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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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lingham , he was present , and could answer for himself . Themodeof managingthe carters' work wa 3 this—if one set went to the stone quarry , each pair of horses brought an equal load , and every man brought an equal number of loads . He paid for the stone by the square yard , and upon each Saturday night the overseer , wfaost business it was to keep an account of every load drawn , made his report to Mr O'Connor . If they went five turns for stone , every man was obliged to perform that duty , and every nan did perform that duty . If they could go
three times to the lime-kiln , every man was compelled to do so ; and if they went twice for sand , every man was obliged to do so And he would take upon himself to say , that in no single instance was this amount of labour ¦ knlked . That lie bad done more labour with his toKM for 8 * ., titan he could tire for 2 ij and that , excepting one instance at O'Connorville , where a labourer got drunk , and stripped , and challenged another to fight , he had never seen a drunken man upon any estate . So much for the horses . "
Mr Cullingham rose and said— " Mr Chairman , may I be permitted in fairness to say , that , in all my life , I never sat down in company with one of the carters—that I never met them at any public-house—and that I never drank half a pint of beer with any one of them , so help me God ! or saw one of them drank ; and I appeal to Mr Rider—one of the delegates , and a carpenter—whether he ever saw me drunk on the estate ?'' Mr Rider . —I certainly never saw Mr Cullingham drunk upon the estate in my life .
Mr O'Connor—The next charge is , that of Mr Lawrence having received 30 * . a week for having superintended his own men . Mr Lawrence did not receive 30 * . a week , he received II . a week—not for superintending his own men , but for superintending the cutting out of the foundations upon the proper sites marked out by Mr O'Connor , and which -was ene of the operations thai required the greatest vigilance and circumspection . The men employed in that work might put the Company to considerable expense , if not superintended by a person who understood the
busi" The next was , thegreat wastethathadbeen committed . As regarded that , several carpen ters vho had been engaged on the works of private individuals , had stated , and put it in writing , that they never saw so small an amount of waste of the property of any individual ; and what he ( Mr O'Connor ) was prepared to assert aud prove was , that there was not one pound ' s worth of waste committed
upon the property of the Company , but that , on the contrary , every particle that was over from one estate was carried to another . He asserted , beforemany carpenters—whom he invited to contradict him if what he stated was sot true—that the most niggardly master could not have been more careful of every Biorsel of property , even to the burning of the sawdust for manure .
" The next charge wag , that Mr Taylor—Mr Cullingham ' s son-in-law—received 3 i . a week ; while the books would show that he received 15 * . a week , and sometimes 1 / -, and that H 3 contract was the same to the farthing as every other painter—namely 2 L 5 s ., for giving a cottage and outbuildings four coats of paint , finding Ms own colour . ( Hear , hear . ) "As to the counselnot being present , the Directors are aware that Mr O'Connor offered ts
pay the most eminent counsel his fees out of Ms own pocket ; but Mr O'Connor was not aware at the time that he made the announcement that Conference met precisely at the commencement of the term , just when clients and business were pouring in , aud at a time when counsel worth having could not leave London whatever fee was offered . "As to the charge of allowing tradespe « ple and labourers to go into the cottages before the time for location , it came with a bad grace from Mr Edwards , who was so pathetic about the poor . He would not only plead guilty to
this charge , but he would do so with pleasure , and he was only too happy to be able to accommodate those whose numbers , coming upon a sudden , always increase the price of lodgings ; but he would tell Mr Edwards more , that although he was not aware that they did consume much' of-the roots , yet if he ( Mr O'Connor ) saw them without firing while the roots were there , lie would tell them to use them and welcome , and he wondered -whether the house being aired -would be better or worse for the occupant ? He was only too happy to nave it in his power to make them as comfortable as possible .
" Lastly , with respect to the removal of Mr O'Connor from the Directory , he could only say , that for that proposition he would cheerfully rote himself ( Laughter . ) And if such was the wish of the Conference , he would not , like other dismissed Directors , ask them to pay his wages , or the money that was due to him . ( Hear , hear . ) And now he would carry the war into the enemy ' s camp , and he begged leave to ask Mr Edwards , whether the itinerating bagman , who travelled Devonshire to abuse the Land Company , had been employed
at Snig ' s End , and if so , in what branch ? Mr Edwards . —He was engaged as a sawyer . Mr O'Connor . —Then , SirBoyle Roach'sbird was a fool to him ; the bird could only be in two places at once , while the bagman appeared to be possessed of ubiquity . Here was a sawyer working under a shed , seeing a man resting upon his plough , men drinking at the Feathers , men digging foundations , men grubbing , waste committed , and inspecting the wages book—all at the same time . And this honest sawyer , holding sixteen shares—four four-acre shares—who had so laudable an interest in the
well-being of the Company , had paid up 9 s . 6 d . upon the sixteen shares , according-to the Se cretary ' s book , just handed to me , or sevenpence a share . He would now ask Mr Edwards another question—it was , whether Mr Francis Putt , of Snig ' s End , was his other informant , and the other Devonshire firebrand ? Mr Edwards , —He certainly was . Mr O'Connor . —Now then , for this gentlemen . Of all the villains that ever disgraced
any society , this fellow is the greatest . He bought a wood from me of eleven acres ; he wa 9 to grub it , so that the plough could go over it , and to pay me £ 120 . My terms were that ¦ 1 should have half the money down , and that the wood should be grubbed under Mr King ' s inspection . He said he bad the money in Devonshire—that he would go for it and pay it , according to the terms . I told Mr King that I had sold it te him . At that time , the Committee of the House of Commons on the Land
Company occupied my every hour . He went to Devonshire ; did not bring the money , but . brought a sample of cabbage plants , in which he proposed to pay me . ( Laughter . ) He took possession of the wood without my knowledge , Mr King presuming that he had paid according to contract ; he sold nearly 40 / . worth of bark , and some poles , in Gloucester , which I heard of by mere chance , —I stopped the money , — I called an auction , sold a portion , detained the remainder , —he robbed the Company of 50 / ., and I am now paying for the grubbing of the wood . ( Cries of shame . )
Mr O'Brien . —Oh ! I can speak to that villain ' scharecter ; of all the villains that ever were born I look upon that fellow as the greatest . I will just tell the Conference one circumstance , and they may judge from that Mr Cullingham sent him to perform some work at the school-house at Lowbands , —it took him a day and a quarter . I saw Mr Cullingham before the men were paid , and he asked me how many days Putt had worked , —I told him
a day and a quarter . MrCullingham said , "Why I have entered him into the book five days and a quarter—he told me that that was his time . " It was altered ; and when I saw Putt after , I said to him , "Well , Putt , you are the most unmitigated rogue unhung ; you returned yourself to Mr Cullingham as having worked five days and a quarter , while you only worked a dayand a quarter ; '' and just mark the fellow ' s answer ; be said , in the coolest manner
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possible : '• Well , might I not as well rob the Company as any body else r" ( Cries of " What a villain ! " ) Mr O'Connor . —Now , I think I have ex . posed the character of the two Devonshire bagmen tbatltake so laudable an interest in this Company—the one ha 3 paid 9 * . 6 d . towards sixteen shares and has been discharged , and the other has cheated the Company out of 50 / .. But this Conference must learn and understand , that every man once employed thinks that he is engaged for life , and that when his work is done that it is tyranny to discharge him , and that he has a right to live upon the
funds of the Company , and that if I deny that rig ht I am the tyrant and must be abused . ( Hear , hear . ) Whereas , the salvation of the Company depends upon my faithful execution of the trust reposed in me , and my fixed determination never to gain popularity or toleration by the violation of that trust . ( Cheers . ) " Mr Edwards has said , that a practical builder has entrusted him with an estimate to build houses for 801 . —another delegate proposes building houses for 65 / . ; but here is the distinction which all overlook—that I propose and will have uniformity of building , as I will not be charged with having built Irish cabins
for the Land members ; and if there is one thing more than another to which I seek to wed those members , it is not to their comfortable but actually to their stylish and convenient cottage , and after all that has been said about them I am here to affirm that there never were , in this or any other country , such convenient cottages , cottages in every respect so well built , so well finished , and with the very best materials . And there are practical builders , many of them in this room , who have been on the several estates—there are occupants here from every one of the estates , and I defy them to find out one single fault . ( Hear , hear . )
"Now , then , I longed for this opportunity , te give an answer to every charge that might be brought against the Company . A little j leaven leaveneth the whole lump ; " a few ! scabby sheep infect the whole flock ; but I ! rejoice to think that nine in every ten of the occupants are good , industrious , honest men , ! and , withlGod ' s Messing , I will very speedily I drive the vermin from amongst us . ( Hear , ' hear . ) With regard to those 80 / . and 65 / . cot- j tages , let the Conference bear in mind , that j they are not my cottages upon my plan and therefore furnish no data to go upon . A builder ia Gloucester , whose very heart and
soul was in'the Plan , proposed to build the cnttages at 240 / . each , and now I will give the master builders ( the 657 . and 80 / . gentlemen ) the rough items of the expenditure of one of our cottages . Bricks , 12 , 080 , at 30 * - £ 18 0 0 Timber and slates . . 30 0 0 The whole of the brick-work , slating , plastering , laying kitchen floor , fixing chimney pieces , setting stoves and range ? , and : preparing for sleepers , making mortar and all . . . 13 O 0
Carpenters work . . 12 10 0 ( A voice from one of the bystanders , ' Too much . ' ) Mr . O'Connor . —Well , a . word about that presently . Foundations , with plinth , including stone . . . 8 0 0 Painting , glazing , and glass . 3 0 0 Now there is 86 / . without any margin for lime or sand , grates and stoves , locks , latches , hinges and ironmongery , chimney pots and stone chimney pieces , digging wells , sinking pumps , paying for them , lead fer valleys , and
allthe etceteras . Now that ' s my cottage . But let Mr Edwards ' s contractor , or anyothe man , propose to perform those several operations cheaper , and to leave twenty-five per cent , of the money unpaid till the work is approved of by my overseer , and then he shall have the contract for my houses , but not for his houses . And now a word to my friend who says " too much " for the carpenters' work . Is he aware that there are three rooms , a dairy , a back kitchen , a cow house for two cows , a place capable of holding a pony , a place for roots , a privy , two sheds , a gate to the yard , a dresser
in the kitchen up to the ceiling , with three drawers and five shelves ; a cupboard by the fireplace , up to the ceiling ; and two dwarf cupboards in the sitting-room . Now then , observe , my principal object in establishing this Flan was , to raise the rate of wages , while labourers themselves cry "too much . '' ( Hear . ) "Another charge was by the farmers in each district , that I raised the wages of the labourers . ( Hear , hear . ) Why that is the very life and soul of the Plan . I create a demand , and the supply in the market is worth more money : and now to hear such a charge . I will now
state to this Conference , in presence of the Directors , of several of the overseers , and of many carpenters and builders who have been employed upon the estates —what no other employer in Europe could state—that if we separated to-morrow , even in hostility , not one of them could charge me with one single mean , dishonourable , dishonest , or hypocritical act . I could defy them . ( " Hear , hear , " from the Directors . ) I want to harmonise the labourers , and not to disunite
them . I have told every overseer , that if he had a complaint to make against a man to make it in his presence , as I would not hear it in his absence ; and I can say what no other employer can say , that I never spoke a ' harsh word to any man since I commenced operations—that my every act has been upon the side of indulgence—and that as to practical builders knd agriculturists , I will submit to no controul , if I did , like other societies , your ' s would very speedily book up .
" I rejoice to have met so discreet , so valuable , so prudent a Conference , and I rejoice to think that you are within twelve miles of forty-two of the reviled houses—go and see for yourselves , and then censure if you can . I have stood an amount of slander , of labour , expense , anxiety , and trouble to realise this , the darling object of my life ; and I am resolved—with the assistance of such men as you—to overcome all opposition , and go on till I conquer every foe , and locate every unwilling idler in his own castle , upon his own labour field . ( Loud cheers . )
Mr James Taylor , delegate for Ashton . — " There will be always grumbling—do what you will , you will never satisfy some people . ( Laughter , and "True . ' ') There were two in our district ; one chap got £ 65 , 1 think , for a three-acre allotment , and he began to growl ; and the wife of another in Stockport came away , and left her husband at O'Connorville , nut nothing would satisfy them . Mr O'Connor . —Well , now , Mr Taylor has
truly stated one of the alternatives of the dissatisfied , namely— to sell their allotments ; and surely , the man who pays £ 2 12 s .- and gets £ 85 , as one did at O'Connorville , less the Company ' s charges ; and this man referred to , £ 65 for his £ 318 s . ; others £ 100 and £ 120 —they have no great cause to complain . But , as regards the other case , he would just ask his friend Taylor , whether the name of the party is Wallwark ? Mr Taylor . —Yes ; that is the name .
Mr O'Connor . —Now , you see I am in a position to answer every single complaint of every single growler . I will now tell you this gentleman ' s SOLEMN POSITION , and my cruel treatment of him . He came to O'Connorville in August , 1846—the time of the Demonstration , affectingito believe that the occupants were to be located j then . He brought his family and furniture , and broke
up his house . He was the only one that came , and he had no right to come till May , 1847- I put him into a house , gave him permission to have plenty of firing , gave him milk for nothing , had two bedsteads made as his furniture was delayed , sent him chairs from my own house , and advanced him 5 / . ( Hear , hear . ) Now that was that gentleman ' s " solemn position / [[ And I might have
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added , that he had one of the very best allotment 8 on any of the estates—that his interest is well worth 100 / , of any man ' s money—that the Directors sold the handkerchiefs that he wove at a penny above the market price—that even the " Star * ' office was one of his retail shops—they were advertised in the "Star " and everything that man could . do I did for that man /] I allowed him to put up his loom in one of the cottages and paid for the repairs of the cottage when it was taken down . He made gewn pieces as well as handkerchiefs—he
had the first cottage at the entrance to the estate , and , with few exceptions , parties coming to visit the estate gave him large orders , so much so that he could not complete all . And now mind , I am not at all censuring the man , for I believe that a more industrious , a more honest , a more respectable man of his class there is not in England than Wallwark ; he was always either at work or with his family , he never went near a public house ; but I will now narrate for the reader a piece of the most consummate rascality that ever was perpetrated .
" Wallwork brought with him to O ' Connorville two of the sweettst children Jew saw . They looked puny and delicate . Their mother told me ind others that the boy had some complaint which gave him a dizziness . When they were with me a shor t time the appearance of both delighted the parents , and astonished every one . They became perfect patterns of health , and many a time I have gone into the cottage just at dinner hour or tea time , and Mrs Wallwork has told me that she could scarcely give them enough to eat NOW , trtugh they were very delicate at Stockport . Well , the winter was the trying season , and the children , as every ene at O'Connorville will testify , went on growing ,
improving and getting more healthy . Not a day sick . The ' summer came , and they looked blooming . I have seen them working in the field with the mother , all expressing themselves delighted . Every occupant will testify to this , as I am appaking now of the period after all were located . Well , mark the sequel and the horror : Mrs Wallwark returned to Stockport , and took the children : the boy , I am told went to work in the mill and died , and will it be be lieved , that the report was circulated—in fact , I understand it was stated at the inquest—that the
boy died inconsequence of the damp of the house at O'Cennorvule . Now only think of the extent to which the opposing classes will carry their vengeance against this Plan ; a sickly sweet Roy comes to me in a delicate state of health from the manufacturing district ; with me he becomes vigorous and healthy ; he goes back to the CHARNEL HOUSE and dies , and then the Land Plan is his murderer . There is not in England a more healthy spot than Herringsgate ; but now you see what malice will do .
[ The latter part of this statement was not made to the Con f erence , because I was not aware of the fact at the time . ] Mr O'Connor ; Now if there ' s any—the most whimsical—charge to be brought against me , for mind father all , I am now prepared to meet it , and this Conference shall not separate with my consent while one single complaint is unexplained . Mr Sutton , from Manchester , said , that he represented a large district , and that , of course ,
representations would give nse to inquiry . That he was directed by his constituents to support the appointment of a practical builder , and a practical agriculturist in the directory . And there were several rumours about Manchester—one was , that at the time Government passed the Gagging Bill , and when tnoie employed at Snig ' s End wanted some alteration , Mr O'Connor enacted a Gagging Bill there . He was bound to his constituents to make these representations and he bad now performed his duty .
Mr 0 Connor . —As to the practical agriculturist and builder !> eing appointed of the Directory ; a man did not become an agriculturist at once ; he was instructing Mr Doyle in the operations , and be was one of the Directors . The place for the other Directors was in the office attending to the accounts , and never to leave it . He had a practical builder , and if he was a Director , he should be under his Mr O'Connor ' s controul , at he would not be answerable for the whims of any man . And now as to the Gagging Bill . '
'A t the time of the French Revolution , a Mr Sidaway , a blacksmith , who was going to assume the power of Dictator , and a few others , called meetings to dictate terms to me—in faet , to take the mastery ont of my bands . I sent them word , that if they had any complaint to make which militated against them as trades , that I was prepared to hear it . In consequence , a deputation of carpenters waited upon me to appoint a " chalk lineman , " to assign the proper description of timber for his work . That was just , and I did it ; and then I sent them word , that if they attempted to interfere in the
management of the affairs of the Company , that I would send them every one abent their business , as I was perfectly aware that the moment I showed weakness , they would assume despotism . Well , Mr Sidaway was the ringleader . The Secretary of the Gloucester Branch of the Charter Association sent me all his letters , and hut very few of the carpenters , indeed , took any part in those proceedings , as I am here to assert and affirm that , from the commencement of the works , no carpenter has ever made a complaint to me of any act of injustice . And now I will solve both this " Gagging Bill" and the conspiracy for you .
" A Mr Rjan , one of the carpenters , urged on by Mr Sidaway , and others , went to Manchester and district , and circulated the roost ridiculous and lying reports that ever were heard , but all actually amounting to nothing . This came to my ears , and I instantly demanded that a public meeting should be convened in Manchester , and I sent Mr Doyle , Mr Cullingham , builder , and Mr King , bailiff , to attend that meeting , and to meet every charge . They went , and , in the first instance , both the meeting and the Committee appointed , having heard so much from Mr Ryan , were naturally suspicious . The Committee sat , I think , twice , and , I think , for ten or twelve hours—and after the most deliberate con .
siderahon of the whole ca'e , they reported to another public meeting—called for the purpose—unanimously , as Mr Sutton and Mr Donovan are awarethat not one of the charges was sustained , and that they were frivolous and vexatious-and Mr Sidaway having written one version of the case to Ryan , and a completely different version to the Chairman , it was recommended that Mr Sidaway should be discharged , and Mr Sidaway was instantly discharged . And since his discharge , the basest acts ever committed by mortal have come to light . He interfered in every one's business , and could not do his own . And now , with regard to Mr Ryan , the complain ^ ant , I will show you the spring of his spleen . He was no carpenter , and his work was so inefficiently
done , that Mr Cullingham stopped £ 115 s . from hi » contract upon a bouse , and paid another carpenter for repairing his botched work . Now , that man was not very likely to be friendly to snch strict management . What he stated was within the knowledge of Mr Sutton and Mr Donovan , both of whom attended the meeting , and heard the report . Now , then , are there any more complaints ? as this Conference will see that hearing them is no waste of time . And I have only to add , that I hope the day is not far distant when—with the single exception of Mr Ryan—I shall have the pleasure and delight of seeing every carpenter , builder , and labourer , at work again . And I think that is the best proof of the harmony that h » B subsisted . ( Hear , hear , )
The Balance Sheet for the last quarter was then taken into consideration ; and , after very proper explanations being demanded of a few trifling items , it was accepted unanimously . One item was the sum of 2 s . 3 d . for omnibus fare , for two clerks , to two localities , to arrange some dispute between the secretaries and members of the districts . Another item of £ 7 odd , for Directors' travelling expenses to Brorasgrove , Snig ' s End , and back , and to London , was accounted for thus : —The Committee of the House of Commons directed Mr Grey , the accountant , to go to Bromsgrove , and inspect all the books , and that the Directors should meet him there . They came with the books to Bromsgrove—had to go from Bromsgrore to Snig ' s End for more books
—come back , and return to London—and the amount of travelling expenses was low . The next wat JE 6 , for expenses of Directors to Snig ' s End and back , which was consequent upon the necessity of the Directors being present with their books , when the allottees were located , to point out who had transferred , and who bad received any portion of Aid Money before location . It was supposed to be for the demonstration upon opening the estate , but Mr O Connor explained that he refused his consent to vote a farthing of the funds for a demon , itration at Herringsgate , or any other place , and that he had that morning received a letter fiom a solicitor , stating that if the sum of £ 6 , due to a band that attended the demonstration at Snig ' s End ,
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was not paid , that Mr Cullinehara would be sued forit . . ¦ ? . Mr Cullingham . — It was the trades at Snig ' i End that ordered it , and they undertook to pay for it . The next item that was questioned in the balance beet , was £ 36 for Directors' travelling expenses , and which Mr O'Connor explained thus : —Unwilling to violate the rules laid down by the Committee of the House of Commons , he apprehended that it would be illegal to call a Conference to represent an illegal body , and therefore , the most effectual mode was taken of consulting the members personally upon the proposed alterations . Messrs M'Grath and Clark made a tour for several weekt
for that purpose through Scotland , the north of England , and part of the Midland Counties , when he ( Mr O'Connor ) was given to understand that it would not be illegal to hold a Conference for the purpose of legalising the Company ; he then , together with the Directors in London , decided upon recalling Messrs M'Grath and Clark , and although the Conference was held , he considered that that money was well and profitabl y spent , and he , for one , was astonished at the smallness of the amount . He had left Birmingham for Aberdeen , on Thursday week—he returned on the following Sunday week ; and bis expenses for the eleven days amounted to £ 32 12 s , and it was the only expenditure of any of his tours that he had kept
an account of . Mr Kydd then asked , how it happened that the amount of clerks was so much larger than that under Mr Wheeler ' s management * and Mr Bentley , the delegate for Huddersfield , said , that he had written several letters to Mr Clark , since he had became corresponding secretary , and that he had not received answers as punctually as he bad from Mr Wheeler . Mr O'CoBHor replied , that nothing could be more easy than to answer Mr Kydd ' s question and Mr Bentlev ' s question . Mr Clark should answer for himself . The necessity for more clerks , arose from two circumstances : " " The first was , that one man could not do two men ' s work .
" The second was , the enormous increase of business consequent upon the unavoidable absence of the Directors , attending to the deed of registration through the country . But the main cause was this . Immediately after the resignation of Mr Wheeler , the Lowbands Conference decided that the Corapany should close at the end of the year , and the consequence was , that the number of members joining nearly doubled > itbin that period , and the Management required more hands in the office . But as he was not willing to allow any charge to rest upon the shoulders of the Directors , to which , if wrong , he was liable , be begged to state that as soon as the business slackened , and funds came in
slowly , the directors did discharge ftur clerks ; and when he ( Mr O'Connor ) heard it , believing that their department also was a branch of the Labour Question—knowing that they bad been- instructed in the office business , and feeling convinced that their practised service * rould be required again , when slander and misrepresentation were stifled , he ( Mr O'Connor ) told the Directors not to dismiss those clerks , as he would rather pay them their wage 3 out of his own pocket , if the Conference objected to the course . ( Hear , hear . ) He had answered every question , there were no complaints ; and he would now ask , if such a balance sheet , without 2 s 3 d , and other small items , being put under the lumping head SUNDRIES , was ever presented to a Company ?
It was unlike other companies , Last week he read an account in the Timet newspaper , of a Board of Railway Directors who were their own auditors . ( Laughter . ) What would they think if he , as treasurer , presented a balance sheet to that Conference , with 'Audited and feund correct , Feargus O'Connor , " at the bottom of it ? ( Laughter . ) Why , in fact , while every other company in England was now indisputably proved to be cheating , juggling , deceiving , and robbing its members , the Nationa Land Company was the only company in the Kingdom that could show a pennyworth of property for every penuy expended . But here was the difference—the juggle was for the rich , and the Land was for the poor . ( Loud cheers . )
Mr Clark said : In answer to Mr Bentley ' s question , 1 have only to refer to the enormous increase of business in the office . That of course all letters are not of equal importance . Every letter of importance I have answered myself ; those of minor consideration I have referred to the clerks , when it was impossible for me to answer all , and I have given them the gist of the answer . The Balance Sheet to the 29 th of September was then unanimously accepted , and the present Board of Directors were unanimously re-elected . The 12 th of May was tbe day named for the future location of members ; and , in justice to the delegates aud the Chairman , I must say that a more creditable , a more shrewd , a more dignified representation of Labour and the Land Company could not be selected . v
The Chairman upon such occasions is a most important personage . With him rests the discipline and decorum . A bad Chairman will be sure to waste time , and make a bad Conference ; but Mr James S » eet economised time , exacted rigid discipline , and gave the most unqualified satisfaction , while every question submitted to tbe consideration of the delegates was argued with an amount of prudence , discretion , and tact which did honour to the
working classes . The only signification of dissent or approval of the numerous party of visitors was , when , according to my pledge to the Committee of the House of Commons , the question was put from the chair , whether the affairs of the Land Company should or should not be wound up , when every hand in the Conference , and every hand in the room , was held up against the Company being wound up , and which was followed by clapping of hands and enthusiastic cheering .
I have so far given you a critical repart of the proceedings which were confined to question and answer- I have shown you the source from which every complaint has come . I have given you the answers to those complaints in the Conference , and now I will sum up in a few words of observation . Suppose a Free Trader built cottages out of his own capital , and suppose he gave to those occupying four acres of land , a cottage , and that land at four per cent upon the outlay ; and suppose they came to him without a fraction , and that he advanced them £ 50 or £ 10 by way of capital ; suppose he gave them seed wheat , and an incredible amount of tht very best manure ; suppose that he never put spade
or plough in the ground , or one particle of seed ; suppose he made no roads , but allowed them to scramble over hedges ; suppose he gave tbem no fire-wuod ; and suppose that he allowed them house rent free from May to November twelvemonth ( eighteen months ); and suppose that they hold the land rent-free for that time ; in fact , suppose that they had all from an individual landlord , and never paid a farthing , what would be the character of that landlord ? And what would be the fate oi the growler that eharged him with injustice before the
public , or the scribbler that charged him with injustice in the Press ? Ah ! my friends , the . Press would not be open to such a tribs , while column after column would be spent in laudation of the philanthropic Free Trader . But the best answer to every grumbler is this— " Can you not get more than £ 2 12 s . for your allotment . '" —for observe , that it is those who have got them that are the grumblers— " Can you not get more than £ 5 18 * . for your three acres , or « £ 5 4 s . for your four acres ?"
Now that is the answer , wholly apart from Aid Money , LoanMoney , andagriculturaloperations . And , ray friend 8 , I tell you now , that I have to contend not against the casual circumstances by which man is surrounded , but against NATURAL INSTINCT ; which is not an evil , but the greatest advantage , under proper discipline , by which its dangers maybe remedied . That natural instinc : is SELF INTEREST , and in proof of which I assert , without fear of
contradiction , that if our Land Company consisted of one hundred thousand members , and that if one thousand of tbe most fortunate were located , that that one thousand , without the slightest reference to , or consideration for the remaining ninety-nine thousand by whose aid they were located' would stoutly contend for their claim to the whole ; and upon their selfinterest , their selfishness and misrepresentation , the validity , the practicability , and ihe value of the Plan would be judged .
It is not an easy matter to reply to the exciting representations as to the state of destitution of this man , or that man , or the other man . They tell upon tbe feelings , though they are based upon falsehood ; they enlist the sympathies of the kind-hearted ignorant , and they furnish the enemy with the means of attack . But if one man succeeds , his success is the conviction of the idle ; and what I now assert , and I defy contradiction , is this , that a four-acre allotment on any single one ot the Company ' s estates is richly worth a bonus of £ 400 ; and I contend for it , that ia the retail market any one of them
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would fetch that amount over and above the origina l cut , provided it was a landlord question , a manu facturer ' s question , but not a Labour question , —th «* is , that a landlord would get tenants for as many cottages as he could build , and four acres of land , at t » n yearl ) ! rent of ^ 28 , tha t , is the interest upon * 700 , while the allotment would only cost £ 300 . And I further assert , that during his life he would not have one defaulter upon a single allotment . 1 have made my reply to the several charges brought against the Plan and against the buildings .
l invited the delegates to come to Bromsgrove and judge for themselves . A great number did visit that estate . I saw four oflhem myself , after they had minutely inspected every house . I saw the delegates for the Norwich district , for the Bolton district , for the Rochdale district , and for the Blackburn district , and they will tell you . as they toldm « , that they were never so much astonished or de . lighted in their lives : that they could not have believed it from the several false representations that had been made .
And now , I tell you what I say with rfgard to those representations and those cottages . There never were built in England by a builder for himself , or for an employer who intended to lease them , cottages equal to those of the Land Company , both as to material , work , and finish . And now , when we speak of bonus for an allotment , let it always bi bornein mind , that no individual on his own account , will build thp same house on the retail plan for within £ 40 of what I build it on the wholesale plan .
Now , 111 just give you a single item . The bricks that 1 have used at Bromsgrove I pay 25 s for , not counting carriage , because I burn them wholesaletbe same bricks in the neighbourhood would have cost me 32 s , and the carriage would have cost me 5 b more than they do on the spot— that is a saving of 12 s a thousand , or £ 7 4 s upon a house in that one material alone : and if I bought timber , "lates , ironmongery , lime , und sand , retail , and paid retail labour , the house would cost me above £ 40 more than it does upon the wholesale principle . And now , when it serves the purpose of Free Trade speculators in votes to eulogise the wholesale plan , let me give you the following specimen from last ( reek ' s Nottingham Review , which ia placed immediately under a paragraph headed
THE O'CONNOR LAND SCHEME . Now here is the paragraph from the 'Review , with its very fascinating figurehead ;—F « behoi / Db amp Voter fob Wobxiho Mxir , —The Birmingham Freehold Land Society ii paving tbe way for an extensive and vigorous attack upon the monopolists of the counties . It has been in existence thirteen months , numbers 387 members , holding 1 , 438 shares . 125 allotments have been made to the membsrs at a cost ef a film averaging £ 19 each allotment' containing seven yards front and fifty yards deep of eligible building land . Each of the allottees is qualified as a count ; voter ; the annual value of their plots of land being placed beyond doubt , some bavin * already let off on a building lease of ninety . nino years , for fid , per annum . The leading features of this society are to buy building land at the wholesale price , and retail it to the members at tha same price . The difference existing between wholesale
and retail prices of land is almost incredible , and requires some facts to convince parties unacquainted with tbem to believe it . Land which was asked and worth 3 s . 4 d . per yard retail , has been purchased wholesale at Is . Id . per yard . Had the allottees individually made their own purchases , each allotment , instead of averaging £ 19 , would have been about £ 67 . The whole of the fifty . two counties ma ; be , before the next septennial election , by the means of Freehold Land Societies , placed in the hands of civil , religious , and commercial freedom . Now what does the reader think of that ? £ 19 capital bringing in £ 2 10 s . a year rent ; which upon £ 100 would be £ 12 15 s a year interest , while not a four-acre allotment of ours will reach that rent . Now by the same standard of reckoning the rent of our allotment , that cost £ 300 , should let for £ 38 5 s . a year . Oh ; but then the one is for the pig , commitaariat , and the larder , and the other is for CIVIL
RELIGIOUS , AND COMMERCIAL FREEDOM . Can any of these civil , religious , and commercial freemen , again abuse onr plan ? Yes : because in the one case the voter would be a slave , having only a house , and depending upon the capitalist fer employment ; while in the other case , the voter would be a freeman , because his own employer . My friends , society is now out of joint . For years I have been writing to you , and telling yt . u that we were near the struggle of the league of people against the league of King's ,
It m not a prophecy after the continental revolutions —it was printed years ago , and has been often repeated ; and what knobstick statesmen are now trying to do , is to frame a piece of cabinet work out of rude and rough materials , while I tell them that every fragment out of which new society is to be constituted must be TRIED UP before it is put together , or , at all events , before it will harmonise . I tell you that , whether from revolution or from peaceful change the new system may come , that no power on earth can save Labour or secure Labour ' s
triumph , UNTIL IT IS INDIVIDUALISED . I tell you that from a community of happy individuals alone can a sound state of representative government spring ; and I tell you that no other channel to secure individuality is open but the Land ; and I tell you , that as long as you have not the Land the wages of the most fortunate will be measured by the destitution of the most miserable , and that the comparatively fortunate are the greatest tyrants to the positively destitute . They measure their position by the destitution of others . The man receiving 25 s . a week scoffs at him who receives but 10 s . ; the man who receives 10 s ., looks with contempt upon tbe unwilling pauper—whereas , if they would measure their prospect by the positive , and not by the comparative scale , tbe nnion of all would realise £ 3 a
week for each . And the clearing of the suiplus population , and their location upon theLancTof their birtb , w ^ uld gtoe a spring to every trade ' in the country while the small farmers would produce better , fresher , cheaper , and a greater abundance of food , than you can get from abroad . But , then , that is not the system by which tyrants achieve patronage , emolument , and wealth . They cultivate the national resources by the standard of monopoly , though they adopt Free Trade as their principle . They would rather have the lion ' s share of artificial traffic , with bastiles full of paupers , and an armament sufficiently large to quell the complaints of the starving and the hungry , than have their fair share of the country ' s produce , without a discontented being in the land .
Again , do not say that I am prophecying , but look to the conclusion of my work upon "Small Farms , " written in 1843 , and there you will find that I predicted that our Foreign Colonies must be abandoned , and that they must be made willing instead of compulsory customers . I foretold what the expenditure would be , and your inability to bear it . And now , mark the following announcement from the " Globe ' ' newspaper—a Government organ : —
Military Fobck in Irelako . —The augmentation of the constabulary from 22 , 000 to 90 , 000 rank and file will onable the Government to withdraw ten regiments from Ireland for colonial and other service , and to concentrate at head-quarters those many detachments now frequently employed upon duty which is the legitimate province of a police force . It is also intended to attach to the headquarters of the constabulary in each province a flying park ofartilery for field service . Now , here , while landlords are unable to meet their engagements— -while farmers are flying to America—while labourers are starving , and Poorrates cannot be collected—we are to have an addition of 8 , 000 men to the Irish constabulary , Jand they are to have a FLYING PARK OF ART 1 LLERY FOR FIELD SERVICE , in order to spare the Irish garrison for colonial service . Now read ihe following : —
Insolvency amongst Fabmeks . —The Dublin Gazitte of Tuesday evening contains a list of one hundred and thirty two insolvents for tbe counties of Donegal , Tyrone , EnniBkillen , Queen ' s County , Kilkenny , Limerick , Tippernry , Waterford , arid Wioklow , of which no less than seventy-three are sot down as farmers . Now , in these dajB of economy , it is my ptaotioe to bring you to figures . This 8 , 000 additional force at 25 s . a week per man , which , inoluding officers , barracks , outfit , flying artillery , and the thousand and one othvr expenses , is below the mark ; but take them at 25 a . a man , and this , without reducing the army by a single man , entails an additional expense upon the starving people of ten thousand pounds a week , or half a million and twenty thousand a year . And now mark the remit , that annual amouut wc $ ld pay an interest of four per cent , of twelve millions ¦ wen hundred and fifty thousand pounds , and if
they gave me that sum to expend in Ireland upon locating the poor , there would not be a soldier , a policeman , or a poor rate required . But then the party in power would not have bo much PATRON . AGE , and the younger children of lords and 'squires would have to werkfor their bread . My friends , this iB the whole system , and it is difficult for one single solitary individual to stand up against it , with all the powers and applianots at its command for the destruction of iti opponents . Working ; men , ask yourselves thia one question ; — ' Has FeargUB O'Connor , during the eleven years ' xistence of the ' Northern Star , ' aid during nearly two years' existence of the ' Labourer , ' and in his Revtral other works and speeches , ever written a line or spoken a sentence worthy of c mmenfc while the inune productions arid twaddle of the ocemiea of your order are ohronioled and stereotyped ai apo-
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thegm » ? ' Ask youMBiVM whetbei ., u » * h « rwiolie .. tion of man , any individual of my « &r aa » stood fe » yon and your order amid persecution , alaMrr , ana abnse as I have , and tbe answer most be-KEVER . Well , then , I was ailent for fourteen months , uiwa the abuse heaped upon me by some of tbe Land vermin , rather than be the medium of creating dieseslion in our ranks . I have had cay polities ) triumph through Scotland , and my social triumph « Birmingham ; and 88 harmony and union mint be the indispensable elements ofprogranion and improvement , I now bury the past ia oblivion , I te . - . der absolution and forgiveness to treryooe of my re * Tilers , the only satiafaotion I shallteek , will be—tha confession of their erron . When tbe d » y of Labour ' s triumph , and tbe national jubilee shall come ,
—when I Bee the oeantry decked with happy bomw and profitable labour fields—when I we the tick father or siok mother reposing in their own home ? , and tended by their own children—when 1 Bee drunkeDnesB banished from 'he land—when I see Gbris * tianity based upon charity , and goodwill among * pen—when I see every bastile and barrack turned intoschooUW college ? , and when Iteeartonttckaee nf half bapotten cripples changed intoaheaHhy popo * lation , with the blush of life , thes ' ep of health , and tha resolution of freemen—then , in spite of oppression , denunointion , and slander , I will look apon tin glad soene and exclaim : — " Thin , this it nj vork ; for , In spite of all opposition , lam resdred that ow Land Plan shall live a glorious ! ife , or only perish after a determined struggle .
IT IS LABOUR'S ONLY HOPE ! Your faithful friend , and unpaid bailiff , Feargus O'Connor . P . S . —I will now show you , in a postscript , the oxsot financial position of the Lud Company : — £ Land at Bromegrove , paid for ... 10 , 690 FortyonB houses , erected at Bronwgrove , and expended on draining , agriculture , ronds , and grubbing ... 6 006 Portable building * , horsei , atock , implements , and Machinery , now that
the Company i « to go on . „ ... 3 000 Paid deposit on Mathon Estate . 1 , 6 » Land to ba sold at Minster Lovel ... ] 750 Ditto at Lowbandi „ ggg Ditto at Snig ' s End ... . „ ... 90 & Timber paid for , and joiners' work , at the rate of £ 7 15 s per hop » , paid on fifty-two houses , at £ 2 « a boost ... 1300 Timber , slates , an i joiners' work paid on eix > usei . at Minster , at £ 10 a bonse 240 Due on promissory notes aud note to
1 st November 1848 ... 1 , 000 J "«" 1000 Due by Mr Ihira , solicitor , of Kidderwinsfer 500 £ 28291 ) P 1 R OO&IHA ; Due to tradesmen , and on all other ne-„ ""¦¦* " ••• ' 1 , 508 Sold at Bromsgrore , house and ten awts 1 . 000 Ditt > , at ditto , eight aore » ... „ . 590 £ 3000 Property available for Company ' s ore 28 299 From which deduct debts asd portions ' old ... 3 . 009 £ 25 . 299 And it leaves the sum of £ 35 990 of available pro ^ perty , or nearly one-third of the amount of paid-up oapital . Bromsgrove will loette fifty fonr-scre oeoupants , ten three-anre oconpanta . aodten twoacm occupant * , and will be ready for location on tbe 12 th "f May next , if the members Derforra their duty . Now that is the literal position of the bankrupt Land Company avery fraction of which ii eufc , with the exception of the £ 500 due by Mr Hair * and I an prooeedingfor that , and will . recover it . _ , F , O'C
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MR RICARDO . MP . FOR WORCESTER , AND THE LAND COMPANY . Ton will see that I have had a pretty good weelfr work of it , Next week I shall send aa advertHement to the Worcester papers , calling on Mr Ricardo , tbo member for that town , to meetae in pnblie meeting , at his own convenience , before which Iwfllebargehim with the most mean , dishonourable , dishonest , and ungentlemanly conduct , thus giving him an opportunity of defending himself personally ; and , should ha rafuse to appear , I will let him know that a gentletoan , unsupported by faction , holdi a higher position in society , than a trafficker who ma ; have raised himself in the estimation of moiety by speculation ; and I tell that gentleman , that if ha supposes that heia to meddle in my affairs with impunity , he ragrossly de . oeived , And should he refuse to meet me , I will charge him in hie absence , and novar rest till I drive him from his present position into fc » former obscurity . You will Fee that I am determined that neither select oommitte ° , norindividul trickster * , shall take libeit ' ts with me or mine . F . CUomkob .
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¦— ^«^—— - ' CHARTIST FORTHCOMING MEETINGS . Sunday , Nov . 12 th—A Wert Riding delegate racetiDg will ba held at Nicholl ' a Troperanee Hotel , 16 , Broad Street , Halifax , at tea rftiotk a . m —A . general meeting at the Globe and Friends . Morgan Street . Commercial Road , at half-part seven o ' clock , and adisousoion on the Trades Delegates' Address at half-past eight . —A meeting of the O'Connor Brieide , at Mr George Haugh ' s , 16 , Paradise Street , Preston , at six o ' clock—A public meeting at the Crown and Anchor , Cheshire Street , Waterloo Town , of members of the Green Gate , Hackney Rnad . — . Whittington and Cac , Bethnal Greec . —Digby Arms , and Globe and Friends Localities , for the purpopeif establishing a Chartist Hall for the Tower Hamlets , at eizht o ' clock . —An adiourned raeaiimr nf nh * n > .
holders will be held at the Sooth London Chartist Hill , at time e ' olook . and Mr Southwell will lectun in the above hall at seven o ' clock —A meeting « f Chartist and Land Members at the Branch Office , back of the Three Howe shoe * , Mer % r Tydvil , « t six o ' olcok . —Mr Joaeph Bowker will deliver two leoturea in tbe Chartist ronm , High Street , Ha * . lingden . —Mr Dickenson will Jectnre in Mr Judcfe long room , NewodBtle-on-Tyne , at eevea o ' clock . — The council and members will meet at tbe Seven Stars , Barker Gate , Nottingham , at two o ' clock . — Mr James Leaoh willleoturc in tbe People ' s Institute , Manchester , » t six o ' clock ; and a membera ' meeting will beheld at two o ' clock .-. A special mem * bers * meeting at the Temperance Hotel , Blaaktfc Row , Hull , ac Beven o ' clock .
Mo xdat , November 13 th . —A Ball and Concert f « the Defence Fund , in the room . Stinley Street , Macoleafield , at half paBt seven o ' clock . Tub ?» at , Nov 14 th . —A ball is the large sohoo room , Circus Street , Marylebone . —A public meeting in the upper room , New Hall , Newbnd , Northampton , at eight o'olnck . Wkdhebdat , Nov . 15 th . —A uwelijigat theWaltera Ann « , Church Street , Deptforfi Sunday , Nov . 19 th . —A district dikpte mcotajs will be held at B . Browley * , New Simt , Battey , near Dowgbury , at two o ' clock , when Air Bentley wffl report the proceedings « f the Conference .
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LAND FORTHCOMING MEETINGS . To htar the Reports of Delegate * frm th * Conference . Saturday , Nov . 11 th— A meeting will be held * John Huater ' s public house , Kwington Lane , at seven o ' olock . —At Ibeaon ' s To&pwsnco ilona » . w Buxton Road , Huddersfield , at sbtcb o ' oloek precisely . Sunday , Nov . 12 tb . —A meeting will beheld * the Seven Stars , Barker Gate , Nottingham , at ax o ' olook . —At Charles Brook ' s , Little Town , at tea o ' clock , a . m . —A monthly meeting , in the Peopltta Institute , Manchester , at nine o ' clock . —At the Ar sembly Rooma , Dean Street , Soho > 'Westminstas ; at hiif-paat ( even o ' clock . Monday , Nov . 13 th . —In the Ions room , Cook'Inu , Head of the Side , Newcastlo on-Tynp , at eight o ' oloefc . —At the Butohers' Arms Inn , Banfeury , at eigst bVlook .
Tuksday , Nov . H ' . b . —Whittington and Cat massbers , at eight o ' clock . Wbdnbsday , Nov , 15 . —In the upper room , New Hal ) , Newland , Northampton , at eight o ' clock . —fa Mr MosBlej ' a large room , Sheffield at neii-n o ' olotk . Mohday , Nov . 20 th—A meeting will be Mi it the Wheataheaf Inn , LoughboitHigh . Sunday , Nov . 18—In Mr NurUnft Commercia Oi . ffae-houfle , Back Lane , Blackburn , at t * o o ' clock .
LAND MEETINGS . Sunday , Nov 12 . —At Hudson ' s Aeademy , 8 > . Cross Street , Halt on Garden , at m&a o'clock , —ia Butterworth ' a Building , Bradford , at one o ' clesk . Monday , Nov 13 . —In Mr Fmskland ' s roan , Preston , in tha evening .-At No . 5 , Galloway * BinldiDgs . Bath , at eight o ' cloek . —At tbe Fal « m Inn , Mill Street , Kiddermiiujter , at suvsn o ' clock . — At the Marquis of Graaby , Datco !?? , at eigfct O oloek—In the Prince of Wales Lo ^ e room . O « Malt Shovtl . North Church Sid * , Hall .-At 3 S . Scholty ' s , Midgate , Peterborough , at tight u ' olotk .
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A Fat Paupkb . —A woman , who has been an inhabitant of the workhouse at Yarmouth for three years died on Tuesday last . Her size was enormouB , and her disease supposed to be dropsy . & post mortem examination was made , the result « f which proved that a superabundance of fat aroudfl the heart and other parts of theframe vat the imoBbiate cause of death , as it hadiocreaud to suchaa extent as to produce aufibeatca * .
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Noyembeb 11 , 1848 . THE NORTHERN STAR . 5
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 11, 1848, page 5, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1496/page/5/
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