sentiments expressed in that House by the right hon. gentleman, the Secretary for the Home Department, respecting the vital and all-important question of reform -set strongly against the Ministry, and he was sure that the vast majority of the people of this great country did not place any confidence in his Majesty's Ministers. But the right hon. gentleman (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) had endeavoured to taunt them for not bringing forward at once a motion for the dismissal of the Ministry, if they were of opinion that they deserved to be dismissed. The Ministers were, no doubt, anxious that it should be brought forward in that manner, but he (Sir James Graham) was opposed to a premature discussion of that question, aware as he was that, in consequence of the constitution of that House, the bringing forward a question in such a shape, and before the public mind was properly prepared for it, would be the most effectual way to strengthen any Administration. He therefore trusted, that it would not be brought forward now, that they would go on with the Orders, as they had been entered in the Order-book, and that upon this day se'nnight the sense of the Commons of England would be taken upon that which he (Sir James Graham) considered the most vital and important of all questions, namely, whether it was expedient or not that the state of the representation of the people of the United Kingdom should be considered, with a view to its Amendment. In reference to

it would be dangerous for his Majesty to go in a procession to the City" by night." Why, within one short week from that day, his Majesty had gone in a procession "by night;" he had gone to the theatre, and he had encountered no danger what ever, but was, on the contrary, rewarded by the most loyal and enthusiastic demonstrations of affection on the part of an attached and devoted people. What had since intervened? That celebrated declaration of his Majesty's Prime Minister, that nothing should induce him to discuss this question of reform; and that, if it should be brought forward by others, it should be opposed by him. From coming into contact with a great body of constituents, he was tolerably well acquainted with the opinions of the population of this country; and he would say upon that point, in reference to which the Duke of Wellington had declared that he would concede nothing, that his Grace was at direct issue with the people of England; and when he said the people of England, he meant, not merely the lower orders, but the middle classes of society, in conformity with whose sentiments the Govern ment must be conducted, or it could not stand. The right hon. Baronet had himself, upon a former occasion, stated, that he rested upon public opinion, and that he was ready to stand or fall by its decision. Now, public opinion demanded a reform of the representation in the Commons House of Parliament, and while the right hon. Ba ronet and his colleagues declared that they would not grant it, the people of England said that it must be granted, or that there would be no peace in the realm, and no security for property. That was the point on which the Ministers and the people of England had come to issue, and which he hoped would soon be brought to trial. He trusted, therefore, that no premature discussion would be introduced with regard to the confidence of Parliament in Ministers, but that upon the great question of reform the decision of the House should be taken. That declaration of the Duke of Wellington which had rendered him so unpopular, had astounded, alarmed, and confounded the people of England. The noble Duke had previously enjoyed a portion of the confidence of the public, but that declaration had made him the most unpopular Minister that was ever known in England. At the same time he (Sir J. Graham) must

that question, the Duke of Wellington had declared himself against all reform, and the right hon. Baronet (Sir Robert Peel) had declared himself unable to see his way, and that he could give no opinion upon it. His Majesty's Ministers, therefore and the public had come to an issue upon that great question, whether it was expedient that the state of the representation should be considered, with a view to its alteration. That was the point upon which they had come to an issue, and, as far as he could see, the declaration which had been made by the Duke of Wellington against reform, and the sentiments which had been expressed by the right hon. Baronet, had, in an incredibly short period of time, effected the greatest possible change in the sentiments of the public with regard to the Ministry. The right hon. gentleman, in his letter published that morning, had stated that

{Nov. 8}

say, and he said so from the bottom of his
heart, that any act of personal violence
offered to that noble Duke would be a
stain
upon the annals of this country,
which years of future glory would never
wash away;
He did hope whatever
opinion might exist as to the civil conduct
of his Grace, that eternal gratitude, which
he deserved for his splendid military
services, for his dauntless valour, and for
his glorious achievements, would wait on
him, and that his person or his life would
never be placed in hazard in this country.
He feared that the noble Duke was too
fond of ruling alone, and that he was ob-
stinately attached to that policy which he
thought was right; but he trusted that the
noble Duke would not continue obstinately
to pursue a line of policy which might
place the peace and the prosperity of the
country in jeopardy, and in his conscience
he believed that public opinion had pro-
nounced-decidedly pronounced-against
the policy of the noble Duke.

been of the greatest service to the metro- | might be placed. As that step had plainly polis. The most savage attacks had not originated with his Majesty himself, been made upon the new police, and he must express a hope that his Majesty having witnessed their conduct, he must would name another, and an early day to say, that it appeared to him that they were, honour the citizens of his good city of generally speaking, an active, steady, London with his company, and he had no well-conducted, and respectable set of doubt that his Majesty would receive the men. It was true, that some of them had assembled thanks of a vast multitude on been brought into disgrace, but they were that occasion. few, and were punished by the officers of their own corps. He had witnessed the conduct of the inspectors of police, a very respectable class of officers, and from what he had seen of them upon jury trials, they were excellent members of a very useful body of men, who deserved the thanks of the community, instead of the violence by which they had been assailed. It appeared to him that the unfortunate step which Ministers had taken, originated in an unfounded alarm. When the two Aldermen waited on the right hon. Baronet opposite, he should have asked them whether they had been deputed by the Court of Aldermen to make the communication which they had made, and what were the grounds upon which they had formed their opinion. That respectable individual, the Lord Mayor elect, had been made the scapegoat on this occasion. He was not a Member of that House, and had only expressed an opinion, in consequence, perhaps, of rumours which he might have heard, and which might not have reached other quarters. The Lord Mayor thought it right to make a communication to the Duke of Wellington on the subject, but the Government should not have acted upon that communication until they had first ascertained the grounds upon which it rested, and what reasons there were for thinking that the Duke of Wellington would be assailed. The late disgraceful attacks upon his Grace had been instigated by persons whose interest it was to make a tumult, and who consisted, principally of that same class which assailed the new police, and which unfortunately amounted to thousands in great towns; namely, pickpockets, and vagabonds of that description. But the unfortunate step which

Ministers had taken in consequence of an unauthorized communication, had inflicted a deep wound on the loyalty of the country; and the effect of it on foreign nations was likely to be most disastrous to us, whatever might be the circumstances, whether of negotiation or hostility, in which we

Sir R. Peel said, it had been assumed that the communication of the Lord Mayor elect had been the only one that had been received by his Majesty's Government, and the hon. Member opposite had said that his Majesty's Government should have ascertained the grounds upon which that communication was made. An interview had taken place between himself and the Lord Mayor elect after the receipt of that communication, and if the information which had reached his Majesty's Government on the subject had been solely derived from him, Ministers would certainly have paused before they proceeded to act upon it; but the information received from the Lord Mayor elect had been confirmed by communications from at least twenty other different quarters. He thought that the Lord Mayor elect had acted perfectly right, and he must repeat that Ministers had not come to any resolution till after an interview had been had with the Lord Mayor subsequent to the receipt of his communication. He must also take that opportunity of saying, that he could never forget the honourable and candid conduct of the learned Gentleman opposite, (Mr. Denman) that evening; which did not, however, surprise him (Sir R. Peel), knowing as he did in common with every other person the high and honourable character of that learned Gentleman. He was gratified but not astonished at hearing the sentiments which that learned Gentleman expressed respecting the attacks upon the Duke of Wellington, as well as the brutal attacks made upon humbler but very useful individuals. They were sentiments which might draw down upon him some unpopularity

he spoke of unpopularity amongst the low and the vulgar; but they were the sentiments of all respectable and good

citizens in the state.

were now

lest any ambiguity should arise, the most distinct explanations had been required on the one side, and given on the other. This country was thus called upon, by every consideration, to admit the United States to a participation in that trade from which they had hitherto been excluded. The law of 1825 was framed with a view that all nations should participate in it; and it was only the conduct of the United States which had hitherto prevented them from enjoying the benefits which others had reaped from participation. It must be satisfactory to the House to learn that all those matters in difference finally and completely set at rest: but it was, at the same time, indispensably ne cessary to consider what changes hat occurred since the enactment of the sche dule of duties-whether anything has occurred since 1825 to render those duti unfit for the purpose for which they we intended; viz. the due protection own colonial interests. The ell et existence of non-intercourse bat West Indies and the United been, to create new channels to raise up a new class of con protection afforded by out... duced a circuitous micro our own North-America.. whatever might have this country in 1 now to tell the Un were the cause & abide by the con 1825 contai on which the :: and it also tecting duin times give Governm altering t

of the United States. On the conclusion
of peace this country reverted to her
original principle of the exclusive posses-
sion of the trade of her own colonies.
From that date until the present, scarcely
a single year had passed without an in-
fructuous attempt on the one side or on
the other to settle the question. By what
was known by the name of Mr. Robin-
son's Act a fair opening seemed offered
for the arrangement of the commercial
intercourse between the United States and
the British Colonies; but the measures
adopted in consequence by the republic
were certainly not such as to render the
Statute effective for the purpose for which
it was passed. Since that date, the claims
advanced by the United States in 1824,
had been entirely retracted, or it was
obvious that it would have been impossi-
ble to have fully and completely arranged
the matter in dispute. They had uncon-
ditionally withdrawn their unfounded pre-
tensions, and this country now stood on
the footing it occupied in 1825, and which
it announced to all the world it was deter-
mined to maintain. He was bound to
add, and he should not do justice to the
United States if he did not, that it was
impossible for any government to con-
duct a negotiation, in which the most im-
portant interests of two countries were
deeply concerned, in a more frank,
straight-forward, conciliatory, and there-
fore, as he thought, politic, wise, and
prudent manner, than the United States
had conducted this negotiation through-
out. He believed that on this occasion
neither party had had the slightest reason
to complain of the other, but both had just
grounds of satisfaction and mutual confi-
dence. Certain documents connected
with this important question had already
been laid up the Table of
mulete the

1

41122

to any fo

sibility of

1. this right

1

upon the
no object
any party
pursue n

shipp. within

tam, Nov

1

st

ed rates,

in markets us of those nation can Colonies. In of the United whelring advanith the Canadian sure, therefore, important branch te, which had grown *wenty years in New Sin, and the Canadas.

heregister onnage of the British al-India lands, and of our NorthAmerican Colonies, had in one year in

lations, and made investments, under the belief that the present system was likely to be of longer continuance. Whether our colonists could claim this protection as a strict right was a different question, but there was no doubt that Parliament ought to feel an earnest solicitude for their interOne object of the schedule of 1825 was, to encourage the introduction into the West Indies of articles from our NorthAmerican colonies: it had succeeded, but, under the change of circumstances, it was now the business of this country to take off part of the duty on foreign shipping, which, to the present moment, had existed, and had operated against the United States. The circuitous trade through our North-American colonies had been encouraged by this Government, and such, as he had already remarked, was the design of the schedule. It was true, that the lower descriptions of grain and flour had never yet passed through those colonies: they had been derived from the United States; but Jumber of every description, wood and staves-of the greatest importance to the West Indies -had been conveyed thither entirely from our North - American colonies. The schedule would, therefore, give increased protection to the Canadas for the carriage of those articles, and a protecting duty would be imposed for the maintenance of their interests: that duty would be merely an increase of the impost upon lumber; it was already 7s. per thousand staves, and he should propose that it be raised to 10s. 6d. per thousand. The planters would thus be furnished at as cheap a rate as they could reasonably expect, and the principle of the change would be, to afford that degree of protection which would balance the foreign supply, so as to give to the consumer as fair a competition as possible. The better mode would be, that he should lay before the House, in a Mr. George Robinson would not trouble printed form, a comparison between the the Committee with any remark on the two schedules, so that the House would schedule proposed for the sanction of the at once perceive how the law stood now, Committee by the right hon. Gentleman and how he proposed that it should stand opposite. But with respect to the hon. in future. That comparison was proba- Gentleman's assertion, that all parties inbly by this time printed; and the House terested in the commercial prosperity of would be aware that, in consequence of England, would receive with satisfaction the distance, it was fit that no delay the announcement of the new footing on should occur, and that the new duties which the intercourse of our colonies in should come into operation at the date of the West Indies with the United States of the Order in Council which had already America has been placed, he (Mr. R.) been issued. He could not refrain from could not help observing, that there was observing, that these changes must operone party deeply interested in the question,

ate considerably to the advantage of this country: he did not know that they would operate to the disadvantage of the United States, and he doubted if any country permanently gained by the commercial injury of another State. It seemed to him that much would be gained on both sides-to the shipping interests at home, as well as to our North-American possessions. It was to him a matter of the highest satisfaction to mark the growing prosperity of those colonies; among other recent benefits, they were drawing coal in some parts of Canada, of a quality of peculiar excellence, which they were longing to be able to export to the United States. A system of free intercourse must always be preferable to restriction, and the system he was about to recommend was far more beneficial than that which had so long existed. Was such a state, was the entire suspension of the intercourse between our West-Indian colonies and the United States, to be compared to that which he now had the satisfaction to see established. There was an important feature by which that schedule was distinguished from all former ones. It was this-that, in whatever territory the commodities introduced from our WestIndian islands into the United States may have been produced, they were to be admitted without any additional duty. The hon. Gentleman then referred to the comparative tables for the proof of the advantageous terms under which the produce of our West-Indian colonies will henceforth be received in the United States, and concluded by moving, that it was the opinion of that committee, that, “no duties be imposed on commodities, introduced into his Majesty's Colonies in the West Indies, from the United States of America other than those described in the schedule.”