The Sun.
London, England, 1847-09-29 00:00:00

Obieninit Mt

LONDON, WEDNESDAY. SEPTEMBER 29, 1847

Communications have at length been received in
the Spanish capital from the Captain-General Don
£tALDOMERO E.SEARTERO, Due de la Victoria. The
intoner of their reception by the illustrious personages
to whom they were addressed was honourable alike to
themselves and to that distinguished statesman. As
a fitting return for his personal devotion to the Re-
gent during the days of his exile and misfortune,
Colonel GI:REBA was selected as the bearer of these
interesting letters, and to Colonel GURREA himself,
therefore, as the friend and representative cf ESEAB-
TERO, were directed those affecting marks of consi-
deration which have recently been afforded by the
SoyeszElGN and the Government. According to the
accounts received from well-informed correspondents,
the reception of Colonel GuartEA by ISABELLA was
characterised by an amenity and grace peculiarly in
accordance with the general nobleness of her disposi-
tion. And the friendly solicitude evinced by her
Most Catholic MAJESTY as to the health and happi-
ness of one who had fought so bravely and suffered so
Trievously in her behalf was an appropriate corollary
to the late political amnesty and to the decree restor-
ing the exiled warrior to his titles, dignities, and pos-
,essions. The reception of GURREA by the members
of the new Administration was in like manner so re.
naorkable for its cordiality and empressement as to be
in itself sufficient evidence of the feelings of
synwathy entertained by the Salamanca Cabinet
for the personal sufferings and protracted
banishment of the Duke of Vic.roxy. Immediately
his emissary appeared in the doorway of the Council
Chamber, the Ministers rose with one accord for the
purpose of testifying their respect for the eminent
man still resident in the modest villa in the ltegent's
park. After one by one embracing the gallant bearer
ESEABTED•O'g letter, the colleagues of Senor SA-
IAMANCA lit.tenrA to its perusal with that attention
which wiaa assur:o: by its manly and dignified lan-
guage. ESPARTERO, would appear, has expressed
his readiness to place his wood sword at the disposal of
his Sovfaualuza, an .l to employ his abilities as acaptain
.and a statesman in the cause to which they were ori-
ginally devoted. Whatever may be the result of
allege commxc,icatione between the greatest of the
soldiers of IsaBELLa and her present political advisers,
it must be a matter of sincere gratulation to all lovers
of tf'ue patriollsm, that the royal dupe of CHRISTINA
and L:ngs PurLirrE has been afforded an opportu-
nity, so soon after her disastrous marriage, of bind-
ing yet more indissolubly to her cause the most
loyal and able of her few defenders. The young
4rQue Reed go longer tremble in her palace

at the reflection that she has to oppose
to the profound guile of one who is al-
most an octogenarian the resolution of a heart
that has only throbbed during seventeen sum-
mers. She may now raise between herself and the
formidable intriguers of Aialmaison and the Tuileries
a man whose ♦ery integrity may outwit their crafti-
ness and whose acknowledged genius as a com-
mander and administrator may restore her to happi-
ness, by securing the independe ace of her kingdom.
England exults at the revival of hope to ESPAR-
TERO, and at the restoration to him of all those
honours which were won by his honesty and
prowess in the service of his QUEEN and country.
England exults in this change of fortune, but she
exults not as at the reclamation of a partizan. Eng-
land exults at the propitious epoch which has arrived
in the career of ESPARTERO, because she admires
genius, because she loves truth, because she reverences
justice, because in the estimation of her people no
sight is more worthy of admiration than the acknow-
ledgment of the services of an earnest and disinte-
rested patriot. We rejoice, therefore, over the re-
newal of a friendly intercourse between ISABELLA
and ESPARTERO, because the former is in extraor-
dinary need of a staunch and gifted protector, and
because the latter has earned for himself the admira-
tion of his countrymen by his integrity during the
time when he was prosperous and powerful, and by
his patience during the hours of his most severe
affliction.

It is riot unworthy of consideration, that simulta-
neously with the receipt of this intelligence from
Madrid, news arrives from Paris of the additional
dignity conferred by the French MoNaßcir upon the
most illustrious of the living warriors of his kingdom.
SOULT is honoured in a peculiar manner by
LOUIS PHILIPPE, while ESPARTERO is receiving from
IsABELLA an especial token of her favour-
The juxtaposition of these names is emblema-
tic in a particular manner of the credit due to
the two SOVEREIGNS. ill3y a royal ordinance the
Duke of DALMATIA. is nominated Marshal-Gene-
ral of France. By a royal decree the Duke of
VICTORY is reinstated in his rank as Captain-General
of Spain. The former act is worthy of Louis
PHILIPPE, the latter of ISABELLA.. It is suitable that
a young QUEEN, placed in a position so perilous
as that of her Most Catholic MAJESTY, should
evince her regard for the most single-minded of
her defenders ; and it is most suitable that
the KING of the FRENCH should confer another
sounding title upon the most notorious time-server in
the length and breadth of his dominions. Far be it
from us to call in question the military genius of the
Duke of DALMATIA. We have not the presumption
or the fool-hardiness of the gallant biographer
of WALLENSTEIN. It is enough to remember that
SouLT was a lieutenant of NAPOLEON to feel assured
that he was by no means incompetent as a warrior,
and that he won the imperial feof of Dalmatia by
some great service to France, either on the battle-
field or in the council-chamber. But history will not
fail to record how slippery were the affections of
Marshal SOULT, how transferable was his loyalty
how convenient was the plasticity of his allegiance:
It will say that among those who became oblivi-
ous of their gratitude to the Emperor and
King NAPOLEON in the day of his disastrous down-
SOULT was not the least conspicuous—that his
name may be coupled with those of BERTHIER and
MARMONT in that epoch of ducal perfidy
and imperial misfortune—that he was ready
to lick the dust at the feet of the glut-
tonous Bourbon, Louis XVlll.—that he was
the most obedient vassal of the national enemy
CHARLES X., until the popularity of LOUIS PHILIPPE
D'ORLEANS appeared to be becoming predominant,
and that the retention of his wealth and dignities at
all risks was the surnmum bonum of the Duke of
DALMATIA. As a subject and a citizen ESPARTERO
is as different from SOULT as the character of ALBE
MARLE is dissimilar to that of BOLIVAR.

The recent decisions of Mr. T. Y. APCHRISTIE,
the Barrister appointed to revise the lists of voters for
the City of London, will, we trust, be productive of
the most beneficial results in preserving those actually
and bona fide entitled to the elective franchise from
the trouble and annoyances to which they have
hitherto most needlessly been exposed, and also in
preventing many from losing their right of voting,
in consequence of their choosing to relinquish it until
the period of the next registration, rather than to
submit to great :personal inconvenience in attend-
ing to substantiate their claim, or to defend their
title against the objections made against it. The
Legislature, in deciding that there should be an
annual revision of the lists of voters, never intended
that every person inserted therein should be
compelled to sacrifice a portion of time that might
be of considerable value to him, in consequence
thereof. It provided certain qualifications which
should be essential to entitle the party to vote at the
elections for Members of Parliament. So far as its
intentions could be carried out in practice, the parties
qualified were not to be subjected to any difficulty or
trouble. If by any mistake or accident their right
was not immediately recognised, a simple and easy
remedy was supplied, that the error might be cor-
rected. At the same time, in order to guard against
the admission of improper and unqualified persons,
and as every elector is interested in preventing an
undue usurpation of the franchise, it enabled every
such elector to object to the retention of the name of
any person on the list who was wanting in any of the
necessary qualifications.
e With these objects' the overseers of parishes in
any city or borough were required, amongst other
things, to make out an alphabetical list of all persons
entitled to vote, in respect of the occupation of pre-
mises of the clear yearly value of not less than 101.,
situate wholly or in part within their parishes. By
the Reform Act every person was entitled to be re-
gistered if he had occupied premises of the clear
yearly value of 10/. for twelve months previous to
the last day of July, and provided he had been
rated to the relief of the poor in respect of
these premises for the preceding twelve months,
and had paid all rates due up to the month of April.
From this it was obvious that any occupier omitted
from any rate would be disfranchised for the subse-
quent year ; but every such person was permitted
to serve a notice on the overseer, claiming to be rated
to the relief of the poor in respect of the premises
in his occupation, and the overseers were required
to put such name upon the rate for the time being ;
and in case they neglected or refused so to do, the
occupier should notwithstanding, for the purposes of
the Act, be deemed to have been rated for the pre-
mises from the time the rate was made, on which he
claimed to be placed. If the overseers, through wilful
neglect or carelessness, omitted to place upon the list
the name of a party duly qualified, a double remedy
was given against them. The aggrieved party was
entitled to maintain an action for the damages he
might sustain or be put to in consequence thereof,
while the Revising Barrister was empowered to in-
flict a fine for every wilful breach of duty in the
execution of the Act of not more than 51. or less
than 20s. The first of these was never acted on.
We believe that there is not an instance of an action
by a private party against overseers for their neglect
in omitting to place him on the register. The Re-
vising Barrister very seldom indeed exercised his
power ; if great negligence was apparent he some-
times censured them, and threatened that if they
persevered in similar acts of carelessness he would
act with less leniency on future occasions, but the
fine was scarcely ever enforced, and the practical
impunity increased the irregularity until it
became a positive nuisance, and very many gentlemen
were subjected to considerable expense, trouble, and
annoyance in consequence.
Mr. MSCneiseie has determined, so far as in him
lies, to put a stop to this reprehensible conduct on
the part of the parochial authorities, and censures
having proved utterly useless, he has, much to the
surprise and consternation of the overseers, inflicted
a number of fines varying from 1/. to 4/., in each
instance, according to the nature of the case. These
salutary examples will, it may be hoped, induce par_
ties who take upon themselves duties of such great
responsibility, and on the correct and accurate dis-
charge of which the personal convenience of every
parishioner is so much concerned, to devote a greater
degree of attention thereto, and in no case to
omit the name of any person entitled to the franchise
from the list without a fair and plausible excuse to
justify them for such an omission.
The other decision of the Learned Gentleman to

THE SUN,