The Sun.
London, England, 1838-03-08 00:00:00

which he ( Sir F. Trench) drew from it was this—that the
Noble Lord's colleagues had put Ireland into such a situation
that nobody could govern that country but themselves. This
view of the case was more condemnatory of the Government
than anything that could be offered to convey censure on a2e
Government. If Ireland was in such a state as to render it
difficult to be governed, it was entirely in consequence of the
system pursued and sanctioned by her Majesty's Government.
He was ashamed to think that his late Majesty's Government
had appointed to a high station a man who had made declara-
tions which had a most wicked effect.—( Cries of " Name.")
Her Majesty's Attorney_ General.—( Loud laughter from the
Ministerial benches, and cries of "He ought to be im-
peached.") It might be a matter of laughter to Honourable
Gentlemen opposite.
The SPE AKER hoped the Hon. Member did not intend
to impute motives to any one.
Sir F. TRENCH wished particularly to guard against so
doing, but ho was convinced that the tendency of the Learned
Gentleman's argument was to say, that he visited Ireland,
and found a generous people ; that he turned to Scotland,
and found long swords, and people who knew how to use
them, and that the killing of Archbishop Sharpe was no mur-
der. In regard to imputing motives to other Gentlemen, he
had particularly guarded himself ; but, he must say, that it
was shameful for any Government to fix on such a man to be
her Majesty's Attorney-General.—( Hear.) However, he was
glad
_to say that the prospects of the country were growing
brighfer. The people of Ireland were returning to their
senses—(Cheers and laughter)—and the Hen. and Learned
Member for Dublin flies agitation.—( Renewed laughter, and
cheers.) Indeed, he (Sir F. Trench), had heard that another
Learned Agitator had recently been hooted and pelted in his
progress through the county of Tipperary. On his soul
and conscience he believed that political agitation, by
the extraordinary talents of those Gentlemen for mischief,
acted on the passions of the excitable people of Ireland so
strongly, that they might even be induced to commit murder.
Their best qualities were misdirected to the worst of purposes.
(Cheers from the Tories.) As to the question of Canada,
he would leave the Noble Lord the Secretary for the Colonies
in the hands of the Noble Lord the Member for Marylebone—
( Great cheers from the Tories)—who said that the administra-
tion of Canada was not worthy of that care which should be
taken of so bright a jewel in the Crown. He would confine him-
self to that part of the question which came nearer home—the
administration of Ireland.—( Hear.) There was much boasting
of the beneficial effects which that country experienced from
the present Government; but he held in his hand the Hue and
Cry of the 24th of last month, in which he found proclama-
tions announcing that 21 murders had been recently com-
mitted.—(Tory cheers.) Was that a proof of the tranquillity
of Ireland? Was that a proof of the benefits conferred upon
the country by the present Administration ?—( Cheers.)
Mr. O'DIL LON BROWN wished to state the reasons
why he should not vote either for the amendment or the origi-
nal motion. Both had but one object—to discipline the pre-
sent Government. He did not approve of the colonial policy
of the Government, and he thought their conduct towards
Canada especially was calculated to provoke rebellion, which
had at length broke out. He disapproved of the Hon. Baro-
net's motion, because it was directed against an individual,
whereas it ought to be directed against the Cabinet of which
he was a member.—( Hear, hear.) He thought that was not
fair, nor just, nor manly—(hear, hear)--and he would rather
vote for the amendment of the Noble Member for Liverpool,
and censure the whole of Ministry, if he thought it possible to
get to-morrow a more Radical Government, and one which
would more fully represent the feelings of the country.
But as the Hon. Beronet was not prepared to form a more
liberal Administration, the direct object of the motion must
be to put in the places of her Majesty's Administration the
Hon. Gentlemen opposite. But if that were done what would
be the Hon. Baronet's next step ? If he was consistent he
must endeavour to dislodge them ; and was it not most ludi-
crous to place them in power for such a purpose, when he con-
sidered the activity and the wile of the Hon. Gentlemen op-
posite—(Hear)—when he considered the seductive means
by which in Parliamentary parlance they might obtain a good
working majority, he thought it would be very difficult to do so.
Although the influence of public opinion might prevent them
remaining long in office, they might remain long enough to
do great mischief. lie regarded the return of the Tories to
office as the most terrible calamity that could be inflicted on
the country.—( Great laughter.) He would have no objec-
tion to supplant the present Administration if they could be
replaced by a more liberal one. There were three parties in
the country—the Tories, who governed the many for the ad-
vantage of the few—the Whigs, who governed the many by
the will of the many, for the advantage of the few—and the
Radicals who governed the many by the will of the many for
their own advantage.—(Shouts of laughter.) There were
some Whigs who wished to retard the progress of Reform ;
but the Tories would force the machine back altogether. On
these grounds he should oppose the motion of the lion. Ba-
ronet and the Amendment of the Noble Lord.

Mr. TANC RE D would vote against the motion of the
Hon. I3aronet, the Member for Leeds, nor could he accede to
the amendment of the Noble Lord. He considered that the
selection of Lord Glenelg was most unjustifiable and ungene-
rous. He ( Mr. Tancred) had had the pleasure of knowing
him for a very great number of years, and he considered his
character one of the most respectable in point of moral and
mental qualification. He would not follow the Hon. Baronet
in all his observations on the Colonial system. With many of
those observations he concurred; he thought that the govern-
ment of all Colonies had been productivelof great cruelty. Look,
for instance, at Spain : she had an empire of colonies, but her
greedy disposition had degraded her colonies and herself.
He thought if there were any of the English Colonies
where the Government had been beneficent it was the
Colonies of Upper and Lower Canada. He believed
that in a great measure the cause of many of the dis-
turbances that had taken place was to be attributed to
the French Canadians. It was true that they were men
of a kind and affable disposition, but it was equally true that
they were remarkably credulous and jealous. The English
Canadians had far exceeded them, and that had created jea-
lousies and heart-burning among them. The Noble Lord the
Member for Liverpool was obliged to admit that the seeds of
mischief had been planted in the Canadas in former times, and
unfortunately those seeds had fructified. Formerly any person
was thought good enough to be placed on the judicial bench
and to fill the offices of the State. There could be no doubt
that up to 1828 the Canadians had grievances of a serious na-
ture to complain of ; but from that time a very different system
had prevailed, and any impartial person in the colony must
admit that the government of that country had been parental
in the extreme. The question was whether the Govern-
ment had not suppressed that revolt with as little less of
life and sacrifice of property as possible by what was
called their vacillating and dilatory conduct.—( Hear,
hear.) He asserted he considered the principal cause of
that revolt having been so speedily suppressed was the cir-
cumstance of its having made manifest to all, to the well inten-
tioned people of the Province, that it was with the utmost
pain the Government at home would sanction an)thing like
violence. Not only was that felt in Canada, but also in the
great neighbouring Republic. Under these circumstances he
never would be a party to assert that any evil had arisen from
the policy pursued by the Noble Lord. It had been a successful
policy in its result, and was equally humane and wise. Ile
should most certainly support the Government on this occasion.
Mr. RICH (we believe) said it was not his intention to
trouble the House with a thrice repeated talc on Canada.
That subject was discussed six weeks ago, and apparently
finally settled. The real fact was, it was not the affairs of
Canada that induced the Gentlemen opposite to say they had
no confidence in the present Government, the real object
was to get a Tory Government substituted for the
p-esent Reform Government. —(liaar.) The Noble Lord,
the Member for Liverpool, with his ready cut and dried
amendment, and his notes and memoranda, already ticketted
and doquetted, disclaimed against the unhappy dilemma in
which he was placed by the negative of the Noble Lord the
Secretary. for Foreign Affairs to the motion of the Hon.
Member for Leeds; but the Noble Lord who followed him on
the same side of the House let out that this was a party gees-
tion ; and he would leave those two Noble Lords to reconcile
their various readings of the question. The Noble Baronet
the Member for Leeds made his motion--the Noble Lord
moved a wary amendment ; let the Noble Lord come forward
and boldly avow his motive. Let him stand up and say
whether he contended for a Tory or a Liberal Government,
and not allow his amendment to be masked by a trumpery al-
lusion to Canada. The question was whether we were to
have a continuation of those principles which, for the last
seven years, had advanced this country in prosperity and ge-
neral information to a degree that had never before been wit-
nessed, or a return to those principles which had acted so
prejudicially to the welfare of this empire. Was it a mere
mercenary scramble for office that the Gentlemen opposite were
making, or was it not for a change of principle? He would
not do them the injustice of supposing the former.—( Hear,
hear, hear.) But let him warn Honourable Gentlemen
opposite, if they came into office their first act must be to
dissolve Parliament; and what majority could they reasonably
expect? The country would be thrown back into the same
situation it was three years ago, and driven into a series of
dissolutions which nobody could see the cud of. The Tory
Government had had sixteen years of peace, during which
no doubt they had brought forward their best measures;
and yet, what was the situation into which they had brought
the country ? As nearly a state of anarchy as could be ; so that
his Majesty, after having ascended the throne for six months, was
unable to go into the city. Ireland was in that state which bid
defiance to all law, and scarcely then any thing was heard
throughout it but repeal. What were the external relations
of the country ? A distinguished personage, then a Member of
this House, had predicted that peace could not be preserved
for six montlT, yet peace had been preserved, and by a re-
forming Ministry. Property in the Colonies was then worth 20
per cent. less than it was now, and a mass of brutalised human
beings,who called in vain to Tory Governments for emancipation,
The North American Colonies were much more discontented
than they were at present, and though rebellion had unfortu-
nately broken out, yet it bad been repressed with much less
loss of human life, and by wiser and more humane measures
than Hen. Gentlemen opposite, in their worldly wisdom, would
suggest. He would not stop to dwell upon enormous taxation,