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Northern Star (1837-1852), 27th November 1852, Edition 1 of 2, Page unpag

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    • REVIEW OF THE WEEK.
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      No. 16.-New Series.] London, Saturday, N...

      No . 16 .-NEW Series . ] LONDON , _SATURDAY , NOVEMBER 27 . 1852 [ Price Fourpence Halfpenny

      Review Of The Week.

      REVIEW OF THE WEEK .

      All Eyes Have This Week Been Fixed Upon ...

      All eyes have this week been fixed upon the parliamentary _gladiaiors . The fight which it was said would come off has began in earnest . Disraelli would willingly have avoided the contest , but the other party was resolved that he should not . He was _wilUns to dear up tie ambiguity of the Queen ' s speech , and to admit that free trade lmVlllO" hPPTI _PTIJlpfp _/ l IE 1 W / u ) nnm « 1 , Ct . _„ 1 11-11 Living been enacted , is producing benefits , and should be persevered in . Bat the Whi gs _were too eager to get back to office to allow a treaty to be _patched on these , or indeed any terms , if they could help it . They took care that the renunciation , of protection should be accompanied by such _circumstances of degradation as no men would allow to be invoked upon them . It is difficult to see what any body can want more , than that men should recognize a policy and agree to abide by it ; that is to say , inen who are not seeking for _something

      for themselves . But the fact is , as everybody knows , that what the " outs " want , is to be in , and they had much rather that Lord Derby would give them a fair excuse for assisting them , than that he should adopt their political creed . There is no telliug how far they would lave succeeded in their object , but for the appearance of a third party npon the scene . Lord Palmerston when the fight is at the hottest , steps in between the combatants , and assuming all the

      moderation of a peace-maker , strikes up their hands , and proposes his own erms of accommodation . He does this in a _iiplomatie fashion , which does no discredit to his past experience . He does not think either party quiteright ; neither does he think either party altogether wrong . He can make allowance for the violence of the opposition , but he recommends them not to quarrel _abont words , and to let _bvcones be _bygones . He thinks , probably , his own consciousness teaches him

      that , that a window in each man ' s breast is not exactly desirable-Knowing , as he does , that motives are not always to bear scrutiny' , he would not be too particular in asking why gentlemen change their opinions . It ought to suffice that they do change them , and that change is possible , perhaps easy ; it needs no other argmnent than the memory of his owu life to convince him . Lord Palmerston in making his proposition , which draws the finest

      possible line of distinction between two resolutions so nearly alike , has undoubtedly played a first-rate card . He assumes a vantage ground which a mediator alone can occupy , and invests himself with the dignity of a judge . He appears to speak the voice of the enfranchised part of the nation which wants its business done instead of its time wasted in party squabbles . Whichever side wins or loses he cannot be the worse off . Either way fortune favours him . If his

      _proposition be rejected he has given up no principle , violated no promise , deserted no ally . If it be accepted he gains the importance of having settled a difficult question to the satisfaction of most people , aad the additional satisfaction of having revenged himself upon lord John Russell , whom he envies for his power , hates for his _interferes dogmatism and despotism , and despises for his lack of ability . It may seem hard to thus criticise the _proceedings of a man who

      seems to be so fair and candid upon the surface , but , alas ! . for charit y , we are obliged to judge of the future by the past , _aiuTto read a man ' s motives by the light which his life throws upon them . It does not seem at all improbable that Paimerston will triumph . The ministerialists will be glad to avail themselves of that loop-hole ° f escape , and the free traders and whigs , if we may judge by the tone of their organs , are likely to make a virtue of necessity and submit . The Times , which without _recanting its anti-corn law and

      great liberal views , is inclined toward Disraeli , from that sympathy which one clever rogue has with another , chuckles at this second befo _ol of the protectionists hy their leaders , and at the baulk the _^ higs ] iave unexpectedly met with . The _Daily News is fairly _farious atthe threatened disappointment , and Cassandra-like cries _"^ oe , woe , * at the prospect of Manchester for once being nowhere , _**& the Globe , consoling itself as it best may with philosophy , says , that as in mechanics , allowance must always be made for friction , so J _i all future debates it will be necessary to calculate upon the effect 01 _Fahnerston .

      Taking a deeper view of the under-bearing of this _^ graceful scramble for " pelf , power , and place , " for it is nothing _» ore . We ask how it concerns the great masses of the people % _^ _ie answer is that ife does not concern them at all . They have no voi ce in the national parliament—no concern in or confroul over its _^» They have a certain amount of " material freedom" of liberty _* ° come and go and do what they can ; but as regards real power , the power to accommodate the laws to their just wants , and to their _LTOWN EDITION .

      All Eyes Have This Week Been Fixed Upon ...

      need of elevation , they are on a par with the slaves of America . Whichever band of mercenaries happens to be in or out , a coerced majority must be ruled by a hostile minority . Whichever- happens to hold office , the people will have as little to fear jfrom the lords of he land , as from the lords of money and manufactories :. The one will try to keep up the value of . that gift of the creator to all men . The land which they , as well as their opponents call their property , the other will deriv a trade , _though it be in the bones and sinews of their

      fellows , and coin gold though _it-, be out of their life blood . The first motto of the people is" a plague on both your houses , " and the true policy , the attempt to form a national party independent of either . The Daily News , the Manchester organ , says that the country would risem revolt against any attempt to meddle with commercial freedom , and seems to justify insurrection . How _tnielit is that " one man may steal ahorse while another may not lool _^ over * the gate . " What did this same Daily News say , when it apijrehenie'd that people were going to rise for their political rights ' ? _Ilfj-our recollection

      serves us , it prescribed—Special constables , policemen , horsej foot , and artillery . Clearly " what is sauce for the goose is not sauce for the gander ; " but the time may come when it will : _$ & These embryo insurrectionists might remember that the doctrines they covertly preach may be as likely to subvert as _. to support _tlieir class—power . . Convocation is still sitting , and _M-pluralistsrflo nofrseem at all inclined to separate quietly . Nothing short of wM Cromwell did for the Paimp will . do for them ; but whereis the Cromwell . Tyrant—as in some things he was " Old Noll , " is sadly wanted just now in other

      places beside Convocation . With regard to tliisSclerical parliament , there are several parties whose differences seem to . be _utterly irreconcileable . One does not want synodical _actioiija _^ l ; another would maintain the power of Convocation as it is ; _altjiird would make it include the working-clergy ; and the fourth wants to have the laity admitted . The two middle parties might _agt _| e to some terms of compromise . The first three are in the main decidedly opposed to the last . In one tune or auother the same song is always sung at a sort of ecclesiastical anthem , a Government by priests , and priests alone

      for priests only , lhe Church of Kome says it boldly at the top of its voice ; the Church of England quavers it in a * faint union behind its hand . They all think that the church means the clergy , that the laity are not the church , but belong to it . As a sort of temporalspiritual property , in which the ordained have a vested interest , perhaps it is as well that they should go on as > far as they can , like monkeys , the higher they climb the greater will be the exposure , and the end may be that some of" the sons of the church / ' if they do not pull down the rotten worm-eaten edifice , will set themselves to _workfto bring about such a reform , as will serve to ffive it a fearful shake .

      ¦ We are somewhat surprised to hear that- the , Crown has sustained a defeat in the Irish Court of Queen ' s Bench . The Irish Attorney-General moved to quash the Corner ' s Inquisitions in the case of the Six Mile Bridge Tragedy .. The ground on which the application was made , was that there was not any evidence to support the verdict of Wilful Murder . There was no absolute precedent for : making such a rule , but there was an expression of opinion on the part of an English Judge that under certain circumstances of such a thing might be done . The Irish Judges have , however , refused to act upon that approximation to a precedent , and decided to let the case go for trial upon its merits . We are less surprised at the result , however , when we come

      to consider the reasons upon which that decision , was founded . Quite in keeping with the ordinary stand-still disposition of legal functionaries in general , they thought it would be inconvenient to make a precedent . They looking in the dark web of lwa with their legal owl eyes , saw sundry inconveniences arising from such a course , and most potent reason of all , it was apparent to them that even if they did quash the Inquisitions , the case would go for trial after all . Apart from the verdicts of the Coroners Jury , bills of indictment might be preferred at the assizes . Nobody donbts but that would be the case .

      There is a blood-feud , and revenge is as imperative in _L-eland to-day as it was among the class of the olden time . More than that , sectarian animosity is aroused , and it has become a question of creed . Above all , the priests are interested in it , and that being the case , it is certain that the affair will be pushed to the utmost extremity . What may be the finding of an Irish Jury , no one can pretend to say . It may be Catholic , or it may be so managed that a majority of Protestant Jurymen shall fill the box . Whichever way it is , no matter what evidence may be brought , there is too much ground to fear that in that unhappy country Justice wihyfor its own sake , be but lightly considered . But if a final verdict of Guilty should pass , there is no

      doubt that the Crown will exercise the prerogative of mercy , and grant free pardons to the accused soldiers and magistrates . * [ Beading in the papers the accounts from the provinces , one would almost fancy that we were living in an Alpine country ,, From every quarter comes intelligence of disastrous floods . North and south , east and west , the waters are out , and one timid Yorkshire gentleman has taken into consideration the propriety of acting the part of Noah , by building an ark for himself and his household . In many places the railways are stopped from the embankments having been-washed away , and the bridges ; fallen before tlie torrents . The Severn is sweeping before it farm produce , and tlie implements of husbandry . ind covering hundreds of houses to the chimney tops . The fens of

      All Eyes Have This Week Been Fixed Upon ...

      Lincolnshire are a great lake , and Oxford stands in its county m the midst of a sea . The Oxonians forsaking the river for the greater expanse are rowing upon the common . We have 'hardly , as yet , sufficient data to determine how much of the _^ past harvest ! has been lost by these inundations , but great fears are entertained of their effects upon-the next year ' s crops . The Empire in France is accomplished . The representative ' of Crime has perched upon the summit of ambition . The imperial crown has been grasped by a blood-stained hand—the perjured lips will soon

      latter anew oath—the eagle will perch above corruption—and brutality will be cousecrated . That will accomplish the present degradation of France—that will complete the rottenness from which , perhaps , new life may spring . " When things come to the worst they are sure to mend . " If there is any truth in that adage surely they must mend now ; or is there yet a lower gulf below that lowest , into which tlie nation has descended ? It is hard to tell . The _numbers are not yet precisely known , but there are bets , that the votes for the President will exceed eight millions . It is said , that in the municipality , of the

      Seine the tickets in the Urn will represent more than five-sixths of the voters of the district .. From the country the ; reports are given as still more decided ; of course no one will attach credit to the final announcement , whatever it may be . It could be as easy to say ten millions as eight The number was pre-det ' ermih ' ed before the poll was taken—and it will be made—we shall 1 never know , how many voted , any more than we know ' how many fell'in ' the streets of Paris on the 2 nd of December . , Those who counted in tlie one ' case , counts in the' other . Can it . be supposed , that ' a gambler , who-plays with false dice , will hesitate to use them wlien his last _throwveomes for his largest stake . Is it probable that . lie who stepped over f mountains , will stop at . a

      molehill ? Is it probable that the i homicide will : shrink from forgery , or the perjurer pause at the sin of a . single : ' lie ? We remember somewhere to have read in a novel .: surcharged with the terrible , that a man first slew _ariotheiv ' and then putting a pen : in the dead hand , signed a will in his own favour / Surely .: the novelist was prophetic He forecast the part of Louis : 'Napoleon' to admiration The history of his power is full of horrors . He smothered Liberty and slew her sons ; and now the pen in the dead hand , guided by his own , is bequeathing to him the freedom of all posterity . Well the end will come , _fand then those who smite with the sword , shall in their turn bfi smitten .

      The marriage of the President with the Prmcesss Wasa is now con- * fidently talked of . Some time ago we noticed the conversion of-the lady from the protestant to the catholic church , and marked it as the sign of a coming event . A few nights ago her portrait was shewn in the palace to a few friends , and it is said that she is very young and handsome . What a fate for a young creature—to be wedded to such a monster in human form . Perhaps she has been bred up for a marriage of ambition , and is prepared to give her hand without her heart . If so , there is little to regret . The diadem may

      as well cover heartlessness as crime . The most important aspect of the affair is that the marriage , if it be decided on , seems to indicate that the Emperor of Austria has giveu up all notions of opposing the Empire , and has finally abandoned the cause of the imbecile Bourbons . It was a bold stroks that of publishing in the Moniteur the manifestoes of the excited republicans , and the protest of the Count de Charnbord . The legitimists rave at the thought of

      degrading the son of kings by _placing him and his language upon the same level as those of proscripts . Folks may differ as to who suffered by the comparison , but this is certain , that the republican documents showed they came from the pens of men who have both heads and hearts , intellect and courage , while the descendant of royalty has neither the intelligence to defend his claims nor the pith and manhood to assert them . Well may the Austrian Emperor , who has at the least soldierly qualities , leave the drivelling paltroon to his fate .

      It is another question to ask the meaning of that dark cloud which is gathering over Europe from another quarter . The Russian Empire is almost a sealed land . The information we get from it is scanty , comes seldom , and is but little to _bs relied on . The despot closes up all avenues with an iron hand . It is however certain , that large masses of troops are congregating in Poland , and swarming toward the western frontier . What is the purpose of this movement 1 It may be a dark omen for Louis Napoleon—it may be only a measure of preparation , to take advantage of any events which may happen .

      Prussia seems to be playing a sure game . The time for the concluding of the renewing of the Zollverem will soon expire , and she looks on quietly , as though she were quite indifferent . She is making ready to draw a cordon of Custom Houses around her frontier , and to shnt out her former allies—probably she has shrewdly estimated the effect of this course . The smaller German States do not feel quite so comfortable at the prospect before them . The manufacturers , if they would not strike for liberty , will for profits . Those

      of Darmstadt have ] openly threatened , that if the Zollvereign is suf fered to expire they will , in a body , emigrate into Prussia , and settl * there . The government has replied , that there is no intention o abandoning the Prussian commercial alliance . That , probably , is th < fact with regard to many ; 0 t the smaller states . They are perfect ! willing to play off Austria and 1 Prussia against each other , and _&< get the best terms for themselves , but when they must choose , the will cling to Prussia rather than to her half-bankrupt rival .

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 27, 1852, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/nss_27111852/page/1/