The Sun.
London, England, 1835-01-07 00:00:00

READING.

TUESDAY EVENING, JAN. 6.—The election of two members
for this borough commenced this morning at eight o'clock.
The candidates being Mr. B. Oliveira, Mr. Sergeant Tal-
fourd, and Mr. Russell. The two former steady and strenuous
advocates of reform, arid the latter " a Conservative of the first
water." At the close of the pool at four o'clock this day the
cumbers were—
Mr. Serjeant Talfourd
Mr. Oliveira
Mr. Russell 174
The late member, C. F. Palmer, did not come forward, but
retired in favour of Mr. Talfourd. 400 electors have polled.

EDINBURGH.

CITY.

(Abridged from the Caledonian. Mercury of Monday,)
SIR JOHN CAMPBELL'S ADDRESS.

,
Sir John Campbell, having hilted tue electors to meet him
in the Waterloo loems, on Saturday, at two o'clock after-
noon, to receive from him an explanation of his p?litir.l ten,.
timeuts, a large body of persons accordinglr anembled in that
place. The room, indeed, was crowded in every quarter.
Sir John was accompanied by Mr. Abercromby, the Lord
Provost, Professor Napier, Mr. J. B. Greenshields, advocate,
Mr. Thomson, advocate, Mr. Cuninghame, advocate, Mr.
James Craufurd, advocate, Mr. Peddie, W. S., Mr. F.
Howden, Mr. John Anderson, jun., &c., and a number of
members of his Committee. He was received with great
enthusiasm.
On the motion of Mr, Andrew Miller, the Lord Provost
was called to the chair.
Sir J.' CAMPBELL then rose amidst cheering and waving of
hats, which having subsided, he proceeded as follows :—Gen-
tlemen, I have had offer,' from other quarters, which I have
respectfully declined, and I hurried down to Edinburgh the
moment I saw the King's proclamation. I own to you, that
until I read that proclamation, I doubted whether the present
Ministry would have had the folly, I had.almost said wicked-
ness—( Hear)—abruptly to dissolve the first Reformed Parlia-
ment that ever sat in Great Britain.—(Cheers.) But, gen-
tlemen, they have played out their last trump.—(Laughter
and cheers.) We are told that the country has lately suffered
much from agitation, and we have heard much of the pressure
from without. But, gentlemen, who are the agitators now ?
Before two months expire, I am afraid there will be an agita-
tion in this country of which we have had no example during
the existing generation. And who have caused that agitation ?
Who but the pretended enemies of agitation, and those who
say they wish tranquillity to prevail. Tranquillity did prevail.
The people were contented, and submissive to the laws ; they
wished to have their grievances redressed by their own repre-
sentatives. But an act has been done, the consequences of
which I look forward to with dismay and apprehension. lam
afraid a collision is about to take place, not merely between
party and party, but between different classes of this great
community ; and unless men more disinterested, more cool-
headed, and more wise, than those who have resorted to the
measure of a dissolution shall interpose, I tremble for the con-
sequences. Gentlemen, there was little to be exi ected from
a Ministry that came into existence in the manner in which
the present Administration was created. I must always speak
respectfully of the prerogative of the Crown • but I cannot
forget that the prerogative is vested in his :Majesty for the
good of the people. I shall always speak with reverence and
affection of the Sovereign now upon the Throne. But
at the same time, gentlemen, I must freely, and as a British
subject, declare, that the exercise of that prerogative by which
the late Administration was dismissed was most unconstitutional.
Well, gentlemen, what took place upon the dismissal of that
Government?, You had the Dictatorship, or, as it might be
called, the Protectorate of the Duke of Wellington. The
Duke became Dictator, and combined in his one person the
offices of Secretaries of State, First Lord of the Admiralty,
President of Council, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
He was, I may say, Attorney and Solicitor-General—( Loud
laughter)—for, although we remained nominally in office du-
ring the Dictatorship, it was only to sign papers and perform
routine business. And, gentleman, this will require some
explanation—for you, my constituents, may well ask whether
I ought not to be ashamed of having been Attorney-General
to the Dictator.—( Laughter.) lam astonished I received no
letters from you complaining of a breach of duty. But I may
inform you, that there was a meeting held (after my Right
Hon. Colleague had left London, however) of those who had
enjoyed office during the late Administration, to'take into
consideration whether or not they should continue to act in
any manner after Lord Melbourne's dismissal, and it was then
stated to be an invariable rule to retain office until successors
should be appointed, and we therefore resolved to make no
exception to the general rule, nor factiously to oppose the
new Government—in short, to do nothing disrespectful towards
the Crown, but to continue nominally in office until Sir Ro-
bert Peel should return from Italy—at the same time protest-
ing that this should not impede our calling in question this
unconstitutional state of affairs. For since the time of Au-
gustus, who acquired absolute power in a manner very much
the same, there had been nothing like it in Europe. I ab-
solve the Duke of Wellington froth entertaining any ambi-
tious notion of acquiring and retaining absolute power ; but
I must say, that that act, if allowed to pass uncensured, may
prove fatal to the liberties of the country.—( Hear, hear. )
At last Sir Robert Peel arrived from Italy, and the Duke laid
down the fasces. Sir Robert issued his manifesto. Gentle-
men, I know not, for I have had so little opportunity since
then to mix with you, what you thought of that production.
But I know that in London it was thought at best to be rather
a shuffling production. It bound Sir Robert Peel down to
one thing—namely, to hold sacred all the abuses of' the Irish
Church, but it left him quite loose in every thing else. Sir
Robert Peel is an honourable man, and I believe will prove
himself to be a consistent one. He says he would never have
accepted of place at the price of being an apostate to his opi-
nions. Gentlemen, I belieVe that is true. I believe that Sir
Robert Peel has ever regretted the part which he took, as a
minister of the Crown, in carrying the measure of Catholic
emancipation. I have myself observed him show great bitter-
ness and soreness upon that subject. If these, then, are the
sentiments of Sir Robert Peel with regard to the part he took
in carrying Catholic emancipation, which he had always before
opposed, you may rest assured that he will remain consistent,
and will be Orange Peel to the last.—( Laughter and cheers.)
Well, then, Gentlemen, what do you think of Sir Robert's
colleagues ?—beginning with Sir Edward Knatchbull and
ending with Lord Roden—all Ultra- Orange 2—( Cheers. )
How do you think Sir Robert Peel will like to march through
Coventry with such a regiment ?—( Laughter and cheers. )
How is he to control such a Cabinet ? There are none of his
colleagues who have not both spoken and voted against all
those points on which he says he is a Liberal. I cannot help
thinking, that if he had his way, Parliament would not have
been dissolved; and I must foresee that he will be overruled in
all important points, and that Ultra-Toryism will be the order
of the day.--( Cheers.) Gentlemen, when the new Parliament
meets, I am afraid the situation of the Ministry will resemble
that of the ancient Britons when the Romans had withdrawn—
they will find only barbarians on one side, and the sea on the
other.—( Cheers.) You will have all heard of a letter
written to Rome, called " The Tears of the Briton."
I suspect you will soon hear of a letter written from London
by Sir George Clerk—( Hear, hear)—or some etlier of
his colleagues, superscribed " The Tears of tl' Vories."—
(Great cheering.) They were afraid the late
would swamp them ; but they will 'tate Parliament
and the new Par-
-1 liament worse. To hope for l'.l:Jeral measures from sueh
men as the new Ministry., I say is entirely vain.—
Looking, Gentlemen, at the.., new list of the Ministry, I think
it would be the best a''..vertisement that a liberal candidate
could offer, to hold up to the electors. There is not to be
found in this list one single individual who did not speak
against, vote '',,gainst, in every stage, and exercise his utmost
infiuenc'e to prevent the Reform Bill from passing, and to
keep '':;ou in slavery.—(Great cheering.) I shall not fac-
tio.ur,ty oppose the new Government. But I say this, that
unless those who are appointed by the King possess the
''..-onfidence of the people, they ought to be removed.—( Great
cheering.) It is not for me to speak of the measures which
were in contemplation by the late Administration. I was
but an humble individual. I was not a Member of the Ca-
binet. But I must anticipate, notwithstanding what Sir R.
Peel says, that Municipal Reform will take place. You
have no idea in this country of the corruptions existing in
the English Corporations. Many existed in your's ; but
your's were poorer and purer. The English Corporations
possess enormous wealth, which they dedicate to the cause
of corruption. In many of the great cities of England, the
people are tyrannised over by a selfish and odious Oligarchy.
But I hope a stop will soon be put to all municipal abuses,
and that this will be one of the first objects of any new Go-
vernment which may be established. I hope also there will be
reforms in the Church. Regarding the Irish Church, Gentle-
men, I must consider it as an abuse altogether.—(Cheers.)
I shall glory to see that abuse rectified ; but I never would
consent to touch ecclesiastical property, or divert it from eccle-
siastical purposes.—( Hisses and cheers.) I hope it is unne-
cessary for me at present to go into any exposition of those
principles on which I solicit your support. Ido not wish to
trench upon the rights of the House of Lords as they exist ;
but I earnestly wish that they were more enlightened, more
liberal, more discerning, and that they knew better the situa-
tion in which they are placed.—(Cheers.) With regard to
civil rights and privileges, I wish to see all on a level, and
that they should be equally dispensed both to Churchmen and
Dissenters, and to attain that object I shall assiduously labour;
and it is upon these grounds, and on these principles, that I
now again solicit your suffrages to return me as your represen-
tative in Parliament.—( Immense cheering and waving of hats.)
Mr. KNOX, teacher, then rose and asked of Sir John whe-
ther he would, if returned to Parliament, advocate a farther
extension of the franchise in any degree ?
Sir JOHN CAMPBELL replied, that at the present moment he
would not.

Mr. Kmox then asked whether Sir John would be favour.
able to the introduction of the ballot?
Sir JOHN CAMPBELL considered the ballot an evil, but it
might become a necessary evil. It was desirable, however,
that every man should be allowed boldly and openly, and with-
out apprehension, to exercise the franchise in the face of the
country._( Cheers. )
Mr. KNox next asked, whether Sir John would support the
repeal of the Septennial Act ?
Sir JOHN CAMPBELL considered the origin of the Septennial
Act a great usurpation and stretch of power ; and it could only
be defended on the ground of its being necessary for a tempo-
rary purpose, and he should rejoice to see it repealed, and Par-
liaments of such length as should allow public business to go
on in a proper manner, without making representatives inde-
pendent of their constituents.—( Cheers.)
Sir JOHN, in answer to the next question from Mr. Knox,
whether he would oppose any and every measure of the Peel
Administration, said, that so far from that, if Sir Robert Peel
should move for leave to bring in a bill for the reformation of
the Church of Ireland. he should second the motion--( Cheers. )
Mr. KNOX agreed with the latter sentiment, but on the
other questions he was any thing but satisfied—( Laughter.)
Mr. PEDDIE then asked if he would vote for the repeal of
the Corn Laws ?

Sir JOHN was an enemy to all restrictions on trade, and
wished to see that in corn as free as any other; but in the
existing depression of the agricultural interests, he thought
any violent or immediate change was to be avoided.
Mr. CRAIG, tailor, asked if Sir John would support a mea-
sure for the endowment of Popery in Ireland ?—( Hisses.)
Sir JOHN replied, that he should not wish to sec the Roman
Catholic religion endowed.
Mr. J. B. GREENSHIELDS, advocates then rose and moved., I