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79g The Saturday Analyst and Leader. [Se...
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KING BOMBA TTJRNED PROTESTANT. HHHE last...
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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.
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Mr. Roebuck's Political Dyspepsia. Nphe ...
sent them .. This passage . is as follows : " It is also the law and custom of the Parliament , that when any new device is raised on the King ' s behalf in Parliament for his aid , or the like , the Commons may answer that they tendered the Bang ' s estate , and are ready to aid the same , only in this new device they dare not agree without conference with their executives : thereby it appeareth that such conference is warrantable by the law and custom of Parliament . " Modern members have affected an independence of their constituents , quite fatal to the idea of representation , and it is common to hear them boast that they never " gave a pledge , " their intention being to remain , politically speaking , " loose fish" to
the end of their days . One of the most important functions of an M P . is deliberation , and if constituencies attempted to extort pledges so as seriously to take away this function , a very mischievous result would follow in lowering the character of the legislature ; but in practice , pledges are never asked for . except in cases where they ought to be given if the candidate intends to be a representative at all , and so fur from electors attempting to exercise too much control over their members , the rule is that they exercise too little . The lower sort—in character , not necessarily in station- —do " pester " their representatives ' for places and subscriptions , btit there is a decided want of supervision of the representative work .
Having propounded his theory of representation , Mr . Roebuck complained that the Parliament was " twitted with having done nothing . " He declared that his colleague and himself had worked very Hard , and added , "I b ^ lieve ^ the best thing that " could result is that we have done nothing . " To explain ' this pai-adox . lie proclaimed the vulgar fallacy , " that thepeople of England are peculiar , for being only able and willing to-undertake one thing at one time "—the one thing during ' the session being the foreign relations of this country . We can ¦ easily admit that in England ^ as elsewhere , there can
only be one subject which is the most popular subject of the day , and that favourite topics liave a tendency to diminish the interest felt in all others •• ' but there was no positive wish that nothing should be done excepting to make provision for defences ; nor in that direction has the Parliament even attempted to do its duty , The people otit of doors , vith more hindrance than help from the Government , have made an important volunteer movement , but the House of Commons did nothing more for our defences than vote , without investigation , any quantity of rnpney the Cabinet chose to ask for . At no time were the debates on our foreign relations so
destitute of serviceable ; talent , and iinless jealousy of France can be so called , no attempt was made to lay down any intelligible principles of action ; and when the session concluded , ' the ' Government was found maundering in the Queen ' s speech about the treaties of 1815 ,, as if they were things for which any sane Englishman would draw the sword . If the House of Commons had really gone into the question of national defences , and had made any progress towards systematizing and giving permanence to a . volunteer , moveinerit , large enough to diminish the amazing cost of the regular services , Mr , Roebuck might have been entitled to
boast of its labours , but the fact is , that we are as far as ever from' a really national system . We have not , even settled the' preliminary questions of what should" be done by the navy , an 4 Svhat should be ksft for land foi ' , and ' we have entered upon an expenditure of millions in . fortifications without determining the work they ai < e , to perform . ' All we know is , that the military authorities intend to make them ap , excuse , not for . diminishing the standing ' arnlyj but for aaking ; for more ti'oops . ' * "SSt \\ \ \ reference to Reform , Mr . Roebuok says— " We intended' to carry the Reform Bill , but the opposition was too
' strong fprus and the people of England did not support their , re ^ re'sentft , ti"ves . " It is not correct to say that the Reform B 0 ^ ' feU to the ground because of the stee ' ngth of the opposition . It fell because its own friends did . not take the trouble to ke e ^ itiipi and , if constituencies are not to' " poster" repre-• s entE ^ e ' s ^ vith their opinions , why should' the latter make the [ n < dn ~ expression of opinion a reason for standing still . The ' sinair-Refbrm scheme of Lord JpiiN Russisxx was ml attempt ' to ' forQstiin agitation , to make the Legislature act from its ' own energies , and not wait to 'bo kicked onwards ' by ' external forpe . ' 'Its refusal to ndopt this boiwsa' is ' . ' quite fativt ^ to' Mr . Roebuck ' s or to any wiser theory ^ of irjfdo-¦ j y ^ ntt ^^ V ftncl the ' result lias , prored , that . ^ otlnng ' c ' j > n , bo qfone tjSroPtlip ruling classes are made so uncomf ) rf ' mb ( ey tliKt W *| KejlA < 5 | jR sivl « es tliey ' ^ consent to ' exchange , ' '"'"' , mtl ^ % f ^ 0 rSffo , iva remain in ' the same' tinsettled state , Mr * Jtoii } Biij ' 'bK J prS 5 iiises ' that tlio [ nexi session' will bq ns barren \ . . . ' . ¦ ¦ ,
as the last ; but the House of Commons is not to be blamed for it , " because sir , we ( the House of Commons ) are the living voice of the people of England . " Here again is that morbid egotism which Mr . Roebuck takes for political wisdom . Mr . Roebuck is in the House of Commons , and therefore it is the living voice of the people of England , and is to be complimented , because " have done muc h good by doing nothing . " We have no wish to underrate the good that has been done by the fact that one great Senate in Europe is free ; but we must have wiser and nobler utterances than we had last session , before we are entitled to call our Parliament " the harp of the liberty of the world . " The world wants to know what sounds the harp meant
to give , or what principles we intend to maintain ; and it is still sorely puzzled to guess whether old doctrines of balance of poAver or new doctrines of the rights of nationalities will be the foundation of our action . Everyone sees that the French Emperor may force us into war by practically asserting his monstrous claims to readjust boundaries according to principles that ought to be put down ; but the comfort the people of Europe Avould derive from our wish to repress Imperial ambition is much marred by doubts whether we should ally ourselves with the thirty little . tyrants of
Germany , or play the old game of trying to make Austria a counterbalance to France . A truly English policy would set these questions at rest , and take away from Louis Na . pot . eoN his most dangeroxis -weapon , the opportunity of playing off the rights of the nationalities against the Sovereigns who support the Treaties of 1815 . Towards such a policy , however , the : House of . Commons has made no advance ; and it is difficult , to believe , that the intereste of Europe have been benefltted by the blatant absurdities of Mr . Kkrslake and Sir Robert Peei ,.
In one thing Mr . Roebuck admits the House of Commons to be imperfectj '' talk , talk , sir ,, is the curse of that house ; " and he added , with an acidity singularly indicative of in / digestion ^ " and I think it is the curse of this room . ' * After this the Cutlers should provide no more cutlets for their billioUs member ; and if fate and fortune should dissolve the present connexion , we recommend them to inquire of si new candidate before backing his pretensions , " Pray sir , how is your liver . "
79g The Saturday Analyst And Leader. [Se...
79 g The Saturday Analyst and Leader . [ Sept . 15 , 1860
King Bomba Ttjrned Protestant. Hhhe Last...
KING BOMBA TTJRNED PROTESTANT . HHHE last resort of baffled rascality is to protest . The dis-J- . honest debtor , whose liability will be wiped out by the statute of limitations next month ; when compelled to discharge the claim before , this mode of liquidation operates , pays it under prbtest . The man of elastic conscience who , relying upon possession being 1 nine points ; of the law , ' . ' annexes " ¦¦ property he has , contrived to lay his hands on , protests , against its restoration toJtlie rightful owner . ' . The tenant who wants to live rent free protests against ejectment . ' . The highwayman caught in Jktgrante detieio protests against being- brought to justice . And last , but ' by no means least in the qoncatination of delinquency , his Majesty the late ' King of Naples protests against the decrees of Heaven and the unaniinous determination of the
Italian people . The French Emmsuor is proud to declare that he rules " by the grace of ; God and the popular will . " , By the grace of Go » and . th ^ will of the people , ' as well as to the , unspeakable satisfaction of the people , the JCing of NAPt 3 ? s has ceased to rule at all . His departure . qnly cannot be described in the language Cicero applied to Ca . ta . line , becriuse . would be an insult to that classic ' desperado . to compare him with the . ferocious poltroon who at Naples is' just now so happily 'J conspicuous l > y his absence ; " and who has rather dropped . ofT , like a mortified limb , than " rushed forth" with tho desperate , though fugitive fury of the old Roman demagogue . We have heard of men who , like C ^ sab , have been equully
great with the sword and the pen . But it has been reserved" for his Majesty the lttte King of Na-p ^ ks to illustrate the antithesis of that accomplished character , ana to show that his nbuee of the pen is even more deplorable than h [ is ' non ' -use of the sword . We cannot say that he fought badly ; , for , he' wouldn ' t fight at all ; on this subject he has baffled qriticisra , because he has furnished no materials for it to operate upon . ' : Butif we may judge by what analogy there is . and reason fro ; n hie writing to his . fighting ,, the Jitter would have been about the very worst that w « s ever exhibited . "As well icuh'awav first as last . " we can' imagine hia Majesty muttering
to' ^ hSfelf ' aV b e ' took . flight , ' arid Wde a Uterary . eplutter , to cpver ^ 'feis : retreat' after the 'faeWidrt of those nameless _ and noisome ' animals wljpae defence frpm ' the hounds resolves » tseu intd ' tho fact that the latter are riot destitute of riosefl .:
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 15, 1860, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_15091860/page/4/
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