NEWS OF THE WEEK.
IRELAND has again been the prominent subject of discussion in both Houses of Parliament ; and though with no immediate prac- tical result, not without hope for the future. The hope, indeed, is based on no very positive grounds—the general admission that something must be done, coupled with the evident absence of very obstinately prejudged conclusions. Taking the discussions in both Houses, some idea may be collected as to the actual state of opi- nion in the several parties. In the House of Lords, the Earl of RODEN is the first movet. There is an act forbidding proces- sions in Ireland connected with religious distinctions. It was aimed at the Orange celebrations of the battle of the Boyne. Certain Orange persons in Ulster, backed by Lord RODEN, regard this law as unequal, and demand that the act should be either re- pealed or extended to the other side—meaning to the Repeal pro- ceedings. Government demur to doing either the one or the other ; and not improperly. The cases of the Repeal and the Orange meetings in question are by no means parallel. The Repeal proceedings have for their object a future and practical legislative measure, which the Irish people have a perfect right to seek. The impolicy of the measure and the danger of the meetings are separate questions, to be discussed on their own merits. The Orange probeiplons had no practical object : they were celebrations of a past event, a triumph by a minority for a victory obtained over the majority of the Irish people, the minority being backed in that insolent triumph by the conquering country. If the English were to conquer France, and the conquering colo- nists were yearly to celebrate the battle of Crecy or Waterloo, publicly, in France,—or if the English Romanists were in the ascendant, and were to celebrate the accession of " Bloody MARY," drinking her " pious and immortal memory," and that of the men who kindled the Smithfield fires,—the cases would be more similar. Those who would vindicate the moat violent Reform Bill meetings, or apologize for Lord GEORGE GORDON'S riots, must see that such celebrations would be absolutely intolerable. The Orangemen ought not to be allowed to commemorate their invidi- ous victories so long as the desire to do so survives. Therefore there is no occasion to repeal the act : there is not a particle of reason for extending it to Repeal meetings—if they are to be dealt with, it should be by a separate measure : but the act may be suf- fered to expire, when its existence in the statute-book has become a reproach to the Orangemen for a propensity no longer retained. Besides wishing to forbid Repeal meetings along with Orange party triumphs, Lord RODEN recommended calling out the Orange Yeo- manry—giving the Orangemen more victories! That is the Ropes or Ultra-Tory notion of Irish policy ! It is needless to say that it is out of date, and ludicrously impracticable. During this recent discussion the Whigs have been very silent : but Mr. SHELL has reiterated Lord PALsteasroses suggestion of giving the Roman Catholic priests glebes and glebe-houses, and building for them places of worship ; that is the Whig nostrum at present. Mr. SHARMAN CRAWFORD proposes " fixity of tenure " ; a subject worthy of consideration, in spite of something equivocal in the name, which is alarming or not according to the lips that use it. " Young England" favours a policy which seems, in the vague terms of those who assert it, to be a Conservative version of a sweep- ing Trish Reform, handling political matters tenderly, but being libe- ral in clerical and fiscal matters. "Young England," too, is in dudgeon ; thinks itself cavalierly treated by the Conservative leader; and is mutinous, in speech, if not in vote. It is observed that the mutineers are few : but they are active and ardent ; and, besides, their fewness more exposes the weakness that cannot keep them in order. Few commanders would think it sufficient to say, " My men are mutinous, certainly, but the mutineers are not many." The Ministerial policy—what is that? Who can tell ?—Perhaps not even the Ministers. The Duke of Wm.- LIXOros, replying to Lord RODEN, admits all the difficulties of
Ireland ; says that he can't declare what Ministers will do ; but that he, in his own military department, is prepared, and he hopes to pre-
serve the peace. Sir ROBERT PEEL more unequivocally betrays the absence of matured counsels and resources of contrivance : replying to the various assailants and advisers of Government, he promises during the recess to consider the law of landlord and tenant; he pushes the Church aside, evades Repeal, and plainly, in set terms, acknowledges that his calculations and hopes respecting Ireland have been baffled : he is utterly at a loss. Such is the position of Irish affairs in Parliament at the end of the session.
Lord BROUGHAM proposed the revival of an enactment which, be says, enabled him in 1833 to suppress dangerous meetings in
Ireland—an enactment to authorize the changing of the venue in trials for such offences. Such a recourse might be useful:; yet perhaps less so now, that there is such a general prevalence of particular opinions in Ireland. To change the venue of a Repealer's trial from Connaught to Munster, does not seem likely to do much good ; and it would never do to send all Repealers to Ulster for trial. However, Lord BROUGHAM discovered his revival to be needless ; the existing law sufficing for his purpose.
Mr. GLADSTONE has carried, with but feeble opposition, the second reading of his bill to permit the exportation of machinery ; thus, says Mr. LABOUCHERE, abolishing from our commercial code the last of the prohibitions. It is odd that, after the measure has been urged for twenty years, Mr. GLADSTONE and his colleagues should only now be struck with the idea : but that is merely one " sign of the times." As usual, there were Free-trade opponents of this Free-trade measure—men who saw " peculiar circum- stances" in what approached the interests of their own circle : but on the whole, the manufacturers behaved consistently and worthily.
A Committee of Supply afforded Mr. EWART an opportunity to advocate a Free-trade revolution in Import-duties; a very praise- worthy object, but of little promise in a House consisting of the few indefatigables and about triple the number who stay to supply Ministers with the necessary amount of votes for finishing off business. Mr. GLADSTONE seemed to make a show of reserving all declara- tion of Ministerial intentions: he would not this session say what Ministers will do next. Last year, after the much-doing of that season, the negative would have been taken to imply a great deal : this year, after the no-doing of the last six months, it falls mean- ingless on the ear. misters also have been teased to produce the evidence on the Customhouse frauds ; with some censure of the Board of Customs, threatening change. The publication is deferred, on the usual plea, that it would serve the guilty parties. The bare report of the Commissioners of Inquiry, however, exposed such a mass of habitual neglect in the superior officers of Customs, and- such disorganization and disregard of common honesty among subordi- nates, with glimpses of such vast losses to the revenue, that ano- ther half-year ought not to be suffered to elapse without effectual public measures to cure the evil—not mere expedients to conve- nience the people in office, but a thorough reform of the whole. The Customs is not considered so " genteel " as other Govern- ment offices : is it true, that people are appointed to it who would
be offended if you did not call them gentlemen, yet who deign to accept what the fastidious demanders of West-end offices would eschew ? If the department consists of a class of electioneering auxiliaries not quite gentlemen enough to have the genteeler offi- ces, that fact and the extensive demoralization of Customhouse- officers form a curious coincidence. The country ought to know all about such things. Moreover, how much is the country losing per month in smuggling frauds, during the postponement of thorough reform ?
There has been some little talk about Spanish affairs in both Houses. Lord LONDONDERRY hypothetically attacked Govern- ment for protecting ESrARTERO. The Marquis is a hot-blooded English Tory ; he has travelled in the native land of Dos CsaLos ; and on the strength of those circumstances he is outraged because the flying ESPABTEBO was not turned back upon the bayonets of his pursuers! Mr. BORTHWICK, Lord Jona MANNERS, and others in the Commons, pleaded hard for the release of CARLOS; whom
" Young England" dreams of as a " Prince malheureux," the im- personation of sound government and chivalry in adversity ! One reason for letting him loose on Spain was strange : CHRISTINA IS doing her worst, and why should not CARLOS do his worst ?
