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6 ¦;• • ¦' , - -" \ ; ; '" : - . " "'•; ...
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Cratres' ff to-bements*
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RVLES OF THE JODRXEYilEX WEAVERS ASSOCIA...
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Q. UARREI, AMOXG WoRKHOUSE AUTHORITIES.—...
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CotTespcmiJcwe*
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FALLACIES OF FREE TRADF. [Under tlie abo...
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. THE SHORT TIME QUESTION.
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RENEWED AGITATION FOR A DIMINUTION OF TH...
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Power of Steam.-" It is stsme;!" said an...
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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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6 ¦;• • ¦' , - -" \ ; ; '" : - . " "'•; ...
6 _¦;• • ¦' , - - " \ ; ; _'" : - . _" "' _•; _^ \ " ; ' ¦ - _TRW :: K 0 W _£ _W _^ _^ November 14 , I 84 fi ;
Cratres' Ff To-Bements*
_Cratres' _ff _to-bements *
Rvles Of The Jodrxeyilex Weavers Associa...
RVLES OF THE JODRXEYilEX WEAVERS ASSOCIATION , As passed at a _Tublic Merting of the Members , the 31 st of October , 1646 . 1 st . That this society ba called the "Friendly Society of , l- > urn-ymen Weavers . " 2 nd . That the object of this society be to assist th * Union ali e idy iu existence , to protect our wages lo the utmost of onr j _* ow « . r , and to see that the ' householders ' aci Justly to each mtmber of this soci _.-ty . 3 .-d . That as so' _-n as we get yropiTiy _organised as a local body , it shall he the duty of the _committee Io take 5 _nt- » consideration the propriety of joining the National Tr _. _Ji-s Association .
4 th . That this society bo governed by a committee of nine persoHs , including president , secretary , and _treasurer ; and that the president shall have the rower to c _:. ll the committee together when be shall think ir necessary lo do so , and a majority shall bave power to transact _bu-iness . 5 th . That the committee be chosen in tbe following manner , vis ., the president , secretary , and treasurer , to le elected bv a public _meetinst ofthe numbers , and the Tetnainder as th _<* y stand in rotation on the secretary ' s book , and that tiiey hold office for the space of three months .
Gth . That the entrance fee be twopence , and contributions as circumstances may require , but not less than one penny per week . 7 th . That in the event of a strike taking place , _sanctioned by this society , each member who may be under Hie n res « ity of leaving the town in consequence of such strike , shall be enitled to a certain sum of money to be ] ur . _* Hft « r derided on . _Stii . That a registration book be kept by the secretary of thi « society , wherein shall be entered nn account of al j _jbs to _b- * let in the 'own or neighbourhood , such information to be obtain , d of tbe members at the weekl y n 9 -: in ; s . _llth . That any member of this society shall he allowed to examine the registration book by paying one penny to the secretarv for his trouble in keeping the book .
lOUi . That the secretary of this society be _autneriseo * to keep a correspotdencewith the various manufacturing ; towns in this country , in order to afford all possible information to any memo * r of this society who may be either desirous or compelled through want of employment to leave this town . litis . That this society meet to transact business every "Monday irght at seven o ' clock . l- _' -h . That the books be audited every three months , the auditors tobe appointed at a public meeting of the members . loth . That all lodge business be closed by ten o ' clock _.
SHEFFIELD . _PnocBEss or _Machiseet . —The Sheffield _Independent _siates that a machine , invtnted in the United States , for cutting files by machinery , has been brought over to this country , and that steps are being taken by Messrs . Naylor , Vickers . and Co ., to procure a patent for the invention . A company is already ibrmed , with ample capital , in the United Slates , who have several machines at work , and who , it is stated , are about to increase very considerably tbe number of their machines . It is stated that the machines are of cheap construction' ' , and that one person , competent to sharpen the chisels , can superintend the working of several machines . The ; Independent says , we understand thas p ? rsons of great experience who were at £ r _« . t'p _2 _rfectly credulous , are now fully convinced that the machine is capable of cutting files in a very superior manner .
PERSECUTION OF BASKET MAKERS . TO THE EDITOE OP TOE "SORTHEBX STAR . Sir , —Silence hitherto has been a tloak to the overbearing-intolerance and persecution of the Master Ra & kvt _Mak-Win this kingdom , and , especially , Robert _Raynes , of Leicester , chairman of the masters' union . In the mouth of August last , the United Basket Makers held a conference at Manchester for the purpose of revising the association's laws . I was delegated by the Leicester and _Northampton district to attend the said meeting , for which offence I was immediately _discharged from working under Mr . Raynes , he stating that I was " a Chartist rascal , and kept the men in a state of discontent . " Mr . _R-jyaes _, to counteract the exertions of our union , immediately issued circulars through the country , calling a Master ' s Conference in Birmingham , on tbe 5 th of _Octobar last , at which neeting tbey passed the following resolutions : —
Tnat the masters supporting this resolution do engage to employ no journeymen connected with the journeymen ' s society after the 17 th day of October . That the members of this union do pay after the rate of sis : * _ence himself and tor each and every man in his _ei'p _' . oy for contingent expenses , as often as the committee shall levy , to tlie secretary of tbe branch or district , who shall remit the same to the general treasurer . That Mr . Robert Raynes , of Leicester , be tbe general _treasurer , and [ Mr . W . Watts , of Xottiogham , general secretary to this union . That the committee shall consist of the several secretaries in the districts .
That the United Society of Journeymen Basket Makers hive resorted to an expedient , at once dishounourabie and unjust in the case of the late strike at Wolverhampton . At tbat town a demand was made for a considerable advance in the rate of wages , this the masters refused te give . To effect _ihcir purpose , the journeymen ' s society supplied , and are now supplying with materials , a shop , designated a * ' bee-hive . " This shop is now occupied , not by Wolverhamptrn men , but strangers , tbe men having nearly all resumed their work . The goods arc sold much under prime cost , to tbe great harm ofthe employers of that town , and not to the _advantage of the mm . To overthrow these designs , this _meeting recommends that the committee do render such pecuniary assistance to the employers of Wolverhampton as _sha'l enable tliem to undersell the journeymen ' s shop , as it is , it will be the means of effectually , and for ever , _preventing the recurrence of such dastardly and mean attempts . "
Such ** dastardly and mean att- mpt _» , —what is there that is " mean" in working for themselves ! If itis " mean " to work for ourselves , it is doubly " mean " to work for men who are devoid of all honesty , _rcas-n , and c _tmaion understandm _^ . _Jouraeyxn-ii , manufacture for yourselves and "overthrow these designs" of masters who "laugh aud _growjfat" at your expense . Teach them their duties _^ when they will understand your rights . Let thtm work for theirselves—you for yourselves—and see who is "mean . " Mr . Raynes says he ¦ will undersell nie when I go into the market if it cost _Jiim £ 300 . Mr . Raynes has accumulated his money by fhe meanness of selling his own goods , —let us now accumulate hy selling our goods instead of merely selling our labour , when we shall be able to compete with tbeir illgotten £ _-jS 0 . * _Wst . _TVilesian , Basket "Maker . _Lsicester , Nov . 5 , 1 S 4 _C .
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OP UNITED TRADES . Glasgow . —Monday Evening . —A meeting ofthe Rope Mat . rs of this city was held to hear a lecture from Mr . Jacobs , and decide on joining th" National Association . The lecture was received with frequent applause , and the _replies to the questions asked were satisfactorily received _. The _folloaini ; resolution was carried unanimously : — "Tbat the Rope Makers will be materially benefitted b y tlie National Association , that we , therefore , send in our adhesion from this _nisht . " A vote of thanks to tbe lecturer was then passed , and business closed .
Cajielos Nailers' Rise of Wages at the Messas . Fa . _'Bbaih . v . —On Tuesday , Al . ssrs . Cloui ; h : m and Jacobs proceed to _Camelon , pursuant to instructions from the Central Committee , to mediate between the journeymen nailers and . employers , relative lo an increase of prices required by the former . 0 : t their arrival , the several works sent a deputation with the purposed list to the three employers in that _village , leaving the same for their consideration . In about an hoar the deputation again called for a reply , when tbe Messrs . Fairbairn ob . j x-tt-d to some of the items iu ihe men ' s list , and furnished them with a list , which they off . red to pay from Holiday , the 9 th oi _November . This list contained a considerable rise on all siz _^ s , still there were some sorts the men were not satisfied with . It was then agreed that the mediators should send notes to each of the
employers iu the village , requesting an interview . Tbis the Messrs . Fairbairn immediitely as-entd to . At four o ' clock , the meeting took plnce . Mr . Fairbairn , during the controversy , admitted that many ofthe nailers earned low wages , and tbat provisions were dear , nnd hoped they wouldget cheaper before the winter , through foreign supply . After some further conversation on the subject , the Messrs . Fairbairn agreed to give the rise prices until further improvement in trade , when they would give another advance , which terms were accepted , the mediators _assuria _; them the association only _sought , by peaceful and reasonable means to better the condition of its members . Mr . Fairbairn complained that some incorrect statements had appeared in print respecting th ¦ price tbsrged for coals , and showed from his book that ' . lie price charged by him to his men for coals was—large , per cart of 1 G cwt ., 10 s . Gd . -. small do ., 3 s . 0 d , - , and that he , therefore , gets no advantage on that head .
Two other employers sent a verbal refusal to the no _' es of the mediators requesting an interview , and one of them discharged immediatel y , without previous notice , one of the deputation , therefore their men are remaining out , to be employed by the association . Paisley- —Wednesday . —A meeting of the Trades of Paisley was held in the Socialist Hall , when Mr . Jacobs delivered a lecture , which was well received . At the suggestion of the lecturer , a committee was formed of one from each trade , to -organise the trades of Paisley in to a . district of the National Association , who are to jnakearrangements for tbe lecturer to address the several bodies . Babbhead . —Thursday .-A meeting of the Block Printers was held at the Public Hali , Barrhead , to hear a lecture from Mr . Jacobs , who gave every satisfaction . A _resolution was unanimously passed that the Block Printers of Barrhead join tbe National Association . A committee was then formed to carry out the resolution
and get up meetings of the other trades . _Paislet . —Friday . —A geueral meeting of the Block Printers and Nailers of this town wasbeldattbe Chartist Chut cb , to hear a lecture from Mr . Jacobs . The lecturer ¦ Wiis greeted with the | usual approbation , several questions were asked by _influenzal members of the weavers body , and satisfactorily answered . It was then agreed that the committee call another meeting for a second lecture ,
Rvles Of The Jodrxeyilex Weavers Associa...
at the earliest moment , that th _« licturer may enlist those into our ranks who yet hold aloof from the society . NB—The missionary hopes that the Ship Carpenters of Glasgow who were disappointed of his attendance on Tuesday evening , will take his visit and service at Camelon ns a sufficient excuse , as he did not return therefrom till ten o ' clock . Fur . her , having received many applications for his services the same night , he requests those needing him to send him word at least a week heiore hand , addressed G 2 . North Frederic Street , Glasgow . The Carpet Weavers of Kidderminster have presented the following testimonial to their employers : — _Gentlemen , —We , the Carpet AVenvers in your employ , _be-r _roost rf < _= ] _ir * ctfully to lay the following memorial bcfor <* you , hoping you will give it your serious consideration . Owing to existing circumstances , we consider it
n duty incumbent upon us , in'justiceto _ourselvc sand our fHmi !!* s , to solicit you for an advance of wages . We think , Gentlemen , when you consider the depressed state of tbe trade generall y , and the consequent auftVring we and our families have to undergo , owing to tbe high price of provisions and other necessary articles , that you will give us that attention wbich tlie importance of the _snbj-Tt demands . We appeal to you asfellowmen and as Christians to assist us iu our present degraded position as poverty is the chief cause of the 6 vils which afflict us as a body . We a . « k jou to help us to remove the cause , by placing us in the fame position we werein 1827 . You must be aware that for a man to find his family the necessaries of life it requires him to be wholly occupied in physiciil labour , instead of having . i _p-irtion of his time for the cultivation of those faculties which distinguish man from
th ? brute creation . We have a mind as well as a body , which requites food for its development and support , without which man will ever fall a prey to ignorance and eupidity . As monopoly and restriction are passing away , and »• _¦> are entering on a new era in our history , all wc ask for is a share in tho general good ; and that you , in your new arrangements with the Merchants and Consumers of Carpels generally , will adopt such measures as will allow you to raise our wages , so as to enable us to give our children at least a suitable education . It is not direct from you that wa ask for an advance , but from the consumer through the medium of you , our employers , We are encouraged to ask for an advance from the answers which the carpet Manufacturers ofthe north
gave to their men . when making a similar request upon the Brussels and Scotch , ( having obtained upon tbe Scotch , ) which was , - that if tbe Kidderminster masters could be induced to give it , tbey ( the carpet masters of the north ) would readily comply , " as it would make no difference to them , providing all masters would raise alike , as they could then meet equally in the markets , Having said this much , gentlemen , we leave the subject for your consideration , trusting you will take a benevolent and _christian-like view of what we have laid before you . —We aslc it not as an act of favour but as a matter of equity . We temain . yours respectfully , —The Cahpet Weavebs . P . S . —Gentlemen , your _memorialisls will call for an answer this day _fortnight , as they now appear before
VOU . " Nov . 9 th , 181 G . Tiie IvEiGnLKv Tors-Out . —We think it right to republish the facts of this conspiracy of the master woolcombers against their hands , as set forth in the following statement ., read at the recent public meetins ; held at Kciehley , which was presided over by Mr . Ferrand , M . P .: — - "We , the woolcombers of Keighley , are compelled , in justice to ourselves and the public at large , to give the following outline of our present condition , vouching at the same time for the truth of our statement . The wages of an ablebodicil and industrious wool combers for working IS successive-hours per day will not average above 10 s . per week , and after deducting from this sum the expenses of rent , fire , soap , and candles , which at a low calculation cannot be less than 3 s . Gd . per week , he has only 6 s . 6 d . left to provide himself and family witb meat , clothes , and other necessary articles .
Tbe want of workshops has driven us to the necessity of following our employment at our own homes , and most frequently in our own bed rooms . This circumstance , from the close nnture of the employment and the effluvium arising from the corab-pot , the oil , soap , and wet wool , _produces disease amongst us and our families to an alarming extent , and it has been proved , from an in . vestigation lately made in Bradford , that the average of life is less amongst the woolcombers than amongst any other body of workmen in the kingdom . In nine cases out often when a young man gets married be has little or anything to commence housekeeping with , and lie frequently gets into such difficulties , by furnishing his house and providing himself with the necessary articles he may want , that he seldom or ever recovers from the effects of his outlay .
The difficulty of supporting himself by his own labour makes it always necessary that his wife should either comb along with him , or labour in a factory , two very improper occupations for married women ; but when he becomes tbe father of two or three children then his situation grows wretched indeed . The labonr of himself and wife then becomes so necessary to prevent actual starvation , that fainily and housekeeping are almost entirely neglected . It however frequ-ntly happens that a depression of trade arrives , when he is either only partially employed , or altogether out of employment , in which case he is reluctantly driven , in the youth and vigour of life , to become dependent on the tender mercies of the Poor Law Guardians ; but when overtaken by old age , sickness , or any of the thousand casualties to which we are liable , he is compelled to spend the last of his days in au union hastile , without ever having known the comforts and pleasures of a home .
In making this statement we have no wish to overdraw the picture of our situation , but prefer keeping it rather under than over . It must be remembered that in manufacturing towns rents , highway and poor rates , and a variety of other necessary expenses , are high , and that we are confined entirely to our bare wages . We have no plots of ground , no conveniences for keeping pigs , cows , or other things to be found amongst a rural population , and we shall challeme any man to prove that we can support ourselves and families out of 10 s . per week without being placed in the condition we have described .
To improve this our miserable condition by an advance of one farthing per pound upon combed wool , which would only have increased our wages about ninepence per week , _ouremployers hare combined _against us , and thrown betwixt 1 , 200 and 1 , 500 of us out of employment . It is now about ten weeks since this happened , and during that time we havo suffered everything that want and privation could inflict , and we are now depend _, ing entirely upon tbe charity of the public . Keighlev , Tuesday , Nov . 10 th . —* The position of the _woolcombers remains nearly the same as it was last week . Lund ' s weavers continue out , and appear deter _, mined to remain so till their employer agrees to do something like justice to the combers . The manufacturers continue to exercne the most _barefaced tyranny
towards those weavers working in their factories who dare venture to raise a voice in behalf cf the combers . Some of them make a regular practice of walking round tteir factories to detect persons collecting money for their support ; and their orders to the hands are now issued out in nearly the following terms : — " If I can find any person in this factory collecting money for either themselves , or tbe combers , or producing a book for that purpose , I will instantly dismiss thtm from my employment ; and if I find any overlooker allowing such a _prao . tice , t will dismiss him also . " The combers and weavers are now busy enrolling themselves in the United Trades ' Association , the combination of their employers having proved , that henceforth tbe tyranny of the manufacturers will have to be opposed by something stronger than local unions and casual support .
Wednesday , Nov . 11 th . —It will be recollected that last week the mill hands of Mr , William Lund turned out on behalf of the combers _. almost immediately after a party of the Anti-Wages League waited upon a magistrate to know if they could not send the turn-outs to prison for leaving work without a fortnight ' s notice . The magistrate said , such a thing might be possible , but that it would be very cruel and imprudent to send some hundreds on that account . They then wanted to know if , in case they stopped all their mills they could not demand a party of soldiers to protect tbeir property and the peace
of the town . He told them that that also was possible , only they would have to pay the expenses themselves ; and be considered it would be much better to give tbe uiAney to their ' combers than the soldiers . This morning the Leaguers are posting up notices to run their factories three days per week . They are doing this for the double purpose of doing with less combed wool , and of preventing their workpeople from bnving anything to spare for the combers . They have always been bitter opponents to a Ten Hours' Factory Bill ; but it appears they are not so much opposed to the Short Time measure when it suits their own purposes .
P . S . —Mr . Robert Mullan , Tyrell-court , _Tyrell-street , Bradford , is authorised to receive money on behalf of the Keighley woolcombers , from persons residing in that neighbourhood . Wages is Paisley . —The Glasgow Examiner states that though trade is brisk at Paisley , the weekly average of the weavers * wages does not exceed seven sliilings . 1 _Kiimabnoce . —The staple trade of this district is at present in a very depressed state .
Q. Uarrei, Amoxg Workhouse Authorities.—...
Q _. UARREI , AMOXG WoRKHOUSE AUTHORITIES . —Mr . Wealc , Assistant Poor Law Commissioner , has just made , at the request of the board of guardians , an investigation into a quarrel between the master , matron , schoolmistress , and the porter of the Loughborough Union workhouse . It appeared that it originated in an avowed personal dislike on the part of the matron towards the school mistress , who had been but newly appointed . The matron lost no opportunity of annoying the governess , and inciting the schoolchildren to dispute her authority over
them . Tlio porter was charged with impropriety towards the female paupers by , the matron ; and he , in _retaliation , charged the matron with having _persuaded a lunatic pauper to prefer . gross and lake charges against him . This was sworn to be the fact . The-porter admitted having had " a lark " with some [ of the female inmates , but called witnesses to show that it was not of an improper nature . The _jrroeeeaihss resulted in the compulsory resignation of the master and matron , the dismissal of the porter , and the schoolmistress retains licr situation .
Cottespcmijcwe*
_CotTespcmiJcwe _*
Fallacies Of Free Tradf. [Under Tlie Abo...
FALLACIES OF FREE TRADF . [ Under tlie above head Mr . Oastler has addressed a letter ( the concluding one ofa series ) to the editor of tho Morning Post . The entire letter is very lengthy , wo have , therefore , been compelled to omit a lew of the least important paragra p hs . ] Slit— " It is along lane that has no turn . " The self styled " philosophers" have had a wearisome run , whon—bounce they have tvicken their shallow pates against a heap of rotten potatoes . ' There they are aghast—at bay—a standing monument of the folly and
wickedness of forcing the people " to live on the coarsest sort ef food . " Why , except upon tho principles of manern "philosophy , " should potatoes be the food of millions ? They now acknowledge in terror , by their acts , that the poor have a right _ta live—that rents must yield to labour ' s due— that poverty hai rights more urgent than the landlord ' s claim . Common sense has warned them oft—they would not listen ; but now , the conceited ells have fallen into the pit they digged for the poor ! Still , though forced , in act ? , to deny their avowed principles , they stoutly maintain , in words , that they were right .
I shall render my country good service if , once for all , I explain the unchristian , and consequently antisocial principles on which the modern " enlightened and liberal philosophers" found their shallow , loose , and selfish scheme , which , for so many years , tiiey have been substituting , bit by bit , for that old , e . impact , and substanial fabric—our universally protective Constitution . I have Mr . Cobden ' s testimony in reference to the authority of Dr . Adam Smith . Nothing can be more conclusive than the evidence furnished by Mr . Cobden , in that memorable passage which I have before quoted , and which 1 now repeat , that it may ba more firmly impressed upon the minds of your readers . It is to be found in the first number of the Anti-Corn Law Circular , aud is as follows : —
At length , however , the obvious truths which Adam Smith , Kicardo , and others had so clearly demonstrated , that those restrictions and prohibitions upon trade tended , in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred , to diiert the national industry from its natural and profitable _pursuits _, into artificial and less productive channels , were recognised by the statesmen of this country ; and partly to stimulate industry ( with tho view of meeting the heavy _charges ofthe government and debt of the nation , ) and partly , perhaps , from a conviction of tardy injustice of the measure to that party whose interest had been , and still is , lost sight of by the advocates of monopoly—tbe consumer , the principles of Free Trade were adopted and openly avowed by the Liverpool Administration .
From that time tho question of the justice or injustice of the Com Laws assumed a new shape ; tt is no longer one of doubt to the honest inquirer , but presents itself simplified and divested of every dhficitUy . All attempt to carry us back In our discussion of the subject beyond tho period when the principle of Free Trade was applied to the manufactures , commerce and shipping of Great Britain and her colonies , should th * refore , by sedulously avoided as supererogatory , and calculated only to mystify what has , from that time , been a plain und unembarrassed question . This is evidence sufficient to prove that Dr . Adam Smith is one of the recognised leaders of the new school of " philosophers ; " that . he is esteemed the leader , may be gathered from a quotation from Mr . Cobden ' s " England , Ireland , and America , " where the lucky agitator says : —
" We have our Banksian , our Linncean , our Hunterian _sacieties . and wbyshould , at least , OHrgreatest commercial and manufacturing towns have their Smithiax societies devoted to the purpose nf promulgating the beueficent truths of ' The Wealth of Nations ?'" No matter , as I have in a former letter shown , that Dr . Adam Smith doubted the truth of his own theory . There can , however , be no doubt that he is the recognised oracle of the Free-traders , and that the 'Wealth of Nations" is the book in which we may safely search for the foundation of their " benificent" principles .
If , then , that book contains a most important assertion that is in direct contradiction to the principles ofthe Holy Bible , it will be proved that the foundation ofthe free system is anti-Christian . To establish this most important fact , it is only needful that I should make a very short extrant from the " Wealth of Nations . " I have extracted those words before ; they cannot be too often repeated . Dr . Adam Smith says : — " Every individual is continually exerting himself to find out the most advantageous employment for whatever capital he ean command . It is his own advantage , indeed ; and not that of the society , that he has in view . But the study of his own advantage , naturally , or rather necessarily , leads him to prefer that employment which is most advantageous to the society . "
I would not misrepresent Dr . Adam Smith ; I would rather urge the admirers of his creed most carefully to analyse his great work , and , if they oan , to find therein any other foundation for Ihe scheme of unrestrained , unregulated action—Free Trade . I think they will search in vain . Nay , I am persuaded , on reflection , it is evident that the principle of free action can only be defended on the premises assumed by Dr . Adam Smith—the belief in the unerring perfectiou of his man , his very selfishness being estepmed his most important virtue . Were I to ask Mr . Cobtlen or Sir Robert Peel , if
a scheme , founded on a principle that is so utterly at variance with Christianity , can ever associate itself with a Constitution so essentially Christian as ours ? —they , being mere politicians of the modern " Liberal " school , would , most likely , smile at my folly ; not so , the Bishop of Oxford . lie cannot assume to be a mere politician , lie dare not , even in the Ilouse of Lords , divest himself of his sacredotal character . lie is a Bishop of the Church of Christ . The Right Rev . Prelate may riot defend a principle that is contrary to the fundamental d ctrine of Christianity—the fall of man .
If there be any other principle on which to establish Free Trade , than that propounded by its great apostle , it is manifestly due to the Church of Christ , and to bis own episcopal character , that the Bishop of Oxford should , without delay , publish it , or reconcile Dr . Adam Smith ' s assertion with Holy Writ . When the Bishop has done this , when he has established man ' s infallibility , he will have proved the excellence of Free Trade ; he will have done more , ho will have demonstrated the usefulness of his own order . I believe that man is a fallen , selfish , ignorant being , and that every unregulated and unrestrained action of his is fraught with evil—that , if left without the restraining __ and regulating laws of God ( which , by our Constitution , must be part and parcel
of the laws of the land ) , instead of preferring such schemes , in the search of his own advantage , as would be advantageous to the society , his selfishness would lead him to injure all for his own benefit . I learn this from the Holy Bible . I have often witnessed it . I am not to be convinced against Bible truth , and every day ' s experience , by Sir Robert Peel ' s declaration that Mr . Cobden has established a contrary truth ; or by Mr . Cobden's assertion that Dr . Adam Smith has " clearly demonstrated" another fact ; or by the Bishop of Oxford ' s doctrine enunciated in these awful words— - Be he labourer or be he farmer , what is it that makes him valuable to those above him ? It is competition ; " or by a shoal of smirking Manchester men chirping " Free Trade is common sense !"
Sir , this is a serious question . It will be found lo be so , before England has done with it . It is essential that the followers of Jesus Christ should know what manner of spirit that of Free Trade is . We have been assured that Free Trade was the only way to make bread " cheap" to the poor ; and its opponents have been denounced as persons who wish to withhold corn from the poor . As if to stamp that assertion with falsehood , since the triumph of the principle of Free Trade , with an avowedly good harvest , corn lias risen to an alarming price . The
speculators could , if they would , tell us why . Well might Mr . Francis Horner , the greatest statesman in the Free-trade school , when speaking of Dr . Adam Smith's theory , describe it as— "A popular , plausible , and loose hypothesis , as good for the vulgar aB any other : " and "give up tbe perusal of ' The Wealth of Nations , ' on account of the insurmountable difficulties , obscurity and embarrassments in which the reasonings of the fifth chapter are involved ; " declaring— " that discovery that I had not understood Smith , speedily led me to doubt whether Smith had understood himself . "
So much for Dr . Adam Smith and his Cobdenian " clear demonstration of a plain and unembarrassed question—so clear as to render further discussion supererogatory !" There is still another acknowledged master in the Free-trade school , to whom it is _neeessary that I should refer , lie had carefully studied "The Wealth of Nations , " and having traced the principles of Free Trade from their native place , the selfishness of man , and having a more astute mind than Dr , Adam Smith , he ventured boldly and clearly to enunciate the natural result ofthe free and irresponsible principle , and feared not to work it out to its inevitable result . The Rev . T . ft , Mallhusslat . es : —
" The only authors from whom I have deduced the principle which formed the main argument of the essay were Hume , Wallace , Adam Smith , and Dr . Price ; and my object was to apply it , te try the truth of those speculations on the perfectibility of man and society which at that time excited a considerable portion of the public attention . " 1 say , then , Sir , when the Rev . T . R . Malthus , the bright luminary oftlie nineteenth century , discovered this naked avuwal of an unnatural anil anti-Christian do-ma , lie no longer parlied with Nature or Christianity ; but , perceiving that " Smith ' s loose hypothesis" could only be established on an unnatural and unchristian assumption , lie proceeds to describe of whom " the society" to be benefited by the Free principle _coi . sisis . lie ' plainly announces that the poor , or the labourers , do not form part of that " society , " save when the wealthy may happen to require their services ,
Fallacies Of Free Tradf. [Under Tlie Abo...
Hence , " emigration and no right for the poor to li ve" have been received by our " liberal and onlightened" philosophic statesmen as established political truths ! Wc are told , by high authority , that we must judge ofa tree by its fruit . . The fruit of the Free principle of actions is proved to be , banishment or death ! Havo I placed the Rev . T . R . Malthus in too honourable a niche in tlie temple of our new " philosophers ? " Let the great " schoolmaster" of those " philosophers" speak . Lord Brougham thus described the Rev . T . R . Malthus to the wondering Lords : —
May I step aside for one moment , and do justice to a most learned , a most able , and most virtuous individual , whose name has been mixed up with more unwitting deception , and also with more wilful misrepresentation , than that of any man of science in this Protestant country , and in these liberal and enlightened times . When 1 mention talont , learning , humanity , the strongest sense of public duty , the most amiable feelings in private life , the tenderost and most humane disposition which ever man was adorned with—when I speak of one , the ornament of the society in * which he moves the delight of his
own family , and not less the admiration of those men of letters and of science amongst whom he shines the first and brightest — when I speak of one of the most enlightened , learned , and pious ministers whom the Church of Eng land ever numbered amongst her sons—I am sure every one will apprehend that I cannot but refer to Jlr . Malthus . The character of this amiable man has been foully slandered by some who had the excuse of ignorance , and by others , I fear , without any such palliative , and simply for having made one ofthe greatest additions to political pbilosoply which has been effected since that branch of _learning has been worthy the name of a
• cieiice . Again , when Lord Brougham apologised for the ignorance of those eminent statesmen " who framed tbe statue ( 43 ) of Elizabeth , " which established by law the right of the poor to live on their native soil , his Lordship said : — They were not adepts to political economy—they were not acquainted with the true principles of populationthey could not foresee that a Malthus would rise to enlighten mankind upon tbat important , but as yet illunderstood branch of science .
After this , no one can eay that I have too highly exalted the Rev . T . R . Malthus . 1 am not about to " misrepresent" or to " slander " the " most learned , most able , and most virtuous Malthus . " I shall permit that " n . ost enlightened , learned , and pious minister of the Church of England" to speak for himself , only expressing my opinion , that it will require all the cunning and sophistry of his clever eulogist to reconcile the principle of the Rev . T . R , Malthus with the Word of God , or with the boohs of that Church of which he was a minister . Still , I am bound to acknowledge that the reverend author has honestly developed the principle of Free Trade , and has faithfully described its result , assuming always , that Dr . Adam Smith ' s '' loose hypothesis" is correctly described by Mr . Cobden .
Nothing can be more clear than the fact , that upon the testimony of those tw _© great masters ( Smith and Malthus ) ofthe new " science" of "liberal and enlightened political economy , " the solo benefit to be derived from the practice of that " science" is for the rich — cheap corn , cheap clothes , cheap dwellings , cheap everything for them ; but nothing for the
poor . The Rev . T . R . Malthus himself shall describe the share of the poor in a society that submits to be governed by the Free principle , lie Bays , " A man born into a world already possessed , if he cannot get subsistence from bis parents , and if society doee not want his labour , lias no claim of right to the smallest portion of food ; and , in fact , has no business to be where he is . At nature ' s mighty feast . there is no vaoant cover for him . She tells him to be gone ; and will quickly execute her own orders if he do not work upon the compassion of some of her guests . If those guests get up nnd make room for him , other intruders will immediately appear , demanding the same favour . "
Having " got rid" of these troublesome and unbidden guests , the state of society will be exhibited , as blessed by the operation of Free Trade , as propounded by Dr . Adam Smith , and explained by the Rev . T . R . Malthus—the advantage , of all being secured , by the selfishness of those who use their capital for their own benefit ; ergo , the infants , the aged , the maimed , and tlie " surplus able-bodied labourers , whose services the rich 'do not want , " will all" he gone !" To complete this " beneficent" scheme , to make it work with _, the least possible suffering to those whom " nature tells to be gone , " i ( Marcus , supposed to be Lord Brougham , ) has published a pamphlet recommending that infants should be destroyed
painlessly on their ' entrance into life ! Thus crowning the "beneficent" theory of man ' s free action with _^ the crime of infanticide ! The process ol " painless extinction" ( the name givenj to child murder by these " philosophers , " ) being considered more humane than the infliction of that suffering which would be entailed on the unbidden " guests " under nature ' s fiat— " Begone !" Many persons who profess to be Christians , who support Free" Trade , startle at the conclusions arrived at by a study of that " science " by Malthus and Marcus . It appears to me that these deductions are _honest'y drawn from the theory which Mr . Cobden has pronounced to be " beneficent" —Dr . Adam Smith ' s theory of Free Trade !
If I err , let those who embrace the philosophy of Dr . Adam Smith { explain , where and how Malthus and Marcus are inconsistent with Smith . Strong confirmation of the correct interpretation of Malthus is furnished by the fact that the "liberal and'genlightened" statesmen of the Free Trade school , had avowedly determined to reduce his theory to _practice by the New Poor Law , that being , as Earl Fitzwilliam said , " a step to no Foor Law at all . " That those " wise men " had resolved to reduce the poor to absolute destitution , is suggested by " the ulterior projects" threatened by Lord Brougham , that determination is proved by the secret instruction given by a "liberal and . enlightened " Government , to its officers who were entrusted with the duty of drawing the New Poor Lew Bill . Those instructions contained the following murderous recommendations : —
"Tne commissioners shall have power to reduce allowances , but not to enlarge them . " After some further suggestions , there are the following : — " Alter this has been accomplished , orders may be sent forth , directing that after such a date all outdoor relief should be given partly in kind ; after another period , it should be wholly in kind ; after such another period , it should be gradually diminished In quantity , until that mode of relief was exhausted Fiom the first , the relief should be altered in quality , coarse brown bread being substituted for fine white ; and concurrently with these measures as to the out-door poor , a gradual reduction should be made in the diet of the in-door poor , and _atiict regulations enforced . "
No wonder that , the guilty authors of these audacious recommendations dare not avow them in Parliament . The late William Cobbett , M . P ., for Oldham , had caught a glimpse of them . He _challetmed Lord Altliorp to deny their existence . The noble lord was silent . When , afterwards , John Walter , Esq ., M . P ., for Nottingham , declared that _sucluecret instructions had been given , Sir James Graham acknowledged that " he had & faint recollection of their existence . " The Duke of Wellington ( who must then have felt ashamed of his connection with the philosophers" ) stoutly denied that such instructions had ever been given . Mr . Walter had , however , obtained possession ofa copy of them , and , to his immortal honour , he produced it inthe Ilouse of Commons , thereby he tore the mask from the " benevolent" countenances of the oppressors of the poor , and paved the way to the repeal ofthe inhuman enactment founded on the recommendation
of that diabolical secret document . Let it never be forgotten that those instructions , and the new Poor Law ( as a step to 110 Poor Law ) ate just , if the principle of the free action , maintained by Dr . Adam Smith and the Rev . T . R . Malthus , are founded in truth ! Mr . Cobden truly states '' The principles of Free Trade were adopted and openly avowed by the Liverpool Administration . " It is also a fact , that every succeeding Government has been loosening the bonds of Protection—destroying one monopoly after another , until the sole remaining one is that of wealth . This is called Free Trade . Under its operation the poor have been promised " a big loaf and better wages , " But what do they find ? Millions starving for want of food , in a land from * which the daily exports of food are most enormous . Such is the result of the free action of capital upon the _lt-. oh . " Dear bread and worse wages , " resound from the manufacturing districts .
Ever since the inoculation of the Liverpool Administration with the priucipleBof Free Trade , ( and , be it remembered , the whole period has been one of peace ) , our laws have tended towards the Free princpJe of action , until it arrived at its climax last session . Now , if those principles were really wise aud " beneficent , " the condition of the labourers and artisans would necessarily have improved during their adoption . Let any one look back to the former period , and . compare the condition of the industrious classes tfi . en . aiul _atpment , and he will find that" more work for less wagea" ia the result .
The object of this letter is , to convince those sincere friends of the poor , who has unhappily embraced the anti-Christian philospliy of the age , that they have mistaken the effects of the free , unrestrained , and unregulated principle of action , and that while they had hoped ,-by the removal of monopolies , to render the access to food easier to the poor , they have really been erecting a stronger barrier between food and labour , by encouraging the great monopoly of wealth . These good men have found that " Tiiere is a way that scemeth right unto a man , but the end thereof are the wages ol death . "
It is absurd to suppose that any member ofa civilised society should give up his right to life an I liberty . I maintain that the whole people have a
Fallacies Of Free Tradf. [Under Tlie Abo...
ight to life and liberty in the land of their birth , and that , while able and willing to labour , that they have a right to be supported by their labour in that land , and that , if unable , either from infancy , _aje , or infirmity , of obtaining employment , they have still a right to support , and that , in their native land , I maintain also , that rich and poor have a right to perpetuate their race in that land . I recognise no c aim inland or property of any kind , anterior to those inalienable rights of every man . If the rich claim more , when every man in tlie society is not protected ( I do love that word ) in the enjoyment of the indefeasible rights I have named , their claim is uri ] ust .
I have well weighed this matter . If I am not correct , I call upon Mr . Cobden , Sir Robert Peel , o _; - the Bishop of Oxford to prove the _cintrary . That statesman would not permit the food of man to be drained from a country that is declared to be in a state of famine ; nor clothing to be exported where the people are in rags . lie would no longer permit the sacrifice , by overworking , of hundreds of thousands ofthe industrious inhabitants of thisnation to the cravings of the covetous and wealthy . lie would restore to the domestic hearth oftlie labourer and artisan—the wife : and thus secure the
required comfort of his home . lie would find their properplace in soeiety for tlie improvements in science and machinery , making them the helpmates of labour , not its competitors . He would at once restore the right of all , by law , to life and liberty . The statesman we want would know how to increase the wealth of the nation by making that wealth usefid to all . In fine , he would regulate all his measures by that infallible rule of right- " Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself . " I remain , Sir , Your obedient servant , Richard Oastler .
P . S . —I am invited to visit Yorkshire , there , once more , to plead the cause of the factory workers , I am told that I shall be expected , on the same errand , to traverse Lancashire and the manufacturing districts of Scotland . I shall rejoice to be enabled to answer all those calls . m I wish that statesman would attend all our meetings . He would then know whether the manufacturing operatives were or were not for a Ten Hours ' Factory Regulation Bill . He would also ascertain if Messrs . Fielden and Ferrand , or Messrs . Cobden and Bright , were the true exponents , in the House of Commons , of the condition and feeling of the masses engaged in our busy hives , the factories . Believe me , Sir , he would gain more " useful knowledge" by attending those meetings , than by the perusal of manv books . I wish he would attend . R . O .
. The Short Time Question.
. THE SHORT TIME QUESTION .
Renewed Agitation For A Diminution Of Th...
RENEWED AGITATION FOR A DIMINUTION OF THE HOURS OF LABOUR IN FACTORIES .
GREAT MEETINGS AT HUDDERSFIELD . On Tuesday evening the Short Time Committee for Yorkshire recommenced their [ agitation under the most favourable auspices , by holding a public meeting in the Philosophical Hall in this town , The room and galleries , which are capable of accommodating two thousand persons , were fully occupied , and not one dissentient voice was heard throughout the entire proceedings . John Fielden , Esq . M . P ., W . B . Ferrand , Esq ., M . F ., and Richard Oastler , the old and tried friends of the factory operatives , assisted at the meeting . Several clergymen and manufacturer .- ; were also present . The Rev , J . Bateman , Vicar of Huddersfield , was ealled to the chair , and he opened the proceedings by expressing his cordial concurrence with the advocates of a Ten Hours' Factory Bill , as necessary for the physical , intellectual , moral , and religious welfare ofthe factory workers . _"•*
The Rev , R . Mannisg _, of Huddersfield , moved the first resolution , which was—That a reduction in the hours of factory labour is a growing necessity , from the great increase and high _perfection of machinery , whose use is to lessen , and not to argument , human labour ; that long hours , though at first not felt to be so great a social evil , are now found to be very injurious both to the person and pucuniary interests of the parties employed . Mr . T . IIawkyard , an operative , seconded the resolution , and it was carried unanimously . The next resolution was moved by an operative named John' Hanson , and seconded by another named John Sykes . It was as
follows—That the recent and present factories regulation acts were forced upon the country in opposition to those proposed by Michael Thomas Sadler and Lord Ashley ; and while the object ' of _thess acts , according to their promoters , was to give greater advantage to the employers by relays of children , still even those measures have proved of _considerable blessing by the greater equalisation of labour throughout the factories , the prevention of night working , and the opportunities , _though small , given to children for instruction and
recreation , Mr . Oastler then came forward to support the resolution , and his rising was the signal for the most hearty demonstrations of applause , which lasted for several minutes . When the cheering bad _subsided , Mr . Oastler said—Mr . Chairman and the inhabitants of Huddersfield , I am here again harnessed in the Ten Hour Bill cause , and with the help of God I will never again retire from the field until that cause be triumphant . ( Cheers . ) Sir , it is not needful that I should go into argument in Huddersfield to prove the necessity _atad the justice of that which has been admitted to be just and necessary even by the bitterest opponents ofthe Ten Hour Bill in Parliament . Mr' Oastler then went on to say that he had been
present himself in Parliament . He was under the _sallery during the whole of the last debate on the Ten Hours' Bill , and whatever arguments he might have thought necessary to use to convince the opponents of the Bill , he had received on that occasion from Mr . Cobden himself and Mr . Bright . ( Cheers . ) Those gentlemen , who were then _opposing the Ten Hours' Bill , declared in Parliament , that- it was a good and very desirable thing to reduce the hours of labour to ten , only that it ought not to have tho authority of Parliament ; they thought it should be voluntarily adopted between masters and men . He should think himself wasting the time of the meeting , if he went into argument to prove that tbat was necessary to be
done by law which the bitterest opponents of it declared should be done without law . They had now to fiirht the battle of the Ten Hours' Bill in Huddersfield ; and when he saw himself surrounded by so many friends , whom he loved arid revered—when he saw two such dear friends present as Ferrand and Fielden —( three hearty cheers were then given for Mr . Ferrand and Mr . Fielden)—when he saw two such friends present—men to whom , under God , he owed the liberty to stand" before bis countrymen—( cheers )—two such friends as no king was ever blessed with but himself— ( chcers ) _-when he stood iu such an assembly _. and inthe presence of sucb friends , it would indeed be unlike " the old king , " if h ! s heart were not warmed and his tongue were not loosened .
Talk at Huddersfield if you will about an amelioration ofthe condition ofthe factory workers at Manchester , Bradford , and Leeds—talk of the parks at Manchester ! Who were the persons most ready to subscribe to the promotion of such objects but those factory masters who had been most opposed to a Ten Hours' Bill ? Talk of a society at Bradford for the purpose of providing females in factories with lodging houses ! He wanted to _getl them to their mother ' s home . ( Hear . ) Who supports snch projects ? Why those verv persons who were once opposed to the Ten Hours' Bill . What did this prove ? It proved that those parties had a conviction in their minds of what was just , fighting against their selfinterests—against their pockets . Tlie * e __ parties , he trusted , would yet come out , and , yielding to the kind feelings of their nature , support any measure that would seem to be for the advantage of the
factory workers . It would be remembered that the foundation of the Ten Hours' Bill was laid in troublous times ; they had had to fi > _-ht through many battles ; but , thank God , they had come out of them purified , and although the Reform Bill had passed , although the Corn Bill had been repealed , and although all the Tories had been extinct but himself —( laughter )—still they were all right good Ten Hours' Bill men . In allusion to a suggested Eleven Hours , Mr . Oastler asked , was there a single person in that assemby wo would be contentwith an Eleven Hours' Bill ? " The artswer was universal—" No . " This question Mr . Oastler repeated , as he said , to prevent mistake , still the answer was " No . " Mr . _Oastier , having expressed his regret that there had been in the Ilouse of Commons two aristocratic seceders from the good cause , eulogised the Rev . Mr , Bull for his able and zealous services on behalf of the
operative classes ; and concluded by recommending the operatives to be actuated towards their employers nnd one another by a spirit of godliness and philanthropy . The resolution 'was then put from the chair , and carried unanimously . The Rev . Mr . Granb , incumbent of Woodhouse , moved—That from our amazing powers of production a still further reduction is found to be essentially necessary ; and this meeting calls for tbe adoption of an efficient Ten * Hours' Bill ; it huviiur boen sufficientl y proved tfint such would be a general ndvantage both to the employer and the employed ; for the growing intelligence of the age requires that mure time be set apart for the moral and religious instruction ofthe working population than can be afforded by au Eleven Hours' regulation , witb which the factory operatives never will be satisfied . . •>; :., ' j 'Mr . AliMiTACcK seconded the resolution . ' •• , •¦ - I
Mr ; - Fkiihand having been requested by the chair * ¦ matt ' to support the motion , ' was . enthusiastically _ehec-rad on his rising , lie said thcre . wasa wry convincing proof bcfoi ' _u-liim that public opinion _wnsfbecomin ' uuatumou * in favour of the Ten Hours' Bill . On the present occasion past wrongs should be _forgotti n , but , nevertheless , rmness , should bedisplaycd . Tbey ghould tell their masters that the operatives mus
Renewed Agitation For A Diminution Of Th...
have the Ten Hours' Bill . Parliament should be tnU that the toiling millions of this country who hadVp neglected by the Legislature for half _acentury _"•»«„?? not be satisfied unless this right were conceded Whilst ths manufacturers had grown more rich th operatives had become more poor ; whilst the former could not count their wealth , the latter could not enumerate their miseries . The continuance of such a state of things was disgraceful to achristian country ( Cheers . ) \ Le was glad to find the clergy present on this occasion . He hoped the Bishops in the House of Lords would take up this question . If they neglected to do their duty in that house , they had no business there . lie had been down in the manufac . hiring districts during the Easter recess of 1844 , and he to offence to
happened give members of Parliament , high in authority , because his arguments were brought home to them . He should use the same arguments to-night . Suppose , for instance , the House ot Commons could for one week be converted into a factory , and that the members who now dine on hot rump steaks at the Carlton or Reform Club , who had eqrntorlable homes , faithful wives , and affection * ?«« Th-M ™?' i f » _c""verted in t ° f-ctory _operaciveB . ( I hat ' s it , hd . " He would begin then with the ff- _ioTI" f he blttest Went ofthe Ten Hours ' Bill in 1844 ; he would begin with Sir Robert Peel wnose whole wealth was extracted from the sinews of the working people of England—from a bidy of men now laid in the grave . And where were their descendants ? Were they enjoying the comforts
which they oujiht to have derived from the honest industry ot their fathers ? Ne they were reduced to beggary—they were a fearful monument of the curse which manufactures had brought on this country during the last halt century . Supposing thit Sir Robert Peel had to lie upon a sleepless bed , Jest hi * _, wife and children should sleep during the hour which should summon them to work—suppose heshould say to himself , " If my wife and children are too late at the factory my scanty wages will not be sufficient for our wants , I must therefore keep a careful watch . " lie dare not sleep himself for his wife and children aro constantly starting and asking " Js it time V That ' s the point . ( Cheers . ) They are reduced to such poverty that his clock has long been sent to the
pawn shop . He therefore cannot tell the hour . At midnight the light of the moon bursts through a broken windows , and he fears it is time . He summonses his family to the work , ne sees his wife and children go forth in rags amidst the pelting storm . They arrive at tbe mill . They find the gates locked . They stand shivering there perhaps for half an hour . The clock strikes two , They are before theirtime . A number ot others congregate in the same place , who have also mistook the hour . They stand trembling aud shivering till the clock strikesthree , four , and five , and the next time it beats the hour the mill-doors are opened . lie ( Mr . Ferrand ) was prepared to prove that that was not a purely imaginative case , but one of frequent occurrence
. ( Hear , hear , " "It is . " ) Was not that a iearM state of society ? Let Members of Parliament then take that case home to themselves . If they only witnessed for one month what he had witnessed for 20 years , they would not oppose the Ten Hours' Bill . ( Hear . ) He did not hesitate to say that the factory workers were no better than slaves . ( Hear . ) Mr . Ferrand concluded by observing , that if the Bill did not pass next ; _session , he would develop a constitutional plan by which the operatives would obtain redress in defiance of all opposition . Mr . Ferrand resumed his seat amid loud cheers . The resolution was agreed to . Air . _JogEPii Bell then moved *—
'that a petition to both Houses of Parliament , founded on the foregoing resolutions , be prepared , and _signed by the chairman on behalf of this meeting ; and that it be _recommended to the workers in each factory to send a petition on their own _fiehalf . Mr . IIekbt Hutton seconded the motion . Mr . Bikby , in supporting the resolution , handed in a subscription of £ 1 6 d . from a few hands in the employ of Mr . J . Scholefield , of Rastrick , in aid of the short-time movement . Mr . W . Sp arr then
moved—That the thanks of this meeting are eminentl y due to Richard Oastler for his original advocacy of this question , and for his constant and undevlating support of the factory Child ' s cause ; and also to Lord Ashley and John Fielden , for their several efforts in Parliament to obtain tlie measure that justice so sternl y demands ; and gene _, rally to those Members of Parliament who have listened to the voice of humanity , and supported the Ten Hour *' Bill . Mr . John Leach , of Huddersfield , seconded the motion , and it was carried unanimously .
Mr . Fielden-, M . P ., who was loudly called for , then came forward at the request ot the chairman , and after the applauso with which he was received had subsided , he addressed the meeting at considerable length . He said he was now quite satisfied that they were as much resolved as ever they were to persevere in their efforts for a Ten Hours' Bill—that they would not be persuaded by those who advocated eleven hours to give up ten , but that they would stand firm for that for which they had been contending for years , and that they would send forth their supplications and their prayers to Parliament until it passed a Ten Hours' Bill . ( "We will have it . " ) They had many opponents both in and out of Parliament . ( Hear , hear . ) He saw from some of the newspapers that Dr . Bowring had been visiting his constituents . it Bolton ; and whilst there he had been
called to question about his conduct on the Ten Hours' Bill in the last session , when he voted against the measure . Not beim _? able to escape from the questioning , he s » id that he wished the employer and employed to be as free as the air they breathed . A very proper and just sentiment ; but the employer and employed manufacturers were not on an equality . ( Hear , hear . ) The manufacturing operatives had been described as slaves . ( Cries of " We are . " ) Tcs , they were slaves of steam , of water , of machinery , and of the proprietors of them . ( Hear , hear . ) The factory workers had not power to regulate their hours of labour . ( " We have not . " ) He would rather see a voluntary arrangement made between masters and men as to labour , if such an arrangej ment could be fairly carried out , but he did not see it possible . Mr . Fielden next cautioned the
advocates ofa fen Hours' Bill against being seduced to give their sanction to one fur eleven _Ueui-s ; and said that he could hardly believe that his friend , Mr . _Hindley , who had always voted for a Ten Hours ' Bill , was , as was rumoured , trying to get the men of Lancashire to go for an eleven hours' ono . Eleven hours was too long for children to be employed ; and if the hours if factory labourers were to be " reduced to ten , he felt persuaded that , if they akeied to eleven , there would then be moredifh ' culty in getting ten than with the present hours . ( Llear , hear . )
Therefore he was decidedly against any attempt to obtain anything less than ten hours . From the way in which the measure had been treated on two previous occasions by the Legislature , if the people still made manifestations , and those manifestations were peaceable , decorous , and united , he had ho doubt , a Ton Hours' Bill would be carried in the next session of Parliament . ( Loud cheers . ) The ' lion , member went on to notice several ofthe objections which had been brought against the Ten Hours' Bill , which he ably refuted and resumed his seat amidst great cheering .
Mr . Oastler also returned thanks , and in very feeling terms alluded to his former connexion with iJudder - _cfiei-d , and ins long avowed determination not to cease in his labours for the amelioration of tho _B- | l 0 ry lers Ulltil the enact _m < -i * t ofa Ten Hours ' A vote of thanks having been given to the chairman , the meeting separated at a quarter past eleven o clock .
Power Of Steam.-" It Is Stsme;!" Said An...
Power of Steam .- " It is stsme _;! " said an Irishman ; ' by t ' ie saintly St . Patrick . but it ' s a _mighty great thing , entirely , for driving things—it put " me through nine States in a day—divil a word ofa lie in it ! _JSine States ! " exclaimed a dozen in astonishment . " Yes , nine of them , bejabers , as aisy as a cat ' ud lick her ear . D ' ye see , now ; I got warned in New \ ork in the mornin * , and whit wid my wife Biddy to Baltimore the same day—hould your wisht now and count the States There was the state of matrimony , which I entered from a sin « le state , m a sober state inthe State of New Yorif , and I wmt through New Jarsy , _Pensylvane , and Dilaware , into Maryland , where I arrived in a state of johhcation .
Possessions of the various Powers ox the Komi ! A-MEmcAx CoxrahxT . -A statistical writer iu one of ot thetNew York ) journals gives a statement ot the comparativejinciease of territory of England and the United States on this continent . Tile recent additions to the hitter extend its boundary ou the west coast from the forty-second to the thirtvseeond parallel of north latitude , sweeping into the union oO 2 , 230 . 1 OO acres . The reduction of the territory ot the United States bv the cession ofthe Oregon treaty , adds to the British possession 32 , 000 , 000 or acres , and the possessions of the various powers on the North American continent are shown in the following table : —
Miles Acres Russian 750 , 000 ... 4 SO . 000 . 000 British 2 , S 50 , 000 ... 1 , 521 . 000 . 000 United States ... ' 2 , mi . 7 U ... 1 , 873 , 230 , 1150 Mexican 905 . 356 ... 570 , 303 , 840 Central America 180 , 000 ... 110 , 040 , 000 By the conquest of _New Mexico and Santa Fe there has lieen added to this union a population estimated at 300 , 000 souls , mostly Indians . A Great Fact . —At a recent meeting to ' establish a Juvenile Refuge in Manchester , the Archbishop of Dublin said , they could _edticiite fifty ehildien at tiie same cost that they could keep one soldier . _GuvE-yoR ov Uojuuv . —On Wednesday a Court ot . ¦ Directors was held at the East Lula llotisO _: _WiK-n ¦ . George Russell Clarke , Esq ., was unanimously _appointed Governor- « f the 1 ' _residency of Bombay . Ali ,-Hallows Fair . *— Thi _*; _o'd established and iu : «
portrait market _wiw held on Tuesday , at the us ia ¦ dace , about a mile west from Edinburgh . _^ The sn }* j > ly of _Ix-iists brought f » rwar . _l anvmnfed to 741 ' , beimj " ' about 2000 more than at last year ' s niarkcti
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 14, 1846, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns3_14111846/page/6/
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