The Sun.
London, England, 1866-07-13 00:00:00

now hold in India pretty well as much as we can
govern, and that, at all e gents, until we have more
thoroughly consolidated our authority there, and
have left the marks of it by diffusing all the bless-
ings of the civilisation which we ourselves enjoy
among the populations of that vast empire—until
that happy time arrives, or until we have approxi-
mated to it much more nearly than now—we should
be pursuing an unwise and dangerous policy if we
tried to extend our borders or to lessen the power or
the permanence of those native rulers upon whose
assistance we have so long relied. (Cheers.) I be-
lieve the native princes were formerly the objects of
jealousy and distrust to English rulers, but within
the last ten years a great change has come over the
spirit of our statesmanship in that respect ; and
there is now, I think, a general desire to uphold
them in the rights and honours which they justly
earned by their loyal support at the time of the
mutiny, and to look upon them not as impediments
to our rule, but as its most useful auxiliaries.
(Hear.) Then, in foreign affairs, we see the same
convergence of opinions. We are now in the midst
of a terrible crisis. The most frightful calamities
are desolating the centre of Europe, and we sympa-
thise deeply no doubt with those upon whom such
fearful sufferings have fallen, though while so sym-
pathising, we yet cannot forget that it was the com-
bination of two powerful States a couple of years
ago to oppress a weaker neighbour that has brought
this terrible visitation upon Germany. Be that, how-
ever, as it may,and whatever our sympathies may be,
we have come to recognise that it is not our duty to
mark out the limitswhich the various States of the Con-
tinent should ob serve towards each other, and states-
men on all sides agree in holding that the first duty
of England in wielding the tremendous power which
she possesses is to look after her own interests and
uphold her own honour, and that when this is fully
attended to she may repose in peace. As long as the
honour of England is not infringed upon,
as long as
the interests of England are in no way prejudiced,
I believe that on no side of the Rouse and nowhere
among our statesmen is there any deesst
those unnumbered horrors which we read of in the
down upon ourselves the very small irpeartoticdleraowf
newspapers with
(Cheers.) If you thus glance so much reugreeetovaenrdthcoempumuistieuaraltfiioenld.
kl
i, thatu
y it
that
is
controversies
on nmatters
still reexil a..
stt-,
youing wtA:lidosmeees, Iticthinp
those considerable quahfi-
alicatdioenvsemn uswitthbellgarad. det°Some, indeed, of our conflicts
are, as I have said, vital. Take, for instance, the
question of the Established Church. There are some
who desire its entire overthrow, but I believe the en-
ormous majority both of the House of Commons and
of those whom the House of Commons represents,
recognise all the blessings which the existence of that
Church has long conferred upon these islands, and
sincerely wish to maintain her influence and her use-
fulness unimpaired. (Hear.) I think, too, that even
those conflicts which exist upon the subject of the
Church, and those differences of opinion which pre-
vail even among her best friends, will be found, if
you look at them closely, to be more often differences
on questions of fact rather than on questions of prin-
ciple. Take that which has been, perhaps, the sorest
point in ecclesiastical battles of recent years, the ques-
tion of Church-rates. If you examine the speeches of
those who have addressed the House on either side, you
will find that there is no difference of opinion, at
least not among the vast majority, as to whether
churches ought to be keptup or not. The controversy
is as to whether, if Church-rates were abolished,
the fabrics would be kept up or not; and that is
plainly not aldifference on a question of policy, which
it is hopeless to expect an agreement upon, but on
a question of fact, which, as opinion progresses, and
as the facts may be more clearly ascertained, it is
possible may be some day adjusted. The same re-
mark, I think, applies to the question which has sent
us here—l mean Parliamentary Reform. You find
some people who hold that every man in this coun-
try has a right to an equal share in the Government,
no matter whetker he holds a large stake in it or no
stake at all, and no matter whether he contributes
very little or very much to the taxation by which
the Government is carried on. They argue that,
without taking these circumstances in the least de-
gree into consideration, every man has an equal
right to a share in the government. That is a prin-
ciple which I am sure would never be endured for a
moment in commercial affairs, or any other of the
affairs of life, and I don't believe it will ever he
sanctioned by the great majority of the people of
this country. (Cheers.) But undoubtedly it is a
question of principle, and as long as that principle
is in dispute, so long upon that point we must ex-
pect constant, and, it may be, bitter contests. A
great deal, however, of the difference of opinion
upon the question of Reform, as brought out by the
recent debates, appeared to be on a question of fact
which further inquiry may tend to settle. For in-
stance, one great point of controversy was not whe-
ther one class ought to preponderate over other
classes, for the great majority of the House of Com-
mons, had that question been put, would have
affirmed that there ought to be a balance of classes,
and that none ought to have a preponderance ; but
the question was whether the measures before the
House wouldresult in the preponderance of the work-
ing class or not. Upon that point our information
was insufficient; but I have no doubt that when com-
plete information is brought before the minds of the
Legislature, the differences of opinion will not be so
great as they seem to be. The controversy as between
the rural districts and small towns on the one side
and the large towns on the other, was also as to a
question of fact. No one was bold enough to main-
tain that the great towns ought to dominate over
the rest of the country ; but the question was whether
a particular set of measures would have that effect.
It was thus a mere matter of statistics on which our
controversies to a great extent turned, and I in-
dulge the hope, therefore, that if more complete
information was obtained our differences would not
be so wide. (Hear, hear.) I make these observa-
tions because I am one of those who think that, as
it was expressed by Lord Derby the other night, the
dividing line of parties and the dividing line of
opinions do not coincide, and that many who sit on
opposite sides are really at one upon all important
subjects. Nothing, therefore, should be more de-
sired by all who love their country than that those
who agree in opinion should fight side by side for
the principles which they cherish. (Cheers.) I have
gone over these various topics in order to show that
in succeeding those whom we opposed, it does not
necessarily follow that upon all, or even upon the
majority of points, we shall pursue a widely diffe-
rent policy. With respect to the measures which
it may be our duty to introduce, and to the fate
which the Government may meet, or the complexion
which the contest of parties may hereafter assume,
this would not be the place for me to touch upon'
such matters, nor could I expect to offer any infor-
mation or conjectures which would be worth your
attention. I can only say that the conduct of the
party to which I belong has in past times given
sufficient guarantee that our first object, in what-
ever position we may be placed, will be to maintain
the honour and interests of the country over which
we have been called to rule, and whatever may be
the vicissitudes of politics I feel confident that you
will have no cause to regret that you contributed
by your representatives so
recently
formation
called f t the
has
Administration which
the s
ic or
jn do conduct
HAY,a
Ni
vr
cheered, said—
h
lof s.o
was (Loudi va warmly rs e
c
oteryonuodtiicde
mtheatnhle
anticipated,
before
h e youn t
ot
imuchnon t hssh aogr
honour of returning me as your representative,assuresme
but the reception you have given me
that I have not done wrong in accepting
noble
e in
ob
the new Administration. (Cheers.) My
friend has so clearly explained the course which the
Government is about to adopt, and its desire to
co-operate with all whose political opinions are not
entirely diverse from our own, that I should be tres-
passing unduly with your time were I to touch on
that topic. lie has accepted one of the noblest
positions to which an Englishman can aspire, hav-
ing been called to preside over the gorgeous empire
bequeathed to this country by the daring of Clive,
and cemented by statesmen of the greatest reputa-
tion, who have endeavoured to promote the inte-
rests of the millions whom Providence has com-
mitted to our care, and I feel sure that he will de-
vote all the energy and determination of his charac-