The Sun.
London, England, 1841-01-11 00:00:00

houses when it pervades the Legislature, and over-
flows into our laws. Boards of Guardians and
masters of workhouses will probably think it their
duty to be kind towards unfortunate paupers, and
give them an abundance of food, when the Legis-
lature has learned to respect the rights of industry,
and does not wilfully withhold food from the labour-
ing classes.

If the Times and its co-mates, instead of raving
against the new Poor-law, would inculcate a respect
for justice on the Bench of Bishops,—would inspire
the Dukes of BUCKINGHAM and RICHMOND
and their followers with some little regard to the
rights of the starving Manchester weavers, the
Sheffield cutlers, or the Walsall smiths, not only
would the poor-houses have fewer tenants, but they
would be much better cared for, and much more

kindly treated. As long as a law exists which starves

a large number of the people every year—as long as
the Legislature betrays a terrible disregard of hu-
man life, how can it be expected that the charities,

amenities, and kindlinesses of our nature, should be
cultivated by the servants of the Legislature, who

preside over workhouses ? When they are partieu
- -

lady cruel they take their cue from Parliament.

The Post professes good intentions, but it cannot
all at once shake off bad habits. While it advocates
moderation, and reprobates exaggeration, it asserts
this morning that "The Sun hopes and believes that
the assertion of the Standard's correspondent is true,
refers to the Australian Journals as corroborating a
part of it, and boldly maintains that Mr. FROST,
as an oldfriend of the Government, and a stanch
supporter of Liberal principles, deserves, not only
pardon, but office, and rapid promotion in the
QUEEN'S service."

Now this is not merely an extravagance or an
exaggeration, such as the Post accuses its friends
of committing, but the wilful fabrication of an un-
truth. All that we said was that Ministers
would not do wrong if they had lightened Mr.
FROST'S sufferings, now that he has lost the power
to do mischief. We said not a word about pro-

motion.
Neither can the Post all at once acquire know-
ledge. In ignorance of the fact that consumers,
capitalists, and labourers, may all be benefited by
the repeal of the Corn-law, it calls those cheats who
affirm that the repeal will have such effects. At
present the duty on wheat is 275. 8d: per quarter,
say 28s. Now suppose that this sum, being
remitted, is divided as follow:, :-18s. to the labourer,
in the price of bread ; ss. to the consumer in the
price of goods ; and ss. to the capitalist as profit,
will they not all be benefitted ? Something like
that would actually occur, and yet the Post, in its
ignorance, (mils those cheats who affirm it.
Our Contemporary is alarmed as to what is to
become of the agricultural labourers, who he ex-
pects will be thrown out of employment. That is
a mere fancy of the Post to excuse a wrong. At
present there are more labourers in the agricultural
districts than can find employment, and whether the
surplus be 10 or 1,000, the effect in reducing wages
to the lowest possible level is the same. The agricul-
tural labourers now can scarcely be said to live—
they starve. At all times the surplus hands of
the rural districts have found employment in
towns, and the only effect, as far as the la-
bourers in agriculture are concerned, of the
repeal of the Corn-law, would be to extend
that market for their labour in the manu-
facturing districts, which is the chief means of
keeping them from a state of hopeless, helpless
dleupiernes. dencpel,
,he agricultural
present, on the farmers and the
s
labourers' wages would
be increa bed, not diminished, by the abolition of the
Corn-law.

The Paris Journals of Thursday, with private
advices from the French capital, hare been received.
' In the Committee on the fortifications of Paris, dif-
ferences had arisen between Marshal SOULT and
Ai•
if
' E Rs
—the ex-Minister contending that a
grant
eighty millions of francs should he voted
immediately for the works, while the illustrious
Marshal would only consent to a vote of fifty-four
millions. Five Members of the Committee were
ready to vote the larger sum, and four to grant only
the lesser, so that M. TIIIERS has a majority in i

hints disapprobation of that part of the scheme.
The Leeds Mercury has not merely opposed it by
argument, but has gone the length of declaring that
all the old boroughs and chartered towns will stre-
nuously resist it. But their assistance is necessary
to carry any plan of reform in opposition to the
united landowners. At what period may that be
calculated on ? Not months merely, but years
must elapse, and in the meantime are we to accom-
plish no reform whatever ? That must, however,
be the result. We can command no reform unless

our energies are united. We cannot now unite all
Reformers in favour of the plans of the Leeds Re-
form Association ; and, unless we can unite on
some other plan, be it the repeal of the Corn-law
or the Ballot, we shall have no reform. To
put an end to the hope of reform, when it might
be achieved, is, in our opinion, to promote revolu-
tion ; and therefore we are for now uniting all Re-
formers around the Anti-Corn-law League.

Two flagitious cases have lately been brought
before the public of cruel and scandalous treat-
ment of paupers. At Eton a woman was shut up
in an unwarmed room, without bedding or clothing,
with a slight intermission, for thirty hours, her
offence being a wish to dress her child's chilblains.
At Hoo several girls have been whipped. It is the
business of the Times and some other Anti-Poor-
law journals, to paint these cruelties in the darkest
colours, and most certainly it is not our business to
extenuate them. We abhor such eonduct as that
of the masters of the workhouses at Eton and Hoo,
who are especially bound to be kind and considerate
to the many helpless children of misfortune and
misery who are placed under their care, and at their
mercy. We know nothing much more atrocious,
except it be similar conduct in parents to children,
than for the legal guardians of the suffering and
dependent poor to treat them with cruelty. At the
same time, we cannot allow it to be:supposed that such
cases never occurred under the old law. We are well
convinced that they did, and were probably much
more frequent than at present. In fact, considering
how jealous a large portion of the public has been of
the New Poor-law, how closely some public jour-
nals have watched the manner in which it has been
carried into execution, and how eagerly they have
been to detect and expose faults, we are inclined to
believe that the cases of cruelty under the adminis-
tration of the Poor-law have been remarkably few.
If they had been ten times more numerous we
should not have been surprised. How can workhouse
masters have compassion fur the poor when spiritual
and lay Peers, and rich country gentlemen,
starve them by law ? When a Noble Duke,
whose family and relations are quartered on the
public, and provided for out of the public funds,
does not think it beneath his dignity, at a
Board of Guardians, to more a resolution to de-
grade the food of the poor, is it not to be ex-
pected that the servants of the Guardians should
catch the spirit of their masters, and flog
and imprison those whom the law and the Guar-
dians treat so scandalously ? We shall have but
little improvement in the servants of the State till
the Bishops, the nobility, and the gentry, set them
the example of respecting the rights of the
people. Humanity will flourish in work