The Sun.
London, England, 1819-12-01 00:00:00

[PRICE StVtNPENC P.

of the human heart who could .advance such a pro-
position. No fact was better ascertained than
that men practically attempted impracticable
theories. This, when exemplified in virtue and
in science, was at each effort a step towards im-
prosetnent ; but when such efforts were made in
a bad cause, the progress of vice atol wickedness
was too frequently increased ; and though the
ultimate object could never be secured, still the
evil done in the endeavour might be beyond ell
possible calculation. Thus, though universal suf-
frage was not to be established, universal anarchy
and confusion would necessarily ensue from the
conflict in support of it —(Hear, hessr, hear !)
No man in this Christian country could for
moment believe that pure, unmitigated. broad
atheism could ever be established in it ; yet in
the attempt to reach this visionary gaol, might
not all morals and all order be destroyed ? He
should insist that the guilt of the pet sons at-
tending reform- meetings was manifest, from
the regular systematic msnner in which they
were held, as •grell as from the insignia of treason
which generally aattesaied them. What thee, he
would ask, wasohe doty of Parliament with re-
gard to them ).The Noble Alarqmtis said that hii.
quiry ought to take place ; he did nor object to it
at the porter time; but was it to hose pre, edenee
of a measure which was intended to oppose im-
niediate danger ?—(Hear.)—(ilere time Notmla
N1)1111111% entered on some other arguments to the
same effect, objecting to the proposed delay in
decided terms.)—lf the Bills could be its); roved,
he had not the slightest objection to it ; hut lei
no premature step be taken against them. They
were not directed against the people of Fugliod;
as was erroneously reported, but against the
wretched and worthless vagrants who Went
about preaching sedition throng!) the country,
and wringing the hard eat nings front the
poor, in order to call meetings together. These
wt etches laid snares arid decoys for the people,
nor could they be too severely punished.---
Yet these attacks, he contended, were not directed
against the monarchy, but against the people, anti
the persons by whom they were made were the
same in principle with those represented by a
great Statesman, who said that assaults were
made upon the people of England by men who had
no notion at older but in contusion arisiutg out of
brutish liberty. true liberty he had always un-
derstood to be implied in the words liberty of :ha
subject, which very arpositely expressed it ; for
the liberty of the subject was, that he was sub-
ject to the laws, subject to religion,subject to
good order, subject to his allegiance- -iii short,
subject to the Constitution in every respect. With
the radical, however, it was quite different ; he
acknowledged no amenability ; he would be lord
paramount upon every occasion, and there. wart
Des earserpmose against social order ',vim,' tV34it
not ready to attempt—Radice in Tartara tendit
Ile must aeait) repeat his determined opposition
to the motion before their Lordships, fee:ing that
he should not discharge his duty to ids Sovereign
or the Country were he to fICCe:!e to it.
Lord ERSKINE spoke at sonic leogrl, in support
of the motion ; and arnotlgtt °thief arguments
observed upon file necessity of !time exhilinathin
of the conduct of those who, having .etrti that
those very persons now charged oI hi conspiring
to overthrow the Government, having appointed
a Meeting out the chi, of Auro_tist, had forborne tit
carry that proposition in o effect, upon a Warning
from the Magistrates that the intended Meeting
was illegal, nod had afterwards called a fresh
Meeting, which it was now to stamp with illega-
lity—without any pins taken to caution people
against attending it—without any in,imation of
its imputed unlawfulness, sent in the troops to
disperse them by loree, the Riot Act having been
read in the mean time. The Noble Lord then
entered into an historical detail of the laws
adopted at different periods for the di•persion of
illegal assemblies, which he cootended had bet it
utterly disregarded and violated in the instance of
the Mee:ing at Manchester ; and with respect to
the checking of seditious and bla-pheinaus libels,
he contetuted that the existing laws, when vi-
gorously executed and enforced by repeated amid
well-directed prosecutions, bad always been and
would eser be found folly efficient. He concluded
by voting for the motion.
Lord GRENVILLE, alluding to the state of the
Country, declared his decided Opinion to be that,
at the present moment, it was placed in the most
awful situation that had . ever been known. Most
happy should he be ta
,find his apprehensions una
founded ; but watching„as he had done, the pro-
gressive increase of the evil, and seeing. as he now
did the msgnittide to WhiCh it had arrived, he
must declare his decided opinion to be, that the
present crisis was uneenalled. He strongly en-
fore, d the necessity of Parliament looking the evil •
in the face. 'file presCnt evils, he thought, arose-
from very different c.iuses io thoce stated by his
Noble Friend. !heir' Lordships' attention had
been called to the year 1793. but he would ask
any man, let his opinioes be what they might,
whether, from that period, there had not been inrsr.
Sr rinni apprehensions created, but still he did not
think it wouid have been possible to have worked up
the feelings of the people to the extent they had been
not the distress of the times been so great.—
No arguments were necessary, it all that it was its
the power of Parliament to do to alleviate the
distress of the country were doae. If he could
believe that so short a period as had been men-
tioned by his Noble Friend would
~remove the
direful distress now existing, he worth! not view
the • subiect with those gloomy feelings he now
did. It was impossihle that Nainisters could at
once remedy the veils. 11) fact that had been
urged against them ; bet what word,' be the
etT,_et of the conduct of the agitators of the peo-
ple ? It would add t,enfold to their present dis-

4

~N
Itol._
,• 4., i: -. ,ic q 4
hliZi 0: 4'l ''-'--- ''''', ffl
i ~
ikni7l' 'l ..•J ;
I 432,0,!,.:k^"..4,1...'':.:"4.'

. ~ v. •

/iitt....:,;41