On this page
-
Text (3)
-
March 31, 1860 J The Leader and Saturday...
-
ANTI-REFOBM TACTieS. THE course pursued ...
-
COALITIONS AND ALLIANCES. MR. BEIGHT has...
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
-
-
Transcript
-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
March 31, 1860 J The Leader And Saturday...
March 31 , 1860 J The Leader and Saturday Analyst . 295 ¦ . ' . ' ; ¦ _ ¦ ; ¦ : - ¦ ' - . ¦ ¦ ¦ ^ t
Anti-Refobm Tacties. The Course Pursued ...
ANTI-REFOBM TACTieS . THE course pursued "b y Opposition on the second reading of the Reform'Bill in the House of Commons ; would seem ; , at first view , to be alike purposeless and unpatriotic . Disclaiming all intention of dividing against the pr inciple of the measure , they have contrived to protract the debate , until one man after another has thoroughly committed himself and his party against everything- like just or generous recognition of the rights of the people . Speaker after speaker has betrayed the detestation and the dread with which the most limited enfranchisement of the working classes is regarded . Althoug h the utter hollowness and groundlessness of such fears have been clearly exposed by Mr . Baines , Mr . Crossley , Mr . Bright , and others , on the Liberal side , the same ignoble and unmanly apprehensions have
been displayed again and again ; and appeals , the most undisguised , have been made to the selfishness of the middle classes , . who may , it is hoped , be perplexed , and for the moment paralyzed by the notion that they are " to be swamped , " as the slang phrase goes , by the admission of one out of every twenty working men to the franchise . In the face of a general election , which if the Bill passes cannot be very far off , the adoption of language like this would appear to be unaccountable , if not insane . But as the controversy proceeds , we . begin to discern the real drift and tendency , of the course pursued . Under the semblance ; of willingness to discuss the question generally , the desperate hope is entertained that by delay the Bill may be defeated this session . With the recollection of their own Bill still fresh in men ' s minds ,
the Tories , could not well fall back upon their old doctrine of " no Reform . " < T > velve months have hardly elapsed since they staked their retention of power on the success of a measure which they brought forward as a great and coniprehensive ichange in pur ; electoral system . It would hardly have done , therefore , to turn round suddenly and refuse in so many words to entertain the subject at all ; and it would have been hopeless to try and get a majority against Ministers on the second reading * What , then , was to be done ? No other tactics seemed to promise . a chance of even temporary success hut those of delay . The object must be to get tip interminable-discussions , on wide and
general grounds—the wider , and the more general , the better for the purpose . Provocative denunciations of the nature of the Bill were , for this purposej indispensable . Mere practical criticism and commentary on details would not do , for these must eitherlead to summary refutation or to practical amendment of the measure in committee—and neither one nor the other wa 9 the object sought to be attained . The language of vague misgiving ; and of vituperative attack on the authors of the Bill and their motives , promised to cause a far greater consumption of time ; and by sheer waste of time the anti-Reform leaders tell their followers that it is still possible they may win . : '
They were , moreover , encouraged in this course by the aid afforded them in both Houses by recreant Whigs like Lord GltEY . . ¦ .. "••• ¦ ¦; ¦ '' . It is certainly not a little strange that the sinister part taken , by Lord Nokmanjby in foreign politics should he so closely copied by Earl Grey in questions of home politics like . Reform : People begin to ask , what does it mean ? Both were for years the confidential associates of the men who now fill the highest political offices under the Crown ; and while in power they contrived to have their immediate relatives placed in the highly confidential and politically irresponsible
positions of private secretary to the Queen and private secretary to the Piunoe Consort . These appointments do not change with the fluctuations of parliamentary parties , but have for many years continued , by royal favour , to survive every variety of Administration . What personal ties of sympathy or sentiment subsist between these privy ministers of the Court arid their respective brethren , who make it their especial business to oppose the public ministers of the Crown in Parliament , we do nob pretend to say . But it is certainly a most unfortunate coincidence that the two most factious opponents of Liberal policy at home and abroad at the present juncture should be the Marquis of Normanby and Earl Grey . ISfo wonder people ask" - —wliat does it moan P Of the conduct of the former with regard to
Austria and her hereditary' minions , whom sho would fain , re-impose on emancipated Italy , we have long since taken occasion to express our opinion . Of the latter noble lord , if we speak with equal freedom , we do so- with n still stronger sense of the duty that lies upon us to do so i for Lord Grey is a man of no paltry , vanity or coxcombical ambition . Ho is a man of information , industry , and quickness of perception—a man of undaunted courage in the avowal of lite sentiments , especially when he is in the wrong , and , with a certain impressive earnestness of delivery that generally commands rather than wing attention to what ho says . But on the other hand , ho is a man , the -vices of wlioae disposition have from the outset of his career marred his
usefulness as a public man , and left him with hardly one intimate and confiding political friend . Arrogant and supercilious to all witli whom he is brought into contact , he is wholly devoid of that superb grace and dignity of bearing for which his father was distinguished . " Tetchy , and wayward from his infancy , " he has been alternately the . ¦ torment of colleagues when in office , and the petulant and resentful assailant , of his party whenever he has been left out . For some years past this evil has been deemed the lesser of the two , and the continuance of his ostracism from power seems to have rendered him more reckless and perverse than ever . This may in part account for his Lordship ' s recent course regarding Reform , and that which he threatens to pursue
after the holidays . The notice he has given of a motion for a committee to collect statistics on all points connected with the representation before proceeding with the consideration of any practical measure of amendment or relief , is a most characteristic specimen of the wrong-headedness of the man . Such a committee might sit till Christmas , or throughout next session as'well as this , without coming to any definite result ; and no result at which they could by any amount of assiduity arrive , could possibly touch , the vital and obvious issue that is at stake . It would be the veriest mockery of the people ' s patience and of their prayers . But we cannot forget that this is the same Lord Grey who deserted the Government of Lord Melbourne in 1839 , because Mr . ( afterwards Lord ) Macaulay was invited to join it as a Ballot-teer .
Coalitions And Alliances. Mr. Beight Has...
COALITIONS AND ALLIANCES . MR . BEIGHT has a ; singular aptitude for placing public questions on the lowest possible grounds . He can conceive nothing higher than a good -bargain-, ; - and recklessly vituperates those who interfere with the trade he wishes to drive . These qualities may endear him to a limited circle of dealers and chapmen , but they damage his advocacy of a good cause , when , for business considerations , he thinks proper to become the champion of " a national idea . On Tuesday night he wished to guard his country against a repetition of former errors , and . entanglement in alliances to sustain dynasties and preserve
balances of power , but his oration neither indicated the statesman , the gentleman , nor the gound moralist . One of his newspaper opponents was characterised as a compound of " pietyand ruffianism , " and it was more than hinted that all ¦ writers who express alarm at the conduct of the French Empire are in the pay of pretenders to the throne now occupied by Napoleon III . ! This is worse than nonsense ; It is possible that some writers and proprietors of newspapers may be of Mr . Bkight ? s opinion , and look upon politics chiefly or entirely with an eye to trade ; but there is a very large amount of honest public opinion , which views with anxiety every symptom of Imperial aggression , and cannot banish from its consideration the possibility of England ' s
being called upon to sustain by force of arms what is called the " public law of Europe , " Tlie immense taxation to which the people of this country have cheerfully submitted , the prodigious outlay upon- naval and other armame ' nts , the expense and trouble to which thousands have put themselves in order to swell the ranks of the volunteer rifle corps , these arc . all proofs of uneasiness , and of warlike energy that require to be cautiously guided ^ ' if we would avoid consequences disastrous to ourselves and mischievous to the general good . In our last week ' s impression we treated the annexation of Savoy , and especially of the Swiss portion , as an indication of further designs , and we are not surprised that J / Oid John Russell should express his belief that " such an act will lead , a nation so warlike as the French to call on its government ,
from time to time , for other acts of a , similar nature ; but when the noble Secretary for Foreign Affairs adds , " flint , however we may wish to live on the most friendly terms with the French Government , we ought not to keep . ourselves apart from the other nations of Europe , that when future quostions- arisn , as ^ future questions may arise , wo shall be ready to act with others , " wo do fear something like a renewal of tho old alliances and coalitions , thnt were so . costly to England , without adequate benefit to ourselves or to anybody else . * " Tho French ' Government may bo , justly condemned for itsduplicity and untruthfulness in tho mutter of Savoy , but , unfortunately , these are qualities of which sovereigns arid onbmots arc usually proud ; and if they ulionnto us from Imperial France , they should do no less than make uq equally wary of trusting other despotic powers . - .
, Mr . Bright desires that our foreign policy shall be suclr ' na not to " estrange us from any of the Governments of Eurojpethnt it shall not bo such to France on ' ono side , or to Austria on the other , as shall mako one of those powers tho embittered enemy of Iflnglund / ' This kind of neutrality belongs to » policy which could never bo pursuotl by a hig h-mincled nation , because
-
-
Citation
-
Leader (1850-1860), March 31, 1860, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_31031860/page/3/
-