The Sun.
London, England, 1867-03-05 00:00:00

Scotland and the Reform Bill.

The amount of proportion of representatiou to be given
to Scotland under Lord Derby's Reform is, like all the
other parts of the main question, involved in mystery. Like
everything, too, on which Mr. Disraeli has given explana-
tions, it has been, as he himself states, the subject of
" misconception." So, upon Friday night, he set himself
to remove that misconception, and to interpret his former
meaning. But again the interpreter is the harder to be
understood of the two -not only is it impossible to make
out what Mr. Disraeli intends to propose, but the argumen-
tation in which he expatiates throws the whole facts and
reasoning of that part of the question into utter confusion.
The first exposition given of the Reform Bill showed that
it is not intended to reduce the number of English mem-
bers; 30 are to be taken away from certain English con-
stituencies, but all the 30 aro to be given to certain other
English constituencies. This, it must be confessed, looked
very like a design to refuse any additional representation
to Scotland, for it is only from England that seats could
fairly be taken, and in all previous bills which gave addi-
tional seats to large constituencies in Scotlandt they were,
as needs they must be, taken from small constituencies in
England. Hence, doubtless, the dual form of Sir Stirling
Maxwell's question whether it was intended to give any
additional representation to Scotland, and if so, from what
source it was to be derived. Laying aside as oat of the
question the taking away of any representation from Ire-
land, there were only two answers which even so ingenious
a person as Mr. Disraeli could give to this question, if he
intended to answer it at all. He might have said No to
the first clause of the question, and there an end. Or he
might have said Yes to the first clause, and to the second
have replied that the source from which the additional
representation was to be supplied was an enlargement of
the numbers of the House of Commons. But he said
neither Yes nor No, nor anything between nor anything
beyond. He argued that as the Bill, the substance of
which he had stated to the House, had reference only to
the representation of England and Wales, there was no
reason to infer from the provisions of that bill the
yisions of the bill for Scotland. The only conclusion at
and
which Ministers had arrived was that England
Wales had not " too much" representation—
.
t
low that they had concluded that Scotland had enough.
didnot fol-
low
in one sense that does follow, and in the only other
sense a great deal more follows. Unless .
it is i
increase the total number of members—the
easy,
statementntendd e to
which intention, if it exists, WAS not only
incum-
bent—a conclusion
conclusion
E at nd
Scotlandhas nots too
not n, but
tiou chhavrepre-
sentation, is a
more. Further, if it is concluded that, according to pro-
perty, population, and
Las not
btoo
omuchncl u
dreed-
presentation, then, on
tshooosamen g
ldata,and hit must
that Scotland has a great deal too little. Scotland may or
luny not is entitled to • but there is no pro-
cess get what she
by which England can be shown entitled to retain her
present number of members which does not show at the
same time that Scotland is entitled to more than her pre-
sent number. " The conclusion," adds Mr. Disra "at
which we have arrived is, that representation mfg t be
more efficiently distributed." Well, why in the process of
distribution draw a line at the Tweed, and lay out of view
that portion of the United Kingdom in which, as far as
regards addition, "efficient distribution" is most required?
There is another question raised by Mr. Disraeli's speech,
and it is not the only question to which the Conservative
Ministers, in their handling of Reform, have given en-
largement and new difficulties. The bill of last year,
for instance, gave seven now members to Scotland,
and took seven away from England, making a difference
of 14 in the balance' between the two kingdoms. Suppose
that Mr. Disraeli now gives seven new members to Scot-
land, not by taking them from England, 1.11 by enlarg-
ment of the House, Scotland would have Hulk more than
half the gain which Mr. Disraeli was so active in prevent-
iug her obtaining last year. It is he, not we, that puts
one kingdom against another, and "cannot at all admit
that in attempting to improve the representation of Eng-
land and Wales we are bound at all to consider the claims
of other parts of the United Kingdom." If in this matter
England and Scotland are to be treated separately, as some-
what opposing Powers, and not as Great Britain, then it
will become the more just and necessary that the balance
shall be adjusted with arithmetical accuracy, which would
give Scotland much more than wo either expect or very
much care fa.r.- Scotsman.

Mn.ARTEMUS WARD. —Th is gentleman, who by
his great intelligence and the humour displayed in his
writings has made so many sincere friends in England,
now lies without hope of recovery at Southampton. This is
the more to be deplored as the liberal sentiments and ope
nature of Mr. Ward had a strong tendency to draw closer
together the feelings of Americans and Englishmen.
ALARMING OCCURRENCE AT A MENAGERIE.-011
Saturday night a large and powerful black bear, an inha-
bitant of a menagerie exhibiting at Guildford, forced his
way through a partition, and into the tigers' den, whic
was occupied by three young Bengal tigers. A fearful com
bat soon raged between the infuriated beasts, in which th
bear appeared to be gaining the advantage. After vainly
trying to part the combatants and to induce the bear to re
tire into his own quarter?, the keepers determined that th
only way to prevent a fearful catastrophe was to destroy
the bear. Accordingly two of them loaded their fire-arms
with slugs, and both discharged their pieces together and
shot the bear dead, whilst they at the same time wounded
two of the tigers so severely that it is feared they will have
to be destroyed. Tho value of the bear is estimated at about
£9O, and the tigers at from 80 to 100 guineas each.

THEATRE ROYAL DRURY-LANE.
Sole Lessee and Manager, Mr. F. B. Chatterton.
THIS EVENING, TEIE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL.
;lessrs. Phelps, T. Swinbourne, Harry Sullivan, Barrett, F.
Bursby, C. Warner, J. Robins; Mesdames Hermann Ves.in,
11. Vaudeuhoff, Isabel Adams.
To nclude w,th the Pantomime. entitled N
thUMBER
Ntr ;o r Harlequin and the Gnome-King* of e Giant
Mountain