fin Jfc MMB 1A Br, MEMOIRS and CORRESPONDENCE of JAMES ACLAND. Proprietor and Editor— written by Himtelf. « I LIKE HONESTY IN ALL PLACES."— Judge Bayley. Printed and Published by JAMES At LAND ( SOLE PROPRIETOR AND EDITOR; at the BRISTOLIAN OFFICE, Bristolian Court, Bridewell Lane. VOL. IV— No XX. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15, IS30. [ PRICE \{ d MEM.— I h- ave received the new Rules of the Commissions for Pitching and Paving. I thank my correspondent for his attention, am) shall recur to the subject on Saturday. It is very certain that in this business I have done ine People of Bristol a service. J. A. PARLIAMENTARY REFORM. ELECTION BY BALLOT. Of all questions connected with Reform' n > ne have ma le so much progress in so short a time as the Ballot; this indeed, with sensible men, appears the sine qua nun ; without this, ail oiher measures of Reform will be fallacious and inoperative, but this will secure that free- dom of election which is so desirable where there is a shadow of liberty, but more especially in a country like Egland, where the power of money and influence has so long reigned with unopposed sway j— the ballot alone can oppose this power effectually, and render elections in tbeii result what they ought to be, the clear expoession of the people's will. No persons have done half so much for the ballot, as the Duke of Newcastle, Earl Grosve. nor, and those other Peers, who have served notices to quit on their tenantry, for their open- votes at the last flection ; and yet the Duke, in his strange attack on Sir T. Denman, in the House of Lords, on Friday night, " claimed the bent fit of independence for himself, and therefore would all > w\>! jo others." What must His tenantry think of » uch a monstrous assertion! Independence indeed ! yes, but is it not punished in all those of his tenantry who asserted it, by ejectment from their dwellings? " He would do to others as he wished to be done unto himself ! What would the Duke of Newcastle say, if, taking him at his word, the King's Ministers should give him notice to quit all the Crown Lands, on the ground of his voting against Ministers P— and yet, Would this not be equal justice?—- would this not be treating him as he has treated others ?— and what right would such a nobleman have to complain ? The Duke afterwards introduced the question of ballot, which he said he hoped would be scouted by all men. And why? because it would take from bim the odious power which he claims, of doing what he will with his own in other words, it would take from him his power over the borough of Newark, where the popular feeling, if un- controlled by his influence, would St once elect honest and independent men to represent them in Parliament, and refuse to be any longer saddled with any nominee which the Lord of Clumber sent amongst them. The chief object- ion to the ballot urged by the Duke was, that it would be disgraceful to the country ; now an Englishman fought openly, spoke openly, and acted openly." The Duke should haVe added^ and was ruined for so doing. But as this is an argument used'by some whom we much respect, we will answer if; yet not in our own word', but in much belter than any we can use, from the able article in the Westmiuster Review, to which we direct the attention of our readers:— M Among the opponents of the ballot in Par- liament are some who cannot so much be said to argue, as to groan, and use inarticulate cries against it. Of this kind are those who say they hope that they shall not live to witness ihe time, wihen Englishmen shall not have the spirit to deliver their vote in the face of day. It would be as honest, and about as wise, to say, they hope not to live to witness the time when every Englishman shall not have his carriage and pair. If they were to say, which Would be the only thing to the purpose, that they hoped not to live to see the day when an Englishman would not go to the hustings, and fearlessly vote for the man of his choice, without regard to the dictation of any persoi upon earth 5 the falsehood of the pretext would be too glaring to be successful, even in a country whereas much is done by hypoctisy as in England. It is a matter of fact, notorious and undisputed, that those who vote for members of Parliament in THE BRISTOLIAN 550 England, proceed to the hustings under the in- fl uence of what lliey either hope to receive, or dread to suffer, and prostitute themselves in the most infamous manner, by voting not according to the dictates of their own minds, but like crouching slaves, at the will of another. Are these the circumstances in which votes are commonly given in England, and arc men found who say they hope not to live to see the day when Englishmen shall be afraid to vote openly ? Patience would be found to hear them in no assembly, we think, upon earth; but one com posed of the very men who suborn such votes. Courage to vote as Englishmen vote, at the command of those by whom they are bought, or diiven, is the courage of the slave, when he lends bis body to the lash. Are there men, who pretend a horror at the prospect of parting wi'h this, and receiving in exchange for it the pro- tection of secresy, because secrecy would degrade the people? A wish for elevating the minds of the people is an admirable wish, and the profes sion of it is truly a pretty profession ; but the true character of the profession is known by the character of the things which follow Is the wish not to see Englishmen vote secretly, a wish that Englishmen should have sufficient independence of mind to vote as they please though all the world should know in what manner they vote ! We also enter- tain that wish most fervently. We have another stiong wish ; that all Englishmen were above being paupers. We apprehend, however, it would little answer any good purpose' for us to use the formula of those who level their wishes against the ballot, and say, they hope not to live to see the day when Englishmen wilt live upon charity. Poverty makes the people of England willing to live on charity. Dependent circumstances makes them willing to prostitute their votes. Your choice lies between prostitute voting and secret voting. There is the deepest degrada- tion in ptostitute voting. Not only is there no degradation in secret voting, but it saves from all the degradation inseparable from prostitute" voting-; all men, therefore,' who | depreca'e the degradation of the people, not with hypocrisy, but in earnest, are of course the advocates of the ballot. " But on what authority, we shall be asked, do we make the assertion, that there is no degradation in secret voting ? On the autho- rity, we reply of those very men who say there is What ! do the same men, who say that secret voting is degrading, say also that it is not degrading? 1 hey do ; as you, and as they, and as all men, are perfectly aware. You see them constantly practising the ballot, and introducing the use of ballot without a thought of self degradation, wherever it is really their wish that the vote should be pro- tected from external influence. In order to protect themselves from- the trifling inconve- nience of displeasing somebody, by black" bali> ng aw improper candidate for admission into a club, ihey themselves take the benefit of secret voting, ( an theie be a more per_ feet proof that they do not regard ir as de grading ? Can thei^ e be a more perfect proof that when thev refuse to' thehonest voter for a Member of Pa- liament the same protection against far more serious conse- quences, on the pretence that it is degrading they aie not sincere? Obseive, too, the dif ference of the ends. That improper members miy not be admitted into a club, the secret voting is needful in the one case. That im » pioper may not be admitted into the Legis- lature, it is needful in the other. Do you dare say, that the use oHt is not degrading in the former of these two cases, that it is de- grading in the latler ? That the end sancti- fies the means in tha « former case, not in the latter ? ' ' I cannot abide muffling up," says one Honorable Gentleman ; and by such an appeal to sentimentality, manfully proposes to decide one of the most important questions of legisla- tion. If a great end is to be obtained by muffling up ? The nature cf the pretext is so manifest that it would seem not to be worth exposing ; and yet there persons for whose sake it may be proper to attract a little attention to it. if there were any argument in tlit- se words, it would rest upon this, that all secrecy is bad. If some secrecy is good, ihe man who says he does not like it, renders us one good service; he gives us full warning against taking him for a guide. Every body knows, this Honorable Gentleman knows, that, in itself, secrecy is neither good nor bad. It is good, when it is the means to a good end; bad, when it is the means to a baJ end. li is not base in a General, . it is meritorious to " mtfflle up" his designs, from the enemy. The more perfectly he can, by concealment, stratagem, dissimula- tion, guile, delude their expectation, the more he is admired. It is not base in negociatfon tor the statesman to conceal with the utmost care, the extent of the concessions he would make, rather than fail in the attainment of his objict. Every government makes a point of concealing such a part of its proceedings, and, as tar as possible, such particulars in the nit- tonal affairs, as it would be detrimental to o the nation to let othir nations know. It it be detrimental to the i a ion, thai the mode should be known in which a man gives his vole for a Member of i'arliamen', that also, ' or the same reason, ought most assuredly be kept from being known. One is ashamed to feel oneself obliged to contend against suth puerili ies." SPIRIT OF- THE PL EL1C JOURNALS. REVOLUTION IN POLAND. The Poles have risen. The Russian garrison of Warsaw has been overpowered, after a deter- mined resistance, and the Grand Duke Constan. line wilh difficulty effected his escape. This intelligence, which has been some time looked for, and of which Ministers first received intelligence on Saturday, may be confidently relied on. The Fiench Papers which ariived last night, give some particulars of the insur. rection. According to the Journal dts Dcbats of Friday, " a letter from Berlin, of the 3rd of December, announces the breaking out of a violent insurrection at Wa: saw, on the 29. h of THE BRISTOLIAN 551 November, in which the Polish army took part_ Four Russian Generals were killed ; among them the Minister of War of the Kingdom Polond." Prince Czarinsky has been named Chief of the new Polish Government. This is indeed most important intelligence. At the verj moment when the despots of Europe are medita- ting fresh aggressions, and collecting their strength for a desperate effort against the Great Nation ^ rhich has so gloriously broken its fetters— the victims of that series of acts of injustice, the most flagrant of modern times which remains je' to be atoned for, suddenly appear on the scene, to furnish employment for the armies of the despots at home. The praters of every man, in whom all sense of justice is not obli eiated, will be offered up to Heaven in behalf of the Poles. May Russia, Atis ria. and Prussia. f> Compelled to abandon the s (><>(! ninth, in the day of Poland's divisions, they so iniqui'ousl) shared ! What a lesson will be re. id to mankind if, at the moment when dtspots, ir: the insult- no ot their might, are me. li'a ing further invasions t> f the rights of nations, their aim is paralysed by the consequences of former injustice! The re establishment of Pi land would be of immense consequence to Europe. From its rxtvnt of fruittul territory, and the number of its inhabi- tants', pow upwards of twenty millions, Polmd. with any thing like an effective Government, wil1 be able to maintain its independence. From its position between Russia and Germany, the noxious influence of the former on the latter will be at an end. and the semi barbarians of the North will no longer be a bugbear to civilised Europe. The struggle which the Poles have to maintain before they secure theii independence is mott serious, Russia, Austria, and Prussia, will pour their armies into the country, without delay. France is now in a very different state fr< m that in which she was when the former gieat parti ion took place. The question is fulj of difficulties. It is not to be supposed, that if the Great Powers direct their fotces against Poland, the other Nations, now suffering undet oppression, will remain pass, ve speciators of the strife. The combustibles are everywhtre pre- pared : and the Po and the Rnine will, perhaps more than s) mpathise with the Vistula. Further intelligence from Poland will be looked for with intense anxiety.— Morning Chronicle. The demand for Reform in the Church cannot long be withstood, without endanger- ing the fabric which abuses of long continu. ance have disfigured and defiled. We ate advocates of that reform, because we are anxious not to destroy, but to renovate— not to throw down, but to repair Religious institutions, above all others, should relv for their support upon the moral force of en lightened opinion, or else their foundation is not upon » rock, but in the sand. Almost from the era of the prospsritv of the s\ stem of na'ional worship those corruptions bt- ga. i which have tarnished its beauty, and impaired jts. strength. The time has come when those defilements mu- t be torn away, or the ' enera tile edifice which they desecrate will hae to resist the shock, not of ju<| cious reform, but of that viol nee which aims at subversion Wi'h hostile opinion without, and the prin- ciples of decay undermining its stability within, how can its resistance be long < pt effectual K It is vain to denv that the con- stitution of the Chuich is bad as to the unequal distiihr. tion of wealth. It is equally vain to deny that its government is bad- as to a corrupt system of patronage. The one gives to the favoured few, who eat of the fruit which they scarcely tend, richer, and pomp and worldly gloiy and sends the labourers in the vinevaid empty away. The other burlesques the duties of a Christian Pastor by- pluralities, livings, in commendam, and other inventions, devised to pamper the in- dolent and luxurious favourites of secular ambition, at the expense of the dearest in- terests of religion. . The necessity of a prompt and effectual leformation in the Church is strongly shown in an able little pamphlet, which has just emanated from the press, un- der the title of a " Letter to the King," from a Country Curate. In proving the inadequate payment of the hard- working Clergy, which is the ncces; ary consequence of the unequal distribution of wealth in the Church, he states that there are in the several dioceses of England and Wales 4,- 254 Curates, of whom three receive under 200'. per annual ; 5 under 190/.; 15 under 180/ ; 26 under 170/^ ; 162 under IbO/.'; 32 under 150'; 52 under 140/.; 207 under 130/ ; 69 unde; 120/. ; .500 under 110/ ; 156 under 100/. j 458 under 90/.; 415 under 80/.; 300 under 70/.; 89- 2 under 60/.; 441 under 50/.; 173 under 40/.; 59 under 30/.; and six ( hgresco referent) under 20/ ! On looking at this side of the picture of the Church of England establishment, we would take it to be the poorest in Europe, or rather the poorest that had ever existed in the civilized world. But when we look to the other sidt; of the pic- tuie. that which pourtmys the glories of Prelacy, and enchants thee. es of the children < f pa ronage, we would be induced to draw the very opposite conclusion, and consider ' he Church of England * as the most wealthy ecclesiastical establishment that had ever raised iis proud pinnacles in the sunshine of worldly prosperity. Can such a stale of things s and ? It is too repugnant to reason, to common justice, and, above all, to the pure principles of Christianity, to be secure for any length of time against the assailing energy of public opinion. The constitution of the Church and its government must un- dergo - the changes which the welfare of society and the interests of p ire religion de- » ! mand. These changes must take place either ] with the acquiescence of the high Ciergy, or in opposition to them. If ihey resist, a Re- formation will come, like that which drove the money changers out of the temple ; and it will throw down the altais of Mammon, and the shrines of ambition, which have defiled the sanctuary of the Christian faith . Out of the superabundance of the Princely revenues of Pi elates and D gnitaries, the working Clergy must be paid what is suffi. cient for the decent and respectable main- tenance of men of liberal education, who, to enable them to discharge faithfully and effec. tively the functions of their holy office, ought - • 80 THE BIUST01JAN to be as free from the " Vulgar necessities of sordid want as from the temptations of luxurions splendour. The Church has opu- lence enough to provide well for all its priests in every gtade. Its riches only wan; a proper distribution to be converted to the advantage, instead of the reproach and desecration of religion. " How seldom," says the author of the " Letter to the King," ' do we hear of a pious and haril- wiirking Curate, although his life has been a pattern 6f exemplary con' duct and rigid self. denial being- rewarded by preferment— and how seldom is it ever be stowed on those v* ho do not possess either political claims, or purchase- money ! " These are not the qualifications that Christianity requires in her ministers— and if the Chureh continue at variance with Christianity, which must fall?— Morning Herald. A l'EEP A I' THE HOUSE GF LORDS, An Alphabetical List of all the '' eers who sit in the Upper House of Parliament, in eluding the English Bishops and the four . Irish Bishops who sit therein ; shewing the Offices, Pensions, Grants, Chutch Preferments, and other Profits or Emoluments attached to the Peers or their Families. The List first gives the titles of the Peers, bury, was tutor to the late marquis, Sinec tire next their rank— via. D for Duke, M for and pensions to the under branches of the Marquiss E for Earl. V. for Viscount, B, famil,, <£ 1,407. tor Baron, Bp for Bishop, and Abp for Archbishop. The Peers' family surnames, are given in a parenthesis. The sum stated at the foot of each article, is the An- l, P" si" ns l> f C' 00L Bro, her '' 309/- a year' , , „ ... „ s cretary at Vienna. Another relation, dean nual Income from the Public Purse, apper [ . ,, i i • r i i. . of Exe^ r, and four church livings and other taming to that Peer and his famiJy. It is to ' n be observed, that no Pension or Place List ABERDEEN. E. ( Gordon). [ Secretary of S ate fur foreign atfairs, 60001, a year ;,] a has been laid before Parliament since 1808. As to Church Livings, we can make no cor rect estimate of them, for it is curious enough that of all Livings under 150'. a year > a list is laid before Parliament, with the sums annexed — but that those exceeding 151/ a year in value, have no sums put - against them, although many are worth several thousands a year each. As to Bishopricks, no man, but the aarties concerned, can duly estimate their worth, and Irish Church Livings are wholly omitted except in eight or ten cases. Gur list includes onlv sncn Peers as actually sit in Parli menl— but there are 209 " coich and Irish Peers ( including Irish Bishops) who do not sit in the House Tr e general result of ou| labours is as follows : t— Three hundred and sixty five Peers sitting in Parliament wiih their families, pre* upon the suffering British Public, to the annual extent of £ 2 754,336 Two hundred and nine Peers, not sitting in Parliament, with their families, devour an- nually of the Public Spoil £ 978,000 benefices, not less than 3000/. [ His wife is the mother of the marquess of Abercorn.] Alexander Gordon, lieutenant colonel of foot, 700/.—£ 5,609. [£ 11,609.] ABERGAVENNY, E. ( Neville). Patent inspi- c or of prosecutions in the customs 2 000/. ; [- Recorder of Harwich. ] Aunt, 373/ pension. Son, cap'ain navy, 700/. a year | Another son, a clergyman. A third, a cler- gyman, with the livings of Birling, Kent ^ vicar ot Frant, Susses; and chaplam in ordi. nary lo his Majesty,]—£ 3,07- 2, [£ 4,572. This List was compiled in 18- 20, and is the result of immense labour and expense. To render it strictly conformable to the Peerage of the present day, is not altogether practica ble, there being as yet no returns of places and pensions ot a more recent date. This circumstance, however, is of little importance, as although one individual may have been removed by death, and another may have changed his office, or retired from public life, the immediate successor of such, of course devour the same, or a still larger amount of the public spoil. Total £ 3,732 336 Let Englishmen judge for themselves. A LIST OF PLACES, PENSIONS, & EMOLUMENTS ABINGDON, E. ( Berlie). [ Lord lieute- nant of Bi- rks, and high steward of Abingdon.] Cousin, 500/. a year in the church, and another, ibree livings, 1,500/. — £' 2,000. ABOYN't, E. ( Goidon). Colonel of the Abeideeushiie militia, 1,000/. Alexander, in same regiment, 300/. Brother, a major and assistant quarter master general, 900/. Cousin, major general in India, and colonel of a regiment, 3,000/. A cousin, a captain navy 700/. a year. Mis son married the eldest daughter of ihe marquess of Conyngham. —£ 5 900. ALBERMARI E, E. ( Keppel). A son, captain navy, 700/. Another son in the army, 300/. [ A third in the Church.] Cousin, Robert Adair, pension as late foreign Minister, but oo particulars.—£ 1,500. A LV AN LEY, B. ( Pepper Brother, captain army, £ 400. DRAWN From the Public Purse by the Members of the British House of Lords and their families. This List does not include the Secret Ser- vice Money £ 800,000 per Annum. ABERCORN, M. ( Hamilton) a minor. His aunt is bishop of Worcester's wife. The bishop of London, now archbishop of Canter. Piloted. aadPubliabed by JAMES ACLANP, ( SOLS PROPRIETOR JKB EDITOR) at the KRISTOIIAN OFFICE, firistoliau Court, Bridewell Lace Arden ), A MHERST, E. ( Amherst). Pension, 300(>/ lord bedchamber, 1,000/.; retired ambassador, 2,500/.; [ late governor general of India.]— £ 6,500. \ To be continued.]