The Sun.
London, England, 1867-09-04 00:00:00

IRELAND

DUBLIN, Sept. 3.

A deputation from the English Reform League,
comprising Mr. Edmond Beales, " the distinguished
advocate of Parliamentary Reform," Mr. Ernest
Jones, and some other members of the corps who
usually play minor parts, have favoured this city
with a visit, and made their first appearance before
a Dublin audience last evening. The Irish Reform
League, of whose existence the public are now re-
minded, made arrangements, it appears, to give
Mr. Beales a hospitable reception at the Westland-
row Station, but, by one of those unfortunate acci-
dents to which such bodies arc liable, the deputation
which had been appointed to do him special honour
missed him in the crowd. They made the lust re-
paration they could offer by waiting upon him after-
wards at the European llotel. Later in the even-
ing, as the Evening Post announces, " the members
of the League, including Messrs. Stanley, Dillon,
Meehan, Dargan, Richardson, Cooke, Molloy, and
Fagan, came to pay their respects to Mr. Beales.'
A conversation ensued, and Mr. Beales " pledged
himself, on behalf of himself and his colleagues, to
advocate the ballot for Ireland." lie was again
induced to speak. by the dexterous proposal of a vote
of thanks. Mr. Beales, in acknowledging the com-
pliment, assured the company that the English
Reform League " observed no distinction whatever
between England and Ireland," and, in strict logical
sequence, added that " England will never be in the
position she ought to be until Ireland entirely occu-
pies an equal position to her with regard to all
national rights, all political and social advantages
of every description." Alluding to events in Ireland
last year, he observed, " Some of your countrymen
had recourse to armed force. lam not here to reflect
upon them or what has been done," but he wished
them to understand that national claims may be
enforced by combined popular action within the
limits of law, which "no Government or array
of military power in the world can resist."
He illustrated this by reference to what he had
himself achieved in London, as to which he was
very explicit :—"I have proved that in London,
when in opposition to all the notices and threats
of the Government, and with the knowledge
of a formidable military force being arrayed to
prevent the people from meeting in Hyde Park, I
persevered, and successfully persevered, in vindicat-
ing the right of the people to meet there. Because
I was convinced that I was right in law, and in the
strength of the law I led them there, and the Go-
vernment was powerless to resist. Having pursued
that course last year and this year, what was the
result? In one case the Government did interfere
with us in relation to our meetings at Hyde Park,
but on the third day they stepped in and asked me
to save them from revolution. (Cheers.) And if
I had not done so on the 28th of July last year, you
would have had blood rolling from one end of Lon-
don to the other. The request I made was, that
their soldiers and their policemen should be with-
drawn from Hyde Park. That was complied with,
and I myself took many thousands away, simply by
asking them to retire. I did not leave the Park that
night until half-past 11 o'clock, when there was not
a soul in it. " (Applause.)
Mr. Ernest Jones, accompanied by Alderman
Carter, of Leeds, Councillor Murray, of Manchester,
and Mr. F. Clayton, secretary to the northern
branch of the Reform League, arrived in Dublin at
a later hour on Saturday night, and proceeded to
the European Hotel. They were more fortunate
than Mr. Beales in meeting their Irish friends on
landing, and a conference was immediately held, the
proceedings of which are reported to have been
most gratifying and cheering. A preliminary
meeting for the purpose of arranging for another
conference yesterday was held on Sunday night at
',lie same rendezvous ; The O'Donoghue, M.P.,
presiding. Mr. Beales having been brought to the
front by the congratulations of the chairman, in-
quired whether the [rish Reform League " would
be satisfied as a beginning with the measure passed
for England or agitate for a more liberal measure."
Their English brethren he assured them were deter-
mined to continue the agitation in order to procure
what alone would-be satisfactory—namely, residen-
tial and registered manhood suffrage and thz;
Mr. Ernest Jones and others also spoke. The de-
putation from the Irish Reform League expressed
their concurrence in the policy of the English body,
and a committee was appointed to make prepara-
tions for the conference. The great event for which
such elaborate arrangements bad been made came
off yesterday morning at half-past 12 o'clock in the
Rotunda. The O'Donoghue again took the:chair,
and at his suggestion the doors were closed. In the
evening Mr. Ernest Jones delivered a lecture in the
Round Room of the Rotunda on " Political Liberty,
and why it is needed." It was announced for eight
o'clock, but the room not being then sufficiently
filled the lecturer did not appear till half-past eight.
There was then a considerable portion of the room
unoccupied. The :gallery was reserved for ladies,
but three or four only availed themselves of the
privilege of being present. The O'Donoghue again
occupied the chair. Mr. Jones, who was well re-
ceived on coming forward, bespoke a friendly
hearing by the statement that " he was ono of a
people from whose Government this great nation
iad received grievous injuries." lle drew a broad

distinction between the English people and English
Government, and assured his audience that the
people of England sympathised with them, and
were determined to struggle for the redress of every
wrong under which this noble country suffered. He
denounced the aristocracy, who he said combined
to keep down the people. There were in round
numbers 71,000,000 acres in the three kingdoms.
In 1770 there were 210,000 owners of the land.
In 1856 the number had decreased to 32,000, and
it was still diminishing, while aristocrats, such as
the Duke of Devonshire, the Duke of Richmond,
and the Marquis of Breadalbane, were the
owners of vast tracts, which extended for
miles. He advocated the repeal of the law of pri-
mogeniture and of entail by the new reformed
Parliament. He also supported the policy of
the League in agitating for residential household
suffrage and the ballot. At the conclusion of the
lecture, Mr. Beales, having been called for, repeated
the account of what he had done for the people of
England. In returning thanks for a complimentary
resolution Mr. Jones had another opportunity of
addressing the meeting, and further established
himself in their esteem by stating that he had been
a sufferer in the cause of Ireland, having spent two
years in a felon's cell. A vote of thanks to The
O'Donoghue brought the proceedings to a close.
The above conferences and lectures were mere re-
hearsals for a great public meeting which has been
convened for this evening in the theatre of the
Mechanics' Institute.
The Freeman announces that the Roman Catholic
prelates have considered and repudiated Earl Rus-
sell's proposal for the division of the revenues of the
Established Church between Protestant and Roman
Catholics. The. Cork Examiner, writing simultane-
ously on the subject, warns all who desire to see the
Church question speedily settled not to imperil their
chance of a happy solution of the difficulty " within,
at the very outside, a few years hence," by seeking
a division of the spoil. The Attorney-General's
scheme for dividing the revenues more equitably
among their recipients, but retaining to the Church
every farthing of its revenues, is characterised as
simply laughable ; but the proposition which comes
from Catholics and Liberals, that the revenues
should be transferred to the Roman Catholic
Church, is deprecated as " more dangerous," and
" ono which, though plausible, contains in it
the elements of enormous mischief, if not actual
failure." The writer points out the danger of
alienating the most valuable allies—the voluntaries
of England and Scotland. In reply to the inquiry
to what purpose the revenues of the Estab-
lished Church are to be applied he says :—" Time
enough for that; first get rid of the evil—first
settle the primal question—namely, that the Estab-
lishment must be disendowed—that Protestants and
Catholics shall equally depend for the support of
their respective Churches on the voluntary assist-
ance of their respective congregations. . . There
are many useful purposes to which the revenues of
the Church could be profitably applied."

1V EIVCISTLE- ON-7 VAR CONSI ITU.
TION A L ASSOCIATION.

This newly-established association was inaugu-
rated at a conversazione in the Music-hall on Mon-
day night. Between 200 and 300 persons were
present. Lord Ravensworth, the president, de-
livered the opening address, in which he traced out
the development of the British Constitution, the
limitation of the monarchy, the privileges of Par-
liament, and, in connexion with the Constitution of
the King, Lords, and Commons, the Established
Church of the kingdom, the object of which was to
carry the knowledge of God's holy religion to every
man in every parish in the kingdom. After speak-
ing upon these points at considerable length, his
lordship said.—" I may bo callel a Tory and Con-
serrative—l am a Tory and Conservative—(hear,
hear) —beeauso 1 1 )ve my Sovereign and I lave the
Constitution of my country, but I do not the less
love the liberties and ths privileges of the people.
Nor have I in the whole course of my life, that I
am aware of, committed any act or given any vote
in Parliament for which I do not feel myself now
personally responsible, and ready, if called upon to
do so, to justify by argument. Upon a due consi-
deration of these topics which I have ventured thus
to bring before you, one point must necessarily
impress itself upon your minds-- one very serious
point—namely, that this far-famed Constitution of
England is a Constitution of balanced powers—that
if that ,balance be readily overthrown, rashly in-
terfered with, many dangers, certainly many in-
conveniences, may be expected to arise. And this
brings me to the latest act of the Legislature—
namely, that Reform Bill which has just become
a part of the statutes of England. There
is no doubt that by that bill a very large extension
of political power has been given to men in the
class of those whom I am now addressing—so large
an extension, that many have thought, and not
without reason, many have feared, not without some
grounds, that the extension has been too rapid
(hear), too sudden, that the consequence of it may
be a disturbance of the balance of the power which
I have spoken of as one of the most essential cha-
racteristics and features of the British Constitution.
(Hear, hear.) It remains to be seen what the re-
sults of the Reform Bill may be ; but so long as men
like yourselves are found to enrol themselves in an
association for the preservation of the British Con-
stitution, so long as portions of the community are
bound together by love and attachment to that
Constitution, so long as men are persuaded of the
blessings they enjoy, and so long as they may be
led to apprehend dangers which may crop up with
time—so long do I hope and believe that our Con-
stitution will be safe, and that in spite of this large
extension of popular privileges the House of Com-
mons will yet be found the supporter, as it ever bas
been, of the prerogatives of the Crown, and of
the due privileges of both Houses of Parliament.
Now, one or two very important and somewhat
novel principles have found their way in this new
Parliament with the Reform representation, and, if
you will forgive me for doing so, I will allude to it,
partly for the purpose of setting myself right in
your minds, and in the minds of this county and
neighbourhood, as to the language that was made
use of by me, and which has exposed me in certain
quarters to anything but worthy criticism, and
which I therefore wish just to glance at in order to
set myself right with the people. A great principle
is established in the new Reform Act—namely, the
representation of minorities. It is all very well for
certain parties to abuse that principle—it is all very
well to say that it is a departure from the ancient
usage, but the fact is that it has been accepted by
Parliament, and that it forms a portion of the Re-
form Act at the present moment. (Cheers.) The
,:rnsequence of the application of those principles
will be:that in very populous communities which
'return three members to Parliament—it is the
fashion to call them three-cornered constituencies—
the method of taking the vote:" will be such as will
secure to the minority, almost in every C:'.2(_'; certainly
the return of one member out of the three. i:Cw,
whether that is right or whether that is wrong, it is
a principle which has been argued for some time.
It was originally brought into prominence by the
Government of Lord Aberdeen, by Lord Johti Rus-
sell, then the leader of the Government in the House
of Commons, and it is now actually part of the law
of the land. I ventured to say in my place in Par-
liament that in the northern counties, and that in
the northern boroughs, minorities were very sorrily
represented. There can be no doubt that it is so.
The county of Durham, as I stated, sends 10 mem-
bers to Parliament, of whom only two are upon the
Conservative or Constitutional side of the House.
I think the proportion of 8 to 2 or 4 to 1 is a some-
what sorry representation of the minority. I also

see that, of the northern boroughs, Newcastle has
not returned Conservative members since my ex-

cellent and worthy and hon. friend on my left—Mr.
Hodgson Hinde—represented you. I said, and I
went no further than that, the principle of three-
cornered constituencies was found advisable to an
extent further than it goes at present. The group-
ings of the northern boroughs might be conveni-
ently made so as to give the minority the right to
one member out of three. I did not go beyond that.
I ventured to give a sort of sketch- of the mode in
which the improvement might be made ; it was,
perhaps, rather a rash and forward thin(' to do ;
but, however, there was nothing unnatural in the
grouping that I perceived, and there it stands. The
error was made in the press, and singularly enough
all the London papers made the same mistake. I
never proposed, or I never suggested, that Tyne-
mouth should be coupled with Berwick-upon-
Tweed ; the borough which I did suggest to be
coupled with Berwick was Morpeth and not Tyne-
mouth. I did not think that it was at all unnatural
to group those two boroughs of Morpeth and Ber-
wick together." The meeting was addressed by
Mr. J. 11. Hinde, Mr. It. Edie, and other gentle-
men, and the proceedings were enlivened with
music.

RACING CASUALTIES.--The Journal de Maine et
Loire relates the circumstances of a fatal accident
which took place in the secondday's racing at Saumur. In
the hurdle race, at the last turn before reaching the stands
in the run home, five horses bolted and rushed to the side
whore there was a great throng of spectators. In the gene-
ral sauce qui pent that ensued one Cochard, of Chartzes
`Cvas knocked down by the hoz se of Lientenant Billerat, of
the 9th Cuirassiers, receiving a contusion in the head and
a fracture of two of his ribs. The lieutenant was pitched
heavily forward on the gronnd, and had his collar-
bone broken, with a determination of blood to the head.
At the same moment; and nearly in the same spot, Lieut.
do 131:dialog also had a bad fall, and broke his collar-bone.
He is not, however, in any danger. Assistance was imme-
diately procured and the first attentions were paid to the
three wounded men by Dr. Trudau, surgeon-in-chief of
the military school. Lieutenant Billerat succumbed the
next evening to the injuries which he had received with-
out ever having regained possession of his senses.
IRRITABLE PEOPLE.—Sergeant Penguin was early
at his chambers next day, to the rage of his laun-
dress, who, after the manner of her class, considered her-
self personally wronged if her employer took the liberty of
altering the hour of arriving at his own chambers. "Real
gentlemen never did those things," was her remark to an
assenting friend, whose ideal of realism, in this respect,
was an elderly young gentleman, who lived in his rooms,
never rose till twelve, and then went to his club to
breakfast, returning more or less sober in the hours
which it used to be considered clever to call small, and
who never checked her red account-book—lets, however,
from absolute faith in her. than from a want of acquaint-
ance with rudimentary arithmetic. But the Sergeant
was unconscious of the offence he had given, and this
was lucky for the injured person, for Penguin was not of
a disposition to encourage liberties in his inferiors, except
politically. He was as unreasonably angry because Mr.
Horsham had not arrived half an hour before the time,
and wasted sundry imprecations on clerks who could not
sleep near their business, but must live at Stoke Newing-
ton. " Devil stoke Stoke Newington," and Serjoant
Penguin. " I never lived at Stoke Newington when I
was a young man. Islington was good enough for me.
He'll be living at Stoke Pogos next, I suppose." But the
word reminded him of Gray's Elegy, and he soon began to
quote it, and quoting at any length will restore anybody to
good temper. The youth's head had not begun to rest upon
the lap of earth when Mr. Horsham arrived—and was re-
ceived affably.—" Sooner or Later," by Shirley Brooks.
THE ACCIDENT AT CHATHAM DOCKYARD.—
The caisson which met with the accident at the entrance
to No. 4 Dock at an early hour on Saturday morning was
yesterday afternoon removed to one of the building slips,
whore it will undergo the necessary repairs before being
again used. The survey of the caisson since the occur-
rence has led to the discovery that the accident was occa-
sioned by a portion of the bottom of the caisson being
rotten. The repairs will render the dock useless for
some time to Qom