The Sun.
London, England, 1828-09-12 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE LONDON JOURNALS.

Some people are rather positive in their as-
surances that the arrangement for the Admiralty
is completed, and that a successor to the latelv
resigned chief of that department has been found
in the person of Lord Melville ! That strange
things happen daily in high offices, we arc not
prepared to deny ; but that such a recurrence a:;
this to times of which every man rho loves his
country must be anxious to bury the recollec-
tion, has actually taken place, am affirmed by our
unitcmporaries, we shall not believe until we
sec it, and then with extreme repugnance. Of
Lord Melville we will just say, that he is nearly
the last man whom the nation, if consulted,
would suffer to dabble with its navy. His Lord-
ship is not a new public officer : there is no pro-
mise about him'—he is known enough—he in-
spires no hope : what else I.e inspires, we arc
not anxious to particularize. We trust that
there exists a power somewhere, whether in Par-
liament or in the people, to prevent the navy
from being jobbed, and made into a Treasury
preserve Scotch Lords and even Scotch Tories
are well enough in their proper births, but the
heart of British oak is the last receptacle that we
would have chosen wherein to deposit the dry
rot.— Times.

There is no subject on which the accounts
which reach us (hilly are more different andcon-
tradictory than the resignation and non-resigna-
tion of the Lord High Admiral. We stated,
N./Maenad time ago, that his Royal Highness,
had tendered his resignation, but that his Ma-
jesty had not thought proper to accept it ;
yesterday we gave an extract from an Evening'
Cotemporary, in which it was distinctly stated
that his Royal Highness had given up all chavg,r.
at the Admiralty on Saturday last. This account
we have reason to believe to be correct, mere
yes-
pecially as it happens to be confirmed from other
quarters ; but there are others who stoutly den
either that the resignation has been accepted or that
between his Royal Highness and
thetiie
Ddiuffkereetuir"Wellington has arrived at such a
pass as . •
It is certain that ono-
titer Commission has beenl
naLe out, and that,
that it cansfot be accommodated. Be
this, however, as it may,
in the event of his Royal Highness still declin
ing the office of Lord High Admiral, Lord
s
Melville will succeed him as First .Lord of the
Admiralty. We have reason to know ii.LO
that
that Nobleman has signified his acceptance Qf.
the office with great reluctance, and that but for
the unfortunate difference, promoted from inte-
rested motives, which took place between his
Royal highness and the Premier, all parties io
the Ministry would have been pleased to see
Royal Highness at the head of the Navy. His
resignation of his high office, in fact, we consitlcs
as little short of a national calamity. Prior to
his appointment to the office of Lord High
Admiral, the Navy had been managl4l
exactly the same manner as the army had beei
previous to that of the late Duke of York as
Commander-in-Chief—parliamentary influence
had superseded the more powerful claims of me-
rit—and family interest the just appeals of the
meritorious. The Lord High Admiral put au
end to this system, so far as he was concerned,
and hence the determation to get rid of him.—
The patronage of the navy had been found ne-
cessary, under former Administrations, because
those Administrations were corrupt, and the
Government unpopular ; and how it appears
that even the Duke of Wellington tarmot dis-
pense with it ! We would fain hop hoW-=
ever, that the return of Lord Melville td ;Ire,
Admiralty would not be signalised by
same submissiveness to the Boroughmongers
which was formerly manifested, that merit would
have some claims upon his regard, and that those
who have been heretofore the great monopo-
lisers of the navy patronage, would be taught
that there are other interests besides theirs to be
consulted, and that a Government pursuing the
" stern path" of duty may safely rely on the sup-
port of the country. At all events there is no
branch of the public service in which the expe-
riment cats be so safely tried. The navy is the
right arm of England, and its restoration to its
former efficiency would, of itself alone, entitle
the Duke of Wellington to the gratitude and
support of time country.—Morning Advertiser.
Our Contemporary of the Courier must have
read our article on the influence of the Clergy
with very singular spectacles, to discover that it
was written in " disparagement" of the Protes-
tant Clergy, or that we chid them for abandon-
ing the usages to which the Catholic Priests
were indebted for no small part of their influence.
On the contrary, we expressly stated, that WC
" (lid not much regret the absence of that domi-
nion and sway possessed by the Roman Catholic
Priests over the minds of their flocks ;" though
ofthelgreat,
the Bishop of Bath and Wells seemed to think
Priesthood.
that our own clergy would do well to take a leaf
toilua saidtt theeor:
wherever
ehoraottkil:e,oeft suspected e Catholic
it would be found,
cerg), isWe
influence
the people are ignorant and degraded, and that
the ignorance is the main source of the influence;
for, in proportion as education is diffused among
the people of a country, they learn to think for
themselves, and to trust to the resources of their
own minds, and, therefore, are not easily in-
fluenced by others. We are tempted to suppose
fellmoNavicyreature
that our contemporary's memory has served hint a
in the same
nick, and that he has confounded the impression
observa-
tions, with that produced by those which we made.
produced on hint by the Bishop o:fiaßtslawiothlulil'scdili:ioiissslas
The iin nfluence flpresent
NdvialyiciiisapCrecicirsogefyiyhmitash
hours for the improvementan influence which he will share
entitle him to ;
.whhswilalrebelaabiloouwreitdlg.
cause, and which with all those
in proportion
oppor-
tunities of benefitting the people, by his advice
and assistance, and he may turn to excellent ac-
count the influence he possesses with the higher
ranks. It is fortunate for a neighbourhood when
a Clergyman of liberal views
and an active phi-
lanthropic disposition
has his residence in it ;
we take as an
as it is merited. A Clergyman Las
instance the Rev. John Thomas
Beecher, the CI •
toilman of the Quarter Sessions
for the Newark • •
iviston of the county of Not-
tinrdiam s‘ b hose unwearied exertions for the im-
provement of the
working of the Poor Laws,
and the establishment of Friendly Societies
on safe principles, and otherwise praise-
worthy
objects, justly entitle him to the
gratitude of his countrymen. 'The sort of ile.
fluence which a man like Mr. Beecher possesses,
namely, the influence derived from the el i-
deuce of his labours for the improvement
of his fellow-creatures, is the only influence
which it is fitting any one should possess among
rational beings. We hope the number of com-
petitors for • such influence will constantly in-
crease, and that the Clergy will seek to distill.
guish themselves,. by contributing to the im-
provement of their fellow-creatures, instead of
seeking to keep them in darkness, to insure what
the present Archbishop of Canterbury deemed a

desirable object—the prostration of the will and
the understanding. It gives us sincere pleasure
to be able to call the attention of our readers to
language in a clergyman, truly worthy of an
age professing to be enlightened. At the dinner
given to Professor M'Culloch, by the gentlemen
of his native county, of which a more ample
account is given in the Dzw:f;-ics Courier, than
the one we yesterday copied from the
6urgit Courant, the Rev. Mr. Garlies Mait-
land, the eldest of the five Established Clergy-
men preLient, upon the Kirk being drank, deli-
vered the following speech, which cannot be too
rarucir curt needed :
Sir, as the senior Member of the Church of
Scotland now present, I return thanks in
me own
name, and in the name of my brethren, for the toast
which you have now given ; anti for the high com
pliments which yon hay, now paid to ourchurch.
These compliments, I hope, Sir, are not altogether
inimerited; and it is my earnest prayer, that we may
long continue to deserve them. As a Minister of
the Church of Scotland, I do not think I am out of
my place in being here this day ; and in uniting with
so many gentlemen of fortune and respectability, to
confer a small token of our gratitude, admiration,
end esteem, upon an individual who by his learning,
talents, and genius, has conferred so touch honour on
the province which gave him birth, and such f,reat
nd permanent benefits on society in general. I am
perfectly convinced, Sir, that if the matter he rightly
understood, it will he found that the Church of
Scotland and Mr, M'Culloch have the same object
in view, namely, the improvement and happiness of
their species. We may seek this great and important
object by different means, but the end is the same. We
i-ray not travel on the same road, but we shall meet
the same point at last. The Church of Scotland
a liberal church ; she has discarded as much of
bigotry and superstition, and retained as touch of
the useful and the rational as any other church, esta-
blished or not established, with which I am ac-
(painted. She does not disclaim the lights of rea-
son, science, and philosophy ; on the contrary, she
considers them us useful hand maids, us most valu-
able arid important auxiliaries, as she desires to avail
herself of their services to the utmost. This being the
ease, Mr. M'Culloch's labours as a philosopher and po-
litical economist cannot he indifferent to the Church of

Scotland ; nor cuii they be conside:ed as at all :dick
to the high objects which he has herself in view.
Ilis labours, Sir, if I understand their nature, have
a direct tendency to promote the temporal prosperity
and happiness of mankind, by means of good order,
good government, salutary institutions, and whole-
game laws. :Now, if this be the case—if it be really
trite that Mr. M'Culloch's labours have this ten-
dency, I think it will hardly be denied that his ob-
ject is intimately connected with the very best inte-
rests of religion. For I maintain, Sir, that religion
will thrive best, and make the surest and most rapid
progress where the people are the most independent,
most comfortable;' contented, and happy. It is, Sir,
in the very nature of great poverty and wretched-
ness to engender crime. It is in 'the very nature of
such a condition to harden men's hearts, and to ren-
der them utterly reckless and indifferent about h..ii-
rality and religion. I need not appeal to the de-
plorable history and condition of our sister island for
a melancholy confirmation of this fact. Every gen-
tleman who now hears me must be aware of the
truth of his own experience. lie must have seen
with his own eyes, and at his own door, the baleful
and demoralising effects of excessive poverty and
wretchedness. If, then, the labours of Mr.
M'Colloch, have any trind-ncy to remove or
to mitigate these evils, or to produce such
a frame of' society as may have a tendency to
promote the comfort and happiness of mankind, then,
Sir, they must certainly be considered as subsi-
diary to those of the labours of the Ministers of the
Church of Scotland. For, Sir, in proportion as
you render men comfortable and happy, in the
same proportion do you increase the probability that
they will become virtuous and moral. If, on the
other hand, by foolish institutions, arbitrary restric-
tions, and absurd regulations, you render them
wretched, degraded, and miserable, there is a pro.
liability, nay, there is a certainty, that you wih
drive them into crime. Looking, therefore, upon
the happiness of our species as the great and ulti-
mate end of our labours, we must look upon kir.
M'Culloeh's exertions with a friendly eve. We
must look upon him as a friend, an ally, and a fel-
low-labourer, in this extensive and important field;
and, therefore, Sir, I repeat, that as a Minister of
this Church I do not think I am out of my place, or
out of the way of my duty, in coming here this day,
to testify my respect -and gratitude to the gifted in-
dividual who has done so much for his own honour,
and so much for the benefit of his country and of
mankind."—(Loud applause.) -
It is the praise of the Church of Scotland,
that though she formerly, with other Churches,
was chargeable with the sin of intolerancz, she
has, as fiir as we know, the exclusive merit (in
these kingdoms at least) of having honestly
--aught the intellectual improvement of the people,
and made education even a matter of Church
discipline. The Rev. Mr. 11-laitland says, and
says truly, that poverty and wretchedness render
unavailing the principles of religion, and that
proportion as you render men comfortable
and happy, in the same proportion do you in-
(lease tile probability that they will become vir-
tuous and moral." Religion is viewed by this
enlightened Clergyman as intimately connected
with the sciences, which have for object the im-
provement of the temporal condition of the
species. Ile justly Considered the labours of
the teacher of Political Economy "as sub-
sidiary to those of the Ministers of the Church
of Scotland.. 0, how the saintly hypocrites,
who have so long laboured, both publicly and in
private, to raise a prejudice against the London
University, as if an accession of knowied
'
weree
injurious to religion, ought to blush
at
the lesson read to them by this worthy clergyman.
We would go even further than the Rev.
Maitland ; we contend that no 111311 can be a
safe teacher of religion who is not intimately ac-
quainted with the principles of the sciences,
which provide the improvement of mankind. The
sciences of morality and religion arc sciences of
relations. • The Bishop of Bath says the essen-
tials of religion lie in a small compass; but this,
we apprehend, would lead to considerable mis-
apprehension. It is easy to tell a man to do
good and to eschew evil ; but when we come to
apply these maxims, we find ourselves at once
involved in all the complicated relations of human
society. The Clergyman, if he be unacquainted
with the Principles
of Politic..]. r ..conomy, may,
in applying his rules, teach one of his Hock to do
that which will injure both him and the society
of which he is a member. A Clergyman, there-
fore, who does not know the principles which
regulate the temporal advantage of society is an
unfit teacher. Religion, we
repeat, is not an
abstraction ; .
cannot be separated from other
science 3. Tile man who prescribes to his fellow-
creatures without knowing the grounds of moral
will be like the empiric, who
and political science,
kills' by doinc, nothing when something ought to
be done, or byb doing- that which ought not to be
done.—Morning Chronicle.
There eau be no doubt that the vice of
drunkenness, with its usual consequences, beg-
gary and crime, is rapidly increasing among the
lower classes at the present day, especially in
the metropolis, on account of the low price of
spirituous liquors. The Select Committee Oil
the State of the Metropolitan Police ascribe to
the cheapness of gin a portion of the destructive

influence by which the criminal calendar is of
late years so frightfully enlarged. Their in-
ference is nut an erroneous one. A habit
which so drains the pockets of the poor, and
produces so much mental confusion as dram-
drinking does, must inevitably tend to fill the
workhouses and crowd the gaols. A dram-drink-
Mg population is of necessity a demoralised one;
and, where the moral restraints are broken,
the laws can only govern by their inflictions
being- felt. The Select Committee, in corro-
boration of their opinion on this subject,
quote the evidence of an intelligent officer, whose
duty (they say) requires a constant and accurate
ob:,.ervation of what passes in the streets. He
was asked " What effect has the reduced price
of gin in your district ?" His answer is, " I
think there is a great deal more drunkenness ; I
think it was one of the worst things ever done in
the world. If they had raised it a penny in-
stead of Killing it, it :would have been a very
good thing." The number of drunken persons
of both sexes whom any person cannot now flril
to observe in the streets, compared with the
number to be seen a few years ago, when spi-
rituous liquors were dearer, fully bears out the
statement of this witness. At this rate London
is likely soon to realise once more the melan-
choly scenes of liogarth's picture of Qin-alley.
Another thing besides the cheapness of gin con-
tributes to its great comparative consumption,
which the Committee have not remarked upon ;
and that is the scandalous adulteration of malt
drink in consequence of the brewers' molzopoly,
which has turned a wholesome beverage into a
poison.—Morning Herald.