The Sun.
London, England, 1831-11-04 00:00:00

don ; but the Attempt might not be crushed with-
out bloodshed. They who after this wareing,
either themselves attend the meeting, or suffer
any over whom they have controul to attend it,
have themselves alone to blame, if they disregard
it. We are glad to find that the organization of
Unionseine,the metropolis and neighbourhood
is proceeding rapidly. This will be an effectual
means of guarding against the danger resulting
from popular excitement. When once the re-
spectable householders are organised in such a
way that they can be instantly assembled, on any
emergency, in their respective localities, with a
view to any object, we may set at defiance the
spoilers who ride in coaches (to use the lan-
guage of Mr. Fox, at the late meeting), and the
spoilers who go afoot. We have already noticed
several Parochial Unions. The work is going
on in the parish of St. George's, Hanover-
square, in Greenwich, in Chelsea, and several
other places. Constant applications are made at
the Committee at the Crown and Anchor Ta-
vern. Respect for property is the foundation
of all civilisation and improvement. We seek
Reform because we do not wish that a borough-
mongering oligarchy shall plunder us at pleasure;
but while we seek to secure ourselves against one
class of plunderers, we must not lay ourselves
open to another. Labour, and capital, which
is the fruit of labour, must be inviolate.—Morn-
ing Chronicle.
A Correspondent, who signs himself " a
Member of the National Political Union," ac-
cuses us of not treating the question of the Po-
litical Unions fairly. He says, we mix them up
with armed associations, with which they have
no necessary connection ; and he calls upon us
to discuss the subject on its own merits, without
any reference to the proposed plan for a military
organization of our peaceful citizens. We were
not, indeed, aware that we did not meet the
question of Political Unions in a candid and
straightforward manner. It is not our habit to
avoid the fullest expression of our sentiments on
those questions of public interest which we think
it important to discuss, and we are sure our
readers will do us the justice to allow that we
neither sacrifice our opinions to power, nor
shape and alter them according to the newest
fashion of an ephemeral popularity. The prin-
ciples which we maintain now are those which
we advocated when some of our copteunposariee,
who are most clamorous for Political Unions,
and most vehement in their appeals to the po-
pular passions, were as obsequious supporters of
an Anti-Reform Ministry as they are, at present,
the impassioned and implacable denouncers of
an Anti-Reform Opposition. All political
unions, clubs, and associations are bad in prin-
ciple, and dangerous in practice, which usurp any
of the functions of the executive Government.
If a Government cannot preserve the peace, and
give to the public that security which they have
a right to expect from the executive power of
the Et'tate, without the assistance of eelf-consti-
tuted bodies not recognised by the Constitution,
such a Government is unfit to exist. It must
be grossly deficient in the wisdom and capacity
requisite to the right administration of power.
TO acknoviedg that political associations can
tranquillise the people when the responsible Go-
vernment cannot, is to acknowledge that the
Government is virtually deposed. If a Govern-
ment confess its own incapacity it commits an act
of self-deStrectioo, and the public confidence is
transferred from it to voluntary associations,
which have neither constitutional existence nor
responsibility. But, if a voluntary association can
calm the storm of popular commotion, it can
also raise it. The greater its power to tran-
quillise, the more potent its energy to disturb,
If the tempest preeses on the veesel of the State,
the Prospero, whose magic wand stills the angry
waves, can, at his pleasure, let loose the hurri-
cane that shall dash it on the rocks. History is
full of examples, but we need only appeal to the
French revolution of 1789. When the moderate
and enlightened members of the Constituent As-
sembly ftamed the efew Constitution of a limited
Monarchy, which the King ratified, and to
which all orders of the State gaye in their ad-
hesion, the ambitious men, who wished to profit
by confusion, framed political clubs, under pre-
tence of performing the double office of protect-
ing liberty end plveereing order, and, 'though
many well-intentibned persons and sincere friends
of rational freedom at first patronised those so-
cieties. as is the case with regard to the politi-
cal unions among ourselves, yet those clubs bee
came the political ladders upon which such
crafty and ferocious adventures as Damon, Marat,
and Robespierre, climbed to the eminence which
enabled them to overturn the newly-modelled
Constitution, end to ratee epon the Nine of
regular Government a sanguinary and intolerable
despotism. The :people may have some reason
for combining in political bodies to carry a great
;question when they have to struggle against an
adverse Governnient. their forming unions
under such circumstances is not for the purpose
of usurping the functions of the constituted
authorities ; and yet even those unions generally
do more harm than good to a popular cause,
as was the case with the Corresponding Soe
eieties, some quarter of a century ago, to
facilitate t4e caerying of Reform, but which
societies materially retarded its success, as
our condition at the present day affords melan-
choly evidence. We said, when we first ob-
'eete-1 to uolitical unions, that they would cause
) •
disunion. We since adduced pepof of this in
what took place at the formation of the London
Political Union, where the champion of the
/forking classes spoiled the project of Sir Francis
Burdett aisd 11;.s friends, who expected to have
the working classes to shout at their heeia, but
not to enter and sit down in 'their political
ceeeeTh We have also referred to what has
taken Place at Maneheetea, where the Political
Union, or at least a large part' of that • Union,
honoured Mr. Hunt with something like a tri:-
lernplial proceesims, vshile he descanted upon the
advantages of univeral suffrage; annual 'lsarliae
.ici.
ments, and vote by ballot. The Courier calls
those Political Unions " monstrosities," yet
'thinks they et.:e7,y ke good things, because they
of
are the fashionthe day. We are of opinion
that there is no state of society which ought to
pstilee us fall in love with monstrosities. The
true)( uen
ssisdotn coveentTlent is founded onprin-
ci But the prinCipiess of our Teodoro' po;:-
t are contiuually giving way to Whet le
expediency—the idol of short-sighted
S le ich creates greater difficulties
thtasitteistiTevelt-e-11;oves.—Morning, Herald.
In another column will be found an account
of Mr. Hent'e vieit to Manchester. An Even-
ing Contemporary suggests that the Member
for Preston should be voted to Coventry by the
Broad Sheet, as the most effectual means of
ex-
tinguishing his influence. We are willing to
allow that no step would be more likely to mor-
tify the Honourable Member himself than the
neglect of his orations by the Press, but we
Brill haye too much faith in the general discri-