the queen's accession—separation of hanover from england—the civil list—the general election—rebellion in lower canada—its prompt suppression—sir francis head in upper canada—the affair of the caroline—lord durham's mission—his ordinance—it is disallowed—lord durham resigns—renewal and suppression of the rebellion—union of the canadas—the irish poor law bill—work of the commissioners—attack on lord glenelg—compromise on irish questions—acland's resolution—the tithe bill becomes law—the municipal bill abandoned—the coronation—scene in the abbey—the fair in hyde park—rejoicings in the provinces—dissolution of the spanish legion—debate on the intervention in spain—lord ashley's factory bills—prorogation of parliament—the glasgow strike—reference to combinations in the queen's speech—remarks of sir robert peel—rise of chartism—the six points—mr. attwood's petition—lord john russell's proclamation—the birmingham riots—dissolution of the national convention—the newport riots—murder of lord norbury—meeting of the magistrates—the precursor association—debates in parliament—lord normanby's defence of his administration—the lords censure the government—the vote reversed in the commons—the jamaica bill—virtual defeat of the ministry—they resign.

a combination of circumstances invested the accession on the 20th of june, of the princess victoria, with peculiar interest. she was the third female sovereign called to occupy the throne since the reformation; and like those of elizabeth and anne, her reign has served to mark an era in british history. the novelty of a female sovereign, especially one so young, had a charm for all classes in society. the superior gifts and the amiable disposition of the princess, the care with which she had been educated by her mother, and all that had been known of her private life and her favourite pursuits, prepared the nation to hail her accession with sincere acclamations. there was something which could not fail to excite the imagination and touch the heart, in seeing one who in a private station would be regarded as a mere girl, just old enough to come out into society, called upon to assume the sceptre of the greatest empire in the world, and to sit upon one of the oldest thrones, receiving the willing homage of statesmen and warriors who had been historic characters for half a century. we are not surprised, therefore, to read that the mingled majesty and grace with which she assumed her high functions excited universal admiration, and "drew tears from many eyes which had not been wet for half a lifetime;" and that warriors trembled with emotion, who had never known fear in the presence of the enemy. when the ceremony of taking the oath of allegiance had been gone through, her majesty addressed the privy council:—"the severe and afflicting loss which the nation has sustained by the death of his majesty, my beloved uncle, has devolved upon me the duty of administering the government of this empire. this awful responsibility is imposed upon me so suddenly, and at so early a period of my life, that i should feel myself utterly oppressed by the burden, were i not sustained by the hope that divine providence, which has called me to this work, will give me strength for the performance of it; and that i shall find in the purity of my intentions, and in my zeal for the public welfare, that support and those resources which usually belong to a more mature age and to long experience. i place my firm reliance upon the wisdom of parliament, and upon the loyalty and affection of my people."

the young queen enjoyed, in the new king of hanover, the advantage of a foil which, with all the force of contrast, placed her character as a constitutional sovereign in the best possible light. at her accession, the crown of hanover, which could not be inherited by a female, was separated from the crown of england, with which it had been united since the accession of george i. in 1714, and had descended to the duke of cumberland, the next surviving male heir of george iii. this severance, instead of being regarded as a loss, was really felt as a great relief by the british nation, not only as terminating its connection with german politics, from which nothing but annoyance and expense could result, but, what was regarded as much more important, freeing the country from the presence of the duke of cumberland, who was detested for his arbitrary temper. on the 24th of june, ernest augustus, king of hanover, left london, apparently in a very churlish spirit, and breathing hostility to constitutional freedom in the country which was to be cursed by his rule. so strong were his feelings against constitutional government that he had not the grace to receive a deputation of the chambers, who came to offer him their homage and their congratulations; and on the 5th of july[444] he hastened to issue a proclamation, announcing his intention to abolish the constitution. he not only did this, but he ejected from their offices, and banished from their country, some of the most eminent professors in the university of g?ttingen. it was thus he inaugurated a rule of iron despotism worse than that of the native princes, who had not the advantage of being brought up in a free country.

the queen did not disturb the administration which she found in office. the premier, lord melbourne, who was now fifty-eight years old, had had much experience of public life. he had been chief secretary for ireland, home secretary, and prime minister, to which position he had been called the second time, after the failure of sir robert peel's administration in the spring of 1835. the young queen seems to have looked to his counsel with a sort of filial deference; and from the time of her accession to the close of his career he devoted himself to the important task of instructing and guiding his royal mistress in the discharge of her various official duties—a task of great delicacy, which he performed with so much ability and success as not only to win her gratitude, but to secure also the approbation of the country, and to disarm the hostility of political opponents. no royal pupil, it may be safely said, ever did more credit to a mentor than did queen victoria. for the time being, lord melbourne took up his residence at windsor, and acted as the queen's secretary.

prior to the revolution the sums voted for the civil list were granted without any specification as to whether they should be applied to the maintenance of the army, the navy, the civil government, or the household. the king got a lump sum for carrying on the government, defending the country, and supporting the royal dignity; and was allowed to apportion it according to his own discretion—the plan most agreeable to an arbitrary monarch. after the revolution the expenses of the army and navy were separately voted, and the charges for civil government have been gradually removed from the civil list. at the accession of william iv. these charges were reduced to the amount required for the expenses of the royal household, by the removal of the salaries of the judges, the ambassadors, and the lord-lieutenant of ireland, together with a number of civil list pensions. this fact should be borne in mind in connection with the sums on the civil list of former sovereigns. for example: william iii., anne, and george i. had ￡700,000 a year; george ii. and george iii., ￡800,000; george iv., ￡850,000; william iv., ￡500,000; queen victoria received ￡385,000. the application was thus limited: privy purse, ￡60,000; household salaries and retired allowances, ￡131,260; household expenses, ￡172,500; royal bounty, alms, and special services, ￡13,200; leaving an unappropriated balance of upwards of ￡8,000 to be employed in supplementing any of the other charges, or in any way her majesty thought proper. the pension list was limited to ￡1,200 per annum, and the incomes from the duchies of lancaster and cornwall, estimated at ￡50,000 a year, were secured to the crown. economists grumbled about the magnitude of these allowances, and lord melbourne was accused of being over-indulgent to the youthful sovereign; but her immense popularity silenced all murmurers, and the nation felt happy to give her any amount of money she required.

on the 17th of july—a week after the burial of the king—the queen went in state to meet parliament. she was received along the line of procession with extraordinary enthusiasm; and never on the accession of a sovereign was the house of peers so thronged by ladies of rank. a tone of kindness, mercy, and conciliation, befitting her youth and sex, marked her first speech from the throne. she stated that she regarded with peculiar interest the measures that had been brought to maturity for the mitigation of the criminal code, and the reduction of the number of capital punishments; promised that it should be her care to strengthen our institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, by discreet improvement, wherever improvement was required, and to do all in her power to compose and allay animosity and discord. immediately on the delivery of the royal speech parliament was prorogued in order to its dissolution. the general elections speedily followed, and were all over early in august. the ministerial candidates were accused of making an unconstitutional use of the queen's name in their addresses, and availing themselves of her popularity to strengthen the position of the government, and the conservatives asserted that the queen had no partiality for her present advisers, whom she found in office, and bore with only till sir robert peel and his colleagues should feel strong enough to take their places. the elections did not materially alter the balance of parties, the whigs still commanding a small majority.

the queen's first council.

after the painting by sir david wilkie, r. a., in the royal collection.

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[445]

niagara falls.

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parliament met on the 15th of november, when mr. abercromby was unanimously re-elected speaker. on the 20th the queen opened the new parliament in person. in the royal speech the serious attention of the legislature was requested to the consideration of the state of the province of lower canada, which had now become a question that could not be any longer deferred. the demands of the inhabitants of that province were so extravagant that they were regarded by sir robert peel as revolutionary. they demanded, not only that the executive council should be responsible to the house of representatives, but also that the senate, or upper house, then nominated by the crown, should be elected by the people. the home government, sustained by an overwhelming majority of the house of commons, rejected the demand; and when the news reached canada, the lower province was quickly in a flame of rebellion. violent harangues were delivered to excited assemblies of armed men, who were called upon to imitate the glorious example of the united states, and break the yoke of british oppression. fortunately, disaffection in the upper provinces was confined to a minority. the loyalists held counter-demonstrations at montreal; regiments of volunteers to support the government and maintain the british connection were rapidly formed, and filled up by brave men determined to lay down their lives for the fair young queen who now demanded their allegiance. sir francis head had so much confidence in the inhabitants of the upper provinces that he sent all the regular troops into lower canada for the purpose of suppressing the insurrection. a small force, under the command of colonel gore, encountered 1,500 of the rebels so strongly posted in stone houses in the villages of st. denis and st. charles that they were obliged to retreat before the well directed fire from the windows, with the loss of six killed and ten wounded, leaving their only field-piece behind. among the wounded was lieutenant weir, who was barbarously murdered by the insurgents. at st. charles, colonel wetherall, at the head of another detachment, stormed the stronghold of the rebels, and completely routed them, after an obstinate resistance, with a loss of only three killed and eighteen wounded. the strength of the insurgents,[446] however, lay in the country of the two mountains, where they were pursued by sir john colborne in person, with a force of 13,000 men, including volunteers. many of them took to flight at his approach, including their commander girod, who, on being pursued and captured, shot himself. but 400 rebels, commanded by dr. chenier, took up a position in a church and some other buildings, around which they erected barricades, and there made a desperate resistance for two hours. next day the british troops proceeded to another stronghold of the rebels, st. benoit, which they found abandoned, and to which the exasperated loyalists set fire. papineau, the leader of the insurrection, had escaped to new york.

sir francis head had made a somewhat dangerous experiment in denuding upper canada of troops, conceiving it to be his duty to lay before the american people the incontrovertible fact that, by the removal of her majesty's forces and by the surrender of 600 stand of arms to the civil authorities, the people of upper canada had virtually been granted an opportunity of revolting; consequently, as the british constitution had been protected solely by the sovereign will of the people, it became, even by the greatest of all republican maxims, the only law of the land. this was not done, however, without an attempt at revolt, made chiefly by irish roman catholics. the leader of this movement was w. l. mackenzie, the editor of a newspaper. on the night of the 3rd of december, 1837, this leader marched at the head of 500 rebels, from montgomery's tavern, his headquarters, upon toronto, having initiated the war by the murder of colonel moodie. they were, however, driven away. mackenzie fled in disguise to buffalo, in new york; a large number of the rebels were taken prisoners, but almost immediately released, and sent to their homes.

it was on this occasion that the loyalty of the british settlers in upper canada shone forth with the most chivalrous devotion to the throne of the queen. the moment the news arrived of mackenzie's attack upon toronto, the militia everywhere seized their arms, mustered in companies, and from niagara, gore, lake shireve, and many other places, set out on their march in the heavy snow in the depth of winter. so great was the excitement, so enthusiastic the loyalty, that in three days 10,000 armed volunteers had assembled at toronto. there was, however, no further occasion for their services in that place, and even the scattered remnants of the insurrection would have been extinguished but for the interference of filibustering citizens of the united states, who were then called "sympathisers," and who had assembled in considerable numbers along the niagara river. they had established their headquarters on navy island in the niagara river, about two miles above the falls, having taken possession of it on the 13th of december, and made it their chief dep?t of arms and provisions, the latter of which they brought from the american shore by means of a small steamer called the caroline. colonel m'nab resolved to destroy the caroline, and to root out the nest of pirates by whom she was employed. on the 28th of december a party of militia found her moored opposite fort schlosser, on the american side, strongly guarded by bodies of armed men, both on board and on shore. lieutenant drew commanded the british party, and after a fierce conflict the vessel was boarded and captured, a number of those who manned her being taken prisoners. these being removed, the british set the vessel on fire, and the flaming mass was swept down the rapids, and precipitated into the unfathomable abyss below. according to the american version of this affair, the british had made an unprovoked and most wanton attack upon an unarmed vessel belonging to a neighbouring state, on american territory, at a time of profound peace. the truth came out by degrees, and the american president, van buren, issued a proclamation on the 5th of january, 1838, warning all citizens of the united states that if they interfered in any unlawful manner with the affairs of the neighbouring british provinces, they would render themselves liable to arrest and punishment.

such was the state of things in canada which the imperial parliament was called upon to consider in the spring of 1838. the first feeling which the news of the insurrection produced in britain was one of alarm; the next was that all the forces that could be spared should be immediately dispatched for the purpose of crushing the revolt; and a ship of the line was employed for the first time in carrying a battalion of 800 guards across the atlantic. the duke of wellington censured the government for not having had a sufficient military force to preserve the peace in canada, and used the oft-repeated expression that was stultified on several occasions during the latter portion of victoria's reign, that a great nation cannot make a little war. on the 22nd of january lord john russell moved[447] for leave to bring in a bill suspending the constitution in lower canada for three years, and providing for the future government of that province, with a view to effecting a satisfactory settlement of the affairs of the colony. he stated that her majesty's government had resolved to send out an experienced statesman, of high character and position, and of well-known popular sympathies, with ample powers, and that lord durham had consented to go. the government measure was carried in the house of commons by a majority of 262 to 16, and unanimously in the lords.

the lord high commissioner immediately proceeded on his great mission, and after a tedious voyage landed at quebec on the 29th of may. he took with him, as his private secretary, mr. charles buller, a man of singular ability, an ardent friend of free institutions, gifted with a large mind and generous sympathies, and a spirit that rose superior to all party considerations. a more suitable man could scarcely have been found for such a work. but he also took out with him mr. turton and mr. gibbon wakefield, men of ability but hopelessly damaged in character. he promptly proceeded to dismiss his council and to select another of five who had no acquaintance with canadian politics. he found on his arrival 116 state prisoners, whose trial had been postponed, awaiting his instructions. on the 28th of june the lord high commissioner published an ordinance, in which it was stated that wolfred nelson, and seven other persons therein named, had acknowledged their guilt, and submitted themselves to her majesty's pleasure; that papineau, with fifteen others, had absconded. the former were sentenced to be transported to bermuda during pleasure, there to be submitted to such restraints as might be thought fit; the latter, if they should return to canada, were to be put to death without further trial. in each of these cases an unfortunate error was committed. the lord high commissioner had no legal authority out of canada, and could not order the detention of any one at bermuda; and to doom men to be put to death without further trial, was denounced in parliament, by lord brougham and others, as unconstitutional. lord brougham described it as "an appalling fact." such a proceeding, he said, was "contrary to every principle of justice, and was opposed to the genius and spirit of english law, which humanely supposed every accused party to be innocent until he was proved to be guilty." his reasons for the course he had adopted were given by lord durham, in a despatch to the home secretary, dated june 29th. the british party, he said, did not require sanguinary punishment; but they desired security for the future, and the certainty that the returning tranquillity of the province would not be arrested by the machinations of the ringleaders of rebellion, either there or in the united states. he said: "i did not think it right to transport these persons to a convict colony, for two reasons; first, because it was affixing a character of moral infamy on their acts, which public opinion did not sanction; and, secondly, because i hold it to be impolitic to force on the colony itself persons who would be looked on in the light of political martyrs, and thus acquire perhaps a degree of influence which might be applied to evil uses in a community composed of such dangerous elements."

the ordinance was disallowed at home. lord brougham, who had never forgiven his former colleagues the constitution of the cabinet without his forming a part of it, signalised himself by the extreme bitterness with which he headed the onslaught. the result was that, after protracted debates in both houses of parliament, which occupied the whole of the summer, and fill up nearly 500 pages of the parliamentary proceedings, the ordinance was annulled by act of parliament; but an act was passed indemnifying lord durham and the canadian authorities. the majority in the commons was so large that the opposition did not venture on a division; and in the lords the disallowance was carried by a majority of 54 to 36. this result occurred on the 10th of august, and lord durham saw the news first in the american newspapers. lords melbourne and glenelg softened the matter to him as well as they could; the former communicated the intelligence with the greatest regret and the deepest apprehension as to its consequences. lord durham betrayed his mortification unwisely in a proclamation which he immediately issued. as the banishment was an exception to the general amnesty he had published, he informed the prisoners at bermuda that her majesty being advised to refuse her assent to the exceptions, the amnesty existed without qualification, and added—"no impediment, therefore, exists to the return of the persons who have made the most distinctive admission of guilt, or have been excluded by me from the province on account of the danger to which it would be exposed by their presence."

lord durham at once resigned, and was succeeded by mr. poulett thomson, afterwards lord[448] sydenham, who fully adopted his policy, which was ably expounded in an important report from the pen of mr. charles buller, with additions by gibbon wakefield. it was characterised by profound statesmanship, and was the basis of the sound policy which has made united canada a great and flourishing state. meanwhile, the returned prisoners from bermuda showed their sense of the leniency with which they had been treated by immediately reorganising the rebellion. sir john colborne, the commander-in-chief, who had, on lord durham's departure, assumed provisionally the government of the colonies, thereupon proclaimed martial law, and stamped out the insurrection. only twelve of the principal offenders were ultimately brought to trial, of whom ten were sentenced to death, but only four were executed. the persons convicted of treason, or political felony, in upper canada, from the 1st of october, 1837, to the 1st of november, 1838, were disposed of as follows:—pardoned on giving security, 140; sentenced to confinement in penitentiary, 14; sentenced to banishment, 18; transported to van diemen's land, 27; escaped from fort henry, 12. the american prisoners had been sent to kingston, and tried by court-martial on the 24th of november. four of them were sentenced to death, and executed, complaining of the deception that had been practised on them with regard to the strength of the anti-british party, and the prospects of the enterprise. five others were afterwards found guilty and executed. the american government, though deprecating those executions on grounds of humanity, disclaimed all sanction or encouragement of such piratical invasions, and denied any desire on its part for the annexation of canada.

out of these troubles arose a new state of things, a new era of peace and prosperity. lord durham saw that disaffection and disturbance had arisen from the animosity of race and religion, exasperated by favouritism in the government, and the dispensation of patronage through "a family compact." he recommended a liberal, comprehensive, impartial, and unsectarian policy, with the union of the two provinces under one legislature, and this, after several failures, became law in 1840. it was a revolution quite unexpected by both parties. the disaffected french catholics feared, as the consequence of their defeat, a rule of military repression; the british protestants hoped for the firm establishment of their ascendency. both were disappointed—the latter very painfully, when, notwithstanding their efforts and sacrifices for the maintenance of british power, they saw papineau, the arch-traitor, whom they would have hanged, attorney-general in the new government. however, the wise government of lord sydenham soon reconciled them to the altered state of affairs. the new constitution was proclaimed in canada on the 10th of february, 1841; and the admirable manner in which it worked proved that lord durham, its author, was one of the greatest benefactors of the colony, though his want of tact had made his mission a failure.

queen victoria in the coronation robes, 1838.

from the picture by c. r. leslie, r.a., in the possession of the victoria and albert museum, south kensington.

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on the 1st of december, 1837, shortly after the opening of parliament, lord john russell introduced a question of great urgency—the relief of the irish poor. after going through, and commenting on, the several recommendations of the inquiry commissioners, and noticing the objections to which they were all more or less open, he explained, by way of contrast, the principles on which the present bill was founded, much in the same manner that he had done on the first introduction of the measure. the statement was generally well received, although there were some marked exceptions in this respect; and the bill was read a first time without a division. it was, in like manner, read a second time on the 5th of february, 1838; but, on the motion for going into committee, on the 9th, mr. o'connell strongly opposed it, and moved that it be committed that day six months. the amendment was, however, negatived by 277 to 25, a majority which made the passing of the measure in some form pretty certain. on the 23rd of february the question of settlement was again very fully discussed, and its introduction opposed by 103 to 31, the latter number comprising all that could be brought to vote for a settlement law of any kind. the vagrancy clauses were for the present withdrawn from the bill, on the understanding that there would hereafter be a separate measure for the suppression of mendicancy. the bill continued to be considered in successive committees until the 23rd of march, when, all the clauses having been gone through and settled, it was ordered to be reported, which was done on the 9th of april. on the 30th of april the bill was read a third time and passed by the commons, and on the day following was introduced and read a first time in the lords. many of the peers, whose estates were heavily encumbered, were alarmed at the threatened imposition of a poor-rate, which might swallow up a large portion of their incomes. those who were opposed to a poor law on economic principles,[449] appealed to their lordships' fears, and excited a determined opposition against the measure. on the 21st of may there was a stormy debate of nine hours' duration. lord melbourne moved the second reading in a judicious speech, in which he skilfully employed the best arguments in favour of a legal provision for the poor, stating that this measure was, in fact, but the extension to ireland of the english act of 1834, with such alterations as were adapted to the peculiar circumstances of that country. it would suppress mendicancy, and would abate agrarian violence, while relieving the destitute in a way that would not paralyse the feeling of energy and self-reliance. among the most violent opponents of the measure was lord lyndhurst, who declared that it would lead to a dissolution of the union. the duke of wellington, on the contrary, contended that the bill, if amended in committee, would improve the social relations of the people of ireland, and would induce the gentry to pay some attention to their properties, and to the occupiers and labourers on their estates. he objected, however, to a law of settlement as leading to unbounded litigation and expense. owing chiefly to the support of the duke, the second reading was carried by a majority of 149 to 20. on the motion that the bill be committed, on the 28th of may, a scene of confusion and violence was presented, surpassing anything that could have been expected in such a dignified assembly. the irish peers especially were in a state of extreme excitement. the discussion was adjourned to the 31st, and, after a debate of eight hours, the clause embodying the principle of the bill was adopted by a majority of 107 to 41. the bill was considered in committee on the 7th, 21st, 22nd, and 26th of june, and was read a third time on the 6th of july. it had now passed the lords, altered, and in some respects improved; although, in the opinion of its author, the charge upon electoral divisions approximated too nearly to settlement to be quite satisfactory. the royal assent was given to the measure on the 31st of july, and thus a law was at length established making provision for the systematic and efficient relief of destitution in ireland.

the capture of the "caroline." (see p. 446.)

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armed with their act of parliament, the poor law commissioners who had been appointed to carry it out hastened to ireland for the purpose of forming unions, providing workhouses, and making all the necessary arrangements. mr. nicholls was accompanied by four assistant commissioners, mr. gulson, mr. earle, mr. hawley, and mr. voules. they assembled in dublin on the 9th of october, where they were joined by four irish commissioners, namely, mr. clements, mr. hancock, mr. o'donoghue, and dr. phelan. the erection of workhouses was proceeded with without loss of time. reports of the progress made were annually published, and in may, 1842, the whole of ireland had been formed into 130 unions; all the workhouses were either built or in progress of building, and eighty-one had been declared fit for the reception of the destitute poor. mr. nicholls left ireland in 1842, his functions being delegated to a board consisting of mr. gulson and mr. power. it was indeed a most providential circumstance that the system had been brought into working order before the potato failure of 1846, as it contributed materially to mitigate the nameless horrors of the awful famine.

on the 6th of march, sir william molesworth, with a view to bringing the whole colonial administration of the empire before the house of commons, moved that an address be presented to her majesty, expressing the opinion of the house that in the present critical state of many of her foreign possessions "the colonial minister should be a person in whose diligence, activity, and firmness the house and the public may be able to place reliance;" and declaring that "her majesty's present secretary of state for the colonies does not enjoy the confidence of the house or the country." the honourable baronet made a speech of two hours' duration, which was a dissertation on colonial policy, containing a survey of the whole of her majesty's dominions in both hemispheres. he disclaimed all party considerations in bringing forward his motion, or any intention to make an invidious attack on lord glenelg. but as the colonies were so numerous, so diversified in races, religions, languages, institutions, interests, and as they were unrepresented in the imperial parliament, it was absolutely necessary that the colonial administration should be vigilant, prompt, sagacious, energetic, and firm. lord glenelg was wanting in these qualities, and the colonies were all suffering more or less from the errors and deficiencies of this ill-fated minister, "who had, in the words of lord aberdeen, reduced doing nothing to a system." lord glenelg was defended by lord palmerston, who regarded the attack upon him as an assault upon the cabinet, which would not allow one of its members to be made a scapegoat. the house divided, when the numbers were—ayes, 287; noes, 316; majority for ministers, 29. nevertheless the ministry were greatly damaged by the debate, which emphasised the growing radical revolt. in the following year lord glenelg, having declined to exchange his office for the auditorship of the exchequer, resigned.

at the close of the session of 1837 an earnest desire was expressed by the leaders of both parties in the house for an amicable adjustment of two great irish questions which had been pending for a long time, and had excited considerable ill-feeling, and wasted much of the time of the legislature—namely, the irish church question, and the question of corporate reform. the conservatives were disposed to compromise the matter, and to get the municipal reform bill passed through the lords, provided the ministry abandoned the celebrated appropriation clause, which would devote any surplus revenue of the church establishment, not required for the spiritual care of its members, to the moral and religious education of all classes of the people, without distinction of religious persuasion; providing for the resumption of such surplus, or any part of it, as might be required, by an increase in the numbers of the members of the established church. the result of this understanding was the passing of the tithe bill. but there were some little incidents of party warfare connected with these matters, which may be noticed here as illustrative of the temper of the times. on the 14th of may sir thomas acland brought forward a resolution for rescinding the appropriation clause. this lord john russell regarded as a breach of faith. he said that the present motion was not in accordance with the duke of wellington's declared desire to see the irish questions brought to a final settlement. sir robert peel, however, made a statement to show that the complaint of lord john russell about being overreached, was without a shadow of foundation. the noble lord's conduct he declared to be without precedent. he called upon parliament to come to the discussion of a great question, upon a motion which he intended should be the foundation of the final settlement of that question; and yet, so ambiguous was his language, that it was impossible to say what was[451] or was not the purport of his scheme. sir thomas acland's motion for rescinding the appropriation resolution was rejected by a majority of 19, the numbers being 317 and 298. on the following day lord john russell gave sir robert peel distinctly to understand that the tithe measure would consist solely of a proposition that the composition then existing should be converted into a rent charge. on the 29th of the same month, lord john russell having moved that the house should go into committee on the irish municipal bill, sir robert peel gave his views at length on the irish questions, which were now taken up in earnest, with a view to their final settlement. the house of commons having disposed of the corporation bill, proceeded on the 2nd of july to consider lord john russell's resolutions on the church question. but mr. ward, who was strong on that question, attacked the government for their abandonment of the appropriation clause. he concluded by moving a series of resolutions reaffirming the appropriation principle. his motion was rejected by a majority of 270 to 46. the house then went into committee, and in due course the irish tithe bill passed into law, and the vexed church question was settled for a quarter of a century. the municipal bill, however, was once more mutilated by lord lyndhurst, who substituted a ￡10 for a ￡5 valuation. the amendment was rejected by the commons, but the lords stood firmly by their decision, and a conference between the two houses having failed to settle the question, the measure was abandoned. in these events the ministry had incurred much disrepute.

the approaching coronation of the queen became, as the season advanced, the prevailing topic of conversation in all circles. the feeling excited by it was so strong, so deep, and so widespread, that a radical journal pronounced the people to be "coronation mad." the enthusiasm was not confined to the united kingdom. the contagion was carried to the continent, and foreigners of various ranks, from all nations, flocked into the metropolis to behold the inauguration of the maiden monarch of the british empire. there were, however, some dissentients, whose objections disturbed the current of public feeling. as soon as it was understood that, on the score of economy, the time-honoured custom of having the coronation banquet in westminster hall would not be observed, the marquis of londonderry and others zealously exerted themselves to avert the innovation, but their efforts were fruitless. the coronation took place on the 28th of june. the only novel feature of importance consisted in the substitution of a procession through the streets for a banquet in westminster hall. it was certainly an improvement, for it afforded the people an opportunity of enjoying the ceremony. persons of all ages, ranks, and conditions, embodied visibly in one animated and exalted whole, exultant and joyful, came forth to greet the youthful sovereign. all the houses in the line of march poured forth their occupants to the windows and balconies. the behaviour of the enormous multitude which lined the streets, and afterwards spread over the metropolis, was admirable. the utmost eagerness was shown to furnish all the accommodation for spectators that the space would allow, and there was scarcely a house or a vacant spot along the whole line, from hyde park corner to the abbey, that was not occupied with galleries or scaffolding. at dawn the population were astir, roused by a salvo of artillery from the tower, and towards six o'clock chains of vehicles, of all sorts and sizes, stretched along the leading thoroughfares; while streams of pedestrians, in holiday attire, poured in continuously, so that the suburbs seemed to empty themselves of all their inhabitants at once. at ten o'clock the head of the procession moved from the palace. when the queen stepped into the state coach a salute was fired from the guns ranged in the enclosure, the bands struck up the national anthem, a new royal standard was hoisted on the marble arch, and the multitude broke forth in loud and hearty cheers. the foreign ambassadors extraordinary looked superb in their new carriages and splendid uniforms. among them shone conspicuous the state coach of marshal soult, and the old hero was received with vast enthusiasm by the populace.

the queen reached the western entrance of westminster abbey at half-past eleven o'clock, and was there met by the great officers of state, the noblemen bearing the regalia, and the bishops carrying the paten, the chalice, and the bible. the arrangements in the interior of the abbey were nearly the same as at the previous coronation, but the decorations were in better taste. galleries had been erected for the accommodation of spectators, to which about 1,000 persons were admitted. there was also a gallery for the members of the house of commons, and another for foreign ambassadors. soon after twelve o'clock the grand procession began to enter the choir, in the order observed on former occasions. the queen was received with the most hearty plaudits[452] from all parts of the building, and when she was proclaimed in the formula—"sirs, i here present unto you queen victoria—the undoubted queen of this realm. wherefore, all you who are come this day to do your homage, are you willing to do the same?"—there was a loud and universal burst of cheering, with cries of "god save the queen." when the crown was placed on her majesty's head there was again an enthusiastic cry of "god save the queen," accompanied by the waving of hats and handkerchiefs. at this moment the peers and peeresses put on their coronets, the bishops their caps, and the kings-of-arms their crowns, the trumpets sounding, the drums beating, the tower and park guns firing by signal. the dukes of cambridge and sussex removing their coronets, did homage in these words:—"i do become your liege man of life and limb, and of earthly worship and faith and truth i will bear unto you to live and die against all manner of folk, so help me god." they touched the crown on the queen's head, kissed her left cheek, and then retired. it was observed that her majesty's bearing towards her uncles was very affectionate. the dukes and other peers then performed their homage, the senior of each rank pronouncing the words. as they retired, each peer kissed her majesty's hand. the duke of wellington, earl grey, and lord melbourne were loudly cheered as they ascended the steps to the throne. lord rolle, who was upwards of eighty, stumbled and fell on the steps. the queen immediately stepped forward, and held out her hand to assist the aged peer. this touching incident called forth the loudly expressed admiration of the entire assembly. while the ceremony of doing homage was being performed, the earl of surrey, treasurer of the household, was scattering silver medals of the coronation about the choir and the lower galleries, which were scrambled for with great eagerness. the ceremonials did not conclude till past four o'clock.

the procession, on its return, presented a still more striking appearance than before, from the circumstance that the queen wore her crown, and the royal and noble personages their coronets. the mass of brilliants, relieved here and there by a large coloured stone, and the purple velvet cap, became her majesty extremely well, and had a superb effect. the sight of the streets "paved with heads," and the houses alive with spectators, was most impressive. the queen entertained a party of one hundred at dinner, and in the evening witnessed, from the roof of her palace, the fireworks in the green park. the duke of wellington gave a grand banquet at apsley house, and several cabinet ministers gave official state dinners next day. the people were gratified, at the solicitation of mr. hawes, m.p. for lambeth, with permission to hold a fair in hyde park, which continued for four days, thursday, friday, saturday, and monday. the area allotted comprised nearly one-third of the park, extending from near the margin of the serpentine river to a line within a short distance of grosvenor gate. to the interior there were eight entrances, the main one fifty feet wide, and the others thirty feet each. the enclosed area was occupied by theatres, taverns, and an endless variety of exhibitions, the centre being appropriated to lines of stalls for the sale of fancy goods, sweetmeats, and toys. the queen condescended to visit the fair on friday. the illuminations on the night of the coronation were on a larger and more magnificent scale than had been before seen in the metropolis, and the fireworks were also extremely grand. all the theatres in the metropolis, and nearly all the other places of amusement, were opened gratuitously that evening by her majesty's command, and though all were crowded, the arrangements were so excellent that no accident occurred. in the provinces, rejoicing was universal. public dinners, feasts to the poor, processions, and illuminations were the order of the day. at liverpool was laid the first stone of st. george's hall, in presence of a great multitude. at cambridge 13,000 persons were feasted on one spot, in the open field, called parker's piece, in the centre of which was raised an orchestra for 100 musicians, surrounded by a gallery for 1,600 persons. encircling this centre were three rows of tables for the school children, and from them radiated, like the spokes of a wheel, the main body of the tables, 60 in number, and 25 feet in length. beyond their outer extremity were added 28 other tables, in a circle; and outside the whole a promenade was roped in for spectators, who were more numerous than those who dined. the circumference of the whole was more than one-third of a mile. other great towns similarly distinguished themselves.

[453]

the coronation of queen victoria. (after the picture by sir george hayter.)

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in this year the spanish legion, which had been sent to help the constitutionalists in spain was dissolved, after an inglorious career. it had been constantly attacked by the conservatives in parliament. thus, in the session of 1837, lord mahon, who had been under-secretary for foreign affairs in sir robert peel's government, reviewed the line of policy pursued by lord palmerston. he complained that the public had been kept in a[454] state of ignorance whether they were at peace or at war, and in his opinion it was a peace without tranquillity and a war without honour. the object of the quadruple alliance had been to appease the civil dissensions in portugal, and not to sanction the intervention of france and britain in spain. he lamented the policy that led to the additional articles signed in 1834, which stipulated for a certain degree of interference. but lord palmerston had thought proper to proceed still further, in suspending the foreign enlistment act, and allowing 12,000 englishmen to enlist under the banners of the queen of spain. more than ￡540,000 had been already expended in the war; and in lord mahon's opinion the influence of great britain in spain had not been augmented by these measures, in proof of which he alleged that british merchants got less fair play there than french merchants. lord palmerston defended his policy against the attacks of lord mahon and other speakers. the quadruple treaty, he contended, contemplated assistance to the constitutional party in spain as well as in portugal. it was concluded because there was a civil war in portugal; and when the civil war was transferred to spain, the same parties who took part with portugal by treaty were bound at an early period to extend its provisions to spain, its object being expressly "the pacification of the peninsula by the expulsion of the two infants from it." he differed widely from lord mahon in thinking the suspension of the foreign enlistment act was disgraceful to the government. examples of the same kind were to be found in the most brilliant periods of the history of england.

general evans had taken the command of the spanish legion, which throughout the whole of the campaign was encompassed with difficulties and pursued by disasters, without any military success sufficiently brilliant to gild the clouds with glory. within a fortnight after the debate on lord mahon's motion came the news of its utter defeat before hernani. this defeat encouraged the opponents of lord palmerston's policy to renew their attacks. accordingly, immediately after the recess, sir henry hardinge brought forward a motion on the subject. he complained that no adequate provision was made for the support of those who were in the legion. at vittoria they were placed for four months in uninhabited convents, without bedding, fuel, or supplies of any kind. not less than 40 officers and 700 men fell victims to their privations. the worst consequence was, however, the total demoralisation of the troops. theirs was not honourable war, it was butchery. they were massacring a fine and independent people, who had committed no offence against britain. ill treatment, want of food and of clothing, habits of insubordination and mutiny, and want of confidence in their officers, had produced their natural effects. let them palliate the disaster as they would, there was no doubt, he said, of the fact that a large body of britons had suffered a defeat such as he believed no british soldiers had undergone in the course of the last five or six hundred years. the motion was defeated by 70 votes to 62, but as the legion was dissolved in the following year, 1838, the object of the opposition was gained.

the employment of children in factories also occupied the attention of parliament at this time. a bill had been framed in 1833 with the most benevolent intentions for the protection of factory children. the law excluded from factory labour all children under nine years of age, except in silk factories, and prohibited those under thirteen from working more than thirteen hours any one day; the maximum in silk mills alone being ten hours. the provisions of the law were, however, evaded by fraud. children were represented as being much older than they really were, and abuses prevailed that induced lord ashley to bring in a bill upon the subject. accordingly, on the 22nd of june the noble lord moved, by way of amendment to the order of the day, the second reading of his bill for the better regulation of factories. the order of the day was carried by a majority of 119 to 111. the bill was therefore lost by a majority of eight. on the 20th of july lord ashley again brought the whole matter under the consideration of the house in a speech full of painful details, and concluded by moving a resolution to the effect that the house deeply regretted that the imperfect and ineffective law for the regulation of labour in factories had been suffered to continue so long without any amendment. he was answered by the usual arguments of the manchester school about the evils of interfering with free contract. lord john russell argued that, in the present condition of the manufacturing world, we could not, with restricted hours of labour, compete with other nations. a ten hours' bill would drive the manufacturers abroad; and it would no longer be a question as to an hour or two more or less work to be performed by the children, but as to how their starvation was to be averted. on a division, the motion was lost by a majority of 121 to 106. on[455] the 16th of august the queen proceeded to westminster for the purpose of proroguing parliament.

the system of combination had spread very widely in 1837 and 1838. so great was the terrorism produced that conviction for an outrage was very rare. the utmost precautions were taken to prevent discovery in committing assassination. strangers were sent to a great distance for the purpose; and even if they were detected, few persons would run the risk of coming forward as witnesses. the consequence was that in nine cases out of ten combination murders were perpetrated with impunity. in 1837 the cotton spinners' association at glasgow struck to prevent a reduction of wages in consequence of the mercantile embarrassments arising from the commercial crash in the united states. this association had its branches all over scotland and the north of england. during sixteen years a total of ￡200,000 had passed through its hands. so extensive were its ramifications that, when it struck in the spring of 1837, no less than 50,000 persons, including the families of the workers, were deprived of the means of existence, and reduced to the last degree of destitution. crowds of angry workmen paraded the streets and gathered round the factory gates, to prevent other people from going in to work; fire-balls were thrown into the mills for the purpose of burning them. at length the members of the association went so far as to shoot one of the new hands in open day in a public street of glasgow. in consequence of this outrage the sheriff of lanarkshire proceeded with a body of twenty policemen and arrested the members of the secret committee, sixteen in number, who were found assembled in a garret, to which they obtained access by a trap-ladder, in gallowgate of that city. this was on saturday night, august 3rd. on the monday following the strike was at an end, and all the mills in glasgow were going. the jury found the prisoners guilty of conspiracy, and they were sentenced to transportation, but the murder not proven—a result which excited some surprise, as the evidence was thought to have warranted a general verdict of "guilty." this was, two years after, followed by their being all liberated from confinement by lord normanby, then home secretary.

however, the agitation of the working classes continued; and, when parliament met in february, 1839, the concluding paragraph of the speech referred to the disturbances and combinations among the working classes: "i have observed with pain the persevering efforts which have been made in some parts of the country to excite my subjects to disobedience and resistance to the law, and to recommend dangerous and illegal practices. for the counteraction of all such designs i depend upon the efficacy of the law, which it will be my duty to enforce, upon the good sense and right disposition of my people, upon their attachment to the principles of justice, and their abhorrence of violence and disorder." in the course of the debate in the commons sir robert peel adverted to the paragraph referring to illegal meetings. having read several extracts from the speeches of mr. stephens, dr. wade, and mr. feargus o'connor delivered at chartist meetings, he quoted, for the purpose of reprehending, a speech delivered by lord john russell at liverpool in the previous month of october, when, alluding to the chartist meeting, the noble lord said, "there are some perhaps who would put down such meetings, but such was not his opinion, nor that of the government with which he acted. he thought the people had a right to free discussion which elicited truth. they had a right to meet. if they had no grievances, common sense would speedily come to the rescue, and put an end to these meetings." these sentiments, remarked sir robert peel, might be just, and even truisms; yet the unseasonable expression of truth in times of public excitement was often dangerous. the reform bill, he said, had failed to give permanent satisfaction as he had throughout predicted would be the case, and he well knew that a concession of further reform, in the expectation of producing satisfaction or finality, would be only aggravating the disappointment, and that in a few years they would be encountered by further demands.

it was during the year 1838 that the chartists became an organised body. the working classes had strenuously supported the middle classes in obtaining their political rights during the agitation for the reform bill, and they expected to receive help in their turn to obtain political franchises for themselves, but they found parliament indifferent or hostile to any further changes in the representation, while the middle class, satisfied with their own acquisitions, were not inclined to exert themselves much for the extension of political rights among the masses. the discontent and disappointment of the latter were aggravated by a succession of bad harvests, setting in about 1835. the hardships of their condition, with scanty employment and dear provisions, the people ascribed to their want of direct influence upon the[456] government. this gave rise to a vigorous agitation for the extension of the franchise, which was carried on for ten years. in 1838 a committee of six members of parliament and six working men prepared a bill embodying their demands. this was called the "people's charter." its points were six in number:—first, the extension of the right of voting to every male native of the united kingdom, and every naturalised foreigner resident in the kingdom for more than two years, who should be twenty-one years of age, of sound mind, and unconvicted of crime; second, equal electoral districts; third, vote by ballot; fourth, annual parliaments; fifth, no property qualification for members; sixth, payment of members of parliament for their services.

the popular agitation became so alarming, however, that mr. stevens, one of its instigators, was indicted and held to bail on a charge of sedition. but this interference with liberty of speech served only to inflame the excitement, and to render the language of the orators more violent. in june, 1839, mr. attwood presented the chartist petition to the house of commons, bearing 1,200,000 signatures, and on the 15th of july he moved that it should be referred to a select committee, but the motion was rejected by a majority of 289 to 281. this gave a fresh impulse to the agitation. the most inflammatory speakers besides mr. stephens were mr. oastler and mr. feargus o'connor. the use of arms began to be freely spoken of as a legitimate means of obtaining their rights. pikes and guns were procured in great quantities; drilling was practised, and armed bands marched in nocturnal processions, to the terror of the peaceable inhabitants. at length, lord john russell, as home secretary, reluctant as he was to interfere with the free action of the people, issued a proclamation to the lieutenants of the disturbed counties, authorising them to accept the armed assistance of persons who might place themselves at their disposal for the preservation of the public peace. as a means of showing their numerical strength, the chartists adopted the plan of going round from house to house with two books, demanding subscriptions for the support of the charter, entering the names of subscribers in one book, and of non-subscribers in the other. each subscriber received a ticket, which was to be his protection in case of insurrection, while the non-subscribers were given to understand that their names would be remembered. another striking mode of demonstrating their power and producing an impression, though not the most agreeable one, was to go in procession to the churches on sunday some time before divine service began, and to take entire possession of the body of the edifice. they conducted themselves quietly, however, although some were guilty of the impropriety of wearing their hats and smoking pipes.

monster meetings, not unaccompanied by disturbance, were held in various places, the most serious of which occurred at birmingham. the inhabitants of this town had been kept in a state of almost incessant alarm by the proceedings of disorderly persons calling themselves chartists. representations to this effect having been sent to the home office, sixty picked men of the metropolitan force were sent down to aid the civil authorities in the preservation of peace. they arrived at birmingham by the railway on thursday, july 4th, and speedily mustering, they marched two abreast into the bull ring, where about 2,000 chartists were assembled, at nine o'clock in the evening. they endeavoured, at first, to induce the meeting quietly to disperse, but failed in the attempt. they then seized the flags with which lord nelson's monument in the centre of the square was decorated, and among which was one that bore a death's head; but the chartists, who had at first been disconcerted, recaptured them, after a desperate struggle, and broke their staves into pieces, to be used as clubs. a conflict immediately ensued, in which the police, who were armed only with batons, were seriously injured; and the chartists were retiring in triumph when the 4th dragoons charged them, by concert, through all the streets leading to the bull ring, and they fled in every direction. further riots ensued, and on the 15th an organised mob attacked the houses in the high street and spiral street. they broke into the warehouses, flinging their contents into the streets. a large pile of bedding was set on fire in the bull ring. windows and shop-fittings were remorselessly demolished by the infuriated multitude. a few minutes past nine o'clock the cry of "fire!" was raised. scarcely had the words been uttered when the rioters carried immense heaps of burning materials from the streets, forcing them into the houses of mr. bourne and mr. legatt. within a quarter of an hour the flames burst out with awful violence from both houses, amidst the exulting shouts of the rioters. while this work of destruction was going on they had the streets to themselves. the general cry among the inhabitants was, "where are the military? where are the magistrates?" at length, about ten o'clock, sixty of the metropolitan[457] police, with a posse of special constables, made their appearance, and rushed upon the rioters sword in hand, causing them to fly in all directions. the dragoons, under the command of colonel chatterton, were now discerned galloping down moore street, and another squadron at the same moment down high street, and in five minutes about 300 of the rifle brigade marched to the bull ring. the inhabitants, feeling like people sore pressed by a long siege, clapped their hands with joy at the approach of their deliverers. the fire engines also came under escort, having been driven away before, and set about arresting the conflagration. in the meantime the cavalry were scouring and clearing the streets and suburbs, and the police were busily engaged bringing in prisoners. about midnight the roofs of the two houses fell in, and about one o'clock the fire was got under. next day the shops were nearly all closed, the middle classes full of suspicion, and the populace vowing vengeance against the police and the soldiers. a piece of artillery placed at the head of high street contributed materially to prevent further disturbance. about twenty prisoners were made, and the evidence produced before the magistrates showed the determined purpose of the rioters. when these outrages were the subject of discussion in the house of lords, the duke of wellington said, "that he had seen as much of war as most men; but he had never seen a town carried by assault subjected to such violence as birmingham had been during an hour by its own inhabitants."

chartists at church. (see p. 456.)

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the excitement was kept up during the summer and autumn by meetings held in various places, and the arrest of persons taking a prominent part in the proceedings. on the 4th of august there was an evening meeting at manchester held in stephenson's square, when about 5,000 persons attended. the object was to determine whether "the sacred month" should commence on the 12th of august or not. mr. butterworth, who moved the first resolution, said he considered that the chartists of 1839 were the whigs of 1832, and the whigs of 1839 were the tories of 1832. the whigs were more violent then than the chartists now, and yet the whigs were the very men to punish the chartists. during the meeting persons[458] in the crowd continued to discharge firearms. there was, however, no disturbance of the public peace.

government now resorted to vigorous measures; the chartist leaders were brought to trial, and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. at a meeting of the national convention held on the 14th of september, it was moved by mr. o'brien, and seconded by dr. taylor, that the convention be dissolved. on a division, the numbers were for the dissolution eleven; against it eleven. the chairman gave his casting vote in favour of the dissolution. it was thereupon hoped, and, indeed, publicly declared by the attorney-general, that chartism was extinct and would never again be revived. it soon appeared, however, that this was a delusion, and that a most formidable attempt at revolution by force of arms had been planned with great care and secrecy, and on a comprehensive scale, the principal leader being a justice of the peace. among the new borough magistrates made by the whigs after the passing of the reform bill was mr. john frost, a linendraper at newport. at the beginning of the chartist agitation in 1838 mr. frost attended a meeting in that town, when he made a violent speech, for which he was reprimanded by the home secretary. but this warning was far from having the desired effect. during the autumn of 1839 he entered into a conspiracy with two other leaders—jones, a watchmaker, of pontypool, and williams, of the royal oak inn, in the parish of aberystwith—to take possession of the town of newport, which was to be the signal for a simultaneous rising of the chartists in birmingham and in all other parts of the kingdom. but the weather was unfavourable and the night was dark. the divisions under the command of jones and williams failed to arrive at the appointed time, and the party under the command of frost himself was late. the intention was to surprise newport at about midnight on sunday, the 3rd of november; but owing to the wetness of the weather it was not till ten o'clock on monday morning that the insurgents entered the town in two divisions, one headed by frost, and another by his son, a youth of fourteen or fifteen. they were armed with guns, pistols, pikes, swords, and heavy clubs. the mayor, mr. thomas philips, apprised of their approach, had taken prompt measures for the defence of the place.

when the insurgents, about 8,000 strong, drew up in front of the westgate hotel, the principal point of attack, frost commanded the special constables to surrender. on their refusal the word was given to fire, and a volley was discharged against the bow window of the room where the military were located, and at the same moment the rioters, with their pikes and other instruments, drove in the door and rushed into the passage. it was a critical moment, but the mayor and the magistrates were equal to the emergency. the riot act having been read by the mayor amidst a shower of bullets, the soldiers charged their muskets, the shutters were opened, and the fighting began. a shower of slugs immediately poured in from the street, which wounded mr. philips and several other persons. but the soldiers opened a raking discharge upon the crowd without, and after a few rounds, by which a great many persons fell dead on the spot, the assailants broke and fled in all directions. frost, williams, and jones were tried by a special commission at monmouth, and found guilty of high treason. sentence of death was pronounced upon them on the 16th of january, 1840, but on the 1st of february the sentence was commuted to transportation for life. a free pardon was granted to them on the 3rd of may, 1856, and they returned to england in the september following. mayor philips was knighted for his gallantry.

the first day of 1839 was marked in ireland by an atrocious crime. the earl of norbury, an amiable nobleman, regarded as one of the most exemplary of his class, both as a man and a landlord, was shot by an assassin in the open day near his own house at kilbeggan, and in presence of his steward. the murderer escaped. this event deserves special mention, because it was, during the year, the subject of frequent reference in parliament. there was a meeting of magistrates at tullamore, at which lord oxmantown presided, at which the earl of charleville took occasion to animadvert very strongly upon an expression in a letter, in answer to a memorial lately presented by the magistrates of tipperary, in which mr. drummond, the under-secretary, uttered the celebrated maxim, that "property had its duties as well as its rights." this, in the circumstances of the country, he felt to be little less than a deliberate and unfeeling insult. he did not hesitate to say that the employment of those terms had given a fresh impulse to feelings which had found their legitimate issue in the late assassination. in the course of the meeting resolutions were proposed and carried to the following effect:—"that the answer to the tipperary magistrates by mr. under-secretary drummond has had the effect of increasing the animosities entertained against the[459] owners of the soil, and has emboldened the disturbers of the public peace. that there being little hope for a successful appeal to the irish executive, they felt it their duty to apply to the people of england, the legislature, and the throne for protection."

these resolutions may be taken as expressing the feelings of the landed gentry as a body against the melbourne administration and the agitators. but the latter were not idle. o'connell had then his "precursor association" in full operation. it received its name from the idea that it was to be the precursor of the repeal of the union. on the 22nd of january a public dinner was given in honour of the "liberator" in a building then called the circus, in dublin, for which one thousand tickets were issued. two days later a similar banquet was given to him in drogheda, and there he made a significant allusion to the murder of lord norbury, insinuating that he had met his death at the hands of one who was bound to him by the nearest of natural ties, and had the strongest interest in his removal. mr. o'connell volunteered the assertion that the assassin of lord norbury had left on the soil where he had posted himself, "not the impress of a rustic brogue [a coarse rough shoe, usually made of half-dressed leather], but the impress of a well-made dublin boot." there was no ground whatever for the malignant assertion, which was one of those errors of judgment and of taste that too often disfigured the great "liberator's" leadership.

these occurrences in ireland led to hostile demonstrations against the government in parliament. on the 7th of march mr. shaw, the recorder of dublin, as the representative of the irish protestants, commenced the campaign by moving for returns of the number of committals, convictions, inquests, rewards, and advertisements for the discovery of offenders in ireland from 1835 to 1839, in order to enable the house to form a judgment with regard to the actual amount and increase of crime in that country. the debate was adjourned till the following monday, when it was resumed by mr. lefroy, after which the house was counted out, and the question dropped; but it was taken up in the lords on the 21st of march, when lord roden moved for a select committee of inquiry on the state of ireland since 1835, with respect to the commission of crime. his speech was a repetition of the usual charges, and the debate is chiefly worthy of notice on account of the elaborate defence by lord normanby of his irish administration. "i am fully aware," said the noble marquis, "of the awful responsibility that would lie upon my head if these charges rested upon evidence at all commensurate with the vehemence of language and earnestness of manner with which they have been brought forward; but they rest upon no such foundation. i am ready, with natural indignation, to prove now, on the floor of this house, that i have grappled with crime wherever i have found it, firmly and unremittingly, and have yielded to none of my predecessors in the successful vindication of the laws." among the mass of proofs adduced by lord normanby, he quoted a vast number of judges' charges, delivered from time to time between 1816 and 1835, which presented only one continuously gloomy picture of the prevailing practice of violence and atrocious outrage. passing from this melancholy record, he proceeded to refer to numerous addresses of judges delivered on similar occasions since 1835. all of these contained one common topic of congratulation—the comparative lightness of the calendar—a circumstance, the noble marquis argued, which went far to establish his position, however it might fail to prove the extinction of exceptional cases of heinous crime. with regard to the wholesale liberation of prisoners, lord normanby distinctly denied that he had set free any persons detained for serious offences without due inquiry; or that any persons were liberated, merely because he happened to pass through the town, who would not have met with the same indulgence upon facts stated in memorials. "no; this measure," he insisted, "had been adopted upon the conviction that, in the peculiar case of ireland, after severity had been so often tried, mercy was well worth the experiment. it was one which was not lightly to be repeated; but while he had received satisfactory evidence of the success of the measure, it was in his power to produce the testimony of judges with whom he had no political relations, to the pains taken in the examination of each case, and the deference shown to their reports."

in spite of lord melbourne's declaration that he would regard the success of the motion as a pure vote of censure, it was carried by a majority of five. in consequence of this result, lord john russell announced his intention, next day, of taking the opinion of the house of commons on the recent government of ireland, in the first week after the easter recess. accordingly, on the 15th of april, he moved—"that it is the opinion of this house that it is expedient to persevere in those principles which have guided the executive[460] government of late years, and which have tended to the effectual administration of the laws, and the general improvement of that part of the united kingdom." the debate emphasised the discontent of the radicals. mr. leader was particularly severe on the government. "in what position is the government?" he asked. "why, the right hon. member for tamworth governs england, the hon. and learned member for dublin governs ireland—the whigs govern nothing but downing street. sir robert peel is content with power without place or patronage, and the whigs are contented with place and patronage without power. let any honourable man say which is the more honourable position." on a division, the numbers were—for sir robert peel's amendment, 296; against it, 318. majority for the ministry, 22.

the majority obtained on their irish policy was about the number the ministry could count upon on every vital question. it was not sufficiently large to exempt them from the imputation of holding office on sufferance; but if they were defeated, and were succeeded by the conservatives, the new government, it was plain, could not hope to exist even on those terms; while lord melbourne had this advantage over sir robert peel, that he was cordially supported by the sovereign. having escaped the irish ordeal, it might be supposed that he was safe for a considerable time. but another question arose very soon after, on which the cabinet sustained a virtual defeat. the assembly in jamaica had proved very refractory, and, in order to avoid the evil consequences of its perversity, mr. labouchere, on the 9th of april, brought forward a measure which was a virtual suspension of the constitution of the island for five years, vesting the government in the governor and council, with three commissioners sent from england to assist in ameliorating the condition of the negroes, improving prison discipline, and establishing a system of poor laws. this measure was denounced by the whole strength of the opposition. the question may be thus briefly stated. before the act of emancipation in 1833, all punishments were inflicted on slaves by the domestics of the master, who was unwilling to lose the benefit of their services by sending them to prison. but when emancipation took place, that domestic power was terminated, and new prison regulations became necessary. the colonial legislature, however, persistently refused to adopt any, and continued a course of systematic resistance to the will of the supreme government, whose earnest and repeated recommendations had been utterly disregarded. under the apprenticeship system negroes were treated worse than they were under the old condition of slavery, because the planters knew that the time of enfranchisement was at hand. but though, when the hour of liberty, august 1st, 1840, was seen to be very near, the jamaica assembly voluntarily brought the apprenticeship system to a termination, they accompanied the measure with an angry protest against any interference by the british parliament. it was contended, on the part of the government, that if such a state of things were permitted to exist, the authority of great britain over its colonies would speedily be lost, and every little island that owed its political existence to the protection afforded by the imperial government, would, without scruple, set its power at defiance. such being the state of the case, it might be supposed that no serious objection would be raised to the course adopted, in the interests of humanity and good government. but the conservatives seized the opportunity for another party contest, and became quite vehement in their defence of the constitutional rights of the jamaica planters. the debate was protracted for several nights, and counsel against the bill were heard at great length. eventually the division took place at five in the morning on the 6th of may, when the numbers were 294 to 289, giving the government a majority of only five, which was regarded as tantamount to a defeat. on the 7th of may, therefore, lord john russell announced that ministers had tendered their resignation, which was accepted by the queen. he assigned as the reason for this step that the vote which had passed must weaken the authority of the crown in the colonies, by giving support to the contumacy of jamaica, and encouraging other colonies to follow its bad example. this obvious consideration rendered more painfully apparent the weakness of the government, arising from division among its supporters; for if anything could have induced the different sections of the liberal party to suppress their differences, it would have been the necessity of interposing, in the manner proposed by the government, to shield the unhappy negroes from the oppression of their exasperated taskmasters. indeed, in spite of various attempts to patch up the cabinet, its members were at hopeless cross-purposes.