The Sun.
London, England, 1833-07-01 00:00:00

SPIRII OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

Sir Henry Parnell, on Friday last-, presented
a petition from the newsvenders, complaining of
the injury they sustained from the clerks of the
post-office being allowed to deal in newspaper,.
The observations of -Lord Althorp, extenuating
she evil of, the practice, have been blamed by
some of,our contemporaries, and we think wish
treat justice. This is an abuse for which there
can be no apology. "If (said his Lordship)
the fees of the clerks with regard to newspapers
were abolished, it would be necessary for the
Government to increase the salaries of the per-
sons employed in the. Newspaper-office." Let
those persons have what salaries are necessary.
We presume that there can be no more difficulty
in obtaining efficient clerks, for proper salaries,
in the post-office, than in any other department.
" The question (said Lord Althorp further) in
his opinion, must be looked upon as a ba-
lanced question, and not quite so clear in
favour of the views of the petitioners as his
Right Hon. Friend thought it to be." Now,
really. 'wish every disposition to think well of
Lord. Althorp, we are astonished that he could
give utterance to such language as this. A .ba-
salanced question, forsooth ! Why every branch
of the public service could no doubt be executed
• in the same way. The clerks of the Custom-
house might be allowed to pay themselves by im-
porting; and the advantages they would have
over private traders would indemnify them for
the want of salaries. We regret exceedingly
to hear Lord -Althorp say one word in extenua-
tion of such an.abominable abuse. In fact, his
Lordship's apology indicates a defective know-
ledge of the proper functions of Government.
The clerks of the Post-office might, in fact, with
• equal justice, rob passengers on the highway, in
circler to eke out their salaries, as invade the pro-
, perty of newsvenclers. Government is.ieetittred
to prietect property, and the industry of the peo-
ple is as much entitled to protection as any other
description -of property. The moment a Go-
: Yermitent ceases to be merely the protector of
industry, and endeavours to usurp particular
.:liseriChes of trade, it travels out of its proper
duty. We had imagined that the idea of Go-
vernment being subsisted by monopolies had
been so long exploded, that not a word would
be said in its favour. The Viceroy of Egypt,
who mccOpolizes all the foreign commerce of his
• country, may, by the profits of trading, contrive
to do with' a lower amount of taxes than would
otheysise be necessary to support his establish-
meats.; but is this a way •to improve the re-
' Sources of a country? And are we in England
to take for our model the barbarous practices of
an African despot We say distinctly, that the
Government is not justified in allowing its ser-
vaets to pay themselves by monopolies. The
saving to the Government ought not to be taken
one moment into consideration. The saving
to the Government is far more than compensated
by the loss occasioned to individuals. It is
quite clear that the servants of the Post-office
cannot be losers by the practice complained of;
and, independently of the objections to it on the
score of justiceOhe public are entitled to know
what the clerks--of the Post-office actually re-
ceive,- that, if Overpaid, retrenchments may be
made ; and if underpaid, they may be properly
remunerated. The subjects of this country are
entitled to demand that in every branch of in-
dustry to which they may betake themselves the
course shell be entirely open. Lord Althorp is
not, therefore, justified in allowing any one class
of functionaries to interfere with the people in
the exercise of their callings. He may jt st as
well give the clerks of the Post-office the power
of paying 'themselves, . by entering the domains
of gentlemen on the roads and carrying off' pro-
perty, as by allowing them to rob the news-
venders. It is quite clear, that if the clerks
are allowed to pay themselves by vending
newspapers, they will contrive to injure their
rivals in trade. We do not, therefore, in the
least doubt that the statements of,Mr. Johnston
of Dublin, with regard to the impediments
thrown in his way by the clerks of the roads.
are founded in truth. In fact, the system
is one which must necessarily lead to all manner
of abuses. We can assure Lord Althorp that,
little as he may think of such observations as
those made by him in answer to Sir
Parnell, they are calculated to do great injury to
the Government. If his Lordship had either
said nothing, or said at once " the practice is, I
admit, a very unjustifiable one ; the only excuse
for it is that we found it established, and we have
not yet had time, from the multiplicity of affairs
dividing our attention, to set about remedying
it,"—the public would have made allowances for
him. But they construe these paltering apo-
logies into laxity of principle—an indifference
to right and wrong. We have received several
letters from correspondents on the subject, ex-
pressed in most indignant terms. We will in-
sert one, that his Lordship may see that there
is a marked difference between candour and an
indifference to principle, and that it is always
dangerous to betray anything like the latter. "If
(says our correspondent) proofs were wanting to
' convince the public that redress from the
Whig Administration will never be ob-
tained, .however clear the charge may be
proved, it is only necessary to refer to the
answer given by Lord Althorp to the petition
presented by Sir Henry Parnell last night. Why
will his Lordship persist M a line of conduct so
opposite to the professions of all his former
life ? I ant, Sir, yours respectfully—once a
Whig, but now ashamed to allow it." Nov our
correspondent, in his indignation against Lord
Althorp's apparent indifference to principles on
occasions like that alluded to, is evidently unjust
both to his Lord Ship and colleagues. Their in-
tentions have been proved to be good by the
readiness with which they have instituted in-
quiries into all the rotten parts of our system.
We have not a doubt that Ministers will, with-
out loss of time, purify the Post-office. But in
the mean time this ugly trick of offering apo-
logies for what admits of no apology leads the
public to forget the good they have done and are
about to do, and to judge of them from what
they say. A bad abology, h worse than no
apology.—Morning Chronicle.
The report of the Factory Commissioners has
been just laid upon the table of the House of
Commons, and a precious farrago of nonsense
it is. They propose that the employment of
children under nine years of age in mills or fac-
tories shall not be permitted at all ; dist until
the commencement of the fourteenth year the
hours of daily labour shall be restricted t o eight,
no portion of which is to be between the hours
of ten at night and five in the mornine ; and
that, with respect to all children of a more ad-
vanced age, that is, above thirteen, the yresent
system shall continue in operation, or be ren-
dered more galling and pernicious even than it
has yet been. And what may our readiers sup-
pose are the exquisite reasons why )(w+lg per-
sons of both sexes, having comploLc: their