self, and some part of that I shall notice; but, first, let us look at what this gentleman is reported to have said respecting those in general, who wish for a reform in parliament. These are the words attributed to him in the report. "If the de"sign of the noble lord who had just sat "down was to prove himself an honest "man, he might just as well have remain"ed silent, for certain persons would never "think either him or any one else so, who "did not acquiesce in all the chimeras of the "hon. baronet (Hear! hear! hear!) It was the design of him and his friends "to excite such an opinion among the "people; and he believed, in his soul, it "was also their wish not to have many supporters in that house, lest their designs should fail, and the public would "begin to think too favourably of the house. It was their desire to raise a popular ferment, by talking of abuses which "often had no existence, and by vaunt"ing of remedies which they never meant "to put in execution! Far was it from "their thoughts to come manfully and "constitutionally down to that house "and state their complaints, if any such "they really had. No, it suited them "better to make harangues at taverns, to mount the tables at the Crown and An"chor, to tell the people to meet as people, and look not for redress to their re"presentatives, who were no longer fit to "be called an House of Commons. It "was their plan to raise a cry by which "the infatuated people might be hurried "to their ruin, by hinting at corruptions. "which never had existence, and rousing ther argument for a reform in the representation? Is not this disgraceful state of things the natural result of the present system? Could there possibly exist any case like that supposed by Mr. Windham, if the system of election were such as that proposed by Lord Grey? That there could not every one must be satisfied; and, therefore, unless Mr. Windham likes the character and conduct of his Attorney or Brewer, he must, one would think, wish for such a change as would extinguish such characters.There is one passage in Mr. Windham's speech, which, I must confess, astonished me beyond measure. He makes a comparison between the sacrifices made by Sir Francis Burdett, and by those whom he opposed, and represented as selfish; and instancing Mr. Pitt, he is reported to have said, that Mr. Pitt gave a "proof of his magnanimity in leav-" ing office, in 1801, which had became "almost a second nature to him, because "he could not conscientiously abandon a "measure, to which he had pledged him"self." This did astonish me. The selection was so very unfortunate; for, it is notorious to the whole nation, that Mr. Pitt came into that same office again, three years afterwards, without making any attempt to redeem that pledge; and, further, that he united" with his former opponents for the purpose of turning out the man, whom he had prevailed upon to take his place, under a promise of giving him his support. Nay, does not. Mr. Windham well know, that, after Mr. Pitt had regained his place and his power, he resisted an application for the adoption of the very measure, which Mr. Windham says he left his place because he could not conscientiously abandon when he was in power before. Will Mr. Windham say, that the times or the circumstances were changed? If he does, then we ask him, how he came to press the measure in the last instance; to insist that Mr. Pitt was bound by his former pledge, and to reproach him with an abandonment of that pledge?—This, I think, is pretty complete: a happy instance of Mr. Pitt's "'" mugnanimity :” a lucky hit at Sir Francis Burdett a most striking proof of Sir Francis's injustice in denominating Pitt the link of corruption. Leaving Mr. Windham to a full and undisturbed enjoyment of this triumph, let us go to the reported speech of MR. TIERNEY, which has not only been published in the report, in the common course, but republished separately.A great deal of the speech related to Mr. Tierney him expectations which never could be gra"tified."Of all the charges that the mind of man is capable of inventing, I should have thought, that the charge of clamouring against undefined abuses and corruptions was the very last, which any man would have thought of, as applicable to the conduct of sir Francis Burdett, Mr. Wardle, Mr. Madocks, and the others, who wish for a reform of the House of Commons. This is the very last charge, which one would now expect to hear from those, who, four months ago, cried out for joy at the appearance of something in a "tangible shape." Have these gentlemen contented themselves with "hinting" at corruptions? Have they dealt in broad and general imputations? Had the abuses, of which Mr. Wardle complained, “no existence?" Was there no ground for the charge of Mr. Madocks? Have these gentlemen "deluded" the people with SO lord Henry Petty? to produce the saving falshoods? Have they not "come manfully which renders that expenditure of no benefit to the nation at large. This is all that he has to do; and, as to his ability to do it, all I shall say is, that I am glad his opponents have dared him to the proof. -Mr. Tierney appears to have been very angry with something, which Sir Francis Burdett had said, at the Crown and Anchor, about his, Mr. Tierney's, retiring from office with his pockets full of the public money, which he declared to be false. After much upon this point, expressive of strong resentment, the former member for Southwark is reported to have said: "It was true the worthy Baronet had never been troubled with office; "the reasons for that might be various; "perhaps the cause might have been his "own disinclination; perhaps his immense "fortune might have exempted him from "its cares; or perhaps he had never been "importuned upon the subject. (A laugh.) "Certainly he (Mr. Tierney) had been in "office, for he had not such a fortune as "could support him independently out of it, "and he would perhaps, be compelled to "live upon bread and onions, when the worthy Baronet was faring sumptuous"ly.". -Now, really, I do not see any thing very witty in this; and as to his reason for getting into office, I shall only say that, while a man's poverty may be a very good reason with him, it may be a very bad one with the public for letting him in. But, without pretending to say whether the report be correct, which states Mr. Tierney to have represented bimself as liable to be compelled to live "upon bread and onions," I will venture to assert most positively, that a man's being in that state is the best argument in the world for his not being chosen a member of that House, which has the power to dispose of the public money. If a man were to go to any nobleman of great estate, and say, "I am very poor, my Lord, and, "therefore, I wish you would make me "your steward," the reasoning would be very good for the applicant; but, do you think, reader, that it would be conclusive with his Lordship? Yes, it would, in all probability, be quite conclusive, but the conclusion would be exactly the contrary way: "You are very poor, and, therefore, "you shall not be my steward." -It is a wonder, that Mr. Windham, in his speech, should have overlooked this part of the speech of his Right Honourable "friend," as he appears to have done, when he was speaking of those persons of "real or fancied superiority of talents, but "who had neither money nor land, and who "condemned fortune for not seconding "the views of nature, and placing them at "the helm of affairs." LORD PORCHESTER is said to have censured sir Francis Burdett for having asserted, that the House of Commons had acquitted the Duke of York; but, if this assertion be not true, what was the assertion in the Duke's letter, which he wrote to the king, when he resigned his office, and which letter was laid before the House! He there stated, that the House had acquitted him. The authorities, on both sides, being so high, it might be deemed presumption in me to judge between them; but, surely, the " loyal" will excuse sir Francis Burdett for having conceived that the Duke of York spoke the truth. The fact is, that, upon this point, the "loyal" must be very much puzzled. They do not like to say that the Duke was not acquitted, for not to be acquitted is to be found guilty; and yet, it goes hard with the " loyal" to say, in so many words, that the House of Commons did acquit the Duke. But, after all, how stands the fact! why shortly thus: that several propositions were made for expressing, in a greater or a less degree, censure on the conduct of the Duke of York; and, after all those propositions. were negatived, the House resolved, that no further proceeding in the case was necessary. If this be not acquittal, what is? acquittals are always in the negative. "Not "guilty" is all that an acquitting jury says; but, in this case, there was the afirmative also; for, there was a majority upon Mr. Perceval's Resolution of complete acquittal. Pray, would not any public writer be exposed to the chance of having his, ears clipped off, if he were to assert, that the House of Commons did not acquit the Duke of York? Lord Porchester is reported to have said, that the House did not virtually acquit the Duke. Why, then, they virtually found him guilty. should I dare say that? No, no. virtual work is what we do not understand. We have been accustomed to hear the verdict of guilty, or not guilty; and do not comprehend any thing of your virtual finding guilty. But, This As to MR. CURWEN'S motion itself, its fate is of little consequence. I do not believe that it will be adopted; but, it is valuable as having drawn forth a confession from a majority of the House itself, that something ought to be done. It will also be recollected, that, in the debate upon Mr. Madocks's motion, he was told | having wholly subdued this nation of eightto wait and see what this measure would do; but, now, if the measure should not be adopted, what will then be said? God knows! In short, the enemies of reform have nothing left to say. They must "make a stand." That is the good phrase: "make a stand against popular encroach"ment." Mr. Madocks says, "I accuse two "of the ministers of selling a seat in this "House, and demand inquiry into the matter"; and the ministers answer, "it is time to make a stand against popular "encroachment"; and the Opposition Benches echo: "make a stand?" Mr. Windham comes with his illustrative story: a man ought to be hanged who steals a goose from the common, but it may be meritorious to steal the common from the goose; that is to say, that the elector who sells his vote ought to be punished, but that the man who buys it, or who sells or buys a seat in parliament, ought to be subject to no punishment at all; nay, ought not to be censured, there being nothing immoral in his conduct; that the selling and buying of seats now makes a part of our glorious constitution, and that all those, who wish for such a change as would effectually prevent such traffic in future, are either knaves or dupes. This is the ground, upon which the famous stand is to be made. Indeed, it is made. We all know one another's minds and resolutions. The stand-makers are resolved that seats shall continue to be bought and sold, and we, I trust, are equally resolved that they shall not. It is then, as they say, at the point of a game, "who shall;" and, if we persevere, we shall, in spite of all that can be opposed to us. AUSTRIA, SPAIN, AND PORTUGAL. The former of these countries is now enjoying the fruits of the doctrines of those, who have so long preached up the necessity of making a stand against po"pular encroachment." A pretty stand they have made at last; but, just such a stand as every man of sense expected to see them make. The Emperor Napoleon, who is Emperor not by "the grace of God," as he pretends, but by the folly, tyranny, and cowardice of princes, is now in possession of the capital of the Austrian dominions, whither he has gone without meeting, from the people, the smallest degree of resistance; and, I think, there can be little doubt, that we shall soon hear of his teen millions of people, who have an army And this occasion of stating to the nation, sort of deliverance, contemplated by the the sentiments of the government with re- ministers for Spain. The people are to spect to Austria, Spain, and Portugal. fight for the king's rights. We hear of With respect to the first, he told the prick- no rights of their own, that they are to fight eared contractors and loan-jobbers, that for. They are to have, it seems, indehe hoped the difficulties of Austria pendence; that is to say, they are to be would be but of short duration; he gave independent of the family of Buonaparte. them the glad intelligence that it was But what is this' to the people of Spain? intended to afford the Emperor of Aus- What care they, or what ought they to tria aid from our resources; he said that care, who is their master, unless they be both the sovereign and the people had en- convinced that they shall be more happy tered upon the struggle, prepared for great and free under one master than under the exertions; and he concluded by saying, other?-As to the prospect of affairs in that if Austria should fall, the struggle Spain, who can believe, that it is very fair, would not have been made in vain for while we see, that nothing is done, even Europe. Whereupon, it appears, there in the absence of the French armies? Why, were loud and repeated applauses.”- if the spirit, in Spain, was such as we have This secretary of state may, perhaps, have been told it is, would not the present mobeen able to discover some exertions on ment have been seized on to drive the French the part of the people of Austria; but out of the country? Can any man believe, we know that the Emperor Napoleon has that, if this be not done now, it ever will be reached Vienna; and, it would be quite done? There has been time for French curious to hear the reason, whereon he armies to march from the capital of Spain founds the opinion, that the fall of Austria to the capital of Austria, and to fight will have contributed to the defence of many battles on the way, and yet there Europe against that same Napoleon. It has not been time to make the remainmust be very consoling to the Emperor of der of the French quit Spain. But, Austria and his family to hear sentiments stop," some of the wise ones say, "till like these from an English minister; and, Lord Wellesley gets there." Napoleon will, after hearing such sentiments, he must be a in all probability, be there nearly as soon fool, indeed, not to be prepared to sacrifice as Lord Wellesley; and, whether he be or himself and his people in the glorious not, I should be glad to know what Lord cause.- -For years and years past, have Wellesley is likely to do in Spain. He will the tribe, assembled upon this occasion, not have the Indian Princes to negociate been goading Austria on to war. Infinite with, and to fight, in Spain. He will meet are the means they have resorted to for with no poor souls like the NABOB VIZIER OF this purpose. Often have they succeeded; OUDE. It is said, in the news-papers, that and success after success has been attend- he is merely going out to arrange matters, ed with defeat after defeat on the part of and is to leave his brother Henry there Austria; till, at last, the total extinction instead of Mr. Frere. I shall be sorry of the power of the House of Lorrain pro- for this. I wish him to remain himself mises to be the result of their efforts. And, by all means; and then we shall have it is at a moment when Napoleon is in an opportunity of showing Napoleon what possession of Vienna; when he is issuing our Indian conqueror is made of. I his orders from the palaces of the fugitive should like to see the whole of the afsovereign; it is at such a moment, that fairs in Spain and Portugal, left to the the ministers of the king of England Wellesleys. I would have nobody interfere meet, and, amidst the applauses of their with them. I would leave them to do just servile dependents, unfeelingly proclaim, what they pleased, or rather, what they that if Austria should fall, her struggle were able. And, then, we should see what will not have been made in vain! either they, or the cause, consisted of.The great consideration, at present, however, is, that the remains of the French are still in Spain. One of two things must be either they have a large army there, or a small one. If a large one, they will be able to keep their ground, till reinforcements arrive; and, if a small one, there can be no spirit of resistance in the Spanish people; the" universal Spa"nish nation," cannot much dislike the With respect to SPAIN, Mr. Canning told the crew, that he hoped that the deliverance of that country would be finally accomplished. The toast, which drew forth his observations with regard to Spain, was in the following words: "Ferdinand VII., "the legitimate king of Spain, and may "the noble efforts of his subjects secure «his rights and their own independence." From which we may clearly perceive the |