STATE OF PARTIES IN FRANCE AND ENGLAND.
THERE is a Juste Milieu in England as well as in France. In both countries, the term may serve to describe the supporters of their respective Administrations. The Ultra-Tories correspond with the Carlists ; and the Radicals have their prototypes in the party of the Movement.
In England, the political prospects of the Tories have been blasted by their adherence to arbitrary principles of government, obstinately persisted in until repentance came too late. They con- sidered liberty to be an evil to be mitigated and lessened, not a blessing to be extended and improved. They converted the House of Commons into a tax-trap; and used it as a screen behind which they skulked from the inquiring eyes of the People. They made sounding speeches on the immense advantages which the nation derived from its representative form of government ; by means of the rotten boroughs, they deprived*, in a great de- gree, of that character, and consequently of the power to benefit us and control them. Well might they boast, that they had ex- tracted from the English Constitution its democratic sting—that, however liberal and patriotic the views of the Monarch might be, they had turned the key of his closet upon every one who ap- proached it in the garb of a popular Minister. This base policy might have continued to prosper for an indefinite period, had it been possible to keep the People in ignorance by gagging the Press. But, though- too often disgracefully pliant, the sturdy spirit of' Englishmen resisted this master-stroke of ty- ranny; so that even in the worst days of CASTLEREAGH and SID- MOUTH, the Press, under the protection of the Trial by Jury, re- 'inained comparatively free. The first consequence of this freedom was the extension of political knowledge among the People ; and, as popular ignorance is essential to the prevalence of aristocratic imisrule, the second has been the overthrow of the Tory domi- nation. The haughty and unrelenting men, who for so many years banded themselves together to plunder and oppress their fellow subjects, have suffered so severely in the late battle on the Reform Bill, that, if not absolutely hors de combat, they will never . again be able to recover the strongholds from which they have . been bravely driven. They would act prudently, therefore, in re- tiring into their Conservative quarters, where with " Claret and Madera they may irrigate the dryness of decline."
By the Radical party, we do not mean to designate the followers of HUNT and CARLILE, or the advocates of violent and uncon• ..stitutional measures. 'We employ the term here to designate that holiest and independent but small body of members in the House :of Commons (though powerful and numerous out of it), who wish to pull up Corruption by the roots, in order that the tree of Liberty may have ample room to strike deeply into the soil. These men are no office-seekers, nor constitutionmongers. They consider a Reformed Parliament as the means of effecting great good for the country, and are determined to use it for that end. Should further alterations be found necessary, in order to render the House of Commons not merely a full exponent of the just and lawful desires of the People, but also an efficient instrument for their accomplishment, then, and then only, will they promote such alterations. In the mean while, they will set fairly to work with the tools already in their hands. Public approbation, and the internal consciousness of deserving well of their country, must be the only guerdons which they can hope to win. They are too few in number, and act too independently of each other, to form a .party in the House with any hope or intention of obtaining office. In fact, though capable of doing infinite service in their actual position, they would lose weight in the country by becoreing Mi- nisters,—if such an event were within the range of probability, instead of being fir beyond it. The Juste Milieu, or Ministerial party, are well aware, that there are certain measures of reform, vigorous, substantial, and effective in their nature and operation, which this Independent party will regularly support; but, on the other hand, that there is a description of temporary expedients and palliatives, the adoption of which they will scout and resist.
• The character of the Ministerial party may be fairly enough de- scribed by the term Juste Milieu, as it is used and understood by our volatile neighbours, whose past history proves how seldom they have been able to hit it themselves. The Whig party, or that union of parties which forms the present Administration, stands in the middle between the Tories and the Radicals. How far their position can, strictly speaking, be called " juste," many will be disposed to question. They support a commutation, not an abolition of tithes ; a reduction possibly, not an abolition of the 'Corn-duties; gradual, not immediate emancipation of slaves ; and quinquennial, rather than triennial, certainly not annual Par- liathents. They will probably also oppose the introduction of the Tote by ballot. In short, as a Ministry, they may be considered as the patrons of half-measures. If they should go greater lengths, it will be owing to the impetus received from the Radicals—both in and out of Parliament. They will probably command a consi- derable majority in the new House of Commons; and, owing in a great measure to the peculiar state of parties in the country, will almost certainly retain possession of their places for some time to come. At any rate, we hold it to be tolerably clear, that their suc- cessors, to whatever division in the State they may ostensibly be- long, must necessarily adopt the principles and policy of the Juste Milieu. If, as we have seen above, neither the Tories nor the Ra- dicals can possess any reasonable expectation of forming an Admi- nistration on the principles of their respective parties, the only alternative winch is presented to the King, is to retain his pre- sent servants, or to select others of the same brood, family, and caste.
We have compared the Carlist party in France with our Ultra- Tories. The points of resemblance between them are many and striking. They agree in maintaining the first grand principle of despotism—that of excluding the people as much as possible. from all share in the government of their country, and all control over the funds which they have furnished to carry it on. Both are enemies to fteedom of speech and writing, and friends to clerical ex- tortion. Suspensiens of the Habeas Corpus Act, a la CASTLEREAGH, and Ordinances, A la POLIGNAC, are the measures which they adopt to silence the murmurs of an oppressed and indignant na- tion,—measures which naturally recommend themselves to des- potic temperaments and miserable understandings. They prefer CHARLES the Tenth to Louis PHILIP, MIGURL to PEDRO, and Russian Absolutism to Polish Liberty. Fortunately for the people of France and England—fortunately for the whole world—there is one other point of resemblance between them at present : we al- lude to the position of both at the foot of the political ladder. There let theta rest—it is their proper place. Every step upwards which they are suffered to take, will be upon the trampled rights
and defeated hopes of their fellow men. • It is, perhaps, rather in their peculiar position, than in their political tenets, that the French Opposition resemble our Radical or Independent party. Although they both possess the power of influencing the measures of Government to a great extent, yet there is little probability of either being able to form a Ministry which could embody and act upon their avowed principles of fog reign and domestic policy. They both are favourable to the exten- sion of the elective franchise, to short Parliaments, and to the diminution of royal and aristocratic power. But, as regards foreign affairs, we believe, that the policy of the Movement party is by no means adopted by our English Radicals. The latter are not dis- posed to vote away the money of their constituents to carry on Continental wars; while the former wish forcibly to overturn, or to assist in overturning, all the despotic thrones in Europe, by means of battalions of French Propagandists. Neither is the idea of a republic popular in England among the leading Radicals; but it is openly advocated by the organs of the Movement. Lastly, there can be no comparison between the number of distinguished and leading men belonging to the French Opposition in the Cham- bers, and that of the English Radicals in the House of Commons. If the foreign policy of the former were not so decidedly warlike, and their domestic too republican in its tendency, no obstacle to their forming an Administration would arise from the deficiency of clever leaders and distinguished men; whereas, if Mr. HumE, for instance, were called upon to form a Cabinet, he would not be able to select half a dozen members from among his friends, who fill a sufficient space in public opinion to quality and entitle them to hold important state offices. It is, therefore, as we remarked above, not so much in the particular articles of their political creed, as in the general tendency of their principles to democracy, and in their present position as the antipodes of the Ultras, that we are to seek for the resemblance between the French and English Radicals. Notwithstanding the predictions of the overthrow of the Juste Milieu in France, with which our press as well as that of Paris has teemed, Moderate politics are still on the ascendant there. The Ministerialists, backed by the King, have hitherto proved too strong for the Carlists and Republicans united,—for although they agree in nothing else, these two parties cordially concur in hating the Government. The fact is, that the cautious lovers of peace, the possessors of property, and the speculators on the Bourse—a nu- merous and important body in Paris—are all agreed as to the ne- cessity of supporting the King and his Ministers. They maintain, that the real question for the nation to decide is, whether they will continue to live under a limited monarchy, or be again consigned to the tender mercies of despotic rule : they assert that the esta- blishment of a republic is a mere political chimera; that a won- derful alteration must take place in the character of the French, before it would be suffered to exist fora twelvemonth among them ; and that there never was a people in the world to whose welfare and internal peace the energy of a powerful executive was so essen- tial. Having had some opportunities of forming an opinion as to the state of public feeling in France, we think we can safely assert, that such are the sentiments of a great majority of the respectable upper and middle classes,—notwithstanding the influence of a certain portion of the press, and its violent supporters of the Move- ment. If, therefore, we have described correctly the position and prospects of the three great parties into which the French nation is divided,—theCarlist, the Movement, and the Juste Milieu,—it fol- lows that the latter, which it was said the meeting of the Chambers would extinguish, will probably retain its ascendancy for some time longer—not for months only, but years.
We have shown that the state of parties in England is not very dissimilar; and that Lord GREY and Marshal SOULT will probably be compelled by the force of circumstances to move upon nearly parallel lines. How far this state of affairs is fortunate or other- wise for both nations, remains to be proved. We confess that we shall be much disappointed if, in our own country, great good does not result from it. We see no reasons to doubt the good intentions of the Whig Ministry. That it requires to be spurred into active and vigorous exertion, is undeniable ; that the goad will be smartly applied in the new Parliament, we have no doubt. The Ministry may surely be made the instruments of extensive national im- provements. Let us therefore give them a fair trial. Should they neglect or refuse to march—cautiously if they like, but steadily and straight forward—in the career of Reform, they must, and will, be forced to "make way for honester men."
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