The Sun.
London, England, 1867-05-04 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY, MAY 4, 1867.

There is, fortunately, still time for the Council of
the Reform League to illustrate the ‘ise old adage
that "Discretion is the better part cf valour," by
abandoning the proposed assembly on Monday, or
at least by Adjourning it to some mo;e suitable posi-

' ion than Hyde Park. They may possibly be re-
luctant to make any concessions to law, to autho-
rity, or even to public opinion, but they can scarcely
think it dignified for themselves' or creditable to
rioterscau e taon
dbecomer
baesrs:coifa
thet e d
pi ne
atchee. p uTlh)l
ei r mind
with
their
pro-
ceedings received the somewhat undeserved honour of
occupying the attention of Parliament fora consider-
able period last evening, and though no very definite
conclusion was arrived at, Mr. WALPOLE declared
that the Government were a • •
roams to avoid any un-
necessary collision with the people, while taking
all possible precautions to repress any disturbance.
It seems that there will be no inter • f creme with the
proceedings of the Leaguers unless there is some
disturbance or riot, though the Government will
have a sufficient police force in reserve, and permis-
sion has been given to the residents • inthe vicini • •
tyof the
Park to be sworn •
in as special constables. These pre-
cautions are not so unnecessary B
as r. RIGHT appears
to think, since the cost of reglazing the window
frames of a large West-end house
is an unwelcome
expense to some householders, notwithstanding that
it may assume the form of a forced contribution to
the Reform League. Mr. BRIGHT has come for-
ward as the champion of the Leaguers, and made a
lengthened speech in their behalf, but as he also
presented a petition on behalf of the Fenians his
advocacy lost something of its value. Mr. BRIGHT
holds that great meetings in England are never
provocative of breaches of the peace. Whether the
Leaguers' demonstration came under the head of
" great meetings" or not may be uncertain, but if
the hon. member for Birmingham, in his monopoly of
the study of history, has not altogether overlooked
the records of his own time, he may remember that
some five years ago liyde Park was the theatre
of a series of " great meetings" to demonstrate
popular sympathies respecting GARIBALDI and the
PorE. Sunday after Sunday the Park was the
scene of riot and serious disturbance. No toler-
ably respectable person could pass through it in
safety, and severe injuries were in many cases
received' It was the stronghold of ruffianism till
the respectable half of London lost patience, and
vigorous measures were taken to put it
down ; and, if we remember rightly, it was
forthwith resolved that no more meetings
should be permitted in the Park. Mr.
BRIGHT asks " whether any number of persons have
not a perfect right to enter the Park ?" And taking
the affirmative for granted, he goes on to ask
" whether they have not the right of standing
shoulder to shoulder, and of expressing their
opinions in a loud voice ?" A very loud voice it
must be if a hundredth part of the hundred thousand
men he would allow to assemble are to hear two
words of what is said. But who believes
that the demonstration of Monday is intended
for the delivery of speeches, which could be
very much better heard in the Agricultural Hall
or some other large building. We cannot think
Mr. BRIGHT free from blame in citing the conse-
quences to the Government of Louis PHILIPPE in
refusing their sanction to the proposed banquets,
and we should think he had lived long enough in
London to know the sort of characters which every
mixed and noisy company attracts in the public
thoroughfares. Iu the case of great public proces-
sions the cause of order is always safely left to the
public themselves, but the very classes who keep
order on sight-seeing days, the steady mechanics,
the sober artisans out with their families, and the
general body of the working classes, will be the
very ones who will keep away from Monday's
demonstration. The roughs, and idlers, and pick-
pocketA will probably muster in strong force, hoping
for an opportunity for riot and plunder, and the
collection of these worthies at the Weit-end is not
a very creditable object of ambition.

We are glad to find that Mr. GLADSTONE has
thrown his influence into the scale, and, after his
appeal to them last night, the Reform League have
an excellent excuse for altering their programme.
The good sense and justice of Mr. GLADSTONE'S
remarks were indisputable. The working men, as a
body, were, he said, as loyal as any members of
that House, but it was not consistent with the
duty of such persons to place themselves in conflict
with those who were responsible for the execution
of the law. lie advised them to conform to the
wishes of the Government; " so much, at least, of
respect is due to the Government as the adminis-
trators of the law, from the private individual, the
loyal subject of the QUEEN." Both sides of the
house, said Mr. GLADSTONE, fully agreed upon this
question, and we miy hope his opinion will have
weight. The members of the League can scarcely-
wish to get mixed up in a discreditable disturbance,
especially as they have no shadow of a ground
for just complaint. They have been allowed
to hold meetings in Trafalgar-square, to form
processions through the streets, and they have had
the use of some of the great city halls. If the
object was to prevent them from discussing the
Government measure, it would certainly not be
attained by keeping them out of the Parks. But
no English Government would dream of such a
hopeless effort. Mr. BRIGHT says that, had it not
been for these meetings, the Conservatives would not
have introduced a Reform Bill, and would, conse-
quently, not now occupy the Government benches.
This is another instance of the hon. gentleman's short-
ness of political memory, since the Reform League was
not heard of in 1859. We cannot think that the
present agitation is at all likely to further the inte-
rests of Reform, and we are not surprised that Mr.
IVALrotx should have received a memorial signed
by some thousands of persons against it. The
ambition of Englishmen has always hitherto been
to combine political liberty with universal respect
for law. The desire of the Leaguers appears to be
the substitution of what Mr. NEATE caljed " A
Parliament in the streets," in which the noisiest and
most aggressive become the most important.

The announcement which the Chancellor of the
Exchequer made to the House last night concerning
the course which the Government would take about
the inestion of residence is just what was expected
by all parties, and it is one that is so evidently
suggested by common sense that there is scarcely
any need to comment upon it. The Ministry have
resolved to defer to the decision of the committee.
There was little or no excitement in the House
when the decision was made known, because
it was pretty generally anticipated, but of
course a few remarks were made. Mr.
lioesmAN, vexed that all his efforts to put au
end to discussions upon Reform for this year were
unavailing, took care to quote from the letter which
Mr. DisitAlim had sent to his supporters previous
to the division ; but this was soon disposed of by
the Chancellor of the Exchequer. These observa-
tions upon past doings and speeches seem quite the
rage just now ; but it is a very idle sort of argu-
ment at the best, and in the present instance it was
an inconclusive one, because Mr. GLADSTONE'S
amendments were framed so as to upset
the Government if carried, and it was :essential
that they should be met with a direct negative.
It was the more unfair of the latter to go on in this
wanner, because it infused a wrong element into the
Committee, and rendered the consideration of the
bill a party question, instead of A subject upon which

the House met to consider upon common grounds of
interest and importance. At any rate the diffi-
culty has been got over, and that is the chief thing
to think of, and all other inconveniences are quite of
secondary consideration in the matter. Mr. Dis-
RAELI expressed the regret which the Government
experienced in having to relinquish their proposal
for a two years' residence, but he said also, which
was very true, that " every candid mind must feel
that the course which they bad taken, upon due con-
sileration, was one consistent with their character
as men of honour and the duty which they owed to
their country and the Crown." We consider the
remarks of Mr. HonsmAN as factious and ill-timed,
and those who think of following in his track had
better look to the importance of the question at
issue, and not perplex those who have already
enough on their hands. Mr.DISIZAELI also explained
that the Government would insert au amendment
iu clause three to remove all " ambiguity" as to the
position of the compound householders, and a clause
will be moved to repeal the section of Sir W. CLAY'S
Act in reference to compounders and ten pounders.
All things taken into account the Reform Bill has
made
be long b
great
progressefore i t is got through
w week, and we trust it will
notugh committee and
sent up to the House of Lords, for the public will
naturally rejoice at so significant a sign of its pro-
gress as this will afford. To do this will rest with
the House, for the Government are sure to make all
needful exertions in the matter.

" Strange age that thus offers a premium for
crime," was said by one who exposed the fallacies
of the present day respecting the high consideration
in which criminals were held, and really Mr.
BRIGHT, and those hon. members who followed suit
to him last night respecting the Fenian prisoners,
fully exemplified that description. A petition was
presented by Mr. BRIGHT which was couched in
such extraordinary terms that we are not surprised
that a motion was made that it should not be
allowed to lie on the table of the House. It
was as well that this was not agreed to,
for fear of misrepresentation on the subject, '
but the protest was certainly not unreasonable.
Those who drew up the petition were either grossly
ignorant or absurdly indifferent. They actually
said that those who were made prisoners were men
" whose cause and offence were alike free from dis-
honour." This was a curious definition of those
who are committing the offence of high treason,
and endeavouring to subvert the Government of
the country. This is not all, however, for the
petitioners furthermore declared that the state of
Ireland, in some degree, justified the course
which the Fenians pursued, and wound
up their claim by demanding that the
said Fenians should be treated on the principles of
" honourable warfare." 4g So are they all, all
honourable men," may well be added in connection
with them, we suppose ; but really we think Mr.
BRIGHT should know better than to put himself
forward in such a cause. We are not surprised that
Lord NAAS should declare that the statements
respecting the treatment of Fenian prisoners
were much exaggerated, for we should have come
to the same conclusion without any answer being
officially given. It is quite contrary to the usual
any great hardship inflicted, and as for the notion
management of convict prisons that there should be
that the object was to degrade the prisoners that is
quite absurd, because in the sight of our impartial
judges they are degraded by conviction, the offences
of which they are convicted, and it would be a vio-
lation of the laws to consider them as prisoners of
war. Those who persist in these exaggerated state-
ments, and use this inflated language, have a
great deal to answer fur, and they do a great deal
of mischief, unintentionally no doubt, but not less
surely. It is high time that this folly should
cease ; and we are sure of one thing, that if there
has been an error of judgment on the part of the
authorities in Ireland, it has been on the side of
dtoo a
Ims
_u cane
h eleniencyucy, be
to wit ads the misguided
added,indivi-
that has met with
no return whatever, but seems rather to have been
taken advantage of to prosecute further plans, and
to plunge still deeper into the plots devised against
the Executive.