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Northern Star (1837-1852), 11th November 1848, Edition 2 of 3, Page 1, prevaltrM^u^Mw^N fi ^Vo^S^^e 'S>J J($ un...

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    • i ;ij{ jcijf jou-sranttj h»w joor buskea 4»e,go,-ffas^. ¦e ¦end/' - _
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      i « i « Wbi « m »*"» ent > W » Vnrinwsi » noV > aj *» boSobm . * , « . God . « God ---- *» a * 01 *** hdP ^ emselves . " i < i < £ Tes < £ Tei 7 niUifortibnKl ^ udthe de ^ l tak « the hind . b most " TIHB THBaB IS HOIHEJG BBWTOJDEE THB SOT . "

      T TO THE MEMBERS OP THE Tifc NATIONAL LAND COMPANY

      i Gestlbmen , ] I sb Ish--U not again rail you , either " my friends' * .. n . « my children , " until you are better behaved md rpid more"dutiful ; but as the more fortunate , r r at ? at least many , of them , imagine that the ODSsettssession offend and a house constitutes a ilitle We to idleness , I address them by the proper i erffljenn , " Gentlemen . *" * i Ahove I have given yon some old maxims ,

      I be fee truth of which man ' s actions establish , r rhilfrhile the enmity evinced towards the Land 3 J jan ^ ian would prove that it is something new , or , [ ht leit least , that their opposition proves a great noveiovelty , namely—that it is impossible forman jfl lift live upon land in his own country . Per"aifeaps there is not upon record a more extras raEagant or novel P iece of { o ^ tl ; aa ** " ¦ asser " iioufca , except it be the My of those who be-Efievfiere-t . .... ... , , ™

      T "The first objection to the Land Plan was , Ithathat land could not be purchased- that rich i cspbp italists would club their monies , bid against ] FeaFeargns O'Connor , and buy up all the estates J offiofiered for sale . Well , that assertion , of itself , i shcshould have proved their hostility to the Plan , \ aniand their hostility was the best proof of its yalyalae to you . ^ . T The next assertion was , that you were ¦ esexoticsborn under ground , reared in a hothoinc-use—tender , and unable to bear the open

      auair « _ . j - The next assertion was , that England was in intended by nature to he a manufacturing ^ -country , while ALL OTHERS were intended fo to be agricultural countries , —that is , that you wt -were to import the raw material—upon which yi you were to expend your slave labour—a disfc tance of some thousands of miles—to ^ aanufacf tv tare it cheaper than those who sent it to you C could manufacture it—and then to get back - ; yonrfbod from other countries which would c condescend to receive your superfluities in

      ex-< change for the necessaries of life . This was 3 Bap tist Noel's theory—the Reverend ? nd Hoj noufable Baptist Noel— whose rubbish was ] poked into every poor man ' s hwise in thekingi flom , and for which rubbish he wasmade Chapp lain to the Queen . My Friends , I cannot continue to address you as " Gentlemen , " because I am angry with you , inasmuch as your ingratitude and indolence are consequences of a vicious system . This Land Plan of ours has stood more attacks

      —more assaults—more slander , vituperation and falsehood , than any plan that ever ms propounded , and most of all from those who were the most fortunate in being first located , and having the greatest indulgence shown to them . The very critical situation in which I have been placed by those parties since August 1847—the period at which the last Conference assembled—must be obvious to every man . The Press was open to the foulest fabrications , and the fabricator was an

      INNOCENT—INOFFENSIVE—INDUSTRIOUS BUT JUGGLED AND DELUDED INDI " VIDUAL- Every ear -was not open but cocked—every skull was a gun—every brain was combustible matter—every prejudice was a percussion cap—every tongue was a hairtrigger—and every report was said to be an explosion . In the midst ' of these fabrications for fourteen months , and coming , as they did , from those presumed to be best capable of judging , the wonder is , that every cottage has not been levelled to the ground , and every allotment

      tenantless . But what ' will strike you as a greater wonder is , that I should have abstained from replying to any one of those numerous fabrications until I was placed in a situation of having them proved or disproved before the representatives of the whole body . And , if anything will convince you of my sincerity in the undertaking ' , and my desire to elicit truth , jou will find it in the fact that I have invested my money in it , and that I have idled upon my ability to refute every slander uttered against the Land Plan by those who either Bought a pretext for returning to drunkenness

      and dissipation , or those who hoped to frighten me into an acquiescence in their every demand , from a dread of exposure , to circulate which they were aware that the Press and the enemy would be but too ready . I shall now proceed to remind you of the principle upon which the Plan was originally based , and I shall then show you the principle upon which it is now based , and from the contrast you will be able to deduce this fact , that every single alteration has been favourable to

      the occupant . By our first rules 5 L interest was paid upon the first 82 ? . 10 s . expended , and five per cent , upon aU additional capital . So that by the old rules , if 300 f . was expended opon a man s allotment , his rent would be I 6 t a year , whereas , by the new rules , his rent will be 12 * . a year . By the orig inal rules , as laid down at the Manchester and Birmingham Conference , the cost of all agricultural operations were to be deducted from the Aid Money . At Herringsgate , lowbands , and Minster , not a fraction was

      deducted . By the old rules there was no provision against the payment of rent , when a half year was due , while none of the occupants have yet been called upon t » pay rent . By the old rules there-was no provision for loans , while 7001 has been advanced , besides the Aid Fund , to occupants at O'Connorvilie and Lowbands . Now , such are the alterations as to the former and future standard of rent , and as to what has been promised , and what has been

      done for those who have been located ; and now I shall proceed to review the alterations that hare been made by the Conference in the programme submitted to the country through the "Northern Star" and explained by Messrs M Grath and Clark . The original programme proposed that occupants should be located by bonus instead of by ballot , which wasillegal , and could not be continued . The Directors , however , having an interest in the working out of the Plan , and anxious to preserve good faith with the members , made the . following

      alteration : — By the original programme , if a man ' s allotment cost 300 L , and if he paid 100 ? . bonus , he would still pay 12 L a year rent , or four per cent , upon the outlay , whereas by the alteration , if he pays 100 Z . bonus , he will pay 81 . a ? ea tent , being allowed foux per cent , as the interest upon Ms 100 / . ; and then , instead of gettingaleaseforalifeandninety . nineyears , he . sill receive a conveyance of his allotment , at a rent-charge of 8 l . a year , thus making it a freehold ; and he will have 3001 of property , « f house built , and land purchased at wholesale Price , to mortgage , if he wishes , for 200 / ., the ^ au who lends the 2001 . having 300 / . security

      writ , and the labour employed in its cultivation ; and , above all , the attachment to the freehold ; and thus the man who pays the honus returns the Company one-third of its coital , and , according to Mr Grey and Mr f iolaison s evidence , there will be no difficulty p raising the other two-thirds , thus reproducing the whole of the Company ' s capital ahnost immediately , and enabling us to carry ° a ouroperations as speedily as wecan purchase ^ and build houses , and that will be just at the rate that I can get the money , for in less ftau twelvemonths I could buy ten million Pounds worth of land , although it was stated t ^ e was none to be had in the market .

      1 will now show you the position in which jhose located on the " Bromsgrove Estate would he placed under this rule . I can tell within a « w shillings what the rent of a four-acre allotment there will be , not including agricultural operation s , which of course are a distinct tQ ing . The average rent of four acres and a cottage at Bromsgrove will not exceed 10 / ,, so

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      that the occupant who pays 100 / . Ibonus will pay 67 . a year rent for his csttage and four acres , while I know men in the neighbourhood who are payiag 6 l . an acre for land ; aid I will now show you why land at Bromsgrove , at any standard price that can be put upon land , ' is proportionately more valuable than the same description of land in another district . In the district of Bromsgrove , the whole population

      is a consuming population . It is in the centre of the mining and naU-mJring population ; perhaps the most densely populated in the kingdom . The next proposition is , that those who pay into the . Bonus Fund , but who have not paid enough to entitle them to location , shall be allowed four per cent , upon the amount paid , until it shall have been augmented to that point which will entitle them to location . Now this

      you will see is a vast improvement upon the Land Purchase Department . , In the Land Purchase Department the depositor was obliged to . pay up the whole of his purchase money , as well as 10 / . premium , and Qi . 10 s . for legal expenses and surveying , if he was a four-acre member ; whereas , now , he pays neither premium , legal expenses , nor surveying , and need only pay one-third of the purchase money to entitle him to a conveyance of his allotment .

      Lest this 100 ? . bonus should be considered a compulsory amount , let me explain it to you . I merely take the standard of 100 / . while , perhaps , the bonuses may not exceed 50 / . ; but then , the man who pays 50 / ., if that amount entitles him to a location , will have 21 . a-year deducted from his rent , as the interest of his 50 / . at four per cent . ; he will receive a lease for a life and ninety-nine years , instead of a conveyance of his allotment , and when he augments the 50 / . to one-third of what the allotment has cost the Company , then he will

      receive a conveyance , as you will see that this ensures the reproduction of the Company ' s capital without being subject to the legal expenses of mortgaging . Now I hope that I explain these matters to the meanest intellects . As to the legalisation of the Plan , the appointment of trustees , and the assignment of the property to those trustees , of those facts you are already in possession through the reported proceedings , and now I come to the consideration of a very important proposition , namely : —

      THE CLAIMS OF ; THE MEMBERS NOT YET LOCATED . I proposed , that in order to keep good faith , all who bad purchased from balloted members should be the first located . This , however , was negatived , and , I think , most justly , upon the grounds stated by the opponents . They stated that the man who would not sell was as well , if not better , entitled to location , than the representative of the man who did sell . In this discussion the Directors took no part ,

      further than urging the claim of the unlocated members . I proposed compensation in money , to be given at the period at which they would have been located , leaving it to the Conference to say what the amount of compensation should be . For instance , if an estate was ready for location in May , that those who were to be located upon that estate should receive their compensation in money upon the dav on which that estate was ready for

      occupation . Mr Edwards , the delegate for Devonshire , stated that the members balloted were promised to be located within this year . I stated , in reply , that if the money had come in at half the rate it did when that statement was made that all WOuLA have been located before now ; I showed that 1 had entered into a contract for 1 , 400 acres of land , which would have left over 200 acres , after locating all the balloted members —that the funds fell off frem 5 , 000 / ., 3 , 000 / ,, and 2 , 000 / ., a week to 20 / . a week—that not I one-third of the capital of the Company had

      been paid up , and that the defaulters , and not the Directors , were to blame . I further showed , and the Conference unanimously assented , that the interest of those members and of the Company would be best protected by giving them compensation ; I showed that it would take 108 , 0001 to locate the balloted members , and that that amount would not come in as long as all others were debarred of a chance of location , whereas the compensation would be sure to be paid , and within a very

      short period , if the priority market was once opened . In this view the Conference acquiesced , when Mr O'Brien proposed that one-fourth of each estate should be assigned to the location of the balloted members , and to this proposition the Conference and the Directors cordially and unanimously assented ; and the effect of which will be the location of the balloted members very much more speedily than they would have been located , if the location of all others was deferred until they were provided for .

      It was then proposed , by Mr Bentley , that 15 L to two-acre men , 22 / . 10 s . to three-acre men , and 301 to four-acve men , should be the amount of compensation to he given , these members still holding their scrip and the amount paid for shares to be deducted from those respective amounts . In that case 2 / . 12 s . would be stopped from the 15 / . ; 3 / . 18 s . from the 22 / . 105 . ; and 5 / . 4 s . from the 30 / . Mr Edwards proposed that they should receive 5 / . a share and still retain their scrip , that is 12 / . 12 s . for a two-acre man . 18 / . 18 s .

      for a three-acre man , and 25 / . 4 s . for a fouracre man , and this proposition was carried all but unanimously ; the effect of which will be that one-fourth of the Bromsgrove Estate will be assigned to the balloted members on the 12 th of May , and they will have the option of taking to their location or receiving the stipulated compensation . I will make one observation upon this Bonus

      principle . I have sold to members , not balloted , four-acre allotments for 90 / ., they paying the same amount of rent as if they were located by ballot and had not paid a farthing in the shape of bonus ; others have paid 100 / . and others 120 / . bonus ; whereas , if , under the new system , they had p aid 120 / , bonus for an allotment estimated at 12 / . a-year , they would pay ?/ . 4 s . rent , whereas they are now liable to 12 / . rent besides the 1207 .

      The next alteration that has been made is , to dispense with the Expense Fund—and I wish you to bear these facts strongly in mind . Firstly . —That , if our capital was fully paid up , we would have a yearly income of 12 , 000 / . at four per cent . —and Secondly , —That I have made , and will make , five times as much out of the rubbish on every estate as will not only cover the Expense Fund , but constitute a large Surplus Fund for the location of the poorer members .

      Thus , we have given another and a great advantage to the shareholders . I now come to the consideration of the most important point , and that which most earnestly and anxiously arrested the attention of the Conference—1 mean the location of the poorer members who could not pay a bonus . By the provisions of the Act , under which the Company will be legalised , it is in our power to alter and amend the rules and Deed of Settlement as circumstances may require , and bv economy upon my part , and confidence upon their part , I have no hesitation in saying that I shall be able to locate the poorer members very ^ speedily without bonus at all , and much more speedily than under the old yules

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      —and for this reason—because all the mojief made by me upon the sale of farm houses , and ! the use of old materials , not valued in the purchase , will , as a matter of course , go into the Loan Fund , and constitute a stock from which ; the poorest will receive relief , and . which—sol far from diminishing the capital of the Company—will add ' to it , as assets to be distrh buted when its operations are completed . There is also another source from which the

      poorer members may-be located—namely , the LOAN FUND . We may take example by ' the aristocracy , and the speculating of the democracy , upon this point . . In London , Manches . ter , Sheffield ,: Birmingham , and every large town in England , persons put money into RACING SWEEPS , and they draw for a horse , and if SHYLOCK wins the race , the man who draws the Jew wins the money—that constitutes the SWEEP . So with the Loan Fund . The very poorest in the district may club their shillings , and the paid-up members may put into the Land Sweep , and the man

      who is most fortunate may draw his / amount of bonus—or two , or three , or four , may draw , while none lose their shillings , because in turn they will have the benefit themselves—and more , they may hare a Shilling Sweep , or a Half-crown Sweep , and the man who pays ten shillings may have ten draws , and so with the man who pays ten half-crowns , while the mechanic , and those better off , may have Pound Sweeps . However , if there was neither

      Sweep nor Shy lock , what . I contend is , that the very poorest of the poor will be located much more speedily under the new , than under the old , organisation—and I wish you ; to bear one fact in mind , that when we are legalised , many a man now located will pay a great proportion of his purchase money to get a conveyance , while we could raise from 70 , 000 / . to 80 , 000 / . upon the property that we are possessed of—thus enabling us to reproduce and locate our members much more speedily .

      I have now fully explained the alterationg that have been made by the Conference . There are some few errors , but not of importance , in the report of the proceedings in . the " Star ' ' Amongst others , it is stated that I said that the ground at Minster was cropped . I said no such thing , as the Conference will admit , I said that nothing was charged for the agricultural operations performed , but that the Aid Money was given in full . And now , my friends , I shall give you , consecutively , a verbatim account of every charge brought against me , and I will give it

      without one particle of colouring , and in a form in which every delegate must acknowledge its truth . It may be , that they were brought forward at different stages of the proceedings , but I will give them to you consecutively . And I think , when you reflect upon my Scotch political tour , where I went to meet my political assailants , and when I tell you that , on Thursday night last , I addressed a number of my most virulent political assailants in the People ' s Hall in Birmingham , and that , having gained wisdom from past experience , I never was so well received in the most excited times in that town—and when 1

      tell you that I had borne the most unmitigated and continuous abuse , in every shape and form , from a portion of the located members , for the last fourteen months—I feel assured that you will read , not my defence , but their conviction , with pride and pleasure . There were deputies in the Conference from every estate , and I will begin with O'Connorvilie , represented b y Mr Wheeler —while , in justice to him , I am bound to say , that his statement was devoid of any , the slightest , acrimony , and was confined to a representation of the state and wishes of his brother { allottees . You shall have each statement , and my reply , in the shape of a dialogue , and then you will understand it . Mr Wheeler stated that at O'Connorvilie

      the occupants were located at a bad season of the year ; that during their first year bread was excessively dear ; that many had applied the Aid- Money of the Company in liquidation of debts that they owed in their districts ; that there was a want of dung and a want of experience ; that one occupant lost two acres and a half of potatoes by the rot , which would have produced much more than four tons to the acre but for that calamity ; that the wheat harvest being bad , militated considerabl y against their prospects ; that he had paid attention to his crop , and produced twenty-four

      bushels from half an acre ; that some were in distress because they had expended over 200 / . in buildings and ether improvements ; that the want of leases to know their position was a ' grievance of which they complained r also the difficulty of procuring water for cat ' lv and other purposes , as it took two women , or one strong man , to work the pump put in b y the Drectors ; and also the distance from a market town might be favourable to Mr Sillett s position , but operated against theirs » but from the experience that he now had , he felt convinced that no man—the strongest man

      —could cultivate an acre of ground to its greatest state of . capability , but he felt assured that , in time , all those evils would be corrected , or correct themselves , and he believed there was a strong desire upon the part of the occupants to make the Plan succeed . " Mr O'Connor replied , that the occupants were located on the 1 st of May , at O'Connorvilie—that was a bad season . They were located at Lowbands in August—that was a bad

      season . They were located at Minster in March —that was a bad season ; and they were located at Snig ' s End in June , and that was a bad season—and , therefore , until he was enabled to add a few more months to the year , he should like to know when the proper season would be ? and that question was one of the propositions that would be submitted to the Conference , to name , not the month , but the very day of the month when they should be henceforth located .

      "As to bread being dear , it was fortunate for those who got the Aid Money , and their pound partially cropped , to have something to fall back upon , and he felt assured that Mr Wheeler would not charge him , or the Directors , or the Land Company , with that calamity . "As to the Aid Money going to liquidate the debts of those who were located , he would ask that Conference whether or no it was ever contemplated that the money of the Land Company should constitute a fund for the liquidation of the debts of its members , and whether it was not properly decided that the Aid Money should be appropriated to the improvement of the soil , thereby increasing its value in the reproductive market ?

      "As to dung and cultivation—the Company paid nearly 320 / . for the best London dung ; and as to cultivation—with the exception of a head-land here and there—the whole of the land was well cultivated . No charge was made , and , in addition , 10 L was expended on the erection of outbuildings , for each allottee . "With regard to the failure of the potato crop , he ( Mr O'Connor ) trusted that that Conference would pass a stringent resolution , making the Directors responsible for the po tato rot , the blight in the wheat , and every other casualty and natural calamity to which the allottees , and all other men / were subjected . But let him ask this one question—is a great national project to be damned by the failure of a single crop ? And then , mark what Mi

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      iWheeler had truly-told them—or rather onder-. stated-rtbat if a man ' s potatoes had not ifailed ; He'would have had over ten tonffirpon bis two acres a t ^ a half , which , at sixptnee per stone , or 4 / , a ton . would have amounted Mr O'Brien . —Four tons to the acre I I am prepared to show that a man may grow ten tons , ' ' . " : ; > ' . Mr O'Connor . —I take it at the four , and if hiscrop had not failed- he would have , had i , ir £ ,, i 8 rent > nis house , and an acraand a half for . nothing . Now , can any argument be more conclusive of the stability of this Plan , if it is not all to be based upon the potato rot ? ' '

      . M ? * as regards the 200 / . expended on buildings—; . . Mr Wheeler ..- ! said , and on the land as well . Mr 0 'Conri qr : ~ -WelI , admitted that the bulk was expended in buildings ; and , as he often told them , the produce of the soil would soon build a house , but the house would never cultivate the soil ! , " He would now come to Mr Wheeler ' s admission—that he had produced three quarters of ^ wheat ^ rom half an acre , and upon that he * ot « bXtfist the value of . the Land Plan . . Three quarters to half an acre is six quarters to an

      acre , and at 50 s . a quarter , or 6 s . 3 d . the bushel , that one wop would return 15 l . to the acre , and turnips , or another crop , may be sown in the same ground ; but taking it as the one crop , and estimating the rent of four acres at over what it will be if they reduced it to 4 / . per cent , upon the outlay , this would be the position of that man—he would have 3 / . above bis year s rent , a five-roomed cottage , outbuildings , and an acre of straw and three acres of land for nothing ; and , I think , the straw

      answers the complaint of the want of dung . " ¦ But Mr Wheeler has most ingenuously admitted the stability , the value , and the practicability of the Land Plan , when he says that no man can cultivate an acre of ground ; and when the delegates bear in mind that every farmer in the kingdom pays his rent , the interest of bis capital , maintains and educates his children , keeps hunters , drinks wine , and lives well upon the profit made on slave labour , when , as a matter of course , the free labourer will work harder for himself .

      " As to leases , he begged to tell them that although averse to taking any such power upon himself until trustees were appointedalthough he was entitled by law to do so—yet he would be prepared to name a day when he would give to the occupants , who were , prepared to pay up their rents , leases according to the terms prescribed by that Conference . " As to water , Mr Wheeler was perfectl y aware that there were two wells sunk to an

      immense depth , and that , subsequently , at the desire of the occupants , a pump was also sunk , to which he ( Mr O'Connor ) was opposed , well knowing that at such a depth it would be expensive to repair it and hard to work "it ; but in order to show the position of the allottees , as compared tvith the farmers in the neighbourhood , the farmers were obliged to go a great distance to fetch the water , while the allottees had it comparatively at hand ; and knowing the value of water and all other conveniences , he was prepared to say that when the members did their duty he would be prepared to make tanks , as he had at Minster Lovel , and to put pumps in every man ' s back kitchen .

      "The last proposition thathe had to comment upon was , the distance from a market town . He begged to say that they were nearer e market town than Mr Sillett was—that they were within lftsa than three miles of a market town ; but he would not confine his answer to that assertion , he would make it more complete , and it was this—that what was a potato , a cabbage , a turnip , a carrot , or any other food under the walls of a ' market town , was

      butter , pork , bacon , cheese and other commodities , at a hundred , nay , a thousand miles distant from a vegetable market ; while , in the one plan they had the manure produced for their consumption in the other case they had none . In conclusion ! he begged to tender his thanks to Mr Wheeler , for the very discreet and temperate manner in which he submitted his propositions , and , he hoped that he had answered one and all , to the satisfaction of Mr Wheeler , and the Conference .. ( Cheers . )

      Mr Wheeler said , that nothing could be farther from his intention or inclination than to urge against the scheme what might be fairly charged upon circumstances , and casualties tlfiit had occurred . ( Hear , hear . ) Mr O'Brien next made his representation as delegate for Lowbands , Snig ' s End , and the Cheltenham district . He said , that he had to lay before the Conference a true state of the pitiable condition of the allottees at Lowbands , and the first question to which he would call their , attention was that of draining . The old

      drains , that were curved and crooked , were stopped up , and straight drains were made . That , in many instances , the water had ceased to flow , and the main drains were so small and confined , that they were wholly useless . That the land was not cultivated previous to the allottees taking possession , but was merely scratched over . That the potatoes last year , like the present , were a complete failure , and the poor creatures had nothing to live upon . That manure was promised them , and Mr O'Connor had promised them lime to mix with the soil that was taken out of the foundations .

      1 hat , in many instances , the allottees got no dung at all , and scarcely any more than four loads . That the * wheat , generally speaking , was a complete failure , and so were the potatoes . That he had made a calculation of one man ' s return for 200 days' work , and found that it only amounted to 7 / . Us . He had expended 35 / . himself upon the improvement of the sctool allotment . He kept nearly an acre in grass , and found it very profitable ; and , therefore , he would propose that , in future , a fourth of every man ' s allotment should be kept in grass . That the land was not of a

      good quality , and that Graham — one of the allottees who had before been referred to , and his famil y , were without shoes and clothes . That ninepence was all he had received since he went there as schoolmaster , and that the poor creatures were obliged to sell . He was convinced himself of the practicability of the Plan when once set fairly going , as he believed even Mr O'Connor had fallen far short in his statements of what the Land was capable of doing . Then old Farmer Lee—so often referred to by Mr O'Connor—who was actually obliged to pick up stones off his land ,

      and sell them to buy coals . Mr O'Connor replied , and said " . that he was sorty that the last delegate had not made his representation in the same spirit that Mr Wheeler made his ; nothing was more easy than to trump up a statement based upon figures and calculations ; and nothing was more unjust than to attempt to excite the feelings of that Conference , by false and unfounded representations ; and he ( Mr O'Connor ) would now proceedto show ^ tbat , without an exception , every statement made by Mr O'Brien was unfounded .

      " Firstl y . As regards the drainage . It was a curious charge , or rather a curious assertion , to say that crooked curved drains were preferable to straight drains ; but . the fact was , that not a single old drain was stopped up—that all the drain ? ever made were straight drains , marked out with a line , and pipes put into

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      them . An . d as regards the main drains , there they were visible to the eye ; and what he asserted was , that on . the best drained estate in England / there * * ere not as good main drains . They were open * drains and well made . The pipe djains discharged into th « n , and when one failed to work by tie , passage being stopped , nothing was more easy than to discover where the stoppage was , and ! to repair it , . And Mr O Brien had not stated ! that tiles were given to every man , and drawn for every man , who 1 chose to make more drains ; nor hat ? he stated the impossibility of cultivating ground ,, build . inghbuses ,, and draining at « Se same time : nor was it stated , or even contemplated , " that the land should be drained . He next came to ^—

      " The failure of the potatoes last year . Now this was riot true , as the potatoes at Lowbandslast year were in nine cases in ten , boasted of asbeing a splendid crop , and he hadThimself seen five pr six pounds produced from a single root . Then as to"The tillage of the ground , and its character . The moment a man Js located he thinks lie becomes a farmer by magic , and Mr O ' Brien ,

      who told us yesteiday that three months ago his hands were as delicate as any lady ' s in the land , is not only a better farmer than me , but is prepared to speak to what he never saw . But what he ( Mr O'Connor ) asserted was , that Lowbands was considered the crack farm in the neighbourhood—that the tenant who rented it paid 336 / . a year rent , and the farmer who bid within 20 / . of whathe ( Mr 0 'Connor ) gave for it , must have been as great a fool as himself .

      "Then as to the cultivation . It was ploughed most of it three times ; it was dragged ; it was crushed with a patent crusher ; it was fine harrowed , and after that any lumps that were then left were broken by what in Ireland they call "beetles , '' that is , large wooden mallets with long handles , | and so well was it cultivated that those who saw the farm in March said they would not have known it in July . Nothing is more easy than to make those kind of statements , but there were many present who saw the Land , and he defied any to contradict a word that he had asserted .

      "Then as to their being promised dung and lime to mix with what came out of the foundations—it is a pure fabrication . Dung was not promised , and he ( Mr O'Connor ) had recommended the . allottees to buy a couple of waggon loads of lime themselves , and mix it with the foundations , and five or six only did so . But now he would come to Mr O'Brien ' s assertion , that some allotments got no dung , and some others not more than four loads . Now these were the reports—the malicious reports—which all men anxiously circulated , and which it was difficult for a single individual to refute . But let the Conference hear and mark

      the fact . There were about forty acres pared and burned , and when Mr O'Brien alluded to the allotments that got no manure , he had not the candour to tell you that pared and burned ground neither gets , ' nor wants , any manure but the ashes , which is the best of manure . He did not tell you that a half acre of Land was planted for each allottee with potatoes , andahalf-quarterofanacrefor each allottee was manured for cabbages and Swede turnips ; and he did not tell you that that quantity for each allottee was manured to an extent that

      astonished the farmers in the neigbourhood , that the potatoes were planted with the spade , and in the best manner , and that the ground for the cabbages and Swedes , besides being ploughed and harrowed , was all digged . He did not tell you that Very nearl y the remainder of each man ' s allotment was highly manured with ashes and guano , and sown with turnips , and that if the turnips were bad it . was because of the lateness of the season . He did not tell you that upon 110 acres of the Land that was not burned there was 1830 double horse-loads

      of the best manure—all stable and cow dungeither put upon the Land or behind the cottage upon each allotment . He did not tell you that there were nine tons of guano and hundreds of loads of ashes put upon the land or distributed amongst the allottees . Now what I assert , and I defy contradiction , is that there was not a farm in England in a higher state of cultivation , or more highly manured , than the Lowbands farm . And I state it in presence of those who saw it , and I defy contradiction . Why the dunghills were the talk of the country . " As to the 71 . lis . for the 200 days' work ,

      the calculation was too minute—it was something he could not grapple with . Then , as to Graham and his family being without shoes and stockings—it was a rank falsehood . Graham held four acres , and was a credit to his class . lie worked on Lowbands as a labourer , and when he came there he ( Mr O'Connor ) had to lend him six shillings , to buy a shovel and a pickaxe , and , to his credit be it spoken , he was almost the only man who did not get the loan money ; and he said , his rent was there whenever it was called for ; and when h . 2 saw him he was well-dressed , and his mother was

      well'dressed , and it was miserable to make these exciting statements , which were totally without foundation . " ¦ As to the proposition of Mr O'Brien— ' that one quarter of each allotment should remain in grass '—though a practical agriculturist , he appears to have lost sight of an important factj which is this—when I buy an estate , all the grass land is in a lump , and all the tillage land is in a lump ; so that I should find it rather difficult to , select an acre of grass out of four acres of stubble , or four acres of ploughed ground .

      "He would now deal with the assertion of 'Farmer Lee being obliged to pick stones off his land to buy coals / And if ever there was a malicious insinuation , this , he would prove , was one of the most malicious . Now , what was the fact 1 and it was a singular thing that he ( Mr O'Connor ) was , most providentially , in a situation to answer insidious statements which appeared to carry weight upon their face . Now , here was the fact . When he ( Mr

      O'Connor ) was at ; Lowbands . with Mr Crawford , in June , Lee brought them out to the roadside , and showed them a large heap of stones that he had gathered off the land , and said that the road surveyor had contracted to buy them , and he asked him ( Mr O'Connor ) what they were worth , observing , — ' You see that will pay some of the labour on the land . ' Now , he would ask , if there could be trumped up a more paltry , but apparently a more pathetic story ?

      ¦ " But now he would come to the real and the irrefutable position of a four-acre man at Lowbands ; and he felt assured that that Conference would be thunderstruck when they heard it , and then heard their complaints . The four-acre men had received 60 / . in hard cash . The allotments were cultivated in 1 & 47 , each had half an acre of potatoes , aud a portion planted with cabbages and Swede turnips . A large proportion of the remainder sown with turnips , and the remainder in the most perfect state for putting in wheat . In October , there were four bushels of wheat sent to each , from Minster Lovel , of the- very best description of seed , for a change . Mr Kershaw . —Only three .

      Mr O'Connor . —Well , three . I thought it was four ; but that was enough of seed for an acre and a half . They got two cwt . and a half of guano in bags . They had a quantity of dung behind their houses . They had fully a year ' s firing behind the cottage . Every allotment was divided by a French furze . hedge ,

      I«I«Wbi« M»*"» Ent> W» Vnrinwsi»Nov>Aj*»...

      and divided from'tntf foMby a French furzs hedge . There ' wasadon & terow of pear-trees and apple-trees , of the very best description , planted at each side of every road , and not one sixpence had been paid by any of them , and now they grumble ! ( Shame , shame . ) And now he would establish their character for industry . He would ask Mr O'BrieH whether it was true or false , that a number . of those French furze hedge-rows , which are tender , and require to he well weeded , are choked up , and smothered with weeds ? ' ' } i

      Mr O'Brien . —I am sorry to * cay , it Is too true , in many in » Jan « eB . -, ' . " ' < . Mr O'Connor . —Then , Good Go $ , is it not clear that nothing em be done for Ihose men r And is it not clear tJtat as one scaMyf sheep irifeefethe-whoh'Rocsgilhata & wdf'ritoseidh * ' fellows may throw disevedit' upon the- whole Plan ? And he begged to'remjnd the Conference that there were but a < few of the vermin , but that the vermin had tBe * ear of the enemy . He would now sum up the grievances of tlSo men ofLowhairds . The footfacre men l & e all others , had their ground highly cultivated , and highly raamwed , . Half am aore of potatoes , cabbages , and Swedes , almost ready for use—nearly a potiMa-week in m oney—thr ^ e bushels of the best seed wheat—tW bags and , a half ' of the b « 5 st guano—their ^ tenents divided with furze seed—a double row of apple ' and-pear trees planted—a house , rent freefirewood behind the- doe *; and two years crops —and not lone single fraction paid .- ( Loud cheers , } Now , then , w / wle in this state * . they ' were consulting amongst themselvea- as * to whether they should pay a * iy rent or not .- Thus scheming as- to how they should rob the

      uoor-. Mr O'Brien . —I deny thai * . They certainl y consulted an attorney about it . ( Laughter ;) Mr O'Connor . —Well , that looks sometlnng like it . But . what he told them and their attorney , and that Conference wasithat , under those circumstances , he would eject every maH who did not pay his rent ; and that Conference would bear this fact in mind—and it was ther great fact—that the danger to such a Company ) as that was the management of its affairs being entrusted to an individual , who , at the expense Of honour , would seek popularity by silencing the complaints of those who could be won and * kept silent by misapplying the funds of the Company to their use , while those who are unlocated were robbed and deceived . ( Hear , hear . ) In that consisted the strength of this Company , that he , who had the principal management of the monies , could always answer the . ' complaints of the growling by an appeal to his own integrity . { Hear , bear . ) It was a well known fact that Company ' s money w * considered a legitimate source of plunder for all ; but while he gave his own money , and his

      time lreely , he was economical—nay , stingy , of the monies of the poor ; and he would illustrate this from what he had done for some of the occupants at Lowbands . Before they were en ? titled to the Joan , he had lent one £ 14 10 s . of his own money , another £ 10 , another £ 5 , another £ 5 , and another £ o . One had honestly paid him the largest portion of the £ 5 he lent him ; another who never worked a day , got the Aid Money , the Loan Money , and £ & from him ( Mr O'Connor ) , and cut off to America . "Now , Gentlemen , in conclusion , I invite every man who has any—the slightest—complaint to urge to come forward and state it befpre this Conference , and I will answer it , not by sophistry but by facts ; ' while I apprise you that , henceforth , the rules [ you lay down shall be strictly abided by , as it is better that you should ride us , the Directors , with spurs , than allow us too much latitude ; and , notwithstanding all the odium thit has been cast , or attempted to be cast , upon this Plan by the rascals who have been most fortunate , and who have the servile Press at their command , I swear that I would rather have four acres of the Company ' s Land , at the Company ' s rent , than sit behind a desk or stand behind ' a counter at a salary of 41 . a week ; AndthosB idlers who want to sell , to sro back to the eric

      palace , will not understand that they themselves are depreciating the value of their owe property in the market . ( Hear , hear . ) Do not talk to me about the Small-Farm system ; 1 took five Members of Parliament to Lowbands in June . Mr Sharman Crawford , a practical agriculturist , was one of them . They were not only delighted but were astonished and amazed beyond measure , and such a sight of teeming abundance was never seen in England upon the same amount of land . But yet-I am chargeable with the potato rot and the wet harvest . Well , the same may be said of Snig ' s End , which some viper says was badlycultivated ; that , too , was like a garden in July , and , but for the potato rot , would have astonished even the occupants . Now , I trust I have satisfactorily and calml y replied- to every assertion of Mr O'Brien ' s and that this Conference will affirm it . ( Hear , hear . ) And . another word and 1 have done . It is- this , that those who sell now in this dreary month of November , when May-day comes will only be too happy to add what he can get within the time to whathe got , and to go bacfc- again to his allotment . ''

      Mr Kershaw , who appeared is a deputy from Lowbands , then made his statement . He said that it cost him 6 s . 9 d . for nails and gimlets for building his pig sties —that he had sold pigs to the amount of between 5 / . and 6 / . —that it had cost him 5 / . to buy coals to boil food for pigs—that he now had pigs for which he refused between 11 . and 3 / . —that hisharvest was yet unthrashed , and . that the allottees were in a miserable condition , and none of them could pay rent , and he has paid so much for seed and straw , and fire shillings for two pails , ' ' Mr O Connor ; " Thepositionof the Lowbands deputy is truly awful . I cannot say a word about the 6 s . 9 df ., it is very minute ; the money received for the pigs has , of course , gone to the stock of capital . He has over * jl . worth yst , and all his harvest , and he is not « ble to pay ( J / , rent j but as to the cost of seed , surely there never has been a failure in . any crop to tha extent that would not return ) the amount o & seed sown or planted . "

      Next came Mr Beattie , the deputy .- from Minster , who claimed 3 £ 15 s . above the Aid Money , for work performed upon hia allotment ; and this part of the proceeding is so interesting , that , although it occurred upon two separate days I shall give it coajatouously , not to break the thread . Mr Beattie gave & e most melancholy account of the condition of the allottees ^ at Minster , and especially of his own . He stated that his allotment had not been cultivated since the days of Adam ; that his privy had been raised by a flood ; that he had to employ seven mea to remove huge roots and stones ; and that he had expended all his Aid M *> ney , ' and > as now in a state of utter destitution- } that nothing had been done to his allotment , and that , he did not know what to do ,, f Continued to tic . Jftarlfc page , )

      .-. <¦ _... -• •- . ~ • ,R ¦¦; : - : V ¦...

      .-. <¦ _ ... - • - . ~ , ¦¦; : - : v ¦ y - ~ ¦ ' I .. ' , ' ... , . . ' - ,: | l

      ._ . , V Y , And Mtioml ;Tfiades' Journa...

      AND MTIOML ; TfiADES' JOURNAL . VOL . XI . No 577- LONDON , SATURDAYfKOVEMBM 11 , 1848 . ri ™ JSS ^ JST ^^ • ' . . - . : ¦¦ -.: ¦ - -- ¦ ¦ . ¦ : ¦ yrre-MuUMg * and sixpence per Quarter

      Glasgow Municipal Elecxson. Triumph Of M...

      GLASGOW MUNICIPAL ELECXSON . TRIUMPH OF mV CHARTIST CANDIDATE OYSR THE ISim . PROVOST AKft M . P . FOR G & ASGOW . On Tuesday last , Mr James Mol * at the reqaeat of a numerous tidy of ekctaiB , coasted the second ward agaicut Alexander Eaitie , Lord Provost , and Member of Parliament for Glwgow ; and although evory influence wai used , ar ^ j money lavishly ex * pended hy the honoarabla mewLr to secure Ma return , Mr Molr was plac ^ at th e head of the poll . At the close at four , o ' clock , the numbers were—Moir , 186 ; Gilmour , lft ; and Hastie , 100 . The return of oiy r t ; ld friend James Moir , has ? ivcn great satisfaction to ( he Chartists of Glasgow , and will be haUidwilh delight by the Chartists of England and Scotland generally .

      Ii K

      ii

      Prevaltrm^U^Mw^N Fi ^Vo^S^^E 'S>J J($ Un...

      « I vi mm ' 1 ^ iiU ^&^^ Hi

      Pbtmngton.—Cholera Still Prevaltrm^U^Mw^...

      Pbtmngton . —Cholera still prevaltrM ^ u ^ Mw ^ N fi and the neighbourhood . Last ^ Vo ^ S ^^ e ' S > J J ( $ curred—that of a Mr Robson , un ^ Sa ^&^ , <^ fi $ SS Three or four new cases have beefiTrM W ^^^ M' - - ? , nm of them with faint hopes of recove » . | - ^ - ¥ Z- ^ i ' - ** J *^ V b ^^ fe ^ Sl 3 Cove » . V- ^^ Z- ^ i- " * J * ^ W

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 11, 1848, page 1, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_11111848/page/1/