The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-05-18 00:00:00

then fortnerly to support the ministry, Them does
not now seem such an improbability of a resignation as
existed a few weeks since. The entire failure of an

attempt to create a real excitement in the country seems
to render a dissolution worthy only of a set who are
plunged in a lower depth of infamy, if possible, than
the incapable crew who hold the reins of government.
The London Times of yesterday states, on the au-
thority of a correspondent, that, just before the budget
was introduced, Lord Melbourne complained to the
Queen that the time had come when the state of parties
in the house, and of public feeling out of it, made it
necessary that the ministers should resign. On this
her Majesty remonstrated. Lord Melbourne then said
that the only alternative course for the ministers was
to adopt some strong measure such as should be cal-
culated to make a popular ferment in their favour.
The Queen, with a wave of her hand, replied, " Any
measure !" Hence originated, it is added, the present
proposals of the ministry. We trust her Majesty
knows her duty to her people far too well for this anec-
dote to be true. But she has been long associated
with those who would not hesitate to resort to this
dangerous expedient; and the schoolboy proverb says,
"evil communications corrupt good manners."
The Morning Chronicle declares its sentence to be
decidedly for dissolution ; and as that journal is sup-
posed to be very much in the secrets of the ministers,
we shall not be at all surprised to learn that, however
desperate the expedient, it will be that to which they
will have recourse.

Mr. Alderman Evans is a doctrinaire, if not a dia-
mond of the first water ; and one of his favourite doc-
trines is, that the municipal body ought to have more
power. • Now we have never contradicted the erudite
alderman on this point ; but we have reminded him
that one species of power, and a very important and
considerable one, is derived from men's acts. Cha-
racter in, society is power; it is power in individuals,
and we see no reason why it should not be power also
in corporate bodies. Let our Council then, we say, no
matter whether consisting of Whigs or Tories, act well
and consistently, for the benefit of the town, and they
will acquire power—moral power; a greater power and
influence, in fact, than they could derive from any

mere act of parliament; but let it act in a different
way, and it will have but a naked authority,—be con-
temptible in the eyes of the citizens, and become a
target for the shafts of ridicule and odium ; elevated,
in short, only to become obnoxious.
We make this remark because we understand our
" municipal Bentham" intends making an attempt in
the Council to-morrow to rescind the resolution lately
carried to oppose the inland bonding bill. Now we
ask so great a stickler for municipal importance and
dignity, is this the way to promote the influence of, or
increase the respect of the people for the municipal
body ? Is it by repealing resolutions one day , that
have been deliberately passed on another—is it by
stultifying itself after this fashion, that the corporation
will acquire weight or value in the popular mind ?

Alderman Evans, we are aware, was in a minority
on the last division ; but is it on this account that he
now seeks to disturb the determination agreed to ? If
so, then we must say that he evidently pays more re-
gard to his own wounded vanity, and exaggerated no-

tions of his self-importance, than he does to the cha-
racter of the body at large .to which he belongs ; and
we respectfully but earnestly call on the members of
the Council to he punctual in their attendance at the
meeting tomorrow, if for no other reason, for this of
giving an effective negative to this repealing, and
self-stultifying project contemplated by Mr. Evans.
There is no occasion that we should now go over the
grounds on which we base the necessity of opposing
the inland bonding bill ; but this we will say, that

whatever error there may be in neglecting the bill, o
suffering it to pass as if we had no concern with it
there can be none in paying due attention to our loca
interests—none in .the Council being alive to them—

none even in an excessive care and caution in guard-
ing against any proposition or measure calculated to
do the town an injury, no matter from what quarter it
may come. The Council, have, we may say, but just
come to a prudent resolution to this effect, and we ask
Will they, at the instance of any individual member,
whether to gratify his spleen, or to restore his self-
complacency, or for any other equally insufficient
cause, agree to cancel this resolve ? Mr. Alderman
Evans appears to us to be acting the part neither of a
good corporator, nor of a good citizen, in this matter ;
and we earnestly call upon all other members of the
Council, of whatever creed or party, to defeat the
attempt.
.......memme"....••••••00.0••••••••••••

CHURCH MISSIONARY ASSOCIATION MEETING

—The speech of the Rev. Professor Scholefield at this
meeting yesterday will be found to repay perusal. It
is one of the many exemplifications met with by every
reading man, of the value of historical knowledge in
the elucidation of truth. The same may be said of
some of the speeches at the anniversary meeting of the
Pastoral Aid Society just held in London. We will
endeavour to make room for a condensed report on
Friday. _