The Sun.
London, England, 1836-04-20 00:00:00

PENSIONS.

Mr. D. W. HARVEY then rose to bring on his motion.
Next Thursday, it was to be remembered, there was to be a
call of the House, the professed object of which was to pro-
mote economy, and to obtain, on behalf of the agricultural in-
terest, some portion of that surplus which the Chancellor of the
Exchequer might have to bestow. It would be seen whether
that call would be honoured in a similar way to this. It might
certainly be said that a considerable number of the Members
were present at six o'clock.—( Hear.) Oh, yes he knew it
had been said that he had done wrong to make this call ; but
there was no unfriendly want of curiosity to hear him speak ;
but that he could scarcely expect that Members, though they
came down in obedience to the call, would prefer a dry debate
to a good dinner.—( A laugh.) The result was, that most of
them had gone home, and that by-and-by they would come
down to give their votes without having heard a single word of
the argument.—( Hear.) It had been said to him repeatedly,
that as the Members themselves were concerned, the debates
of that House were but of little use ; that they came down
with their opinions formed, their minds made up ; and that
nothing which occurred in the course of the debate in
any way affected the vote which they had predetermined to
give. Why then debate at all ? was the obvious question—
to which it was always answered—." Oh, the public mind is
crude, and it requires repeated discussions in this House to
form and fashion it rightly." Let not, however, Hon. mem_
of the
Many
hers " lay this flattering unction to their souls." On this sub-
jectthe ijusTtihcee
the public were far in advance of the Government.
opfublic continuingan ted
thei argument
Pension Ltoistcooonviitns presentcethem
a Member now absent would recollect the promises which he
made to his constituents to take the earliest opportunity of
redeeming himself on this point, and if the constituents of
those gentlemen were not now satisfied, at least they could not
say that he (Mr. Harvey) had not given them an opportunity.
It was perfectly notorious in all the Clubs that a certain Noble
Lord, who was then leaving the House, was most anxious, in-
deed panted with eager desire, to state the reasons why this
motion should not be assented to. The Noble Lord was ready
tho
erefore, e rpeofoin rte, a
all he
was as
Members to
come down, at all events, at a later period of the evening, to
theretsarc some m hei inducement
wasmasteroeetoent
for of
Hon. against him, and,
hear the Noble Lord, if not to take the subject into their consi-
deration. The House would, doubtless, well remember how
indignant that Noble Lord was on a former occasion when he
entered that House just after his too liberal associate, Lord
Althorp, had consented to the motion. The Noble Lord on
that occasion rose and stated that his Noble Friend had in-
cautiously assented to the moticn. He did not wish to divide
the Cabinet, and therefore gave his reluctant sanction to it ;
but if ever it came before the House again so as to give him
(the Noble Lord
saanido)ppiof rhtuen(i
mty
r.ofHdaeravleiylsworitvhiviet,d whythe their
discussion,
A laugh.) thought he had a
right to remind the House of He
be exceedingly surprised.—( he should
this,in order to show them that
there would be at least an amusing afterpiece, however dull
the preamble might be. The object of his motion was to re-
vise the list of pensions returned to that House on a motion of
his own made in June last. They were 1,303 in number, and