The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-05-09 00:00:00

sentatives ? Eta believed that the lion. Gentleman

was quite wrong in his idea of the public feeling upon
this Walcheren question, and that there could hardly
be found a man who could mention it without a sign,
or some expression of deep regret at the numbers of
lives sacrificed oa that occasion to no purpose.—
[Hear, hear I.] The lion. Gentleman was right in
saying that there were many persons who would
laugh at what was known in that House by the name
of moderate reforr... lie• was certaidly one of those
persons who would not be satisfied with what was

generally called moderate reform, but who went the
whole length of wishing to see the people possessed
of that share in the Government which the Constitu-
tion and the law entitles them to. At the same time

he was not one of those captious reformists that
would take nothing, if they could not get every
thing they wished for. [Hear, hear!] Any meek-
sure whatsoever appeared to him a reformation of
abuses, or an amelioration of the present state of the
representation, however short such reform might
come of his wishes, should always meet his most
cordial support. [Hear, hear!] In talking of
the great men who had got into Parliament from
the unreformed state of the House, the Honourable
Gentleman seemed to have forgotten the many great
men who had written and spoken in the cause of re-
form. He seemed to have forgotten that Lord Hali-
fax had written in favour of reform, and that Sir
William Jones had asserted the right of the people
_ _

of England to annual Parliaments and free elections.
If the Ron. Gradation had,
however, lived is the
time of the Refarmation, he would, probably, hate
been a decided enemy to it; if he had lived at the
time of the Revolution, he must, on his own-prin-
ciples, have opposed it ; or if he had lived when the
Septennial Act was passed, he must have opposed
that as a dangerous innovation. This Septennial
Act was passed, as most bad measures are, from tem-
porary alarm. It was then stated, that there was a
Popish party struggling for power, which, together
with the expence of elections, was then considered a
sufficient reason for departing from the ancient Con-
stitution of the conntry. Would the Hon. Gentle-
man have opposed the Triennial Act, if he had lived
in those times ? The Earl of Devonshire, however,
protested against it as unconstitutional ; and the
Honourable Gentleman had professed a great admi-
ration of the Cavendishes, and the Russells. When
we came to modern times, it would be recollected,
the great Lord Chatham, Mr. Pitt, Mr. Fox, and
many men most distinguished for talents, had strongly
urged the absolute necessity of reform. He, there-
fore, conceived that both authority and reason were
of the same side, and that the public good im-
periously required it. The Hon. Gentleman seemed
to say, that he would vote for reform in Scotland, if
the people expressed a wish for it. Should not he,
on his own principles, have only considered whether
it was or was not for the public good, without consi-
dering whether there was a popular demur raised
or not ? Ile had allowed that the amount of our
expenditure was a grievance, and that the war was a
grievance ; but these were grivances not of the House
of Commons. In this opinion he, however, totally
differed with him. He believed that the war, with
its enormous expenditure, was a war of the House
of Commons. He believed that that HOllll3 had taken
a weak alarm at certain opinions which they feared
would make such a progress in this country as to
'enaliigtsi-fitreitatttotlon. He was sent that tkill
principle could never have made way, if the people
were fairly elected, or if the protection of the coun-
try had been left to the armed property of it. He
conceived that the armed property of the country
would be a much stronger protection than a standing
army. The Government was said to be a Govern-
ment of King, Lords, and Commons. He did not
know how it could be said to answer that descrip-
tion, if the Commons were not represented. Who
did the House of Commons represent at present ?—.
The Members - certainly very faithfully represent
those who are their Constituents. There is no mats
returned by a patron of a borough who would not
he ashamed to vote contrary to his interests or the
wishes of the person who sent him into Pediment.
He would therefore say, that most of them did faith-
fully represent those who actually sent them; but
when they were to be considered (as was true in theo-
I ry, but not in practice) the representatives of the
I people, then it was not surprising that their votes
should be in direct opposition to the wishes and feel-
ings of the people. Thinking that any amelioration
of the representation would be something gained for
the general interests of the country, he should give
his cordial support to the present motion.
Lord MILTON could not help observing, that the
Hon. Baronet was constantly in the habit of talking
1 of the ansient and pure times of the Constitution,
and yet be never condescended to specify to what
particular period he referred. But he had advised,
as a part of his plan of Reform, that the power of
' sending writs to new boroughs should be revested in
the hands of the Crown. This was one branch of
the renovation which the Hon. Baronet recodnend.
ed : but really he (Lord M.) could hardly conceive
any thing that would lead more directly to despotism,
• than the possession of each a power. With all due
' deference to the superior constitutional knowledge of
his Hon. Friend who brought forward this motion
he must contend that nothing was more unfounded
than to suppose. that originally only such boroughs
is were large and opulent sent Members to Par-
liament. The fact was, that while some bo-
roughs had declined, others had flourished and
svown more and what he deduced
im rtant;
po
from all this was, that the state of the borough
representation was in point of independence what it
bsd been at all periods of our history, and even at
those whielt the Hon. Baronet had so often repre-
I seated as pure and uncorrupt. The great advantage
of the present system was, that there could be found
no description of persons in the country who were
apt represented in that House. The landed interest,
and the commercial interest, with all its various re-
milleations, had each theieerepeesentation. Under
i the present system, the East and West India in.
Wrest; haeltheir claims supported. They had. their
reertiefeb whom they could speak.
is Hon. entre pion went to disfranchise a nuns.
ter o f boroagias, and increase the representatives for
1 chanties;" but withall the partiality which be (Lord
]l,.y naturally felt for the landed interest, be should
*ink it vary unfortanate for the general prospetlty
v
ee titer nista in that House. It would seem to

'tip

)!~,
~I

,~

1!

, •
. .A. • • ,
... L .
• q , ', .
ilk
.ki i
-- - 1 i

' .c •..
,1
.._..- . ~r.~..... __ .. ..__