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m/> •"¦ ' •¦ *"— - - iu JAMES HILL,
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-forrtjpi InteUfflente,
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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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J . VM ISDEPESDEST ENGLISH CHARTIST , alia * " WILLIAM I-WISn . I-MAT-GET-IT , " ( FOUNDER OF THE XATIOSAL DAILY BREAD SOCIETY , OF THE ANTI-BREAD TAX SOCIETY , OF TIIE KATIOXAL 1 AXD ASD BUILDIXG SOCIETY ASD ANOTHER SOCIETY ) , Esq . Sib , —Notwithstanding your attempted evasion , ly a contemptible "DOUBLE SHUFFLE , " re-, sorted to in Lloyd ' s last week's paper , I still deal with you as the author of those articles which appeared in previous numbers of that journal upon the 11 Chartist Co-operative Land plan . " I fix them upon yen because you had previously offered the first
of those articles to another paper , and the poor subterfuge of yourself or Carpenter , by which you would repudiate the letter of an Independent " English Chartist , " shall not facilitate your escape . It is nothing to me that Mr . O'Brien attributes the letter to Catkins—that is , it does not clear you of the authorship ; but , en the contrary , it is strong circumstantial proof that Watkins is not the author—because O'Brien is never right , and the disavowal for Watkins but tends to convict you . Tou will pardon the harsh expression , but you justly merit it , as nothing can be more mean or dastardly than to abuse a man
under an assumed name . However , as I have fully answered the two articles in question , and likewise your letter , I shall now proceed to notice your subsequent correspondence . The parties for whom I write love fair play , and , therefore , I here puhlish your letter under the signature of " William I-wish-I-may get-iV for that is your letter . I could not reply to it last week , because I was engaged in Lancashire in enlightening the public mind upon the value of the O'Connor " norsE trap , " and let this week ' s snb scription list answer for my failure . The following is toch letter : —
To tin ? EJUor of " JUoytfs Weekly XcictpaperJ 1 Sib , I confessmjself oneof those unwary persons who have been so far misled by the specious promises held out bytheframersofthis society , that I have taken out a card and subscribed three shillings and threepence , being the amount of three instalments and the entrance fee ; and I shonM certainly hare gone on contributing , but for the light thrown upon the subject , in your papers of the 7 th and 14 th inst , exposing the delusion , for which I beg to tender yon my heart ; thanks . The truth and justice of your views seem fully admitted , for whereas the columns of the AbrfAeru Star hare been largely occupied with proceedings and intended proceedings of the Chartist Co-operative Land Society for some
weeks past , the last number of the paper is almost silent on the subject ; and when we recollect the swaggering , bullying tone usually adopted by the conductors of that paper , against those who honestly differ from them , we must see that silence , under present circumstances , is a pleading guilty . I am justified , therefore , in inferring that the society is defunct , and I seek to know what redress I have for the recovery of my money , which , small as is the sum , it is not convenient for me to lose , —and which , even if it were convenient , I should not on principle silently or quietly submit to have filched from me . Moreover , I have subsequently , thanks to your recommendation , become a member of the Rational Land and Building Association ( of the existence of which I was not
aware until it was pointed out in your valuable paper ) , and I see most clearly , from the constitution of that association , that not only is there the fullest security for every shilling and every pound invested , the moral impossibility of loss , hut the certainty that I may look forward , within a reasonable time , to become that which I , a working man , never conceived it possible I could become , a county freeholder , and , in addition , that I may secure for myself the more solid advantage of living rentfree , in my own habitation , in declining life , without the horrors of the union workhouse staring me in the face . "When I see that such solid advantages are not a question of chance , or lottery , but moral certainties , attainable by regular or occasional small subscriptions , which , if from
ill health , or hick of employment , I am unable to continue , are not forfeited , nor even made the ground for any fine ; on the contrary , should my exigencies require it , may be made available ; when I see at how small a cost these valuable rights may be obtained , and reflect on the money expended iu getting op agitations for the franchise , tending to no results , or worse than none , or the money which has been expended in a variety of ways , in unavailing endeavours to obtain higher wages , and in numberless other fruitless undertakings , I can but be grateful to you , sir , far pointing out to the working classes the National Land aud Building Association , and to be filled with a well-grounded confidence that a better order of tilings is opening to us , aud that our day of deliverance is dawning .
I require , then , my three and threepence to go in augmentation of my subscription iu the National Land and Building Association . Some of my acquaintance , who , having been with myself misled in entering the Chartist Co-operative Society , and have paid instalments , seek the recovery of their money . We fear our case is almost hopeless , but we ask your advice ( which please communicate cither hi your notice to Correspondents , or by any other mode ); if there is any hope for us , and , if so , how we are to proceed to obtain our rights . By pointing this oat you will add another boon to those numerous ones which you have already been the means of conferring upon the working classes , and oblige , sir , your obedient servant , "WlLUAM WiSH-I-ilAT-GET-lT , Lambeth , June 10 , 1 S 40 .
Now , sir , that letter is one mass of foolish falsehoods ; you were emboldened by my silence upon your previous nonsense , and supposed that you might with safety palm anything upon the credulous , rendered foofe ' seeptical , if not sus ;; : C ious . 7 ? d <*» e *» h » ve your whole case before liiiadeyoii yourowu executioner t Ai K&i as you had got your head into your own ii ' sSSe I had only to let the drop fail and allow you to swing as a public example . That I have already done most effectually ; aud that it should not he too hastilv lost on society , I must now gibbet you
with " WILLIAM I-WIS 1 I-I-MAY-GET-IT . " Tou s ay that you were not aware of the existence of the " National Land and Building Association" until you read xocn owx article in Lloyd ' s . What , are you not the founder of that association ? And more , as John "Watkius is himself the Independent Chartist Association of Great Britain and Ireland , do you not , to your sorrow , constitute Ihe National Laud and Building Association V But let that pass : William says that he has paid an amount of subscription to the "Chartist Co-operative Land Plan" in the Lambeth district , which he is anxious to have restored to him , that he may purchase the chance of a cell in one of your foar-room houses for life . I shall pre . sentlv insert the rejected replv of the Lambeth
secretary , and in the meantime , to relieve William , and all those similarly circumstanced , I have only to say that by bringing me an assurance of his identity from the Lambeth secretary , that he shall receive 3 s . 6 d . for the 3 s . 3 d . he says he has paid ; and I may as well mention here that as I am about paying a large sum to the treasurer ' s account , that all who are desirous of withdrawing have but to signify the same to me , and they shall , one and all , have their monies returned . Xow , stupid man . how ceuld you thus put your head in the liou ' s mouth ? Xow , I ask for William—we must have him or Carpenter ; Lloyd's editor must give his name , for editors do not publish anonymous letters without a knowledge of the names of their writers . Who , then , is AVilliam ? Will he come for his 3 s . 3 d ., and his 3 d . premium ?
Uere I publish the answer to William , sent to Lloyd ' s by the Lambeth secretary , and that independent paper instantly refused its insertion . I presume , because the writer had a name . To dwell at greater length upon William ' s letter would be a ridiculous waste of time . I now come to tour notice to correspondents , in the same number of Lloyd's : — 1 HTOETAST TO WILLIAM WISH-I-HAI-GET-It . To tie Editor of Moyd ' s Weekly Newspaper . Sia , — 'Will your correspondent signing himself as "William AVish-I-may-get-ir and friends ( if he or they are in existence ) call at the South London Chartist Hall , 113 , Blaekfriars-road , on any Sunday evening , between tlie hours of six and eight o ' clock , when their monies
can be returned according to rule the nineteenth , by persons who are continually joining and members who are adding shares to those already in their possession , or if lie will call at my residence I will purchase his or their shares . Sir , I cannot but think that had your correspondent ( if he inhabits this globe ) have signed himself * Will of the Wisp" he would have been more to the point , for he evidently is such by the fact that no such sum as 3 s . 3 d . can be or has been paid in any of the classes of weekly payments that that gent , imagines he ias joined . Commonhonesty , if not common sense , should have told Williain Wish-I-may-get-it first to make the demand and be refused , before endeavouring to stigmatise a body of men as dishonest And , sir , with respect to
legality , I and the working men generally have implicit faith hi the legal knowledge of Mr . Uobert « , whois our attorney , and notMr . O'Connor , as you have it Also with Ksjiect to your correspondent fancy ing that we are dead—Jailed outright by your leading articles , does he , or has hs attended our weekly meetings ? I say , no such thing , otherwise no such a letter could have been written with truth ; why , your articles have increasedour numbers , we have in Xambcth alone shares taken out to the amount of £ 250 . and we are daily gaining considerable accession , and our weekly income averages £ 3 . Now , sir , all we require is that you will publish both rules , those designated the gilt farthing , and thoss teimed the gold sovereign , to let your readers judge for themselves ; wkich ,
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with the insertion of this , will oblige a Chartist , indepen . dent of any name but his own . I am , Sir , yours respectfully , John Gathard , Lambeth District Secretary . 16 , Grange Walk , Bennondsey-square . I am not astonished at the many doubts you create as to the realisation of hope in the O'Connor lottery , from the very many successful delusions that have been practised upon the poor people of this country ; and , lest you should be at a loss for a recent striking illustration , I beg to present you with a letter I have received from Peterboro ' . Here it is : — Peterboro ' , June 25 , 1845 .
Mr . Editor , —I find , in reading O'Connor's letter in last week ' s Star , that he has been attacked by i respecting the Land Co-operative Society . Perhaps , you living in London , are not so well acquainted with this gentleman ' s character as we are in Peterboro ' . And , as in Ids letter he has insinuated that Feargus O'Connor and Co . intend robbing those whom he succeeds in alluring into his trap , T . will inform you how and Co . set a similar trap in Peterboro ' and Wisbeach , and succeeded in catching about 150 poor devils . He established what he called a United Advancement Society , which was to be for the benefit of the working classes . Each mem . her paid sixpence per week . When there were funds in
hand sufficient , an estate was purchased ; and the share thepoorhard-workingfellows that subscribed their money had in it was , to travel twenty miles to look at it ; for he contrived to swash , up just at the time the estate was purchased ( as he had done two or three times before ) , and robbed the public to an enormous extent . Sir , I can assure you he is one of the most barefaced villains that ever crawled the earth . He saved his bacon by making his escape , or he would have been torn to pieces by those poor fellows whom he swindled out of their money . His name is only remembered iu Peterboro' to be execrated . Yours , &c , A SOFFEBEB .
P-S . —I hope you will publish this in your widely circulated paper ; it may prevent him succeeding again . Now , sir , I make no doubt that tou have heard all about this " mouse-trap ; " and no doubt too used your powerful influence in cautioning the people against the scheme of purchasing land with subscriptions of sixpence per week . I shall no w publish your notice to correspondents : — O'Cossok's LorrEar for the Land . —Some lotteries are " all prizes and no blanks , " —this is almost the other way . O'Connor talks of turning the shoemakers ofLonden into farmers ; but they are still to work at their own trade . And this is to ease the labour market ! Trulv , a most Irish proposal ! The working-classes , Mr . Editor
owe you their thanks for cracking O'Connor ' s deaf nut , and showing its hollowsess—for pointing out the pitfall , which he has covered with grass , to make it looklike firm land . False as his Utopia is , still more precarious are he terms by which , even if it could be realised , it is to be holden . Men are to subscribe—the money is to be entrusted to an irresponsible treasurer—lots are to be drawn —but what if the laud , like Duncombe ' s estate , were to beforestalledby a bill of expenses '—what if the fortunate drawer of a prize found his little plot of land in the air , or somewhere under the tropics ! This getting the laud , is something like finding out the longitude , or like a ticket with no soup . We ought to call it the " O'Connor sweepstakes . " Is not such a scheme punishable by law ? But
impostors will never be wanted while there are gulls to believe them . I will suppose that somefew shoemakers had taken up the spade and mattock , and become cobbling farmers , after the manner of O'Connor . Would they bu freeholders , copyholders , leaseholders , or mere tenants at will ?—Would they get upon bad land or good land!—Would they be able to keep out their neighbour ' s pigs or poultry ; or , worse than all , could they keep the parson from clapping his ten tithing claws upon them—the lawyer from ferrettiug them out like rabbits in a warren—the taxman from scoring them with the devil ' s broad It , for rates and cesses ? Ah , this is blight , and mildew , and failure ! And then their own trustee or landlordwhat warrant have they , that he would not serve them with a notice to quit , after all their time and trouble —on pretence of being dissatisfied with their management ,
or their want of due respect for him ; or because of some undermining parasite ; or that he thought it would be better to sell , and have money instead of land ! And would not the lucky five-acre farmer be all the whileuuder the present accursed system , like a toad under a harrow t For my own part , sooner than buy one of the lottery tickets , to raffle for a bit of land , and hold it ( that is , if I shouldevergetit ) under such termsasareproposed , Iwould at once go and take out an allotment at a rent of 3 s . per annum . And such may be had iu the neighbourhood of where I reside—wheu I should realise all the advantages which O'Connor" holds out only the clumce of obtaining eren if I took his word for that , which ( as Ikaow the mail ) I am aot disposed to do , and should deserve to he cheated , if I did . If I were to listen to his blarney , I am afraid I should lose my bit of cheese , like the crow wheu the fox flattered it , for being a good singer .
"An Independent English Chartist . " Very , very foolish man ! If the shoemakers , choose to work al their trade , am I to prevent them * While having a resource in the land , which they would net otherwise have , would they , although is existexce , be as likely to submit to masters' reductions , or to compete against those of their trade at work , if reduction was attempted ? Mine is an allurement ; for 1 well know that , once located upon the land , not a man of them would ever handle an awl again , except to make shoes in winter for self and family . But it is not an allurement for my own gain , as I have over and over again refused the shoemakers' pressing appeals to become treasurer of their fund . But as to
what every man of common sense thinks of the hardship you make of paying rates , tithes , and taxes ; let me tell you a story . When the property tax was laid on , the Marquis of Westminster went from the Upper House in a furious passion ; and when he arrived at home he said to his coachman , " John , I am the hardest used man in England . " " Dear a' me , my lord , whatever is the matter ? " " Why , I have £ 12 , 000 a year tax to pay on my property . " " Eh ! that is hard , indeed , my lord ; but I'll tell you how to avoid it . " * ' How , John , how ? " " Why , my lord , I ' ll chaxge places with tou , axd pat aix the tax . " " Pooh , pooh ! " was of course the only answer the very ill-used lord couldgive . Now , sir , whether do
you think it better to PAl poor rates , or to be obliged to LIVE UPON THEM ? Of course , they'll pay poor rate 3 , and tithes , and taxes , and rents into the bargain , but those having all that to-pay ( and happy the man who pays the most ) , will have four times as much to spend as they have now , and not one-half the work to earn it . As to the attorney , they may employ one if they like ; but I cannot possibly foresee the remotest prospect of such a person finding his way into one of our societies . Then , sir , as te the landlord serving them with notice to quit , in default of proper management , or due respect , or the undermining parasite . Nonsense , man ,
you . are not in your senses ! The landlord would have no more power over them than you would—he could not serve them with notice to quit . The land would be theirs for ever and ever , to will , or sell , or leave to whom they pleased , upon the one condition of paying £ 5 per annum ; and any tenant who desired to purchase the fee—that is , to pay no rent at all , would have , in the first instance , the option of doing so ; and in any deed of sale a condition to that effect might be inserted . Having now disposed of your nonsense of the 22 nd , I shall say one word upon the half of your letter that appeared in Lloyd ' s paper of last week . That letter is easily
answered" Men , till they grow sager , Back their opinion with a wager . " I have not got £ 500 to spare , perhaps you have , but I will tike the minimum proposed , the " onepound , " and bet you a pound that you cannot prove that you are not the author of the two articles I have fathered upon you , and of the letter signed an " Independent English Chartist . " It will not do to say you are not the author of all . Tou must show whothe author is , or Carpenter must do it for you , and it shall be by an affidavit . The only sensible passage in your letter is
the concluding one , where you say , " But , then * , what SAME COTJLD CARET SO MUCH WEIGHT AS THAT OF Mr . Feargus O'Coxxor ? " Aye , what name , indeed , or what name ought to carry so much weight as that oi Mr . Feargus O'Connor ? What name has been so well tried ? What name has so successfully withstood the shock of knaves and fools I Now , sir , allow me to ask you a few questions . Why don't you meet me in discussion upon the relative merits of this "horscchesnut and chesnut horse ; " by the way , you say that my Lowe is groggy , spavined , and lame ? Wei ! i
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I can cure every one of those defects , as I am a capital farrier , while your hack has an incurable complaint ; he is bbokes-winded , and broken down BEFORE . Do you twig what before means . He picked up some SIXPENNY NAILS when he lost the shoe you speak of . I can draw the three-andthreepenny nail out of " William I-wish-I-mayget-ifs" foot , aud make . " Old Billy" as sound as a trout on his fore feet . But why don't you meet me in discussion , especially when Lloyd ' s paper might thex he induced to give a bit of public meetings interesting to the working classes . Why rdo you not vary your style a wee bit , instead of showing the one
dole self and selfishness under your ' different disguises ? Why has not one single " man come forward with a name , to uphold your plan or to denounce my plan ? Why have we not the weekly receipts of the " 75 Assurance Association , " with the names of the secretaries , published in Lloyd ' s . Why don't we hear of some expression of public opinion to back it ? Why aro yousosoreaboutthe " mousetrap ? " Andhave not the necessities of this national plan of yours even yet provokedanother number of the Common Weal , which was toappearwhenthepositionofthesoeiety demanded it ? WHO IS YOUR TREASURERf-WHO YOUR TRUSTEES ? _ WHO YOUR
DIRECTORS ? -WH 0 YOUR MANAGING COMMITTEE J-WHO YOUR BANKERS ? -AND WHO IS YOUR ASSOCIATION , OR WHERE IS IT ? or when are we to have the first specimen of this veteran architecture exhibited to the longing eye ? WILLIAM , I WISH I MAY SEE IT ! Why do you complain that I have written" three and a half columns , when you know that nearly one and a half was devoted to the publication of matter from the Common Weal , the Nutional Reformer , and the Breadcuter ? I only wrote two columns , and you have written seven columns . Perhaps there is more in my two columns than in your seven—I suspect there is . Now I have done with you for the present , and shall devote the remainder of my space to my dear , confiding friends , the members of the Chartist
Cooperative Association . M y beloved friends , it makes my heart bound and rebound with joy to hear and read of the unparalleled success of our regeneration project . Last week it cost me about £ 15 , to meet and overcome the follies of Mr . James Hill , published m Uoyd ' s Newspaper from time to time . But it was rendered necessary by the fact of the land being a new subject , and the consequent propriety of answering any objection raised by the jealous , the scheming , the adventurous , and the needy . Whenever anything is proposed for your advantage , socially or politically , the obstructives step in and propose something better , and always having the fascination of
practicability about it . They never try to beat you out of a position , but they always try to seduce you from it . Thus , the Sturgites would not oppose you ! O no , but they went considerably further and presented you with the fascinations of ability to carry out what they proposed . So , in 1835-36-37-38 , and 1839 , when we revived the Charter , one and another stepped upon the heels of each man and proposed something practical . I told you many years ago , when the Household Suffrage party sprang
up , that as there was no party strong enough to carry that measure , that all they required was our co-operation ; and once having abandoned our position , and having joined them , that Household Suffrage and Universal Suffrage would , on the following day , bo buried in the same grave . Now , keep that in mind ; they come as near us as they can , and then sell themselves and us if we would only allow them . This is just the case with the tinkers , who would patch up something to divert public attention from our present plan of re generation . But tiiey sham .
sot bo it—xo , sever . You have more confidence in me than you ever had in any living man ; and so you ought , for I have fought more battles with you , and have borne my full share of the blows , and have had less than my share of the " prize money . " I shall now proceed briefly to reply to the objections even of individuals . First , then , some complain of t ' sc difficulty of selling this surplus produce . Well , that is a glorious difficulty in imagination . Think of such a difficulty , as working men having more of the produce of their own labour-beef and mutton , and milk , and butter , aud cheese , and poultry , and eggs , and vegetablesand honey
, ? . nd clothing , and fruit , aud p igtMhftn they know what to do with ' . —while at present they have but that scanty supply allowed by their masters . And think of all these things being fresh and produced by themselves , and think that a surplus of food is better than a surplus of cotton , or even of cold . But to meet the objection , I wish I may see the day when it will be difficult to sell a fat pig or a pound of butter in England , because all have too much . Secondly , I am asked what a man is to do with a cottage and two acres , if he does not wish to occupy it ? Well , 1
presume that few such will join this association ; but in such case I assert , without fear of refutation , that any nienibor would receive from a non-member thirty , forty , orfiftypoundsasapremiuiu forhis holding , the moment he gets his lease for ever ! And this additional value is given to the lot by co-operation , just as fortunes are made by assurance companies , which arc no more or less than co-operative societies for tho wealthy . What is a man to do in sickness ? is another question . What docs he do now ? Suppose a colony of one hundred , and that such a difficulty should present itself : would thev not be in a better condition to form
a sick club of themselves , while the wholesomeness of their occupation would reduce the chances of sickness ? Men must be sick ; and small fanners , above all classes , would be in the best condition to bear the infliction , as most of them would have families . Better be sick in a man ' s own bed , than in the Bastile . How , if a man could not pay his rent ? Why he should be turned out at once , as the failure could only proceed from drunkenness or wil ful neglect . It is but 3 d . per day ; and one middling pig , or the fourth part of one cow ' s milk , would pay the rent . How if an occupier died ? Why ho may make his
will , and make what disposition he pleases of his land for ever . Could a man purchase his cottage and two acres for ever , and do away with the rent ? Certainly ; and , from first appearances , I trust we shall be in a position not to sell a morsel ; and my opinion is , that each holder with moderate prudence might purchase his allotment in jive years or less : and 0 ! how that desire would sweeten every hour ' s additional labour—even by moonlight . May God grant me life just to see one colony purchased by the occupants , and my labour shall not be wanting . In fact , my every attention shall be directed to that point . How are tailors and shoemakers to loarn the science of
agriculture ? Nothing more easy . How did they learn an artifical trade ; and , moreover—all bear this in mind—where there is a demand there is sure to be a supply . And you may rest assured that if one colony was planted to-morrow , that , before that day week , they would have just the supply needed of the best practical farmers and best practical gardeners to sell their knowledge . Thus one man would require a lesson from either , for a day , or two , or three , at the important seasons of the year , and would be able to pay 5 s . a day for the instruction ; and three or four good masters would live
well , and well earn their money . A lesson to one is a lesson to all , at agriculture , but at nothing else . What can a man do upon two acres ? No man that ever was in England , or in the world , could cultivate two acres te the best advantage ; and what breaks the farmer ' s back , is being obliged to pay rent for more land than he can cultivate to advantage . It is sheer dead loss . The very worst circumstanced two acres is too" much for a man to manage well ; too little to make a bankrupt of him . What would the occupiers do without horses ? Just as I do now : hire them when they Jrequire them , instead of keeping
one for 365 days to do 10 days' work , or not so much . £ 30 is too little to build a house : yes , but enough to make a comfortable cottage , that the
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owner for ever may add to at pleasure—better than a room in another man ' s house , a lodging in a cellar , or a pallet in the Bastile . HOW ABOUT MACHINERY ? It would then hernia ' s holiday . If we had a demand , we should very soon have threshing machines , draining machines , and all sorts of madunes doing for fourpence what , in his individual capacity , it would cost a man five shillings' worth of labour to perform ; Get the demand , and don't you iear the suppl y . If Vould be worth five shillings of a man s labour , at the then value , to thrash twenty stone of wheat ; a machine , belonging to another man who had no land , would do it for sixpence , and he would
save 4 s . Cd .-that is the value of co-operation . Could the landlord turn him out ? Fudge ! non . sense . No . ; no more than he could meet him and rob him on the highway , without the danger of being transported . Could a man starve ? Yes , certainly , if he wishes ; but mow he must , whether he likes it or not . Could the members be prosecuted ? Most assuredly ; but then I would give a trifle to see the indictment framed against men for offering to buy land that was offered for sale , or for subdividing it , or letting it , or tilling it . It would be a gem of an indictment . Is it according to first principles to buy wliat belongs to you ? Yes , if you cannot otherwise get it . Has the present generation a right to deal
with land for ever ? I only deal with circumstances as they present themselves , I allow future generations to correct the blunders we may fall into , just as I would correct these of our ancestors ; but if I live for 1000 years , then Hi be talking to you about that ; as the judges say , " when the case arises , we'll deal with it . " I never create obstacles , I remove them . Are the parties engaged in arranging the preliminaries honest ? Yes , as tiie su . v . Will you fob our cash ? I could not if I would . I would not if I could . Will Mr . Roberts ? Yes , certainly , till you require it ; but then , on the moment , you will have it , with bank interest , and without the deduction of the fraction of a farthing . But if he should die ? More would be the pity , but ho would leave your money
for you after him . But he does not , thank God , look like a dying man . Will you leave the country , Mr . O'Connor ? What is that to you if I do—I won't take any of your money with me . Can the society fail ? Can the people be hoaxed or deceived ? Impossible , WHOLLY , UTTERLY , AND ENTIRELY IMPOSSIBLE . Are the rules , as they now stand , binding ; or can they be altered and amended , so as to give general satisfaction to those for whose advantage the society is established ? The present rules are only binding upon the present managers . When the association numbers 2000 members , several queries will
be submitted , through the Northern Star , to save expense of printing circulars , and a full and ample opportunity will be afforded for such alterations , emendations , and corrections as the majority shall think proper to adopt ; when they will also have the power of electing their own treasurer , president , trustees , and committee of management . I shall propose myself as managing steward , without salary , and liable to be removed at pleasure , at a minute ' s notice , on payment op no wages , and no questions asked . AVilliam , you wished you might get—now you have got it ; and how do you like it ?
I remain , my dear friends , Your ever faithful and unpurchaseable sen-ant , Feargus O'Conxok . P . S . —This is a long letter , but it is worth every word that will be in Lloyd ' s for the next six months . Every man should read my work on Small Farms ; and when I tell you that I sold the copyright , and that I have no interest in its sale , except the good it will do , perhaps Mr . Hill may say that it is no harm to buy it , if I get nothing from the sale . —F . O'C .
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FRANCE . Jyranny of Lpuis Philippe and his Infamous brovEKNMENT . —Ihe carpenters still persisting in their strike for wages , we gather from the Debats that Government have resolved upon permitting , soldiers to be employed in their pltSfee . We need hardly remind our readers that , according to the conscription , men ot all trades are to bo found in the French army l he Debats of Wednesday has a most atrocious article ilciemling the resolution ef tho Government . The Constitutionnd , on the other hand , combats this resolution of the Government ; the following is an extract from its columns : — °
We ask by what right the military authority should interfere in a subject of competition ami freedom of labour ; according to what principle of justice , workmen on whom rests the burden of lodging , clothing , and feuding themselves and their families , should see their wages disputed by men whom the budget of the state supports 1 How could the use of soldiers be justified in private works , completely foreign to their legal destination ? We ask , can anything be imagined move dangerous than to place the army in face of a mass of workmen in an attitude of permanent hostility , resulting from this pretension to make it interfere in the quarrels of masters and workmen , in order to break in favour of tbu former tlie equilibrium between the demands and offers on which the regulation of wages depends . The army is supported by the produce of the taxes furnished in great part by the consumption of the working classes . For the last fifteen years its wellbeing has been augmented by meausof the greatest sacrifices imposed on the tax-payers , and the latter never
complain . And when the workmen , whose wa o'es remained the same , even when the conditions of living became more difficult for every one , demand an increase corresponding with the movement which takes place around them , a competition is to be set up against them , of which they themselves pay the expense ! When the question regulating the forces of the army was to bu discussed , the committee on the budget , considering that the division for Paris was no longer necessary , in consequence of the completion of tho fortifications , wanted to lop off 5000 men ; but it was replied that the guardians of the fortifications imperatively demanded that the garrison of l'aris should be so much augmented . Now , it is found that this garrison can without inconvenience detach from its service a sufficient number of men to replace 5000 workmen forming the strike . The Chamber complains loudly of the inactivity of our naval dockyards , and still there is some talk of bringing up carpenters from the seaports to place them at the service of private employers !
Such are the bitter fruits of middle-class despotism ! How the working men of Paris must wring their hands in agony of spirit when they reflect that it was themselves who , after pouring out their blood like water for liberty , allowed the scheming shopocrats to instill the Government of tlm hypocrite Louis Philippe on the ruins of that of Charles X . And if the working men , driven to despair , should , with cvualor justice , madly throw themselves upon the bayonets of their tyrants' myrmidons , there is ready lor them the Paris fortifications to draw them to a horrible , hopeless massacre . Be it remembered , too , that the Constitutiomiel ( the organ of Tiiiers ) , which just now , for it-sown purposes , is advocating the cause ot the workmen , was the foremost of the French press in demanding the fortifications , with the iruiltv
foreknowledge that those fortifications were useless to oppose , and not intended to oppose , a foreign foe , but were solely designed to keep in bondage and misery the enslaved masses . Alas ! how the people of France have been cheated by their gore and glory-mongers . Can they not see tjiat it is not foreign , but domestic enemies they liaVe to fear % ihat it is not" perfidious Albion" they have to contend with , but the perfidious scoundrels of their own country ; the perfidious middle-class , the perfidious lung of that class , perfidious politicians like Guizot and Twers , and perfidious journalists , the main supporters of all political perfidy . ? . These arc the enemies that France has cause to fear ; they have caused —and will again cause—her sons and daughters to weep tears of Wood through their perfidy and oppression .
The Chamber of Deputies voted the budget of expenditures ( supplies ) for 1846 on Friday week by a majority of 232 to 45 . The Chamberafterwards proceeded to discuss the bill relative to the execution of the convention for the repression of the slave-trade . M . Mauguin alone opposed the grant of the credit demanded for ( that object . The bill ; passed by 243 against 1 . The sums voted without discussion or division , for the improvement of the coast defences of France , amount to 28 , 700 , 000 francs . On Monday the Chamber voted a sum of 2 , 050 , 000 francs for
repairing the cathedral of Paris , by a majority of 231 to 4 . The session is drawing to a close as evidenced by the wholesale flight of the Deputies to the provinces . The strike of the Paris carpenters still continues , their work being done b y soldiers . The lodgments in the saving-banks of Paris on the 29 th and 30 th ult . amounted to 536 , 120 f ., and the reimbursements to l , 025 , 000 f . These returns show how heavily the struggle of the carpenters presses on the operative classes ; for a good deal of the excess of the reimbursements over the payments was , we arc assured , ascribable to that ciiuse .
SPAIN . General Narvaez addressed [ onthc 10 th ult ., a circular to the authorities of the kingdom , reminding them that" Don Carlos aud his family were outlaws , banished from Spain , excluded by the constitution and by special laws from the succession to the throne , and deprived of their rights as Infants , " and commanding them "to pursue to death their partisans who should enter the Spanish territory , and , if already residing therein , to have them tried in the shortest and most summary manner by court-martial , as
traitors and declared enemies of the throne and liberties of the nation . " This circular was published officially in the Gaxetteof the 23 rd . The Espectador lias been acquitted by the jury impanelled to tryjit upon an indictment for having published seditiouslibels against the Ministry . The majority was 10 against 2 ,. and the verdict was received with loud applause . A report had been spread of disturbances having broken out at Valencia , but the rumour was not confirmed The editors of the Clamor Puoitvo are in close confinement at Cadiz .
SWITZERLAND . A Geneva Journal states that the instructions given by the different cantons to the deputies for the approaching diet are much more explicit on the question of the Jesuits than those for the last diet . It is already known , says this journal , that ten states and two half states will vote for their expulsion by any means necessary to attain that end . St . Gall will give no instructions on this point , but it is supposed that if Geneva should declare for the expulsion , there would be no doubt of a majority . The municipal elections at Lucerne have commenced , and as yet , according to the Neiv Zurich Gazette , b . en so much in favour of the Liberals as to have given great alarm to the Government , which has augmented its patrols , and taken other measures to prevent a rising of the Liberal party .
PORTUGAL . The most extraordinary activity is displayed , on the part both of the Government and of the Opposition in preparing for the approaching elections , and tho contest is conducted with more than usual bitterness . The election takes place this month . Two persons were tried on the 10 th for partici pation by connivance in the revolt of Torres Novas , 1 G months since . The jury acquitted them . They had been imprisoned more than a twelvemonth , and fora time transported to Madeira .
GREECE . A oi i Athens , June 20 . Our Chambers are getting on slowly , flic Senate has voted the taxes on bees , honey , ic ., and some "V np i' £ ¦ J ; They havc also voted the Civil List , which had already passed the Lower Chamber ; the f S will have thus 1 , 000 , 000 drachms ( nearly ± 37 , 000 ) per annum . They also passed the Budget ot expenses for three months , as the whole Budget is not presented yet . Brigandage and murders con . tinue ; even in the capital assassinations are of daily occurrence . This very morning a man was stabbed in the high street . The people in authority have lost every idea of decency and propriety . I ' eopie in high
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Ct . ^ k ^ hSr ^ . Jar ^ J&p- ' - ' t&Zk . ** , a ^^ stations publicly associate with known briuands , and this very week robbers were arrested by tlTe gendar- ^ s merip on the premises of one of our first dianitarie x ( a right-hand man of Colletti ' s ) , where he luid given \ VS . thenr'an asylum . In open day a carriage was at- PViJVN . tacked on the road to the Piraeus , and a money khNo changer ( a Sernff ) robbed of 7 , 000 drachms . Bot- f N , ^ lie and the coachman were severely wounded , auh \ were only saved from being murdered by the approacd ' \ k « i other carriages . The robbers are said to bh r uoyernment people , perhaps some of the late amo \ r ucstied brigands . . V , Ti , q SYRIA - ' f \ t Vi ay"an question seems now to be prettv quiet . V . \ in the nudst of the late struggle between thelVlaronjtes and Druses it is said the AmericaProtestant ' SiUU IMliUIllilll 1
, n . ^ , • . ~> "» W . lUlL'Slilllb « y fN . missionaries acted a noble part . They remained in V \\ lrn « SS altci'tkvhad been burnt and sacked , ^ VV \ ttt WOi " n thc Maronitcs , and then went V \ V * SiJK ^ th ? i ? J e ° offi ( - ' towjmls t ! lc ^ Jns and tl ; A I " " ? frt' H doved - "" I « - « Ketcd b ? both - VT tho r > f Cilt n- priests were ) Ut t 0 d ™ - - by JH ftrffiTS" ? P uUl 0 I 1 - ?«}« nnccs ! We learn that ' H to Km v cst h . . J hw camp at Zahli , so as i \ L A ff . / 1 osltlon . wl"ch separates the Druses fVom \ - the Maromtcs , ready to fa 1 upon each other iml f ^ who are restrained by his presence ; . £ I h ' now V K& l C ) Ond f - ° ! bt ' tLttt the CMstians we o the provokcrs and originators of thc recent massacres . Stimulated b y their infamous priests thev V commenced a war of extermination agaiSttto X SiTV ! . lattcr -: > v evor , were mo ° rc than a , V match for their assailants , and retaliated with tea * \ X Jr fr ?" Ce tllc slau Shter aml deaolatSi 5 w of which Europe has recently heard so much . j l \ INDIA AND CIIINA-Oveulaxd Mail . J \
Dispatches bv extraordinary express from Marseiles . m anticipation of tho Overland Mail from jm lin , reached London on Tuesday . The dates are Bombay , May 20 th ; Calcutta , 10 th ; Madras , the 10 th ; Scinde , the 10 th ; Lahore , 1 st May ; and China , March 20 . The news by this conveyance , although not destitute of interest , is of little political nnportance . It is something , however , to know that nothing has occurred to disturb the general tranquillity which has prevailed throughout India for some tune past . From Scinde wo hear that the S ? om . ' ? ItIl B W Klian a * their head , have been at their old trade again ; but in an attack on the Murrccs were not onl y defeated , but compelled to disgorge their more recently acouired booty . Tim
ftS ult *¦ T ^ ™ undergone little alteration or the better . I- roni Gabool we learn that Dost M a-1 } oiued had become alarmed , and had abandoned his designs upon Pcshatrur ; and it is not probable that us son will succeed in'inducing the troops at Jellalaiw d to advance against the Sikhs . The Sirdars of Undahar are evidentl y in dread of the military preparations ot Sir Charles Napier , for they have requested thc interposition of Dost Mahomed to prevent him from attacking them . From Central India we ragret to learn that the apprehensions entertained sometime since as to a probable deficiency of water in Malwa , have been sadly realised . The sufferin « s of the people , m consequence of the unusual scarcitv , are described as great . Sir Henry Harding « , „
tinued at Calcutta . The only news tram China is of a commercial character . The Chinese seem disposed to carry out their treaty with this country with good laith and mth that view our troops are preparing to withdraw from the Chusan Islands .
UNITED STATES . Wonderful Land Slide ix the Tows of Warsaw , Ulster County . —A correspondent , writiii" from Ulster , says : — " Never , within the recollection of our oldest citizens , has nature given such awful demonstrations ol her freaks in tills vicinity as ImpDcncd here a lew weeks since . On the night of the 3 rd of May last a large tract of land , comprising a portion ot the farms of J . U . B . Dimond and James G . Bruyn , broke loose , aud was carried by the force ot its own gravity about l ( i 0 yards , carrying with it fruit trees and var . ous others of largo size , some still standing in their upright position ; others torn from their beds and scattered iu most beautiful confusion What ------ & vtt
. — «•««»••*» waa ** javi * IT IKIiV has caused this rupture no one has as yet ascertained . Nought was heard of the ' move ' of this mass of matter , save , as one of the neighbours says , he heard the sound of a ' rushing night wind . ' Ihe first intimation we had of anything uncommon having taken place was , that the Rondout Crcuk , below tho slide , on the following morning , was completely dry . On our arrival at thc place we found that the earth had broken loose about thirty feet from the stage road leading from Kingston to Wortsboro ' , runniug parallel with the road for about 120 yards , forming a chasm at the point where it started of about 100 feet perpendicular , the whole bodv
containing about SO acies of land . Iu its passage it crossed the Rondout stream , literally clearing the bed of all obstructions , and depositing its contents to tho height of about fifteen feet in the bed of thc stream for about 100 yards , forming a dam at one dash across tho whole stream , impervious as masonry could make it . Tke waters above proved what has always been considered impossible—namel y , their powers of running ' up stream . ' This it continued to do for the distance of about two miles , to a place called llixon ' s dam , where , after finding its level , it recoiled ; with the help of human hands , and its own powers , it forced its passage through the adjoining lands , tolind its old channel below . "
Later still . —Arrival op tiie Cambria . —Liverpool , Friday A * tekxoon . —The Cambria steamer has arrived , having performed the quickest passage known between America and England . She sailed from Boston a few minutes before four on the afternoon of the 10 th hist ., and from Halifax at twenty minutes past ten on the morning of the 18 th , and arrived in thc Mersey , abreast of Liverpool , precisely at a quarter past four this morning . In the advices brought by this vessel we do not find that anything has occurred to alter the state of American relations with Mexico ; matters remain just as when the Great Western left .
Three Murders . —The Virisliny Il' % of 27 th ult . gives the p articulars of a shocking affair on the Mississippi River , near Natchez . A river trader , known as Colonel Dawson , or Dorsey , in descending the river with the remnant of a stock of merchandise , and two females , whose names or characters are not known , had picked up somewhere in Arkansas , a man who so far insinuated himself into his confidence as to get permission to travel on the boat , and had continued cither as a passenger or sort of an assistant , until they reached the neighbourhood of Waterproof , where they were engaged in a quarrel , which
ended in his being dismissed from the boat , with imprecations and threats of vengeance . This occurred some time during the day on Saturday , and on Sunday morning , about three o ' clock , thc bout was discovered on five , drifting down . Thc negroes in the neighbourhood succeeded in drawing it ashore and suppressing the fire , when a spectacle presented itself too horrible to contemplate . Dorsey was found lying in his berth , with his feet burnt off , and his head and face shockingly mutilated , with blows apparently dealtwith an axe , and thc two girls on the opposite side in a like condition . The monster was pursued , and committed to answer .
M/≫ •"¦ ' •¦ *"— - - Iu James Hill,
m /> " ¦ ' •¦ * " — - - iu JAMES HILL ,
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TO WILLIAM CARPENTER , SELECTOR OF ARTICLES FOR LLOYD'S NEWSPAPER . You Mean-spirited , Sneaking Cur !—Your adoption of anonymous productions . and other person ? , effusions shall not altogether screen you from punishment . I shall treat you as thc author of the following notice to correspondents in Lloyd ' s paper of Saturday last . You and your scheming coadjutors shall havc a' dose of it now . Here is your notice : — Shaw and John Gotiiaud . —Two- letters with these names attached have been received , the writers of both volunteering , and armareiitl y exceedingly anxious , to I'Wlte "William Vish-I . may-6 et . it" trail the Chartist
Vsiousc-trap , and to pay back the amount of his subscription . Some persons might wonder at this unusual benevolence , and inquire how it should occur that there was this extreme anxiety manifested on the part of strangers to relieve the sufferer . The case is apparent enough . We told William Wish-I-niay-get . it that he bad only to apply to Mr . Feargus O'Connor , or to Mr . Thomas Prouting lloberts , at 340 , Strand , who , if they were to be found , would , as having rendered themselves liable to a penalty under 7 and 8 Viet ., cap 110 , for establishing aud promoting a joint stock company without registering it , be too glad to relieve themselves of a troublesome customer It appears that they have taken the hint , and in order to
allay the panic , and prevent No . 310 , Strand , from being besieged by a troop of hungry applicants from Commercinlroad East , Lambetli , and other districts inhabited by their dupes , it has been arranged that the subalterns in the different districts should comeforward , and , if possible , preventsuch a state of things . Accordingly , both the partics who write these letters present themselves on behalf of their employers , and express a desire to pay the money . It is much more agreeable to pay one person voluntarily , than have to pay one hundred by compulsion : and , then , if the money were publicly returned , many persons would not see through the operation , and their apprehensions would be allayed . ! Both these benevolent individuals also
represent themselves as officials . John Gothardsignshimself District Secretary ; and J . Shaw , Delegate of the Convention at which tho rules were drawn up . The latter wishes to be responsible for a share in the paternity of the rules . This proposal to father the illegitimate bantling by one of thc subalterns , reminds us of similar cases , where John the footman marries tho housemaid , and , by becoming father of the child , relieves the master from a good deal of odium . We know nothing of Mr . Shaw , except as the writer of this letter ; but in the report of the Convention ( contained in thc Northern Star ) , when this land plan
was developed , we find that" Mr . J . Shaw thought the lund plan was an excellent means of obtaining tho franchise . " Capital ! Hiring a £ 30 cottage and a potatoe plot , at £ ' 5 per annum , to give the right of voting ! Mr . J . Shaw afterwards moved , " That each delegate , on his return to his respnetive district , use his utmost influence with liis constituents to cause them to pay up all arrears , also to cause them to immediately lake out new cards , hand-books , * c , that the debts of the association may be liquidated , and the officer ' s pay permanently secured . " This contains a solution of the enigima .
You nasty filthy fellow , you say , in speaking of me and Mr . lloberts , " If they were to be fou . nd . " Give me leave to tell you that I am always to be found in str own house , and never in a ruothel ; I never was in one in my life , not even in Portugal-street . My name is not to be found in the bankrupt list , nor is my residence to be learned from my schedule and when I am found , I am always sober ; I never was drunk . Now , then , can you say ditto to a \ these things , or to any one of them . So much for myself , and now one word upon your rascall y , mean attempt to pervert the words of Mr . Shaw to thc injury of a project that you dread . You try to raise up the Chartist Association and the debts due by several districts , with the Chartist Co-operative Land
plan ; aud you say , " this contains a solution of thc enigma . " Aye , so it does , but it is a solution of the lengths that a big blackguard would go to serve a purpose . You knew full well that the observations of Mr . Shaw were directed to the Chartist Association . You knew that there were no such things as hand-book * connected with the Land Association ; you knew that no arrears could be due by the land members on the formation of the Association , now the matter under discussion ; you knew that it was not in existence ; you knew that the Land Association could owe no debts , and that therefore they need not be liquidated ; you knew that our sceretary had furnished a list ot the outstanding debts of the " Chartist Association /' and that it was to those debts that Mr . Shaw ' s observations had reference . Now then , is " this a solution of thb ehi 6 Ma" for you ? As to Mr .
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Shaw and Mr . Gathard-not Gothard , as you havc it-they are , both the one and the other , much more respectable men than ever you , were or ever will be . But let us have "William I-wish-I-may-get-it ' s " name ; . he , at all events , can have no delicacy in screening Mr .. Roberts and me from the legal consequences of being' officers of an illegal association . You and your staff may back him ; or you may take out shares , and sue as members- and I'll meet you all . My godd fellow , you had better not throw any more of your filth ; for be assured you shall get blow for blow , and a blow too many . I don't care what you publish , if you put the names of the writers ; and as for leading articles , you must do as you best can about them , as you never could write one in your life < FfiAROUS O'CoNXMt .-
-Forrtjpi Inteufflente,
-forrtjpi InteUfflente ,
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Another Child Murder at Gheeswicii . —Late on Wednesday night , as Serjeant George Wilson , of the R division of Police , was going his rounds , near Bliiekheath , he heard some children say that a young woman , named Mary Ann Eager , living at tho " Cavern , " under Blackheath-liill , with her parents , had committed a murder . On instituting inquiries , as he proceded on his beat , he discovered thc report to be too true . Ho then went to tho house of her father , who is a worYnig gardener , and saw her mother , absorbed Im . the utmost distress . Serjeant Wilson learnt from ihe neighbours that thc young woman had delivered herself , about three o ' clock in the afternoon , of a female child , and that after doing so , she proceeded down stairs from her bed-room .
to take tea with her mother , and thc latter suspecting that something was wrong , went up stairs , and found the infant lying dead in a pool of blood on the Hoor . On examining further , it was ascertained that tho jugular vein and carotid artery were separated , causing instant death . A pair of scissors were found lying in tho blood , which had evidently been used for the pnrpose , as the wound appeared jacged , and cut in those places as if done by such an instrument . Information was forwarded late at night to Dr . Mitchell , of Royal Circus-street , and Mr . Hatch , of Blaekheath-hill , surgeon , who attended immediately , and after examining the body , ' . declared it to have been born alive . The prisoner , who is under the surveillance of the police , is confined to her bed , in a dangerous state .
The Great Westers Railway , Friday ETcning . — As the express train to Paddington , consisting of lour passengers' carriages and a luggage van , had nearly reached Salt-hill , the engine-driver observed that the luggage van was off the rail . He immediately slackcned the speed , and stopped the train before it had proceeded a quarter of a mile farther , without causing the slightest alarm to the passengers . The driver then proceeded with the engine to Slough , and returned with the necessary assistance to replace the van , which was done in half an hour , and thc trainproceeded to town . Fortunately the van was in the rear of the carriages , or the accident might havo proved of serious consequence . The passengers during the delay did not leave the carriages .
Accident ox the Bristol and Birmingham Railway . —Collision of Trains . — On Thursday afternoon a collision between two trains occurred on this line . The train which left Gloucester at half-past ten , for Birmingham , on reaching Camp Hill came in sight of a train proceeding from Birmingham on the same line of rails , and ere the engines could be reversed both trains came into collision , one engine being completely destroyed , and the other very nearly so , by the shock . One of the engine drivers and one of the stokers jumped off , but the former was severely hurt , haying fallen on his back on the rails ¦ the stoker was likewise hurt , but not so seriously . The men on the other engine escaped . J ^ B ~ to 4 he dsuu sengers , several have been mor&-Qrlesk " Kuik bnt natefatally . :.:, : - . - ? ; w « n > ~" , 'X ' - ¦¦ . ¦; ' ¦ ¦ . ' : ¦ w
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_ vuuviU . m . 399 . LONDON , SATURDAY , JULY 57 l 845 ~ pb , cB * , vK p EKOT „ ~ ¦' - ' ¦ ¦•¦ ' Five Shillings nud Sixpence per n ™ ,., * ,.
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, •• '¦ • ¦ ¦ - . - -. A , ¦ : . . .. . . _ J ^ C / V > J ^ ^^^^^^^^^^ B ^^^ m 1 ll ^ i J ^^ m i ^ x ^^^ . M ^ x ^^^ F ' - ' ' ' fjl f ™ w | Jv ( lipit ^ Jtl ^ t JHJH& AND NATIONAL TRAMS' JOURNAL
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Northern Star (1837-1852), July 5, 1845, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1322/page/1/
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