The Sun.
London, England, 1846-09-08 00:00:00

betning aittlt

LONDON, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1846.

Government and the resident landlords of Ireland
must immediately and earnestly emulate each other
in endeavouring to afford occupation to the destitute
peasantry across St. George's Channel, otherwise
starvation and insurrection are not merely possibili-
ties, but certainties. During the calamitous history
of that neglected and abused country an autumnal
season never commenced with so many appalling
auguries of scarcity in provisions. If anything were
requisite to excite commisseration in the minds
of the local and legislative protectors of the
Irish population, the spectacle of rottenness pre-
sented by their potato fields would be amply
sufficient. The thousands of acres, upon the pro-
duce of which that population had alone cal-
culated for subsistence, present an aspect of utter
desolation ; miles upon miles in the neighbourhood of
the larger towns, as well as of the more secluded
villages, are beheld fields in which the murrain has
taken such a destructive effect, that their proprietors
are unwilling to submit to the expense of digging.
So desperate is the condition of the poorer classes
already, that, according to the opinion of a very
credible eye-witness, an outbreak is unavoid-
able, unless precautionary measures be taken
forthwith. Indeed, it would be the acme of credulity
to repose in a confident expectation that thousands
will voluntarily submit to the gradual and excruci-
ating torments of famine while there are plump oxen
within reach, palatable swine worth the killing, and
stores of meal but indifferently guarded. An out-
break under such aggravating circumstances is one
of the most natural movements to anticipate. The
time-honoured principle of meum and tuum is incon-
trovertible by a conscientious logician, but it resolves
itself into a sheer absurdity when regarded by a
starving populace. One by one, as the encroachments
of hunger are experienced by the multitude, are the
reiigious sentiments, the promptings of reason, and
the kindlier dictates of the heart, subverted. And
hence, instead of feeling astonishment at this notion
of an ultimate display of insubordination, we confess
ourselves to be somewhat amazed, and to be alto-
gether inspired with admiration at the patience, and
the meekness, and the self-imposed tranquillity with
ss-hich the impoverished Irish have sustained all their
preceding sorrows. Talk no longer of the lawlessness
of the Irish peasantry, of their ingratitude, of their
predisposition to crime and insurrection! Tell us
no longer of their being little better than ignorant
and intractable barbarians ! Their conduct during

so many and such terrible afflictions; the tranquillity
which was preserved even in those awful moments, in
1845, when they shut themselves up in their hovels
to despair of human succour and to die ; the un-
repining submissiveness with which, according to
the language of the Parliamentary Blue Book, on the
Relief of Distress in Ireland, page 225,, they "actually
subsisted on food made from the wash' of a starch
yard, food but indifferently suited for pigs"—all these
circumstances are an ample testimony of the capa-
bility of this poor peasantry for better things. "If
the next crop fails us, it will be the end of the world
with us !" said a labourer to Captain PERCIVAL, on
the 25th of last May. Feeling thus intensely the pri-
vations to which they were abandoned, these simple-
minded people still continued amenable to the na-
tional Legislature. Cherishing the domestic affec-
tions more sedulously, perhaps, than any other race
upon the surface of the earth, the peasants could be-
hold the sufferings of their wives and children with-
out resorting to violence for their alleviation. A few
sacks of meal and pollard were, without doubt, car-
ried off from the waggons and the storehouses, but
the depredation was committed by parties of habitual
depravity. A bullock or so was occasionally tre-
panned, but the abductor was invariably some one
blessed with a notoriously bad reputation. Assassi-
nations, and mutilations, and murders were of no
unfrequent occurrence, but those dastardly sins were
attributable more to distinct associations, as the
Rockites, Molly Macguirism, Ribbonism, and the
like, than to any affinity to bloodshed on the part of
the collective community. We can confidently un-
dertake to say that many eminent virtues have been
evinced in an eminent manner by the Irish peasantry
during their grievous and protracted privations.
Patience and long-suffering, gentleness of heart in
the midst of every conceivable temptation to brutal
force and ruffian depravity, forbearance under
the most insolent neglect and subordination,
when goaded on to insurrection by hunger and
disease! These beautiful instances of submission to

the decrees of DIVINE PROVIDENCE are a testimony of
that natural piety and that innate generosity of dis-
position, which, if suitably responded to, would in-
sure, not only the happiness of themselves, but the
greater prosperity of the whole empire. Even when
charging at Waterloo and in the Peninsula to the
sound of " Garryowen," Irish bravery was never
more signally demonstrated than during these months
of provisional and pecuniary destitution. Assuredly
the Legislature and the landlords should correspond
to these virtues in the population : such national

merits should not pass unrewarded, much less be
followed by an abandonment to death either by

inanition or contagion.
We have already expressed our sentiments very
explicitly on the Government grant of 50,0001.; we
have maintained that such a stunted bounty is al-
together inadequate for the relief of a quarter of even
the existing destitution, and that, consequently, it

w ould be but a paltry corrective to the vastly extended
destitution which time must necessarily develop. On
this particular we can now, however, rest perfectly satis-
fied. The Ministers, for their own sakes, for the sake
of the nation, and for the sake of humanity, will have

a reservation in case of any extraordinary emergency.
Nothing need be dreaded from the apathy of the
legislative officials. We must now turn with an

anxious and scrutinising interest to the efforts of
the Irish landlords for the assuaging of the
miseries of their tenantry—those landlords whose Ha-
bilities and crippled resources have been so graphi-
cally delineated by Lord MOUNTCASHELL. Let them
be astir for the sake of their own fair fame, and of

;heir own fair fortunes. The time has arrived

in which they may wipe away the remem-
brance of wholesale evictions and retail
illiberality. Let them avail themselves of
so excellent an opportunity of rendering their
names popular, of attaching to themselves a devoted
and enthusiastic race, and thereby of materially im-
proving their neglected possessions.
The Iri,h can be as intensely grateful for benefac-

tions as they have already proved themselves intensely
patient under privations, or as they may prove them-
selves intensely outrageous under a long-con-
tinued abandonment by their natural and national
protectors. One of their priests, on seconding a
vote of sincere thanks to Sir 11ouEirr PEEL, at a
meeting held at Mallow, on Wednesday, declared
that "if he travelled over every page of the Eng-
lish vocabulary, he could not find terms strong
enough to express his sense of gratitude to that great
and good man!" Let the Irish landlords imitate the
generous example shown by Sir R. PEEL in his public
capacity, and they will be rewarded with similar gra-
titude from an industrious and peaceful tenantry !

The Hon. Member for Limerick, the ex-martyr of
the cellar, is determined to convince the public that
he has not relinquished one single particle of that ob-
stinacy that induced him—not only in opposition to
the advice ofevery single one of the Irish Members with
whom he had been in the habit of acting, but in
spite of the urgent entreaties, the anxious prayers of
their veteran leader—to force a collision with the
House of Commons, and peremptorily to refuse the
slightest concession. Ho saw that a considerable
majority of the repeal party, all those blessed with
the slightest portion of common sense, depre-
cated the course he had adopted, and that if
he escaped a vote of censure at Conciliation Hall
it was only because the Irish are a warm-hearted
people, who do not readily abandon the cause of a
friend, and who will be influenced by the heart to
pass, sub silentio, that which must in the strongest de-
gree be condemned by the head. The Hon.
Member had calculated on a considerable sensa-
tion being excited, which should vibrate through

the land from Cape Clear to the Giant's
Causeway, which should arouse the strongest feel-
ings of indignation throughout the nation ; and that
during his martyrdom he should (as one of the
Young Ireland gentry expressed it) act the king, re-
ceiving in regal state the deputations which would
certainly crowd in to wait upon him with addresses
from admiring and sympathising thousands. But in
vain was the hope. In vain the sojourn in the cellar—
the refusal to partake of generous fare—the protest
against Saxon ale—the stern resolution against wine;
all failed in procuring him the sympathy that he
coveted, in exciting the commotion that he desired.
It is true that a few of the very young gentlemen,
who had sufficient leisure to afford a visit to the
Saxon metropolis, visited the cellar, and in some
degree calmed by their condolence the disappointed
feelings of the martyr; and that the same persons
also attempted to obtain a vote of the Association
approving of his conduct, and encouraging him
to persevere in his opposition to the orders
of the House. But, alas ! these exertions were
in vain. The people, who would gladly have
supported him in any legitimate contest, in anything
founded on reason which could possibly prove bene-
ficial to his country, could not join him in his wild
and ridiculous attempt. He took up a false, an un-
tenable position, and he could not expect that any
sober-minded person would do battle on his side, when
he so foolishly refused to withdraw from the unequal
contest. Hence the feeling of gratitude on his part,
the determination to support the Young Ireland
party when they, in turn, should be guilty of conduct
as absurd, as supremely ridiculous as his own. Hence
his withdrawal from the Association when a check
was interposed, and language, by which the entire
body might have been seriously compromised if it
had been patiently heard, was put an end to. Hence
his refusal to accept the proffered reconciliation, to
avail himself of the bridge of gold prepared for his re-
turn by Mr. O'CONNELL. Hi. vanity has suffered a fear-
ful shock ; his self-opinion has been sadly assailed ; he
thinks it better" to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven.'

He must be " nulli secundus"—he prefers to preside
over the councils of Young Ireland to being even the
second in Conciliation Hall. He has sulkily retired
to Cahermoyle to await the course of events, and he
has recently been cheered by an imposing demonstra-
tion of the physical force repealers of the county
Limerick, who headed, we regret to say, by several
Roman Catholic clergymen, waited on him for the
purpose of presenting addresses from the repealers of
Rathkeale and Newcastle. The Hon. Member gave
a detailed account of the causes which led to his
secession from Conciliation Ilall, of the differences
that arose in the Association : these, according to Mr•
O'BRIEN, were occasioned by different causes—first,
as to the propriety of the Association pronouncing an
opinion in support of himself, in his struggle with the
House of Commons, in which cos he stated) the

jority yielded to the minority; secondly, as to
the propriety of repealers accepting or
holding office under the Whig Government ; and
lastly, respecting the Dungarvan election. These,
according to Mr. O'l3Rifei, are the real differences
that have occasioned the spit in the repeal camp, and
not the question of physical force. This is the roan-
ner in which he strives to persuade himself that he is
still justified in his conduct.
The chief foundation on which the Association was
erected was, that its objects were to be attained only
by moral force—by the strength of public opinion.
On this distinct pledge and understanding many of
its members joined its ranks ; and it was by a strict
adherence thereto alone that the co-operation of
others whose aid would be most desirable could be
hoped. The sagacious leader could trace to that prin-
ciple the various triumphs he had obtained, the vic-
tories he had achieved. lie gained, by peaceful
means, successes which could never have been won
by force. During his entire course his great diffi-
culty has been to curb and control the ardent and
impetuous feelings of the people. It was easy to
excite them, easy to goad them on to any
pitch of enthusiasm, to induce them to brave
any dangers, to undergo any privations; but
to keep down the excited passions, to prevent any
outbreak that would effectually destroy the prospects
of a peaceful and bloodless victory, that was the task
that required extraordinary powers indeed, hic labor
hoc opus est. It could only be done by the constant
affirmation of the principle, by instantly putting down
any person, whoever he might be, who would speak
even of the possibility of an appeal to arms, a re-
course to physical force. It was not the persons who
could give expression to the feeling that were to be
feared, men who really mean fighting and are not al-
ways speaking of it, and imagining cases when they
would be called on to do so, but it was the ignorant
multitude on whom these harangues might have the
most injurious and demoralizing effect. He was,
therefore, right in at once checking their utterance in
the Association, and in getting rid of those who infringed
the fundamental rule of the society; and in the with-
drawal with them of Mr. SMITH O'BRIEN we really
think he has experienced no great loss.

On the 24th of August Cardinal Giza addressed
a circular to the Governors of the Provinces of the
Roman States, coffin.; on them to adopt measures
calculated to improve the religious and temporal
condition of the poorer classes. The document
states, that the POPE beholds with the utmost
pain the quarrels, thefts, and other misde-
meanors constantly recurring throughout the Pon-
tifical States ; that the chief cause of this state of
society must be found in the idle life which

the younger portion of the population are
accustomed to lead, and in a want of proper
instruction to prepare them for gaining an honest
living by their industry. His Holiness, in con-
sequence, in addition to his wish to see education and
habits of industry generally disseminated throughout
his dominions, proposes founding without delay an
establishment at Rome for the education of a certain
number of boys belonging to the working classes
throughout the states, so that they might be, in the
first place, removed from the spot where they
were likely to contract bad habits ; and in
the next, might form a nucleus of well-in-
structed, non-commissioned officers, calculated to
suffice for the army required by the State. His Ho-
liness calls on the governors to apply to all persons
under theirjurisdiction, particularly the bishops, mu-
nicipal magistrates, and provincial councillors, for
suggestions to forward this scheme, and to indicate
the best mode of raising the funds necessary for car-
rying it into execution. The circular, in conclusion,
calls on the governors to avoid mere theoretical
recommendations, and to confine themselves as much
as possible to practical matters.

Madrid papers of the Ist have arrived.
The Heraltlo gives the following bit of special
pleading as an answer to the article in the _Espanol,
which we published in our paper of yesterday, on the
subject of the MOTATPENSIER marriage, which the
Espanol contended would be a violation of the funda-
mental laws of Spain and of the treaty of Utrecht :
" The spirit of the treaty concluded at a time when
the condition of Spain was very different from what it
now is, was never to unite on one head the two crowns
of France and Spain, in order not to disturb the politi-
cal equilibrium, to which, in past ages, more itrportance
was given than in the present day ; but could that
circumstance now occur even with the consent
of the two nations ? Certainly not. Could the
Duke de Montpensier ever be the common bond of this
re- union, impossible in our age ? Certainly not ; for even,
which God forbid, should her Majesty have no heirs, the
Duke de Montpensier would not be, as husband of the
Princess who succeeded to the throne, King of Spain, but
simply husband of the Queen ; and in order for him, in
that position, to inherit the throne of France, there
must be such a succession of deaths that their improba-
bility even prevents their entering into any human cal-
culation. But, suppose for a moment that this extreme
improbability were to happen, it would be then only, and
nut before, that the Duke de Montpensier might be
called on to keep the engagements by which his family
were bound. This is too evident to make it neces-
sary to insist further on it. We must, however,
establish that it cannot be deduced from the spirit of
the treaty of Utrecht that the Queen, or the imme-
diate heir to the throne, cannot contract a marriage
with a prince of the house of Orleans. We may sty as
much of the literal sense of the treaty. The application
made by the Espanol of the article of the constitu
tion is but a play upon words, consisting in a forced
and absurd interpretation which it is sought to give to
the word exclude.' We admit that the treaty has now
all its primitive strength. But is that the law of which
the constitution speaks ? Between a law properly. so
called and a treaty ti ere exists a very strong difference.
The first is a document purely domestic, obligatory only
for individuals belonging to the same political associa-
tion, without application to any other nation; the second
is the international law, which mutually binds different
nations, which treats them as the simple law treats indivi-
duals. There is, therefore, an immense difference between
the meaning of these two words ; a difference such as
cannot give rise to any equivocation, for it would be as
absurd to call the law of Utrecht'—the treaty which
bears that name, as to apply the word treaty' to the
law on the press. The law is too explicit in its language
to confound ideas so completely distinct. If, in a docu-
ment so important as the constitution, it had been wished
to make the exclusion insisted on by the Espanol, it
would have said, 'Those who by the law, or by treaties
are excluded,' and it would not have spoken simply of
the law. It is impossible to admit that in this word can
be generally understood treaties. But there is more.
The treaty of Utrecht cannot now have the primitive
force, and a blind obedience to its clauses cannot be de-
manded. After the revolutions which have succeeded
each other in Europe the law of succession is changed.
When, not long since, we wished, on the faith of that
treaty, to make a demand from England which it did not
suit her to grant, the reply was that the treaty had fallen
into desuetude, and that i,s clauses could not be dis-
cussed. But we do not wish to place ourselves in such
an advantageous position. We grant that the supposi-
tion of our adversaries is true, and that the treaty is the
law of which the constitution speaks, and that this treaty,
is now in its full force. Even in making this immense con-
cession we do not fear being able to maintain that the article I
of the constitution is not applicable to the present case.
The constitution speaks of Princes against whom the law
imposes the punishment of exclusion—Princes whom, by a
logical consequence, cannot aspire to the marriage in queF-
tion, because the law cannot open indirectly the road to the
throne to one whocannotarrive there by a direct and.lawful
one. It is only by doing violence in an absurd manner
to the clear and explicit meaning of the article of the
constitution that he who has renounced is excluded by the
law. It may be replied to us, it is true, in the last place
that he who renounced the succession is excluded from it,
although the sense of these two words be distinct ; but,
by urging this illogical reasoning further one would be
forced to maintain that all Princes who are not called
to the succession of the throne are excluded from it, and
that consequently our Queen and her family could only
marry their cousins, Infantes of Spain. That the Duke
de Miintpensier or any other Prince cannot be called to
the succession, because they have renounced it, for a mo-
tive founded on special questions which have disappeared
with the age to which they belonged, as has been the
case with the treaty of Utrecht, is what may be sup-
ported by false reasoning ; but to deduce therefrom
that these Princes are excluded by an article of the con-
stitution would be an absurd consequence which not only
does not hold good before logic and common sense, but
befere the simple signification given to words in the v?-
crtbulary of the language. In torturing terms in this
way they may be made to say anything."

This concluding observation is completely ap-
plicable to the reasoning of the writer in the
Herald(). Never was there a more flagrant attempt
at torturing terms in order .to get up some show of a
reply to an adversary. The arguments of the Herald()
are so completely identical with those of the French
papers on this point as to lead to the suspicion that
they are all the coinage of the same mint. In the
meantime the opposition to the MONTPENSIER mar•

riage is daily waxing stronger among the
Spanish people, and General NARVAEZ was

on Sunday dispatched post-haste from Paris
to Madrid. It is said that on the QUEEN'S
marriage a general amnesty will be published for all
Spaniards of all political opinions, the only excep-
tions being Don CARLOS and his sons. El 7iempo
confirms the news published yesterday of the resig-