The Sun.
London, England, 1844-10-15 00:00:00

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LONDON, TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 1844.

DEPARTURE OF THE KING OF
THE FRENCH.

His Majesty Louis PHILIPPE, after a sojourn of
sii days, left Windsor Castle yesterday, at twelve
o'clock. The QUEEN and Prince ALBERT, to do
bondtar• to their illustrious guest, accompanied the
Jimp, notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather,
to Portsmouth ; and, as was understood, would pro-
ceed ; in the royal yacht, with the combined fleet of.
England and France, as far as St. Helens, where they
would take leave. The royal visit has been alto-
gether of the most gratifying character, and, from
every account, Louis PlimirrE has been delighted
beyond measure with his reception, not only from the
municipal corporations. who presented addresses
to the former exile at Twickenham, but from
the hearty welcome which he received from all classes
of Englishmen. Wherever he appeared there was no
stinted applause. It was a universal burst of national
feeling, as a compliment, not only to the SOVEREIGN,
but to the gallant and intelligent nation of which
be is the representative. France will appreciate the
importance of such a visit, and the world at large will
regard the friendly interview of the first Sovereigns
of Europe as the emblem and the safeguard of peace.
The propriety with which the French KING has con-
ducted himself in England excites general approba-
tion. He wanted no display of troops—no reviews
—nothing but the object for which he came—
to return the compliment of a friendly visit from the
oupFSov-ptAiGs of a people who have been called the
taturai inentie,s of France, and who have happily con-
vinced him that,no people were ever more maligned.
We believe iivisithe universal wish of the people of
tireitCZttiialn3ithl Ireland that these peaceful rela-
tion.filter be interrupted, and that Louis
has dorio so much for the tranquillity ,

of Europe, may be able to say, on his death-bed, " I
leave the world in peace."

At the Bingley meeting—a meeting memorable in
more than one respect—the most satisfactory testi-
mony was borne to the success of the Allotment sys-
tem, which was first introduced into that parish about
twelve months since. Mr. EDWARD SMITII, who was
himself one of the allotment tenants, expressly observed
that " it was the best thing for the inhabitants that
had ever happened. Before it was commenced, they
had to fetch their vegetables a distance of from twenty
to thirty miles, and it was consequently very difficult
to get them fresh. During the present summer the
occupiers, and not only them, but the whole parish,
had the pleasure of having fresh vegetables daily. He

had been married twenty-six years, and never

last summer had fruit earlier - than October ; and
before the Allotment system was commenced, al-
though born and bred in Yorkshire, he had never
seen a potato either cut or set. 'He was an operative,
and never had the chance of following any agricultu-
ral operations ; but now he understood a good deal
about them. When trade was good, they were sup-
plied with wholesome vegetables ; and if it slackened,
they had enough laid by to keep them and their
families till spring." Homely, unadorned facts like
these are worth a thousand showy arguments, and
go far to prove, not only that the Allotment
system is perfectly practicable, but that it is
one of the wisest and safest measures ever
projected for the benefit of the humbler classes.
It is not merely that it supplies them with
work, but that it gives them a direct, personal, en-
grossing interest in that work, which is the best
stimulus to exertion. Again, by keeping their atten-
tion usefully occupied, it prevents them from lapsing
into idleness and dissipation; strengthens their phy-
sical energies ; gives a sunny, cheerful tone to their
feelings ; and confirms them in habits of order and
regularity. We trust that, ere long, we shall find
the Allotment system carried into general practice,
convinced, as we are, that the great landowners
and farmers will find the measure not less
beneficial to their own interests, than to those of the
labourers whom they employ.
We have said that the. Bingley meeting was a re-
markable one. It *a so from the circumstance of
its being the first dirkt, attempt yet made by rank
ti and affluence to bre down that odious system of
exclusiveness which f ',years has been productive of
so much mischief to the social community. Not
only did high and low, rich and poor, all dine together
without distinction—not only did operatives and la-
bourers propose toasts and make speeches as well as
more distinguished individuals—but at the cricket-
match which was played in the morning,
Lord JOHN MANNERS—with a manly, Un-
affected, old-English contempt for aristocra-
tic pretension which does infinite honour to
his head and heart—took an active part in the game,
and enjoyed it with as much relish as any of the pea-
santry. The sight of this high-spirited young Noble-
man with his coat off, and the cricket-bat in his hand,
so struck the fancy of an elderly Yorkshire labourer
who was looking on, that he exclaimed in the excess
of his astonishment, "I declare if the great man has'nt
doffed his coat, and is going to bat our JEM'S ball !
Well, to be sure, who could have thought it ?" Aye,
who could have thought it in the haughty, finical, arti-
ficial days of the Regency, or even ten short years
since, when the absurd system of exclusiveness
was still in full vigour ; and the higher classes, in con-
cert with their sycophantic imitators, the middle
classes, cordially agreed in one thing—namely, the
propriety of keeping the poor and the humble at an
awful distance ? No one in those convential days
could have ever thought that a Nobleman would so
far forget what he owed to his own dignity, as to
engage in a cricket-match with a set of mere vulgar
peasants, innocent alike of cash and respectability; and
the naive remark of the old Yorkshire labourer
—which, brief as it is, is full of significance
and affords food for melancholy reflection—clearly
shows how perfectly novel the spectacle was to him,
and the hundreds who witnessed it. But, thank GOD,
a nobler and more Catholic spirit is coming over the
influential classes ! The first faint streaks of day are
reddening in the east, after a long and gloomy night.
In this simple—and as superficial people will regard
it, trivial—circumstance of the cricket-match we
trace the germ of a liberal and enlightened feeling
which will at no distant period work a moral revolution
in the country, and atone for that great social
blunder of years, the Exclusive system—that is to
say, the division of society into castes. And here
perhaps the Political Economist—that rare quint-
essence of self-conceit, pedantry, and narrow-mind-
edness—may exclaim, " a cricket-match, indeed !
What business had these poor people playing
cricket, when they should have been hard at work
providing for their families, and endeavouring to
make more money—the great object of exist-
ence ?" Our reply is, harmless recreation, when
it does not interfere with the day's duties, is often-
times the truest economy—the most productive work ;
for by giving a relief' to the mind, invigorating the
physical system, and imparting a cheerful complexion
to the feelings, it renders the operative or the labourer
better able to grapple with his laborious lot—to toil
with more diligence and readiness, and consequently
with more effect. Besides, the accumulation of
money is not the sole business of exis
tence. Life was given us for nobler pur-
poses than merely to heap up pounds, shillings,
and pence. Wealth, reverently as it is regarded by
the majority, is not the summum bonum. It is—or
should be—merely a means to an end,—and that end,
the promotion of our own rational happiness, and that
of our fellow-creatures. When Lord FRANCIS EGER-
TON said to Mr% D'ISRAELI, " I have founded a
cricket-club for my cottagers, and you have no idea
how they enjoy almost the first sight of the
sun ! " he urged a poetical and convincing argument
in favour of his club, to which the most dexterous
Politics' Economist that was ever'spawned, would be
puzzled to make a reply. We shall probably return
to the subject of the Bingley meeting to-morrow.

Madrid journals of the6th inst. have been received,
and if some are to be credited a serious misunder-
standing has taken place between certain members of
the Cabinet. According to the Globo, about thirty
members of the Chamber of Deputies met on the sth,
in consequence of a quarrel between NARVAEZ and
Senor MoN the Minister of Finance. MARTINEZ DE
IA RosA, among the rest, used his influence and re-
stored apparent harmony, but little doubt remained
that the differences of opinion in the Cabinet were
such that an explosion would soon take place. The
Tieinpo, a Ministerial paper, expresses the confident
hope that the quarrel will not aggravate the
serious position in which the questions about
to be submitted to the Cortes will place
the Administration. The following are said to
be the measures in contemplation :-1. The preamble,
which speaks of the sovereignty of the people, will be
suppressed, with a view to give more strength and
prestige to the Royal authority. 2. The creation of
Peers will be for life. 3. The jury will be suppressed,
under the idea of incorporating that institution into
the new Bill on the liberty of the press. 4. The
article relative to the National Guards will be re-
moved from the fundamental law ; this force will be
created under another organic law, which is to be
submitted to the Chambers.

The Opposition journals have recovered courage as
the assembly of the Cortes approaches, and spare
neither NARVAEZ nor the QUEEN-MOTHER—called by
one of them " the invisible power." "It is affirmed,"
says the ClamorPublico, " that the invisible power
neglects no means of accomplishing its penitence.
What enormous sin can it have committed? But
the nation never will consent to its calming its
scruples at the cost of the blood and sweat of the
people. Our readers will guess that we are adverting
to the concessions made to the clergy." We shall
soon hear of strange scenes in the Spanish capital.
The Three per Cents. were done at 27i a for
cash, 272 at 60 days ; the Five per Cents. at 20 ;
and the Coupons at 27, at 60 days.

Several of the Paris journals give full details of the
arrival of the French SOVEREIGN at Portsmouth, his
journey to Windsor Castle, and the hearty and en-
thusiastic reception his MAJESTY met with at every
place, and from all classes of the British people. "We
hasten," says the Journal des- Debatg, "to publish all
the Particulars of the brilliant reception given by Eng-
land to the KING of the FRENCH. This reception so
enthusiastic and so cordial, does honour equally to
King Louts Pnuarrz and the great nation of whom

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