The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-04-16 00:00:00

EE STOURBRIDGE OBSE.RVEIL

! snubs cannot job ; but he is the vehicle through
whom the Sovereign conducts a vast amount of most
multifarious and grave business ; and when there is
no one to interpret the wishes of the Sovereign to him,
and to be a kind of higher functionary in his own des
!pertinent, he has to carry on day by day the routine of
this business, and he has all the influence which a man
must have who has to clothe in language that which
the head of the State wishes or requires Lobe dine....
The Sovereign has always a very large amount of
hard work to do every day, and now that the Qatten
has to do it herself, and haa the experience and ability
to do it, she must labour very hard. This constant de-
votion to the public service and to the maintenance of
her inherited position has of course its drawbacks. A
Queen is only a crowned woman, and the strength of
women is limited by nature. An hereditary monarchy
is to be taken with all its advantages and disadvan-
tages, and if the Sovereign has delicate health, as the
Queen often has, then the work belonging to her office
must exercise its natural and physical effect. The
nation takes its Sovereign much as husbands and
wives take each other, for better and worse. The in-
dividual life rolls on, and much is lost, and much is
gained am the days go by. It is only an idiotic sort of
loyalty to pretend to believe that the Sovereiati has
not to live the life of an human being, and to effect to
think a Queen must always be the same. The Queen, as
she has of ten given it to be understcol, and has expressly
recorled in her book, feels the physical fatigue and
oppression of work, and of sheers and sights, and the
life of citiea She gives her whole powers to the per-
formance of that business in the highest departments
of public life which her striking natural aptitude, her
constant willingness to learn, and her imepaise expe-
ti-cce enable her to carry on with a success that is of
! the greatest benefit to the nation. This business
absorbs her strength. It is not to be supposed that
! she is of so feeble and sentimental a character that the
mere waywardness of grief for her great loss would in-
duce her to withdraw from the view of her subjects.
But she naturally feels that to carry on her Government
in the best possible way, so far as she can determine
the mode in which it is carried on, is her primary duty,
and she has not strength or spirita for such more. This
appears to unto be the rune truth am to what is called
her seclusion from social life. There must, however,
be some sort of limit to the work of • Sovereign, and it
can never be desirable that the Sovereign should work
too hard. AP the Queen spends her whole strength in
the service of her people, she must he allowed the
greateet latitude in the mode in which she lays out her
Life. But the peculiarity of the life of a Sovereign is,
that it is scarcely possible for the occupant of the
throne not to do one thing without neglecting to do
some other thing. This may perhaps b. avoided under
the happiest circumstances, and in the flower and per-
fect time of life. But as years go on each Sovereign in
turn will have to leave some things undone in order
that other things may be done.
No part of a Sovereign's work can summon in value
that part which the Quern performs so admirably—
the part of superintending the machinery of govern.
ment. But it is also true that the participation of the
Sovereign in the social life of the people is very good
work too in its way. Royalty, in order to do good,
must exist as a living force, and in order to exist in
this way it must be seen, must bring itself home to
the general mind, and become a part of the daily life of
men. The English Sovereign is dear to the people of
England as the embudimeut of English history, and
the living visible expression of ancient law and
government. The monarchy reposes on the con-
tinuance of this sentiment quite as much as on the
utilityof the functions which the Sovereign discharges
in the active working of the scheme of government.
What pleases and in a sense ennobles the people is
the thought that the state and grandeur of royalty is
something that belongs to them. In a sense the Queen
belongs to the nathon, as the nation to the Queen.
NVitien the Queen's carriage goes by, is it not, in the
eyes of the poor, like the palming of the carriage of a
rich and great man'

system of the British schools, which he describes
aa the merely formal reading of a portion of the
Bible 'a. a kind of grace before meat tosecular lebsons.'
I challenge your writer to point out a single word of
my speech which either expressesor implies approval of
the'Briti,h system,' or of tbe employment of the Bible
in rate-supported schools at all. I referred to the British
system only as a proof that the Dissenters do not desire
their distinctive doetrines to be taught in school& and
woull oonsequently derive no advantage from the fund
which the bill gives them, where they are the stronger
party, of practicing this injustice to the detriment of
the Egtablißhed Ccurch. For myself, though I regard
the British system as greatly preferable to the merely
denominational, yet, on any other footing than as the
less of two evils, I decidedly olject to it, as unjust to
Catholics, Jews, and Secularists, and for other reasons.
I am, Sir, &c., J. S. MILL"

independent, the recipients to be voluntary subscribers to
the " National Friend I y Society," com posed of &Alaimo, clerks,
labourers, email tradesmen, and their widow.. For this
close the source of relief should be Friendly Society allow-
ance for sickness, non-employ ment (temporary), migration
expenses, soperannuation, and banal—the relief to be or-
dered by a Friendly Society Board, con Wing of Guardians
ex Oki& and members elected by subscribers: and the condi-
tion and mode of relief should be periodical payments at
member.' houses, or at the society's offices.
Class TS, comprising persons unable to work, Including the
aged and infirm. cripples, incurables, lunatics and idiot., and
orphans. The source of relief for this close should be a sub-
sistence rate an now levied in aid of charitable endowments
al d private euhscriptioas, the relief to be ordered by a
hoard of Guardians and members appointed by subscribers,
and the condition and mode of relief should be admission
to refugee, asylums, school establishments, and reforma-
tories

An nteresting discussion followed the reading of the
paper, and in it great doubts were expressed as to the
feasibility of the plan. Mr. F. Hill said if pauperism
were to be diminished a chance ought to be given to
English workmen to compete with foreign workmen.
Mr. Alsager Hay-Hill said one great obj,-ction to the
Om was that being affiliated to the Poor Law system,
the prejudice of the people against that system would
he applied to the plan proposed. Self-help he thought
could best be promoted through the agency of the
Post-office Savings-banks. Mr. Collins, a guardian of
St. Pm:lure., believed the administration of the Poor
Law was its bane. Dr. Stallard contended that power
should be given to Boaris of Guardians to bring before
the magistrates habitual pauperi.—indeed to have an
adult reforuiatory in which to place them. The Go-
vernment should be asked to extend the Post-office
Savings-bank system, so that a man could go to •
Saviogs-liank and buy a ticket, which would give him
an allowance of 3s. a week in the event of his being
out of work. The proceedings were brought to a close
by votea of thanks to Mr. Lituiport and the chairman.