The Sun.
London, England, 1860-10-20 00:00:00

SOCIAL SCIENCE.

INAUGURAL MEETING OF THE LIVER-
POOL
ASSOCIATION.
Yesterday (Friday) afternoon a meeting was held
at the Collegiate Institution, Liverpool, to inaugu-
rate the local association recently formed in con-
nection with the National Association for the Pro-
motion of Social Science. The chair was occupied
by Lord Brougham, and on the platform were Sir
J. K. Shuttleworth, the Bishop of Chester, the
Hon. A. Egerton, M.P., Sir John Bowring, G. W.
Hastings, Esq., Rev. J. S. Howson, principal of
the Collegiate Institution, Mr. Joseph Hubback,
Mr. Theodore Rathbone, Mr. William Brown, Mr.
Du Hamel, &c. There was a tolerably numerous
audience. •
Lord BROUGHAM, on taking the chair, was
loudly cheered. He said,—lt has been thought fit
—and I have no right whatever to complain of it
—that I should preside over the first meeting of
this local association, though my excellent friend
and your fellow-townsman, Mr. William Brown,
is the president of that association—(applause)—
but, as it is formed in connection with the
National Association, of which I have the honour
to be president, it has been thought proper that
I should at present occupy this chair. It is wholly
unnecessary for me to describe to you the great
advantages which men have supposed, and I believe
justly supposed, to have flowed from the establish-
ment of that National Association. Its fourth con-
gress was lately held at Glasgow, and exceeded iu
success in all respects the threeprevious conferences
which had gone before. Its success, therefore, is now
undeniable, and it has also added one or two impor-
tant branches or sections to those which before
existed. I ought to mention one, because it has
been very grossly, though I have no doubt uninten-
tionally, misrepresented. I mean the international
section. Attacks have been made upon the congress
at Glasgow, which made that addition, and upon
the body at large, for having adopted a measure
for the purpose of encouraging political agitation
all over the world. The misrepresentation has been
effected by omitting two very important words from
the resolution which made the addition to that see-
tion,.the resolution being "that a section should be
established of commercial and international law."
They chose to leave out the two important words,
" commercial" and " law," allowing the word " in-
ternational" to stand naked and alone, and which
no doubt might have been liable to that construc-
tion, that we chose to be a generally agitating body
all over the world. Then it might come under the
word international, and it is very well they did not
charge us with having agitated a question of rob-
bery or of wholesale murder ; because as anything
might come under theword international, anything
they chose—as well as commerce and law—we have
added these two words purposely in order to avoid
the possibility of such a ridiculous misconception,
and for the purpose of showing that it was on sub-
jects of commerce and of law that the" internation-
ality" of the section turned. (Hear, hear, and
cheers.) I ought to mention that we have here
the presence—and it is naturally suggested to me
by the addition of this international section—of a
very learned and excellent person—Mr. Du Hamel
—(cheers)--Councillor of State of the Emperor of
Russia, member of the Academy of Sciences of St.
Petersburg, and who, I believe, would be as much
imperial as would be his liperial master at our
establishing a section for the purpose of poli-
tical agitation all over the world ; because, though
jthe Russian empire has many very great and good
qualities, and its Government deserves great praise,
infinite praise, for what it has lately done and is
still attempting—(applause)—yet I think there are
few parts of the world where political agitation
would be less acceptable, less welcome, than in the
capital of St. Petersburg—that is, general political
agitation. (Hear, hear.) But don't let me pass over
the mention of the Emperor of Russia, and his
councillors, without once more, .as I have lately
done, most heartily rendering my tribute of thanks
for the great measure which is now, not in agita-
tion or contemplation merely, but in progress of
execution—though under enormous difficulties it
cannot be denied—difficulties which enhance the
merit of the Emperor and his councillors the more
—I mean the great measure of emancipating the
millions of human beings who are at present in
serfdom in that country. (Loud cheers.) We did a
very great service to humanity, and did very great
honour to our name by the emancipation of our
slaves in the West Indian colonies, and by the enor-
mous price, though not too great for so great a good,
of 20 millions which we paid for that great measure.
(Cheers.) But the difficulties of the Emperor of
Russia in his case are still greater than those with
which we had to contend, and the numbers are in-
calculably greater; for, according to the best ac-
-1 count we have, there are no fewer than 22 millions
1 of serfs; in fact the whole labouring population 01-'
I the country are the property of the crown, not more
I than 150,000 or 200,000 being private property.
I Therefore it is impossible to make am reference to
the subject of Mr. Du Hamel's presence here, and
lin connection with the misrepresentation which I
I felt bound to set right, without expressing what.
I ail good and all free men feel upon the great
merits of the Russian Government in shutting
their eyes to the enormous difficulties with which
they h?d to contend, and which make one
almost dread that, until other changes and reforms
have taken place in their Government system
and internal polity, they will find it hardly pos-
sible to complete this great and good work. (Ap-
plause.) Now, there was one topic upon which I
felt it my bounden duty to enlarge a good deal at
Glasgow, and which I have since once and again re-
ferred to since I came to Liverpool. I mean the
great change which has taken place all over this
country, and Scotland also, and I hope to live to see
the day when the change will extend to Ireland,
where it has only begun to work as yet—(loud
cheers)—the change of the abnegation of party feel-
ing, and the general disposition to devote ourselves
to the propagation of sound principles upon great
measures of social improvement, and to the *encou-
ragement of Government, of Parliament, of parties,
and of all authorities in the country to undertake
and to perfect those measures of social improvement.
(Applause.) And I repeat what I said both at Glas-
gow and elsewhere against party principles and
party—(l won't give them a bad name, and there is
no occasion to say factions :—faction is the abuse of
party, but unhappily it is an abuse to which party
is so liable that it is very difficult to have the one
without the other)—l will say party connections,
party principles, and party grounds of combination
and opposition. Now it has been said that party
may produce very great good, and that the combi-
nation of men agreeing in opinions upon the same
principles, and the same grounds, may be produc-
tive not only of most harmless, but most useful
consequences. And I don't deny it; because com-
bination adds strength and force to those who,
having the same opinions and actuated by the same
motives, desire to accomplish the same measures and
to give effect to their principles and embodiment to
their opinions. Ilion% deny it, but lam of opinion
also that there may be a temporary and occasional
combination, and that men may unite who have the
same opinions to act upon the same principles on
certain subjects without a general and universal
assent which implies a slavish submission, and
always has the effect—at least as it has the tendency
it very often produces the effect—of subjecting the
many to the domination of the few. (Cheers.)
But upon measures of social science which pre-
tend to promote the improvement of mankind in
general, or of large bodies of mankind, why
may there not be a temporary, an occasional,
union, with all the benefits of party, by giv-
ing power, price, and effect to those so com-
bining, and without the evils which party has so
great a tendency to produce? Now, just observe
how habit acts. It has been the gracious dispen-
sation of Providence in our nature to give great
force and effect to habit. It might. have ',ten other.
wise. Habit might have made things distasteful,
uneasy, and difficult, had not our Divine Creator
arranged flint it always has the effect of making
things easy and comfortable, and of even subduing
the sense of pain. But it is also an indeniable fact,
that there may be a local, a temporal, and an occa-
sional habit which very frequently will continue for
a certain time, and afterwards, being no longer
required, the bountiful dispensation of Providence
is that the habit shall cease to produce the effect.