The Sun.
London, England, 1831-08-04 00:00:00

the population was found to vary with the *establishments
maintained there by the Government. In 'he very useful
notes attached to the population returns of 1821, it wan
remarked, that the population had fallen off in Deptford,
and increased in Greenwich ; and the falling off in Dept.
ford was ascribed to a reduction in the dock-yards ; and
the increase in Greenwich was attributed partly to the
Naval Arsenal, and partly to the fact of a greater number
of pensioners fancying to become resident in that town
From the influence, ton, which the Government would
exert through these establishments, he contended, that in
all cases in which the interests of the metropolitan dis-
tricts were not directly concerned, Greenwich and its de-
pendencies would be a nomination borough; but he did
not object to it on this account, though it certainly seemed
strange the Noble Lord should have selected it under
the circumstances. Great, too, he observed, as was the
hostility of the Noble Lord to nomination letroughe, the
unconstitutional plan of giving to the King the right
of nominating Members to that House had been hinted
at. It was true the Noble Chancellor of the Exchequer
had not expressly stated that this would be hereafter pro-
posed ; but there was a mode of doing things which, with
all apparent caution, rendered perfectly evident the object
'which men had in view—Dum tacent, clamant. The
Cabinet, as a responsible body, had expressed no inten-
tion upon the subject ; but the Noble Lord who had in
trosiuced the Bill had spoken of this project as a matter of
grave consideration, and it was to be fairly presumed he
would not have ventured even upon this expression of
opinion without a perfect understanding with the other
Members of the Administration upon the subject. The
truth was, the Noble Lord was frightened at the pro-
',liable consequences of his own measure, and was looking
rant, with a provident eye, for remedies to meet the
evils which it could not fail to create. But to proceed
more immediately to the question before them respecting
Greenwich, upon which, to prevent unnecessary delay,
lie was svilling to take the discussion upon all the metro-•
leslitan districts. He would, in the first place, admit
that it had Isoen a blot upon our representative system
that the great towns had not been represented ; but
this blot he did not believe could be fairly alleged to
exist with respect to the metropolitan districts. For these
he considered that representation had been amply provided.
Though same districts of the great London district did not
enjoy the right of returning Members to Parliament, yet
be contended that looking upon it as a whole, it could not
lie supposed to be imperfectly provided—First, there were
tie four Members for the city of London ; then two for
estminster, and two for Southwark ; making eight in
all. To these, he maintained, might be properly added
athe two Members for the county of Middlesex. Because
these Members were not returned by a rural population,
!hut simply by town influence. In an extremely valuable
rreturn, they had stated the number of families in the county
eL Middle ex which were engaged in agriculture, the
enesiber concerned in trade and manufactures, and the
m renber of those employed in neither. From this return
it -ppearetl that in agriculture there were only 9,393
fault les engaged, while 101,3b6 were engaged in trade
and n ninufactut el. This showed how large was the pro-
portion of town influence to that of agriculuiral, since
the ratio of those engaged was as 161,000 to 9,300.
rural population in Middlesex did not
alnltdoegeetdthetrLai!
',taunt to more than 70 or 80,000, while the
total populatin. ' of the county was 1,140,000. Thus it
appeared there ..'vere ten Members for the metropolitan
and to tt -so one of the Members for Surrey might
-lily added ; because, considering the
in his opinion, ly, t 51 of Southwark, and observing
influence of the boroue u was a town population, and
tat the popular' ion of Brixts could be no doubt that a
population, there
not a rural a
,uffici,sut influence to return
cancan P°Pul'it' ion exerted nail population of
the Membe The whole of tits
Surrey anis tented to 130;000, while the n'iwn population
k3f Scluthw ark and Brixton amounted to 39,000. The
eonsequen ee of all this was, the metropolitan districts had
televen M embers a—the four for the City of London, the
two for Westminster, the two for Southwark, the two
Tor Alik tlesex, and the one for Surrey. Never therefore,
ate asset: ted, was there juster cause for surprise than that
ben nut re should be added to them, giving the metropo-
iit","7 astricte Members. If Ministers were to say that
the r: inciple on which they proceeded was population, or
'contef aatsion to the taxes, this case of enfranc.hisement
Woak be intelligible ; but in admitting that all which they
had h eretofore done was done well, he was bound to sty
'?his et -as not the principle upon which they proceeded. It
Was n at the principle of it that England was to lose forty
'Meng terra and the metropolitan districts gain ten, in con-
bevies ice of the increase of population and increased re-
turn t t the revenue which had of late years arisen. This
case o f Greenwich was the only one to which such a prin-
ciple'/ Dad been yet applied, and nobody could pretend to
„at It was in conformity with the principle of the Bill.—
Why,i he :sked, was it that they did not apply the same
rule to the rZetropolitan districts as to the borough of
Liverpool—a town' not surpassed in wealth 3nd intelligence
—and which was the :rat link between this country and
anothe r world ? Why stlquld shay leave it to the simple
',enjoys nent of its own Members, When they gave additional
l‘lerd )ers to a district which alreat!jr had eleven represen-
tatisa sin Parliament? Or, why did that' not, if the rule
was s, good one, extend it to the great town of Liverpool,
tOsI gas -e it additional representation? There were many
'large pit ices in the neighbourhood, which had not hereto-
!Tore take. I any part in the election of Members. They
'were to be incorporated with Liverpool, and thus the con-
tltituency v, 'as to be increased : bat yet there was to be no
increase in the representation. This, he contended, proved
- 'he stropolitan districts was an excep-

'that the cast 'of the met- 'Po'
!ception to th e general rule they bad laid down ; because,
if the prinap le which they now applied to these districts
',were cons:dee.. das a leading and guiding one, they could
, no: possibly •h, ye neglected the claim of Liverpool to addi-
iPPresenta tion, whether upon the grounds of popu-
tional
ution or of cants.
ibotion to the taxes. Neither could they
have l'een, when enfranchising (acid therefore not, as
. the case of Liverpool, fettered by pre.
t m
ight be 1-;leaded ith • •
seriptios4, e,ontent 'a 70 orgiving
merely two Members to
23irininzlions„ with its theirBo,ooo inhabitants, when they
.eontitmed ite two Men ciii to Mahon, which was only
caved (rota partial &sires hats eat from having ten persons
-akove the 4,000. He .1
is
enfranchisement.tlow stated the reasons for
wilieeh he w0u1..1 oPP°se A The first
•h
e upon the House was, that
-proposition he ve,sbed to urk, '
, of the country, the I ondom
in reference to the other part.
• represented. The second
district was already sufficientl
vage
of ~, our representative system
was, that the ancient , ' all places of returning
-liinl been to give an equ, al right t‘ population or con-
;two Members without reh'vence to th,
'ir
the third „was, that Ministers
itribution to the taxes. Ana' for example, in
lhad heretofore adhered to t.''is rule, a"lst
sebe eases of Calne and 3.lsuacheas;,.", the one o:
,v, Aiich .
they determined to ret.‘,in, and the ether to
sent, ire two Members. Having' necordinblY adhered
wt., re. bound
in all t sther cases to the ancient maw, they
in the r, . -ese n t instance to show why they o,..uarted
• •vour of the metropolitan districts, and' a,”hat
from it in te
'iarities of these places which had w • L I
were the peen. . e,g e,
The point was, could that case be made
with their minds.
consideration of population, and contri-
out which, upon a sould entitle these districts to addi-
butien to the ntaxes, It could be made out, but it told
tional representatives..) _,. to one of those districts--
again.t themselves. Allu 'mg
e might observe that it was
the parish of Marylebone—h.
because, according to the
about to acquire two rights s'
a.St 101. householders who
Bill, if he understood it rightly,
-a were to have a vote
had not a vote for the city of Lotult.
for the county of Middlesex, which, acisied to their rght of
voting for the new borough, would create A double right.
Now this representation, he considered,
was little wanting
to the p.' risk of Marylehone. It so hap.oe.ned that there
were at least one hundred Members of PaetuZnent resident
in that parish, And of these very many had ees.lly an
identity of interest with the pariah. In its Select Yes::;
there were no less eau; ten Members of Parliament, and
le could appeal to lion. li.Johers present whether these
Mens;:ers were the least frequent in their attendance.—
From this he argued th.s.t there In; little danger that
the interests of this district, which had eir;.,eally so many
representatives, could suffer from not being enf#l4r
If, hired.
however, it was deemed improper that the inhabitants
of so rich and extensive a district should be left without
their due influence in the general representation, why did
they not_ proceed u
Yorkshire. upon the same p;an as in Lancashire ,
and York Why did the riot g.i.vo2 een itlitionai repre-
sentatives to the county of Middlesex? They 4404 think
they had done little in adding ten representatives to the
eleven already enjoyed b the ntettnplitan districts, Inv
they were much mistaken. They had deranged the
balance of interests in this
countryreiailermore than ;yes wise,
and in a degree which would any endeavour to ad-
just them hereafter a matter of hopeless difficulty.
almost
This balance was founded on prescription
otnit was not
the more unjust or the less to be
respected ac-
count, and i: produced a regularity and security wthii‘sh, in
the practical %cocking of the new scheme of the Const.'‘t 1
tion, he feared it woisld not be possible to ensure. Let them- i
not lay the flattering unction to their souls that the whole
effect of this proceeding yenta be
.the conferring of twenty
representatives upon the metropoWan districts. It would
create a new order of men in
that licuse, which would
alter in character and increase in p offer at earl;
they
came in contact
successive
election. Animus-like, the more
with their native earth, the greater would be
their force,
the higher their hope, and vigaut. Another point which
might be urged was, that by this addition of point repre-
.,etetiess they were giving an undue influence to the more