What now is the cause that presses upon many men's minds an instinctive percep tion that no name is now fitted to be the successful rallying-cry of a party, the word of power, able in its mere utterance to create a cabinet? An investigation of the depths of this question would lead us away from our present purpose, and it is no part of our design to engage in it. The truth it implies will, nevertheless, we think, be admitted, and the admission, we venture to hope, will go some length towards opening a way for the removal of the pressing evil. When Lord John Russell resigned, in February, 1852, the step was manifestly neither expected nor desired by Lord Derby, whom it forced into office, unprepared either with a policy or with a cast of parts which could be permanent. The result was to place that statesman in a false position- false, both as to the principle of which he was thrust forward as the exponent, and as to the colleagues with whom he was to work. Protection was a flag which then symbolled no certain or sustainable idea of party combination, and yet he had no other to hoist; his men were undrilled in any other tactics than those of a guerilla warfare, and the inexperience and want of steadiness of many of those whom he placed in prominent positions soon produced their natural effects. He had no policy in reserve, and the unprincipled hostility of the Peelites again drove him from office, before it was possible for him to mature a plan intelligible to the country. It is matter of regret that he has not employed the time that has elapsed since, either in disciplining his force into habits of united action, or in arranging the scheme of a future official campaign. We are unwilling to enter upon the invidious duty of constructing a black list, but the memory of every reader will suggest the names both of general officers and captains of troops in the official army of 1852, in company with whom no wise commander would ever again venture to march through Coventry. Yet we have heard of no new list of promotions or appointments in Lord Derby's army; and what is worse, we have witnessed no strategic manœuvres calculated to introduce better discipline, or to define with more exactness the base and the object of his operations. The general himself has, upon two recent occasions - on the Canadian Legislature and Oxford Uni

versity Bills courted most unnecessary and damaging defeats upon his own ground. The officers have too often waged petty wars, each for his own hand, inconsequentially, as in the case of the attacks upon the National Education system and the Incumbered Estates' Court; or piratically, as in the advance of sham and mischievous land bills, and measures for the demolition of the parish churches of the metropolis. If Lord Derby had been again forced into office by the maturation of recent intrigues within the cabinet, or by the open mutiny of a section of the supporters of the coalition upon the vote for the war ministry, he would again have been under the necessity of entering Downing-street without a flag, and with no certain declaration of principles; and again, no doubt, his antagonists would have raised over his head the worn-out and now utterly unmeaning banner of Protection. Again, I would that manœuvre be found sufficient to accomplish his destruction? And then, indeed, we might ask, what next? Mr. Bright is, he says, willing and anxious to follow Lord John Russell into opposition. If Lord Derby be again driven into office by the intrigues of antagonists, and again driven out of it by the folly of friends, and through the inefficiency of his own plans, the next turn of the game will, in all human likelihood, seat a Manchester ministry upon the treasury benches, with the hereditary leader of the Whigs nominally at its head, but really in menial service as its tool and stalkinghorse.

And now to return to our search for the sick man's successor. It is evident enough that claimants for the inheritance are not wanting within the domestic circle. Lord John Russell, no doubt, has his own consent to be second heir to his noble friend; and Lord Palmerston's name is a familiar word in many months, suggested pointedly by the peculiarities of the occasion, although rather in connexion with the onerous and now all-important management of our foreign and hostile relations, than as chief of a ministry. The intrigue, in the course of which Lord Granville was degraded and Mr. Strutt discharged, and the bringing in of Sir George Grey to the colonial office, are facts in themselves sufficient to give colour and consistence to the reports current as to the nature of the divisions within the cabinet; and it seems

scarcely possible to doubt that the separation of Russellite and Peelite factions, which was naturally to be expected from the beginning, has at length actually taken place. In the patching process the former has been strengthened; and, as Mr. Hume is said to have remarked at the meeting of friends of the ministers, already so often mentioned, an attempt has been made to revive "the old principle that no one could interfere with the government of the country except a Russell, a Grey, or an Elliott." It seems highly probable, therefore, that the Lord President of the Council has made up his mind again to push for leadership; and, taking the circumstances of the hour and the men into consideration, it appears to us to be of extreme and urgent importance that the Conservative opposition should at once most seriously examine the chances of his success, and the possible combinations necessarily involved in it, or to which it might open a way. A main element necessary to the formation of any conclusion upon these points, must, of course, be a knowledge of what the country absolutely requires, as essential principles of ministerial policy, and what limits of deviation it would tolerate in other matters. With regard to the former, we believe, the labour of investigation need not be great. The country requires a ministry that will avow a manly, vigorous, and straightforward foreign policy, and that will carry it out in measures, of which the design and tendency cannot be mistaken. The country will not be satisfied unless secret diplomacy and intrigue be unmistakeably abandoned, and the war be carried on with energy, and with a distinct and acknowledged purpose of bringing it to an end as soon as possible, in a secure and honourable peace. Secondly, the country requires the avowal and the practice of a firm, Protestant, and British policy; it will not be satisfied unless all truckling to ultramontane influences be formally renounced upon the one hand, and a complete freedom of opinion-which is Protestantism-be secured upon the other. A confession and practice in accordance with these two principles is, we believe, all that the country at this moment looks to as essential to the policy of a ministry; and if satisfaction be given upon these two points a very large latitude for

difference of views upon other matters will not be denied. With respect to the first, it would be superfluous to offer a word in proof of the universality and stringency of the public opinion in regard to it. If any one doubts as to the correctness of our view in relation to the second, we would confidently refer for conclusive evidence in its support to the division lists of the House of Commons during the present session. Large majorities, upon even the smallest questions evinced, throughout, the anti-Roman feelings of the people, unmistakeably exhibited in the votes of their representatives of all classes, parties, and sections; while their sympathy with every form of Protestantism was demonstrated with equal clearness in the amendments carried in the Oxford University Reform Bill. In the committee upon that bill, a majority of ninety-one in a house of more than 400 members, carried the first step towards the admission of Dissenters to a participation in the rights of education in that national school, against the strenuous opposition of the coalition, seconded, we regret to say, upon this occasion, by some of the leading members of Lord Derby's ministry. The hint was taken by the Government and the House of Lords, although not by Lord Derby and some of his immediate colleagues. On the third reading of the bill, another step in the same direction was taken, and a majority, increased to 154, determined that the degree of Bachelor of Arts, of Oxford, should no longer be unattainable by the Dissenting youths of England. This decision was sanctioned in the House of Lords, on a division in Committee of 73 to 47. It is scarcely possible to overrate the importance of these facts, testifying, as in truth they do, to the ratification of a solemn league and covenant between the Church and the various sections of British Protestantism, whose unanimity is so essential at this moment to the safety of the common liberties of all. That some of the truest and most distinguished of our Irish Conservative representatives joined heartily in this work is a proof of its soundness; that it should have been obstructed by any such was a mistake, which we hope the decision of the Upper House has done somewhat to expose and to correct.

Whoever would come boldly forward now with these two principles inscribed upon his banner, might, we have little

doubt, unmake and make a ministry, whether his antecedents were Free Trade or Protectionist, Tory or Whig. Any combination of which a sincere acknowledgment and profession of these should be the basis and bond, would, we are persuaded, hold together, notwithstanding minor differences, against any coalition, no matter how many "Talents" it might include. We can pretend to no knowledge of the secrets of parties, or acquaintance with the designs or intentions of statesmen. It is not for us, therefore, to say whether any leader so bold or so politic is likely to appear; or whether any disposition to follow such an one prevails among the various herds of aspirants to office. It is enough for us to have endeavoured to fix the position of the vessel of the State among the shoals of party, to mark the dangers around, and to point out the course which appears to be practicable and safe.

We believe that it is above all things the duty of honest public men, at the present conjuncture, to take council for the rescue of the public interest

from the perils in which it is involved, through the weakness and infirmity of purpose of the Coalition. To this paramount object all schemes of party advancement should be held as secondary; yet precaution is needed lest, in escaping from one peril, we should fall into another. A little misconception of public opinion, a little neglect of just claims, a little obstinacy might prove fatal to country and party; while a frank avowal of purpose, and a stern repudiation of all shams, would open a way to serve both. It would be a poor anticlimax of Conservative patriotism, to force a mixed mob of Russellites, Manchester men, Tenant Leaguers, and Roman agents into a position from which they could dictate terms to the Sovereign. It would be small partywisdom to hold back from any combination possible to be formed upon the two principles of home and foreign policy we have indicated, and which should possess such elements of strength and ability as would afford promise of competency to carry on the Queen's Government.

THE very title of this book shows us on which side it is written. Georgia and Armenia are only beyond the Caucasus to one in the Russian Empire; to us, unless we go through Russia, they are on this side of it. This fact it is necessary to notice, because it explains to us much which is contained in the book that might at first appear puzzling. The book is written with Russian predispositionswe will not call them prejudices,-and the sketches have been taken from a Russian point of view. To our minds, this enhances the value of the book.

It is an inherent quality of our human nature, that if we become involved in contention, whether it be individually or collectively, we can hardly avoid looking at all the actions of our opponent in the most unfavourable light.

Anything which enables us to guard against this species of unfairness must

But

be welcome to a candid mind. candour itself may sometimes be carried to excess; and it occasionally happens with some men, that, in their great anxiety to guard against judging unfairly of an opponent, they fall into the opposite error, and give him greater latitude, and make more allowance for him than they would for a friend or an indifferent person.

Baron Von Haxthausen's book is useful even here, for we are told in the preface, that "not only was the book written, but the manuscript was in the hands of the translator long before the war which now gives a peculiar interest to the scenes described in it, was anticipated." We may, therefore, look upon this account of Georgia and Armenia as an unprejudiced one, or, at least, prejudiced in favour of Russia rather than against her, inasmuch as the author's travels in Russia were

made under the auspices and even by the especial invitation of the Emperor Nicholas.

Baron Von Haxthausen is a Westphalian nobleman of distinguished talents and reputation, and his principal object in travelling was to make inquiries as to the tenure of land, and the relations of the peasantry with the soil, more especially in those regions where serfdom, or anything resembling it, was or had lately been the prevailing condition of the country.

However valuable such inquiries may be to the statesman, the philosopher, or the philanthropist, they are not those with which we shall attempt to weary our readers. We will, on the contrary, merely endeavour to cull such passages or abstract such information as shall serve to give them some more precise ideas about the districts immediately south of the Caucasus, the people that inhabit them, and the nature of the treatment the latter receive from the Russian authorities.

Of the physical geography and external form of the countries he traversed, M. Haxthausen does not tell us much, and our best maps are, we know, very imperfect and incorrect representations of nature.

The very range of the Caucasus itself is quite untruly represented, as was once explained to us by the celebrated Russian traveller, Abich. We do not, however, know how far that gentleman's labours have yet been published, and are quite sure that they are inaccessible to us at this present writing, if they have been.

Every one knows, however, that the Caucasus is a lofty and broken mountain chain, which, after skirting the north-eastern shore of the Black Sea, strikes across to the centre of that great and singular depression occupied in part by the Caspian. As the latter is believed to be 1300 feet lower than the former, the mean height of the Caucasus is, of course, increased by that much beyond what it would have if the Caspian were on a level with the ocean or the latter had access to it. The boundary between Europe and Asia, after traversing the Caspian Sea from the mouth of the river Ural, suddenly turns nearly north-west, along the watershed of the Caucasus, to the Black Sea. The country north of the Caucasus partakes of that low and level character which is common to all the vast plain of Russia in Europe;

that to the south of it is much more broken and diversified, the plains consisting of lofty table-lands, separated frequently by bold ranges and groups of mountains, such as characterise the neighbouring countries of Persia and

Asia Minor.

The loftiest peak of the Caucasian range is Mount Elbrouz, the height of which Baron Haxthausen gives as 18,500 feet, or nearly 3,000 feet higher than Mont Blanc. A very striking sketch of the snow-clad summit of this mountain will be found at page 86 of his book, taken from one made by his travelling companion, Prince Paul Lieven, though this sketch was taken from the plains on the north side of the Caucasian range, and not from the more broken country on the south. We can, indeed, at once accord the meed of high praise to the eight coloured lithographs which the book contains. They do great credit to all concerned in their production.

Like most border countries, especially when mountainous, the Caucasus shelters a multitude of different races and tribes of men. There is said to be not fewer than seventy original tongues spoken in its neighbourhood, some languages being confined only to a few villages.

With the Circassians, however, and all the tribes that inhabit the recesses and northern slope of the Caucasus, we have now nothing to do. Our author leads us through Mingrelia, Immiretia, and Georgia. After staying for some time in Tiflis, the capital of the latter, he takes us into the northern corner of Armenia, the portion now belonging to Russia, staying some time at the cathedral town of Echmiadzin. He then returns to Tiflis, and, after an interesting excursion to the country of the tribe called the Ossetes, and some notice of the province of Karabagh on the shores of the Caspian, he retraces his steps to the shores of the Black Sea.

At the very outset we meet with a story utterly startling to our European notions, and showing how entirely ideas and feelings change with the change of circumstances and condi tions: :

"In the harbour of Bambor lay a small Turkish vessel, which had been seized by the armed boats of a Russian man-ofwar steamer, manned by Cossacks. On board this vessel, beside the Turkish pro

This

prietor and some sailors, was a Circassian Prince, as a guest, from the neighbourhood of the fortress, accompanied by two of his noble vassals, and some servants, a young woman, and six Circassian girls, from twelve to fifteen years of age. The master of the vessel was probably a smuggler, conveying food and ammunition to the Circassians, and taking as return freight Circassian girls for the slave-market at Constantinople. Circassian Prince might have wished to make a voyage to Constantinople from political motives. The charge of smuggling ammunition, which the Turk denied, could not be proved; but the forbidden traffic in girls was palpable, and by the Russian laws the vessel was confiscated. I inquired of the General how he intended to dispose of the Circassians; he replied, that they belonged to a race with whom Russia was at peace, and he should therefore set them free, after interposing some trifling difficulties and exhortations.

"Meanwhile the son of the Prince had arrived, to beg the liberation of his father. I accompanied the Circassian within the rayon of the fortress, where an interesting scene followed. In announcing to the girls their liberation, the General ordered them to be informed that the choice was open to them to be sent back to their homes with the Prince of their own race, or to marry Russians and Cossacks of their free choice, to return with me to Germany, where all the women are free, or, lastly, to accompany the Turkish Captain who would sell them in the slave-market at Constantinople. The reader will hardly credit that, unanimously and without a moment's consideration, they exclaimed, To Constantinople-to be sold!' There is scarcely any people more proud and jealous of their liberty, and yet this was the voluntary answer of these women!

"If, however, we investigate a little deeper the views, thoughts, and habits of this Eastern people, the answer will appear not unnatural, but, in fact, accordant with their notions. The purchase and sale of women is deeply rooted in the customs of the nation every man buys his wife from the father or from the family. On the part of the women no feeling of shame is attached to the transaction, but rather a sense of honour; and, indeed, before we can pronounce on the subject, we must be intimately acquainted with the circumstances, and must be able to place ourselves exactly in the position of the Circassians. In her own country a Circassian girl lives in a state of slavish dependence on her father and brothers; her position is therefore raised when a man demands her in marriage, and stakes his fortune to obtain her, at the same time that he liberates her from the servile constraint of her family. Among Europeans, a rich man who marries a poor girl, generally appears actuated by compassion; she is congratulated on her good fortune, which is somewhat offensive to a woman's pride. If,

on the contrary, a rich girl marries a poor man, she purchases her husband, and this is humiliating to him. When two marry who are equally well off, the match has, more or less, the air of a mercantile transaction; so that it might also appear as if genuine and disinterested affection could only be found in a marriage between two poor persons. But here again the motive is often either one of mere passion, a need of mutual assistance and attendance, or a wish to establish a separate household. The Eastern girl sees in her purchase- price the test of her own value, the higher the offer, the greater her worth. The purchase of women being the common practice among the Circassian tribes, slave-dealers to whom they are sold, are to be regarded simply as agents, who dispose of them in marriage in Turkey. Their parents know that a better lot awaits them there than at home, and the girls willingly go to Turkey, where, as this traffic has existed for centuries, they constantly meet their kindred. In their own homes, moreover, the Circassian men are rough and imperious, and the women are slaves to all kinds of drudgery and menial labour; whereas the Turk is a patient and kind husband, and a tender father."—pp. 7–10.

The shores of Mingrelia, between Redout Kale and Anaklia, afford us glimpses of a noble country, for which nature has done everything, and man, of late years at all events, absolutely nothing. In riding along them, Baron Haxthausen says:

"During the whole day our road lay through forests, and what noble forests! In the southern acclivities of the Caucasus the tree-vegetation of the north is found together with that of the south; and I have rarely seen finer beeches, oaks, elms, fir-trees, interspersed with planes, chestnuts, walnuts, olives, laurels, and cherry-trees, the native habitat of which last is said to be Mingrelia.

"Where these forests are not too dense to allow underwood to grow, especially when composed of elms, vines have twined around the trees, festooning them from branch to branch. It is impossible to conceive a more luxuriant and charming sight: for miles all the trees were hung to their very tops with red bunches of grapes, for I nowhere observed any white grapes. This fruit is said to be very sour, and scarcely eatable. The vines appear to grow perfectly wild, no one caring to cultivate them, or laying claim to their possession."-pp. 17, 18.

In the interior of the country again we get the following glimpse of the neighbourhood of a little town called Khori:

"Here is a panoramic view of wonderful beauty to the north, the majestic range of glaciers of the Caucasus, tinged with the