The Express.
London, England, 1861-02-27 00:00:00

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BRITANNIA.
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—The Erothera Conrad will give th,•er Mo.kall and Aerobatoal
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EItINCE TUE OGRE. Herr Conrad and ions Mn. 74. Lone.

aloe WAT&Z AT LONDON BRIDGE.
T DAT —Mania& DA DIAL Afternoon. Th. eonn.
TlMMlLAnif—Nrauffes, ID. Oa.— Afternoon, 4h. 27es.

LONDON, WEDNILIDAY, FEB. 27.

Tat division on Sir Joint Tact.xwxy's Bill
to-day will be the critical vote of the session, and
one party in the House of Commons at least is
fully alive to the fact. During the last few days
the Tories have made extraordinary exertions to
secure the attendance of every member who usually
sits on their side of the House. The new Conscir-
',afire whip, anxious to rise with the occasion and to
prove his fitness for the post, has devoted himself
to his arduous duties with untiring energy, and it
is certain that every available man in the opposi-
tion ranks will be to-day et his post. Whether
there has been equal diligence and zeal on the
Government side of the House a few hours will
decide. But if any timid or lukewarm Liberals
are still disposed to regard the vote on this
measure as of secondary moment, none of their
opponents share the delusion. The Conservatives
at all events perfectly understand the supreme
importance of to-day's division as a trial
of party strength. That is, indeed, its
true significance. With the Tories this resistance
to Sir J,PHN Tszi.svrev's motion is a mere
party struggle. Their aim is purely negative—to
defeat the Liberal party on a question of first rate
Importance. For the rest they have no principle
to defend, and no counter-policy to pursue. So far
as the question of Church-rates is concerned they
are really fighting for nothing, or at best for a
Isere chaos of contradictory opinion. It is the
MOWS important to insist on this, se some moderate
Conservatives may feel inclined to vote against Sir
Joys Tastsw NY's Bill in the hope that if it is
debated a compromise may be agreed upon. There
is, however, no chance of this. The perfect union
that exists amongst the opponents of the rate, and
the hopeless division of its professed friends,
squally conspire to prove that compromise is now
impossible. Thu moment the Conservatives at-
tempt
to deal practically with the question, they
are split up into sections as strongly op-
posed to each other as they are to the abo-
litionists. Mr. DISZACLI denounces the plan

recommended by the House of Lords and the
Episcopal Bench as shortsighted and even suicidal.
Archdeacon I)ast+us undertakes a crusade against
Mr. Hellealltis scheme, pronouncing any attempt
at compromise as treason against the Church.
Nay, so hopelessly divided in opinion are the
friends of the rate that they cannot venture to
hold a public meeting lest the speakers should
contradict each other. This actually happened
the other day at a private meeting amongst them-
selves, Mr. Beer... Foal) Hoer having risen to
protest against the opinions expressed by Lord
ROBIULT MuNTAGr. While there is no union in
opinion or pulley amongst the friends of the rate,
the subject has, however, excited a good deal of
feeling, and needy politicians, like the leader of
the Opposition, who care nothing about the Church,
and simply want a cry, are naturally anxious to turn
this pro rate excitement to their own account. They
are of course glad to use it as a party instrument,
and eagerly hound on their followers in the hope of
gaining a momentary triumph. The ablest organs
of the Church, as well as her wisest and most
earnest friends, deprecate this political use of
the question, and justly urge that a barren victory
on the question of no compromise would ulti-
mately prove far worse for the Church than a de-
feat. They know well enough that on the Tory
side of the House there is no principle at stake in
this struggle ; they know the Church can gain
nothing by it, and that it is only a desperate effort
to delay an inevitable triumph.
But while a barren victory on this question
might be • serious evil for the Church, it would
undoubtedly prove a great gain for the Tory party.
They have not only made the rate a political
question, but have given it • prominent place in
their party programme, and rallied the whole force
of their party organization in its support. If the Op-
position gain a majority to-day, the Liberal party,
and the Government that depends on it, will re-
ceive the heaviest blow that has been dealt them
for many a day. The Liberal party will, in fact,
not only be defeated, but disorganized. It behoves
every member of the party, therefore, every man
in the Houie calling himself a Liberal, to consider
the meaning and result of to-day's vote. Many
members en the Liberal benches have possibly
no particular interest in the subject of Church-
rates. With some the matter is simply a bore they
would gladly be rid of at almost any price. Others
are in favour of a compromise, if it could in any
way be brought about. Many Liberal members
are thus indifferent, if not actually opposed, to Sir
Juan TILZLAWN v's Bill. On reflection they must,
however, see that in the present position of the
question they are no longer at liberty to consult
their individual feeling in the matter. Though
abstractedly perhaps in favour of a compro-
mise, they must see that it is now impos-
sible. The opinion and example of expe-
rienced and leading statesmen like Lord P
%TON and Lord JOHN RUILSELL are decisive on this
head. The total abolition or partial retention of
the rate, instead of being, as it once was, a mere
detail of ecclesiastical legislation, has become a po-
litical question of first-rate importance. It is
one of the two great questions that divide
Liberals and Tories. And public men who
have heretofore perhaps been indifferent to the
question are called to consider it in its new aspect.
If they have any care for their own position or that
of the party with whom they act, they cannot
afford to neglect it any longer. It would be diffi-
cult to estimate, and perhaps impossible to over-
rate the importance which this question has now
acquired not only in this House, but locally in the
panty and borough constituencies, as well as in the
mind of the country at ism,. It is one of the
few questions i-n which Liberal constituencies are
determined to make a stand, and they are not in
the mood to be trilled with. It is one of the few