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THE NOETHEEN STAE. SATURDAY, JULY 15, 1843.
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©o aseanen* awn ^o mjs pofflrcttte. ;
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TO THE CHARTISTS.
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Wb. learn from Boulogne sur-Mer that a few
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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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T 1 SIT TO TTre " COjrOOBDnTM * AT HAM COMMON , SUBSET . BT G . JOCOB HOLTOAKE . Every attempt to demonstrate the possibility of increasingithe mnj ef Tmjmin happiness is a tribute to ansnYipd-B W nether mch attempt suocaed or ^ whether It fails , it is stall as offering at the shrine of human improvement . The . residents at the Ham Coomon Coneerdinm believe that USD \ fonld be -healthier in frame , a = d more refined In ^ nought , "Were their diet more simple , and less animal . They believe Association to be conducive to personal happiness ; and Co-operation to worldly px » j » efliy . BeEevins w , Bke trne reformers they endeavour to act enfc their belief
A few day sgol tad fiie ; ple » nre of -ratting them , ? rhen I found little to censure , « nd modi to commend . As I am lax team admiring the opinions of ibe Concoidists , I jnay he supposed Impartial in "what I say in lavourof flidx ^ oinys . What they mean hy " divine xj&arsB , ** " spinta , " "hsnnoniea , and ad forth , I am utterly enable ta comprehend . Bnt their habitation , Steir ™ mwin and their intentions , I can -UDuerxland . The otherEpecalationBinBj " beTery correct ; bnt 3 irill confine myself to -what comes -within the compass of my capacity .
The Concordlnm is a mansion of moderate sizs , is a fcesniifnl atna&on . The yards are spadons and clear ; the gardens extensive and improving . Some of the looms in the house are genteelly , and all are comfbrt--sKy , innnahed . Shower and plume baths axeatthB serrice of alL A printing office is attached to the premises , in -which ~ a portion of the members are emplojed . Others are occupied injtaHonng , agricultural , and similar-oBBTal departments ; and . I must add , that s 21 Ir % k healthy and appear happy . "With the practice of the Concordists there is mixed up isoch self-denial . 1 use the term in the -worldly sense . Bait remembered that all is not denial -which
the worM ib in the habit of calling by that name . I question not th 3 t the stern Spartan -was a happier mas £ kan the Tolnmptions Greek lie diet of the Concordist is plain , and purely vegetable . The Epicure would torn away from their homely meal ; bat let him remenslsT that they "wonld sicken at his diEease-engen aeriagtiiEh . Their diet has perhaps a homely appearance ; bnt the health that accompanies their repast is a far sore lovely sight fh * n the fever and bile -which -CreeD round **»« ynimmTwVJ jle&b-filled-pl&te . They "Who provide food let their appetites instead of appetites for their food , are strangers to the ssst -with 'which temperance and exarcaBes sit xlo-wn to the plainest fare . In the mods of-his translater , Creech 3 Horace
sags" Why , Sir , the pleasure that ' s in eating knoira Is sot in th * meat , tut in thyself alone . 3 dake exsrdse thy sanee ; let thst excite : Pot a fleamy and a sqneasy appetite 2 *< rr trontj nor tench , nor oyaterecan delight " As Tn diet , so in dress , the Concordists consult the attainment of health . In person the young men appear rather the followers of Xyeurgns than the votaries of pleasure . This is honourable to them . They chiefly wear bcargs , and have much to enconnter in the irsy mt Tidicn ' e for this peculiarity . But they appear to Ihint -Kia Bclwer that " it is a farce to talk of independence , ¦¦ while evEry man is the slave * of his aeigfe-¦ bonr * a opinion . * ' We have a strange propensity to xidicnla thB slightest deviation from costumes -worn and hacknied , however harmless in itself that daviation may he . We often spend more satire on our neighbonr ' a innocent eccentricities ^ t 1 -- " o& tke pernicious rices of i&lf the us / Son .
In what I observed at the Concordium mere were many things to be amended . 3 nt I allow that these jue Eot of great weight It is to be considered th&Vtbe experiment is in an incipient state . It would not be fair to xnSdss , as though time had been afforded to Teach perfection . It is progressive . A friend who accompanied me , testified that he had visited the same place Pome twelve months ago , and was surprised at the improvement that had taken place , The ConcordlatB have a particular otgect in view : and in commenting on their plans , arrangements , and modes oT living , I have deemed it a duty to keep this object slwajs in view , As in the works of literature , so is pxperimenta in science , the rule of Pope should be the guide of oar judgment"Ii an respects legard the writer ' s end - " Shies sods can compass more than they intend . "
The intention of the Concordists is excellent ; and their experimenJ a most useful one . Hence I should , be more anxieus to help iba amendment , than enter upon the cei-demiiafion of what may be defective . H is true my visit was short , and my observations therefore few . Bat I endeavoured to compensate by vi £ 51-zc 8 tke "want of more extensive opportunity . I perKciCy examined ereny department ; and -all I saw vrss cisan and creditable . My ignorance of- what 1 anight aot have seen does not affect the truth of what 1 did « te . And as others have given their first impressions of this place it is equally fair that I should give UlTRts . Mr . » T- J . Fox has said that " to the world , failure is often - ^ orth more than success . " This is a strange , but
true , assertion . It is an important qnestion , whether ve sra steeped in conventionalism and shackled with custom as to be unable to throw cfi our artificial habits , Tetnra to the simple ones of nature , and still progress in Jntemgence . Much has been said of the merits of pooperatisn ; but little has been done socially to testits beatSt ^ It 3 s an interesting ^ jroblem jet to be solved : sad tt is not too much to say that the progress of JmiESEity hangs upon its solution . Failure or success TriU slike settle the point . S-ucxss will determine the Tray mankind are to take ; and faSxre will prove that th&y must start in a new direction . The Concordists are one party who are labouring to furnish this information - a ^ u whether their experiment succeeds or not , ike ? tnertt esteem and deserve . encouragement .
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TO THE EDITOR OT THE IfOBIHEBS STASDias . Sxa , —The town of Ktleo baa been jSacsrded triih . bins of various sizes , raflTng a puttie meeting , to > e held in the Secession Church , ooPriday evening , the 7 £ h cf July , when John Bright , Esq ., and Archibald Px ^ Etice , Esq , would attend and address the meeting on the working of the Corn Xaws and the depressed condition of agricultaire . farmers were invited to sttecd to consider " what is the cause of the bad state of the agriculturists , and what is the remedy ? " Some of our Chartist friends sent me a bill to Edinburgh , and invited me to attend , which accordingly 1 din . The meeting -was addressed by she aforesaid gentlemen , who o&ered to siswer any qnestions , and enter into ^ ny explanations on the subject before the meeting . When
the time arrived I rose and addressed the meeting-, and made some observations on the injustice of the- Corn ¦ laws , whichl said was wrong , but not " the cause of the present depressed condition of agriculture , * ' bnt the ' cause lay more at the door of the manufacturipg speculators ,, who , by their greediness to gain large fortunes in a short time , had reduced the arttzsn and labourers from comfort to starvation ; that so " two \ rrongE could ever make one tight ; " * and the question of Com Laws was only tile war-cry of the great manu- \ fadttrers against the great landowners- neither party ' intending the people to have the smallest part of the i spoil when the battle was won . The audience cheered . me for these sentiments , -srhen Ht PrenUce arose to ask if I WBsaninhsliitant of the town , and intimated to ' it be
fhe < -: h ^"" B *» that would necessary-Oat my name f and occupation * frrm > fl be ascertained before I was allowed to proceed . The question was then asked me , if I wss a farmer , to which I answered in the negative- The League gentiemen then pointed out a note at the bottom of the placard , stating that "the deputation will have pleasure in replying to any questions put ly farmers!—and , as I wsb not a farmer , I could not be allowed to address the meeting . To this I said , •* the placard calls a public meeting on a public question affftsing the whole nation , -and , as one of the public , 3 claim a right to show why I differ with the deputation from the League . " The audience applauded » y wmari . and dies of "hear him "made the chapel ring i again , and made the two Leaguers look fit to burst with nge . 1 -was aHo"s-ed to proceed , and was showing that a reduction of the labourer ' s Trages , of say 3 s .-per week on f cm- millions of labourers , xobbed the Home Market
© I £ 32 200 . 000 in onfi yea * ; K * & thai the -wwmrfrurtarer fouua u hiB interest to employ iron and steam instead of men ; and I wss proceeding to ask how much eggs , batter , s . d 4 cheese the steam engine consumed from , the Bon » e 3 Jarketrwhen 3 was 3 nt « Tnpted by Hi . Bright , Trb » -S 3 Mi iney only cams there to answer questions , and those put by farmers only . The chairman then xiesn-d nsyoiamei and assoonssl toldhim , thB deputies put ihnr heads together and seemed in mighty consnlt&tioiiand grave discourse . The chairman -was instructed ] to stop me from spe&king , and confine myself to asking ! brief questions . Accordingly I consented , and . asied if She Tn ' mnnfftrtnrfTw had sot increased their machinery and xedncea the wages of their workmen ? ana as the ¦ workman could only purchase food according to the amount ©? -wages he received , would not the reducdon of tijelaboittEX * s wages be felt by the Home Market ?! Must ha not purchase less food , or pay less fer it , in this \ same ratio as Ms means grew smaller ? 1
Mr . Bright attempted to shew there was more money paid to jnaHuEactniing labourers now than in 17701 {¦ B ienyoa ; inow , my dearnir , Sifire Was lea mannfae- ! taring and less poverty } . He " attempted to seem" to ] understand my arguments as condemning-all machinery ; j and on tiis dap-trap he became very eloquent—proving ! that we could sot exist -without machinery of some sort ;' even if it was a needle or a pin , for which piece of ' humbug the audience gave him a round of applause . i Kow Sir , it has so often been declared , times without number , that we are not against machinery or j the invention of machmeiy , but seek to have machinery ' directed to -benefit the community and not to starve them to death ; and as all who take an interest is public questions must be well aware of this our xnpnTimg , -what think you of the " friend" who passes fora gentleman , who could condescend to prop up a faffing cause by such a barefaced pretending to mistmderstand-an zzsumeiit ? I can only say 2 pity the man who coald use zneh nnworthy means I the xo two
1 V ^ wSj opportuuity questions , and so opporttxnisy of reply . 21 z . Bright took three quarters of in hour in replying to my last question , to preclude the possibility of my asking any mcie ; and plainly told the meefing Qiat it wasvery probiblel was psla * y the 3 snd 9 wsen t © do their work iuoppoting
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the League . This raiseQ | a prejudice in the minds of many in the meeting who did not know me . The meeting concluded at a bite hour , when a resoln . tion was passed in favour of a Bepeal ef the Com Laws . Three propositions -were put at the conclusion , to be washed down with shouting . Three abonts for a Repeal of the Corn Laws . Three shoots for the League deputies . Three sbouts fox the chair , and a regular good one for the glorious , impartial , and liberty-loving ministers ef the chapel The meeting then separated . Ozi tke day after , I had many of the inhabitants visiting jne , and expresrefl their fliapprobatioB of the unfair treatment I met with , and ^ wished me ! to lectnre in
the open air ; bnt I was compelled to refuse : for I am worn down to a skeleton , and hardly able to stand up any longer . I was confined to my bed most of Saturday , for I had walked thirty-one miles the day before , to be at the meeting ; but , however , I took a walk through the town about eight o ' clock ; and , to my surprise , I found a great multitude assembled in the Market Place , expecting me to spsak . j They came round me , and requested me to address them , and I could not refuse 5 and in a very few minutes after I began speaking , I felt as well as ever I was in my life . I found the lat © public meeting has done far more than 3 could have expected in favour of Chartism .
The town is now placarded with bills , announcing a lecture by me in reply to the arguments of Messrs Bright and Prentice , together -with a challenge to the League to fair and free discussion . ; My dear Sir , —I believe I have sow , taking one day - with another , lectured every day this last fourteen months ; and I am now fairly " done up" in health . My English friends know bow I fared in England ; and J beg to be allowed to say that since I have travelled and agitated in Scotland , I have not touched the funds of our Association , in any district ( if they have any ) , saveland except when among my warm-hearted friends at Dundee and Montrosa Thus I think 1 have done as much with as little means as any man in our movement . I shall now rest upon my oars for a month , to get round , and to firmly establish one or two litte spots about BoxbuTgbshire . I shall then be ready to serve any locality that may send for me , " funds or no funds . " Tour ' s , T . Dickeksok . Commercial Inn , Kelso .
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THE STRUGGLE . Whatetkh notions the Irish people and their leaders may have entertained as to the probable issue of the Repeal agitation in the restoration of the Whigs to power , there can no longer remain anj doHbts as to the tactics and the intentions of the Whigs themselves as a body . We needed not the new-born patriotism of the old members of the « ld Whig cabinet and their unprincipled followers j we required not the sudden ardour with which the Irish
liberal members have been inspired , to convince us j of the length that this greedy * ack of mongrel poli-1 tidans would go , to thrust their muzzles once more into the meas-trough , or to teach us the amount of confidence -which the people could place in them , j Ardour , zeal , and large professions are baits , how- ] ever , with which the ineantioHS are likely te be , caught ; and therefore it has become our duty to float it upon the surface , so that every fish ma ; see the hook and avoid fhe nibble . W « did inot require the exuberant piofessions of Russell , Macaulat , j
Pjllmebston , Roebuck , Chables Bullkb , and ; others , to convince us of the lengths to which the " outs" would go to get" in" again . W © needed not ; the high-flown patriotic sentiments of the Irish section who reviled ub , who coerced us , and who j would have crushed na , until every drop of Chartist blood had been squeezed out of us , to teach us the effect that altered circumstances . will have upon vicious politicians . When -we bear in mind the funeral procession that bore the bleeding corse ' of Ireland to the foot of the Throne , when the Irish
people followed it as chief mourners , and the Whigs attired in their Windsor uniform , proceeded it as a joyons festival , we require no further proof of the hostility of that party to the " concessions" required by the Irish people . When we bear in mind that the first act of Lord Plcsket , Lord Gbkt's first Reform Lord Chancellor , was to dismiss every Deputy Lieutenant and Magistrate who presided over or took part in the anti-Tithe agitation of 1832 , at a time when Starlet , the Secretary for Ireland , declared that the " toial extisction of Tithes "
was one object to be accomplished by the Reform Bill ; -when vre recollect that the Hon . Fiehce Btttlkb , Sir Rjchabd Kagle , Mr . Jakes Redmond Bakke , and several others , were deprived of the Commission of the Peace for taking part in that anti-Tithe agitation ; when we recollect that withoul any agitation whatever existing for a Repeal of the Union in Ireland , the Whigs gave us the most bloody Coercion Bill that ever disgraced the statute book , by which they suspended Trial bv Jury , and substituted that of Court Martial ; ; when we
recollect that thej gave us an Irish Arms Bill which differed but slightly from the atrociops measure now before the House ; and when we- bear in mind that all these cruelties were contended for as necessary to prodnce a calm in which justice should bo administered : when we recollect' all these things , and find after ten years of boasted calm of Whig creation , that the Whi ^ s have no better stock of complaint than the existence of every grievance which was promised to be remedied , we say they had
; ! < much better hold their peace . We find an announcement in the Times of of Tuesday last of a meeting thai took place at th » house of Sir Benjamin Haix , Whig member for Marylebone , and a baronet of Whig creation . It will be found in- our eighth page , and will be read with the interest it deserves ; I and most especially the speech of Mr . Wtsb , ' the Whig member for Waterford , from : which we cull the following sentence for special remark . Mr . WTrE says : "NOW WAS THE TIME TOR
ENGLISHMEN TO SPEAK OUT . BUT UNLESS IT WAS THE WEALTH , AND THE INTELLIGENCE , AS WELL AS THE NUMBERS , IT WOULD BE BETTER NOT TO MAEE THE ATTEMPT . " It will be further seen that the only resolution of the meeting was to present an address to her Majesty praying her to dismiss her present ministers from power . This is the first stone directly thrown front the Whig camp ; and we shall most anxiously watch the Repeal agitation to see whether or no it has hit ! 1 If Mr .
Wtse supposes that the numbers are to be led in the train of wealth and what he is pleased to call the intelligence of the country , he will find himself most egregiously mistaken 1 The wealth ib injheindustry of fee working classes , while intelligence belongB pre-eminently to their order . ThiB is a " newmove * 'j the newest of the " New Moves , " and one which the people will require all their watehfulness to guard against , as emissaries are already abroad endeavouring to prepare the public mind for such & result . The Chartists , however , have now acquired a distinct position for themselves as a party ; and it iB only by making a proper use of that position , that they can
hope to exist as a body . Should they now be foolish enough to join in a kind of secondary Repeal Agitation , which would have no other object in view than the restoration to power of England ' s and Ireland's bitterest foes , they shall do so after cantion . They shall not blame us for any evil results that may follow . As far then as regards the declamation Jof the Irish Liberal Members and the hangers-on of Whiggery we tell the people not to be led away by their sophistry , orto be gu - ' led by their insolence J but wherever a resolution is proposed to present an address to her Majesty merely calling upon her to dismiss her present advisers and the Parliament , let them move the following as an amendment : —
To present an address to her Majesty praying that her Majesty will diHinii « her present advisers and call to her Council such only as will be pledged to carry out the details of the People ' s Charter , and to Repeal the Legislative Union between Great Britain and Ireland , in accordance with the wishes of the people of that conntry 5 and further graying her Majesty to dissolve the present Parliament and to iESue her royal commands 10 the several Sheriffs of Counties , and to the returnm * t-fficers of CiueB and Boroughs , to return member * elected by the whole people according to the principles laid down in the People ' s Charter and demanded by 3 , 500 , 000 of her English , subjects ; said farther praying that ail political prisoners , whether at home or abroad ,
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shall bo restored to their families , their country , « nd their friends , and that justice shall be done to all those who have unjustly suffered legal persecution for demanding a redress of those grievances which are now generally admitted to exist . " If the recent discussions in the House of Commons upon the Bubject of Irish grievances has taught us the : amount of justice which that country is likely to receive at the hands of the Tory Government , it has ; further taught us that aB the cricket system is to be played , the Whigs are better H out " than "in , " watching the wicket . In their day , the
best evidence that could be adduced for the coercion of Ireland was one old ballad ! while taking advantage of Whig precedent , the Tories rely upon a whole book of songs . The only difference between the two parties is this : that while the Whiga were "in , " the Tories not only did not oppose them , but joined them in their every act of recklessness J while upon the contrary , the Whigs , when " out , " are upon the watch , and give us , at all events , the benefit of their opposition . The English people know that the Whigs and Free Traders would squander blood and treasure to any amount before they would consent to enaot the jPeople ' s Charter . The Irish people know that they have pledged themselves to resist the Repeal of the Union to the death : and from this
knowledge the people of both countries mast come te the conclusion that any junction between Chartists and Whig 3 must be destructive of Chartism ; while any coalition between Repealers and Whigs must annihilate all hope of Repeal . Justice to Ireland cannot be recognised in patronage ; it can only be developed in representation . Justice to England cannot be recognised in the principles of Free Trade , or Charch Reform ; it can only be effected by popular representation . We have thought it essentially necessary to be thus explicit upon the subject of this new dodge , because we are aware that at a time of general excitement those who are not steady in principle will be easily warped to the side of extravagant profession ; and that the Whigs and their emissaries will have recourse to all available
means for creating a reaction , base d upon extensive promises , no man can doubt . If , however , the people suffer themselves to be duped , they will learn their first lesson in folly , from . the spirit of viadictiveness which will be evinced iu their annihilation as a political body . Should this trick succeed , the insincere of all parties would allow their senseless , frothy agitation to subside into a temporary calm for the purpose of bringing their united forces to bear against Chartism , which contains the only whole political principle worth contending for . Wo have now done our duty ! it is for the people to do theirs !! and if evil should come from neglect ; of our advice , let the charge be saddled upon those who read our warning but eschew our counsel . We feel convinced
that many warm-hearted Irishmen amongst us may be led away by a belief that the Tories only stand in the way of a Repeal of the Union , and that consequently every act of opposition to them is calculated to advance the question . Our hope , however , is in the belief that Ireland herself has achieved too much strength , and has arrived at too supreme a knowledge of her own powers , to waste that strength and power in so slight a triumph as that of knocking down the Tory " wicket" and placing the "bat" once more in the hands of those whom it cost us bo much trouble to " bowl out , " and who , while in , pursued a career of " base , bloody , and brutal recklessness , unparalleled in the bloodiest ann&la of the bloodiest country . "
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THE CRISIS . Wb know not whether the physician who had foretold a crisis , and who , although he had prophetically described all those symptoms by which its approach , its character , and duration were likely to be characterised , would be held in much respect as a practitioner , if , when the crisis was over , he was unequal to the task of subsequently dealing with his patient . For years , yea , for scores of years , " crieises" have been foretold by our political physicians ; and they have come , some as predicted , shewing all the symptoms by which they were to be preceded ; but when the patient was to bo got
over the purging , the sweating , the blistering , the cupping , and the bleeding , it was then that the difficulty of restoring him to health , to strength , and to vigour presented itself . Our present rulers , then , are precisely in the situation of the physician in the latter case . They h&ro blistered and purged , and bled and cupped , and sweated the people , and have brought about that weakness which most ever follow such treatment ; and they are now unequal to the task of restoring the weakened frame of society to its once health ; position . Politicians , however , like other
professional experimentalists , are unwilling to confess the inefficacy of their own nostrums , and contend that the present condition of the people is a natural consequence growing out 0 / some natural cause over which practical politics can have no controul . We know , quota one , that the patient labours under Church deliriums ; we know saith another , that the patient labours under a very heavy rent pressure ; we know , quoth a third , that the burthens ot the state are heavy and hard to be borne ; while a fourth admits that those upon whose industry they must all ultimately fall , have been crushed beneath their
weight , from the fact of those who represent the property of Others having thrown them exclusively upon the shoulders of those who ivete not represented at all . If , then , these are the diseases under which the people labour , and if the connection between Church and State , which causes the Church delirium , iB to be held inviolate , as Sir Robert P £ el informed us no later than Tuesday night , there can be but little hope for any abatement in the symptoms of that portion of the disorder . If the rent pressure belongs , aa wo are told , to the "head morals " rather than to the head political , there is as little to be
expected by way of recovery from that chronic disease . If what is called national faith must , under all cirenmstances , be upheld ,. the patient must still continue to suffer under that portion of the disorder . It is some consolation , however , to find that things which were scarcely allowed to be hinted at Borne few years ago—and for hinting at which some have grievously suffered—are now spoken of , freely discussed , and admitted to deserve that character which good men have suffered for stamping upon
them . It not unfrequently oocurB that that convenient plea , necessity , must be stretched in a remedial as well as in the coercive direction ; and hence we find Sir RobebtPekl ultimately driven to the necessity of making tho following admission . He says : " the attention of the House had been called TO THKEE SORTS OP IBISH GeIEVANCES—THK SOCIAL , the Political , and the Religious . The Social , ob Agbakiaw , were not new Grievances ; nor was it possible fob the govebnment to devise anv immediate kimedy for them ! but if a
committee had been proposed fob 1 nq 0 iky into the Law of Landlobd and Tenant he would gladly have agreed jo that . " These are the words of the Prime Minister of England , delivered in his place in Parliament on last Tuesday night , —the most important admission ever made by an English Minister , and one which will not fail to have its due and natural effect upon the minds of the working classes .
Let us see what this admission amounts to . The Right Honourable Baronet teUa ua the grievances complained of ; but that it is impossible for the Government to devise any means to remedy the grievances ; however he will aeree to the appointment of a Committee to hear the grievances which the Committee canuot remedy . The admission , however , leads us to ask why Sir Robert Peel , as Prime Minister , has negketed to do that which if dono by another , he would not oppose ? If a Committee to enquire into the law of landlord and tenant ba necessary oveufor the childish purpose of hearing , seeing , ordering , and doing nothing , why did not Sir Robert Peel himstlf move the appointment of Eucn a Commit . eeJ Perhaps , the fair answer to this qne&tion may go far to exhibit Sir
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Robbrt Peel in that false position in which the confidence of his party has placed him : a position which he might have held by independence ; a position which he is about to lose from weakness . Our whole system has become so confessedly rotten that even J an . honest or well intentioned leader is sure to bring contempt upon himself by the tools that be is compelled to enlist in his service . Tbere is an old and in his ease a very pertinent adage : " if you wrestle with a sweep whether you stand or fall , you must get some of the soot . "
We presume that the . same chances may be calculated upon from embraoing as from wrestling ; and Sir Rob set having embriced the political sweeps of all parties , from the ranting Republican , the revolutionary Whig , and the constitutional Whig , down to the inflexible and stand-still Tory of the olden school , for the purpose of carrying on what he hoped to make a Conservative Government upon the principle of required reforms , now finds himself blackened by contamination , and damned by expediency . Could he hare hoped for a better result from the workings , the machinations , and the conspiracies to which he has been exposed in the
Cabinet , not of his voluntary formation , but of hia inyoluntary adoption ? When we see the three most important offices filled by pressed men , and not by volunteers , we must have considerable misgivings as to their interest in the success of their leader ' s undertaking . Sir James Ghah , h fills the most important office under the Crown ; and it is only by acting in complete opposition to his whole former life that he can hope for grace , for favour , or even for toleration frem his newly adopted party . He is cold-blooded , cruel , unrelenting , vindictive , and calculating , and hates Sir Robert Peel as he hates ^ the devil himself . Stanley fills an
office only second in importance to Graham s ; and Stanlet , the proud scion of the proud old house of Derby , but bends beneath expediency ' s sternest necessity in playing subordinate to the man whose father ; had the merit of making his own fortune . Stanley hates Ireland with an irrepressible , imperishable , and unextinguishable vehemence ; he loves the Church for the milk that he draws from her pap ; he defends that title which the land gives him as a politician ; he aspires to that elevation and greatness for which blood has been hitherto held an indispensable qualification ; and he knows that Peel has placed an extinguisher upon his hopes ,
and fetters upon his struggling ardour . For these reasons Stanley , too , hates Peel ; while he loves Geahah , as in fact our Home and Colonial Secretary may be and not inappropriately denominated the Siamese Youths . Stanley and Graham broke up he Grey Administration : and Stanley aud Gbauah will as surely destroy that of their present master . Seeing the power that the Lord Chancellor of Ireland has exercised , we must naturally attachjgreat importance to that high office ; and although we believe in the sincere attachment of the quondam republican Lord Lyndhurst , his benefactor , yet do we incline ( 0 think that an unchecked
license : to the old republican blood to flow without dread for the I 06 S of the good things of this life would overcome the strong feeling of personal regard . Peel is not altogether safe from the strongest affection which may be manifested , under prosperity , by the political children of his own nursing . Glad-STONK will stand by Peel as long as Peel can stand without him ; but the moment that the fitting time for separation arrives , that moment will Gladstone breatc from his leading-strings , and with a cool and calculating temper , and with a perfect mercantile knowledge , which so pre-eminently qualifies a man for distinction in this rule-bf-three country , he will
marohon at the head of the commercial and dissent interest , and , moulding himself to the strongest political party , will acquire the position of leader of the public mind , the object nearest and dearest to his heart . Suoh then are the materials against which Fbbl has to contend in sccresy ; while there is no cloaking the hurricane of unpopularity which is gathering round him from without , for tho very rea ' soas that we predicted long since , and which are , for opening the eyes of the people to the fallacies of the itinerant demagogue freetraders . If reference is now made to the letters of Mr . O'Connor upon the subject : of the Tariff and the Income Tax at a time when the whole press of the empire was silent upon the probable result of those measures , it will be seen , that so iong ago as March and April 1842
that gentleman predicted the very " crisis" which has now resulted from those measures , and the position into which they would bring the Prime Minister . He foretold the very amount by which agricultural produce would be lowered , and to whioh the value of hind would be reduced ; while he also predicted that those reductions would be of no value whatever to the working classes , whose wages would be commensurately reduced ; and he further added , that from the Charter alone could the pcop 2 o hope for any share is aoy benefit that was to be achieved by the Tariff ; thus not only predicting the M crisis , " but prescribing the subsequent treatment for the ) patient . All changes of all sorts , if beneficial , can be only so for those classes who , by representation , are enabled to turn them from general to class purposes .
We shall conclude these observations with an extract from a French paper , from which the gene * ral feeling of our friends abroad , as to our present position , may be gathered .
SPAIN AND ENGLAND . Le Siecle observes , that " Both Spain and Great Britain ; are in a period of crisis . " If may judge from appearances , -we should foresee a more ( extensive catastrophe foe our rivals beyond tbe channel than for our national allies beyond the Pyrenees . " The agitation in Ireland is each , that tho entire mass of the population is joining in it . O Connell has promised to have 3 , 000 , 000 of Repealers , and he has obtained them ; operatives , peasants , lawyers , proprietors , priests , bishops , all have risen at his voice . It is easy to see thdt this man is , morally , tbe sovereign of Ireland , and that with one word he may raise a tempest . *
" O . i the other hand , of the operative of Great Britain : there are 2 , 000 , 000 who are idle in workhouses —in those bastiles for labour where there 1 b no occupation to be had . The official returns of the indigent poor throughout England and Wales for tho year 1842 , state the poor within the workhouses to be 221 , 687 ; the exterior poor , 1207 , 402 " In : the same country the picture of corruption is not less hideous than that of pauperism ; we have traced it too recently to repeat It It is proved that iu no country are there committed more crimes , nor in no country are morals more depraved than in England .
" it is there that tbe Government , the Ministry , the two Chambers , and the Law Department openly practise venality j it is there that diplomacy is habitually destitute of all good faith ; it is there that there is a virulent dispute between three churches ; it is there that social order is attacked in its base by the Chartists . Add to all those causes of destruction that tbe British' army , whose province is to secure the administration of the laws , is numerically weak , scattered over the entire globe , and is composed in the proportion ef one-third of those Irish Catholics whom they are employed to repress . Do not forget , in floe , that England is crushed under the weight of a debt of more than fifteen milliards , and that henceforward it will be impossible for her to add to her taxation .
" In i Spain , on the contrary , if there exist some of the causes of the derangement whisli is visible in England , there are at leaat unity of religious faith , richness ef soil , which is sufficient for the wants of all , in general an honourable character , and a material force resulting from her admirable position between the two seas which -join the bariler of the Pyrenees . "Ttie prosperity of those two nations is necessary for ttw future tranquillity of Europe . Whatever may be ouri cause of complaint against ; the most powerful , we trust that both may weather the crisis in -which they are at I present placed by useful reforms . Spain will draw the strength she requires from her own vitality , and England , endowed with inconteatible energy , has need only to eaiarge the popular rights in or . ler to maintain herself for a longtime against tbe wfcigbt of her tottering empire . "
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days ago a revenue cutter captured , off Cape Grinca , a boat * with three men » n board , containing bales of cotton-thread , tulles , and Blockings , amounting in value to £ 10 , 000 . Each bale had straps , bo as to tcake U portable as a knapsack . The boat and its freight wore brought into Boulogne , and sold on condition of the goods beiu ^ re-exported .
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THE MARYLEBONE DODGE . It wiH be seen from an announcement made in oir present Dumber that the meeting at Sir Benjamin Hall's house was but the precursor of a public meeting which is to be held on Monday next , in the borough of Marylebone , ostensibly for the purpose of discussing Irish grievances , bat in reality with the view to restore the Whigs to power . If Marylebone , however , claims any political pre-eminence- in its representative quality for having returned a fighting sailor and a Whig baronet , it is also distinguished for having throughout the most trying times preserved a high character for public principle and
political boldness , under these circumstances we might well afford to leave the Whigs and their followers to be dealt with on Monday next by the working classes , who , while in power , they so cruelly deceived and brutally oppressed . As however we are aware of the use that will be made in other parts of the country by a Whig triumph in Marylebone , and as the local drones may have a blighting effect upon the local bees , we would strenuously recommend the friends of freedom in
the Charter , to send their battalions from all parts of London to aid and assist in making tho triumph of democracy so complete that its enemies will not again dare to mock us by false promises , and so woo us that they may be able to crush us . Marylebone has been the sceno of many a glorious Chartist triumph ! Let that of Monday be added as another to the number ! Tho riding-school , the workhouseyard , the institute , ' and the several other places of meeting , have frequently resounded with the shouts of triumph : let them be heard again on Monday
and let the amendment , which we have elsewhere recommended , be ( committed to the hands of the Admiral and the Baronet as the sense of the men of Marylebone , to be delivered into the hands of the Queen . And let them see that this service on their behilf shall ] be as well performed as those which they boast of having so faithfully rendered to the electors . Above all let them take care and have fair play : and in order to ensure it , let them appoint an honest , brave , and cool-headed working man to take the chair . Surely , if the meeting is for the benefit of the peopld , this is a step that all parties must acquiese in ! The time is come when Chartists
must oot onjy be watchful but brave ; as the people may relyj upon it that those who lay claim to extreme liberality , are as much opposed to the Chartists and their principles as the most rampant Tory to be found on earth . We must now organize ! organize . ' . ' organiz )!!! fora dissolution of Parliament ; and should we be driven to another election under the old system , we must take advantage of the pressure of the times to insure the restoration of all expatriated Chartists , and the emancipation of the imprisoned : while for the general conflict we must so marshal our forces as will ensure the return of such a > knot of veritable Chartists as will sit With the Speaker and rise with the House , pledged to the non-electors by bond
and oath to restore their trust when called upon , as a means of ensuring the honest discharge of those duties which they { undertake to perform . There would be no better commencement to such an organization than the triumph of Chartism amid the general confusion of politics ; and there would be no place which could [ give greater influence to that triumph than the adoption of the amendment we have published , by the good people of Marylebone . It would give both j factions a taste of that share which the people themselves intend to have in all future changes , while it would inspire the Chartist body with a new hope and vigour for the coming campaign . j
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My Friends , —I have before been put to the extremo pain of re ferring to the differences which exist between me and the Editor of the Northern Star , with reference to Dr . M'Douall . I had reason to hope that if those differences could not be reconciled , you would ba spared from the frequent recital of them . From the article which appeared in last week's Star , however , under the head " Notice to Correspondents , " my hope in conciliation was wholly destroyed ; and nol alternative remains to me but that of publicly expressing my disapproval of the
course , and disbelief in the charges against Dr . M'Doual . Nothing can be farther from my mind than fora moment to deny the right of every man to express his own opinion fully and fairly ; and in order to get myself rightjwith tho public , I shall exercise that right and I trust calmly myself . I do not then subscribe in any , the most remote way , to the denunciation of Dr . M'D ' ouall . For myself , I will add , that J respect him for his talent , I honour him for his patriotism , and I have full confidence iu his integrity , while as a friend I have the most affectionate regard for him . With these feelings , and entertaining them I trust — —~— ¦ - — -w ~ — - ^ ^ v ~— 1 ^^ - ^ j — — 1 — — — - ^ ^ —m w w » — ^^ v ¦ ¦ ^ H ^ ^ ^ p ^ - ^ T K ^^ t ^^ ^ « *^* ^ rf W
strongly , I could not submit to be branded as a hypocrite for tolerating abuse of him , or as a tool , not being able to resist it . I feel convinced that I have taken the proper course for the protection of my ovra honour and my friend ' s character , by thus taking the earliest opportunity , after the recent provocation , for making this explanation ; while at the same time I am resolved that upon the issue no contingent evils shall ; spring . You are not to infer from this that any other difference whatever exists between me and Mr . Hill ; while he , I feel assured , will concede to me that right which he has very freely exercised himself .
From my disinclination to say more upon painful subjects than is necessary to servo my immediate purpose , I abstain , for the present and for ever , from further reference to this most painful of all painful ones . And remain your faithful friend , Fearqus O'Connor .
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The Carpenter ' s jHall Chartists , Manchester —This morni ? ig * s post ( Thursday / brought an address from the Council of the Carpenter ' s Hall Chartists , in reply to the notice in last weeks Star ajfec . ing them . Mr . Hill , who is personally alluded to in that address , has been this w . ek in very indifferent health , and ] so much engaged in making preparations far fttis tour through the country , that he has spent scarcely any time at the Office ; and consequently the entit'e arrangement , and indeed nvanage ment of the papery has fallen upon my shoulders . I have not an opportunity just now of consulting him ; and as J presume this address Wilt not be inserted without explanatory remarks , I have withheld it for
the purpose of putting it into his hands . In thus acting I assure the Carpenters Hall Chartists that I havz no intention either ^ to offend or to interfere ; I merely act as duty dictates , under the peculiar circum ~ stonees . | J . Hobson . ' E . Wilks , Cheltenham , desires us to amwer the following question : — " Which are the cheapest and best 6 oofcsi to give an ignorant person a general knowledge of his rights and duties an a citizen ; the object , nature , and duly ef Governments ; the reforms necessary in our Government ; and the tpay to gel it reformed ; and some general knowledge of Political Economy ? " The works we would ^ recommend are , Paine ' s Right ' sof Man ; Paine ' s Dissertation on First Principles of Government : Paine's Common Sense ; Paine ' 8 Criais ;} and Paiue ' a Decline and Fall of the English System of Finance 1 also Cob be tt ' 3 Legacy to Labourers ; Cobbett ' s Poor Man ' s Friend ; Cobbett ' s Paper against Gold ; and Cobbett ' s Advice to Young Men . For , the " Refcrms necessary in our Government" read the People's Charter ; and , "for the way to get it Reformed" attend to the teachings of the Northern Star . For a general knowledge of TRIJE Political Econrniy ^ read Bray's Labour / s Wrongs , and Labour ' s Remedy ; WiUts ' s Facts and Fictions of Modern Political Economists ; Atkinson ' s Principles of Political Economy ; Gray ' s Social System ; Gray ' s Remedy lor the Distress of Nations ; oastler ' s Fleet Papers ; Owen ' s Memorials to the A j Uied Sovereigns ; and Owen ' s DevelopemeRt of the Principles aad Plans of Home Colonies . ! Mr . Wilks states that he asked the question of the Editor of the Noncoul ' ormist j but received Jor answer that " he could not answer" Above he has our answer : and if , when he has fyad and grounded himself in the principles the works specified teach , he is not a wise man on the subjects enumerated , it is not in the power of eh ? iilt » g books or bgQk ~ reud \ ng la make him so , I
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William FaiebuhK , Wednesburt , desires all who may have monies in their hands , for the aid and assistance of the lava-made widow . Etas , to send an account of the same for publication , that the amount collected may be ascertained ; and the money applied , either in one way or other , to the relief of the present pressing necessities of the widow ' s ease . COBRECiiON . —In Air . Cleave ' s list of subscriptions last week , one Hem was set forth as from Mossley Lincolnshire . It should have been Lancashire . The Martlebone Chartists desire the address of Mrs . Richards , as they have some money for her . A . Sincere Friend , at Uswobth , writes to the
pitmen of the Tyne and Wear , bearing testimony to their great and glorious demonstration ofSaturday last , when , as he says , "fiveand-twenty thousand mm , with their sixty or seventy banners . fluttering in the breeze , and accompanied by their bands of music ? assembled loMarfrom one another the cause of their manifold grievances . But while he is pleased to be able to report most favourably as to the general order and decorum of the procession , he must reprove for a practice at the meeting , which , if not stopped on future occasions , may lead to great mischief . He speaks of the practice of drinking on the
ground , from ale-carts and waggons ; and the practice efthe bands playing while the proceedings of the meeting are being carried on . Both practices , he says , interferes with good order ; and give the enemy occasion to speak ; while the farmer may be used by the designing for the accomplishment of most nefarious schemes to defeat the object of the working men . Amongst a sober people there is little chance of a riot or tumult being incited : with a tipsy crowd nothing more easy . He would advise that the parties calling large meetings should see to these things for their own protection . C . F . Stollmetee . —We will see what can be done in
our next ? Henry Higson , on behalf of the Chartists ofColne , writes to say that William Smith , who was arrested during the STBIKE-OUTBBEAK , at Skipton , in August last , and sentenced to twelvemonths ' imprisonment in Wakefield House ef Correction , will be at liberty again about the middle of August next ; and his ' friejids are desirous to give him a public entry into the town , as a mark of respect for his virtues as a good citizen , a good father , and a good Chartist . To this end they desire the cooperation of every lover of right . A meeting is to be holden in the Chartist newsroom , Windy Bank , on Sunday , July 30 / A , to make the necessary arrangements .
J . L . Ambler , Ambler THOBH . —TFe are sorry that we cannot oblige him ; but the calls upon our space are so many and so urgent , that it is very little indeed we can devote to mere Essays or Disquisitions on abstract questions . We rather prefer matter that 1 elates to present and immediate practical results . Robert Ashforth , Birmingham . — We know not of the Advertisement he writes about . He had better consult some of the faculty in Birmingham . We are not friendly to Quacks . J . M . Leach , Hyde . —We cannot afford space for his long address to the master-manufacturers and shopkeepers of Hyde . We would advise him to
deliver it to them orally . Nottingham Female Chartists will see that we have omitted their" schooling" of Miss Susannah Inge . We must not have the women ** quarrelling " : the men make " mess" enough . The notice last week was quite sufficient . A Constant Reader , Hull , should have given his name . We shall hand the letter over to Mr . West . Ft would have been but fair , too , that a " Constant Reader" should have ascertained from the party himself , whether the sum he speaks of had not been sent , before he wrote his ** suspicions" at all . Isaac Hoylb , Kirkdale Gaol , shall have attention next week .
The Poor Law at Wabrington . —We have another communication from the person signing himself " Washington , " not only reiterating his former statements as to gross and scandalous treatment pursued towards the inmates of Warrington Workhouse , but assuring us that his account of them is far from being as strong as it might truly be . We much regret that ** Washington" has not given us his name . In these matters , and with charges of cruelties so incredible as he detai ls * it is but fair that those who wish us to publish that which might bring us under " the lash of the law , " should at least give us an opportunity of ascertaining their own credibility , and how far we might be justified in trusting ourselves to
make statements en their responsibility , —which is , as we sometimes have been dearly made to know ,- ^ no responsibility at all . We therefore can but still treat this matter as an attempt of the enemy . " Washinston" details much that he has done in the Chartist cause , and against the Whiqs and Tories of Warrington ; but he has not told ' vs who he is . He may be , for aupht we know , a Poor Law Assistant Commissioner , who wishes to have groundless charges of ** Poor Law atrocity '' published , that he may have a "job " of "inquiry , " and be able to demolish" the Jlimsy and infamous stories vamped up against " ¦ the Boon" —the rate-saving , comfort-distributing New Poor Law . " Washington" having
thus "fixed" us , we must decline to publish his statements : not that we would shrink from doing so , if assured of their truth . This we should do , regardless of all consequences : for we know that the only safely of the poor under tke present system lies in public exposure . The Press is the only power on the side of the people at alt dreaded by their persecutors and robbers : and we are prepared to run all risks in affbrdinq the poor all the protection that the Press can afford , when we have real grievances to detail—real actions to complain of or denounce Anxious , however , as we are to publish whatever can lend to alleviate or better the condition of the poor victims of tyranny , we cannot afford to go
" ¦ fishing" for sham instances of oppression ; or suffer ourselves to be imposed upon with fictitious narratives , if we can avoid it . Strongly suspecting that this is an attempt to so impose upon us , we naturally feel desirous to ascertain whether our suspicions are justifiable or not . We should therefore feel greatly obliged if some known friend in Warrington could help us is ascertain whether there are any grounds for one or two statements or allegations made by our correspondent " Washington . " We have ascertained , t , ince our last , that the Master of Warrington Workhouse has died very lately ; and that he died suddenly . These facts we gather from an advertisement in the Manchester Guardian for
a new master and mistress tin" consequence of the sudden death of the late master . " But what we are anxious now to get to know is : " Did the Guardians farm the old and young female inmates of the Workhouse to the Master , to be by him kept for the sum of ONE shilling and SIX pence per head per week" ? " /* it true that the food he kept them on was so thin . that the voung females could nol help but urine their " beds" ? ** Is it true that for thus doing , what they were physically incapable of preventing , they WERE FLOGGED" ? "Is it true , that on the 27 th ef June last , nine females were set apart to be FLOGGED by the Master himself ; but that before he had finished with the first , he fell down at
the feet of Ms victim , and expired in less than fifteen minutes" ? " Is it true that an old man , of the name of Taylor , more than seventy years of age , and so feeble as nol to be able to walk without two sticks ; is it true that this old , feeble man was refused admission into the Workhouse , and consequently drowned himself in the Sankey Canal , at a place called Buttermilk Bridge , on the evening of June 24 th fast" ? "" Is it true that about a month ago , a little girl was so hunpry as to crave a potato from the old woman who had the charge of boiling them ; and that she was discovered eating it in the yard by the ma&ter ; and is it true that he forced the child to tell where she had gotten it ; and then , after reprimanding the
old woman , is it true that he took another potato , hit from the pot , and went and forced it down the child ' s throat" ? " Is it true that that same CHILD DIED THAT SAME NIGHT" ? We Wish tO know whether these things be true or not : for toe don't believe them ; but believe that the sending of them to us to be published is a wicked attempt to mislead us . If it turn out to be so , we shall gladly aid in bringing to justice th" man who , by means so detestable , seeks to bring odium upon the Poor Law Authorities , and innocent people into trouble . The letters we shell preserve ; and * fj ° don't receive from some known friend in narrtngton , confirmation of the allegations made by the writerwe shall either place them in
, the hands of the Poor Law Commission rs , to be by them dealt with as they may think meet ; or tn the hands of a Member of Par It . ment , for Parliamentary inquiry . Mrs . Cooper , Leicester— A most energetic and stirring appeal to the Chartists generally , oh behalf of the husband bereaved widow , Coopeb , has beenforwarded to us , by Mr . Thomas Winter and Daniel Toon . They represent her as being in great difficulties arising from her continued illness , and her inability to attend to business She is in danger of being ousle * from her home
being in arrears with both her rent and rates . The bare mention of these facts will be sufficient to show Chartists their duly . W . Aitilen , late of AsHTON . —The Committee appointed to collect subscriptions Jor the support of the wife and family of Mr . Aitkcn , ( who had to run to America for the part he took in the strike-outbreak of August last ) , desire all those who h < ive books and monies to deliver them in , on or before Tuesday , the Zrd of August , either to the Committee itself , at the Chartist Roem ^ Charlestown , on Monday and Tuesday cvenings t or to Mr . E . Hobson , bookseller .
The Noetheen Stae. Saturday, July 15, 1843.
THE NOETHEEN STAE . SATURDAY , JULY 15 , 1843 .
©O Aseanen* Awn ^O Mjs Pofflrcttte. ;
© o aseanen * awn ^ o mjs pofflrcttte . ;
To The Chartists.
TO THE CHARTISTS .
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4 THE NORTHERN STAR , J ^
Wb. Learn From Boulogne Sur-Mer That A Few
Wb . learn from Boulogne sur-Mer that a few
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), July 15, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct490/page/4/
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