Star.
London, England, 1822-02-18 00:00:00

MADRID, FEBRRUARY 3.

In the Sitting of the Cortes on the 2d, the Presi-
dent announced that the debate on the three Projects
of Law viz. on the Liberty of the Press, on the right
of Petition, and on the Patriotic Societies, was to be
entered upov, and ihat they were to be discussed in
that order successively.
Messrs. ibireno, Frail. Martinez de la Rosa, and
Martel y Sanchez Salvador, desired to speak in favour
of them, and twenty Members against them.
Senor Calatrava obtained leave to speak first.—
Having admitted the importance of the subject, he
proceeded—,, I believe, Gentlemen, we do a great
service to the nation if we do not now enter on the
discussion of this subject, and only endeavour to
apply to,the public evils, not insufficient remedies,
as the Committee proposes, but those effectual and
radical ones which the National Congress has recog-
nised, and of which it has spoken in the face of the
nation and of all Europe. I think that the Cortes,
before they enter on the discussion of these three
laws, and examine the reasons alleged by the Com-
mittee for proposing them, ought to recollect what they
represented to his Majesty in the middleof December,
and which, to the misfortune of his Majesty and of
the Nation, has not hitherto produced any effect:—
The Honourable Deputy then proceeded to quote and
to comment upon several passages of the Answer of
the Cortes to his Majesty's Message; especially call-
ing the attention of the Assembly to the clause which
concludes with—,4 The Cortes would think them-
selves deficient in the performance of their duty, if
they did not declare to your Majesty that they are
firmly persuaded that the present Ministry does not
possess the moral energy that is necessary happily to
conduct the Government of the Nation, and to main-1
tain and cause to be•respected the dignity anctprero-1
gative of the Throne." The °rater read also the pa-1
ragraph in which the Cones promise to co-operate
with his Majesty in every measure that may conduce
to the prosperity of the Monarchy. 4, Government,"
said he, has availed itself of this clause to propose:
the laws before us; but what use has it made of the
principal part of the Message of the Corms? It formed
a vigorous Administration, which inspiring general
confidence by its wisdom and zeal, by its patriotism
and adherence to the public liberty, may remove
those evils which call for a speedy remedy,
Has the Government, on its part, done what was ne-
cessary to take the measures which the situation of
the State so imperiously demands? What use has it'
made of the Message of the Cortes? It will not be
my fault if I have to dwell on these melantholy
truths; it will not be the fault of the Deputies, if they
have again to speak in the same manner that they
spoke a shot t time since ; but it will be the fault of
those who placed them under the necessity of speak-
ing so. But shall the Government, under these cir-
cumstances, extort from us a repressive measure?—
Let it seek the assistance of the Cortes : but when
shall it do this? When the Government persists in
letting the evils continue, and does not do what is
requited, shall the Cortes suffer the whole burden to
' fall on the Na innal Congress ? No! The Congress
may resolve to do this; but my voice shall constantly
oppose it." The speaker asked, hether the Cortes,
having declared the seven Ministers incompetent, it
was imagined, that by :educing them to three, and
making one do the duty of two, the Administration
would have the moral energy which the Cortes had
declared to be n anting? and he concluded by pro-
posing, that before the Cortes considered the opinion
of the Committee, they should take into consideration
the following proposition :
" The Ministry not having bees yet constituted with the
moral force necessary happily to conduct the Government of the
Nation, and to maintain and make respected the prerogatives of
the Throne, notwithstanding what is imperiously demanded by
the situation of the State, and what the Assembly represented to
his Majesty on the 18th of December last, 'the Cones, who,
without this remedy, think every other insufficient to remedy
the *oils of which the Government speaks, and perhaps even
prejudicial, consider that they are not in a proper situation to
come to any useful determination on the projects of some re-
pressive laws which have been laid before them."
This proposition being read, a deba:e arose, whether
the regulations of the Assembly (particularly article
100) allowed the debate, on a motion proposed by the
PRESIDENT, to be broken off, to debate the present
motion of a Member?

It was decided by 96 votes to 71, that it was al-
lowed, and by the same number, that the propoial
M. Calatrava should be discussed. Many Members
desired to speak both for and Against the motion. M.
Martinez de la Rosa made a long speech against it ;
adverting to the expression—" The Government has
not the moral energy necessary, &c." he observed,
that without those laws the Ministry could not have
the necessary energy ; it was impossible the abuses
of liberty should give it them ; but the contrary must
happen, as had been the case before with the first Mi-
nistry after the establishment of the Constitutional
System, which was overthrown by the public papers,
and by some men who, concealing their ambitious de-
signs under the mask of liberty, propagated subver-
sive ideas, and availed themselves of the right of pe-
tition to discredit men who had so many claims on
the national gratitude : the Liberty of the Press, the
Patriotic Societies, the right of Petition, were then
abused, to spread distrust of those Ministers whose
loss we lament, and the result proves the truth of
what Senor Cuesta has said, that the Government
cannot exist as long as there are not conservatory
laws. The debate was continued in the Sitting of the
Bd, in which it was finally decided, by 90 votes to
84., that the proposal of Senor Calatrava should not
be put to the vote. The debate on the three laws
was fixed for the following day, the 4th.