The Sun.
London, England, 1849-06-16 00:00:00

Otrienina '.41116

LONDON, SATUR9AY, JUNE 16, 1849.

After two nights' elaborate discussion, the House
of Commons decided yesterday by a majority of 291
to 150 that the Imperial Legislature shall NOT inter-
fert, with the local acts of the Canadian Government.
Last evening's decision must now constitute a very
remarkable Parliamentary precedent. It will always
testify that in 1849 the Lower House of the Parlia-
ment at Westminster resolved, deliberately and
calmly resolved, after a careful examination of the
arguments "for" and " against"—That England
would not consent to influence the policy of an
elective Assembly in one of her most important co-
lonies ; and That England should never attempt any
such arbitrary interference unless it was glaringly
manifest that such interposition was positively re-
quired by the honour of the Crown.
There are so many conclusive and wholly unan-
swerable reasons why the supreme Legislature hf the
British Empire should arrive at this conclusion, and
arrive at this conclusion alone, that we should con-
ceive ourselves to be perfectly justified in attributing
the amendment of the Right Honourable Gentleman
the Member for Stamford to factious motives, were
we not as fully sati,fied that his political conscience
is as honest as his statesmanlike intellect is liable to
be affected in favour of any crochet however extrava-
gant. But that prejudice may blind and eccentricity
mystify even the most keen-sighted and logical intel-
lects, we' should be at a loss to account for the
extraordinary hallucination of so many of our legis-
lators in regird to a matter so clear, so vivid, so self-
evident as this' of the impolicy, and not only the
impolicy, but the absolute injustice of any inter-
ference on our part with the Canadian Parliament
respecting the Bill for the indemnification of losses
in the rebellion.

Among many other reasons, such interference
would be egregiously impolitic and shamefully un-

just :

Because the measure in question is in itself un-
exceptionable ;
Because it is exclusively a local operation ;
Because it has been passed into a law in the
most iitrictly constititutional manner—being car-
ried successively through both the Canadian
Chambers by large majorities, thereby receiving the
approval of the representatives of the Canadian
population ;
Because Upper Canada having already received in-
demnification for losses sustained during the rebellion,
Lower Canada was surely entitled to share in a simi-
lar advantage.
Because, moreover, the hostility evinced towards
the Bill has not only been clearly the revengeful hos-
tility of the minority, but thAt minority has still fur-
ther damaged its already dilapidated reputation by
resorting to the most unconstitutional measures of
opposition, or rather of retaliation, namely, to riot
in the streets, to a violation of the dignity of the
Parliament, to the most dastardly acts of incen-
diarism ; am], lastly,

Because any such proceeding on the part of the

* " The Crisis in Canada; or, Vindication of Lord
Elgin and his Cabinet, &c." By Alexander Mackay,
Esq., Barrister-at-law, Byo. pp. 68. Ridgway, London,
1849.

" Our Colonies." By Arthur Wellingtou Hart.
n. pp. 44. Richardson, Loudon, 1849.