THE WHIG POINT OF HONOUR.
MINISTERS have been accused of lacking all sense of self-respect— of having no point of honour by which they would stand to extremity. How unjust the accusation is, Lord MELBOURNE has shown this week: he has declared what is that by which he, the chief of the party, will stand or fall. He was charged, naturally enough on a superficial view, with inconsistency, because he pro nounced that to be madness in 1839 which in 1841 he describes to be wisdom—the Repeal of the Corn-laws. He proved, however, that the supposed inconsistency was but a refinement of exquisite consistency : he still, with Roman firmness, adheres to his original opinion ; he still thinks that the proposition to repeal the Cornlaws in 1839 was madness, and nothing could induce him to alter that opinion. No; there he is invulnerable : he may not be thought very ready to resign ; but on that position he has taken his stand— there he is inflexible—there he has nailed his colours to the mast : rather than consent to repeal the Corn-laws in Thirty-nine, Lord MELBOURNE will resign at once.
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