The Sun.
London, England, 1831-06-20 00:00:00

OP THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

The Belgic Papers of Saturday, and of the two
evious days, which we received yesterday, are
tto•ally destitute of news of interest. The National
Congress languidly contintlee its sittings, and such
of its members as can be collected by invitations or
-threats, try to help each other in doing nothing ;
but the people look rather to the Congress of Lon-
don than to that of Brussels for the decision of
their fate. The President and the Ds-penes who
are here seem to have trensported the scene of po-:
Utical interest to this 'country, and to have fixed it
for a season round Doevsoing-street and Marlbo.
rougll-house. Accordingly, every stemier that ar-
rives from England occasioes. a host of conjectures,
arid gires ground for eseelless speculation. to the
meats time the Jerobin and war paetys since the
stage has been cleared for theme nrie attempting to
get up a little under-plot of then. own to embroil the
chief action of the pieces Their jourrele, like
weachmen half intoxicated, half asleep, call out
" fire, fire ;" and their undiseiplined volunteers do
all they can to break the seemistice, that they ma -
accomplish more ex; eirsive mischief. The Propa-
gandist emissaries from Paris, and the tettriotic agi-
tators of home 'growth, perceivinee that their ccoc-
cupation would be gone" vrere Prince Leopold to
accept of the crown, and the question of been-
deries to be settled, provoke to hostilities with all
theie. might. The letter of the Regent to Prince
Leopold is just such a production as must have
been expected from a man of the Regent's
good sense, and in the Regent's eimation.
He himself, on being promoted to his pre-
sent exalted rank, swore to meintain the limits
and integrity of Belgium, as settled in the coasti-
tirtional act ; and he could not ask less from his suc-
cessor than to exert his influence to obtain them
without a war. The Regent is a warm Belgic pa-
triot, but at the same time he is a man of moderate
views and satisfied ambition. Though he stands in
the same relation to Ponce Leopold as Capo d'ls-
tries did last year, he has not the same ficilities
rear the same motives for preventing a final settle-
ment of his country, by frightening away his suc-
cessor elect. Nor has he the same disposition, for
he knows too well the uncertainty, toil, and danger
of occupying his present situation, with Europe
against him, and a turbulent faction clamouring for
war, to desire the postponement of the ultimate
transfer of supreme power into other hands than his '
own. This was neither the disposition nor the
prospects of the wily Greek, full at once of ambi-
tion arid craft,----who requested the Prince not to come
at all unless he came with a new map of Greece in
his pocket, well aware that the limits could trot be
easily changed, and that so long as the question
was 'unsettled he could occupy the President's
chair. The Regent has done wisely in establishing
a journal over which his Government may have
limited controul. Never was there a periodical
press so uncandid, factious, false, and fickle as that
of Belgium. The chief peen. of Brussels, for in-
stance, without knowing -wry thing of what is doing
in London, thus begins a tirade against the .Belgic
Government, against Prince Leopold and the Con-
ferences of London :—" For several days the Belgic
deputation has been in London. Ten represents--
(ryes of the Belgic people, with the President of the
National Assembly at their head, arc in the ante-
clzainbcr af a foreigner, whom 1,000,000 of free.
men call to reign over them. They knock at his
door in vain !" What moderation can be expected
from a people whose sources of ieformation are
poisoned by such perverse libellers ?—Times.
A report is in circulation that the Lords mean to
oppose the Address to his Majesty, on the opening
of the new Parliament, by moving an amendment.
We are inclined to think that this rumour has sprung
from some who are no friends to the hereditary
legislators of the country—perhaps not even to a
still higher authority in the Sate. A Sovereign in
unison with his people is too important a personage
in these times ,0 find himself subjected to any mark
of disrespect from those whose honours most re-
semble his own, and who are next in dignity to him-
self. A new Parliament! Almost a new King,
with all the gloss of novelty untarnished about him,
and all the real substance of worth in his nature!.
A new era! All these are too important personages
or personifications for the second body in the Con-
stitution to shut, the door upon them, without at
/erst hearing what they have got to say; arid the
early avowal, before it can possibly be known whet
the speech will contain, that it is meant to move an
amendment upon it (should that avowal be verified
by the event), is, in truth, shuttine the door upon
the King and the newly-elected House of Corn-
mons, and tire fresh era in the world. It is true
that, constitutionally speaking, the speech of the
King is the speech of his Ministers : none more fully
acquiesce in that doctrine than ourselves ; but still
we are of opinion, that so well-ordered and dignified
an assembly as the British House of Peers may be
disposed, at least for a while, to listen to those whom
their King has chosen as his servants, anti in whom
be confides as the depositories of his will. The Mi-
nisters make the Speech, but the King makes the
Ministers. Nor should we even plead thus far in
common times ; but the slightest flash of disrespect,
even by reflection or refraction, from a constituted
authority to a constituted authority, is what we
cannot bring our minds to expect at an epee:ft like
the present. There is another point of view also in
which this matter deserves consideration. It is
dear that the House of Peers cannot oppose the
Address but with some view to the important ques-
tion to be brought on first before the other House
of Parliament. Now we are eure that the Upper
House will keep itself clear and unfettered for that I
question. The Bill may come up to them in the
most proper and unquestionable shape possible ;
but in what a position will they be then placed,
if they should have pledged themselves to a pre-
mature condemnation of it, by opposing the Ad-
dress ? They will have shut the door not only
against the King and his Ministers, but also against
themselves, excluding themselves from the free con-
sideration of that which will be freely offered to their
decision. We shall make but another remark upon
the subject at present. Those eminent persons, on
whose imagined proceedings we presume to reason,
have each of them, no doubt, a very just and proper
influence in the several counties where their proper-
ties lie, and which they themselves inhabit. We
do net say that they have interfered improperly in
the late elections ; on the contrary, we know that
they have been more than usually cautious during
the various contests which have taken place. But
still their property must give them consideration.--
Hare they found that obedience and acquiescence
has attended on their wishes among the people,—
nay, even among their own tenantry,—in favour of
Anti-Reforming canddares If not, the whole
body, we presume, would not prematurely, or ex-
cept upon the absolute impulse of duty, oppose the
whole people on a subject on which the individuals
were found incompetent to influence their several
localities.. From these considerations we hope we
eonelude that the Address will not Ire opposed
In the House of Lords.—Tintes.
Au Evening Paper, in discussing our abstract of
the several creations of Peers as supporting or
opposing the Reform Bill, says, that we hare omitted
all those Peers createdintah:el greater' part of George
M.'s reign, making
up neyulda f
boeurfth of rite whole
Peerage. Now, nothing co
rule; we took an equal number from thre ht i:and arid
tail of every class of the Nobility,--Dee„ itei, ate
quisses, Earls, Viscounts, Barons ; and we showed,
beyond the power of contradiction, that of the more
ancient nobility of each class,—the heads,—the
Reform had the majorities ; but of the more recent
--the tails,—the Anti-Reform had the majority :
and by the way, as every era has its names and
appellations, it would not be a bad way thus to dis-
tinguish the friends and enemies of Reform among
the Peers,—the heads and the tails. But what in-
duced us chiefly to resume this subject teas to remark
its
on the adroitness of thatjournal, which .
evinces
respect for the Upper House of Parliament. hy
'howiag that nearly a quarter of it consists of Pitt '8