The Express.
London, England, 1850-05-30 00:00:00

Vie erpreMS.

OUTGOING ILiILI4.
The malla be bilk North Amens mod the UMW
It will be muds timeerew .wail.
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Norma, Hosubms, Now Odrome."Z Miiiietead maladies
*OS Madais, M. hea-de•Nimenue, New Grehida.
cuni, sal P.m will be tor_ ea lie evades et Jae 1.
The mils Oar Mederia, &GAN sad of
Ayres, will
M wade up ou the amoebas at ham 4.
Tia rai Iler Liebe., Spate, and Gibraltar will be sada
up as dose 7.
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swam el Jon 7.
The mois be Gibralter, Malta, Grew, the Isaias
reg Oellee. bad* awl Chiba, vie leathereptesid7Z
Ze up en the eaeraing el leas SO.

MOS WATTS AT =MOT MUMS
TWA glay—WwWwA Us. AMA..., 4b 3114.
Twissasm-IkAINO SA II a...«... AMMONS, &I. Um.

LONDON, THURSDAY, MAY SO.

LORD Joni Rrtissu, is to move to-night that the
house do resolve itself into a committee, to consider
the oath of abjuration as affecting persons professlag
the Jewish religion. It is to be regretted that this
subject has been necesaarily delayed until the end of
May. The delay affords a pretext for dealing with
the measure "in another place' according to the
time-honoured parliamentary practice in regard to bills
brought up at "this late periot of the
session." however strongly the opinion of the
Mouse of Commons may be expressed to-night, there
will be at least a pretext for delay, and the Lords
have not shown themselves slow to take every advan-
tage, fair and unfair, of such opportunities as may
chance to be afforded them to protract the settlement
of this important subject. We should consequently
have little hope that any measure on the subject
could be got through parliament this motion did we
not believe that the question might be so materially
narrowed and aimplfied as to obviate many of the
difficulties by which it heretofore has been em-
barrassed.
The committee aplointed early this session at the
instance of Mr. WILLIAM PAGR Woon, reported
upon the state of the law, and made it sufficiently
apparent that it is by no means the principle of
British legislation to exclude Jews from the highest 1
honours of the state. The words "on the true faith
of a christian," first introduced into the oath of
abjuration in the reign of Watt.tm 111., were not
intended at any time as a test of Christianity. They
had no reference to Judaism ; they were used merely
to conform the oath to an old parliamentary prece-
dent of the reign of JAMES 1., when an oath called
the Oath of Obedience was imposed, in which
these words were introduced. As we men-
tioned on a former occasion, it is a matter of great
doubt whether the oath of abjuration is now in force
at all ; but be that as it may, the various exemptions
which have been made, render it quite certain that
the °bleat of this oath is not, and never was, the ex-
clusion of the Jews from office.

These exemptions have existed from the time of
GEORGE!. and 11. By the acts passed in the reign
of those sovereigns, the legislature sanctioned the
omission by Jews of the objectionable words from the
oath of abjuration. The words of one of these sets
are worth quoting. They u• as follow :
And whereas the following words are contained in the
latter part of the Oath of Abjaratiest—viz., "upon Me true
fsift of a Christian." And whereas the people professing
the Jewish religion may thereby be prevented from
receiving the beaefit of this act; be it further en-
acted, by the autherity aforesaid, that whenever any per
professing the Jewish religion shall present himself to
take the said oath of abjuration in pursuance of this act, the
mici words, "awes the true faith of a Ctiristiar," shall be
omitted out of Me said oath in admiaivering the same to
such perms, and the taking and subscribing the said oath
by such person professing the Jewish religion without the
Words aforesaid, aid the other oaths nopeusted by as said
act, in like manner as Jews tesserriaitani to take the oath
of abjurati.in by OS aet made on the tenth year of his
llikiesty King George the Forst, de.
This enactment shows the feeling of the legislature.
The act, however (13 Geo. IL, cop. 7), only applies to
certain cases. Bat it is only necessary to extend its
operation to secure to the Jews the immunity they
desire. Aiiile bill enacting that whenever a Jew
is henceforward called upon to take the oath of abju-
ration he may take it in conformity with the provi-
sions of the act 13 Geo. 11., cap. 7, gets rid at once of
all the difficulties by which the bigoted portion of the
community have sought to embarrass this question of
seliiious privilege.
It will be, we believe, comparatively easy for Lord
Jo= Rees= to show that this amendment of the
law is required not only in order that the electors of
London may send whom they ;please to parliament,
bat really to order to meet difficulties which estima-
ble members of society encounter almost every day in
the performance of their ordinary duties. A case has
some to oar knowledge which *scarred in th's city
only a day or two ago, and which demon-
strates most clearly the absurdity of the present
state of things. Mr. D.tvm &twain:ess u every one
knows, is an alders=knows, of London, who has served the
office of high sheriff of Middlesex and Kent, and who
Lin her Majesty's commission of the peace for those
and several other csuntise. Now it occurred last
Tuesday that this gentleman, as a Middlesex magis-
trate, had occasion to perform some act in tile ex
officio capacity of a commissioner of assessed taxes foe
the district of Marylebone. Mr. SALOMONS went to
the proper office for that purpose, and found
the commune' sitting; a very respectable pawn-
broker in the chair. Before actaig, the clerk
to the oommiseioners, who very probably gets some
lies on the admission of new members, required Mr.
BaLoesotte to qualify. That gentleman stated that
be had done so already, both as a justice of the peat*
foe Middlesex, and as a commissioner of assessed

Uses in other counties. This, however, by no means
contented the nom-nipsiosers for Marylcbone. They
had an idea that Mr. Si,tosioNs desired to perform
some act that might not be acceptable to all
of them, so apparently they looked about for a
means of excluding him. Are you willing to
qualify ?" said one of them. " Certainly," said Mr.
Ssi.oxoss. Da you know what you're a-4oieg to
do ?" Liked another. "I hope so," said the Alderman
and ex-8.-.eriff. "Jost chew him the oath," sung out
a third; and just s Munk, the son of Wifku,stuek
under the no.. of Isaac of York the skin of bacon
that repulsed him from the lists at Ashby, so,. with
much the same effect, the Clerk to the Commissioners
pulled oat of his drawer the oath of abjuration, or-
dered to be administered to all "suspected persons,"
and insisted upon the Middlesex magistrate gulping
it down, "on the true faith of a Christian," or else
foregoing his title to act am an ex-officio Coniesiotier
of Taxes.

Whether or not Mr. SALOMONS considers it a
grievance to be precluded for the moment from act-
log with these Marylebone commissioners, is more
than we can say. Bat the good sense of the nation
will regard it is most improper that a gentleman
holding her MAJESTY'S commission of the peace in
half-a-dozen counties, an alderman of London, an
ex-sheriff of Middlesex, and a highly estimable man
into the bargain, should be liable to be treated with
this sort of indignity at the caprice of any body
of persons with whom be may be called upon to act.
It will be seen at once that a simple extension of
the Act of Gnome IL would prevent a repetition
of these unnecessary annoyances. The case is a strong
one in support of Lord JOHN REBEELL'S contemplated
measure, and whilst its occurrence must be a vexation
to the party principally concerned, the incident is
opportune, as showing the annoying and mortifying
manner in which the disabilities imposed by the oath
of abjuration may be made to operate at the pleasure
of almost any petty board.

Ann the people of Ireland to be handed over once
more tritlieir hereditary tormenters ? or can no expe-
rience, however bitter, teach the rulers of this country
that by landlordism it is vein to hope for the perma-
nent pacification or social redemption of that most
sorely tried and deeply injured realm ?
From one end of the island:t• the other there is
heard bat one importunate demand—namely, for land
reform. North and smith, cast and west, all are
_ _ .

united in the urgent cry for security and fair play.
Hitherto the mass of the occupiers of the soil
have known neither. Property in the soil
has been a slime and strict monopoly, girt round
with every kind of privilege fir legalised plunder
and extortion. Improvement has been confessedly
paralysed fur generations by the unbridled insolence
of their territorial tyranny. Rack-renting, eviction,
denial of compensation for improvements, and all en-
forced by the irresponsible power of the proprietary
acting an irresponsible magistrates at petty and at

quarter ssesiono—this marvellous mechanism of op-
pension working without hindrance from sire to son,
brought the modal condition of Ireland to what we
too well remember it was when the famine of 1917
cams. In the helplessness of that Nadel meson the
state was forced to intervene, to save millions of
its too long aftlector), pauperised, and siewn-troddes
subjects from dencition. Every look of grave iv-
roach and blame was on lemilludism—ethe
guilty thing that notorional bad been the piquant
mem of so mach shame woe. Official sermons
were eloquently preached upon the enormity of the
system, end official vows put up that ones the terrible
exigency over, effectual measures should be taken for
preventing fa the future the recurrence of such in-
tolerable evils.
But famine and politikus have no sooner dis-
appeared than the frightful miseries of the old system
are forgotten, and the responsible advisers of the
crown prepare to renew the old lease of Ireland to
the oligarchy, that they mac wreak their sordid
and inhuman will thereon. The atrocious code of
landlord law under which the country has been half
barbs:hied, is sot to be amended in any one particular.
Having the monopoly of land, the hereditary extor-
tioners are to keep it as long es they please, or as long
as they can. When their individual necessities force
them into the Incumbered Estates Court, no merciful
interpositioi is exerted even there to change the de-
basing and demoralising tenure upon which the
tenantry occupy their lands • but the new purchaser
is to take the same statutaile power of oppression,
violence, and fraud, which the spendthrift had
whose estate he puchases.bsetreet single effort
has been made or 32 making to arbitrate the deadly
fend between the peeseseors of tenant-right in Ulster
and these who would rob them of it. "Pull devil,
pull baker," appears to be the sum total of the advice
which parliament is likely to give in this most press-
ing and perilous question. The petitions of the Irish
people are of course thrown under the table. The
suggestions and remonstrance, of their popular repre-
sentatives are treated with contempt. And after
having trifled for three months with the subject of a
Landlord and Tenant Bill, the announcement has at
length been made that there is no serious intention
of even trying to pass any measure of the tort this
year.
We must do Lord Joint Ittrsuni the justice of
saying, that we believe, if left to himself, or, rather,
if not thwarted and betrayed by those oa whom he
meet, to some extent, rely for the preparation of de-
tails, he would do the needful in this most important
matter. His words of promise and of hope five years
ago ere still remembered. He decla'ed, when about
to take office, that his favourite day-dream had been
the restoration of peace and contentment to Ireland.
And he indicated plainly the way in which alone
that great end could be attained. Unhappily for
his fame, and for the weal of that victim
land, he has been encompassed by men without
either sympathy in his ideas or any ideas of their owe :
wretched copyists of stale methods, e.-.d wholly inap-
plicable formula; doctrinaires without heart or even
foresight; penny-wise economists, who for sake of
some farthing theory will inevitably involve this
country, at no very distant day, in a costly and scan-
dalous struggle with the unanimous disaffection of a
whole community. Lord Joaw stated on Tuesday
evening last that he had referred the recom-
mendations of the liberal members connected
with Ireland for the consideration of --
whom? He did not say. But of whomsoever,
we know the deplorable result that, because some
confidential adviser of his thought fit to veto all pro-
posals of amelioration in the iniquitous kw as it now
exists,—therefore the Prime Minister regrets to be
obliged to say that he cannot hold out any present
hope of a remedial measure. Sir WILLIAM SUMER-
rttne's humbug bill is to be read a second time, by
way of affording opportunity, as it is said, for a dis-
cussion: but the festering sore is to be suffered to
inflame, and the incentives to every species of evil are
to be allowed free course for another year !
Who can wonder if under each treatment we find
the peasantry of every part of Ireland misled
into a resumption of those unwarrantable but not
wholly unmeaning or inefficacious practices wi.ich
in other days have deformed the character of the
people and led the way to fearful crimes ? We are
deeply impressed with the conviction that if some
great change be not peremptorily brought about in
the existing relations of the two great classes in that
country, a prolonged and implacable struggle will
arise, which no man of sober judgment can view
without apprehension, and of which no man can fore-
see the issue. Already the too obvious doctrine is
openly promulgated that it is idle to look to parlia-
meet for redress, and that the remedy lies within the
mai of the people, spontaneously organised for the
puryose. 'Ti. vain to shut our eyes to the fact that
this is the theory of revolution. Yet to this theme
government has actually volunteered a species of
obligate accompaniment !