The Sun.
London, England, 1833-06-05 00:00:00

prove their strength by their numbers, if not by
their reasonings. The vote, therefore, is not
important from its indication of any change in
the opinions of one branch of the Legislature,
but it is important if it opens the eyes of the
King and the country to some legal and consti-
tutional means of making the House of Peers
harmonize with a reformed House of Commons.
Times.

Our readers will observe, from our Parlia-
mentary report, that an important conversation
took place last night in the House of Commoos,
on the subject of the vote of Monday night in
the House of Lords. Lord Ebrington, though
aware of the motion of which notice was given
by Colonel Davies for to-morrow (Thursday),
" thought it essential that the House should be
put in possession of the intentions of his Ma-
jesty's Government, and should receive from his
Noble Friend (Lord Palmerston) an assurance
on the subject. I am anxious," added his Lord-
ship, " to receive from my Noble Friend an as-
surance, that no steps elsewhere taken will have
the effect of influencing the policy of Ministers
until this House has had an opportunity of de-
claring its opinion upon a question, regarding
which it is as well entitled to express an opinion
as the other branch of the Legislature—( Hear,
hear, hear)—and I have every reason to believe,
that when that opinion comes to he expressed, it
will be found diametrically opposite to that of
which we have heard in another quarter ;
and that not only does a majority of this
House think so, but likewise a great majority
of the people who sent us here as representatives."
Lord Palmerston confined himself to saying that
Ministers had hitherto pursued the policy which
they thought best, and that as long as they re-
mained advisers of the Crown, " they would
not depart or swerve in the slightest degree from
those principles which had hitherto governed
their conduct." In fact, Ministers have no
other course open to them. Even if they were
to be mean enough, in order to gain the assent
of the House of Lords, to cry peccavimus !
(an assent which, after all, they would not gain,
for the Lords have the wolf's quarrel with them)
they must prepare for the hostility of the House
of Commons. But Lord Ebrington said more.
In speaking of the House of Lords, he pointed
to the impossibility of avoiding further colli-
sions. " Not only (observed his Lordship),
does this difference exist between this House
and another body on the question of foreign po-
licy, but I am persuaded also that it exists
upon several other questions of great magni-
tude and importance, involving the highest in-
terests oj the country, and that in this our dif-
ference, as well as on other questions, I also
entertain no doubt that we are sustained by a
vast majority of the people of England.—
(Hear, hear.)" If there be this difference be-
tween the two Houses on several questions
of great magnitude and importance, in-
volving the highest interests of the country,
(and Lord Ebrington is not a man to talk
loosely upon such an occasion), what is to be
clone ? As far as the expression of the opinion
entertained of the foreign policy of Ministers by
the eighty Peers is concerned, it would, to bor-
row the language of a distinguished Member of
the Legislature of former days, be of no more
avail than the opinion of "so many drunken
cobblers," But the expression of opinion may
be taken as symptomatic of a settled disposition
to paralyze the decisions of the House of Com-
mons on the several questions of great magni-
tude and importance alluded to by Lord Ebring.
ton. The two Houses are pulling in different
directions, and it is quite clear that in such a
state of things the affairs of the nation cannot
be conducted advantageously. Ministers must
either bring over the House of Lords to the
House of Commons, or they must bring over
the House of Commons to the House of t4ords.
To bring the House of Commons over to the
Notice of Lords supposes that the representa-
tives of the people are at variance with the
majority of their constituents, and that a general
electinp produces the change. But Ministers
must by this time be well aware that they have
by no part of their conduct lost ground so much
with the people, as by the wish shown by
them to conciliate the Peers. The present
Members of the Holism of Commons could
no be brought over by a threat of dis-
solution, knowing as they do that they would
thereby preclude themselves from all hope of
being returned at any 'future election. The
Lords must therefore be brought round to the
Commons, and that can only be by an extensive
creation of Veers, 4,0 a pleasure may not be
palatable to the Peers ; but if they render it
necessary, they have themselves alone to blame
for what takes place, !t will be seen from the
Court Circular, that a meeting of Cabinet
Ministers took place at a late hour on Monday
night—thst FplX7timication was afterwards
forwarded to his Majesty at Windsor, and a
Cabinet Council summoned to meet yesterday,
at twelve o'clock. The Ministers were in deli-
beration between three and four hours, and thg
answer returned by Lord Palmerston to the
question of Lord Ebrington was of (mum given
alter the determination of the Cabinet had been
taken. It was understood that the King's an-
swer had not been receiyed before the breaking
up of the Cabinet. The Lord Chancellor dis-
tinctly stated, on Monday night, that, " speak•.
ing as he unfeignedly did, with all respect to
their Lordships, and excepting the Noble Duke,
who, he believed, had no such intention, he
would yet say that he believed many of their
Lordships had come down to vote on this occa-
sion with a view to a change in his Majesty's
Ministry. There could be no doubt that such
was the tendency of the vote which many of
them intended to give,'? We had an idea
that the Tories were more prudent than to
endeavour to supplant the Whigs, in reliance
on the support of those who are displeased with
the Whigs because they have not been sufficiently
sweeping in their changes, and have not executed
all possible reforms at once, and without doe
deliberation. It is no doubt in the power of the
King to call whom he pleases to his councils ;
but that the Tories should endeavour to place
the Whigs in a positionwhich should compel
the Whigs either to make a fresh creation of
Peers, or to resign, and thus compel the King
to have rocourse to them, amounts to a degree of
infatuation approaching to insanity. We give
them credit for sincerity, we will not suppose
them aimingat confusion and revolution under
the mask of Copseivative professions; but then
we cannot also give them credit for prudence? or
of the signs of the times. To en-
deavouriticsraarcome into power on the credit derived
from being the champions of Don Miguel and
priesteraft, and the enemies of liberal institutions
—is a strange why of conciliating the favour of a
nation dissatisfied with the present Ministry, be-
eau,se, in their hands, the 'Reform Bill his not
produced impossibilities. The time has come,
however, when Ministers must strengthen them-
selves in the House of Lords, or yield to the