The Sun.
London, England, 1846-06-30 00:00:00

MENT BILL.

Sir JOHN GUEST moved that the Committee on the
Colchester Navigation and Improvement Bill be revived,
and have leave to sit on Thursday next, and that two
selected Members form a quorum.—The motion was
agreed to.
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This Bill was read third time and passed.
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This Bill was also read a third time and passed.
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CHANCELLOR
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RESIGNATION OF MINISTERS.
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The private business having been disposed of, the
greatest expectation was manifested for the appearance
of Sir Robert Peel. The Ilouse never on any occasion
presented such a thronged and animated appearance,
and we observed that several ladies were in the
vicinity of the Speaker's gallery. At twenty-three
minutes past five o'clock Sir Robert Peel entered the
House with an anxious air, and after a few moments'
consultation with Sir James Graham, he rose and ad-
dressed the House as follows:
Sir ROBERT PEEL—Sir, I feel it to be my duty
to avail myself of the earliest opportunity of notify-

ing to this House that, in consequence of thei
position of her Majesty's Government, and especialy in
con ;equence of that vote to which the House
came on the night of Thursday last, by which
the House refused to give to the Government
those powers which they deem necessary for the
repression of outrage and the protection of life in Ireland,
her Majesty's servants have felt it their duty to tender
their resignation to their most gracious Sovereign.
The resolution to tender that resignation was the unani-
mous resolution of her Majesty's servants, adopted with-
out hesitation. Sir, if I bad any complaint to prefer
with respect to the course pursued by the House, this is
not the occasion on which I should prefer it. It is im-
possible to feel that that occasion by which a great change
takes place in the councils of a great empire, for weal or
for woe, the welfare of many millions of the Queen's
subjects in almost all parts of the habitable globe —it is
impossible to feel that it is not an important, and, I might
almost say, a solemn occasion, and that it is not such an

occasion that one ought to avoid preferring any complaints,
Sir, such controversy would be ill•suited to the magni-
tude of the occasion. I must also say that a provocation
of any such controversy would be wholly at variance
with the feelings which influence me in addressing this
House.—(Hear, hear.) This feeling would rather

prompt me to acknowledge with gratitude the many

occasions on which, speaking of the great bodies in
general on this side of the House, at periods antecedent
to the present session, I and my colleagues have received
their generous and cordial support. This feeling, also,

would rather prompt me to acknowledge with gratitude
the occasion on which gentlemen opposite, in oblivion
of party di&rences, have accorded to her Ma-
jesty's Government, or the measures of which
they approved, a cordial support ; and I trust, Sir,
that nothing will escape from me in explaining the
course which her Majesty's Government has thought
it their duty to pursue, which would run the risk of pro-
voking those controversies which I deprecate. Sir, her
Majesty has been pleased to accept that tender
of resignation, and her servants now only hold
office until their successors shall have been appointed.
Sir, I said that if I had complaints to prefer, this
would not be the occasion on which I would prefer
them, but I must also say that I did not propose those
measures connected with our commercial policy at the
commencement of this session, without foreseeing the
great probability, whether those measures succeeded or
failed, of the dissolution of the Government of this realm.
Sir, I rather rejoice that her Majesty's Government has
been relieved from any doubt, by the early decision of
this House, as to the course which it was their
duty to pursue, for I do not hesitate to say that

I would not, even if the late vote had been in our
favour—l would not, even then, have consented to hold
office by the sufferance or permission of any party—
(Loud cheers)—believing, as I do, that it is for the
public interest, that a Government remaining in power
should be enabled to give practical effect to the mea-
sures which they may believe it necessary to
introduce for the public good ; and I do
think that, in a position in which her Majesty's
Government was placed by the withdrawal—perhaps
the natural withdrawal—of the confidence of many of
those who had hit:ierto supported them—l do not
think it probable that, even if that vote had been
in our favour, her Majesty's Government would be
enabled, with credit to themselves or with advan-
tage to the interests of the country, to continue
in the administration of public affairs. (Great
cheering.) We therefore felt it our duty to ad-
vise her Majesty to accept our resignations without

adopting that alternative which might have been
adopted, namely, recommending to the Crown to exer-

cise its prerogative and to dissolve the present Parlia-
ment. We preferred the immediate tendering of our
resignations to the adoption of that course. Sir, I do
not hesitate to say, speaking with that frankness which

I am sure can offend no one, that if her Majesty's
Government bad failed in carrying through Parliament,
in all their integrity, those measures of commercial policy

which it was my duty to recommend, I do not hesitate
to say that there was no exertion which I would

not have made—(Tremendous cheering)—in order, if
not to ensure their success, at least to give

the country an opportunity of pronouncing
its opinion upon them. In that case I should have felt
myself justified in advising her Majesty to the extreme
course of dissolving the present Parliament ; but there
was no necessity for such a course. Those who dissented
from these measure had withdrawn, I am bound to say,
their opposition to them ; they had eventually given
these measures their consent, and they had therefore
passed into a law. Under these circumstances, I
do not feel that I should be justified, in
order to pass any inferior measure—l say I should
not have felt myself justified in advising the
Crown to exercise its prerogative, because I feel

strongly this, that no Administration is justified
in advising the Crown to exercise that prerogative unless

there be reason. I shall presume even a strong moral

conviction, that in the Parliament succeeding that

dissolution the Government will be able to ad-

minister the affairs of the country by the sup-
port of a party sufficiently powerful to enable them
to do so with advantage to the public.—(Hear.)
The power of dissolution is a great instrument
in the hands of a Government, which should be
only resorted to under such circumstances as I
have alluded to. I think a dissolution should
not be taken for the purpose of deciding whether
we were justified in proposing those measures of com-
mercial policy which we had proposed at
the . commencement of the session. I do
not think that a dissolution even at that

time would have been justifiable. ' The only ground upon
which we should have advised a dissolution would have
been, that we should have been enabled to give effect
to those measures which we brought forward. Now,
I do not mean a support founded on a feeling
of mere temporary sympathy with our situation,
or of concurrence upon the great questions of
domestic policy, however important they may be

I think we should not dissolve without a full assurance,
in our own minds that we should have the sup-
port of those who differ from us upon almost all
the questions of public policy, and who were with us
upon one question, but that we should have the
support of a powerful party, united to us by
general ties. I am bound to say, in the general
state of division of parties, that I did not
entertain that confident hope that the dissolution of
Parliament would have given us a majority. I
thought also, in common with the rest of my
Honourable Colleagues, that after all the excitement
which has taken place, after the stagnation which would
continue consequent upon our suspending the business of
the country, it did appear to us that a dissolution
of Parliament was an evil which should not have been
allowed to take place.—(Cheers.) We were beaten on a
question connected with Ireland. I shall lament having
been beaten upon this question, not merely because
it was an Irish question, but I should deeply lament our
being beaten on a question connected with Ireland, if it
should be thought that the measure we proposed for the
repression of outrage in Ireland was an indication
that her Majesty's servants held any different opinions
as to the policy to be pursued towards Ireland
from those which I declared towards the
close of the last session of Parliament. Those
opinions which I then avowed—those opinions which
had a practical effect given to them by the Cha-
ritable Bequests Act, the additional vote for the endow-
ment of Maynooth—to those opinions both myself
and my Hon. Colleagues still subscribe. We brought
forward that measure believing that resistance
to the contagion of crime and a vigorous re-
pression by law of those offences which I
am sorry to see disgrace some parts of
Ireland, was not a measure calculated permanently
to improve the social condition of that people, but
we thought it was a measure calculated, if taken
in conjanction with other measures necessary for the
purpose of giving effect to legislative measures
of another kind; Parliament has, however, decided dif-
ferently on that subject. Of that decision I
say nothing—l deprecate only any inference
being drawn from our conduct, that because we pro-
posed the measure which some persons call
coercion, but which we call a measure for
the protection of life to Ireland. I only deprecate,
any inference, which would be most unjustifiable
That our views as to the policy to be pursued
towards Ireland. had undergone any change.
Speaking of myself, I do not hesitate to say that there
ought to be established in Ireland complete equality—
(Loud cheers)—in municipal and political institu-
tions,—(Cheers.) I say complete equality, as far as
it is practicable to carry it out, in the present political
and religious aspect of the country.—(Hear, hear.)
It may not be possible to carry out completepoolfit
the l
and religious equality according to the letter
to
letter, in regard to
the franchise, in regard to municipal
spirit, and not of the
and in regard
rights,
terms, but it may be done according the spirit. But
I speak of the
to other great questions relating to Ireland.—(Cheers.)
There is a strong desire in the minds of many
that the people of Ireland should be placed
in
possession of the same political and religi-
ous rights as those of England and Scotland,
and I admit the correctness of the principle.
Not only do I admit the justice of the prin-
ciple, bnt lam of opinion that a complete assimilation