The Sun.
London, England, 1866-12-19 00:00:00

Merchant Taylors' School.

The winter speeches were delivered yesterday—
familiarly called " The Doctors'-day"—at the con-
clusion both of the half-year and of the half-yearly
examination, held as usual by the Venerable Arch-
deacon Browne, the Rev. Charles Matheson, and
Professor Hall. At two o'clock the Rev. Dr.
Hessey, the head-master, introduced the Master of
the Company, the Wardens, the Examiners, and
the members of the Court into the large school-
room, where a vast gathering of old pupils and of
the boys and their friends were assembled to receive
them.

Dr. Hessey announced the prizemen for the half-
year, and adverted to the satisfactory circumstance
that at Oxford in 1865 and 1866 Merchant Taylors'
men had appeared ten times in the first class lists.
In the evening a grand banquet was given by the
Master and Wardens in honour of the day.
After the toasts of " Church and Queen," "The
Royal Family," " The Army and Navy" (for which
Colonel Beadle and Sir C. Nicolson responded),
and " The Lord Mayor, the Magistrates, and
Sheriffs,"
The MASTER proposed "The Two Houses of
Parliament," coupling with the toast the name of a
gentleman who, in spite of the clamour of faction,
and of all that professional demagogues were able
to say, had deserved well of his country, and earned
the gratitude of his fellow-citizens—Mr. Lowe.
(Cheers.)
Mr. LOWE said—There was a time when no man
could have thrown upon him an easier or a more
agreeable office than that of returning thanks for the
House of Commons. It was, in fact, a sort of rhe-
torical bed of roses. The sympathies of the audience
went so heartily with the efforts of the orator, his
feelings and those of the nation were so entirely in
unison, that the man must indeed have been a novice
in his art who could not command a cordial approval
from every assembly while descanting on such a
theme. But times are changed. The House of
Commons, which used to be the admiration of most
foreign countries, and the pride and glory of our
own, the cynosure of our institutions, thegem of our
history, so that at the very name of it every English
heart beat more proudly--that institution which
we have cherished for 600 years, and which in these
600 years has ripened, matured, amplified, expanded
until we thought we had made it an instrument of
Government such as the world had never seen before
placed in the hands of any nation—that noble insti-
tution is becoming a scoffing and a by-word among
certain classes inthis country. (Hear, and laughter.)
It has become among those persons the target at
which every shaft is aimed, the flag which they like
to drag and trample upon. It is with no common
emotion, then, that I rise to return thanks for the
toast you have so kindly received. In my humble
judgment the House of Commons has not during the
recess received that treatment from assemblies of
Englishmen to which its glorious past and its most
useful and industrious present fairly entitle it.
(hear, hear.) I have never asked more for the House

of Commons than this, that it should be tried by the
same test as is applied to all other institutions in
this country ; that if it is objected to people should
point out in what respect it has failed ; if it is thought
to have failed, that the specific faults which have
led to its failure should be pointed out, and that
retneciies should also be suggested, not vaguely and
at large, but specifically and definitely. This is the
challenge I have given. It has never been replied to,
and therefore, n twithstanding all the obloquy
poured upon us—notwithstanding that some critics
have not been satisfied with passing in review our
intellectual defects, but have even described our
physical Lk:fora:ides, that we, who for our ages,
are, perhaps, as good-looking as others, are pub-
licly denounced as little-minded, hump-backed, one- •
eyed semndrels—(laughter)—notwithstanding all
this obloqity, I will venture to speak up for the
House of Commons, and will say that you will pro-
bably get a worse before you geta better. (Cheers.)
I say further that in the House of Commons you
have an assembly eminently intelligent, and that no
one acquainted with its debates can fail to be sur-
prised how admirably members who are not in the
habit of addressing the house acquit themselves
with ability when it is necessary that they should
speak, though they may not have had sufficient

energy or adequate inducement before to display
that ability. It was also eminently business-like,
and I do not believe there is an assembly in the
world which goes through the same amount of la-
bour with the same amount of care, attention, and
ability. (Hear.) Then it is an orderly assembly.
Though it is more numerous than any other assem-
bly, it keeps its members in order, or assists its
Speaker so to do, better than any assembly which
ever existed ; and this, without the aid of a bell,
without the necessity every now and then of sus-
pending the sitting for half an hour ; in short, with-
out any of those mechanical devices which are re-
quired elsewhere. (A laugh.) I will say, moreover,
that as a body we are pure ; our hands are clean ;
no " wire-pullers," no " lobbyers" frequent our
lobbies to induce us to prostitute our high offices for
the purpose of individual gain. (Hear.) Then I
think I may also say that in the course of the last

30 years the House of Commons has erected a dur-

able monument to its own memory in the improve-
ments which it has made in our Government. No
institution is perfect, and we have our defects. But
I recur to the point I started with—before you
change us away make quite sure that you are going
to get something better in exchange. (Cheers.) Re-
member, the House of Commons amalgamates with
all parts of the Government. If you injure it you
injure every department of the public service, from
_ _ _

the highest to the lowest. My voice was therefore

raised strongly not against all change, but against
any change that was hasty and ill-considered, be-

cause every change is irrevocable ; and if a wrong
step be taken, it is by no means to be measured by
the direct injury which it occasions, but the mis-
chief which it works indirectly cannot be calculated.
(Cheers.) As this, therefore, is the first opportunity
which I have had for many months of speaking in
public on this subject, I am most anxious to express
the hope that these things will be well considered
and cautiously dealt with. Like every good Eng-
lishman, I am prepared to bow to the majority of
the intelligence and property of the country ; and l
have no doubt that whatever they do, if deliberately
done, will be well done. But let nothing be done
in a hurry. Let us think well before parting with
the certain good we have and accepting the very
doubtful good which is promised in exchange for it.
(Cheers.) The House of Peers is, of course, in-
volved in every consideration 1 have mentioned.
One great problem to be thought over is this—are
you prepared to part with the House of Peers ; and,
are you not bound to see that any change
you may
make in the constitution' of the House of
Cifoltinoitn; ons is of such a nature that it will be enabled
still to work on in harmony with the Hous3 of
Peers'? (Hear, hear.) lVith these observations I

beg to return my most sincere thanks fur the favour
which you, at least, are still inclined to show to
those most venerable and, I think, most beneficial
institutions. (Loud cheers.)
The Examiners," "The Masters and Wardens
of the other City Companies," anti " The Visitors"
were the next toasts.

In responding to the last, Archdeacon HALE sad
to had regretted and oppo-ied the removal of

Charterboue, but he now received consolation from
the thought that the glorious playgrounds would

still be occupied by young boys, and that the great
work of a public school education would still

prosper in the midst of the metropolis.

Choy Cuni Chung is the name of a Chinese
school-teacher in San Francisco.