Opinionsi of tte Prrdi.
WHO IS TO SUPPORT THE IRISH CLERGY?
MORNING CHRONICLE—All hopes of a satisfactory adjustment of the Irish Tithe question are destroyed by the declaration of the Tory Peers, unless the voice of the country shall bring these infatuated and factious politicians once more to their senses. But having thus resisted every attempt at fur accom- modation—having by their own perverse determination doomed the Irish Clergy to starvation, it was surely their imperative duty and that of their party to step forward and relieve the sufferings which they refused to remove by well- timed legislation, and by a general subscription from a party winch is always boasting of its wealth and possessions to evince that real attachment to "the Church," about which we hear so much—but no such thing. It is the British nation which is to be called upon to open its purse-strings to mitigate the effects of Tory obstinacy. It is found out to be undignified and degrading to the Clergy of Ireland to be supported by a subscription of their friends, and so the hard-working people of England are, we suppose, to be again called upon to make a further sacrifice for this object. But we tell these canting politicians that it will not do, the country is awake to their schemes, it will no longer submit to be thus trifled with. Upon them rests the whole respon- sibility of the results of their factious proceedings, and it is to them that the country has a right to look to maintain the unfortunate individuals who have been thus offered up as a sacrifice on the shrine of interested and Tory ambition. Let Tory aristocrats disgorge a portion of that wealth which in many instances is itself derived from the public revenue.' Let the dignitaries of a bloated and worldly establishment come down with a portion of that inordinate wealth which is calculated to pamper their vanity and mar their utility as Christian ministers. Let all these people show that they are what they pretend to be, "friends of the Irish Church," by laving down their money for its support; but let them not imagine that Englishmen are such fools as to submit to be robbed of the proceeds of their industry in order to maintain a state of things opposed to the plainest principles of reason and common sense—hostile to the peace and security of Ireland—inimical, therefore, to the best interests of the country at large, and useful only to Tory politicians as a bone of contention, a theme which may be perverted by their craft and ingenuity, to excite the support and sympathy of the nation for their own corrupt and sinking cause. The people of England will know what to think of their present paltry affectation of consulting the dignity of the Irish Church, by a refusal to subscribe for its unfortunate and destitute professors.— Septemter 23.
LYNCH'S LAW: TIIE PRINCIPLE OF SELF-PRESERVATION.
COrRIER—In comparing the conduct of the executhiners of Lynch's law -with the people of Europe, we do an injustice in making the comparison with the conduct of the orderly vassals of the European monarchs. The conduct of the ruling classes in America must be compared to that of the ruling classes in Europe. The executioners of Lynch's law are not, like the citizens of London, bject to a higher power, but, like the Emperor Nicholas and the instruments -of his will, they are their own masters, and Lynch's law, barbarous as it is, -shines out bright aloneside the atrocities committed in Poland. We might even may, that it does not look very bad compared to the late proceedings at Lyons and Plailb.tad that itis,quite virtuous when contrasted with the means employed in the Bastile, and in the dungeons of Prussia, not very long ago, to produce obedience to the ruling powers. In fact, we need not go beyond our own country for a comparison that will be favourable to America. In Osler's Life of Lord Exmouth it is admitted that our seamen were grossly ill-treated— that they were first impressed and afterwards plundered. They Were half- starved by the cupidity of the officers, and exposed to disease and death. From being badly fed the seurey made dreadful ravages amongst them. " Mutinies," he says " were the natural fruits of the system which had pre- vailed in the Nave, and it is only wonderful that obedience had been preserved so long." We all know, however, what violent means were employed to enforce obedience ou the part of thin e whom hom our own ill-treatment made mutiny natural. Mr. Osier describes Lord- Exmouth as quite a pattern of piety and loyalty. Ile was goodness itself, accortIMg to his biographer ; and what did Lord Exmouth propose to do with mutineers, sylio may be compared to the slaves in the United States? his proposition seas, " that a ship manned with officers and with volunteers, who could be fully trusted, should attack the next ship that mutinied, and, if necessary, sink her in the face of the fleet." It is %vial the conduct, such as this, of the ruling clmses of Europe towards their subjects or servants, that the conduct of the titling classes—the overbearing, un- bridled majority in the United States—ought to he compared, and so compared, their conduct appears as bright as that of the pious Lord Exmouth or of the virtuous and all-admired Czar. What is required, therefore, both in America and in Europe, of the ruling cla,sts as well is the t tiled, is as much to amend oar morals as our institutions. We shall conclude by observing, that the violent conduct we condemn, whether adopted by the ruling majority in the United States, or by the ruling power in Framer', is in both cases the logical deduction from the great principle of peQerveion which is usually insisted on as equally binding in the political as in the physical world. That the ad- mirable principle of si4f.preservation, ati OW1mm St !WA' of animal life, ought to be applied to political bodies, needs, ha . iwar, w) lot);-cr any denial, since we find it equally acted on in the case of slavety, which is avowedly pregnant with mischief to the slave-owners, as well as it) the ease of any European govern- ment. In America, the most ahominahle iniquity, driving men to other iniqui- ties, is defended on the principle of sttlf-preserra.tion, which teaches tie at ouce the extreme folly of deciding political principles by analogies drawn from ani- mal life. A moment's reflection, too, shows us why such analogies never can apple. Life is the gift of the (:reator, and he has provided for its preservation by an instinctive principle. Politittal systems are the inventions of man : iii man). cases, like slavery, they are the rest:lts of his cupidity and his crimes; and the same Power which implants iti all its creatures the instinctive love of life and happiness pronounces, by that which ht as vivid in the slave as in the slave's master, the condemnation of the political system. It is to be presumed, if only from the apprehension in which the shive-ewner cc:nth:Rally lives, that, in fact, the system is as injurious to hint is to the slAve-t. Such a pre,mnption is con- firmed by much experience ; and thwt the instinctive love of life awl happiness in both parties condemns those had syt tents tvli.-11 erring reasoner: seek to defend, by ntabing it the duty of tzten to preserve p.ditieal power as it is the duty and I.,ve oi animals to preserve their lives.— S,Ttemtcr Tlir DUKE OF CUM DEMAND'S CHARACTER.
Monxisc Cu !WNW f, E—We bail irnat,2;ined that there was at least one man in England who might deem himself fortunate to be allowed to remain uncha- ratiterized ; but, to our great astonishment, on Monday last the Standard coolly presented that man to the people of England, as one of the most distin- guished charactets of the country. Referring to the Orange Institution, the Duke of Cumberland is addueed by the Stow/erre as a proof that it is quite un- objectionable ; far our contemporary, enumerating the menthe's+, when he comes to the illustrious Duke says, " the Duke of Cumberland, another brother of the King, of whoin we will only say, that if ever a tum carried frankness and loy- alty to a faulty length, his Royal Highness is the man." The virtue. of his Royal Highness must have suddenly acquirsd mi extraordinary development ; for their existence was utterly unknown ia this country down to the time of the memorable debates in the House of Commons on the subject of an addition to his income, when the illustrious Duke was approaching his 50th year. So unpopular was the Duke with all parties—Tories as well as Whigs—that no man stood up for bins ; no man wished to speak of him from personal know- ledge; and many :Members availed themselves of the opportunity to intimate that he stood by no means high in their est:I-nation. 'flue grant was first pro- posed in 1815 ; but so obnoxious was it to the country, that on every discussion the IIIinistry lost votes until the question was fairly lost. In 1818, :Ministers, finding that they could make nothing of the illustrious Duke by himself, con- trived to bring him in among the other members of the Royal Family. In the course of the discussions in 1818, there was a strong feeling in favour of the thitchess of Cumbeiland. Mr. Brougham, Lord Folkstone, Mr. Wrottesley, Sir Thomas Arland, all loore strong testimony to hem' character. "If (said Mr. Wrottesley) amiable conduct in private life—if dignity of manners—if goodness of disposition—could endear to the people of England an individual brought amongst them from a foreign country, he knew not of any personage in elevated life Who possessed those qualifications in a imighiem &glee than the Dutchess of Cumberland." It was propmed by several Members to vote a dower to the Dutchess, but not to give any addition to the Duke, as no grant was proposed even fur the Duke of Sussex, whose "character was unimpeachable." Sir Charles Forbes slid, " For his part, if the House refused to vote the sum proposed to the Duke of Cumberland, he would not be a party to in-alt the Dutchess, by voting a dower to her at the expense of her Royal consort's character ; and he sincerely hoped, if it were granted to her, that she wt.- old have the spirit to resent Lord Stanley "never would consent to the motion with regard to the Duke of Cumberland, though he wculd allow the motion as affecting thc Dutchess." The only man that had any thing to say in belnlf of the Duke was Mr. Little- ton, who observed "that he had with regret heard some insinuations thrown out against the conduct of the illustrious Duke, and these were made as a sortof ground for opposing the grant. To these insinuations he should say no mere, than that no one had the manliness to avow them ; and he declared, upon his honour, that he believed them to be wholly without foundation." A Scotch Member most prudently observed, that he had lived long enoagh in the world not to believe more than half of what he heard. The grant to the Duke was lost by a majority of 143 to 1:36, and "loud cheering took place in the House when the result of the division was known." No vote ever gave more satis- faction to the country. The dower to the Dutchess was granted without opposition. We vow that this is the first time we ever heard of the virtues of the Dulre of Cumberland. As the world is v anxious to discover virtues in men of his high station, his Royal Highness must have been peculiarly unfor- tunate in concealing his good qualities so long from the world. Not only did the illustrious Duke fail to receive credit for virtues, but even in the House of Commons very marked insinuations were thrown out that the illustrious Dike was anything but apostolical. We are sure, therefore, that the discovery of the Standard will give the greatest satisfaction to the loyal people of this country, who are always delighted to discover good qualities ill the Royal Family. Per- haps our contemporary will also inform the public in what manner the virtues of his Royal Highness have suddenly acquired such a miraculous expansion. An excellent political intriguer he was always suppased to be—much more anxious for his ends than scrupulous as to his means; but the illustrious Duke has, it seems, taken to loyalty and frankness, now that he has passed his grand cli.3 macteric.—September 23
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