The Evening Telegraph

THE ENGLISH MISSION

The recall of Minister Motley from England appears to have been definitely determined upon by the President, although as yet no satisfactory reasons have been given for making a change. It is a matter of the very greatest importance that our Minister to England shall be a first-class man in every respect, and it will be difficult to find any one who fulfils all the desirable conditions to a greater extent than Mr. Motley. His appointment as Minister to the British Court was a subject for the sincerest congratulation on both sides of the Atlantic, and it will be a real misfortune if any one less worthy of the cordial respect and esteem of the English people is made his successor. The only reason we can assign for the proposed action of the President in this matter is that Mr. Motley has not pressed the settlement of the Alabama claims with as much vigor as is considered desirable. It is certainly of some consequence that the English Government should be made to understand distinctly that we do not intend to recede one inch from the position we have taken with regard to its liabilities, or to allow the subject to die out of men's minds through our neglect to agitate it. It was understood that Mr. Motley's apparent inactivity with regard to the Alabama claims was owing to the instructions he received from the State Department. If, however, his removal will be of any advantage in procuring a prompt settlement of our differences with England, by all means let him be superseded as soon as possible. It is to be hoped, however, that the English mission is not to be made a reward for political services, or a token of personal esteem on the part of the President for some faithful public servant like Secretary Fish. While we have the very highest regard for Mr. Fish, it scarcely needs argument to prove that the mission to England should be given to a younger and more energetic man, one who is up with the spirit of the age, who understands what the necessities of the nineteenth century are, and who has both physical and mental strength to push our claims with vigor. Mr. Fish has been mentioned as the probable successor of Mr. Motley, and estimable as the Secretary of State is in every way, such an appointment would not be considered at all the best that could be made.

Another rumor with regard to this matter is that the President has offered the mission to ex-Governor Morgan, of New York. Without considering him to be the best possible choice under the circumstances, he is at least better suited for the position than Mr. Fish, and if Mr. Motley must come home we would rather that Governor Morgan should be appointed to succeed him than run the risk of a worse selection being made. Governor Morgan is in the prime of life, and he has enjoyed of late years greater facilities for studying the temper and disposition of the people of the United States than either Mr. Fish or Mr. Motley. He knows exactly what the feeling is with regard to the Alabama claims, and if the administration wishes to adopt a more decided policy with regard to them, it will probably find in him a fitting instrument to impress upon the British Cabinet the necessity for a speedy settlement.