True Democrat. (Paulding, Miss.) 1845-18??, 1846-05-27
MIS- CHLLANY.
FACTS RELATING TO THE EN-
GLISH GOVERNMENT AND NOBIL-
ITY.
BY REV. C. COLLINS.

Hc pOVCTuHnetlL Ol eng is, anu las
been since the DAYS of King John, limit
ed monarchy. The Kings power is limit
ed by parliament which consists of the
Upper House, termed the house of Lords,
and the over House, called the house
Of Commons, corresponding in some mea.
sure to the Senate and Honsc of Represeu-
tatves, which constitute the Congress of
the United States The power of Parlia-
ment is legislative and absolute. The
Kings power is executive and-limiled.
The King is the source from whence
every noble derives his nobility. His pre-
rogalive, "by which we mean" says Black
stone, 'that special pre-eminence which
the King hath over and above all other
persons, issgreat" In the eye of the Eng
lish law, he is perfect. He can neither do
wrong nor mean wrong. Though he
should be guilty of the darkest crimes be.
fore he ascends the throne, yet the moment
the crown presses his brow, he is, in the
eye of the law, purged ofaIl sim His per-
son is sacred, he cannot be arrested for
debt He is commander and Chief of the
army; the source of all civil authority,
hence every officer in the empire receives
his commission, and derives his power d.
rectly from the reigning sovereign. Ac-
cordng TO law the King can never die. A
George or William may die, but the King
eternally iveS-i. C. the throne is never
vacated; for the moment the sovereign ex-
pireS, the heir isSupposed to be visited with
the regal prerogntive. The civil code of
England never mentions the death OF a
King; but his demise
One would suppose that ali individual
possessing such vast power TO be abso-
lutte But he is not, the King can make
no new law, he can only sanction those
which have passed Parliaments. Though
it is supposed that he is above, and beyond
the reach of the law, vet his counsellors
and ministers are not. They are account
able for his deeds; OH them the vengeance
frequently falls, which should fall upon
the King. He is also dependent upon the
House Of Commons for his salary, and I'M
less he acts in accordance with their wsll-
es they will deprive him of the means 10
dcfray the expenses of his household, and
support the dignaty of his station. He has
no private revenue, aud is not permitted,
as King, to hold private property He be-
longs to the nation, aad the nation TO him.
What we have said of the King will ap-
ply TO the Queen.
The next title of dignity, after prince, is
Duke. The Dukes are generally near re-
lalves of the King, th ough occasionally
one Of the inferior nobility attains TO the
dignity MS is the case With the Duke of
Wellington. The title aud dignity ofDuke
is generally hereditary. His income IS dc.
rived from his own estates, unless he'is
n member Of the royal family, then he re-
ceives a salary from the government. But
thew are all assisted by government, mas
much as they usually Oil Offices without !
duties, and with large incomes. 1.-The BROTH |
erS of the Teigning King or Queen are
Dukes. Besides them in England there I
are 10. The Coronet ofan English Duke,
consists OF eight strawberry leaves, on
rim Of gold; he is styled tile Most Potent /
Prince, Your Grace.
The next rank Of English nobility is
Marquis. OF the Marquis order we know |
but little, they wero unknown in England /
unit! 1887, when Richard II, created his
favoric, Robert We're, the Earl of Oxford, |
MARQUIS Of Dublin The title which he I
is addressed, is Most Noble and Potent /
Prince. England has 20. The next in |
order is the Viscount, this title is COMPARE |
lively rare The next is Earl, in official
language termed the Kings we'll beloved /
and trusty cousins This practice is as
ancient as the time Of Henry Nv, who be-
ing either by his wife, mother or sister, re-
lated TO every Earl in the Kingdom, arliul- /
lv acknowledged the. relationship Ia bis /
letters and public acts. An Earls coronet /
is composed Of eight pearls, raised upon
points. with small leaves between them,
and above the rim. There arc AT present, \
los in England, IN Scotland, and 10
in Ireland As earls for some time after
the Norman conquest, were cahed Counts, 1
their wives are now called Countess. The
next is Baron: this class Of noblemen are
are more numerous in England than 10
any other There are Ill in England, 22
in Scotland, and rs IN Ireland. The next
last nd lowest, is knight. This dignity
was created IN 1911, by james |. He
wished IN raise money TO carry on a war,
and for this purpose granted 10 100 persons
the night OF beaFing the arms Of Ulster, and
priixinr Sir to their names, for whichthey
gave him $1,000 each. No privileges ere
connect with this tiile, but the tile itself
Is considered a great honor. and Is fre-
- A .--.-l - .tsaf9ss. -sr.1rh~a ~frff i