we have a highly-
sensational picture of an elephant-charge, and we
grow quite bloodthirsty in the excitement of the chase.
It is no joke, however, to make one of such a party.
The Duke is terribly in earnest, and means business ;
is here, there, and everywhere ; helps to collect brush-
wood and make the fire ; seems able to do without meat,
drink, or sleep (to speak of), and swallows his mutton broth
out of the solitary teacup which makes the round of
the party with a philosophy and gay good humour that
are irresistible. We are very much tempted to give in
extenso the Duke's letter to the Prince of Wales, but refrain
for obvious reasons. A short extract we cannot resist.
The Prince having caught his hare' (only this time it
was an elephant), proceeds, with coat off, and shirt
sleeves tucked up, to' skin him in the most scien-
tific manner, from which congenial occupation he
is summoned to have a piece of the loaf and
meat jwhich the governor has been cutting up.
This was breakfast, the party having risen at 5 a.m.,
and it was then 3.30 p.m. Hear this, ye club loungers,
ye young gentlemen of England who lounge at home at
ease, ye heavy swells, and effeminate exquisites, and take
a lesson from royalty ! But,' the Duke observes,
' as our hands and arms are all covered with blood, we
had to get our friends to bale t p water in the cups
of our spirit-flasks, and wash us down, clear of the pool,
it being our only water to drink.' The Duke having
finished his skinnings, et cmtera, makes the following
remark, which is so fully flavoured with the conscious
satisfaction of a virtuous action, that we cannot resist
giving it The day was fine and the weather hot, and
my short clay was very enjoyable, sitting on the yet waxen
carcase!"'

But the book itself is written by the Duke's chaplain.
Here is a specimen of his style. It is a description of the
Duke's entry into Capetown, giving one an idea of the
most surprising demonstration of the congregated riffraff
and ,rabble of the world. :—" As we proceeded
fresh carriages of private individuals and hone-
men continued to join on behind, and it was
necessary to keep a bright look-out to prevent their
rushing in between the two carriages containing the
Duke and the Governor with their suites. The road was
thickly covered with red dust, which as soon as the
horsemen and carriages started rose in clouds and
enveloped everything. A great scrambling crowd of
Malay and black boys, running and tumbling over eich
other, shouting and laughing; women with children tied
upon their backs; old men, too, and girls dressed in
every conceivable kind of ragged rig and picturesque
colour, with head-gear most varied and wonderful to look
on—to wit, Malay hats like huge parasols, or the thatch
of an English corn-rick ; crowns of old black hats,
turbans of all proportions and colours, swelled the pro-
cession as it swept along. Everybody within reach
seemed to stop in whatever they might be employed,
and to commence running with the procession as though
bewitched. One long negro, carrying an empty coffin
under his arm, joined in, and commenced running
and shouting with the rest. Darkies of all shades and
ages, up in trees, screamed and shouted in a state of
frantic delight at the whole scene. When the
cavalry trumpet sounded ' Trot,' the cloud of dust
increased tenfold. Everybody apparently, who could
muster a horse was mounted, so that ahead and on
every side the carriage in which we were following
the Duke was hemmed in and surrounded, and everything
became mixed up in one thick cloud of red dust, in
which helmets, swords, hats, puggeries, turbans, and
horses almost disappeared. The crowd hurrahed louder
than ever ; pigs squealed, dogs howled, riders tumbled off ;
the excitement was irresistible. Whoo-whoop !' and
we were rushed into the cloud of dust (to escape being
utterly swamped, and left astern of the Duke),
standing up in the carriage, and holding on in front to
catch what glimpse we could of what was going on."
Then there is a comic part and a solemn one. The former
is bearable, but the latter falls into many a mistake. The
book as a whole relates in prose, in comic and in solemn
verse, how the Prince left England, visited Trig
tan d'Acunha, where the chaplain was much
discouraged because he could not marry any couples
—how he visited Capetown, and goes hunting;
how he went to Australia and got shot; and, finally, hiS
return home. The book is innocent of toadyism, and the
Daily News thus sums up its quality. " This book bears the
same relation to literature proper that calves-foot jelly and
sweet omelets do to diet. Not unpleasant, and not with-
out a certain amount of mild merit, but entirely innocent
of those sterling qualities which we prize in a piece de
resistance; which we eat hot, and think still better cold,
and return to again and again, finding in it bone and
muscle, flavour, nourishment, and strength."

A Connecticut editor gives an account of a man
who "blew out his brains after bidding his wife good-bye
with a gun."

Messrs. Edmonston and Douglas have in tho
press " A Survey of Foreign Politics," by Mr. Grant
Duff, M.P.

The name of Lieut. Prince Arthur, K.G., has been
struck out of the roll of officers of Royal Engineers at head—
quarters, Chatham, on his being trausferred to the corps of
Royal Artillery. His royal highness has been entertained
at a farewell dinner by the officers of the Royal Engineers,
at Br ompton Barracks, previously to his formally quitting
the Royal engineer establishment.

Dr. Thomson, Archbishop of York, opened, on
Friday night, the winter course of lectures in connection
with the Edinburgh Philosophical Institution, with a criti-
cism on modern positivism, with the view of shewing the
insufficiency of a philosophy which takes no account of
other knowledge than that acquired by the senses ; that
the natural system of the world touched the miraculous at
both ends, and that it is impossible to leave out of any
true philosophy God, freedom, duty, and immortality. The
lecture was characterised by considerable felicity of defi-
nition and general terseness and graphicness of description.
Great curiosity has been expressed as to what M.
Thiers is engaged upon at this moment. During the last
five or six months the illustrious statesman has purchased
more than 150 volumes on natural history ; the latest
works, the most recent discoveries, all the progress of
science is the subject of his studies. It is now stated that
for many years past M. Thiers has been occupied in writing
an important book, in five or six volumes, on religion,
philosophy, general history, arts, and sciences. The first
portion is now completed ; the few amongst the friends of
the author who have read some pages render homage to
the ardour of the profession of faith set forth in the work.
A correspondent of an evening paper comments
on the indiscreet way in which Mr. Reverdy Johnson is being
treated in this country. His friends seem to be doing all they
can to bring him into disrepute with the dominant party in
his own country. At the Sheriffs' dinner to Mr. Johnson on
Wednesday last, Mr. Alderman and Sheriff Cotton, after
bestowing on the people of the States the usual plentiful
allowance of butter, proceeded to qualify it with acid as fol-
lows:—" There was yet ono thing to be done, namely,
to restore to the Southern States all the rights of
the Union, and all the State privileges. Cheers.)
The American Republic would then be perfect,
and all its influences and laws materially strength-
ened." Now, most people are aware that the ques-
tion, of which the alderman thus disposes, as it were, in a
few words of exuberant innocence, is one of the most diffi-
cult ever submitted to the judgment of a people. The
Republican party, right or wrong, have decided it their
own way. And the majority of the nation, by
the recent Presidential vote, has deliberately adopted this
policy. One word of assent, therefore, by Mr. Beverdy
Johnson to the suggestion thus ingeniously tendered for his
acceptance by the Alderman would have compromised the
envoy with that party which now controls the Legislature,
ltd in fog mentla# time they c.eatret the exegytim _ •

NORTITCOTE EXPLAINS HIMSELF.

Sir Stafford Northcote writes again to explain 'what Be
said about the disestablishment of the Irish Church. He
gives the Hon. Mark Rolle a long explanatory letter. " I
understand," says he, " that some of my friends in North
Devon are uneasy in consequence of my answer when I
was asked at Torrington whether I would pledge myself
never to consent to the disestablishment of the Irish
Church, and that they are also dissatisfied with the terms
in which I wrote to Mr. Gladstone respecting his speech
at Wigan. Ido not for a moment suppose that you, who
were present when I spoke at Torrington, misunderstood
the answer I gave ; but as it has been industri-
ously misrepresented by our opponents, and as the
misrepresentation has been endorsed by no less a person
than Mr. Gladstone, I think it right to ask you, as the
chairman of the Conservative committee for North
Devon, to allow me, through you, to assure our friends
that I am as heartily and sincerely desirous to maintain
the Church Establishment in Ireland as it is possible
for any man to be, and that no efforts of mine will be
wanting to preserve it. It is true that when I was
asked at Torrington to give what is called a pledge upon
the subject I declined to do so. I have never given
a pledge upon the hustings, and I never will do so,
either upon this or any other question. I consider that it
is the duty of a candidate to state his opinions, and this I
have never shrunk from doing. Upon the question of the
maintenance of the Irish Church Establishment, I have
in the course of the last few weeks stated mine at least a
dozen times. But I consider that it is equally a candidate's
duty to refuse to give pledges as to what he will do
under circumstances which he cannot foresee, and as I
should refuse to do so when honestly asked by a friend,
much more did I refuse at Torrington, where the demand
was made by an opponent, apparently with no
other object than that of entangling me. My reason for
writing as I did to Mr. Gladstone was, that in two sepa-
rate reports of his speech at Wigan (in the Times and in
the Standard), he was represented as having put into my
mouth words which I not only never used, but which were
as nearly as possible the direct contrary of those which I
did use ; and upon these, as it seemed, he founded an
argument which would have had some force if I had
really said what he was represented to have attributed
to me. Thinking that he bad been misled by some
incorrect report, I wrote to set him right. He has since
informed me that he was misreported, and that he in
reality quoted my words correctly, namely, that I would
not pledge myself under all circumstances to resist dii.
establishment. Upon this foundation Mr. Gladstone
rests the charge, that it does not appear that the main-
taining of the Irish Church is really written in my
purposes, my understanding, and my heart. I confess
that while I am perfectly indifferent as to the abuse
of such authorities as Mr. Pynsent and the Western
Times, I am both surprised and pained to find a man like
Mr. Gladstone imputing to me lukewarmness, and even, as
I read his speech, insincerity, upon a question on which I
have never wavered for a moment, simply because I have
given an answer upon the subject of indefinite pledges,
such as I firmly believe Mr. Gladstone himself, or any
other experienced statesman, will admit to be constitu-
tional and right. I will only say, in conclusion, that I
adhere firmly to the opinions which. I have expressed in
all my speeches during the canvass, that I regard the dis-
establishment of the Church in Ireland as an uncalled for,
unstatesmanlike, and dangerous measure, and that I shall
resist it to the best of my power. At the same time, I
equally adhere to my refusal to give a general pledge, upon
this or any other subject, as to what I will or will not do
at any future time under circumstances which it is impos-
sible for me to foresee.