The Cleveland leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1865-1865, 1865-05-13

praying hoG Mhl6sby W cOuNo1 OK pIoeeiuh
of those feelings TO the Government of the
United States.
Earl Derby hoped tho government had
taken pains to ascertain that there was
nothing in the form of motion render-
ing it in the slightest degree doubtful
whether the Unsnimous assent would be
given by the House to the motion. as
proposed, the m ,tter was unprecedented.
lie wss quite certain that the expression
of sorrow and indignstion for the atrocious
act committed, would not only meet with
she unanimous assent of the House, but
would represent the feeling of every man,
woman and child in Her Majesty do
minions
Earl Russell said Earl Derby was correct
in saying that the circumstances were hsp-
pity Unprecedented, and he hoped there
would be nothing in the form of the motion
which would cause objection TO be taken
TO it.
Comments of the English Press.
Mr.. LINCoLN's Loss To AMERICA IRREPAR-
ABLE.
From the London Times.
The American news which wo publish
this morning will bo received throughout
Europe with sorrow rs sincere and prof uud
as II swOkee eeven in the U United States them
selves. Mr. Lincoln has fallen al the hands
of Al assassin, and Mr.. Seward has too
probably shared his fate. Deeds of
such atrocity cOUeT their perpetrators I0tth
everlasting infdny, and dtscredit the cause
they are presumably meant TO SerUe. We
trust it will appear that the crimes of
Wilkes Booth and his sccomplice were con-
,,i,,,d IN a,,npart vii n N n fnna
but themselves The South, broken and
defeated, could receive no possible benefit
| from the removal of Mr.. Ljntoln and Mr..
| Seward; the too probable effect of the crime
| is an accession of madness and anger, rem
dering all schemes of reconstruction i'm
possible. Ga the other hand, the waving
Of knife bafore the s6righted audience st
the theatre and the SIC Seraper tyTayHlS,
| pronounced by the assassin, indicate the
vanity of men willing o immortslizs them
selves, like Erstostratus, though the world
should perish. Unjust rs we believe it to
be-, the Confederate cause will not escape
the dlsbo1or cast upon it by the wantt n
murders of Mr.. Lincoln and the Secretary.
The admiration won by the long and gal
| laut defence Of Richmond will be lessen cd /;
the memory of Lees lofty bearing and
| Jackson's deep religious feeling will b9 OBJ
scured, by the atrocities committed in the
nsme and on behalf of the South. arson
in Ncl0 York, theft under the PTeteHce Of
l0aT 1l Vermont, and assassination uI the
capital, DIM the L~stre Of a four gears re-
sistaRce to superior forces and of many q
l0cIE fought field ~ VlrgiHtG.
The critical condition Of affairs in
America, the position of the Southern
States At the feet Of their victorious sntsg-
Onists, the gigantic task of reconstruction
which must be undertaken by the political
leaders of the North, and, above sll, the
unpromisiDg character of the man whom
An accident bss nsde the ruler of the Union
for the next four years, tend TO exalt our
estimate of the loss which tho States have
suffered in the murder of their President !;
but it would be unjust not TO sckno owledge
that Mr.. Lincoln l0Gs man t0ho cO1G d not
lasdcr any circumstances hare been easily
replaced Starting from humble position
toone of the greatest eminence, and adopted
by the republican party rs mRkeshit,
simply because Mr.. Seward and their other
prominent leaders were obnoxious TO differ
ent sections ofthe party, it was natural that
his career should be watched with jealous
suspicion. The office cast upon him was
great, its duties were most onerous, and
the Obscurity of his past career afforded no
guarantee of his ability to discharge them.
His shortcomings, moreover, were on the
surface. The education of man whose
early years bsd been spent in earning
bread by manual labor had necessarily
been defective, and faults of manner and
errors OF taste repelled the observer at the
outset. In spite OF these drawbacks Mr..
Lincoln slowly won for himself the respect
and confidence of sll. His perfect honesty
speedily became apparent, and what is,
perhaps, more TO his credit, amid the many
uDstudied speeches which he was called
upon from time to time to deliver, imbued
though they were with the rough humOr
of his early associations he WAS in none of
them betrayed into any intempersnce of
language towards his opponents or towards
neutrals. His utteraRces were apparently
careless, but his tongue was always under
command. The quality of Mr.. Lincoln's
administration, which served, however,
more than any other to enlist the sym
psthy of the bystsnders, was its conser-
valive progress. He felt his way gradu-
ally 10 his conclusions, and those who will
compare the different stages of his career
one with another will find that his mind
was growing throughout the course of it
What msy be the actual destiny of the
United States deprived of the guiding
hand of Mr.. Lincoln and Of the experience
of Mr.. Seward no one would venture 10
foretelL In compliance with the provision
Of the constitution, Mr.. Andrew johnson
has assumed the Presidency for the rest of
Mr.. Hincoln's term. Att the time when
the last mail left New York the States had
not recovered from the feeling of horror
and astOnishment which had been created
by the news of Mr.. Lincoln's assassination;
but the possibility of Mr.. Johnson's sue
ceeding TO the Presidency had been dis
cussed when such an event was thought
highly improbable, and it was earnestly
deprecated by all parties. The indecorous
exhibition uponsLhe occasion of the in
sugurstion of Mr.. johnson IS Vice Presi-
dent was of a piece with his previous
career, and, indeed, the memory of his
conduct as Governor of Tennessee must
fill every American with the gloomiest
forebOdings. On the other hand, ANYTHING
like violent interruption of the success.
sion Is thing which an American citizen,
with his almost idOatrOus veneration
for the constitution would shrink from
instinctively. The best solution of the
difficulty would be a voluntary resignation
by Mr.. johnson of an office which no one
ever seriously intended him to fill, and if
his own sense of decency does not suggest
tlis course TO him it may be hoped To {
such pressure of public opinion will bs
brought TO bear upon him that he may bs
led to adopt it. His instant assumption of
the Presidency was probably deemed ne
cesssry, and, under such exciting circum-
stances, little can be gathered from the
few words uttered by Mr.. Johnson when
the osth of office was administered to him.
Such as they are, they point to resolution
to execute the duties of the post, but the
Influences by which the incoming President
is surrounded cannot be favorable to his
retention of Office. General Grant and
Sherman sre both in or near Washington,
the one the Commsnder-in-C Chief and cap
tor of Richmond, the other the man who |
first demonstr ted the holIowness of the |
resources. Neither they nor
Mr. Stanton, the Secretary of War, can
wish to see the work on which they have
been engaged so long, and on which so
r. II h,I- L. /