THE S PEAKE RSH I P.
Ins Tories, it seems, would like to put Sir EDWARD SUGDEN into the chair of the new House of Commons ; and they are said to be talking about it quietly. We believe that the project will end in talk; and for these reasons.
In the first place, they know that Sir EDWARD SUGDEN is not fitted for the office of Speaker. He is impatient, waspish, and undignified in his manner; acute and industrious, but with little Parliamentary experience, and not personally popular. Secondly, he can do his party much better service as a captious debater than as a Speaker. On the floor of the House, he will be, in a very extensive range of business, one of the most for- midable Members of the Opposition; always ready to detect blunders, and merciless in "showing up" him who commits them. In the chair, he would be harmless to the Ministers,
and useless to his friends perhaps a discredit to them. Thirdly, (and this one reason is sufficient of itself,) the Tories, will not make SUGDEN Speaker, because they cannot. If the Liberals are sure of a majority on no other question, they will not be defeated on the Speakership. In addition to the entire strength of his party, an old Speaker, again a candidate, has always a number of personal supporters in the ranks of his political oppo- nents. MANNERS SUTTON had formally taken leave of the House, his retiring pension having been voted and accepted : he ostentatiously busied himself in the intrigues of his party, and was supposed to be negotiating for some high office for him- self: it was in aid of PEEL in his critical circumstances, as a mere party tool, that MANNERS SUTTON again came forward : yet, even with all these disadvantages, justly obnoxious as he was to the severe animadversion which he did not escape, and the estimated Liberal majority being large, it was considered almost a desperate attempt to oppose MANNERS SUTTON. We well remember that the Spectator was blamed and called imprudent for urging on the Liberals to this attack. The Tories, at least until they saw the keenness with which the matter was taken up out of Parliament, and made a test of fidelity by the constituencies, rejoiced in having such strong ground on which to fight their first battle.
But Mr. ABERCROMBY occupies a far better position titan did MANNERS SUTTON. Ile has not intimated any wish to resign: he has not waived his claim to be reelected: his conduct in the chair gave almost universal satisfaction, his conduct out of it has been unexceptionable. We do believe that many of the most respectable Tories m ould refuse to juin in an attempt to oust lam. But suppose every Tory in the Ilouse should vote against
him, the Speakership is one of those few questions on which
the Liberal majority, though very small, might be safely relied on. There is only one contingency on which the Tories would have any chance of putting in their r,wn Speaker. If Mr. WILLIAM HOLMES, on counting the first muster of the session, should find a majority of Tories in attendance, then SUGDEN, or GoutnuaN, or anybody, would be proposed at the eleventh hour, and all ether considerations would be sunk in the certainty of a great party triumph. But the Liberals will not be sluggish and doltish enough to allow the ft,e this advantage.
Previous page
