The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-24 00:00:00

SPIRT of the PUBLIC JOUttriALS.
FROM THE EVENING PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.
GLOBE —The speech of Mr. Christopher to
-his constituents at Lincoln, notwithstanding that
Hon. Member's indignant disclaimer of the tuue-
Lion of pilot ballorm to Sir Robert Peel, afibrds
very sufficient and significant indications that
the Globe was not premature in its early and ex-
clusive information of the intention of the pre-
sent Ministry to propose important changes in
the Coro-laws, and the nature of the alterations
which are intended to be proposed. It is
true that Mr. Christopher was compelled to
he very cautious, and complaisantly dubious
in his announcements of what is intended in
addressing himself to art agricultural audience,
and setting such alternatives before them as he
supposed most likely to conciliate them to over-
tures of any charie. With all these circum-
stances operating on time manner of this announce-
ment, it is impossible not to recognise in it the
character of an authentic embassage front that
Ark, with its beasts clean or unclean, which bears
the present Ministry and its fbrtunes. It is in--
possible also not to recognise the identity of that
character, in its general outline, with the plan
which the Globe has already set forth to the
public. Their principles and characteristic fea-
tures bear a sutficieotly near resemblance to es-
tablish tin the absence of all possible concert)
their derivation from- well-intbroued and authen-
tic sources. Whether, therefore, the minimum
rate proposed will be ss. or 45., whether the point
at which it is to be chargeable will be 08s. or 655.,
it may now be considered as certain that Ministers
are going to introduce a measure having fbr its
object to remedy the extreme low ditty, and the ex-
trent(' highdnticsito posed under the present scale.
and to obviate the frauds in the taking of the
averages. The general plan of Ministerial ope-
rations therefore may be so far anticipated,
and the possible variations front the new scale
to be proposed, as announced by ourselves,
or by Mr. Christopher (who, does not go
so much into detail, and appeared anxious to
commit himself as little as possible with his
county audience), are hardly worth conjecturing
or discussing at present. The main question is
whether any modification which retains the slid-
ing scale, with the evils which are inseparablyin-
herent in the nature of that contrivance, will, or
ought to, satisfy the public mind, so far as,the
public hare a mind on this question. The sliding
scale, under any possible modification, must con-
thine to the last what it was from the first, a con-
trivance—an intentional orn—for thwarting and
limiting the operations of commerce in the sup-
ply of corn.
STANDARD.—OII Friday Mr. Christopher,
the Member for the Lindsay division of Lincoln-
shire, addressed 56 of his constituents at,the far-
mers' market table at Lincoln. The company
comprised the occupants of nearly forty thousand
acre —tutu of as intelligent a class as any in the
community. Mr. Christopher's address was excel-
lent throughout, but it divides itself into branches
possessing different degrees of interest for the ge-
neral reader. The part of the address which con-
cerns the local politics of Lincoln and the factious
proceedings of Lord Worsley and Major Hand-
ley, though quite appropriate to the occasion and
admirable in its style and reasoning, will be reed
with less attention by strangers than the allusions
to the present state of the Corn-law question,
which constitute the great part of Mr. Chris-
topher's speech. Within a few hours of the
accession of the present Government we an-
nounced that the Corn-law question would
occupy its first attention, and that a revi-
sion of the scale of duties, and an improved
mode of taking the averages, were to be
looked for at its hands. e have more than
once since repeated the announcement, and
shown the necessity that suggests the course
proposed. We are happy to Cave-our intimation
publicly verified by a gentleman of Mr. Chris-
topher's rank and talents, and of his deservedly
high consideration with the members of the-
Administration. The Honourable Gentleman on
Friday reminded his hearers that the present
Ministers received office upon the condition of
opening the Corn-law question, and that they are
therefore pledged to it; but Sir Robert Peel
is also personally pledged to the principle of
protection and to the preservation of the princi-;
ple of the sliding scale. Whatever change is to
be expected, must therefore respect the terms of
the scale and the manner of taking the aver-
ao-es. One improvement in the scale was hap-
ply recommended by Mr. Christopher —we
mean the abandonment of the extravagantly
high duties imposed after the prices have fallen
to 40s. the quarter. These duties are perfectly use-
less, for prices will never fall so low unleSs the
country is absolutely saturated, and no temptation
to import grain can exist; the extravagant duties,
therefore, serve no other purpose than to supply
topics to Anti-Corn-law-lecturers. Mr. Christo-
pher confirms us in the opinion we have always
held, that the honest and effectual mode of taking
the averages must be arrived at by some approach
to the sellers rather than the buyers, who, being
all more or less interested in the foreign corn-
trade, must have a direct interest in represent-
ing prices higher than the truth at one time,
lower than the truth at another, accordingly as
they have to buy foreign corn, or to rid them-
selves of a stock on hand.
COURIER.--In this Protestant country every
man has a right to interpret Scripture for him-
self. The State, in establishing a National
Church, represented the aggregate of individual
rights, and did for its subjects interpret and de-
clare the meaning of Holy Writ, embodying this
interpretation in the enactments of the Con-
fession of Faith. To have placed the in- -
terpietatiOn of the Scriptures, to the ex-
tent of saying what was time millet of the
State, acting on the Protestant principle of the
right of individual. judgment in the matter, in
the hands of. the Ecclesiastical Courts, would
have been obviously to surrender this principle,
as much as if these Courts had been permitted
legislatorially to fix the National Creed,' and
would have just amounted to the re-establish-
ment of Popery. Disguise it how the Kirk-leaders
may, there is nothing more evident than that the
famous" Declara tam of independence" of the At,-
seuibly, 1838, was neither more nor less than an as-
sumptiou of gall the spiritual power and. supremacy
ever claimed or exercised under the Papacy.
The Kirk is striving to adhere, practically, to this
usurpation, both in barring the door. against en-
trants to benefice's, and in expelling those
already in possession of livings, who will not
'They her spiritual edietS, but appeal from
where they hold them, to be illegal
and contrary to the Cont.ession. of Faith, to
the jurisdiction or the Civil Mamistratc. We.
have already alluded to a wide spreadt' rumour,
that Sir Robert Peel • - prepared to sanction the-
ovonnds and print.' Kirk
es on which the is now
taking her stand ! not, indeed, to give her the
spiritual jurisdiction she claims, for that-she would
disdain to take from his hands, but to Obtain from
Parliament a declaration that she possesses and has
all along possessed it to the:extent now advanced
and exercised ; and to provide. that when she ,
de-
poses from the spiritual office, the civil arm shall
_
without more ado,
.
deprive her of the secular
emoluments ! No doubt, so far as the Duke of.
Argyll's Bill or any
.other measure yet
proposed
appears to go, she is confining herself to the
filling up of vacant parishes under the existing
laws of patronage; but the "
sub-
mittedmemorial,, her /%liijesty's Government she has
advanced her claim of cc spiritual independence,"
embracing a l<ar wider field, and, as we have
already said, si):;tantiallv re-landing in -Popery.
We would warn Sir Rob6rt Peel to be on finis.
guard when negotiating. with. these " canny
Scotch." While he may mean only to give them
the "inch,'' they may be cunningly securing
the " ell."

BELGIUM.
BRUSSELS, DEC. 19.--The Ltdependelig says—" WO
base this moment learnt that the police has se,ze
anotiser correspondence from a town on the frontiers o
Prussia. It is connected with the conspiracy to over-
throw the Government, and in which several of the per-
sons arrested are more or less implicated."
OA the night of the Isth instant, a dreadful fire en-
tirely destroyed a fine farm, half a league from Cour-
tr"yr Twenty-seven oxen, four horsee, and the whole
harvest fell a prey to the flames. But for the cowherd,
who was roused by the flames, and with difficulty
escaped, the fanner, his wife, children, and servants
would have certainly perished ; they were got out of
the garret window. The buildings being surrounded
by water, in consequence of the inundation, they
were in great danger. Some Customhouse officers
on the other side of the Lys first perceived the fire, but
in consequence of the inundation they were obliged to
go half a league about, and when they arrived all as-
sistance was vain. The loss is 100,000 francs. Nothing
was insured, and it is feared that the fire was the act of
an incendiary.
BRUSSELS, DEC. ~0 —The Journal of Dutch Lim-
burg says--_,. We have received from a source which is
n arty Official, it piece of news of great importance to
our country, and especially to our Duchy—viz., that a
general treaty of commerce is en the point of being
concluded between Holland and Belgium, and that two
mrtics are already agreed on the principal points.
BRUSSELS. DECEMBER e fete at Mons,
on the opening of the railway to Mons, was very
br,iliant. The King and Queen were received with
very much of loyal affection. Their Majesties left
Mons to-day, at half-past eleven, by a special train,
4nd arrived at Brussels at two o'clock. Much delay
caused by the detestable weather. The road in
:r4l places wc.is under water.
•

1

-
.