Star.
London, England, 1831-03-07 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE JOURNALS.

Tzmis.—ln the destruction of the close borough system, therefore,
we say, as a reply to the Duke of Wellington, that the people of Eng-
land, who have a respect for monarchy, and who love their King, will
be secure of such a control over the Administration as must greatly Im.
prove, and therefore strengthen, their "monarchical government ;" and,
.o answer to the borough advocates in the House of Commons, we assert,
1. That men of worth and ability will be sought after by the people
to be their counsellors and the protectors of their rights in Parliament.
with as much diligence and success as they now are by patron.lords, for
purposes far less respectable.
2. That imbecile and insignificant coxcombs, who have hitherto beer.
accustomed to fall asleep on the back benches, or employed to cough
and groan down men of such eminence as the Lord Advocate of Scot
land, foe speaking wisdom, which they could not comprehend, will be
extinct for ever.

3. That the amp siondned of ability and character, as well as in.
dependence, in the Home of Commons, wiU be raised beyond all com-
parison with proseNs. them
4. That the Velma whationey themselm will be driven to • mom
imam and mealy cultivation of their intellectual powers, and to •
men moist elnuivence of those severe laws of decency and duty, with-
out as tipemitt mead to which it is happily impossible for any man in
an ammtunity to enjoy respect or confidence. The break-
ing up of the oehomosAls monopoly will thus have the ordinary good
eibect of hirivrke the amide h Akh its manben deal, as a political
portion of the osimminsaltb.

clisoxicr.E.—We may confidently guest, that no measure ever
,nitol so extensively the suffrages of all classes of the population as the
Itni,terial plan of Reform. That among Reformers there are some
:,0 think that the Reform ought to be more extensive, can surprise
one; for it was known, before this measure was proposed, that
Reformers, however much. they agreed in disapproving of the exist-
ng gate of the represents', ion, were by no means agreed as to the extent
reform ought to be carried. But toe conscientiously be-
lieve that the Reformers, with few exceptions, are quite sails-
* with the present measure. It was well observed by the Lord
Advocate on Friday night, that " reasonable Reform will not satisfy
dte unreasonable, but it will satisfy the reasonable. And who will
jay, that if you satisfy the reasonable, and induce them to unite with
Too, you will not be better able to deal with the unreasonable ?" Mi.
hissers h-tee only to be true to themselves, and the measure must be sue-
' A hand will not be raised against the measure throughout the
,tun tv. Even Sir Robert Peel, though he carps at the plan, and cant.
I,lllcnts the disfranchisement of future generations of potwallop.
ers,r.lottou•ly keeps aloof from the anti-reformers, who are loud in their
,:xecrlti,r,, against him. In the present disposition of the nation, no
minigry hostile to reform could stand their ground a single day.
• Tastes.—We receive daily communications from correspondents,
calling fora general illumination ; some recommending it this evening,
%hen Their Majesties go to Covent Garden Theatre; others, on the
?vr.ting subsequent to leave being obtained to bring the Reform Bill
eta Parliament. We see no impropriety, still less any cause of alarm,
.a this public expression of rational joy at a measure which we look
:pan a+ certain to produce a great moral, as well as political, regene-
; Hon among the people of Great Britain. There are, however, some
persons who are frightened out of their wits at any demonstration of
nopular feeling; and there are also mischievous wretches who
tvould gladly avail themselves of any little disturbance inci-
ental to the most harmless assemblages of the multitude, in
'tiler to convert it into an atguntent of the danger of a general tumult.
fa take away all pretence of alarm from one party, or mischief-making
limn the other, it may, perhaps, be expedient to delay the illumination
after the second reading of the bill. This time cannot be very dia-
tom; for we scout with contempt the calumnious report that ministers
to postpone the second reading of the bill till after Easter ! The
,ople of England ought not to be kept for Aix webs in a state of anxious
aspense ; and we are quite sure that the Government has too cordial a
.vnipathy with the popular wish to daily with their feelings and to make
heir hearts sick with deferred hopes. We know that what has been
‘vi.ely begun will be vigorously carried on. Corruption has been roused
Croat its lair: promptly and energetically will it be hunted down, for
the whole nation is eager to join in one chorus of triumph a; the mon-
fu..r's death.

POST. When the heads of the plan which the Government calls a
Plan of Reform were first made known, it was momentarily supposed
that they would meet with the opposition of the Radicals, because the
noposed provisions would take away from the very lowest of the peo-
ple the elective power which in some places they now possess; and
because they did not include the Ballot, nor any clause for curtailing
the duration of Parliaments. A very little consideration, however,
...reed to show the Radicals that the plan, which afileted them
•it hut a moment, was calculated to work out for them
far more exceeding weight of power than they could have
v, :oared to anticipate, and therefore all the force of their party,
vhich naturally consists of threats and violence, is employed in sup.
nori of the ministers. The most skilful of the Sunday Journals ad.
testing Radical principles, in which we are generally accustomed to
•4:e argumentative ability of no common order most grievously mis-
-olicd, her, we arc sorry to observe at the present crisis, aban.
ticd the arms of the dialection, and taken up those of the vulgar
-triorist. With a copious variety of illustration, he shows us
that this Ministerial measure is regarded with favour, because
is is considered as the first step towards the great end of Radical aspi-
rations. The Government who have intrigued with such a person as
Mr. C. Pearson to promote their ends, who are intriguing with the
blustering O'Connell to obtain his disreputable assistance, ought to be
resisted by every independent gentleman, whether he be a refininer or
be not ; for such a Government is not to be trusted by any one who is
not ready to plunge headlnng into the wildest extremes which Radi.
drunk with partial success, can imagine.
H E RALD.—The course of each night's debate convinces us that the
use of reform is advancing, and must finally triumph. All those
Members who arc not prepared to encounter the shame of useless and
'envicted selfishness, or who do not aspire to the honours of stultification
`or conscience sake, admit the necessity of moderate reform. In which
Liss will the ex. Secretary of the Admiralty choose that we should place
? Truth and courtesy to the Right Hon. Gentleman compel us
to include hint in the first : he is cunning, rather than wise, in his ge.
iteration ; he perfectly knows the value of the " custom of 80 at Al.
leburgh," and of the general proprietary borough interests of his patron ;
lie is most critical, arithmetical, and personal. No one can say that he
deals unfairly by others, for he judges of them by himself. Had it
been his task, as the member of a Government that had pledged itself
to reform, to contrive the plan, and to adopt the principle, he would
at once have said, before he gave his assent, or lent his ingenious hand
to the completion. "It Is all very well, but how will this plan
affect the patron of Aldeburgh ?" It is not surprising, there.
fore, he should firmly believe that the application of the two
ereat principles of population and property, upon which the plan of re.
%In) now under discussion rests, was fettered and regulated by contd.
!ail:ion for the interests of the Marquis of Lansdowne and Lord Fitz.
but so does not any sensible and impartial person in England.
file iqcctions made by Mr. Croker to the arithmetic of the bill are of
Li tici;hi. It was quite necessary, when once the principles of pro.
and population had been assumed as the basis of qualification for
:,vers. that some sum should be taken to regulate the one, and some
iier to determine the other ; but certainly it was impossible to fix
•ei ilte one or the other with equal fitness for all localities.

THE KING'S COURT.
WINDSOR, Almten R.
Their Majesties, accompanied by Prince George of Cam-
-sritk-e and a numerous suite, attended divine service this
naming in St. George's Chapel. The sermon was preached
by the Rev. Mr. Cust. The Service, Hale and Hine, and
the Anthem front Rodgers, with Handel's chorus, " The
Horse and his Rider," (Israel in Egypt).
The Duchess of Cumberland, accompanied by Prince
I:.orge of Cumberland, and attended by the Baron de Lin-
,ingen and Lady Sophia Lennox, honoured the first perform- '
nee of Mrs. Wood, in '• La Cenerentola," at the Italian
opera h ouse, with her presence on Saturday evening.
Divine service was performed yesterday before the Duchess
1 Kent and the Princess Victoria, and their Royal High-
nesses household, by the Rev. Mr. Pitttnan.
The King, within these few days, has granted his patron-
-go to the Choral Fund
The Landgravine of Hesse Homberrr, Lord St. Helens,
and a select party, dined with the Princess Augusta on
Saturday, at her residence in the King's Palace, St. James's.
A Cabinet Council was held at four o'clock yesterday
7ifternoon, at the Foreign Office, which was attended by the
Lord Chancellor, Earl Grey, the Marquis of Lansdown,
Lord Durham, Viscount Melbourne, Viscount Palmerston,
Viscount Gcalcrich, Viscount Althorp, the Earl of Carlisle,
the Right honourable C. Grant, the Duke of Richmond,
and Sir James Graham. The Council broke up at half-past
five o'clock. Lord Holland was prevented from attending
the Council by indisposition. Earl Grey visited his Lord-
ship after the Council.
Prince Lieven, the Russian Ambassador, bad a long con-
ference with Viscount Palmerston on Saturday, at the Fo-
r,i!rn Office. Prince Esterhazy, the Austrian Ambassador,
also visited the Noble Viscount on Saturday.
A numerous deputation of proprietors of steam-}oats em-
ployed on the coasts of Scotland and Ireland, including Sir
31. Shaw Stewart, M.P. Mr. Callaghan, M.P. Mr. O'Bryen,
M.P. Hon. C. Douglas, M.P. Mr. Baldwin, MP. Mr.
Campbell, M.P. Mr. Wemvss, M.P. Mr. Home Drum-
round, M.P. Messrs. Williams, Jones, Hutchinson, Macken-
lie, Roberts, Bell, Gibbs, Gibson, Ranken, Mahoney, Ste-
venson, Mitchell, Smith, Watson, Graham, and the Lord
Provost of Glasgow, attended at the Treasury on Saturday,
Aid had a long conference with Viscount Althorp.
deputation from the parish of Greenwich, accompanied
Uy Sir E. Knatchbull and Mr. Law Hodges, the member
the county of Kent, had an interview on Saturday with
Lards of the Admiralty, at the Admiralty Board.
The flea ly appointed Bishop of Nova Scotia had an inter-
'". (for the first time) on Saturday with Viscount Gode-
•.!l. at the Colonial Office.
!lc Lord Chancellor visited Earl Grey and the Chau-
-7 of the Exchequer on Saturday.
Dispatches were sent off from the Colonial-office on Satur-
11y night, front the Honourable General Ponsonby, the
Liti:(-cant-Governor of Malta ; and also for Sir Frederick
'dairy, the Lord Commissioner of the lonian Islands.
iThe Princess Augusta entertained the Landgravine of
ilomberg, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, and
:l'elr•er party of the nobility and gentry, at dinner yesterday
'e'ing, at her residence in the King's-palace, St. James's.