The Sun.
London, England, 1869-02-27 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNAIA

The. Saturday Review believes that the difficulty which
lies at the bottom of the whole question of the Pr°l3:Aer
functions of the House of Lords is far too deep and 114':
to be met by resolutions of the peers not to do this 11"
that except at their own time and on their own conditiciat
This difficulty is, that legislation is not now the enactment
of measures which wise men think the best for the nation,
but the enactment of measures which the nation, through
its representatives, wishes to pass. All legislation implies
change, and the instruments of legislation will vats
according as the motive power of change resides ,
one set of persons or in another. The Lords may
possibly represent some classes in England, but they de 00;
represent the classes in which the motive power o!challgi
resides. They are thus necessarily cut out of the sphere°
legislation, and every day their exclusion becomes more
complete. Theoretically, it seems as if the Cabinet Oat'
do wisely to bring some of its measures forward 01 the
Lords, and some in the Commons, but each measure in
turn seems important when the leaders of the Mieletil
examine it ; and, if it is important;it is important be lens
some considerable section of the classes in whom the
motive power of change resides wishes for it and needs
But if people care about it, they naturally wish their 00
representatives to discuss, modify, and improve its ,11
their behalf ; and so each measure in turn seems as it
must go to the Commons first. With regard to the tlee
bills which the peers have succeeded in obtaining there
are many objections to their introduction in the ITPPer
House. The Sotch Education Bill, indeed, is likely to tie
passed with little alteration. But this is only registerhig,
an edict of the House of Commons beforehand instead el
afterwards. The Lords will but declare that they are
prepared to assent to what they understand would Pleas!:
the Scotch members in the House of Commons• triliet'i
not legislation in the sense in which the Hous-
Commons legislates. It is only such an arrangerae"
of sham legislation as seems to keep up a little the
dignity of the peers. When we enter on so difficult
an investigation as that of ascertaining the true
function of the House of Lords in modern England, We
necessarily begin by clearing the ground and discovering
the direction in which efforts to give new activity to the
peers will be futile. It is not without regret that we ar:
forced to the conclusion that the peers cannot emerge 00,,
of their present false position, either by any resolution 012"
to proceed with business sent up after a certain date, el
by getting one or two minor Government bills entrusted
to them at the beginning of the session.
The Spectator thinks it is quite certain that before long;
that is within three years, the House must consider wile°
it will or will not equalise rates throughout the metropolle;
and Mr. Goschen on Monday hinted very clearly that he
Majesty's Government is inclined to the affirmative
l'
vief;
As a matter of justice, we cannot allow West London
il
grow for ever richer through the labour of East Londetot
yet reject all share in the burdens East London has et
bear; as a matter of local policy, we cannot for even
exempt the educated, the wealthy, and the powerful fr°of
any responsibility in the taxation of the poorer quarterewe
their own city ; and as a matter of national safel'eue
cannot for ever go on heaping rates upon the poor w"to
the rich are comparatively exempt. It is all very Welfeet
suggest palliatives, but when an East-end greengl),
pays rates on a rent equal to half his whole profits, as
West-end doctor on a rent equal to a tenth of his reeeil) be
taxation must not be carried too far, or there
resistance. Pending, however, any general reform
will involve terrible questions, such as the moral 'l
(1
bility for the relief of the poor, the political liability, aof
the legal liability, together with the actual incidence A
taxation, it is possible to pave the way for Palue-ti,
greater measures by equalising the bases of op
lation. It is of no use to say every Londoner shall `efil
3s. 4d. on his rental, if the parishioners of St. j'lll2ll -ea
decree that a half or quarter of the true rent slia,""ig,
ij
accepted as rental for the purposes of the Act. r-rm":"5;
what happens now. St. Judas, being rich, and 113v156
few poor, lowers its assessment, i.e., its legal valuetion,vi
far as it dares. Of course, its poor rate is noraillao°
higher, needs more pence in the pound; but it Learl
really higher, while all general rates are actuallY:.4 0
much lower. The Marquis of Hampshire, saY,
house worth £l,OOO a year, pootrates of 6d., and geii-e 0
rates of 25., ought to pay £125 a year. But it
assessed at £5OO, his poor rate will be ls., his genel.33Liesa
as be& re, and his total payment £75, very little more, -ge
half. This is, of course, a very extreme case ; hebt, 000
Goschen quoted an instance of a house assessed for hots.
duty by the Exchequer, and, therefore, it is to be P
iet
sumed, fairly assessed, at £6OO a year, while its Old
was paying poor rate and county rate on only 137°.,; bole
much smaller variations than that spread over There
parishes will make a vast difference in the returns. 00
are twenty parishes which under local acts can, ot,
disposed, play almost any trick they like about asseselne at
and we only wonder that under the system th°Y °el
fair as they have been. This anomally must be rear :0j
before anything larger can bs done, and it will be rear
peel
by Mr. Goschen's measure, w'.l:e't Las evidently the euP*
of both sides of the House.
11/
5
The London Review considers the best means to dept
in order to improve the electoral system, and declare% to
nothing can he more exorbitant than the sum chargeved
candidates at the last election for agency. In almost des
account these expenses figure as the largest itere, aipg*
many cases are only a colourable pretext for engt:!„, oisc
certain number of votes. A remedy for this mayat
gested, not only easy of application, but lying re3oot
of
our hands, and, if successful, it strikes at the verYC off
indirect corruption. Let the county court iedg,etegeer,
better still, the revising barrister, act as judicial :red
in taxing all election accounts, and let him be erre" vt
to strike out and report upon any excessive items' t the/
the number of agents employed be limited, so t113,-e the
shall not bear more than a certain proportion '''sees/4
number of the electors. The abolition of the daY °f ld (I°
nation, and of the practice of placarding the Pon, W°4cell.
something to limit both the opportunities and the "tiblie'
of electioneering zeal. The forbidding the use a P Dot
houses as committee-rooms would probably do re°ret;
the
these and other amendments might safely be leftterie%
progress of the bill, if only a different mode of reg.„,-oont
the votes could be carried through the House of C°'",,eerP
To the new-born zeal of the Government, to the the
experience of the members, and to the numberodeoa‘,
majority pledged to support the Ballot, We con (pie.
commit the care of an inquiry, which has for ltef the
little less than a revolution in a system alrea„,ci all
astonishment of educated Europe, and without
in the history of the world. 0, ig
s
The Saturday Review wants to know whether l" sors".
not the fact that all the appointments of tihe 1101
Guards, from the highest to the lowest, are Walla .chief
General for the time being, acting as commander- 11 sap
And if it is so, with what fairness can Mr. Caru-,eepaatf
that the dual system is not at this moment raira'
Every duplicate office in the Horse Guards and te 0014
Department is, we are now told, a duplicate ofpct,oan'
tained, by the authority of the Minister, for the of the
disement of some petted soldier at the exnetisie deearC:
country. A chief is wanted to supervise the evl2°Lege
ment of supply, and what do we find? WhY', si3elfollAre
two generals, Sir Henry Storks and Genera,' tiler
assigned to this work at the War Office, aluleaera`f
magnificently-paid general,calleda.Quarterns aster" 600'
to do substantially the same work at the }terse 1,00111
Of these three only one is wanted, and it is sv,sel,
eeerlf
that the principal duty of the Quartermaster-ue trio
to make routes, and to send requisitions for stores Thee/
twin department which exists at the War Office' Gums
again, there is a Military Secretary at the gorseis thaA
and his counterpart at the War Office, lor
shape of an Under-Secretary of State, tale f(46
out of what once was called the Secret the°
Military Correspondence. The necessity !°_oebor•ll:
offices is created by the dual system, and one,
might be dispensed with if thegeneral wielding idleot el.
of the Commander-in-Chief were placed at the
Main,
the Minister as his military adviser. Then'aigisth°o
have at the Horse Guards three adjutant-gener,o aloe a'
to say the adjutant-general of the arneY, indeVe„
needed, and two deputy adjutant-generals, rf 70 of Cal
dent of the first, who report direct to the P
oa;neers and
bridge as the immediate commander of the Enee'exeso 504
Artillery respectively. Not only are all these 1:10f oe Oro
costly offices established as a consequence
°, the fi°o
government, and of the quasi-independence
me'
...ork of
Gnards, but a very large percentage of tl w_deoee
ap
two departments consists of tedious correel)°',imitellal,6
wrangling about trifles between Pall Mall and
sa'_.3 that
For all this waste and mischief Mr. Cardwelln).,ate !,
alone is responsible, and should he fail to ano;lif /Oa
once, his responsibility would be heavy en
it
teriai responsibility were less of a farce than
eft
for a •
On Monday next Mr. Glyn will mcn-cool I°ll P3°Y
writ for the borough of Bradford, and 3lr,flgil
for a writ for the borough of 8.. wdley.
RELEASE OF A FENIAN CONVICT. ,tigus
Government have unconditionally release I:_ejoisn"
Costello, who was under penal servitude for
-r
edo
and whose writ of error recently failed.
was
As
held crowdedin
nthe
vsincteoertiianHgalol of
on theThursday i u l Itlsi int
fa:nvoto
.r 0
of f:e:000,1ri
lease of the whole of the Irish political Prise g Pit,' et
tions were adopted by the meeting beilics cereesvsse
faction the intention to restore the ll"'bea to re'
ce
in Ireland; considering the deterulix:alai:al
0g 0000
.00 tO
forty-nine of the political 'prisoners as a girl
to de jubtifof
of the intention of her Majesty's Minister
.0 os an . 0
the Irish; and expressing the belief that sel let
the political prisoners remained in the gaol
at their re..
source of disaffection to the Irish, endrk' tPA oppilAv'
would promote the pace, contentment, a
tho VDPire.