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

ject of Portugal for the present, we conceive it our duty to cor-
rect a malignant assertion in the- Quotidienne- of the 28th,
stating, " that the Regency of Portugal had attempted to make
a loan, hut had. found no lenders at London or in Paris." This
is incorrect. Some time ago, a proposal was made by the Mini-
ster of I.lnances to the Chamberof Deputies, soliciting authority
to raise a loan. The proposal was
.referred to a Committee of
Members, who made their Report on• the sth instant, recom-
mending the expedient of a loan for about 450,000/. sterling.—
This Report is in our possession, and as it treats at some length
of the public debt of Portugal—a subject in which our capital-
ists are deeply interested—we intend laying the result before our
readers, more particularly as it suggests some useful information
as to the best means to be adopted for the revival of public cre-
dit, and the means most applicable to a Sinking Fund. It may
be unnecessary to add, that there has not been sufficient time for
the Report to be acted upon, as regards a loan, either in London
or Paris, and possibly the attempt will not be made in either
place, for we have seen a letter of the 9th'fror2a Lisbon, written
by and addressed to highly respectable parties, which says, that
so great was the confidence entertained by the Bank and great
body of merchants, that in all probability they would themselves
make a tender for the loan at a very high price.-11.forn. Chron.
The efforts of Ferdinand and his Apostolics having been
successful in lighting up the flame of discord in Portugal,
and hitting armed, paid and accoutred all the refugees and
mil-contents that could be got together, the former may
now safely retire within the line of their own frontier, ex-
pressing great contrition for what they have done, and pro-
mising—very faithfully, no doubt, not to interfere again in
the concerns of their neighbours. This will be true Je-
suitiud policy, and such as Mr. Canning's armament
comes too late to prevent. It is singular, that a statesman
of his keen and penetrating mind, should so egregiously
have mistaken the Portuguese character as he appears to
have done; more especially, considering that Portugal is
the only foreign country of which, from long residence, he
can be supposed to have any intimate knowledge. Mr.
Canning's error seems to originate in the persuasion that j
a spirit of freedom can exist under the dominion of priest-
craft. Of this, the history orthe world might, and, ought
to teach him and every man the reverse; and that there
ran be no such thing as political freedom where the Ro-
man Catholic Religion is predominant. Alike opposed to
civil liberty, and to the spread of knowledge, the monks of
this and of every age, bent only on their own aggrandize-
merit and selfish enjoyments, are anxious to keep down any
tendency towards objects which must inevitably defeat the
craft by which they, and- they only, are such great gainers.
To talk, therefore, of giving a free Constitution to Portu-
gal,' or to Spain, under their present circumstances, is
utter childishness. Nor, were it feasible, can we see what
this country has to do with any such purpose. It is very
well to talk of England as the cradle of liberty and of liberal
ideas. So she is, and so we hope she will long be ; but
it does not, therefore, follow that she is bound to set on
.foot a romantic crusade, for the purpose of instilling those
principles into other countries; still less can she be justi-
fied in interfering in the intestine divisions of other States,
who neither want nor have any right to require her aid for
such a purpose.—Morning Herald.