The Sun.
London, England, 1866-06-05 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS,

TIMES.—The debate of last night had about it an
air of unreality which detracted sadly from the
effect of the speeches delivered. Everybody knew
from the beginning what the result would be, and
the proceedings might almost as well have gone on
in dumb show. There was, of course, much excel-
lent display, plenty of beating the air and other
" exquisite fooling." No one was in earnest, except
Mr. Bernal Osborne, whose vivacity is always
greatest when nothing can come of it, and who had,
moreover, the pleasure of proving that everybody
was in the wrong but himself. The rest of the
combatants did not possess the easy self-satisfaction
of the new member for Nottingham, and were, in
fact, conscious that their position was a little ridi-
culous. They were like the redoubted champions
who faced one another ten days or a fortnight since,
and showed admirable science, but still somehow
disappointed their patrons. Men felt then that they
had not gone down into Kent by a special train,
kindly provided by the London, Chatham, and
Dover Railway Company at 4 o'clock in the morn-
ing, only to see Mace and Goss show how cleverly
they could avoid drawing blood, and in the same way
the house felt last night that it was scarcely worth
while to carryon the farce of debating Capt. Hayter's
amendment to a conclusion. Instead of throngs of
members, including many of the second if not of the
first rank, contending one with another who should
catch the Speaker's eye, even during the dinner hour,
as on the debate on the Franchise Bill, the attend-
ance was slack, the desire to speak anything but
widespread, the weariness inexpressible. W e be-
lieve that if the House of Commons were as omni-
potent as it sometimesimagines itself to be, it would
have voted the annihilation of the hours from 7 to
12, and so have precipitated the conclusion which
was all it wanted to accomplish. It is impossible to
misunderstand the issue of the debate on Captain
Hayter's amendment. The general opinion on the
demerits of the Government scheme was unchanged,
but the best friends of reform confessed that the
only thing to be done was to allow it to die a natu-
ral death, instead of strangling it at its entrance
into committee. In the spirited defence of the
scheme made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer
he confessed that a large portion of the Redistribu-
tion Bill was open to discussion, and that the Go-
vernment did not consider their plan of grouping a
necessary ingredient
iin their proposals. The Go-
vernment, it seems, s still bent on enfranchisement,
but as the House of Commons is resolved to pass
none but a complete scheme, the errors of the Re-
distribution Bill infect the consolidated measures.
Lord Grosvenor frankly declared his opinion that
the Franchise Bill was bad and the Redistribution
scheme unsatisfactory, but he thought a change in
the Government at present so hazardous that he was►
prepared to vote against the amendment, in the con-
fidence that her Majesty's Ministers would recog-
nise the impossibility of carrying their measure
through Parliament this session, and would there-
fore withdraw it. We adopt Lord Grosvenor's con-
clusion. There can,indeed, be no question but
that the critical relations between Austria, Prussia,
Italy, and France have
.saved the Ministry. It
inspire the. confidence of the
may be a matter of regret, in. the. interest of party
to inspire
exclusion from power has
Government, that the Opposition should be unable
to cross over to the Treasury. Bench for want of a
Foreign Secretary possessing both the knowledge and
country, but
hruer
tihsietier
nowhere been so damaging to them as in making
tranquillity abroad a necessary condition to their
assumption of office at home. Nor do we repine at
the result in the interest of Reform. Had a Liberal
Government been driven from, power by a hostile
division on Captain Hayte. r s amendment, Reform
would not have perished with them. The question
must be settled. The demands of the more advanced
section of the Liberal party would have grown, and
after a brief interval a Liberal Government would
have been reconstructed, pledged to accomplish the
results desired by the ardent supporters who had
reinstated them in power. It is possible that this
would have been the beginning of a fresh period of
disorganization ; it is more probable that the coun-
try, wearied of an apparently endless contest, would
have acquiesced in the schemes of the most
vociferous Reformers.
in It is no small satisfaction
to be spared this contingency. So long as the pre-
sent Ministry remain power they are pledged to
Reform ; but whatever Reform they may carry must
be carried with the help of the Opposition. The
pr present eonf t
withdrawingscheme
being
it . tshtdsroaown be acknowledged,
n,—and the neces-
sity
—we may expect to see it again next Session, based
on fuller knowledge and more mature reflection.
The Session has not been lost, for we have already
learnt to understand the practical consequences
onlyof c changes s
theoretical which in the beginning
considerations.
The members
of the Government themselves ought to confess
that they have been instructed by the discussion
to which their plans have been subjected ; and
if recourse were had during the recess to the as-
aigtanCe Of a cOnWaiSSiOn) we belieyg that a con-