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1358 THE LEADER. [Ko. 455, Decembeb 11, ...
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SIR BENJAMIN". Don't you observe the vul...
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THE ATLANTIC CABLE. The question as to t...
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The Feast of Reason and tiik Flow of Sou...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Adand To The The - The In-- The , - Of Y...
ParisPost-oflice , Eiie Jean-Jacques Rousseau . I presume that for all these papers , received but not delivered , the French postal authorities claim and receive payment from the English Postmaster-General . But they make no delivery , and yet charge for it , -which , by common honesty , if not by common law , must be held to be nothing " more nor less than swindling : —obtaining tnoney linder false pretences , and cheating Messrs . Smith out of a portion of the prepaid postage . This is bad enough , but what follows is worse . Not only are the papers not delivered , and the senders in England thereby defrauded , bat the French . Government actually keeps possession of
the journals , coolly pocketing the proceeds from their sale as waste paper . If from the ethics of Confucius the French Government has so great a dread of foreign intelligence being disseminated in France , we may concede that they may take what precautions they deem necessary against their fears , yet they ought not to make a profit out of them They " are bound , if they will not deliver the papers , to return them to St . Martin ' s-Ie-G rand . The combination of politics and priggery is the meauest and most despicable feature of the whole system . Burglars mostly despise area sneaks , and so far are superior to the administrators of an enlightened despotism who descend to petty larceny . SIR FKAXCIS HEAD . Sir Francis B . Head , alias M . Leo Xeulsdorf , alias Jenkins 1 had written thus far , when the . Times of " Wednesday , by rare chance , came to band before post time , containing the second epistle of the author of " Bubbles" and " Fagots . " That the chronicler of such unsubstantialities should venture into a political discussion , is but a fresh illustration of the character of those who M rush in where angels fear to tread . " I know not which is the most astounding , the affected ignorance or real insolence of the Governor-General en disponibilite . Before , proceeding further , it may be due to your readers who must be surprised that any one who ever had the honour to hold her Majesty ' s
commission , and to represent her m the government of an English community , should prove so recreant to his national faith- —to state what charm won Sir Francis B . Head from being the servant of constitutional Government to become the votary of imperial despotism : — how , in short * took the purple fever which has debilitated his mind and unhinged his reason . Weak minds and frothy heads are generally wrenched from the rightful course by trifles , and Sir Francis B . Head ' s perversion is a melancholy instance of this weakness . Upon an evil day the blower of " Bubbles" came hither , and upon a still more evil day he went to see a review held by the Prince President . While lost and tossed about in the crowd that followed the heels of the
President , an aide-de-camp , with a led horse , approached , and , addressing the bubble-blower , asked if he had the honour to speak to the illustrious Sir Francis Head ? Being satisfied that such was the case , the aide-de-camp then said that his master , having noticed the noble air and commanding port , the Hyperion curls and fascinating beauty of an Englishman in the Crowd , had inquired who that superb specimen of humanity , that model-man , was ; learning that he was Sir Francis B . Head , the Prince President sent one of his own horses to enable the eminent publicist , that had " scampered "
through the Pampas , to follow in his train . To follow among the' military myrmidons of a Bonaparte , to spring into a saddle warmed by the seat of the son of a king and nephew of an emperor , was too much for such a head , which bowed crimson in return to the compliment , and has ever since been of a purple tint . From that day Sir Francis B . Head lias never ceased to bewail the fate which made him an Englishman instead of a Corsican or a Pole , which made him the representative of England's Majesty , instead of the jplat valet of the figment of an imperial dynasty .
" VTith respect to the Fagoteer ' s blundering through contemporaneous history , that I find has already been disposed of . I will thereforo confine myself to Sir Francis B . Head ' s curious morality , and to his practising that -which he deprecates in others . He asserts that M . Baroche , having sworn fidelity to the Republic , was quite justified in betraying it becauso , after three years ' trial , he was " deacl sick of it" - —an extraordinary item this in the code of honour of a military man ! If Sir Francis were president of a court-martial , would he acquit John Stiles who deserted from his regimont because , after three years' trial , he was " dead sick of it ?" After defending the lackey , Sir Francis ofibrs his patent staln-romover to his master , but upon that muster's
hand , which stabbed from behind the constitution that it was pledged to cherish , and protect , are stains that would make the multitudinous seas incarnadine , and which all the gums of Araby cannot sweeten . If Sir Francis B , Head undertakes to whitewash the French Emperor , ho wlH find qu'ilaura travailld pour te roi do Pruaee , Like all anti-Englishmen , Sir Francis falls foul of tho 7 'imes , because that paper is the great organ of English fooling , of English love of fair play , and of English admirution of honour , fidelity , and truth . Tho first charge made by this un-English baronet is that tho Times abuses 11 the hospitality imparted to it . " Tho uso of tho -word " hospitality" shows a strange Ignorance of tho signification of words , and I advise Sir Francis to consult hla dictionary . HosnIUlIty , In English , signifies entertaining
strangers without reward . Now , I presume , whatever entertainment the representatives of the Times may have here is paid for ; they , no more than your own correspondent , are lodged , fed , clothed , and paid by the French Government . There is , consequently , no hospitality . Tho next charge is that tho Times keeps an anonymous correspondent in Paris . Has Sir Francis never contributed an anonymous article to the Quarterly ? is he an entire stranger to those leaders which glorify imperial tyranny in the " base exception , " and have inflicted a deep scandal on English journalism ? Sir Francis knows , moreover , that the correspondent of English papers in Paris are not anonymous , either to the Government or to the public . Their names and addresses are duly registered at the police , and will be found in the Annuaire du Commerce . Sir Francis B . Head has , therefore , told a falsehood . The Baronet would not be
worthy further notice were it not from the curious internal evidence which his epistles afford that Sir Francis B . Head , the Jenkins of the present day , and Rf . Leo de Neulsdorf , the correspondent of M . Cassagnac and abuser of Englishwomen in the liiveil , are one and the same person . I really cannot congratulato Sir Francis on the success of his disguises , they are too flimsy and transparent ; his sleight-of-hand tricks and transformations are too clumsy to deceive the dullest clown in Corydon . One word more . Who made * the writer of * ' Bubbles" and " Fagots of Dried Sticks" spokesman of the English people ? How dare he assert that they disapprove of the language which calls things by their right names . They may not desire war , but they would rather encounter that , with all its horrors , than abandon the right of free speech and betray the cause of freedom , of which they are sole guardians , as they are and will be sole defenders .
1358 The Leader. [Ko. 455, Decembeb 11, ...
1358 THE LEADER . [ Ko . 455 , Decembeb 11 , 1858 .
Sir Benjamin". Don't You Observe The Vul...
SIR BENJAMIN " . Don't you observe the vulgar sneer Oil the thin lip of fawning toady ? " O law , my Lady , listen here , They're going to make a peer of Brodie ! " He was a doctor , near the Park , Some kind of surgeon or physician ; How true your ladyship's remark , ' The country ' s in a sad condition ! ' " But no , your fright is premature , You ancient , toad-devouring virgin , The Peerage will be still kept pure From contact with a titled surgeon . It ' s not to be ; but if it were , While men are born , men live , and men die , Some recognition might be fair
Of those who use the ars medendi . Lords from hereditary trees ( TMy lady ' s gone : we ' ve sadly shocked her ) , Where were your lengthening pedigrees , If vain the cry " Fer opem , Doctor !" If the good sword may claim its fee In titles , as our codes determine , 'Twere no unseemly thing to see The scalpel laid away in ermine . You , Peer , for having understood Allthe dark labyrinths that our laws have , "What Saving Clause has done the good That Brodiu ' s forceps' saving claws have ? To cut bad throats , and stretch bad necks , Are claims on Fortune ' s purblind goddess , But clear-eyed Honour gladly decks }
The man who heals good people s bodies . But , wise and kind old man , you know , A bauble ' s , what the thing will fetch , worth ; And Punch still bows to you , although He greets Sir B ., and not Lord Botchworth . — Punch
The Atlantic Cable. The Question As To T...
THE ATLANTIC CABLE . The question as to the replacing of tho Atlantic Telegraph Cable is likely to bo decided in a fow days . Tho Company have mada application to the Government for a guarantee of 4 J por cent , on 537 , 000 ? ., subject to the samo conditions as that of tho Red Sea lino , and this 1 ms been backed by memorials signed by tho leading firms , not only of London , but of Manchester , Liverpool , Birmingham , Leods , Halifax , Bradford , Hull , Glasgow , Paisleyand Norwich . Supposing U to bo granted ,
, contracts will Immediately bo concluded for a now cable , and any negotiations that may bo thought desirable * with tho American Government will subsequently be entered Into . No attempts can bo made , with any prospect of success , to lift tho old cable until tho return of calm weather at tho end of April or May , and , oven undor the best circumstances , tho expectations with regard to the operation are not favourable . Meanwhile it has boon definitively ascertained tbnt tho existing damage was not at tho shore end . Tho laying of tho
now ond has boon completed to a dlstanco twelve miles out from Valentla , and tho portion taken up was found to bo In a perfect condition for all electrical purposes
munication otherwise than by an entirely new uZ After the unanimous expression of opinion , notmerelv by the commercial towns but the people at large that the work is one the nation should not allow to fail it may be presumed there is little doubt of the required help being accorded , subject to such stipulations as mav protect the general interests of the public . Among other provisions some modifications in the construction of the Board might , perhaps , be advantageously demanded ¦—Times .
Experiments lately undertaken by a person ™ 7 " unconnected with the enterprise stroSj ^ J r ^ original inference , that the main fault is Ibou ™ lT ? ° from the Irish coast , at a depth probabl vof 900 f » n There is also a fault on t he other side , "" which is thrT to be about 300 miles from Newfoundla nd Cu '" however , still continue to be received , although of a fc- i so feeble and uncertain as to be useless for any » , t- i purpose . At present the telegraph is in charge of Mr Henley , who is manufacturing an apparatus such a * Inexperience on the spot leads him to think may vet no sibly lead to some results , but in no case could there 1 , 1 a . hopc of achieving permanentl y any satisfactory com
The Feast Of Reason And Tiik Flow Of Sou...
The Feast of Reason and tiik Flow of Sour — The Builder says : — " Some of our readers will like to know that at the old gate at St . John ' s , ClerkenweU— place of many interesting associations—a literary society has been formed by men connected with arts andliterature , with a view to the conversational discussions of subjects rendered familiar to them by their pursuits . The old hall in which the club meets is that in wbieh the Gentleman's Magazine was printed , and whence Sylvanus Urban for many years issued this , the oldest of our periodical publications . In consideration of this , the club has been called the ' Urban Club . ' At a recent meeting , Mr . ' Heraud , Mr . Stirling Coyne , Mr . ISlanehard , Mr ..-Henry Manston , and a number of other workers
in the field of literature , assembled . In the course of the evening Mr . lleraud remarked that the chief interest of literature docs not lie in the popularity which it might evoke—not in the echoes of applause which might natter a man ' s empty vanity , here nnd there—butintbe discipline which it gave to the mind of the literary man himself . It was a maxim of Plato that ' Euclid ' was not intended for shipwrights ; but it was quite clear that shipwrights would derive benefit from ' Euclid . ' It was quite clear that , if-the ship ' s carpenter had learned
his demonstrations , he might accept the resultSj and with much benefit apply them to his craft . But the highest end of mathematics was not merely their application to mechanical arts or mere material good in the world , but it was the moral act upuu the mind of the scholar himself . " To tli . ou who wish to pursue this interesting discourse still further , it may be some satisfaction to know that another gentleman present stated that for his part-he always advocated the Individuality of the Individual ; that " it was with regret that he perceived that German Positivism and Cosmopolitan Despotism weregradually wearing awaynlltheold landmarks
between man and tho Infinite ; and that his only hope for salvation of the true idiosyncrasy of man lay in the subjective abnegation of free will and the mental absorption of the Elemental Catachresls . More followed in this interesting strain , when a gentleman long anil creditably known for his connexion with the stage declared that , having surveyed tho grout drama of life from Pans to Peru , lie was inclined to believe that the natural development of human passions , whether in the dramas ol ^ schylus , the poems of Firdusi , or tho pantomimes 01 road for lauing
Mr . Blanchard , was the only proper man back to his primeval state of innocence ; thatuu time and space should be no more , and the echo oi mm undying song which the Swan of Avon poured forth . « ho proudly breasted the wave , sailing downward to uo ocean of eternity , should have died awny upon •»««« " tivc ear of posterity , ho should continue to uphold J faith nnd sanctity of the immortal British drama . A « j r a convivial evening , spent in this entertaining aid m structivo manner , the company separated and wem » u
to hod .- ^ -From the Critic . Alwancis . wmi Austria— Tho very nnme or g Austrian alliance is hateful to Eng lishmen . £ «»"' ¦ again has it been dreamt of by miccoshivo MhiMOT , but it has always onde . l in discredit an . dofont . v last experience of its worse than wort ileMioM » likely soon to be forgotten . When on tho trial « y terrible struggle , in which wo Hocriiim 1 « ' ff 0 millions of treasure and forty thousand Wntwn .. . asked Austria , whoso interests were- Men | cnIJ \ | bll | lv . own , manfully to join us , and thus avert -ho > o- j of a lengthened conflict , Austria « hufllod , intrW J ^ lied from week to week and from montli to moni , wo , undor tho guidance of Lords C «[ cnilo J' " occasions doon , submitted to bo so fooled , til « oi « wn m had passed away , and Kwssia had t'njj' to d » df ( 1 i « strength together and to prepare for tno ur counter . At tho door of the Cabinet of W ™ , „„ tho ghastly reckoning of tho Crimea ; «"' JJ'J lllto English Minister In time to oomu h aukea l " , ll ( | 0 ( engagements offensive and ilefoiwlvo w " » ' f , | lfl him , as a preliminary , demand w 1 " 1 '"'™ 0 ™"' m \ W millions hor cowardice and insincerity co « t u , ^ him ask hor if oho can restore our dond . —*™ J
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Dec. 11, 1858, page 22, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_11121858/page/22/
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