The Sun.
London, England, 1838-08-28 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS•

In the Scotsman of Saturday last there is an excellent
article on " the policy of an unprincipled faction," which,
if we had space, we would insert at length in this day's
Chronicle. We take this opportunity, however, of stating
that we think our Contemporary has rather been unjust to-
wards the Clergy of the Established Church in attributing
to them generally a participation in the feeling with respect
to the new Poor-law displayed by individuals of the body.
We admit that the conduct of the Tories, as a body, with
respect to this measure is infamous. It is true, as the
Scotsman states, that the well-thinking members of the
Tory party saw in such a measure the only means of
saving the nation from internal disorganization ; but they
dared not face the evil—they could not afford the
necessary sacrifice of popularity. The achievement was
performed by other bands ; and then the minions of
the Tory party, laughing at the folly of their ad-
versaries, rushed forward, backed by the wild halloo of
the Times and the pious urgency of the Standard,
to seize the weapon of agitation, which seemed with.
so much simplicity to be confided- to their grasp.
The Tories may be said to have rather backed the
Times, than to have been backed by that paper ; for
the hostility of the Times to the New Poor-law began
with its introduction to Parliament, and Mr. John Walter
is to be found in the minority of eighteen, or some such
number, opposed to the second reading. The truth is, that
Mr. J. Walter, and when we say Mr. John Walter we say
the Times, is not the tool of any party in this matter, but
the dupe of hii own heated imagination. There is less
excuse for the unprincipled Tories, who availed themselves
of the ignorance of a large portion of the people to convert
a measure of which in their hearts they approved into a
weapon of offence against their political opponents. But
the Scotsman adds, that " the Clergy have been found
ready instruments in the work of evil. Whenever submis-
sion to high T try principles has been called upon, they
have been the first to require it in the meekest and most
alsjsct form. 'When their opponentshave held rule they have
been the most active exciters to outrage. For the conduct of
one priestly agitator, who has 'cut no inconsiderable figure in
the present attempt, the Rev. G. S. Bull, we cannot
do better than quote the Report of the Committee of the
House of I ords on the Poor-law Amendment Act."
Now, if there are Reverend G. S. Bulls, and Reverend
Mr. Mabertaes, there are also a number of Reverend
Chairmen of Boards of Guardians, who have laboured
faithfully and assiduously to carry the law into execution.
We cannot forget, too, that it was to the proof afforded by
the Rev. Mr. Becher, Mr. Whately, and others, of the
possibility of effecting the changes which the Act made
general, that we are indebted for much of the sunpert
which the measure obtained in its passage through Pariia-
merit. The parish Clergy of England are a numerous
body ; and it would be strange if in such a body there
should not be found several weak, foolish, and even wicked
individu rls ; but from all that we have ever heard we do
es7not, helisve that the Clergy are any thing like generally
hostile to the new Poor-law.—Morning Chronicle.
The opinion we have already had occasion to express re-
specting the injustice of the present Government of France
in its foreign relations, is confirmed by an examination of
the official correspondence between-its agents and the Go-
vernment of Buenos Ayres, embracing the subject of the
present rupture bstween the two countries. Notwith-
stand;ng the non-eaetenee of any treaty whatever between
F,ance and the Areceithos Republ'C, Count Mole insists
neon the plicatioe, in Leon.. French emigrants to
Bheteris. Ap:is. of the secturitieo granted by the treaty
between Evgland and the Republic to Brhish subjects.
The Government cf Beetios Ayrea on the other hand,
which admits foreigners to an equali.y of civil rights and
privileges with its own dtizens, claims as a sovereign and
indeecndent State the right cf sehjecting them to an equal
share in the burdens of the commtmoy. It refuses to ad-
mit the pretensien of foreign agents to afihrd a,i extreje-
diei d protection to their countryiner.-1, when the latter
have married in the country ; 2, when they carry on a
mechanical pro!h sien ; when they hate acquired
landed pro;wrty and establishments ; 4, when they
have resided in it more than three y.-ars. The discus ions
' entered into between the, two Governments on this subject.
hr 1830 were terminated by the official declaration, on the
part of the French Charge d'Affaires, of his adherence to
principles above enumerated, an adherence confirmed
tar the subsequent silence and consent of the Coesul-Ge-
Dead of France up to the 30th of November last, when, by
a note addressed to the Buenos Ayrean Minister, he pe-
remptorily requiree, by order of his Government, their
aban:lonment of their principles. The refusal of the Buctics
At lean Govetiarnent to acknowledge in a Csnsular agent
the competent authority to discuss queetiens of a purely
diplomatic; character is met by the latter requiring his pase-
port. Ills demands ere then renewed by the French Ad-
miral. The Buenos Art an Gower: meat replies," thatvery
for froischttending to - expose the country to the conse-
quences of a rupture, the Governor has shown a dis-
position to discuss and consider the points en whiet
Ere founded the demands of the French Consulate
as soon as they shall be presented by a diplo-
matic agent duly authorized for that purpose ;'
and it declines discussing those questions with the
commander of a squadron uninvested with full powers.
Hereupon the French Admiral " declares the port of
Buenos Ayres and all the litoral of the river belonging to
the Argentine Republic to be in a state of rigorous
blockade ;" and yet this public act, involving so many
questions of international right, is absolutely without a
nate, thus rendering the perpetrator liable in tire French
courts of law for any damages which may result to the
merchants of France from the informality of his proceed-
logs. The origin of this exercise of the right of blockade,
without at the same time exercising the right of war dates,
fora the introduction of new maritime code of Russia in
IS-29, when she blockaded the Dardanelles, after laying
down her belligerent character in the Mediterranean during
her last war with Turkey—a code which she now enforces
against the commerce of Europe with Circassia, whilst ac-
knowledging the belligerent rights of the Circassians them-
selves. The singular analogy between the proceedings
o; the French commander in attempting to blockade
the "litoral" of a river nearly 300 miles wide at its
;mouth, with the pretended blockade of the eastern coast of
the. Black Sea, by the unsigned regulations of 1836, is still
further borne out by the precipitate concurrence of the Bri-
tish Government in those extraordinary transactions. The
same Bris7'sh Minister who notified in October, 1831, to
the British enerchants at Constantinople the imaginary re-
gulations of Russia, receives the copy of a circular addressed
by the French Admiral, on the 28th of March, to the fo-
reign Ministers and Consuls, notifying " that the port of '
Buenos Ayres and ati the litoral of the river belonging
I
to the Argentine Republic or in a state of rigorous block"-
ade." The Admiral adds, " therefore entreat you, Sir,
to inform your Government of this measure." The very
next day, the British Minister, acknowledging in the
French Admiral an authority against which the Government
of Buenos Ayres itself protests, addressed a letter to the
Chairman of the Committee of British merchants, acquainting
them " with his having received a notification of a blockade
of the port of Buenos Ayres and of the whole of the rivers
belonging to the Argentine Republic," thus acknowledging
a blockade which even the French Admiral only requested
might be submitted to the knowledge of the British Go-
vernment, and admitting that blockade to extend beyond
the La Plata to the other rivers of the republic, including
the " Colorado," which is navigable for steam-boats to the
very foot of the Andes. The Brit:eh Secretary of State,
conversant as he must have been with this violation of all
• the forms of international observance, notifies in the Ga-
zette of June 21 the existence, not of any declaration
by the French Government of their recognition of
the blockade, which could alone give to it any legal
force, but the reception of a despatch from her
Majesty's Minister at Buenos Ayres stating the de-
claration of blockade by the French Rear-Admiral. The
illegality of the whole proceeding, and the burden which
will necessarily fall on her Majesty's subjects from the ne-
cessity of indemnifying the merchants who may suffer from
these monstrous acts, are considerations which shrink into
insignificance when we consider the direct support thus
given by a British Minister to the piratical acts of the two
great maritime rivals of Great Britain, and of the power
which France thus obtains of concerting her mercantile and
diplomatic speculations with sufficient sagacity to admit of
her relaxing the blockade at any moment when a fleet of
,French merchant vessels may be ready to forestall theme
ca!rance into Buenos Ayres of the half a million sterling
of Eaitish merchandise at present consigned to that country.

—Vela,
The scl:eiZlers and jobbers are now as deeply immersed
in plots for rep ,alin,,,, the Corn-laws, as they were at no dis-
tant period, it: ,7..ett,:ng up gambling railway companies, and
.
fraudulent Spanish bonds. - The
in forcing into clot holds
ut it must be confessed, advan-
anti-corn law plot holds.p ,
tin, I, n,; common degree. The par-
, that temp
ties to it risk nothing •; whilst tLe prize played fur, is no
-land, ail the farming
less thari half the landed rent4..lael osfuEinn
bwh;rh represents the
capital, and more than half
.I
classes. A less splendid
annual wages of the labourtngt.vity,
all the "liberal" trick-
bait might suffice to call into acill
e.lore cf the poori‘lduees
ery of Jae worthy projector:2, w i os
land cheap labour syl.te-ai l.
them to advoeste the chew hrea
matter, of coors,,
All the ral:nl.ster:al journ!ds- are, as a
as a,,..,, scan.,
wall
jitui ill denoutv!.ing the Corn-1v.2--,
~0r,,,.
ialb/;.,e,
Our eve-
pe,.lll r rersoil. sties t I c,n, " ,h,' (''' 'l'
vevedingly zealous
Ling. ii:onternvrary i;, in polit of fit, t, e-
.•
he sy:.s, pleased,
lie the fr` cheep broad" ts-,rF:tre •;—and ,a' "--,.., , ',„: to our
1•:st niglif, 'o corvaiinicrit the fie:raid,
. ,. oy re,r,o,,
-re tempted
" n:ot absurd'
statetnenti Oa tea' till!2.111011, We ,
,i,ts„
to Lly Le7cre cue r.,,:der:4, a s-leep: oc tLe ":14t"I` ,'
whic...b appear itlrninous, ~,,,d " pl..:llosopl&c.i ;
in thu Pycs ..
the Li!) ral pzlrty !
~ raore is :;1.e.... roason to drew!, bal Ycan tg''ner'llY