The Sun.
London, England, 1852-12-20 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS-(THIS ETENING

The Loan Oxalic/n.1411 took his seat on the Woolsack
at 5 o'clock.
The attendanee of Peers was slight. The members
of the GoTernment haying seats in the house were
present. On the Opposition benches were Lord Clanri-
carde and Lord Clarendon.
All the galleries of the house and the spaces at the
foot of the throne and below the bar were crowded.

MINISTERIAL EXPLANATION.

The Earl of DERBY rose and said,—My lords, it is
consistent with the usual practice and advantageous for the
public service that a. Minister of the Crown, in announcing
to your lordships the dissolution of his Gevernment, should
enter into some explanation. The responsibility of re-
signing office is no less an offence than that of accept-
ing it without due consideration ; and it is due to your
lordships, to the other house, and to the country, that
those who are charged with the Government should not
throw up that government on light or on trifling grounds,
upon any minor differences of opinion, or upon any
ground of private misunderstanding or personal intrigue.
Upon the present occasion I am not called to trespass on
your lordships time at any length, because the causes of the
'dissolution are patent to all, and upon the surface. The
noble earl then proceeded to say that, after the general
election of last summer, her Majesty's Government hav-
ing gone through the returns, found that there were about
310 gentlemen who were disposed to repose confidence
in her Majesty's Government, irrespective of the ques-
tion of free trade or protection. There were three other
parties, or rather there were more, one of whom
included within itself the various gradation between
high aristocratic and exclusive Whig and the wildest
theorist and extreme Radical, comprising about 260
members. There was a third party from the sister king-
dom—the representatives of the Catholic clergy, and
pledged to oppose every Government who were
not prepared to act on their extreme views. There
was another party, numerically small, but of great
personal worth, possessed of very great official
experience, still professing Conservative principles.
With these three parties in the house, it was evident
that at any time by uniting together they could destroy
the Government which was then in existence ; and it was
not long that they were left in doubt as to the intention
of these parties. Before the Government had time to
bring forward any specific financial measures, a gentle-
man of extreme opinions made a motion, so framed
that all the three parties could act in concert
in supporting it. Upon this point he was not
speaking upon doubtful grounds, they had had some
curious revelations by an hon. baronet in the other
house, who had lifted the curtain, and showed the actors
discussing their plot for the ejectment of the present Go-
vernment. On that occasion the object was thwarted
by the intervention of a noble lord. Shortly afterwards,
when the financial policy of the Government was sub-
mitted to Parliament, the House of Commons, after a
lengthened debate, rejected those propositions by a ma-
jority of 19, in a house unprecedentedly full. (Hear,
hear.) Had the defeat of the noble lord been
upon some minor and incidental question, upon
some matters of detail, greatly as I should have felt that
the position of the Government was thereby weakened,
I should not have considered myself satisfied upon such
a defeat in abandoning the duty confided. But
the motion was made ostensibly as a vote of want
of confidence in the Government, and, under
those circumstances, it was the opinion of my col-
leagues that it was our duty at once to resign.
Having bad a distinct declaration of want of confi-
dence on the part of the House of Commons, I and
my colleagues were unanimously of opinion as to the
only course we ought to pursue ; and I proceeded to
wait on iler Majesty to tender, in my own name and that
of my colleagues, the humble resignation of our ser-
vices. Her Majesty was pleased to accept that resigna-
tion, and to signify her pleasure, which was acted on in
the course of the same evening, to send for, and to take
the advice of two members of your lbrdship's house,
of great experience and ability, and one of whom, I say
it without disrespect to the other, was peculiarlydistin-
guished for the well-known moderation and temper
which he has shown in discharging his duty in this house.
That noble marquis (Lansdowne) was prevented by ill-
ness from attending, and on the following day the Earl
of Aberdeen waited on her Majesty, and signified his
readiness to undertake the formation of a new Adminis-
tration. On what principle that Administration is
, to be formed, of whom it is to be composed, what are
' to be its principle I know nothing. We shall, I presume,
have a full declaration before long from the noble earl
himself. I remember that on more than one occasion
that noble earl has declared that the question of free trade
excepted, he knew of no point upon which he differed
with myself and my present colleagues. I presume it is
the intention of the noble earl to carry on the Govern-
ment if he shall be able to form it on strictly Conserva-
tive principles. If those principles are to be carried out,
I at present entertain some little doubt with such associa-
tions as those of which the-noble earl must avail himself.
But on this he would abstain from saying anything
which could now excite discussion, but he was confident
he would meet with more forbearance from the great Con-
servative party than that party had met with from others.
(Hear.) If his Government were conducted on Conserva-
tive principles, and so as to restrain the democratic
power of the Constitution, he would have the sincere
support of the great Conservative party in this country ;
and he would find that no personal feelings would exer-
cise any influence on his (the Earl of Derby's) conduct.
For his own part, he need not say that the surrender of
office was personally indifferent. It would indeed have
been a matter of deep mortification to him if, on resign-
ing office, he had left the country in a less advantageous
position that when he had taken office ; but he ventured
to think that, short as had been the period during which
he and his colleagues had held office, that period had
not been without some advantage to the country—it had
not elapsed without some beneficial measures having been
carried. The noble earl, after paying a high compli-
ment to the abilities of the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
which he said had elicited the applause of his opponents,
proceaded to review the measures passed by the Govern-
ment, claiming the credit for having done more for the
cause of Reform, than had been done for many years.
They could not take any credit for the state of the
finances, -but they could take credit for, that
the had broken through that dangerous apathy
with regard to the internal defences of the coun-
try. After the time which had elapsed since the com-
mencement of the session, and after the numerous in-
terviews which had taken place between their opponents,
he was somewhat surprised at receiving a communica-
tion from the noble earl (Aberdeen), requesting him to
move the adjournment of the house until this day week.
lle certainly had considered that the measures of
their opponents had been better concerted. Un-
der all the circumstances, and considering that
Christmas-day intervened, he thought it better to
move the adjournment of the house until Thursday—of
curse giving the noble earl to understand that, if it
!fere necessary, and if the noble earl had not by that
"'Qe completed his arrangements, he should be perfectly
rune completed
112:_°n Thursday to move the further adjournment of
h°l,lB, until Monday. The noble lord then concluded
by mouse
that the house adjourn until Monday.
-'he Duke of NEWCASTLE rose to protest against
an observation made by the noble earl, insinuating
that measures h
parties efthe
(Id been concocted between the different
the GoverrthaeetPposition for the purpose of expelling
place was for no The conference which had taken
object of devisio"ch purpose, but avowedly with the
free trade, which should li:esolution for the affirmation of
enttli q obtain the assent of all parties.
If the high honor
reputation of his noble friend did
not command from the
had noble
rn earl an abstinence from the
insinuations which he
ads against him, surely he
might have deferred makin
any accusations in respect
to what he was now doing in coin .
noblepl c: with the com-
mands of her Majesty, until the
earl was was himself
present in the house. He (the Duke
of Newcastle)
rose for no other purpose than to declare that
_ combinations had
the statement of the noble lord that ce.nah.
been formed to prevent him explaining the measuresf
the Government to the country, Was
baseles o
unfounded, and he felt bound under these acnird
cumstances to give it his positive contradiction. The
noble load would forgive him if he said that the course
he had taken on the present occasion was a most un-
usual proceeding. (Hear.) The noble duke observed,
in conclusion, that his affection for the Earl of Aberdeen
as well as regard for the several members of the House
of Commons, whose character had been drawn into this
discussion, prevented him sitting still on the present oc-
casion, and not offering some explanation to the house.
(Hear, hear.)
The Earl of DERBY said—l trust the noble lord
will permit me to state that I did not say that there had
been a motion made for the purpose of preventing us
bringing our measures hefore the country. What I did say
was that from the first commencement of the session it
was obvious there was some concert between the Liberal
party, for the purpose of preventing the Government
explaining their measures to the house and the country; that a motion was made and concert entered into on the
subject before we had an opportunity of submitting
our measures to the country. (Hear, hear.) I
did not say that the specific object of making the
motion at that time was to prevent us bringing fbrward these measures. . I have only to add, that if the I