OUR OWN REVOLUTION.
WILL the people in this country go without their share in the European revolution? That is the question to be raised next Week, on the presentation of the Chartist petition. It may be staved off, but hardly settled, by the suppression of any " dis- turbance." The Chartists have for years persevered in present- ing their monster. petition. They are not to be confounded with the random revolutionists of other countries. They may not be a majority of the nation even numerically ; but they are a large section of the working classes, and as antagonists of the powers that be they share the sympathy of others among their own class who have their special discontenta—of the Anti-Poor-law section, the Operative Protectionists, the Trades Unionists. They exhibit very considerable intelligence, specific views, and a fair share of reasoning. It is not safe to put them off with the plea that they are not the wealth and intelligence of the country "; for it re- asserts their own complaint, that the poor are neFlected or op- pressed qua poor ; and it violently contradicts their own not un- natural self-esteem.
The assumed monopoly of "intelligence " among their antago- nists is not true ; the exclusive consideration for wealth is not just. Industry has its rights, though canting advocacy may have brought discredit on them; numbers have their claim, though they do not express a majority—or the Whig party would have small title to the Treasury-bench. It is a mistake that the majority exercises any direct rule in this infinitely di- vided land : it is a mean party that rules, because it is the mean —and, some wags will say, very mean it is. But a rule so pos- sessed is not safe in the face of large discontented numbers, moved by the contagion of adventurous spirit, incited to hopes by strange and surprising examples, intoxicated even to vapourings about rebellion and blood, which have become deeds elsewhere.
We boast of our singular imperturbable tranquillity : is it im- perturbable ? Who can say 4—Certainly not those ruling per- sons who are the "guardians of the public peace": they know nothing about it : the estrangement of class from class keeps them quite ignorant of what is felt, resented, and hoped by the "lower orders." Yet the Government is dependent for exist- ence on "public opinion," in which the working classes have a large share. That government alone is stable which enjoys the concurrence of a majority of the intelligent classes ; it must at least exist on the sufferance of that majority. Armies are engines too small to maintain a government in peace: they do but esta- blish, on emergencies, in experimental conflict, the balance of opinion which already existed but which was doubtful. To know that it is safe and stable, a government must know the state of opinion in the country. Again, to maintain its safe position, it must be guided by that opinion; and therefore also it must know that opinion. Not only so, but the multitude in turn, if they do not get all they desire, must know that they are considered. Are either of these conditions fulfilled in our own country ? Not quite; and that is the reason why our boasted tranquillity may not prove imperturbable.
What is it the Chartists really want ? "The Charter" we take to be a mere rallying standard: what the Chartists, what all the workins- classes want, is a larger share in the elective fran- chise, higher wages, more of social and political consideration. Natural wishes these, and not quite unreasonable. You cannot either decently or safely meet them with a direct refusal; you cannot in policy evade them by mere temporizing. It would be much better if you were to meet them frankly. The working classes see that there is one thing common to the revolutions of other countries : it is not the conquest of this or that institution, which we may have already ; but it is the fact that the people have come forth as a power of the state, are recog- nized, treated with deference, consulted, considered. That it is which make them hanker after some movement here. They ask a revolution. Give them one.
Your refusal is not ingenuous or pure ; your evasions do not reach their hearts. They tell you that they are poor, and there- fore miserable, because they are ill fed, ill cared for in the state, ill considered. You evade these representations. You answer, that you cannot decree higher wages ; which is true, but it is special-pleading. You can do many things to improve their con- dition besides decreeing higher wages. You can improve the quarters in which they dwell, and you mean to do so ; but you suffer yourselves to be hindered by paltry "vested interests" and the intrigues of local lawyers. You can remove restrictions upon trade, which would increase employment, and would be equiva- lent to decreeing higher wages ; but you boggle at the work. At this moment you are suffering a condemned law to exclude car- goes of cotton which come a-begging from Havre, and which would give renewed activity to trade, higher wages to the work- ing classes. You cannot. decree high wages ; but hasten to abandon the practice of keeping them down. Let the working classes know that such things are done on their behalf. They ask a more direct and explicit consideration for themselves ; and they merit it. They complain that poverty co- exists with immense wealth, and that their cry of distress is coldly repelled. But it need not be so. It is not enough to do justice, especially to those who are less fortunate : you must let them see that justice is done; you must admit them freely to your councils, and make them note that other courses would not be so beneficial to them. You are not a Vice-Providence, that you can claim to be exempt from responsibility to those whose interests you have in charge; and if you have the responsibility, let your accounts be clear and open. They ask a fairer and purer representation in Parliament : is it decent or expedient in the face of that demand to neglect the gross inequalities and corruptions which adulterate our represen- tative system ? Bribery, intrigue, and fraud, of kinds the most odious because most paltry, assist at the election of our Members: we still have our manageable boroughs, such as Harwich and Ripon, to neutralize the "wealth and intelligence," the numbers and immense living interests, of our Manchesters and Birminr hams. Wrought not to sneetat-the " ii2 points" unless we had a fair and intelligent system to justify refusal. Even a good sys- tem—the best for the time being—could not be final ; for as in- telligence and political knowledge increase, so will popular power; and it will be necessary to provide for successive extensions of the franchise. Let that be avowed at once, deliberately, cheerfully, and explicitly : if the Government were cheerfullrto secept that necessity, and were to take steps for the gradual extenaion of the suffrage from time to time, it would disarm political discontent on that score, by satisfying hopes with a practical sense of pro- gress. The classes now excluded would feel that they were getting on ; the proper feeling for every nation. But indeed, such improvemets would affect more thin the working classes--they would materially benefit the middle clas- ses; who are not just now violently moved with discontent, who are more than ever desirous of order ; but who view many abuses in the state with dislike, and are contracting a dangerous con- tempt for our inert Government. They would approve of the reforms which we have indicated ; others would benefit them still more directly than the working classes; though such reforms would appeal to the natural love of justice inherent in all.
Our taxation figures as an immense burden on the people; and to make it, tolerable it should be distributed with the utmost pos- sible fairness, administered with spotless purity. Above all, these are not the times for any "aristocratic "favouritism. But is our taxation equal, our administration of the .proceeds pure ? The perfect fairness of collection involves a thorough revision of Our tariffs, with a view to the most profitable and equable -distri- bution of the burdens. Perfect fairness of appropriation would somewhat more strongly task the powers of the statesman that should undertake it.
• The taik are collected, professedly, for the public service : they are in great part ippropriated to the private advantage of the aristocracy or those connected with it ; and the misappropriation entails other disadvantages, besides a waste of public money that almost amounts to embezzlement. Every public office is bur- dened with persona who are foisted upon it for their own ad- vantage, not for that of the people ; who pocket the public money without adequate return ; who constitute superfluous numbers, set examples of idleness' encumber the public purse with expense, the public service with inefficiency. Let vs suppose an aka in which there are two principals, two secretaries, and clerks. One of the principals shall be a hard-working man, well versed in official routine, competent to his work, diligent, punctual, and fulfilling all that is expected of him within the routine of the office. But the other is a weak man, an incapable who eases his conscience by a diligent perpetration of niaiseries; who, instinc- tively feeling his incapadity, conceals it in a busymeddling without aim or utility, and makes his importance felt only by inopportune ttiss—a blue-bottle in office. Why is he there ? Because he is a Mend and connexion to Lord —, or Sir —, a great man in the Ministry, who was anxious to see the poor fellow provided for, and the income attached to the vacant office was just the convenient amount. One of the secretariecoliall be a person thoroughly ac- painted with the details and history of his office ; but he is the junior. The other man is a nobody—with no particular faculties, no health, no diligence—with nothing but a name that belongs to a titled family : all the cadets of that family must have some genteel provision; and,—, who is incapable of making his own way in the world, is smuggled into the back room of the office. Among the clerks are some few disposed to get through the work. -That, however, is not the rule. They are looked at askance. The majority "Note the work a bore," and discounte- nance any unwelcome diligence. Why are they there? Because they are the sons of Mr. —, and Mr. —, mid Mr. --, the friends', political, professional, or literary, of Lord —, Sir —, and others; young men in want of incomes. Every office is a reservoir of incomes. The young men are not there because they are inspired to do the work ;. they don't even do it with honest diligence : they are only to have the incomes; they only do as much work as saves appearances; and to they establish a low rate of work. A consequence is, the necessity for more clerks --an increase of the reservoir. Men acquainted with public offices will easily fill im this skeleton. Attempts have- been made in some offices to amend the evil by introducing piece-work ; a to- pical remedy that cannot reach the moral corruption of the matter. The root is the fact that the public office is kept as a preserve of patronage for the aristocracy and its connexions.
Much cant is uttered against "the aristeersey " : but that is true. The aristocracy is the channel of promotion. Hence it creates for itself a forced influence. It keeps the- best posts for itself and its own associates. To do this the salaries are made very high; and then we are told that high salaries 'are necessary to secure persons of "station" and-" weight"; it being assumed that persona without the wealth and connexions conventionally implied in those terms would not do.the work so well. A pure as sumption, unsupported by any argument or experience. Some of our ablest statesmen have been of no birth—some, men of no wealth. Were the aalaries pitched at a lower scale, the pressure of "gentlemen" to obtain official posts might not be so great, but gentlemen, who felt a vocation would not be excluded by the smallness of the pay—their own means would enable them to in- dulge their humour; and probably the vacancies would be open to men who would wake statesmanship more of a legitimate pro- fession; who would reckon for advancement on professional ability and industry, and who would import into our statesman. ship a greater amount of working energy than it now displays. A large number of men in the dilettante pursuit of statesman- ship are men of mediocreabilities who, apart from wealth amid "station," could have risen to distinction, in no profession what- soever. Their occupation of the class excludes others of greater ability. Here the element of our mixed aristocracy of birth and wealth mischievously displays iteelf, and contributes to diminish the safety and stability of the state. In the Army, it is an aristocratic dogma that " blood " is ne- cessary to make good officers:' the only ostensible guarantee for blood is the test of a high money purchase ; but it is eked out with favouritism, and the scions of our aristocracy do swarm in the profession. The consequences are precisely analogous to those of the civil service—needless offices, lavish expenditure, swarming mediocrity, class exclusion, and the like. Similar abuses, in a minor degree, are seen in the Navy. The Church has its revolt- ing inequalities of luxuries for lordly dignitaries, privation for the working clergy. Were all these things mended, or were a sincere and compre- hensive attempt made to mend them, it would be a real revolu- tion, but a revolution at once opening into peace, contentment, and prosperity. Were they all done at once, a scheme so large, so practical, and so stirring, would fill the mind, and sa- tisfy that appetite for action which is the hazard of the time. There is no reasort, except one why all should not be done promptly. There are vested interests in the existing system; but we need not wait for their dying off: let those inter- etas be capitalized, and bought off at once by compensation. The reason we have excepted is the apparent want of men able and willing for the enterprise. Unless the revolution were to find its own instruments in the shape of men com- petent to the task, we -suggest with little hope. A politi- cal shock seems needed to put some more adventurous blood into the Treasury-bench : without it, we are likely enough to drift into the whirlpool of a more distant but dangerous revo- lution, through sheer helplessness to face the difficulties of an altered course.
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