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at 1 Leeds :—Printed for the Proprietor, FEARCr^ 8 O'CONNOR, Esq., ol Hammersmith, ConatJ I ff J^I _ _—l- f-_~> V^V w w m m *~— .^___" I'flf^h fl^llCl
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VALUABLE WORKS.
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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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Just published , price 2 s . 12 mo . bound in cloth , TjlIFTEEN LESSONS ON THE ANALOGY £ AND SYNTAX OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE , for the use of adult persons wh o have neglected the study of Grammar . BY WILLIAM HILL . Also , Price One Shilling , bound in Cloth , PROGRESSIVE EXERCISES , Selected from the best English Authors , and bo arranged as to accord with the Progressive Lessons in' the foregoing Work , BY WM . HILL . Also , Price Fourpence , . THE GRAMMATICAL TEXT BOOK , for the use of Schools ; in which the bare naked princip le 3 of Grammar , expressed as concisely as possible , aw exhibited for the memory . Published by Cleave , 1 , Shoo-lane , Flee t-street , London ; Hobson , Northern Star Office , Leeds , ' Hey wood , Manchester ; and all Booksellers .
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-, LITERPOOL DEMONSTRATION . , _ * ( Concluded from our seventh page . ) Mr , CBwht , who was received with tremendous theera and waving of handkerchiefs on his rising , « ked leave , on account of the delicate state of his beallh , to be allowed to advance more into the centre of the meeting , and to occupy a standing on one of the tables . This was at onee conceded , and he proeeeded with his address , which occupied nearly two iowB in the deh ' Tery . He addressed them as men and women of Liverpool , and hoped they would not be offendedbecause he did not know a more
, honourable title in existence than that of man , nor did he think the females would frown because he bad not styled them ladies . He liked to be among the people—among those with whom he was always the most happy , and he was glad to see them there for a great variety of reasons . He referred to the imprisonment he had undergone , and to the Bnsuceessfal efforts which had been made for his liberation , although the inSuenee' of Tom Potter , the Mayor of Manchester , had been successful in the case of the Rev . Mr . Jackson . He mentioned this to contrast the influence of wealth
with that of the working classes , for while , two millions of signatures could not procure his release , one man liberated Mr . Jackson . When he first went to Lancaster Castle , it was attempted not only to place him in the felon sward , but to compel him to wear the criminal ' s uniform , both of which piece 3 of tyranny he had resisted and had overcome ; but he was thus thrown upon his own resources , and while compelled to provide his own maintenance , was debarred the means of earning fire pounds weekly , which he had had offered for writing for two newspapers . ( Hear . ) He had had much bad health , but had been enabled to weather out the storm ; ana all the time he had been in prison he had never set his foot on a board . —nothing but the damp
stone fleor , beades haying only one seat , and that a three-legged stool . _ After he had been in some time , by the interposition of some of his wife ' s friends , CoLYorke had waited npon the Marquis , ofNorxnanby , and remonstrated with him on the hardship to which he was subjected , particularly in beisg depriTed of earniag a livelihood by his pen ; to which Ms Lordship replied , Why , this O'Brien you Epeak of , is the most dangerous man in the whole partydecidedly themost dangeron * . ( Laughter and cheers . ) He then referred to the crime for which he had been sentenced , and gl anced , in the course of his long and excellent speech at the form of hid indictment—the recognizances ho had had to enter into previous to his liberation—the class legislation whish was the
foundation oiall the bad Government—the economy and retrenchment of ths Whigs for the ten ' years they had been in office—his return as the member for Newcastle , and a hint or two for Mr . Ord—his own lack of bodily strength—his exertions since his liberation , which , though it only took place four days ago , had seen him &dareE 3 no fewer than six public meetings . He told them what he had never told before , that he was put down by one of his own friends—( hear , hear)—it was quite true that he owed his prosecution to the rascality of one of the leaders of his own party—( hear)—he would not mention names , though he could do so , but such vras the fact ; he had fallen a sacrifice to a jealous feeling among those with whom he had acted . He then went on rapidly to glance at the proceedings of the late convention—explained his conduct on the
national holiday—referred to the proceedings at the Bull Ring at Birmingham—explained his conduct with regard to the advice which he was said to have given ( but which he denied ) to the people toTkrmand went through the Tarious topics discussed in his speech which we have so fully reported at Lancaster , aad which in some measure renders unnecessary a more detailed report of his speech here , did not a want of room , and of time , prevent U 3 from doing that justice to it which its merits demand . [ Our Reporter attended the soiree , and found- when he got there that the committee , not expecting him , had engaged a Reporter at Liverpool to furnish an account to the Star ; being unwilling to deprive uim of thfa engagement , an arrangement was made that he should send a full report of Mr . O * Brien ' s speech , which , on Thursday afternoon , we had not received , and were thus thrown on our own resources . ]
The next toast -was— " The ladies : may they become food instructors of the rising generation , " ¦ which waa drank with cheering . Mr . Ajcblkr , in a few observations , acknowledged the toast on behalf of the ladies , and regretted that at so lite an hour a question of so much importance could not hare proper justice done to it He eulogised the duties they wen called upon to fulfil , and hoped the -day was not distant when their influence and importance in society -would be felt and acknowledged . The Ch . u : b . ma 5 announced thathe had been reminded ¦ of the object for which the meeting bad been called , by having received from Mr . Ellis , the auctioneer , s > sovereign for the press which it was intended to present to Mr . O'Brien .
Mr . O'Bbiss protested against the meeting being converted to one of a pecuniary nature to himself ; it would detract from the pleasure he had experienced . He hid come there to receive honour , and honour he bad received . The Chaibjjas teen dissolved the meeting , and ¦ yhanYn having been voted to him for his conduct in the chair , the meeting separated at near midnight .
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T . HHI > S Mr . O'Co ^ 'Os mace his public entry into Leeds on Tuesday ; he arrived from Manchester at five o ' clock , and tt& 3 met on Holbeck-moor by such numbers as scarcely ever before followed in the train ¦ of hero or statesman . In fact , at no previous period have the principles of which he is the advocate been 50 triumphantly—so enthusiastically honoured as on the present occasion . The arrival of the patriot called forth a burst of cheering which made the neighbourhood echo ; while the joyous greetings ¦ with which he wa 3 individually hailed , stopped the formation of the procession to the town , and del ayed its arrival for some time .
A committee had been appointed to arrange the tnanner of his entry , to marshal the procession , and to get up the soiree ; and a very effective committee ihey were , proving , as at all other places where the " ** fustians" begin in right earnest , thatthev lack not intelligence to manage their own affairs ; out where all are determined to do their best , the management of even so large a party becomes pretty easy . This does aot , however , detract in the slightest degree from the merit due to the committee ; for if the management bscame easy to them their entire arrangements were nevertheless of such a nature as under any circumstances , to have produced a gratifving result .
So soon as the enthusiasm at the Moor somewhat abated , and the people had fallen back from fhe carriage in which Mr . O'Connor had taken his seat , then the procession was formed , and the trumpet sounded the advance—the head of the column being about half a mile before the carriage , and a dense mass occupying the entire road , the pace was slow , and the approach to the town was delayed beyond the appointed hoar . The procession was accompanied by two bands of nasic , and a large number of flags and banners , bearing the usual inscriptions ; and hundreds of persons were decorated with green rosettes . There were numbers of ¦ well-dressed females , also , whose presence seemed to far aish greater inducement to order- in the rougher sex .
At the time the procession moved there were not fewer than from fifteen to twenty thousand persons present ; but these numbers formed no comparison with those by which it was afterwards actually accompanied through the iotto , while all along the route , namely , along Meadow-lane , over Leed 3 bridge , up Briggate , down Kirkgate , along Yicarlane , up Lowerheid-ruw , down Brj ^ gate ^ along C-ompaercial-srreet , :-nd dewn Aibion-= treet to the Mns : c Hall , the windows and house top 3 were crowded with persons , particularly ladies , by whom
the approach of Mr . O'Conner was hailed by waving of handkerchiefs , green ribbons , < kc . The progress through the town was triumphant in the extreme ; the Whigs had ail shut themselves in back roomsthe Tories were silent as the grave—the Chartists were every body , and every body were Chartists ; at least every body did honour to the distinguished leader and chieftain of Chartist principles—repayiug him richly for the sufferings he had endured , and compelling him to the adoption of still greater exertions , for the obtainment of still greater conquests .
After the procession had arrived in Albion-street , which was so densely crowded as to be completely blocked up , Mr . O'Connor addressed a few words from his carriage to the masses by whom he was surrounded , and then retired until the company had beoome seated in the Music Hall , where the Tea and Soiree were to take place . THE TEA PAKTT AM ) SOIREE . About half-past seven o ' clock , half of the company , to the number of upwards of five hundred , being as many as the saloon would conveniently accommodate , being seated , Mr . O'Connor entered , and vfss received handkerchiefs&c
with deafg"i ^ g cheers , waving of ,. which lasted for some minutes ; he took his seat at a table with the Chairman ( Mi Brook ) and other friends , in the Orchestra , and the tea was served up , the tables hating been previously well stored with substantaals , for which great credit is due to the comaittee of management , and to those ladies under Trtuae more immediate snperintendanee the entertainment -was arranged . We should not forget to notice , bo tn * fr tta room was Tery tastefully decorated with KWflprMH . bouquets of flowers , &c No soon « r had tbe gOMfti at the tables partaken of tea , than they . ' Mttwdrt ^ faflthCT large party , who had occupied the
^ * jaBay , » oa innate-room , took their places , and it was MBdf ablcf o ' clock betee the tables were finally cdMM . ¦ As an accompaniment , tha Chairman an-, apMriftbat wfeik tba UiAe * van being cleared , Mr . ^ Sfi ?
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Duffy had volunteered a song . This he sung is good style ; it is his own eompostion , and is as follows : — MR . O'CONNOR'S WELCOME TO LEEDS . COMPOSED AND SOKG BT KB . J . DCFFTAl THE
S 0 IB . EE . Toae— " Rob Hop ifacffreotr , 0 ! Welcome , from thy living grave , £ » Te , bold O'Connor , O . ' The suffering Bullions come to save ; Brave , bold O'Connor , O ! Thrioe welcome here , thou best of men , The widows' kope , the orphan ' s frien' , Our country ' s pride , from hill and glen . We weloome brave O'Connor , O . ' Tyrants sought , but sought in rain , Brave , bold O'Connor , 01 Thy great and noble soul to chain ; Brave , bold O'Connor , O ! Say , have-they tam'd the lion's rage ? Or chang'd him in their Whlggish cage ? No , faith , they're not ; I will engage , For brave , bold O'Connor . O !
Long may he live to take his stand , Brave , bold O'Connor , 0 1 Among the " workies" of the land ; Brave , bold O'Connor , O ! May Heaven bless the sacred cause , And crown his efforts with applause , And gain us just and equal laws , Brave , bold O'Connor , 0 ! The prince of patriots is here , Brave bold O'Connor , O ! Brother Chartists rise and cheer Brave bold O'Connor , 0 ! Cheer him as an honest man , Despite of Whig or Tory clan , " My dear" Ray or " royal" Dan , We welcome bold O'Connor , 01 The conclusion of this seng called forth much ap planae , which having subsided ,
The Chairman introduced Mr . Westlakb , who presented an address from the associated Chartists of LeedB and its vicinity ; and Mr . Wm . Hick , who presented anotherfrom the Charter Total Abstinence Soeiety , from whom also a large and beautiful rosette , suspended by a broad green belt , was placed round hi * neck by two of the females . It was inscribed , * Universal Suffrage , and no surrender . " An address was afterwards presented from Hebden Bridge . The following are copies : —
TO FEARGUS O'CONNOR , ESQUIRE . Honoured Sib , —With feelings of delight and exultation for the adequate expression of which our powers fail us , the Chartists of your own more peculiarly adopted locality , the town and neighbourhood of Leeds , respectfully , heartily , and sincerely welcome you to the renewal of that personal intercourse which the recklessness of despotism has for a season interrupted . Permit us to express our grateful thanks for your long-tried , faithful , and ever ready services in the cause of freedom , and to renew the expression of our confidence that those services will be still continued ; that you will still battle for the cause which you have bo Jong , so powerfully and so nobly advocated—the cause of right , of freedom , and of justice for the working man .
Tyranny has done ite worst upon it ; but the good Providence of God has guarded you . Your life has been spared ; your fetters are now broken ; and your presence among the people will heal up breaches and dissensions where they may exist ; will raise the spirits of the drooping ; confirm the courage of the bold ; and so invigorate toe whole , that factious domination shall soon quail before us , and the reign of righteousness begin . Since you have left the tinsel of your own " order " to associate with us , we have wrought together as one . We receive you this day in earnest of
continued union . We renew our covenant with youa covenant of mutual service and reward . Yours be the service of struggling for our rights—your reward the proud consciousness of patriotism—our heartfelt gratitude—our children ' s blessings : ours be the task to uphold and strengthen you . Thus shall our march be irresistible . The flag of liberty unfurled Ehall wav « over the ashes of tyranny , and prosperity shall wait on justice . Signed on behalt of the Chartists of Leeds and its vicinity , J . Storehouse , Secretary .
. TO FEARGUS O'CONNOR , ESQ . Honoured Sib , —The Chartist Total Abstinence Society desire to express their unmingled satisfaction at again beholding you free , unmanacled , and nothing daunted in your glorious zeal for liberty . They hail your reappearance among us as an earnest of success , and they feel jour exhilarating presence to brace the nerves of their determination , and to urge them onward to increased exertion . We beg you , as au earnest of our love , as a testimony of our gratitude , and as a pledge of our attachment , to accept this simple emblem of liberty and purity , which we are satisfied must always be coeval .
Praying that the tune may speedily arrive , when your glorious efforts shall issue in the establishment , upon a legislative basis , of the Charter of our rights , and pledging ourselves to unceasing and continuous struggle , while we express an unreserved confidence in your gallaut leadership , which has already done much , we look forward to the speedy accomplishment of all our hopes—the establishment of the throne in righteousness , and the universal prevalence of prosperity and peace . Signed on behalf of the Leeds Chartist Total Abstinence Secie-ty .
TO FEARGUS O'CONNOR , ESQ . Mr Deab Sir , —At a meeting of the National Charter Association of Hebden Bridge , on Monday the " 20 th inst ., Robert Sutcliffe wa 3 unanimously appointed our delegate to represent us at Leeds , on Tuesday next , to assure F . O'Connor , Esq ., of our unabated confidence in him , as our political leader , and of our firm determination to persevere in the glorious cause of democracy . And we hereby pledge ourselves never to rest until the Charter becomes the law of the land . Yours truly . On behalf of the National Charter Association of Hebden Bridge , Henry Ba . rb . itt , Sub . Sec .
The Chairman then rose and said , they were well met on a most gloriously triumphant occasion , an occasion on which Leeds had shown its power—had proved to the factions that nothing less than their just rights would satisfy them , —that they were determined to have the Charter and nothing less . ( Hear , and cheers . ) All parties were ready enough to admit the existence of great distress—to admit that distress unparalleled prevailed at the present time , but they were not of the same opinion as to the source from whence such distress sprung . Some of them blamed the Corn Law 3 , and said they were the source of all the ills under which the nation was sinking—( hear , hear)—whilst others had a
different opinion , and laid the blame on something else . But the Chartists traced the evil to its proper source , and they sa \ d it originated in class legislation . ( Hear , and cheers . ) They said it originated in all laws being passed for the exclusive benefit of the few , and not for the many , —in the fact that every thing is protected except labour . ( Cheers . ) To remedy this universal distress , one party proposed to repeal the Corn Lawa ; but , whatever might be others' opinions , their opinion was , that the Charter , and nothing less , could ever restore health and prosperity to ihe country . ( Cheers . ) And thi ? , he | was proud to say , the people were becoming daiiy more and more determined to have . ( Cheers . ) He congratulated them that they were met to
welcome an unbought and unpurchaseable advocate of their glorious cause—that they had met to do honour to ihe now un- " caged lion" —Feargus O'Connor—( cheers)—and though they had a great deal to contend against with the- Tories in power , and the Whigs doing all they can to dispossess them of it , yet he caHed upon them to unite ; to lot O'Connor's motto be iheir ' s , " Agitate , agitate , agitate . " ( Cheers . ) He called upon them to rali y around him whose past conduct so well merited their confidence , of which he had proved himself so well worthy ; and with such a leader , and such a union as they had the power to form , success must be certain . ( Great cheering . ) He concluded by proposing the first sentiment , "The people , the source oi' all power . " The toast was received wiih great cheering .
Mr . Yevebs who had been delegated to represent the Huddersueld Chartists , responded to the toast . He was happy to see that the time had come when the people seemed to manifest Bouie consciousness of their power—that they at last dared to think and to act also . While their power was permitted to remain quiescent , they would always be the victims of oppression . Sj locg as they continued to exhibit themselves in the character of cringing slaves they would never lack a riding aristocracy to sit closely on their backs . ( Loud cheers . ) He was not a Chartist of yesterday . He had borne the battle and the brecza for 3 long period of time , he had advocated the principles of right and justice under the personal and living leadership of the
venerable Major Cartvmght ; he had enjoyed the happiness of personal intercourse with that veteran reformer in the year 1822 . He had since then Btood up in many coniiicts for the cause . He was now approaching seventy years of age ; but the gratification he bad experienced that day more than repaid him for all the toils he had passed through in a life of service . The speaker then went on to expatiate upon the influence of the female character , and to call upon the wemen , of whom he was glad to see so large a number pretent , to add their strength to that of their husbands , fathers , and brothers , TrmVing firm their phalanx against the enemies of right , and presenting to oppression an unyielding front The speaker sat down amidst loud cheers .
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After an air by the band , Mr . Daffy was again announced to deliver a recitation . ' fir ^ aaid * fa fed-bean one of those who had been imprisoned , and ' ebnseqae ' ntly ' be knew what the sufferings of the incarcerated were ; bat how severe soevei . bia own had been , it was no matter ; he was amply repaid by being present at the demonstraUonof that day , to congratulate in person the " uncaged" lion of all lions—the inoorruptibte patriot of all patriots . He waa about to recite to them a little doggerel of his own composition ; it was composed in prison , where he was denied the ate of . pen , ink , and paper , and it waa - suggested by having read some splendid cantos of Byron ' s Don Joan , and by thedtcumstanoes of a robin visiting his cell every morning , to partake of the crumbs of black bread which composed his food . He begged that they would excuse , therefore any inaccuracies in the composition , and take the will for the deed . Mr . Duffy then gave , in a feeling manner , an excellent poem of eighteen stanza * , which received , as it merited , the applause of the numerous
company . The Chairman then rose and said , that had he been in company of a party of either Whigs ox Tories , be might have felt great difficulty , in fulfilling the task which had been committed to him in proposing the next toast , and in calling upon them to respond heartily to the sentiments it contained ; but in the present company , knowing that they had got tfeargua O'Connor amongst them —( loud cheers)—he bad no suoh difficulty . He gave them , therefore , " The health of Feargus O'Connor , Esq . the unpaid ,. the untiring , and the unflinching advocate of the people , and . justice to Ireland , by a speedy repeal of the union . " Drank with tremendous cheering .
Mr . O'Connor was greeted with the most vociferous cheers on rising . When the applause had subsided , he said—Who would not go to York Castle for sixteen months ? ( Cheers . ) If that experiment which the Whigs so hopelessly have tried in vain , and if the Tories have in store for me a similar punishment for what I am doing , I only trust that a similar result upon my return to the people will await me . ( Cheers . ) Sir , before I make any observations npon the sentiment which has been bo enthusiastically responded to by all present , allow me , in the first place , to return an answer to those addresses that have been presented to me . To that which cane from the associated Chartists of Leeds , and was presented first , allow me to say , that from it I derive peculiar pleasure , and for this
reason ; that much of the time to which ifalludes has been spent among them in person , so that although other persons in other localities might nave taken my character upon trust , from the Whig press or from the Tory press ; although they might have been ready to give me credit for the character which it was said I deserved at Leeds , yet there can be no mistake about that coming from the men of Leeds—( cheers )—therefore to them I return my thanks , and I only hope that their confidence will be my retaining fee fcr the future , and that as it has hitherto ( through the very worst agitation , for I consider that the most difficult part of our wort has been accomplished ; for I have dragged the Charter through the mire , even in rotten Leeds ) I trust that iu future my conduct shall also meet their
approbation . ( Loud cheers . ) As to the address from the Chartist Teetotallers , I receive it with not less pleasura It gives me great delight and satisfaction to find that 1 have been driven from the place where 1 cradled the infant in the first instance from the pitiless storm , to such a pl&ce as this . At that time there was no other place open to me ; and willing to seek shelter anywhere , where nine or ten could be called together , it was that or nothing . And now our cause we agitate in Bober earnest , and in consequence of that it is becoming a terror to the drunken factions of Whig and Tory . ( Cheers . ) If I could connect the principles of temperance and moderation , I may say , although not belonging to a temperance society , I am entitled to that address . I know perfectly well that the cause of the
teetotal society being formed was in consequence of the baneful effects of moderation . Few men know how to use it ; but I , thank God , have had sufficient strength of mvad not to ailcw my judgment to become intoxicated ; and I think , although not a teetotaller , I can say what few men can say who have passed through the exciting life that I have done , that no man ever saw me tipsy since the day I was born . ( Cheers ) Having thus alluded to these two addresses , let me next turn for a moment to the ladies who have done me the honour to hang my principles round my neck . ( Cheers . ) Whether it was that I was not prepared for so great an honour or so gentle a touch , or whether it was that 1 had had for sixteen months the gallows always within my sight —( laughter;—or whether it was that I remembered
the prediction of the Birmingliam Advertiser , which said that I had mounted a ladder to a triumphal car , but that perhaps it was not the last time I should' have to mount a ladder—I don't know ; but I confess to yon that I did not like to feel anything so close to my neck . ( Cheers and laughter . ) However , when I turned round and saw the hands who placed this there—( holding np the rosette )—and the motto inscribed on it , " Universal Suffrage , and no surrender , "—( loud cheers)—I said , there is to be a suspension , but not of my body . That suspension is to be of all the factious opposition which has heretofore been arrayed , by the poor little creatures calling themselves middle classes , and upper classes , and shopkeepers , and Whigs and Tories , against the
mighty power of a mighty people . ( Hear . ) That opposition must cease . And why ? Because having beaten the one faction who thought themselves sufficiently powerful , by their union , still to hold the reins of Government , we have now brought them into our ranks ; and depend upon it that they will not adhere so much to their former principles , as to the means by which they themselves may be restored to office . ( Cheers . ) There are many of you present who will recollect my first appearance as a politician upon the Leeds stage ; you will recollect my after appearance among you ; and how , upon each successive visit , the Whigs told us that Chartism was losing ground , that the Radicals were among themselves divided , and that from their opposition no danger was to ba anticipated . How do they
treat us now ? If they find us strong they say that the Chartists are a weak , a divided , an insignificant , powerless bady , but if they want an excuse for their own bad deeds they Bay , it is not the want of the confidence of the people in tho Whigs which restored the Tories to power , but it was the Chartists . ( Laughter and cheers . ) See vrhat a thing the acquisition of this great power has become ; is it a thinij to be abused by a divided , inconsistent , and worthless party ? My friends , they should not have told us our own strength . Their great strength for j ears has consisted in the manner in which , through their organs , they have been enabled to persuade you of your ewn weakness , What was my first step in promoting this which has become the universal cause of the people ?
It was to overcome that p # wer which the press bad : to shew the men of Glasgow that the wen of Leeds were with them in spirit ; to shew the men of Nottingham , of Sheffield , of Huddersaeld , of Birmingham , of London , of Dublin—( bear)—of Bath , and all those of the same class in the other towns throughout the united kingdom , that among the working classes there could be only one view , that for their salvation there could be only one object w < # rth contending fcr . ( Hear . ) Year after year we saw the VV'bigs , while in power , obliged to feed their young by taxation , by commissions , and by places , and augmenting taxution according as the paupers belonging to the Whigs increased , as the law of primogeniture did not allow them to be otherwise provided for ; while the law
of population still went on augmenting the paupers in number . From that period to the present , what has been the result ? You had no King—that is , no monarch , living in London nine or ten years ago . You had no such person as William the Fourth reigning here in Leeds ; you were under the guidance and governance of King Baines—he yiaa the monarch of Leeds . ( Loud laughter and cheers . ) He was the monarch of Leeds , and it was almost dangerous for the monarch iu London to give his assent to , or withhold his assent from , anything that the King of Leeds thought proper to say . ( Renewed laughter . ) In fact , punishment did not always fall immediately upon the aggressor ; but if King William did wrong , the Queen waa threatened with the change of her sex : she was put into breeches . (
Increased laughter . ) I am now shewing you bow it is that thU local rule of tyranny has been so long , kept up . I am now endeavouring te shew to you that in each locality there was a petty tyrant who told the people that the passing of the Reform Bill was quite sufficient to redress all their grievances . From that time to the present , when you found out that the Reform Bill is a delusion , you began to waver in your allegiance to King Edward , and that mainly because you found he held out hopes and promises that he was unable or never intended to perform . He knew perfectly well that he , along with other shopkeepers and middle-class men , had an equal share with other bad men in what could be pilfered from the people ; he knew that there was no staple commodity for
those in his grade to traffic upon and speculate in , but what proceeded from labour ; and he said to those around him , if we cannot secure some of that to ourselves "we shall all starve together . ( Hear . ) Well , what did Edward Baines do ? As Boon as he made money by vending his spurious opinions , and although he professes to stand by his order , he refuses to give you any participation in the land . I have always thought that ¦ what was sauce for the goose was good sance for the gander ; and I have heard it said that many perssns , who are good judges , make the physicians taste the medicines they prescribe before they take them . What then was Edward Barnes ' s first step when he got money ? Wky , purchase a little bit of Chat Moss , that he might be a landlord himself . ( Loud laughter . ) Though he tells you that the land will not do yon any good , he took care to secure a little bit of it for himself
as soon as ever he bad the means ; nay , so convinced was he of the value of land , that he put up -with the very worst description that could be laid hold of sooner than be without ( Cheers and great laughter . ) And as to organic change , as soon as the Reform Bill is passed , what does Edward Baines do ? He turns to another piece of cajolery ; and though there is great great strife and dissension in his cabinet ; though there is for some time a great difference between Mr . Baines as " I , " and Mr . Baines as " «* eventually Mr . Baines declares for the Ballot . ( Cheers . ) One week he says , in his newspaper , the Ballot is every thing ; and the next week he says that the repeal of the Coin Laws , with the Ballot , will do all that is desired . ( Cheers and laughter . ) I am told that you had a meeting yesterday in the Cloth Hail Yard , and I am told that tke tricksters tricked you again ; and that instead
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of putting the amendment and the resolution , the Ghalrmajrpnt the MpeadmqDt twice , and then declared it carried . That cHairmanr an alderman , and a very singular man , though a Goodman too , also pot the resolution aftarwarda , and declared that both bad been carried . ( Hear . ) I mention this to you in order to show yon the next experiment that will be tried to breaku p tha Chartist ranks . Now , that the Whigs have lost their poirer , by their own tiickery , by their own . deceit , and their own villany , they will endeavour to hurl us once mote into an agitation which will have " cheap bread" and "high wages"for ita object I have heard a great deal of those men in my absence , and their speechea read prettily in Mr . BainesV paper , who La very ably represented here by a gentleman who
is taking no nottsof what lam saying . ( Cheers and laughter . ) In my absence I always read in the Mercury that whenever Feargus O'Connor presents himself , we always meet him fairly and fight the question out ; but whenever Feargus O'Connor is present I never see any of that ragged regiment which they have assembled from God knows where . ( Laughter . ) I never hear any of the rhapsodies of those gentlemen who declaim so feelingly npon the advantages of the "large loaf , " and " highwages , " and "plenty to do . " tfowthey may leave out that last point , for it is unfortunately a part of the portion of the poor man that he has too much to do . ( Hear , hear , and loud cheers ) In an address presented to me from Hebden Bridge , and which has not been read , they say , " We are
determined never to rest till the Charter becomes the law of the land . " I tell them that they can't , because there is no rest for the wicked . I tell them that they are system-made wicked men ; for those who profess a desire to give them a large loaf , have eaten up both large loaf and small ; they have not only eaten up the public resources , but have thrown themselves upon the public also . If this system be much further pursued , the publie will help themselves ; for hunger will break through stone walls , snd men cannot be kept honest by Act of Parliament ( Hear . ) But this Corn Law question is that npon which the Whigs will seek to elevate themselves , and keep out the Tories . It ia hard to deal with the sophistries of those who advocate the repeal of these laws . I wish I had some of them here ;
I never can get hold ef one ; they are like pigs with soaped tails , I never can catch one . ( Laughter . ) I have , in every shape , laid this question bare in all its nakedness before a well-judging and sbnnd understanding people . But let us take that common-sense view of it which b&s not been taken yet We cannot , on occasions ef this kind , enter so minutely into details as not to leave something for captious fools to cavil at But suppose you required fourteen millions of quarters of wheat , or any other quantity , for a year's consumption , and suppose you grew two er three millions short of the entire quantity , and that the want of that two millions greatly increases the price of the twelve millions that are left ; our object can only be to increase the supply so as to prevent that increase of price . But suppose
that those two millions are introduced from some foreign state , we not only reduce the price of the home grown corn , but to the same extent we make ourselves worse consumers of the products of our own trade than we were . The Corn-Law repealers would go all over the continent to seek up the deneient two millions of quarters ; but instead of doing that give me half a million of acres of land at home , and I will produce you the two millions required . That would not only make us producers of our own food , independent of foreign importers and foreign growers , but would also make us consumers of the value thereof in our own market ( Cheers . ) The great argument of the repealers is that it would make bread cheap ; but I beg you to remember that in the exact proportion that bread has been
cheapened , wages have been reduced . ( Hear . ) It is well known that whenever there is an increase of the demand for goods for foreign markets , there is a dismissal of rr .-inual workies , and an increase of machinery . If to-morrow they required ten thousand ship loads of your goods , new engines would be set up , and the workmen would be required to work double tides in order to meet the foreign demand . ( Cheers ) I leave those gentlemen that bone to pick , though they may tell you that they do not struggle for themselves alone , but for you . But do you see any of these men wanting a day ' s meal ! Do you see Mr . Marshall wanting a large loaf ? the man who , by reducing bis wages from 15 s . to 14 s . a week , can save £ 26 , 000 a year independent of the advantage arising from speculation
purchases of the raw material . ' That is owing to the want of the Charter , and that is a fact which must bo impressed upon the mind of every working man . ( Hear . ) No matter what specious promises the Whigs may make in order to captivate the popular feeling and to get back again to office ; no matter what they may do , unless you have extensive organic changes , far ; well to every hope of redemption for the working class . ( Hear . ) We are now in a position that we never were before . I have dragged this question through the mire . Every political measure has to undergo its own share of slander and disapprobation . I admit that I was scoffed at and spat upon when I carried the little offspring under my coat in the dead of night ; and my excellent friend , Mr . Duffy , who has to-night entertained you to the best of
his ability , will bear in mind that six years ago , at Sheffield , they cried "Hurrough Pat , what brings an Irishman here ? " Have 1 [ not then lived downprejudice ? I go to-morrow to Sheffield , where , I can tell you . the same men who cried " Hurrcguh Pat , " in 1835 , will be among the foremost to say " Welcome Irishman . " ( Cheers . ) I started with reminding you of the great strength which the Whigs and Tories derived from the 8 ) stem of delusion they were enabled to practice upon persons in different localities ; and even yet the Leeds Mercury has not given up its old and flagitious practice . Yesterday , you had . I am told , from 1 , 200 to 1 , 400 persons assembled in the Cloth Hall Yard to petition on the subject of the Corn Laws ; and , you may depend upon it , that we shall have tbat cried up on Saturday ,
as a great demonstration , the numbers being increased in geometrical progression like the nails in the horse ' s shoe ; and if the gentlemen from that office to whom I have before referred , will do me the honour to attend , I will dictate leading articles for next Saturday ' s paper , both as to that meeting and the present { Cheers , and laughter . ) Now , I will venturs to assert that I shall either be booked for a prophet , or shall drive the Mercury out of its intention . You will see in tho Mercury all the speeches , with the cheers , and something more , at the Monday ' s meeting ; and , besides that , a long leading article , approving of the spirit of the resolutions , and tolling the faction that the proposer of the amendment was to be commended for having seen the necessity of sinking minor
differences , and consenting to sail in the same boat And you will have another article about the procession today ; for , if my eye did not deceive me , I saw some one in the cockloft of the Mercury Office , counting the numbers as they passed . They bad a man who counted the whole people who came to the Kersal Moor meeting , although they arrived by thirty-seven different roads ! and he made the number to be just 3 , 33 d . ' and I have no doubt but that in the next Mercury our procession to-day will be set down as consisting of 920 persons , twenty or thirty of whom "were women . ( Laughter . ) And thus they seek to deceive you . But presently thy day will arrive when the hosts of the Mercury will rise up in judgment against the deceiver , and say , had it not been for your falsehoods ,
we should have wedded the people to our cause ; but you persuade us , by lying and falsehood to wait till the time for something like union has well nigh passed by . That amiable , good-tempered , orderly , saintly , quintescenca of gentility and good-breeding , Mr . Edward Baines , says that tho Tories let me out of York Castle for the assistance I had rendered to them ; but the Morning Herald says that the Whigs liberated Feargus O'Connor to let him loosa at the Tories ; and the Leeds Mercury says that it is quite a shameful thing that Mr . O'Connor should now agitate against the repeal of the Cora Laws , when he voted and spoke against them seven years ago . In that , however , the Mercury Is quite mistaken . Now that the Whigs are out of power , their first move 'will ba , and it is
important to know it , to join in the suppression of Chartism . It may be said tbat the Whigs are dead ; but they are only dead to themselves as a party , they are not dead for mischief . They would rather see a majority of 200 Tories in , the House of Commons to-morrow than see thirty men of my principles amongst them . ( Hear . ) We have still much labour before us ; and I believe much of the onerous labour will fall on my shoulders ; and thank God , they are broad ( cheers ); and thank God they are strong ; and , thank God , I am of that constitution , conformation and form , that I neither dread the oppressors' threats nor the great man ' s scorn . ( Loud cheers . ) Some persons of my position in society would join with you at a general election , and court your popularity -when it served their purposes , but I
do not limit my co-operation to such occasions . I am always ready to shako the blistered hand , meet it vrhere I may . Neither do I do it for selfish purposes . I am always to be found among you ; always mixed up with your cause , and ready to advantage it in any manner that I think most condncive to its success . It is a dangerous thing , it has always been a dangerous thing , for a man to stand up energetically in the prosecution of a particular course , which has for its object the amelioration of the condition of the working classes . Yet I have made a just estimate of the danger which I run , and I am determined to persevere . ( Cheers . ) Have I ever once entered upon that one-sided course which faction has pressed rue to enter on ? Never , never , never . ( Loud cheers . ) Let me now inform you as to a certain matter , a portion of which you are cognisant of yourselves . You recollect the demonstration which was made in the middle of the snow in the dead of last winter , when the men and the
women from distant parts crowded to Leeds in order to do honour to the principles ef the Charter , and to meet their reviler ; you remember when the flax mill waa fitted up , almost like a theatre , and when the people were Marshalled under the auspices of the man worth two millions of money ; you recollect that night when the Whigs just really felt my power . I waa in a dungeon then ; I was the caged lion then . ( Cheers . ) And yet Mr . O'Connell , who did not vanture to come to Leeds , told the people of Ireland that I bad recommended the people of Leeds to assassinate him if he cane . ( Shame . ) I would appeal to all ofyou who know what I said and did , whether any one can say tbat I ever held ont such an intimation to any one ? I" No , never . ') Were not these my words— " They will endeavour to break the peace , but let every man be a policeman to preserve the peace . " My recommendation was to oppose the sUding scale of principle , and to accept no instalment
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of justice . At the Manchester demonstration , yesterday , the acene was a moat splendid one . All the trades came ont under their own banners ; such a procession was never seen there since Manchester was built ; and such a soence will never again be witnessed until I carry them the abstract of the Charter as the law of the land . ( Loud cheers . ) Bnt what were the circumstances attending this demonstration r Why , some days ago I received a letter from a repealer , saying , that in case I went to Manchester , I should be assassinated , even if 6000 Irishmen fell in the struggle . Last week they were invited to assemble in Carpenter ' s Hall , by placards , which clearly pointed me ont as on object for assassination . They asked in large letters , " who incited the people of Leeds to assassinate
Daniel OConnell ? " and then they answered the question in still larger letters , " Feargns O'Connor . " Notwithstanding this , the working men of Manchester met in thousands to welcome O'Connor in Stevenson ' ssquare . And sure enough O'Connor was there to meet them . ( Cheers . ) Though I had the letter in my pocket , nobody had heard of it till I had got into Stevenson ' a-square ; and when I arrived there , I stood np and asked for the assassin . ( Loud cheers . ) But there was no assassin at hand . I knew that no Irishman could be brought to perform so vile a deed . I did not more shew my courage in going there than I showed the opinion that I held of my countrymen . And who were the parties that flocked round the
carriage for the four miles of procession ? I scarcely heard a word of English ; it was all Irish . ( Hear . ) Bat mark the moral . If I have escaped whom have I to thank ? But if I had shrunk from going what would have been the consequence ? Why , that I should have received similar letters from Leeds and from Sheffield , and from other places which I might propose to visit , and thus tbere would have been an end to the Chartist cause . ( Hear , hear , and cheers . ) And now hear what was the result We had a very numerous teadrinking which lasted from six o ' clock till near midnight , for the tables were replenished with guests more than three times over . We had manufacturers there , middle-class men , and shopkeepers , for
" A fellow feeling makes us wondrous kind . " And what waa the consequence of my refusal to attend to this intimidation ? Why , a deputation from the Repealers , saying tbat they agreed with every word that fell from me in Stepheuson's Square , and that now they would join the Chartists . ( Loud cheers for some time . ) What does all this mean ? ( " They join us 1 " ) They join you . What ! and you cheer at it ? You ? ( ' « Yea . " ) What ! the working men of Leeds join in cheering at the union with Irishmen ? ( Loud cheers . ) Well , you astonish me ! and I do lack words to express not so much my astonishment as ray delight What ! you , the " enomies of the Irish working classes . " , ( Never . ) What ! not for *• seven hundred years th » enemies of Ireland . " What ! not" the men
who gave a Coercion Bill to Ireland ? " ( No . ) What not th » men who support the power of the law cirarch ? ( We have no power . ) Well ; that is the very answer that I have been giving for the last ten years ; that you have no power to do anything ; and that if you had , it would be applied to make Ireland a nation instead of a province . After some further observations on Irish topics , Mr . O Connor reverted to the subject of Anti-Corn Law Agitation , which he said had been set on foot by the League with renewed vigour for the purpose of harassing and annoying the new Government . And he entered into lengthened details to show tbat it would be immensely to the advantage of Great Britain to encourage the growth of corn at home , rather than to sanction its being imported from
other countries . He wished for a more extended cultivation of the laud and an increase in the number of domestic farmers , as he was satisfied that an occupier of five acres of land would not only be able to pay a reasonable rent , but to save as much at the year end as would equal the rent and the value of the labour expended on the land . In conclusion he said—My friends , neither misinterpret me when I go away , not misunderstand me in our communiajs one with another . What I say is , that bo power on earth—that no power of man shall ever induce me , by bribes , by coercion , by persecution , or by intimidation , to give up one single fraction of one fractional part of the whole principles contained in the People ' s Charter . ( Loud and continued applause . )
The Chairman said tbe next toast did not require any comment to recommend it . It was , " Th ? Charter , and may it speedily become the law of the land . " ( Great cheering . ) Mr . Peter Hoey , of Birasley , was received with cheers , and responded to the toast . This was , he said , tbe pleasantest evening he had ever spent in his life , and he rejoiced that he had travelled to Leeds to be a witness to their devotion to the principles of the Peopla's Charter . He was delighted for two reasonsto witness their enthusiasm , and personally to repay tbe compliment to his eloquent countryman for the eloquent manner in which he had ever advocated the people ' s rights . He had been imprisoned for his principles , and he could assure them tbat his opinions had
not been in the least changed l > y his imprisonment ; but he stood before them a better Chartist , if possible , than he was before he entered the dungeon ' s gloom . ( Tremendous cheering . ) Since his liberation be had visited bis native country ; that visit had not disappointed him ; nay he was delighted to have to announce to them that the great principles of the Charter were steadily progressing throughout Ireland . ( Tremendous cheers . ) He had stood btfore a meeting of Chartists at Dublin , and he could assure them that were there no other society but that in all Ireland , it was enough to Radicalise ths whole of the towns in Ireland .
( Cheers . ) They were united—they used their influenceand it was not too much to say that with such a union and such powers as they possessed , it was impossible that the spread of their principles could be put a stop to . ( Cheers , ) He bad received a letter since his return which fully corroborated these statements , and which said that let what influence soever be exercised , it waa not in the power of any party to stop the advance of that little band . ( Cheers . ) He would not detain them further than to assure them that what he was , that would he remain , and that under no circumstances could a change be made in his sentiments . ( Greet cheering . )
The Chaihman then gave " The Chartist Candidates at the late general election . " ( Loud cheers . ) Mr . Wsi . Martin , of Bradford , was called upon to respond to the toast He said he was proud of being present on that occasion , not because Mr . O'Connor was there , but because tbe men and women of Leeds had that day shown so bold a front in favour of their own principles , proving to a demonstration that they were determined to shake off both the factions , and to take their affairs into their own hands . ( Cheers ) He was proud , certainly , to see the honour which was paid to bis countryman , —( applause )—because in honouring him they bad also honoured his uncle and his principles . ( Great cheering ) Mr . Bainea had on one occaaiea been guilty of telling the truth . He had said In a
letter that the people of England were determined to do justice to the people of Ireland . ( Hear and cheers ) He did not complain of tho number of Irish members , but of their quality , and he was quite determined to do his best to give them an opportunity of choosing members of their own—men who would advocate their principles , and who would be chosen on the broad ground of Universal Suffrage . ( Great cheering . ) They did not want men who would legislate for the church , or for a profit mongering faction , —( hear , hear , ) —but men who would legislate for the whole country ,, and who would give protection to labour . ( Cheers . ) Governments were originally formed to protect the weak against the strong ; but by degrees , and in process of time , the aristocracy gained power , and used
the people as stepping stones for their own aggrandisement , —( hear , hear , )—and drew tbe labourer from Disinheritance , in OTder that they might obtain possession of it for themselves . ( Hear , hear , and loud cheers . ) But Mr . O'Connor had proved that he meant to restore to them that which they had been so unjustly robbed of . ( Great cheering . ) The speaker then went on to say that there was more land than was required to support tbe entire population of the country , from which he argued that were the labouring classes treated and employed as they ought to be , they would be so far withdrawn frcm ths manufacturing districts , and occupied in agriculture , as would render it unnecessary tbat females and children should any longer labour in those degrading rattle-traps , the factories , because the
earnings of the fatber would support tbe mother and her offspring . He could not endure tbat women should be any longer subject » d to the brutalities of over-bearing overlookers , or that children should have to endure the tyrant's lash . There were some amongst the middle classes who were better tban others , and there were also amongst the aristociacy some better and some worse ; but still these would not give the suffrage to the working classes for fear they should send men who were better acquainted with the circumstances of all classes to legislate for them in the House of Commons . He then went on to expose the pretended superiority of the aristocracy , who style the laoouring population the swinish multitude , and spent their over time in the company of prostitutes .
and other even more degrading ways ; though even they were obliged to admit that the working classes were respectable , and possessed great intelligence . The people were now getting too intelligent to be humbugged ; they were not so ready now as formerly to listen to the tales told to them at the hustings , and to shout in favour of tbe factions who were ensnaring ' them ; for they knew now tbat all the talk was mere humbug , and they were not to ba led away with it He ( the speaker ) bad been returned as the Member for Bradford at the last election by show of hands by a trenundoua majority , ami bad not the other parties demanded a poll be should have taken his seat . He re- ' gretted that at a period like this tUe privilege of voting
was vested in bricks and mortar , and not in the man ; and while the majority of those who lived in such houses , voted in the manner they did , the system could not be different Had the people the power , then would a different Bystem prevail , and labour would be the standard of the currency . ( Cbetrs . ) He exported them to unity , and to steer the same peaceful coarse they had hitherto done , by which the enemy would be prevented from plundering them , and the ; would be enabled to proceed on to victory . He warned them against being led away by spies , had it not been for them the people would ere this have been in possession of the promised land . He entreated them cot to slacken their exertiona on behalf of th » imprisoned
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Chartists ; and paid a high compliment to the tforflien Star and its Editor , bat foe whom the sufferings of those who had bees incarcerated would have been much mere severe , and , like Clayton , they might have been , murdered . His- blood still cried ont , for ven geance , and vengeance it would jet have . He thanked them for tbe patience with which he bad been heard , and congratulated them on their numbers and beat ing . He hoped what they had heard would be fan . pressed on their minds , and that they would go home with a determination to come forward and join their brethren in the struggle for liberty , by joining the Chartist Association ; and then farewell , along : farewell to the Mercury plU in Yorkshire .
Mr . Martin sat down amidst great cheering . The Chairman next proposed " The speedy return of Frost , Williams , and Jones . " ^^ - Mr . Skevingtoiv being called upon to respond to the toast , said—That after the achievement of the people ' s rights , by the establishment of the principles of the Charter , the object nearest his heart was the desire to see those expatriated patriots restored to their country , their families , and friends , per . sooally he was unacquainted with Williams and Jones , yet , through the medium of the press , he had learned sufficient of their characters to entitle them to his most strenuous exertions on their behalf . Of Mr . Frost he knew much : he had been a co-wo rker with him in the cause of political redemption—he had fought with him , side by side , in the oamDaum
against despotism , and he ever found him a man of sound principle and sterling integritv . Mr . S . after passing a high eulogium . upon the public character of the exiled patriot and urging upon the audience the necessity of exerting themselves to obtain tne full and immediate remission of the unjust sentence passed upon the three patriots , concluded by informing the men and women of Leeds , that being appointed lecturer of the East Biding with which tne Chartists of Leeds had identified themselves , he should have frequent opportunities of addressing them , and that as the time allowed for each speaker on the present occasion , was limited to fire minutes , he would enter more fully into the subject at some early period . Mr . Skevington ' s address was well received throughout , and he sat down amid loud and long continued cheers . .
The Chairman gave as the next toast— " The liberation of all incarcerated Chartists . " , Mr . Dufft was extremely happy both for his own sake and that of the meeting , that his time was limited to fire minutes . He was little used to address meetings like that ; but his soul mast have been indeed dead if , with the promptings of his } own experience he could hesitate but one moment to reciprocate the sentiment embodied in the toast . They were all now comparatively happy , their mirthful countenances bespoke a glee of heart , aed their joy at the reception of the lion from his cage , was a temporary overbalance for the sufferings and privations whioh they habitually endured ; but let him conduct them for a moment from that splendid saloon to the hells of Wakefield , Northallerton ,
and Beverley , where their brethren were languishing What was tne condition of ihe Chartist captive in those abodes of misery at that present moment ? He was then locked in his cell , and stretched upon his pallet to reflect a midst the gloomy stillness of tbe night upon the rampant reign of tyranny—to think upon his wife and or his little ones who mournsd his absence , and to curse , in inward bitterness , the iron which he felt within bis soul . If he should dsre tooncover bat hishands or to thrust his head from beneath the Whig blanket , it would be quickly noticed by a ruffian traversing the room in list slippers . " Hist S " would be all he would hear for that time ; the number of his bed would be taken down , and in the morning he would be had up before the Governor ;
and for the crime ( ' . ) fiercely reprimanded , and sentenced , it might be , to a day or two ' s solitary coufiuemeut , or it might be to a deprivation of a portion of his miserable food the next day . [ Great sensation was produced in the meeting by this pourtrayal of the miserable condition oi our suffering brethren . ] The speaker then went on to state that this was no fancy-drawn picture ; it , was one in which he had himself formed a figure in the foreground . The Whigs bad been mercifully pleased to remit a portion of his sentence . Why 1 because they imagined that by infernal tortures they had got rid of him . They had brought him to the verge of eteraHv . There were
those present who saw him and whoconld testify that his body and limbs were swollen to an alarming extent—his nervous debility and general state of health was such , that they thought he could not live more than three 7 eeks , and so they let him out to die . Thank God tVey were mistaken . He was now something like his own man again—he was there a living witness against despotism and class tyranny ! and by God ' s blessing he hoped to see their downfal , and to rejoice , not only at the liberation of his brethren now incarcerated ; but of the destruction of the foul system under which they and so many others hare been made to suffer . ( Loud cheers . )
The Chairman then gave as the next toast , " The Northern Star and the democratic press . " ( Great cheering . ) Mr . Hill begged , on behalf of the Northern Star , to thank them most cordially for the compliment they had paid that paper , in placing it at the head of the democratic press ; nor was it of course the less pleasing to him after the four years' service he had endeavoured to render them iu the conducting of that journal , to know that this was no idle compliment , but a simple acknowledgement of fact . If the sentiment upon which their proceedings had been based was correct in its expression ; if the people were indeed the source of all power , and that they were so was atruism universally acknowledged ; it was
surely then worthy of their best concern to consider how the real power of the people could be best and most efficiently exercised for their own benefit . In the absence of legislative means , which they bad supposed to be filched from them , there was no lever eo effective in the hands of the masses as a sterling de * mocratic press—and while thisexisted , and was rightly estimated and supported by the people , there could ba no daBger of permanent olass legislation . With the liberty to think , to reason to argue , to inquire , and to communicate freely the results of their cogitations , there was ever an amount of intellectual power in the people to devise the means of effectuating their redemption from enthralment . He hailed it , then , as one of the best tokens of the times , that ths people had now learned to estimate the value of the
democratic press . If there was any reason why the Northern Star should be by them placed at the head of that press , he would seek it not so much in any particular individual talent , or energy employed upon it , as in tbe fact that it was , it ever bad bees , and while under his management it ever should be , an essentially democratic organ—an organ recognising broad principles and universal rights alonean organ oi their own , in which the people could read their own minds , write their own minds , and see their rights asserted , and redress claimed for their grievances . It was thus that the Northern Star had become a terror to the people ' s enemies ; and upon these grounds he claimed for it a continuance of that upholding favour which could alone make it capable of tearing down the towers of corruption , and establishing the reign of
righteousness . The Chairman next announced that he had come to the last toast of the evenings— " The ladies . " He wm happy to say that he bad secured the services of " quto a lady ' s man" to respond to the toast ; his remarks would be brief , as after he had done , tae band would stay for & while , in order that the ladies , who were very wishful , might enjoy the pleasure of a dance . The toast was received with much cheering . Mr . Hick , in a speech of some length responded , after which thanks were voted to the Chairman , and the proceedings terminated at nearly two o'clock in the morning .
Thus ended a demonstration whichTvill not be speedily forgotten , and the salutary effects of which must be felt to the latest period of time , in the influence which it will have upon the advancement of those principle * which are for the benefit of the whole human race .
At 1 Leeds :—Printed For The Proprietor, Fearcr^ 8 O'Connor, Esq., Ol Hammersmith, Conatj I Ff J^I _ _—L- F-_~≫ V^V W W M M *~— .^___" I'Flf^H Fl^Llcl
at 1 Leeds : —Printed for the Proprietor , FEARCr ^ O'CONNOR , Esq ., ol Hammersmith , ConatJ I ff J ^ I _ _—l- f- _~> V ^ V w w m m *~— . ^___ " I ' flf ^ h fl ^ llCl
xuacuesex , dj JuanuA HUJBSON , nw * r ** " ing Offices , Nes . 12 and 13 , Market-street , Bris * - gate ; and Published by the said Joshua Hobso * , tfor tho said Fxarcvs O'Conkob , ) at hi * I ) w *^* ling-honse , No . 6 , Market-street , Brigg ** ' " Internal Communication existing between the » < j No . 5 , Market-street , and the said Not . 1 * ^ 13 , Market-street , Briggato , thus constitatin * tbe whole of the said Printing and Publishing 0 & » one Premises . . All Communications must b * addressed , ( Post-pa ^' - 3 . Hobsom , Northern Star Office . Leeds . Saturday , October 3 , 1841 ^ * .
Valuable Works.
VALUABLE WORKS .
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8 THE NORTHERN STAR .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Oct. 2, 1841, page 8, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct569/page/8/
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