The Sun.
London, England, 1841-11-24 00:00:00

EVENING SUN

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS.

FROM THE EVENING PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.
GLOBE.—The Post affirms this morning
that " the public know tnat Sir Robert Peel is
preparing statistics for the meeting of Par-
liament next year, in order to the presenta-
tion and defence of measures calculated to
obtain the approbation of Parliament and pro-
mote the welfare of the country." It must be
mentioned, in candour, that the oddity of the ex-
pression—" preparing statistics," arises from the
fact that the Post is replying to a sneer at Sir
Robert's statistics. We have no doubt, how
ever, that the phrase expresses pretty correctly
the real amount of what Sir Robert Peel is pre.
paring. Whatever measures he may think "
cal-
culated to obtain the approbation of Parliament"
—when the evil day shall at length come that.
measures must be at length proposed,—statistics
enough we are at least sure of— husks for the op•
pidan " swine," whom Sir Robert has maintained
the fitness of " shearin.a" rather than " fleece
the sheep." We are almost disposed to think
that there is more propriety in this cool com-
parison of Sir Robert Peel than is at first sight
obvious. It expresses a policy that will go a
wool-gathering everywhere, except where
wool is to be found. Are we to take the Herald's
prediction of the probable upshot of Sir Ro-
bert's statistics ? Then indeed the swine-shear-
ing and wool-gathering wits of this Ministry will
be spendidly illustrated. The Herald announces
that, in amending the existing Corn-law (which
even the Herald has at length discovered is an
operation which catu be escaped), we are to
look to the remote prospect of Great Britain
again becoming an exporting country, and to
promote that. result, "by granting a drawback
of ss, or - GS.- a quarter on the exportation of
domestic wheat or flour." The Herald consi-
ders that "such a drawback would practically be
a reliefin foreign markets to the excess of taxation
imposed on British over Continental agriculture."
These are the amendments oftheCorn-laws contem-
plated in the Tory camp. We are to revert,
under the auspices of some new light of Mr.
M'Culloch, to the policy of the first half of the
last century--that of paying from our taxes to
enable foreigners to cat our corn cheaper than
we ourselves are allowed to eat it ! What is in-
tended (called by its right name) is to compensate
the landed interest out of the taxes, for the effect
of all the miscalculations which attend monopoly.
STANDARD.—The letters of Doctors Pusey
and Gilbert, which appeared in yesterday's
Standard, reached our hands at art hour too
late t') allow that calm consideration of them
which the importance of their subject and
the rank of the writers must render proper,
before venturing to offer an opinion upon the
general question of which those letters treat.
Most willingly, indeed, would we - avoid
that question, as we have hitherto avoided
it to the utmost of our power—with the same
feeling with which well-disposed children try to
• close their ears against the altercation of their
parents ; . but the paiuful task of pronouncing a
decision is now forced upon all who appreciate
the danger threatening the University,the Church,
and the country. Even now we venture to speak
chiefly in the hope that by a timely expression of
public opinion the dangerous controversy may be
interrupted, through the prudence of those who
have moved it ; for if prosecuted to a final deci-
sion in the particular case, the consequence,
whatever that decision may be, cannot fail to
cause great injury. Such a decision will present
a poll of the followers of Doctor Pusey on the
one side, and of those who decline to
adopt all that gentleman's opinions on the
other ; and however the numbers may stand,
the " unhappy division" (we use the Rev.
Gentleman's own words) must afford occasion of
triumph to the Romanist or to the other secta-
rian enemies of the University and the Church.
Let us hope that the prudence of Dr. Posey
and his friends, warned by the voice of the pub-
lic, will spare such a scandal. If they are sin-
cere in the reverence for the Church which
they profess, there can be no doubt that such
must be the- effect of an unequivocal expres-
sion of public opinion. Our views of the
tendency of the peculiar doctrines and
practices of Doctor Pusey's school have never
been concealed, although we have always offered
them with the courtesy due to the errors of sin-
cere and pious, though exceedingly weak, men.
These views have-not been altered by the late un-
happy defection of Mr. Sibthorp, or by the fact—
well known in the University, and not denied by
the parties theinselves—that some of Dr. Pusey's
most zealous disciples, some absolutely depen-
dent upon him, are at this moment balancing
whether they,shall imitate Mr. Sibthorp in mak-
ing an honest and open profession of that Roman-
ism to which they already subscribe in secret.