The Sun. — London, England, 1832-01-28 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. Lord Aberdeen's speech on Thursday evening amounted to a declaration-Ist, that there were many impolitic and unjust provisions in t'ee treaty for settling the affairs in Belgium ; end 2d, that his Majesty's Ministers were censurable for their con duct in forming a treaty of such a character, as well as in much of the negotiations which preceded it, The last in his Lordship's string of resoltstions went, `ldly, to prevent the execution by his Majesty of the treaty which had been formally signed in his name. Now the wholetprettioe relating to the separated parts of what but eighteen months ago constituted th e kingdom of the Neth er l an d s , in so far as any sound practical purpose be answered by discussing it, ap pears to us to be in a very narrow rompass ; and as such, we do not feel called upon to treat it at any great length. Lord Aberdeen seems, throughout his able and elaborate speech, to have asennied, that from the mo ment o f his L or d s hi p ' s epritiing office, tne successors of the Ministry of which he forme el part had fcund the Netherlands and Europe a com plete carte blanche, upon which they might have inscribed whatever treaties or settlements best pleased them. S uc h, un f ortunate l y, was not the case, nor for some tire, before the Duke of Welling ton's Administration retired ; inasmuch as the troops of the King of Holland had been pre viously beaten wit of Brussels ; that Sovereign had been unable to re-enter the Belgic territory ; and the Duke of Wellington's Government had itself been a party to engagements which r e c ogn i ze d, i n f act if not in strict form, that an irrevocable separation had already taken place between the Dutch and Belgic provinces. It is undoubtedly, as Lord Aberdeee states, to be regretted, that such a separation should have occurred, aed broken up an established Govern ment, of which the integrity and stability were of real advantage to Europe. Nobody could have ex pressed stronger concern than did Lord Grey, in the course of his able answer to Lord Aberdeen, that the sceptre which was torn from King William's grasp could not h e re pl ace d i n t h e h an d o f the Prince of Orange. Bet it is obvious that lot neither of thes e m i-f ortunes were t h e present British lltresors responsible. So with regard to other circumstances—look at the difficulties which have been imposed upon Great Britain between her de sire to secure, as far as was practicable, the re spectlve interests of the Dritch and Belgians, and to avert by all human means the calamity of a general war. Had England not exerted herself, with other Powers, to prolong a suspension of arms between the King of Holland and the Belgians, and to follow up that condition of enforced tran quillity by a treaty establishing their mutual inde pendence, and restraining all attempts on either side to disturb it, what must have happened—inevi tably happened ? Belland would have marched her superior army to Brussels, and restored, fir a day, the authority of the House of Orange. Te e next day Marshal Soult would have shown himself upon the frontier with 100,000 French troops ; and how much later would have been the legions of Prussia.—with those, if requisite, of Austria, and the German Confederation (we say nothing of Russ sia) in executing the passage of the Rhine ? The British Government is accused on this occasion o indifference towards Holland, an ancient, and (exce e t in t hr it stanee of the war of 1776) an honoureb'e and useful ally, at least so long as she had preserve ;14r national independence. We do not see hoe Engleed cold have acted more effectually for ti i well-being of Holland, than by the measures of he; diplomacy throe ghout the last fourteen month- Suppose we had sent a few regiments, era sqoadroh, to aid the King of Holland in the re-conquest ue those provinces, could he have retained diem at tht point of the bayonet, and under the harrassing risk of endless insurrection ? Would that have been ad cantageous to Holland? But could he have been mat' enough to make a new aggression upon Belgium when. as we have said, France and a European war was to await them ? Well, then, the countries hay( been separated by moral causes as well as material over which England had no definite controul. Bu the terms of the treaty are objected to, and incon sistencies have been complained of, as between the successive acts of the " Conference" of London. Unquestionably, the differences of temper which nave discovered themselves, not merely in the Bel gians but in other parties, at different stages of these protracted negotiations, have impressed themselves upon the acts of the Congress. In the twenty -fog; articles, the eighteen articles, and the final treaty, there are provisions of a dissimilar tendency, as af fecting the Dutch and Belgians. Could this have been avoided, with Powers on the watch, whose ad verse passions and pretensions were ready at each hour to break into deadly conflict ? It is quite true, as Lord Grey observes, that if the stipulations in veighed against by Lord Aberdeen, giving to Bel gium certain debts of navigation within the Dutch rivers, and thereby the necessary outlets for the pro duce of her industry upon the German frontier as well as towards the sea, had been withheld, the con4r quenee must have been an eager transfer of their allegiance by the Belgic people from King Leopold to King Louis Philip, or whatever might have been the ruling power of France. That the privileges thus granted may prove inconvenient, or perhaps mortifying, in their exercise to the State whose Sovereignty within its own dominions ap pears to be invaded by them, we hold with both Lord Grey and Lord Aberdeen to be a subject of some regret. But, we ask, is not such a disadvan tage incomparably less grievous than either-Ist, the incorporation of Belgium with the French Mo narchy, —or, 2d, a war at the gates of Amsterdam, to prevent or repair that disaster ? England, it is Justly affirmed by Lord Aberdeen, ought to interest herself for the welfare of tlee Dutch nation. The greend of that policy has ever been the neces sity of protecting Holland against French encroach- . merit. Let us ask, then, is not tire security of Hol land far better provided for by the exaction of a treaty, which renders Belgium an independent and intermediate State, than by a violation of the same treaty, which must have the effect of surrendering Belgium to France, and thus giving Holland for a next door neighbour the same ai my with which Louis XIV. invaded, and Napoleon Bonaparte ex tinguished her ? As for the British guarantee ob jected to by Lord Aberdeen, of so large an annual payment as 850,0001. by Belgium to the creditors of the old joints debt, we should feel just the same re pugnance as does the late Foreign Secretary, if we suspected that it ever could be laid as tire ground work of a pecuniary demand upon Great Britain. We trust that in this case Lord Grey's construction of the treaty will ruin out to be the right one, and that nothing is guaranteed but the formal transfer of the debt, not involving trey part of its substantial liquidation. The non-execution of a treaty which has been ratified by ail the great Powers, would be an inconceivable breach of faith for this country, and the first announcement of it by her Ministers would be a signal for thelong-deprecated war.— Times. A most and street and impudent attempt has beers made to represent the party assembled at the Free masons' Tavern, on Wednesday, to celebrate the birth-day of Burns, as a band of furious Tories and Anti-Reformers. Were this representation true, it would reflect the greatest disgrace on tile persons who arranged or composed the meeting, arid noth ing which disgraces the adherents of a cause can ever advance the cause itself. It would, in fact, show that the hypocritical or perfidious managers of the entertainment, while pretending to honour the memory of a great poet , and while entrapping his admirers into the s ame room with their sworn pun /I:11S for that purpose , contrived to convert a literary dinner into a Tory job , . and diverted to factious politics that interest which they professed to enter tain only for poetical genius. Besides, as there were, even among the stewards, several gentlemen notorious for liberal and reforming principles, theme jority who would avow that they intende d to political advantage of their position to inflict the i r notions or party watchwords on the company, really meant also to insult their fellow-managers. The good taste or sound sense of such a design may be left to be settled between those who praise it, and the great body of the meeting who, we are sure, would repudiate the scandalous imputation. But the fact Is, that the gentlemen of the meeting were so not entrapped. The upper table was certainly composed chiefly of Tories, where napes, if not principles, were revealed in the proceedings of the evening. The King's health was proposed by the Chair man with great coldness, and was intended by him to-be received by the company in the same manner; heat the worthy Knight was disappointed, for the ma jority of the company paid to his Majesty's name that just tribute of applause. which is echoed in every pa triotir assembly of his subjects. The only other mast at which there was any thing like the display of a marked political predilection was " the health of the Duke of Wellington." It was quite evi dent on this occasion likewise, that the Chairman intended to command a Tory roar of applause, and that he wished his audience to consider the Duke rather in the light of an opposition Peer, than an immortal hero,—rather as the enemy of Reform, than the conqueror of Napoleon. This, we are in formed, succeeded better than the former to which we have alluded. Every Englishman is disposed to drink the Noble Duke's health, in his proper capa city, with enthusiasm ; and it requires some courage to rise up in a public meeting to protest against any party misinterpretation of a just applause. From this cause it was easy to establish the Duke's popu larity at the Scotch dinner, and as easy to found on that popularity a perverse construction of its mo tive. Some hissing was certainly heard at the abuse of office in the,Chairman and his friends; but this sign of disapprobation was not so general as it would otherwise have been, from a fear Isst it should be considered as directed to the wrong object,—for who would hiss, if he could lie considered as hissing the Doke of Wellington ? It was certainly not a little painful to see the least display of factious poli tics at a dinner destined to celebrate the triumphs of genius and the delights of literature. No libel more revolting could be directed against the Tories by their enemies, than the charge of using the name of Burns—whose opinions verged upon excessive libe rality—to pilfer the appearance of a useless vote against that political amelioration which the country so universally and so loudly demands. Those, there fore, who boast of the Tory exploits of the Scotch meeting, make the most cutting and cruel satire on their friends. Leaving them, however, as we said before, to settle this matter between themselves, we -hail only say that the sensible part of the meeting felt, and feel, nothing but profound disgust, both at , he manner in which politics were introduced, and It the use which has since been made of the disgrace ful surprise practised on their good nature.—Timcs. We call the particular attention of our readers to the report of the proceedings at the Court-martial n Captain Warrington, in the Chronicle of this day. Mr. Goldney, surgeon, the bearer of a letter :mom the Mayor to Colonel Brereton, as the officer commanding the troops, despatched immediately ,lter three o'clock on Monday morning, calling on aim to take the mo•t vigorous, effective, and decisive neans in his power to quell the existing riots, states -hat Captain Warrington, who opened the letter, expressed every willingness tc do anything upon proper order." The following question and answer next oc,ur " When Captain Warrington stated to you that he could not act without a Magistrate to co every inch of the road with him, did you make any reply, or take any mea , ure. to communicate to the Mayor or other Magistrates what Captain Warrington had stated ?—A. No. I did not. I lid not know where to find any other Magi , trate than the Oayor, and he had particularly requested me, through Jlr. L aniel Tripp (brother of Alderman Tripp), not to mention where he was to be jaund." _ Our readers will perceive further, that a detach. meet of the dragoons re,ched Queen-square about five in the morning ; that between halt-past three o'clock and five o'clock the destruction of the whole or a considerable portion of the southern wing of the west side of Queen-square took place—that none were destroyed after the dragoons strived , here. Mr. W. Harris, jun., who was at Mr. Daniel Tripp's when Mr. Goldney received the Nlayor's letter, and accompanied him when he de ' livered it, states, that after Captain Warrington had read the letter, he said " he should be very happy to do anything that lay in his power, but that he could do nothing without a Magistrate; that he should require a Magistrate to go every inch of the the road with him by his side, ancl that he hoped lie did not think the blame rested with him. He expressed his regret at the Doddington troop of yeomanry having retired from Bristol from their being unable to find a Magistrate . . and ended the conversation by saying there was a great -crew loos• somewhere." The following question and answer are moat important : " Did you take any means to apprise any Magistrate that Captain Warrington was willin; to turn out with his troop if any Magistrate would accompany him ? " I did not know where to find any Magistrate ex cept the Mayor, and Mr. Goldney and myself were re quested not to say where he was. I did not know where to find Mr. Barrow ; but be was ill." A screw loose indeed! We refrain from all ob servation on the conduct of the gentleman now on his trial ; but we feel no such delicacy with regard to men not on their trial—the Magistrates of Bris tol. Whatevrr may be the doom of Captain War rington, we ask if it is to be endured that military men are to be the scape-goats, while the Magistrates of Bris t ol, whose especial duty it was to watch over the safety of the persons and property under their charge, not merely abandon their post, but absolutely conceal themselves in the hour of danger? 'We know that of late years the irresponsibility of Corporations has been carried very far by a boroughmongeringPar liament, which sanctioned the monstrous doctrine that Corporation property might be disposed of as absolutely by the members of the Corporation as private property by individuals ; but surely it will never be contended that the irresponsibility extends to such a monstrous abandonment of duty as this evidence discloses. If Corporation Magistrates are to be privileged thus far, there is nothing that they may not do, or refrain from doing ? We hold it impossible that matters can remain tvhere they are in the case of the :Magistrates. The affair of the officers sinks into insignificance compared with that of the Magistrates. They are the fountain-head of authority, and if through their fault there was no communication at an important crisis between them and the subordinates, it would be a farce to deal se verely with the subordinates and allow them to escape.—Morning Chronicle. We believe in our conscience that the object of Lord Aberdeen and his supporter., on Thursday night, was to kindle a war in Europe. The evi dent tendency of his speech was to induce three of the Powers to withhold their ratification of the treaty, and the King of Holland to recommence hostilities against Belgium. The Duke of Welling ton said, distinctly, that the three Powers in ques tion would not ratify the treaty till they had the consent of the King of the Netherlands—and hence the importance of encouraging that King in his ob stinacy. Having, it appears, made up his mind to try the chance of civil war rather than submit to Itetorm, for what else is the meaning of his Grace's assertion, that Earl Grey's "course of conduct in another respect was calculated to breed civil war:" he, perhaps, thinks he may escape the alternative by entangling the country in a general war. The whole of the proceedings of Thursday night are certainly calculated, if any thing can be calculated, to add to the difficulty of preserving peace. The motion in the Commons came admirab;y in aid of the proceedings in the Lords. The Opposition threw out a bait for a certain portion of the usual supporters of Ministers, which they swallowed, and thus the ob ject was gained of producing in the three Powers the impression that the Ministry are in a tottering con dition, the consequence of which impression would naturally be, the desire to contribute, as much as pos sible, towards their embarrassment. We confess we think the Ministry ought to have received more support than they obtained on Thursday night in the House of Commons. We are far from thinking lightly of a lavish disposal of the public money; and it may be also true, that, strictly speaking, the sever- I ance of Belgium from Holland relieved us from the ' Russian debt. But Ministers could not fail to be aware that any difficulty, in the way of paying this money, would have supplied Russia with a power ful motive for preventing the settlement of Belgium, and that the defection of Russia might have had a powerful influer:ce on other Powers. It has been said, why did they not obtain the authority of Par liament f But would not Parliamentary discus sions have tended to produce the aver-ion on the part of Russia respecting which they were anxious? • The difficulties of Belgium were not of their • creation. We ourselves do not think very highly of the arrangements with regard to Belgium ; but we can make allowances fur the difficulties in which Ministers were placed; and believing them sincerely desirous of preserving the general peace, and afraid, that if hostilities recommenced, we might be drawn into a participation in them, we are not I prepared to say that, under all the circumstances, they could have acted better. Mr. Hume and Mr. O'Connell, and the other supporters of Minster who voted against them, ought to have viewed the Russian debt in connection with their ge neral policy, and not as an isolated transaction; and ' to have re flected on the effect which their vote might have in endangering the safety of Ministers. If Ministers had been left in a minority, and if the consequence had been their resignation, the responsibility towards the country of those who contributed to such a re sult might have been anything but light. When we say this, we by na means think that Ministers ought to havebeen induced by a majority against them to resign ; and we were therefore sorry to hear, on good authority, that intimations to the effect that a ma jority against them would cause their resignation, fell from more than one Cabinet Minister in the House on Thursday night. The difficulties which Ministers have had to encounter, during the pro gress of the Reform Bill, are, no doubt, many and serious ; but they ought to have been prepared for them. So great a change never before took place in the institutions of a country, without convulsion and bloodshed ; and the only wonder is, that things have hitherto proceeded so smoothly with us. They are not entitled either to he disgusted or discouraged. They are not in the situation of an ordinary Ministry. They might have refused to take office, when the alternative, as stated by themselves, was Reform or Revolution ; but having taken office, they thereby entered into a covenant with the British nation to remain at the helm, till the storm was over. Were they, after what has taken place, to show any at g ns of f a i nt -h earte d ness , t h e y wou ld, one and' all of them, be the scorn of the whole couatry for ever after. No man would mention their names but for the sake of pointing a moral with them. At whatever risk, they must go through with the work. If they have not the heart to em brace all the consequences flowing necessarily from the entering on such a work, they thereby pass a severe sentence on themselves. The people will hear of no despondency—no indifference. It is no trifling affarr to agitate a nation—to fill it with hopes of a grand measure of political regeneration, only to dash the cup from its lips. Happen what will, the people have nobly played their parts. To every call made on them they have answered as became risen worthy of the prize for which they were corn batting. The people have never lagged. They may have failed to comprehend the cause of the length ened delays which have taken place—they may have occasionally augured unfavourably of the courage and decision of Ministers from their apparent want of energy at times—they may have been astonished at some of the appointments that have taken place, and the anxiety rather to gratify enemies than sup porters—but they forgave all for the sake of the great cause to which Ministers were pledged. So long as they appear in earnest, the people will rally round then). But grievously are they mistaken if they think, that, having brought matters to the pass at which they now are, they will be suffered, on any pretence, to escape with impunity.—Morn- ing Chronicle. The proceedings which took place at the meeting held in the parish of Saviour, in the Borough, rela tive to the proposal for demolishing the " Ladye Chapel," and a report of which appeared itt our co lumns a few days ago, prove that the Vandals mus tered a strong force for the purpose of recooquering that ground by numbers out of which they had been driven by the power of enlightened and unanswerable arguments. They carried a motion for the demoli tion of the chapel, which, however, cannot be acted upon unless confirmed by the vote of a second vestry meeting, and sanctioned by the approval of the Bishop of the diocese. So did the Vandals for merly carry a motion in vestry for the demolition of the church itself—a church . which is not only the noblest ornament of Southwark, but one of the most venerable and interesting specimens of sacred archi tecture in the kingdom. Yet, though that motion was carried in the first instance, our opposition to the barbarous design was not in vain ;—we sounded a call at which the conservative intelligence and virtue of the parish rallied. The jobbers and the levellers, when they had just got their profane hands upon the spoil, were put to flight—the venerable edifice was saved—and now it stands, in renovated splen dour and holiness, a temple of the Most High, de livered, as it were, from the hands of the Philistines. But though the direct attack of the sacrilegeous le vellers against the great collegiate church of South wark thus signally failed, the destruction of the Spiri tual Court, or " Ladye Chapel," as now meditated, would have the effect of partly realising the wishes of the malevolent barbarism which originally con ceived the design of demolishing the church it self;--for this beautiful anti massive building is both essential . to its symmetry arid conducive to its strength. If once taken away, an outworlc and buttress of the church will be gone—the noble ef l i - fect of the magnificent pile will be thereby con— siderably impaired—its durability diminished—and, ' hereafter, the jobbers of the borough may tae ad vantage of their own wrong, and make the injurious consequences resulting from the success of their present project an argument for the renewal of the attempt to ensure the destruction of the church. The opinions of men of science have been asked and given on this important subject; but the Vandals objected, naturally enough, to the interposition of science as the conservator of the glorious works of art—her voice had No charm for them—they were bent upon a project of mischief and.ruin, and, under the influence of the blind zeal with which their unholy object inspired them, they would Rot allow the able architects who attended the vestry meeting to furnish them with the evidence which they came prepared to give. They had rather re main in the " happy ignorance" in which they were, ;than be convinced against their will, lest, perchance, they might " repent them of the evil, and be turned from the folly of their ways." Among the reasons which the two intelligent archi tects, Mr. Savage and Mr. Cottingham, have urged against the demolition of the " L a d ye Chapel," we cannot avoid noticing the following one, more espe cially us the public are well aware that no gentle men in their profession are better acquainted with the principles and history of Ang!o-Norm an archi tecture than those:whose riarr's we have mt ntioned. They regard the intended demolition of that build ing as an act of spoliation and of irremediable mis chief, because " it is one of the most chaste and elegant specimens of early pointed architecture of the thirteenth century of which this country can boast ;" because " it is an important and necessary appendage to the venerable and beautiful edifice of the ancient collegiate church, and cannot be re moved without destroying the splendid architectural efect of the whole structure ;" because " it is of the same date, and in unison sseth the side aisles of the choir (which have been already restored with the most correct judgment), and communicates therewith in a direct line; and because these beauties will now acquire additional value by being brought into view in ts much more ample manner than here tofore, and with an elevated horizon, when viewed from the southern grand approach to the new Lon -1 don-bridge, exactly as an artist would desire ; where by the grandeur of design and variety of outline ' of the whole composition will be exhibited to the greatest advantage;" because " the eastern wall of the choir was never intended to be exposed below the roofs of the Consistorial Court, as is suffi• ciently proved by the ancient doorways of the gal lery of the clerestory communicating with the roofs of this building, and which ancient doorways still remain; and the walls below are not of sufficient thickness to admit of arched recesses sufficiently deep to correspond in style with the architecture of the choir, without entirely destroying the remains of the magn?ficent altar-piece DOW in progress of restoration by subscription ;—and because a new de sign will be required for the Rats exposed to view by the removal of the said chapel, to correspond with the able restoration already made of the choir-end above the roofs of the said chapel, and for which new design there is nor, nor can be, any authority whatever." There is an additional argument ad duced by those gentlemen, which all rate.payers of the Farish will widerstand upon the dry question of pounds, !shillings, and pence,—they do not hesitate to say that " the perfect restoration of the Con sistorial Court, or Ledye Chapel, will cost less money than the alteration of the east end of the choir, which would become necessary by its re moval ;" and they give the grounds on which they have come to this conclusion. They also suggest that the parishioners require the chapel for their numerously-attended parochial meetings, as a vestry hall, and further say it is apprehended that the un worthy motive for destroying and removing !the chapel is, that houses may be built, so as again to encumber arid obstruct the pub! c view of this beautiful pile of building, whiich is the third church of the metropolis, and possesses sufficient merit to attract the attention of all foreigners of taste visiting this country—to whom, as well as to our own countrymen, it has ever been a subject of regret that our public buildings should, from an ill-judged parsimony, he exhibited to se little advantage. To. day the public meeting, which has been advertised in our Paper, is to be held at the Freemasons' Tavern, having for its object to preserve and restore this chapel —not less worthy of enlightened pro tection as a rare and beautiful specimen of ancient architecture, titan as an interesting historical monu ment of the events connected with the sufferings and triumphs of the religious reformers, who have fought the battles of our faith, and went forth to martyrdom. We hope the Bishop of Winchester will act up to his duty as a con-ervator of the church, in refusing his sanction to the decision of the Van dals, and that he will unflinchingly adhere to his words—never to gire his consent to an act of sacri lege and spoliation.—Morning Herald. The result of Thursday night's division has been as mortifying to Ministers as flattering to their oppo nents. Never was a more perfect contrast exhibited between simplicity and sophistry, prudence and rashness, admitted imbecility on the one side, arid acknowledged capacity on the ether. The state ment of Mr. ferries was lucid, his arguments con elusive, and so pointedly directed, that, wh•lst child might have understood the subject as he explained it, the cleverest enemy could find no sub terfuge, no loophole, for defence. Lord Althorp tried, and failed as usual ; and, when he found the sense of the House against him, fell back upon the Crown lawyers. The Crown lawyers proved hut a broken reed, as Mr. Home quickly discovered; and it is universally acknowledged that but for the pity of some ardent Reformers, who merged all regerd to the merits of the case in the support of a Reforming Government, the Ministry would have been beaten —yes, beaten by their own packed House of Delegates. According to the Courier there is no disgrace in this. A vote of censure hits been averted by the votes of placemen only, and yet the Ministers are not dishonoured ! Bah ! There is not one independent Member, however zealous as a partisan, riot even a Sir John Sebright, who does not protest against having been thus dragged through the mire in their support. The .Ministerial prints if ever they evince the state of public feeling out of doors, evince it on this eccasion. They all depre cate the conduct of Ministers ; and the only attempt at their vindication rests upon the necessity of avert ing war with Russia, of which the payment in question was made the price. Who, however, occasioned that necessity ? Was it the natural course of events abroad, or was it Lord Palmer ston's boasted non-intervention policy ? The Herald of yesterday infers that our position quoad Holland and Belgium originated with the Duke of Wellingtou's Government. That inference we beg, on the authority of the Duke's own word, dis tinctly to deny. His was a mediation essentially pacific, accorded at the desire of Holland. Lord Palmerston's has been an arbitration essentially warlike, protested against by Holland and Belgium both, and acquiesced in by all the Powers except France with evident reluctance. lf, therefore, Belgic independence, which French intrigue engen dered to our prejudice, be indeed our handywerk, as the Solicitor-general declared, " we having used a diplomatic or political interference to deprive the Aing of the Netherlands of the sovereignty of these provinces," and thereby becoming bound in honour not to enforce a condition of the treaty which Hol ifiourredignnevertheless adheres to—if, we say, such be indeed t h e case o f t h e C rown Officers upon their own strewing, what becomes of Lord Palmerston's policy ? What will the nation thirdt here after of its economical rulers? To prove our re spect for successful rebellion in Flanders, we convert the Duke of Wellington's friendly mediation into an arbitration, backed by a squadron of ships of war. To prove our regard for English interests, we open the door of Belgium to France. To prove our anxiety for peace, we force Holland into war. To prove our good faith and honour towards that ancient Ally, we nominate a new King and bind ourselves to support his throne, thereby defeating the object of the treaty of 1815. That object defeated, to avert war with Russia we violate the condition upon which our share in the payments prescribed by that treaty rested ; and thus, in conse quence, not of the original treaty (for there Hol land stands on the same ground with ourselves), but in consequence of Lord Palmerston's love of Bel gium, and spirit of king-making and diplomatic quixotism, we saddle ourselves with new obligations, and pay, in fact, five millions for King Leopold. If, then, in point of honour a case of necessity did exist, as the Solicitor-General pretends, who but Lord Palmerston created the necvssity ? No wonder the Treasury forbore to apply to Parliament to c hange the law in the first instance. They dared not risk a refusal.—Morning Post. CANTERBURY TALES.—The numerous ad mirers of this beautiful series of fictions, by SOPHIA and HARRIET LEE, which have for a long time been so scarce, will be highly gratified to find that they are now reprinted " The Standard Novels," and that Mrs. HARRIET Lea, with whom the design originated, and who wrote the greater number of the storic,, has revised the volumes ex pressly for the present edition, and prefixed to it a new introduction, embracing, with other interesting details, a brief memoir of her sister and coadjutor in the work. M I LTON.--MILTON'S time was in some re spect] not unlike our own. It has been justly deseribtd by Dr. CHANNING, as an age when men are busy pulling down and building up : a ferment itann was spreading over the surface and dissolving the materials of society. Old faith was gone ; old institutions were crumbling away. Long splendid vistas of ideal perfection opened before meu'a eye' , dazzling their senses and confounding their judg ments." MILTON stood boldly forward for a republic, and his sentiments have not yet been adopted in England subsequent stage of publi c op i n i on . M r . MlTvortn fancies ould have ch ange d hi s op i n i ons h a d h e that ie v the opinions of S OMERS an d o f L OCKE . I n liaiitv any ktegto ha manlier it might be said, that he would have changed again had he lived to read the writings of BENTHAM the philosopher, who walks in his garden and owns the abode in which the great poet spent some of his best days. The error of MILTON was not the " unconstitutional " nature of his doctrine, as is objected by WHARTON, but that his schemes were visionary and impracticable. He could not divest himself of notions of theocracy : MILTON bad read the Old Testament, the Talmud, and the Miahush, till he was more than half a Jew.—Exansiner. THE LATE BUTCHERY AT MALAGA. (From a.e Morning Advertiser.) Some of our readers will, no doubt, remember that we were the first to inform them, some time swo, of the melancholy result of the expedition cf Torrijos—of his capture, and of the sad fate of him self and his band. He was betrayed, and he was murdered—we ought, perhaps, to say butchered ; for such a death as that a hich the brave and gallant hearted General died, it has fallen to the lot of few to taste. lie died with undaunted bravery in his heart—and with liberty on his lips—an honour to his family and country—an eternal disgrace to the Government which entrapped and ordered him to be executed. We give below the particulars of the melancholy event, from our own correspondent, on whose narrative we can rely with the most perfect confidence. They are truly horrible and di.gust ing:— " January 9. " My DEAR. FitIEND, -I am extremely sorry for not having b en able to write to you, hut you know how diffi cult it is to be correctly informed of any thing connected with political matter in this oppressed, and indeed un happy, country. At least I have bad the opportunity of speaking to N. T., our intimate friend, whit has been lately in Malaga ; and, I am very happy to say that the particulars to tie mentioned in this letter concerning the execution of Torrijos and his followers are as true as hor rible, and without any precedent in this country. Ido not doubt that the information would have been better received immediately after the melancholy event I ant al luding to ; but this has been so extraordinary in all its circumstances, and so worthy of notice, that I feel confi dent to say, that in case of being published, it cannot fill to meet a benevolent reception. t , I will not detain you long with the details of the ill treat went of the unfortunate prisoners, particularly during the last hours of their existence. It will be enough to say that Torrijos was obliged to remonstrate in the most ener getic terms against the cruelty of there not having been allowed to his comrades and fellow-sufferers any food fur twenty-four hours, and heearnestly requested, not for himself, but for hie distressed companions, a kinder treatment, or at least a piece of bread, which even to a hungry dug ehottel not he denied. The only thing allowed to those unfor tunate men was, permission to write to their friends ; but lam very much inclined to think their notes have not reached their destination, and particularly the letter of Mr. Boyd, directed to England. " The General of the district granted to them his spiritual and religious attendance, sending to every one of them a priest or a monk, and I can assure you that the General and the Apostolical party have been very disap pointed at their complete submission to all the ceremonies end practice of the Catholic profession on such occasions. The former expected to throw upon them the stain of infi delity and impiety, in order to give to ignorant people more proofs of the intention imputed to the Liberals, of de stroying the established religion. The priests have been, as usual, very cautious in revealing the conversa•ion be tween them and the suff-rers ; some things, nevertheless, have transpired, and upon the following particulars you may entirely rely, as they have come to my knowledge by s female relative of one of the con'a-sort, arid intimate friend of my informant. Torrijos, Golfin, Lopez Pinto, and more particularly Florez Calderon, have made very strong arguments te the priests in favour of the liberal principles, and against their preaching false doctrines from the pulpit, and perverting their peaceful mission, as they have bee❑ the instizators of the deluded people, and the most strenuous supporters of despotism, and consequently the real executioners of so many patriots. The priest I have alluded to said, that the most striking words he has heat d on the occasion was the appeal of some of those victims to Gnd against their murderers, who were at the same thee the oppressors of their country. " Now I come to the most painful part of my letter, and I ant scarcely able to hold my pen to continue. Of all those unhappy beings one only died at the first tiring, so terrified were the soldiers in performing this abominable act, which, for the benefit of the sufferers, requires calw ness They knew very well who were those illustrious victims, and the sharne'ul means practised for taking them prisoners. Torrijos, when actually on his knees to be shot, exhorted the soldiers to fulfil their duty with firm ness, and gave himself the order for firing, but unfor tunately they only wounded the General in one of his arms. He then said to the other tour soldiers, prepared as usual in case of failure, " Now, comrade., cou rage, and do not miss your aim ;" but, after that, be being yet struck only iu one eye, and actually lying on the ground, exclaimed, " Soldiers, courage, and do not let me stiffer any longer." So it happened at last, and dreadful was the last trial of the bravery of this gallant office r. The honour of a religious interment was refused to all the bodies, excepting those of Torrijos, Boyd, and Loptz Panto, which were given up, at the request of a sister of the first, of the English Consul, and of the Ar tlllery officers, who were able to exempt from that ignc miny their brother officer Pinto. All the rest were buried, four by four, one upon the other, in a mere ditch dug for the purpose. This proceeding has been the more striking, as in Spain the ecclesiastical interment, as it is called, is always allowed even to the greatest criminals, and it is a matter of religion, and a sort of chivalrous punctilio, to attend and honour, and even to assist them at the last hours, affording them every bodily and spiritual comfort, even the most expensive dinners and choice dainties are provided if required by the condemned persons. " I must finish this letter by saying that I hope the day will come, in which, as one of those patriots said a few hours before his execution, an honourable monument will he erected in remembrance of the illustrious victims on the sante spot where they suffered ignominious death. "I'." (From the Times.) We have published elsewhere a letter from Ma laga to a gentleman at Gibraltar, reciting some cir cumstances which preceded and attended the exe cution of the gallant Torrijos and his brethren at the former place, on the 11th ult. History, ancient or modern, presents nothing more atrocious than the conduct of Ferdinand's agents on that occasion : nothing of petfiily more base, or of more savage cruelty. We know not where to find, except in the records of Robespierre and his fellows, an instance of wholesale and cold-blooded butchery, like that of shooting, without a trial, between 50 and 60 unarmed captises,—many of them, as is well ascertained, un conscious of offence against the Government which destroyed them. But even from those guilty annals which embrace the worst period of the French re volution, it is certain that nn precedent can be quoted for treachery so systematic and revolting, as that through which the Constitutional Chief and his followers were trepanned into the power of those who shed their blood. The letter which we refs: to displays powerfully, though incidentally, the at tachment to Torrijos, with which that brave and estimable soldier was fitted to inspire his compa nions, who cried that with him they were content to perish. His dying words bespoke tiie habit of command, and the warrior spirit strong and buoyant as on the field of battle. " Fire without flinching" was the last speech of the military patriot to his executioners The apostrophe of Calderon was not less worthy of a philosophic martyr to the cause of freedom. " Here, on this spot, will a mo nument be raised to eternize the memory of those now about to die, and these lands will become the patrimony of our children." Alas! we fear not yet. But there is another letter, to which we invite the sympathy of all, of whatever party, or age, or country, or sex, who can be won by female excellence, cart give due honour to conjugal affection, can admire un pretending heroism in woman, or can commiserate the lonely widow's grief—it is from the wife of Torrijos, who had divided with him the vicissitudes of his eventful life; nay, more than once, the dan ger of his military service, and had shared and ren dered tolerable his six years of exile. This exem plary lady writes front Paris in a tone of dignified but incurable sorrow. There is no selfish commot, place repining. She says to her friend, " You know how we lived, and you can judge my grief." She does not, like ordinary females, complain that afflic tion has wasted or weakened her ; but that she is too well,—" better than she wishes to be;" that it is true her strength begins to be subdued, and she sees it with satisfaction, as her sole desire is to re join her husband, and her sole duty in this world to watch over and guard his fame. The friends of Torrijos and of humanity will be distressed to hear that this devoted woman is completely destitute of all means of future subsistence. An occasional friend here and there may have been kind to her 11C cessities, but every farthing of property she had on earth is lost. Such is surely not the condition to which generous hearts would consign a being h so many claims upon their best affections. We merely suggest to the affluent and bounteous, that offerings to misfortune could not be better bestowed than for the relief of this virtuous and heartbroken lady. No man ever felt such gratitude to England, or such reverence for her institutions, as Torrijos iiim-elf. N,r did the high-minded widow of Lord Russell exhibit more of the qualities which became her relation to a murdered patriot, than does Luisa , !e Torrijos. MALAGA, Drc. 14.—The courier returned from Madrid on Saturday, the 10th, at twelve o'clock in the forenoon, with the sentence of the prisoners. At four o'clock in the evening 200 men of the 4th regiment and same of the militia, as , enahleil in the Plazt Heal, and two hours after the prisoners were removed from the earl and con ducted to the convent del Carmen. The Genertil being brought from the barrack of the 4th regiment, and pl.ceil in a coach, was told that they were going to send him to Madrid ; but the deception was of short duration, and he told them that he knew they, the:nselves had betrayed him, • for they had invited him to come into Spain. The pri soners remained in the convent all night, where they dis played great courase and fortitude. The General and Dos Manuel* complained that their companions were not brought to trial ; off,-erving that there were some amongst them who knew not for wh tt purpose they had been landed. 1)on Manuel said to the priest who had been placed by his side, that the Spanish authorities had invitel them to come, and that they had received letters to that effect from the Minister, Z unbrano, himself; that the whole business had b• en a most trracherous plot ; but that he die'lsiontentel ; dying as he did, for liberty. Torrijos said, that be felt not for his own death, but for that of his ceturades. But they all to a man assured him that they it ould die happy, since they were to perish NA ith him. At one o'clock in the morning of the following day (Sunday), the General requested that a mouthful of bread ' might be given to his comrades, as they had tasted nothing since eight on the Friday morning, (this fact is also cor roborated by the statetnent of the Jailors.) Some dry bread was then brought for thein after they had been 54 hours witimut any food. Torrijos said, that sooner or later the massacre of hitnsrlf and his companions in arms would he avenged. Calderon observed, " The day will • come when, on the spot where this convent now stands, a monument will be raised to eternize the memory of those who are shout to die, and these lands will be come the patrimony of our posterity." All this, my friend, and many other things were said, which I will not mention, because I am unwilling to dwell on so sad a story. Twenty-four of the prisoners, with their chiefs, were led out in front of the riding-ground. Torrijos re qu sted that he might be allowed to give the word to fire.— This was grante'l, and then he said that his throwing his military cap on the ground should he the signal for death. T,eir eyes were then bandaged, and in the first volley Torrijos was wounded under the arm. He then exclaimed " Fire, grenadiers; fire without flinching." The second discharge having wounded him in the eye, he fell flat on his back and died, crying—" Fire steadily, my lads, fire." I had forgotten to mention that belore the first discharge all the In isomls exclaimed with one voice—" We die for liberty !" The whole of the other 24 died in the same ' way, and the dead bodies were immediately carried off to the cemetery. Those of Torrijos and Pinto were placed in niches ; the latter 11Y the commandant of the artillery, whom he had appointed his executor, and the body of j Torrijos by his sister, who was in great distress. Nearly all made their wills. Bobaddla wrote two letters, one to his sister, and another to a lady to whom he was be trothed. Botja was ens of the first who died. Man rique would not allow any friar to visit him. Boyd told the first friar who came to visit him to go about his busi ness and to take his chocolate ; but afterwards an Irish friar came, and he allowed him to stop all night. The whole of the prisoners died with the gieatest courage and serenity of mind. The English Consul, after Beyd's death, burial-ground. MTe(lohlyh a r d e moved o interredved his body, in th the a p n d r o o t es n t t a h n e t f h o Government has since issued very severe edicts. The execution took place at a quarter-past ten on Sunday morning, a day tin which there is no example in Spain of criminals being deprived of life. LErrEtt FROM DONNA LUISA DE TORRLIOS, TO HER FRIEND, A LADY IN LONDON. " Paris, Jan. 19, 1832. I received your afEctionate letter; and though not capable of writing. I cannot leave you without an answer, I if it be only to tell you that I am much better than I wish to he, or thought I ever skould be. You understand the loss that I have sustained ; for you know how we lived together. You can also judge of my grief, and that I de sire not to survive the man who formed my only happiness. " I am here, in a foreign land, and without the means of existence; but that is the last thing that occupies my thoughts; and although my friends are much alarmed for my future situation, I am indifferent a'sout the matter, r l since nothing henceforth can make the least Unpression upon me, after having lust my beloved Pepe and my country. " What I have now to beg of you is, that you will for- ward to the editor of the —, the accompanying letter from M. M—r ; and it you do not find it incon venient, that you will also translate it, with a view to its being inserttd as soon as possible. My sole object during the sad remnant of life which I have still to endure is, to prevent any misrepresentation which might darken the fame of toy adorable husband, and that, indeed, is the only motive whieh compels me to answer the article in the abovementioned journal. My bodily constitution, though strong, begins to sink,—a change which I rejoice at, for the solitary hope" that now supports me is, to follow to the grave him for whose sake only life once was dear to me. Ret urn my best thanks to all the members of your amiable family, and particularly to my dear Charlotte; and pi y, and pray to God for, your unhappy friend, " LUISA DE TORRIJOS." • Don Manuel Flores Calderon, President of the Cortes in the year IS*2:2 : one of the most distinguished Spaniards of the present age. It is said that some of the Paul Prys at the Pavilion, Brighton, have received a broad hint that their ab4ence would be preferred to their presence, and some of the Lady Prys have been visited with a similar commu nication. RURAL TlRANNY.—Speaking generally, since ail rubs have exceptions, the privileged classes of our rural districts take infinite pains to be abhorred by their p fo o o o t r i e . s t t h ,: h eigh ;l o ,:y rs. wa T ll- h in ey t i h n e c i l r ose rarka. commons. The l;hLy t stop spring-guns and man-traps. They spend on th e k eep o f high-bred dogs what would support half as many chil dren, and yet persecute a labouring man for owning one friend in his cur. They make rates of wages, elaborately calculating the minimum of food that will keep together the soul arid body of a clodhopper. They breed game in profusion for their own amusement, and having thus tempted the poor man to knock down a hare for his pot, they send him to the tread-mill, or the antipodes, for that inexpiable offence. They build gaols, and fill them. Tf:ey make new crimes and new punishments for the pont. They interfere with the marrilges of the poor, compelling some, and forbidding others, to come toge ther. They shut up paupers in workhouses, separat ing husband and wife, in pounds by day, and wards by night. '1 hey h,irness poor men to carts. They super intend alehouses, decry skittles, deprecate beer-shops, meddle with fairs, and otherwise curtail the already nar row amusements of the poor. Even in Church, where some of them solemnly preach that all are equal, they sit on cushions, in pews, boarded, matted, and sheltered with cur tains from the wind and the vulgar gaze, whilst the lower orders must put up with a bare bench on a stone floor, which is good enough fur them. Every where they are ostentatious in the display of wealth and enjoyment ; whilst in their intercourse with the poor they are suspicious, quick at taking offence, vindictive when displeased; haughty, over bearing, tyrannical, and wolfish ; as it seems in the nature of man to be towards such of his fellows as, like sheep, are without the power to resist."— Wakefield's Pamphlet. BIRTHS. On the ‘27th inst. at Chelsea, Mrs. William Shoberl, of a son. On the 25th inst. in Bedford-square, the lady of Richard Richards, Esq. of a daughter. On the 25th inst. at 'lotton, near Southampton, the lady of Lieut.-Colonel Phipps, of a daughter. On the 25th inst. at Quarry-hill, Tunbridge, Mrs. Deacon, of a daughter. MARRIED. On the 25th inst. at Rickinansworth, the Rev. I. J. Cory, Vicar of Orton-on-the-Hill, Leicestershire, to Miss Dawbiney, of the former place. On the 24th inst. at Christ ('hurch, St. Marylebone, and after wards at the Catholic Chapel, Spanish-place, William Buckley, Esq. of the Madras Army, to Emma, eldest daughter of the late George Walters 6mythe, Esq. of Acton Burnell, in the county of Shropshire. On the 26th inst. at Trinity Church, Marylebone, Major Henry Hubert Farquharson, of the Royal Regiment, to Elizabeth Ann, daughter of the late Lieutenant-General Reynolds, of the East India Company's service. DIED. . _ On the :26th inst. at the residence of her daughter, Louisa Steppen, relict of the late Daniel Steppen, of Portugal-street. Lincoln's Inn, Esq. in her 81st year. t , n the Oath inst. Charlotte, the wife of W. C. Thomas, Eq. of Great James-street, Bedford-row. On the 9 2d inst. the lady of the Right Hon. Sir E. Thornton, G.C.B. of Weinbury House, in the county of Devon. C On the 25t1+ inst. Mr . James olwill, of the King's-ro a d, Chelsea, in his 55th year. ? th ri c t ie h r e k 2 , 2 , I Isdign. of s st.at t. NA'orthing, Emily Charlotte, wife of C. G. neLeonard's Lodge, Sussex, aged 54. PRINTED AND PUBLISHED RV M U RDO YOUNG, AT -EMS SUN OFFICE, 112, STRAND, LONDON.