The Express.
London, England, 1857-04-28 00:00:00

LONDDY, TUESDAY, APRIL N.

Tunas are people whose palates are so sophisti-
cated that they cannot relish plain, wholesome I
dishes. And there are people whale intellectual
palates ate much in the same condition. This ac-
counts for the number of writers who hare no faith
in any meascue of Reform that is not cooked up with
some orotolmts or complications of their own
&lining in stimvhints. To lop off an abase, or
labodase an improvement, simply, into our electoral
system will not content them. They must hare one
proviso to soccomplish one object, and then another to
onateract tie first in whole or in part. They am
staid of all reforms that are likely to do their
smirk, and therefore insist upon having those which
they oondoicend to patronisesmusled and hampered.
la short, they look upon all niessales of reform
sn if they were the gifted serration of fveruitio in
the flag tale, and insist that itterrinr shall sniff his
ears with eottoo to prevent his hearing too much.
and Shcift-forr tie his legs together lest he shoal
overrun the game he is in pursuit of.

Ouse of these wiser thia wise urn has bees
pleeding very earnestly is a eomMempseary for sew
anengement. la any new Deform Dill that may be
biettght fermata, to aware the iepresestation of
minorities is the 'louse of Comwou. Upon first
thoughts we were rather surprised at the writer's
anxiety spa this score at the present awasent.
fires allowing the estimate of Lord P.tuairserox's
. . . _ . .

majority which has been farmed by his moat
sanguine Irteuds to be exact, or even ander the
mark, nal it appears to us that the opposing
minority will make a tolerably decent muster when
Parhenget meets. It has, indeed, occurred to us,
that by " minorities" the writer in question may
mean small knots er independent thinkers, who do
not tree exactly with either of the great contending
partimend who may be in danger of being squeezed

;sat et Parlismamt altogether by the shock and col- I
Sam of the two more numerous bodies. To this
iaterpretat ion, however, is opposed the fact, that he
—or Lis colleagues—have for some weeks been
braying out io pease over the exclusion of
" impracticable and crotchety" members, and eon-
gestalating the country upon the more manageable
Home of Commons that will be the result of their
exausion. We leave the writer to explain his own
meaning—if he have any. In the mean time we
beg leave to express our hope that the House of
CSELMOSS may never become inaccessible to men of
original and independent habits of thought, who
refuse to wear the livery of either of the powerful
factions which contend for place on that mena. The
presence of such men is necessary, as a assh spa
the examen of party spirit; it is......marybl mim
to prevent the debates of the Home hem amt.
rating into mere logomachies, in which the caw
batants seek only to impart a good colouring is
their own actions, not to promote wise awl
just legislation. But we do not see that there is any
reason to resort to indirect means to insure the ad-
mission of such men into Parliament. That three or
four gentlemen of distinguished ability and high
principle have been defeated in the general election,
under circumstances migieeuliar excitement, does not
prove that it is impossible for them to gain admit-
tance into the House of Commons. On the contrary,
there is no one acquainted with the turns and wind-
ings of political life who does not feel confident that
a very short time indeed will sec all these gentle-
men restored to their places in the Hones.
Our local constituencies are not all cast in the
same mould. The candidate who is unacceptable
in one city will be warmly welcomed in another.
We may always make sure of a fair supply of
independent members without having recourse to
the dainty device of enacting that all large consti-
tuencies shall return three members, but that each
elector shall have only two votes. Such a proviso
is not intended to introduce men of independent
habits of thought and of unbending will into Parlia-
ment. It is not intended to ensure a constant supply
of JOSEPH HONES. It is meant to ensure the presence
in the House of Commons of a well.drillcd phalanx '
hostile to all popular desires. The inventors of
this device seek not to promote liberty of
thought, or the amelioration of our institutions,
but simply to preserve what is called, in the
slang of faction, "the due balance of parties."
Their beau-ideal of a house of Commons, is one with
a majority implicitly devoted to a ministry that will
talk liberalism without acting it, and a minority of
illiberals salleiently strong to afford ministers a
pretext for not introducing, or at least for not
insisting upon, liberal measures.
Another crotchet has been propounded of late by
the some ingenious class that is so anxious to ensure
"a fair representation of minorities." It is
proposed as a substitute for Vote by Ballot.
It is neither more nor less than a proposal
that a voting paper shall be sent to every
elector by some Government officer, to be
by him filled up with the names of his
candidates and signed, and returned to the messenger
when called for. It would be impossible to devise a
mode of voting which more felicitously combines all
that is objectionable in open voting with all that is
alleged to be objectionable in secret voting. The
secret of the vote given by each elector would be
most successftilly eonataled am the public, and it
vroidd at the same the, be perfeetly pateut to the
Walsh ender Government. The voter would be
withdrawn from any MOM* that public opinion
might has over his and, sad left exposed b all
the Wham that ass in cues meld exercise, an-
'mistreated by any eppaemg influence whatever. J