The Express.
London, England, 1859-06-07 00:00:00

LONDON. ?UNSEAT, JUNE 7.

Tue open conference of Liberal Members of the
Opposition, which took place yesterday, has more
than realised the hopes that were entertained re-
garding it. We do not allude so much to the num-
bers assembled, or to the general unanimity that
prevailed on the occasion, as to the heartiness and
soundness of tone which characterised nearly the
whole of the proceedings. Two or three dissentients
there were indeed from the policy of the Amendment
about to be moved to-day in the House of Com-
mon' on the Address; but they served only to
mark more distinctly the predominance of dif-
ferent sentiments and of other feelings than
those to which they gave utterance. Two hun-
dred and seventy gentlemen, comprising nearly
every man of parliamentary experience and distinc-
tion on the Liberal side, concurred in declaring their
determination to vote on the earliest possible oppor-
tunity that the present advisers of the Crown do
not possess the confidence of the country; and many
whom accidental circumstances prevented from being
present intimated by letter or otherwise their readi-
ness to assent, when called upon, to that proposition.
As we expected, it seemed to be understood on all
hands by those who took part at the meeting yester-
day, that before any large body of members in oppo-
sition made up their minds to give a vote calculated
to entail • change of Government, they must be
assured unequivocally th►t all personal feuds and
sectional jealousies were at an end, and that the
policy of future Cabinets formed under Whig leader-
ship would be both anti•exclusive aa to men, sad
promptly progressive as to measures. Both Lord
JOHN Itc,,r.u. and Lord Prat MERSTON stated folly
their readiness to accept office upon these conditions,
Nothing could be more frank or honourable than the
declaration of the former, that should the latter
be celled on to form a ministry he was
prepared to co-operate unreservedly with him ; and.
at the audible suggestion of Lord Pctsertivro:4, he
added amid the cheers of all present, that he was
authorised to say on the part of his noble friend that
should their positions in that respect be reversed, he
would receive a like aseiatanos and support from him.
It was candidly admitted by both that unless the
differeot shades of opinion in the party were fairly
represented is the Administration, it would be vain to
*seen any claim of pre-eminence over their Conser-
vative rival,. Oa this point Mr. BRIGHT did good
service by disclaiming manfully any desire to impose
open the more moderate section extreme opinions
for which they were not prepared. The
duty of • Cabinet, professing to carry out
truly the ideas and opinions of the party in
general, was to show equal respect and regard for all;
but en r, proposals for legislation to embody
what he eM:ed the averagesentialentsof theP•rty.lle
loeist(4, how, ye?, on demanding publicly from Lord
Join whether It MU to be understood that be meant
to adhere folly to the propositions for Electoral
Reform stand by him at the close of the last Perlis-
mect ' It is ►lmo•t superfluous le say th•t the reply
Mail in he aeirmative.

Lord I'll IIER•70:1.4 explanations referred chiefly
to fvrcign policy. He professed himself to be
sincerely anxious to preserve the neutrality of
England in the present war, and to be
rumble to foresee any reasonable probability or
just.ticatim of this coarse being departed from.
He added, with characteristic boldness, how-
ever, that if any danger existed it lay in
the direction of a possible misunderstanding with
France—a cireameaDne which he characterised as the
most unfortunate irlint could betel the prosperity of
England and the wc:fare of the world. To /weft
such a calamity he had '3l3g anz•ow.lT striven, and
whether in cffi-vv or in opp.vition he should always
do so. He declared his sympathy to be on the aide
of Italian freedom in the impendig straggle, though
be felt it wee neither the deity, iwr the policy of
England to interpose by arms. The candour of the

noble Viscount's vigorous expressions on this subject
became the text for a brief but bitter invective from
Mr. Rotarot, who voss followed by Mr. LINDSAY
and Mr. HOLIMAN ;n a more qualified strain of dis-
sent. It was evident that there was but a faint
and partial rteponse to their ohj€ctions on the
part of the meeting, which was as nearly of one
mind apparently us any assembly of the kind we
have bad in our time. Mr. Serjeant Dean repu-
diated on the part of the majority of Catholic mem-
bers any disposition to turn Tory; and if we are not
greatly misinformed the division list of Friday or Sa-
turday morning will make good the honourable and
learned member's words. Meantime, let us own that he
acted a friendly and judicious part in stating plainly
the difficulties of the position occupied by liberal
and enlightened representative, of Catholic
constituencies. It is clear that if the popular party
on the other side of the Channel is to be once more
re-united in feeling with Liberals in this country, a
very different system of administrative policy must
be pursued from that which during the last ten
rare has alienated and disgusted good men. This is
not the time for reproaches ; it is a time to forgive
and to forget; but we have long felt what we now
say unequivocally, that a change of persons and of
practices in the Irish Government, reaching much
further than a mere substitution of Whigs for Tories,
is indispensable, if Ireland is to be regained to the
side of liberality and progress.