The Press.
London, England, 1853-12-10 00:00:00

THE PRESS.

REFORMERS IN COUNCIL.
" The above form the Cabinet."

Lord GRANVILLE (laughing) : Very good—very good, indeed ,—but,
come, I say, we are really making no progress at all. We began with
considering clause 4 of the Reform Bill, and we have somehow got
back to a dispute on the meaning of clause 1, illustrated by ,an
anecdote of Palmerston's. At this rate we shall sit here till
Christmas-eve.

Lord JOHN Rrsext.t.: You look at me as if it were my fault. It
certainly is not. If you could all only agree to everything I propose, I
should be the last person to be troublesome.
Lord Ansaozr.% : I ant very sorry to have to say anything which
can possibly be deemed offensive to any of my colleagues, but I must
observe that throughout all these discussions Lord John Russell has
lust sight of the agreement upon which our Coalition was founded,—
namely, that we should all forget all our antecedents.
Sir CHARLES Wow): Yes ; and all our relatives. Ha! 1m: (The
speaker suddenly looked blank, recollecting that this ►ras rather an owlesrard
joke front him.)

Sir JAMES GRAHAM : Wood, with his usual neatness and dexterity,
has sought to save Lord John Russell the necessity of reply to the
Premier's very just observation ; but I fear we must recal attention to
it. Now, I have made a few memorauda—( Takes out papers)—of which
I would humbly solicit a very few moments' consideration. ILays them
on table and begins to examine them through glasses.) Now, I find that on
the oth of February, Ik'►t, which happened to be Monday—l don't
know that the fact is material, except that the day proved Black Monday
for my noble frien.l—Ha ! ha !—my noble friend introduced his own
Reform Bill. Ho said—

Lord PALmEnsTos : My deur Graham, we heard the speech, ►uul I
think you will allow that men at our time of life ought not to be asked
to listen to such an address twice in two years. (Laughter.)
Sir Gususm : I will not read it. But I ►oust point out this. By
that bill the county franchise was reduced, the borough 10/. voters
were swamped by 51. voters, and franchise was conferred on all who
paid forty shillings direct taxation. Boroughs with fewer thou► 500
electors were tacked to other boroughs ; parliamentary qualifications
of membe►s were abolished ; Jews were to be let in, and Papists relieved
of all oaths they did not like.

Mr. 6 t.AnsrosE : Don't say Papists, (iraham, please. There arc
three other courses open to you. Call them members of the Catholic
Church ; sulOcts to the l'►otaan See ; or adherents to the older creed
of Christendom. Why shock people's feelings ?
Sir J. GRAHAM : Anything to please you. We'll call them developed
Puscyites if you like. lint do not let us turn aside to trifles. There
WAS our noble friend's old bill. Ile will have, in March or April, it' he
ennuot put it off 'later, to introduce that which we are at present con-
sidering. It is clear that, if this new bill lie a s►ualler measure than the
old, his yours° in defending it will not be all easy one.
Lord .1. IlessEt.t. : I shall feel obleeged to you not to concern your-
self about that. I believe tt►yselt' I►ert'eetly ei,invetetit to advocate any
measure whatever. Aprce urcii the 161 i :mil leave tilt' to make its
eel►;j,sy.

Bill from a Cabinet of which he is a member ought to contain an ex-
tension of the franchise in boroughs, and that if it do not contain such
extension he ought to resign office ; but
sir W. MoaEswoirrit : Stop. I did not say that.
Sir J. GRAHAM ( Mustily ): I ant sure I beg your pardon. But, as
no two honest men can differ on the point, I ventured to say what I
believed you would say. But to proceed, for, after all, Molesworth 's
consistency is a trifle which should not detain us, there is another
reason why the borough franchise should be extended. It is this. I
pledged myself in my- Carlisle canvass that it should be.
Sir C. Wool) (simply ): But, bless you, the same rule will apply in
your ease as in Molesworties. If the bill has not the clause you think
needful and just, you ought to resign.
Sir J. (insus3t (amain!, eqmpassionately): Poor dear Wood ! He
does not see the difference between the necessity of retaining the
presence of an amateur politician and the service of a real one.
Sir C Wool) (smartly): Conte, 1 know something about baronets,
and Molesworth is the eighth of his line, while you are only the
second of yours, come. Now then : take eight front two, there
remains six.
Sir J. OautiLtm : Yes : that's the way you used to do the arithmetic
in your budgets, to the great delight of the audience.
Lord J. RessELL : Waiving the question of Giuliani's pledges,
which he can hardly—ha !ha !—expect us to value at a higher rate
than—ha ! ha !—he has been teaching us to do by his own regard to
them for the last quarter of at century—ha! ha !—I would call atten-
tion to one remark which I made in my lamentable speech in 1µ52.
I represented, as the great merit of that bill, that it would leave the
relative positions of the agricultural and the commercial interests
just where it found them. Unless lam enabled to say us much—
Lord PALMERSTON : As little ?

Lord I{tssF:►.►.: Very Well, as little for the new bill ; it will be
a eluestio►► with me whether I ought to introduce it.
Sir C. Wool): Lor ! if it will be any convenience to you, I'll intro-
duce it with the greatest pleasure, and talk any number of hours.
Lord .1. Russial. yreezingly); You are very good.
Lord Pai.mmtsTos : We need not waste time. It is clear that
John Russell emit say that of the new bill. When I say can't, I use
too strong an expression, because there is no saying what my noble
friend can't say ; but 1. mean that it would not be true. The ar►ange-
mcnt whicl► is to throw the borough voters into tl►e counties will most
materially alter the relations of commerce and agriculture.
Lord Am.:um:Ex : And here is the very thing of which I com-
plained at the outset. You are all trying back upon what you have
said and done in other days. Why, if we are to apply that test, or
encourage other people to apply it, what is to become of our union?
There is no Past for a Coalitionist.

imrd I'.u.mi:us•roN : Tlu►t's true. He has enough to do iu looking
to the particularly disagreeable future, as several respected friends 1
see around me acutely feel.

Sir C. Wool): We are getting grammatical. I know in what tense
the new Reform Bill is. lia! ha ! 1)o you give it up ? The imper-
fect. Ila ! ha!

Lord 1. HAMILL": : Now it is nearly time to rise, and we have done
nothing—ff ,►►• or mope ad maim.