The Sun.
London, England, 1836-01-22 00:00:00

ever did before for the people of any country, by means '
equally_accordant with a spirit of peace, and social order.
We could make him fully sensible that the declaration of
O'CONNELL himself, with respect to the trivialness
of what he had accomplished, could not for an instant
outweigh the importance of his public services. Mr.
O'CoNNELL may say that he has done nothing for his
country ; but were he to do so publicly to-morrow, there
is not a man of common understanding in Ireland who
would believe him. ' Sir FRANCIS BURDETT talks
as if the Catholic gentry were alone benefitted by the
passing of the Catholic Emancipation Bill. The
Hon. Baronet would not have so spoken in 1806. But
Sir FRANCIS BURDETT ought to know that as men
do not live by bread only, so neither do they derive
all the blessings of life from accession to office.
Is the consciousness of political and social equality
nothing ? If so, why are the people of England
presumed to be happier, because their Constitution
renders them eligible to the highest offices in the
State ? Why are they congratulated on official
victories of which a large proportion of them are never
to gather the fruits ? Sir FRANCIS alludes in rather
unsavoury terms to the O'CONNELL tribute. This
is a standing topic with the Tories. We always hear
of rags, and nakedness, and misery in conjunction with
the tribute : how strange then that we never hear of
such subjects when the quarter-day arrives for paying
off the pensions of the mendicant aristocracy who
live but to demoralize and pauperize the country !
We never hear of hunger and thirst, and the
squalor of Irish indigency, when Church cor-
morants are to be fed—when the members of a dis-
solute oligarchy are to be gorged with plunder—and
when subsidies are to be levied for the support of Ger-
man princes. If the Irish poor be in so distressed a
condition that it is disgraceful to receive their pence
voluntarily offered, how atrocious must be the
criminality of those who wring shillings from
them against their inclination, sometimes to the
shedding of their blood ? It is time to get
rid of this cant about rent. When Mr. O'CON-
NELL arms the collectors of it with pistols charged
by himself—when he sends them forth at day-break
to watch the first opening of the cabin door, and so
surprise the peasant in an unheeded moment, in
order to ruin him by the compulsory collec-
tion of his pence—then shall we admit the jus-
tice of not only railing against, but of restrain-
ing him. But O'CONNELL is not priest enough for
the. adoption of this method of propagating the light
of a pure Christianity. He must be converted, and
become a parson before he can attain this moral emi-
nence. But Mr. O'CONNELL may make his mind
very easy on this matter. The Tories rail against the
rent, because it is an incontrovertible evidence of
O'CoNNELL's influence in Ireland.

In this day's Sun will be found certain documents,
under the title " TORY MAGISTRACY," well worthy
of serious consideration. Those who wish to see a
happy illustration of the working of that system, which
invests the Lords Lieutenants of Counties with the
appointment of Magistrates, will peruse these docu-
ments with interest. People sometimes express sur-
prise that there should appear to be so much Tory
influence in the counties. They do not consider that
the main source of this influence is the Magistracy.
The Tories having been in possession of the Government
with little intermision for 70 years, have carefully ex-
cluded from a seat on the bench of Magistrates,
almost every man whose political opinions did not
square with their own. This they accomplished in
an indirect and underhand way. They appointed
none but their own creatures Lords Lieutenants of coun-
ties ; and none but the creatures of their creatures—
no one who could not produce a recommendation from
a Lord-Lieutenant was ever put into the Commission
of the Peace. What has been the consequence ? These
Magistrates so appointed—a great proportion of them
calling themselves ministers of the Gospel, too—have
been the bitterest opponents of reform. Through
every channel by which they could make their in-
fluence bear against the spread of liberal opinions,
and in support of the old system of abuses, has
their power been felt. In private, and on the
bench—whether in the employment of a trades-
man or labourer—in granting licenses to pub-
licans, in distributing the. patronage of the county
by appointing to numberless petty offices—con-
tracting for the building of bridges, gaols, and
other things of a like nature—the cause of Toryism
was steadily kept in view.
With respect to the county of Middlesex, the evil
has now reached a point at which it is indispensable
that it should be stopped, and an entirely different
plan pursued. We see that the business of the
County is at a stand-still, for want of resident
Magistrates to perform it. Can it be presumed
that the Metropolitan County is unable to furnish a
sufficient number of gentlemen competent to discharge
the duties of the office ? This will not be maintained.
Mr. HUME states that some months ago he recom-
mended to Lord JOHN RUSSELL 20 gentlemen as fit
and proper persons to act as Magistrates. How comes
it that none of these have been appointed ? Did the
Secretary of State object to them ? By no means.
The Noble Lord highly approved of them, and used
his influence with the Lord Lieutenant to get them
appointed, but could not succeed !! ! What must
the country think of this ? Ate its interests to be thus
sacrificed to a false delicacy ? We trust that the
county electors, as well as the metropolitan vestries,
will, without delay, present petitions to his MAJESTY,
and to the House of Commons, for the redress of this
shameful grievance.

In another column will be found a letter from a
Roman Catholic Bishop, which shews in what estima-
tion PETER DENS is held by the Catholic Church.
Dr. CARRUTHERS says he never heard either of old
PETER or his book till they were both resuscitated
by M'GIIEE and O'SULLIVAN at Exeter-Hall.

We have received the whole of the Paris papers of
Wednesday. They do not contain a word of news
to which we can attach the shadow of importance. The
secession of M. HUMANN from the Cabinet conti-
nues to engross the attention of the political circles
of Paris, probably because it is supposed that he will
be soon followed by some of his colleagues. There
are. but two Members of the French Cabinet for
whose retirement we are particularly anxious. 'These
are the Duke de BROGLIE and M. PERSIL. The
departments of War and Justice could not be worse
filled than they are at present ; albeit, there are but
few points of comparison between the two Ministers.
M. de BROGLIE is unquestionably a man of much abi-
lity, great acquired information, and tolerably straight-
forward in his views. But he is the dupe of R usstA,
and therefore a dangerous guardian of the dignity of
France. M. PERSIL is a man of no fixed political
principles ; his opinions of the merits of any question
depend upon the sentiments of the KING, for whose
sovereign wisdom, as well as power, the Minister of
Justice entertains the most profound reverence.

The Chamber of Deputies was engaged during the
sitting of Tuesday in the discussion of a project of
law for the repair of the vicinal roads of France, which,
according to the report of the committee whose duty it
was to enquire into the general state of the public
roads, involves interests more important to the national
welfare than the immediate laying down of railways.
The Court of Peers are still engaged with the trial