The Sun.
London, England, 1830-03-25 00:00:00

from that which has attended his actual undertaking.
We may, indeed, characterise the motion of the
Hon. Gentleman as being, for its hostile spirit to-
wards Ministers, repugnant to the sense of the
House, and no less irrelevant to the national inte-
rests, from the childish selection of topics with which
he introduced it. But though we know and feel
the necessity of a reduction of taxes to a consider-
ably greater extent than that which Mr. Goulburn
has announced, we are very remote from agreeing
with those who triplet superciliously the proposition
of his Majesty's Ministers, as if they involved no
substantial relief to the community. It is said by
one (rather long-winded) correspondent, that the
country gentlemen will take care to keep all the
benefit of the free trade in beer to themselves, by
raising their rents in proportion. This we take to
be a futile fear, in as much as the consent of another
party, besides the landlord, is requisite towards an
increase of rent ; and unless the farmers of England
are young enough to join in a conspiracy for their
own ruin, such a consequence can hardly be
anticipated. The same correspondent is some-
what jealous in urging the imposition of a pro-
perty-tax, in lieu of others which press more
upon the springs of industry. The reformer of tax-
ation is a little premature in this. Let us see one
class of taxes really reduced before we talk of find-
ing substitutes. It appears from the statements of
another correspondent, that certain tender con-
sciences have been disturbed by the approaching
repeal of the beer tax. " The clergy, magistracy,
and principal inhabitants of the city of Hereford"
have begun to pray that beer, when released from
duty shall not be consumed on the premises where
it is purchased, for fear of its causing debazteliery
among the poor I Is there no debauchery among
the gin-drinking poor? By the way, there is sense'
as well as comfort in his notion, that we Londoners
may have a wholesome luncheon of sandwiches and
ale, whenever we choose to stop and take such re-
freshment, after the trade shall have been thrown
open. Our worthy friend who would levy a " poll-
tax" on each of the 25,000,000 of people supposed
to form the population of the United Kingdom,
thereby creating what he calls a revenue of
.50,000,000/. per annum, is doubtless an accurate
arithmetician, whatever we may think of him as a
financier. The single comment, therefore, which we
shall make on his tax is to request that he will take
a trip with us across the Channel, and, knoct ing at
the door of the first Irish cabin we come to, just
beg of the poor devil who " rents" it at 21. a year,
to be ready the next morning for the tax-gatherer
with the sum of 211. sterling, being the net amount
of the " poll-tax" for himself, his wife, and ten
half•naked children I Will that content our inge-
nious projector of Cannon-street ? There is an
awful specimen of cant and mummery ill a letter
signed a " Friend to Good Order," which, if we
tied room, we would publish out of pure respect for
the author of it, not doubting that he is the worthy
keeper of a coffee or gin-shop in disguise. But
these projects of our correspondents are scarcely
more absurd than those of some of the nostrum-
mongers, who, during the prolonged and uninterest-
ing discussion now fortunately at an end, have
fatigued night after night the House and the public.
If we can conquer our sense of tedium, we may on
a future occasion notice some of these specifics for
the remedy of public distress.—Times.
We are far from blaming any public man for re-
nouncing the opinions he may have avowed, if he
discovers that he was in error. A pertinacity in
maintaining what is known to be erroneous, from a
dread of incurring the charge of inconsistency, is
cowardice. Lord Grenville, for instance, was never
blamed for expressing his regret that he was one of
the authors of the Bank Restriction Act : for no
man could, even for one moment, suppose any other
motive for the expression of this regret than what
was honourable to his Lordship. We are always,
therefore, in canvassing the opinions of public men,
much more disposed to inquire whether they be
now in the right path, than to reproach them with
having been formerly in a wrong one ; for no doc-
trine is more dangerous than that public men ought
to be intimidated by accusations of inconsistency or
apoetacy from allowing themselves to be open
to conviction. We know of no sort of alter-
cation more disagreeable than that which occa-
sionally takes place in Parliament, when Members,
instead of meeting the arguments urged in favour of
or in opposition to, any measure, are reduced to the
necessity of criminating each other on account of
having done, or left undone, what forms the subject
of discussion. These observations are drawn from us,
in consequence of a seeming departure from an ordi-
nary practice, in noticing the former opinions of Sir
Francis Burdett on the subject of currency;
but it is not the altered opinion of the Honour-
able Baronet which moves us to draw on our
recollection of Parliamentary proceedings, but the
tone of triumph which he assumed on Tuesday night
in commenting on the 'conduct of Mr. Peel. We
have no objection to Sir Francis declaring, "that
the measure of 1707 was one which, it; the then
state of things, had saved the country," that " every
thing had settled itself to that state," and that " the
industry and enterprise of the country was so great
that it produced more than sufficed for the expen-
diture of the war;" but when he mounts his high
horse, and with the tone of infallibility tells us that
''the Right Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Peel) had, in-
deed, eleven years ago set up the god of his idolatry
—this golden idol—this calf in Horeb of the be-
sotted Israelites; and the effect, after varietie vacil-
lations, had been the present condition of the coun-
try ;" and that " The distress of 1810 was occa-
sioned by the Bank of England having first issued
too much paper, and then being alarmed, having
suddenly restricted its issues, and refused eccommo-
datiou. The effect was, to ruin many respectable
and wealthy individuals. It was also a great crime
in the Government of that day to allow such a state
of things to arise, because it was its duty to take
care that no such sudden changes should be made in
the amount of the currency. With regard to the
distress of 1816, it was true that that was bee
fore the year when the favourite child of the
adoption, and not of the creation, of the
Right Iloaourable Gentleman, saw the light.; but
the tidings of it had gone forth—the Government
was known to be pregnant of this portentous birth,
and the country had a foretaste of the bitter conse-
quences of its appearance." When we hear this
tone of exultation on the part of the Hon. Baronet,
we cannot help calling to mind, that from the first
of the bullion question, he was one of the loudest
and most violent of those who arraigned the Go-
vernment for conduct the very reverse of that for
which he now condemns Mr. Peel. On the 9th of
July, 1811, Sir Francis complained of " the unjust
attacks which had been made on a Noble Lord
(Lord King) for doing no more than what tee was
entitled to, and which justice to his own family ree
quired him to do. How could it he pretended that
a landlord was not entitled to demand his rent to be
pa;d without depreciation, at the very rime when
the tenant was selling the produce of his farm
with reference to this very depreciation in the
paper currency of the kingdom ? He recollected
the language which, at the commencement of the
French Revolutioen was held by Gentlemen on
the other side of the House, with regard to
the French assignats. Their tone, however, was
now completely changed, :aid was to tie com-
pared to nothing but what they then attributed
to Robespierre and his associates, from which the
downfal of the credit of France was prognosticated.
He trusted, however, that the present rneastess the
very measure he, Sir Frames, new justifies) would
have this good effect ; it would metes gentlemen at
length feel in what situation they stood.
He trusted at length they would be awakened, k.nd
would not wait for the period when every man in
England would find that, with his pockets full of
paper, he mit without the means of support, This
language, in such a situation, seemed to say that pp
4:-.., remedy could be applied, and reminded him ref. a
teel,Aine in an Italian Poet, which was said to be in-
scribed over the gates of Hell-- ' Who enters here,
;:e: ''
(
!wee hope behind: , , , The Noble Lord