The Sun.
London, England, 1844-02-15 00:00:00

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LONDON, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1844.

marks made by Lord JoHN RUSSELL, and considered
that they should legislate for Ireland, not only on just
and wise principles, but generously.
Lord CLEMENTS followed, and supported the mo-
tion.

After speeches from Mr. YOUNG, Sir GEORGE
GREY, and Lord ELIOT, the debate was again

adjourned.
A motion made by Mr. FERRAND relative to the
Poor-law Commission was negatived, and the House
adjourned at Half-past Twelve o'clock.

Another of the great weekly meetings of the Anti-
Corn-law League will be held this evening, at
Covent-garden Theatre. We are glad to find this
powerful national confederacy thus resolutely bent on
persevering in its strenuous and wholesome course of
agitation, and opposing to the monopolists—with the
time-serving Premier at their head—a front of stern
and bold defiance. The Leaguers owe it to them-
selves, not less than to the vast mass of their fellow-
countrymen, who have honoured them with their con-
fidence, to persist at all hazards in agitating the
momentous question
.of free trade; to abate one jot
of their determination—to exhibit, but for a single
instant, the slightest symptom of despondency—would
just now be death to all their hopes, and arm the
monopolists with tenfold power. It may be imagined
by some timid but well-intentioned persons that Sir
ROBERT PEEL'S late declaration in Parliament has
inflicted " a heavy blow and great discouragement"
on the cause of free trade ; in reality, however, it has
done no such thing, but has supplied the advocates of
that cause—by rousing the energies which a too
great confidence of success might have lulled
into a partial lethargy—with just the sort of brisk
stimulus that is necessary to carry them triumphantly
forward. They must now see that the time for
parley—the time for trusting in the favourable dis-
position of Sir R. PEEL—is for ever past ; and that
nothing can henceforth serve their turn, or bring
eventual victory to their banner, but a fierce, sys-
tematic, continuous, sleepless, and unwearying course
of agitation. The Leaguers must strictly fol-
low the advice given some years since to the
friends of Catholic Relief—they must " agi-
tate—agitate—agitate !" This must be their
first—this their second—this their third prin-
ciple of action. And in this spirit they will act,
and the result cannot fail to be a decided triumph.
For let no man dream for an instant, that because the
Premier has declared himself this session against free
trade, he will of necessity repeat the same declara-
tion next session. You may as well expect that an
April wind shall blow for a month together from
the same point of the compass, as that our fickle,
fluctuating Minister will abide by a past de-
claration—no matter how unqualified its tone—
when he finds it essential to his interest to throw it
overboard. He will be governed, as he always has
been throughout his not very brilliant career, by ex-
pediency, and by expediency alone. It is lucky
for the Leaguers that this is the case, for they have
in the Premier's utter disregard of consistency,
their best assurance of success. They have only
to look sharp after the election branch of their system
of agitation, and achieve, as opportunity offers, a few
more such solid triumphs as they achieved the other
day at Durham,Kendal, and London, to compel Sir Ro-
BERT PEEL to withdraw his opposition, and come for-
ward as an advocate for a further alteration in the
corn-laws. But this will not be enough. No-
thing ought and we are quite sure that no-
thing will satisfy the League, but a total
abolition of this grinding impost. They must "go
the whole hog " in agitation, and not rest satisfied
with such a small concession as a fixed duty. As the
grievance is oppressive, so must the remedy be com-
plete and not partial. Meantime, as regards the mo-
nopolists, these men are just now, we perceive, in a
high state of tumultuous exultation. They are effer-
vescing in all quarters, and think that they have
at length got the slippery Premier fast in their
clutches. But they are mistaken ; for, like an eel, he
has got a trick of slipping through men's fingers just
at the moment when they are most sure of him. As
he acted with Catholic Emancipation and the Test
Acts, so will he act with the corn-laws. The
movements of the League will be the barome-
ter by which he will be guided. When he
finds them wresting a few more towns and cities
from the tenacious grasp of the monopolists, and
adding daily to the number and weight of their sub-
scriptions and their proselytes, that instant he will
cry " Peceavi," tip his party the " cold shoulder,"
and hold out the right hand of fellowship to the
triumphant Member for Stockport.