The Sun.
London, England, 1835-06-20 00:00:00

sure was proposed by men (I speak ofcourse inyja:po-
litical sense) without one atom of principle—one grain
of judgment." And therefore, because such was the case,
Mr. GOLDSMITH would have us believe that the Right
Hon. Baronet was justified in acting, as he did Really
this is the most extraordinary reasoning we ever heard.
Conceive a man with two ideas in his head, gravely
gettiwg up and informing us, that a British Senator has
acted wisely in supporting a Bill, whose only recom-
mendation is, that it has been brought forward by men
without " one atom of . principle—one grain of judg-
ment I" Had the measure in question been projected
by an honest Cabinet, then, on Mr. GoLDsmiTies
showing, Sir R. PEEL would have been bound to
oppose it : but the extreme rascality of its authors
justifies his approval of it I Oh, rare logician I
Hide thy diminished head, Dogberry I Thou art
nothing to GOLDSMITH.
When we first perused the above apologetic sen-
tence, we took for granted that it was merely one of
those small jokes, which " gentle dullness" is so apt to
crack ; but long before we had concluded the Report
of the Meeting, we found—or fancied we had found—
a clue to it. The dinner, as appears by the account
in our contemporary the Post, was a most uproarious
one : the usual Conservative toasts being drank, not
with " three times three," but the majority with " nine
times nine," and " one cheer more !" Now, on
referring to Mr. GOLDSMITH'S speech, we find
that it comes immediately after a health, which was
drunk with
," nine times nine," and " one cheer
more ;" and we cannot, for the life of us, help thinking
that it was this unlucky " one cheer more"—for nothin;
makes a gentleman so thirsty as cheering—that was the
source of Mr. GOLDSMITHS inspired eloquence. We
state this with great deference, and shall be glad to
find that our surmises (for, after all, they are only
surmises) are ill-founded.

Mr. FOWELL BUXTON last night brought forward
his -motion for a Bill to suspend for one year the
payment of the twenty millions ,_l•ranted to the
India planters, and for the appointrint of a

aittee to enquire whether the provisions of the Bill
or the Abolition of Slavery have been complied
ith. No one who knows Mr. BUXTON, or who
is qualified to appreciate his indefatigable labours in
the great cause of humanity, can for a moment doubt,
that in making this motion, he was actuated by the
purest and highest motives. At the same time it is
impossible to read his speech, and the reply of Sir G.
GREY, without being convinced that there exist nn
grounds whatever for having recourse to the extreme
proceeding which he recommended.
To have suspended the payment of the compensa-
tion money voted by the British Parliament •n certain
conditions, and therefore due to those who have ful-
filled the conditions, would have been a breach of
faith, which, in our opinion, would have greatly tar-
nished the lustre of the most splendid act of justice
that ever was performed by a nation. Had any of the
Colonial Legislatures refused to sanction the emanci-
pation of the negroes ; or had they, after formally
sanctioning it, thrown obstacles in the way of its
practical effect, there would have been good
reason to pause before putting such Colonies
on a footing with those which had shown an earnest
desire to co-operate with the mother country in giving
freedom to the slave. And this proper course has in
fact been pursued by the Government in regard to
British Guiana, Honduras, and the Cape of Good
Hope. But to propose that the whole of the planters
in our West India Colonies should be so severely
punished—because one or two instances of individuals
having infringed the law had occurred—is a proof
how easily the best men may overlook the claims of
justice, even when they think they are pleading its

cause.
The speech of Sir G. GREY will be read with
the greatest satisfaction by the friends of Eman-
cipation. It seems to us completely to have set
at rest the question about the non-productiveness
of free negro labour, and the dreaded ruin of the West
India proprietors. What can the croakers on this
subject say to the facts that, in some instances, more
produce has been raised on certain estates, with fewer
hands, since the new system commenced ; that land is
rising fast in value in some of the Colonies ; and that
during the eight months which have elapsed since the
Apprenticeship Act came into operation, not a single
act of injury has been done by any negro to a white
man, nor a life but one—out of a negro population of
800,000—sacrificed in consequence of violating the law.

The important question of the continuation of the
sugar duties was discussed in the House of Commons
last night, and was settled in a way which, we thinL,
be satisfactory to the country. There eau be no doubt

that the price of sugar is raised to the consumer, by the
additional duty now levied on that which is the produce of '
the East Indies, and that this duty ought to be equa-
lized; though perhaps the advantages and disadvan-
tages accruing from such equalization to the parties
respectively concerned have been somewhat overrated.
But we think the reasons assigned by the CHANCELLOR
of the EXCHEQUER for contiuuing the present duties
for another year, are such as ought to produce general
.)equiescence in the plan recommended by him. It
is gratifying, at the same time to find from what fell
from the Right Hon. Gentleman, and from the gene
ral tone of the debate, that this will be the last
year of the duties. The additional duty on East India
Coffee grown in our own colonies is to cease immediately.

ROBERT ADAM DUNDAS has, our readers are
aware, already acquired some celebrity. Whether it
be exactly that kind of celebrity which a noble-minded
man would desire, we do not pretend to decide.
He contrived, by hook and by crook, to get into the
House of Commons, as joint Member for Ipswich, with
his friend, and brother in iniquity, Mr. F. KELLY.
Both these gentlemen have been turned out of the
House, with a label on their backs, bearing that
they are incapable of sitting in the, present Par-
liament. We have not heard what Mr. KELLY
is doing-7-he wisely keeps himself quiet ; but his
late colleague, Mr. R. A. DUNDAS, has, it is kaid,
been taken up by the Carlton Club, and is to be
brought forward, as soon as the foul deeds of bribery
.are purged away by a dissolution, to oppose Mr.
HANDLEY in South Lincolnshire. We can hardly

give credit to the report, because, though we are quite
sure that the TorieS love bribery with all their hearts,
vet they have no love for bungling bribers. Let the Re-
i'orrners of South Lincolnshire, however, be on their
guard. They have enemies to deal with who know
well how to mask their intentions. Semper parat US
should now be the motto of every Reformer.

It is understood that the Municipal Reform Bill
will not be suffered to pass through the Committee,
without an attempt to substitute Voting by Ballot, in
the election of the Town Councils, &c., for the mode
of voting by polling papers, which is proposed as part
of the present Bill. The supporters of Mr. GROTE'S
late motion will not let such an opportunity pass by,
of making a further stand for the great principle of se-
cret voting, which is indeed one of the mainsprings of
freedom of election, whether of Municipal Officers, or
Repres,;:ntatives in Parliament.

The object sought to be attained, is, the electionif
the numit efficient and trustworthy Burgos es for Tow
Councillors. But the influence of wealth and family
cOnnexion (leaving out of the question the operation
of direct bribery and corruption), will infallibly tend to
induce inhabitants to vote—not for the best of men,
but for those whom it is most the voter's interest to
oblige ; or, in other words, according to their own.in-
terest, and not that of the town. If votes are kept secret