Star.
London, England, 1827-05-04 00:00:00

•
MAW ere to augur from this oomlnencinalllitt
tbia. squite certain, that a more violent, a
• Attire unhesitating. a more unscrupulous, a more irm-
a64 p sty, never got t ,gether, than that which broke
grows's Abe night before laA—(Hear). Before coming
to those,p inns, which are trifles in the estimation of the
lion. Gentleman, however of importance i,thers may I
deem them. I will give my no answers to his no ques-
tions. 1 shall imitate him, and leave unanswered those
questions which he has not put ; but I shall say a word
or two on that import .nt point with which he con-
cluded. I admit the candour and the manliness in
which the Honourable Gentleman has come forward,
as much as I do the Gallant General's politeness
in giving way to him. I rejoice in that candour
and manliness, inasmuch as it exposes the toot on which
the Hon. Gentleman expects to get back into office, by
carrying the Catholics farther off .shar ever from the
object of their hopes—(Cheers).. So-impatient is the
Hon. Gentleman for that " devoutly wished for con-
summation," that he is not able to wait a week—a
week I No, nor until the arrival of the mail from Deb•
lin, which is to bring an account of the opinions a.
the Catholics themselves upon the point—his impa-
tience will not permit him to wait a 'day. until that
measure shall be brought forward, in order to put the
Minister and all the friends of Administration, old or
new, out of the positions they occupy. A week out of
place is too long, and, therefore, his plan is, to urge us
to do that, whictr, in my conscience I believe, and as a
friend of the Catholic Question, I solemnly declare, .1
believe would be fatal to it—(Cheers). There are times
and seasons when it is proverbially lawful to take a
lesson from our enemies. Let the Catholics who have
too often taken a lesson from their enemies, now take
another—let them, and they must be stricken with
madness if they do take it—let them follow the advice
of the Hon. Gentleman—(Loud and continued cheers)...
let them rather wait for the effect of time, in allaying
prejudices, and in removing scruples—let them wait
for the breaking out of that light which will shine—
let them studiously retrain from all irritating language
and conduct—let them not follow the advice of indis-
creet friends—let them wait the removal of these scru-
ples, of the existence of which, in a certain quarter, we
have had almost official proof from the Hon. Gentle-
man—let them hope for alt from patience—let them
hope for all from forbearance—let them hope for all
from conciliatory conduct—let them eschew the cc/tinsel
of intemperate friends—but, above all, let them eschew
the advice of their avowed enemies, who, for party
purposes, now seek, and with the thinnest disguise with
which faction ever sought to cover its nakedness and
deformity, would urge them to their ruin—(Cheers.)
Let them eschew the advice of their frank and manly
enemy, the Right Honourable Gentleman opposite, but
let them follow that of their constant, their honest, their
undeviating friends. In speaking of honest friends, I
candidly lay a claim to be reckoned among that num-
ber—l, who have always supported every question
founded on liberal principles. (Here the Hon. Gentle.,
man recapitulated some of his claims to the confidence
of the Catholic..) But is it not extraordinary, that those
Gentlemen who have uniformly opposed Catholic
Emancipation, who used to say, " For Gon's sake, do
not renew this eternal question."—is it not extraordinary
that they should now be solicitous for its agitation ? I
have not the speeches of the Hon. Gentleman at my fin-
gers' ends, as he has mine—not because the Hoc. Gen-
atternais's speeches are of less value, and less worthy of
being sought for—but, because I have not time; for
when not engaged in my Parliamentary duty, I am
professionally occupied; but had I the speeches of the
Hen. Gentleman at hand, I make no doubt that I
should be able to produce such a passage as this—
" Bad as it would be to see the Catholics admitted into
this House—frightful as it would be to the Church to
grant their claims—dangerous as it would be to the
State—there is one thing still worse—one thing mere
frightful—one thing more alarming—and that is, the
constant agitation of this question. It is bad to
grant the Catholic Claims, but it is tea times worse
to keep them constantly before our eyes."—(Cheers.)
Nothing can be more monstrous—nothing more incon-
sistent—therefore, than that those who constantly hither-
to deprecated the discussion of the Catholic Claims,
should now come forward and say, " De not delay a
week in re-introducing that question." One week is too
long for us to rest upon our bed of thorns—one week
is too long for us to remain out of the Royal favour—
one week is too long for us to remain in the cold
solitude of retirement—one week is too long for
us to be occupied iu reading the fag-ends of Par-
liamentary debates —(A laugh) and, instead of
calculating the endearing items of expenditiire—
and the still more endearing items of receipts—(A
laugh)—to be kept sitting on this barren rock—to be cal-
culating how many times you, the Master of the Mint—
how many times you, the future Judge-Advocate—how
often you, who will sit by that post, have been found
voting according to your principles, and against those
who bad promotion to give away—(Continued cheers).
You, Catholics, are abused—you are abandoned, if the
whole country shall not be plunged into agitation and
tumult by the renewed discussion of your question; and
if in one week it be not brought forward, you—advo.'
cates of the Catholics—will have abandoned your ptin-
cip'es." (Long continued cheering). So much for the'
main point--now for the questions of the Hon. Member.
He says, " I will not ask the Right Hon. Gentleman
opposite respecting the coincidence I have remarked,
nor will I ask the Hon. Secretary for the Admiralty;
(in which, he is quite safe. 'fur the lion. Secretary for
the Admiralty is not present,) " nor will I ask that Hon.
and Learned Member, near the post." (A laugh).--
Therefore, as no questions were asked, us answers have
been given. (A laugh). But I will ask what there was
extraordinary in the circumstance, that those News-
papers, which had formerly been in favour of the Op-
position, and against that part of the Government which
had retired, should continue consistently to support the
principles they had always advocated? The only wonder
was, why that portion of the press which used to be
for the Hon. Gentleman and his friends was now either
silent altogether, or had become the defenders of the
Right Hon. Gentleman or his measures, in a case of es.
ttaordinary difficulty and embarrassment, and a case of
difficulty and embarrassment too not of his own seeking.
It is quite impossible, that, having no influence, we cool
late a single step towards producing that coincidence
remarked by the Hon. Gentleman. But were there no
means-by which the talents of the Hon. Gentleman, and
thole of his Right Hon. Friend, the late Secretary fee
the Home Department, could be used ip influencinitrbt.
press ? in we understood the Hon. and Learned
her). With respect to the importance attached to the
publications in dievewspapers. I declare, admitting all
that inspottace, that it is my' firm belief that public
opinion leads, instead of grows, out of the press—for,

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