The Sun.
London, England, 1848-09-06 00:00:00

your minds the necessity, by every constitutional
effort in your power, of putting an end to
that state of things as soon as it is pos-
sible. My Lord, when I remind you that the law has
wisely, for the purpose of economising expense to the
candidates, as well as saving time to the electors, re-
quired that the voting should take place in one day, you
will see how extraordinarily anomolous the law is, that
after the return shall have taken place a scrutiny may
be commenced, which may last a year. Indeed I may
say that, with regard t i my own scrutiny, it lasted a
year, because, although it was only three months before
the Committee, I was nine months in preparing for my
defence, and was compelled, from the time of my return
until the hour that I bee an my trial, to have from forty
to sixty clerks employed, going to the taxing offices
in Dublin, to ascertain whether those who voted
both for and against me were in arrear of taxes. There
is another singular fact in my case, and it is this, that
seven-eighths of all who voted for me were property
qualification voters ; they were either 501., 201., or 101.
freeholders or householders, and, on the other hand,
it is as singular a fact that of those who voted against
me, and for my opponents, seven-eighths were non-
property voters, or freemen who were not compelled to
have any property qualification whatever, but who
might live in an attic or a cellar, or who might be, as
many of them it has been proved were, inmates of the
workhouses on the south and north side of the Liffey.
I myself saw several voters, who came to swamp the
independent support I received, dressed in a workhouse
garb. Although inmates of a workhouse, they were
Parliamentary voters, and they therefore neutralised the
votes of men of station and rank. Now I think you,
gentlemen, will at once admit, that such a state of things 1
as that ought not to be permitted to continue any longer ;
that if it is necessary to have ittlygualifiestitm at- all,,
in order' to enable I nano' iota, tbis stittrinthigel
ought not to be permitted to exist. If I had my own
way I would walk over a good deal of these restrictions
in the franchise, I would either have universal suffrage,
or a property qualification, or household suffrage.—
(Hear.) But still, when men, paying taxes, occupying
houses of a certain rent, are prevented from voting be-
cause they have not paid certain rates and taxes, it is
too bad that another set of men, who are clothed in rags,
shall have a privilege which the others do not possess.
Dublin, my Lord, is the bead-quarters of the
tag-rag and bob-tail class of voters. I know you will ex-
cuse me for thus trespassing at such length on your
time on this point, for, after all, it is the real question
at issue. I have now to refer to the only other
charge brought against me, if it is a charge at
all. After the subject of non-payment of taxes was
disposed of, it was alleged that I did not possess a pro-
perty qualification. Now, my Lord, I never pretend to
anything but what I really am, namely, to be a plain
man,
I have
never
pretended
a t prope
r timest obe
by
anythingthei
r p
more
names.
onrevrige boemufwo thet
people
of
the
than an advocate for popular rights; to be an apostle
and firm supporter of the glorious principles of civil and
religious liberty—(Hear)—to extend to every human
being that which I claim for myself as the birthright of
every man, conferred upon him by our adorable Creator,
to worship God according to the dictates of his con-
science. I never pretended to be a rich man, but, at
all events, I claim to be rich enough to meet my own
wants. At the end of thirteen weeks my opponents,
after being beaten out of the field, because I main-
tained a sufficient majority without entering
a rebutting case, I should have put them
upona
into a minority of 700; but without entering on a re-
butting case, I defeated my opponents, and they were
obliged to beat a retreat, and leave the field. They
then had recourse to the insulting, ungenerous proceed-
ing of impeaching my property qualification. And, my
Lord, you will see the injustice and crying nature of
that opposition, when I remind you, that, believing
they would have entered on that portion of their case first,
I summoned, at an expenditure amounting to 6001. or
800/., witnesses to maintain my property qualification,
and kept them here for six weeks, having challenged
my opponents to commence that portion of their case
first, because, if they proved that point, I would defend
the seat no longer; but they shrunk from that pledge.
The Committee ruled that they might marshal their
case as they pleased, and they went into the scrutiny
on the votes first, having kept my witnesses for five
weeks, expending seven or eight hundred pounds
upon them. Believing that that part of the
case would not be entered upon, I sent them
back again. When the scrutiny was over, then
they revived the old objection to my property qualifi-
cation, merely for the purpose of adding to the ex-
pense. I had then to re-summon those witnesses, and,
alter a portion of them only had been examined, with•
out clearing the room, the Committee expressed their
unanimous opinion that I had satisfactorily proved my
property qualification.--(Cheers.) My Lord, these are
the naked facts, and, as your Lordship has already said,
I believe there is no case parallel to this upon record.
First of all, it was a case of the most rotten and unsound
description as regards my opponents, and of the most
vexatious nature towards myself, and, I believe lam
right in stating, was protracted to the almost unprece-
dented period of seventy-seven days. There were abso-
lutely seventy-seven days during which that Com-
mittee sat. I shall not say how many idle days there
were, but, from first to last, it occupied thirteen weeks.
My Lord, in conclusion, I beg to state that after all I
do not regret that that petition was presented, because
I believe that the circumstances connected with it, if
properly handled, may be made use of for the public
benefit, and be instrumental to induce Parliament, at
least, to correct this monstrous evil—that no man who
shall be returned by the unpurchased, and unpurchaseable
voices of the people, shall for the future be subjected to
such an ordeal as that to which I have been compelled
to submit. If that result is likely to follow, as I believe
in my own conscience it is, it will be a full recom-
pensetor e bmuet t i fnogr allca s
ethe
compliment
you, and
a ndy the L
yo friendsor du,
hiauvhe
ecrpoena
icdl
assembled,u smi
bpaitduration youehlool
rriieiomni
nut yteagh teohfat
considerableetet
iotl
wtlohwosr aehwdes
:flea:
atanycyi
mnososld,
fellow-countrymen,
seat
nrnlurpoeetnsanrtsthyursg
taromi
yonlnfal
f. e
nitnbst o,dhu,o43soacarmil
caslnyeieetygdasoLmi
sv
whom
;0,
Parliament
:rent
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evidence
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it:decountry,ebahnletfestivealthoughocatt
strong proof that they have friends in England. I shall
sym-
pathy of the English mind towards Ireland without re-
of addressing—the representatives of the
given me credit for success in Parliament, it has been
United Kingdom. I believe I have met with a very
the disposition of Englishmen and Scotchmen to give
fair play to an Irishman.—(Cheers.) Whether the
pledge myself to you, that although '
first thoughts
shall be, as even in your own my
estimation they ought to
be, devoted to Ireland, that I should be ashamed of my-
self if my second thoughts were not devoted to the service
of Great Britain.—(Cheers.) I do believe, that as a
representative of the people in the Imperial
I should be unworthy of a seat in that great assembly,
ifsu
ffl°elle.rihadnrg
e s allowr
fmolri enteredt
havemtmheee
handsometttrtohoehyeeheneiosecuthmdtauhtihhpsohuno ashonrgarawutenat(sn )
ridtvuklteao.
have
rI
if when I entered its doors I considered myself merely
as an Irish representative, and did not attend to the wants
Etna wishes of the inhabitants' of thi •
s country, as well as
to the wants and wishes of the people of my own country,
and do everything in my power to improve their laws
and ameliorate their condition.—(Cheers.) I hope, and
believe, that the majority of the Irish representatives en-
tertain the same opinion.—(" Hear, hear," from the
O'Gormon Mahon.) My Lord, in all the sincerity of
my heart, I tender you and this company my warmest
thanks, not only on behalf of myself, but of the electors
of Dublin, for the strong mark of approbation you have
been pleased to confer uppn me this day.—(The lion.
Gentleman resumed his seat amidst loud and prolonged
cheering.)
Mr. CLAY, M.P., then proposed " The Health of the
Independent Electors of Dublin."
Mr. KEATING CLAY returned thanks.
Mr. LOCKE, M.P., proposed " The Health of the
Chairman," which was drunk with enthusiasm.
Mr. HOOPER proposed " The Health of the Vice-Pre-
sident, Mr. Wilcocks, M.P., and the Metropolitan Com-
mittee for raising a fund for the defence of Mr. Rey-
nolds's seat."
The VICE-PRESIDENT briefly returned thanks.
Mr. REYNOLDS, in a speech highly eulogistic of the
services rendered by those gentlemen, proposed the
healths of his counsel, Mr. Carpenter Rowe, and Mr. G.
Lewis Smythe, his Parliamentary agent.—Those gentle-
men having severally returned thanks,
Mr. GEESIN proposed the health of the Secretary to
the Committee, Mr. Wyld, M.P.
Mr. WYLD, M.P, in returning thanks, adverted to
the vexatious proceedings against Members of Parlia-
ment upon petition, and expressed his own opinion, that
it would be better to abolish all appeal to the House of
Commons than to permit it to continue subject to the
gross and grievous abuse of which it had recently been
proved capable.
Mr. G. THomesos, M.P., in an eloquent speech, in
which he contended for an equality of rights for Ireland
with England, proposed " Prosperity to Ireland." The
toast was drank with the utmost enthusiasm.
The UGORMON MAHON, in a long and energetic
speech, responded to the toast, and the meeting broke
up shortly after twelve o'clock.
Lia

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Correspondent.