The Sun.
London, England, 1827-01-23 00:00:00

fering to departed worth. We would ask how it Gould be
better appropriated than in the way which we have men-
tioned? Not the Army only, but all
.classes,_we believe,
in England, are desirous of manifesting to posterity the
estimation in which they held a General whoi.by remodell-
ing the Army,- in- the most effective -menner, greatly contri-
buted to the, preservation of the country in the. most event-
ful crisis, and the sympathy with which theyregarded the
departure of a Prince who, though not free from errors
common to our nature, had virtues and kindliness of heart
which more distinguished him than his illustrious descent,
We do not, therefore, think it improper, at this time, to
suggest that an Asylum for soldiers' widows, not otherwise
provided for, might be erected out of_,the_funds for a mo-
nument, to complete, irking with the Asylum for the soldiers'
children, the imperishable testimonial of charity consecrated
to his.remembrance.--Moraing Herald.
It has been imputed to us, that because we have tint
embarked in Mr. Canning's Portuguese crusade with the
same zeal as either his hacknied or his new partisans, we
therefore- despair of the energies and resources of the
country, and are lowering her in the eyes of foreign na-
tion:. It is the common fate of all who are not harnessed
to the chariot of one party or another, to find all who are,
ready to impugn their motives; while their own are, in
fact, the only ones which ought to be-impugned. We do
not at all dispute " the giant's strength," which Mr. Can-
.ning attributes to his country. We agree with him, and
with the poet-, that "'tis exeellent to have" it ; but,stliy,
because we possess it, we are to expend it upon -objects
such as those which have unfortunately fired Mr. Can-
ning's mind upon this occasion, is what we cannot com-
prehend or accede to. Of the energies and resources of
the country, we do not at all despair. She is, it is true, a
giant recover from a vast and fatiguing exertion, to whom,
therefore, repose would be more desirable than renewed
activity; but still she is a giant, and so far from being ex-
hausted by past exertions, if it is necessary, the experience
of action would only strengthen her means of future exer-
tion.. To speak more intelligibly, we entirely agree with
a writer in the last number of the' Quarterly Review, who
states, as we think, very truly-, "-that this country, at the
present moment (depressed as it may be) is ten titnes more:'
able to support and maintain its present debt, enctits pre-
sent, establishments, than it Wouldluive been able to . haxe 1
maintained one7fourth part of that. debt,. and of those estab-
lishments, in the reign of Queen Anne." All that we cone I
tend is, that peace is the obvious policy of the country; that
, the maintenance of it is the duty. of every honest-Governs:
ment ; and above all, that to embark. in melees mar, to-say
nothing of its injustice, is to ,waste and anticipate those-
resources,' which wise and :provident rulers would husband
against the hour of unavoidable necessity.- - -That-hour, -hi
our apprehension, has not arrived ; for though Mr. Cait-
ning may possess a somewhat romantic attachment towards
the country which afforded him an asylum (a somewhat
inglorious one nevertheless) from the triumphs of a sue-.
cessful rival, it does _not therefore follow that-the country:
at large will partake of his enthusiasm ; on the contrary, we
are persuaded, that as the momentary excitement subsides;
men's minds will gradually sober down into a more ra-
tional view of things, and no small number Will look back
with astanishment, but in vain, for the why and wherefore
of the nine days' madness of their past'deliriutn. But still
-it does not follow that, taking this view of the matter, vvv.
therefore despair of the resources of the country. just as
truly might it be said, that a man taunted and urged into
litigation, about objects he has little or no concern in,
avows either his poverty, his weakness, or the injustice of
'the cause, by wisely and _prudently refraining from -em-
'barking in a quarrel with which he has nothing to do. Let
the hour of danger, or of real necessity arise,-and-Great
Britain will show the world that her powers are unimpair-,..-
est; bat till that period arrives (and, which we had fondly'
hoped was far distant) it, is little short-of mere extrava-
gance and folly, to See her funds expended, and her troop-
embarked, on an errand on which, if successful, little
:even of glory or gratitude is likely to be obtained, and
On 'which, should we fail, we shall not have the consolation
Of knowing, that our failure will have been unavoidable.
—lbid.

We recommend to our unbelieving contemporary, who
passesi so hasty an opinion on the Archbishop of Toledo's
Exposition to the-King of Spain, which we published is
our Paper of the 'lsth mat., the perusal of a letter on the
same subject, which we have this day- inserted in our co-
lumns. It equally deserves -the attention of our readers in-
general;-as corning from one 'of the most distinguished of
the Spanish Exileiinr this country, a 'venerable Ecclesi-
astic, whose le'ariiing and liberal sentiments are alreadv
known to the British public. Don Joaquin
,Lorenzo. de.
Villanueva, a native of the-kingdom of Valencia, was edu-
cated for the church, and, at the early age of eighteen, ob-
tained a professor's chair in the Seminary of Orihuela.
His profound knowledge of his own, and some of the
Orientallanguages, obtained for him the appointment of
Member of the Royal Spanish • Academy; and after ob-
taining the Crois'of Charles 111., and being chosen Ho-
norary Chaplain of Charles IV., he obtained .a Canonry in
the Episcopal Church of Cuenca. In 1808 be followed
the popular cause of his. country, and in 181() was elected
a Deputy to the Cortes for the province of Valencia. In
this assembly of the Delegates of the Spanish nation, he
contributed by his talents, and sanction, to the formation
of the Political Constitution of his country. lie strenu-
ously advocated the abolition' of the Inquisition, defended
the rights of the People, and co-operated, by every means
in his power, to curtail the exorbitant revenues of the
Church of Spain. He was anxious that the labourites
classes among his country Men should be relieved from the
enormous exactions of the Clergy, and the people at large
educated in a manner conformable to their respective sta-
tions. The liberality of his principles, displayed during the
whole period of the Revolution against the French, pro-
cured hiM some enemies aMons, the higher dignitaries of
the Spanish Church;- and in 185-ls on the return of Ferdi-
nand from his captivity in France, Canon Villanueva was
immured in a dungeon, at a time that a similar. habitation
was-prepared for many others of his countrymen, for the
mere crime of, having laboured to promote the deence and
regeneration of their native land. At the end of twenty
months' close confinement, and_ when . no other charge
Could he produced or concocted against him; except what
could be gleaned from the public JoUrnals of the Cortes,
the King
.cut short the proceedings instituted against
him, by issuing a Royal and arbitrary Order, command-
ing the Canon to be confined.. as a recluse, in the Con- ,
vent of La Saleeda,_ during a period of six years, at the
same time depriving him of his benefices,. sequestrating his
property, and prohibiting him from receiving either visits
or letters. No punishment could have been more unjust and
tyrannical.• La Salceda is a Convent of Recluse Minor
Friars, situated on the mountains of Alcarria, in the pro-
vince of Guadalajara. It is built on the side of a broken hill,
anciently called Del Infierno (Hell.) The place is cold and
dreary, and the building extremely inconvenient. In 1820,
when the Constitution was was re-established in Spain, he
was again elected a Deputy to the Cortes, for the province
of Valencia. In 1822, he was named the Ambassador of
Spain to the Roman See ; and,
in the following year,
when the liberties of his country were a second time over-
thrown, he 'sought an asylum among us,
and, at the ad-
vanced age of 72, has not ceased employing his pen on
various topics connected with the welfare of his country
and of Britain. It is curious, but not the less true, that
the pretensions of the Court of Rome have always found
a greater number of opponents among the Clergy of Spain
than those of any other Catholic country (as our readers
may see from the Apology for the Catholics, by Dr.
Geddes); and the same liberal principles which the Spa-
nish Ecclesiastics generally maintained at the Council of
Trent found en advocate in Dr. Villanueva, when the Ca-
tholic Bishops were lately examined by the Legislature.—
On that occasion, he appeared in print as the opponent of
several of the views of Dr. Doyle, which he considered too
favourable to the pretensions of Rome.—Morning Chron.
It is far from being creditable to France that her late
Ambassador at Madrid, De Moustier, should not only
escape without ignominy or punishment, but should even
il)e allowed to take, without reproach, an active share in