Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-08-19 00:00:00

clergy—

to this most momentous question. It is

one, they may be assumd, which lies at the very'
foundation of the social: fabric; and unless soittO

decisive means be at once adopted to deal with it
effectually, we must not be surprised if, in no long
time, we should bo involved in even so, (Qad a
calamity as that of finding such a fabric, fel-Ulla
utterly to pieces in our midst.

NOTES OF THE DAY.

It now appears that the stipulations of the Treaty of
Villafranca, as regaids the Italian States, were framed
to admit of the success of the revolutionary movement
which the war had produced. Those stipulations
merely permit the exiled Princes of Tuscany and Mode"
to return to their kingdoms, if they can persuade their
subjects to receive them, but forbid their restoration
being enforced by arms. In refusing, therefore, either
to reinstate them by his own army, or to tolerate the
armed intervention of Austria with that object, Lo"
Napoleon P 09114 b but acting in accordance

AUGUST 19," 18590

with the Treaty which Austria entered into along. with

41m• Whether the Emperor of Austria understood
those conditions, is probably questionable. At any rate,
the Princes themselves appear to have calculated upon
Austrian support, in their endeavours to re-instate them-
eelves in authority. The policy of Leuis IST4poieon,
there is no doubt, is directed to the establishment in Italy
.41 —.;.asty of his own House ; and this helm the case.

of .a ct

an'his sympathies must, for the moment, be with those
Who are revolting against their late rulers.
The Tuscan National Assembly's resolution, that. the,
Grand Duchy shall henceforth form a component part
of the " Kingdom of Italy," under the constitutional
rule of the Kingdom of Sardinia, would seem to militate
against the great purpose of the French Emperor. But
the fact is, that what that Assembly and the Modenese
Provisional Government are doing, cannot be regarded
as anything but temporary. Oitie thing is recognised
'which hereafter have to Westablished and organised
on au entirely new footiag4we mean this " King:om
.of Italy ;" to which, in all their present arrangements,
they already refer, and in the future settlement of which,
there is little doubt, it may be taken for granted that
Louis Napoleon has his own ends to serve.

The London builders' strike is assuming a worse
aspect than ever. The determination of the masters to
resist the dictation of their workmen, as to the hours of
labour and their remuneration, appears to be producing
so much sympathy in favour of the strike among the
working men of the metropolis generally, that the
building operatives are encouraged in their policy of
resistance, and have become firmly resolved, it is stated,
to stand out for their own terms. They have already
issued an appeal to the trades of the United Kingdom,
to support them in their present struggler which is
being responded to, it appears, so heartily, as to inspire
them with confident hopes of yet being able to prevail
over their employers. The spirit thus manifested on
the part of the working men is, we think, a mischievous
one ; and the course they are persisting in is deeply to
be regretted, on their own account, no less than on

their employers'.
Although Mr. Ferrand has again been defeated at
Devonport, all must admit that he has fought a gallant
fight ; while many will agree with us, that he deserved
to win. Devonport, however, is a Government Borough,
—that is to say, a place where, if the Government of
the day is unscrupulous enough to allow it, its influence
can easily be exerted in coercing the voters. There is
no doubt, from what we have learned, that had no Filch
influence been exercised, Mr. Ferrand would have been
returned by a triumphant majority. As it was, he pre-
sented the unhappy anomaly of a popular candidate
being defeated by the votes of those among whom his
Popularity was acknowledged and appreciated.

The revelation given in a curious fetter to the Journal

de Frankfort, exposing the unconstitutional impetuosity
of Lord Palmerston and Lord John Russell, in accepting
the conditions of the peace of Villafranca without, as
they were in duty bound to do, consulting her Majesty,
is but a confirmation of a similar disclosure which crept
cut some ten or twelve days ago. There is every pro-
bability of its truth ; and, if true, it is anything but
creditable to the Ministers concerned, however charac-
teristic it may be of their policy and their perversity.

THE LATEST NEWS.
MR. COBDEN ON PARLIAMENTARY
REFORM.

Last night Mr. Cobden addressed the non-electors of
Itochdale on Parliamentary Reform. The number of
pens present was proba,:dy between 4,000 and 5,000.
the meeting was held in the large pavilion in which the
iree took place on Wednesday night. The mayor, Mr.
Stuart, presided. Mr. Cobden was greeted with loud
cheers, again and again repeated.
Mr. Cobden, after having apologised for the hoarse-
ness under which he was labouring, said this was to be
considered a non-electors' meeting, and by the mayor pre-
siding, it was clear that the non-electors were considered as
forming- an important class of the communityof this country.
He held it quite impossible there could be good in any
Policy that did not take with it and embrace the work-
ing classes. With regard to Parliamentary Reform, it
was a sign to find that the people were anxious about
having the suffrage. In times past they had rather
dealt with the question of Reform as a compound ques-
tion than otherwise,- and that policy lie now believed
was erroneous. There should, in his opinion, be
a separate bill for everything ; there should be a sepa-

Le extension o:

the ballot, another for shortening the duration of Par-
liament, and another for the re-distribution of seats.
He had always advocated household suffrage, and others
had advocated manhood suffrage. The middle classes
of those who had votes were jealous of the working class

having the franchise, but without any reason ; every step
they went forward they would find that the next step was
easier to make. We had come to a dead lock now on
this question of Parliamentary Reform, and it must be
dealt with at once. He hoped it would be dealt with in
a large and satisfactory manner with regard to the idea
which prevailed among the middle classes (the electors).
That if the working classes were given the franchise
it would weaken their present power that was ridiculous,
for there was no interest which that class had which
was not the interest of the other class. He (Mr. C.) •
never could see any danger in giving to the working
Flosses the franchise. He would ask the middle classes
if they did not feel that they had some great dangers to
risk, themselves, if they kept the working classes longer
out of the suffrage. There were, he believed, four or
five millions of adult people in this country who had
not got a vote, and the Government therefore advo-
cated that at least some of these should be taken into
Partnership with the middle classes as regarded the
franchise ; for as it l; as, the privileges that now
exclusively held were hardly safe at the present
time ; our system of repression was an infamous
sham, and there was no security in shams that at any
time may be passed by a reality in the next five years.
He should not be surprised to hear of some revolution
on the continent, and that it might even produce great
changes in this country—changes which politically
would be far greater than any that ever came is pass.
The statesmen of this country would greatly regret that
they lied not attended to the queetion of Parliamentary
Reform in time of profound peace and contentment, such
as now prevailed throughout the country. He there-
fore advised those in power no longer to dally with this
great question, for those five-sixths of the population
who had no vote might think they were oppressed, -and
therefore determine to shake off that oppression. Then
we were told that the working classes would be injured
by possessing the franchise. In answer to that he would
put this question : If the people are not able to take
care of themselves, who are they that are fit
to take care of them ? The fact was, the people must
always be left to take care of themselves. It was urged
as a reason why the working classes were unfit for the
franchise, that they were ignorant, being uneducated.
His answer was, then educate them. Education was
the foundation of every political question in America,
and it must be so in this country. In America they
advocated education, as the means of enabling the people
to govern themselves, and so it must be m England ;
and, as a means to that en?, he (Mr. Cobden)
advocated an extension of our system of national
education. He did not fear an extension of the
franchise, for he believed above all other things it
would extend our commercial prosperity and happi-
ness as a nation. Another reason urged why the
Working class should not possess political power was,
that they would take the taxes off such things as tea,
sugar, &c. Well, if they did, he could not see that any
great harm could result from that. Take the case of
the corn-laws, the navigation-laws, and the like. What
were they but class legislation ; and their abolition had
been fraught with good, and no evil, even in the case
of those for whom they were first enacted. To take off
the tax upon tea, sugar, paper, &c., was carrying out
the enlightened principles of political economy. With
regard to the measure of parliamentary reform that
Should be conceded, he did not think that either the
country or parliament was fond of advocating a very
large measure ; but, somehow or other, the question
had been mooted in the house, and although there
everybody was extending the system of representation,
they did not know how or what to do with it. (Hear,
hear) When he was in America, Mr. Bright was
making many eloquent speeches on this subject, in which
he advocated a large measure of reform; but he (Mr.
Cobden) never gathered in any way that he atumeeed

in getting up any sort of combustion in the country.to
help him ; indeed, a friend of his in America noticed
this, and observed to him that he (Mr. Cobden) and
Mr. Bright had made a great mistake, that they did not
agitate the question of Parliamentary Reform before that
ofthe repeal of the Corn Laws ; for now the people were so
well fed, clothed, and contented, that they had all become
Tories. It was of no use for him, Mr. Bright, or any
one else, to try to ;et any. measure of Reform, if those'
outside, the Teople, the non-electors, did not assist them.
lie ought, however, to advise the people universally to
make the demand; Ile would not advise those-ix power
to grant such a measure as would carry us over the next'
twenty years. Lord John Russell had, he understood,
pledged himself to a £6 suffrage for the boroughs, and a
£lO for the counties. Well, in such places as Manches-
ter, Rochdale, and all our large cities, that suffrage
would take in a great number of the working classes, but
it would add very little to the county register, nor would
it do much for Scotland or Ireland. Ile was told that,
altogether, it would not give more than about 500,000 or
600,000 persons the franchise: If Lord John Russell's
proposal was not agreed to, they had better not disturb
the existing state of things ; and he understood that
some—both Lords and Commons—thought Lord John
Russell's proposal was too much of the present
government faltered. With regard to Lord John
Russell's proposition, it would act most unwisely ; the
ballot would be sure to follow an extension of the fran-
chise, and he would have it made a separate. question.
With regard to the question of r-edistribution of seats,
the large cities and counties must have more members,
and many of the small boroughs be disfranchised. The
large cities which might return four members, such as
Manchester for instance, ought to be divided, say into
four wards, so that each class, rich and poor, might
return the members most congenial to their minds...

. P
In consequence of the falling of part of the walls of
Messrs. Raynors' warehouse, in Love-lane, Great Howard-
street, last night, upon the telegraphic wires, thereby
rendering them useless for the present, we are unable to
give the remainder of the proceedings.

The following appeared in a portion of our impression
of yesterday .

FRANCE.
THE AMNESTY-DEPARTURE OF THE
EMPEROR.

PARIS, Thursday Morning.—The .3foniteur of this
morning publishes the following :
All warnings which have been given to the news-
papers in France and the Colonies, are to be considered
as non-issued. . .

The Minister of the Interior, in concert with his
colleagues, the Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Algiers
and the Colonies, has ordered the necessary measures to
be taken to ensure the immediate exec-ition of the full
and entire Amnesty granted by the Emperor.

Their Imperial Majesties left yesterday for St. Saveur,
where they will sojourn till the sth September, when
they will proceed to Biarritz.
922 soldiers, sentenced for various offences, have been
either pardoned or, the term of their imprisonment has
been commuted.

IREITTER'S TELEGRAM.]

PARIS, August 17.—The young Grand • Duke of
Tuscany arrived yesterday at Paris. He has been re-
ceived by the Emperor,•who invited him to remain for
some time at Paris, in order to await what events may
transpire. The . Emperor gave him a very kind and
gracious reception.