The Express.
London, England, 1857-11-21 00:00:00

IS REFORM TO BE POSTPONED?

(From the Saturday Review of this day.)
The recent monetary origin and the violation of ,
the Bank Act are, it is true, subjects more prating than any I
reform bill ; but we have an extra session expressly forth*
purpose of considering these important matters; and even
though that alone should not sofa= It is absurd to suppose
that 660 gentlemen can keep up • &nation on the currency
for the greater pert of • year. We have no objection to I
the bank charter taltiag proseloos of every other topic;
but really, to sesame that it will lea= no thus for the eon-
adoration of • Mona till savours overmuch of •
foregone concludes that time ahall never be foetid
for the only measure in favour of which the
constituencies =prase& anything like a Seas
°pinker. In fart, there is very little disrobe effected ha
the lair, for the parliamentary reformer is kindly al-
as= to wait until he can get a session to hlinealf. Can
any tea gam how long that period of expectation will
rove f An absolutely name session has never occurred
in the memory of man; and if reform is to be laid aside
until so very convenient • ~on, we are afraid that Mr.
Roebuck will have time to advance to universal auftrage
and weakly parliaments long before the question shall be
rmaidared ripe for dinamtion. It may be Iran ae the Ana
cynically observes, that men in oMoe end men is parlia-
ment are not fond of interfering with patronage, sad rand.
beg peso= of influence and social position, and that they
will Milli* shirk the duty if they can. But, if so there
la the more rearm for prating on the disagreeable disettallea
before the TIONIIIbriIIOII of promises, as yet reoent,shall have
altogether faded away. At any rote, it la a strange way of
encouraging honesty in public life to tell our representatives
that they saw disposed to akark their pledgee, and that that
is en excellent reasonwhy they should not think of fulfilling
than.
U as
those who were returned to the present parliament
reformers ere in earnest In the matter, there neva. was •
season which promised • fairer opportunity for carrying out
their principles than that which is now approaching. Such
of thanes desire only to escape from an irksome duty will,
no doubt, find went of time as good en excuse as any one of
• thoomand others.

(From the Leader of this day.)
Reform is once more a topic of the day. The working
charm are agitating it, end we have received many declara-
tions of sympathy with the sentiments we have ewers'
as to the vitae of en open end cordial association of •ll
cisme of reformers. They have one grand poiat to gala ;
it is before them; they now know that the government will
avoid concemion until it to wrung from it ; they have area
tonnes disgraced until it has been bestridden by an adven-
torte him Mr. and they have only to organise their
own mouton and apply than. • • Even the tory pinta
—although abundantly endowed with the attribute classically
asinibed to the By—will not affirm that every oisaiderable
town does not contain at least ten men interested in the pro-
motion of parliamentary reform. If thine ten would unite
and act—in concert, perhaps, with a London committee—
thequestion might be taken out of Lord Palmerston's hands.
It le not for the liberal party to receive the dictation of my
cabinet. An the ministerial objections amount to no more
than special pleading, end an artful attempt to confound the
third session of 1857 with that of 1858. Are both those
sessions forestalled P There Y now a programme before the
country. Whet towns will set the example of appointing
committees to vote whether the principles set forth are de-
serving of sdoptton P

(From the latter of " Publicols" in the Weekly DispakA.)
Ewing does its utmost to bucks the question of Mom,
the Tams breaks out in a startling anxiety sod tenderness
for its emotes. Something. it thinks may be made of that
for the purpose of procrastination. " Will nut the parlia-
mentary reformer himself be better loathed with having a
session, though a later one, to himself ?" A swim to him-
self : There's a bait. Only think of seven whole months
to make reform speeches in! What an effort to in the
long-winded! Unhappily this " later" session is what we
have been promised again and sgain. We have run after it
lb boys after ► rainbow. And when is it to come? The
siege of Sebastopol stopped it owe. The Bank Charter and
Ladle stop it now. Want of preparation stopped it in the
swim of last spring. There will never be wanting some-
thing or other, at home or abroad, by which it may not
stopped. Now, we have a promise to claim; an express,
absolute promise. We may never have such a thing again
Our facetious premier may warble the old song,
I told her I'd many her,
But never told her when.
We cannot afford to let him slip. The associated pulls-
mentary reformers are dealing rightly end windy. They
start no great public agitation. No movement is contem-
plated like that of the Anti•Caea•law League. They went
no popular excitement. Their own views are calmly pro-
pounded, and they invite the people to say whether they coin-
cide, and thus confirm the verdict of the last election. Such
a quiet refresher will, it may be hoped, tell with greater power
on the premier than a more noisy demonstration.