POSTSCRIPT.
SATURDAY.
The Premier came out last night as the resolute enemy of the Ballot. This will surprise some good-natured persons, who have been assured, and on what they imagined the very best authority, that Lord MELBOURNE, if not in favour of the Ballot, was at least indifferent on that as on most other political questions. That delusion is now at an end. The presentation of a petition for the Ballot, from Neath in Glamorganshire, gave Lord Melbourne an opportunity of declaring, that even if one-tenth of what was said oaf intimidation were true, he could not wonder that the people should " feel inclined to fly for relief from it to any remedy that might offer the smallest hope of redress ;" but at the same time, that " if even all that was said on the subject were true, the measure of the Ballot was one which ought not to be adopted as a remedy." This is decisive ; and there is no occasion to dis- cuss his Lordship's stale and refuted reasons for the opinion he professed. The Duke of WELLINGTON said, he knew that there had been a great deal of priestly intimidation and popular violence ; but as to the exer- cise of undue influence by men of property, "he knew nothing what- ever about it ! " " He knew of no such thing as the exertion of im- proper influence by men of property over their trades-people ! " He was aware that within these few years political influence had become very desirable, and had been attained by a great number of persons ; " but with respect to official influence, within the last seven years they had gone back full a century : matters were not at all as they were in his time—on his honour they were not ; what he recollected ten years ago, was not the state of things now." The meaning of all this seems to be, that, in the Duke's opinion, the influence of the aristocracy has declined in this country. The events of the last two elections are scarcely consistent with this assumption ; but perhaps the Duke of WELLINGTON is right in the main, and the violent exertions recently witnessed are the forerunners of aristocratic exhaustion.
There was sharp skirmishing in the Commons. Sir HENRY HARDINGE put some questions to Lord Palmerston on a sore subject— the treatment of the remnant of the British Legion in Spain ; whose condition he represented as most deplorable. Lord PALMERSTON re- plied, that Lord John Hay had engaged to provide a safe passage for all who wished to return, and that an officer had been sent front Madrid to pay the arrears. Sir GEORGE DE LACY EVANS, nettled at the tone of Sir Henry Hardinge's remarks, denied that there was any thing like starva- tion among the troops ; they were not in a worse state than men under Sir Henry Hardinge's own command during the Peninsular war, and would be taken care of by Lord John Hay. Sir HENRY HARDINGE came down upon General Evans with General O'Connell's authority, stated in a special order of the day, that the men of the Legion had been infamously treated; and General O'Connell was their commander, not General Evans.
The excitement of both the gallant officers was very great ; and the whole House was in a fever, when the SPEAKER and Lord JOHN RUSSELL interfered as penee-makers. But this squabble was scarcely ended before Mr. BRADSHAW got up, and asked whether General Evans bad been made a Knight Commander of the Bath in the ordinary way, through the recommendation of the Commander in Chief? Lord PALMERSTON replied, that the recommendation of Lord Hill was not necessary: the honour bad been conferred on the responsibility of Go- vernment, and he thought it had been well earned and worthily bestowed. Sir ALEXANDER DALRYMPLE wished to know whether General Evans had been knighted as the officer of a foreign power ? " No" was Lord PALMERSTON'S reply, received with vehement cheers by the Opposition. General EvASS asked if the question was put on behalf of Lord Hill; as he had had some communication with Lord Hill on the subject? Sir ALEXANDER DALRYMPLE replied, that he had no authority from the Horse Guards to make the inquiry ; but he spoke on behalf of many British oflicers, who felt that a most unjust distinc- tion bad been made.
Here this matter was closed. But after a brief interval, the excite. ment was renewed by Lord MAIDSTONE asking Mr. O'Connell, whe- ther, as reported in the newspapers, he had charged the Tory Members of Election Committees with perjury ? Mr. O'CONNELL avowed that he bad said every word attributed to him ; and was glad of the oppor-
tunity to repeat his charge : he believed every word of it, and so must the House—it was a hideous abuse. This bold defiance occasioned prodigious hubbub. The SPEAKER asked Lord Maidstone, what he meant to do, having got an answer to his question ? Raw Lord MAID- STONE was in a difficulty ; but after consulting with his friends, gave notice, that he would bring the subject before the House on Monday. Lord JOHN RUSSELL then rose, and said- " I beg to give notice, that, if this complaint be entertained by the House on Monday next, I mean to bring forward for the consideration of this House the charge of the right reverend prelate the Bishop of Exeter, respecting an allega- tion of perjury on the part of certain Members of this House."
According to the Morning Chronicle, the Tories were completely dumbfounded by this magnanimuus declaration, while the exultation in the Ministerial ranks was unbounded. It would, however, have been becoming in the leader of the House of Commons to have promoted an inquiry into a grave charge againat a large portion of its Members. It was a paltry (though characteristic) mode of getting rid of the diffi- culty, to rake up a charge two years old against a defunct Parliament, which cannot be converted into a breach of privilege against the pre sent House of Commons ; though, perhaps, the Attorney-General might use the law of libel to bring Dr.Phillpotts into a court of justice. The sparring finished, the real business of the night comae: aid. and the Irish Poor Bill, from clause 36th to clause 45th inclusive, weal through a Committee.
The Tynemouth Election Committee reported. that Mr. George Young was not, acrd that Sir Charles Grey was duly elected for Tyne. mouth,
Previous page
