The Sun.
London, England, 1855-02-19 00:00:00

(Front the Lynn Advertiser.)
Lord Stanley, M.P. for the borough of King's Lynn,
having intimated his wish to address the electors, a meeting
called for that purpose, was held at the Town Hall, on
Thursday: There was a very large attendance on the occa-
sion, and all parties in the town were amply represented in
the &meeting. Amongst others present we observed the
following gentlemen, viz., :—The Rev. R. Cattley, Rev. G.
Lecper, Rev. J. Bransby, Rev. A. W. Durdin, Rev. G.
Rigby, Rev. J. T. Wigner, Captain Cresswell, R.N.,
Lieutenant Garland, RN. Messrs. R. Bagge, F. Cresswell,
W. Moyse, J. Platten, G. Hogge, P. Wilson, J. B. Whit-
ing, R. Pitcher, L. W. Jarvis, J. J. Coulton, J. P. Blen-
cowe, E. Durrant, C. Goodwin F. Hulton, H. Edwards,
J. E. Jeffery, W. Beloe, L. Self, R. Cook, W. Armes,
I. 0. Smetham, W. Blencowe, J. Scales, H. Plowright, H.
Allen, W. Cooper, A. Swatman, C. Sheppard, T. Sheppard,
Seppings, J. Laird, Plews, Blott, Share, F. R. Partridge,
Atmore, W. Shipp, W. Patrick, Harding, H. Wells, J.
Thew, Saylo, dzc.
On Lord Stanley's entering the room, in company with
Mr. Bagge, he was loudly cheered, and his lordship's recep-
tion throughout was such as to convey to him the fullest
assurance of the confidence reposed in him by his con -
stituents.
The Mayor having been requested (on the motion of Mr.
Bagge, duly seconded) to take the chair, stated that it was
his intention to have said a few words on the occasion :
but, labouring as ho was under a very severe cold, sore
throat, and loss of voice, he should content himself with
merely introducing to the meeting Lord Stanley, who, on
all occasions, he was sure, did everything to promote the
welfare and interests of the inhabitants of the town, and
who was, .ho thought the meeting would agree, entitled to
their warmest thanks for his conduct. (Applause.)
Lord Stanley on rising to address the meeting was received
with much cheering. He proceeded to speak as follows :—Mr.
Mayor and Gentlemen, I have asked you to meet me here to-
day, because I think it only right and courteous after so long
a period as that which has elapsed between the election of
1852 and at the present time, to offer to you, although unso-
licited, some account of the manner in which during that
time I have attempted to discharge the trust imposed upon
me as your representative. I take this step not solicited by
any one here ; I take it without reference to any prospective
probabilities of a future Parliament—for a general election at
thil time appears very unlikely; but I take it because I wish
to offer on my part, and to ask from you in return, that frank
and full confidence which at all times and under all circum-
stances ought to exist between the electors and the elected.
(Hear, hear.) And let me in the first place express to you
my gratitude, not only for the support which here I have al-
ways received, but also for that which I value even more—for
the perfect and entire freedom of political action which you
have always left in my hands. There are many here whose
advice I value, there are some to whose judgment I would
even defer my own ; but in the six years that I have been your
member it has never once been said to me upon any single oc-
casion, " you must vote for this measure, or you must ab-
stain from voting for that, or else you will not be returned
again." (Applause.) I am proud of such confidence ; and,
though the case is my own, and though, therefore, I may be
considered as an interested party, I will say I believe that is
the best way, I believe it is the only way, to obtain honest
and effectual political service. There are difficulties enough
in the way of any man who aspires to be a conscientious and
independent legislator7-personal feeling, party bias, class in-
terests, liking or aversion for particular men, the fear of
seeming inconsistent with one's former professions, the
fear of seeming to forbid for popularity or for office:--adthese
are motives which warp a man's mind without his knowledge,
and which make it not always easy to see clearly what is
one's duty. There is nothing gained by interposing another
obstacle between a man's conscience and his vote ; and I think
you will agree with me that if a member is not fit to think
and to act for him elf upon public matters, he is much better
in any other place than in the House of Commons. (Applause.)
Well, gentlemen, the three years of this Parliament, although
productive of consequences which may ultimately be mo-
mentous not only to England, but to Europe, have been, so
far as internal legislation is concerned, singularly barren of
results. (Hear, hear) The Government of Lord Derby
quitted office too soon to bring forward any measures; and,
of course, in public as in private affairs it is idle to claim
credit for unfulfilled intentions. When Lord Aberdeen formed
his ministry we were told on all hands—it was the general
cry of the country, that there never had been an administra-
tion of greater promise; and certainly, if we are to judge by
the number, by the magnitude, and by the variety of the in-
terests with which they undertook to deal, and of the ques-
tions which they undertook to settle, we must allow that
there never has been a more promising administration. We
were to have a largo measure of parliamentary reform ; we
were to have augmented and improved provi =ion for national
education ; the poor law was to be reformed—settlement
done away ; and lastly, there was a scheme to throw open,
as it was said, and to remodel the civil administration of this
country upon an entirely new basis. Well, what happened ?
Parliamentary reform was first postponed, then abandoned.
An education bill was introduced; was laid before the House
of Common. ; was there received with no particular favour
indeed, but with no particular censure and yet, nevertheless
suddenly and without cause it disappeared from public
view. The Poor-law Bill -a measure which I believe
would have received the support of quite as many Conser-
vative as Liberal members—broke down in the face of Par-
liament from a want of concert among its promoters—ono
Minister supporting one scheme, and his colleague defending
another; and that measure, too, was withdrawn, and never
appeared again. And as to that much-vaunted scheme of
crvll service lefulm, which had been named iu the Queen's
Speech, and which had been introduced to the country by the
applause of the newspaper press—that measure never even
was submitted to the House of Commons at all, but, after
having been so named iu the Royal speech, and after the
details of it had been sketched out in the newspapers, was
withdrawn, and has not been heard of from that day to this.
Now I need not tell you that the initiation of public mea-
sures rests with the Government, and that where from any
cause Government does not undertake the work of reform,
not very much can be done by independent private members.
Some measures, however, have been carried, and many have
been discussed ; and to these minor topics, though only com-
paratively minor topics, I will advert in a few words before I
come to that which is the one object of the day—l mean the
war in which we are engaged. (Applause.) Two measures
have been carried which I shall pass over very shortly. A
bill was introduced for the prevention of bribery—a bill con-
taining some provisions of a very stringent character—a bill
which, since it has been in force, in those few cases in which
it has had a trial, has, I believe, worked well. That bill ori-
ginated pretty equally with both sides of the house, and, as a
whole, was not opposed by any party. It is a measure for
which neither the Government alone, nor the Opposition
'alone, could claim credit. It was a bill which originated
with the entire House of Commons ; and, as. far as the details
were concerned, I believe we may say that the most important
provisions which it contained were due to my friends Mr.
Walpole and Sir Fitzroy Kelly. There was also a bill intro-
duced and carried for the reform of the University of Oxford.
That was a measure of which the necessity and the import-
ance had long been felt; and it was a measure which, as a
whole and upon principle, did not meet with opposition from
any quarter. It underwent important modifications in its
progress through Parliament. It excited much discussion,
and, perhaps, some needless apprehension ; but it happened,
singularly enough, that the on'y great principle which it
could be said to involve, the only principle of really national
importance which it contained—the principle of admitting
persons not members of the Church of England to study in
those universities—that principle formed no part of the Mini-
sterial plan ; it was not adopted by the Ministry when sug-
gested to them from another quarter ; but it was carried
against the opposition of the Ministry by a union of indepen-
dent Liberal and Conservative members. (Hear.) There
was, indeed, a measure also passed in that session, of which
the entire credit or discredit rests with the Government—l
mean the India Bill of Sir Charles Wood. I mention that
measure partly on account of its great importance, partly
also because it was one with which I was myself in some
degree connected. It became my duty, when that measure
came to a second reading, to move an amendment postponing
the consideration of the subject for a period of two years.
I and those with whom, and by the advice of whom, I acted
on than occasion, did so, not because we were hostile to the
principle of Indian reform, but precisely the reverse. We
thought that if time were allowed for the public to become
better informed upon the subject, and for a more general
interest and attention to be excited in the country—we
thought that if a limited period—two, three, or even five
years, had been allowed for that purpose, and, in the mean-
while, if all permanent legislation had been suspended, that
means would have been afforded of introducing many great
and beneficial improvements in the government of India
which were not at that time possible, and that the ad-
vantage so gained would more than compensate for the
delay. We were the more entitled to .hold• that opinion,
because at the time the measure in question was brought
forward an inquiry had been ordered to take place before
a committee of the House of Commons ; that committee
had sat during a part of two sessions ; it had investigated
the subject, but investigated only a part of the subject ; and
upon that partial investigation, the inquiry being still un-
concluded, Parliament was asked to legislate, the inquiry
was to be cut short, and the House of Commons was to
decide upon the whole of a case of which it had heard only
a part. I have often reverted to that vote ; and though
mite,nutuardyersgeonsme—ortehosuiggnhalnedveefreadt—id
lopmpusosittinony,
certainly there never was a Ministerial measure more success-
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minus must c oPnafrelsi as
that, looking back upon that measure, I am satisfied the vote
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now advert to ono or two questions, not perhaps of greater
intrinsic importance, but of more interest to you. I take
first the question of church rates. I have voted for the abo-
lition of church rates, and shall do so again. When the mat-
ter was first brought forward for discussion in the session of
1853, I thought, and many others thought, that a compro-
mise would be possible, which, while equally relieving Non-
conformists from the unjust burden to which they are sub-
jected, would serve to mitigate in no small degree the oppo-
sition and the dislike to any change which were felt by the
great body of Churchmen. That plan was proposed by
another member of Parliament. I supported it in writing,
and I voted for it in the division ; it was fully and fairly dis-
cussed ; and the result of the discussion which then took
place upon my mind was to convince me that fair and equit-
able as that compromise might be in point of principle, it
was encumbered and embarrassed with so many practical
difficulties in the working as to make it difficult for it be
carried through the House of, Commons, and make it quite
impossible for it to be successfully carried out. Well, then,
I had only to choose between maintaining the law in its actual
state or voting for its total repeal. I thought it was a ques-
tion, not merely of policy, not merely of expediency, but of
justice and right; and I therefore could have no hesitation
as to the course I should take. (Applause.) I am quite
aware that in some districts, especially in the rural districts,
inconveniences would be caused for a time by the withdrawal
from parishes and congregation of that compulsory legal sup-
port to which they are at present entitled. I do not over-
look that objection, and I not underrate its importance ;
but I think the inconvenience in question would be only tem-
porary ; I think it would bo more than counterbalanced by
the termination of that strife and dissension which we have
so long witnessed in connection with this questien ; and
I think that the' change is doubly important, not only ell
account of the intrinsic merits of the cause, but because
it will afford us the first trial, the Arst practical ex-