The Sun.
London, England, 1833-10-28 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

We have received the highest gratification
from the perusal of the report of the admirable
speech of the Earl of Durham at the Gates-
head dinner. We were well aware that Earl
Grey confided to his Lordship the prepara-
tion of the Reform Bill. To Earl Grey
the people are deeply indebted for this confi-
dence ; for though they will not take Lord
Durham at his word in underrating his own
exertions, they will subscribe to his tribute to
Earl Grey :—" I was," said his Lordship, " but
the humble instrument of carrying into effect
the will of one, who staked his credit and the
reputation of a long life upon the success of
the measure ; and who only took office upon
condition of carrying the question. The person
who possesses this claim to the gratitude of the
people of England is one man, and one only—and
that is Lord Grey.—(Applause.)" The people
will never, we trust, forget what they owe to
Lord Durham for his great work. At this
time, when a part of the people seem to forget
that they live under a constitution, which, with
all its defects, is adequate to the great end for
which men are desirous of Constitutions, some
observations of Lord Durham are very reasonable.
Having alluded to some improvements which
might be made in the Reform Bill, he proceeded
to say, " And here allow me to observe, that in
these days you must not blame individuals, or
Ministers, if they have not carried the principles
of Reform so far as you wish. The power rests
with yourselves now, to instruct your represen-
tatives to carry any measures upon which the
respectability and intelligence of the country
have set their hearts, and they must be inevitably
carried.—(Cheers.)" He afterwards added, " I
know of nothing that the people of this country
—and when I speak of the people, I speak not
of property, but of the intelligence and educa-
tion of the country—and I say I know of
nothing upon which the intelligence of the
country has set its heart, and which it ought to
possess, that it will not eventually obtain.—
(Cheers.)" This is the great merit of the
Reform Act, that it rendered all further consti-
tutional improvement possible. Having such a
means of giving effect to our wishes, we ought
to spurn at all attempts to lower in public esti-
mation so inestimable a blessing. Let us keep
constantly in mind, that the Reform Act trans-
ferred the power from the boroughmongering
oligarchy to the people, and that everything
may now be effected by constitutional means.
Lord Durham alluded to the restless discontent
which is now abroad. " Mr. Rippon (said his
Lordship) has alluded to the present state of
public affairs, as being one of a very serious
description ; and I confess I am much inclined
to agree with him in that opinion.--(Hear, hear.)
I believe and admit that a spirit of restless dis-
content is abroad, which requires great prudence,
great skill, great discretion, and eminent states-
manship to allay. But my opinion is, that the
best mode of allaying it is for the Crown and
the Government to go cordially along with the
people.—(Loud cheers.)" In this country the
Crown and the Government must go cordially
along with the people, meaning by people the
respectability and intelligence of the country,
which now command in Parliament. It is of
course, desirable that the people should only
desire what is for their good ; but whatever they
desire in good earnest they must obtain ; and
any Ministry that shall think of conducting the
affairs of this country in opposition to the
general will, would be shipwrecked. The obser-
vations of his Lordship with regard to the restless
spirit of discontent which is abroad, remind us
of a very happy exposure of the absurdity of a
certain class in an article in " The Edinburgh
Review," just published, on the first session of
the reformed Parliament :—" As the greatest
possible number (says the Reviewer) of the
largest conceivable measures must, of necessity,
be accomplished, however swiftly, yet in some
kind of succession, and not simultaneously, they
of whom we are speaking could always stop at
any one, and complain that the residue was still
wanting ; and by a known law of our nature,
what we want is even far more prized than all
we have obtained ; so that, after the affairs of
the East should have been settled, those per-
sons of high expectations might say, What
signifies the East India trade and Government ?'
Nothing has been done to settle the West India
question—that is of real importance—the re-
formed Parliament does absolutely nothing. And
then, if the affairs of the 'West were also settled,
they would in like manner exrlaim, East Indies
and West Indies, and any Indies, we care not
for, compared with the abuses at home, that
eat into the vitals of the state. What s':neclires
has the reformed Parliament abolished It
does little or nothing for the people.' " As a
frequent illustration of this we may observe, that
because Ministers have not yet improved the
law regarding the press, all their labours, with
some of our contemporaries, seem to go for
nothing. How admirably Lord Durham re-
proves this carping spirit ! Dwelling with rea-
son on the many advantages we may expect
from the Corporation Commission, which the
Tories consistently oppose, but which Cobbett
and men of his kidney oppose because nothing
seems good in their eyes which they do not pro-
pose themselves, the spirit of envy being the
spirit by which they are constantly actuated, his
Lordship explains his views with regard to the
manner in which the people should act towards

M inisters.
"I cannot allow the evening to pass over without re-
calling to your recollection, as just and honourable English-
men, that however we may disapprove of some of the
measures they have introduced into Parliament, and to
which they themselves were driven by dire necessity, we
must not forget the great difficulties which pressed upon
them from all sides. We must remember the great ser-
vices they have performed, and not be too ready to believe,
if they do not advance with the same speed that we wish
them, that they are less sincere in their intentions. They
Lave done a great deal in their ample contribution of the
Reform Bill ; and they did a great deal even in the last
Session ; in particular they introduced the important mea-
sure of Corporation Reform, which, in my conscience, I
believe will go far to extirpate those pestilential hotbeds of
Toryism, which, like the Upas tree, have so long oversha-
dowed the land.--(Cheers.) By that measure they have
placed in your bands the power to root out those nests of
corruption which have rio long oppressed the country ;
and by that alone they have done much, if they had done
nothing else, to entitle diem to your apptuliation.—
(Applause.) They have, however, done many other
things that deserve your gratitude, but which it is not
necessary for me to notice at this time. I only request
you to consider the difficulties which surround them; and
particularly that there las at this hour, a majority of fifty
opposed to them in the House of Lords, which the leader
of the Tory party can bring against them in twelve hours,
upon any question on which be may be inclined to
Oppose
or damage them.—(Hear,
Hear hear.) You must bear in !Lim:
also that there are other difficulties not quite so apparent,
erfectly known to everyem epnrtacatind practical states_
but which are p
man, and which require gre_a_t.
js 134.
b Ycolurcnuo
drat-
spection on the part of the MI
consider these things, and whennytroYu.
ht, ale Alon ou are
eb so, you
should support them when they do ri. e.
when they appear to falter or hesitate m tbnecirmiconug;ae'
on
them
g
and
the wrong.
oppose them when they are unfortunately in
--(Applause.) At the same time, pay the just tribugtte.
which is due to their character, and especially

that of the illastriotio individual at the head of the
Government ; give them credit for good intentions,
and do not suppose that they would, in a moment,
consent to tarnish their fame, and abandon their
avowed disposition to consolidate and confirm the rights
and liberties of the people, of which they have given
such ample earnest in the Reform Bill,—(Cheers.) But
you must recollect that you have also duties to perform.
You must not confine yourselves to idle lamentations, for
what the Ministers have not done, or what they ought not
to do. You must press upon your representatives the
consideration of every subject you think desirable, particu-
larly the important topics of Corporation Reform, the
improvement of the Reform Bill, and Reform in the
Church—(Cheers)---and, though last, not least, you must
firmly and strenuously call for a grant, and not a sham
grant, to promote the great cause of national education."
We wish our limits could have allowed us
this day to transfer to our columns the whole of
the long report of this interesting dinner, as given
in the Newcastle Chronicle. We must not
forget to notice the gratifying announcement
from his Lordship, that he is now blessed with
a comparative return to health, and that he is
able again to devote himself to the services of
his country. We trust his valuable life will be
long spared to his country.— Morning Chronicle.
The public will read, with cordial satisfaction,
the proceedings at Gateshead last Wednesday,
on occasion of a complimentary dinner to Lord
Durham. The speech of the Noble Lord was
heard with deep and just attention ; nor will
that portion of it wherein Lord Durhan com-
municated the highly interesting and important
fact, that it was he himself personally who had
been intrusted by Lord Grey with the framing
of the first Reform Bill, be received by his
countrymen without respectful and grateful ap-
probation. The truth, indeed, had been guessed
at before, but never put beyond all doubt from
any quarter until this gratifying declaration of Lord
Durham. His Lordship very judiciously took
I care to exonerate himself from the odium of
having approved or participated in the adoption
of the 501. leasehold clause, which is at variance
with the first principle of all reform—namely,
that each elector should be able to give an inde-
pendent vote. No tenant at will can be by
possibility independent. We denounced at the
time that iniquitous and tyrannical motion of
Lord Chandos, as a characteristic of the worst
spirit of Toryism, and as a most serious and
lamentable subtraction from the general merits
of the Reform Bill. Lord Durham, with great
manliness, admits that Ministers have not always
proved themselves as firm and resolute as might
have been wished in the enforcement of their
own sound views for the public welfare ; but he
asserts, and truly, the manifold difficulties which
have beset them. He acknowledges that some
further improvements are required in the Bill, par-
ticularly with iespect to registration, and the ex-
penses of elections, and calls upon the constituent
body to instruct its representatives for the pro-
motion of whatever amendments may be deemed
necessary. The whole speech of Lord Durham
is worthy of notice, for its downright, straight-
forward character, and the absence of all political
humbug. Such a man appears to us to have
little reason to dread the attacks of spiteful
calumny upon his conduct, whether public or
private, and might well dispense with appeals
in vindication of either to any tribunal but that
of the opinion of society. We would advise
Lord Durham to let the lies of a factious press,
whether conducted by clerical scamps in the
country or Tory scamps in London, take their
own wretched course to a sure and speedy obli-
vion. Mr. Attwood made an attempt to intrude
upon Lord Durham and on the meeting, but
was soon put down.— Times.
While we deprecate all resistance to the pay-
ment of the assessed taxes, we cannot but think
the course pursued by the Ministerial Papers is
calculated rather to increase than allay the irritation
which exists on this painful subject, and thereby
render the embarrassments of their employers
still greater than they already are. Like all sy-
cophants, the scribes who are purveyors of lite-
rary adulation to the Treasury display an exu-
berance of servile zeal which sadly lacks
discretion. They are not satisfied with telling
the people that illegal combinations, and resist-
ance to the law cannot be tolerated,—they taunt
their sufferings—they sneer at their distresses—
and, in the true spirit of " pampered menials,"
they make a sport of the misery which their
masters refuse to relieve. One of those Go-
vernment hacks, whose sense of right and wrong
is always conformable with the rules of wisdom
and maxims of morality which happen to prevail
in Downing-street, says, " The assessed taxes,
we believe, have been particularly chosen (to
excite the public mind upon), because they
appeared to form a fit subject for imitating, on
English soil, the Irish agitators, in one of the
modes of attack which has been found in
Ireland most effectual—the systematic resist-
ance of legal demands—but they have not
lice Irish distress or an Irish populace to
work u;ion." It is evident that this writer wishes
to make Lis employers believe that if they
can succeed in compelling the payment of
the obnoxious tax's in a few instances by
the strong arm of the .1.4 w, enforced by what-
ever means are in their power, they may continue
to levy them for any indefinite P: rind, because
the excitement which exists is not tti. conse-
quence of general suffering, but merely the On-
porary ebullition produced by the artful instiga-
tion of some restless agitators. If the Ministers
should be induced to believe this, they will be
led into a fatal delusion. The agitators who
get up illegal combinations against the assessed
taxes only take advantage of a soreness of feeling
which has long and very generally existed in the
minds of the middle classes against those most
unjust, unequal, and oppressive imposts, the
house and window taxes. Nay, more, this very
soreness of feeling against those war taxes was
for years chafed and exasperated by the Whig
politicians who now constitute the Government,
and who made their continuance a subject of
angry vituperation against their Tory predeces-
sors, when an exclusion from office made them
exceedingly sharp in finding out, and bitter in
declaiming against, the grievances of the peo-
ple. Since Lord Althorp voted for the abo-
lition of the assessed taxes, his opinion on
the subject has changed—simply because his
position is altered. As Chancellor of the
Exchequer himself, he has no objection to
extort from the suffering industry of the
people those taxes which, as a hunter after
popularity, lie would have denied to the fiscal.
Minister of another party. But it matters not
to the people whether they are fleeced of the
fruits of their daily toil, to support an extravagant
system of Government, by Whig or Tory Minis-
ters, except that the case of the Whigs is iio far
worse than that of their opponents, inasmuch
as they have added the vice of a hypocritical pa-
triotism on this question to the vice of rapacity. But
although the first advice to resist ta.,Tation came
from the themselves,Whigsmoreood se
we trtuhsatnthteo
seek
people
a
in general haveremoval of those obnoxious • imposts by other
than constitutional means, - ,

cretion, and forbearing to transgress the law,
they may insure the repeal of the house and
window tax, next Session, while a systematic
violation of the law may serve to retard so desir-
able a consummation.—Mornino- Herald.

BANKRUPTCY COURT, OCT. 26.

(Before Mr. Commissioner 'WILLIAMS.)
ROBERT JOY'S BANKRUPTCY.

A meeting of the creditors under the fiat issued against
Mr. Robert Joy, late of the Grand Hotel, Covent-garden,
was held to-day for the proof of debts, &c.
The executors of the late Rev. Dr. Downes appeared
in Court to prove a debt under the following circum-
stances :

The gentleman who attended to support the proof
stated that the Rev. Gentleman was an old frequenter of
the Grand Hotel before the bankruptcy of Mr. Joy. Dr.
Downs had a choice cellar of wines, and when the bank-
rupt required wine for his very best customers, who
wanted something very extraordinary as to quality, Mr.
Downes used to allow the bankrupt to have a small quan-
tity from his private stock, some of which it was stated
the bankrupt used to obtain ten shillings per bottle for.
No price had been fixed upon this wine between the
bankrupt and the Rev. Gentleman, and the executors
since the bankruptcy had frequently sought for Mr. Joy
in order that a price should be fixed, but without effect,
and the executors now wished the Court to make a❑
order upon the subject. The executors thought a claim
for 1001. for the wine supplied to the bankrupt should
be allowed.

Mr. Clark, the official assignee, said the only course
that could be adopted was for the executors to charge
what the wine cost the deceased, otherwise they would
he liable to the penalty for the sale of wine without a
license. There was a bill for 1001. also to be proved,
and perhaps the best course would be for him to fix a
value upon the wine, and if the executors objected to the
award they could show cause why a greater sum should be
allowed.
This course was agreed to.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION•HO USE.

CONSPIRACY 10 DEFRAUD TRADESMEN.-011 Satur-
day Cant and Clark, who have been examined several
times at the Justice-room, were brought up for final
examination.

It was stated that, during the last examination, the
emissaries of Wicks, alias King, who is the principal in
the firm of swindlers, carried away from Cotter's wharf an
immense quantity of goods, which had been fraudulently
obtained by Wicks. A number of tradesmen were in
readiness to give evidence of the conspiracy to defraud, and
it was clearly and legally proved that the two prisoners
were parties to the system.
Mr. ADOLPHUS, for many of the defrauded creditors,
called upon the Lord Mayor to hold the prisoners to bail
for the conspiracy.
The solicitor to the assignees under the old commission
of bankruptcy against Wicks here applied to the Lord
Mayor to order that 1931., which had been found upon
the person of Cant, should be handed over for their benefit,
as they were entitled to everything that could be called
the property of the bankrupts, and it was evident the
money was the produce of geode fraudulently obtained.

The LORD Mayon—lndeed I shall make no order of
the kind. I pity the new creditors, whose property thus
falls into the hands of the old ones. Theirs is a much
harder case than yours.
Cant—That money has nothing to do with the goods,
and I declare there has been nothing fraudulent in the
transactions in which I was engaged, and I think it unfair
to visit the sins of others upon me. I did not assist in
anything dishonourable, and poor Wicks paid as long as he
could. lam sure he sacrificed seven hundred pounds in
endeavouring to cut against the grocers of Taunton ho-
nestly.—(Great laughter.)
A Creditor—Very honestly, indeed. My Lord, you
never heard of such a monstrous plan of robbery. We can
prove that these fellows sold goods which they plundered
us of for a third of the regular price. They sold segars,
which were worth a guinea a pound, for six or seven
shillings ; and they used to give as much pickles for
ninepence as would cost, in an honest concern, half-a-
crown or three shillings. _ _

The LORD MAYOR—Now, Cant, couldn't you have
stuck to your business of a tailor and be honest?
Cant (laugbing)—Honest, my Lord! Why I am
honest, I should think ; there's no proof to the contrary.
These are all debts, bona fide debts.
The LORD MAiroa then consulted with the City Soli-
citor and Mr. nobler, and stated that he should bold the
two defendants to bail i❑ 1001. eacb, and two sureties for
50/. each.

THE RIDICULOUS OFFICE OF ALE CONKER.—Mr.
Allen, one of the ale-conners of the city, summoned be-
tween twenty and thirty licensed victuallers, for having
refused to allow him to taste their ale without paying for
it, and also for having refused to pay him his fee of Is. a
quarter each.
Mr. Phillips, of the Lamb public-house, was the first
called upon.
Mr. Allen stated that by virtue of his warrant as ale-
conner he went to the defendant's house, and examined
the pots, which he found to be all of correct measure.
He then desired to taste the ale, to ascertain whether it
was fit for the use of the public, but Mr. Phillips refused
to permit him, except he agreed to pay. He then asked
or his fee of a shilling, but that was also refused.
The Loan Mavou—Well, Mr. Phillips, why don't
you pay the ale-conner? Mr. Phillips considered the
complainant by no means entitled to a fee, or to the pri-
vilege of tasting his ale, except on the conditions which
applied to the rest of the public.
The LORD MAYOR—I suppose if the fee is given the ale
is good ; and if not it is objectionable.—(Laughter.)
Mr. Phillips--That's exactly the case, my Lord. It is
a complete humbug.
The Loan MAYOR—I'II look into this question parti-
cularly. There are many absurd laws in existence, hut
they must be obeyed as long as they remain unchanged. I
can see objections to this practice i❑ an instant. In the
mean time I must exonerate Mr. Allen, whom I believe
to be a very honourable man, from the slightest censure.
His Lordship should decide the question at the end of the
week.