The Press.
London, England, 1853-05-14 00:00:00

THE PRESS

not to place the income tax upon Ireland
while Ireland was sutfeling under the burden
of the Consolidated Annuities! admitting, dis-
tinctly and in terms—admitting that he was
bound not to impose the income tax while they
remained.
What miserable shuffling is this ! Would to
heavens that there was a parliamentary tri-
bunal of criminal justice, before whom the
whole set could be indicted for obtaining votes
nutter false pretences ; and we venture to say
the records of such a tribunal would present
no more palpable ease of political swindling
than the dexterous maiseuvre by which the
Irish uwmbers were cheated into the placing
of the mongrel Administration in power.
We must still have our words as to the
denials of Monday night. The facts are now
known ; they were not known to the public
then. Ilta Mr. Hayter knew then as well as
he does 110 W to WllOlll tile StlltelllelltS in the
press and the insinuations in Parliament re-
friTed. He had not forgotten his conversation
with Mr. Maurice O'Connell. On Thursday
night he distinctly recollected it, although his
memory was not so vivid as to his perhaps
more explicit interview with Mr. French. Ilia,
distinctly remembering that he hail given Mr.
O'Connell au assurance as tee the intentions of
the. Whigs if they succeeded to power—dis-
tinctly remembering that be had given that
assunnwe for the express purpose of influ-
encing the votes of Irish members—distinctly
remembering that he had authorised his assur-
ance to be repeated—distinctly remembering
that he had promised that Sir Charles Wood
should state the same sentiments in his plaice
in the house—distinctly remembering all this,
he dexterously managed to make the following
statement to the home :----" 1 am exceedingly
" obliged to the honourable member for bring-
" lug the matter to au issue ;" by which we
protest plant men would have understood
that - the matter" had been placed in such a
position that the whole truth 1111114 110 W be
disclosed. That Mr. Hayter was " exceedingly
obliged" to the Inniounible member for the
issue he had raised we have not the slightest
doubt.

understand," he continued, " the hon.
" member for Cambridgeshire to say that some
" person alleging himself to be an agent of
" the Whig party, some time during the finan-
" cial statement of the lute Anincellor of the
" Exchequer, took upon himself to attend a
" body of Irish gentlemen, and state that be
" was authorised to make this proposal
•• namely, that, if they gave their votes for the
" purpose of overthrowing the late Govern-
" ment, the Government likely to be tOunded
" upon its ruins would undertake not to im-
" pose the income tax upon Ireland."
And, having thus chosen his own ground, he
proceeded with what lawyers call a special
traverse of the charge :
" I (never wan «othoriged) by any person, or
" any body of persons, to make (11114) C OM-
" inunication to any person or any party. 1
never did attend any meeting of any kind in
"my life of Irish gentlemen. 1 never started
" to any person at any time (that .1 vas autho-
" rised to state) that, in the event of the Govern-
" meld of Lord Derby being overthrown, the
" Government to be substituted in its 'dare
would undertake not to impose an income
" tax upon Ireland."
The words in italics are those dexterously
introduced to make the statement true. But
with confidence we appeal to the judgment of
every right-minded and honest-hearted man,
whether Mr. Hayter was not bound in fairness
and candour to add to this statement some
allusion to that communication with Mr O'Con-
nell which he so distinctly recollected.
Doubly bound he was so, when he heard
the oracular solemnity of the Recorder of I
don accept with judicial gravity, though hardly
with judicial discrimination, his special and
skilfully-framed denial, as a contradiction to
the fact of any negotiation. " The statement
" of that negotiation," said the profound wis-
dom of Mr. Wortley, " is utterly unfounded."
Mr. Hayter sat silent while judicial impar-
tiality laced this eonstruction on his words,
and placed them so to the generous prejudice
of oths.
Once and for all we leave the Havter and
O'Connell intrigue to the judgment of the Dri-

27

tish publie, who now know the secret means
by which the Conservative Ministers were
driven—or. ‘ve shonld say. intrigued—out of
power. Vie W. in the full confidence that
ut for ring that judgment the only perplexity
will 1w whether deeper disgrace belongs to
the unworthy pledge of December, its scanda-
lous violation in April. or the skilfully- framed
evasions of Monday night.

TRANSPOIITATION—THE CONFLICT OP
COALESt'EII lONS.
IT is less strange than memorable that Lords
Aberdeen total Neweastle should have eX -
pressed emitrailietory views in the. 111111111111111
debate of last 'Tuesday on the subject of trans-
portation ; and it is more memonible than
strange that their morning apologists should
also, while continuing the discussion, have
overlooked their inconsistency. It is natural
that the l'remier tool his Colonial
Secretary should evince their hostility to Earl
t ;ivy by their eaptious replies ; but we did
not conceive that their agreement against
him wits to be balanced tat the same evening
by their disagreement with each other. Here
are their dicta side by side. both taken from
the Times of Weilliembly lot :
Eon Tit‘N,o'.,wivrioN--Tay: Ai: \ TIO\\4I'MITATIII".;-
1-: \lll. 01, WI Illot EN. ralt: lay sir.wa.uaTi
111 llnlw, the noble, earl 11144 1111.. a lino µmate.' Mitten'•
throuwit.liti treated the %hole ul ii..s tanterl) 4.‘ktinl; iu the 1,1 10-
'1.1..1111Pa 114 if the 11111111/)1111.111.
Il SlVelslllll 111 111101141 11-1111•II/Ir. INleetillll 111114 entililry Na,. also
111115511. N4M, 11511 tatly it thmtlite.444 111.1. 1111111111% *llit'll
dour 1101.1101 11o111.!, 15111 Noe die %Po 101 In 1.• a great
antmoipa to ‘I. 111.• 541'111 161.1. 1114-is 1.11111111111, 1114 1...rt....4
of W.' lint s' it 111111 44,11111114,0. like.
Nod
11011'11111 too vim:cll.' till 1111 eit Shaul, joils 11,011110 e% hn
diets.. OW ,t 111,11 st ill 1111 Stela
at 11'NIIN1s.•1latioll.
rennin. iiiii 1 I 11.1111, 11141 I. Ile Noir Nell MN are that
1;...1 MI loon, wid,rablrllll.oller NUM
it 11111 inonslblo• loi 11114 tolo`lllo4 too list e• 1140111 t lee.
(Or the liven noloiliono ..1 1011 I'\lwllllµ 111 Figur,. and
111 10,4011'11A 11.1.11• looter 1'
t 1.1.11, 111 NIIII.II I 11111. 'lllO 11 Ull4 WI 1111111111`11/ Mt Al lot
1110 In' to.lll, 11. r c‘llllllole., to SMI. brrnnw•sysitelet of tree•
Weieto.lll Ani.tritlio. I 110 1114 Vlll.l*
.itei %bpi cootentele.re•el toe
e ,aetreeo, q •
uit, • fittletl, that tlerre•fort.
it
rigive 111111 Ihe toelde earl— this( shoonlet loa•
11.0. prglrvt oor 1..101 %%111. t-ilililor ills the•
being hatteeleml 1111.11. 0111/1 11111 he 61'Ur\e''111.
14
.
.41...11er the 1.1111.. m. bra' N Wash 1.1551.1 In ilinnalnee
Ihat
it
Nita liar milielo II o11':111 11 I e the in %%Well It 111111 1114'11
t 111111111111.41. rooollio-eel loy Colonel Jovial).
This instructive diversity WKS priVlttCly 1111-6(141
6(141 by several noble lords. and publicly re-
marked by the. Lord Chief .lustive, who with
laitetised quickness anti legal precision pointed
out the contrariety. "The noble earl at the
" head of the tilovernment," said Lord Camp-
bell, " was, he Intel told them, in favour of NW-
" tinning transportation, mitt the noble duke
" was its mortal enemy." The Lord Chancellor,
who is lillllllOsell to belong to the Whig section
()I the Ministry. thought proper to lecture
Lord Campbell on his speech. No doubt it is
sufficiently no al ifylng to these Coalitionist
ministers to find the Whig .Instiee of
England exposing their divided counsels. lint
the perplexity this occasions is not shared by
the dashing journalist who submeribes to the
/timbals of the I hike of Newcastle, and ignores
his Prime Minister. in the summary averment
that "statehuten of all parties feel that the t ime
is
" come when we must deal with the muss
of
" our criminal population at home." If the
world is int much conveyin' with the question,
whether Lord Aberdeen is a statesman in the
eyes of his followers and subordinates, it is
interested in this exposure of the prineiples
upon which the supposed htlitl'slllllll S Cabinet
eonhtrtteted ; tuul i 11,1• letitill it 4
de►ived front
the Collt,llldictioll in which its apologists are
involved. Is this l'abinet so ricketty,
sIS
warped and worllicaten that it is already
crumbling away into what llurke denominated
" the dust and powder of individualisni? Is
it Si) baffled and bewildered by its own cross-
purposes that the treatment of English crime
and criniiiials is only another of its many
vete grestnatm .' And when will these open
questions be' fairly catalogued, that we may
know what questions are reserved ; or whether
there are any upon which ministers are as cer-
tainly unanimous us upon the propriety of their
retaining the in :lieges without the responsi-
bilities of office ?

TILE DoCKYAIII) INQUIRY.
WE lidlleve to our determination to t.bstain
from commenting upon an investigation which
has not yet terminated. declining for the pre
sent all the invitations which party
her
is accumulating for acknowledgment hereafter.