The Sun.
London, England, 1852-04-06 00:00:00

APRIL

one dispittrd Ana 'Wail that patronage at their disposal, the
Ookretnihent were about to appeal to a general elettion, with
ii view to their re-appearance befor,a ttariiament, if the coun-
try rejected them as Prtteclionists, in the character of Con-
vatives. Lc :inch doubted whether they would receive
mom fAVour at the bands of the country in the one cha-
racter than the other.—( Hear, hear.) There had been
observed in them of late many things exceedingly unlike
the old Conservative party.—(Hear, hear.) So far as he
knew the old Tory party that used to prevail in that
House, pretty well all their political proceedings were
wrong; but this was ever known to their honour, that

they were bold—that they were straightforward—that they
were chivalrous—that you could rely upon them.—(Hear,
hear.) The proceedings of the party now in power, during
the last six weeks, could scarcely be deemed as ranking
them within any such category.—(Hear, hear.) Never had
a straightforward answer been given by them to any ques-
tion.—(Hear, hear.) They talked of the Opposition having
interrupted the business of the country; all the Opposition
had attempted to do was to elicit from them statements of

.
who they Ns-ere, what they were, what they were going to
do, and when.—(Hear, hear.) As matters now stood,
there was no knowing from day to day what the Govern-
ment would do or would not do. On Saturday night every
ion. Gentleman went to bed, believing they ware going to
have a new Reform Bill, with a large extension of the ea-
_

'rage, on new principles—not based on education,. that was

old; not on properly, that was unnecessary but on two

years' service in the militia.—(hear, hear, and laughter.)
Now, the great Conservative party came down and said they
were not going to have anything of the sort; that was
merely a joke of Lord Derby.—(hear, hear.) The other
night the great cause of Protection was abandoned; that
evening it was again attempted to be set up. No doubt
there was in the country a considerable number of gentle-
men Conservatives, and honourably entitled to the desig-
nation ; but did the Government, acting as they had been
acting, imagine they would be accepted by those gentlemen
as their representatives?—(Hear.) It might be equally true
that the country was not indisposed for the late change of
Government ; the people grew tired of old faces, and liked
change from time to time; but the country would by no
means take to a set of Ministers who refused to come for-

ward like men and what they meant to do, any more
than Members of that House would in silence permit them-

selves to be called factious for asking a legitimate and ne-
cessary question, or be charged with interrupting the busi-
ness of the country, before they were enabled to know what
that business of the country was.—(Hear, hear.) It might
very well be that the Government themselves did not know
what they meant to do, but meantime the country was alto-
gether dissatisfied with their chopping and changing about.
—(hear, hear.) The House were all anxious to hear from
the Chancellor of the Exchequer another of those clear, frank,
open, and lucid statements by which he had lately distin-
guished himself, so that no one might any longer remain in
the dark on the subject.—(Hear, hear, and a laugh.)
Mr. HENLEY said that the Gentleman who last sat down
had, in common with the two gentlemen • who preceded him,

asked what were the Government going to do ?—(Hear.) He
might, in as quaint fashion, rejoin by a question, what did
those gentlemen want the Government to do, for while the
two first querists pressed the Government to go forthwith to
the country, by means of a dissolution, the last speaker asked
" What do you want to go to the country for ?" and urgently
represented that the whole business of the country
would be interrupted by a dissolution. This, in the fifth
year of the present Parliament, was rather a singular
course on the part of a gentleman who was one of those
who went out into the lobby in favour of triennial Par-
liaments.—(Hear, hear.) lion. Gentlemen opposite affected
not to understand what the Government had said over and
over again, but the country perfectly understood it, and was
perfectly satisfied with it.—(oh, oh.) The country had
been told, in langusge it could not misunderstand, and
which it had not misunderstood, that the great principle
which Hon. Gentlemen opposite, for their own particular
purposes, wanted to make the only question would not be
mooted until after a new Parliament had been assembled.
This plain statement, however, did not suit Hon. Gentlemen
opposite, to whom it was very convenient to raise this
question, and try to make it the only question which was
to be considered, as if there were no other matters in which
the country was interested. if Hon. Gentlemen opposite
had such a distaste for the present Government, why had
they allowed them to become a Government? It was no-
thing but their own laches, their own indifference to the
late Government, which brought about what had happened.
—(Hear, hear.) If they considered that everything was
proceeding well under the late Administration, that
colonial matters were doing well, and that foreign
matters were satisfactory, why did they put that Govern.
ment in a position which rendered it incumbent on them to
resign ? Who was to blame for that result ? Certainly
not the present Government. But it (lid not suit the Gentle-
men who made up the majority to leave the late Govern-
ment in office ; they wanted to turn them out, to have
another set of men in their place, and then to harass those
by all sorts of interruptions of the public business, so as to
develop some chance of working their own particular pur-
poses.—(Hear.) Her Majesty's Ministers were determined
to go on with the indispensable business of the country, and
they had manifested what was their feeling by proposing
nothing on which there was likely to be any great difference
of opinion. That evening they proposed to take a vote for
the K .fir war; was that a necessary or an nnnecessary
proposition ? He would readily contrast it, as a matter of
expediency, with the present discussion, and then ask Hon.
Gentlemen opposite, which of the two most needlessly pro-
tracted the session, which they were so eager to terminate 2
—(Hear, hear.) The best illustration of the cha-
racter of the Ministerial measures was, that in the
five or six weeks since their accession to office they kad
not had a division against them in the House.— (Hear.)
As to the principles on which they proceeded, he would
simply answer that their principles were now what they
always had been ; there was no change in them. Whether
any party could carry the whole of their principles did not
depend on themselves, but on the country; and to the coun-
try it was the declared wish of the Government to go, so
soon as the measures necessary for the prosperity and safety
of the country should be carried.—(Hear, hear.) The
They
eared not how soon this should be; but it would be in full
time to enable a new Parliament to assemble in the preesnt
year, and to that new Parliament the question which Hon.
Gentlemen opposite wanted, but which they would not
be allowed to make the only question, would be sub-
mitted.—( Hear, hear. )
Mr. S. HERBERT said that in the speech just delivered
there was one expression which be felt called upon to no-
tice; it was the repetition of an expression that had been
used by the Noble Member for Colchester, who said that
the Government had been impeded in the course of public
and necessary business by interruptions from the Opposi-
tion side of the House. The Noble MeMber for Colchester
said, they had taken up the time of the House by
long disquisitions on constitutional principles. No doubt
the question of constitutional principles bad been amply
discussed in that House; but the Noble Lord, when he said
that Hon. Gentlemen had not been justified in making these
disquisitions, might be met at once by the proposition that
these disquisitions were perfectly justifiable, since the Go-
vernment had yielded to the force of the arguments by
which those disquisitions were supported.—(Hear, hear.)
They had yielded to the force of sound constitutional prin-
ciples, and it was altogether politic in them to yield, so as
to avoid the appearance of being dragged, as unwilling cul-
prits, to the bar of a general election.—(Hear, hear.) The
Right lion. Gentleman who last spoke seemed to fancy that
he clinched the statement that the Opposition had impeded
public business, by the observation that there had not been
one division taken against the Government. Now, he
doubted whether, in the memory of any man in the House,
there had ever before been so much necessary public busi-
ness transacted with so little opposition—(Hear, hear)—
with not merely so little cavil, so little criticism, but with
such almost entire suppression of those observations which
were almost inseparable from the discussion of estimates,
and this especially at a moment when public opinion was so
excited as it now was on the question of our national de-
fences.—(Hear, hear.) The accusation then, in his opi-
nion, fell utterly to the ground, that the Opposition had
attempted to impede public business with any unjustifiable
or unnecessary delays.--(Hear, hear.) The Hon. Member
for Staffordshire had taken occasion to animadvert on the
course which particular Members had pursued in 1846 in
relation to free trade. lie was not going to revert to that
period, but this be would say, that to the latest hour of his
life he should feel proud of the course which he then pur-
sued.—(Hear, hear.) He had been quite prepared to meet
with much obloquy and much misrepresentation; and to
make an option—not difficult, certainly, but bitter to the
heart—between party ties and the feelings of personal
honour wrapped up in those ties and the welfare of the
country;
but he had not hesitated—(Hear, hear)—and, if
the principles which he then asserted, and for which he had
undergone since a sort of political ostracism, were again
assailed no effort should be wanting on his part to defend
them, and to defend unimpaired, uureversed, unmodified,
the blessings which be believed to have been conferred
by those principles on the great body of his fellow-country-
men.—(Cheers.) It was said that the Government had
made no express declarations of their intention on this
point; he had no wish to hark back to that subject on the
present occasion, but he certainly could wish that, instead of
deferring this question to be settled by the constituencies
at a general election—thus leaving the most anxious doubts
hanging over the public mind on the subject for some time
to come—he could have wished that the Government had
come frankly forward and said, "We see that policy is im-
possible, and we admit, with the Hon. Member for Stafford-
shire, that the national feeling is against us on the qaestion,
and we will say at once that we have ne intention, under
any circumstances, of attempting to reverse or modify the
free-trade policy."—(Hear, hear.) It was his (Mr. Herbert's)
desire to see the country governed on sound political prin-
ciples, and certainly, if he could add art arch to any bridge
by which the Government could escape from their free trade
dilemma, he would readily contribute the structure. There
was always joy over a sinner that repented, but most espe•
cially when his sins were such as endangered great prin-
ciples. The Government valued, and justly valued, Con-
servative principles. and so did he; and he would ur-
gently represent to them that it was in the highest degree
impolitic and dangerous to have those principles allied
with a policy that was odious to the great body of the
people.—(llear, hear.) lie wished to see sound, progressive
Conservatism prevail in the Government of this country,
and he should regard it as a great misfortune to find a great
party, comprising many men of public and private virtue,
identify itself with a policy which was odious to the nation.
because the nation firmly believed it to be based on injus-
tice.—(Hear, hear.) What was this corn-law, which Gen-
tlemen opposite wanted to bring back,—what was it, after all,
but a system of outdoor relict to the country gentlemen?—
("Hear, hear," and laughter)—different, indeed, from a
poor-law rate in this material respect, that whereas the poor-
law rate was a tax imposed on property for the sustentation
of poverty, the corn-tax was an impost levied on poverty for
the aggrandizement of property.—(Hear, hear.) lie con-
sidered it most important that lion. Gentlemen opposite,
many of whom did not hold opinions in favour of protection,
should be enabled, as early as possible, to free themselves
from the encumbrance for ever. He was satisfied with the
arrangement to which the House appeared to have come,
and had no desire to occupy the present moribund Parlia-
ment with questions which had to be settled in the next.
The Government having taken the course it had adopted o
the question of protection, the only way in which that q n
tion could be permanently and satisfactorily settled vr -ties;
an appeal to the country • and he desired to have that as
1)-
made as soon as the public business would admit.—(gear,
hear.) For that appeal he was quite prepared, confidenri
that under no name, no subterfuge, would the nation be per-
suaded to give up that which it regarded as the charter of
of the labouring
the comfort and wellbeing, most especially,
classes.—(Cheers.)
be
Mr. MOORinto thisE said, the whole of this vexed subject might
resolved summarytproposition—that the Govern-
ment wanted to abandon pro ection and the Free-traders
would not let them. The present Government
it to the country whether desired to put
it preferred them to the late
Government; and be, himself, considered that the answer of
the country would be decidedly in the affirmative. The
Whigs clearly thought so too; and this was why
fisted that the appeal they in-
should be whether the people
espreferred
f
the Whigs or protective duties,
feeling conscious that
there were a dire alternative on
whichlie
the people of England
would prefer the Whigs it was protection. (Mr. Moore)
had never been a Free-trader: he believed that the repeal
of the corn-laws had been a great injury to his country.
But he did not expect, and his countrymen, did not expect,

a return to protective duties. Protection had been
too long the humbug of one side of the House, and the
bugbear of the other; and it would greatly facili-
tate the transaction of public business if Honourable
Gentlemen on both sides would mutually agree neither to
choose it as a phantom, nor set it up as a spectre. As for the
Whigs, as latterly constituted, he felt convinced that public
opinion would never again consent that the whole govern-
ment of this country should be centered in one exclusive and
rapacious cabal, nor that the great grandmother of any Noble
Lord should be the fountain of all honour in England. As for
the Noble Lord the Member for London, the Irish people had
unanimously, irrevocably, and inexorably decided that he,
at all events, should never again be at the head of the
Treasury bench.—(Laughter from the Opposition.) The
Irish people were perfectly satisfied to wait the issue of an
appeal to the country, because they knew what it would
eventuate in. They were perfectly calm in this matter, be-
cause they had no expectation of office themselves, and be-
cause they in no way missed the quarter-day.
Sir J. TYRELL could quite understand that the situa-

---
tion of Hon. Gentlemen opposite was a painful, inconve-
nient, and embarrassing one, because he felt that the Govern-

ment having shown that they had the power and tie Cap
city to bring forward measures of a well-considered character
which Mere likely to give satisfaction to the country, had
committed an offence that was not to be forgiven.—(,year,
hear.) It had been said by the late Mr. Sidney Smith that
the real cause of the quarrel between this country and
America was that we gave better dinners and rode in better
carriages than they ; and he believed that the cause of
the discontent evinced by lion. Gentlemen opposite, was
that the Government had shown an ability to introduce wise

and good measures. He admitted that the Members of the
late Government were not very forward in the course of
policy which had been pursued by the Opposition side of
the House; but the outsiders bad been figuring away to a
tremendous extent, and certainly they had not been very-
flattering to the Noble Lord the Member for London in all
their remarks. For himself, he looked upon the Noble Lord
as one who had been a great Minister for many years, and
he thought he deserved a larger measure of justice from Hon.
Gentlemen opposite, now that he was not i❑ power, than he
seemed likely to receive. Hon. Gentlemen opposite pre-
tended to misunderstand what had taken place in the other
House; but, as his Right Hon. Friend the Chancellor of the '
Exchequer had once said, " there shall come a time when
you shall hear me," so he (Sir J. Tyrell) would venture to
say that there should come a time when they should under-
stand bis Right lion. Friend, if they would only continue to
listen to him.—( Great laughter.)
Mr. P. HOWARD complained that the Government had
not indicated what the nature of their policy was to be.
The late Sir R. Peel previous to taking office addressed a
letter to the electors of Tamworth, in which he gave a
most distinct explanation of his whole policy—colonial,
home, and ecclesiastical. Earl Grey also, when he accepted
office, gave an equally distinct exposition of his political
views. In fact, an outline of the policy to be pursued had al-
ways preceded a change of Government. The present Go-
vernment, however, had left their home and colonial policy a
complete riddle, while on ecclesiastical polity they had ex-
pressed no opinion, but by the indirect answers which they
had given they had (opened up a most fertile ground for reli-
gious strife.

Mr. NEWDEGATE regretted that when the Right Hon.
Gentleman the Member for Wiltshire spoke of his readiness
to construct an arch in any bridge that could be built be-
tween himself and those from whom he had separated, he
should have followed up that declaration by the phrase that
the corn-laws were a system of out-door relief to the land-
owners of England. As the acting chairman of the acting
committee of the Central Protection Society, he could say
that the whole of those societies throughout the kingdom
had placed their confidence in the Earl of Derby because
they believed that that Noble Lord was sincere in the opi-
nions which he had always entertained, expressed, and acted
upon, and because they believed that he was the Minister
who was most likely to bring about a happy understanding
between themselves and those sections of the commu-
nity who entertained opposite opinions upon the
question of commercial policy. He (kr. Newdegate) and
his friends abated not one jot with respect to the question
of protection—not one jot; and when the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman said that the corn-laws were a system of out-door
relief for landowners, perhaps he would allow him to inter-
pose the opinion of a great and unprejudiced statesman—M.
Thiers. That able statesman said, "We ought to encou-
rage free trade in 'France, because it has brought 4,000,000
acres of waste land into cultivation;" but he added, that it
was a most unwise change which th late Sir Robert Peel
had made in England in 1846. "It was a change," he
said, " which had been made in deference to the violence of
an ignorant agitation ; it was one not calculated to promote
the real interests of the country, but carried out for the
sake of preserving the aristocracy and the monarchy from
the violence of a misguided policy." This was the un-
biassed opinion of the representative of a country which had
gained enormously by our adoption of free trade.— (Hear,
hear.) He (Mr. Newdegate) had not wished to detain
the House, but when such doubt had been cast upon the
soundness of Lord Derby's opinions, and upon the con-
sistency of those who supported him, he had felt bound—
having that day presided as chairman of the committee of
the Protection Society—to express his views to the HOMO
on this subject. - (Hear, hear.) It had been said that Lord
Derby would lose the confidence of the country by protract-
ing the session, and not immediately announcing a definitive
policy. He (Mr. Newdegate) did not believe it. The
Hon. Member for the West Riding had let them into the
secret of his policy. He had stated that two things were
essential to the violence and success of the agitation which
he intended to create. The first was, that there should be a
fixed, narrow point of attack, such as a ss. duty; and the
other was, certainly as to the exact time of a dissolution,
and he promised the members of the League at Manchester
that if he had those two things he would endeavour to cul-
minate the violence of the agitation at the precise time of
the election. Now, if Lord Derby had any respect--as he
knew he had— for the opinion and peace of the country, he
would refuse to comply with the terms which had been dic-
tated to him by the Hon. Member for the West Riding.
Sir R. INGLIS said, that the Right Hon. Gentleman the
Member for South Wilts (Mr. S. Herbert)—in proof that no
unnecessary impediment had been thrown in the way of
public business—had reminded the House that the Govern-
ment, who had now been six weeks in office, had in no
single instance met with a hostile division ; but he was
sure the Right Hon. Gentleman would not deny that public
business had, to a great extent, been impeded by other means
—in one instance by speeches for eight hours, another for
six hours, on questions which might have been disposed of in
half an hour. And who were those who brought forward
those questions? They were the very gentlemen who were
so eager that the Members of that House should be sent to
their constituents with the view to a new verdict on the
question of free trade.—(Hear ) Now, he (Sir R. Inglis)
begged to say, with regard to the intentions of the Govern-
ment on the subject of a dissolution, he required nothing
more than the original statement, in another place, of the
Prime Minister. His belief was, that so soon as the mea-
sures which, in his judgment, were essential to the public
service and the defence of the country were passed, the Noble
Lord meant, as an honest man, to appeal to the country.—
(Hear, hear.) Now, that being the case, he asked the House
whether, if the course was persisted in of occupying eight
hours on one evening, and six hours on another, and three
hours, as ou that occasion, with unnecessary discussions, the
Government could be expected to advise the Crown to dis-
solve Parliament at an early period ? (Hear, hear.)
The subject then dropped.
TIIE lONIAN ISLANDS.
Mr. HUME said it would be in the recollection of the
House that, at the termination of the last session, be gave
notice of his intention to bring the general state of the
lonian Islands under the consideration of the House at an
early period of the present session. It would also be recol-
lected that some time ago he moved for certain papers on
the subject. It appeared, however, that, as yet, the Go-
vernment bad found it impossible to produce those papers;
wit
h
the therefore he thought it would be unfair to proceed
the motion of which he had given notice for to-morrow
(Tuesday), in the absence of the necessary documente,—
(, gear hear.) He should consequently postpone that motion
until after the Easter recess, in the hope that the documents
would then be forthcoming; but he could not allow the pre-
sent opportunity to pass without saying a few words en the
subject. One of the questions which it was intended to
bring before them that evening was the expense of the
Kafir war, although no notice had been given them of the
amount which was to be demanded. There could be no
doubt, however, that the sum would be a very large one,
and that it had been incurred in consequence solely of the
gross mismanagement of the authorities at the Cape, aided
and abetted by the Government at home.—(Hear, hear.)
It was In consequence of the serious and expensive mistakes
which had been committed at the Cape of Good Hope that
he was annious to urge upon the Government the necessity
of taking into their timely consideration the situation of
the lonian Islands, so as to prevent us being involved in a
similar unnecessary trouble and expense in that quarter.
The Hon. Member then proceeded to refer to the severities
which were exercised by Sir H. Ward on the occasion of the
riots which took place in Cephalonia in 1840. He com-
plained that martial law was unnecessarily proclaimed on
that occasion—that no fewer than 44 persons were sentenced
to death by those courts-martial, 21 of whom were actually
executed, besides a large number subjected to military
flogging. He (Mr. Hems) thought it his duty to bring
the subject before the House in 1850, and on that
occasion the division was 15 in favour of his motion for
inquiry, and 84 against it, thus marking a very strong
opinion in favour of the state of things which then existed.
The House was then called upon to give Sir 11. Ward a fair
trial. Well, how had he proceeded since? In consequence
of a motion for inquiry into the proceedings which had taken
place at Cephalonia the Lord High Commissioner dissolved
the House of Assembly, and prevented them from proceed-
ing. In six months afterwards another Parliament was
called, but was actually dissolved by proclamation before it
met. After summoning another Parliament, the Lord High
Commissioner sent down to Zante and othbheeoresneplamecneetnsi arenlynllisyet.xo.f
tehTeery individualcandidates whomcon
connected
ted wishedwit
with
o t
hb
ee
G elected,ov er
n mand n
td. directing
t theing
tlhibeeirrtyoffiocfesth,
etoprae-soste
bfao
dr t
ihnaegnd all the editors and public writers banished
met on the
The new Parliament
t(p
renrgei lau os. f)h
el
do
the tyran-
was the disgust which
cilvted, thatf found
c.ir-
3dof without
et rrei ahl:—en(dHelaurc.h)
nical proceedings of Sir 11. Ward had e
cumstance unparalleled in the history.
governments had occurred, viz., that it was
representative
possible to get a quorum of 22 to make a H
aosueeo.....un(
Heimar-,
—having previouslyHl:een
Assembly had been again
hear.) The consequence had been that the House of
prorogued for six months
which had taken prorogued for eighteen months
out of two years.
at believed that the tyrannical pro-
ceedingsand Hungary place of late years in France
did not
inflicted upon the u f all equal those which had been
Islands.—(Hear, he
rh ortunate inhabitants of the
.lonian.
licy to allow Sir II a )
. He thought it a most unwise po
Ward to remain in the lonian Islands
after what had occurr d The '
e • Government should at once
recall him, and at the commissioners in
same time send out
whom they as to the
had confidence to inquire on the spot
causes of the prevailing discontent.— (Hear, bear.)
Sir J. PAKINGTON observed, that he thought he had
some reason to complain of the course pursued by the Hon.
Member for Montrose. Some little time ago the Hon.
Member moved for numerous papers on the subject of the
lonian Islands, which he (Sir John Pakington) consented to
produce, intimating, however, that, as a considerable portion
of them would have to be sent for from the lonian Islands,
much time must necessarily elapse before they could be fur-
nished Notwithstanding the absence of the papers, the Hon.
Member gave notice of a motion for a Commission which
should go out to examine into the affairs of the lonian
Islands. Suddenly, however, the Hon. Member seemed to
change his mind, and, to his (Sir J. Pakington's) surprise,
be found him contending that the occasion for taking a vote
on the Kafir war was a fitting one for treating of the
affairs of Cephalonia.— (A laugh.) At first the Hon. Mem-
ber appeared to be dealing with the Cape and the Kaffir
war, but at last he settled down in the lonian Islands.—
(Hear, bear, and laughter.) As the Hon. Member had not
concluded with any motion, he (Sir J. Pakington) should
have hardly known to what to reply if an attack had not
been made on the conduct of Sir Henry Ward, and an opi.
nion expressed that he ought to be recalled from his poet.
That subject having been touched upon. however, he should
feel that be was shrinking from his duty if he did not fairly
state the views of the Government with regard to it,
(Hear, hear.) In the first place, however, the Souse Would