The Sun.
London, England, 1835-02-18 00:00:00

horn-book of a Speaker's duties, at a time when he
ought to be, if qualified for the situation, an ac-
complished master of his art. If the present
Parliament should subsist for about three years only,
Sir, Charles, Manners Sutton being re-elected to
the office of Speaker, will have given twenty years
of his life in that arduous capacity to the service of
the public. He is now in the prime of life, and the
full vigour of his faculties—why should the public lose
the benefit of his matured abilities, and his consum-
mate knowledge of the law of Parliament, at a period
of life when his talents and judgment, strengthened
and enriched by experience, can be made more avail-
able than ever to the public service ? Can faction
bestow upon the nation any equivalent for depriving
the ,House of Commons of the abilities and know-
ledge of the ablest Speaker that has presided over the
national representation at least within living memory ?
As to the mere political adventurers of political
life, we know they care for none of those conside-
rations. Nor are we so ignorant of human nature,
as to address any such arguments to them. But
there are some men of character—of honourable senti-
ment, and of naturally just' disposition, whose good un-
derstanding and feelings are sometimes wrought upon,
by the stimulating draughts of party excitement,-
to do that which in their calmer and more sober
moments they would regard as both pernicious and un-
just. Sure we are that if any such men are induced
to join the partizans of faction, the political adven-
turers, and the O'Connell and his " tail," on the pre-
sent occasion, for the purpose of preventing the re-
election of Sir C. Manners Sutton to that chair, in
which for seventeen years his conduct has been so ex-
emplary—so distinguished for the display of sound
judgment—ready knowledge, courtesy, firmness, and
integrity, as to obtain for him " golden opinions from
all sorts of people," they will bitterly regret the injus-
tice, when the heat and ferment of party shall have
subsided, and reason shall have regained its mastery
over the unreflecting passions. But we trust the
good sense of far fthe greater number of British
Reformers, whose battle we have long and un-
shrinkingly fought, will not fail to distinguish be-
tween the exercise of a rational, honest, and indepen-
dent scrutiny of the measures of Government, and a
blind, unreasoning, and factious attempt to oust the
King's Ministers before they have an opportunity of
laying their measures before the representatives of the
nation—for that is the secret of the unholy alliance
between the Whig-Radicals and the O'Connellite and
repeal faction, to thrust the Whig pensioner, Mr.
Abercromby, into the Chair of the New House of
Commons, to which he ought no more to aspire than
Sir C. Manners Sutton to be Chief Justice of the
King's Bench, if it happened to be vacant. Our
principle of election for difficult and responsible offices
is that the best qualified men should be selected,
without any regard to party considerations. We have
always maintained this principle with regard to all ap.
pointments affecting the public interest, whether they
be judicial, legal, medical, or of any other description.
When the Chief Baronship of the Exchequer was
vacant the other day, to whom did the eyes of all
persons, who knew anything of the relative merits of
the leading lawyers in Westminster Hall, naturally
turn, as to the man whose experience, whose knowledge,
whose eminent accomplishments as a lawyer and advo-
cate, marked him out for that situation, which he now
fills with such credit to his own ability, and such sa-
tisfaction to the public ? Was not Sir James Scar-
lett the man to whom even Reformers conceded the
claim of superior qualification, without considering for
a moment that the country should lose the benefit of
his services, because in politics he was reckoned one of
the ornaments of the Conservative party. Suppose
some untried, inexperienced Barrister, or some lawyer
far inferior to the great leader of the King's Bench Bar
in learning, sound judgment, discretion, and legal acu-
men, had offered himself for the situation, and even
touched the pulse of public economy, by offering to
undertake the duties of the office on cheaper terms.
Suppose, also, that Government had closed with the
offer of the " cheap lawyer," and placed him in the
seat which Lord Abinger now fills, what blame would
not Government have justly incurred—what public re-
probation would they not have deservsd,when the business
of the Court began to fall off—when the suitorsbegan to
desert it, and the overflow of causes which Lord Lynd-
hurst had attracted thither, dwindled into something
like the penury of business which trickled through the
sinecure Court of Exchequer, the Chief Baronship of
which Mr. Abercromby accepted from the Duke of
Wellington—a Court where he enjoyed a sort of ju-
dicial nap for some two years, or thereabouts, and then
awakened once more to the bustle of political life, and
a pension of 2,0001. a year. Now, we say, and the
testimonies of the Whigs themselves bear us out in it,
that it is quite as absurd and preposterous to compare
Mr. Abercromby's claims to the Speaker's Chair with
those of Sir C. Manners Sutton, as to institute any
comparison between the qualifications of an inexpe-
rienced or superficial lawyer, and those of Lord
Abinger for the chief seat in the Court of Exchequer.
But does the country in reality purchase the inex-
perience and official incapacity of Mr.Abercromby, on
cheaper terms than the great experience and accom-
plishments of Sir C. Manners Sutton ? Far from it.
The worse commodity is offered to the public at a
much higher price, which we believe is contrary to the
canons of political economy, at least it must be so, if
there be any connection between that branch of science
and common sense. Let us see how this is. The
Abercromby job—one of the least defensible jobs we
have ever heard of—has pensioned the ex-sinecurist
and ex-steward of the Duke of Devonshire on the
public taxes 'to the amount of 2,0001. a-year. If he
were elected, of course the pension, which we say is a
more scandalous one than most of those which excite
the patriotic disgust of Mr. Whittle Harvey, will merge
in the salary of the Speakership, which is 5,0001. a-
year ; but then the Speaker becomes entitled to his
pension for his 17 years' service, that pension being,
if we recollect right, 4,0001. a-year. Let us now see
what the difference is to the country—
The Speaker's salary £5,000
Pension of Mr. Abercromby 2,000

£7,000
So the account stands, provided, as we expect will be
the case, Mr. Abercromby remains where he is for the
present,' a pensioned, placeless Whig, and Sir C. Man-
ners Sutton is restored to the situation where he ought
to be. But, for argument sake, let us imagine the rule
of right inverted, and Mr. Abercromby raised to the
Speaker's Chair, in spite of his poverty of pretension,
how will the account stand then ?
The Speaker's salary £5,000
Pension of Sir C. Manners Sutton 4,000

£9,000
Making a loss to the country of 2,0001. a year, be-
cause the Whig-Radicals choose to prefer an inexpe-
rienced gentleman, considerably advanced in years, for
Speaker, to one thoroughly qualified and in the vigour
of life. But this is not all. In the nature of things
it is impossible but Mr. Abercromby must be pen-
sioned off in a few years, and a younger and more
vigorous Speaker chosen—one who if he may not have
any experience, will at all events be competent to en•
dure the fatigues of that arduous office. In that case
an additional 4,0001. a year must go out of the public
purse, And then the account will stand thus—
The nest' Speaker £5,000
Sir C. Manners Sutton's pension
Mr. Abercromby pension

Cost to the country of the 8 peakership £13,000
Thus the country will have to bear the additional cost
of pensioning two Speakers instead of one, to pay for
this factious freak of the Whig-Radicals. If the loss
were to be incurred by the purchase of superior quali-
cations that would be another thing : but the Whigs
themselves have settled that question by putting upon
record their unqualified praise of the official conduct of
the late Speaker, than whom no man in any high of-
fice ever received more honourable testimonials to lus
public worth from his political adversaries. Whether
Mr. Whittle Harvey intends to vote for Mr. Aber-
cromby, because he is pledged to oppose all un-
merited pensions, we know not—or whether Mr. Hume
takes the same side in the contest, because he is pledged
to economy, and because he described the pension to
Mr. Abercromby, on a former occasion, as a mon-
strous job, we are equally unable to say. We leave
those Honourable Gentlemen to reconcile their votes
to their professed principles touching undeserved pen-