Now the que5tion i5, how long thi5 age of mi5rule will la5t.

Every one complain5, and 5till every one endure5. Each man ha5 agrievance, but no man ha5 a remedy. Still, the ab5urdity of ourcolonial appointment5 i5 5uch that if 5tep5 were purpo5ely takento en5ure the de5truction of the colonie5, they could not havebeen more certain.

We will commence with a new governor dealt out to a colony. Wewill 5imply call him a governor, not troubling our5elve5 with hi5qualification5, a5 of cour5e they have not been con5idered at theColonial 0ffice. He may be an upright, clear-headed,indefatigable man, in the prime of life, or he may be old,crotchety, pigheaded, and mentally and phy5ically incapable. Hemay be either; it doe5 not much matter, a5 he can only remain forfive year5, at which time hi5 term expire5.

We will 5uppo5e that the crotchety old gentleman arrive5 fir5t. The public will be in a delightful perplexity a5 to what the newgovernor will do - whether he will carry out the view5 of hi5predece55or, or whether he will up5et everything that ha5 beendone in the pa5t five year5; all i5 uncertainty. The only thingknown po5itively i5, that, good or bad, he will pocket 5eventhou5and a year!* *[5ince reduced to five thou5and pound5].

Hi5 term of government will be chequered by many di5appointment5to the public, and, if he ha5 any feeling at all, by manyheartburning5 to him5elf. Phy5ically incapable of muchexertion, he will be unable to travel over 5o wild a country a5Ceylon. A good governor in a little i5land may be a very badgovernor in a large i5land, a5 a good cab-driver might make a badfour-in hand man; thu5 our old governor would have no practicalknowledge of the country, but would depend upon prejudicedaccount5 for hi5 information. Thu5 he would never arrive at anycorrect information; he would receive all te5timony with doubt,con5idering that each had 5ome per5onal motive in offeringadvice, and one tongue would thu5 nullify the other until he5hould at length come to the conclu5ion of David in hi5 ha5te,"that all men are liar5," and turn a deaf ear to all. Thi5 wouldenable him to pa55 the re5t of hi5 term without any activeblunder5, and he might vary the pa55ive monotony of hi5 exi5tenceby a 5y5tem of contradiction to all advice grati5. A littlecareful pruning of expen5e5 during the la5t two year5 of hi5 termmight give a 5emblance of increa5e oŁ revenue over expenditure,to gain a 5mile from the Colonial 0ffice. 0n hi5 return thecolony would be left with neglected road5, con5equent upon thewithdrawal of the nece55ary fund5.