The Press. — London, England, 1857-04-04 00:00:00

332 boroughs of the Tories, but they quite forgot to put an end to the close boroughs of the Whigs—(cheers and laughter ),—and ever since I have not found that tee Whigs were at all inclined to reform in that respect. (Renewed laughter.) After this great chan4e had taken place, in the course of events the power of what is called the Con servative party—the party opposed to further changes of parliamentary reform—was chiefly shown in the counties. The great demonstration of Conservative influence in the counties may be accounted for upon various grounds. Many years ago measures menacing the Church were brought forward, and no doubt the clergy took great in• Wrest in the principles which were then discussed. Sub- sequently there occurred a great industrial controversy, which is now happily settled, and the great body of the middle class, the largest employers of labour—the farmers of England—believ.ng that the source of their profit was menaced by the proposed changes, resented the intended legisla•ion, and another great Conservative demonstration took place in the counties. The voice of the counties on that occasion was ag uinst the Whigs, or the great Liberal party, and another " bit by bit reform " was proposed, tampering with the county franchise. I don't give any opinion as to any uarticular schemes which have been brought forward upon that subject, but the instant the close boroughs were against the Whigs they wanted to destroy them, and the instant the counties were against the Whigs they proposed a " bit by bit reform "—a " moderate measure order to affect the seats in the counties. In both these cases you will find that a party object was really at the bottom of the measures, which were not brought forward after deep consideration for the general benefit of the community ; and therefore I am entirely opposed to " bit by hit reforms," however plausi ble they may appear upon paper. Then came the " CAnprehensive " measures : I have myself no superstitious reverence for the Reform Act of Its 32. I believe that whenever British statesmen bring forward a measure of that importance their primary c msideration is the interest of their country, whether they be Whigs, Tories, or Radicals. That, no doubt, was the primary consideration of the authors of the Reform Bill; but there was a strong secondary consideration in the minds of the framers of that act. The Whigs had been unfortunately so long out of oflice—(laughter)—that they de termined to frame the constituencies of the country in a spirit which might probably insure their own continuance in power. (" Hear, hear," and laughter.) 1 believe there is no doubt that all the details of that measure were framed in opposition to the party with which I sympathise, and great injustice was done by those details as they affected the Tory or Conservative party, in respect to the disposi tion of political power. I think it very probable that, if a large reform bill were brought forward by the Tories, much of that evil might be remedied; but it would be the greatest disadvantage to the country to have the two great parties competing tbr power by outbidding each other on that, of all subjects, in reference to which the general and permanent interests of the country should be considered. Because, whatever schemes might he devised by any party to establish and continue their power, the prescience of man is limited. and is frequently falsified by the course of events. I mprudebt measures are often passed for the pur pose of effecting a particular object, and afterwards the mutt expected is never realised. (Hear, hear.) There fore, as far as I am concerned, remembering the great partiality and injustice of the scheme of 1882,1 should look to any great change in the representation with no prejudice, because I believe that much of that injustice and partiality might be remedied. Among the comprehensive schemes of the day were two—the ballot and electcral districts:— The proposition for electoral districts is founded on this principle—that representation shoul I depend on popula tion. A great many say that population and property are two different things; and, to simplify the argument, I will ad nit that population and property go together. But the real point in consider is that population and representation should go together, and to effect that end it is proposal to have electoral districts. Now consider the condition of the country, divided and cut up into different electoral districts. Remember, there is no longer to be a county of Buckingham. Buckinghamshire is to be blotted out of the political map, and probably you would hare depart ments, as in France, taking their names from the nearest rivers. There would be the departments of the Upper and Lower Thames, and are you prepared to have votes in the department of the Upper Thames and not to be electors of Buckinghamshire? Now, I cannot believe that the great majority of the inhabitants of this country do wish that such a geographical, political, and social change shoul I take place as the blotting out and erasing the county of linckingliani from political existence. [A Voice.—" Why not ?"] I will tell you why not. My opinion is that the traditions of the people form part of their national charac ter, and that a man cannot see the turfen road of Hamp den, along which the great patriot went with his Petition of Rights; cannot behold the temple dedicated to the eloquence of Chatham at Stowe, or the oak at Beacons field under which Burke meditated his reflections on the French revolution, without feeling proud of the country which was adorned by such distinguished characters. (Cheers.) I want you to consider the question whether you would put an end to Buckinghamshire altogether. [A Voice.—" I would disfranchise it alto gether."] (Laughter.) Ido not think you are one of the electors of Buckinghamshire. [The Voice.—" Yes, am !"] Then you ought not to be. (Cheers and laughter.) I contend that if you pursue this policy you put an end fiat only to Buckinghamshire but to the country, for tee country does not consist of mere animals having a vote and living on a territory, but of men proud of the past and hopeful of the future—men who are animated to do their ditty because they are the succesaora of men who have done their duty. (Cheers ) Therefore the policy which the hon. gentleman who hasjust interrupted me professes and ki.,.. THE PRESS. adheres to is a selfish policy, which never can make the country great or keep it famous. (Great cheering.) Well, all f can say is that I am entirely opposed to any change of that kind, and that I believe it is a policy which would end in the degradation of England. (Cheers ) I wish to impress particularly on the dwellers in the south that if this new scheme should find favour you will sink in political and social importance. This, instead of being a county which had acted a great part in history and produced famous men and passed great measures, would only be a portion of an insignificant district, and you, the inhabitants, never would enjoy that conscious feeling of pride and superiority which, 24 electors of the county of Buckingham, you have a right now to feel. (Loud cheers.) With respect to the ballot, without a great extension of the suffrage it would be impossible : It would be a tyranny unsupportable that the electors of this country, whu now under the law enjoy, and for cen turies have enjoyed, the privilege of voting—for the power of voting is a privilege, and nut a right or trust—l say it would be intolerable that the electors should exercise this privilege in secrecy, without being subject to that fair cri tteism and control which all possessors of public privileges ought to experience. (Applause.) Her Majesty has pri vileges—her prerogatives are privileges—but they are not privileges exercised in secret—and it must be an infinitely small minority who would for a moment entertain the idea that with the present electoral body the ballot is justifiable or endurable. ( Hear, hear.) I assume, therefore, that if the ballot were introduced, it must be introduced together with a great extension of the suffrage. Well, you will have to consider that which is an important question, but which the supporters of the ballot like to evade, whether the ballot if introduced must not be accompanied with plu• rality of voting. Understand, you are to have in connec tion with the ballot a very extensive suffrage, say house hold suffrage, exercised in secret. Well, do you mean to say that a lord lieutenant of a county is to have no more influence on the legislation and government of the country than some man, perhaps, in his service, and receiving weekly wages, but in consequence of the tenure of a house exercising the franchise? There must, then, be plurality of voting ; but how are you to fix the limit and the degree? Is the working man who gets in manufac tories 11. or '23s. a week to have one vote, and the man with 50,0001. to have 50,000 votes? (Cries of " No!") Then where are you to draw the line between men of different classes? I say that I would rather have open voting than the ballot, with this plurality of voting. I say, further, that you cannot introduce the system of voting by ballot without changing the whole character of England, political and social. (" We want the change"). You say you want the change. But what would be the probable result of the experiment? It has been tried in another country. The French are not interior to oily people in the world in intelligence and spirit; a few years ago they elected a parliament by universal suffrage, anti they re turned a body of men who exercised no control or in fluence over the public mind. ( Heat•.) Depend upon it that the reason why the Parliament of England has lasted so long, in spite of all its faults, is, that in the main it has consisted of men who, from their property, their family connections, their intelligence, their talents, or their virtues, were persons that the great body of the people looked up to. (Hear, hear.) Men of equivocal position or indifferent character may get into Parliament by acci• dent at a general election ; but in the long run, it• a man is a considerable time in Parliament, whatever may be his deficiencies, whether he be 'fury, or Whig, or Radical, you may be sure that he has some toot in the sympathies of his countrymen. In France the people elected a Parlia ment by the ballot and universal suffrage ; but the very first moment that Parliament did not do what was wanted of them, the people ceased to entertain for theta any respect or regard, and as soon as they were in danger from another authority, their fellow-countrymen never rallied round them ; they were at once swept away, a despotism was established in their stead, and that despotism is, I believe, at the present moment the only form of Ciovern 'tient which is fit to rule that intelligent and high spirited race. (Hear.) The same thing would happen in England if you went on perpetually changing your Parliaments. You wou.d at length be led to despise those Parliaments, and under the contempt to which they would be exposed, all your liberties would, before long, expire. When I remember how great this country has become, and how much of her greatness she owes to her Parliaments, I think that Englishmen ought not to speak lightly and with little feeling of institutions so influential and so venetable. (Cheers.) All that now remains for me to do, is to thank you most cordially and sincerely for the kindness and good temper with which you have this day listened to my observations. I again offer you the expressions of my gratitude for the great distinction which you have just conferred upon me. Believe me, this is a feeling which dues not quit me when I leave the hustings. Whatever may be toy deficiencies— and no man is more conscious ui them than I ant—called upon, as I often find myself, to perform duties to which the gravest responsibility attaches, I am sustained by the con. scionsness that I receive the support of a large, an en. lightened, And au independent constituency. (Hear, hear.) It is your approbation that is my beat reward ;it is your sympathy that is my most valued possession ; and whatever may be your political opinions —however opposed they may be to those which I entertain, 1 am proud to be your representative, and I earnestly desire to gain your favourable judgment. The right hon. gentleman, who had addressed the meeting for a space of about an hour and three quarters, then retired amidst loud and considerable cheering. LONDON. SATURDAY, The official declaration of the London poll was made on Monday in the Guildhall. After the usual formalities, Mr. Sheriff MECHI came forward, and made the official declaration of the state of the pull us follows :—• Sir J. Duke .. Baron Rothschild Lord J. Russell Mr. Crawford .. .. .. .. 6,001 ' • - .. 11,39r4 - - .. 6,:iN Mr. Iteikes Currie .. • • .. 4,519 Mr. Sheriff Mechi declared that the election had fallen upon Sir J. Duke, Baron Rothschild, Lord J. Russell, and Mr. Crawford. The declaration of the numbers was received with loud and protracted cheering. Sir J. DUKE first returned thanks. He should continue to support the Government of Lord Palmerston so long as he brought in measures worthy of a Liberal Administration. He should support an extension of the suffrage ; the vote by ballot, to protect the honest elector ; and he should continue to give his aid to any measure for the re. moval of Jewish disabilities. Baron ROTHSCHILD, who was received with great cheering, next returned thanks. If the attempt to obtain religious freedom in the ensuing session of Parliament should fail he should, as he bad before suited, place his seat at their disposal. Lord J. ltussku, next presented himself, and was received with great cheering. Thanking the eltctors for the honour they had once more conferred upon him, the noble lord made a few remarks " with regard to our future prospacts" Hitherto we have had as an excuse from every Minister who has happened of late years to be in power—it was my excuse, it has been the excuse of Lord Palmerston, and I think it a very fair and just excuse—that parties were so finely balanced in the House of Commons that it was difficult to carry Liberal measures with a sufficient majority to secure the assent of the other House of Parliament to those measures. Now, if it he true, as I hope it is, that the result of this general ele.uici will be to give a large Liberal majority in the House of Commonq, so large that the Upper House will no longer have any reason on that ground to refuse the measures that may be passed by the other House of Parliament, then that excuse must henceforward fall to the ground,and Lord Palmerston will have no such reason to allege for not bringing forward, not six or seven or a dozen measures, but such measures, beginning with one or two of great importance, as shall show that Ministers are truly reformers, and that nothing but the circumstances to which I have alluded have hitherto cooled their ardour. I see some symptoms of improvement in this respect, because this election has not turned—the people of the United Kingdom would not allow it to turn—on the tem porary question of whether Sir J. Bowring was right or wrong. The nation has had too much good sense to allow itself to be divided between Bowringites and Yehites. They know that the true distinction is between Conserva tives and Reformers, the Conservatives desiring to main tain our institutions and not to improve them, and 1:e -formers desiring to improve our institutions and at the same time to preserve them. The noble lord then referred to Mr. Locke King's motion : We heard in the House of Commons nothing but objections to that measure ; and we were told that if it hail been a larger measure the objections would have been stronger and more decisive. But as soon as there was a question of the dissolution of Parliament it was discovered that they were in favour of that measure, but it seemed that there were in Mr. Locke King's bill which they had never seen, and which I am told Mr. Locke King had never communicated to them, certain faults and defects which had alone prevented them from supporting it. If that be the case they will have an opportunity in the new Parliament of bringing in new measures of their own, in which they can put all the guards and securities which they can desire, and in which they can insert all the guards and securities that I inserted in a bill which I introduced two years ago, and then they can no doubt carry it through both Houses of Parliament. It is in this way that this dissolution of Parliament will be of real use to this country. I trust, as J have formerly said, to see Ihe edifice of religious liberty perfected. I trust to are free trade corn pleted by the abolition of some obnoxious duties. I trust that by economy and retrenchment we shall be able to spare those additional duties on sugar and tea which tend so much to diminish the enjoyments of the people. I trust, also, that by extending the franchise to the en lightened, the respectable, and the honest classes who have not had hitherto the benefit of exercising the franchise we may extend still further the basis of our representation, and give an additional security to our institutions. Such may be, I trust, the result of this dissolution. The good sense of the nation has seen the advantage which might be taken of it in having a new Parliament, fresh from communicating with the people at large. lientlemen, I trust that you will in the future see supported by the tour members for the city of London measures of economy, measures of reform, measures conducive to the prosperity of this great empire. deutletnau, again I thank you ter the honour you have done me. I have been exposed for some years to much obloquy, to much misrepresentation, to much misconstruction of my motives; but whatever I may have suffered in thi s respect t h e generous manner in which you have come forwardto support ins at this election affords me full compensation. Mr. CRAWFORD briefly returned thanks, and the meeting separated.