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,».. j 4 ... . . « .- THE NORTHER : N . ...
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. ___ va.om&s cooper, thscela&txst-s WORKS.
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THE iNORTHEKiN STAR. SATURDAY, MARCH 21, 1846.
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IRELAND. MURDER OF BRYAN SEERY. At a tim...
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THE TEN HOURS' BILL. Oil Wednesday next ...
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PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW. The dispute respec...
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THE POLISH STRUGGLE. " Freedom's battle ...
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Transcript
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
,».. J 4 ... . . « .- The Norther : N . ...
j 4 ... . . « .- THE NORTHER N . STAR . ^ * . * March 21 , 1816 . , , —1—^———— . —c a . K———————™—¦ " ***~——^——^ . » ip ^——i ^^—i ^^—^•* *********** * " ^^^^^^ ' ^ - —~ j" ^^ " * ^^ ! "i * 5 ** "i
. ___ Va.Om&S Cooper, Thscela&Txst-S Works.
. ___ va . om & s cooper , thscela & txst-s WORKS .
Ad00407
( To be bad of John Cleave , and all booksellers . ) Just published , price Is . TWO ORATIONS AGAINST TAKING AWAY HUMAN LIFE , UNDER any Circumstances ; and in explanation and defence of the misrepresented doctrine of "Son-Besstance . " * ( Deliv . red in the National Hall , Holbom , '' on the evening of Febnary 25 th and March 4 th . ) Chapman , Brothers , 121 , Xewgate-street .
Ad00408
A GOOD FIT WARRANTED . UESDELL AND CO ., Tailors , are now making up a complete Suit of Superfine Black , any size , for £ 3 ; Superfine West of England Black , £ 3 10 s . ; and the very best Superfine Saxony , £ 5 , warranted not to spot or clnrage colour . Juvenile Superfine Cloth Suits , 24 s . ; ttveries equally cheap—atthe Great Western Emporium , libs . 1 and 2 , Oxford-street , London ; the noted house for good blackcloths , and patent made trousers . Gentlemen can choose the colour and quality of cloth from the lareest stock inLondon . The ar t of catting taught . ^
Ad00410
COLOSSEUM .-NOTICE . -PBICE OF ' ADMISSION DURING THE HOLIDAYS !! "Day Exhibition q 8 " RA Evening Do , ; ' Children under Twelve is . Stalactite Cavvrns Is . extra . I tHE DAY EXHIBITION consists of the Museum of Sculpture , Grand Picture of London , Alhambra Conservatories , Gorg eous Gotliic Aviary , Classic Ifcins , Swiss Cottage and Mont Blanc , with Mountain-Torrent , Jfcc . ie . Open iroin Ten till Four o'Clock . EVENING . —The new and extraordinary Panorama of London btNwiit , Museum of Sculpture , Conservatories , and Gorgeous Gotliic Aviary , ie ., brilliantly illuminated ; Swics Cottage , Mont Blanc , and Mam-tain Torrent represented by Moonlight . Open from Seven till a Quarterpast Tea o'Clock .
Ad00411
DAGURREOTYPE AND CALOTYPE . THE APPARATUS , LENS , CHEMICALS , PLATES , CASES , and every other articl . used iu making aud mounting the above can be had of J . Egerton , No 1 , Temple-street , Whitefriarg , London . Descriptive Catalogues gratis . LEREBOURS celebrated ACHROMATIC TRIPLET LENSES for the MICROSCOPE , sent to any part ot the country at the folloniiig prices : —Deep Power , COs . ; Low Power , 25 s . Even- article warranted .
Ad00412
PATENT ENVELOPE . MORGAVS NEW PATENT ENVELOPE will be ready in a lew days . The Trade supplied with samples and prices , by applying to Mr . Youngiiusband , Royal Polytechnic Institution , Regent-street , London ,
Ad00413
EOTAL MARYLEBONE THEATRE . LESSEE , XK . JOHN DOCSLASS . LEGITIMATE Week . Second week of Messrs . Abel ! and Taylor with their wonderful Dogs . To commence on Monday and Thursday with " Macbeth . " Macbeth , on Monday , Mr . Howard , - Macbeth , on Thursday , Mr . Neville ; Lady Macbeth , Mrs . Campbell . On Tuesday and Saturday with " Richard the Third . " Richard , on Tuesday , Mr . Jtayner ; on Saturday , Mr . Howard . On Wednesday and Friday , "OtheUo . " Othello , on Wednesday , Mr . Bright ; Iago , Mr . Farrington . On Friday an entire change . To be followed , on Monday and Thur * day , by the ' Lucky Dog ; " ilumps , Mr . T . Lee . On Tuesday aud Saturday , " Drawn tor the Militia . " Billy , Mr . T . Lee ; Natty , Mr . W , Phillip . On Wednesday and Friday , the "Omnibus . " Pat Rooney , Mr . T . Lee ; Tommy Dobbs , Mr . W . Phillips . To conclude every evening will "Paddington One Hundred Ytars Ago , " iu which Messrs . Abel and Taylor , with their wonderful dogs , will appear . Stage Manager , Mr . Neville . Boxes , 2 s . ; Pit , Is . ; Gallery , Cd .
Ad00414
Just published , by the Executive Committee _ of the National Charter Association , Part I . of rriHE POLITICAL WORKS OF THOMAS PAINE ; X to be regularly continued until completed . This edition of the works of Paine has the merit of being the cheapest aud neatest ever offered to the public . It will consist of five parts , stitched in wrapper , at sixpence each ; aud will be embellished with abeautitul vignette of the author , engraved exclusively for this work . London : Cleave , 1 , Shoe-lane . N . B . Orders executed by T . M . Wheeler , General Secretary ; and by tbe various Sub-secretaries throughout the country .
Ad00415
FROST , WILLIAMS , AND JONES . A GRAND FESTIVAL , consisting of Tea , Concert , aud Ball , in aid of the Funds of the Exiles' Restora-, tion Committee , will be lield in the elegant suite of rooms atthe i ' AKTHE . viciM , 72 , St . Martin ' s-lane , Leicester-square on Toesdat , MarcU 24 th , 1816 . Tea on the table at Six o'Clock precisely . T . S . Boscombe , Esq ., M . P ., will preside . The Ball will commence at Eight o'Clock . Tickets to the Festival—Double tickets , 2 s . ; single , It . 3 d . To Ball and Concert only—Double , Is . ; single , 9 d . Tickets can be obtained at the following places : — Mr . Parks , Little Windmill-street ; Milne , Unionstreet , Berkeley-square ; Cuffay , 12 , Maiden-lane , Coventgardeu ; Harris , 21 , Henry-street , Hampttead-road ; Overton , 15 , Tabernacle-row , Finsbury ; Thorn , 2 , Prospect-place , Upper Barnsbury-street ; Parker , news-agent , Harrow-road ; Fuzzen , milkman , Margaret-street , YYilluiDgton-square ; Drake , Standard of 1 Jberty , Brick-lane ; Watts , Islington-green ; J , Shaw , 24 , Gloucester-street ,
Ad00416
PORTRAIT OF MR . O'HIGGINS . Wc have only this day received the portrait of Mr . O ' HigginF , which will be put into the engraver ' s hands without delay . Mr . O'Lliggins' trial is , we believe , to take place in the Queen ' s Lcnch about the 19 th of April ; and we hope to have the portrait ready by that time . Ail who have seen it admit it to be a most striking likeness . POLAND . A meeting of all parties sympathising with tho Poles , in their present glorious attempt to rid themselves of the triple despotism of Russia , Austria , and Prussia , will be held at the Crown and Anchor , on Wednesday next , the 25 th inst . All the democratic members of Parliament nnd other friends of the Polish cause have been invited , and are expected to attend . Admission free . Chair to be taken at hall-past seven o ' clock precisely .
The Inorthekin Star. Saturday, March 21, 1846.
THE iNORTHEKiN STAR . SATURDAY , MARCH 21 , 1846 .
Ireland. Murder Of Bryan Seery. At A Tim...
IRELAND . MURDER OF BRYAN SEERY . At a time when tbe virtuous press of England is lavishing its condemnation on the cold-blooded murders , not only sanctioned , but invited and provoked , by tbe Austrian Government in Gallicia , it is but right to turn attention to the more civilised murders committed in Ireland , under the sanction of law , and justified by the English press . What boots it to the Widow Seert whether she lost ber husband through the influence of blood-money , held out as a
temptation to the assassin , or to the necessity of offering up a Catholic victim to appease the fears of a murdering Protestant aristocracy ? Those who live by pandering to the most morbid passions and worst of feelings are always most ready to moralise upon tbe actions of others . They profess to shudder at wickcdnes committed a-far off , while they gloat over scenes of devastation which they themselves have provoked at home . There is a strong parallel between the case
of Poland and Ireland , as far as the government o * the countries is concerned , while , beyond all comparison , the physical condition of the Irish people , —not judging from their present , but from their invariable state of poverty—is much worse than that of the Polish serfs . But as the murder of an innocent man is the subject under our present consideration , we shall not launch into any general review of govern , ments or policy , but shall at once proceed with our subject .
It is admitted by all that religious feuds have been the main cause of Irish mis-government , and consequently of Irish distress . A kind of tacit compact appeared to exist between all classes of society , not excepting even the most rabid Orangeman , that sectarian differences should no longer distract the counsels of the State , and that theological disputations should give way to sound legislation . The rankling differences and irritating controversies
between Protestants and Catholics were being characterised by a less intensity oi angry feeling , and none seemed more to court this moderation , and to desire a cessation of hostilities , than thcZtmes newspaper ; but , fearful lest it had wounded and migh t kill tbe goose with tlte golden egg , it seizes upon a most infelicitous opportunity , not only to raise the cry of "No Popery" once more , but to widen that unfortunate breach between Catholics and Protestants which all seemed to deplore and every one
desired to arrest . Since Butax Seert was murdered , the Times has laboured hard at its vocation to defend his murderers , and , in its anxiety to justify the foul deed , has
Ireland. Murder Of Bryan Seery. At A Tim...
not shrank from the publication of the most atrocious and scandalous libels against the Roman Catholic clergy and the Roraai Catholic people of Ireland . It is not many weeks since it became our duty to analyse the legal defence set up "by the Times on behalf of its Protestant clients , when we showed that a desire to convict Seery had betrayed the writer into an exposure of his own legal ignorance ; and having since discovered that the question was now interesting to every Englishman with a particle of justice or humanity in his breast , that journal , en Saturday last , published the following atrocious libel against the Rev . Mr . Savage , the confessor of the murdered man , his twenty-nine coadjutors , and their diocesan , Dr . Cantweu ,. The following is the
letter to which we refer , and to which , and our comment thereon , we call the attention of our readers : — " Sir , —As a lover of truth aud justice , I enjoyed your manly and able defence of the proceedings in the case of the late Bryan Seery . I therefore think it due to the vindication of the administration of our law , the character of the jury , and , indeed , ot the unfortunate victim himself , for victim he was to the anti-Christian genius of Popery , to make you acquainted with what I have heard and believe to have been the real facts of the case . The statement respecting Seery ' s tenancy and subsequent settlement with Sir Francis Hopkins is true , aud the treatment
of the latter produced in Seery s mind respect and gratitude , but Scury was a llibandnian . The members of that , society take an oath oi implicit obedience to the committee or superiors ; and by reason of its being voluntary , and invested , as they suppose , with a religious hue , they esteem , it more sacred than any other obligation . Sir Francis Hopkins was tried , found guilty , and sentenced to death for some subsequent evictions of cottiers ; and lots were drawn amongst the parties supposed to be aggrieved at a meeting of tho . society ; the lot fell on Seery . iiis
companion , the second man at tlte offence , was appointed to see that he did not flinch , from his duty ; his own death and violation of his oath , which ho more abhorred , would be the consequence of refusal ; Seery , therefore , resolved to undertake the supposed duty , but , true to the lax morality and Jesuitical teaching of his pastors , resolved likewise to tire wide of the mark , which he accordingly did . This fact will account for the declaration , oft repeated , of bis innocence of the crime of which he was accused , namely , filing with intent to kill ,
" There can be little if any doubt that these facts are well known to Mr . Savage aud his diocesan , Dr . Cautwell , and the 30 priests who joined in the requiem to this ' innocent' victim . But what can be thought of the system that has so blinded the moral sense of these 30 persons—what of the spiritual tyranny that holds up as » martyr the victim whom they doomed to an ignominious death t » preserve their power over men's minds , and have an opportunity of libelling the laws and British institutions and connexion ? " I am , Sir , yours obediently , * "R . M . "
The above is characteristically signed " R . M ., " and which , we presume , means " Real Murderer . " We are justified in this supposition , because " R . M . " admits himself to be an accessory after the fact , and all accessories in murder are held in law to be principals . Now for a word of comment upon this letter ; this ruffian thinks it due to the vindication of the law , to the character of the jury , and INDEED TO THE UNFORTUNATE VICTIM HIMSELF , to make the Times acquainted with the facts . Sweet , amiable sympathy for the character of the unfortunate victim ! He says , " that Seery was a victim to the ANTI-CHRISTIAN GENIUS OF
POPERY . " We would a-k the Real Murderer , how many thousands of poor Seery ' s faith have been victims to the anti-christian genius of Protestantism ? In this advocate ' s attempt to defend Sir Fiunois Hopkins as a landlord , he is obliged to admit the fact , that several poor cottiers , as well as Seery , had been victims to this best of landlords . He then goes on to state , with minuteness , the manner in which Sir Frascis Hopkiks was doomed to death , and the mode in which the sentence was to be
earned into execution . lie says , " his companion , the second man at the offence , was appointed to see that he did not flinch from bis duty , his own death and violation of his oath , WHICH HE MORE ABHORRED , would be the consequence of his refusal . " Now , then , let us criticise those words , and let us take them in connection with a passage in a previous article in tho Times , to the effect that , after all , the law was of man ' s creation , and to the same agency the culprit looked for release . But . what will now be said or thought of tbe disregard sought to be attached to the dying words of a man to whom death
itself was preferable to the VIOLATION OF HIS OATH ? Can we suppese the most hardened wretch capable of preferring death to tho violation of his oath , and so tender of life , as to fire wide of his victim rather than at him ; so blunted in feeling , so depraved in heart , so regardless of a future State , and the consequences of dying with a lie upon his lips—can wc , we say , affix the sin of perjury to his God , to whom his last confession was made through his pastor , to one whom the Real Murderer has proved to have been so tenacious of an oath and so tender ot life ?
What a thread the sophist would hang his condemnation of Seert upon ! that his innocence was pleaded by his having fired wide of the mark , whereas he was charged with firing with intent to kill . The laxity in Seebv ' s morals is ascribed to the fact of his being a Ribandman , and the consequent necessity of complying with the laws of that association . Of this there is no proof ; we have the mere assertion , but we shall use it as an argument to refute the scandalous libel against the thirty Catholic clergymen and tlio Rev . Dr . Camweia . Now , it is a well-known fact , that the priesthood of Ireland have , almost to a man , set their faces against , and openly denounced , Ribandism , and ,
therefore , the tact of Seem- being a Ribandman would not only have diminished the sympathy , but would have aroused the suspicion ef Mr . Savage , and would have made him more scrupulous in his examination and preparation of the victim . We have asserted before , and we repeat it , that no Roman Catholic who has led the most depraved life has , in the last awful moment , when standing upon the brink o * eternity , withheld one , even the blackest transaction of that life , from his confessor . We have further added , that there is not an instance upon r ecord of a Roman Catholic clergyman expressing sympathy for one who has been adjudged to death upon clear and
unmistakeable evidence . And upon these two facts alone , apart from the illegal trial of Seery , the doubtful , contradictory , unsatisfactory , and conflicting evidence against him—the unconstitutional mode of trial , and the lucid , clear , and unequivocal evidence given in his defence , would of themselves purge our mind of all and every doubt of his innocence . It will be seen that an English Chartist barrister , who read the trial attentively and cautiously , has subscribed a pound for the relief of the widow and
orphans . "Will the Real Murderer say that he , too , is a victim to the lax morality of Popery , or that he wishes to see licensed barbarism supersede the constitutional laws of the country ? Ah ! it is well , it is philanthropic and Christian-like , to express a high sounding horror for the victims of aristocratic barbarity , while the national religion of an Irishman , which neither the terror of the most sanguinary laws , tho fear of the bayonet , nor the dread of the scaffold can change or destroy , is advanced as presumptive evidence against an Irishman .
As the Real Murderer has taken upon himself the office of Catholic censor , hits he ever taken the trouble to compare the cleanness of the Irish Catholic clergy , with the filth , the sodomy , the lust , the incest , the adultery , the drunkenness and depravity practically inculcated by the State Church priesthood of England ? If those things narrated by him with such p lausible precision and conciseness are so well known to him as to justify him in using them as the condemnation of Seery and the Roman
Catholic clergy , and in justification of Sir I ' iiancis Hopkins—if be knew that Seery was to have been the marksman , he also must know who the second in command was ; he must know ( or he must be a liar for stating what lie docs not know ) all about the mode in which Sir Francis Hopkins was doomed to die , and he is a murderer by withholding those facts from the public . He expresses anxiety to do justice to the character of the victim himself . Let him then , in justice to the character of Sir Francis Hopkins , ofthe jury , and of the oflended law , come forward
Ireland. Murder Of Bryan Seery. At A Tim...
and establish upon evidence what lie has dared to publish under the protection of secresy as to his name . The writer then proceeds with tho following atrocious libel against Dr . Cantweu . and the thirty priests who joined in the requiem to the murdered man ; and we assert , without fear of contradiction , that a more gross and scandalous libel never appeared in print , and that a jury of English Protestants , under the direction of Lord Ci-ief Justice Denman , would fiat our opinion by a verdict of Guilty against the libeller . He proceeds thus— " But what can be thought of the system that has so blinded the moral sense of these thirty persons—what of the spiritual tyranny that holds up as a martyr the victim whom they doomed to an IGNOMINIOUS DEATH , TO
PRESERVE THEIR POWER OVER MEN'S MINDS , and have an opportunity of libelling the laws and British institutions and connexion ? " We will add but a word to this climax—and what can be thought of the ruffian who professes a thorough knowledge of the circumstances interesting to all mankind , and who yet has the dastardly cowardice to withhold proof of them from the world ? Or wha * can be thought of a base and brutal press , which , under the protectionofan anonymous slanderer , would seek to fabricate facts to aid in the defence of the murderers of an innocent man . While the press of
the factious teems with libels upon the dead , ant ! those who would rescue their names from the world's censure ,- it shall be our task to take the mask ol hyprocrisy off the murderers , and to expose their hypocritical advocates to tho criticism of sound opinion and the punishment of self-reflection . This lust murder of an Irish Catholic shall not be hastily forgotten , nor shall English sympathy cease until English Chartism has established its first monument in Ireland , . by locating the widow and orphans in a habitation of their own , from which tyrants cannot drive them , or tyrants' laws eject them .
Tho people are too much in the habit of resting satisfied with the mere temporary expression of their horror of such deeds ; but if they will prevent their recurrence , they must seek justice in season and out of season , for every victim who falls by the hand of thu assassin , whether it be the Austrian bloodhound or the anti-Catholic Saxon law . No ! Seery ' s murder shall neither be forgotten nor forgiven ,
The Ten Hours' Bill. Oil Wednesday Next ...
THE TEN HOURS' BILL . Oil Wednesday next Mr . Fieidejt brings on his motion for a Ten Hours' Bill . A motion which , if properly understood by the working classes , aud unimpeded by free trade millowners , would b « looked upon by the nation at large as of paramount importance , even of greater importance than all the measures that have been discussed since the meeting of Parliament . It is strange that that portion ot the press which , when in ' opposition to government , made
advocacy ofthe Ten Hours' Bill a sine qwnon in the qualification of representatives , has now , since its adhesion to the Pew , administration and the Pml policy , become mute upon the subject , It is not less strange , however , that those of the working classes who profess a desire for its accomplishment , should anticipate more beneficial results from the canvassing of individual members , than from public exposure of the atrocities under the present system * and from appeal to the interests , if not the feelings , of the middle classes generally .
The Ten Hours' Bill delegates now in London would vainly hope to achieve their object without Chartist intervention ; and , believing tint victory is within their reach , they weuld deny participation in the glory to their Chartist brethren . We tell them , however , that every movement made in advance by Sir Robert Peel , every " bid" offered b y Lord John Russell , and every forward step taken by parties and public men , arc all so many confessions of Chartist strength — so many tributes to the undying perseverance , of Chartism ; nnd that from the Chartist body alone can emanate such an agitation , and such a direction of tho national mind , as can insure the success of any national project . It is true ,
that while they advocate peace and moral applianecs alone , that they have been denounced as destructives by a profligate press and by interested slanderers . It is true , that while they advocate temperance , they have been branded as drunkards . It is true , that while they deny the right of one man to interfere with the religion of another , that" they have been branded as infidels and Socialists ; and it is true , that while they are the creators of all wealth , and have , therefore , the greatest interest in its presei-r- ; tion , that they have been stigmatised as the de . stroyers of property . But , it is als ¦ true , that no party in the State , save the Chartist pavty ^ epreseuts the national mind of the country .
Why , then , upon this critical and all-important subject , seek to strip tho question of its fairest plumage , to denude it of its greatest strength ? We invited the country to elect a Convention to sit in London previous to the introduction of Mr . Fielden ' s motion , which would have bespoke the national will , but the Short Time Committee , in obedience to a paltry policy , and from a dread of running counter to the interests and prejudices of some free trade em . ployers , have hoped to confine this national flame within the precincts of free trade toleration . We tell them , as we have often told them before , that this is
a boon that must be forced from their fears , aud that will never be conceded by their love of justice . They boast of wealth , and can command ample funds to deluge the country with tracts , establishing the right , the justice , and tho propriety of the measure . Wc have furnished them ourselves with topics for volumes . Wc have brought the subject under its two most important heads , HESTRICTION and DISTRIBUTION , within the compass of the meanest understanding . We have shewn , which they may more familiarly illustrate , that this measure
would place LABOUR the PARENT , and CAPITAL the CHILD , in their just , their proper , and legitimate relation one to the other . That it would go far to relieve the real middle ckuses , the shopkeeping community , and small traders from the imposition of poor rates , police rates , and local legal expenses , now multiplied to an enormous amount by the cupidity , thu caprice , and injustice of leviathan capitalists , who direct and controul machinery for their own individual benefit , regardless of the hardship that their monopoly imposes upon their inferiors in wealth and station .
Wc have shown how the measure would strip the labour-market of its present idle reserve , and throw the unwilling idlers into honourable and emulative , instead of'disgraceful and injurious , competition in the labour-market . We have shown how the hours diverted from toil to mental improvement would advance the moral , and consequently the social and p hysical condition of the people . We have shown how the change would conduce to the moral elevation of the
wom en of England and the children of England , and wo have refitted the libellous assertion that the hours spared from toil would bo devoted to drunkenness and dissipation . But if wo want an argument that comes home to the mind of every man wko is compelled to sell his labour to another , do we require more than tho fact that Bright and the free traders , Fox and the pious preachers , with their tribe of hired lecturers and their prostitute press , are the sternest opponents of the measure .
Must net the continuance of the present svstom he considered of paramount importance to the owners ot machinery , when a pious Quaker will disgrace himself by the expression of wilful falsehood in the Senate-house to maintain it ? Wc have made a calculation which , if put forth to the world by the Short Time Committee , must have insured the co-operation of the middle classes in favour of a Ten Hours' Bill . We have laboured hard to prove , AND WE HAVE PROVED , that the unjust accumulation of an over , grown fortune by one man , which legitimately belongs to , and should be distributed among , those who have produced it , is an act of the greatest injustice to the shopkeeping community . And we have proved , that of all the interests most at variance , are those of
The Ten Hours' Bill. Oil Wednesday Next ...
the millowners and the shopkeepers . We have shown that # 0 , 000 a-year , divided amongst 2 , 000 individuals , would be mora profitably expended among the shopkeepers in a district , than the same sum usurped as the lion ' s shave by one employer . If ever there was a time when Parliament was ready to legislate favourably upon this subject , it is now ; and if ever the mind of the middle classes of London was ripe to hear argument upon the subject , it is the present ; when remission of labour in comparatively insignificant employmen t is demanded by shopmen and others , and acquiesced in by their empleyers .
Never was there so great a question preceded by such culpable apathy . The working classes , who now toil their very lives out , and bring on a premature old age , to be spent unheeded and uncared for in the loathsome bastile , should not lose the opportunity which even yet presents itself of backing the measure by their petitions . There is not a man who feels an interest in the restoration of Frost . Williams , and Junks , who should not feel an equal interest in the reduction of the hours of labour ; and on their behalf 3 , 000 , 000 of signatures were presented , with less than ten days' notice , to the House of Commons . The same number of signatures would secure a Ten
Hours' Bill , aud the working classes have yet from Saturday to Tuesday inclusive , four days , to aid Mr . Fielden in his struggle . If the time is lost , the fault will be theirs , not ours . For weeks past we have endeavoured to arouse the working classes to a sense of their duty upon the subject ; and if they fail in its performance the fault is theirs , not ours . Apart from all other considerations , wo wish for two hours spare time each day , in order that the factory slaves may have the recreation of visiting the freeman ' s habitations , which we hope to establish in their respective neighbourhoods , for contrast between the life of the slave and the free labourer .
Of this , however , we arc certain , that neither the dread of a government , the cupidity of employers , nor the timidity of tho labouring classes , can much longer withhold a measure which justice , morals , Christianity , humanity , and even common decency so loudly calls for .
Parliamentary Review. The Dispute Respec...
PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW . The dispute respecting the Oregon territory was formally brought before the House of Lords on Tinsday by the Earl of Claresdo . v who moved for the production of such portions of the correspondence between the Foreign Office and our Minister at Washington , as the Earl of Auerdees might think it consistent with the public weal to Jay before Parliament . The tone of the speech by which this motion was introduced was worthy of a sthtesman of a powerful country , which deprecates , but dv . es not fear , a war ; and which , though prepared to take any
reasonable step by which the enormous evils which must ensue from hostilities between two such countries as England and America may be averted , is , at the i-arae time , fully determined to maintain its own rights and dignity against all unjustifiable claims , or unwarrantable aggressions . The whole conduct of this country , with reference to this dispute , contrasts most favourably with that of America , and we make the confession with no small mortification . It is painful to us to see the greatest Republic of ancient or modern times imitating the worst features of monarchical brigandage . The history of the Old World is
full of the misery , crime , and bloodshed which have arisen from the all-grasping covetousness of its rulers , and their attempts to seize upon the territories o ' others . One would have thought tiiat at this time of day the people and the statesmen of the New World would not have had to learn the Jesson , that the wellbeing of a nation does not so much depend upon its territorial extent as upon the just administration of wise and equitable laws , and the maintenance of institutions calculated to secure internal ptosperiiv and comfort . Tbe " earth hunger" by which our transatlantic neighbours are devoured , is all the more
lamentable when it is recollected that of the immense territory already in their possession , how large a portion yet lies unreclaimed from the primeval wiklness of nature , or is but scantily inhabited by the haidy backwoodsmen , the first pioneers of civilisation . In their yet unsettled boundless prairies , and dark forests , they possess the means of locating a poyulatikm equal in amount to that of the great empire of the East ; and a quarrel for a few thousand moie acres of soil , which can only be reached by traversing a dreary , and in some places an almost impassable desert of upwards of two thousand miles , seems not only utterly unreasonable , but ol the most deplorable description . Lord Clakk >; don powerfully put the position assumed by England in
this unhappy dispute , when he said , that in proposing to submit the whole question of our claims to arbitration , we had given the best proof to the world that we had advanced none , in the justice of which we were not able to contide ; and that , however confident we were in the belief that these claims weie well founded , wo were at the same time so little dtsirous of obstinately adhering to them , that wc were quite willing to have tho whole case submitted to an impartial tribunal . That the government of the United States will persevere in rejecting this offer of arbitration , appears to us , as was well expressed by Lord Clarendon , "Amoral impossibility , for there could not be found in the records of any nation an act more wicked than that two countries bound together by the strongest reciprocal ties , should , owi . no
TO tlin Htifm \ hQEVEnr PEACEFUL OFFtf-h ** o . m : of ihkm , go to war about an almost unoccupied territory , the whole value of which could not compensate for one single montli of war and its evils . " This is the tone which we could have wished to hear the Democracy of the New World speak on such a question , thereby showing to the old monarchies that Democracy is identitttl with " peace on earth and goodwill towards men ; " and leading on by moral example the other nations of the earth to the adoption of those political principles and institutions which practically vest the government in the hands of the whole people , substituting the rule of the Many for the despotism of the Few .
The firm but conciliatory speech of Lord Cunr . snos drew forth a cautious but equally temperate reply from Lord Aberdeen , who said that , believing war was the greatest calamity that could befall a nation , and the greatest crime generally that a nation can commit , every effort consistent with national honour would be made to avert it . He entertained a strong hope of bringing tho matter to a satisfactory conclusion ; and if , unfortunately , this was not the case , he was determined that not only should the entire people of this country acquiesce in the propriety of the war , but that our proceedings should be of that conciliatory , just , and moderate character , which would secure tho sympathy and approbation of . every - , tate in Europe , and ofthe whole civilised world .
On Wednesday the Fever Bill , introduced by Sir Jamks Graham , was discussed , and a strong representation its to the necessity of a Poor Law for Ireland , upon the principle of the statute of Elkabeth , was mado by Mr . Wam . ky . Such a law would make the support of the destitute fall where it ought to doupon the laud and property of Ireland . It is the first duty of property to find employment ; and when it fails to fulfil this duty , it devolves upon the State to compel its discharge . Let tho landowner know , that as often as he gives a tenant notice to quit , he is
adding one mote to the roll of out-door ciiiploymci . t-, or relief by the parish , the rates to pay for " which must conic out of his pocket , and he will become more chary in his evictions , more solicitous of finding the means of profitably employing those whom he must keep either in active industry or forced idleness . Still , though we agree with Mr . Wakut that the employment and feeding ofthe people bv means li their own industry , thus called into exercise by a perception on the part of the owners of property that it is for their interest that the people should k
industrious , not idle , and wmswinonfl ,. , \ a ^ w . u industrious , not idle , and consequentl y destitute wc cannot refuse to the bill ofthe government our anprobation , so far as it goes . In itself , it is not sulii cient for the exi gencies of Maji , ] . but , taken in
Parliamentary Review. The Dispute Respec...
connection with other measures introduced for the relief of Irish suffering , and the tone of government on Irish questions generally , we accept it as an omen of better days , and better legislation for that unfortunate and ^ oppressed country in future . If there ia anything which we could wish to see . added to the tfever Bill , it would ; be a clause extending to operatives in England and Scotland . Typhus is a perennial plague in all our
great cities , and annually kills more persons than all that fell by the slaughter of Waterloo . Of the misery , destitution , orphanhood , and widowhood which it causes , few can have any conception , who have not practically examined the districts in which it commits its ravages . The attempts to arrest these ravages ought not to be left to individual charity , but be undertaken by the State , which should institute not only curative but preventive
measures . Since last week the Protectionists have recovered their courage , and instead of making speeches , which , like the passages in old houses , lead to nothing-, have followed up their opposition by divisions upon the silk , brandy , cattle , and other items in the new tariff . Another great battle is promised by Lord G . Bentinck upon timber . In every case the Protectionist party have been beaten by varying majorities ; although , we certainly think , that in tho
case ot silk the decision was one of numbers , and not of argument . The facts adduced by Mr . Baskes , and Mr . BuocKLiiiiUBST , one of tho largest manufacturera in the country , as to the effects of free trade upon the wages and comforts ofthe operatives employed in the silk trade , were , in our opinion , but slenderly met by the vague generalities of Sir Geo . Clerk and Sir R . Peel . Indeed , some ef the free traders themselves admitted that there were circumstances connected with this trade which almost called for its exemption from their favourite system .
But , for the time being , the star of Free Trade is in the ascendant . Its doctrines are the mania of the hour , * and the Premier , backed by the League , the Whigs , and the 112 Conservative gentlemen , who , as Mr . D'Israeli sarcastically says , " have become the regenerators of their country by changing their opinions , " hears down all the opposition of his quondam friends . Their courage under these circumstances is really wonderful ; the dogged obstinacy with which , night after night , they keep up their un » availing struggle , though wearisome , is thoroughly English in its character , " Even though vanquished , they can argue still . "
The Polish Struggle. " Freedom's Battle ...
THE POLISH STRUGGLE . " Freedom ' s battle once begun , Bequeathed by bleeding sire to son , Though baffled oft , is ever won . "—Uteox . Poland breathes , even struggles- —there is life and hope yet . Though Cracow is lost , and some hundreds of additional martyrs sleep in their bloedy shrouds , we cannot despair of Poland ; no , nor yet even ofthe ultimate success ofthe present struggle .
In our latest edition of last Saturday ' s Star we gave publicity to a document purporting to be an " Address of * the Polish Committee to the British People . " We published that address , not because we approved of it , but because wo desired to publish all that related to the Polish struggle , and especially all that the Poles might have to say for themselves . It would have been well , however , had that address never seen the light . It has been " a heavy blo * and sore discouragement" to the friends of Poland .
In their address , this " Polish Committee" say , " Poland is in arms . She is in arms , not for the sake of any wild theories of government , hut for the sake of that which is admitted to be a right hy every reasoner , and felt as an instinct by every mannational existence . She is in arms , not for the purpose of replacing one form of government by unother but for the sake of freeing herself from the dominion of foreigners . " Now , once for all , let us tell this " Polish Committee , " that if Poland is in arms merely for the sake of nationality , such a cause will not meet with the sympathy of the great mass oi the
British people . We desire the restoration of Poland ' s nationality , because we believe that restoration to be one of the necessary means to the great end of Poland ' s regeneration . But the mere nationality or Poland—that is , the substitution of the tyranny of Polish aristocrats for the tyranny of Nicholas , Fkumxasd , and Frederick William , has none of our sympathy . We war against systems rather than men ; wc only war against men , when , as the supporters of bad systems , they render their own destruction necessary in order that the systems they support may be destroyed . Tyranny is tyranny all
the world over , and if the mass of the Polish people are to be trampled on , it matters little whether their tyrants are Poles or Russians . The " Polish Committee" repudiate " wild theories of government . ' - ' This is the cant always employed by aristocrats to conceal their hatred of justice . We know what this language means . The Cracow manifesto proclaimed the abolition of all privileges , universal citizenship , tiie destruction of class property in hind , the right of every man to tlte products of his own industry and fraternity with all men . These , according to the "Polish Cuhimittce" in London , are all " wild
theories . " Under the guise of invoking British , sympathy , they have isjueii a counter-revolutionary address , which can hardly fail to injure the cause of which they are tho professed champions . But , who are the men that compose this " Polish Committee ? '' ]);> they really represent the Polish emigrants residing iu England ? Nat at all . They are but a faction and a fraction of the Polish emigration . They arc the Kim-Adamites , or partisans of Prince CzABTOttYs-w , who wuU to Lmgose akinuon Poland They arc but a fraction of the emigration , both in France and England , ami their sentiments are
abhorred by the great mass of the emigrant Pclos who are democrats . Ym if « , , ft mav * , < . A ^ i } mj have not the democratic Poles replied to the counterrevohittounry addivssof the "Polish Committee ?" Because , under present circumstances , such a reply would have a bad eflUt ; it would exhibit disunion amongst the Poles themselves , which would be fatal to their cause . We , tkretorc , think that t ! , R , ii 3 h de maci-ats hare acted wisely and disereetiy in abstaining at present Irom pretesting against the sentiments ot the live aristocrats calling themselves the " Polish Comtuittee . "
A few words more to the King-Adamites , ami WC have done with the ,,, -fiiac they , a small minority of lhe emigration absent from Poland , should go « i agi the faive of electing a king for their eountrym , , is J , " a-iWest theory" „ f government wc ever h ,: il d ti . lof . Wc saw recently that Prince Czar-TohuAI . md abdicated hi 3 pretensions to the throne of lo-auu . Ik so doing he acted diwreetlv , and we advise his partisans not to attempt to induce their chief to rcsunui the pretensions he has laid aside . Let them , with becoming modesty , leave it to the Polish people to choose their own " govern , mens , which , we doubt not , will be a government based ou the great principle of the Cracow ma- iifcato —justice to all , privilege to none !
Wc said at the commencement ofthis article that wc did not- despair of thu success , even ofthe present struggle . That the Russian , Austrian , and Prussian Despotisms are conspiring to prevent Western Europe being iufontiedof thu fads of the struggle is very evident . The German papers publish only the news supplied to them by the gnvernnicutofncials , under the jealous supervision ofthe censorship . The Prussians and Austrian * have established a- double lino Ot troops along the whole of the frontiers , so that the news-gatherers for the French and English journals can k' -mi . little or nothing of what is passing . One thing is certain , that a large body of the patriots have entrenched themselves in the defiles of the
Carpathian mountains ; they are snid to number throe thousand , but it is probable that they are afc h-ast double that miiuber . L ) the Carpathian moun « tains they areiu communication with Gallicia on the one side , and Hungary on the other , in both of which the materials of rcvolttt ion ab-iund . The Carpathian mot-ntr-ins are full of uiilicult passes and defiles , and i lie I ' mes may hold out for almost an indefinite pw'iijil . It must be evident that hut a slight success
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), March 21, 1846, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_21031846/page/4/
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