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Northern Star (1837-1852), 27th November 1852, Edition 2 of 2, Page 10

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      The Hamlet Of Nations—Petition For Italy...

      le legitimate influence towards moving the ministers of the Crown tcto employ the powers with which they are invested to bring al about the immediate evacuation of the Roman States by the forces o of France and Austria . _ We entreat the readers of this journal to sign the " triends 0 of Italy's" Petition , or at least some petition , though of fewer v words . We can anticipate all the objections to " petitioning , " a and this one specially that the petitions will be unheeded . 1 Not so if the movement be national ; at the very least the i petitions will diffuse information much needed and incite to f further inquiry .

      We -will not speak of the interests of British commerce , or cor ' British political influence , although it may be not unimj portant for our merchants and statesmen to note the fact that ] Leghorn has become an Austrian port , and that the French i are fortifying the sea-approaches to Civita Vecchia ; that j Rome is the " head quarters of a French , and Florence of an . Austrian , garrison . We speak rather to that sense of right j and honour , which we trust is not yet absolutely extinct hi i our people , when we say that a partition of Italy , as

      infaj mous as the partition of Poland , is going on under the eyes i and with the full cognizance of the present generation . We ; ask , shall this be ? Our fathers permitted the destruction of Poland . Shall we share their guilty complicity by tamely permitting the spoliation of Italy ? A word of caution ! An artful and insidious attempt is bein « - made with that brazen audacity which refuses defence or explanation , and then takes credit for innocence (!) , to puff off " Lord" Palmerston as the heaven-directed statesman

      possessed of the capacity and the will to effect a " liberal solution" of the Italian question . The men who thus prate are too clever to be mere fools—we leave our readers to draw their own inference . For ourselves it is enough to say that both by tongue aud pen we are ready , when required , to demonstrate that of all the " Foreign Ministers" who of late years have disgraced England , Palmerston is the most mischievous enemy to Italian independence and to the ! freedom of Europe generally .

      The above was written when intelligence arrived that , that miserable flunkey of Austria , the Arch-Duke of Tuscany , had re-established the punishment of death for political and other offences , including offences against religion ; that is to say the offence of the Madaiai—Bible-reading and converting to Protestantism . Here is something for the Exeter Hall " sympathisers ; " something to rejoice the heart , and glut the savage ferocity of Lucas ofthe Tablet and the rest of the persecuting Papists , who would if they could imitate their holy chief ; the

      triple-crowned impostor , and his * well-beloved son , ' the Tuscan tyrant—and withal slave—slave of the Jesuits and Croats . His High-Mightiness recently declared that , " he was resolved to extirpate heresy from his dominions , even though he should be known as the bloodiest tyrant in history ! " Here is work for Exeter Hall , to extirpate these popish tyrants and their tyranny , by giving a helping hand to the liberators of Italy . Will theprotestaht " sympathisers" do so ? If not , let them " shut up , " and exhibit a decent silence .

      Very melancholy is the position of Italy at this moment . The Italians are ripe for revolution , — -ready for the holy war of independence . But with France foremost among . the despotic powers , and England indifferent , it is morally certain that , at this moment , an Italian movement would be crushed by the overwhelming brute force of Austria and France combined . Upon us is the responsibility of the situation . If England wuold speak the word of hope and active brotherhood , the dastardly despotisms would quail before the crashing charge of the uprisen nations .

      As a people Ave have hesitated too long . Theoretically we have held with the cause of Right and Liberty , but practically , by our swine-like apathy , we have sided with Wrong and Tyranny . We must no longer hesitate between Good and Evil , but boldly resolve to efface the base past by the better future . To the voice of Mazzini let every man , with heart and hand , respond—So shall we do our duty , help our brethren to break their chains , and consolidate the fraternal alliance of the peoples of England and Italy .

      250 The ' 8f Alt Of Freedom. [November 2...

      250 THE ' 8 f Alt OF FREEDOM . [ November 27 .

      Freedom Pierced. Fra^Kxin Pierce Has Rec...

      FREEDOM PIERCED . Fra ^ kxin Pierce has received a majority of the votes of his fellow citizens—he is President ofthe United States , and for the next four years " Democracy " will rule the destinies of the great American Republic . We are far from being sorry at the defeat of Scott . His acceptance ofthe Baltimore platform , his willingness

      to lean upon the pro-slavery Whigs , and enemies of " Sewardis ^ , " sufficiently proved his unworthiness to occupy the post of leader of the American Confederation . We are by no means grieved by his defeat ; the anti-progressive sentiments of the majority of his party , and to which he was compelled to give his assent , preclude the possibility of his obtaining sympathy from any admirer of honest principle and lover of genuine freedom .

      But we do sorrow for the success of his rival Pierce , and the more so that he desecrates the holy name of Democracy by his repudiation of the principles of eternal Right and Justice , of which alone is true Democracy constituted , That the Times should be joyful at the triumph of Pierce is noways stranue . The English Free Trade journal , organ of the

      English moneyocracy , and ofthe laiser otter party finds a worthy idol in the American Freetrader Pierce , the upholder of slavery and the advocate ofthe cowardly and selfish policy of neutrality . But it is somewhat unaccountable how English journalists who have long and constantly expressed a desire for an alliance between England and America should see cause for satisfaction in the election of a man pledged to oppose all such alliances .

      A false estimate of American parties has induced our excellent contemporary the Nation of Brussels also to sing a song of triumph at the " Democratic" victory . The Nation sees in this triumph a cause for hope for the down-trodden peoples of Europe , little dreaming , apparently , that there can be little hope of aid for the European peoples from a government and a party which has forsworn ail fraternal sympathies with the oppressed , and which has adopted as its rule of conduct the conservation of all those material interests whose very existence are utterly inimical to tbe welfare and progress of humanity .

      The Times rejoices in the result of the presidential struggle " because the nation has pronounced against military candidates . " We , as much as any , abominate the hero-worship—the great

      Freedom Pierced. Fra^Kxin Pierce Has Rec...

      popularity of mere man-rulers- —that dangerous passion for military glory which has taken such an evident hold upon the minds ofthe mass of the American people . Too many of Europe ' s disas ^ trs have arisen from this cause to render us other than grieved to seethe existence of a spirit in the American people which may at no very distant day endanger their own liberties and those of their children . We ' should be g ^ id to witness the rise of a better spirit in this respect—ajuster appreciation ofthe worth of military chiefs ; but how is this demonstrated bv General Pierce ' s election to the Presidency ?—by the rejection or soldier Scott for the acceptance of soldier Pierce ?

      The Times , moreover , sounds a note of joy at the defeat ofthe Free Soil party , which it affects to treat with contempt . That the Free Soilers are not contemptible the history of the last few years sufficiently proves . It is certain that , on the contrary , the Free Soil party is destined to be thepavty ofthe future . We may be told that in this present election they have given no evidence of power ; but it is not difficult to explain the cause of the

      paucity of votes obtained by their candidates . By a false reasoning they concluded that it was not only useless , " but absolutely mischievous to " throw away " votes . Judging that Hale and Julian had no chance against their " Democratic" and Whig competitors , great numbers of Free Soilers gave their votes to swell the majority of Franklin Pierce . Either Scott or Pierce will be elected ; a vote for Hale is " thrown away /'" said they , and so they chose the best of two evils—to vote for the

      candidate on whom they could most count for the furtherance of some ofthe objects they have in view . Such was their policy , and it was bad . All policy is evil ; they should have adhered to principle , and their cause at this hour would be further advanced than it now is . They should have remembered the words of James Russell Lowell . " They enslave their children ' s children who make compromise with sin . "

      The votes of the Free Soilers largely contributed to the success of General Pierce , and now he is returned what gain , is there to the Free Soilers , or advancement of their principles ? The basest of all expediency is that which takes into consideration the chances of success possessed by those requiring the votes of electors whose opinions they represent . Hale and Julian represented Free Soilism , and thel ' ree Soilers who voted for Pierce , and King from motives of expediency , committed a great moral crime , and treason against their own principles . Pieecb is elected ; Whigism is in the dust ; where is the benefit to the Free Soil cause ? only as the fall of Whisrism will tend to the destruction of the

      "Great Democratic Party ' itself . Its triumph , as we have seen , has been aided by those who have no sympathies in common with its pro-slavery majority , and now that the Whigs are overthrown , these men will have no " choice cf evils ; " they will at once be the direst opponents ofthe regime they have helped to usher in . The Pierceite organs themselves acknowledge , that the grand object will now be to purge the " Democratic " party of all ultraism , and to make it thoroughly conservative . One writer , speaking of the Pierce triumph , says : " One of the not distant

      results probably will be the withdrawal or banishment of the of the whole tribe of fanatics from the democratic ranks ; 1 . The Abolitionists ; 2 , The Filibusters ; 3 , The Woman ' s Rights dreamers ; 4 . The Bloomers ; et id genus omne . These disturbers of society , whose only object has been to tear down existing institutions , have grown to be more numerous than might have been supposed . ..... All these excrescences will now be lopped off . The Democrats can afford to lose whole battalions now , and there will be a sjeneral determination in the rank and

      file ofthe party to expel allultraists , fanatics , and ' disturbers . When this is done , the great Democratic party will be the noblest political organization since the organization of the Federal Government . It will be pervaded with a high . moral , feeling . " That is to say , when all that is of any worth in the party , all the sections who have any desire for progress are expelled , the " party will be pervaded by a high moral feeling ! " It is a strange way of coming at that feeling , by banishing from tlie " Democratic " ranks all political morality and conscience !

      But what will become ofthe Free Soilers , the Abolitionists , " et id genus omne " so preremptbrily disposed of by the " Democratic correspondent of the Times ? Most certainly they will be no supporters of the pro-slavery , and anti-progressive " ' Democratic" party . They , with the "Seward" fraction of the defeated Whig party , and the conscientious Free Soilers who have this autumn recorded their votes for Hale and Julian will unite to constitute a great national party of Free Democracy , which shall certainly carry the day in the next presidential struHe .

      Then , let not the European peoples be disheartened , " for the policy ofthe Pierce administration will sufficiently demonstrate the folly of putting trust in sham "Democracy ;' " ' and in 1856 America will repair the injury clone to the cause of Freedom by the election of Pierce , by raising to the presidency a man who shall represent the principles of Liberty and Progress , and ofthe Solidarity of Nations .. ¦ ruiiHilinr-. ii . r . w ^ i i . ^ -.. ^ .... I . riM ¦¦¦¦ i

      A Calvan1st1c Crusade. The Disciples Of ...

      A CALVAN 1 ST 1 C CRUSADE . The disciples of the creed of Calvin have declared war upon the " desecrators of the Sabbath . " The Rev . Andrew Thompson , D . D ., of Edinburgh , has written a tract under the title of " The Sabbath and the Railway , " in which he tells us that "the human provision made for travelling should just be for cases in which divine permission has been qranted to travel "

      Does the Rev . Andrew Thompson D . D ., oi Edinburgh mean to tell us that he would henceforth have none traval on Sunday but those who shall obtain in addition to their railway ticket a passport from the Almighty ? The ravings of sectarian bigotry and lolly we have often seen to take strange forms but surel y none more strange or blasphemous than this' ' The

      reverend gentleman evidentl y felt , if not the absurdity of his proposal at least the difficulty of carrying out its provisions , accordingly , he ados , ' The railway company has then two alternatives to choose between , —no . train at all , or common trains , and for our own part , we believe the former of these alternatives to be infinitely preferable . "

      In other words , Dr . Ihompson would deny to the denizens of our crowded cities the only opportunity available for them to obtain a breath of pure air , and a sight of the green fieldvet unsoilea by the smoke of our manufacturing curse } We can hardly conceive how such men as the writer of the tract no w before us can so distort their reasoning powers ad stifle the nobler sympathies of their nature as to beabMu

      A Calvan1st1c Crusade. The Disciples Of ...

      out a blush to advise such inhuman restrictions as those he proposes . Arid tie ' must needs , too , instance the example of Christ in support of his advocacy ! He says : " Our Lord did in reference to this law what he did in reference to othersobeyed it in its true spirit , and disincumbered it from the rigid repulsiveness of those pharasaic glosses which made it to be felt as a burden , rather than a blessing and a

      birthright . " Blind indeed , must Dr . Andrew Thompson be , not to see that he and those who think with him are precisely they who would encumber the Sabbath of the people with rigid repulsiveness , and pharasaic glosses -who would make it a burden , rather than a blessing and a birth-ri-ht . They would prevent the sons of toil from leaving , even for one day a week , their unhealthy homes , and would enshroud them in a pall of hypocrisy where their souls would be eaten out by secret

      debasing sins . And why all this labour to aclieive such an end—the abasement of the mass of the people , and the prevention of the developement of their higher mental and moral capacities ? Only the desire to uphold some fanatic dogma of their creed , and the fear of letting the people escape to a grander temple than that in which their creed is expounded- If this puritan Sabbaththis confinement of the toilers in the Bridge-gates ,, and Saltmarkets of our cities , he , as Dr . Thompson tells us , the great mound and outwork of our nation ' s religion , at what price is '' our nation ' s religion " to be valued ? .

      We can see from the documents forwaraed to us , that it is meant to propagate this Calvanistic despotism in England , but we know it too well to suffer it , without protest , to cross the border . If our Scottish friends are content to put up with it , they may , but it is to be hoped that the time is not far distant when they will concur with us , that men should finish with such a mental and physically debasing system .

      Ocean Steam Navigation.—Kingroad Is Now ...

      Ocean Steam Navigation . —Kingroad is now fixed upon as the site for a great harbour , docks , and railway in connexion with the port of Bristol . Mr . Rendell , the Admiralty engineer , has reported in favour of the grand project , and the company—the board of which will comprise some of the largest and wealthiest shipowners in the V * Jl 1 . — „ .. !_ -A . * . J . l- » a ¦ vir .-n-. rtl mftiiNnmAMl-OVl * llrtrii ' lAO l ^ Trrt r . *• J . 1 , « . domhas iven the usual parliamentary noticesTwo of the

      king — g . Great Ocean Steampacket Companies are already negotiating with the projectors of the scheme . The undertaking , if carried out , will be on a scale of great magnitude , the capital required , and which is said to be forthcoming , being no less than , £ 1 , 500 , 000 . In addition to her nituraliy advantageous position as a port of departure for gigantic ocean steamers , the value of the port of Bristol in case of war is much reckoned on .

      Temple Bar . —The " Times" and its correspondents have commenced a crusade against Temple Bar as an intolerable nuisance and obstruction to the traffic of the city . They demand its demolition . " Upon the pavement in the city , " writes the ungallaufc journalist , " you can generally trace ; a stoppage among the foot-passengers to two old ladies , who are looking about them in a vacillating way for a Stamford-hill or Hoxton omnibus . When a monster stoppage occurs in . Fleet-street and Ludgate-hill , the almost invariable cause of the delay is Temple-bar . Two or three hundred vehicles on either side remain the helpless cause of this deadlock . To pull down . Temple-bar would be one of the greatest improvements which could be made in the streets of London . We do not ask the Corporation to do more than remove a nuisance . "

      The Inundations .. —At Shrewsbury , after havin g been submerged for an entire week * a large proportion M the 550 houses iuundatedby the . Severn have at length obtained relief . The waters began to abate on Wednesday week , and have continued to do so ever since . The loss of property has been severe . Ironbridge , Bewdley , ' Bridgnorth , have been considerably relieved from the water , and , at each of these places , the more wealthy classes have come forward nobly to the relief of their less fortunate fellow-creatures . At Shrewsbury , also , large exertions have been made , and the poor sufferers of all sects and

      creeds have been most liberally relieved . In North Wales the floods have been numerous and destructive , and near Aberystwith , the Ystwith and Yh y dol rivers have overflowed their banks and produced great destruction . At Nottingham , in consequence oi' continued rain , the flood is again rising , In Buckinghamshire the river Ouse has overflowed its banks . In Surrey four lives have been lost by the inundations . At Walton-on-Thaines four persons were drowned in a moat . A young man , Mr . . Bryan Clark , of Tuxford , in Nottinghamshire , was drowned by falling into a deep drain whilo searching for cattle .

      The gold and silver coined in Russia from 1828 to 1851 amounted to three hundred and eighty millions of roubles . An American captain recently escaped from one of the Gallipagos Islands to a ship five miles off , by means of an oil-cask sawed in two .

      . The following advertisement appeared in one of last week ' s . papers : — " To be sold , the Wisdom " -tooth ofthe Duke of Wellington , price £ 10 , and several Locks of his Hah , price £ 1 Is . each . Apply , & c .-0 Likewise a small Grinder of Napoleon ' s , for £ 5 . " The Paris correspondent of the Atlas relates a story to the effect that , during the recent disturbances , a newly elected provincial mavor ot high character was arrested ( in mistake for his predecessor , a Red Republican who had died ) , and was sent off to Cayenne before the misake was discovered .

      ^ An island , 100 feet in length and 7 feet in height , was recently lormed in the lake of Cleeyeetz , near Eutin , in North Germany , by the effect of hurricanes . In 1814 a similar phenomenon occurred ; but m a few months the isle suddenly disappeared , and there were 12 feet ot water where it had been . A Silly Feat . —One day last week , the son of an inkeeper at Caistor performed the feat of riding up a flight of stairs into a bedroom , turning round in it , and descending in the same manner in perfect safety . The stairs are about twelve feet in length , and are nearly perpendicular . On reaching a small landing at the top of the stairs , the horse had to turn round and ascend two additional steps in atrausvese direction , in order to enter the bed-room .

      The Slave-trade . — -The Brazilian Government is said to have made a request to our own to withdraw our cruisers from their coast , as thoy wish to have the suppression of tho slave-trade in their o \ m hands , for which purpose they have ordered six men-of-war steamers to be built in England . ^ Closing of Spirit Shops on Sunday . —We are informed that in the following places the public houses are either at present closed on Sunday , or are shortly to be c , osed—viz ., in the towns of Edinburgh . Glasgow , Greenock , and in the counties of Claclnnaisian , East-Lothian , and Fife , and that other places are likely soon to follow the example . . This , of course , applies only to the mere dram shops , and not to hotels or inns . —Edinburgh Neivs .

      Napoleonism in Holland . —A letter from Rotterdam states that the booksellers of that place have received an intimation from the police that it would be abreeabie'to the authorities to see them abstain from offering for sale eitheir the « Napoleon le Petit" of M . Victor Hugo , or the " Nuits de St . Cloud "

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 27, 1852, page 10, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_27111852/page/10/