The Sun.
London, England, 1864-07-20 00:00:00

Representation of Finsbury.

Last night a meeting of electors desirous of pro-
moting the return of Mr, M'Cullagh Torrens for
Finsbury, at the next election, convened by circular,
was held at the Belvidere Tavern, Pentonville.
Mr. Torrens attended, on the invitation of a large
and influential body of requisitionists, who, mindful
of his past career in Parliament and his fidelity to
the principles he avowed on entering it, were de-
sirous that a metropolitan borough of such import-
ance should be adequately and properly represented.
The requisitionists seeking for the proper discharge
of the duties of such a position, desired that they
should b© represented by gentlemen whose mental
power, political knowledge, and established public
reputation qualified them for the discharge of the
onerous duties devolving upon the representatives of
such large and important constituencies. :Reference
to the past conduct of Mr. Torrens in Parliament
had produced the conviction that in him these quali-
ties were combined, and that gentleman was thPre.
fore invited to lay before a meeting of electors his
political opinions, and also state his decision whether
the amount of popular support accorded to him
would induce him to become a candidate. To this
requisition, which was signed, on the whole, by
those who used to take a prominent part in the
election of the late Mr. T. Duncombe, without any
expense on his part, Mr. Torrens readily responded,
and last night was met by an assembly of gentlemen
who might fairly be said to be representative naen
from every part of the borough.
Mr: M‘DoNNELL, representative of Clerkenwell
at the Metropolitan Board of Works, was called to
the chair, and in a few brief but telling sentences
introduced Mr. Torrens to the meeting.

The learned gentleman, in the course of an ad-
dress which was listened to with the deepest atten.
tion, and with frequent and warm applause, explained
the grounds on which he ventured to solicit the suf-
frages of such an important constituency. He had
an ambition—but it was not a selfish one—it was,
in his day and generation, to make his mark on the
age in which he lived as a man who had done
something useful and permanently beneficial to his
fellowmen, He had in the earlier portion of his
public and political career at least given proofs of
the spirit by which he was animated, the objects he
aimed at, and the principles of which he was the
advocate; and to the past he thought he might
confidently refer as a guarantee for the future. He
did not wish to be a mere talker, a mummer, or a
dummy. In past Parliaments he had served his
time to the business of legislation. He hoped he
hejpeeople ought to be done, and how to do it.
learned by study and experience how the work
of the
He made nt_e vague promises, no elastic profession-3
of principle. tom' would not go into Parliament tied
and fettered by irone.."t pledges, but he referred to
his votes on all great qu,7stioue as the surest tests
of what his future course wol!ld be. When in
Parliament he helped to carry the repeal of the na-
vigation laws, and the removal of the disabilities
of the Jews. He was one of the small majority
that first enabled Mr Locke King to carry the prin-
ciple of a 1:10 county suffrage, and he had had the
pleasure of voting with the late Mr Joseph Hume
for a large extension of the suffrage in towns, on
the ground that the exclusion of the working classes
was the chief defect of the Reform Bill, 1832. For
the adoption of the ballot he hdd voted with Mr
Berkeley, though by itself he did not think it would
produce political purity, but must be one of a com-
bination of measures for that purpose. With re-
spect to the administration of the country, Mr Tor-
rens expressed the epic ion that they were too exclu-
sively taken from one class, and at the same time
deprecated a rather wide-spread opinion that
lawyers, as a class, should be excluded from Parlia-
ment in favour of commercial and practical men in
other pursuits and callings of life, whose success in
a mere monetary way, though creditable to them as
individuals, was not necesealily a proof of their
possessing the qualities requisite for a legislator,
On the subject of church rates he thought the time
had come when the Government should remove this
cause of religious discord. On general grounds he
would vote against the public money being given
to any sect whatever if those who received those
grants would agree to stand upon that ground.
He
n 6 advocate retrenchment of public ex-
general terms, but in detail,
With res2cct to an important question—the law
relating to tet'e relief of the poor and the mode in
ped2ll4ureid not only in
which it was adneinistered—while he thought public
opinion was notripeN the adoptioe of a national and
equal rate, he thought time had Come for the
abrogation of the law of settlement and tee adop-
tion of a union rating. With respect to the metro-
poliscould not agree with Mr.
Avrton and other advocates of a federal matropo.
itself, while he
litan municipality, he thought it was an open and
a pressing question how such boroughs as Finsbury
could be welded into a compact mass, and exercise
their legitimate influence on Parliament and upon
the Government for the time being. They would
never do so in their present state, and for their own
sakes, apart from general questions, it was ex-
tremely important they should have the advantages
of local self-government. The hon. and learnefl
gentleman, after adverting in very felicitous and
eloquent terms to other raatters, concluded by
stating that he asked no one to pledge himself to
support his candidature should a better man appear
in the field. In that case he would be the first to
withdraw from it, If not, he promised, should he
of ascertaining
be elected to represent that important constituency,
that he would render an annual account of his stew.
ardship, and take every opPortunitY
the views of his constituente, though he did not
promise he would always act upon them. When
he could not do so honestly he would return the
trust they had confided to him. (Cheers.)
Efficiently
statementwhic hecooffitshisetepnotlilytiCaanl
Dr. EPPS, in a very ab le and telling speech,
having listened to a
moved—" That this meetingncipies of
dpri Mr. Torrens,
eepreeses its opinion
many years in Parliamen
uat,
lified to become a repre.
that he is eminently q
House of C
sentative for Finsbury in the Commons
and pledges itself to use its best exertions to secure
his return for this borough in the ensuing Parlia.
ment."
_Mr. HOPWOOD secoaded the resolution, and after
a short conversation, id which Mr. Collins, Mr.
Elt, and other geutlemen toete part, the resolution
was carried with two
dissentiots, on the under•
any opposition to Mr. Tor-
sn toatn
adcitnugapltrlheysaetvnoittt
edefiffdo
re notrietd. bind those present who did
A t the same time no gen-
tlemanrene, but merely reserved their freedom of selection
for the future.
The following gentlemen were then elected a
committee to promote the election of Mr. Torrens,
with power to add to their number :—Messrs. J,
L. Hopwood, Dennis lerDennell, Chas. D. Toime,
Hugh Owen, John Robert Hall, Richard Moore,
John Lloyd, Bowles Pattison, William Birkbcek,
T. Bounce, James Seott„\Svaamlkueerl,Szac.ith, M. Samuel,
John Walker, William
A vote of thanke to the chairman closed the
proceedings. •

passed was one, which
Settled Estates Act of
HAMPSTEAD-11EAVI AND TILE NEW SETTLED
he: ESTATESjust h A,—Among
ecaT
issued,— Amnt ge t
ehme
el ansdt at
he tes
1356. As introduced, it was expected that the act would
lead to the inclosure of a part of Hampstead-heath. It was
amended in the Commons, and as it now stands, it is enacted
that the Court of Chancery, in determining what are settled
estates, is to be governed by the trusts and limitations when
that settlement was made. Other alteratiops were made to
preserve the law on the subject,