Vor. I.]

Che Examiner.

“THIS IS TRUE LIBERTY, WHEN FREEBORN MEN—HAVING TO ADVISE THE PUBLIC, MAY SPEAK FREE”

CHARLOTTETOWN, P. E. ISLAND, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 25, 1847,

enn

— EURIPIDES.

[No. 21.

CHRISTMAS. Old Father Christmas is now come at last; Summer’s bright flow’rets are withered and past, Autumn hath gathered her harvest of grain, And merry King Christmas is now come again.

Ambassador Frost on the window pane, Wrote word that his master was coming,

In icy characters, rich and quaint, Finished with womanlike cunning,

Then on he passed to the brooks and streams, And he stopped their drowsy humming.

Up to the clouds away he flew—

Aye, aye, he found plenty of work to do; For he covered us up in a mantle of snow, We looked so dismally cold below.

Old King Christmas is stout, though old, And his beard is white and long ;

A robe of fur doth his frame enfold, And his step is firm and strong ;

His cheeks are rosy with health, and cold, And he smileth on old and young.

He loveth the blaze of the cheerful fire,

So pile up the fuel higher—yet higher ;

And he looks for good cheer, mince pies and stron¢ beer, For he cometh to see us but once a year.

Bring ye hither the holly bough, With its rosy berries digit ;

Bring ye hither the mistletoe, Garnished with fruit so white ;

And the ivy green that creepeth low, With its leaves so darkly bright.

The goodly misletoe hang on high, Beautifui type of life’s holiest tie, Whispering its moral to every heart— The oak and the misletoe never may part.

Ivy, the emblem of friendship true, That in sorrow doth closest cling, Fondly striving to hide from view, The ruin that time doth bring; Hiding our faults ’neath the vernal hue That its shadowing leaves doti fling.

The holly, like truth, is sturdy and strong,

And fears not the wind that blows loudly or long ;— Falsehood and Prejudice blister away,

Truth is secure, and can still ‘bide its day.’

A wreath of the holly and ivy green, With misletoe berries entwined—

“Truth, love and friendship, should ever be seen In a Christmas wreath entwined ;

For Christmas loveth right well, I ween, This wreath on his brows to bind.

Old Father Christmas is now come at last; Summer's bright flow’rets are withered and past, Autumn hath gathered her harvest of grain, _ And merry King Christmas is now come again.

THE DYING CHILD.

BY HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN.-—TRANSLATED FROM THE DANISH BY MARY HOWITT.

Mother, I’m tired, and I would fain be sleeping ; Let me repose upon thy bosom seek: But promise me that thou wilt leave off weeping , Because thy tears fall hot upon my cheek. Here it is cold: the tempest raveth madly ; But in my dreams al] is so wondrous bright : I see the angel-children smiling gladly, When from my weary eyes I shut out light.

Mother, one stands beside me now! and, listen! Dost thou not hear the music’s sweet accord ? See how his white wings beautifully glisten! Surely those wings were given him by our Lord! ‘Green, gold, and red are floating all around me: They are the flowers the angel scattereth. Shall I have also wings whilst life has bound me ? Or, mother, are they given alone in death ?

“Why dost thou clasp me as if I were going ? | ___ Why dost thou press thy cheek thus unto mine ? Thy cheek is hot, and yet thy tears are flowing:

I will, dear mother, will be always thine! ‘Do not thus sigh—it marreth my reposing;

And, ifthou weep, then! must weep with thee ! “Oh, I am tired—my weary eyes are closing : —Look, mother, look! the angel kisseth me!

ENS WIL ARAN

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 25, 1847.

THE DELEGATION REPORT.

“ Shame on the policy that first began To tamper with the heart to hide its thoughts ! And doubly shame on that inglorious tongue

That sold its honesty and told a lie.” OLD Pray.

“ Magna est veritas et prevalebit.”

If there be any value in the labours of those who write for the public, it arises from their success in leading the minds of their readers to the adoption of the means of acquiring some practical and praiseworthy object—some desideratum in politics—some moral and public benefit, calculated to enlarge the rational liberties and happiness of mankind. Were selfishness really abolished, the con- tests of public opinion would only tend to the discrimi- nating, or to the best means for bringing into practice these desirable ends. The ends would be the same— the means would differ in proportion to the degree of in- telligence possessed by controversionalists on either side. Unfortunately, the millenium, when every man will be disinterested, has not yet arrived; nor do we see in the narrow limits of our horizon the ray which will precede the bright day when that desired epoch will \dawn upon ns. We wish, asa public journalist, we ‘could recognize in our adversaries that regard for truth, | without which the labours and studies of men who write /on public affairs cannot tc.d to any other purpose than ‘to mislead. For our own part, in an early number, we |based our appeal to public favour on a promise, that in | whatever controversy we might be engaged, or whatever ‘arts might be used a gainst us, we would never forfeit our claim to public confidence, even to gain an advantage a our bitterest enemy, by the assertion of falsehood ‘or the concealment of truth. Nay, we will carry this principle of morals still farther,—for we will never be guilty of that species of mystification, which makes an artful use of real facts to verify a lying conclusion. We are aware that, having laid down these rules, we are often fighting with unequal weapons; but we will not, on that account, forfeit our own dignity, and for the sake of any momentous principle, forget that we are writing toa candid public, who, if fora short space they are deceived, soon learn the truth in spite of all the vile ‘sophistry and low falsehood by which it is often attempt-, ‘ed to be concealed.

According to these rules we shall review the speeches and declarations made by the Delegates to their dues’ at the meeting which took place at the Prince Edward House on Saturday evening the 11th instant. Setting aside for the present all minor and subsidiary subjects, those gentlemen made at least four or five assertions neither of which will bear, as to their veracity, the ri- gid test by which, in accordance with the professions we have made above, they must be tried.

The Delegates did not blush to assert—

Ist. That they were the cause of the early departure of Sir H. V. Huntley, and the arrival, this fall, of Sir Donald Campbell.

2d. That they surprised the Colonial Secretary with the information, that there was not a member of the Po- pular Branch of the Legislature in the Executive Coun- cil.

3d. That they enlightened the mind of Earl Grey on the subject of our Island Currency—it being one of those matters respecting which, according to Mr. Pope, his Lordship had been “somehow or other kept in the dark.” The refined and well-bred Speaker seasoned his sage remarks upon this subject with that usual low spice of personality which is well known to be his principal stock in trade in his place in the Assembly as well as out of doors. Perhaps we should say that Mr. Pope’s proneness to this species of attack is rather a misfortune than a fault. Men of little minds and malignent dispo-

;

sitions are too apt to mistake the flippancy of a scold and the pertness of a buffoon for the point and polished sar- casm of a wit; and persons remarkable for either or both

'jare really more entitled to commisseration, if not con-

tempt, than to respect or admiration.

4th. That they (Messrs. Palmer and Pope) have deen uniformly found voting with a majority of the present House of Assembly,, And—

Sth. ‘That a majority of the members of the existing House of Assembly were hos ile to the late Lieutenant

‘Governor up to the time of his departure.

Now, there is not one of those assertions that is not a falsehood, in one or other or all of the denominations which the term falsehood is made to bear.

Ist. As to the retirement of the late Lieutenant Go- vernor and the arrival of his successor:

The public Despatch from Earl Grey, which commu- nicated the change, fixed the time of Sir Donald Camp- bell’s departure from England for the 4th of the present month. This despatch was written, as our readers are well aware, about ten days before the Delegates had obtain- ed an interview with Earl Grey, and the change which it announced was not in any degree dependent upon the charges preferred against Sir H. V. Huntley. In his reply, Sir Henry strongly represented the difficulty and hardship consequent ona voyage to and from Prince Edward Island, in the midst of winter, and expressed a wish to be relieved in the Government before the freez- ing up of the Gulph, as his state of health would not permit his crossing the Straits in the Ice Boat. Under these circumstances, Lord Grey again wrote to Sir Hen- ry, giving him permission to use his own discretion in the selection of the time for his departure from the Is- land, and expressing a hope that it would be an accom- modation to him to learn, that Sir Donald campbell would leave England by the Steamer of the 19th No- vember—a fortnight only before the time originally ap- pointed for his selling out. And thus it must be evident

toall who are not utterly regardless of the value of truth, ‘that Sir Henry Huntley, and not the Delegates, caused

himself his early departure, which probably involved the question whether or not he should eventually remain

until the Spring. Now this might be enough to refute

the statement made by the Delegates to their dupes, at

Pippy’s, respecting Sir Henry Huntley; but we have

unquestionable testimony now before us, in the shape of letters from respectable parties in London, which proves that the Delegates failed to make any impression at the Colonial Office unfavourable to Sir Henry, for the best of all reasons—Earl Grey would listen to no complaints against an Officer, the question of whose continuance in the Government had been settled without the inter- ference of his accusers. The Delegates made no se- cret of their chagrin and mortification at this rebuff, whilst in England; and we are fully convinced, that if they had any inclination to tell the whole truth to their deluded followers, we would discover one of the strongest reasons for withholding certain facts they say they did not feel themselves at liberty to com- municate. “The etiquette that should be observed,” say they, in communicating a knowledge of public bu- siness with the Colonial Office, compelled them to leave their victims “in the dark.” Were we unacquainted with the characters of the parties, we might be inclined to commend this delicacy to the praise of the public; but their conduct throughout the whole of their opposi- tion to the late Lieutenant Governor has been such, and the means resorted to for the furtherance of this opposi- tion have been so manifestly at variance with every principle of propriety and justice, that we never can persuade ourselves into the belief, that for mere punc- tillios they would hesitate to make known all the cir

cumstances Connected with their interview, were these calculated to strengthen their position, or procure a

wreath of laurels for their brows.