Star.
London, England, 1810-12-12 00:00:00

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18.

Senor GARCIA. DE HERKEROS on this day explained
the vote he should give on the first Article of the
Report, and which would appear contrary to the opi-
nion he had expressed on a former day. He w-ts for
a free circulation of opinion, " for (said he) a free
press does not depend on anterior or posterior censor-.
ship, but on the free circulation of mens' writings."
He agreed perfectly to the first Article, with the ad-
mission of the word " politica," by which modifica-
tion religious subjects would be excepted from dis-
cussion, or remain on the same footing as before.
Senor Mexta observed, that by the French code, st
Prefect was appointed in every department of France,
whose business it was to censure the press. Was this
example to be followed by the Cortes ?
El Senor LLANERAS read a discourse against the
abolition of the previous censorship, endeavouring to
prove that the liberty of the press was not only con-
sistent with it, but better secured by it.
Senor ARGUELLES then rose, and said he wished to
bring the matter to a point, for otherwise there would
be no end to the discussion. He approved much of
Senor Mexia's speech, who had argued from facts.
The Deputy from Majorca (the same SenorLlaneras)
had said, that with honest tribunals there would be
no necessity for a free Press. He perfectly agreed
with that Deputy, that if all men were infallible and
incapable of wrong, there would be no occasion for
any laws whatsoever ; but for his part he had never
known but one class of men, namely, such as they all
were, fallible beings, subject to all the imperfections
of their common nature. " The Deputy for Major-
ca," continued Senor Arguelles, " has declared that
the Inquisition was a proper tribunal for judging what
books ought to be permitted. Does he forget that the
library of the Marquis of Villena, with all his valua-
ble manuscripts, was burnt by a Friar of the Court
of John the Second,.who was himself a literary cha-
racter and a poet, notwithstanding which, the king:
dom was ruled by the favourite Dr. Alvan de Luna ?
The religious and political zeal against the Liberty
of the Press did not abate in the subsequent reigns ;
nevertheless, upstart minions governed the nation in
the time of Eurique quarto, Felipe tercero y quarto,
and never were so numerous the regulations against
the free communication of our political opinions as
in the reign of Charles the Fourth. Even a prudent
tolerance in political matters would have preserved us
from the present calamity. Had we been possessed
'of the Liberty of the Press, should we have had its
censors, and our very judges themselves, composing,
the Court of Godoy, that Court where every thing
was sold, and which might justly be called the mar-
ket place of all justice and liberty ?
" There is not a nation in the world which.has not
suffered an age of disorders for want of the liberty of
the press, for one evil which has been produced by its
excesses. There I rest its claim, and I challenge the
world to deity it."
Senor Colonel GOLPIN said, that the freedom of the
press was just, useful, and necessary, and that they
could 'not go on one step without it. There was no
othei mode of coming at the public opinion. A for-
mer speaker had asked what was to be done, if the
press should be directed against the Cortes ? He
would answer, that the Cortes would derive from it
the same advantage which the Parliament of Eng-
land derived from the public newspapers, through
which they learned the opinion of the people on their
conduct. He. said, that those who feared that the
lihetty of the press would be employed against the
characters of individuals, would do well to recollect,
that they might equally be injured by the circulation
of libels in manuscripts, with this most fatal differ-
ence, namely, that in the one case the evil would be
manifest, and the powers of defence would always re-
main, whereas in the other the blow is secret, the dan-
ger is unknown, and the means of defence are abso-
lutely taken away. It was clear, therefore, that the
absence of a free press afforded no security t 3
dnats for the protectitm of their characters, hut, on the
contrary, by encouraging defimatory manuscripts,
subjects them to infinitely greater inconeeniencies.
"On the conclusion of this speech,
Senor G.14.14G0S moved that the question should
be putlis the vote.
The Marquis of Vioo then rose. and read a long
and 'laboured argument against the Liberty of the
•

Press. On which Senor TORRTRO spoke again nearly
as follows :
" The last speaker ascribes to me that I had said
that England stood alone by therrecdom of the Press.
This is not correct. I said that England stands by
public opinion, which the Liberty of the Press pro-
tects a!d fosters, but which is ,itself rooted in the
liberty of the subject. On every debate in Parliament
, the substance of the speeches of its Members is imme-
I diately printed and circulated all ever the country ;
land from thence it arises that the poorest peasant in
the most wretched village in England has the power,
if he has the capacity, of iaspectinfr and judging of
the conduct of every public man in the realm.
" That Member has acknowledged the beneficial
efficacy of the Press in England, but denies it to
Spain. I affirm that the efforts of a Free Press would
be equally beneficial to Spain, as the basis of our Go-
vernment is the same. Englandhas her Parliament;
Spain has her Cortes. England has a limited Mo-
narchy—Spain is in the act of limiting hers. Eng-
land has a just division of the three powers, Legisla-
tive, Executive, and Judicial—we have just declared
the same division. What, then, is there in these two
nations, so allied in character, and so similar in the
basis :of their respective Constitutions, that should
confine to England the benefits which are ad-
mitted to belong to the Press in that Country,
and prevent our reaping some of the same fruits ?
—Had we been possessed of the press in Spain,
would some Priests have ventured to assert that
Charles the Fourth was inspired by GOD to put the
Government into the hands of Godoy ? If we had
had the press, Godoy must have fallen ; as we were
without it, he has lived to perpetrate our ruin. I re-
peat, that had it not been for the decided public opi.
nion of England, established 1.1 the efforts of the
press, and acting on a wide and fertile soil of national
education, England must have perished from the con-
vulsions of her parties. Should the King ever enter-
tain the wish, and possess, through the agency of a
stronger executive than we now grant him, the means
of destroying the Cortes, what refuge have we ? Whi-
ther are we to fly ? Whither, but to the good opinion
of the people of Spain, gained by our own actions,
and disseminated by the press ?
" Had G9cloy known the feelings of the Spanish
people, he would have been deterred from committing
many crimes ; but, amidst fools and bad men, while
statues were erecting to his fame, he was deceived,
and the nation was undone. Had we possessed the
press, Charles IV. would not have dared to carry on
that wretched system of government which had re-
. duced us to our present situation.
" The power which the Parliaments of England
hold over their Kings, arises from the knowledge
which the people possess of the principles of those
who compose Parliament, and from the support they
give them."
With this speech the debate on the first article con-
cluded, after which a warm discussion took place
with regard to the mode of voting, and whether it
should be public or secret ? Some Members having
observed, that in England the gallery was always
cleared when the question was put by the Speaker,
Senor Aanueues stated, that by the standing or-
ders of the House, even the discussion was secret, hut
that the practice was uniformly the reverse, for Eng-
land had virtue enough to respect the opinion of the
people.
The President having declared that the Session
was closed for that day, the votes were not taken until
the next day, Friday, October 19th, when the ques-
tion being put on the first article (amended by the
insertion of the word " politica " as above-mentioned),
and the Secretary writing down the name of each
Member, there appeared in favour of it 70, against it 32.