The Statesman.
London, England, 1810-09-20 00:00:00

LETTER V.

•
I am really-alarmed both at
POLPTIAN TO CAIUII. ~.,
your doctrine 'and, at
the strong language you have used. in eolith:iv
it ; and 13n vast say, that I do net think you justifies'
by the circumstances of the ease. You have look•
ed too much to one •sitie elf, san...llllkOant Pil'ieelv
,And forgot that on the lifter it: id -neceitsery for. tive.l
;_Crown to have consideieila influence in the (louse
of Commons. Woe dukiaiiisialaitis of Ministeri
. . .
,-npiosed from nothing but principle; Government
tdesist Ps hue nothing ,hut the rectitude of its area..
•
Asures jo „rapport them ; but sinceoppa!sition springs
froin.other motives,• Government 'suit potisess an
influence to counteract these Taoi;VeS; to produce.
nut a bias of the passions, bunt neutrality, it must
have some weight to set the balance even. It is the
.„
nature of. power always to press upon the bounds..
ries. which. con fine it. Licentiousness, faction, envy,.
impatience of controul 'or inferiority; the secret
pleasure of mortifying the great, or the hope of
dispossessing them; a carstaat.wittingsesi to slues.
titan and thwart whatever is dictated, Or even pro.
posed by another ; a disposition common to all
b,tdies of men to extend the claims and authority of
their orders ; above all, that love of power, and of
shewing it, which resides more or less in every
human breast, and whiol,,in popular assemblies, is
inflamed like every other-passiod—by communica.
titan and encouragement . these motives, added to
private designs and reseutteentS, cherished also by
'popular acclatnationi• and operatiugalpon the great
share-of power alieady possessed by tho House of
Commons, might induce a majority, or at least a
large party of men, to unite in endeavouring to
drat; to themselves • the whole government .of. the
state, pr at least so-to obstruct tilt condtict of pub-
' Up at4!.4 bra wanton vid.perogrseimposition, as to
render it impossible for the wisest statesman lA/starry:
fo—rartl the business of the nation with success or
istisfaction*:" It may, therefore, well be dobbied
whether you have taken a right view of the subject,
i and whether a complete representation of the Rega-
-1 plc, independent of the Crown) would be useful
or even practicable.

But the construction of the Halm Of Comnions
cat.' by no means be presumed 4o be defective, be.,
cause it does not entirely represent the people. We
must heat' in mind, that 66 the only ride of govern.
meta known and acknowledged by men, is use and
practice +."---‘' Governmenis are formed by chance,
and being gradually imProvedsby !itch .ezpedienti as
the successivwdiseoverpof• their defects happened to
snggcst, are never to'bertrktl by a 'regular tlieory.
They are fabrics 'of dissimilar. materiali, 'raised by
different architects tipoi di Totem. plans, and wo•
most be content with them as they.are*," Now,
use end practice, and successive hOpiovements gree
deafly made, have brought ourGoveroment to the
situation in which we tend it, we must C 071043-fit
to be the best adapted to the cireemstances—,and
character of tits: nation, and not be discouraged
because it does not agree with some more perfect
imaginary system which has never been tried,- and
probably could nut be acted upon.
Supposing, hoWever, that we had discovered real
slefects in the House of Commons, should we not
be obliged to acknowledge, with Sir MA/timer
BALE, that " if by any means a. misgovernment
should fall upon Parliament, the subjects of this
kingdom aro without all manner of remedy ;" and
with Mr.,Justice BLACKSTONS, that " so long as
the English Constitution lasts the power of Parlia-
ment is absolute, and without controul ;" and with
Dr. JOHNSON, that " Laws are now made, and
-customs are established, which arc our rules, and
by them we must be guided." Such, at least, is
my opinion, and it gives me The leis concern, be.
' cause L am not convinced that any good would arise
front a new mode of returning Members to the
!louse of Commons. "No •alteration in the mode
of election, or in the electors •themseirta;-avotild
'produce any change in the elected ib
.tbeinlietthe'
*sotirce of the evil, Which-WO bliteenal:appllcittioo
can approach t • Ito weVer they eh chosen, 'de: Par.
Bement, .when assembled, wil4 he just thewames
Different modes of election may, io bemire, make
'some difference in (he trouble and expeaco of • the
candidates, and may differently afflict the Motels of
the people and the peace of the country, but will
make no difference lel the regresentatlie.btidy, Oita
brought together,, and it is of li.ttlasiguifitatioril/
t$ hat means they come there. • The majority of any
legislative isscuthly, consisting of • 658 members, in

- -
• -♦ I Ruine, 503.
1-pf.,,ii•iitio ease ALleasi VOL 10# p. iso

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the same circumstances and situation, will infallibly
iict in the same manner*."
Suppose, however, lastly, that a change promited
us some benefit, and that there was a hope that the
legislature might be prevailed on to sanction it;
Awould it be ',life to make the attempt ? Would
theattempt, if successful, lead to any permanent,
advantage These arc questions worthy of consi.
()prelim!. To innovate upon the diablished prac. .
aim of a igiavenstnent is always extremely dangerous.
The earns Which are xisitno, are like the pro*
whickeipportais ancient building they arc cum..
flit twit, atiligMyt .and theugh they seem defortni. •
ties,
,yirt, if you attempt to remove them, the whole •
fabric falls. They have been added as successive
accidents and decays made them necessary ; and if
you begin to change them, you never know where
you.can stop. You procure the adoption of some
measure which appears moderate and reasonable;
but-which, from its awkwardness and novelty, lit
assur,ts with what you leave behind—meanwhile
the love of change takes hold of the popular feel.
ing, the torrent sweeps wildly on, and destroys
every thing before it—the ancient and venerable in.
stitution is quite demolished—a state of anarchy.
and confusion arises—and no law can be established
1 till order is enforced by a military despotism. Wit.
ness the English Rebellion, whit!' led to the execs.
Lion of CHARIAS I. and the tyranny of CROMWELL&
Witness the still greater horrors of the French Re.
volution, ending in the tyranny of BONAPARTE.
In both cases the contest was moderately began by
men eminent for their integrity and patriotism—but
they could oot guide- the tempest they had raisedi
and thus perished in the general conflagration. Let
us, therefore, be warned by their example, and
carefully guard against every thing which can tend
to make the people '• despise their old habits of
obedience to their governments from which fatal
source may arise a, train of consequences ending id
the wreck of every vestige of freedomt." Bat
even if this dreadful extremity could bo provided,
for and prerentedPrnsight be doubted, as I hinted
"before, whether any innovation would be lasting,or
practicable. Look-A.6e famous 61st chapter of
King Yeast's Charter, authorizing a civil war after
certain formalities,, and imposing no restraint on
the lawful rebels, but that they should respect the
persona of the King and Queen and their children.
took also at.a clasese in a confirmation of the great
Chatteris which was enacted in the 49th year of
iligllllllr M. 66 giving liberty to the King's subjects
to rise against; and distrain him to the utmost of
their power, notwithstanding the allegiance which
they owed hire, in case he should transgress the con.
ditions therein agreed mit." In this confirmation
there watts no exception, even in respect of the
King's royal person and family. But what was
the result of .these celebrated remedies ? In both
eases,' 66 as edon as the Kings got out of the hands
of their-respective enemies, neither father nor soli
paid say regard to concessions so compulsively ex.
Sorter Su impracticable (adds the learned Biker
'Of the Charters) is the attempt to restrain even
inited Monarchs by any positive, provisions, which
argue * degree of distrust inconsistent with me.
narehy itself." In ' like manner many other regu.
lotions, by which it'has been attempted to remedy
imperfections, perhaps inseparable from human in:
ititutions, have been disregarded, either because ttfey
could not be reduced to practice, or because they
Were produetive of other
The constitution consists of thole laws Which the
legislature take Care to preservein activity, and of
those customer' which It permits and sanctions, and
seeing that yiiiir" perfect system of representation,
would give an intolerible degree of embarrassment
to the executive power; that the present system
cannot be presumed to be bad ; that if it were bad,
there is no remedy likely to be efficacious ; and that
if there were such a remedy, it would be dangerous
to try,it; we mayon the whole conclude, that it
is better to maktrourselves satisfied with our pre.
Sent condition, and do all that sec can to strcngthett
the hands of government,against
,thc mighty power
Which threatens us from without.

• 2 Soam ienyns, 212.
t-. . + Lord Selkirk, p. 11.
131w/este/les lido. 114, lutroduetlen 90. •

P.

•. 't•
We haverecently had to notice the pltasnomanioti
of the sinking of a piece of leild itt ....therrench-tera,
ritory, leaving a lake id its place. The follostieg
similar pheenometto'n is still more eitraordinery,„at
'bring produced by a 0111'0 falling in of a range.ot
Mountains : Lemberg, :Tilly 22.—The day' before
yesterday a part of the mountains,. situated two
miles from this place, separated from the • chain to
which they belong, and was 5.1.41;0-wed up iu lido
earth. ThesubUrb if our City, called Chorousa
'ie)stra; has ,wen to much flooded in consetptence
'of this event; that the *ater penetrated 'to the bed.
efiatubcrtzi and tan children a ere lostA


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