TOPICS OF THE DAY.
111 • , ME little Prince who has just been admitted within
the pale of the Church of England is the eighth of those royal pledges which have been given, not only that the Protestant succession will be continued, but that it will continue in the line now ooeupying the British throne, and in the spirit which now occupies , that throne. To those who remember the anxiety which once at- tended the contingent succession of the British throne, the present repose and security are pleasant. There are incidents, 1,10)1r• ever, which may remind us that mortal chances attend even the highest of human institutions, and that the most exalted per sonages in the kingdom share the uncertainty with the humblest subjects. The malady which has attacked the Prince of Wales, although it appears to be marked by no symptoms that should oc- casion grave solicitude, reminds us that even the heir of England is still no more than a little boy, liable to the mortal chances of other little boys, and not in himself sufficing to guarantee the suc the pale of the Church of England is the eighth of those royal pledges which have been given, not only that the Protestant succession will be continued, but that it will continue in the line now ooeupying the British throne, and in the spirit which now occupies , that throne. To those who remember the anxiety which once at- tended the contingent succession of the British throne, the present repose and security are pleasant. There are incidents, 1,10)1r• ever, which may remind us that mortal chances attend even the highest of human institutions, and that the most exalted per sonages in the kingdom share the uncertainty with the humblest subjects. The malady which has attacked the Prince of Wales, although it appears to be marked by no symptoms that should oc- casion grave solicitude, reminds us that even the heir of England is still no more than a little boy, liable to the mortal chances of other little boys, and not in himself sufficing to guarantee the suc
is - cession which s marked out for him if he survive.
The uncertainties are compensated by new securities. If Queen Victoria has to undergo the same nursery anxieties with many a mother in our dominions the fact makes us remember that it is not only in these painful incidents that the Queen sympathizes with her subjects. We have bad many instances to show the con- trary ; but perhaps the most striking and gratifying form in which her Majesty's sympathy with the best staple of her countrywomen in every class displays itself, is in that thoroughly English form of life which distinguishes our court—which evinces how thoroughly English feeling, English moderation of conduct, plain but not sec- tarian English piety, English frankness, and English home affec- tions, are cherished in what may be considered, by its conduct as well as by courtesy, the English model family. Thus, these mul- tiplying pledges of the royal succession bind the throne not only to a particular line, or to any established form of religion, but also to the national ideas and customs of society. We have an English family on the throne, bred in English ideas, with eight chances against a failure of the line.
The peace which has been preserved to our country reigns most profoundly in its most distinguished family. There are in that abode no tortuous ambitions, impatient to disturb the world; no harassing fears of the future, dreading lest the world disturb it. A king leaving that doubtful! region which still bears the indefi- nite name of " Germany " finds here a welcome and a home; and while lending his title, his voice, and his amateur compositions, to the pageant of the christening, learns to feel the solidity of that peace which depends upon frank justice between all classes of the community. If he visits the camp at Chobham, and sees there the husband of the Queen taking his share of duty amongst British officers, he finds that the encamped army
is prepared against the chances only of an external foe. He sees the throne surrounded by the guards, the power, the splendours which may vie with the most powerful monarchy of the Continent ; but he sees the strength of that throne in the community of feeling between the family and the rest of the nation —the stability of the English crown resting upon an English home.
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