The Sun.
London, England, 1827-04-30 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS..

The long and tantalizing delays which occurred
before Mr. Canning could accomplish the for-
mation of a Ministry, such as might give some
reasonable assurance to the public that England
had actually and effectually shaken off a Tory
nightmare of 20 years, have at length, as we an-
nounced on Saturday, been terminated by an 1..-
corporation of Mr. Canning and his most deserv-
ing colleagues of the Liverpool Cabinet, with die
more enlightened and distinguished of the Whigs.
If those delays produced, as indeed was natural,
a disposition to wonder at, and to remonstrate
with, the authors of them, in the minds of up-
right and reasonable men, who acknowledged no
scruple, and indulged no anxiety, but for the
good of the whole nation, the result, it may be
confessed, has amply repaid whatever uneasy
forebodings had mixed themselves with the pro-
gress or vicissitudes of the question entertained
between Mr. Canning and Lord Lansdown. In
admitting that it was not Mr. Canning who pro-
crastinated—that his course throughout the nego-
tiation was promptly chostn, and pursued with
alacrity and vigour—we lay no blame at the door
of the noble parties with whom, in this instance,
the Right lion. Gentleman was engaged. Mr.
Canning had no difficulty, because his position
was one which left him no alternative. He was too
wise to think of mainifacturing an Administration
out of a coterie this private friends, and too spi-
rited to fall -ht the feet of those of his ancient
colleagyss who had already affected to spurn
him. It was therefore for Mr. Canning, an honour-
able alliance with the Whigs, or an ignominious
surrender to his enemies and theirs,—the Whigs.
with whom he agreed on every great principle
of state policy at home and abroad—the Tories,.
with whom he had scarcely one principle in
common. Mr. Canning's decision and ce-
lerity, therefore, were prescribed to him by a
clear understanding of his ground, while the .de-
liberation and tardiness of the great Whig leaders
were equally imposed upon them likewise by
regard to the character which they were consci-
ous of holding among their countrymen ; and
we may add, by the highest sentiments of delicacy,
integrity, and honour. Mr. Canning had to
offer place—an action which, in relation to the
Whigs, inferred nothing ambiguous or mortify-
ing on his part—nothing which, let the proposal
be received as it might, could put him in a situ-
ation to humble him. Lord Lansdown and his
friends, on the contrary, were to be the parties
accepting this good from the hands of another ;
and it was a thing of inestimable price to them,
that no shade of just suspicion should be cast
from any respectable quarter on the motives
which induced them to accede—that no ques-
tion should be raised as to the dignity of the
terms which they acquiesced in, or as to the force
or existence of any previous obligations by which
their freedom of choice might be affected, or the le-
gitimate high road to office obstructed, whether
touching the opinions of his Majesty, or the extent
to which Mr. Canning was authorized to go in repre-
senting them. It was no unbecoming scruple of the
`Whig leaders, which made them watch narrowly
their own feelings, as well as their capacity of pro-
moting the King's and country's service—that they
might yield nothing from a selfish desire for power,
and in nothing overrate the public benefit to be de-
rived from a coalition with Mr. Canning. And here
it is but fair to remark on the striking contrast be-
tween two classes of coalitions; one of which has
no material to bind it but a mutual guarantee of
place between mesa of opposite politics, or of none:
another—and on that we 'now congratulate the
country—which seeks an official co-operation, for
the sake of enforcing objects of high natienal im-
portance, equally prized by both the coalescing.,
parties, and exposed to imminent risk of destruc-
tion if they do not coalesce against a common ene-
my. In fact, the union just formed is but a remedy
for-that unnatural state into which the public men
of England had been latterly distributed, where
friends were separated, and enemies crammed toge-
ther. This false rule of dispersion and combinauon
had the inevitable consequence of impairing what-
ever ought ,to have been most powerful in our
public councils—of placing the imbecile as drags
upon the strong, the silly as distractors of the wise,
and a narrow and prejudiced oligarchy—in their na-
ture and by circumstances indivisible—masters, by
mere brute weight and force, of all the element of
the national prosperity, isolated from each other by
the unlucky separation of liberal and instructed
statesmen. It is a fixed part of the existing arrange-
ment, that Lord Lansdown, with several other
Whigs, shall take seats in the Cabinet before the
close of the session. That Mr. Brougham, distin-
guished as he is among his party, does not const-t.ite
one of the number, is expressly at his own earnest
and considerate suggestion, for the sake of facilitating
by every means the general adjustment of an Admi-
nistration on which the hopes of the country are
fastened.—Times.

Mr. Abercrombie is, it is now said, to be Judge
Advocate, and not Sir James Macintosh. If this be
the case, it certainly shows great disinterestedness on
the part of Mr. Abercrombie, as he must give up
great professional emolument. The junction of Lord
Lansdown and his friends, to which we have alluded
in the preceding article, will certainly take place in
a few weeks.—lbid.

The only new arrangements since we last ad-
dressed our readers are, that Mr. Abercrombv has
consented to accept the office of Judge Advo-
cate, and Sir James Macintosh that of a Mem-
ber of the Board of Controul. Mr. Hart suc-
ceeds the Vice-Chancellor. The reasons which
prevent Lord Lansdown from taking office for a
month or six weeks, are understood to be of a
nature peculiar to . himself. But of course Mr.
Tierney, Lord Carlisle, &c. delay also until his
Lordship joins. However, it is known, that
they 1611 all act with Government as if they took
office immediately. Some of the appointments
are understood to be merely temporary, as, for
instance, those of Lord Dudley and Mr. Sturges
Bourne, and have been made with a view
to the changes which the entrance of Lord
Lansdown into the Administration will ren-
tier necessary. There is, we believe, but one
opinion among professional men as to the
merits of Sir John Leach, who, in all that con-
stitutes judicial fitness, was allowed by those who
were entitled to a voice on the subject to be
greatly superior to the late Chancellor. It is
true that nothing escaped the memory of the lat-
ter, and that he was familiar even with the minu-
test parts of form. But we may allow that the
late Chancellor possessed very rare qualifications,
without admitting that he was a good Judge.
In truth, from his want of grasp, his judicial
merits were of a very secondary character. Viewing
all matters so much in detail as he did, it must
have been peculiarly difficult for him to extricate
himself from the labyrinth of circumstances in
which he entangled himself;and to come to a de-
cision. The reluctance with which he delivered
an opinion had its source in the structure of his
mind,and this is the best apology which can be of-
fered for his dilatoriness in deciding, though it
forms no excuse for his retaining so long a si-
tuation which he held at the expcnce of so much
misery to suitors. Sir John Leach, on the
other hand, possesses a clear logical head, which
enables him to seize promptly the distinguishing
features of a case ; and having a clear micep-

tion of the case within his own mind, he has no
difficulty in conveying his impression to others.
—lf, intent only on the substantial merits of the
case, he may occasionally overlook some minor
matters (For perfection is not given to man) this
is a trifling fault in a Judge, compared with that
of Lord Eldon. The principal of his decisions,
too, can always be understood, which is of nmense
consequence with regard to the state of the law. The
other judicial appointment, namely, that of Mr.
Hart, is also hi•hly satisfactory to the profession,
from his professional experience, sound knowledge,
and coolness of judgment. The approaching meeting
of the two Houses is looked forward to with some
interest. The strength of the Government, both
with regard to talent and Parliamentary influence,
places Ministers in such a state of superiority, that
apprehension for them is entirely out of the question.
Indeed, as far as talents are concerned, we are quite
at a loss to see how an opposition can well be got
up. Mr. Peel professes neutrality; and who is
there beside him to head an attack in the Commons ?
In the House of Lords, matters are still worse. The
Duke of Wellington will find leading a Parliamentary
Opposition a very different matter from fighting
battles in the tented field.—Morning Chronicle.

We trust that a beneficial consequence of the re-
cent change will be the placing Scotland in direct
communication with the Government. All inde-
pendent Scotchmen are eager•that the lee system
should not be renewed.—lbid.

The last fortnight has been a period of more
than ordinary political excitement ; report has
succeeded report like waves upon the troubled
ocean ; and the public mind has been kept in
much the same state as that of voyagers through
the stormy Bay of Biscay. The storm has for a
moment subsided (ready, probably, to assail the
vessel again as she passes the Line) ; and the
Administration for the time being having been
somehow or other put together, the public will
be apt, we should imagine, to employ the short
interval of repose in asking what the country
has lost or gained by the change of Ministers.—
In helping our readers to a solution of this in-
quiry, we cannot do otherwise than run through
a hasty comparison between the present and
past occupants of the principal public offices. In-
stead of Lord Liverpool and Mr. Robinson, we
have got Mr. Canning as First Lord of the Trea-
sury and Chancellor of the Exchequer—a man
in those capacities, we conceive, inferior to
either, and, therefore, doubly inferior to both.
What there is in the character or pretensions of
the new Premier, which peculiarly qualifies him
for the double station he has chosen, we have
yet to learn. Will he either master or diminish
the debt.? Will he increase public confidence at
home or abroad ? Has he got in his forth-
coming budget a panacea for our finan-
cial difficulties ? If he has, we can only
say, that he used his late colleagues
very ill in not imparting it to them. Instead of
Lord Eldon, we have got Lord Lyndhurst—a
man of whom, perhaps, it may, at least, be said,
that he is unknown as a politician—unknown as
an Equity Lawyer—and unknown as a .fudge in
the highest Court of Appeal. Instead of Mr.
Peel, we have Mr. Sturges Bourne—a gentle-
man of unexceptionable character, both public
and private—and whose highest praise, perhaps,
it is, that though he is the long and tried per-
sonal friend of Mr. Canning, he is pretty well
known to have set his face against much of the
tergiversation and inconsistency of the latter's
political life. But allowing-Mr. Sturges Bourne
every fair claim on the ground of personal and
political merit, who is it, let us ask, that he-Stie-
ceeds ? Why, the man of all others On whom
the confidence of the nation were reposed ; and
who, to great integrity, had opened to the
country a scene of advantage, and to himself a
career of political honour and renown scarcely
ever equalled. Without any disparagement,
therefore, to Mr. Bourne, it may be said, that
he takes office under fearful odds. In the Fo-
reign Secretaryship, Mr. Canning himself is
succeeded by Lord Dudley, a Nobleman, who,
in early life, gave evident token of superior
talent; and who, for aught we know, may be qua-
lified to take office under any Administration. Mr.
Robinson, under the title of Lord Goderich, takes
in the House of Peers the place and office of Lord
Bathurst, as Secretary of State for the Colonies—
a change at which no one can reasonably complain,
except that it takes from the country a clear, a use-
ful, an accurate, and honourable Chancellor of the
Exchequer, in whom the public, we believe, had a
just and wellLfounded confidence. In the minor
offices, no very material changes have taken place,
except so far as by a partial junction with the Whigs,
Mr. Canning's ambition has led him to sacrifice all
the earlier prepossessions of his political life. Thus
started through the first storm, we shall be curious.
to see how the vessel steers her course on the re-
mainder of her voyage. She is deeply laden—has
a valuable cargo on hoard—and her passengers are
of a description not to be slighted or trifled with.
The whole world are, as it were, standing on the
shore, viewing her progress; and it cannot be denied
that not a few among both the passengers and the
spectators have no vast confidence in the Comman-
der. That she may run aground, or strike upon
some sunken rocks, we have our apprehensions—
that she will become a wreck we have none. For
should her difficulties, from any of these causes, be-
come such as to endanger her safety, it will be no
difficult matter to put other hands on board, who
will bring her safely into port.—Morning Herald.
The Marquis of Lansdown and his friends, the
moderation of whose politics is so well known,
will unite with ,Nr. Canning in carrying on the
Government which he has formed, under the
sanction of his Majesty. The Noble Marquis
does not, at present, accept of any appointment,
but it is understood, we believe, that this ar-
rangement has been made with reference to a
special case, and that at no distant period he
will hold an important office in the new Govern-
ment. Meanwhile, the acceptance by the Duke
of Devonshire, of the place of Lord Chamber-
lain of the Household, is, of itself, a decisive
proof of the support that will be given to Mr.
Canning by the friends of his Grace and of the
Marquis of Lansdown. This day, all that re-
mains to be done, with regard to the formal com-
pletion ofthese arrangements,will be gone through.
His Majesty will hold a Court at two o'clock,
to receive the Noblemen and Gentlemen who
have joined the Ministry, and who have changed
their places in it ; the Seals of the respective
Offices which have been vacated, either by re-
tirement or by these changes, will be delivered
into-the King's hands, who will immediately
transfer them to the actual occupants of the seve-
ral departments. Several of the new Alembers
of the Cabinet will afterwards be sworn in of the
Privy Council. To-morrow the House of Com-
mons will meet, and various rumours are afloat
as to what will be said and done. The House
of Lords will re-assemble on Wednesday. W e
hear of some extraordinary statements that are to
be made in both Houses, but we cannot be-
lieve thiit all which is talked of will take place. It
is not probable, however, that the Ministerial
crisis we have passed through will subside with-
out an attempt on the part of those who pro-
duced it to set themselves right in public
opinion, so far as they may consider it prac-
ticable to do so. But, while we are prepared
for explanations, we are utterly at a loss to

conjecture their nature Qr extent. As yet, not
the slightest endeavour has been made by the se-
ceders to justify the extraordinary step they took.—
We are prepared to expect a singular scene in the
House to-morrow night, when Mr. Canning
appears at the table to take the oaths, in consequence
of his rerelection. His reception, it is said, will be
triumphant. We speak only of what is the current
rumour, and abstain fre•" specifying what we
have heard, that we may not be suspected of
throwi..g out a sug,c_ -,stion while repeating only a
report. But the House of Lords still be the chief
arena, probably for the talked of explanations ; for
with the exception of Air. Peel—whose retirement is
no way identified with the secession of his colleagues
—all the principal Ex-ministers are Members of that
House. Upon the whole, we may look forward,
we think, to two or three debates of extraordinary
interest.--.lran Times.

A Morning Paper, which has lately distin-
guished itself for sagacious discoveries of all
kinds, informed its readers on Saturday, as a
piece of authentic and important intelligence,
that " Lord Mountcharles, the son of the Mar-
chioness of Conyngham," was appointed, in the
Gazette of the preceding evening, " one of the
Lords Commissioners of the Treasury." Our
contemporary certainly need not have waited for
the appearance of Friday's Gazette to announce
this news. The Court Calendar would have
enabled it to enlighten its readers long ago upon
the subject, Lord Mountcharles has been a Lord
of the Treasury these ten months, his Lord-
ship's appointment bearing date the 13th June,
1826. The same Paper was equally felicitous in
another piece of information. " Mr. Canning's dis-
tribution of his law patronage," it observed, "seems
to be taking place in the oddest way that can be
imagined. The late Attorney-General, who had
given him no offence, he turns adrift." It so hap-
pens that the late Attorney-General voluntarily, and
of his own notion, sent in his resignation on the
14th inst. So much for " turning adrift." We
may add, further, that, in all the arrangements
which have been made, various, extensive, and im-
portant, as they are, not one individual, high or low,
of those who no longer hold office, has been depri-
ved of his situation. The whole of the resignations
were the spontaneous acts of the persons who re-
tired.—lbid.

Sir John Leach has quitted the office of Vice-
Chancellor, in order to take the Mastership of
the Rolls. He has a right to this promotion,
and to much more ; for never had the country a
more zealous and efficient servant ; and, indeed,
it is the general conviction, among those- Who
have the best means of judging, that the loss of
his labours would leave a void in the administra-
tion of Equity, which it would be impossible to
fill up. The rapidity of his apprehension—his
capacity of strenuous and exclusive attention to
the matter before him—the extreme logical ac-
curacy of his deductions:—the quickness with
which he separates the essence of a case from
matter merely collateral, subordinate, or extra-
neous—the promptitude and firmness with which
be acts on the conclusions to which he has come
—the extreme regularity of the arrangements
into which his ideas dispose themselves, and
the perspicuity of the language in which he
clothes them—(rendering it impossible for and•
person to inisapprehend either the full import of
the decision, or the grounds on which it proceeded)
—his extensive knowledge of the system of
equity, of the principles on which it is founded,
its limits, its doctrines, its authorities—his
readiness in applying these doctrines and
authorities—his long practical acquaintance with

conscientious devotion to his judicial duties—his ar-
dent love of justice, and fearless hatred of injustice
—these qualities, acquirements, and virtues, have
rendered him one of the most practically useful
Judges that we have ever had. For ten years he
has laboured, day after day, in the office of Vice-
Chancellor, struggling to get through the enormous
mass of business which rushed into his Court. We
rejoice that he should be removed to a station of
greater dignity and less toil ; yet, at the same time,
we scarcely know how he can be spared from that
Court which he made the most effective of our tri-
bunals, doing in it a quantity of business through
which one can scarcely conceive how a single man
could get, and doing it, too, effectively and well.—
Ibid.