The Sun.
London, England, 1852-03-20 00:00:00

EVENING,

MARCH 2O, 1852.

that the Attorney-General (Sir F. Thesiger) sat for a
population nominally of 5,954, with an electoral list of 241
names; but be dared the Hon. and Learned Gentleman to
deny that, at the election in 1847, the bribery and corrup-
tion on both sides in that borough of Abingdon were such
that both petitions were withdrawn for fear the borough
might be disfranchised.—( Laughter and dissent.) He
warned the Government, then, that if they persisted in the
attempt to govern the country through nomination counties
and little pocket boroughs, they themselves were the men
who would be weakening the attachment of the people to
the institutions under which they live], and breaking down
the barriers of the democracy which they appeared so much
to dread.—(Opposition cheering.) He charged the Govern.
ment that they were conscious that they bad not the opinions
of the people with them upon the question of protection ; and
that upon that question they dared not go to the great
constituencies of the United Kingdom. Having
mentioned several places in which free-trade prin-
ciples had Made rapid progress amongst the constituencies of
late years, the Hon. Member alluded to the borough of Tam-
worth, and appealed to Mr. Newdegate to state what the
people there said to him upon the subject, when that Hon.
Gentleman was attending a Protectionist dinner in that bo-
rough, in the course of the past year.—(Hear, hear.) And
if that were not evidence enough he would cite the Hon.
Member for Boston (Mr. Freshfield) to give the House his
experience, for he (Mr. Bright) had read a ludicrous ac-
count of that Hon. Member having, at the period of his elec-
tion, been kept on one side of the square whilst his dinner was
kept on the other—an admirable retribution, he thought, on
one who sought to impose a tax upon corn.—(Laughter.) A
fortnight ago, a meeting was held at Manchester, of which
they had all heard ; and he observed that the Noble Lord at
the head of the Government had spoken of the subscriptions
which were then entered into as " subscriptions upon
paper."—(Hear, hear, and a laugh.) But he (Mr. Bright)
could assure the House that it required strong arguments on
the part of Mr. Cobden and himself to prevent those sub-
scriptions, large as they were, from being much larger.—
(Oh, oh.) lie did not mean more numerous, but much
larger in amount—(Oh, oh, and laughter)—and he Ten-
turned to say that if there were the slightest attempt on the
part of Government to reimpose a duty upon corn, and the
thing were, so to speak, in the balance, there was a great
deal more than their corn-laws that would not be safe for

three or six months. The subscriptions at Manchester,
which amounted to 27,0001. at the meeting to which he re-
ferred, had since reached the sum of 62,0001., and were every
day rapidly increasing.—(Free-trade cheers.) But perhaps
Hon. Gentlemen would go to Ireland for a Protectionist cry.
Let them. They had heard of what had only just taken
place in the county of Kildare, and he doubted if they could
have gone to an election in Ireland with a Member of the
House of Commons against whom personally less could be
said than against Lord Naas.—(Hear, hear.) Yet that
Noble Lord, who had gone down to Kildare in the tall con-
sciousness that he would be victorious, had been obliged to
beat a retreat before the opening of the poll or even the day
of nomination.—(Hear, hear) Hew could any one expect
to persuade the people of Ireland that they would benefit by
Protection when it was found that a long experience of that
system had only landed them in one of the most calamitous
famines that modern times had known ? - (Hear, hear.) He
would ask Hon. Gentlemen opposite whether they would
consider the course they were then pursuing a creditable one,
if it were pursued by their political opponents? Who could
attempt to justify their conduct in sending one set of candi-
dates to the counties to preach protection, and another set of
candidates to the boroughs to say that they were Conserva-
tive Free-traders ? (Hear.) That was a question which the
country would not allow to be trifled with. The uncer-
tainty which had arisen in consequence of the accession
of the present Ministry to office, and the language they had
since used, was undoubtedly very considerable, but he con-
fessed, at the same time, that it was only partial, because
the belief in the power of those gentlemen was but partial.
If, however, it were thought for a moment that they would
recklessly attempt to carry out in power the principles they
had avowed in opposition, they would see a tumult in this
country to which the tumult in 1832 was as but a whisper
to the raging of the hurricane. The uncertainty which sur-
rounded the question might be productive of the worst con-
sequences in foreign countries. In the United States of
America the election of a President was about to take
place, and if it were supposed in that country that the
policy of free trade was about to be reversed in England, the
hands of the anti-free-trade party would become greatly
strengtheued, and we should have no chance of obtaining
one of those reciprocity treaties which Hon. Gentlemen op-
posite advocated. But if those gentlemen were not for the
corn-laws let them say so.—(Hear, hear.) He said dis-
tinctly that if any authorised member of the Government
would boldly avow that the time was past when any duty
could be re-imposed on corn, and that while they were ready
to effect a fair adjustment of the taxation of the country,
they would not tamper with the taxes for the purpose of
affording the agricultural interest a compensation for the
loss they had sustained by the repeal of the corn-laws—he
said that if any authorised member of the Government
would boldly make such au avowal, he believed they
would give great satisfaction to a large number of Con-
servatives throughout the country, and they would never
find hies voting for any proposition of a want of confidence
in them as a Government. He would then judge them by
the measures they might bring forward—( Hear, hear)—with
the same independence and the same honest wish to do
his duty to his constituents which he had exhibited in his
conduct towards the Government of the Noble Lord the
Member for London.—( Hear, hear.) But if they were for
protection, and would not say so, then they (the Oppo-
sition Members) would make war upon them. If they
were to carry on an " organised hypocrisy" they (the Oppo-
sition Members) would see whether they could not break
up a confederate imposture; and bad as the representation
of this country was— and no one was more conscious of its
defects than he was—he was perfectly persuaded that if the
party opposite were to dissolve Parliament, and to go to the
constituencies on any duty they might like to propose on
corn, they would find their ephemeral Government scattered
to pieces, and that the united voice of the intelligence of the
free people of this country would condemn the policy which
they had avowed in opposition, and on which they had
scrambled to their seats in power. (Loud cheeis.)
The ArroaNEY-GENERAL and the Marquis of GRANBY rose
together; but, after a short delay, the former Hon. and
Learned Gentleman gave way, and
The Marquis of GRANBY said he hoped the House
would indulge him for a few moments with its attention,
as he had been so pointedly alluded to by the Hon Mem-
ber who had just sat down.—(Hear, hear.) The Hon.
Member had paid him the compliment of saying he looked
upon him as a consistent man. He believed he was so,
and he was prepared to say that he retained the opinions
he had before avowed in the House.—(Hear, hear.) It
had been generally admitted that the free trade policy
had inflicted great injury upon large classes in this
country, and that some means should be attempted
to modify it. He still retained his opinion that
the most advantageous mode of doing so was by im-
posing import duties, thereby making the foreigner pay
the tax, and raising a revenue which would allow the
repeal of other taxes that pressed upon the industry
of the community. He would say that he had every
confidence that Lord Derby and his Government would en-
deavour, if the country would support them—(A loud
laugh drowned the sound of the words which followed)—
that it would be ridiculous, absurd, and highly mischievous
to attempt to reverse a policy that had been the law of the
land for upwards of five years, supposing the people of the
country are convinced that that policy was just and advan-
tageous.—( Hear, hear.) He thought, therefore, he should
have no difficulty in supporting Lord Derby when he found
him saying, "That for the relief of the farmers, without
any serious difficulty and expenditure being incurred by the
country and thrown upon other Glasses, a moderate imposi-
tion of duty would produce a large revenue, and thereby
enable other taxation to be taken off, and that such a duty
would hardly produce an appreciable effect on the price of
food." Honourable Gentlemen on the other side of the
House had taken great pains that evening to show that
they were not factious in the opposition they were now
making to the Government ; but if their conduct was not
factious, it was very difficult to say what factious conduct
could be. The Noble Lord opposite, when he was at the
head of the Government, said he thought a dissolution
was most undesirable, and would be attended with great dif-
ficulty and inconvenience. Now, he wanted to know if,
when the Noble Lord was at the head of the Government,
that would be the case, why it was not equally disadvanta-
geous to the interests of the country to require a dissolution
now? But if he was unable, from the speeches of the Noble
Lord, to discover why he was so anxious for a dissolution,
he might, perhaps, be allowed to suggest that it might be
that the Noble Lord and those who supported him were
afraid if a dissolution were delayed that the prosperity of
which they had heard so much would diminish, and that
the tide of emigration, instead of setting towards the western
shores, would again set into the workhouses.— (Hear.) He
had heard with deep pain the speech of the Right Hon.
Gentleman the Member for Ripon, because he knew the in-
fluence that anything that fell from him must have not only
in that House but in the country; but the Right Hon.
Baronet had indulged in similar warnings on former occa-
sions, and had shown that his opinions were not unchange-
able nor his judgment unerring. He hoped the present Go-
vernment would not be deterred by any threats or any inti-
midation from doing what they believed to be their duty to
the country.--(Cheers.)
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said it was not his inten-
tion to take any part in a debate that was sufficiently dis-
cussed, but that he was actually dragged into it by the per-
sonal allusion of the Hon. Member for Manchester. What
he felt was the attack that had been made upon his personal
character and honour, which he was desirous of repelllngin
the most distinct manner possible. The Honourable Mem-
ber for Manchester (Mr. Bright) had challenged hint to
deny that in the election of 1847, or afterwards, he had
entered into a corrupt agreement to suppress charges of
bribery.—(" No, no," from Mr. Bright.) Well, then, an
agreement, not corrupt, to suppress charges of bribery, in
order to prevent the disfranchisement of the borough of
Abingdon. The Committee might be aware that in the
election of 1847 he was returned by a very slender majority
of two, by an extraordinary and rather amusing incident.
Two petitions were presented against that return, both of
which contained charges of bribery. One of ti
that
prayed for the seat, and the other merely
the election be declared void. Where a petition claimed
seat, e
it was t
seat, and contained charges of bribery,
party petitioned against to recriminate upon
to thehim that the
Committee
oppositeopen to tn
party. Before the period had arrived when
were to try it an application was made.
charges of bribery should be abandoned on both sides His
ould not be affected,
answer was this—he knew personally
and that if any agent of his, or any he hoped that such
responsible, had been guilty of bribery, be
for whom he was
he
would be
and that
party would be exposed before
be no party to any
whatever might be the result
and
cheers.) Immediately after
him, and his answer given,
compromise.—(Hear, hear,e
seat was abandoned. There
that suggestion was, made 'The to
which prayed merely for the declare-
the petition prayingonto
then stood the petition
leer3".nd one of the charges contained in it
He believed it was on a Monday
tion of a void election,
b were to assemble to try the case. 04
was a charge of
when the Committee
the Friday evening
before an application was made to him
to abandon that
pa
the petition, provided he would consent toa
of the petitioner. His answer was
this—therey
was
a
charge of bribery made against him in that petition,
costa
and he would not pay one farthing towards the expenses of
such petition, and the messenger might go back with that
answer. (Cheers.) Well, the answer went back, and in
about an hour aftewards be was informed that the second
petition was dropped.—(Cheers.) He felt his honour and
character were both saved, because it was impossible for any
one to say that an agreement to suppress a charge of bribery
for the purpose of preventing the disenfranchisement of a
borough would not be a corrupt and scandalous agreement
(Hear.) He was the more anxious to stand well in the opi-
nion of that House, because he felt that he would not be
worthy of a seat is it if he had been a party to any such
agreement. He had given the fullest explanation in his
power to the charge that was made against him by the Hon.
Member for Manchester; and he should like now to know how
that Hon. Member could feel justified in making such
charges without the slightest material or least foundation
for them.—(Cheers )
Mr. BRIGHT—The Committee will bear in mind, that
when I spoke of the borough which the Hon. and Learned
Gentleman represents, I did not make any allusion to any
the
'Ministerial be had personally taken.—(Cries of " Oh I" fronL
None
'Ministerial aide, and cheers from the Opposition.)