NEWS OF THE WEEK.
THE Church-rates measure has narrowly escaped destruction even in the House of Commons. After a debate of two nights, a divi- sion took place on the question of' agreeing to the resolution which the Committee had passed by a majority of 23; and the numbers were—
For the resolution 287 Against it 282 Leaving a bare majority of 5 votes.
This untoward result—for which, it would be seen, we were last week prepared—the Government press accounts for, truly enough, by ascribing negligence and indifference to the Reformers and .extraordinary zeal to the Tories. Including the Tellers—
The Reformers who voted or paired were 309 Reformers absent 30 Glasgow vacant 1
Speaker's vote, lost ......... .......... 1
341 Tories, including Tellers 304 Tories and Doubtfuls absent 1.3 317 24 These figures confirm the statement which we have frequently
made within the last twelvemonth, that on Church questions the Ministerial majority in a full House scarcely exceeds twenty votes, and that whenever a larger majority is obtained, it is simply through the negligence of our opponents. On Tuesday they were alert beyond all precedent. Old gout-ridden ButtnEzz did for the Tories what no entreaties of Reformers would have prevailed upon him to think of in his days of " glory." At three o'clock in the morning, disdaining to pair off, he recorded his vote against the Dissenters and in favour of real Church-robbery. Sir W ATKIN WYNN, whose infirmities will not permit him to remain in the House for an hour together, was hauled out of the Speaker's room just as the division-bell was rung. The success of the Tories was proportioned to their exertions. The.bill was ordered pro forma to be brought in, but can hardly be pushed further. It never was expected that the measure would be carried in the present ses- sion, but it was got up as one of the means of " putting the Lords in the wrong." It formed a part of the plan of bombardment with which the Peers were threatened by the big talkers before the Parliament met : but the Lords only laugh at the little, hissing, fizzing noise of the grand Ministerial mortar, whose explosion was to have filled them with fear and trembling. Oh, these Whig officials are admirable engineers ! They point their guns with such perfect skill ! Pity it is that the shot falls short of the fortress !
The Tories say, that because of this virtual defeat on the crack measure of the session, the Ministers ought to resign. These modest gentlemen were not so ready when it was their turn to resign. They would do well to recollect that, after all, this is the Pees Parliament. The Tories have no case against the Government; but the country has reasonable grounds for dissatis- faction that measures of unquestionable improvement, as this one is, receive such indifferent support in an assembly which pretends to represent the reople. A dissolution seems to be required for this reason—not to put out one Ministry or push in another, but that a more decided demonstration of public opinion, to whichever side it incline, may he obtained., The discussion on Monday and Tuesday was nominal's, on a motion by Mr. Am:mew JOHNSTON, to the effect that any surplus revenue which Church-lands could be made to yield, should be a Plied to s the diminution of "religious destitution "— that is the cantArase of the day. Let us admit that on this occasion ANDREW 'hammed good service. He stripped the hypocritical Tones of the pietence that their opposition to the Government measure was founded on the sacred oblisation to apply Church funds solely to Church uses. Mr. JOHN.sTONx's proposition involved nothing like spoliation : it was simply to make the most of cede- siastical revenues for the exclusive benefit of members of the Es- tablishment. Lord STANLEY, though he voted against it, lacked assurance to oppose the motion in a speech; and Sir Remises. Pegs was obliged to throw aside the "destitution" argument, and take up the cudgels for the lessees and the Bishops. On worldly grounds alone he stood ; cant about the poor no longer served his turn; his hypocrisy was laid bare. He pretended to think it little less than sacrilege to relieve the land from the payment of rates, though that was the basis of his own plan ! Altogether, Peits's conduct was most contemptible.
The debate on the whole was exceedingly dull. BURDETT spoke a tissue of Tory platitudes. His mind, or what retnains of mind, was with his fox-hounds; an allusion to which interesting animals and their occupation he contrived to lug into a speech about Church-rates! He sneered at the conscientious Dissen- ters, and declared that the real question at issue was the Volen- tary principle or the support of a Natisnal Establishment: we have already shown that such was not the question which Mr. JOHNSTON called upon the House to decide. Me. SHEIL replied-to Sir FRANCIS, but not in his happiest manner: he performed the easy task of establishing a ease of matchless apostasy, by quotations from former speeches. Mr. CHARLES BULLER, at great length, and with his usual vivacity, demolished the pretence of there being any lack of church-room or of clergy- men: the deficiency, he maintained, was in the people, who care little for gospel truth and are attached to gin. Lord JOHN Rus- sELL concluded with a slashing reply both to PEEL and B ORDFTT : few of his speeches ever exhibited better debating power, accord- ing to the approved method of the House of Commons. But what end did it serve? and what impression would the eloquence of an angel have made on the dense mass of ignorance, bigotry, and selfishness arrayed on the other.side? The conduct of the minority on this question is most disgraseful, aver did any body of men more shamelessly repudiate every g Ae political honesty. They were leagued together inowedly to secure plunder. And the melancholy truth must be told, that they could 'perpetrate this wrong with impunity. They know that tint people will not move at present, and that the Mi- nisterial exhibition is a mere sham.
