The Sun.
London, England, 1847-07-08 00:00:00

a great man great, though be dare not invade the
homes of the men of Kent—(Cheers)—Napoleon Bona-
parte, who said that the Irish Roman Catholic priesthood
in Ireland were the moral captains of the people. Why,
because they are independent and unpaid. Endow them,
and they will immediately lose their influence.—
(Cheers.) That is my deliberate opinion. With these
principles and opinions, you may readily believe that I
shall not easily bring myself to vote for the endowment
of the Irish priesthood.—(Cheers.) And now, although
I am obliged, for the sake of time, to omit many sub-
jects, on which, however, I shall be ready to answer, if
you will ask me questions, I will pass to that which is
considered to be the holy of holies, the occupancy of
Downing-street.—(Cheers.) And as there is little
enough as yet of public significancy about this Ministry,
I do not know that I can do better than to quote-
what I said six years ago of Lord John Russell,
the chief and champion and best representative of
modern Whiggism, in the figurative language of a
boy, " that it was impossible to speak without admira-
tion of a statesman who reminded him of a saying
of a great imperialist general, who made it his
proudest boast that he had fought two campaigns
against the Conde and Turenne, and had not been con-
quered. Lord John Russell had fought more than two
campaigns against Stanley, more chivalric than Conde;
and against Peel, more far• seeing than Turenne; and
had not been conquered."—(Cheers.) But since I spoke
that sentence six years have passed away, and Lord John
Russell has not only not been conquered, but bas himself
conquered both Lord Stanley and Sir Robert.—(Great
cheers.) lie has realised to the furthest and the fullest
the prophecies of his coming greatness which fell from
the greatest of our political poets, Mr. Thomas Moore,
and the most eloquent of our statesmen, Mr. Canning.—
(Cheers.) But notwithstanding the greatness of his
position, and the greater greatness in himself, I may,
perhaps, be permitted to say—l, who have that Sydney
blood in my veins which was shed on the same scaffold
with hisjtussell blood in defence of the liberties of Eng-
land—(Great cheering)—that he remembers too much
and too often that he is a Russell and a Whig, and too
little and too late that he is the Prime Minister of
a country which is sick—heartily and cordially sick—
of all the barren inanities of party.—(Great cheering.)
It has been to me a reproach in politics that my watch
is always five minutes too fast.— (" Hear," and laughter.)
You will probably think that in saying how I will act
towards Lord John Russell my watch is going too fast,
and I am already supposing myself once more your
Member.—(Cheers.) Flattered by such a meeting as
the present—guaranteed by your sympathy and support
—I believe I shall for the third time be your Member.—

(Tremendous cheering.) Under all circumstances I
shall go to the poll.—(Cheers.) Except in a time of
movement, I must admit that we men of theory make
indifferent Parliament men. My own temper is such
that I will frankly say that in these last vicissitudes I
would rather have' been one of the journalists who led
than one of the statesman who followed.—(Loud
cheers.) And if I shall be ostracised and deposed by you
—(Loud cries of "No, nol")—to exercise thenceforth
the free pen of an independent intelligence, I shall not
personally blame the instigators of a change which shall
hinder and prevent me from mingling in the small dis-
sensions of modern legislation.—(Loud cheers.) But
whatever the event, be it yours now to acquit me of the
charges brought against me ; be yours, or at least of the
gentle-judging and generous among you, the part to try
me by no vulgar standard of success ; to reproach me
not that I have been a patriot when a Government was
strong, and a placeman when a Government was weak,
but for that very reason to sympathise with and adopt
my public conduct. Be it mine to assure you that, had
I to renew it, I would speak again as I have spoken, and
vote once more as I have voted—to rejoice that I at-
tacked Sir Robert Peel when his Administration stag-
nated beneath the superincumbent slime of aristocratic
approbation—to rejoice still more that I joined him
when his hand was free, and he struck the niggard rock
of Parliamentary bounty, and the waters flowed forth,
and the people of England were permitted, even in our
time, to feel the invigorating influence of a liberal and
beneficent, but not the less an ancient and :Tory policy.

—(The Hon. Gentleman resumed his seat amidst reite-
rated rounds of enthusiastic applause).
The meeting broke up at twelve o'clock.

ROYAL THAMES YACHT CLUB.
Yesterday a sailing match for a purse of 100 sove-
reigns, and which, on account of the extensive publica-
tion given to the contest, excited very great interest,
took place on the Thames, the starting-point being at
Erith, the course thence to the Nore light, and back
again to the starting-point, a distance of close on sixty
miles. The fact of the prize being in the current coin of
the realm, and for such a large amount, induced a greater
number of entries than usual, those entries comprising
yachts belonging to the principal sailing clubs of the
kingdom. The chief regulation in this match was that
for difference of tonnage half minute time per ton was
allowed upon yachts coming in.
It is scarcely necessary to remark that the morning
was propitious for an aquatic fete of this description,
and that in consequence the steamers, viz., Meteor, Gem,
Ariel, and Waterman No. 10, engaged to accompany
the competing yachts, were at the appointed hour fully
freighted with fashionable spectators. The Meteor car-
ried the Commodore, Lord A. Paget; the Vice-Commo-
dore, Captain Barwell; the Committee, and their numer-
ous friends. The Marquis of Anglesea was present in
his beautiful yacht the Pearl, and so was the Duke of
Beaufort, accompanied by the Earl of Cardigan, in his
Grace's yacht the Intrepid.
At a quarter past eleven the Noble Commodore gave
the signal for preparing to start, and of the nineteen
yachts which had been entered eleven obeyed the signal,
and took their positions in the following order. The
station figured No. 1 being the nearest to the southern
and No. 11 to the north shore:-
No. 1. R.T.Y.C., Chamois, 8 tons, Southampton,
Smyth Pigott, Esq.
2. R.T.Y.C., Eclipse, 50 tons, Weymouth, T. P. Wick-
ham, Esq.
3. R.T.Y.C., Princess Olga, 35 tons, Cowes, T. B.
Rutherford, Esq.
4. R.T.Y.C., Secret, 25 tons, London, T. W. Smith,
Esq.
5. R.T.Y.C., Ino, 25 tons, London, H. Gibson, Esq.
6. R.T.Y.C., Bianca, 31 tons, Cowes, Lord C. Paget.
7. R.T.Y.C., Snake, 20 tons, Poole, T. and M. Stan-
hill, Esqs.
8. R.W.Y.C., Lily of Devon, 31 tons, Plymouth, W.
F. Moore, Esq.
9. R.T.Y.C., Blue Bell, 31 tons, London, Twisden
Hodges, Esq.
10. R.T.Y.C., Little Gauntlet, 15 tons, Portsmouth,
A. Fountaine, Esq.
11. R.T.Y.C., Antagonist, 25 tons, London, G. P.
Nayler, Esq.
The signal gun for starting was fired at twenty-six
minutes past eleven, upon which the different crews
hoisted canvass with equal rapidity and address, no sen-
sible advantage being gained in this point by one over
the other. The yachts immediately canted round, the
Snake and the Bianca taking the lead, the Eclipse took
up the third position, but soon exchanged it for the first,
the Secret a good fourth, and the Ino following close in
the fifth berth, all the others well up. They maintained
this position to the Nore light with no other remarkable
change or incident save the following. The Eclipse in
Long Reach got the first position, the Secret obtaining
the second. In the Lower Hope the Bianca abandoned
all hope, and the little Chamois, desponding of success,
followed suit, and declined the contest.
As the yachts were rounding the Nore light the
excitement was momentarily diverted by the interesting
coup devil presented by the graceful manoeuvring of the
many assembled yachts, and by the swelling sails of
several score of trading vessels outward bound.
The Nore light was rounded in the following time
and order•-Eclipse, 2h. 40w. 50s. ; Secret, 2b. 46m.
255.; Snake, 2h. 54m. 243.; Princess Olga, 2h. 55m. 45.;
Ino, 2h. 55m. 205.; Antagonist, 2h. 56w.; Blue Bell,
'2h. 58m. ;• Lily of Devon, 2h. 58m. 2s. ; Gauntlet,
Bh. 7m. 40s.
In rounding, the Ino weathers on the Princess Olga,
and cuts her out, amidst great cheering ; the Blue Bell
doing the like to the Lily of Devon. In the upper part
of Sea Reach the Blue Bell overhauls the Snake and Ina
and a beautiful race ensued between the two latter boats.
From this point home no important change took place in
the relative positions of the yachts, and the interest was
centred in the leading ones, the Eclipse and Secret. The
former having retained and gradually increased the six
minutes' lead obtained at the Nore, and the excitement
therefore being caused by the doubt as to whether she
would increase her lead to twelve minutes and a half,
the time required by her superior tonnage to ensure her
victory over her lesser opponent, the Secret. This she
nearly succeeded in doing, to the admiration of all, and
only lost by the short space of twenty-five seconds. It
was curious to witness the astonishment of the uninitiated
on learning the Secret to be a winner, though she had
been eclipsed by a distai,ce of nearly two miles by the
loser. The boats reached the goal in the following time
and order:-

h. in. s.

Eclipse
Secret 6 15 46
Blue Bell
Antagonist 6 26 40
0
Snake 6 29 6
Ino
Lily of Devon
6 38 18
Princess Olga .... ..............
" the boat for
The purse and its contents were handed over by the
Noble Commodore with a congratulatory address to the
spirited owner of the Secret, a craft almost invariably
successful, no matter what wind blows. She has again
proved herself what we have called her,
all weathers."
arrangements on board the Meteor, at least both
with respect to amusement and comfort, were
The
thing that e
the most fastidious could desire;
mand she
landed her numerous and highly satisfied every-
with
at a quarter to nine in the evening.
" at

COWES, ISLE OF WIGHT.
(FROM Olin OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

JULY 7, 1847.
A general meeting of the members of the Royal
Yacht Squadron is to be held at the Squadron House on
Friday next, at which a Vice-Commodore will be elected
in place of the Marquis of Donegan, elected Commo-
dore. Sir Bellingham Graham, Bart., it is said, is to be
the new Vice. He is a true yachtsman, and keeps his
yachts afloat till the November gales drive them from
the cruising ground to their moorings, and then into the
harbour, the Flirt being the last of the fleet afloat.
Died of consumption, on the 7th inst., at West Cowes,
after an illness of 15 years, Robert Meiklaw, aa
upright, honourable man. It is understood h t
remains are to be taken round in his yacht, the Talis-
man, to Scotland.

Pormuriori or TUSCANY.--The Gazette di Firenze
gives 1,565,751 as the populetion of the Grand Duchy of
Tuscany. The increase of the population last year
amounted to 16,880. Amongst the deaths in 1846 there
wore Wu coma amateurism&