presto, begone, the First Lord waves his wand, and the vaunted surplus is declared to have no existence save in the ministerial mirage, which glittered for a moment over the financial sands on the first day of the session! And thus vanishes D'Israeli's doctoring and Peel's brick-making! Old Oxenstiern informed his son, "with what a trifle of wisdom the world was governed;" but in our day, it is plain that the world is governed without any wisdom at all!

SIR ROBERT PEEL ON PROTECTION AND RENTS.

Sir Robert Peel, in compliance, we presume, with the social liberalities of the season, has bethought himself of bestowing a nice Christmas box, in the shape of an epistle, on the above twofold theme ostensibly addressed to his Staffordshire tenantryand here the ex-premier has to encounter a double difficulty. As a statesman, and moreover the identical minister who succeeded in carrying the repeal of the corn-laws-he has to contend with might and main against the bare supposition of any possible revival of the monster-evil-Protection. But, on the other hand, Sir Robert Peel has the good fortune to be the proprietor of large landed estates, of which the usufruct comes to him every six months in the agreeable mode of particularly well paid rents-which somehow or other tenants begin to think were estimated upon oldfashioned protectionist principles-not according to the tariff springing out of Cobdenite tenets. To meet this difficulty, Sir Robert has written and published a rather lengthy letter, in which he discusses very edifyingly the irrevocableness of his own legislation regarding the corn-laws-talks of the good effect of the "free import" of the main articles of subsistence " in maintaing a range of low prices in average seasons, and to prevent very high prices in seasons of dearth"-dwells with philosophical precision on the advantages of cheap national food-and winds up his display of statemanship with a practical exhortation to his own tenants-and, of course, all other tenants-" to dismiss altogether from their calculations the prospect of renewed protection." So far, so good —the anti-protectionist statesman comes out in great force—and it is plain that D'Israeli or Lord Glengall are not likely to obtain adherents among the tenantry of the great writer of general epistles from Drayton Manor. But when, after dispatching the case of the

empire at large, Sir Robert Peel enters upon a sort of domestic disquisition as to the relation presently subsisting, and probably accruing, between himself and his Staffordshire rent-payers, we lose sight of that lucid decision, and uncompromising boldness, which characterise his declarations against defunct and never-tobe-restored protection. After reading twice over Sir Robert's exposition of a new "relation of landlord and tenant," obligingly sketched in his letter, we confess ourselves unable to gather any hints bearing on the permanent welfare of his landholding dependants. Sir Robert promises to consider this, and to consider that —to make a variety of calculations-endless enquiries on all conceivable subjects, at home and abroad-and to "co-operate" with his sturdy Staffordshire husbandmen "in preparing to meet, not only foreign, but home competition." Then follows the practical working of this doctrine of "co-operation," which consists in agricultural advice on Sir Robert's part, and in "wise economy-the command of adequate capital-the application of scientific skill— the liberal employment of labour"—and about a dozen other excellent things on the part of the farmers! At length we approach the core of this deep mystery-what about RENTS ?—and here Sir Robert, being familiar with the chefs d'œuvre of the great masters, treats us with a finished dash of chiaro oscuro, and blends light and shade so cleverly, as to make it very doubtful whether his tenants are to be really benefited or not. The only absolute certainty in the fore-ground is the matter-of-fact intimation that rents, "payable according to custom at Michaelmas and Lady-day," are still to be paid, together with all arrears, at the same solemn periods, and at the same customary rates! So runs the Drayton decree as to the peremptory payment of unlowered rents-for any abatement (if attainable) is reserved for future deliberation, and distant determination. If people pay punctually their old, protection rents, Sir Robert graciously engages to lay out " 20 per cent. on such improvements as may be most beneficial to each farm.”

Now, with all submission to the wisdom and liberality of the great parliamentary destroyer of protection, we beg to inquire, whether these arrangements meet the cases of the tenants thus lectured by their leviathan landlord of Drayton Manor. Is it true or false that prices are permanently fallen, and in consequence too of the very measure of abolition which Sir Robert Peel strained his strength to carry? Is it true or false that rentș,

all rents, Sir Robert's own rents, were artificially enhanced by virtue of the protection so long afforded, and now "irrevocably withdrawn? These are the questions that require honest, practical solution, instead of evasive expedients such as Sir Robert Peel fills his letter with. Tenants must pay their accustomed rents is the burden of Sir Robert's Staffordshire ditty; and when they have sold crop or stock on forced terms to meet Sir Robert's austere audit, then they may go home penniless to dream of improvements made on Sir Robert Peel's own farm, by direction of Sir Robert's own agent! Ah Sir Robert, this won't do! In addition to being a liberal statesman, you must learn to be a liberal landlord. As you have helped to lower prices, now help to lower rents. Remember how angrily you denounced the Irish landlords. Set them a good example by foregoing a fair portion of income derived from land, and furnish your tenants with inducements for not joining the recruited ranks of the protectionists.

SIR ROBERT PEEL ON FREE TRADE AND RENTS: OR THE TWO VOICES FROM TAMWORTH.

In another part of our paper will be found, copied from the Times, a shrewd plain-speaking letter from a Lichfield correspondent, revealing the sore disappointment and dudgeon of the Staffordshire farmers on reading, or hearing read (for scholarship seldom guides the English plough), Sir Robert Peel's mysterious manifesto, which appeared in our last publication. We may take a little credit to ourselves for our early exposition of Sir Robert's oracular obscurities, which, from having closely studied the character and career of the ex-Premier, we felt ourselves tolerably qualified to interpret. The Lichfield commentator having the advantage of living in Sir Robert's vicinage, and, of course, of acquiring a knowledge of the Staffordshire sentiment regarding low prices and high rents, has informed us of the unmistakeable resentment of the agricultural ale-bibbers of that large county on finding that Sir Robert Pecl turns out to be a Parliamentary Free-trader, and a Drayton Manor Protectionist! Who can adequately picture the dismay of a portly tenant farmer, whose savings have been sorrowfully melting away since the downfall of protection, when Sir Robert's dark sayings are opened up to him, like the.

explication of Egyptian hieroglyphics! He takes into his mind by slow instalments the murky meaning of the craftily-composed circular. No protection for any person, or any thing under the sun! All prices of all articles must fall, and continue falling, for the public good! The prices of corn must especially be secured from fluctuation, and therefore a "low range" of rates may be confidently reckoned upon by every patriotic tiller of the soil! Just think of the long faces of Sir Robert's tenants when they learn the dreadful secret, that although every thing else must partake of "decline and fall," the Peel rents are to remain as high as ever! Trade, commerce, agriculture, even the votes of electors ex. gr., "head-money" at Stafford, or Newcastle-under-Lymeall-all must come down to the lowest standard of righteous reduction; but there is one cherished exception to the universal rule -landlords' rents-and above all, Sir Robert Peel's rents cannot possibly be touched by the rude hand of diminution! As a splendid boon, he will undertake to improve his own farms let upon yearly leases; and to defray the cost of those improvements, Sir Robert promises to lay aside twenty per cent. of each fully " And paid rent, to be laid out at leisure by Sir Robert himself! is this all," cries the indignant grower of grain, as he angrily smashes his pipe and lights another with Sir Robert's postagepaid circular? Yes, indeed, friend farmer, this is the whole sum and substance of the Drayton Manor manifesto-learn to respect the rights of landed property, and while reverencing Sir Robert Peel's zeal for free-trade, do not murmur at the conservative dispensation which upholds the immutable integrity of the Peel

rent-roll!

PRACTICAL IMPROVEMENT OF THE CROFTER SYSTEM ON THE ESTATE OF MR FRASER OF CULBOCKIE.

One of the most flagrant fallacies of these days of delusion is the notion so widely propagated, that individuals are of no account whatever, mere mites of mortality, incapable by reason of their singleness of effecting any beneficial object—that in short the piece of pleasantry applied to tailors, is equally suitable to every member of society, who must be deemed only a fraction of humanity. To this doctrine we cannot subscribe. We, on the contrary, look for more beneficial results from the wise and liberal efforts of men,

acting in their individual capacities, and conscientiously impressed with a sense of their individual responsibilities, than from the bustling jobbing, and strenuous chicanery of all the associations, confederations, and committees under the sun. What are all those pompous incorporations which abound in every nook of our land, but machines for working out sordid purposes, craftily moved by a few selfish parties who, under colour of a common authorization, pervert public objects into personal interests? And the exposure of countless bubbles does not hinder the concoction of fresh frauds, or of futilities which eventually take the shape of frauds. We have on our table at this moment two spick and span splendid schemes; one for transforming Ireland into a new garden of Eden by means of a half-crown deposit upon an allotment of shares-and the other, a grand Glasgow project of an "association for the protection and improvement of the population of the Highlands and Islands," in which no mention is as yet made of shares or allotment, but of which we have a shrewd suspicion there is a sly approximation to the subscription system, to be organised by means of committees, directors, treasurer, secretary, and so forth. These projectors must pardon us, if we decline puffing off their patriotic and philanthropic plans. If sound and good, they will prosper without our help; and if somewhat equivocal (which we rather apprehend), the less we meddle in such matters, the better for the credit and character of this journal.

But while eschewing collusive commendations of associated bodies, we are heartily willing to give an honest measure of publicity to the well-meant efforts of individuals who do not seek for notoriety as the foundation of their schemes of alleged improvement; and, influenced by this principle, we resolve to lay before our readers the subjoined statement, which we obtained in the following way:-Having heard that a just and liberal course of conduct towards crofters, had been pursued with the best effects on the estate of Mr Fraser of Culbockie; we availed ourselves of some pleasing personal intercourse with that gentleman, to draw from him the details of the actual ameliorations; and they struck us as being so clearly beneficial in themselves, and so likely to be useful in the way of example, that we solicited the further favour of a written communication, embracing the chief points brought forward in conversation. We now present to our readers Mr Fraser's own statement, word for word as we received it, and we shall seize an