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Mat 25. 1848. "THE NORTHERN STAR, 7
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Cottos MjiTiOTACTCRES. —(From the J/ancnesfer
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STRIKE IN THE BUILDING TRADES. (.From th...
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DUNDEE FACTORY GIRLS. DufTOKE May ll—The...
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ARBROATH SHOE MAKERS STRIKE. FitEsii Dis...
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Pedestrianism.—On Tuesday the half-mile race
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foreign fflobtmmte.
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" And I will war, at least in words, (An...
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" I think I hear a little bird, who sing...
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EASTERN EUROPE AND THE EMPEROR NICHOLAS....
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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.
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Speech Of B. D'Israeli, Esq. M. P., Agai...
rtni country which render such a measure as this neces-_ jytOOur continued well-beimj , and which authorizes S [ tli a change as is now proposed . If we are a COmmer . j j and manufecturing people , and if commerce is flourishing , why should not manufactures be prosperous ! jlaww it has been said , and may be said again , what gjgnjfies agriculture in a country essentially commercial -nd manufacturing ? But now I come to the parties « h 0 arelikely topattheseqnestJon ^ and who hav e been o ppesedto us in the course of this struggle . I find a tody of men eminent for their eloquence , distinguished ibr their energy , and more distinguished for their enersy and . their eloquence than for their knowledge of human natare or their acquaintance with puliticat science . I am no t one of those who have ever speken disrespectful ! ofttotbodyofmea ; 1 see in them a great commercial confederation , exercising a great influence « ver their
fellow-subjects . Although I disapprove of their doctrines , yet the same liberty of speech to which all o ther men are entitled , must . not he denied to them . Although I disapprove of their doctrines , I admire the men who , possessing their ability , and who , filling a private station , yet proud of their om energy , banded themselves together for the purpose ot accomplishing a great , and , what appeared to them a laudable object . Although they seemed to me to take only a onesided view of the question with which they undertook to fltal , jet I never could forget that they were engaged iu tbe promotion of a great cause , and I should be the last to say that they are not entitled to the public rtspect . This country « xists by free discussion . If any man supposes that opinion can he put down otherwise than by free discussion , he makes a very great mistake , and he attributes to the invasion of our liberties . If the And-Corn Law League be pernicious—if its doctrines be deleterious—if they lead to confusion—if they he adverse to the interests of a free country—if Hurt be a party iu this
country whe thought all this , and " who thinking it prenared to resist that vast confederation by similar energy by active organization , by intellectual power , and who also devoted themselves to that which they believed to he just and right , what hope would there be for the country if they did possess an able advocate ; bat finding one in whose ability they placed confidence , and whose integrity they never for a moment doubted , and finding him , they found with him those who not only accepted tbe trust of guiding this great party , hnt eagerly sought for the possession of that trust . ( Loud cheers J The following body—they who were represented by these elected chiefs , or those rather who assumed to be leaders . —the represented body , I say , naturally slept at their posts ; it was not for us to come forward . But even if we had come forward we did not possess the organization which is calculated to impart that confidence to others which would enable us to meet hostility ; instead of that we trusted to others . ( Much cheering . ) "We trusted that others who accepted and challenged the position of our leaders would protect anriatsrests and carry out otzr views . Sat what
happens ! Therighthon . baronet told his friends during the present session that he bad on previous occasions given them very many significant hints . He told us that even so far back as last year , Lord Grey had fonnd him out ( loud cheering ) : and the ri ght hon . baronet seemed surprised to find that people could have been so long mistaken in him . But these observations do not apply to me . I was not quite so late as others in making the discovery . Two years ago he rose and appealed to me as a Protectionist ; but I thought then , aud 1 said so too , that protection was , in 1 S 44 , pretty nearly in tlie same state tbat Protestantism was in the year 1 S 3 S—some of my friends were at that time quite indignant at my saying any thing of the sort , hut they are now good enough . to acknowledge that this instead of being a calumny was only a prophecy , and the right hon . haronat may now congratulate himself
on the complete success with which he has entirely dereived his parry . ( Cheers . ) Even the noble lord the member for Xynn , in a moment of frank conversation , assurred me that he trusted in the right hon . baronet , because he btjiered tiiat lie could make tlie best barrain for the Protectionists ; and he assured me further that it was not until the last moment that he entertained the least doubt respecting the intentions of the right hou . bar t . He thought ourl-.-ader , as he then was supposed to b * was about the Important work of making the best bargain that unier the circumstauees could be hoped for ; bathi time there seemed tube somegrouud for suspicion , and doubts arofe as to whether or sot he was likel y to make the best bargain . Do honourable geafcemen now think that he has made the he ? t possible barg iin for us ? ( Cheers . ) Suddenly the absolute truth eaine out , and
the discovery of it seemed to confound every one who sits in this part of the house , if I except the humblest of the number . At last ihe announcement was made , aud it was regarded as a social revolution ; auu what were the circuEistaiices under which it was made ? Were hon . gentieinfrn called together ; was there any thing like an aKtmblageof ihe members of both houses , or of cither house of Parliament ? Xo , the aanounccm ^ nt was made ia she columns of a public journal—there it was made for tlie first time . It is well known that that journal is cartful never to insert intelligence of importance iscept apsn the highest authority . ( Cheers . ) The effect of this anuoucement upon foreign Courts aud upon foreign JUaisters was indeed remarkable . I happened to !)• -
abroad at the time , ; mG I can bear witness ; o the eU .-cts which it prodnctd . Foreign potentates seat to English AiKbassadors ds : nan 3 iag aa explanation . There were Ambassad-jrs cailinzj upun grraipotentates , and assuring tli = ja that then ; was n-ta uvrd of truth la the slals- 'jaenr-( llrar , hear . J Hzaibi-rs of the government were ioumi callkiguvHju other nearspai-rcrs , and prevailing ou them to Slate that the first announcement was ; iuthiug Iml aniin-JO-ient fal-rie ^ tlou ( Hear , hear ; ; afro-many negotiations the oir . nip jirni minority of the Cabinet prevailed , but not nuta severs ! ilachiaveilian manteuvres had been tried , and Cabinet ifrtr Cal-iuet had bct-n formed andieforsaed : and then , after all this the rig ht hon . baronet acts as if we had Jvsti tedium . ( Hear . ) Who can forget-his toae —who can former his indignant glance .
" Veclaborhumeris tunc ego in ' . miciseques ilweque terra cedit insolenliie ;" which is to say that a protection . Minister means to govern Sj ^ la ud aiih the aid of the Anti-Corn Law League , and as for the country gentlemen , they may snap thtir fingers . ( Chetrs and laughter . ) But it appeared to me even then that the right hon- gentleman had no cause to complain of iris party . It is very true , that on a subsequent oscas ; oni' 4 t > gentle 33 en recorded their sense of his conduct ; bat he might have remembered that a considerable section of them were converted and obtained at the last loir . ( Hear , hear . ) Why , what a compliment it was to a iGuisrvr , not oi * Iy to vote € <* r Iiim , but u ^ voce agaiust Sien- « wn opinions and in favour of opinions which ha lad always drilled them to oppose ! ( Ecar , hear . ) It tris a scene , I brieve , unprecedented in the House of
Cuausons . Indeed , 1 recollect nothing equal to it , - cnl-ssitbetbeconversion of ihs Saxons by Charlemagne . Ihat is the only historical incident which hears any resemblance to that illustrious occasion , ( llinewedcheers and laughter . ) The Sasons turned from the banks of tbe HWne , determined to resist by every means tlie movements oi the army « f the great Caesar ; but when the aaperor himself appeared in person , instead of con-< jaeriiig them , he con * -erted them . And how did he convert ibetn ? Why , he converted them in battalions , and baptized ihem in platoons . It was utterly impossible to iaing tbeia iu from a siate of reprobation to a state of S * 3 cesv 3 : 5 , a celerity sufiicientjy quick . ( Loud dicers .. ) Vfc « B l Saw hi ? m followers , rank and file , I was irresistibly reminded in a moment of the incident On the banks oi the Khine . And now I must say a word iu
vindicationof therighthon . baronet . ( Laughter . ) I think that sreat injustice lias swen done to him throughout the debate ; that a jusafiaWe misconception has unirersally prevailed respecting the right hou . gentleman . He has been accused of a long meditated deception , of a desire worthy of a great stat & uaau—even of an unprincipled one ~~ to giv ^ all the opiuious by wfridilic xose to jH * Wer- I ac ( luittherighthon . giaiilcman of any such intention , and J < ¦' <> s « for this reason , that when I examine the career of tsie Minister who now fills a great space in tlie Pat liamentiry history of this country , I see that between 30 and 40 Iters , from the days of Ilerucr down to the days of the ian . mzxaver fur Sjiviclijiort , tlie rlglit uon . ger . tleina ; i lias tKS'lrdvutheMras and intellects of others . ( Cheers . ) His B ' e has b ^ en a great appropriation clause . ( Kcuentd Caters r . nd laughter . ) He ha ; been the Burglar of others
intellects . Op-rn the index , of lieatson , and from the days 01 the Conqueror down to the termination of last reign y « . a will find no statesman who has committed petty larceny on so great scale . ( Cheers . ) Ibtlieve , therefore that when tlu ; right hen . gentleman . undertook our cause On either side cf the house he was perfectly sincereiu his advoiaev . But as in he course of the < iiscussion the conventionalities he had imbibed crumbled away from his grasp , feeling no creative -power to sustain him with new ar , rumeuts fteiing no spontaneous sentiment to force upon him conviction ; the right hou . gentltmuu was reduced at last to defending the noblest cause , based on tlie highest principles , the right hon . gentleman , faithful to tlie law of his nature , embraced tlie new doctrines , the mure vigorous , life-like , popular doctrines of free-trade , lust as he had embraced the doctrines of Horner ; just
as he had embraced the doctrine of every leading man m this country for the last 30 or 40 years , with the exception of the doctrine of Parliamentary reform , which the " wlugs wisely kept as their own , and did notallow to xrow to suhident maturity to fall into the mouth of the right hou . gentleman . ( Lond cheers . ) The right hon . gentleman tells us he daes not feel humiliated . It is impossible for any one to know what arc the feelings of another ; feeling depends in a great measure npon temperatvment ; it depends upon the idiosyucracy of tlie individual ; it depends upon the organization of the animal that feels . ( Laiuhter . ) But I tell the right hon . gentleman , that although he may not feel humil i sted , tlie country ought to feel humiliate j . ( Loud cheers . ) In place of the selfcouiuiaecncy of a great nation—hi place of the justifiable prided Englishmen i . i one who from his position has contrived to occupy the highest rank amongst his
felloivcitizens , it is felt , as Dean Swift said of another Minister , that he is a gentleman who has the perpetual misfortune to be mistaken ; and even now in this , the last scene of the drama , when the party whom he unintentionally betrayed and unintentionally annihilated—even now at the last scene , the right hon . gentleman , faithful to the law of his being , is s « mg to pass a project , which I believe it is maiier o ? notoriety Is not of his own Inventl-n j one which may have been somewhat modified , but which I believe , was in substance ottered lo another Government and by that Government wisely rejected . ( Hear , hear . ) The first day after the rLj ht hon . gentleman made his exposi . lion to this house , a gentleman well known to the house , and learned in all the political secrets behind the scenes , met me . and said . " WSat do you think of your chief ' s Shut 2 I ssid I did avi lawv exactl y what to say about
Speech Of B. D'Israeli, Esq. M. P., Agai...
it , but , to use the phrase of the hour , I supposed it was a great and comprehensive plan . ( Laughter . ) "Oh , " he replied , " we know all about it ; it is not his plan at all . UUPopkins ' s plan . " ( Roars of laughter . ) And , Sir , is England to be governed and convulsed for Popkins ' splan ? Will he go to the country vfith it ? Will he appeal to the people upon such a plan * Will ht ap . peal to that ancient and famous England which was once ^• verned by statesmen sueh as Burleigh and Walsimj ham , Boltngbrakt and Walpole , Chatham and Canningwill he appeal to England on a fantastic scheme of tome presumptuous pedant * 1 will not believe it . ( Cheers . ) I have that confidence in the common sense and common spirit of ray countrymen to believe that they will no longer endure the huckstering tyranny of the treasurv
bench , or of the political pedlar who bought his party in the cheapest market aud sold them in the dearest . ( Laughter and cheers . ) I knew that there are men who tell me that the time is gone by when we may appeal to thehigh and honourable impulses that were once tho mainstay and main element of the English character . I know that we appeal to a people who have been debauched by public gambling , and who have been stimulated and encouraged by an inefficient and shortsig hted Ministry . I know that the public mind has been filled to intoxication with schemes by which the peop le might become rich , without the interference of industry and toil . I know , too , that all confidence iu public men is lost ( Hear , hear . ) But I have faith in the primitive enduring element of English character . ( Cheers . ) It
may be that now , in the midnight of their intoxication , they will not heed me , but I tell them that there will be an awah . nin . c , and in the spring tide of their frenzy warn tliem of the end of trouble . That dark and inevitable hoar will arrive , and per haps they wUl then recur to those principles which made England great , and which , in my opinion , alone cm keep England great ; and i t may chance that they « ill remember , not with unkindn « c , those who , betrayed and deserted themselves , were neither ashamed nor afraid to struggle for the good old cause ; the cause associated with principles the most popular , sentiments the most entirely national ; the cause of labour , the cause of the people , the cause of England . ( Thehon . member resumid his seat amidst applause which lasted fully two minutes . )
Mat 25. 1848. "The Northern Star, 7
Mat 25 . 1848 . " THE NORTHERN STAR , 7
Cottos Mjitiotactcres. —(From The J/Ancnesfer
Cottos MjiTiOTACTCRES . —( From the J / ancnesfer
Examiner . )—fhe following is an account " of the total quantities and declared value of cotton manufactures , entered by the yard , exported from the United Kingdom , in each year from lSLt to 1845 , both inclusive : " Quantity Declared Value . Yards . £ 18 H ... 192 . o 40 . 825 ... 16 , 480 , 750 JS 1 S 2 " . i ? , SS 4 , 029 — 1 S . 15 S . 172 181 G ... 189 , 263 , 731 ... 12 . 303 , 079 1317 ... 23 S , 9 S 7 , CC 9 ... 13 . 475 , 534 ISIS ... 255 . 331 . 695 ... 15 , 708 . 183
1810 ... 202 , 514 , 052 ... 11-714 , 507 1820 ... 250 . 956 , 541 ... 13 , 209 , 000 1821 ... 266 , 495 , 301 ... 13 , 102 , 904 1822 ... 304 . 4711 , 091 . . . 13 . 853 , 954 1823 ... 301 . 8 IC . 2-54 ... 12 . 980 , 644 1824 ... 344 . 651 , 133 ... 14 , 448 , 255 1 S 25 ... 336 . 406 , 698 ... 14 , 233 , 010 1 S 2 G ... 2 G 7 , 0 C 0 , a 34 ... 9 . SGS . 623 1827 ... -3 C 5 , 492 , S 04 ... 12 , 948 . 035 1 S 2 S ... 363 , 328 . 431 ... 12 , 483 . 249 1829 ... 402 , 517 , 197 ... 12 , 516 , 247 1830 ... 444 , 578 , 498 .. . 14 , 119 , 970 1831 . . . 421835 303 ... 12 . 163 . 513
1832 ... 461 , 045 . 503 ... 11 . 500 , 630 1533 ... 496 , 352 , 096 ... 12 , 451 . 060 1534 ... 555 , 703 , 809 ... 14 , 127 , 352 1835 ... 557 , 515 , 701 ... 15 . 181 , 143 1536 ... 637 . ( 167 , 627 ... 17 , 183 , 167 1537 ... 531 , 373 , 603 ... 12 , 727 , 989 1535 ... 630 . 077 , 622 ... 10 , 304 , 733 1 S 39 ... 731 . 450 , 123 ... 16 , 378 , 445 1840 ... 790 , 031 . 997 ... 16 , 302 , 220 1841 ... 751 , 125 , 624 ... 14 , 955 , 810 1842 ... 734 , 098 , 809 ... 12 , 887 , 220 1 S 43 , „ 918 , 640 , 205 , „ 15 , 168 , 464 1814 ... 1 , 046 , 070 , 823 ... . 17 , 612 , 146 1845 ... 1 , 031 , 686 , 069 ... 1 S , 0 J 9 . S 08
The Mokmox Emigration . — The Momioms of Nauvo !> are fairly e » roufe for California . They have all left their old residence , and at the last accounts were just crossing the head waters of the Chariton river , about . 150 miles west of Sanvoo . A Locofoco paper has been established at Nanvoo since their departure , and contains some very interesting items of intelligence conceraing the progress of the expedition , and the general prospects of the country . I * states , on the authority of a gentleman travelling with the company , that everything has gone on well , that the pariy is in good health , and the grand caravan moved slowly , hnt peacefully . Their progress lias been materially retarded by " the want of fodder for their live stack ; the grass not having fairly started , reduced them to the necessity of labouring
for hie farmers on the route , to supply the deficiency . They travel in detached companies , from five to ten miles apart , and , in point of order , resemble a military expedition . The editor of the Hancock Eagle , the paper referred to , says that he visfstcd the camp before it broke up . It was in the rigorous weather of February , and the tents were blockaded by snowdrifts ; vet the scene seemed cheerful and animated . From appr . irances he thought it certain that they would f nfivr ni-ist severely before reaching their destination . It was the intention of at least some of the companies to halt in the valley of the Sweetwater river , and put in a crop for the subsistence of themselves and others who mav fellow . Numbers were on
their way from the eastern states to join the expedition . The same pnper snys , that in the whole town of Xaavoo it would b >! impossible to purchase a drop of ardent spirit ! 2 fo drinking , gambling , or any similar vice had ever been introduced there , though , as a new class of emigrants was-pouring in to take the place of the Mormoms , it seemed altogether probable that they wonld bring with them the aceompaninients of " civilization . " The Temple was for sale , and a wealthy bachelor gentleman from the south had arrived , with the intention of purchasing it . His object , it is said , is to convert the Temple into an asylum for destitute widows and orphans , and to purchase lands and town lots , and endow it out of the rents or" the same .
Shipwrecks . —During the last few days the following serious losses have been made known at Lloyd ' s , the information involving the total wreck of three American traders , and the destruction of a large ship , supposed to be an Indiaman , by fire . Foremost on the list is the wreck of the Trinidad , while on passage to Liverpool , from St . Andrew ' s where she belonged . She had a general cargo on board , and had " every prospect of a quick passage , when suddenly she sprung a leak , which the crew found impossible to stop , and they took to the rigging , where they remained for three days ,-when they were taken off by the sc'aooner Pink , and taken to Savanah . The ship is supposed to have foundered durin-. ' the night they were taken off . The next loss recorded is that of the Catherine , a large and valuable American , Captain Dill , master , also bound to Liverpool from Halifax . She had thirty-six persons on board , all of whom Lad a most miraculous escape .
the ship having foundered in 46 deg . N . Jat . and 48 deg . TV" , long . They were picked up in the boat * by ihe ship Braeus , on board of which they received t' -e greatest hospitality . The third American trader lo . ~ t is « he R < isa , with 1 , 036 bales of cotton on board . 53 ie left Mobile on the 7 th ult . for Barcelona , anil two days afterwards a fearful gale drove her ashore within a few miles of the port , where she became a total wreck . The William Hanniiigton and the Suir , two large ships , above 300 tons burthen , the former on a .-vnvage from Q . nchec for London , and the latter for Llanelly . have belli been wrecked in St . George ' s Day . On the night of the 22 nd ult . a ship , apparently an Indiaman , was seen on fire in 35 deg . X . lat . 39 < leir . W . lone . Uer masts had fallen ovcr-1 board , and her deck appeared burnt through , and - when last seen she was burnt down to the water ' s edse . The vessel bringing the intelligence ( the Crescent , of rvcwcastle ) . put about in search of the unfortunate ci cw , but could see nothing of them .
SixccxiR Combat . —Mr . James , of Plumpton , Cumberland , has some out-buildings whieli are ' very much infested with rats . On Saturday morning one of these gentlemen entered a place where two geese were sitting , doubtless on the look out for young goslings , but he met with a wanner reception than he had anticipated ; the geese engaged the lawless intruder , and , after a desperate struggle succeeded in bnrkbig him . The insolent wretch was awfully mutilated , for the geese continued nibbling him for vexation long after he had breathed his last . A Cnitn Kjiled by as Opiate . —On Saturday afternoon an inquest was taken before Mr , Baker , at tiie Duke of Sussex , IIa "" erstone Bridge , on the body of Mary Anne Birch , three weeks old , whose death was caused by an overdose of opium mixe d with sonic syrup . It appeared from the evidence that deceased was living with its mother and father , a ladies' shoemaker , at No . 3 , Mark ' s Place , and that on the
iuesday preceding , as it was verv cross , the mother was advised U give it some " stuff outof the barrel , " a preparation of opium mixed with syrup , to compose it . Sshe sent a person for it to Mr . Dav , chemist , Jvingsland lload , who prescribed half a tea spoonful , which was given . Shortly after it was taken , deceased was attacked with convulsions while the surface of its face and body became black . Mr . Hooper , a surgeon , soon attended to deceased , and applied the stomach pump and administered other remedies , but without effect , and it died the following day . The coroner said he wished that Mr Hay was present , in order that he might caution him against sebins such a material , and he directed Meadows , the summoning officer , to call upon him , and to state to him that m the event of a similar case being investigated by him , he might , in charging the jurv , hold SBW ^^ S !^^ SSasa ^^ wrtS
hJSSJSST uf tllC E ? press of Ru ^ a during her sojourn m Italy , are estimated at £ 40 , 000 per
Strike In The Building Trades. (.From Th...
STRIKE IN THE BUILDING TRADES . ( . From the Times of Monday . ) The strike of the building trades in the north of England is still kept up with a vigour which shows the organized power of the workmen and the firm determination of their masters . In Liverpool and all the great manufacturing towns ( except Birmingham , where matters have been very recently settled by an amicable compromise ) the hand of labour is staid by an enforced idleness , and the developement of the teeming resources of the empire arrested by
an obstruction which seems of sufficient force to resist all ordinary impulses and incapable of removal except by the extraordinary powers of the State We mentioned , not long ago , the existence of a fireat central association of the workmen of tho United Kingdom , to which ^ the local societies are only secondary and subordinate . It is our purpose now to treat more fully of this congress of the ttades , to describe its organization and its aim , and to inquire how far tlie professed objects of its institution can be carried out without violating the laws of the land .
It is necessary in the first place to explain the state of the law as it affects combinations of workmen generally . They are not , we believe , obnoxious to the common law , unless they amount to wuat is termed conspiracy . Now , conspiracy has been denned in various ways , so various that it would seem hardly to be capable of definition . It has been called a combination between several persons to effect a purpose hurtful to some individual , or to particular classes of the community t or to the public at large . It has also been said to consist of an agreement either for an unlawful purpose , or to effect a lawful pni-wose by unlawful means , . Theiirsfc of these descriptions is obviously too loose and general ; it might be made to embrace every society that ever was formed . The second , which is the more
correct , may or may not include the combinations in question . Where they arestrictly confined to a simple agreement among the individuals composing them to demand a certain rate of wages and not to work for less , it will not include them . But if their objects are extended further , and pretend to affeet the particular relations between masters and men , by dictating to the former what persons they shall employ , or in what manner they shall carry on their business , or by competing the latter to leave tlic-ir employers , or not to hire themselves , or to become members ef tlie combination , then it is plain they are nothing less than conspiracies . So much as this has been repeatedly asserted in the House of Commons , where the assertion was stamped by the hinh
authority of the late Chief Baron of the Exchequer , and the present Chief Justice of the Queen ' s Bench . It is needle's , however , to pursue this branch of the subject further , for whatever the common law may be , the statute law is clear beyond a doubt . The 6 th of George TV ., c . 120 , reciting that these " combinations are injurious to trade and commerce , dangerous to the tranquillity of the country , and especially prejudical to the interests of all who are concerned in them , and th . it it is expedient to make provision as well for the security and personal freedom of individual workmen in the disposal of their skill and labour , as for the security of the property and persons of masters and employers , " enacts , that " if any pe-son shall by violence to the person or
property , or by threats or intimidation , or by molesting or in any way obstructing another , force , or endeavour to force" workmen to leave their employment , or to return work unfinished , or not to accept employment , or to belong to an association , or to contribute to a common fund , or to pay a fine for refusing to comply with rules made to obtain an advance or to' reduce the rate of wages , or to lesson or alter the hours of working , or to decrease or alter the quantity of work , or to regulate the mode of carrying on business ; or if any person , by such violence , & c ., as above described , shall endeavour to force masters to make any alteration in carrying on their business , or to limit
the number of their apprentices or workmen ; such por . son shall be liable to imprisonment upon conviction before two justices of the peace . But meetings "for the sole purpose of consulting upon and determining the rate of wages or prices which the persons present" shall demand for their work , or the hours during which they shall work , and agreements among the persons present for fixing wages , or prices , or hours ; shall not be subject to any prosecution cr penalty , any law or statute to the contrary notwithstanding . In like manner meetings and agreements of mysters for similar purposes e convcrso ace declared to be legal .
Let us * nply this statute to the " Association of United Trades ior the Protection of Industry . " which has its throne in the once lordly purlieus of Bloomsbuvy , and of which the rules and regulations , drawn up in August of last year , arc now before us . First the occasion of the institution is declared to be "thatthe industrious classes do not recievc a fair day ' s wages for a fair day ' s work . " Seeondlv , the object is confessedly by organisation to multiply tho powers of each trad » , " by enabling it to fight its individual batiks with the whole strength of the association . " This last sentence savours strongly of " chaavporty" ami "maintenance ; " there is ' nothing in it , however , opposed to tho language of the Gih George IV ., if we except the premable . Thirdly ,
the composition of the association is by delegater from the various Trades' Unions throughout the kingdom , in whom " the legislative power " is vested , and who are elected for a year . There is also a central committee to which is intrusted "the general executive power . " It consists of a president , vicepresident , and eleven other members , all elected by the delegates , five from the London trades , who are to " carry out the routine business of the association , " and six from the provincial trades . The presidents need not be members of a Trade Union , and they must always belong to a London district . Anion" the duties of a central committee we find
this— " by mediation , arbitration , and legal proceedings , to protect the interests and promote the wellbeing of the associated trades , in all cases of trade disputes and difficulties . " The words in italics would seem to stamp this branch of the proceedings with an illegal character ; at the best , they p ' ace the committee on the very verge , and if put inaction , would certainly carry it beyond the Jaw . Fourthly , the funds are raised by a contribution from each member of a penny a month , which , if we reckon the members at half a million , a very moderate estimate , would jila-e an annual sum of nearly ^ 25 , 000 at the disposal of the London board .
It must be confessed that there is nothing in the constitution of this federal republic which can be deemed to contravene the express provisions of the statute of GeIirge IV . But there arc ether associations , parts of the great union , which are less moderate in their views , or less prudent in their language . Among the declared objects of the " United Buildins Trades' Mutual Protection Foeiety of Manchester , Salford , and their vicinities" will " be found the following : — " The prevention of non-unionists encroaching on their respective employments "—in cases of dispute between workmen and employer to " call the complaining trade , or any other trade , or
the whole of the trades , from the employer or his sub-contractors "—in the event of a strike taking place to " get tramps out of the town that have come to work in the place of the men on " strike" —to obtain the names of men who work whilst a strike is pending , " in opposition to the rules of tlie society , " and to circulate them throughout the country—to " adopt such means as "may be ckcnied practicable to induce non-unionists " to join the society . " There is little doubt that every one of the purposes ahove set forth is illegal under tlie statute , and it would , therefore , appear a mutter of no great difficulty to snpprvss ihis Manchester association by criminal proceedings .
On the whole it will hardly be denied that these covc . b ' mations . whether of employers or employed , and for whatever purposes they may he formed , arc both immediately and consequentially highly injurious to the welfatc of society . Whilst they la * t they foster discontent , create poverty , ^ ive a rein to seditious and designing spirits , fetter tlie liberal flow of capital , anil derange the whole system of trade . Even after they arc " over , there is left behind a rancour and distrust , a remembrance of mutual ill , ihe bitterness of fancied oppression and the vindictiveness of real injury—in short , a general wreck of those kindly feelings of reciprocal rel ' ancc and protection which should never be absent from the breast either of master or man . We do not dispute the
right of workmen to combine for purposes of defence . It is a sacred right , and should never have been vio lated . We go the whole length with Adam Smith , and admit that the property which every man has in his own labour , as it is the original foundation of all property , so it is the most sacred aud inviolable . The patrimony of a poor man lies in the strength and dexterity of his bauds ; and to hinder him from employing this strength and dexterity in what manner he thinks proper , vritfamt injwni io his neighbour , is a plain violation of his most ' sacred property . ' Without injury to his neighbour , " however , this must be done ; for it happens unfortunately that in effect these combinations always do work injury to other .-, and not to others only , but in a far greater degree to the parties themselves . This is the important truth that we would impress upon the minds
ot the deluded workmen who are now loitering in idleness on the high road to povertv , and too probably tottering on the brink of crime " . Let them net think too confidently that the time of labour is only removed a little distance , that they have merely , to say the word and their masters will ' re employ them . Returning sense may come too late . It may be that when they offer themselves for work no work will be given io them . Capital is like the stream which when you dam its natural current will find itself other channels and still flow on . This is a fact and no conjecture , and many late accounts attest it . It is a serious matter for these misguided workmen . When it is brought home to them with all the attendant horrors of poverty aud disgrace , they will look upon us , who now denounce the whole system of combinations , as their truest friends .
Dundee Factory Girls. Duftoke May Ll—The...
DUNDEE FACTORY GIRLS . DufTOKE May ll—The Committee which was appointed at a public meeting of the inhabitants , to conduct the inquiry into the legal treatment of the sixlactory girls , by the Messrs . Baxters and our civil authorities , delivered their report this evening before a densety crowded m ^ tin ^ In Bell ' s Street Hall . ¦ Mr . Ividd was called to the chair . He opened he business by giving a brief and very able outline ot the voluminous matter , which was afterwards laid before the meeting by Mr . Mc Orae , who read n long list of correspondence between lnmsell and persons holding high and responsible situations under the British government . It would seem quite evident , if we hold by the Lord Advocate ' s affirmation , "that no similar treatment of factory workers or othersshall again be allowed
, in Scotland , " that the present case has been grossly illegal , therefore the meeting resolved to sue all the parties who had been engaged in the condemnation and punishment of these girls , before the Court of Session . The following resolutions were then unanimously agreed to : —Moved by Mr . John Mc Crae , and seconded by Robert Stivens , boiler maker , "That this meeting repudiate any participation in the sentiments contained in the petition of Baxter and Brothers , presented to the British Parliament . And firmly deny that it represents the feelings of the public at large , and is at variance with that of Dundee . Many of the statements in that petition are grossly false , and this meeting looks upon it as a puny effort to cover a deed , which has met with the strongest condemnation from every candid , humane , and philanthropic man and woman in Dundee . "
Moved by Mr . Archibald Mc Donald of Aberdeen , and seconded by Thomas Whitten , " That the warmest thanks of the meeting are due , and now tendered toT . S . Duncombe , Esq ., M . P ., for the kind services which he has rendered to the inhabitants of Dundee in taking up the case of the six factory girls , and in particular for his bold and uncompromising advocacy of their cause in the House of Commons , notwithstanding the many efforts which appear to have been made to induce him to abandon those poor and helpless persons to the mercy of avarice and wealth , which was exerted to stifle all knowledge of their wrongs , and which are now before the country , and laid bare among their fellow factory slaves . And also , that this meeting tender a vote of gratitude , which is richly due to all those honourable members whosupported Mr . Duncombe , while urging upon the house io urge a full and particular inquiry in this extraordinary case . "
N . B . —The enthusiasm which prevailed when the foregoing resolution was put from the chair , was extraordinary in the extreme . Fifteen hundred hands were instantly upraised as if by magic , but this of itself did not satisfy , for three thundering cheers followed , which seemeiUto shake the substantial building within which the meeting was congregated . Moved by Mr . Gow and seconded by Mr . Wm . Scott , FJeslier , " That this meeting approves , and will support carrying the case before the Court of Session , also that a committee be instantly appointed to carry the same into effect , with a view to its speedy termination ; and also , as no doubts exist of a triumphant victory , this meeting binds itself to aid the committou with tho necessary expense in donations and subscriptions . "
The meeting then elected a committee to carry forward the business , after which it gave a unanimous vote of thanks to the old committee , and all those who had lent their aid to stem the torrent of might against justice and right ; and closed the evening ' s proceedings with a cordial vote of thanks to Mr . Kidd , for his manly warmth of feeling in behalf of the sons and daughters of toil , and likewise , for his conduct in the chair . ComtESPOsnuKT .
Arbroath Shoe Makers Strike. Fitesii Dis...
ARBROATH SHOE MAKERS STRIKE . FitEsii DiscLOsmiKSs oi ? Ooxsriiuev , Tyranny , ani Oppkessiox op tub Masters . —Mr . Editor ,--In my last correspondence , . 1 told you the masters had sent forth their " drill sergeant , " to ride from town to town to enlist recruits to strengthen their ranks to beat off the journeymen , who found it necessary to leave the town in quest of employment . When 1 said this , I did not think it would be possible for the masters tofind adherents to crush their men , through the want of work and the necessaries of life , to succumb to their masters , but true it is , they have done so , and not in a solitary instance , for the contagion has become very general . The whole of the prin ciple shops in Dundee . , are refusing to give work to the men
of Edinburgh and Arbroath , and with one solitary and honorable exception , it is said , Montrose is alike infected with the pestilence . It is confidently reported that Forfar , Kirrimuii * , and Brcclrn , arc likewise one in the holy covenant , and havo subscribed the non-intrusion act of grace against the devoted journeymen . The most active conspirators in Arbroath are two leather dealers , and these hold the conscience of a large number of masters in very firm keening , not only as respects this place , but elsewhere ; consequently any sign of unwillingness to comply with thi-ir high commands , would go exceedingly far to extinguish their existence as masters , and this fully accounts for the infection having spread s-i rapidly . But what seems to have created no little mirth in town is , the curious circumstance of a good
number of little "Corks" ( masters ) having suflercd their names to be appended to a handbill , setting forth humiliating terms , which they call upon their men to submit to , and resume work , when true it is , that few or none of them ever could muster trade or cash to employ or pay anybody , and when a " hack " pair was per chance made by way of favour , the wages were seldom immediately forthcoming . The masters have put forth two advertisements , both of which arc couched in artful language to mislead the public , and in doing this , they have resorted to the gros = e . st falsehood in order to shield themselves from the bitterest public indignation . In the first instar . ee they say "that they ( meaning the union men ) have determinedly refused to hand them a copy , or even read the rules by which they , the masters , were in
future to he governed '" The union men did offer to explain , and read over to the masters such portions as affected them , and James Walker , when he made this proposition , made by order of a general meeting , was treated by Mr . Brown with everything but common civility . But docs not everybody know that such a course was stepping somewhat far to oblige them , and that the rules were not framed with the intention to guide the masters , but their workmen . May it in return be asked , what law in the constitution of our country authorises them to embody a rule for the government of their business as employers , to hunt tlie men down throughout Forfarshire , and the adjoining counties ? In their second bill , which appears to have been drawn out with more care , as it ivears the garb of legal formality , there are a variety
of false conclusions and mean strictures set before the public . It affirms that the journeymen have formed themselves into an " illegal combination , " and they insinuate that such combination will be injurious to the public interest , while they know full well that the society of journeymen looks to the public interest by not allowing the masters to palm upon the people inferior work at a high price , and contrary to the British law , and in opposition to what is meant for the public ' s good , they have had the barefaced imiiudcncc to tell the world that their hole-and-corner meetings arc strictly legal , while that of thcit' Workmen held with open doors where they could enter are illegal . The masters are now struggling for what a child may easily discern to be base—for indeed they
h-ive explained ( ho ( act themselves . It is this , as StillCll ill their advertisement in the Arbroath- Guide . They say , " Wo want to maintain our authority in the management < f our own business . " Now the true meaning of this is . to have it in their power to mix coarse ar . d fine workmen together to do their work , and then they will " manage , " having also the power to fix the rate of wages , to realize a sweepin » profit . Thoir second bill requests the men upon strike to abandon their just principles and unite with them in a scheme which would go to defraud the public and destroy the " customary" ( bespoke ) trade , which has hitherto owed its superiority over the sale to the combination ol the workmen , who have struggled hard to enforce wages to enable them to do something like bare justice to the customers .
fhe editor of the Arbroath Guide has devoted a very considerable space , detailing what he considers the law of the case ; & hd has taken special ; cave in tho course of his reasoning to try and work the publb ; mind into the bslicf that " the journeymen are wrong . This editor mush return to school ' before he will be able to convince any one " that , if a workman have a right to fix his rate of wages , which are refused to be paid , he has no right to threaten to leave work through such refusal . " Would any sane person support the proposition , that a man ' has a right to roan the benefit of a society who never contributed 0 I 1 C farthing to its funds ? The reasoning of this sage editor says " yes " for he labours to i-onvince the people of Arbroath that it was wrong to strike a man out ef the b . nelits arising from the
funds of the society , while that man was pocketing the fruits which' they had created . So far has he joined the non-intrusion principle , and I am not angry at his late conversion ; but when he dishonestly clubs with the masters , by affirming thatckcap and dear made bouts and shoe ' s should be mixed in one batch , and vended to the public as genuine " customary work , " the Society of Journeymen , 1 trust , will lack faith to follow him . In the meantime a determined spiritstill prevails among the few men who , as yet , cling to their homes upon a scanty fare ; but those will soon remove , and leave the ' drill-sergeant" and his co conspirators to manage their business accord ing to the opinion of " legal advisers , " and the Arbroath Guide A Correspondent .
Pedestrianism.—On Tuesday The Half-Mile Race
Pedestrianism . —On Tuesday the half-mile race
for * 10 , between iU-ily and Anderton , was decided at Camberwell , and won by the hitter , who covered the distance iutwo minutes and a quarter .
Foreign Fflobtmmte.
foreign fflobtmmte .
" And I Will War, At Least In Words, (An...
" And I will war , at least in words , ( And—should my chance so happen—deeds , ) With all who war with Thoug ht 1 "
" I Think I Hear A Little Bird, Who Sing...
" I think I hear a little bird , who sings The people byand by will he the stronger . "—BraoH .
Eastern Europe And The Emperor Nicholas....
EASTERN EUROPE AND THE EMPEROR NICHOLAS . no . m . In the course of our review of this work it will be our duty to notice the state ef the Finnish portion of the Russian empire , and to show , as we shall do , the gross injustice of that act of " annexation" which made Finland a portion of the Russian empire . We shall also be able to show , that the Finlanders , although not of the same stock and race as the Poles , entertain no affection for their paternal Tsar—on the contrary , if they may not exist as an independent people , they would be too happy to transfer their
allegiance to the Swedish' Government . Previous to 1815 , Finland was united to Sweden ; but the partitioned of nations severed this connection , and handed Finland over to the Russian robber . A letter ' rom Helsingford , of April 20 th , says : — " Two nights back , between eleven and twelve o ' cloek , this town was thrown into confusion by the appearance of 500 or 600 young men , chiefly students of the University , who promenaded the streets singing national songs . They stopped before the houses occupied by the Rus * sian functionaries , and broke the windows with stones , crying out— ' Poland for ever ! ' ' Down with the Muscovite tyrants ! ' ' Oscar I . for ever !'"
This letter adds , that a great number of the students have been arrested , and will be tried by courtmartial . For the sake of the noble students we regret this demonstration , as in all probability they will suffer perhaps the knout and Siberia , or at least fifteen or twenty years of servitude as common soldiers in the Caucasus , in reward for their patriotism . But whilst we mourn the victims of Russian barbarity we must not forget , that this demonstration is another proof of the hatred existing towards the Russian despotism in the countries annexed to tho Muscovite empire ; another presage of the fall of that empire when tho moment shall come for the long enthralled nations to rise .
The voice of humanity cries loudly for the overthrow of the accursed tyranny of the Tsars . Lately we read the following revolting statement in th « SieeU : — ' The Knout . — "Madame da Kalerdgi , who rereceived the knout at Warsaw for having , according to the Augsburg Gazette , kept up a correspondence with the propaganda of Paris , is a niece of M . de Nesselrode . But it is not owing to a correspondence with the propaganda , but because she aided tlie escape of Count Dombrouski , the husband of one of her intimate friends , that she had to suffer that dreadful punishment , Countess Orloff , th » aunt of the minister , was whipped for having received persons in her house who were ill disposed towards the Government .
M . Nesselrodb is a Minister of the empire , and one of the most powerful of the Russian grandees , and yet his relations , and ihose relations Women , have been subjected to the horrid torture of the knout ! If a Russian , of the station occupied by Nesselrodb , cannot save his family from these cruel humiliations , what must be the abject state of the great mass of the people I . Since the above was written , we have read a statement in the Eeforme , narrating the flogging to death of a Polish lady , Madame Krosnowska , a widow , twenty-six years of age , for the cn ' me of corresponding with the Polish exiles iu Paris !
What will England ' s Queen , and England ' s female aristocracy say to these new specimens of tlie infernal acts of the dear delightful miscreant who gladdened the hearts of policemen , flunkies , Ascot racing blackguards , and creatures calling themselves women , or rather "Ladies , " by his liberal distribution of monies , snuff-boxes , and condescending smiles ? We might pardon the admiration felt by flunkies and blacklegs for their hero , but shame ! oh shame ! xo England that any one of her daughters could be found to consort with this ' womantorturing monster whose accursed presence should never have been permitted to blight tho soil ol Britain . The second chapter of the Work before us is devoted to the Slave population , showing the Identitv between TltK TERMS Sl . AVK ASB SlillP . I * J
Russia—Distinctions hut who the Emperor ' s Slaves and the private Slaves—Coxditiojj , Pros-PJ 3 CTS , AN'D FlSELINCS Of CoTII . Properly speaking , the entire of the inhabitants of the Russian empire , including Poland , Finland , and the German and Caucasian provinces , are slaves , seeing that their every action and word is subject to the imperious will ol a despot who may take from then ; their property , their personal liberty , and their lives , if he will . But there are distinctions of class amongst these unhappy people , some of whom , if they are not their own masters , are , at least , the masters of others . The unhappy victims of this double despotism—the universally-recognised slave
class—form an immense multitude . Taking the whole empire , forty-rive out of every sixty-three individuals are in a state of absolute Serfdom ; but , taking the Muscovite population only , we find it almost wholly in that deplorable condition . " The proportion of slaves which it contains , exceeds thirtyfour out of every thirty-six of its number . " It must be understood , when we speak of Russian serfdom , and apply the word " serf" to Russian slaves , that that serfdom is a state infinitely more degrading than any system of servitude known by that name in
former times in the conn tries of western Europe . The condition of the English serf in the days ol Norman tyranny , though little to be envied , never fell to that litter abasement of mind and body which is the condition of the Russian serf of the present day . Even the worst abominations of negro slavery have but rarely approached those of Prussian serfdom j and in all but exceptiouary cases , the negroes of Cuba and Carolina are better cared for , Jess cruelly used , and happier than the slaves of Eastern Europe . Wc will here give a few extracts from the work before us , proving the above assertions : —
CONDITION OP THE PRIVATE SLAVES . The fate of the private serfs differs as much as the character of their many masters . The vices , the personal inhumanity , the avarice , the necessities , the inuttention or absenteeism of the lord , all operate upon the destiny Of the Slave , According to law , a slave proprietor can bv punished for pu tting his serf to ds-nth , —but onl y b > - incarceration in a monastery , even if he had burned him alive , or crucified him ; and such horrors have been perpetrated before now ;—let us hope , for the sake of those who committed them , in a moment of temporary insanity . But another law forbids any court to receive the evidence of a slave against his master . It owes its origin to an ukase issued in 1707 , by tin- Empress Catherine , which
snys : _<< if a serf , forgetful of the obedience he owes his lord , make any complaint against him , purticuhnly to imperial majesty , both the author of the petition afcd he presenting it shall be amenable to the punishment which the laws award . " This punishment is the infliction of the knout , and exile to Siberia . This ukase has b ; cn confirmed by another issued by the Emperor Nicholas in 1 S 2 S , with a slisht modification ; so that as the law now stands , ( article 577 of that division of tlio Russian cutic which treats on serfdom , ) it forbids the serf to accuse or give evidence against his master , under penalty of capital punishment , iu any but the two following cases , —viz : 1 . Treason against the Crown . 2 . Concealment of the number ofhis slaves liable to the imperial poll-tax .
As long , therefore , as a master confines lus cruellies to his own slaves , without interfct'iiiB with those of other people , he is practically safe . Tlie law itself is therefore , in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred , neutralised by this contradictory clause ; but if it could even be put into execution , the most barbarous murder ofa slave does not vec « ive the-punishmen t due to capital offences , which in Russia is exile to Siberia , and tlie infliction of the knont . The law thus , in its very thtory , docs not pretend to give tlie slave the protection which iive-and-thirty years ago was practically extended to tlie West India nej ; ro by the legislature of Great llritaiii . During the administration of Spencer Perceval , on the Sth of May , 1811 , the Honourable A . W . Hodge , a member of his Britannic Majesty ' s Council at Tortola , was executed for the murder of one nf his negroes by excessive flogging . * * *
Besides this , the proprietor , where a ctrtain distance removed from a p-. ilice station , can punish without other legal limitation than the responsibility which falls uuurn liim if his victim dies within three days ; and at all time ? he has a right to send his serf , male and female , and of any age , as often as he pleases , not for trial , but for cor . rection , to the police authorities , without incurring the remotest risk . # * * * * Practically , therefore , the private serf is life ami limb at the dUposal of his master , as completely as « lllVUS have ever been in any country , lie can be sold or hired nut like a beast of burthen . The law now wills that a certain portion of land must be sold with him , but land is of mere nominal value . The roaster may remove one
Eastern Europe And The Emperor Nicholas....
or all his peasants for life from one estate to auotherei though thousands of miles apart . In purchasing aslaverc hehM , therefore , only to go through the formality of we ceiving from the former proprietor a few acres with himp of which he soon-forgets the possession , and from whiotot he may remove the slave , separating him for ever . froma his family , and dooming him to perpetual bauislinieijjjl from his home . . ' . ; The slave , male o * female , cannot mai'ty without the a permission of the lord : —the law stipulates that theyy shall not be forced to marry against their inclinations , ! , but doesnot offer to protect them ; and the means off coercion in the power of the masters are so efficient , that t
resistance to their wishea is unknown . X suurud old 1 maid may sometimes be seen , forcing all tho handsomest t girlsMn the village to wed the most repulsive objects ; at t another , an experimental agriculturist will range his 9 male and female slaves by categories , and vn : irry them i according to some fanciful theory which he believes will I tend most rapidly to the reproduction of the species . No > further respect is paid to the feelings of the father or of f the husband , of the daughter or the wife j and there are i no purposes , the most infamous , to which the stave is not ; always liable to be devoted , and frequently applied . The i master may at any time send his male slave to Siberia , or for a soldier , —and seine h « must constantly choose for this service .
Of course , the unhappy condition of the slaves is not without exceptions ; but these exceptions are always dependent upon the individual character of the master . A humane and enlightened master will , of course , treat his slaves in the spirit of justice and kindness ; but the experience of all time declares how uncertain are the chances of happiness under a despotism , national or private . A body of serfs , enjoying comparative happiness under a humane
master , are always liable to bo handed over fo a tyrannl . cal and cruel lord , either by the death of their master or the sale of the estate to which they are attached . Hence , it is obvious that instances of the good treatment ef individual slaves , or slaves belonging to a particular property , prove nothing in favour of the system above shown to be barbarous and revolting in the extreme . We now proceed to extract illustrations of tho CONDITION OF THE EMPEBOIt ' s SiAYBS .
The imperial serf is not either liable to the same ex . tensive privations wiiich the private serf endures , nor to tlie same extent of capricious cruelty of which he is at times the victim . Ho can more readily obtain leave to move about the empire ; and lie enjoys some of the ad . vantages , —of belonging to an extensive aud wealthy proprietor , but then it is of an absentee proprietor , who has abandoned the administration of his overgrown estates to overseers and agentsr This comparative exemption from utter misery and unendurable tyranny , which tlie Crown serf to some extent enjoys , is not ,
however , without exception The vast and corrupt body which administers this prodigious estate , is sometimes guilty of incredible barbarity and injustice ; and the imper ul serfs are sometimes decimated by hunger , as well as those belonging to private individuals , —and to an extent of which the writer of these volumes was not aware , even when he published tlie "Eaveiations of Russia . " Though it is true that in cases of famine relK-f : . 3 always afforded from the imperial treasury to this population , the sums intended for that purpose seldom reach their destination . # ** # * #
The imperial serf is taxed at the stipulated aum of fifteen roubles annually ; he is bound to keen the roads in order , and to contribute a portion of his labour to works of public utility ; and bereceives from the Crown for his support ten dsiatines of land to cultivate . He is bound to feed the troops quartered upon him , and to afford means of conveyance for the public seivies , and is ostensibly awarded p-iymentfor the same . Practically , however , he is so much at tho mercy of the vast establishment of officials comprised in the administration of the imperial domains , that the annual tax extends to double and treble its avowed amount ; he cannot stir from the place of his birth without the dearly purchased permission of thesernpacioua agents , andhoi'i liable with his family to any corporal punishment it pleases tham to
inflict , or to banishment to Siberia at thci :- will and pleasure , What he most dreads , however , ni . d what is consequently used us the readiest means of extortion , is being selected for the army , or for the government works . The disgust and horror entertained & y the lower order of Muscovites for the military profession , which after a certain period ol service frees them fi-i . m slavery , is so profound aud deeply rooted , that it is only fully to be accounted for , by the innate aversion of this pacific people to everything warlike , Uninviting as may be the pvosp-iet of the s & ldiav , it is still strange to see the tenacity with which the peasantry will cling to the most wretched mode of life rather than ho enlish-d : !> ut their dread of seiving in the public works or the manufactories of the Crown , in perfectly natural .
When the traveller is shown the mines an ' canals , or the vast imperial manufactories and iron worlcs , —when he sees the stupendous docks in the ports of the liiack Sea and of the Baltic , he is seldom aware of the true condition oftlie unfortunates by whom they have been erected nud are t-hiefiy filled . They are forced labourers , staves of tho imperial domain . It is considered that m they are the emptrov ' s property , they are bound to do the work lie wishes done , without remuneration ; and they consequently receive on ! v tlie coarse raliaus necei . sarv for
their support , and the almost nominal pay oS ' lhc- soldiei . So far from any eiuoui ' . 'ig-ciiK-iit being hcid t- ^ t for tlie z-. al they may show , or the proficiency they may attain , they see by experience that the more the workman is i-a ! ue < 7 , fhe lonijcr and the linrder is the toil at W ' lich he is kept , and the less chance of ever being- fismisjed to bis village ; whilst , on the other hand , as it is tbe habit of the slave to conceal his dexterity , the uwkirardncss he may show is always tupposed to be feigned , and it is only after a long course of cruel treatment that it is believed tc be real .
The robberies practised on private serfs by their lords , and the additional punishment imposed upon the Crown serfs in the public works iu proportion to the ability exhibited by them , has " rendered it a maxim of a traditional wisdom amongst the slaves of both classes , obstinately to conceal thoir acquirements as much as possible . " The overseers of the serf ' , aware of this , have recourse to flogging on all occasions when any want of ability real or feigned is exhibited by the serfs . The author of this work cites instances of Englishmen and other foreigners being employed in the public works at heavy salaries from thoir supposed extraordinary proficiency as workmen , whereas these foreign workmen have known that some , of the slaves were as clever as
themselves , but this the slaves would never confess as they well knew that if their abilities were once known instead of being rewarded the result would be a retention till a later age in the government factories . The Tsars have laboured not unsuccessfully to disseminate the idea throughout Europe ili . it they desired the emancipation of the serfs , but were prevented fulfilling their generous desires by lbs tyran - nieal obstinacy of the nobles . This is not true . It is true no doubt that the past and present policy of
the Crown is to remove the private serfs from the power of their lords , and this policy is acted upon whenever a proprietor falls into disgrace and is punished by the forfeiture of his lands , or when serfs mortgaged to the Crown become forfeited by their owners . But these serfs o : i 'being transferred to the Crown are not set ad liberty , on the contrary they eiro added to the twenty-one . millions and a luvlf of serfs-belonging to the Emperor . Nicholas is the chief slave proprietor in the empire , —'' holding upwards of twenty-one out of every forty-tire serfs within it !"
ihe serfs arc immersed in the lowest depths of ignorance , and indeed , the policy of the present Emperor , as regards all classes of the empire , is designedly retrogressive . The nobility are not allowed to travel . Nicholas has by ukase " prohibited the admission of the lower orders from tlie elementary to the superior schools ; hehas forbidden the establishment of temperance societies , and has branded the literary tastes which his servants may exhibit , by classing it with insubordination and . drunkenness—as a ' vicious tendency' ( !) on which it is the duty of their superiors to report . "
This huge slave owner , this encouragcr of vice , this brutal enemy of education and enlightenment , this incarnation of all evil , Nicholas , is one of the sovereign signers of Anti-slave-trade-treatios , and a subscriber to , or patron , of , the EnglishliiWe Society ! O ! monstrous hypocrisy : Nor docs the imperial hypocrite stand alone . The canting unti-slavcrymongers who make Exetcv-hall ring with their denunciations of tho vulgar flesh-robbers of Cuba and the Brazils , have not a word to say a . » ainst ihe bloated slave-driver of Muscovy . But , then , we must allow that the humane Nicholas gives his signature to treaties to put down trade in black slaves , besides which , he supports the Bib !;) Society " 01 for a forty-parson power , To sing thy praise hypocrisy ! ' ' Is not the Russian " a man and a brother V Shall
no voice be raised in behalf-of the slaves of llussia ? les , a voice has been raised by the author of this work , and we will echo its tones , ringing in the unwilling cars of pious , Tsar-worshipping '' Anti-sla » very men " that " these forty-five millions of fellow creatures , the Russian Serfs , are in every saue Of tilt word , as completely slaves , as the negroes eaptured on the coast of Africa , and sold in the markets of the new . mrld , "
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), May 23, 1846, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_23051846/page/7/
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