to his party when out of powernever did any factionist play a more shameless game. Backed by the Imperial Executive, Sir Thomas did not fear to aid in punishing O'Brien and Meagher-guilty and mistaken, but not mercenary men; backed by the Roman Catholics of Ireland, and with Lord Derby and Mr. Wilson Croker as witnesses to the virulence of the Durham Letter, he had not the spirit to aid in punishing Lord John. But Sir Thomas is "an honourable man." Pah!. We dwell upon the importance of looking to the antecedents and condition in life of the candidates for Parliamentary honours, because we desire to see an INFLUENTIAL class of Members .returned for Ireland. While we have no sympathy with the place-begging crew who advertise themselves as patriots, we are painfully conscious that Ireland (unlike Scotland) has not received her fair share of the official honours and emoluments of the Empire promised to her at the Union. From the Colonies, the Indian Empire, and great departments of state nearer home, Irishmen have been excluded, because the IRISH INTEREST has never been properly worked in Parliament, with reference to the distribution of Indian and Colonial patronage. Hitherto our Irish Conservative Members have not been active enough in dealing with this question. It has been raised, but very feebly, by "popular" Members, without parliamentary influence or much personal credit. We trust that the Irish gentry, and those representatives of Ireland interested in sustaining their property, will not allow this important question to get into the hands of the Mac Quirk O'Latitat class of Members. But in order that it should be properly dealt with, and efficiently worked, we must have a class of Members, sans reproche, who can give weight to any cause they espouse, unlike the bragaway M.P.s, whose notion of imparting weight to a subject is by sinking it! What could a hundred Doctor Maurice Powers, or three hundred Major Blackhalls do for Ireland? For the Catholics they courted and deserted, or for the Protestants they abused? Given a class of Members of worse than dubious social position, with wives and children pressing upon them for aid, or with a cohort of London duns escorting them up the lobbies of the palace at Westminster, what can result to Ireland but corruption for the country and conscience-selling class of Members themselves-shame and degradation to the land that produced them? Who cares to hear such men in debate?-who listens to them, as they rant for the reporters' gallery, for a while deceiving their constituents by the exaggerated intensity of their harangues, and the consistency of their votes on trivial questions-but sure to decamp when the Downing-street screw is put on them? The Maurice Power or Major Blackhall class of members are worse than useless to Ireland; and unless our countrymen rouse themselves, and choose a better and more efficient body than they have returned to the last Parliament, our country will be again doomed to suffer sorely for the sins of beggarly representatives, and the political turpitude of bribeentreating humbugs, who would take any amount of pledges as readily as Cornwall smugglers would swallow a score of Custom-house oaths. Recollect, we say to the gentry of Ireland-to Protestants and Roman Catholics, that the Poor Law has been put upon you by the Empire, and that agricultural Ireland has been made to succumb to legislation for commercial and manufacturing England. You have now a fair claim to insist on the talent, energy, and enterprise of Ireland being admitted to Indian and Colonial offices in due proportion to her wealth and population. In that respect, as we will show at another time, she has been scandalously treated, and by none worse than by the Whigs. In Scotland the younger sons, in early life, get promotion in India and the Colonies, and they often return to repurchase their family estates, sustain their names, and assist their native land. The system, founded by Dundas, continues to this day; and we must in Ireland resolve that our public men should open for their pauperised country a new vein of ore, by insisting upon their constitutional and imperial right to certain Colonial and Indian "diggings," from which they have hitherto been debarred. We hear much of the West Indian and East Indian interests, of the Bank interest, the Dock interest, and the Shipping interest; but we do not hear of the IRISH INTEREST-though our ears are stunned with cries of "the Brigade," "the Catholic Hierarchy," &c., &c. Alas! it is in that flatulent and noisy school of politics, dealing in words and platform speeches, and vows at hustings and pilgrimages to the Defence Association, that the danger really lies of our Roman Catholic countrymen (more particularly) being caught by sound, to the neglect of substance. The bragaway class of Members will give pledges and break them; ranting in opposition to-day, and cutting to the Colonies on the morrow, bellowing all the louder when they are more resolved to bilk their party. Sorry would we be to suppose that our Roman Catholic countrymen would not aspire to elevating the intellectual honour of Ireland. For our own generation they can point to the illustrious poet, whose memory Ireland honours, and to some other distinguished names. But after subtracting the names of O'Connell and Sheil, we press upon thein, in no ungenerous spirit, that they have, either through carelessness or good-natured credulity, allowed a whole class of Members to get into the House of Commons, whose performances have not been creditable to the fame of Ireland. We are sorry to say that clamour, and a few clerical agitators, have done more to return candidates to Parliament, than considerations of public duty or sound principles of patriotism. Take the case of Mr. Anstey, elected for Youghal, in 1847. It is a sample of the mode in which the popular party has managed its affairs, and consulted for the interests of the community. He was, or said he was, a convert to the Roman Catholic creed. What his real opinions were it is not of the slightest consequence to inquire. He went over to Youghal, armed with a letter of introduction to the priests, and set up as a candidate, in opposition to the Duke of Devonshire. The Duke, like many of his party, had a morbid partiality for his cousins, and resolved to put them in for Youghal. It so happened that the Protestants of that ancient and loyal town thought that the Duke ought to pay more regard to their feelings, and introduce to them candidates more personally interested in the welfare, of Ireland than mere men of fashion, even though they should bear the honoured name of Cavendish. They would have been anxious to accommodate the Duke, perhaps, if he had met them half-way, but they had no notion of being treated as mere serfs, and, accordingly, they declined to vote for his Grace's nominee, nor can our readers be surprised at such conduct on the part of the Protestants of Youghal. Mr. Anstey easily obtained the seat by the active support given to him by the credulous Roman Catholics of the town, who believed in his truth. During, and subsequent to his candidature, his favourite subject of invective was Lord Palmerston, whom he attacked with the most apparently sincere antipathy. What has Mr. Anstey done for Ireland? -and how did he redeem the pledges given at the hustings? The newspa pers recorded, in summary terms, the substance of his pointless and almost endless harangues. Whatever preten sions to a parliamentary reputation Mr. Anstey possessed, were pulverised in ten minutes by one of the shortest and happiest replies ever made in Parlia ment-the terse and pithy rejoinder of the late Mr. Sheil; and the newspapers have not failed to inform us of the frequency of Mr. Anstey as a guest at Lady Palmerston's receptions! Certainly we must admit that the same authorities do very often record a selection of strange names at those fashionable assemblies. It was a maxim of Cardinal De Retz that "politicians neither love nor hate;" and Lord Palmerston chooses his guests so queerly with regard to their personal antecedents towards himself, that he would seem to be a witness to the truth of the Cardinal's maxims. Because, at first sight, it does seem as odd to read of Mr. Anstey being a guest at Lord Palmerston's, as if we heard of Mr. Disraeli spending a season at Drayton Manor, or Mr. Reynolds being on a visit to the Archbishop of Canterbury. But, doubtless, Lord Palmerston knows well why he invited the Member for Youghal to his reunions. But our readers will ask what is the practical cure for this state of things? We say, in reply, that the Roman Catholics, for their own interests and honour, as well as for the credit of their native land, should be induced to combine with the Protestant gentry of this island in returning as many Derbyites as possible to the next Parlia ment. The Whigs, as a party, are utterly extinct. Their cousin.hood may survive to be snappish in opposition, and to coquet with Radical agitators, but as a party they are gone. It would be beyond the genius of a Chatham to revive them, even if such a man were to condescend to their alliance; and assuredly neither Lord John Russell nor Earl Grey have aught of Chatham in their natures. The great Tory party, true to its national instincts, now is upheld, not less by the support of its powerful friends and adherents, than by the general distrust of the insincere and shuffling Whigs. The Whigs are ut terly ruined. Lord John Russell is hated by half of his party, for his ruinous leadership of the Opposition. In such circumstances, the only party that can be formed for Ireland is one in alliance with the property, the talent, and established respectability of the country. Nothing could be more injurious than to return to the House of Commons needy adventurers; barristers without independence, briefs, or clients; or attornies hunting for registrarships, et hoc genus omne. It is the boast of the ministerial party in Ireland that they can point in the House of Commons to the Attorney and Solicitor-General for Ireland, as men who uphold the character of the country for talent. While we write, we learn that Mr. Butt's great powers have found a sphere suitable for their exertion in Parliament. It was a movement in advance, that certain influential parties in the northern portion of this island overleaped mere family feelings, and selected Sir Emerson Tennent for a seat in Parliament. Mere territorial influence, without a recognition of active talents, would be injurious to the best interests of property in Ireland; and we tell the nobility and landlords of Ireland that it is not enough to rely, in choosing Members, to look to rent-rolls and high station, but that talent and aptitude for parliamentary life must also be regarded. Lord Claude Hamilton has shown himself very ready and skilful in debate, and is one of the most rising Members in the House. Lord Naas, by his vigilance for the interests of Ireland, and his thorough business habits, has gained general respect. Mr. G. A. Hamilton's abilities and character are universally appreciated; and we could wish that more Members, resembling them in assiduity and zeal, were sent to London to take charge of "The Irish Interest." Let the independent Roman Catholics ally themselves, at the coming contest, with the Ministerial party, and they will strengthen those influences which can alone raise Ireland from her depressed condition, and subdue those noxious elements of sectarian ascendancy, which "Brigades" and "Defence Associ ations" would perpetuate, for the sake of stipendiary advantages to adventurers in agitation, and to the degrading profit of despicable caterers to religious discord, and cringing slaves to Ultramontane absolutism. In conclusion, we can only say that we have dealt with the subject on public grounds, and might, if we had thought fit, have written with great severity of the conduct of certain M.P.s, whose offences we leave to be dealt with by their constituents. We sincerely hope that the popular mind is not so intoxicated with faction as to be utterly incapable of distinguishing between good and bad candidates on the hustings. We have written on a painful topic, and have reluctantly been obliged to use the language of reprehension. We will, however, wind up with a story, which can point a moral as well as raise a laugh at the absurdity of political intoxication. There was a certain publican who kept a house of entertainment not far from Leixlip. He realised a small fortune by selling inferior porter to his customers when drunk. It so happened that when the brewery of "D. O'Connell and Company" was started, he became a customer of the concern, which for a brief period obtained an ephemeral success over that of Guinness and Co., the D'Arcys, Thunders, and other non-political brewers. The O'Connell beverage, however, was not thought so palatable or nourishing; and, like many of his order, the publican had a quantity of it left on his hands. However, late on a Sunday night, when his house would be crowded with sots, he would whisper his faithful Terry-"Are the boys drunk yet?" "Not yet entirely, Sir, but they soon will be." In half an hour after, Terry would return with the welcome intelligence of "the boys" being fairly drunk." "Then tip 'em the Connell, you divil-tip 'em the Connell; they'll niver know the differ 'twixt that and the Guinness!" And so the publican got rid of his unsaleable porter. Let not the people of Ireland imitate the sots of Leixlip, and so far be politically inebriate as not to know the difference between genuine Irish gentlemen, anxious to uphold the character of the country, and promote the happiness of all classes, and a wretched, venal gang of adventurous scamps, elbowing their way into Parliament skulking to Downing-street-shunned in London society; without eloquence, genius, or virtue; anxious to runnot the race of fame and honour, but that vile race in which the Power and Blackhall hacks of faction have borne away the prizes of salary and SHAME! NOTE ON THE QUEEN'S COLLEGES. SINCE the letter on the Queen's Colleges was printed, the Triennial Visitations of the Queen's Colleges have been held. The following account of the result of these inquiries is given by the learned Ex-Lord Chancellor of Ireland, at the close of the Visitation in the Galway College, as reported by the Galway Vindicator :— "Ex-Chancellor Brady, in closing the proceedings, said, that the Visitors had now been at the three institutions-in Belfast, in Cork, and in Galway; and that they had found all three admirably calculated to carry out the object for which they had been founded, namely, to impart a sound and valuable education to the young men of the country. They had heard from the President of each that good order reigned among them; and the Deans of Residences in each had reported favourably as to the degree of attention paid by the students to their religious duties. The Visitors had found the Professors engaged in the discharge of the duties of their several offices. There was this gratifying circumstance, that in the whole round of visitation, there had been no complaint laid before them on the grounds of the morals of any individual in any of the departments. There had been questions submitted to them arising out of the construction of the statutes, which latter were of recent enunciation, and subject to difference as to their scope and meaning; but there had been no complaint made before them, affecting the moral character of any individual. They had heard from the Deans of Residences, in Belfast, and Cork, and here, the most satisfactory account as to the attention paid by the students to their religious duties; and from all they had seen, and all the inquiries they had made, they had demonstration of the wisdom of those by whom the institutions were founded, both as to the general plan of education, and the agents whom they had chosen to put it in operation." INDEX TO VOL. XXXIX. Alison, Archibald, Life of John Duke of Marlborough, with some Account of his Contemporaries, and of the War of the Succession, reviewed, 589. Australia and her Gold Diggings, 607. Badamar, the Rath of, a Poem from the Irish, 325, 513. Birth, the, of the New Year, 8. Brandam, Diogo, Portuguese Poet, Specimen of, 419. Brave Man, the, from the German, 766. Brooke, Henry.-Our Portrait Gallery, No. LXVII., 200. Bursting, the, of the Bud, by Jonathan Freke Slingsby, 355. Calderon's "The Scarf and the Flower.— Scenes and Stories from the Spanish Stage," No. V., 33. Carlyle, Thomas, The Life of John Sterling, reviewed, 186. Caxton's Golden Legend, 547. Cecile; or, the Pervert, by Sir Charles Rock- and present state of Fire-Arms, and on the probable effects in War of the New Muskets, with a Proposition for re-organising the Royal Regiment of Artillery, &c., reviewed, 447. Clarendon, Lord, his Administration in Ireland, 237, 373. Collins, Mortimer, Lilies of the Valley, 537; Parva rogasse sat est, 543. Correspondance entre le Comte de Mirabeau, et le Comte de la Marck pendant les années 1789, '90, et '91, recueillie, mise en ordre, et publiée, par M. de Bacourt, reviewed, 151. Croly, Rev. George, LL.D., Scenes from Scripture, with other Poems, reviewed, 9. Death, the, of the Old Year, 7. Disraeli, B., Lord George Bentinck, a Political Biography, reviewed, 114. Falcam, Christovam, Portuguese Poet, Notices and Specimens of, 411. Ferguson, W. D., and Vance, Andrew, the Tenure and Improvement of Land in Ireland considered, with reference to the relation of Landlord and Tenant, and Tenant Right, reviewed, 137. Florence Sackville, or Self-Dependence, an Autobiography, by Miss Burbury, reviewed, 219. Forster, Rev. Charles, B.D., The One Primeval Language traced experimentally through Ancient Inscriptions, &c., reviewed, 226. Forsyth, William, The Song of other Years, 544. Freshness, the, of the Heart, 5. Garrick and his Biographers, 430. Letter to the Editor from a candid Geologist, 81. George, Anita, Memoirs of the Queen of Spain, edited with an Introduction and Notes, by Miss Julia Pardoe, reviewed, second notice, 50. Giltillan, George, the Bards of the Bible, reviewed, 9. Gold Diggings of Australia, 607. Golden Legend, the, as treated by Jacobus de Voragine, William Caxton, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 547. Greece, Stray Leaves from, 316, 518, 758. Green, Mary Anue Everett, Lives of the Princesses of England, reviewed, second notice, 50. Hare, Archdeacon, Remains of John Sterling, reviewed, 186. Hawkins'-street Theatre Royal, how it came to be built, with a cursory glance at what has been done there during thirty years, 679. Henderson, John, Notices of, 564. Ireland under Lord Clarendon, Part I. 237; Part II., The Rebellion in the City and the Field, 373. Irish Land, Landlords, and Tenants, 133. Jeffrey, Lord, Life of, by Lord Cockburn, reviewed, 625, 722. John Drayton; being a History of the Early Life and Development of a Liverpool Engineer, reviewed, 225. Jubinal, Achille, La Legende Latine de S. Brandaines, avec une Traduction inédite en Prose et en Poésie Romanes, reviewed, 547. Kishoge Papers, No. X.-the Saint of the Long Robe, 22. |