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TO THE WO&rtlNQ CliASSES,
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THE NORTHAMPTON MEETING. COBDEN FAIRLY TACKLED. MORE OF LEAGUE FAIRNESS AND MORALITY.
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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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Mt dkab Pmehs—I am now abonj £ o l » y before yon the , truth , the whole trntb , and nothing but the truth wiii respect to the discussion on Free Trade at NorthMttpton . I Buall lay the iaete / before yon simply as titej Jweaarred , Firstly , then , the jjiHuit fdlows of NorthwnptoD , Long Bnekby , WellingboroHgb , Daveatry , Kettering , and the other tillages of the county hare proved to me that Ckartisn is deeply rooted in the soul of every work , ing man , On Sunday night between eleven asd twelveVclock I armsd at the Blisworib station .
Cfebden and Bright travelled by the same train . The station is nearlyfife miles from the town ; and yet a goodly number of working men and their wires met me there , and in compliance with their request 1 walked with them to Northampton . On my arrival there I learned that the Free Traders had decided upon erecting a hustings capable of holding 200 persons , and that they had the generosity to offer ss eight tickets , which would he about oar share of Free Trade principles . Upon hearing this , I recommended that we should erect our own hustingB , undertaking to be my share of the expense , and that
iheyEhonld be erected close to those of the Free Traders . This proposition was agreed on , and our indefatigable friend , Christopher Harrison , undertook to perform the work . "When the Free Traders fonnd that we were in earnest , and when our hustings was in process of ereetion , they offered us fifteen tickets * which we scceptedj and this will proTe to yon the propriety of holding out onihe " obstructive" principle . . Nothing more occurred worthy of note , until the proceedings commenced , with the exception of the continuous arrival of gronpa of honest Chartists from all p&r ; s of the county . We had a conversation relative to the appointment of a Chairman , when it was urged that "Robins and others had been banished from the town
for the prominent part they had taken in the Char * fist moTement , and that the working classes were fearful of occupying a too prominent position . I then asked if the other party had agreed upon « Chairman . The answer was : "Grundy . " I asked what kind of a man he was , and they replied that they believed he was the best under tie circumstances , as he had been always talking -of his readiness to serre the working classes . Then said I : "he'll deceive yon , and afterwards tell you ihat hi 3 mode of serving yon was by Free Trade . " HoweTer , we had noalternativejand we anticipated , as was the fact , that a hostile chairman , who -would set eTen with a semblance of fairnes ? , would he an advantage to us , and add to that triumph , which we Tfere sure to achieve .
Well , nnder these circumstances we went to fcattle . When Cobden and his party arrived on ihe hnstings , they were received in solemn silence . ¦ When I arrived there , I was received with loud and almost unanimous cheering , without one single mark of disapprobation . The struggle then commenced-Cobden opened the business . I followed himj SPGrath followed me , and from the interference cf ihe Chairman , Bright was allowed to conclude , although Clark had taken notes of Ms speech for the 3 > urpo 5 e of answering him . During ihe discussion , the feelings of the meeting were repeatedly
manifested . Mr . JtTGrath , who made the best speech of ihe day , and I , were frequently interrupted by the -most rapturous applause ; while Cobden was but partially cheered , and Bright was obliged to speak ihrough roars of laughter created "by his own Vn ^ 'foh foil ? . When the amendment was put by the chairman , —who , by the bye , I Bhould tell you Tery unfairly interposed to prevent Mr . Clark from fceing heard , by observing that he thought the meeting had had enough of it , having heard two speeches on each side : hewever , he read the amendment in a very low tone , and then called for
-a show of hands ; whereupon I called out : " Thi 3 is for the amendment , " and held up both hands , which was followed by more than two-thirds cf the JOeeliPgiolding np their iands . "Wien 3 Jx . Cobdeo iawlhis hesaidi We 31 divide . " I replied : " So you EhalL 33 After the cheering &nd clapping of hands had subsided , and while a goodly number frere yet held up , some one upon the hustings cried cut : "Again , for the amendment . " This was done in consequence of Bright and Cobden , who stood one on each side of the Chairman , directing his
attention to the show of hands after the majority of them had been taken down ; and at this juncture Ihe Chairman called for a show of hands for "the original resolution , whereupon those who had not before held np their hands added them to those that Etill remained np for the amendment ; and notwithstanding there was an overwhelming majority for tie amendment , the strength of the Free Traders consisting in a compact knot of about four hundred small masters asd their slsTes , who stood immediately to the left of the hustings .
To ibis dump of slave flesh , Cobden and Bright directed the attention of the chairman ; whereupon , 1 BaidVhastflyi "Come , Mr . Cobden , don ' t you dare to interfere with the chairman . He can do his own -iaij ; and if he is to be interfered with , I say we haTe a majority of more than three to one . " The chairman looked to Bright , then to Cobden , then to Bright again , then looked up , then looked down , ihen looked around to the free-trade supporters ; and then , after a delay of more than three minutes , Which is a long time , I said : " Come , Sir , take another Ehow of hands , if yon are in doubt , and let ihe meeting understand you . " *• No /* said he , " I can ' t takeasecond show .- ' " . No , " said Bright . "Jfo , * aid Cobden . "Then 111 divide , " said I . Whereupon
ihe chairman said , with a face red as scarlet , " the Crigisal resolution is carried . " "Upon that I Bhouted out : "All who are for the amendment , follow me ; '' And 1 rushed from the platform , the whole body moving to the right . When I made my way to the centre of the mass , some fine stout fellows iooi me by the hand and cried out : Go back General ; go back O'Connor , and keep the gronnd ; ¦ we 'll remain and have fair-play ;' whereupon I ran b&ck to the platform ; bnt , before I had returned ¦ which was not more than a minute in all , Cobden > Bright , the chairman , and their snpporter 3 were iissed , hooted , groaned , and scouted , eff the platform , three hands for every one held np for the original resolution , being pointed at them in execration of their treachery and deceit .
I then told all that were for the amendment to remain ; and every msn present will vonch for the fact , that although the rain began to fall , and although the slave 3 bad followed the Free Traders , yet the vast assemblage was not diminished by one ^ rxtk of the numbers present when Mr . Bright had concluded . 1 admit that thai gentleman thinned the assemblage considerably . I addressed those present ; gad , Hpon a show of hands being taken for ¦ a vote of thanks to , and confidence in , me , there were four times as many held np as for ihe original resolution .
Kov ? ^ then , my friends , 1 by no means regret this repetition of the treachery by which the Free traders inculcated the belief in 1840 and 1841 , that iheir principles were the principles of the werking Masses . In the manufacturing districts and elsewhere yon haTe had & taste of Free Trade chairxnen ; tnd yon also know foil well the expence at Which those Free Trade judges would purchase a momentary triumph for their principle . The very lieatatioD of the Chairman ; the long hesitation of ihe Chairman ; con-rinced me that ho had no doubt * 3 to which side the victory belonged : while his
refusal to put the question again , or to divide the Sleeting—a thing frequently done , and easily doneconfirms me in the suspicion which 1 have ever entertained of his class . What has been may be : and the men of Bradford remember how , by a division in the open air , the optics of the "Chairman were proved to be Badly deficient THere he pronounced against us , and we divided too reversed his judgment . Upon the whole , then , Jl * elect that the decision of this simple partisan
• nfl jrednee is just this : in futmre , wherever the ? e » ple meet the League they will erect their own fcvstifigB , and appoint their own chairman ; never ttore reljing on the pledges and promises of impartial Free Trade friends of labour . The victory io . them will be short-lived ; * bile had it been awarded to those who gained it , yon would never have heaid a single word of ihe Uorlhampton disension through tee - wilwnus of the liberal preES . Sue thousands who were present will bear ttsii-Jaony to the strict truth of every sentence that I
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have written ; while the unjust result will bat tend to widen the breach between the rich oppressors and ihe poor oppressed , not only in the county of Northampton , bat throughout the length and breadth of thejand . , A 11 classes in Northampton have now had a tas ^ of their quality ; they have heard their expositions , and laughed at their fantastical conclusions . As far , therefore , as Northampton ia concerned , the question of Free Trade is strangled : and all that the Corn Law
League now requires , is bat one SUCH victory in every other county , and they are done . I have reason to be more than satisfied even with the result . It has proved ihat Mr . Cobden cannot have better employment than discussing the question of Free Trade with me ; while it has enabled me to judge of the powers , the ability , and the tactics of the party . I had never seen either Cobden or Bright before ; and , therefore , I was anxious to measure them . I am always willing to do justice , even to political opponents ; and from the manner in which I had heard the merits of these two men contrasted , I
was of opinion that Bright would one day be , as he ought to be , the leader of the Free Trade party . But , ye gods 1 how I was disappointed , and what a fickle lady dame Fortune is . There is as much difference between the two men , barring the vitality , as there is between a horse chesnut and a chesnut ¦ horse . Cobden has not been over-rated . He is decidedly a man of genius , of reflection , of talent , and of tact—and while ho is in part deficient of some of those qualities which are necessary to constitute a good mob orator , he lacks none of those properties which entitle him to the pre-eminence in
the first rank of orators for the gathering together that amount of fantastic chivalry and wild enthusiasm necessary to support the principle of Mr . Alderman Brooke : "Lord love you , we are all for ourselves in this world " . Cobden ' B voice is above the general standard ; his thoughts are clearly arranged ; his self-possession is remarkable ; while he has a most happy facility of turning the most trivial passing occurrence to the most important purpose . ! am not then astonished that a wily party should have selected so apt and canning a leader . But how
11 friend" Bright has been appointed to the office of second in command , is to me a miracle which I can only solve by the dramatio usage of having your farce after a comedy . In fact , I never , in my life , heard such a continuous stream of airy and metaphysical nothings as that which Sowed from our " friend '* the pump "in one weak , washy , everlasting flood . " The only part of his performance that was cheered throughout was his reading of my speech made on the Corn Laws in the House of Commons in 1834 , and the sentiments contained in that speech were so completely in unison with those expressed in the amendment that I had moved just before ^ n 1814 , that the whole speech was cheered to the echo . Every
man of common sense must le aware of what the position of Mr . Free Trader Grundy would have been in Northampton , if , through his impartiality , the League had been compelled to close Covent Garden to-night for the season , under the infliction of a defeat in Northampton : therefore their bit of triumph was most timely , but will be of short duration : for again I challenge Cobden , Bright , and the League to meet me in the West Riding of Yorkshire , in Lancashire , and the Market-square of Nottingham , the three most important manufacturing counties in the kingdom ; and there I will propose the amendment that was carried at Northampton against . resolution that the Free Trade chairman falsely declared to have been carried .
My friends , yon will very frequently be able to judge of matters from very trivial circumstances ; and now I will tell yoa one or two in connexion with the recent discussion . At the conclusion , a free trader of considerable property , and vrlao , 1 believe , held up his hands for the original resolution did , as a censure upon the decision of the Chairman , follow me to my hotel , and there requested to be allowed to treat the brave fellows who came from a distance with ten shillings worth of ale , and the ladies with ten shillings worth of punch . Add to this , the free traders themselves were completely chop-fallen , and hid themselves in their houses ; while some of those who could bear the light' of day invited me to come back , saying , that we had not h&d fair play .
Again , two gentlemeH who ware at the meeting went with me in an omnibus to the station . They had both seen the show of hands , but were not aware , until I informed them , that the decision was given against ub by the Chairman . Upon hearing this he exclaimed : " Good God , you don ' t say so ^ why you had it . "—Mr . Wheeler just arrived when 1 had got thus far with my letter , and in order to have his opinion as to its correctness , I read it ever to him ; after which he told me that all parties in Northampton , —he remained there till Tuesday morning , were thoroughly disgusted with the decision of
the Chairman ; and he further narrated the following circumstances . Ab he and Mr . M'Grath were on their way te the station , they were met by a Northampton butcher in his cart—he recognized them at once , and observed that he had been on the platform during the earlier part of the discussion , bat was obliged to leave on business before the dose of the proceeding ; that he returned , and was on the outskirts of the meeting when the show of hand 3 was taken ; and his own words to Wheeler were : " Surely you didn ' t believe the decision of the Chairman ? why you had two-thirdB of the meeting in favour of the amendment . " Another circumstance of which Mr . Wheeler reminded me is this
a fact which I witnessed myself . While the impartial Chairman was twisting and turning about Bright and Cobden said : " 0 look here , look to the hand 3 on the platform . " Now then most of the platform hacks had run down to marshal their gangs when the division was about to be taken ; but what do yon think of the conscience of the poor man ' s friend , of the impartial judge , refusing a second division when he was led to a conclusion by a few hands held up to his Jefti Mark another fact ; they didn ' t venture to propose a vote of thanks to him ; they were hissed , hooted , and scouted off the husting as they deserved 3 the judge and the Free Traders scampering off together .
What a miserable , pitiful , crawling wretched sycophant , to barter his townsmen ' s confidence for the passing applause of a faction 1 As lone as his name is Grnndy , never again will he be honored with the post of umpire ; his ugly name will be associated ¦ with trick , treachery and deceit , while the remainder of his life will be passed amid the scorn of thoje he deceived , and those for whom he deceived . These
are the whole facts of the case ; and when to them we add ihe further fact , that old Murray , 0 B . 8 Of their trum peters » had infested the neighbourhood of Northampton , for many days previously to the meeting , circulating tons of tracts , and lamenting the duty npon German EuaBages , I don't think Cobden will attach much importance to the chairman's decision . Apropos ; a word about this Mr . Murray . He was one of the most violent physical force Chartists in
1839-40 , until he happened to owe me between £ 20 and £ 30 for "PUSHING THE NORTHERN STAR : " and then he became a moral force" free trader , allowing me to buy in the cheapest , and sell in the dearest market , taking his word for my profit . As w « * ay in Yorkshire , " I can do with the money now" » nd I beg to remind Mr . Murray , that at the Nottingham tleetion , in 1842 , he requested permiBsioB to be allowed to pay it off at & pound a month ; but I hare-never heard of him since . The reason that I mention this fact , is , I understand that this paid tool has been going about Northamptonshire , abnsing what he terms ^ the physicalforce Chartists . " One word more , and I have done . The Homing ChroniJe mnst Emell a rat . I ashed a gentleman who sat ct the reporter ' s table w / aat paper hewa
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engaged for ; and he : toll me for the Morning Chronicle ; but yet , notwithstanding a bit of bounce in yesterday ( Tuesday ' s ) Chronicle , and a promise to give us the proceedings to-day ( Wedaesdayy , ytt not a -word of this great and important triumph has appeared in the columns of the leading Free Trade journal . Ib not that a curiouB fact 1 Now , then , my friends , yoa are in possession of the truth , the whole tru' . h , as for as I was allowed to discover the troth , and nothingbnt the truth ; and to yoa , as an enlightened and impartial public , I appeal from the false , the hypocritical , % ud sycophantic decision of a crouching , cringing , partial Chairman .
Hoping that my conduct , my speech , and my amendment , Will meet with the universal approval of the working classes , « l am Year ' s , faithfully and sincerely , ^ i ~ C I Fbakgos O'Conhob . PA—It is due to myself that I shonld meution * portion of a . coAvea ^ tion that ioolt ' place beiiraiJHL Mr . Cobden and me , while waiting for the up train at Blisworth . Mr . Cobden assured me that there was no truth in the report that he had charged me with having received Tory money , and that there were many things reported which he had never said . F . O'C .
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In respect to this Northampton meeting , we are in a quandary . Our intention was to give a faithful report of all that was said and done at it . Not fearing to submit our side of the question to the test of examination and contrast , we never fear to report what our opponents have to say ; but are
always glad , when an intellectual conflict takes place , to let the readers of the Star benefit by all that is advanced . This time , however , we are prevented . Never dreaming but that the League journals would report what their own pets would say on the occasion ; and , confident in the belief that we could obtain from that source all that either Mr . Cobden or Mr . Bright might utter , our instructions to the Reporter W £ sent were , that he should only take the speeches of Mr . O'Connor and those who supported him , because we knew that it was a practice with the
Leaguo papers never to report what was said against Corn Law Repeal at any of their meetings ; and we were sure that it would havo bees folly to expect any thing like a report of -what really transpired on the part of the opposition , even if their presence was at all noticed . Accordingly we have had transmitted a copious report of the speeches of Messrs . O'Connor and M'Grath , and an account of the disgraceful and unbecoming conduct of the chairman : but for the opening speech of Mr . Cobden , and the closing speech of Mr . Bright , we are wholly minus !
We have been looking oat daily , for the League Press , anxious to come across the " filming report " of the " annihilation o / the Monopolists , with the tri umphant defeat of their ally Mr . Feargu 3 O'Connor , " and yet we have hitherto looked in vain 1 We have watched the Sun until the sight has nearly left our eyes ; and yet have been unable to discover amongst its bright beams one single ray to light as to Northampton or its Free Trade doings ! The Sun used to be noted for the celerity with which it despatched its " expressed" reports of League county meetings , oftentimes boasting that it managed to have a speaker's speech reported , in print , and in the hands of the speaker ere the meeting
itBelf was over ; and yet , in this case ; a case of triumph too ; a case where the Leaguo came off with flying colours ; a case where Cobden beat O'Connor ; a case where the Free Trade resolution was " carr ied , "—so said the Chairman ! though he probably meant thai the thins WaS carried off the ground when himself and Mr . Cobden fled before the audible expression of dissatisfaction that greeted their departure ; in ( his case , soon a cage as it was , the Sun , the rapid Sun , had no report in Leeds on Thursday , though the meeting , and the thiumph , —was on Monday ! Whatever can be the matter ? H owever does this come about ! 13 the League so strong , that it can afford to lose the benefit of its Northampton " victory" !
The laggard genius of the Sun has also thrown its chilling influence over the Chronicle . Theee you were wont to meet with " a full , true , and particular account , " as the dying-speech men say , of every Coomty and even Village Demonstration in favour of
COIVHWERCLflX REFORM , as soon as over ; and often be / ore they were made ; but in this case of Northampton no such alacrity is manifest ! And still the meeting was a " triumph . " So the Chronicle holdB . On Tuesday , it had the following announcement set forth in leaded type : — " Great Free Tbade Meeting at Northampton . —DB . FEAT OF THE MOKOrOLlSTS AND THEIR
ALLY , liR . Feargds O'Connor . —We nave received a report of the proceedings at the great Free Trade meeting held yesterday at Northampton , at which Mr . Cobden and Mr . Bright gained a signal triumph over the combined forces of the Tories and the Chartists , the latter headed by their redoubtable leader Feargua O'Connor . We shall endeavour to give a report of the proceedings to-morrow . "
This announcement naturally set expectation on the tip-toe , —but only to be disappointed ! " Tomorrow , " that is Wednesday , came ; but no Report Thursday also came ; but still no report ! Not a word ! Not a syllable ; nor even a syllable to say the reason why I Now all this is v « ry funny . The League Press used not to act thus . Meetings of villages so small as not to find a place either in Map or Gazstteer , used to find a ready , often a tooready , recorder in the Chronicle : but here is a B SIGNAL triumph over the combined forces of the
Tories and the Chartists , headed by their redoubtable leader , Feargus O'Connor , " passed over without other notice than a promise to " endeavour to give a Report" ! What a falling off 1 Well , but this shyness , this coyness , this disinclination of the Leaguers to tell the world of their " SIGNAL triumph , " indeed the " triumph ' was " signal , " and " signally" gained , aB Mrs . Grtodi knows ere this ; this disinclination of the Leaguers to "make their own" of the " victory , " places us in queer-street ! We are not able to enlighten the
world with Cobden'B " new-light , " nor transmit to posterity the profound disquisitions of "friend " Bright ! The Free Traders won't let us " trade" with them . We waited to purchase the speeches of the two worthy leaders of a selfish cause " in the cheapest market "; i . e . for " nothing at all "; and they won't let us have them " at noprice " . We are , therefore , compelled to do without them . We are under the necessity of asking oar readers to imagine what
Cobdkh should have said , on euch an occasion , to gain his purpose , and then judg « of the reply of Mr . OTojwoa , and how effective it was , from its own reading ; or else to entreat them to get hold of an old League or Chronicle , ' - "twelve months back will do , —where they will find the stereotyped " harangues " . Our own batch , last week , went to the butter-woman , or -we should not have been bo fixed . We could easily have Bupplied the omission . As it is , however , we aio compelled to adopt our present course .
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Of the " affair" itself we shall not at present speak . At all events if we do , it mast necessarily be " very small" ! The Chronicle , in its announcement of the beast that was to have come , Bays the League beat : so of course our side wa 3 thrashed-A beaten cook crows very spiritlessly ; and a beaten dog walks away , or runs , with his tail hanging down . It is not to be expected , therefore , that we can say much , under present circumstances . The Btingof "defeat" issufiioiently ill to bear , without the additional pang of having to tell the world all about it . How can we , therefore , have heart at all to speak of tho " signal triumph" over us ? It is too much I We must refrain ; and can only say , look ! see ! read ! judge for yourselves !
The reader must imagine —( a task imposed on him by the circumstances we have narrated)—that thousands upon thousands of people are assembled trthamptoa Market Plaoe ; that Mr . Cobden off the . ball ; that he says—all that a man g on a forlorn hope" should say—and which was reported in the League newspaper of July 21 st , 1843 ; that he concludes with moving a resolution , affirming the " principle" of League Free Trade ; that such resolution is seconded , and the Chairman about to submit it to the meeting , when
Mr . O'Connor presents himself , amid the moat vociferous cheering , to propose an amendment . After the applause had ceased he said—Mr . Chairman , and men of the town and county of Northampton : perhaps I had better adopt Mr . Cobden's plan of introduction , by telling you , that I also appear before you in consequence of a requisition numerousl y signed , which I now hold in my hand—(\ Free Trader— "How many signatures ?"¦—Mr . Cobden—No , no ; now—pray don ' o interrupt . )—A gentleman to my left has asked me how many signatures ! 1353 , being just 153 more than Mr . Cobden ' s—( loud cheers ) . Thus invited and having a respeot not only for ihe requisitionists and those whom I have the honour to address , but also for
myself , it 13 due to them and to myself , that I should come before them with clean hands and unsullied character—( great cheering ) . True , I do not hope nor Beek to dissipate the many general slanders that have been to freely circulated against me by the newspaper press ; and doubtless many who have come here to-day prompted by rabid curiosity to see the " wild , " the " reckless' ' and the " destructive" Chartist will go home disappointed . There is one question , however , which I cannot nor will not overlook . I mean a charge preferred against me in my absence , and in support of which Mr . Cobden professed himself to be in the possession of ample documentary testmony —(
tremendous cheering ) . Now , then , I turn to Mr . Cobden , and dare him to the repetition , and defy him to the proof —( continued cheering ) . I am determined not to allow thia great question to be settled off upon personality —( " question , question ") . What , is there a man here , —is there even a freetrader ' in England , so devoid of honour and selfrespect as to say that this is not the question {—( loud cheers , followed by " pray dont" from Mr . Cobden ) . Having thus dared him to the proof , 1 shall now enter upon the whole of that question of which he has but skimmed the surface . Mr . Cobden has treated the subject as though it was bat a branch , whereas it is a root , and he has addressed this
meeting as though it was exclusively constituted of chaw-bacons and journeyman bhoemakers —( loud cheers ) . I feel convinced that his own supporters will admit they have derived very little instruction , that they have acquired very little new light , on the tubj ©« t of Fieo Trade from his oration . Mr . Cobden must not appear here as the embody ment of the Free Trade principle , and , as Mr . Cobden , as a mere unit of the Free Trade class . We must look to those publications , and they are not few , to which as a body the League have given their assent for their principles , as well as the anticipated result from the accomplishment of their object . Perhaps the best compendium of the Free Trade principle will be
found in this pamphlet which I hold in my hand , containing the three Prize Essays , accepted and published by the League —( cheers)—and to the discrepancy of which I shall presently advert , merely observing in passing that like all ' other newspaper committees the League has its town and country Editions : the town Edition containing proof that Free Trade must cause a reduction in the price of bread and an increase in tho rate of wages ; while the country Edition is as strong upon the other hand , that th < 3 effect mast be a rise in tho price of grain and a reduction of the wages of the agricultural labourer consequent on the application of extensive machinery to agricultural purposes—( oheer 6 ) . Having
said so much , i shall now proceed to comment on some of the assertions of Mr . Cobden . Who , says he , will assert that the Corn Laws are just , and ought to be maintained 1 or who will say that their existence is serviceable to the agricultural labourer f To that question Mr . Hope , one of your prize essayists , says this— " That whereas ten shillings per acre is now about the average expended in Scotland on manual labour , the inevitable effect of a Repeal of the Corn Laws would be to reduce the ploughman ' s wages , " &ni which , " added to the substitution of extensive machinery for manual labour , " he says , " WOULD CONSTITUTE THE FARMERS' PROPIT "—( hear , hear , aud " that ' s it . " ) Yes , and it would also
constitute the operative ' s ruin , by throwing a new " surplus population" of agricultural labourers as competitors into the manufacturing market—( cheers ) But in using those authorities I must observe that while they , are made , and paid / or , as free trade auxiliaries , the immediate questions with the writers as farmers , is , as to how they can secure steady markets and nigh prices for themselves . A ad it is not so much to Free Trade as to a Corn Kent and long leases that they look for a remody for their grievances . Mr . Cobden has admitted one valuable fact , the very opposite of which has been heretofore relied upon by the advocates of Free Tr&de . He has said that there would be enough for all , if the soil
was cultivated as it ought to be . Now this is the very principle that 1 have ever contended for—( cheers )—and this is the very principle which Free Trade , without the adjustment of all other interests , vroald destroy—( cheers ) . Yes , I agree with him ; and I agree in part with the essayists ; I agree with both , that a corn rent witb leases in perpetuity , would have s greater tendency than the total abolition of all restrictions to furnish an abundance of home grown food for the working classes . Mr . Cobden has very adroitly , and with considerable tact , endeavoured to separate himself from his party and class , when it would be inconvenient to bear their sins upon his own shoulders—( laughter ) . He
has referred to the stand make by the operatives and hand-loom weavers of Lancashire against the Corn Laws of 1815 , ' four years after they were imposed . He has pourtrayed to you , in very true and feeling terms , the manner in which the advocates of Free Trade in those days were bludgeoned , sabred , shot , and murdered ; but he has failed to tell you who the murderers were—( cheers ) . The murderers of the Free Traders of 1819 were of Mr . Cobden ' s own class ; and many of them are now members of the " philanthropic , humane , and patriotic" League—( cheers ) . They have now bowels of compassion for those whom they themselves have plundered and starved . But it is right that you should also know
why this change has come o er the spirit of their dream since 1819 . They had not then the possession of that political power which would enable them , as Justices , to pervert the law , and as capitalists to command the market —( loud cheers ) . The Reform Bill , which placed them upon an equality with the landed interest , has given them an amount of political power through which they hope to establish the ascendancy of manufactures—( cheers ) . You may rest assured that the mind of man never rests satisfied as long as there is hope of a beneficial change ; and politicians , like religionists , will first claim toleration ,, and then equality ; but will never rest satisfied until they have achieved complete and
entire ascendancy—( cheers ) . And will any man tell me that the ascendanoy of capital over labour is not already sufficiently established without the further pewer , through political ascendancy , of putting blinkers on your eyes , stradles upon your backs , collars upon your necks , and lodging yon in human stables , as your habitations f —( cheers ) . Gentlemen , I was glad to hear Mr . Cobden ascribe all our grievances to the inequality of the franchise , and to the use made of it by tenants-at-will ; and if he ia sincere in : his repudiation ol that system , I think I am entitled to his vote fox the r ^ jendnient
I mean to submit to you , inasmuch as it proposes the substitution of a more equitable description of franchise , with Free Tntfe as the necessary eontequence—( lou ^ cheers ) . fHx * Cobden has asked who will dare to say that the Corn Lb . wb are just ! I dare to say that , hov / ever unjust , their imposition was , the tffict of their renvjvali without the necessary accompa ' aUnents , would be to give Mi Cobden and his cir AS 8 the lions share of the change ~ ( loud and long-r , ont . inued cheering ) . Yes , if 1 am to be m a men ? , gerie with wild beasts , let me have equal talons equal subtlety , equal power , and tqual streng th .. but do not allow me to be a
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facetious monkey or a quiet lamb in the same cage with lions and tigers—( loud and continued cheering ) . Herein , Sir , lies the difference between Mr . Cooden and me . He desires a change for the benefit of his own class ; while I also am for a change , but upon the condition that it shall be equally beneficial to all , and equally protective of the rights and interests of all—( load cheers ) . Mr . Cobden has told you that ] every man of forty-five years of age in Lancashire , with whom he has conversed , has declared himself an advocate of Free Trade . Perhaps Mr . Cobden has not seen the latest return under the head " Popular Health . " If he had , he would have learned that while the average age of the agricultural labourer , even in the
far-famed county of Dorset , is fifty-five years , the average age of the Lancashire operative ia but thirtysix years . Therefore , Mr . Cobden m&y safely say that those who are not in existence , or but few in number , are supporters of Free Trade ; for he must admit , according to those returns , that a Lancashire operative of forty-five years of age is a rara avis " a rare bird—( great cheers and laughter ) . He has spoken to us of ihe effects produced by the Corn Laws upon Ireland ; but he has not told you of the effect that their repeal would have upon the English labour market , by throwing a " surplus population " of Irish pauperb into it—( cheers ) . No ; all through that speech , to which I listened so attentively for anything novel , anything striking , or anything
convincing , I heard it to the ( close with astonishment and surprise . ( Cry from a Free Trader , " Yott ' re a Tory . " ) Get out you gaby ! Here ' s the Tory—Cobden ' s the Tory ! His vote kept in the Tory Minister —( load cheers and roars of laughter ) . I trust that no more interruptions will take plaoe , as the only effect they produce on me is to remind me of some new cause of complaint against the Free Trade party . Knowing that Northampton was a shoe-manufacturing town , Mr . Cobden has endeavoured to enlist your sympathies by asking you how it was , that notwithstanding the right of the Frenchman or the German to come to England and compete with you , they had not done bo 1 Why , my friends ,
the answer is a ready one ; because they would not be satisfied to do your heavy work for your light wages , while the master manufaotarerB had the lion ' s share —( cheers ) . And again , | still relying on the meeting being composed of farmers and shoemakers , he points to the j jolly face of a farmer for proof that the Corn Laws- have been no protection to him . But I point to that man , and that man , and that man , with squalid faces and emaciated bodies ; and I ask THEM how does it happen that THEY are in that condition , while the farmer is go fat , and the master manufacturer bo corpulent ! It is because their blood has gone into other bodies ! their strength has gone into olhsr frames . It is because the farmer is in part
PROTECTED , AND THE MANUFACURER WHOLLY PRO tected ; WHILE UNPROTECTED LABOUR IS THE STAKE PIAYED FOR BY EACH —( load cheers ) . Mr . Cobden has been eloquent upon the grievances of the agricultural labourer , which he proposes to remedy by a rife of his wages ; while Mr . Hope , and the other essayists , rely for their benefit from the change on the reduction which it will enable them to make in the wages of Mr . Cobden ' s agricultural client—( oheerst . But , Sir , there is another subject upon which the Honourable Gentleman , has ; been most eloquently pathetic . He has deplored ; the use of wooden shoes by a portion of the labouring class : but let him go home to his constitutes and his workpeople , and
their continuous rattle upon the pavement will remind him of the causes which have led to the necessity—( cheers ) . Ireland is : certainly an oppressed country ; but the Orangemen of that kingdom still revere the " glorious , pious , and immortal memory of great and good King William , " " who , " they Bay , " freed them from popery , slavery , wooden shoes , and brass money ; " but I think the English operatives will hold tbose in execration , who at this time have compelled them to wear the wooden badge that Irishmen throw off . As to the agricultural labourers , while 1 admit their condition to be as bad as the greatest free-trader could desire , yet I ask you if for tyranny , slavery , oppression , or degradation even , they can complain of the same amount as sworn to by the witnesses from whose evidence I shall read
you some extracts . This evidence was given before a committee of the House of Commons by the sufferers themselves , and confirmed by the Overseer . They were of the comfortable" operative class , and worked at the mill of Mr . Marshall , a free trader , who has Mad the lion ' s share of the profit in his trade : and all , mind , under the operation of those manufactures-crushing Corn Laws ; and the millions which he is reported to possess , were amassed under the most stringent acts restricting the importation of grain . [ Here Mr . O'Connor commenced reading the extracts , and when he bad arrived at the ** « a « giD « , " the " strapping , " and " flogging , " of Samuel Downe , one of the witnesses , he was met with ] a perfect hurricane of
" question , " " question , " " question , from the Free Traders . He continued , ] That is the question : or are we only to hear of the abominations of those whose properties yoa wish to transfer to yourselves by operation of law , while the weeping and wailing of your own slaves are to bo smothered in the sympathy that you profess to feel for them ?—( loud cheers ) . Shew me an African slave , a West Indian slave , or an American slave , ] whose sufferings are at all equal to those of your own slave class—( cheers ) . Aye . —I thank you for you the opposition , because it proves that you writhe under the Bight of your own picture . And yet these are the slaves whose condition you would improve by reducing the value of their labour in all the markets of the world ! while
you canvass the farmers with the assurance that their bread will be made dearer by the operation of Free Trade—( cheers ) . You want law forsooth to make you good masters , just magistrates , and honest neighbours ! while under the amount of protection that you have had , you , the complainants , can boast that that there is enough of capital within twenty miles of Manchester to pay off the National Debt 2 You , who in the midst of thia lat » depression have been able to abstract £ 70 , 000 , 000 of the national capital from the labour market tor the extension of railroads , and who are prepared with £ 80 000 , 000 more to embark in similar speculations ; you who have been enabled to steal ail this under the infliction of this crushing law ; what amount I ask would
satisfy you if you achieve that political ascendancy which would enable you to pursue your unchecked course of speculation and competition ? —( loud cheers ) . Well may Mr . Cobden deplore the " wooden shoes ;" and well may I ask where ' s the eight daya ' elock ! where the chest of drawers ? jwhere the feather bed j where the flour bin ? where the linsey-woolsey peticoat and quilted counterpane ? They are all gone , one and all , within that circle of twenty mile ? , the wealth of which is able to pay ! off the National Debt , while those who made it are in a state of the utmost destitution— ( foud and continued cheering ) . Now , then , will you cry " question " again ?—( cheers ) . Mr , Cobden asked you to hear i without interruption . You are afraid to hear the truth . Mr . Cobden ,
himself , who desires discussion , ] won ' t deny his own tyranny or that of his overseer ia discharging an honest operative for bo other crime than reading the Northern Star—(" no , no , " from Mr . Cobden ) . I say yes , yes . And now you gentlemen upon the platform I turn to i you , and I shew you the manner in which you have been deluded , hood-winked , deceived , and cajoled by Mr . Cobden and his j class . They would fain persuade you , that you are of one order , with indivisible interest , and all to be benefited by the same measure ; whereas I \ tell you , that if the sought-for change is produced ; without the just and equitable arrangements to which my amendment points , their prosperity will jbe yerw ruin . Without this great sought-for-extension , they have gone on multiplying inanimate machinery until one man now doeB the work that 1 , 200 were formerly
employed at , and the disinherited are the customers taken from your market—( cheers ) . Every small master , every small capitalist , and every shopkeeper will bo sacrificed to the now { spirit of competition ; and , as the amendment says , those who are prepared with the largest amount of capital , and ready with the largest amount of machinery , will reap the lion's share from the change , and consign you to beggary , starvation and bankruptcy—( cheers ) . Mr . Cobden has adduced very few authorities in favour of Free Trade ; but there is one upon whose conclusions he has relied for considerable effect . I mean those of Mr . O Connell . He has given you his conclusions ; but I will give you his opinions ; and I prefer men ' s opinions to their conclusions . I Mr . Cobden has told yon that Mr , O'Connell was favourable to the principle of Free Trade ; but I will read you from this book what his opinions are with respect to its effect aponwagea . Mr . O'Connell Baid : — of
Mr . D . O'Connell , —" 7 h » gallant offi ^ r talks the advantage of low wages and low ptf . ee * . But , to be advantogsooa , It mast be universal . tat the gallant officer repair to the Levee room , of an Ulustiioas Field Manhftl , in f all pay , and talk ; ' to him et the advantage of low wages , when they iare atarving upon them . The gallant officer might fintf , that a commendation of low wages ia hot alwaynw , gate a doctrine , a » it is in the House of Commons . When the . gallant efflser led bis columns agaSaat ; the enemy , no man could do bis duty more bravely or better . But if the gallanS tfilcer were to draw up Bis ' regiment in a hollow square , and talk to the aoldierr , of the advantage of low wages , it
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^ l ^ A ^ O is not veiy likety that Jhe woald prodncs conviction , though he might mntiDy . "—< Her © £ fr H Vivian tost to explain , saying , that he never named low wages , but only low prices ; when O'Coauell said ) " I admit , tbat tke gallant officer spoke euly of ' low prices , ' bat the necessary coaseqaence of low prices , I think , is , lew wages . " - —( March 23 , 1830 . ) Now then let Mr . Cobden try if he csn reconcile those opinions with his conclusion —( cheers ) . Gen tlemen I contend for it , that although yoa are in possession of Mr . Cobden ' s own conclusions , tbat yet you are unacquainted with his opinions . H
dare not communicate his real opinions to yoa . I do not arraign his acutenese , his shrewdness , or his tact ; but I do deny bis sincerity . I deny that he is sincere when he asserts that Free Trade will be of equal benefit to all classes of the community . He knows it cannot be so —( cheers and hisses ) . Trns , he ba 3 told you of his diligence ; asd I think if he has- been diligsnt I have been lik ? the deviftj apothecary , doubly dihgent—( cheers ajfti laaghter ) . He haB not told you that I have been in his own town . He has not told you that I have bsen in Mr . Bngbt ' s own town ; and that I have dared them both to discussion before those moat interested in the question—( cheerB ) . The fact isthat those
-, gen tlemen have supported their agitation by falsehood , fabrication , and abase . They parade the vices of the landlords in order to cover their own scarlet sins . They fabricate dialogues and" conversations between parties who- have no existence but ia their owu inventive imaginations ; and they abuse » H who oppose them in their mad career as " mono * Rousts . " I hold in my hand a printed dialogue reported to hare taken place between a gentleman and a farmer , who met accidentally on board a steam-packet . Bat those controversialists have no- more existence than the old farmer , whose ghost Mr . Cobden met in Parliament , or his SuBsex informant , whose name we
have never yet discovered—( cheers and laughter ) . The fascinating manner is which these gentlemen parade their own powers , aad the susceptibility of the clodpolea , ia laughable and amusing . The dialogue always commences by a strong pertinacity and obstinacy upon the part of the farmer , who after a short courtship , always concludes with an " Ah , well , Sir , you have convinced me . " So that here are prejudices of a long life , dissipated as if by magic , by the Aaron ' s Bod , —the honourable gentleman ' s winning and surpassing eloquence—( cheers and laughter ) . They would uphold a principle , by laying down premises and jumping to a conclusion with no better argument
than the fascination of those prophecies , which , apon trial , have no other existence than in their own enthusiastic imaginations . I now come to a further consideration of the results of free-trade , anticipated by the prize essayists . I have told yoa that Mr . Hope calculates on being able to meet the reduced price of produce by a correspondingreduotion in the price of wages , as well as by the substitution of machinery for manual labour . That is hi * position in page 8 , while a little further on he informs us that " when food is lowest wages are highest . " Now , I leave to those who build their faith upon their own essayists to reconcile the many discrepancies that appear ia
their published works . The second essayist tells us that with Free Trade , the price of corn wouldgo on increasing ; but he does not tell us where it would stop ; and he likewise a little further on says , " that wa . es rise with a falling price of corn , is the rule ; that they fall is the exception to the rale . " Now , then , here according to this statician , free trade would cause an increase in the price of corn ; and " that the high price of corn reduces the price of wages ia the rule , aad not the exception . " Further on , this essayist says : — » rise in the price of labour seldom takes plaoe until some time after a rise in the price of corn . " Now , then , here are high and low prices produced by the same cause ;
hot and cold blown by the same writer . I shall conclude my comments on the essayists by one stogie quotation from Mr . Gregg , the winder up . He says , and truly , tbat of the 200 . 000 added to the population annually , 150 , 000- of those depend on labour for subsistence . He argues that free trade would cause more land to be brought into cultivation ; while he contends that the whole 150 , 000 annually added to the human race must be supported by manufactures and not by agriculture : thus creating an annual glut of labour in an < already overstocked market , adding at the rate of nearly 1 , 000 , 000 every six years ; while all the writers anticipate the substitution of machinery for manual labour , witb corn rents and lower wages as their share of the profits in the contemplated change —( load cheers ) But those gentlemen complain of foreign com *
petition ; whereas it is Cobden ' s competition with Brooke , Bright ' s , competition with hi $ neighbour , and Fielden ' s competition , with his neighbour , that has drugged the world with cheap produce : and now they ask to be put in a position that will enable them to entice the foreign purchaser to bay at the-cheapest rate that they can furnish the prodace of English labour ! Aad they have most fascinating rules and maxims for the theoretical accommodation and settlement of all these things Their theory is ; buy where you can ; sell where yoa pleate ; " and then ia the language of Henry to the Cardinal , " to breakfast with what appeiite you may . " They never tell you that cheap and dear are relative terms ; and that you muse earn before yoa can buy—that you must sell where they please , and bay where and for what they please —( cheers ) . They have the command of all the markets in the world .
All I seek by my amendment is to carry their own theory into practice . And then , I will add ray hope to Mr . Cobden's , that the Poor Law bastiles may be turned into useful national seminaries and almshouses ; then , with the greatest Malthusian , I shall be prepared to throw yon " on your own resources , " when you are enabled to throw the griping capitalist and the idle pauper upon "their resources " —( loud cheers ) . Mr , Cobden has hinted , I admit bat slightly , at the Ten Hours Bill ; but he and his class opposed it , and declared that its introduction would be their ruin . So it was with the same class
wnen another monopoly of theirs was in danger j when the House of Commons decided tbat the poor should travel more comfortably , more expeditioosly , and more cheaply apon their railroads , the antimonopolist stepped ia and cried "no ; this is OUR MONOPOLY ; " we have purchased it with the fruits of our own industry ; and it is treachery and a breach of faith to interfere with it " Well , you let foreign corn in by the operation of law ;; that is , you adjust the wholesale price by Act of Parliament ; and immediately that also becomes their monopoly . The foreign merchant , tho British importer , the corn-factor , the miller , the flour factor , and the baker , stamp the wholesale thing with their
seal of monopoly ; and when the retail article comes upon your table you recognise not a shadow of a shade of the law ' s protection given to the wholesale commodity—( loud cheers ) - Now let us canvass the ability Of these sages to carry out their own project , by which they hope to secure the traffic of the world . I ask them , in the event of active capital being able to extract Free Trade from a reluctant oligarchy , the effect of which is avowedly to undersell the foreign manufacturer in his owa market ; I ask , if they imagine for a moment , that the same active interests in other countries will not seek , to protect themselves against British monopoly of slave labour by tariffs , protecting duties , and
prohibitions , if necessary 1—( cheera ) . The battle of Waterloo settled the question of British monopoly ; and other countries as well as England have progressed , and will continue to progress , in manufactures ; and those countries have the power to prevent -any competition which must inevitably destroy all the manufacturing interests of the world—( cheers ) . If I understand the soience of political economy aright , it means the best appJicatioa of the industry and power to the producing means , which are the natural resources of the country ; while we are told by teachers of- political economy that " aa one channel is closed against labour another i 3 opened . " Now that ' s the object of my amendment , —
to open a channel wide enough to admit all to nature ' s field , and to allow all equally to compete in the national mart —( loud cheer ) , And I defy the wit of man to point out any other , field , for the exercise of the skill , the talent , of all , ' except the Jaad of our own country , with the produce of which no foreign state or monarch can interfere —( loud cheers ) . Now , therms food and labour for all ; bat ther £ the ant-imonopoli&ts would not have the lion ' s share—( cheers , aod laughter ) . . Some of our friends have told us , at different times , that we were cursed with an over population . Now , I believe every man will admit . whereas 3 , 00 , 0 . 000 may be an population under a bad system of Government * wise
20 , 000 , 000 ma 3 . be a scanty population under a and well-regulated sysiem of government . And do you sacotioa a , repeal of the Corn L&wa without suitable acwmpanyiag measures , and you would very soon hear that the people , like money and , their own produce * had become a drug m their own country—^ cheeraV Certainly , Mr . . Cobdenwasvery Bilent to « day , and fenced very judiciously with the question of ri& &ad fall t cheap and dear ; but Jt am not here to answer merely what may be broached upon these hustings , but I am prepared to go turther , and cambat their every reiterated assertion . I ask them now upon which horn they will hang ; upon the aheap horn or the dear horn 1 If upon . the and
dear horn ; that is , high priced produce , fogh Kphced wages ; what becomes of the " cheap bbead " $ the power by which alone they hope , to be enabled to undersell the foreigners in their own markefc I If , apon the other hand , th « y prefer to seat thenselves apon the dieap horn , arguing , I admit » th » increased comforts notwithstanding tke reduced rata of waRcs , by wbioh tha worknaan couU pro- * core a larger amount of the necessaries of Ufo ; ia the latter event , I ask them : what is to become of our £ 53 , 000 , 000 paid annually tn a standard in which mum fluctuations will cause no change . ? What 1 a to becomeof our armyyour navy , our law staff , oar police * our chnrcb , and all our idle paupers , togethtr with all persona of fixed ealariei t Are jhet prepared to pay this vast amount of incumltraTt ^ jn its present guaranteed standard , waius &b W * ( CmtinvedinwreigMhpo&'J ^^^ - / - ¦" - -W \
To The Wo&Rtlnq Cliasses,
TO THE WO&rtlNQ CliASSES ,
The Northampton Meeting. Cobden Fairly Tackled. More Of League Fairness And Morality.
THE NORTHAMPTON MEETING . COBDEN FAIRLY TACKLED . MORE OF LEAGUE FAIRNESS AND MORALITY .
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YO £ - Til- ffO . 353 . SATURDAY , AUftTJST io 7 1844 . ""^ " ^ Sg ,. ^^"
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AND LEEDS GENE 1 AL ADYEETISEE .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Aug. 10, 1844, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1275/page/1/
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