The Sun.
London, England, 1854-02-14 00:00:00

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LONDON, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1851.

Yesterday, the 13th of February, 1854, will be
memorable in the annals of the progress made in
the great system of Parliamentary representation.
It will be memorable, whatever the result of the
speech then delivered by Lord JOHN RUSSELL—
supposing that speech lead (which is improbable)
to nothing more than a fruitless agitation, or sup-
posing, on the contrary, that it prove actually
(as was intended), inaugurative of the " large
measure" of Reform, upon which the Coalition is
known to have staked, at once, its existence and
its reputation. Whatever, we say, be the con-
sequence of the elaborate statement laid before
the House of Commons last evening by its
Leader, the principles then asserted by the Noble
Lord, in his position as one of the most eminent
statesmen within the popular branch of the Legis-
lature, are of a nature such as cannot fail to se-
cure to the date of their enunciation an elevated
and permanent place in the national remembrance.
As yet, indeed, it would be simply premature
to deal with more than the broad principles upon
whichhas been based the scheme of Parliamentary
innovation proposed to the country by its present
Government. It were manifestly premature to enter
at this moment, on the morrow of the day upon
which thewhole of thiscomprehensive, and in many
respects most • complicated, project was first ex-
plained by its principal originator—it were mani-
festly prematurelo adventure fotthwith upon the
examination of those broad and fundamental
principles upon which the details have been built
up—it remains yet to be considered (later on)
whether as an incongruous or as an harmonious
superstructure. Changes so considerable as
those proposed last evening by Lord JOHN
RUSSELL require ample leisure for their close
and impartial consideration. Fairplay, indeed,
demands some pause before opinions are
pronounced upon the numerous, and many
of them minute, and most of them un-
precedented, innovations suggested by the Admi-
nistration. It would be altogether unjust
to attempt a premature analysis of a measure so
eminently requiring for its proper estimate the
calmness of unimpassioned deliberation. Therefore
as Lord JOHN himself prefaced his remarks yester-
day by endeavouring to propitiate the most pre-
judiced of his hearers by depreciating the import-
ance of the Bill, for leave to introduce which he
was about to ask the House of Commons—so
would we here hiutat the pr Jpriety of ace )riling
the Noble Lord's statement a careful and (as far as
possible) an impartial scrutiny prior to our ad-
'venturing upon its detailed an I piecemeal exami-
nation.

If, in this way, we regard the proposed mea-
sure of Parliamentary Reform in its entirety, we
gui
reco •
se, at the first glance, an enormous omis-
sion.
but An omission such as, in our view, cannot
militate
against its efficacy, if it be ever
brought in its present shape. into actual operation.
It must t:
great
obvious on. the daste.nt that• we allude
here to
the
Ballot we at omission of the Ballot. Without
Purifybelieveou that every effort will be vainly
made to
Without the .83aryite01 of popular representation.
we
majority of the believe that the veritable
peo'olcan never be really repre-
e
R
sented in the Lower 0 use of Parliament. And
the New Reform Bill
the Coalition, the sheet' the
" large measure" ofche
last anchor of the Administra-
tion, as explained
to the House of
nisT
Commons by Lord Jo Ren,,f'"
SSELL, had no sort of
reference whatever to the Ballot—passed the popu-
lar cry for the Ballot over 3,3 dumblyb and indiffer-
ently as it might have 1)%3el
of some little Ciartist faction for the dean and
the
the suffrage to the entire male adiat extension of
population.
This
t
This omission ofhe Ballot we re'
as the
main flay, in the new Reform Bill as sketched t ched
out
yesterday by Lird Jord JOHN' RUSSELL
Conspicuous, however, if not pre-e minent
among the chief merits of the "large measure"
of the Coalition is that introduced to the notice
of the House of Commons last evening by
Lord JOHN'S significant avowal, that the Bill
of 1831 did not musks sufficient provi ;lion
for the admission of the Working Classes, t heir
admission, that is to say, to the enjoyment of the
privileges and prerogatives of representation. Re-
cognisiug the necessity of compensating for this
electoral niggardliness of the Bill of 1331, by the
,political munifi;:anee of the Bill of 1331, Miuji-
Lers prap3s3 tl :.:p;a th 3 I»: Wilk, Ii) V, by ex-
tending the auff -
rage to all, thasa irlo are ratel at
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