The Express.
London, England, 1852-12-27 00:00:00

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LONDON, MONDAY, DECEMBER 27.

THIERIET, the French historian, hes written •
remarkably clever sketch of the history of England,
making use of Hunt as his principal authority, in
which he shows that, essentially, the form of govern-
ment in this country has been moulded upon that
which would be adopted by conquerors towards a
vanquished nation. He asserts that since the Nor-
man conquest the descendants of the victors have
dwelt in this country as in • " camp." Their
position here has been that of military tenants
of a conquered land. Any person acquainted
with the ficta of the case will have very
little difficulty in satisfying himself of the truth
of TURRET'S remarks as applied to the first
few oentui ice after the Conqueror. The author,
however, carries out his parallel further, and shows
that the successive modifications which have been
made in the constitution, and which have tended to
diminish the apparent antagonism existing between
the two parties, have been in reality of the nature of
compacts, in which the contracting parties gain or
lose certain privileges without forfeiting any portion
of that distinctive character which keeps them apart
as two ',loosing classes. There is • great deal of
truth at the bottom of this delineation of English
history ; and recent events seem likely to support
it with additional confirmation. The old great
feudatories, the tenants-in-chief, still hold pos-
session of the administration of public affairs.
They still assert their exclusive right to this
position. Lord Deana. will consent to recog-
nise the temporary superiority of another party
in the "camp," but the laws of chivalry do not com-
pel him to recognise as " foemen worthy of his steel,"
members of that class which his ancestors denomi-
nated " knaves and villeins." The price which any
government must give to receive moderate fair play
from its opponents, is.—that it shall confine itself in
the distribution of offices to the peerage and baro-
netage. 'the doors to office must be closed against
" the democracy."
Anil thus it is, that the affairs of this great eoantry
arc settled at political tournaments, where none but
those of exclusive blood shiver lances and exchange
courtesies, while the people —Lard Draor's " demo-
cracy"--are permitted to sit round the lists, to look
on. and applaud. FRONT DE MDT and BRIAN DE
BOIS (WILBERT will break lances with the Dis-
inherited Knight or the Black Sluggard, but
OURTII. the Saxon, or Loci:size, the forester, must
break no heads but their own. They must not enter
into any contest in which their destinies are decided.
The people of England must stand outside of the
arena when their interests are the subject of con-
tention, mud can only interfere in the strife by the
means of aristocratic proxies. To maintain this
stem, Whip and Tories are equally pledged. Lord June's beast in the last Parliament, that he
never kept any but the very best society, is equally
significant with Lord DESIST'S denunciation of the
dangers of democracy. A really patriotic Minister,
who would wish to make use Wall the forces which
are available for the goverument of the kingdom, who
should endeavour to press into his service the learning,
intelligence, science, habits of business, which dis-
tinguish the great middle class, would be met
at the very threshold of his undertaking by the cry
of " breach of privilege." He would be told—as
I'VROOT was told by the French aristocracy when he
wished to legislate for the nation and not for a class
—that the constitution was an aristocracy of the
nobles, the clergy, and the magistracy; that it was
the privilege of the nobility to serve the King with
their swords, of the clergy to serve him with prayers,
and that the common people could contribute nothing
but labour and taxes, as they sprang from the con-
quered race. We should have sentimental nobles
praying like the Prince of CONDO of the day, that
1300 would grant them but one gift, to die u noble-
men and lords of their lands. The whole territorial
aristocracy would unite together to maintain every
article of that political creed which, in the words of
CANNING, " assigns to a certain combination of great
" families a right to dictate to the Sovereign, and to
" influence the people."
This condition of things will endure just as hog
as the aristocracy are enabled to control the repr►
sensation of the country by the means of an iiii
and corrupt electoral system, and no longer./hit
the monopoly of the county interest is broken up—
when the towns are invested with their due share of
political power—when electors are protected in the
exercise of their electoral privileges,—then three
colossal interests which have arisen in the country
during the last three centuries, and which are intrin-
sically of far greater importance to its grandeur,well-
being, and improvement than the territorial
is-
terset, will have an entrance opened for them to the
parliament of the nation. Then, and not till then,
will the House of Commons be as a malneeftilve
assembly, commensurate with the magotads of the
greatest nation in the world. All the elements of
England's power will appear there in their due pee.
portions. Her commerce, her manufactures, her
science, her arts, her learning, her literature, will
there meet with a dee expression. Thapeople will
have confidence in each a House, for it tern rapionent
popular feeling in its highest and noblest form.
All this, however, is at present Utopian. At present
we mast endure tome Lord ABERDEEN ramie. about
frantically from lord to lord begging hlm to take
a share in governing us. Thes=trav
content themselves without an
until a certain number of the "
seiTTuti;
that THIERIT describes as permanently
in England. can decide upon the diatribe/Os
of the offices. As soon as this le done, as seen as
our aristocratic leaders have undertaken complacently
the task of making our laws and pocketing our
money, we shall stand a chance of seeing a little
legislatioa take place. If .it so happens that the
" combination of great families which have a right to
dictate" is powerful, affairs may go on smoothly for
some time, and some useful measures may pass. If
the "combination " in question is nearly equally
matched 'II a powerful "combination" on the other
aide, there will be jousting instead of legislatiss.
The nation will have to stop in the oils of
many • career of usefulness until its erittoststital
masters have settled their quarreh, and a new
" combination" is formed. This is the hte to which
England will be exposed, as long as the Parliament
is unreformed. It remains, then, for those who wish
to sea the nation in a position, as far as its govern-
meet isconcerned, to develop •lt its energise, to press
upon Whatever administration is, formed • revision
and an extension of the suffrage. By this means,
and this alone, will the " combinations of great
families" be made to recede kom the vantage-ground
which they unjustly occupy, and the nation allowed
to take possession of its just rights.

IT is an unspeakable relief to be told that Sir
Juts ORAHAII does not go to the Home Once.
Admitting all his great efficient !services in behalf of
Free T °sitting the administrative shill he
showed when before in the Admiralty—where he
may be most serviceable again—admitting the just
views he displayed in the Committees of Military and
Naval Expenditure—admitting the decidedly liberal
tone of his more recent speeches-oin the opening of
MAUI/11'8 letters, and all the low, dirty, and revolt-
ing details of an-English espionage connected with
that ugly story, will haunt one. At no time—but
above all at a time like the present—could any tree
'Aber.' feel comfortable if the Home Office were
presided over by a Minister who stoopto show
such undue complaisance to Continental despots.
The present moment is one in which there is
atattaratile danger and disgrace is any mood apa-
thetic of the pulls that would tolerate complicity or
soasivanee with foreign absol.,iistu on the part of
F. 1141611 Minisse.v Ctviliratim -lid its attendants,
Limey and Rational Government, admix, and
recede alternately. the retriqiii•le movement is
like the reflex of the wave td the riwing tide—eserelv
preparatory to a further advance. Bat all with