Year: 1862

from the London Critic.l


Whoever wrote the Times Of last Monday that "thA
nation has sustained the greatest loss that could possibly
have fallen upont perhaps scarcely understood the fun
meaning OF those momentous words NO one can at TINS
time estimate the Of loss which this nation
has sustained by the death Of the Prince Consort ne
one can say what might have been spared had his life
his death The blow that upon the nation
day night cast gloom the land which is, fear
but aforeshadow OF events TO come and tho solemn toll
ing which peaed from every church inthe king
dom-the tears which sufused well nigh every eye when
the mournful news was known-may be but the precur
Of times even more ugubrious and tears bitter


Far be from us the mputaon Of attery Of the dead BY
assigning to him too much Importance in the state
1t IS not the patron Of the arts; it is not. the
promoter OF the great exhibition OF 1851, tand
OF the South kensington scheme 1t Is not the
with some reservatOns) his career in all three
respects emnently useful and fructnying TO the
country is the supporter and sustainer OF the Queen
IL is the wise and prudent guide and counsellor who en-
abed her most gracious Majesty to bear up under the
weight of the Crown and to support the cares OF hef
high office under difficulties and amid intrgues such as
have seldom oppressed sovereign Prince 1t is the saga
cious guardian, who knew what were the perls which
menaced and do menace the people which it is the
high privilege OF his widow reign who knew which Of
her ministers honest and which the reverse it Ia
all this that mourn for with anguished hear-t is hs
loss of this that feel to be irreparable indeed


In order that this may be better under.
stood and that those Of the University Of Cambridge may
know what they contemplate doing, when they talk Of
elevatng the present Premier ord Palmerston to the
Chancellorship Of the University we will recall to mind
one or two simple historical facts not very remote from
this time. About tho year 1851 and during the years
in which the with Russia came about,
the public was agitated through the press about
eign politics. The plaintiff in that matter Lord Pal
mcrston, who complained that he could the
wife without the husband being present. In 1854 that
noble lord charged by the Queen with sending de-
spatches to foreign Powers without her royal sanction


in other words, with having usurped the office of the
Crown In consequence of that Lord Palmerst0n was dis
missed tho Foreign Secretaryshp and this Gas gene
rally understood the tme through the direct per-
sona influence and advice of the late Prince CoIsOrt.


The revenge which tho noble lord took upon that
sion peculiar and characteristic he cultivated tho
personal acquaintance OF the editors of some socaled
''lbera journals, and persuaded those gentlemen to
s'wrte down" the Prince, denouncng him an enemy
OF England and supporter OF what then called
"Gernan interess-as if anything could be to the inte
rest Of Germany which also really to the interest
of England. The unhnkng people took mp tho cry and
the Prince actually hooted in the streets of London.
The journals which ago did this TO the Prince
among the oudes and most prctentious of the
mourners. So short are human memories.


These events happened but years ago, and al
though the Prince again openly nterfered with
the foreign policy Of the Minister who did not long re-
main out Of office, 1t Is not to be supposed that either
Prince Minister forgot those transactions The inter-
val between 1854 and his death mainly spent by the
Prince promoting his schemes for what he believed to
be interest Of the fine arts in this country, and by
tacit under standing he permitted by the Ministers
deeply into the national purse for that purpose
as pleased him to do yet while ne was by the SIDE OF
the Queen to be supposed that he did not pri
vaely afford to her Majesty the benefit of his sagacious
counsels OF far higher Importance than the des
times OF SOutn kenSngtOn,
the Horticultural Gardens We hare reason to belee that
up 10 the time of his dsdh the Prince COnsot raised his
uoice energally against the haste Nth ,chich England
Is rushing into ,cith the United S1tesan event
which he denounced subversve Of her interests dan
gerous the real Of her power and certain to be
advantageous only to the despotic Powers Of Europe
Whether that view right wrong such we believe
was thefaith in which the Prince Consort died.


We have thought necessary to explain the grounds
the which havea at heart that the reader may
know that is less the patron Of literature and the


fine than the supporter and adviser Of the Queen
that we deploe the loss Of the Prince ConsOr That God
will be pleased strengthen her Majesty with power to
bear with her great loss continue exercise her
high functions with hrm and Independent will is our
earnest prayer is only by the answer vouchsafed to
that prayer that the sum total Of the loss which the ma
ton has sustained can be exactly calculated.