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Untitled Article
second Chamber upon the necessity of a ret ^ naideratiffn in arAksiM occupied assembly , to prevent fatal oversights and . other , terrors ^ The House of Commons is , no doubt , very inaptly xjonstitutedi for the / work of legislation . The best that can be said for it i * , that it is not so bad as the House of Lords . The defectiven&ss istaii
excellent reason for some contrivance , which it would not b ^ very difficult to devise , by which the f mechanics of law-making might be improved . But non constat that , one Chamber being ill constructed for legislation , there should be added anotheo Chamber , worse constructed , and inflicting a host of evils , for the sake of now and then rectifying its blunders . The condition of
the Statute Book sufficiently shows what such a remedy is worths No ' appeal on behalf of the artificers can be made from the testimony of their own workmanship . There are plenty of * £ atab oversights , and other errors . ' If mending the legislation of ikm Commons , up to the degree of simplicity and perfection whiehtt .
has already attained , be the basis on which rests the worth o £ the House of Lords , down it must go , smothered in the bog of ite own making . Public opinion will ere long be chiefly divided , not on the question of change or no change , but on that of reformation or simple abolition ; and in proportion as the former is obstructed will the desire for the latter gain force until it be *
come invincible . Even the ' Edinburgh Review , ' in the very article just quoted , renews its former recommendation of one species of reform , the * free conference , ' on the ground that f it would in fact be depriving the Lords of their veto in certain cases ; but only ia cases where there seems no sound reason why they should retain
itS Why this , my Lord , is all that any body wants ; although not a few cannot perceive a sound reason why their veto should be retained in any case . Still there is time during which a mitik gation of the mischief will suffice for general satisfaction . Only * do not prematurely tell the people that at this point they , and the friends they have hitherto trusted , must needs part company . I would rather suspect your Lordship of such hastiness and incfa *
cretion , as is indeed much to be lamented in a representative of the people , a Minister of the Crown , the leader of a party , and an approved patriot , than believe you have already come to a deter * mination which , if persisted in , must soon present you as an enemy in the ranks of the Conservatives , fighting the battles of noxious privilege against that public opinion which you wisely regard as the great power of improvement . ... •>
I kuow not . whether you would disclaim the inference ^ from th 4 conclusion of your reply , that some notion of f duty , ' aa -di * tinguished from ' feeling and opinion / binds you to the support of ' the Constitution of the country in all itd branches , ' anctth * tao you ^ stand , pledged' to resist ' organic chaagefl , ' even though , yo * should be oon-vinced of their benenoial Umdency to the { great j mjtiM-< rf Uie , 0 omj » unity . You * J&pgua ^ e bt * r # that ocratiu ^ toan ^ wtak
Untitled Article
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Nov. 2, 1835, page 705, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2651/page/13/
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