The Express.
London, England, 1848-05-09 00:00:00

or, Alm, dot household suffrage would be a real''.
put for the le ; and this leads us to the next
question wHOL the universal suffrageists ought to ask
theamelves—what chance have they of getting universal
suffrage? Ten years have the unenfrauchised climes
been earnestly agitating apart for universal suffrage,
and at this moment they have less prospect of obtain-
ing it than when they began. The enfranchised
middle cleave are anxious to coalesce with them to
obtain household suffrage, and the experience of the
Reform Hill era, and of the catholic emancipaloo, and
Anti-oorn-Law agitations, ought to teach them that
what the unprivileged capitalist and operative classes
set their hearts upon in this country, cannot be long
refused.
Turning from the recusants of the unenfraochised
classes who are reluctant to relinquish the idea of
universal suffrage to those of the enfranchised classes
who recoil from the novel idea of paid members of
parliament, we would remind the latter that all public
servants except members of parliament are paid.
Judges and sheriff's officers, generals and private sol-
diers, ministers of state and of the gospel —all take their
salaries. Not a burgess or country gentleman is
delegated to watch over the progress of a railway
bill, paving and lighting bill, or turnpike bill, but
pockets without shame or reluctance his allowance of
so much perdiem. Why then should to, mbersof parlia-
ment alone be refused a fair remuneration fur the time
and trouble they bestow on public business ? So long
as members of parliament receive nothing but trouble
and empty honour for their pains, :so bong will the
choice of Individuals be limited to the wealthy or to
unscrupulous political adventurers—so long, in short,
will the House of Commons continue to be compered
mainly, as now, of the governing class. The wider
latitude of choice which the practice of compensating
members of the legislature for th. it services would
open is quite as necessary for the purpose of making
the House of Commons a true organ of public opinion
as the extension of the right of suffrage. Members of
parliament have no legal allowance at present, and
the consequence is that too many of them help them-
selves, when opportunities occur, most unscrupulously
and exorbitantly.

WE believe it is in KNICKERBOCKERS " History of
New York" that the trial is recorded in which the
judge nonsuits the plaintiff, sets the defendant f,ee,
and condemns the clerk of the court to pay the costs.
The process respecting the diplomatic correspondence
with Spain has terminated in a similar way. Lord
PALMERSTON is nonsaited, SOTOMAYOR is allowed to
go scot free, and poor Mr. BULWER, the clerk of the
court, is condemned to pay all the penalty.
Mr. BULWER will, no doubt, feel very much aston-
ished to find I imself bound and immolated, and that
not only by ministers but by parliament. The
thorough liberals of parliament, with whom we sym-
pathise. me for non-intervention in all respects; and
they, of course, condemn the writing of the note, and
the sending of it. But for the gentlemen who sup-
ported the Portuguese intervention, and who made it
a set clause of a convention that the CA !MAUI and the
CABRAL party should be driven from office—for them
to have such a puritanic horror of a recommendation
to the Queen of SPAIN to temper the absolutism of
NARVAE7. by the constitutionalism of ESPARTERO, is
ludicrously squeamish.
Mr. Bei.whe is bidden to go to the QUEEN-MOTHER
andthe minister, and recommend to them to enlarge the
basis of the executive government by calling to the
QUEEN'S counsel some persons possessing the confi-
dence of the liberal party. lie does as he is bid. In
a little time, in consequence of an hneute in the
streets, the government arrests and condemns to trans-
portation, without trial or process, all the leading
liberals, taking care more especially to mark out every
one known to have put his foot within the British
embassy. Mr. BULWER expostulttes, and to show
that he does so in accordance with his government,
he sends the last note received from his government,
of which he has already made known the
contents.
Such we learn from sources at Madrid, quite inde-
pendent of the British embassy, was the posi-
tion of Mr. BULWER. Was it fair, then, to make
so complete a sacrifice of that diplomatist,
to throw him over as a victim to Lord
STANLEY'S spleen, and Lord BROUGHAM'S bear-
like play, without Mr. BULWER having a chance of
explanation and reply') It is the misfortune of diplo-
matic agents that when they succeed, the minister
robs them of all the honour of their success, whilst it
the minister's directions get them into a scrape they
are sacrificed to keep him unscathed. Such is the
law of Downing-street. But this is really too plating
a case. Lord PALMERSTON with his own hands
primes a petard, and forwards it to Mr. BehwEit for
use. The dangerous and combustible missile explodes,
and the whole blame is transferred from the manu-
facturer to the consignee.
If this were merely unfair to Mr. BULWER it would
be a cause of regret ; but, more than this, it affords
a triumph to a known enemy of England, to one of
the most noted and illiberal intriguers of that Mmn-
cesado and military party who have confiscated the
liberties of Spain. Throughout the whole range of
history no foreign minister has dared to offer
such an insult to England or its representative
as this fellow has done. And for his daring he is not
only adopted and caressed by Lord STANLEY—it is
but natural for one piece of personified petulance to
respect and support another—but the Brit'sh govern-
ment accepts the blow, confesses that it was rightly
dealt, sacrifices the zealous lionwEa, pleading for
Spanish liberty, to the jackal of a military despot,
treading the last spark of that liberty out with his
military boot. 'This is being as preposterously humble
as the note was ridiculously rash.
Amongst Lord P ALM ERSTON'S good qualities is
to be reckoned that of being a firm and unflinching
friend to those who zealously act up to and sup-
port his policy. Lord PALMERETON'S courage, in
this respect, has covered a multitude of sins. On the
present occasion his lordship seems to have lost this
manly quality. lie should have demanded an ad-
journment of all debate until Mr. BULWER could have
given his explanation; and the "correspondence"
should not have been presented to parliameat without
this explanation, being the only document that could
throw light upon the circumstances. Wrong as Lord
PALMERSTON may have been in writing the note of
the 7th, better have written ten such notes than put
Britannia on her knees to receive a box on the ear
from the Hidalgo SOTOMAYOL.

TILE revolution which ejected Louts Pititaree
excited somewhat of a sensation in Europe ; but it
may fairly be doubted whether that sensation
equalled the one which thrilled through Blair Atholl
at the close of last week. Our readers have no doubt
a lively recollection of the attempts made by his
grace of Atholl to close the old road through Glen
Tilt. At least, it is not the fault of the press if they
have not ; for Tait and Blackwood, the Edinburgh
Review and the Qaarlerly, with the newspapers of all
shades of opinion, have opened cross-batteries on the
duke for his conduct in that matter—he being at thi,
moment the only person in the realm in condemnation
of whom the press of all panic s has been unani-
mous. Out of these attempts has arisen the movement
which has created such an excitement within the
Highland line. Legal moccedings have been com-
menced against the Duke for his attempts to stop the
road, and on Friday or Saturday last, due intimation
was made to him of the fact at his ducal residence,
by one of there emissaries of the law, dignified in
Scotland by the designation of " messengers at

arms." -
As will easily be imagined, the action has been
commenced by none of the poor people who are deni-
zens of the 1 )uke's dominions. The " summons," as
the initiatory step is termed in Scotland, purports
to be in the name of three individuals, one
residing in Aberdeen, one in Perth, and one
in Edinburgh. No person living nearer to
his grace, or unsupported by the sympathy
of a band of brother burgesses, could have had the
hardihood to beard him thus. Such a perilous adven-
ture as that of the messenger at arms has not been
essayed since MACKAY preceded him in forcing the
pass of Killicrankie and debouching on the Blair.
Lucky will it be for the liege servant of our lady
the QuKEN if he have not found some new incarnation
of " bonnie Dundee" in arms to receive him.
It is a sound rule—front which we have no inten-
tion to depart in the present instance—that, however
much the public may be interested in a question, as
soon as it is brought under judicial investigation, the
press should abide the decision in silence, and abstain
from statements or observations having a tendency to
bias the tribunal before which it is dependent, until
the proceedings terminate. The Court of Session and
a jury will now have to decide whe'her the Duke of
Am i has the ht‘t• of the 1 'rti to bear out in the