THE COMING " STRUGGLE:" MORE DELUSION?
"NOTHING," said Mr. WARD, at the Religious Freedom dinner, "could have induced me to propose the health of Ministers a fort- night ago : " but now— "Without going into detail upon what were purely political points, he would throw a veil over the past, and would desire them to look to the future. ant, having ascertained that they were prepared to receive the support which future; be tendered to them, he would call upon every man, if they were 80, to go bilk and aid them in the struggle which they were about to make."
These "observations," according to the Courier, "tend to raise a confident expectation that the union of Reformers will be corn- plete ; that the rational Radicals have recalled their wandering wits; and above all, that the JITinistry will press forward mid con- vert our best hopes into realizations." Yes !—there is Mr. Waan's authority for the statement that Ministers are about to enter upon a struggle in which Reformers ought to aid them. Mr. WARD says he has "ascertained" that Ministers are prepared to receive the support which would be ten- dered to them, on the understanding, of course, that they are to make the " struggle " aforesaid. Very well ; now we wait to see what these Ministers, with Lord JOHN FINALery still their leader in the House of Commons, will perform. There are many, besides Mr. WARD, very active in creatina the impression that Ministers are about to " go ahead," as the Yankees say. Precisely the same kind of vague assurance deluded the credulous Reformers at other epochs. When Lord MELBOURNE resumed office in 183.5, persons closely connected with the Govermnent scrupled not to assert that he had full powers to carry such measures as be might propose. They were believed; but the fate of the Irish Municipal Bill, in 1836, undeceived people. On that fraud, however, the Ministry lived for a long time.
The Peerage Reform agitation was at one time encouraged by persons belonging to or in alliance with the Government, and sup- ported by Ministerial newspapers. The often-remembered " pear- ripening " talk was part and parcel of this cheat ; which at length, like its predecessor, was found out, but it sufficed to "tide " the concern over a session or more.
" Open questions" was next set up ; and the same credulous mortals were again gulled by the successful charlatans. Lord JOHN RussELL's speech on the commencement of Queen Vicio- aia's Parliament knocked down " open questions :" now to be revived again, all for the benefit of Whiggery. Candour requires an acknowledgment, that Ministers themselves did nothing directly, said nothing publicly, in the time past, any more than they say or do at the present time, to encourage the de- lusions, of which they reaped the benefit. Lord MELBOURNE, 110 doubt, rubbed his hands and chuckled with delight at the credulity of the Radicals, and the eagerness with which his dirty work was done gratuitously ; but he could defy reference to any declaration which hound him to perform what was promised in his name.
With the experience of past delusion, we cannot believe, with Mr. WARD, that his friends the Ministers are about to make any " struggle." The Member for Sheffield has been deceived by the Whigs before; but his fund of faith appears to be fathomless.
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