The Sun.
London, England, 1865-07-10 00:00:00

of having assisted to pass those meugures
of which they boast. The truth is, that had the
Whigs chosen to bring in a fair and reasonable
measure the Conservatives, as a body, would not
have dared to oppose it after their own pledges to
the country, which we must in fairness acknowledge
they had shown a disposition to keep. The will,
not the power, was wanting on the Liberal side of
the House, as was clearly shown by the divisions on
the ballot and on the motions of Mr. LOCKE KING
and Mr. BAINES. It is not only that they are
opposed to democracy, for the whole tone and
tenour of English political life is opposed to that,
but they shrink from Reform. They are anxious to
retain not the safeguards but the abuses, and could
the Whigs insure as lorg a tenure of political power
and influence with universal suffrage and annual
Parliaments, we have very little doubt that the
three great houses would swell the ranks of the
Chartists. The love of power and place has been
as dangerous to the Whigs, and as detrimental to
the best interests of the country as the obstinate
prejudices of the Tories. Both sides have much
to learn, but the Tories have of late learned their
lesson the faster, and they are likely to reap the
reward of their intellectual progress at this general
election.

Another cause which has helped to favour the
so-called reactionary movement which is clearly per-
ceptible in the country—though in truth reaction at
the present day is a simple impossibility—has
been the American war. The tumult and con-
vulsions of which that beautiful and prosperous
country has of late been the scene have served as a
complete counterpoise to the enthusiastic encomiums
of the Manchester party. In contemplating the
result of a Republican form of Government many
persons shrink from taking any step which would
place political power among ourselves in the hands
of the masses, forgetting that tne circumstances are
not really similar. The same objection might have
been raised in 1832 against putting any influence
in the hands of the middle classes, but in fact so far
from showing any desire to share their hardly ac-
quired power with others, those classes are for
the most part steady opponents of a fur-

ther reduction of the franchise. The object
of every true Reformer should be to preserve
a balance of political power by securing a fair re-
presentation of all classes, and so far from this being
a revolutionary doctrine, it is the very fundamental
principle of the British Constitution. The repre-
sentation of the people, and of the middle classes, is
provided for in the Commons as the representation
of the aristocracy is in the Lords, and while the one
is supplied with the command of the national purse,
the natural right of the working bees of the hive, the
other has the balancing power of refusing its assent
to any measure of which it disapproves. We can
hardly hope to excel the wisdom of our ancestors in
this respect, even as all our regal reforms fail to
supersede trial by jury. Practices which are
based on sound reason and right principle can with-
stand criticism, though they may be susceptible of
improvement in details. It is no sweeping change
that is wanted, in fact a reformed Parliament might

contain very much the same sort of members as we
have hitherto had. The difference would be that
men who have a right to have a voice in the go-
vernment of the country would have a representative
in Parliament ; that large classes, whose numbers
are reckoned not by tens nor by hundreds, but by
millions, would be able not to interfere with the
rights of property, or to introduce republican in-

stitutions, but to vote for whichever candidate
they considered would best represent their inter

rests in the imperial Parliament. The governing
classes would remain the same. Political parties
would probably maintain the same theories, but we
should have the advantage of knowing that, which-
ever side obtained a decisive majority, did actually

represent the views and principles of the people. If
all other safeguards were removed English
conservatism and steadiness might safely be
trusted to preserve the nation from the evils
of democracy ; but, in fact, there ought to be no
removal of safeguards, but only the substitution of
truth for falsehood, of a genuine representation for
a partial and interested one. It is idle to argue as
some anti-reformers have argued, that any arbitrary
division of £lO or £5O can protect us against
anarchy. If we had no other protection we might
have a republic to-morrow.

In an able and interesting article in the current
number of the Quarterly, to which we shall return
at a future period, it is observed that the question
now at issue is whether England shall be governed
by property or numbers. " Those who prefer the
first will vote for the Conservative candidate ; those

who prefer the last will vote for the Liberal. There

is no middle term between the two. It is the great
controversy of modern society, the great issue upon

=
which the hopes of freedom, and order, and civilisa-
tion depend." But the antagonism between numbers
and intelligence is the very evil which true patriots
deprecate. Indisputably it is the right of education

and intelligence to rule, but let them rule with the

aid and support of numbers, not in defiance
of them. If it comes to a trial of strength between

physical force and moral force, the first is likely to

gain at least a temporary advantage which would

be lamentable. Let our statesmen and politicians

rather aim at governing by the willing aid of a

people who feel they are fairly represented and
wisely governed, until by gradual elevation and im-

provement of the lowest classes the interests o:

numbers and intelligence are no longer discordant

Time passes away so rapidly, and one engrossing
pursuit succeeds another with such speed, that one
is apt to forget the exact period which has elapsed
since any event took place, and when recurrence is
made to a date surprise is felt by many. It is now
seventeen years since Lord STANLEY was first
elected for King's Lynn—a circumstance of which
he reminded the electors on Saturday, when he
addressed them at some length. It must be con-
fessed that few among those who have sat in the
House of Commons during this time have more
faithfully fulfilled their pledges, or have consistently
maintained their course than the noble lord. lie
has made no pretentious professions, and gone to
no extremes, but has throughout followed the dic-
tates of common sense and acted according to his
judgment, irrespective of the claims of party and
uninfluenced by the schemes of the so-called re-
formers and regenerators. Lord STANLEY'S speeches
are always listened to with respect, and he attracts
more attention than many brilliant speakers, because
he never addresses the House without a purpose,
and is always very well informed on the subject of
which he treats. His explanation on Saturday was
very satisfactory to the electors, and certainly no
one could complain that it was a niggardly state-
ment, or one that kept back any important decision
•
or awkward statement.

The noble lord truly said that our " foreign
policy" was of more consequence than our
domestic policy, for it was not possible for
any Minister to go very far wrong in
domestic matters nowadays, since public opinion
governed in the long run. No doubt there is great
truth in the statement that we should get into diffi-
culty and embarrassment if we took up the quarrels
of all foreign nations, but the noble lord carries the
non-intervention plan too far. What becomes of our