PRINCE ALBERT ON O'CONNEL.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 324, 21 May 1875, Page 4

PRINCE ALBERT ON O'CONNEL.

Wo ha\e been requested to insert the following article from the '.Nation'; If the future historian will credit the present sovoreign of these countries, as he niuot, with a purification of her court from the immoral atmosphere created and fostered by her predecessors, her reign must be debited with a royal practice which is really Lardly fair towards the press and the public. When a king or queen wriLs, or " edits," or causes to bo written or edited under loyal auspices, a royal book—and especially when the book is about his or her royal self—what are loyal subjects to do ? A book written by any one about a reigning princo is an embairassing matter for reviewers " within the jurisdiction " No one imagines that Queen Victoria would commit a slashing reviewer to the Tower; nevertheless, we all know that no ono during the life of' her. royal grand ather would review a royal autobiograpl y as independently as we | may critici e the same book in the pre--sent day, to it is sheor imposture to pretend tl a; t'xe truth will be written just now about royal autobiographies by the Queen or Prince Albert. For a reigningjaovereign to compile and publish in his own dominions during his own life a book about himself or his consort, is Bimply a royal cominuniqxw to the press and the public—and especially to historyi • No matter how. true and faithful the book may be, the proceeding is; in royal personages, an interference with the independence of public opinion and the freedom of literature. It is, at the very least, out of time. A ruling prince must be content to let tho next generation judge and portray his character. It is cur firm belief^that of all" English sovereigns since Charles I. Queen Victoria will have least to fear and most to hope from oven the most stern judgment" of posterity, Not only by , comparison with her predecessors (which would make her a living saint), but judged by the fair standard of human character, sho will, we think, be entitled to much genuine praise; though we greatly doubt that the' court revelations of the' futuro will thow 1 er to be more, fairly disponed tc wards the Lishpeople tbanj were tho members of her family 'who' Jast ruled over us. Hut everi her present Majesty ought to be content with the passing \ r.iiso of every day,-and leave history-writii g to really independent authors. The reigning princo, painted by himself, and 'set up, before hia subjects to gaze upon, may, be; a., very touching picture; but on.principle, wo decidedly objoct to the proceeding;. English sovereigns "have; ere nbwy, written books. Henry -Mb ;.EtgKth? wrote one in'defence,of the'Gatholic. Church—'.before it refused to allow, him free polygamy. - -James -the:•First, is said to have t written t " Eikon,xßasilikon." We have lat.ety.had her Majesty Queeu Victoria appearing, A ia the field of literature ; and w,e, T mus£. say that if she were not a better sovereign, than nn authoress, the English people would think very poorly of her.r, To be pure, the royal autobiogiaphy .had.'aia " editor "; some court flunkey oTtbjS literary persuasion, who would' db4'jip,. jaueh passages as might, be t-oo c much' for royal humility to tho; royal pen. As long as 1 these, roya'l productions were confined. to'; : 'the strictly maudlin, no one ; to bo uncivil, or to criticise them .with/, unccurtly candor. It is quite'another. thing when, as in one of '.them'just is-;; sued from tho press—a.jlife of PrinceAlbert—public men and. critical political affairs are The "editor" in this case it would seem, has had' turned over to him some of the royal love letters! And here we have actually, paraded forus in public print effusions 7 which a delicate feeling would causeaji Irish maiden or Irish wife to shield from the vulgar gaze as something [too? Hacred for such use ! Here .we-:have* tho royal bitlh-g and cooing given to tho public gaze—all to be seen as' if really happened at the low. charge of eighteen (.tilings, cash down, Smith, Elchr, and Co.! Here we have duly printed, published, and advertised the letter in which the Queen tells Uncle Leopold or somebody else how " Albert has won her heart." Here we have Prince Albert's letter to hia "love" and "darling," six years, after marriage, bewailing tho face of being a;, whole day absent from her side, but solaced'' by the feeling that she is " jusfrnoV sitting down to lunch." WelJ j fell this,', beautiful in its own proper place, is absolutely offensive when ,thrust before r uj by the court editor, as ;much' as to say, " Behold whatan angelic'be'-' mg you have to rulecveryou!;,Search a 1 the world, aucKfind if ycu can',outv [} de . the £. ov ers : of 'gdody T goo.(iy Bible Society Tracts, anything'to compare with Albert and j V ictoria'!"• '"•': '' •'' Ireland is abbitrfhe a disposition unkindly these royal fo.ibleß,--if Toyalty in its literary; dabbling wotrldbut avoid insulting our '^feeling's)' ' '■ In !; this- cduii- ' try, wo are glad to say,, the personal' ohr.racter of the Queen has "never been touched but with 'respect; even when in 'the English' press pen and peni:il were enfployed in directing ! insulting and unmanly insinuations against her. But if in these, lives or - autobiographies the: feelingßVof the Irish people are needlessly offended, we daro lie frank and make plain 'tnlfc! net even a couit'edi.cr is free to attfiupt thid work with impunity, What Prince Albert tbought about n arrie 1 and unnnme'd clergy ho himself told' us whi.'o Jiving. Ho wroto tp Baron Humboldt that "the Irish were no' more deserving of yymputhy than the Poles." And now wo have hi in, in this pemi-royal publication before us, writing to his " Dear Sfcekrnor" as follows out (/Connpll : J)ii,vit STocKMKtt—ln homo politics OiUour,«l;'j i.'tuth ia iho mofcfc recent treat, and it

has had no effect whntevcr. It is a befitting end to nn agitator, that for two yenrs a Per he had stood before the world like u gie.it Colossus, Le ohould pass out of it minuted ; whereas the nian of true' worth cannot survive his reputation.

This mean and cowardly crow over ' the bier of the great lrishmun was ' worthy of Albert the Good-for-noth-ing! O'Connell, forsooth, passed out of the world unnoted ! les ; unnoted by the Court, but wept by a nation. It was in a dark and terrible hour that " agitator " was struck down. Famine such as had no .parallel in the records of Christendom was n sweeping away the noble race, for whom he labored so long and fought so bravely I The roar of political strife was, indeed, hushed in the wail '.of the dying multitude. In that hour England had no nee,d to fear Ireland or the Irish leader ; and so he passed away, .says this German sneerer,'.' unnoted:". He had, we arc further told, "survived his reputation." Long after the,, name of this Coburg t prince will have\sunk into'deserv.ed obscjurity the reputation of .O'Connell, .the Irish Liberator, will excite the admiration'of free ; <men < all ~over the world. Prince Albert,' no doubt, won medals by his prize farming, and bred the finest; pigs and the-fattest bullocks in his district. , O'Connell 'found four /millions o£ Cathqlics in 'chains, and he broke their bonds and set them free. We think it is hardly pr,udent for the monarchy to .parade before the'lrish ' people these passages from jthe' royal correspondence. • We;are r given ( 'to understand plainly .enough throughout the-book that, the prince drew the Queen's hand to.an extent hardly constitutional ; and what he thought about the Irish people, jnl tLe Poles, " r was not very much : cpposed to what his royal partner felt, upon the\same subjects. say,boldly, and.,emphatically that the Irish people have a right to expect that /( books issued,by or under the sanction of-the sovereign avoid political allusions so aggressive and offensive. , The Queen'is theoretically above .andibeyoiid't&e 'region of political-an-tipathies ,and proclivities,/ y If, behind the scenes the *fac,t;isn,ot,'so J indecency it ought not to be'pTodaimed"to us in' .this fashion™lt" 'is "hot* easylSr Irish,men,to beacrin mjnd as, they.yought to do what-is due to.the office of a/sove-: "reign ruler,/in repelling.-calumny 'and, insult that"find>their origin so~ncar>the tLone. *• \ ,r" b f > ,<- ~