The Sun.
London, England, 1844-03-05 00:00:00

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LONDON, TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 1844.

In the House of Lords the Marquis of WEST-
MEATH made some remarks about the expressed opi-
nions of the Catholic clergy in Ireland on the question
of repeal, which were replied to by. Lord Noa-
, MANDY. The subject was of no public interest and
led to no result.
Lord BROUGHAM presented a petition from Sir
AUGUSTUS D'EsrE, praying that the Standing Order
No. 120 of the House might be suspended, in order
that the evidence of Baron BUNSEN, the Prussian
Minister, might be taken with regard to his claims
for the Sussex Peerage before that distinguished fo-
reigner left the country. •
The Noble Lord laid on the table a Bill for im-
proving the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
• He then called the attention of the House to the deci-
.sion of the Criminal Court-Of Louisiana, by which a
man had been condemned to death for aiding in the
escape of a slave. He believed such was the law of
that State, but at the same time trusted that advantage
would be taken of the interval between the sentence
and the day fixed for execution (the 26th of April)
for the sacred purpose of extending mercy to the un-
fortunate individual. (The blasphemous remarks of
the judge in sentencing this man to death appeared in
The Sun some days ago.)
The Marquis of CLANEICARDE gave notice that he
should put a question to the Earl of DEVON relative to
the real scope and object of the Landlord and Tenant
Commission' in Ireland.
The Marquis of NORMANDY presented a petition
from Jon and ELIZABETH RYAN, complaining that
the interest of 2001., the legacy of a former rector of
the parish of Ballysack, had been stopped by the Board
'at' Charitable Bequests in consequence of the national
system of education being introduced into that parish.
His object in bringing forward the motion was to
restrain the sectarian manifestations which took place
in Ireland.
A brief discussion took place, when the petition
was laid on the table, and the House adjourned at a
Quarter to Eight o'Clock.
In the House of Commons, after the presentation
of petitions, and some conversation relative to the
Great Western Extension Railway Bill, and the
South Devon Railway Bill, which was read a second
time,

. Mr. GLADSTONE moved the proposition of which
he had given notice, with respect to Railway Bills.
The Select Committee, he said, had determined to
recommend the House to depart from the general
rule with respect to the appointment of
Committees on Railway Bills. They felt that
the number of Members connected with the local
interests should be materially restricted; they con-
sidered that the local interests should be made sub-
servient to the public interests ; and he therefore
proposed that the Committee on any Bill should be
composed of five gentlemen totally unconnected with

the local interests of the places through which the
line passed. He would, therefore, conclude by
moving a resolution to the effect that, when any Bills
were brought in to authorise the establishment of
two lines to one point, the matter should be referred

to one Committee. Mr. LADOUCHERE, Mr. EWART,
Mr. WALLACE, Mr. GREENE, and several other
Members, generally approved of the principle laid
down by the President of the Board of Trade.
Colonel SIBTHORP, however, differed from the gQneral
feOling of the House, and moved that the further

The Herald, with its usual sagacity, has discovered
that Sir ROBERT PEEL is so enthusiastic and disin-
terested in his zeal for the Protestant Establish-
ment, that he would infinitely rather undergo the
ugly operation of martyrdom than that a single lock
of a Bishop's wig should be injured. Were he even
called on, like St. LAWRENCE, to prove his devotion
to the priesthood by reclining full length on a grid-
iron, and being done to a turn over a slow fire, he
would consent to the broil without a moment's hesita-
tion. It is now some days since our Contemporary
made this extraordinary discovery respecting the
Premier's readiness to become a martyr on an emer-
gency; and so enamoured is he of it, that he this
morning repeats it, and, if possible, with increased
unction and emphasis :—" We believe," quoth the
Herald, "that Sir ROBERT PEEL is a sincere Pro-
testant, and we see that he adorns his religious
profession by an honourable and useful public
career, and by a private life of perfect purity
and of great benevolence; and seeing this, we
cannot doubt that he would perish at the stake
rather than assist in the injury of the Church to which
he belongs." How thankful ought not Protestant
England to be that she possesses a Prime Minister
who is perfectly ready to be roasted at Smithfield or
elsewhere,in the august cause of the Establishment !
After this, what need have we to fear the ut-
most efforts of the POPE and his agents to turn us
all into Roman Catholics ? The Pontiff may—if it so
pleases him—come over, with his whole college of
cardinals and a select cargo of faggots, in a fishing-smack
to Dover; but he will "take nothing by his motion,"
to use a Parliamentary phrase ; not a single convert of
eminence will he make, for the Premier of Great
Britain will.be the first to show his readiness to be-
come a martyr in defence of Protestantism, and all
respectable people will, of course, be proud to follow
so beautiful an example of conscientiousness. Sir
ROBERT PEEL a martyr ! The idea is an ennobling
one, and the imagination dwells on it with
fondness and veneration, not unmingled with a sort of
pleasing terror. Imagine him, with that inimitable
face of his, so smiling and innocent in its serenity,
bearing testimony to the Faith among the sheep-pens
of Smithfield, stuck bolt-upright against a post, and
repeating the Thirty-nine Articles, by way of a deli-
cate hint to his persecutors, while the "devouring
element" is making more free than welcome with his
person ! Of course, as the Premier's will is law with
his Ministerial colleagues, they could not do less than
follow the example set by their conscientious Chief;
and thus our Protestant eyes might be gratified by
the cheering spectacle of a whole Cabinet roasting
together at Smithfield, in defence of tha

Establishment so dear to our Protestant hearts

Possibly our Contemporary himself, in his zea

for the true Faith, might not object to make
one among the party ; and if so, nothing
would be wanting to render the exhibition perfect,
and convince the Porn how utterly hopeless would
be the attempt to convert England to Catholicism.
But to be serious—if it be possible to be serious on so
ludicrous a theme—Sir ROBERT PEEL has about as

little of the martyr in his composition as any
public man we ever remember to have read
of. Others may go to the stake for their religion,
or make vast personal sacrifices, in order to promote
the political welfare of their country; but he is not
one of these disinterested few. A sense of public
principle will never stand in the way of his ambition.
A regard for consistency will never interpose be-
tween him and the sunshine of office. If ex-
pediency require the surrender of this or
that opinion, the surrender will be made with-
out hesitation ; and though he is now the
avowed Minister of the Monopolists, we do not des-
pair of living to see the day when the Premier will
be the avowed Minister of the Free trade party. It
is only necessary that the League should squeeze him
a little more vigorously than it has yet done, to
squeeze out of him a,consent to all its demands.

By the Peninsular and. Oriental Company's steamer
Pacha, Captain WILSON, we have accounts from
Lisbon to the 29th of February, but they possess
no interest. The journals contain no authentic in-
telligenee from the provinces, respecting the revolted
troops. A dispatch from Viscount FONTE NOVA was
published in the Government paper, announcing that
most of them had fled across the frontier into
Spain ; but as this was not confirmed by the tele-
graph, nor mentioned ty the other Lisbon jour-
nals, no credit was attached to the statement.
OLOZAGA has arrived in England by the steamer,
after having been shamefully treated by the Portu-
guese Government. Agents of the police broke into

consideration of the report be postponed for a week.
On this amendment a division took place, when there
were—for the original resolution, 200; and for
Colonel SIBTHORP'S amendment, 3.
Captain BERNAL gave notice, that on bringing, up
the report of the army estimates, he should move
for a copy of the letter from the Secretary at War to
the widow of Colonel FAWCETT, stating that a pension
would not be granted to her in consequence of the
way in which her husband had met his death.
After several notices of motions of little interest,
Sir JAMES GRAHAM said, until the House had gone
into tne Factories Bill, he could not fix a day for
going into Committee on the New Poor-law Bill.

Sir ROBERT PEEL, in answer to a question from
Mr. O'CoNwELL, said, that her Majesty's Government
would be prepared, in the course of the session, to
bring in a Bill to amend the law with respect to Ro-
man Catholic charities.

In answer to a question from Sir R. FERGUSON,
Sir J. GRAHAM said, in case the House of Lords
should confirm the decision of the Irish Judges with
respect to Irish Presbyterian marriages, legislation
on the subject would be indispensable.
On the motion for going into Committee of Supply,
Mr. WILLIAMS moved that the estimates be referred
to a Select Committee, but, after a few words from
Sir H. HARDINGE, the motion was withdrawn.
Mr. SHARMAN CRAWFORD then moved—" That the
large amount of the standing army now kept up for
the public service is contrary to constitutional liberty
and dangerous to the rights of the people." Dr.
BOWEING seconded the resolution, which was sup-
ported by Mr. FIELDEN. On a division the motion
was negatived by a majority of 79.
Sir H. HARDINGE then brought forward the army
estimates, and moved that 100,295 men should be
fixed as the standing army for this year. Mr.
WILLIAMS moved that the number should be reduCed
by 20,000. On a division the original motion was
carried by a majority of 102.

Several votes were then, after some discussion,
agreed to; the House resumed, and adjourned at a
Quarter-past Twelve o'Clock.

We did the GREAT NATIONAL ANTI-LEAGUE DE-
MONSTRATION, which held its first meeting at the
Great Hall of Freemasons' Tavern, gross injustice in
our remarks yesterday. Or perhaps, more correctly,
we ought to say that we did Tom Timms injustice,
when we opined that the National Anti-League
would resemble in dwarfishness of stature that illus-
trious General. For, at all events, the little Ameri-
can stands straight and erect, whilst the Great Na-
tional Anti-League Demonstration could neither
stand, sit, nor walk, .but fell down on the ground at
its first GREAT attempt, amidst the jeers and laughter
of the assembled multitude. And yet, again, we are
wrong, for there was no multitude at all ; for the
Great National Demonstration, in the Great Hall of
Freemasons' Tavern, consisted of about a hundred
and forty men, three women in the gallery, and four
in the body of the Hall. •

And this was the great meeting convened to put
down the Anti-Corn-law League, to overthrow the,
fallacies of the free-traders, and to place COBDEN and
BRIGHT in the shade. Alas, that such doom should
have been threatened, and that such an impotent
conclusion should have resulted. Fatal presage for
the operations of the monopolists ; most unlucky omen
for their future success. And yet, what better could
they expect ? what better did they deserve ? To call, or
attempt to call, a meeting of people in this metropolis,
in support of the corn-laws, must have been the
scheme of madmen. Why, at a time when the prin-
ciples of free trade have taken such deep hold upon
the minds and feelings of all classes—when the entire
people of England and Ireland are sick of that class
legislation which impoverishes all for the sole benefit
of one—who could expect that Englishmen were such
fools as to support any demonstration such as the
National Anti-League sought to make ? None but
Sir RICHARD JODDRELL and Mr. N. DOR AN
MAILLARD.