The Sun.
London, England, 1844-07-29 00:00:00

PI ZIT of thii PUBLIC JOURNALS

FROM THE EVENING PAPERS OF SATURDAY.
'GLOBE—A new writ was moved last night for
Cirencester, in the room of Mr. Master. We have no
shame in saying that we never heard of Mr. Master,
till we heard of his accepting the Chiltern Hundreds.
He will be succeeded, of course, by some new no-
minee of Lord Bathurst. The borough of Cirencester,
which returns two Members, has, we find by a Parlia-
mentary return presented to the House of Commons,
on the motion of Mr. Ilume, during this session, 496
electors, of whom 153 are qualified as ten-pound house-
holders, and 343 as potwallopers. The gentle-phrased
" Parliamentary Coinpanion" tells us of this borough,
4.` Lord Bathurst has some influence here." The fact i
Cirencester is a cornple nomination borough. Mr. Cripps,
the banker in the town, returns one Member (at present
his son), and Lord Bathurst the other. Why Lord
Bathurst's late nominee retires, or who Lord Bathurst's
new nominee is to be, we do not know, nor do we
care ; but this we know, that the sooner this and
sixty or seventy other nomination boroughs are got
rid of, the better. And they must be got rid of.
Cirencester is a large constituency, in comparison
with many others. At Andover, we find by the same
return, 240 electors send two Members to Parliament;
Lymingtoie in Hampshire, 282 electors return two
Members. Constituencies of this size are inevitably
governed by proprietary influence or bribery. We
have had elections during the present session for Abing-
don, Woodstock, Launceston, Christchurch, Horsham,
and Devizes. The first five places
return one Member each. Huntiagdon and Devizes
each return two. Abingdon has 158 electors; Wood-
stock, 392 ; Launceston, 344 ; Christchurch, 327 ;
Horsham, 339 ; Huntingdon, 374 ; Devizes, 374.
The number of electors in every one under 400 !
Why, will; a farce of popular representation is this !
The Duke of Marlborough does what he likes with
Woodstock, the Duke of Northumberland with
Launceston, Sir G. Rose with Christchurch, the Duke of
Norfolk with Horshams and Lord Sandwich with Hunt-
ingdon. At Abingdon and Devizes every one knows
.that money and proprietary influence together do the
business. The 158 electors of Abingdon strengthened the
Government by returning the Solicitor-General, when his
Grace of Afarlborough vvould have nothing more to do with
him at Woodstock. What a proud proof of popular confi-
dence! And even to gain this great popular victory, his
" elegenee" had to come down with scramble-money !
With the exception of Horsham, the Members for all these
bre•oughs are supporters of the Government ; and the
Member for Horsham is a protectionist. We trust that
the Liberal party will not allow Cirencester to be trans-
ferred from one noodle-nominee to another without a
contest, even though the contest be hopeless. Let some
one go there to sow the seeds of sound principles, which
on a future day may be fruitful, and to expose the nomi-
nation system of the borough.
STANDARD.—The debate upon the subject of
drainage, though opened in a bad spirit by Lord
.Normanby, was useful, as whatever forces atten-
tion to the subject must be useful. The health of
large towns must ever remain precarious, until.
these towns shall be sufficiently secured against
the presence of stagnant water. We say the
presence of stagnant water, because great mis-
apprehension prevails upon this subject, as it—is
genernlly supposed that the absence of ill smells and of
filth obvious to the senses, is a sufficient guarantee for
health. The reverse is the fact ; dry dirt, however of-
fensive to the senses, is comparatively harmless, whereas
the exhalation from the wet soil, though damped by the,
purest water, and the exhalations from stagnant water,
however pure, are fatal. The proximity of a per-
fectly limpid fish-pond has been known to perpe-
tuate fever in a house until the cause of the mischief
was removed, though, unhappily, not until after the
sweeping away of successive families. On the other
hand, few persons enjoy better health than those
living in the foetid atmosphere of slaughter-houses;
tallow-chandleriei, and the like. Drainage properly
so called—the removal of water—is that to which
tee Legislature must first direct its attention"
if it would secure - the public he filth, cleanli-
ness would be no doubt an important auxiliary
to dryness, even in preserving health ; and it hes
great influence upon morals, as well as being essen-
tial to comfort, but the first great object, we repeat it, is
to exclude wet and damp. As the Legislature has taken
up .
this subject, we hope that it will ultimately extend its
care for the happiness and well-being of the poor a little
reedier. Something is wanted to provide better lodging
for labourers in largo towns (the field garden allot-
ment system will do much in the country and in
villages). We are persuaded that with facilities and
encouragement afforded by the Legislature, capitalists
',light be tempted to invest money in the erection of whet
we y call labourers' barracks, in which each labourer
might have a room and a bed to himself at a small rent,
instead of being driven, as they now are, to sties in
St. Giles's, for half or a third of a bed in the filthiest
recesses of which they pay is. 6d. and 2s. per
week. There can be little doubt that a barrack
eapeble of comfortably accommodating one hundred
men might be substantially built for 5,0001., the present
interest of which sum, invested in Consols, is 150/. per
*annum ; but 100 men paying no more than one shilling
et-week each, would give 2601. a-year. There would be,
t:Serefore no loss upon the investment • whereas the
benefit to the poor, both the direct benefit to those
lodged in the barrack, and the indirect benefit in reduc-
ing rents generally, would be of inestimable value ; nor
would the labouring classes be the only gainers—those
infectious and contagious diseases whic periodically
sweep through all ranks with impartial cruelty,
however originating, are always nursed in the crowdee
abodes of poverty. For ourselves, when we see any
street or district of streets not of the very worst
Oescription, thrown down _ for any public improve-
ment, we are disposed to 'ask, what has become
ee tiee inhabitants? and the unpleasant answer that
occurs is, that they have probably removed to
some wo,-se place—far though there are some decent
smell streets in the remoter suburbs, poor people, whose
constant daily toil lies in the city; can hardly afford to in-
crease their labour by an' additional three miles' walk in
the morning, and as much more at night,. we should
therefore rejoice to see the very, worst districts evis-
cerated, and labourers' barracks, with spacious surround-
ing areas, in the room of the present abominable edifices

The "BUSINESS" of PARLIAMENT.

A sunrise or so ago, we paused, as once Wordsworth
'Tensed, on Westminster-bridge, and, smitten by the
,oene; fell, like the poet of Rydal Mount; into deep
ph,losophic thinking. We thought of the Abbey, and
ot. th p two-pences taken at its doors ; we thought of the
dean-a:ld chapter, and their tenants; of the Almonry; of
the rejee.s.ed statue of Byron, and of the onslaught of
Baron Fit'ziaardinge. And then we turned towards
the rising ;vans of the new Houses of Parliament,
and. thinking of their cost, asked ,despairingly what
is the good of then; Yes, fellow-countrymen, we put it
to you—are not Bousee of Parliament, old and new, vain
.and useless as Egyptian cenotaphs'? We put it to ti!
NiastriOus and di,,passionnZe man, who, with a patience_
tjl:,-t must surely be a set-off. to some minor sins, plods
his ,% through the daily debates of Parliament-,we.
Pitt it yr him Whether the business of the country, as
it, is grat'ely called by some droll talkers, might not be,
More effie.ently performed by some mechanic means,
than by the six hundred and fifty-eight learned indi-
viduals „ow Llvet in -February to do everything, and-
senart, to tn:st, h:tring
done nothing?, Really the trick
.is ni-or so old, tact; t We wonder at the courage of any
p,r, of .Ministers -win: can repeat it. At the opening of
s.ession bow bcallt..roil is legislative alacrity !,
~fter measure is prorniscd—nay, is fairly bronght
one, perhaps two I,:adings, and is dropped for
anot:;fn- session, to he dropped pgain. A night or two
S:100k; Sir R. Peel, with one of his blandest smile', in-
f.rt,,ed the 'nous, that .ho would ict it know what
rime it had hat upon Bills not 4, be_ proceeded with ;
he (Add count .the addled eggs, and in the
sezion they !right poor, defrauded
—sit again. If Herr Dobler or the Wizard of
were bt conjure after this fashion, the audience
tip the benches. Returning to the new
f Parliament. we must again protest against,
ti,,, uas b,,vished upo 'them. For what busines4
tua- beet? c :reefed inn the present session that might
:,are been uciently transacted in a t entry-box ?
'\ In then, ti.2f.se costly buildings for men to do
nothing in ?. Why, 1, deed,. should we have Members of
_Parliament at all, herrotre we are that Mr. Babbage
‘xotild construct a legislatin machine, which, in the hands
Peal, would fully arniAvserall the purposes of living •
stl)4,`ors ? We are serious. We ti,,,erefore proposa that, at
t!),, ur •-iit election, every gentleman desirous of affixing
to his name should, on his ele;!tion, send his
pruXy 10. •whine. to the House of Common, setting the .
is,,tclirrept ~at "Aye" and "No," us Mr. liabbsge wilt
ilt,truct him'. on eertam questions, and . suffering the
Mini.try to isi-e their divisions accordingly. The result
of tlie present session convinces us that the " business
of Ili, country" %v,;ll be got through quite as well' as by,
the nresent mode with this advantage, that the ma-
chines may be put rtilYwhere•—Punch•

s 1 i t!g-

ImA:rip OF IcuAnou.—The brig Grace, of
:Newcastle, Captain Wilkin, arrived at Shields- on Sa-
turday last, from _fells-bee, bringing 800 tons of prime
gtettio. The Grace left the island on the Ist of May,
and there were thirty-seven vessels than loading and
waiting for cargoes, with others coming every day.
From a sitaament made by the mate of the vessel, we
learn that the stock of guano is one-third gone, and
that 100 vessels have taken this portion away. The
thickness varies fvoin 30 to 40 feet; but a few feet of the
surface consists of the skins of birds and other rubbish,
which has to be removed before getting at the genuine ma-
in facing, each ship their own,
terial. After this they dig
and then it is taken to the shore in bags and barrows, and
carried along ajetty(ereeted with the vessel's spars, planks,
.and yards) into a boat, and thence to the ship. The vessels
:lie about 300 yards from the shore, and at times the surf is
,veryhcavy, so that the jetty becomes a matter of necessity.
The Grace's boat once upset with eight hands, and •it
was with difficulty the crew reached the shore. 14 yes-
-8 , AA can load at once ; and those which are waiting their
t r help the nearest loaded vessel, and then take her
place's A large boat was purchased by the captain of the
`Grac-: to load with, and he sold it to another when he left.
The,.„ re a few labourers who live on board the ships, and
also coin •vanies at London, Liverpool, &c. The shore
is quite
as far as regards inhabitants;
_ but there
are annum sn.•ble quantities of seabirds,
.c.alled‘
.4 pen-
guins,", and an,. ,they tribe, called by the sailors shags. '
One or two eggs of the latter bird
_have been brought
home by the crew, which were found at the depth of 30
feet in the guano, ite perfect. The cargo was quite a
speculation of the cai.,tain's , own. The vessel having
been at the Cape 0f.G00.1 Ilope, and having heard there
of thks manure, well.—
he took tl'e ship and succeeded

Sn»derland Herald.
The Secretary to the New Priso: Commission had ito
interview withl Lord Wharucliffe, at ;he Privy Counil-
cam, on Saturday.