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TO TflE RICH AND THE POOR
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TTTOSE WHO LIVE IN IDLENESS WITH-*irTTLA...
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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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To Tfle Rich And The Poor
_TO TflE RICH AND THE POOR
Tttose Who Live In Idleness With-*Irttla...
TTTOSE _WHO LIVE IN IDLENESS _WITH-* irTTLABOUR , AND TO THOSE WHO ARE WILLING _LABOUR BUT COMPELLED « J 0 S TARVE - I am no about to write you my last letbefore die representatives of the people t € f tin Parliament ; and , curiously enough , " ? A n h members of Parliament are called ! i < . representatives of the people , yet do the nleI constitute the only class in society not P _^ L _^ nteii in P arliament . Of course no one - *• ' jj ever dream of calling fifty lords and
5 mem bers of Parliament PEOPL & -in feet , the term' people' has ever been used as ne of i"rf er _* - J " exce P * '"'ben those who _re-^ diate d the title have required the assistance of tlie people- However , you will see that I have _included all classes at the heading ofthis letter , and , as 1 believe that there are many _cood rich men as well as many good poor men , f have addressed all as friends . Moreover , I ad dress you all as friends , because my own ie art tells me that I would not do a cruel or unkind act even to the greatest enemy 1
bave . The object of this letter is to whet the appetite of both rich and poor for a beneficia a nd salutary change of system . Heretofore , every change of system has been based upon the sacrifice of one or other of those interests constituting the great whole of society . Thus , in their day of rampant and undivided power , the landlords always made good any deficiency in their rentals by a slice from a weaker class ; hence , the Corn Laws were a general delve into the pockets of all , to relieve
themselves from the consequences of the game of muskets , in which the people were the losers . The Poor Laws , in their permanency —that is , except when they took sudden jnmps ( upon which occasions they fe ll upon the unoccupied farms)— -fell upon the tenants . So with tithe , when the tax was paid in kind - € 0 with land tax—so with . county rates , church cess , and all other rates ; they were incipient items , covered in a large figure of rent ; and all pai d by an increased price—a fictitious tir ice—an unjust price , given to the produce
of the land—ay , to all the produce of the land ; for * although corn was the one thing nominally prelected , the protection of that tnticle naturally led to , the diminished prodace of a ll other articles , and to their consequent higher price . Again , the l andlords , in their supremacy , dipt the Irish , parsons of twenty-five per cent . of their incomes , and all this , " I pray you to observe , was in consequence of the political power possessed hy those landlords , and their _consequent ability to live as freebooters upon the weakness , the compliance , and the industry of the ruled , who dare not disobey their
laws . At last , however , the monied interest employed in commerce and manufactures became too ' active and powerful for the sluggish clodp oles . It was the war of a compact and disciplined body against _' a scattered and fugitive race ; it was " the war of a strong , well-victu ailed garrison against its unconnected
invaders . A placard upon the walls , the bellman's ring , or an advertisement in the garrison journals , brought all the forces of ths garrison together , while the weakness of the country party precluded the possibility of its presenting anything like a combined or disciplined force to this marshalled army . Hence , the triumph of the active forces of commerce and manufacture over the scattered bands of
_asriculture : and hence the transfer of Minis terial power and parliamentary influence from tlie latter to the former class . pind , as a neces sary consequence , hence the present distraction of all interests in the nation . Agr iculture was a strong pillar , a firm kev-stone , and its representatives were , for the most part , compelled to bend to sudden emergencies and exigencies . It was a reality ; but as soon as it was replaced by a fiction the whole superstructure began to totter , and the representatives of the fiction were compelled to resort to fiction after fiction , until the walls of the edifice separated , and the roof fell in . The representatives of fiction were not as
capable as the representatives of reality of patching , tinkering , and mending ; and this nation is now Drought to the very brink of rain from the evil , unjust , and , unequitable _distribution of the national resources , as well as from the fact that those resources have been capriciously , and not beneficially , cultivated- For instance , each class cultivated the nationa l resources in that direction , and to that extent only , which would best secure its own profit ; and , as a consequence , and a melancholy one too , we find the capital ofthe country , and the industry of the country , by _degrees more and more applied to non-prodactiveand class-remunerating purposes , tban to re-productive and _national-remunerating
• purposes . _Kow I have explained the whole system for you , and I will proceed to propound the only remedy which statesmen , philosophers , and _lsaraed men can possibly suggest . The great , the paramount object of the government of a country should Le , to cultivate the national resources ofthe country , and to see to the equitable—miud , not the equal—distribution of those resources : that is , that , if in the
process of cultivation A is entitled to 601 . a year , anil Bis entitled to 3 , 000 _L a year . A should cot be stinted to 201 . a year , and B rewarded with 3 , 0407 . a year—that is the difference ¦ between equal and equitable distribution . And I am now about to show you , and to prove to ; you , in defiance of the opposition of every man who ever wagired a tongue or held a pen , that this country , by a proper cultivation of its resources , is still capable of making the rich richer and the poor rich .
It has been the practice of the Press to _prociul ' -iite the most atrocious falsehoods about tiie intentions ofthe democratic party , and it fas been the folly ofits readers to believe those absurdities . Chartism , in 1839 , was described by the Press and by the Judges ofthe land , as the political creed of robbers ; the intention of Chartism being , as stated by Judge Littjedale , at Warwick , on the trial of Lovett and Collins , —to take possession of the Land , and give it to the people . Since 1 S 46—that is , since the promulgation ofthe Land Plan—the same absurdities have been promulgated , while , as a reply , the Chartists answer— "No ; our purpose
is , not to steal the Land , but to buy the Land at the improved value given to it consequent upon the want of it , and the desire for it ; " and tfiis laudable enunciation is now met with the cry of , 'the Law so surrounds you with difficulties that you cannot , and you sball not purchase the Land , because it is surrounded with the law ' s meshes and intricacies . * "Well , if you speak about the value ofthe Land , and not knowing your ability to purchase in 1839 , Vou are p lunderers—and if , in 1845 , you devise tLe means of purchasing it , 3 ou are offenders _against the law . Heiice , you find , that let the poor man do what he will he is opposed by the - ire of the musket or the net ofthe law .
, Heretofore it has been the interest of classes to conceal their mode of warfare , each satisfied ¦ » vith those tactics which wiil p lace it in the ascendant for a moment , but all afraid to _% iil--eits " whole case , least in the development the plundered should discover the weakness of faction . But at length this one-sided policy has broken down , and the people—that -s , the industrious of all classes—have
_disc overed the utter incapacity ofthe representath e * of luxury and idleness to legislate justly Or honourably for the producers ' of wealth . Sow , my friends , keep this apothegm -n _*«* - _* , ! , nd never for a moment lose sight of it . _I-et it be a household p hrase—that "It is as impossible for those who lice vpon " profits made by Labour to represent the ' ¦ labourer—as it is for the victim to hug the fc assassin who _uould take his life ?
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_Aow , keep that apophegm ever uppermost in your nunds , repeat it after your prayers at night , and before yeu rise in the morning , and then reverse the apothegm—and say , _^ " That it is as impossible for the representatives of Labour to legislate justly for the _la-Roarer , without , at the same time , legislating ' beneficiall y for all other classes—as it is to " suppose that a man would rob himself . " I shall now proceed to propound tbe remedy —tbe only remedy—by which the country can be saved from revolution ; the only remedy by which the landlord can be saved from ruin , the
merchant from failure , the manufacturer from bankruptcy , the shopkeeper from starvation , the working man from death , and the whole of society from desolation . Sir Robert Peel has told you ' tbe science of agriculture is only in its infancy / The science of agriculture is only in its infancy ! Observe , then , that all other sciences , when discovered , if I may use the expression , and while in tbeir infancy , were as naked as the science of agriculture , and until applied to practice , were as undefined and unprofitable . The sciences of astronomy , of geology , ef mathematics , and of chemistry , until anal ysed and practically applied , were dead letters ; until , at length , we see in the nineteenth century the stretching powers of
those several sciences , applied to the most astounding purposes , and producing the most astounding results . So will it be with agriculture—because , even to my mind , who bave , I believe , devoted more time and reflection to the subject than any other man living , the developement of the science proves to me on a Monday my ignorance of the previous Saturday ; and if there is any crime which society is mwe chargeable with than another , it is the crime of omission in having neglected to develope to the simple understanding the most simple of all sciences and tha most profitable of all sciences : simple , because the meanest capacity can aid in its developement ; profitable , because its developement must lead to the most beneficial practical results .
In this question is involved so many points of detail , that you must consider my present lame and imperfect illustration of it as a mere penfeather plucked from the eagle . The science of agriculture must be carried out in each country , according to the climate , the position , and character of the inhabitants . I am not talking now ofa primitive state , but I am considering the enforcement of tbe science as a graft upon the present fictitious condition of the several countries of the world . I shall
confine myself , therefore , in this , my first address upon the subject , to its application to tbis country ; and even here I find myself enveloped in such a mysterious web of interest , currency , old associations , prejudices , privileges , immunities , prescriptive rights , and all the absurd conventionalisms which are whimsically enough denominated signs of civilisation , that I find it a herculean task . For instance , as regards the currency , in my mind far and away the most important question , even to the working classes , that agitates the public mind , although so apparently
unconnected with the happiness , comfort , and very existence _oig £ hose whose minds have been studiously kept in criminal ignorance upon the subject . Alas ! the working classes ; of this country , never understanding the fact , or never thinking of the fact , that a fixed value attached to -gold , while a varied value is attached to produce , is as great an absurdity as if a manufacturer was to contract with his customers to supply them with a given amount of produce at a fixed price during his life , without reference to the rise and fall in the price of the raw material , the rise and fa ll in
wages , the rise and fall in rents , the rise and fall in taxation , and the improvement in machinery ; while , at the same time , the available circulating medium of the country , required for tbe ordinary purposes of traffic , cannot be represented to tbe amount of ten per cent , hy the unvarying metal by which , whimsically enough , trade , commerce , manufactures , must be limited . Without mystifying this subject of the currency , I can only say that , as far as my intellect can lead me to a selection of a choice of evils , I very much prefer the principles propounded by the Anti-Gold Law League , to those propounded by Sir
Robert Peel , Jones Lloyd , and the Times And here , in passing , allow me to call yonr attention to the very whimsical , the very insolent and childish manner , in which a nation's interests are sacrificed to the versatility and duplicity of the press , and the selfishness and cupidity of individuals . The Times has turned about like a weather cock upon this vital question of the currency , and the reason , as assigned by the best informed men in the commercial world , is , that Jones Lloyd , the banker , has purchased that paper , and that be is making not less than ONE THOUSAND POUNDS A DAY PROFIT bv the
contraction of the currency , occasioned by Sir Robert Peel ' s banking measure , and the consequent high interest—eight , nine , ten per cent ., and even more—that he is enabled to make of the confidence reposed in him , an amount of interest , however , no part of which is carried to the credit of those whose money be speculates with . I am almost sorry that I entered this paper house with gilded" pillars and golden roof ; however , I now extricate myself from this fragile edifice with this one single remark upon its effects upon the landed interestof this
country : — -To keep Boney out , ' thelandlords promised something less than seven quarters of wheat , as security to the fundlord for a certain ticket as his share of the war tax : and , at the present price of wheat , and the present price of consols—now tbat paper is convertible into gold—the landlord , instead of seven quarters of wheat , is g iving thirty-four quarters of wheat ; and when the fnnds were 102 , and wheat at 40 s „ the landlord was giving the government , the fundlord ' s agent , fifty-one quarters of wheat , instead of seven . Now , I have
done with this frag ile fabric , and I turn to the question of national relief . In my several letters to Lord John Russell , upon the subject of Irish grievances , both in ibe Labourer and the Northern Star , I showed him that it was impossible to improve the condition of the tenant and the l abourer , without _, at the same time , improving the condition of the landlord : and , my friends , the great object of my life has been to purge my party and my principles of the foul and _ungenerous accusation , that we seek to elevate one class upon
the rums of another . Such never has been my intention or desire . I am no misanthrope , but , on tbe contrary , I have as great a respect and as great a regard for the good and humane landlord , for the good and humane manufacturer , and for the good and humane empjoyer of all classes , as I have for tlie good and humane working man . And now I proceed to unravel the great mystery of taxation , and to -show you how a combination of the
good and virtuous of all classes must inevitably make the rich richer , the poor rich , the government independent , and England the envy and admiration of the world . While the Chancellor of the Exchequer is looking for a famine loan for Ireland , and crushing commercial operations by abstracting the amount from reproductive employment and works ; while this head book-keeper of the nation is looking to the quarterly account of dissipation _, destruction , and beastliness , as a means
Tttose Who Live In Idleness With-*Irttla...
of propping the present system , and while he is relying upon the spleen , the self-interest . thi cupidity arid jealousy of parties , for _thestrengtti of political faction , which will preserve the ascendancy of his party—I will show ybu and him a clear , a simple ,-and irrefutable table , by whic h he may save the middle classes , the aristocracy and the working classes , the small item of five millions per annum , and give to tbe government a nett and permanent income of over ten millions per annum .
Now , I am aware that crotcbet-mongering is an exploded thing , and that tbe fascinating propositions to raise hundreds of thousands a year , by a penny a week , or a penny a month , paid by the working classes , is gone out of fashion ; but hear my simple calculation , —see my simple table . The poor-rate is the most oppressive tax upon all classes , because the most undefined and varying , and because it increases in geometrical progression—the increase being , always consequent upon the increased-, poverty _, of the parties called upon to pay it : —thus / for * instance , when the poor are poor , the rich are comparatively distressed , and increasing poverty increases its demand upon decreasing property .
If , then , in round numbers , we estimate this degrading , this respect-destroying tax at seven millions a year , we shall not , as an average , be much beyond the limit ; and what I propose , as a substitute for that seven millions a year , is , tbat five millions sball be wholly extinguished and abolished , and that the property now subject to the seven millions a year shall be subject to only two millions a year , and that the owners of that property shall be allowed to relieve their property of the charge of poor-rates altogether , by purchasing it as low as thirty years' purchase—that is , that
the landlord now paying £ 350 a year shall have his poor-rates reduced to £ 100 a year , and that he shall be ' allowed to relieve his estate of thatburdeu by the payment of £ 3 , 000 , which is thirty years' purchase upon the £ 100 a year ; and , 'in case any landlord should refuse so to relieve his estate , that then the government may sell the charge for poor-rates to any other purchaser , the purchaser having the first claim for the recovery of the interest— £ 100 a year . This would give the government £ 60 , 000 , 000 sterling , and would relieve the agricultural classes and all classes to the extent of five millions a year . And .
now—For the table , showing its application ; and this I shall illustrate by a most simple scale . I will take fifty paupers out of the workhouse consisting of five each family , father , mother , and three children , and I will presume , though I think I am under the mark , that each individual maintained as an idle , degraded pauper , in food , fuel , and raiment costs 2 s . a head per week ; and tbat the expenses of the establishment—poor law commissioners , and their motley staff , master , matrons , schoolmasters , chaplains , repairs , expense of building , and interest , prosecutions , persecutions
stationary , and the one thousand et ceteras—cost half as much as the food , raiment , and fuel , that is Is . ahead per week—hence we have a cost of fifteen shillings a week paid by the industry of the country to support five unwilling idlers . Jfow fifteen shillings a week is 39 / - a year , and fifty families comprising 850 individuals cost the country 1 , 950 / . PER ANNUM . Now , my friends , let us see to its better application , and it will not do for any man to say to me 'Weare willing to pay this seven millions a year to secure a degraded competitive labour class , and of whose misery our anomalous profits are made up . " It will not do to talk to me about the intricacies and the
difficulties of the details , when every man ' s light is measured , every man ' s letter is stampedevery man ' s newspaper is stamped—every puff from every man ' s pipe is stamped—every man ' s quaff of ale , gin , brandy , wine , or whiskey is stamped—when every man ' s book is stampedevery man ' s dog , pleasure horse and carriage is stamped—every man ' s tea , coffee , and sugar is stamped—every man ' s loaf is stamped—every woman's dress , muff , stockings , bonnet , scarf , and boa are all stamped—when every man ' s title deed and . promissory note and bill of exchange are all stamped—when every brick in every man ' s house , every rafter in his roof , and the floor he walks upon is stamped—when all we see . all we feel and touch is taxed—when
man ' s birth , death , and burial , are one and all taxed as if he were born in the Custom House and . buried in the Exchequer—stamped , body and soul , from birth to dissolution , that the rich and idle may live in affluence—surely it i s not complicating or rendering confusion more confused , to give up those complicated details , in order tbat the industrious producer may live " in the sweat of his own brow . ' * I will not have such answers as these ; and the value of the sound knowledge taught to the working classes , consists in tbe fact tbat they will not have them .
We have , then , fifty families of 250 people , costing the nation l , D 50 l ., while living in a state of idleness and degradation . Now , see mr provision for tliose fifty heads of families , converted into cheerful and profitable labour ers , snatched from degradation and thought lessness , and , as if by magic , elevated in tbe moral , social , and intellectual scale . Fifty heads of families located upon 100 acres of land , at two acres to the man , with a good substantial house and 20 l . capital to commence , would cost the government—100 Acres of Land at £ u 9 . an acre ... £ 3 , 009 0 0 Fifty Houses , at £ 70 . a honse ... 3 , 500 0 0 C » pital , at £ 20 . amaa 1 . 000 0 0
£ 7 , 600 0 0 —— ¦ ¦ - ¦ ¦ - _» _f- _ _Henca I show you that fifty paupers and their families , who cost the country 1 . 950 / . a year , may be located as freemen and as task labourers , working for themselves , for 7 , 500 / . Then , as to rent , ifthe government charged 67 . rent upon the 1501 . expended , it would be four per cent , upon the capital , thus relieving the country of 1 , 950 / . altogether , and the land of the occupants being security to the government fpr four per cent , upon the money ex pended .
Now , take the sixty millions funded bythe sale of two millions a year poor rates , and divide it by 150 , the amount that it takes to locate each family , and you have four hundred thousand families , consisting of two million individuals , rescued from poverty and degradation , elovated to the rank of freemen , with a country worth living for , and worth dying for , educating tlieir children , constituting a national militia , cultivating the resourcesof the country , exchanging their produce for tlie produce of the artificial market—giving an increased value to the labourers in that market , and an increased profit to tbe employers of that labour _. instead
thus making machinery man ' s holiday , of man ' s curse—enriching tlie shopkeepers , disbanding cut-throats and bludgeon men , turning the sword into a ploughshare , and the bludgeon into a flail , dispensing with criminal law , each worshipping bis God according to his taste , without the interference ofa hired State Church parson ; an oasis in the desert , a trading colony discovered within the limits of our own island , taking and exchanging produce without double risk , double freight , double insurance , double waste and injury , double wharfage and custom duty , double { _yarehouse and lighter tax , double money-mongers' profit , and double "bubble , toil , and trouble . " Thus , I show you ,
Tttose Who Live In Idleness With-*Irttla...
that , from this spurcealOne , I give the government a nettVental of two millions four hundred thousand pounds per annum , while ! relieve the industrious classes of the . payment of five millions a year , as a competitive labour tax . Obserre , my friends , that the government will build a better house for tot ., with all materials duty free , arid a larger benefit from co-operation , tban . I " can build for 100 ? ., and therefore I give tlie poor man a good house . I he government can buy land without end , and—Merciful Providence . ' -just think that it would only require eiarht hunnW fhi . _nenn * i
acres ofthe millions the poor have been robbed V \ ° i . Carry ° _tWs holy ' _* 8 _God-- » l-e system . And then , when we are searching the world for our breakfast , our dinner , and our suppersuppose wheat was themostnecessary thingtobe grown in the country , and that these occupants ' were compelled to pay their rent in wheat at " six shillings the bushel , or forty-eight shillings She quarter— -that is two quarters and a half for six pounds—there ' s a million additiona quarters per annum at two quarters and a half to a man . " Oh ! but the wheat may fail , " quoth the tender hearted philanthropic political economist . Well , but if it does ' , I answer
potatoes , cabbages , turnips , parsnips , carrots , peas , beans , bacon , pork , beef , mutton , lamb , milk , and butter , very good substitutes , won ' t allfail . " Well , but , " _says another , " the 800 , 000 acres now produce some wheat . " I say comparativel y little . But I leave it all to you , and mine shall be every grain an increase—thus I wouldenclose your race-parks and your common lands now lying waste , for such a ' _holy purpose as that , and thus warm up some of the cold meat in the larder for the new guests that are every day introduced to nature ' s tables .
Let me ask , my beloved friends , what the result of sueh a holy undertaking—I will not call it experiment—would be , when you now witnessed that wonderful and admired peace which the MAN OF BLOOD has produced , through the anticipation of a hopeful future . Ah ! I have shown you a system worth living for , a system worth dying for ; I have tested your morality , your wisdom , your peace-loving disposition , your self-respect and hopeful sellreliance , when the goal of independence is p laced at the end of the most rugged and thorny course . And having spent a life in this—mine , mine own—project , 1 would sacrifice that life rather than see it strangled or stunted in its growth by all the intricacies ofthe law , or the terror of tlie bayonet .
Then , to keep my table clearly before you , I show you how I relieve one interest of five millions a year , give to the government an annua income of 2 , 400 , 000 / ., and give to an industrious population of two millions , the free labour field , the free reli gious tabernacle , the free school house , the free ventilation , the free air of heaven , and the free and untrammelled , though not _injurious , liberty of man . This is what 1 pant for j this is what I live for ; this is what I devote my every hour of thought and labour to ; this is what I will die for rather than
give it up . I now turn to the consideration of my second proposition , namely , the giving to the government an income of ten millions a year . I have shown you where the 2 , 400 , 000 ? . is to come from in tha shape of rent , and I will now show you where the balance is to come from ; and the value of the land , and the developements of'the ; science of . agriculture , so . presses upon
_mta _^ with every th ought , ' that no' argument will more fully prove Jtbe value of the land than that which I am now about to propound . It is this : —That the tenant holding land under a landlord upon his will , or at twenty-one years' lease , will give upon a lease for ever upon that ; land ten per cent , more than upon a capricious tenure . For instance , I hold a hundred acres of land as tenant-at-will . It
requires draining , but upon such tenure I will not lay out my capital ; and my landlord , being either tenant for life himself , and having but a slight interest in tbe improvement of his heir ' s property , or being too poor , will not perform the work- and the consequence is that the land remains cold , sterile , [ and unproductive , closed against the labourer , and in an unprofitable state . Again , he requires a new house , or a larger house , for an increasing family ; but he props the old one , as he has no security for a return upon his capital . Again , lie requires more outbuildings—the very bank of the farm ; but he will natura lly do without them rather than invest his capital in so frail a tenure . He has
money in the funds , or money m his bank , which he would not hazard upon the will or even upon the life of another , and very na . turally prefers the certainty of three per cent _, to the uncertainty of receiving a profit of ten , fifteen , or twenty per cent , upon tbe chance oi another enjoying it ; and thus tbe agricultural labour market is stinted in its fair , competitive , and most remunerative channel . That is the case of a tenant-at-will . Then suppose the case of a tenant holding for twenty-one years—this is his condition;—he will not _ex pend his money upon improvements , or freely upon agricultural labour : and if he does for the first fourteen years of his lease , hell 'be sure to take it out of his land for the last
seven years , by very naturally hoarding as much as he can and very naturally spending as little as he can . Now another and a very striking reason why the science of agriculture has not progressed as rapidly as other sciences , is this fact—that those who make valuable discoveries in other sciences are amply rewarded for them , they have _morefjtban a life-interest , ' they have a perpetuity in their discovery , because tbey make a handsome retiring _sulavy , and nn ample
provision for their families , out of their patent ; and 1 am as convinced as that I am now addressing you , that the diversity of mechanical intellects applied to this Land Plan of ours , with the perpetuity of tenure , will lead to more valuable discoveries and improvements , by a new race , in less than three years , than all the benefits that have been produced from this science , from the creation of the world till the present moment .
Having now shown you , very clearl y and irrefutably , that tlie farmer who now holds money at three per cent ., would spend it all upon productive labour , that would repay him ten , fifteen , or twenty per cent ., if he had perfect security in his tenure ; and reminding you , that tlie Irish landlords and the Irish council are now gabbling about a complicated scheme of what they facetiously term - Tenant Ri ght , ' but which is not less . intricate than Penelope s web , 1 proceed to illustrate for you my second proposition , by wbich I propose to make the rich richer , and the poor rich .
There is not then a farmer in England who would not cheerfully give an additional 'ten per cent , in rent for his land if its possession was secured to him for ever—that is , the m * Sn who now holds 100 acres of land upon the will of his landlord , or upon a short lease at a hundred a year rent , would jump at the 0 % * that he should have it on lease for ever at 110 / . a year—thus I show you how the landlord
would not be injured ; how the farmer would be gratified ; how the labourer ' would be employed ; how the government would be enriched _^ and how tbe nation would be enmibkdby tliisplau , which would give to the goveriinient a property tax ' of- ten per _centfj . ; cheerfully paid hy the farmer , _$ s it _would ' - 'be returned to liim threc _* fold _^ _, and _^ ii * p'i % st to the _lancitoi'd 5 bul , aa _thewntraryfiiaqy a landlord ¦ ' * ¦
Tttose Who Live In Idleness With-*Irttla...
who now _hasliilmake abatements , _andimanjr a one who cannot induce or foree his tenants to pay , would . ' never have a column for _ajreaVs- a ' _% this advantage once conferred upon _the-fiwmersj I would have no objection to make the- process of ejectment more summary , more speedy ; and less expensive , as I feel assured that not one ih > a thousand would ever be a day behind ! _iri'the payment of his rent . And , if lam told tfcatUhifr
system would be as capricious as the _system-of the manufacturer , who undertook to supply hi _* customers at a fixed price for life , I answerthat I am prepared to show _jjthat that _difficulty can be obviated by the substitution of a cornrent for a fixed money rent ; and that ft is just that the tenant should pay his rent accord _" - ing to the scale of price of " fluctuating produce , rather than by a fixed value in _unchange--able metallic currency .
Now , to illustrate this proposition , let mecall your attention to these two simple figures .-. I show that a man will expend more money , try more experiments , better cultivate , arid ! more improve his own property , than he will another man's property ; just as a man will take more care of his own horse , or ofhis own SLAVE , than he will of another man ' s horse or of another man ' s SLAVE . Some men wilt ride or drive a hired horse beyond his powers _,, while he would _spsre his own horse , because
he would have an interest in his life and health . He'll see his own horse done up and comfortable for the night , but , perhaps , never evert inquire after the hired slave . Again , for the second illustration . The man who works for another , works slave labour , and will work grudgingly , and thinks the working day too long ; while , upon the other hand , the man who works task or job work , works cheerfully , expends his strength freely , and thinks the night too long and the dav too short .
To conclude , then—this ten per cent ., laid ns a taxupon property , would enrich every class of society , and , I _beiieve , _wouUl < Io away with the necessity of PoorLaws alto . sretker , while it would leave the government over seven millions and a half annually , which , added to the 2 , 400 , 000 / . made in the shape of rent , would produce an income of 10 , 000 , 000 / . per annum _, and would enable the government to dispense with the Income Tax altogether ; a tax which , however intended as a levy upon profit , falls heavily as a duty on labour , as every man who pays a direct income tax makes a profit upon reduced wages , reduced household , or some other filching from the sustenance and comfort of
the poor . Thus , my friends , I show you that 1 am not an enemy to my class , while I am the stern opponent of thnt ascendancy and dominion of class over class whicii compels the political government of the country to be the filching agents for the strong , and the depredators and plunderers of the weak . If my propositions are simple and understandable , there is now a sufficient amount of genius in the country , created by Chartism , organised by Landism , if directed by vigour , energy , and
perseverance , to lead to the full developement of our national resources , tothe equitable distribution of the profits , to tbe enrichment of all and the impoverishment of none . Then we shall live to seethe day when the husbandman will cheerfully ' live in the sweat of his own brow , " wben he " is first partaker _otthefruits . of his own industry ; ' and when hi ** _brethren the artificial market will look upon him as a helpmate instead of a competitor ; when we shall have religion without
NATIONAL EXCISE PARSONS ; peace without blood education without mental coercion ; TAXATION WITH REPRESENTATION ; and law for protection instead of coercion . Who does not think such a system worth living for ? who does not believe it worth dying for , to bequeath , as a legacy , to generations yet unborn ? " Your faithful Fr end , Feargus O'Cokxor , [ I hope my friend , William Grocott , will read my two letters to my Manchester children .- F . O'C ]
TO THE PRESS GANGYou poor devils—I am not a man of blood nor yet a man of bate , and I have pity upon your families , and yet greater pity for those upon whose resources you must be ultimately thrown . I have received a letter from one of the most respectable booksellers and news agents in Salford , in these words , — Sir , —Tou aro playing the devil with thc Examiner . Some weeks ago I used to Boll six or seven quires ot lhat paper , now 1 can't sell one i Your obedient servant _.
And from all parts ofthe countvy I receive the lachrymose epistles from the agents who used , formerly , to make a good thing by the sale of the Dispatch and Lloyd ' s , but which journals , BLESS THE MARK—are now becoming waste paper , while the " workies" have discovered that tbe very atmosphere is tainted by their presence and the beer is turned sour . I assure you , my "Good Ruffians , " that even my devotion to my constituents , and my anxiety to serve the people zealously and honestly in Parliament . shall not save you from tlie
castigation to which your assassin-like brutality so justly entitles you . Don ' t think that I am one of those whom you can play with ' . —whom you can take up and put down as you please !—whom you can attempt to wound and then beg pardon I " I never seek the quarrel nor shun it when it comes , " nor shall I now be the first to cry "Hold ! Enough 1 " I did not seek this controversy , but you grappled with my honour , and if you perish in the struggle you are your own destroyers ! FeAnnus O'Connor .
GRAND SOIREE AND B . \ U . IN HONOUR of the _Re turn of feargus _o'connorf'esq ., as member for kottikguam . _•**
Tho friends of Feargus _O'Connor , Esq ., M . P _., having determined to hold a festival to celebrate the return of that gentleman as member forthe borough of Nottingham , Monday last wm _appainted for that purpose , and such wa 3 ,. the anxiety of persons to be present on tho occasion that the comriiitteo of management were under tho necessity of taking thc Exchange Hall and the Conservative Assembly Rooms lor the above object . Long before the time arrived for admission , crowds of persons had assembled , ami on tha doors being opened , both places were immediately occupied by those who had been fortunate _^ ugh to obtain tickets .
} Atthe Exchange rooms upwards of COO persons sat down t _<> tea , while those at the _Assembly Romas fell _littl- short of that number . At about fiv _« o clock ' _iFearjjus 0 _'Cdimor , Esq ., attendtd by the _ifiey . Mr Linwood . W . Y . _Roberts . Esq ., T . Allsop , _Etq ., & c , entered the Exchange , Hall , and took Ira seas at the _cros" table , amid " the most _doafeniisg shouts of applause ever beard ' within those walls . Tea having Keen concluded , and while the necessary preparations f ' or ' erectisg a platform , cfcc , wcrebsing made , Mr O'Connor , attended by "" the _povoral person 3 above named , paid a visit to tho Asacmblj Rooms , which he entered shortly after seven o _' _olcck ' , and te .-ik his seat in the _centio of tho gallery amid the uproarious _acclauwtioiii ) of the company assembled _Ltdntv .
Mr _Charlos Robfirti _, of Nottingham , presided over thc meeting at the Assembly Rooms , and m Mott over tbat at the Exchange rooms . LWe have received a very _lonR report of the _> atone meetings just as we wore going to _?««* , b _»^ , ' compelled to Met Us _p-ita'' «* tall a » - »«» _-J
Tttose Who Live In Idleness With-*Irttla...
- ' ' _*' . . 'l / Ii ) ll 4 _UXi ' . / . ill * - ' ¦ < MSSSRS-lhBBR , % oS 6 _J < _, _-: 6 ASTLEB . * _r ?! fWe hare been ' requested \ _$ - pjblish the _fblldkin _* cowe _^ ondence :--,. y , _, '¦ . " . ' ' ; ;> •' - TO _RICHAI 1 D OABTIER . TSQ . , 3 , " Market Walk . ilur ! der * fi _» l _& Nov . 7 , 1847 . - f Dhar _SiRj-rWiliiam Rider is reported to . bav * aaid , at a late meeting at Manchester , that wiies i lira * mon I tn livo nt-. I _. PRfta T _rvflllftstpd vaii tn Inn . I nw » _j _iviiu .... ; _,... . _^~ MS 9 _SRS- * _tfCEn . % 0 fiSAit- * i _« n _rW-TT . _** i * .
. ... v . . r _» . « . » - ... -- - . ' -- " _"v . ijiw £ 10 . ; that yeu demurred , or refused to do this , bat offered to lend it to him ( Rider ) he being _raspon _* _sibletoyou . . This statement evidently _implisstbat you doubted my trust-worthiness . -. - ' - .. ' Will you be kind enough to say , per . return of post , whether / in all our connection , 'both of abui . _rieaa-kind and otherwise , you ever saw in tne alight that would induce snch a feeling :, or prevent ' jou . lendingme £ 10 ( ifconvenient )? . ; _. I am sorry thatyour name _shouidhaye been thai [ dragged into * dispute 1 happen to have with other ! parties on puttie ground * ; but I am not theoffender , aiid when you are made tbe means , whereby to _casf ;» reflection on another man's character , I am Bure jw will declare the truth . [ _Youra _resnectfttJIyv Joshua _Hobsk " .
io un Joshua _nonsoir . London , Nov . 8 th , 1817 . Mr _© EAn * _Ej & , "—I am grieved , more than I _liatt express ,, that my name should be introduced into the _quarrebabout \ the Land . ' However , yonr letter demands an answer . If Mr Rider understood _anything tittered by me * at our interview _as'implying that I doubted your trtistwon hineas , '" be was mistaken . . Iin answer t >> your question ,: • • Whether , in all our connection , both ofa _businessy . kind nnd otherwise , lever saw in ybu aught that'Vtiuld induce such » reeling , or prevent my lending you £ 10 . ( if convenient r \ l reply—Never .
bince . itse ' _-niJ . my name must ha mixed up in these disputes , _^ is hut just that I also state , I am ? sure those persons who charge Mr O'Connor with an intention tc- defraud the subscribers to ' the Land Plan _' of their money , do him _ijreat injustice . He ia much more likely to spend his own money in their service , than to use _theirs on his own account . Th is will serve an an answer to many persons who hflve asked my opinion on that point . Wishing tbat you v / ere all friends again , working
together for the emancipation of labour ; deprecating ! every attempt to cause suspicion in the minds of the * working classes , as t * the integrity and honesty of purpose of Mr O'Connor or yourself ; and most heartily praying for the speedy and complete triumph of the ' Land Plan , ' ; I remain , mv dear Mad . ' Your » Old King , ' Mr llobson , _KiciuiH _) Oastler - 3 , Market Walk , Huddersfield .
TO THE EDITOR . Sir , —In reference to tho _nbovu correspondence , I have enly to repeat ( and on oath , if necessary ) eve _* fy word I stated at the Hall of Science ; . Mr llobson , witli Im usual sophistry , seeks to cover the real _question in a cloud , llobson would have it believed that he had funds , nod that they went tt » support and uphold thc Star . My object was _toshow the reverse To prove that he bad _. _votiiixo to tost by connexion with the Star . This I wished to show . That Mr Oastler spoke jocosely no man call dispute who knows that gentleman . His life ; has been spent in the labour of love—in helping the > helpless . Itis not in his nature to sue the shirt off any man ' s back ; he would rather put one on the back of his veriest enemy—if enemies thit _sord man canba 7 e . "f _t'ii Ride it .
P . S . I will not be sacrificed by Hobsnn _' _* sophistry My character is as dear to me as Mr O'Connoi ' a or Mr _Osstler ' _s : as for Mr llobson ' s , (!) it i * out of the question . W . Ridsr ,
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The Land And La-Houtt Bank Asd Tue Mak-....
THE LAND AND _LA-HOUtt BANK ASD TUE MAK-. CHESTEII MECHANICS . TO TUB BDITOa Ot THE MANCHESTER EX 1 MISEB . Gentlemen , —In last Saturday ' s Examiner , the' Whistler * asserts that , _through his writings , thu _lmtchiae makers have withdrawn their money from thc Land and Labour Bank . Such statement not l > cin _£ a correct one , I hope you will allow me to contradict it in your next . We have withdrawn £ : t 0 ( but not through tho influence ) of the 'Whistler . ') It was to pay our treasurer money thatwa owed to Wm . The abovo sum wns _jmid to my _ordur at amoment ' s notice and four per cent , with it . I should feel obliged to ' One who has Whistled at tho Plongh' if he would state tlio truth and noth _' _ns more . Instead of whistling confidenc * away from "s _, he has whistled us into greater confidence with the Land Rank andits noble founder , F . O'Connor , TCsq . Wc _liaveftiiift in the Land Bank and no idea of tvit ' i ( lr << winf * it . I um , sir , yurs , D . SOHOFIELD , Secretary to the 4 tli _Tiranch of tho _Journeymen-Steam-EiiKine , Machine Maker aiid Millwrights ' Friendly Society , No . 2 , Gray-street , _Carruthersstreet , Manchester . Nov . 2 nd , 1817 .
TIIE O'CONNOR , BASK . TO MB EDITOB OF THB _JIASCIIESTER EX . _UHSEB . Sir , —Ii ) your paper oflast Tue .-ilay it is inserted that Joseph Heywood aud Thariiley lind sent £ ' !" . lust week but one to _Fergus O'Connor ' s bank , belonging to the Middleton _Chi-ktiiiu i ' riendly Sick andljuri . il _staci < -ty , held nt the _Weslcyan Methodist _soIiojI , Miild . etou , and they have as yet received no answer or _cluquc Now , the truth is that we sent a twenty pound Bank of England note by the post of thc 19 th of _September , and received a receipt on the i'lst of September , or by r-turn of post , » o that your correspondent neither knew the tima we sent tile money or that we had received tho cheque . You say . owing to the other society not _liuviug received a cheque , Mr Smithes has _thought _prop-. r to make inquiry into O'Connor ' s b . inlc before he sends tha money . When Mr Smithes visited ine upmi the subject , I showed him the receipts together with all letters we had received upon the subject .
P . S . —If your correspondent bo a member of the abovesociety , we hope he will attend nt the next meeting , and there substantiate his charges ; wo havo stated nothing but the truth which if your correspondent had dono the ? same . it wmrtd havebeen more to his honour and credit as a member of thc above _sooiety . We hope you will insert the above in your piper o £ Tuesdny next , under the head of the itorlidnle and Middleton news , as the false _st-itcmcnt appeared in your last Tuesday ' s paper . Our desire is that the public may know the truth . We remain , lovers nf truth and justice , William _Thounlex and Josbph Hexwood . Middloton , Oct . 31 , 1817 .
TO TIIE IDITOB OP THB MAKCnESTBR _BXAHINEH . Sir , —Having just been looking over the Manchesteb _Exjmises ot Saturday , _thtsSOth of Ootober , I _thew hud , is an article _sitincd by ' One who has Whistled at tho Plough , ' the following sentence . ' We have _buen the cause of many societies not banking their money in the Land and Labour Bank , and havo also boen instrumentalin causing the mechanics to withdraw their money tVoin *? that bank ; ' and as you presume to bo actuated in your desire to benefit th » public by _assertiny thc truth , I hero- _^ by request that you will give insertion to the tol ' _mvmgjy so that in your steal to bu Hia _bcnt- 'iictor of the publicyou may not lead them iuto an error by publishing a . falsehood . ... ...
Thc mechanics of Manchester have not withdrawn their money from tho National Land and Labour H . nik , neither do they intend ro withdraw it , or any portion thereof , _unlesB _anmpelled by the present state of trade to do so , for the support of their member * out of employment ; and , for your futuro consolation , I b » _g to inform you , and throuif ' i yon thepublic , that instead of withdrawing / , tho No . S Manchester Branch deposited £ 20 in the hands of Mr Feargus O'Connor , on Tuesday , when he was in _Slanchestcr , nnd that several others aro about to followin their steps ; Now , sir , tho mechanics' society , above all others , havo reasons to endeavour to stop the supplies of tlieir oppressors , inasmuch as they have , and that very recently , had a specimen of the i ' oily of placing their money in the banks when their employers inyiy get a couple of other * to _* o bond with them for , say live or tea thousand pounds , perhaps , of the very money deposited by the op . ratives , which _enables them to dictate terms to
their workmen , which , should they refuse , tliey are immediately turned out of employ , and spies and inl ' onnera sent in amoiwst theni , and supported too by the moneydeposited in tliose banks by the operatives themselves ; the result of whicii is that we have to put our hand * into our poelcets to protect our _olitcera from the information of _s-uch ivreluhes . Witness the Xewton Conspiracy e _?\ o _o which b ; m cost us near two thousand pounds , _liesMk being the cause of death of an own cnu . in , Alfred _Checseborougli _, to me a d a good member of the mechanics' society . No , no , sir , so far as our branch is concerned , we will not , ifwecan help it , allow our trades' unions to be broken up , and thus lay ourselves _completi-ly at the mercy of our employer . * . Trade societies , sir , I hopB will cimtinne to " orm a'barrier against the oppresssnr until justice shall be done to all . Indeed , it is to be deplored that the capitalists fovea tlieir hands to resist-rcduction after reduction taking place . Witness the amount of mowy lost in the follow ing strikes :-C » _ttou spinners of Manchester , in 1810 , expended , or rather lost , _rf- >« , o < _W ; again , in I 8 i 6 £ 20 ) 0 since that time
_-, _'u ; , _tn ' _. uOO j spinners of I _' _res ton , _rfji _. ol ;' ; town of Preston , JC \ t » 7 , 0 _QC j Glatgcw cotton spinners ,. ' 7 , G _>;() ; loss to town of Glasgow , ; _T ' o <' , 000 ; los 3 to county of Lanarkshire , _SitO . MW ; _sit-iko in tho potteries , ' _-. - Hi _. ouu ; Leeds mechanics' strike , which lasted t . ie _' _. ve mouths , £ l 87 , ( ia »; wool combers of Bradford , ten mouths , _dMO-yoo ; colliers strike , * _" '< , " '' " total . _, « 2 _,-218 _^ . 0 " ) . And whilst the capitalist can mako use of tho law to crush the product !' , tlie product r can never make use a : tbe law to protect liinisoJt' _-witncss tha Glasgow cotton spinners and Dovclicsicr labourors . Now , sir ,, do you really think that if wo lent our money to the Land ami Labour Bank , and thereby eased the . labour market , and endeavoured to get each ot our mem . bare ag . md _liuusi * and four acre * _ofiauil , that : boma * _trf class , would thus turn us out . witbout a dread _««» _" v 8 should betake ou rselves to the _iwluvation oMho sol Hopiiijf vou _n-i ! li _> . _Si-i-t lli « ab ve ui vour pnpet ot n > j . t Sliturdiv and let the truth be _tohl , I »>» , hir , oneof the trustees of tie fourth famn . k of the mechanics ' 5 , _Cluu-cb-street , _Uoclidale-road , Manchester .
Thb Orit.Essivk Avvbktisemknt Duty.—-A P...
Thb OriT . EssivK _Avvbktisemknt Duty . — -A person may advertieein _tftn-jibuses _, cover tlio walls . witH . placards , occupy the * treuis wiih vans , and , in fact , use everv means _waich his ingenuity can devise lot tbe purpose of _makinjj known his wares , and pay aa duty ; but _ifh . 9 _J-Utsa J /; w in a _newspaper , already douoly taxed , Uo immediately _pavs tho _goycvwD . ei . ti ls . 01 . If a poor girl wants a situation , a _tiiae when every farthing is of vital importance _^ to her * she pays tho aaroo amount of duty as a noblema » would da for advertising in estale of the value < _$ _& M _$ _& j _au'i this is ) ju & _thjb \—8 kMd _Tiws K
' ^> - P \F* • T*A ^ ' -N H-.¦R* 1 %. • ...
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 13, 1847, page 1, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns3_13111847/page/1/
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