The Sun.
London, England, 1839-10-24 00:00:00

Union.
" He has done neither ; he has thought fit to
take a middle course ; he has altogether repudiated
the Union as its exists in its present form and pies-
sure ; he has also repudiated its dissolution ; and
having thus assailed ' Repealers' and ' Unionists,'
he proposes a middle course, neither Repeal nor
Union, but a se'l and speculative combination of
both—a wheel within a wheel—neither white nor
black—neither ' fish nor flesh, nor good red her-
ring.'
" It seems to me that there is only one thing cer-
tain, and that is—that his plan is totally inapplica-
ble. It would content nobody. We Repealers
deem that it would operate as a pure delusion. The
Unionists would never consent to such a first step
towards Repeal.; and whilst neither party consented
to his device, there would be exceedingly few beside
Mr. Crawford himself to advocate the practicability
of such a plan. No human being would be found
to agitate in favour of such a scheme. Your milk
and water creates no excitement. It is an excellent
compound for your good motherly patriots ; but it
has in it none of the racy ingredients which excite
the spirit-stirring, soul-moving animation for ' Fa-
therland and Liberty.'
" Mr. Crawford's reply is, indeed, written with
more than his usual clearness, and, what is better,
with perfect courtesy. There is much force, though
there is little of novelty, in the manner in which lie
combines and and puts forward his objections. In every (From the Manchester Times.)
answer to be given to these objections the same Universal Suffrage is usually defined, " the possession
calmness of temper and civility of expression must of a vote by every male person who has attained the age
be used. It would be exceedingly wrong, and of twenty-one, and is of sane mind and unconvicted of
would, besides, give an immense advantage before crime." Here, then, in this scheme of representation,
the public, if arguments employed by him in the ase four disqualifying circumstances. Females are ex-
tone and keeping of gentlemanly demeanour were eluded in a mass, although it would be difficult to show
not met in a kindred spirit, and in the manner and any good reason why a wife who supports her husband,
a widow who supports her children, or an unmarried
with the tact of polished society.
woman who supports her parents (and there are thou-
" There is, however, an inherent and radical de- sands of such instances in this country, rich as it is in
feet in his reasoning,—an incurable vice in his female industry and self-denying virtue), should not have
logic. It is this—He sets out all possible and a vote, while the male dependant upon her labours has
imaginable objections to the Repeal, without stating one. Males not having attained the age of twenty-one
the advantages—without stating any of the almost are excluded, although it would be difficult to show any
immeasurable and incalculable advantages which good reason why a young man of twenty, the supporter
Ireland would derive from that Repeal. of his widowed mother and the protector of her
trious, father-
less children, well educated, manly, sober, and indus-
" It is manifest that the fair and just way to
should not have the preference to a man of sixty,
treat the subject would be—first, to specify, with idle, dissolute, and deplorably ignorant. Derangement
distinctness and candour, as many as possible of of mind is another of the disqualifications ; but of that
the blessings which would accrue to Ireland from who is to be the judge ? Again, conviction of crime is
the paternal care of a domestic Legislature ; second, to disqualify ; and thus a punishment is to be inflicted
to specify, with equal distinctness, the evils, the beyond what the law awards, although the juvenile of-
oppressions, the insulting and contemptuous neglect fender, perhaps through the pressure of intolerable po-
of our affairs by the Imperial Legislature ; and when verty, the fruitful source of early crime, may have be-
these were completed, then, and not till then,
come not only a useful, but a highly respectable member
of society. Why, then, do Universal Suffrage men
should the objections be brought forward. By that propose these restrictions upon the snffrage ? They can
mode of proceeding the Irish people, for whom have no other reason than to secure, as far as restric-
alone we ought to write, would be able to compare tions can secure it, the possession by the voter of a
all the advantages of ' Repeal' with its difficulties, masculine mind, a mature mind, an undiseased and an
and calmly judge between the one class and the honest mind. The proposed restrictions prove that
other. their term is a misnomer, for the qualities required, so
" This course would lead to right thinking and far from being universal, are not possessed, even ac-
justly judging. The course taken by Mr. Craw- cording to their own estimate, by one-fourth of the
ford tends to directly the contrary result. It is, in- po pu ati o n
Household Suffrage carries exclusion still farther ;
deed, the mode which has created and continued but with this difference to Universal Suffrage, that the
the worst errors and heresies in religion—nay, in- persons excluded would be, in a very great number
fidelity itself. It is the mode that perpetuates dis- of instances, better qualified for the discharge of an elec•
sensions and criminal errors in politics, and makes tor's duties than a very great number who would be in-
partisan fury fill the place of calm patriotic zeal. eluded. Limitation to householders, while it would
" I intend to take directly the opposite course include almost all the labourers in the agricultural
to that adopted by Mr. Sharman Crawford. In counties, of whom probably not one-fourth can read and
my second letter on the Repeal—a letter which write, would exclude thousands of well-informed, in-
I d ustFious, skilful, and prudent workmen, who are in
I intend to direct to George Bryan, Esq. M.P.— lodgingscohe in the manufacturing towns. It would include
I will, first, demonstrate the evils, hopeless of re- \,e
pea-
inedy, which spring from the present -form of 1e.....- i 5e...., },,... tch..?. angst
itorr
,At.,andatest,:dae.pendencittlative connexion between the two countries. re....
tion of the most intelligent artizans in•this or :ny other
cond, the transcendent benefits which would arise country. It would include the improvident man who at
to Ireland from a domestic legislature. Third, I twenty-one risks his own independence and the happiness
will take up, seriatim, the six or seven specific ob- of his partner in life by becoming, ere he has made any
jections adduced by Mr. Crawford to Repeal. I provision for the future, a husband and a housekeeper ;
while it would exclude the virtuously prudent person
think Ido not at all exaggerate when I say I will who delayedarriage till he could, as far as human
be able to scatter these objections into ' thin air,' foresight could,
m ould secure a comfortable subsistence to his
or to show clearly and fully that the facts he alludes wife without compelling her to go to the factory or the
to are potential for Repeal, and; not against it. fields, and to his children without condemning them to
I Fourth, I will point out the next steps to be taken early debilitating toil or the workhouse. It would
to revive in the best and in the mode most con- include the man who keeps a lodging-house for thieves
ciliatory to all classes of Irishmen the direct agita- or beggars, while it would exclude the enlightened mer-
tion for the Repeal. chant giving employment to hundreds of the industrious
" I may be mistaken, yet I think I shall be able classes.ln both of these systems, then, there would be a
to prove that we will derive from Mr. Crawford's great number of persons excluded from the elective
hostility to Repeal more advantages than we could franchise who are better qualified than a great number
from his advocacy of that measure. I say this with- who would be included. We stop not to inquire whe-
out meaning him any disrespect, but as a mere ther either scheme of representation would be better
matter of fact. There is no earthly institution, nor than that which was recognised by the Reform Bill ;
any attempt to ameliorate human institutions, which for we write for those, who, like ourselves, are already
may not be met by manifold objections. It is in- convinced that there must be a great extension of the
herein in human nature that whatever man does
,or
proposes cannot be perfect, and must, therefore, be
obnoxious to cavil and fault-finding. Mr. Craw- suffrage to ensure good Government, and peaceable
submission to the laws of the country. We have men-
tioned the exclusions under both proposed plans of
Reform, to bespeak from the advocates of Household
ford is at the ' fault-finding' side; but he fairly Suffrage, and the advocates of universal Suffrage, the
produces his objections, and gives us the opportu- fair and candid consideration of a scheme of repre-
nity of confuting real and not merely conjectural sentation which recognises no exclusion which the
statements. We have a substantial enemy to en- former has not recognised, and which gets rid of the
counter, and not a visionary foe. injurious exclusion, and the not less injurious inclusion
" I will not anticipate my reply further than to which the latter sanction, while it would give to every
say that the most plausible objections suee.ested
intelligent man who desires to hold the elective franchise
by Mr. Crawford are equally, if not more power- (andh
avetit)setwhe opportunity do not
o desiretofe
havei it, dot not
his
ai ning just
fully, applicable to the British Constitution itself, share in the election
of representatives.asoh
or even to the Union as it exists. Of this more The exclusion of all females and of every male under
fully in my next letter. twenty-one years of age in the scheme of Universal Suf-
" For the present I have only farther to remark, frage ; the exclusion of all lodgers in the scheme el.
that I think it was a singular specimen of bad taste Household Suffrage ; the exclusion of the man who in a
to assail, in his reply to you, the ' General Asso- borough pays 91. 19s: of rent, while he who pays 101. is
exclusion of
501 th ise i farmeraalud included
d- whoallpatTlsos4e9l.ezf
ciation,' the 4 Anti-Tory Association,' and the includedren the
rent while he who pays
' Precursor Association ;' all of which merited and elusions consideredinconnection with the extension of
I obtained your support and co-operation. But there the suffrage which has already been obtained, and with
was something worse than bad taste—there is a those farther extensions which are demanded, prove
monstrous error of judgment in his condemnation. that, with the strong desire to extend the franchise, there
Each of these bodies discharged its functions, and are an equally strong wish and determination to restrict
it to those who can exercise it for the good of the coin-
performed its mission, with not only perfect ho-
t Wepropose to unite these conflicting desires
com-
munity. .
~
nesty, but with great success. The General Asso- by the adoption of a suffrage which, we think, with
ciation kept up the spirit of the Irish people during
the Grey-Anglesey tyranny, and succeeded in keep- realßeformers, will, afterdue consideration, be allowed
• ' '
to satisfy both.
ins ,_ in Parliament a phalanx of Irish Members We throw aside the disqualifaction of insane per-
sufficient to check the hostility of that Ministry sons, because all who are ascertained to be insane are
towards Ireland. usually in confinement ; we throw aside the disqualifi-
" The Anti-Tory Association was still more sue-
cation of persons convicted of crime, because all who
cessful—in fact, it triumphantly carried the object
have not endured the full punishment which the law
for which it had been formed—namely, to displace has awarded them are in prison ; we contend not for
the qualification of females, though there may be good
the Tory Administration, and to restore the Whit-Ts
argumentsfor it, man chooses to hold the weaker
to office. By its exertions the electors of Ireland vessel iin fo
subjection we make no distinction between
were so animated and organised as to have sent to the heusebolder and
the lodger, and none between the
the House of Commons that overwhelming majo- 91. 19s. and the 10/. renter. We propose only two simple
rity which finally succeded in overturning the Peel qualifications :
Administration and restoring the Whig Ministry. 1. A certain maturity of years.
2. A certain ascertained amount of knowledge.
I am not now defending the subsequent conduct of
We need not stop. particularly to inquire, on the
that Ministry. I ant o'nly showing, in reply to Mr.
principles ofh abstracth .justice, at what precise period a
Crawford, that his accusation is unjust as it is iin-
pLrstohn ought
of
to eginto
theexereise his political rights.
politic, and that the Anti-Tory Association was
not a failure,
for "discharge twenty-one . law. recognizes his cape-
, but achieved its purposes, and gave •
city _or the of social duties quite as important
one other proof how i irres-stlle Irishmen can be to himself as the choice of a Parliamentary represen-
when they combine honestly,l numerously, legally, tative. We would raise no dispute on a point upon
and peaceably. It is another encouragement to which ail classes of reformers are agreed. As affee-
aei
persevere in the Repeal tatien ting those who are below that age, exclusion would
4, As to the PrecursorbSociety., it was instituted not be regarded as any invidious distinction. But as
as an experiment to try whether, bconfining regards the degree of maturity of mind, beyond the
ourselves to seeking an equalisation, y
a realisation
nof
in
nhfe fyr)atnni.ochn_ise representation deems
criterioni of age, which nearly every philosophical ape-
with England—that is, ' culator upon the theory of representation to
we had any prospect of succeedine
rhe Precu°rsorexist. ' some
be necessary for the qualification of a voter,
that most legitimate object. 'opinion may
youse ofLordLsorodu
obtaining honest difference.
of
speech Brougham,. in. his
the people,
ciety has made this experiment. It has demon- o-December Ist, 1537
on- the Education of
strated that the prospects of justice from the I mpe- posed that, in addition to the persons who now vote for
rial Parliament, instead of increasing are diminish- Members of Parliament there should be included in the
ing, and indeed totally terminated. 'Why even Mr. list of voters for School Committees all who have received
Crawford himself admits—first, that the Irish Re_ instruction in certain institutions, which he names ;
form Bill is unjust ; secondly, that Ireland has and in one of the introductions to his collected
speeches, published in 183 S, he proposesiu that those
been refused justice by the Imperial Parliament ;
and thirdly that Ireland, under the present circum- 'persons
~asothalltalsoln havhe the right to vote
we
r members
re-
speech to I
re-
stances of her legislative connection, has no seen- ferred his Lordshipen saty-e—
-rity for just legislation. " The Leeislature has given the right of choosing
" These arc Mr. Crawford's own admissions ;., Members of Parliament to persons who possess a 10/.
and is it nothing that the Precursor Society has household franchise, or a 40s. freehold. It has also
reduced such a man as Mr. Crawford—a man who gy,,,vieoria a
desires and candidly avows his desire that the Union t
should continue to make such important, such , that all those
all-important admissions, as I have just stated T. ' votingright to choose town-councillors to persons
rated in any way. Of course my object is,
persons who are rated at any amount
;whatever, shall, in the first
for the school committe •
place, enjoy the right of
then I go farther.
" The Precursor Society has, therefore, well ful- ' I hold that there can be no
e. but
. harm,. but every kind of
filled its mission. Its work was done, and well benefit possible, in extending it in the direction lam
done ; and, having been dissolved upon the princi- i about to describe. We want w,411-informed persons ;
i plc upon which it was instituted, it is a little too , we want persons of sober and industrious habits—men