The Sun.
London, England, 1838-02-19 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLI

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The state of parties in the House of CorrimanS 'ek-
hibits a political phenomenon which' has not been
surpassed in this wonder-working age. Less than
twenty years ago the brother of the present Premier
(the Hon. George Lamb) opposed Sir Francis Bur,
Jett and J. C. Hobheuse on the ground of their erg
treme radicalism. The extreme Radicals prevo4d!
The radicalism of Sir John gradually sobered down
until it became just at temperate heat. Sir John vim
then offered place under a Reform Administiatitm,
which he took, and the little remains of radicalism
gently oozed away. Then came another Radical °frets
mg to become all that Sir John had been, but wart
and gave battle to Sir John, and defeated hit :„ and
'Now arm,
became another " glory" of Westminster;
place, Ana a
ther turn of Fortune's wheel has telen
rumour for some time has been abroad that the Gallant
General Evans is to accept place, and wax little and
lax in his politics, after the fashion of hie'predeeessor.
This rumour we do not believe. Who could have
expected a very few years ago to have seen Sir Francis
Burdett and John Cam Hoblionse walking out o(
the House of Commons tooether to join the Torie.
resisting the vote by Ballot ? Or who could havdhaa_
itt
gineal that that ve„,ty. tinestion, after losing :Lie-support
'"..srig'inally sup-
of the only members who had
r.,c,orded in its favour,
ported;',, simuld have 200 votes r
with the certainty of 100 mo)",e under less adverse cir-
cumstances ? Or viewing the way in which the counts,
elections went on tlie last occasion—viewing the im-
mense loss to Government and to the Reform Bill, of
which Government is the especial guardian—viewing
the universally acknowledged scenes of intimidation
and corruption that existed—and viewing the casting
' out of Lord John Russell himself, by the landlords of
Devonshire,—who could have imagined that such
Government, such Reform Bill, such Lord John Rus-
sell, could be found banded together and brought to
bear against the only measure yet proposed to prevent
all those evils ? Truly we live in strange times ! We
have but to see Sir Robert Peel sincere, and the
Duke of Wellington democratic, to witness every
change of which parties and politicians are susceptible I
—Morning Advertiser.
The division on Mr. Grote's motioo for the adop-
tion of Vote by Ballot has realized' our expectations,
the minority having increased to 200, and the majority
of united Ministerialists and Tories, after the most
active muster, amounting only to 317. From the year
1833 to 1836, the majorities were to the minorities
pretty nearly as two to one ; in 1837 the majority fell a
little below two to one ; and in the present Parliament,
certainly the most Conservative of any since the Re-
form Bill, the proportion of the majority to the
minority on the Ballot has dwindled from two to one
to three to two, and that in a very full House. And
why is it that in the same House in which the Con-
servatives have increased their strength, the demand
for the Ballot has increased in a yet greater propor-
tion ? Obviously, because the foul infloences by
which the Tories obtained their triumphs have made
most irresistibly manifest the necessity for the protec-
tion 'of the Ballot. Tlie Tories are the practical
teachers of this questvan, and they advance it by their
examples of oppreSsion in a much greater ratio than
they can swell t)seir own numbers in Parliament by the
the most unst';aring exercise of the foul influences. As
for Mini:sters,' it is now clear that a large majority of
their supporters arc against them on the Ballot, and
that they play the part indeed but of a very slender,
tail joined to the Tory opposition. How Sir Ito-.
bert Peel must enjoy the sight of their insignificant
numbers in his train, piecing up a motley maja-
rite. It is a state of things lamentably at variance
with the representative principle on which a po-
pular GoVernment should be regulated.-' We doubt
whether the Ministry can number 100 opponents of
the Ballot in its party, including absent Members, for
to the 200 who voted in support of .Mr. Grote's mo-
tion must be added man) friends of the measure who
were, for various reasons, absence, illness, &e., unable
to attend. In the evidence of the progress of this
most important question, the best answer is ;given to
those few impatient Members of the Reform party
who have been loud in their complaints that Radical
principles have been thrown back by the Radical sup-
port given to a Government opposed to measures of
organic improvement. In 'the points of agreement
between Whigs and Rl',licals there is a great gain of
strength ; and ;if the points of difference the truths of
the juster opioion, as in the present instance, will
surely I:revail.—Esirmincr.
The speech of Lord John Russell on the Ballot
presented arguments which could not, by possibility,
fail to hare convinced the mind of the speaker who
employed them. The Noble Lord knows well the
character and objects of those who most loudly advo-
cate the Ballot. He cannot have shut his ears to their
declarations that the Ballot. without an extension of
the sufPage, would but add augmented means and ap-
liances to corruption, and that it is by them designed
to be nothing else than a starting-post for fresh en-.,
croachments upon our national institutions. We pass
over, as unnecessary, all consideration of the failure of
the Ballot system to produce the substantial secrecy
so much insisted on by Mr. Grote. Let us assume
the complete success of his project to that extent. 'What
does that success consist of but the triumph of hypo-
crisy, deceit, and treachery, and in cases where the pas-
sions of the rabble have been excited, and .a
frenzy created for the attainment of some short-sighted
and really pernicious end, the return of an uneducated,
violent, factious, barehones Parliament ? We do not
flinch from repeating an opinion which this journal
has before avowed—viz., that democracy is now strong
enough in England, and that the dangers to constitu-
tional monarchy arising from the combination of power
vv.ll poverty and ignorance are far more terrible than
those to be apprehended from any other source. Ig-
norance its easily duped—poverty is soon tempted—
numbers acting together inflame each other, feel confi-
dent in their force, and callous to all personal responsi-
bility. On this point of the question, therefore, we arc
ready "to take the bull by the horns," and to declare
that any mischief to the commonwealth resulting
from the possible and inevitably partial use of
such intimidation as can be exercised by men
of large property and intelligence over those who.
have little of either, must be utterly insignificant,
when compared with the irresponsible omnipo-
tence of the labouring and uninstructed classes,
acting under multitudinous excitement, and indulging
their prejudice, fanaticism, or vengeance without the
direction of reason or the fear of control, but under
the guilty guidance of demagogue ambition. That the
Ballot must operate as an encouragement to lying, no
honest man who is not half an idiot will question ;
and against this datum on behalf of immorality what
is proposed to us ? An imagined political remedy for
an alleged political evil, which remedy, if it be one for
that specific evil, would, by virtue of the same reason,
generate another and more portentous calamity—viz.,
an aggravation of the democratic power until it became
a many-headed despotism, the true subversive principle
of every civilized state. If the Ballot do not insure
secrecy, why establish a degrading form, be it only a.
form, of innovation ? If it do cause secrecy, we
oppose it With a still more determined resolution, be-
cause it enhances a mischief by which we are already
appalled. It was clearly demonstrated by Lord Joint
Russell, that those who are at present leaders in the pro-
pagation of the Ballot frenzy look upon the establishment
of the Ballot to be desirable, in proportion as it is con-
nected with and conducive to the extension of that
suffrage which, in our frank judgment, we believe to
be quite sufficiently extended. Lord Brougham, Mr.
Whittle Harvey, Mr. Warburton, Mr. Ward; one and
all, NI Idle they are pressing for the Ballot, appear to
have a sheep's eye upon those further changes in the
constituency, which are, in the opinion of Lord J.
Russell, alike inconsistent with the Reform Bill and
with the mixed Constitution of this country. Every
one of the above democratic authorities declares his
love of the Ballot to be occasioned by his eagerness
er'? e
o
for a more extended constituency. Hence
la
learn—bgninrg
t is
than an " instalment," as ,
of that series of which none can see the end. But
if Lord J. Russell's convictions upon this matter may-
be inferred from the speech of the Noble Lord, how
are we to reconcile his Lordships acts as a Minister
with his
.arguments and declarations as a Parliamen-
tary speaker? Lord J. Russell must be told that .as
he deems the Ballot detrimental to the public safe' ty,