The Sun.
London, England, 1830-01-25 00:00:00

obligations to Mr. Cobbett, whose opinions
he has, for the most part, adopted. He quotes
various authorities in defence of his doctrines,
amongst which we find the names of Messrs.
hunt and Wooler, but does not make the most
distant allusion to the writer of the Political
Register, who, for more than a quarter of a cen-
tory, we believe, has been constantly urging pre-
cisely the same opinions. We will leave, how-
ever, Mr. Cobbett to settle this point with his
ungrateful disciple, and proceed to make a few

extracts from the arguments urged by the Re-
viewer in support of his doctrines (passing over
the questions relative to the police and public
education). With regard to the absentees, the
Reviewer observes, among other things, that—
Many of them abandon the most important duties
which, as landowners, magistrates, heads of families,
or members of society, they can be called on to
perform ; and most of them, instead of endeavour-
ing to copy only the useful and elegant accomplish-
ments of the people among whom they sojourned,
have fallen into an imitation of other qualifications,
of more easy but much less honourable acquisition.

The firmest minds can hardly resist the contamina-
tion of continual bad example, and no inconsider-
able part of our absentees have departed from some
of the most important principles, both of conduct
and opinion, in which they were brought up. But
it is not on this point principally that absentees are
here considered. If they had thought fit to transfer
themselves and their fortunes altogether to another
land, they had a perfect right to do so; but while
they continue to possess land or goods here, which
have been secured at an enormous cost, it certainly
seems unreasonable that they should be permitted to
withdraw themselves from those burdens by which
that security has been purchased. The number of
English settled in the Netherlands, France, Ger-
many, Switzerland, and Italy, is supposed to ex-
ceed one hundred thousand, drawing from the country
riot less than five millions annually,—a sum so large,
that if, instead of being scattered among strangers, it
were spent in the deserted halls and mansions of
these islands, it would materially alleviate the dis-
tress with which we have been struggling. Whether
any direct or indirect tax ought to be imposed on
those who reside out of the country for six months,
or other limited time, we do not know; but we are
confident that no objection would be made to almost
any plan which could be devised to reach them. If
no such plan can be discovered, that circumstance
will add one more to the other reasons which exist
for deliberately undertaking such a complete revision
of our financial system as shall bring down our prices
to the level of our neighbours, which, if it could be
effected, would at once put an end to absenteeism, as
well as many still more heavy disadvantages.
Dr. Southey has treated the subject of the

change of currency at considerable length. An
idea, however, of his opinions on the subject,

may be formed from the following extracts :
It may be mentioned, that a loan of 30 millions,
in Three per Cent. Stock, was inscribed in the books
of the Bank in 1798, for which the public received
only 15 millions in the actual currency of the coun-
try. In case we should ever be able, therefore, we
...

have contracted to pay (by raising the value of the
currency) twice as much as we received; and, until
then, we are obliged to pay actually 6 per cent. in-
terest for it, instead of 3, without the possibility of
getting the rate diminished, until the ordinary rate
of interest shall fall below 3 per cent., which is not
likely soon to happen. It is true that the terms of
this loan were, perhaps, the hardest we ever were
obliged to submit to; on looking through the second
table annexed to Dr. Hamilton's Treatise on the
National Debt, it will be perceived that several
others have been contracted, the conditions of
which, on the part of the public, were very little
more favourable. Dr. Hamilton calculates " that
if the funded debt contracted since the commence-
ment of the seven years' war were paid off at par,l
the nation would pay 130 millions more than it ever
received, which is more than one-third of the debt
contracted. The far greater part of this excess has
arisen since the war of 1793, and almost the whole
of it since 1780."

But the disadvantages to which the country has
been subjected, by the terms on which it has en-
gaged to pay the principal or interest of its debt,
become unimportant when compared with the effects
of the Bill of 1819 for the Resumption of Cash
Payments.
It would be difficult to refer to any proposal
which proceeded less from any individual or party
than the Act in question. It passed almost by ac-
clamation. Most of the Members of both Houses,
who delivered their sentiments, did little else than
compliment each other on their large and liberal
views, and express their congratulations on the dif-
fusion and triumph of the sound principles of poli-
tical economy. Could the same men be now assem-
bled in the same place, to hear their own speeches
repeated as they are recorded, so many confident
assertions have been refuted by the event, and so
many persons, then high in reputation, appear, ex
facie, to have misled those who relied upon their
reputation and experience, that it would be very
curious to observe the effect produced upon them.
• • • • • * •

There never, perhaps, was a plan of equal moment
submitted to Parliament, in regard to which the
temperate and almost supplicating tone of those who
opposed it was more singularly contrasted with the
confidence and impatience of those by whom it was
supported. The representation of the Governor and
Directors of the Bank of England, and the petition
of the merchants, bankers, and traders of the city
of London, were scarely treated with ordinary de-
cency.
Another very remarkable circumstance is, that
throughout the whole course of the debates, as now
reported, not a single Member of the Government,
in either House of Parliament, adverted to the
change which the Act might possibly produce upon
the real amount either of the principal or interest of
the rational debt. Unaccountable as the circum-
stance may appear, we believe this fact will not be
contradicted. The only words proceeding from any
Member of the Administration, which can be con-
strued as indicating any mistrust of the scheme pro-
posed, are the obscure observations of Lord Castle.
reagh.
We cannot help thinking that the Legislature
ought also to have looked more narrowly than it
did into the conditions, express or implied, under
which the debt was contracted. No casuistry can
be more odious than that which strives to absolve
individuals or communities from the fulfilment of the
engagements they have undertaken. But we con-
fess it appears to us that the obligation of the coun-
try to pay the principal and interest of its debt in
the ancient standard has been assumed a great deal
too easily. It is very true that, at the first suspen-
sion of cash payments, the strongest declarations
were made of the intention of the Government to
return to them as soon as possible—and that similar
declarations were frequently renewed by the Admi-
nistrations which succeeded. But we do not be-
lieve that any guarantee was ever given or intended
that the principal or interest of any particular loan
should be paid in the old or any other standard. It
would here been oppressive on the part of the
lender to have exacted such a stipnlation, and irra-
tional on the part of the borrower to have eon-
septed to it. Nearly 550 millions out of 800er-
that is to say, almost three-fourths of the whole un!..
redeemed debt—were advapced in the depreciated
currency. We are persuaded that these veiv, con-
tracted for excessive loans during the war, as welt as
those who became the purchasers of portions ofi
them afterwaras, never gave themselves a moment's
concern about the currency in which the principal
or interest was to be satisfied. One cannot help
wondering to see legislators and men of experience
gravely talking as if every purchaser or speculator
in the funds had constantly kept before his eyes
some actual binding agreement with respect to the
resumption of cash payments, which could have
been enforced in a Court of Justice. There is not