The Sun.
London, England, 1847-12-20 00:00:00

Lord iiiught for monopoly even after it was con-
-,
aisLecl'and. troyo ? What if he carried the ragged
banner of:9lE ntr,y Piarty\w henjt as too soiled
sariaN thrEehe -4 raisM.SOm Nhe ground
-
by another ? What if he led his .follOwers
on in the very teeth of facts, common sense,
and public opinion ? What of all this ? He
has spoken for the admission of the Jews to Par-
liament ; he has voted with the lovers of civil and
religious liberty ; he has-0 Heavens !—actually
walked out into the same lobby with Sir ROBERT !
Let him be regarded henceforth as an outcast and a re-
probate, a moral poltroon, and an indefensible rene-
gade! Away with all previous panegyrics on the Private
Secretary to GEORGE CANNING : he must be abused
and caricatured without leniency or compunction.
And Mr. DISRAELI, too I. What if the Hon. Gentle•
man the Member for Buckinghamshire has redeemed
the inanity of the speeches pronounced in favour of
Protection by the dazzling singularity of his imagi-
nation, by the beautiful turns of his elocution, and by
the brilliant enunciations of his satiric voice ? What,
again, of all this ? What though the Country Party
be in a peculiar manner bound to Mr. DISRAELI by
the ties of gratitude, because he enabled them to
number amongst themselves at least one man of
very distinguished parts and of unquestion-
able genius ? He has spoken for the admission
of Jews to Parliament ; he has voted with the lovers
of civil and religious liberty ; he has—O, Heavens !
—walked out into the same lobby with Sir RO-
BERT ! Therefore is Lord GEORGE BENTINCK
discarded, and scorned, and derided. Therefore is
Mr. DISRAELI treated with so much matchless in-
gratitude ; and he who was formerly spoken of as
one of the shining lights of the age, is nicknamed a
"Parliamentary rabbi," a writer of unintelligible
mysticism for the circulating libraries, a quibbler,
and an Irvingite Such is the faithfulness,
the moderation, and the gratitude of the
Protectionists ! We shall be readily ac-
quitted from any charge of degenerating
into the apologists of Lord G. BENTINCX and Mr.
DISRAELI. But common justice impels us to demand
whether any other conduct could have been possibly
anticipated from those Members of the Legislature
than that which has called down upon them this
unconditional obloquy ? Could the Noble Repre-
sentative of King's Lynn, or the Hon. Representa-
tive of Buckinghamshire have acted differently
without the most gross and outrageous inconsistency ?
Mr. DISRAELI'S goodwill towards the Israelites is so
universally known, that it has become almost a pro-
verls in literature ; and Lord GEORGE voted with the
Whigs in 1833 exactly as he did on Friday evening,
the 17th of December, 1847. And yet Lord G.
BENTINCIC and Mr. DISRAELI are for this discarded
by the ingratitude of their late panegyrists ! If unity
is strength, so much for the weakness of the Protec-
tionists !

The interview which took place on Friday between
the Secretary of State for the Home Department
and the Chief Secretary for Ireland, on the one part,
and the deputation of Irish Representatives, on the
other, was of a very satisfactory character. The
memorial, which after full deliberation, had been
agreed upon and signed by no less than forty-one
Members, was a manly and straightforward docu-
ment. There was no attempt to make any unrea-
sonable demand, or to require assistance, beyond
that which it was the manifest duty of the Govern-
ment to afford. Every one will acknowledge that it
is not only just and proper, but that it is the bounden
duty of those whom our Most Gracious SOVEREIGN
has selected to preside over the national councils,
by every conceivable precaution, to guard against the
possibility of any of our fellow-subjects perishing
from the effects of famine and destitution. From
whatever quarter the funds may in the first instance
be obtained for the necessary expenditure, or whoso-
ever may ultimately be made responsible therefor,
a recurrence of those frightful scenes, which unhap-
pily took place in too many localities in Ireland
during the past year, must be averted. The Irish
Members admit that it is just and reasonable, that
before any recourse is had either to the liberality of
individuals, or any further appeal to the aid of the
State in the present emergency, the resources of the
localities, which are now available by law for the
maintenance of their own poor, should be proved to
be insufficient, and they state their willing! ess
" that it should be left to the Executive to determine
when this state of things shall have arrived in any
locality." The most strenuous opponent of Irish
grants or Irish loans could not place the principle on
a broader foundation. No aid is sought fcr
until every local resource is exhausted. The
Legislature, during the last session, made the
property in every union responsible for the
support of its poverty. No landowner can
now receive any benefit out of his estate, either
for his own use, or for the liquidation of the debts
and incurnbrances by which it is affected, until provi-
sion has been made for the wants and exigencies of
the destitute poor. In many districts, however,
the existing means are not adequate for the support
of their inhabitants although the whole produce of
the soil were devoted to that purpose. The Govern-
ment acknowledge the existence of such a state of
facts in twenty-two unions, and have expressed au
intention of affording the necessary aid. This de-
claration is hailed with pleasure by the Irish
Members, but they express their conviction that
" the remainder of the districts in which such distress
will prevail has been underrated." They therefore
suggest " that sufficient resources should be placed in
the hands of the Lord-Lieutenant to enable him to
meet promptly the emergency in any locality where
the poor-law had been proved unavailing ;" and
feel confident " that any measure which may
be proposed by the Government, to secure the repay-
ment of any money advanced for this purpose, will
receive cordial support." The Home Secretary ac-
quiesced in these principles, and stated that the Go-
vernment , had, as they believed, at their disposal
means sufficient to meet any case of distress
likely to occur at an early period—(on a for-
mer occasion the Premier stated, for four
months)—and which would not be provided for from
local resources, and assured the deputation that
arrangements had been perfected, in order to aid those
districts in which the poor-law would be found in-
sufficient.

After such statements, the injustice of those who
unhesitatingly accuse the Government of disre-
garding the misery of the people, and suffering
them to perish without an effort on their behalf, will
be sufficiently apparent. Circumstances are now
very different from what they were at the time when
the mysterious visitations of PROVIDENCE blighted
the only food of a large body of the people, and
coin polled them to look to the charity of others for the
support which they were unable to obtain from their
own unassisted resources. Then, there was no legal
means of obliging the proprietors of property to con-
tribute to the wants of their less fortunate neigh-
bours. It is but justice to say that many, very
many, devoted their utmost energies to the praise-
worthy task, ,and gave most liberally from their
diminished resources; but others acted in a very dif-
ferent manner, and a double burden was imposed
upon those who were disposed well and truly to
perform the duties incidental to their position.
This can no longer be the ease. Every man must
now bear his portion in the general charge ; and it
will be appartnt that the best policy is that
which will enable the parties to earn an
independent livelihood by their own honest
industry, rather than that they should be maintained
in idleness in the workhouse. The sad experience of
last year, too, will act as a beacon light to the autho-
rities in pointing out what is to be done and what is to
be avoided. Greater certainty can be felt as to
the amount that will be required, and when they de-
clare that they have means sufficient to meet any
case of destitution likely to occur at an early period,
the fullest confidence may be reposed in the assertion.
h
These, however, are but temporary precautions,et and
the future hope of the sister island,
misery, must depend on the speedy her
rnptrroodspuortiloyn oro
of
" comprehensive and well considered measures for
her permanent improvement."

r t
~..

T_IIE SUN,