The Sun.
London, England, 1844-03-28 00:00:00

importation of foreign corn—two reasons alike con-
clusive. It was not to be introduced from one
country, because they could send corn here; nor
from the other, because they had none to send. Such
was held to be a sufficient reason for keeping the law
as it was, and for saving the landlord from a panic.—
' ([rear, hear.) And were they really so sensitive as
all this ? Might there not be yet some further reasoji
for this sensitiveness than any apprehension of the
influx of Indian corn ? There was no Tamboff in
India that could possibly create such misgivings
in their minds as to make them fearful of even ap-
proaching the shadow of an alteration in these laws.
Was it not rather that the Ministers themselves were
held strictly to their allegiance ? It was not a panic
among the landowners that was dreaded, but a panic
in the Cabinet.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) Lest
those who created that Cabinet should take it into

their heads to destroy it, the members of it prudently
abstained from making any relaxation in their policy.
If such was the miserable state of subjugation—the
degraded dependence in which the Administration of
this great county was placed, he thought, when there
was so much sympathy for slavery of all kinds—for the
negro under the lash, and even for those who worked

by— their free consent in the factories, surely some
voluntary association should be established for the
emancipation of her Majesty's Ministers.--(Cheers.)
In those various indications, the attentive looker-on

would see different forms and phases, conveying the,
intention of obstinate resistance, under one form or.

other. He would naturally ask how was that r-
sistance to be maintained ?—where were its bounds?

—what was its strength ?—(Hear, hear.) One House
met his eye which was made up of landowners—not
with landowners free indeed, who held receipts in
full, but still, in right of the class to which they be-
longed, hereditary legislators—some of them might
have fought battles, and some of their grandfathers
came by their titles and estates by worse tricks
than gaining battles. This class formed a legisla-
tive body, when the capacity for law-making was
presumed to descend from generation to generation.
—(Hear, hear.) Another body there was in the
exercise of considerable influence, which purported
to be a constitutional and fair representation
of the people of this country. There were
some recent returns which illustrated the

relation in which the great bulk of the people
stood with the possessors of landed property. These
returns showed that of the English voters four-
sevenths were country voters. Of these country,
voters one-quarter of the whole number were 501.

tenants-at-Will. In Wales the country voters were
differently divided, and the tenants-at-will had a

clear majority.—(Hear, hear.) Of 320,000 borough
voters in England, 120,000 and upwards belonged to
the lass of freemen and liverymen, and scot and lot
voters and pot-wallopers. (Laughter.) Large
masses of these voters were capable of being acted
upon by corrupt influences, and they were so in
fluenced, sometimes directly, but more frequently
by indirect means. One man influenced his depen-
dent, or protege, and he, in turn, influenced his
neighbour. Men filling the highest situation were
not ashamed to be parties to proceedings of this
kind ; and, only a few days ago, a circumstance
was reported in the Morning Chronicle, which was
only one of thousands that daily took Place. A Ca-
binet Minister of this country, who had acquired
much reputation for skill in farming, advertised that
he had a farm to let—various offers were made, but
one was higher than the rest—the highest bidder was.

admitted to a special interview with the landlord's
agent, who having been satisfied with the cha-

razter and respectability of the proposed tenant, was
on the point of deciding, when the following conver-
sation occurred :—" Agent—What are your politics?
Offerer—Liberal. Agent—What religious persua-
sion do you belong to ? Offerer—l am a Dis-

senter. Agent—But the tenant of this farm must vote,
go to church, and poll with his landlord.—(Groans.>
Offerer—Then, Sir, I am not prepared to sacrifice
my religious and political principles to gratify your
master's lust for power."—(Cheers.) Thus were
Englishmen befooled, but if the system were tho-
roughly exposed through the press it would be shamed
out of existence. This was the way the landocrucy
attempted to control the consciences of their depend-
ents, and too often did control them. They seemed to
say in the words of Campbell, " Oh, we know all
about God Almighty better than you do a thousand
times." A few days ago an excellent school had been
put down by one of these landowners because its en-
lihtened aad liberal mode of education did not suit
his taste, which was in accordance with the Scotch
_ _ _ _ _

Judge who presided at the trial of Muir and Palmer,
and who said that no man had a right even to speak of
the Constitution unless he possessed landed property.
Here, then, was a power which might long resist the
force of public opinion, but what would be the con-
sequences of that resistance ? Was it possible, with
such a feeling as had been evinced in the many meet -
ings that had been held there, and which prevailed
to so large an extent throughout the country—vvas it
possible with the strong conviction and determination
which millions and millions of their countrymen en-
tertained on this subject—was it possible that no evil
should result from such a collision ? Was it pos-
sible that the consequences, the unhappy consequences,
of the present condition of multitudes should not pro-
duce their results in the limitation of manufacturing
industry—in the failure, one after another, of our
markets—in the alternation of seasons of varying com-
mercial and agricultural distress—in suffering more
deep than any charitable societies, or any mitigated
system of poor-laws would ever be able to reach ?
These were gigantic, yet at the same time growing
evils, that must sooner or later be grappled with, and
by a statesmanship equal to the achievement of the
largest commercial reform that any country perhaps.
ever yet experienced. But what else could be done ?
What else was to be done ? There was some talk
of emigration, of exporting a portion of the people of
this country to other lands. They did not send
away their horses, or if they did it was for a high
price, showing the estimate set upon their
worth.—(Laughter.) The horses did not go
about neighing by way of petitioning every human
being for work ; he was too valuable for that ; but
let him walk on two legs instead of four; let him
have what was called " the human face divine ;"
let him be capable of looking up in high aspiration
to Heaven; let him have a brain where thought might
work in all its mighty energie; let him have a heart
beating with affection; let him have strength in his.
arm, still all this could not avail him, he must ga
about asking for work, and perhaps after all be told,
that although a horse was valuable, yet that a man
was worthless ' • and that the best thing that could
be done with him, was to send him out of the
country.—(Cheers.) There was a time when a
.human being—they were told by the highest au-
thority—was " of more value than many sparrows."
—(Hear.) But this was not said now—at
sparrow was worth something to the country peopk,
who could put it into a pudding, but a pauper 'who
was neither wanted for work nor fit to be eaten, it
seemed that the only thing that could be dose with
him was to send him out of the country. As far as
this hopeful idea was capable of being carried out now,
there was a disposition evinced to do it; those who
might enrich the land by their toil—who might by
earning their own means of subsistence minister to
the support and gratification of others, even though
those others should dwell in distant regions—they
would, if such a policy could be wrought out, be
driven in shoals to the coast, there to be shipped oft;
bound to some Cape—not of Good Hope—but of hope
most forlorn—some to Canada—some to Australia;
and if they went in such vessels as were usually
given to emigrants as transports—some perhaF,
bound to eternity—startling the depths of ocean.
(Loud cheers)—by an unexpected invasion orr a
colony of emancipated corpses. It was said that the
country was making strides in demoralisation. *What
hold could spiritual teachers have on a pea* who
had to battle earnestly for being allowed to earn the
means of subsistence?—(Hear hear.) What favour-
able hearing could they expect from a people against
whom the law preached another gospel--
--a gospel of
starvation, as opposed to their gospel of freedom and
plenty—a gospel denying them their 'daily bread,
which it was inculcated in the other that they should
ask of Heaven ?—(Cheers.) Less and less must be the.
influence of those teachers, as this ruinous and de-
graded policy manifested its deformity, less and less
must be their influence of every kind. Eating was
antecedent to learning, and all must be preceded
by that work—the people must be fed, before they
could expect their minds to be cultivated, or their
characters to be forrned.—(Cheers.) But the worst
feature of this worn-out feudal policy—though it was
a compliment to call it feudal, for it was much more
sordid than anything that could be found in feudal--
ism—the worst feature in this policy was not only ite;
war against the physical and spiritual comfort of *o
people, it was that it warred against the morale
of the nation, it warred against education,
and enlightenment, and against civilisation it-
self.—(hear, hear.) It tended, if its whole results
were accomplished, to turn back the nation to its ages
of barbarism, to overspread the land with an untu-
tored banditti, repaying the vindictive and selfish
lF ssons they had learned by example—it opened be-
fore them, through a long vista, yet distinct in its.
remoteness—blazing and roaring—a volcano of revo-
lution.—(Loud cheers.) Foolish people were this
aristocracy—(Hear, hear)—to abuse the League—t
sneer at the League. Why the League stood betwe en
them and ruin.—(Loud cheers.) The League st
,00d
between them and such hatred and execration r no
class of men, one would think, would abid' a the
pelting of. It excited hope in minds that would
otherwise be driven to desperation. There , was a
prospect in its peaceful and firm, but decided
advance—a prospect of are-adjustment of scr .iiety, of a
restoration of amity between class ar class—
of a healing for the words which had f' .stered into
bitterness—of a reconciliation between it Lterests which
at present stood at the extremes of
.nosity and in-
congruity. For all this they
5/.-icitild thank the