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Gfy&vti$t %niiUi%mce.
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TO THE WORLD.
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Leeds :—Printed for tSe Proprietor FEABQ 1 ^
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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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THE great object of Medicine should be to ass « fc Nature , and not to impede her beneficial opera * tions . When diseased action of the system cqm « mences , from that moment a struggle is begun—Nature endeavouring to regain her lost sway . 4 Medicine to be truly beneficial should be on * that acts upon the secretory Organs , and by this means en ter the circulating Bloed . Dr . HAMIL , TON'S VITAL PILLS are found to act in accordance with this , and in a way that no other medicine was ever known to do . Incurable patients ( so called ) direct your attention to thig wonder working medicine , and yon will have mort cause to rejoice than if a kingdom was offered fo ? your acceptance . /
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rp HE ENGLISH CHARTIST CIRCULAR , J . Now PHblishing , Price One Halfpenny each , in which is given a Series of Letters by Fbargus O'Connor , Esq ., on the Effects of Machinery , direct and indirect . " Let me recommend a plan for increasing the circulation of the Chartist Cibcular . Suppose , then , each Subscriber should canvass for one pur chaser ; and where is the man so destitute of influence , who has not one halfpenny friend in the world » By this mode the circulation would ba doubled in one week "
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SUMMER CONVEYANCE . A NEW COACH ; called THE PACKET , has commenced Running , from the Saddle Inn , Briggate , EVERY MORNING ( Sunday excepted ) , at a Quarter before Seven o'clock , TO SELBY . to meet the Steam Packets for Booth Ferry , Hpwdea Dike , Goole , and Hull , from whence Passengers are conveyed by Coaches and Packets to Burlington , Scarbro ' , Hornsea , Grimsby , Cleathorpa , Yarmouth , London , &c , ; ; The diversified and picturesque scenery which constantly presents itself to the traveller by this route , both on the laud and during his progress down the ever-winding Oiise to the more majestic
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SUBSCRIPTIONS FOR MR . OASTLER . AT a Meeting of the Friends of Mr . Richard Oastler , held at Scarborough ' s Hotel , Leeds , on Saturday Evening , April 23 rd , 1842 , It was unanimously resolved , That , this Meeting considers it desirable that a Subscription should be forthwith commenced among the Friends of Mr . Richard Oastler , resident in Leeds and the Neighbourhood , upon the basis of the Subscription originated among the Friends of that Gentleman in London ; yet subjeot to the ultimate control of the local Subscribers as to its Final Appropriation . That the Friends of Mr . Oastler are hereby requested to meet on Monday Evening , the 9 th of May , 1842 , at Half-past Seven o'clock , at Mr , Charlbj Sjiith's , the Cohsiercul Hotel , Upper Albion * Street , Leeds , in order to appoint a Committee and to commence the Subscription .
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IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT . —Tuesdat . ( Continued from our fifth * page . ) Lord J . RUSSELL . —Considering the importance of the petition presented to the hctise and the great number of signatures attached , I could not abandon my duty by not coming down to the house for the purpose of expressing my respect for the petitioners , and at the same time declaring my abhorrence of the ; doctrines set forth in the petition Let me , however , in the ontset at once meet a charge which has , I think most unfairly , been imputed to those who are prepared to rote against the present motion . I deny that I and others who are opposed to it are amenable t « the charge of want of
sympa thy with the suffering and privations of the working classes . ( Hear , hear . ) We know how many thousands of our fellow-countrymen are subjected to the most severe privations . We feel cempassion for their sufferings , and at the same time we admire the fortitude and forbearance with which"those" snfiermgs are endured . ( Cheers . ) But when we are asked to comply with the motion , it seems to be taken for granted and assumed that we can thereby relieve the distress . This , however , I must be permitted to deny . My right hon . friend near me nas met the question on that ground . The hon . member fer Bath said , that if the institutions of the oountry were brought under discussion , the house ¦ w ould be enabled to see what alterations eonld be
aadem them for the purpose of insuring good government . That may cr may not be a fit subject for inquiry , but it is in the first instance the duty of the Legislature to see what would be the effect of such a course . If an inquiry is to be entered into with respect to all the existing institutions of the country , how many great questions would be thrown loosely abroad ? An inquiry will be raised as to whether faith should be preserved for the public creditor . Again , questions woold be put aa to the right of property in land , and wiih respect to other institutions which are now looked upon as inviolable . Have not those , then , who are opposed to the motion good ground to argue against the danger of . throwiiig
the ancient and venerable institutions of the' country into qHestion ! ( Hear , hear . ) The result of such a conrsa would ba to transfer the great capital of Great Britain into other countries , and by diminishing the funds from which labour is supplied , to throw the working classes into a still worse condition than that in which they are at present placed . Under these circumstances , then , whether Hon . Gentlemen vote for or against the motion , they should be esteemed as willing to eHter into a consideration of that which was best for the goefd of the ¦ wording classes . My Right Hon . Friend the Member for Edinburgh has pointed to that passage in the petition which declares that the debt had been
imposed npon the country by persons who had no right to impose it . He also showed that . the petitioners complain of paying taxes to meet the interest Of that debt , and of the existence of property in land and machinery , which they style monopolies . It has been said that my ri ^ ht H ' on . Friend , in taking jhis course , made unjust allegations - against the people . I deny that he accused the people of any intent to plunder . The Hon . and Learned Member for Bath , usefully perhaps for his own argument , but not very fairly as regards my Ri ^ ht Hod . Fritnd , called this a trumpery . petition , drawn up by a person whom he styled , I think , a malignant and cowardly dema ^ o ^ ue . ( Mr . R . assented . ) It was in these words that the Hon . Gentleman described the purport of ibe petition and the character of its author . Has he not then himself made an
accusation against the 3 , 300 , 000 persons who signed the petition , which he thus describes as a paltry one , drawn np by a cowardly and malignant demagogue I If the , hon . member denies that he has done so , how canh-i accuse my honourable friend of aspersing the petitioners ! My hon . friend said that the petition combined certain allegations . This the hon . member for Bath admitted , but he said , let us throw them aside , Now , might not the persons who were misled into the appending their signatures to . such a petition be equally misled in the choice of the persons whom the } would return as their representatives to that Hou ? e ? The Hon . and Learned Gentleman said , that in modern times we were supposed -to have made a gnat discovery when we hit upon the mode of
enac : ing onr laws by delegation instead of-adhering to the aneientmode of taking the vote in the marketplace . I , for one , think it an admirable contrivance ; but if , in the choice of their representatives , the people can be so deceived as to give their suffrages in fa-roHr of a person such as the Hon . Member for Bath described the framer of the petition to be , it woula be carrying into effect the destruction of private property and the destruction of our institutions , at the same time that the respect for , the law , which the Hon . Gent- so truly praised as a characteristic of our countrymen , would , when they were in the hands of designing and plundering leaders , only induce an obedience to the measures which would enable these latter to carry more completely
into effect those revolutions to which the people themselves might be opposed . ( Loud cheering . ) It is clear that the person , whoever "he may be , by whom the petition his been drawn up ,- would apply what had been called the sponge to the National Debt That person denied that the debt was a National Debt , but , on the contrary , so to call it was but a pretence , and that it might with justice be swept away , Now , for my part , I believe that if you eonld gather together in the market-place all the a-ialt males in the country , and show to them that the obligation by -which the pnblic fdith was bound to the present national creditor was a legal and a j-jst obligation , and that a breach of it wonld operaie with great injustice and cruelty , by sending
to want and beggary people who had hithprto relied npon -t as a mean ? of comfortable subsistence , the people would repudiate the proposition as up just and iaiquitiouSj and would to a man refuse to participate in bo < -ruel a spoliation —( lond cheers ) . But , then , I am not quite so confident that those by whom the petition was agued might not be misled by the cry of the moment into the choice of men as their representatives vstio , under the pretence of the publicgood , wonld enter npon that spoliation of which thepeople were incapable . It is , therefore , that I prize the insti' <; t ; on , whieh I lookupou as the pride of modern times , which by delegation renders men more circumspect as to the hands to which power is to be intrasted . It is my opinion that property , " -
intelligence , and knowledge , should form the qualification of a constituency , and thtugh I cannot undertake to say that the present 13 the very best which could be had , I see in it a greater security for the continuance and preservation of our institutions and the peaceful progress of freedom than a resort at once to the principle of Universal Suffrage . I am aware that it is a doctrine frequently- urged , and I perceive dwelt upon in this petition , that every male . of a certain age ta 3 a right , absolute and inalienable , to elect a representative to take his place among the members in the Commons' House of Parliaments . T $ ow , Sir , I never could understand that indefeasible right —( hear ) . It appears to me that that question , like every other in the practical
application of politics , is to be settled by the institutions and the laws of the country of which the person is ' a native . I see no more right that a person . twenty- ; oneyear 3 of age has to elect a Member of Parlia-, ment than he has to be a juryman . I conceive that , you may just as well say that every adult male has a right to sit upon a jury to decide the ' most compli- > cated and difficult questions of property , " or that every man has a right to exercise the judicial functions , as the people did in some of the republics of : antiquity—( hear . hear ) . These thing ? , as it appears i to me , are not matters of right ; but if it be for the . £ pod of the people at large , if it be conducive to the right government of the state , if it tend to the main- tenanue of the freedom and welfare of the people ,
that a certain nnmoer , defined and limited by a ' ¦ reference to a fixed standard of property , should have ihe right ^ of electing Members of Parliament , and if it be disadvantageous to the community at large that the right of suffrage should be universal , then 1 say that on such a subject the consideration of the public good should prevail , that legislation must act upon it as on every other , and that no inalienable right can be quoted against that which the good of the whole demands—( hear , hear , hear ) . The Hon . Gentleman who spoke last said , that my . Right Hon . Friend the member for Edinburgh ( Mr . Macaulay ) had given a terrific representation of the people of England—had described them as sanguinary and as anxious to destrov , to commit massacre
and to plunder . Tsow , Sir , my Right Hon . Friend made no such representation . For my own part , 1 think it is very likely that at many elections , even if Universal Saffrage were in operation , you would find that resptct for property , Tespect for old habits , ' and general regard for the constitution of the country , would produce results not very different from those which are produced when property is one of the qualifications required for the franchise . But although that might be generally the -case , I do not ' flunk that in the present state of popular education , —1 will not say whether a standard of . education 1 sufficiently high can ever be obtained among the ; labouring classes—but in the present condition of ; the people at large , I do not . ihink you could bei sure that there might not be , in a state of- popular j ferment on the occasion of some , general election , i Members returned to this House whose votes would j be favourable to the destruction of onr institutions , ¦
and would shake the security of property . ( Hear , j hear . ) Sir , this constitution is , I think , too precious , { cheers ) , and the arrangements of society are at the j same time too intricate , to allow you to put them to ; such a hazard . ( Cheers . ) I can well believe that in the United States of America—the only country which I should at all compare with this for the en- j joyment of liberty and the full fruits of civilization— j I can well believe that in that country , where there j is no monarchy , where every office is elective , where there ib no established church , where there are no great masses of property—Universal Suffrage may j be exercised without injury to order , and without ! danger to the general security of society . But in [ this country , "where there are bo many institutions , j which , while I believe them to be of the utmost Tilufi in holding society together , are at the same time tie possessors of great property—I speak of scon institutions as the aristocracy and the church—
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and which might therefore be held out as pr iws to a people in distress , I do not think it would be safe at one moment to destroy the existing system of representation , and to establish Universal Suffrage in its place . ( Hear , hear . ) Acting npon these opinions , Sir , I cannot assent to that which the Right Hon . Gentleman who has last spoken represents as a simple prayer , that the petitioners should be heard at the bar . I do not so understand this question . ( Hear , he&r . ) I think the Hon . and Learned Member for Bath has put it more fairly , in saying that it is the Charter to which you are now called upon to say aye or no . ( Hear , hear . ) What do I find stated by the petitioners themselves 1 They have set forth at full length what they consider to be their grievances . Do they ask for any
further explanation ! Do they a ? k that counsel should come to your bar , and there detail what they feel on the subject of their wrongs ! Nothing of the kind . They say , "Your petitioners , therefore , exercising their just constitutional right , demand , that your Hon . House , to remedy so many gross and manifest evils of which your petitioners complain , do immediately , without alteration , deduction , ot addition , pass into a law the document entitled 'The People ' s Charter , ' which embraces the representation of male adults , Vote by Ballot , Annual Parliaments , No Property Qualification , Payment of Members , and Equal Electoral Districts . " That language is very plain ( Hear , hear ) , it is very explicit , but it is , at the same time , 1 must say , very peremptory . It is not a demand to be heard at the bar .
Mr . THOS . DUN COMBE . —Look at the previous paragraph . Lord J . RUSSELL . —The words are , "If your Honourable House will be pleased to grant your petitioners a hearing by representatives at the bar , your petitioners wiS be enabled to unfold a tale ef wrong and suffering , " and so forth . Well , but they follow that up immediately afterwards with the demand I have recited . Mr . T . DUNCOMBE . —They mean if their first prayer is refused . ( Order , order . ) Lord J . RUSSELL . —And they say that in making this demand they are exercising a just and constitutional right . ( Hear , hear . ) They may ask to be allowed a further explanation of those evil 3 of
which they complain , but they ask it with a view of establishing the Charter . Sir , I cannot believe that any counsel or agent standing at that bar would persuade me to grant the six points of the Charter . I should give my vote , whatever speeches may be made at" the bar , against those proposals . ( Hear , ) I therefore think myself bound at once to put an end to the motion , and having thus explained my views , I will not endeavour to hide my vote by any pretence that f wish merely to hear an explanation of their demands . ( Hear , hear . ) I believe it will be far better for the people , better for their future
welfare , if you do not mean to grant the prayer of these petitioners , that you should at once declare to them your belief that your compliance with the prayer of the petition will tend to shake property—will tend to increase the privations of which they complsin—will unhinge that constitution of society which , complicated and intricate aa it is , has produced so many blessings te this country ; that to you is intrusted the great , the responsible , the arduous duty of legislating in behalf of this kingdom , and that in discharge of this common duty you are obliged to put a negative on the demand o ' f the petitioners . ( Cheers . )
Sir R . PEEL—Sir , I hope I should have been exposed to no misoonstruotion if I had remained silent , yet , from the course which this debate has taken , 1 am unwilling to expose myself to the hazard of a misconstruction , or to shrink from the duty of declaring boldly and decidedly my opinion on the subject of this petition . Until I heard the construction put upon its prayer by the Hon . Gentleman ( Mr . T . Buncombe , w » believe ) , I thought there bad been two propositions to be considered by the House , — not quite consistent or compatible it is true , —but still on the face of the document there appeared to be two proposals . The one , that I should admit the petitioners to be heard , in order that they might itate their grievaucts by their counsel ot agents ,
while the other appeared to be an imperative demand that I should immediately , and without consideration , pass in to a law every demand that isiuthe Charter . Sir , I do not want to take any advantage of the Charter for fee purpose of vindicating my vote . If the question of fche Charter be not before us , I am ready to give my vote against hearing the petitioners at the bar of the House of Commons in support of their allegations . I shall give this vote oh various grounds . First , I am satisfied that I cannot be convinced of the policy of acceding to the prayer of this petition . I come to the conclusion to whieh the Hon . Member for Leicester has already come—the foregone conclusion , that those demand ? , if complied with , would be mischievous to the
petitioners themselves ; and having come to that conclusion , I think it more just and more respectful to tell them that I do not intend to accede to their peii ; rion , than to give them a delusive hearing , which I know can have no useful result —( hear , hear ) . Why , Sir , what does the Hon . Mumber for Finsbury the colleague of the Hon . Geatleman , tell me ! That on the result of my decision with respect to the hearing of the petitioners will depend either awakened hope ot fearful despondency . Well , I will not awaken hope by countenancing expectations which I know mnst end in disappointment —( hear , he&r ) . The Hon . Gentleman Eays he wishes to pledge me to nothiDg , he only wishes me to hear the grievances detailed . But he asks me to hear the allegations of
the petitioners , and those allegations are neither more or less than an impeachment of the whole constitution of this country , and the whole frame of society . The petition tells me that it is wrong to maintain an Established Chnrch—it says that £ 9 , 000 , 000 of money are annually abstracted from the people for the purpose of maintaining the church . The petition teils me that the people of Ireland are entitled to the Repeal of the Union . The petition draws a most invidious comparison between the expences of the Sovereign and those of a labourer . I say the petition is altogether an impeachment of the constitution of this country , and of the whole frame of society . And how am I to gratify the demands of the petitioners ! Hear them at the bar ! Why if I hear them , let me hear them effectually . But is it an effectual hearing to permit four or five persons
\ on their behalf to make speeches at the bar of the House ? Are those speeches to be relied upon ! Suppose the speeches at the bar failed of producing an effect , and a demand were then made for an inquiry , should I refuse it , or suspend the whole public business of the country , in order that the bulk of these allegations might be ascertained a » to the policy of an Established Church , and a Repeal of the Union ?—( hear , hear ) . Is not that the only effectual way in which the petitioners would have an opportunity of explaining their grievances ! and is it for the advantage of the petitioners themselves that I should suspend the public business of the country for the purpose of inquiring into this subjectI What is the petition ! If I had a doubt , which I have not , upon this subject , strange as it would seem , the speech of the Hon . and Learned Member for Bath would have convinced me
1 1 1 ' \ ; ' ' * : that the greatest absurdity ever committed would be to enter into an enquiry with respect to the allegations in this petition—a petition which does not represent the sentiments of those who signed it—a petition that is utterly at variance with the judgment and good sense of tie 3 , 000 , 000 of peiitioners , but which has been imposed upon them by a cowardly demogogue ( loud cheers ) whom the Hon . Gentleman knows , and whose personal knowledge of his character entitles him to speak of him with disrespect and contempt . ( Loud cheers ) I take the description of the petition from the Hon . and Learned Gentleman himself , and could I admit tie framer of this petition , a person so described by the Hon . and Learned Gentleman—a man who has perverted
] " to his own evil purposes the mindB of the respectable intelligent , industrious , honest labouring classes of this country , to the bar of this house , for he no doubt will be the person selected to defend the allegations of this trashy petition which he has drawn up , ( cheers ) without be ' ng a party to the continuance of that delusion under which they labour ? ( Loud cheers . ) It is into the allegations of that petition that the Hon . Member for Finsbury asked me to go , and the allegations of the petition have been desoribed by the Hon . Member for Bath . When I refer to the prayer of the petition , when I refer to the character of him who is said to be its author , when . I refer to the certain consequences of raising expectations which I know I mu 3 t disappoint , I must say I
think 1 am acting more respectfully and more justly towards the petitioners in refusing' at once to accede to their demands , than by giving them a delusive hearing at the bar , and afterwards telling them they have made no impression whatever on my mind . ( Loud cheers . ) The Hon . and Learned Member for Bath has described the character of the people of England . He said ihat in other countries of Europe the appeal was to force , while in this country the appeal was to law . He said the labouring classes possessed the physical force , which if they were inclined to enforce it would overpower every opposition ; but they were controlled by their good sense and by their willing obedience to the law , for which they entertained respect . Tha Hon . and Learned Gentleman pointed to the decrepit constable going into the midst of a crowd and seizing a powerful man : the officer of the law was unresiBted : and
although his prisoner was a person of much superior strength , he evinced a willing submission to authority , and the people by . whom he was surrounded offered no opposition ; but what nerved the arms of the constable I Why it was the tacit influence of the law , that stood behind him . ( Cheers . ) And what had given that influence to the law ? What but the conviction that it was just ! ( Loud cheers . ) Do you believe that if the people of this country were in the condition described in this memorial , which declares that " this House has by unconstitutional means created an unbearable despotism on the one hand , and a degrading slavery oa the other "—if that was a just representation of the people and the constitution of England , would that Law which backs the decrepit constable possess the authority and influence it now exercises ! ( Loud cheers . ) Do you hink the people , of whom the Hon . and Learned
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Member has given sneb a description , weuld have that respect for the law they now entertain , if they did not feel that that law which guarantees property , which secures liberty , is a law equally for the rich and the poor 1 f ( Cheers . ) What description was given of the people of England by the other Hon . Member for Finsbury ! He said , " 1 have travelled through various parts of Europe ; I bare had opportunities of observing the condition of the labouring classes abroad , and comparing it with our home population , and I defy you to find a more intelligent , a more prudent , a more independent , or a more high spirited race of people than the people of England . " I grant it : but I ask him what has formed their character ! ( Cheers . ) Is it to the bricks and stones
of their houses that we must attribute their character ! No , it is to the laws and institutions of a free country . ( Cheers . ) The high-minded independent character of which the Hon . and Learned Gentleman spoke has been formed under those laws and institutions of which this petition contains the impeachment . ( Cheers . ) And if it were true that we lived in a state of despotism on the one hand , or degrading slavery on the other , the people of this country would never have the respect for authority , nor would they deserve the character which the Hon . and Learned Gentlemen has given them . ( Loud cheers . ) I did not understand the -Right-Hon . ; Member for Edinburgh to state that the people of this country were of a sanguinary disposition ; and
that if we admitted them to power , spoliation of property would be the result , but that there would be great danger if they consented to the prayer of this petition , so prepared by a designing and cowardly demagogue , adopting the description of the Hon . and Learned Gentleman —( cheers ;)—ot , if this be a libel upon the petitioners , how can the Hon . and Learned Gentleman maintain that those who have been parties to a petition so full of trash and delusion , might not in other instances fall victims to other designing demagogue ? , who may say to them , " Now you are possessed of power , now you have the means of exercising it , and you are a degraded and cowardly race if you do not enforce your own termsV ( Cheers . ) I do not believe they would at once yield
to Buch delusions ; but what security can the Hon . and Learned Gentleman give , that having been deluded once , the petitioners would not be deluded again ! ( Cheers . ) I understand the Right Hon . Member for Edinburgh to argue that it ' you make an alteration in your constitution upon principles like those laid down in this petition—if you think that public faith ought not to be maintained , and that the public creditor should not be paid , because debts were incurred by Parliament without due authority for the support of wars which were unjust—if you think that laud iB a monopoly—if you think that machinery is a monopoly , you will be exciting hopes and expectations which you cannot realise without leading to confusion , aud which you cannot disappoint
without danger . I understood him to argue that anarchy andconfusion must arise from that state of things , because there would be no security for property ; and that , in fact , uncertainty and spoliation of property must neces-sarily arise . ( Cheers . ) But I did not understand him to affirm of the people of England that they were of a sanguinary and barbarous disposition , and inclined to possess themselves of the property of others . ( Cheers . ) On account , then , of the delusion which must arise from granting the prayer of the petition , I cannot accede to this motion .. If I am told that the Charter is involved—if I am now deciding the question of Universal Suffrage , Annual Parliaments , and Vote by Ballot , I am content to rest the issue upon that ground also . I
believe that Universal Suffrage will be incompatible with the maintenance of the mixed monarchy under which we live—I believe that mixed monarchy is important in respect to the end which is to be achieved rather than in respect to the means by which it is gamed—that end I understand to be the promotion of the happiness of the people ; but in a country circumstanced like this , 1 will not consent to substitute mere democracy for that mixed form of government under which we live , and which , imperfect as it may be , has secured for ub during 150 years more of practical happiness and of true liberty than has been enjoyed in any other country that ever existed , not excepting the United States of America ,
not excepting any other country whatever . ( Cheers . ) We may be suffering severe privation . I deeply regret it , I sympathise with the sufferers , I admire their fortitude , I respect their patience , but I will not consent to make these momentous changes in the coustitution , with the certainty . that I shall afford no relief to the present privation and suffering , with the certainty that I shall only incur the risk ofdestroyibg that constitution , which , I believe , if you will permit it to remain untouched , will secure to your descendants as it secured to you and your ancestors , those blessings which you never find in any rash or precipitate changes , however plausible iu speculation they may appear to be . ( Loud and continued cheers . )
Mr . MACAIJLAY desired to say two words of explanation in reference to the matter just adverted to by the Right Hon . Baronet . He denied most distinctly that any expressions imputing cruelty or a sanguinary disposition to the people of England ,-or anything whatever of that nature , had ever passed bis lips . ( Hear , hear . ) Ht 3 argument had not led to anything of that sort , and he appealed to he memory ef every gentleman present whether he had drawn any parallel with the cruelty of the French revolution , or had given utterance to any expression of that nature ? He made no such allusion whatever . ( Hear , hear . )
Mr . MUNTZ said , that as the debate bad taken such a peculiar turn , in cousequeuce of the construction put upon the motives of those who might vote for the present motion , he felt called upon to explain the reason why he should vote in its favour . It was the same reason that induced him to vote for the motion of the Hon . Member for Rochdale the other evening . He should vote for the motion simply on the ground of inquiry . When he looked around him and saw thousands of his fellow-countrymen starving from the want of the necessaries of life , and frem the want of labour to procure those necessaries ,
and when he found 3 , 000 , 000 of the people appealing to that house to be heard on the subject , he could not make up his mind to reject the prayer of the petition . 3 , 000 , 000 of his starving fellow-countrymen was a vast number ; and though he believed with the Right Hon . Baronet opposite that there were many desires expressed in the petition which would never realize the hopes of the petitioners , or conduce to the good of the nation , yet he could not make up his mind to reject the prayer that the petitioners might be heard . Mr . OSWALD opposed the motion , on the ground that if carried , it would delude the people , and buoy them up with false hopes . . of
Mr . C . VILLIERS said that many Members that House , when addressing the populace or their constituents , made against the House much the same accusation as was contained in the allegations of the petition . They endeavoured to bring it into discredit , charged it with legislating for a class , and said there was no hope for the people without a new representation . He would remind the Hon . Member for Lambeth that he had held that language . ( Hear , hear . ) He ( Mr . Villiers ) had not made use of this language , though it was the constant practice of many gentlemen who agitated on the Corn Laws to say that it was idle to attempt iny alteraion , and that the real question was the Reform of the House . And now the people
took them at their words , was it fair that they should be called spoliators and described as being unworthy of the franchise ? ( Hear , hear . ) This he thought was conduct more shabby and delusive than the present motion . He was not disposed to deny many things he had heard in the course of the discussion with respect to the consequences of extending the Suffrage , but when they sat in that House abusing each other , and imputing bad motives to each other , it was not surprising that the people believed them at last . ( . Hear , and laughter . ) He had made a similar motion to the present on the subject of the corn laws , and if it had not been
rejected , he believed much misery might have been averted . He did not see why the petitioners in the present case should not be heard . Such a proceeding , without producing a sudden change in the representative system , might lead to a progressive alteration . Though many of the objects of the petitioners might be characteriEed as objectionable , this was no reason why the petitioners should not be heard , and he reminded the Right Hon . Baronet opposite that he could not himself concur iu all the opinions of his own supporters ; and in proof of this statement he need only refer to the opinions entertained by some Hon . Gentlemen opposite on the subject of Orange lodges .
Lord CLEMENTS said , that as no person connected with Ireland had addressed the House , and as the subject of the repeal of the union was mixed up with otner topics in the petition , he begged to say a few words id reference to that point . The Irish were not very much accustomed to meet with the sympathy of the people of England , and he confessed for one , he was not prepared to be made a cat ' s paw on the present occasion . The repeal of the union might be a subject worthy of discussion in itself . He did not pretend to say that he was himself an advocate for that measure . But , however that subject might be brought forward , this was not the manner in which it was to come before the House . If the poorer classes of this country felt themselves aggrieved let them bring their grievances before Parliament : but the people of Ireland were sufficiently
strong to stand upon their own resources . He wished not to be coupled up with any petition of this kind . ( Load cries of " Divide , divide , " and great impatience manifested by the House . ) The House might be impatient , but he wished , to state his opinions on the subject . ( Cries of *> Go on , go on ¦;" - " Read , read , " and laughter . ) Thepeople of Ireland required much improvement and much alteration in their representative system , and in the mode of sending their Members to that House , ana the sooner that subject was taken into consideration the better for Ireland , aHd the community at large—( a laugh . ) But , at the same time , they perfectly differed from the prayer of this petition , which he looked upon as only subversive of the institutions of this country , and one to which he could not give his assentr * - ( " divide , divide . " ) He trusted that the measure
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with regard to Irelaad would be shortly brought before the consideration of the House , and that the Irish representative system would be cleansed from all the impurities to which it was now subject--ClaUghter . V He would not deitain the House—( hear , and a laugh)—but he begged most distinctly to reprobate the idea of Ireland being brought forward in this manner to serve the purposes of certain individuals , and when the people of that country-had not the slightest chance of being admitted to those privileges to which they were justly entitled . ' ¦ ¦ ¦ : ¦¦ ¦ . '" . ' " ¦ ¦' ¦ ¦ ¦ ' . . ¦"'¦ ¦' : " " " , '¦ ¦ " ' . .
Mr . p'CONNELL wished to say a fewworda , in order that bis vote on this occasion might not be misunderstood / He should not vote for hearing the petitioners , br reason of what they had told him about the Repeal of the Union . That was a subject upon which his own opinion was fixed ; and he was not induced to support the motion because it was mentioned in this petition . In short , he did not wish to indentify himself with thi 3 petition at all—( hear , hear ) . His vote was grounded upon one consideration , and that was—though perhaps he might be mistaken—that he was a decided advocate for Universal Suffrage , and that it was his opinion that every Englishman was entitled to be represented in that House—( hear , hear ) . If he wanted a reason
for that opinion it would be the total failure of the Right Hon . Member for Edinbro' , —( hear , and a laugh , )~ who disclaimed Universal Suffrage , aiid condemned the present state of Suffrage in this country . The Right Hon . Gentleman drew no line where servitude should end , and liberty begin—( hear , hear ) . The comparison , too , made by the Noble Lord of a man ' s claiming to be a juryman did not apply , because the juryman decided on other people ' s property , whilst the voter protected his own . If it were to gratify these petitioners to give them a hearing under such limitations as the House might be pleased to impose , he did not think it would be goiqg too far , and he should therefore vote for the motion .
Mr . T . DUNCOMBE , in reply , said he would promise the House that this was the last division he should take on any proposition of this kind after seeing the manner in which the petitioners were about to be treated . At all events , if' the individuals who had signed this petition , comprising the greater part of the industrious classes of this country , should ever again condescend—( hear , hear ) r-to approach that liouse , be would be no party to their degradation after the manner in which he saw tkis petition was about to be received —( hear , and a laugh);—and he must say that if the interpretation Which the opponents of this motion had thought proper to put upon this petition , as being a proposition for the sweeping confiscation of property , as the Right Hon . Gentleman the Member for
Edinburgh called it—( hear ) ,- ^ -for the destruction of the Monarchy and the Church , and expunging tht > National Debt—( hear , hear ) , —if such were the objects of the petitioners , or there were any propositions of that kind in this petition , let not their censure and indignation and abhorrence fall upon the petitioners , but on the head of him who brought it to the table of the House—( hear , and laughter . ) Let him be the individual responsible for it- —( laughter , and cries of "No !") Yes , he would say that no Hon . Member of that House ought to bring up such a petition , if such were the objects of it—( hear , hear );—and if he thought that the petitioners had any such views , he would not be the individual to appear at the table with their petition—( hear , hear . )
parts and parcels of that petition had been read , and ho did not say that if ha had had the drawing up of it he would have framed it in its present shape—( hear , hear ); there were many parts of it from which he dissented , and he mentioned that at the beginning of the evening , when there were few Hon . Members to hear what the petitioners asked for , although they now came down in shoals to deny them a hearing at tkeir bar —( hear , hear ) . The petitioners asked not for a sweeping confiscation of property —( hear , hear ) . He only wished that the Right Hod . Member for Edinburgh would allow them to come to the bar of that House , working men as they were , and if he wpuld do that and hear their statements , in support of the allegations
contained in this petition , and if they could prove thenvby documentary evidence or by producing additional witnesses at the bar , they would put to the blush the Right Hori . Member for Edinburgh , who had so libelled them ( hear , and a laugh ); and many , though they were not even in possession of the franchise , when they left the bar , would leave the impression behind them that they ought to have the franchise , and that that House would not be disgraced by seeing one of those men on the benches of that House—( hear , hear ) . The concluding paragraph of the petition was , he would admit , worded rather ambiguously —( hear , hear ); But the Right Hon . Baronet opposite most fairly stated—( hear , hear)—he did not complain of the opposition
on the other side so much as he did of that on his own side ot " jheHou 8 e ( hear , and laughter ) , but the Right Hon . Baronet stated that be ¦ would not take advantage of the wording of the petition , if Charter was not intended by the petitioners . ( Hear ) They asked first to be heard at the bar of that House ; and although the cloaing paragraph "was rather ambiguous , he knew their meaning to be , that if the House would not bear them , then they demanded of the House to pass their Charter . But the petitioners concluded thus , '' And your petitioners , desiring to promote the peaw of the United Kingdom , —( hear , hear , )—security of property , and prosperity of commerce , seriously and earnestly press this petition on the attention of your honourable Housa" ( Hear , hear . ) Where was the confiscation of
property , the destruction of the monarchy , or of the church ? or where was the sponge , as he heard it said , of the national debt ? ( Hear , hear . ) But the Right Hon . Baronet took advantage of what was thrown out in the Bpeech of the Hon . and Learned Member for Bath , that this petition was drawn up by a malignant and cowardly demagogue—he believed those were the words of the Hon . and Learned Member—and said that he would name the individual if the reptile were not beneath his contempt . ( Hear , hear . ) If be alluded to the individual whom he ( Mr . Duncombe ) supposed he did , he bad been grossly misled and imposed upon . ( Hear , hear . ) And now he would speak of the individuals who bad signed the petition and those who drew it up , and would read their explanation of what they
meant In the course of the winter there was a difference of opinion between tbe Chartists in Scotland aiid the Chartists in England . A meeting took place in Glasgow , and the question was then considered whether there sheuld be two petitions ; or only one . What the Scotch Chartists objected to was the Repeal of the Union and the mention of the English Poor Law ; but the answer , and it was an answer to the Hon . and Learned Member for Bath , and to many Hon . Gentlemen who had put this false and , he must say , unjust interpretation on this petition , was to this effect : — "In conclusion , " ( this was addressed to the Scotch Chartists ) , " let it be firmly impressed on your minds that our sole objects in drawing up the petition have been to draw public attention to the cause of our national embarrassment , the misery of the labouring classes , and those subjects which deserve moat unwearied attention . The standard ef our cause ft where
it was , undiminished in its tupreme importance and unshorn of its national interest . Brethren , we shall keep it there ; aid : us as you have done , and let union , peace , arid energy characterise © ur united and inseparable exertions in the great cause of England , Scotland , Ireland and WaleB . " Five names were signed to this document The mention of the last one , " John Campbell , " excited much laughter . The Hon Member then observed , that these were the sole individuals who drew up the petition ; and no one else , he believed , had even seen it until it was in course of signature . He repeated , that he deeply regretted the course which the House was about to adopt AH he asked on bebalf of the petitioners was , to give them a hearing ; while , in his own mind , be ifelt convinced that to admit them within the" electoral pale , instead of endangering , would add stability to the property of the country—( hear , hear . ) The House then divided , when there appeared , — For the motion ... ... ... ¦ 49 . Against it ... ... 287 Majority against the motion ... 238
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IiEEDS . — -The Association is rising rapidly in numbers , and although a good many of its members are out of employment , it has been enabled with a little assistance from Churwell , Wortley , and Woodhouse , to send its proportionate share to the Convention , for the members . On Sunday last , the Council voted * 10 s ., in answer to the appeal of the Convention last week ; 2 s . 6 d . was sent a week or two ago by Mr . Garbutt , who had collected it for that purpose . The Association has of late turned its attention more to local affairs than they have done
before ; the Chartists now take a prominent part m every meeting , both local and national , that takes place in the town , and in order that they may make an attack on Whiggiamand Toryism in the Council , on the 1 st Nov . next , let every working man who is qualified , claim to be put en the burgess list . To be' successful , it only requires that every one do this—let the Councils of Holbeck , Hunslet , am Woodhouse , take the matter up at once , and be really determined to win , and nothing can prevent them ' . " -- ' In order to carry it out more successfully , a central committee should be appointed in the town * comprising men from every part of the Borough . Let t . he Chartists sea to it . The Counoi would respotfully request that a larger number of members attend on Monday nights .
BRADFORP . —Delecatb Meeting . —In accordance with the announcement in the Start a meeting of delegates from the several districts of the West-Riding , was held in the Chartist roorn ^ Bradford , on Sunday , May 1 st , at ten o ' clock . D e legates present from Bradford , Mr . Fletcher ; Bingley , Mr . Firth ; Dewsbury , Mr . Wilson ; Leeds , Mr . Fraser . Mr . Fraser being called to the chair , Mr . Fletcher was appointed secretary . After a lengthened conversation it was deemed very advisable that a District Union should' be formed for the purpose of supporting permanent lectures , and to forward this view the following resolutions were agreed to : —•
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"That a central committee be resolved upon , to consist of delegates from each of the districla , in the West-Riding , wishing to co-operate in the support of district lecturers , oae delegate to be sent from each district . " " That this committee assemble quarterly , and that the district secretary-have a discretionary power to call special meetings in cases of emergency . '' '' That Bradford being the most central position , be the general place of meeting /' * That Mr . Fletcher , delegate from Bradford , be appointed secretary for the union until next meeting , which will be holden on the 29 th May ,- at ten o ' clock , in the Association Rooms , Bradford . There being so few delegates present , it was not thought advisable to enter into any arrangements regarding the appointment of lecturers . But as it will be
evident how advantageous such a mode of employing lecturers would be to the spread of our glorious principles , we press upon the attention of our . brother Chartists the resolutions we agreed to ; and trust they will send delegates to the nest meeting , on Sunday , the 29 th of May ; and we also particularly request the Councils of the different Associations to Correspond with the Secretary upon the matter . Remember , brethren , all we have now to depend upon is the wide dissemination of our principles to ensure success ; then be up and doing' ; do not , we beseech you , let this important union be destroyed . Remember , in union lies our strength and importance . You are requested to correspond with Mr . G . Fletcher at Mr . Alderson ' s , Bankstreet , Bradford . ¦ : ,. . ' . '• ' ¦ ¦ ¦¦
CoALBROOKDALE . —Mr . Halford lectured to , a large out-door meeting on Monday last . Several cards were taken ; They will hold other out-doof meetings ia the neighbourhood shortly , and will be ready to sell more cards . " .-Rotherham . —The cause in this place is continually gaining ground . Mr . T . B . Smith visited us on Tuesday evening , and delivered a powerful and elo-?[ ueut lecture , in which he discussed , in a clear and ucid manner , the whole cf the points of the Charter . Numbers aro continually coming to join our ranks . ¦ . ¦
Convention .- — -At the Convention sitting , on Thursday , an address to the country , a remonstrance to the House of Commons , and a memorial to . the Queen , were adopted . A vote of thanks was given to Mr . Duncan ^ as chairman , Mr . Leach , as' vicechairman , and Mr . Campbell , as secretary . The address , memorial , and remonstrance , will appear in next Star . . Barnslet . —The cause of human improvement has received some additional impetus during the past week by the labours of Mr . T . B . Smith , who has been with us delivering lectures on various important subjects . On Saturday evening , we had a ; ood meeting in the Odd FellowB * School Room ' , to hear a lecture on teetotalism , and the claims of the National anti-Tobacco and Temperance Society ^ The address was clear , and full of sound argument , and appeared to give very general
satisfaction . On Sunday afternoon , Mr . Smith preached on the Barebones ^ to more" than one thousand persons , and in the evening , ' . in the Odd Fellows' School Room . Oa Monday evemag , the subjeot was a full , fair , and free representatio ' n of the people in Parliament , which was handled : in the most clear and satisfactory manner , and rivited the attention of the audience for nearly two hours . At the close of the lecture Mr . Frank Mirfield , in a speech replete with good sense and manly feeling , moved the following resolution , "That this meeting is resolved to go for nothing short of the whole Charter , name and all , and as long as our . leaders act honestly and stand by us , we will stand by them . "' Thanks were then voted to Mr . S . for his valuable services , and the meeting separated . Mr , Smhh enrolled four persons as members of the National Anti-Tobacco and Temperance Association .
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Bradford Markets , Thursday , May 5 th . — - Wool . —The Wool trade is altogether of a monotonous character , owing to the unwillingness of the spinners to purchase , except at rates which the staplers cannot replace : the latter have been equally cautious in their operations , and the stock in the market is by no means so considerable as it was a few weeks back ; nor is it probable that any material quantity will ba brought to market till shear day , and till the prices of new Wools be established .- — -Tarn . —Although we cannot report any decided improvement , in the demand for Yarns , yet quite as much is doing as has been for several weeks back . We are glad to
hear that more iB required by the Delaine makers . In prices no marked alteration , — . Piece . —During the week we learn that considerable quantities of goods have been taken out of the market , and chiefly those of our staple manufacture , the Merino . We believe these are for the American market , for which but few have been sold of late , compared with former years . We would hope now that the season is at hand when both the exporters and home merchants usually make their purchases , that we may be able to report more extensive doings , and if any advantage is derivable from the new tariff and the continued fine weather , that our operatives may feel the good effect of it .
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Subscriptions for the wounded and damage dona at the Hall of Science , Manchester , receivedbv mI AbelHeywpod :- ; miywdjux . Aston-st . Association Room , Birmingham 07 9 Association , Northampton ... ... 1 0 2 Abergavenny Association ... ... 0 5 A Mansfield Association , per John Lynn ... 1 q q Sutton * in-Ashfield Asasociation ... ... 0 12 a Oldham Chartists , Mr . J ^ Dunkerly ... 0 60 Charter Association , Rooden-lajie ... 0 2 8 Chartists , Pitsford , Northampton ... 0 7 / WelliDgboroush , Mr . Edward ffall ... 0 tf ( j Skegby , near Mansfield ... ... ... 0 3 [ Sheffield and two or three other places , per Mr . Julian Harney ... ... ... 117 0 ¦¦'¦ ¦ ¦ ' ¦ ' " . ' , : ' ¦ - . . . ¦ ¦ . ¦ £ S : 6 } ' \
Gfy&Vti$T %Niiui%Mce.
Gfy&vti $ t % niiUi % mce .
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O'CONNOR , Esq ., of Hammersmith , Co 0 * Middlesex , by JOSHUA HOBSON , athia P **" lag OmcesT Nes . 12 and 13 , Market-siieet ; , ?* gate ; and Published by the said Joshua V 0 *^ ( for the said Feargus O'Connor , ) at his V y * , ling-house , ^ No . 5 ; Market-street , Briggaki •* internal Communication ^ existingbetween ^ eW No . 5 , Market-street ; and the sa * d No * if " ? 13 , Marketstreet , Briggate , thus constitutiD ^ whole of tho aaid Printing and Publishing ° ? l one Premises . ; ' -. - , '; . ' v ; y . :. ^ -i ! AU CfommunicatirmB must be addressed , ( Post-paid ) A HOBSON , Northern Star Office , Leeds . Saturday , May tt 1812 .
To The World.
TO THE WORLD .
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8 . . T HE NOETHERN STAR , ___ ..- ... " ' ; . . '¦ - ' " ' .. - . .. ' : .- / . \ , M ¦ ' ^ ::. -JM '
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• V ' j'Nr ^^^^^^^ i ^^^^^ W ^^^^^ W' ^^ 'J- ^ N * HUDDERSFIELD ' . —A most dreadful accident occurred on Tuesday last , at the mill of Messrs . Armitage and Brothers , Mill-bridge . A man of the name of Taylor , went down , it is thought , to oil the water-wheel , when some one in the niill , not knowing , set the wheel in motion . The poor man was immediately cut in twain , and the two parts cut into pieces . We understand he has buried his wife , but uafoitunately he leaves a child to mourn his loss : STOCKPORT — The New Pooh Law amd its Victims . —The Workhouse " test of labour , " - or " labour test" as it is termed , has been applied to about 150 out-door paupers at Stockporfc . They have been placed to breaking stones , &c . two-thirds of
whom have been paid at the rate of Is . per day for 6 even hours' labour . AH these however have recently been reduced Is . a week and three hours proposed . to be added to their labour . -Last ) week the body willingly acceded to the abatement , but objected to the additional labour—and a deputation of four were selected to wait upon the Board of Guardians and argue the hardship and impropriety of depriving them of the three hours during which they " might probably get a few pence extra towards the necessities of their families . The Board were inflexible ; and the men continued to work the old rate of labour , seven hours . They worked up to Saturday afternoon at four o ' clock , but in the forenoon a warrant had been issued against the individuals composing the deputation ** for refusing to work and maintain their families . " Their names are John Williamson , Jas .
Goodwin , J . Barnes , and R . Hyde , all of whom have large families . They were taken to " Sadlers Wells " and confined there lill Monday , when they were brought before the Mayor , Thos . Walmsley , Richard Sykes , James Newton , and Robt . Gee , Esquires , Mr . Wm . yaughan appearing for the paupers , and Mr . Coppock attending on the part of the Board of Guardians . The hearing occupied the Court a long time . It was proved that the defendants were paupers , and that for the six days ' work at tenpence per diem , five days ' earnings were paid in bread and potatoes , and the sixth , tenpence only was given them , which was all the cash they received for their labour during the week . It was admitted by two of the witnesses that complaints have been , made about the quality of the bread ; and it was also admitted that more of the defendants had refused to
work , absolutely only objecting to the extra three hours—the new : regulation being from seven in the morning , till six at night ; one hour " only being allowed throughout the day for meals , See Mr . W . Vaughan contended that the proceedings were arbitrary and excessive , the defendants being at work when the party obtaining the warrant swore that they were refusing to work , and had neglected their families I The wives stepped forward and denied that their husbands had neglected them . Mr . Coppock defended the proceedings . The bread , &o . that was given to the paupers was ; as relief , not as wages ; and that the -.. work allotted to them was intended as " a labour test . " The new instructions had been issued by the Commissioners ; and if the pauper refused to adhere to them , they , by declining to work according to their instructions , refused to maintain their families . Hence that expence would fall upon
the rate-payers in general . They had been ordered to work seven hours per day for six days , at tenpence per diem , which they had refused to do . The defendants complained that they had been entrapped into the busiaess by-the Governor and Oakes ( Coppock ' s clerk ); and denied that they had refused to work , ov that they were ever given to understand that what they worked for was parochial relief . So long as they laboured hard for what they got , they should consider the payment to be as wages , aud ought to be paid in money . Williamson said he had two days ' due . The Bench said the defendant ' s had been sufficiently punished by being confined in the . cells since Saturday . They could not by law interfere with the orders of the Commissioners , and they must be observed ; but they would take the responsibility of ordering that the paupers should not work after four o ' clock on the Saturday . ( Applause . ) They were then set at liberty .
LEEDS—On Friday week two women named Sophia Caff and Mary Ann Dunn , were committed for three months each ( with hard labour ) to Wakefield House of Correction , as rogues and vagabonds , for having obtained the snm of 153 . 6 d . in money , six yards of new flannel , and a shawlj from Alary Theaker , servant to Mr . Kershaw , painter , Wellington-road , under pretence of being able to " rule her planet" and make her acquainted with the secrets of futurity , promising ; her at the same time an . excellent husband and plenty of children , who were all to do well in the world . The foolish girl found out , after repeated visits , that both more money and more goods were wanted than she oould conveniently spare , and fancying that she had been " done ,- ' she gave information to the police and caused their apprehension .
Leeds :—Printed For Tse Proprietor Feabq 1 ^
Leeds : —Printed for tSe Proprietor FEABQ ^
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), May 7, 1842, page 8, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct429/page/8/
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