The Sun.
London, England, 1831-09-23 00:00:00

"
SPIRIT Or TH •VPLIC JRI4ALS.
The Reform Bill has at length made good its landing in
the House of Lords, and the circumstances which attended
its teception there were powerfully indicative of the awe
inspired by the presence cl a preternatnral visiter. Cere-
monies, which from immemorial usage have long ceased to
excite any serious interest, or to be otherwise performed
or regarded than as mere mechanical appendages of the
Peers), like the bag and sword of Deputy Black Rod, the
Masters in Chancery, or the gilt badges of the messengers,
all assumed last night an importance befitting the great ends
for which they were originally instituted—the main-
tenance of a stern and solemn intercourse between
the two Legislative Chambers of the kingdom. Bins,
on common occasion', are brought up to the House
of Lords by the Member who has taken the chief
paccoin.
rni
to half a dozen of
his brethren of the Lower House. The Lord Chancellor
aattict in
by
yeirf ropamssagtwe througho
orthree the Commons,
walks down from the woolsack to the bar—a careless bow,
a few muttered wards of form, and, under the rose and in
whispers, some small gossip or light joke begin and termi-
nate the communications of this short congress, which is
as little noticed by the body of Peers as is the process of
lighting the chandelier., or stirring up the fire. Was it
so last night ? We refer to our report of the Parlia-
mentary proceedings.. On the announcement of the long-
expected—by some the much-dreaded—message, the
grotned and scattered Peers took post open their proper
benches, as if to be in readiness for the ambassadors of a
mighty power. To colloquial ease and idleness, a silence
succeeded profound and universal. The doors opened,
and ill‘tead of half a dozen or a dozen Commoners, with
Lord Johtl gonad' at their head, that. Noble Lord entered,
attended by Lord Alehorp, as representative of the King's
Government in the House of Commons, and above an hun-
dred—we are informed many more—of the most resolute
supporters of the-Bill. Instead of as unmeaning mutter of
common-place words, followed by an interchange of social
under-voiced hilarity, Lord John Russell, pronounced, in
clear and emphatic accents the object of the memorable task
intrusted to him; and in a significant tone, on the part of
the Commons, " desired the concurrence of their Lop?.
ships" in the Bill, for securing a fresh charter to she Bri-
tish nation, the provisions of her ancient charter having—.
not fallen, 'mt.-sheen crushed, by fraud or violence, into
long disuse. Lord Brougham, from the woolsack, com-
municated to the Peers the subject of the message which
bad been delivered to him, and presented the Bill for
their consideration. Lord Grey, the Prime Minister,
acting at once for King and people, proposed to their
Lordships the first reading of the Bill, and fixed, with
their consent, the period folits second reading,—viz.
next Monday se'nnight. Then.; and not till then, did
the Members of the House of Commons, having secured
the purpose of their mission, consider themselves to be
foncti officio, and immediately retire from the bar. In
this striking manner was conducted, by far the most im-
portant and valuable transaction in the nature of a de-
mand by the Commons of England upon the Peers, that
ever took place between two branches of the Legislature-,
since, perhaps, the House of Commons first existed. How
paltry,—now that we can look back a little,—how utterly
paltry and contemptible, were the alleged grounds of
opposition to this measure in the assembly whence it
has just emerged ! as much to be despised for their
inconsistency with all sound political reasoning-,
as for the mean and sordid immorality of the
motives which they were designed to cover. A
remarkable feature—indeed the most remarkable
of all the arguments or pretences which were had recourse
to by the Anti-Reformers—is, that they are not to be found
in any one vat book on the Constitution of England. No
writer that ever yet undertook to define, to explain, or to
justify our Constitution, has dreamed of enutneratmg-no-
nhination boroughs or dec ,yed boroughs among its acknow-
ledged parts ; or has brought forward the practice of pm'-
chasing seats as an expedient mode of furnishing the mo-
neyed interest with representatives; or has boasted of, the
process by which one man of talent, in company with 50
100 blockheads, may be thrust into Parliament through
the dirty gates of-a close borough, and hired to execute
the dirty work of its patron, as one of the beauties of our
legitimate Constitution. Nor do we find one syllable
about virtual representation in any Statute-book, in any
grammar, in any commentary of the Constitution of Eng-
England, however ancient and revered. No, the
phrase was unknown to the " wisdom of our auces-
tors," as the thing itself surpassed their comprehension.
On a comparison, therefore, between two modes of
policy, one of which is actually founded on those
known principles and data which may be said to consti-
tute, as they unquestionably contain and limit, the whole
framework of the British Constitution, while the other
.ystem can be no otherwise not merely defended, but even
understood, except by discarding all such recognieed prin-
ciples, anti enlisting into its service others inconsistent
with them—let any honest man with the ordinary" dis-
course of reason" decide which merits moat, the-name of
revolutionary policy ! The Commons of England have
determined; and the Lords, if they be at the same time
upright men and rational, will follow the example of the
Commons. As for the accusations which have been
heaped upon the Press, we take credit for having pro-
voked them from the deadly foes of Reform. Well does
it content us to share with the Bill the execrations of a
common enemy. The answer to such reproaches is this
question. Would the success of the Reform Bill have
been so signal, but for the moral power of the Press, in
faithfully presenting, embodying, arraying, and utilizing
the general sentiment of the people? On the other
hand, does any man who knows England fancy that all
the existing journals put together could have suppressed
for more than a few short weeks the prevailing spirit
of Reform ? Had they embarked in so mad a scheme,
other publications would have sprung up in all quarters,
led opinion to battle against prejudice or knavery, become
the real representatives of the public mind, and consigned
the old renegades to oblivion. The calumnies tittered
against us, we can afford to laugh at. When a Member
of Parliament charges this Paper with having stirred up
the army to rebellion, need we take the trouble to refute
him otherwise than by referring to what we did say,—
namely, that if the Tory faction should attempt to put
down the Commons, the people and the King, by the
bayonet, under the sole authority of the Lords, the troops
would not obey them ; for who, in that case, would be
the rebels? Heaven be praised, that the House of Com-
mons has done its part, though some Members must be
exposed who deserted their duty on the last division. As
for the unfortunate Sir Robert Peel, who laments that he
has only a personal interest in the rotten borough system,
when he had flattered himself that he might have left his
children the fee, we have little doubt that the descendants
of the Right Hon. Baronet will rejoice over the frustrs.7
tration of the intended parental bounty.— Times.
The Reform Bill was last night brought up from the
Commons to the House of Lords. In expectation of this
event, the Lords assembled early in numbers on both sides
of the House, and several ladies were present. The Bill
was read a first time without any observation; and the se-
cond reading was fixed for Monday week. It had keen
stated pretty confidently that the Bill would lie fiercely at-
tacked in its first stage, and this may account for the great
throng, both of Peers and strangers. The Lords, how-
ever, are not such terrible Drawcansirs, as some would have
us believe they are. If the people do their duty, we will
answer for it the Lords will do their)). The bravest Ge-
neral that ever lived, would not think of making head
against a hostile army with his staff alone. The must
staunch of those who believe that the goodness of a Con-
stitution is in the ratio of the amount of taxation which is
placed at the uncontrouled disposal of a favoured few, what-
ever aversion they may have to anyrestraint being imposed
on their access to the pockets of the people, must still have
their misgivings when they see a whole nation arrayed
against them, with petitions in one band, and the other
significantly pointed to their closed pockets. We wish to
impute madness to no class of our countrymen. We readily
admit, that if we were Lords, rich in ancient blood, but poor
in purse, we might have our doubts as to the propriety
of abandoning the means of feeding liberally on the people;
but still, when we saw the people determined to hold out,
we should abandon our doubts. The majority of the
House of Peers have a good deal at stake, and though the
people have also much to lose, the losses of the people
would be but a poor compensation to the Peers for their
own calamity. There may be a few hot-headed, reckless
men among the Peers, as there are in all assemblies, but
the majority will naturally be guided by a sense of their
interests ; and it never surely can be their interest to in-
volve the country in confusion. The story of the dog in
the fable, is peculiarly apposite. By snatching at the
shadow he lost the substance. By seeking more than
itnheitrhelecgoituinnttarytehapsritvhiregessm;alblesutt
wdihsopoeshitalioinsityo
their own, they may come to have less than their own.
questionman
what may happen, if, not content with their legitimate,_
privileges, they seek' to encroach on the privileges °f gm"
people ? They who set an example. of disrepthrer
rf
others follow their example. Viertbemdrynaiowonpenst":::iirors
the principles of justice, can hardly
therire !rrthis,Pt7hey are outrun-
throughout the country, at tbis clati land
as
the
a salutary medicine to
*lhvawhich the middle classec.in
people seem in.:t_ainetp;pgir:
bare been long drug_
of property are but too well
ning expectation.
aware of the
particular throughout the country