The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-11-18 00:00:00

CONTEMPORARY PRESS.

Before we examine the circular issued by the Consta-
bulary Commission, we wish to remark on the fact, that
the government journals have taken the alarm at the
comments we have felt it our duty to make on the cen-
tralization trickery. Mr. Stephen's pamphlet, which fur
rushed opportunity for our general denouncement of the
rapacious invasion meditated by the Whig-radicals against
the rural districts, has found little favour with the fac-
tion. But this is that gentleman's own affair. We
thank him for furnishing a text for some very useful com-
ments to those who, despising the patchwork party, are
proportionately devoted to the public good—a cause, to
the furtherance of which our humble efforts shall never
be wanting. It has, of late, with an unblushing effron-
tery of which none but the whig-radicals are capable,
been asserted that the conservatives in both houses of
parliament are equally answerable to the country for the
poor law bill with the government who, in the official
responsibility, introduced this monstrous measure; but
let our readers observe the inherent but most shallow
cunning of these contemptible politicians. At first this
paltry faction took mighty credit to itself for its liberali-
ty, philanthropy, and wisdom, in having devised a grand
scheme for the perpetual benefit of the poor 1 They now
find, that not only the poor, but that every humane and
rational person in the kingdom, contemplates their
mighty measure with disgust and hatred; they now,
therefore, wish to throw, part at least of the blame from
their own shoulders, and they impudently turn round
upon the conservatives with the pitiful expostulation,
" You did not prevent our replacing an evil by a greater
evil, which we staked our honour to be a decided good ;
therefore the evil lies at your door as well as at our
own." As we mentioned on Saturday last, we hope this
will prove a salutary lesson to the House of Lords,
touching their future submission, under any circum-
stances, to whip dictation, which we trust will not be lost
upon them. The threatened attack on the counties of
the kingdom will furnish a fitting opportunity to their
lordships for proving that they profited by that lesson.
At all events, we will take good care to obviate all pos-
sibility of reproach against ourselves on the score of ac-
quiescence or apathy as regards the new, and we may
call it incalculable, inroad on the national liberties.
In the morning organ of government on Saturday
last the writer, with a cockney sort of security, contra-
dicts the statement of Mr. Stephen, as to the probable
operation of the new poor law act, in tending to the in-
crease of crime in the rural districts. It will be observed
that this confident speculator is speaking of a subject of
which lie knows little or nothing, while the learned gen-
tleman whom he so unceremoniously takes to task has

„...;teen from actual observation in the county in which
he resides, (Buckinghamshire, we believe,) and in other
counties which he has had occasion to visit, profession-
ally or otherwise. The government scribe shortly after-
wards checks himself, finding that in the fervour of his
zeal he proves (if anything) by far too much. For if by
the new poor law act crime has been repressed, there is
all the less necessity for a new constabulary act for that
purpose. This the rninisterialist has just mother-wit
enough to see, and he wriggles out of the difficulty as
follows :—” Though," he says, " there has been this di-
minution, though crime has somewhat diminished (a lit-
tle before he had told us that the direct effect of the poor
laws is to diminish crime,) that fact does not absolve the
government from the duty of extirpating it by the most
effectual means." Certainly not. But, as we said on a
late occasion, the real question is, " whether the sub-
mission of a gigantic tyranny, such as that proposed,
would not be a greater evil than any which it pretends
to remedy ? We think it would, and shall therefore op-
pose it to the uttermost.
The circular addressed by the constabulary commis-
sion to the magistracy of England and Wales consists of
48 questions—most of them of a very prying and corn-
mon-place character. Questions 1 and 2 are expressive
enough as to the jobbing spirit of the whole affair. The
querists are anxious to know what is to be made by the
transaction, as to patronage. So impatient are the com-
missioners as to this point, that they plunge in medias
res. " What is the extent a your division ?" And
" what number of acting magistrates reside generally
within your division ?" The plain meaning of this is—
What stipendiary patronage can we give to our adhe-
rents in your division ? The following query is one of
many which we think must puzzle the .understandings of
plain men :
" 10. Is there reason to believe that the depredations commit-
ted within your division have been committed by persons who
do not reside in it; if so, what place or direction are they sup-
posed to come from ?"

Questions 11 and 15 require information on the sub-
ject of " lodging-houses" (by courtesy) and beer-shops,
as to their moral tendency, &c,, on which we thought
there could not at this time of day be any doubt in the
mind of any reasonable being. For this reason we think
the swelling out the list with such foolish questions is
only to be accounted for by a wish to produce an impos-
ing array—in other words, to humbug the public on the
approved whig-radical principle.. The , 46th question,
which we are about to quote, is an unrivalled illustration
of this principle :
"46. What proportion of the expenses now incurred by the
public in the apprehension and prosecution of offenders do you
conceive might be saved by the establishment of a more efficient
preventive force ?"

"Honest John Bull," when reading this, will rub his
eyes, or his palms, and exclaim, " So, at all events, we
are to have a saving." Yes, but it will be a whig sav-
ing; and we have all, by this time, abundant room to
know, that " retrenchment" in the ministerial vocabu-
lary, like " non-intervention," means the direct opposite
to its ordinary signification. The twe last inquiries are
too characteristic to be omitted :

"47. Do any, and what additional means appear to you to be
desirable in your division for insuring the actual security, and
the sense of security, to person and property.
Thus we see, that, whatever " proportion of the ex-
penses now incurred by the public might be saved, it is
in contemplation to adopt additional means—and, of
course, additional charges is to accompany these—" for
the security, and the sense of security, to person and pro.
perty." We don't clearly catch the purport here. If
security to person and property be established, the sense
of security will follow, we presume. But, supposing
that it did not, the magistrates will be conjurors indeed
if they can contrive means to give a sense of security to
those .who are already safe, yet in fear. Mr. O'Connell
must have suggested this adaptation of the old phrase,
" It's dangerous to be safe."

"48. Have you any other information to give, or suggestions
to offer, in furtherance of the objects of this commission ?"
Were we in the confidence of the government, or of
the Constabulary commissioners, we should advise the
omission of the word " other" in this question, and it
might very well stand for the whole of the preceding 32.
But to return to our original objection. This mischiev-
ous mockery of the Bonapartist inquisition into every
hole and corner of the kingdom has clearly not for its ob-
ject the detection or suppression of crime, but the exten-
' sion of tyrannical influence and factious power. We,
many weeks ago, intimated our conviction that the whigs
would avenge themselves of the country gentlemen and
county constituencies. in some way. And here we have
the scheme in all its enormity, unfolding itself through
the specious form of authorized inquiry. The subject is,
in our judgment, so vitally, important to the independ-
ence of this country, that we shall omit no opportunity
of keeping it at every stage before the public mind. It
is a measure broadly marked by the rutlian-hand of the
arch enemy of England.—Tinys.