Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-08-08 00:00:00

times it has to plant artillery, and to shower bomb-

-shells, in order to overawe a disaffected city. But

these are necessities thrust upon it, which it does

not court

and 'in which it merely 'imitates thy' severe

justice. of the law. This being the plea of all des-
potisms, Louis NAPOLEON'S among the others, what
?ge in excuse Tor her conduct in

else does Augtria al

festoes not a week old ? If w

can poin

to the

massacre of Perugia we can also. point to the coup
-is. If we can point to the legal out-

l'etat at Pa

- -
rage on the celebrated proteges of Miss White, we

can also point to the prosecution of Montelambert

II we can point to Austrian dungeons, we can also

point to Lambessa, and Cayenne,

Now what is the use of all this unpleasant remi-
niscence ? Simply to prove that Louis Napoleon is
involved in despotic traditions and necessities, and
is unable to extricate himself from them,—that he

cannot therefore inaugurate, or help to inaugurate,
that new state of things for which England sighs,
for which Italy implores and weeps, for the hope of
which alone England can enter this Congress, with a
steady step or an unfaltering purpose. Unless
as a sworn enemy to the political system of
the Papacy, unless as a consolidator of Italian

Liberty, unless as a foe of despotic precedents,
pleas of necessity, and subtleties of hereditary-right
over lately conquered nationalities ; unless as advo-
: 4
cate of a principle which is as repugnant to French

as it is to Austrian—as it is to Papal, Imperial notions,

England can fulfil no part at this Congress adequate
to the moral influence which is her due, or to the
dignity of the mission which devolves upon her

among nations,

She will be outwitted by diplomacy. She 11 be

trapped into an ignominious compromise, and
strengthen the questionable reputation she already
bears from keeping bad company. She will have

nothing but a principle and *a sentiment to oppose to
the compacted system and, the united interest of
France, Austria, and the Pope ; and we more than
fear she will find her new hopes premature, and that
the evil confederacy cannot yet be broken.

WE were rejoiced to find the honourable member

_ Ivitya unION 1111LNES, drawing the
attention of the Government tau subject which has

in this matter.
The " Bodmin Scandal," as it has come to be called, did
not .obtain that stern regard from the House of Commons on
Friday night which the previous debate might have led one
to expect. The member whose return had been petitioned
against, on charges of 'corrupt practices, appeared in his
plaCe, and explained that, not wishing to ruin himself and
those dependent upon him, he had intended from the first to
resign his seat, rather than defend it, and this explanation
appears to have been satisfactory. We cannot, however,
agree with any such opinion. Dr. Michell's inability to
bear the expense of such a defence does not alter the case
one whit. If he was guilty of the charges brought -against
him, he deserved- not only to lose his seat, but to suffer any
othdr .penaltr consequent upon his guilt. The corrupting
agents, and the corrupt electors atso, if there were. any such,
ought not. to escape in this way. •The principle, it Tis
evident, on' which a member thus charged can run away
from the accusation, by accepting, the Chiltern Hundreds,
is a very mischievous one, since its practical effect is, most
decidedly, to defeat the ends of justice. As it happens, Dr.
Michell has apparently been an ill-used-'man. HO protests
that the petition was founded in falsehood ;• in which case,
however, the petitioners themselves ought certainly to be
these outrages had in a special manner I punished..'

The Committee of the House of Lords on Churph-rates
has not been able, it seems, to prepare a satisfactory report,
and has therefore been obliged to report the evidence only
accompanied by a recoMmendation that it should be re-ap-
pointed next year. That a difficulty should be in the way, is
not to be wondered at. The evidence received is, no doubt, of
a very conflicting nature as respects the working of the
church-rate system of late years, but this is to be attri-
buted not to the system itself so much as to the very
improper manner in which it has been too generally carried
out. The law of the land is,—that the fabrics of the
national church, and much appertaining thereto, should' be
maintained by a rate upon the parishioners. That is the
prinCiple. And, its object is one so indispensably necessary,
if a national church is to be maintained, that no committee
of parliament, we humbly think, with any regard' to what
is right and consistent in such a case, can ever report against
that principle, unless indeed it be decided, at the same time,
that all,idea of sustaining a national church in this country
is henceforth to be ignored. Let us hope, however, that
the committee will be re-appointed next year; and that the
subject will then have a fuller and fairer consideration than
ir perhaps has yet been bestowed upon it.
11 The subject of Endowed Schools is likely to be taken up
by the Government, judging from what fell from the Lord
Chancellor in the House of Lords on Friday night, in
answer to Lord Cranworth. Mr. Dillwyn's bill in the
House of Commons, which he has deserted for the present,
has directed attention to the subject; and certainly it is
most desirable that any doubt should be removed as to
the rights which are claimed on behalf of dissenters to par-
ticipate in the direction of such schools. Whenever
.they are schools free from all obligation to impart an
education upon the principles of the Church of England, of ,
course the children of Dissenters ought to be considered as
admissible to them as those of Churchmen themselVes :
whilst there can be no just reason why Dissenters should be
excluded from their boards of trust or management. But if
they are schools which Churchmen endowed for the purpose
of imparting a Church education, it can never be just to ."
defeat that object by accommodating the education they are
to give to the prejudices of Dissent.