The Sun.
London, England, 1832-03-20 00:00:00

and those who represented the property, people of wealth
and consideration, would no longer find their way into the
House, and would no longer influence the councils of the
empire. The Bill would open the door of Parliament to
those who cajoled the people. It opened the dour to one
class who were not worthy, and it shut the door against
those who were worthy. It did that at a time when the
great interests of the colonies were at stake.
Mr. WILBRAHAM, adverting to the assertion of the
Noble Lord, that there were appearances of re-action on
the subject of Reform in the county of Chester, begged to
say, that although he did not pretend to judge the opinions
of his constituents on all the separate clauses of the Bill,
he could say this, that, judging from the enthusiasm they
displayed in favour of the Reform Bill, and from the
opinion they had expressed in favour of the present, he
did not think there could be any change in their eenti-
ments. T::e people of Cheshire had, with one voice,
joined in condemning the nomination boroughs, and on
that question, as well as many ethers, he knew their opi-
nions were unchanged. The Bill undoubtedly had many
defects. He did not mean to deny it; and he had said
so more than once in the course of the discussions on its
provisions: but what were all the defects, and feulta, and
anomalies of the Bill, compared with the enormities of the
present system ?—(Hear.) It had been said by some of
the opponents of the Bill that its provisions were a scaf-
fold, raised by a few artful, designing, and wicked men, to
forward the accomplishment of obi,cts which would
prove destructive to all order, and sap the foundations of
property. As long as human natttee remained the same,
there would be a difference of ranks and situations in
society, and mankind would be divided into the richer
and poorer classes. But, he would ask, were the great
mass of the people to remain deprived of their rights be-
cause there happened to be some few persons who would
wish to take advantage of the prejudices or misfortunes of
a clasp, in order to go further than prudence and ereperi-
euce would sanction ? He believed mast conscientiously
that the surest bulwark they could raise against such men
and their property would be the passing the Bill now before
the House into law. The time was gone when any party
of men could hope to govern this country by setting up
ore Administration and pulling down another. The
The people would no longer consent to be governed on any
other principle than that which was consistent with the
exercise of their constitutional rights.
Sir R. INGLIS said that when he icoked at the revo.
lutionary character of the Bill, and at the clauses which
swept away all that representation which had existed for
au many centuries, he was at a loss to know what was the
weight of the English language. In Fame ancient States,
when any one proposed to change their institutions or to
introduce a new law, they were accustomed to come
before the assemblies of the people, with a halter round
their necks, and if they failed to establish the propriety
or necessity of their laws, they were instantly sentenced
to be hanged. Now he (Sir R. Inglis) doubted very
much whether those who proposed the present Bill would
not, before such a tribunal, have been in dang.r of
having the law carried into execution.—(A laugh.) It was
contended, as one great reason for the changes proposed,
that the nomination boroughs were an evil; but was it
recollected that the greatest of Whigs, that fierce Cornet
of Horse as he was called at the time (Lord Chatham),
came into Parliament for the very rotten borough of Old
Sarum ? Tne Noble Paymaster of the Forces, too, who
now sat for the county of Devon, had himself entered that
House for one of these close boroughs which he (Sir 11.
Inglis) was happy to learn they were to preserve. He
said this advisedly, because he felt that in any state of
things it was advantageous to preserve such portions of
the ancient Constitution ; and he should feel equal plea-
sure to learn that every, borough of the same kind was to
be left in the hands of the Whigs, if they could he pre-
served for the advantage of the country. When Old
Sarum was mentioned, however, with so much oppro-
brium, it was right the House should understand the na-
ture of its constituency. He knew, on authority beyond
question, that the amount of property connected with
Old Sarum was above 1.500,000/. It had been said at
one time by the present Lord Chancellor of England, and
it produced a great impreseinn out of doors, that the
Nabob of Arcot had twenty Members in that House.
This number bad teen afterwards stated at eight, hut
both were grossly exaggerated. He had lately obtained a
sight of the documents connected with the transaction,
and he was able to say so on his knowledge.—(Lord
Althorp here asked across the table what was the
real number ?) The real number -was four. He did
not deny the criminality of the affair ; but he stated, as
he had a right to do, that its extent was grossly exag-
gerated. The real nature of the transaction was this :-
The Nabob of Oude had a claim to Tanjore, and had con-
tracted large debts to British subjects in enforcing that
claim. The Parliament of this country passed an Act to
enforce that claim, and the Nabob of Oude was driven to
the necessity of procuring Members to defend his interests.
He would ask, was there anything so indefensible in this ?
or was it a crime wholly without palliation that the
Nabob, at a time when the British Parliament were legis-
lating on questions affecting his interests, should be driven
to the purchase of seats in that House as the only means
left him, who was unrepresented, to defend his rights.
It bad been said, in the course of the discussion,
that ail the old voters retained their rights. But
how did they retain them ? He would take the city
of Bath as an example. Beth had now a Mayor, eight
Aldermen, and twenty-four burgesses, who are, or are sup-
posed to be, 101. householders. The number of voters when
the Bill passed would be 7,:314. Now he would ask
again, what franchise these burgesses of Bath would re-
tain ? It was somewhat like to the pouring out of
a bottle of rich wine into a horsepond, anti then pro-
nouncing the mixture as good as the original liquid.
—(A laugh.) It was, in fact, nothing less than virtual
disfranchisement. It had been made a matter of complaint
that the electors under the present system wore frequently
iti•uced to vote from motives of interest. He believed
that interest would not operate less under the new system
thau it did under the old one; and that as long as human
nature remained the same, popular elections, proceeding
from great masses of the people voting as a body, would
have the same character. As long as the mass of the
people were called on to exercise their right of election,
so lung would there be Burghs of Surrledown and Sir
Francis Wroneheads. The family of that B.ronet was,
indeed, one of the oldest and most extensive in England
—(a laugh.) Let every man reform himself, and as to
wh.iesale reform, that would then follow it without iri-
jury. It had been pretended that the measure was the re-
sult of the will of the people. He denied that it was sh ;
and he denied that the opposition to it, either in that or in
the other House of Parliament, was '6 the whisper of a
faction." Adverting to the letter addressed by the Prime
Minister to the Chairman of the Political Union of Bir-
mingham, relating to the-change of tenarecies, he asked
if any man, knowing previously the character of the No-
ble E rl, could have supp .sed him capable of writing
such a letter? Thirty years ago, the Right Hon. Mem-
ber for Knareeburough had declared, that the English
was the most Democratic Government that had ever
existed in the world.—(flear, hear.) Had anything
occurred since to render it less Democratic? And yet
his Majesty's Government were preparing to produce
a wholesale Democracy.—(Hear, hear. ) They were pre-
paring a representation which was to be a representation
merely of the phy-ical strength of the people. Adverting
to Ireland, he expressed his astonishment that any Mi-
nisters should be desirous of increasing a power in that
}louse, which it we evident, was ready to turn to any
side, and which therefore possessed the means of embar-
rassing any Government. A reference to the North
American Review would show what strangers thought of
the Bill. Wms it supposed that it was to he a final mea-
sure ? Far from it. It was evidently intended to lead to
ulterior proceedings.
Mr. SLANEY represented the great change in the
circumstances of time times and the character of the people,
which had been produced by the industry and the intelli-
gence of the present, as compared with former times.
Why, therefore, should not the great body of the people
return their representatives ? Those representatives
were sent there, not to exhibit splendid eloquence,
not to debate party questions, but to delieerate far the
good of the country. Who did nut know but that at pre-
sent the real business of the House was transacted by about
sixty or seventy Members?
Mr. PF.NIBERTON then addressed the House, and
contended against the principle of the Bill.
Mr. NIACAULAY, in answer to the argument set
forth by the Hon. Member for Oxford (Sir R. Inglis), that
the turbulent men in the various large towns would drive nut
the more peaceable and respectable inhabitants, and prevent
the return of gentlemen or sons of Peers, appealed to the
experience of the House as to the conduct at elections in
those places wherein the popular election already pre-
vailed. The people of England were said to be a happy
people. The happiness of nations was influenced by
some causes not of a political nature ; but still political in-
fluence had some effect, and the happiness of the people
was time best test to which they could bring the merits of
the Government. But he denied, in the first place, that the
condition of the people of England was one of unmixed
happiness; and in the next, that this measure was a mea-
When he heard from
sure of indiscriminate destruction.

some Hon. Gentlemen opposite that the people of England
were a happy p-ople, he could not but be astonished.
From the first time in which he had known anything. of

political affairs, be had tever heard of a king's Speech

that did not eontsio dediratiAls of the existence of distress

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