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Feb. 28, 1852.] THE LEADER. 2Q1
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X The following appeared in our Second E...
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Saturday, February 21, Has the English p...
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Tho Times publishes another long and vig...
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Mu SATUEI)AY, FEBRUARY 28,1852.
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There is nothing so revolutionary;, beca...
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THE LATE MINISTRY. Yes, we have at last ...
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Transcript
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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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Feb. 28, 1852.] The Leader. 2q1
Feb . , 1852 . ] THE LEADER . 2 Q 1
X The Following Appeared In Our Second E...
X The following appeared in our Second Edition L ofltist weeh . ]
Igbstaipt
igBstaipt
Saturday, February 21, Has The English P...
Saturday , February 21 , Has the English people at . Jast found a leader ? If we could , judge from one speech , we niight almost coniecture that Lord Palmerston has stepped forward to take the vacant post . Ministers hate Resigned . —Lord Palmerston succeeded last night in obtaining a majority of eleven in a house of 251 members , against Ministers , on the Militia question .
The debate was short and sharp . Lord John RttsseiiX , in bringing up the report of the resolution on the Local Militia Acts , re-stated the provisions of the bill , which he asked permission of the House to introduce , in terms substantially the same as those he used on Monday night . There were , however , two important differences . After altering the Local Militia Acts , he said , it would be necessary to bring in a bill for consolidating the various acts ; and he surrendered , one of the main points in his plan as sketched on Monday—that of not allowing persons drawn to find substitutes .
Lord Palmerston at once met the statement of the Premier by pointing out the discrepancy between the title and the provisions of the proposed , bill . He showed -with telling force that while Lord John Russell ' s measure-was called a Local Militia Bill , its provisions were those o ^ MEteg « l -M ^ itia Bill . The bill proposed by the noble lord abandoned , the framework of the local system , and adopted the regular system , retaining , however , the name of the former , and not dealing with the various acts regulating the latter . In fact the measure proposed was neither local nor
regular , neither one thing nor the other . You were to have the regular militia besides ; and when you have your 200 , 000 local militia-men , you Would still require , on the breaking out of a war , your 90 , 000 regular militia . Was not this playing your right hand against your left ? He wound up a spirited and telling speech , which , if it did no more , completely exposed the inconsistencies of the government measure , by appealing to the spirit of the nation . Summing ^ rp the objections to a militia , he said , one told us English substitutes woul d- * " ™ away ; another that the Scotch objected to serve : third that Irishmen were not to be trusted .
" To listen to these objections one might suppose that Englishmen are cheats , that Scotchmen are cowards , and that Irishmen are traitors . ( Cheers and laughter . ) All the objections I ever heard are founded upon a practical distrust of the people of these countries . ( Hear , hear . ) Sir , I , on the contrary , am disposed rather to confide in them . ( Cheers . ) But , if you cannot trust your population to defend themselves , you must give them up . ( Loud cheers . ) Tf you cannot trust Englishmen to come to the defence of their country—if Scotchmen will not take up arms and fight against an invading army—if Irishmen will not be true to their Queen and country—why , let us
send for a Russian force at once . ( Loud cheers . ) Let us have an Austrian garrison in London . ( Cheers . ) Let us hide our heads in shame and confusion , and confess that England is no longer England , and that her people have no longer spirit to defend themselves , their homes , their families , and their country . ( Cheers . ) Sir , that is not my opinion . I am of opinion that Englishmen arc proud of their country , that they are sensible of the value of what they have to defend , that they arc fully determined to maintain their liberties , that they will not give way to nn unreasonable panic , or imagine dangers that do not
exist , but that they will bo prepared deliberately to gunrd themselves against any dangers that are sufficiently probnble . ( Hear , hear . ) And my belief is , that if the Government make the appeal to the people , if they show them the dangers that mny possibly arise ( henv ) , if they point out to them the value of the stake they have to defend , I for one bclicvo you will not find the English substitutes running away from their colours—that Scotchmen will maintain their character for courage , and that Irishmen will not be found unworthy of tho country to which "ley belong . ( Loud cheering . )
1 * inully , ho moved to insert the word " amend , " the words " and coriHolidato , " with tlio intention of moving nfterwnrds tho ominHion of tho word " local" boforo tho word " militia , " and sal ; down amid loud and longwmt tinued cheers . After a spoech from Mr . Mxx / NfiR Gibson , taking "P tfvouml outside- tho aroim in which PalindrHton conloaded with Itusrfoll—nnmoly , tlmt of objecting to tho « wUn out of any militia , —Lord John Uubohxx , who had boon inado to fool , by filio hearty chooru of tho JtouHo , that Lord PalmorHton had beaten him , returned < lOHpomt , ol y to tho clrnrgo , and attacked bin ancient col-Jun-Kuo for tho " moot miuHual" course- ho had adopted , coming , forward , not to oppose a second reading , but to say t (> tho minister . " you shall not introduce your plan at all . "
" The noble lord says that the Minister of the Crown shall be debarred from placing his bill on the table of the House , He says , ' You shall not have the bill you like best , but another , of my concoction , of which I will not tell you any of the clauses . I will leave you to find out the provisions of the measure . That will not suit my purpose . All I require is , that you shall produce- a bill different from your own . ' Such a demand was never before made .- Of course , I cannot , comply with
the noble lord ' s request . It would ' . be absurd m me to pretend to satisfy the noble lord . Suppose I were to follow all the injunctions which I have received from the noble lord , and prepare a bill in accordance with them , the noble lord might turn round and say it was not the bill he intended ; that the clauses were different from those he wanted ; and that it would not do at all , and desire me to bring in another bill more agreeable to him . These remarks showed the temper of the Premier . It was useless to follow the discussion of details , the main point was henceforth the existence of ministers ; and Lord John adopted his customary tactics—he menaced the House with his resignation .
" If , " said he , in conclusion , followed by loud laughter , " the House resolve , to omit the word ' ¦ local / I snaU leave Mr , Bernal and the noble lord to bring in the Bill , and feel at liberty to oppose it when brought in , " Mr . Diseaem briefly criticized the plan , but it was obviously only for decency ' s sake . The sting of his speech lay in its tail : — The noble lord , I think , too often shows a readiness to menace the opinions of the House . ( Cheers from the Opposition benches . ) I put the question merely in _ this that the
way : —If it be the opinion of this House principle upon which the Government measure is founded is not a correct one , and that the principle which is expressed in the amendment of the noble lord the member for Tiverton is , on the contrary , the one which ought to be adopted , is this , or is it not , a legitimate occasion to express that opinion ? If it be a legitimate occasion to express that opinion , I cannot doubt that the House will not shrink from fulfilling that duty , and that the threat of the First Minister will not deter us from laying down the sound principle upon which we think the means of national defence should be established in this country . ( Cheers . )
The other speeches—the feeble efforts of Sir George Grey ; the dull criticisms of Mr . Deedes ; the chivalrous rushing in of Mr . Hume to the defence of Russell endangered ; and the spiritless sentences Of the -new President of the Board of Control , —deferred , but could not avert the fatal result . The House divided . For Lord Palmerston ' s amendment , 136 ; against it , 125 .
Majority against Ministers , 11 . Lord John Rttssei / l declared that he looked upon the vote as a proof of want of confidence , and he should relieve himself of all responsibility . Lord Palmerston coolly professed his surprise at the course adopted by the noble lord . He maliciously observed , that Ministers ought not to resign upon a " temporary incidental failure of principle . " Lord John Rtjssem . explained bill
that such was not the case . If he brought in the with the title altered merely , the noble lord would say , that was not the bill ho wanted ; and ho therefore moved " that Mr . Bernal and Lord Viscount Palmerston do bring in tho bill . " ( Loud laughter and cheers . ) Sir Benjamin Ham made a short speech , advising the Premier to resign . Lord John Russell withdrew his motion , members at once dispersed , and after performing a little routine work , tho House adjourned .
Of Lord Pahnorston ' s bill , we must judge when we see it . Tho new spirit and vigour of his conduct , his direct appeal to tho people , are at nil events mostwclcome . Tho Times , the Chronicle , and tho Daily News , anticipate that Lord Derby and tho Protectionists will come in .
Tho Times Publishes Another Long And Vig...
Tho Times publishes another long and vigorous letter from " An Englishman , " on French affairs . Tho Conference of the National Parliamentary and Financial Reform Association , will meet on Tuesday , the 2 nd of March , in St Martin ' s Hall , Long Aero , at eleven o ' clock in tho forenoon . Tho Conference is open to all Members of Parliament who have voted for Mr . IIujjm ' s motion , or othorvvise concur in tho principles of tho National Reform Associ-Committees
ation ; gentlemen elected by Associations or who have adopted those principles ; and Deputations from any body of Reformers willing to attend and nftord information , on tho vital subject of Reform of Parliament . Tho important questions for consideration will bo—1 . What means can bo . adopted for securing , to tho utmost possible extent , tho constitutional rights of tho people i — 2 . How far tho Bill before Parliament is calculated to carry that object into effect?—3 . Tho course to bo pursued to obtain for tho voter tho independent exorcise oi
tho franchise . A party of Americans , at tho head of whom arc Howard Paul , the American author , and . Tosh . Silsbco , tho comedian , are fitting out for a trip to Switzerland , it bomg then intention to ascend Mont Blanc .
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Mu Satuei)Ay, February 28,1852.
Mu SATUEI ) AY , FEBRUARY 28 , 1852 .
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There Is Nothing So Revolutionary;, Beca...
There is nothing so revolutionary ; , because there is nothing so unnatural and convulsive , as the strain to keep things fixed when all the world is by the very law of its creation in eternal progress . —Dr . Abnoid .
The Late Ministry. Yes, We Have At Last ...
THE LATE MINISTRY . Yes , we have at last to thank tlie Derby-Disraeli Cabinet for the greatest service that it could , perform—performed , too , already!—the removal of the Whig Ministry out of the way of the people . "When a feeble enemy wishes to obstruct the inarch of a victorious army , it effects a telling ruse when it puts up the women and children of that army as its own shield . The "Whigs and their followers were the women and childrenthe venerable women and the sickly children that would never grow up —of the Liberal party . They are gone , and we can move forward again . became the herd the his
" Nothing , says - torian , " like his end : " nothing became the archetypal hero of modern whiggery so ill as his end . The Whigs entered office as the opponents of Irish coercion : going out , they record , in the exclusion of Ireland from their Militia Bill , the grossest insult ever offered to a nation . With the peculiar infelicity that attends the footsteps of the weak , they permitted discredit to tarnish even their best men—the last week of office sawone of their very boat lield up as the victim-accomplice in a newspaper scandal . Their aid during the famine—a task which they took out of Peel ' s hands—is recorded in the useless works which they leave among the disastrous monuments of-Ireland . In the
antipapal agitation and the wanton , transparent manoeuvring of their chief to use religious prejudices as a political tool , they alienated the Eoman Catholics , who follow their parting steps with hatred and execration . In the course of their administration , then , they administered a great national aid , so as to earn no thanks ; they governed the country , so as to be upon the point of the coercion which , for party
objects , they prevented ; they have set Ireland , against England , whom their Premier raised against Ireland ; they entered office with a majority sufficient to beat Peel , they go out because their friends will not take the trouble to stay from dinner for a vote , and are beaten in a miserable House of 260 . Both they and the Conservatives may compare that with the House in which Peel beat the Whigs in 1841—a House of
629 , and a majority of 91 . During their administration , they nave done their best to spoil every public question that interests the body of tho people . They have made official taxation a joke , and their Chancellor of the Exchequer has bequeathed to his successor such ridiculous memories as may serve by way of foil to tho most indifferent of budgets . Their last act iu foreign affairs was that trranyillo capitulation , on the strength of which the Austrian Schwarzcnborg makes so insolent an advancereiterating his threats against English
, Bubjocts , if England do not coerce foreign refugcoB . As for tho American alliance—that new and popular idea in this country—thank God they loft that alone ! Tho only man of their party that meddled with it , was Sir Henry Bulwcr , Lord Palmorston ' s aide , who supported it . Tho history of thoir colonial administration is summed up in tho ono word—Grey , who drove tho colonies to tho verge of rebellion , or over it , by an uninterrupted chain of perversities ,
practical inconvenionoos , pecuniary losses , pedantic interferences , and paltry tyrannies , which make him at onco tho laughing-stock , tho scourge , and tho " favourite aversion , of " her Majesty ' s possessions beyond tho seas . " They have pilloried " ltoform" in a bill which was so unhappily put togethor , that its real merit—tho U . extensionlay concealed from tho Reformers who would have supported it j whilo its most conspicuous section was a laughable endeavour to carve out
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Feb. 28, 1852, page 13, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_28021852/page/13/
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