The Sun.
London, England, 1867-06-29 00:00:00

thing can take place every day, and members
always be in a practical state of mind. The position
of the Government was strange, to say the least of
it, and not altogether satisfactory to themselves,
we should presume ; but the CHANCELLOR of the
EXCHEQUER, with his usual dexterity, contrived to
extricate himself and his friends from the diffi-
culty into which they had been plunged

into by circumstances. Mr. GLADSTONE yes-
terday, under the influence of the heat " of
debate" departed from the moderate style which
has characterisedhis discourses, and returned to the

charge with all the fire and fervour of th© early days

of the Session. The cause of all this commotion
was that the Attorney-General brought up a new
clause which purported to carry out an amendment

suggested by Mr. Dk:NIIIN, that " the rate, on the
payment of which the franchise depends, shall be
demanded by the,overseer." In introducing the
clause the Attorney-General declared that he was

not appearing as its champion, and that he merely

drew it up in order to fulfil the engagements made

by the Government. Mr. ROEBUCK was much
against the proposal, and pointed out the harm that

it would occasion if it were carried out. It is de-

sirable, as he said, to exclude the lowest class of
voters, and a notice on the church doors ought

to be a sufficient notice to all that rates were de-
manded. In the course of his remarks the hon.
member for Sheffield declared with truth that he
never taunted the Government, and that the con-

duct of this bill through the House of Commons
reflected the highest credit on the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, but he urged upon both sides to take
heed and not carry out the proposal in its entirety.

The clause was rejected by a majority of two,
and curiously enough nearly all the occupants of the

Treasury Bench were in favour of it, while their sup-
porters were against it. Mr. DISRAELI explained
this apparent anomaly by stating that he was now,

as he hid been before, adverse to the policy of the
clause ; but the committee were some time ago in
favour of it, at a period, too, when the Govern-

ment did not possess the influence with it that they.
now did, and hence they had promised to fulfil the

then expressed wish of the committee that the pro-
posal of Mr. DENMAN should be carried out. They
wished to keep good faith with the hon. and learned
member, and thus they had acted as they had done.

This was, however, quite enough for Mr. GLAD-
STONE, who treated the House to one of those exhi-
bitions in which zeal runs away with political

discretion and Parliamentary decorum, and
which were so frequent during the early
part of. this year. He attacked Mr. HARDY,
and insinuated that the Government had not
been honest in the matter, as they had not mus-
tered their friends in sufficient force. The right
hon. member waxed fiercer and fiercer in his wrath
and excitement, and wound up by saying that he
regarded the division as re-opening every question
relating to the borough franchise, which occasioned
laughter and cries of indignation.
It is much to be regretted that Mr. GLADSTONE
should mar the effects of his great talents, and de-
tract from the influence of his position by these un-
dignified displays of petulance and most unsta tes-
manlike manner of treating questions of importance
and interest. The tone which was taken by those who
followed him showed the impression he made by his
vehemence, and, it may be added, his violence also.
It seems strange, indeed, that the Committee should
ever have approved, even partially, of this proposal
of Mr. DENMAN'S, for it would be a most unwise
one in all its relations, and end by defeating the
object in view by the various clauses of the mea-
sure. As it was very properly put by some of those
who demurred to it, it would throw a greal deal of
power into the hands of the overseer, who indeed
might be very little fitted for it. Suppose, for the
sake of argument, that he was a " BROADHEAD," or
at least of that genus, how injurious would be the
consequences, and most bitter and unavailing would
be the regrets of those who had carried out the change.
Mr. ROEBUCK, in his forcible style, summed up
some of the evils that ensue from this pernicious
plan, and declared that he did not want "to hand
over the reins to ignorance and vice ; and ignorance
and vice will rule if the rabble are let in, as they
will be if this clause be carried."
In the evening the subject of the Irish Reform
Bill was discussed, and Mr. DISRAELI had to with-
stand the charge of some indignant Irish members,
who declared that he bad not acted fairly in re-
fusing to proceed with the measure. In reply, the
right hon. gentleman showed the difficult state of
the case, and that in reality, through the lateness
of the Session and the pressure of business,
he would not have been able to do
more than introduce the bill this year.
Some amusement was created by the face-
tious manner in which he spoke about the Irish
deputations, to which some rather impertinent allu-
sions had been made by some speakers. Early
next Session Mr. DISRAELI has undertaken that the
present Government, if in office, will introduce a
measure of Reform for the sister island, and hence
this bugbear of Irish opposition to the third reading
may be considered to be satisfactorily disposed of.
Even here, however, Mr. GLADSTONE must inter-
pose and suggest doubts, and make mountains out
of molehills. If half of the rules he lays down, and
the admissions he makes upon these occa-
sions were put together in a collected form,
we think he himself would be amazed.
He last night enunciated the extraordinary
doctrine, that the suspension of the Habeas Corpus
Act occasioned by the discontent in Ireland did not
sanction the postponement of a Reform Bill. We
suspect he would have told a different tale had he
been on the other side of the House, but really
assertions of this sort cannot be excused when
made by those who through long years have had
an intimate acquaintance with public business, and
must appreciate the difficulties of the situation. As
for his notion that the Government should have
explained their policy, how ridiculous it is. Surely
he must know that the mention of any change,
good, bad, or indifferent, would set all mal-
contents in an uproar, and create the very
mischief that it is wisely sought to avoid.
After a trying day the result has passed off
pretty well with the Government, and, we may
add, with the progress of the Reform Bill, and the
country may be congratulated that so mischievous
a proposal as that yesterday put before the com-
mittee should have been defeated, if by a small, at
least by a sufficient, majority to dispose of it for
the future, and prevent its being carried into law.
The good sense of the House of Commons has
generally come to the rescue in the case of this
Reform Bill, and we are glad that clause 3 has not
been an exception to the rule, for the proposed
amendment must in the end have militated against
the success of a measure which has deservedly
obtained general approbation, and which promises
to fulfil all the prospects it holds out of attaining
'excellence and efficiency.

Last evening a crowded meeting was held in St.
James's Hall, for the purpose of considering the
present position of the great Reform question.
There were present Mr. MILL, Mr. LAYARD, Mr.
JACOB BRIGIIT, and other prominent members of
the Liberal party, and the proceedings were
throughout conducted with great unanimity of feel-