The Sun.
London, England, 1835-04-13 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE P-ÜBLIC JOURNALS.

The public are already aware that Lords Grey,
Lansdowne, and 'Melbourne had been consulted by
the King upon the appointment of a new Ministry,
but of the actual construction of which nothing was de-
termined on, or, at least, nothing was known up to a
late hour on Saturday night, except that it was gene-
rally reported Lord Melbourne was to be its chief.
Whether the political labours of the Sabbath have
advanced the work of Cabinet-making nearer to a
conclusion, we know not, and we have no desire to
supply the impatient curiosity of the public with our
own conjectures or the fictions of others in place of ac-
tual information. The question of greatest impor-
tance connected with the formation of the new Cabi-
net, is not who is to be its chief, but, upon what basis
is it to be constructed ? We admit that, whatever
the basis of construction may be, the efficiency of the
new Government will greatly depend upon the cha-
racter and qualifications of the person who shall
be at its head. If it be truly stated that
Lord Melbourne is to be its chief, and if

great powers of mind, active energies, and supe-
rior political talent be necessary for that station,
we can only say that Lord Melbourne has never yet
displayed, either as a Legislator or a Minister, a mind
above mediocrity ; far less has he exhibited any of
those high or splendid qualities which are charaCteristic
of that statesmanlike genius which is fitted to rule the
destinies of a great empire. We believe him to be of
a more manly and straightforward disposition than
some of his former intriguing and tricky colleagues ;
but it cannot be denied that he wants those powers of
mind and energies of character which might enable a
Minister to grapple successfully with the difficulties of
the present crisis. This is not the time for ambitious
mediocrity to take the helm. The pilot capable of
weathering the storm with which the vessel of the
State now labours must be one calculated to inspire
confidence not more by his courage than his skill—
one not likely to mistake feebleness for caution, nor
rashness for intrepidity—one prompt to discern the
right course, and firm to pursue it—not substituting
uncertainty of purpose for deliberation, or a dogged
obstinacy for decision. Is Lord Melbourne such a
man ? His flatterers dare not say he is, and the country
cannot. We are, therefore, sceptical as to the stability and
duration of his Government, if, indeed, Lord Melbourne
is to be again first Minister of the Crown. As to the basis
upon which the Cabinet is to be constructed, nothing
positive is yet known about that, but reports are not
wanting upon the subject. It has even been asserted
that the King has agreed to the formation of a Cabi-
net upon the basis of Lord John Russell's resolution
touching the Irish branch of the Church of England,
and sanctioning the principle of confiscating a portion
of the property of the Protestant Church for the use
and advantage of the members of the Church of Rome.
That his Majesty has so readily agreed to capitulate
with the enemies of the Protestant Establishment, and
to surrender to them at discretion the Church of which
he is the lawful and sworn guardian and protector, we
cannot believe, until we have much better evidence of
the fact than has yet been afforded to the public. We
confess we are as little disposed to give credit to the
statement, at present, as we should be to believe
any person who told us that the Noble house
of Russell, anxious to prove the sincerity of its
coalition with the Church of Rome, had resolved
to restore to the Holy See the abbey lands which be-
longed to its monastic children, and which that family
hold by no better tenure than the Church of England
holds its possessions, and certainly for purposes far less
useful and national, being merely for the aggrandisement
of a single family. The house of Russell had better
be cautious how it lends a hand to unsettle the rights
of property enjoyed only during a period of 300 years.
England has had to undergo the struggles of a reforma-
tion in religion, and it would now appear as if she
were destined to undergo the struggles of an attempt
at a counter-reformation ; and as the house of Russell
took a prominent part in the former case, so it takes a
leading share in the latter, but on the opposite side. Is
this a proof of repentence for sharing in the confiscation
of the property of the Church of Rome ? We doubt
very much that it is that species of repentance which
will amount to anything like voluntary restitution. In
the mean time, and while the mountain is in the ago-
nies of parturition of the new Ministry, the Whig-
Radical papers tell us of the wonderful disinterestedness
of Mr. O'Connell in keeping aloof from intrigue, and
wholly neglecting the advancement of his own personal
ambition—Crectat Judaus ! Mr. O'Connell must
laugh in his sleeve at such nonsense, while he hugs
the money-bags of the tribute collected from the hard
hands of his starving countrymen, as a reward for his
patriotic services in labouring to procure for them a
repeal of the Union. Talk of the disinterestedness of
the Repeal-Agitator, indeed ! whose whole life has
been a struggle for his own personal aggrandisement,
while he denies to his famishing countrymen the be-
nefit of laws to provide work for the unemployed, and
a provision against absolute starvation for the sick,
aged, blind, and infirm ! But upon this subject he
and Mr. Spring Rice—an Irish landlord—have a per-
fect coincidence of opinion, and " when they do agree
together," as the play says, " their unanimity is wonder-
ful." The attempt of the Whigs of the present day to
confiscate a portion of the property of that Church of
which their ancestors were the champions, will not stop
with the Irish branch of the Establishment—the
attack is made on the outworks before the citadel is
stormed ; but we confess we do not think the principle
of confiscation the worst part of this Whig measure.
It is the avowed intention of appropriating the confis-
cated property to Papal objects which strikes us with
most alarm. An allusion is made to the Church of
Scotland, but there is no analogy. The Scotch Church
is a branch of Protestantism, but the Church of Rome
is an antagonist Church to Protestantism in all its
branches. The Whigs would devote a portion of the
property of the Protestant Church to the purposes of a
religion which sets out with denying the knowledge of
the Scriptures to the people, and yet the Whigs call
themselves the friends of universal education. But the
sacrilegious attempt has roused the Protestant spirit
of this land, and though the assailants are eager and
fierce, the temple of the Reformed faith shall not want
for defenders.—Morning Herald.
Hardly had Lord Melbourne received the King's
commands, before the Tories went about observing,
with elation, that the negotiations made no progress,
and imagining " insuperable difficulties." On Saturday
they looked at their watches and knowingly said,
" What ! no Ministry yet ?" as if an age had been
wasted in an abortive attempt. These gentlemen do
not play their part well. If the event were to corre-
spond with their wishes, it would be supposed that
there was more of privity than of prophecy in their very
early knowledge of what was not to be, and that the
"insuperable difficulties" had been settled from the first.
Why should the Tories require such dispatch in the con-
struction of a Liberal Ministry? They have not set the
example of rapidity in the, completion of their ar-
rangements. Rome was not reached in- a day
by the Queen's Page. The Liberal, though they have
not to send to Italy for a Chief, may beg to be allowed
something more than eight-and-forty hours for the con-
struction of a Government. It must be remembered
that Lord Melbourne cannot make use of the expe-
dients of the Duke of Wellington. If, like his Grace,
he could dispense with responsible colleagues, and par-
cel himself out into the principal offices of State, he
might form a Provisional Government in a trice, and
a Cabinet at leisure. It would be a convenience to a
party always to have an important member of it on his
travels on the Continent, so that any delay might be
attributed to his absence, and the time for bringing him
home gained for contrivance. But these advantages are
confined to the Tories. if we are to believe some of the
stories of their partisans, they have other privileges pecu-.
liar to themselves and unknown to the Constitution, and in
withdrawina, from the King's Councils may leave be-
hind them a barrier to the success of those who may be
summoned to succeed them. It is currently boasted
that his Majesty's late advisers counselled him to make
a firm stand against the principle of appropriation—
the creation of Peers—and the employment of Mr.
O'Connell. If this be true (and as it is reported by
the Tories, we must admit that the probability is infi-
nitely great against its truth) the ex-Ministry has car-
ried its powers beyond its responsibilities, and must be
accountable for the transgression. The ear of the King
is abused by any official advice which extends beyond