The Press.
London, England, 1857-01-17 00:00:00

Court and taqion.

Her Majesty the Queen remains at Windsor until
the 10th of February, as at present arrange& wben
the Court will return to town for her Majesty's
accouchement, which is expected to take place in
March.

Earl Granville has been on • a visit to Bowood
during the week.
Viscount l'almerston remains at Broadlands.

56

V elit It al.

MR. KINGLAKE AT NEWPORT.

Ma. A. W. KINGLAKE, the author of "liothen," in
his address last week to the electors of Newport, after
arguing for the extension of the franchise, the ballot,
the abolition of church rates, a national system of
secular education, &c., referred to the question of State
patronage, and said that the high offices of this country
are unduly distributed among persons of particular
families, and belonging to a particular class in
society, without due regard to their qualifications for
holding them ; and that the result of this, as shown
in the conduct of the late war, was that the Ministers
were positively unable, with their united abilities, to
feed an army of a few thousand men, encamped at a
distance of eight miles only from a seaport occupied
by their own ships. What was the cause of this
evil ?

The cause is that the Ministers and persons high in
office are selected from too small a number. If any of
you, in conducting your business, were to make to your-
selves a law that you could only take persons whose
names began with the letter A, or persons in a particular
street or passage, how would your business go on ? Yet
this is the kind of restriction which is practically going on
in the selection of men chosen to fill the high offices of
the State. If you will bear with me, I will go for a few
moments into this important question. As you know, all
the high officers of State are taken either from the House
of Peers or the House of Commons. The House of Peers
consists of, I believe, 346 men, and the House of Cora-
mons consists of 658 ; so that, in round numbers, you have
1,003 people from whom the Ministers of State have to be
selected. Vet.), well. Now, of the 346 peers almost all,
except our right rev. friends the bishops, and two or three
law lords, are selected by the mere accident of birth.
There remains, then, the House of Commons from which
to find the selected talent of the country. Now, I am
going to venture upon telling you a home truth—an un-
palateable truth. I do say that the constituencies have
been wanting in their duty with regard to the selection of
those whom they send to the House of Commons, and I do
say that it is from this failure of duty on the part of the
constituencies that there has been so much difficulty in
finding men to fill the high offices of State. Why, really,
gentlemen, we must confess, even though it may be an un-
palateable thing to know, that the sprinkling of able men
which you have in the House of Commons, although it is
selected by the people, is not very much greater than the
sprinkling of abler men in the House of Lords, where the
only test is the mere accident of birth. I have told you
one cause leading to the inadequacy of public men. I
think there is another. I think there is an undue laxity
in the members of the House of Commons. The dnty of
a member of the House of Commons is of a double
character. One of his duties, and that is the one which,
perhaps, you are most accustomed to consider, is that of
making laws, ar refusing to make laws, and taking part in
legislative discussion. But another and most important
duty of every member of the House of Commons is that of
watching the formation of the successive Governments
who are from time to time selected. Ido any that in the
performance of that duty the House of Commons has been
too lax. There exists the practice of asking men to give
what is called confidence to the Government, and the
effect of that is that a Government, though not
consisting of men sufficiently able to govern—a Govern-
ment which would not bear criticism when jou came to
inquire whether one man or another is fit for the office he
holds—is enabled to secure a space of toleration, because
there is a feeling that there will be an inconvenience in a
change of Government. That is the threat always held
out to induce men to avoid a vote rendering necessary a
change of 'Government. Many men have * great dread of
a change of Government. If they change so frequently, it
is said the time will come when England will be without a
Government. Now, what they really mean when they say
that is, that England will be without. a Government
selected from she accustomed class; and when the day
comes; that England is to be without a Government of that
kind, it will be a fortunate day, and not a day of danger;
for, depend upon it, you can never have good government
or economy at home, you can never have that foresight and
management which will bring success in war, until you
withdraw this exclusive rikht of government front a few
families, and seek for ability, combined with high charac-
ter, wherever you can find it—from all ranks, from ull
classes, and from all conditions of men.

LORD ADOLPHUS VANE TEMPEST. M.P.. on Monday
at South Shields, addressed a number of the electors
of that division in the Lion Assembly•rooms, South
Shields. His lordship, after adverting to his absence
in the Crimea, proceeded to speak upon several sub
jt eta at present claiming public attention. He was
in favour of increased education among the masses.
He di-agreed with the present ticket-of leave system.
He was in favour of a moderate Reform Bill, and
reduction of the income tax. With respect to church
rates and local dues on shipping, he promised to
give Cie subject his careful attention.

A BALLOT MEETING AT WOOLWICH Was held on
Wednesday evening at the Ratepayers'.hall, opposite
the Dockyard-gates. Many hundreds of artisans
employed at the Royal Arsenal and Dockyard were
present, the large majority of whom were voters for
•the borough. Mr. -Holland (a draughtsman of the
dockyard) urged upon the electors to support no
candidate opposed to the ballot. In Woolwich they
had about one hundred societies, in which the ballot

THE PRESS.

was the mode of voting, and although the rich
adopted the ballot to protect themselves against each
other at their clubs, yet they denied such protection
to the poor and industrious elector. General Cod-
rington had avowed himself as an opponent, not only
to the ballot, but to any extension of the franchise,
and therefore if the present Ministry brought in a
new Reform Bill the general was bound to oppose it.
Was such a man fit to represent the masses of work-
ing men at Woolwich ? lie concluded by proposing
a resolution, pledging the meeting not to support
any candidate who would not vote for the ballot and
an extension of the suffrage. The motion was car-
ried by acclamation. Deputy-Commissary General
Darling at some length eulogised the character of
General Codrington, whom the speaker had served
under at the Crimea; but he avowed that his opinion
was opposed to that of the general on the question of
the ballot. Addresses in favour of reform and pro-
gress were delivered by Messrs. Keegan, Iliseley,
Sloman, and others, and a resolution was unani-
mously carried, to the effect that General Codrington,
being opposed to these principles, was unfit to repre-
sent the borough.