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TEE SOUTHERN STAR. SATURDAY, JAJOJAKY 14, 1843.
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¦ * — Co afteafcerg ami <£orr*0pottHettt0.
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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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TO THE-CHART 13 TS OP SOTTTH XAlfCASHJBE . Deab Brothers , —Ton are aware that previous to fire lEzning of its present lecturers * PJan . s notice appeared in Hie "Korthem Star" to the diet that eatjh locality forward to the District Secretary information ss to yrbeAer they intend to remain on the Plan , or otherwise ; tbe twin a or names of parties in their locality who -were trilling and competent to 1 " pi . *—d ¦ upon file Plan as lecturers for this district ; and whether any of those already on the Plan ^ wished to have their names erased . But , notwithstanding this notice , and a delay of four -weeks , to give time for them to forward file information reqnired before the bringing out of the present plan , Tery few of the localities thought proper to answer the notica , or forward to the Secre *~ ry the infonnsiion ie desired . He , therefore , toot their al £ Dce aa an admission that they intended to remain
on the Plan as usual ; but no sooner is the Plan published , and the lecturers commence their labours according to its provisions , than first one place and then aEoSier state that they < lid not intend to be on the Plan for ice piesent . And , in the , same manner , rsveia } of the lectnrers have withdrawn . their names . Iht * e proceedings hare thrown the district into confusion , and rendered tbe present plan entirely useless . It 3 s , therefore , indispensably necessary to get a corr : 7 t Plan out as speedily as possible . And it is hoped that the localities will not neglect their duty on this < vv aon , bui forward the information required by sending delegates to the meeting to be held on Sunday , Jan . 22 nd j or by forwarding , by letter , their ^ st ^ rmination , before the above date , to Wm . Dixon , Kp 11 , Ktlson-Etreet , Bank Top , Manchester . By attending to this you win oblige , Yours in the c ?~ use , Wm . Dlxox , District Secretary . Manchester . Jan . 11 , 1 S 43 .
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TO ALL GOOD CHABTISTS . Leicester , Jan , 9 , 1843 . BSETHBBX , —William Ellis ' s widow-and her innocent children ere in need of an asylum . It is proposed to set her up in st > me small business—as a news-agent or something of that kind . John Cleave is the treasurer for a fond to be raised with thai intent . We commenced it at tbe Conference , J took a cap round to every member , and the sum collected was £ 3 6 s ., in addition to 2 a . 6 d . from 2 dr . O * fiiggins , the chairman , and 2 s . 6 d- given him for this benevolent purpose by Bune Complete Suffrage gentleman . I most urgently enireat / on to use every effort towards raising this fund to & decent sum—a sum sumrienl to start the poor ¦ widow comfortably .
PermH me , also , to throw out another hint Cannot some of you point out a suitable locality for Mn . Ellis ? Some friends proposed that she should go to Barslem , Imt she sheds tears immediately when Burslem is mentioned—sh « dreads going there . Poor Ellis , too , in one of the letters I have received towards compiling the memoir { which I »>»» m hare nady Tery shortly ) expresses a sense of horror at the thought of Ms wile and children going , to reside at Barslem . Do you know the factions say , " they will exterminate the whole brood of the Effises J "
Now , under such circumstances , I say poor Mrs . Eslis ch- ] not go to Burslem , and your hearts will impel you to say so too . Find" a place for her , then ; some good hearty Gtartist loKHty , -where she and her jchildrtn tnH be respected , and made as comfortable as their deep-seated sorrow will permit Thomas Coopeb .
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TO THE CHAHTIST 3 OF GREAT BRITAIN . BeatLths speech of the AE&erican President , John Tyler , delivered the 6 th Decsmbsr , 1842 , and compare it with other speeches , speeches delivered to slaves , "who are not worthy of knowing how the business of the nation they support and uphold is carried on . A humbug is issued , and called a most gracieus speech , addressed to two classes of men , the greatest portion of whom are the enemies of mankind . How much better would it be even for me to address you z ? fellow citizens , instead of slaves , as yen are and "Will be , until yon are as j salons of your liberty as yon axe of jour wives and sweethearts .
The President , John Tyler , in the second paragraph of his speech , says , " Fellow < Xtizens . " He tells them in the course of his speech , that . A-mprfm would not consent to the right of search , that America could -manage her own sfiaira without the interlerenc-s -cf other nation- Piay inquire into this , and understand it thoroughly . A *> yourselves why the Americans ¦ would not allow the vtssels of other nations to detain and search their ships , under the pretext of looking for . Blares ? The answer is simple . They are j salons of their liberty . They nave it , and they know now to keep it Pu » y inquire again—Ifl there another ^ nation Jn the world "who dare refuse tie ri § bt of search ? The answer is no , and the question rjain is why not ? 1 say they dare not be free . The despots would say , if you will not do as we wish , wa will not protect you agsisst your people , and you will not long be a kicg ¦ without our aid .
look at the American press and judge for yourselves ; yon see in thai no cringing to reyaity , no support for arbitrary judges or magistrates , no humbug of Church and Stats , no bloated filthy Bishop legislators , no centralisation . How different from the vile press-of England ., with the exception of your own , which yea must support and augment if you will be citizens . There is us despotic Timts in America , there is a certain wicked Tn « i Qieie , a " M * - lynch , who is a great enemy to despotism , although a great despot himself , which plainly shows that despotism is the only thing to destroy despoia , for when despotism and despots fight , they , like ths Irishman ' s cats , destroy each othtr . I wish to impress upon your siinds the true senEe sndTBlneof the word citizsn , and tbe great necessity of tout being snch as soon as possible .
Mow mark , particularly , who -says " fellow-citizTis , and to whom these sacred words are addressed . Ask yourselves-the meaning , and yc-u sill gud that John Tyler , being a cit-zsn , tr ~* been chosen by Ms ftUowtitizsos to preside over tiiem for a time , at the end ol broach , lie will be John Tyler , and a fellow-citizan , With Hie difference of haviag been chosen by a free people , to fulfil the highest situation in the world . John Tyler , ia , in America , as & King in any other country , with the following exceptions—aiing is hated iij the people , ie cannot lesve hia palace but in secresy , and even then , thousands of soldiers and police are necessary to protect T" ™ from the people ' s vengeance , say Zrom hii loyal subjects . The press call them his loyal « ijects . John-Tyler can walk the streets respected by every one he xneert . Merit alone can make a man a President * but an idiot , a murderer , or a blind man , may be a King . A Political Mastib .
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TTTR BIBHINGHAM COKFERESCELETIEB IL , TO THE ED 1 T 0 B . OP THE JfORTHE&N STAB . grE In my last I pointed out the posifica which the Complete Su&age party took in the late Conference , xnft after comparing their conduct with their avowe J principles , showed the inconsistency , and the relation in which they really stood to the Conference after they lad seceded . I will now enter into some of the-principal arguments which have been used by them to justify their own cendnet , and in doing this I most necessarily taLe individuals , for bodies do not reason in a mass , though by adopting the arguments of an individual , and pnzsn-Ing the course of conduct advised , they become respon sible for such arguments and conduct .
Mr . Richard Gardener said , that" It should be first of all distinctly understood that in no one principle had they differed , U was simp !]/ a question of dlsapJise and order ; and the majority having compiled the secession of the council and the minority , by obstructing the z&gnlsz business of the Conference , in violation of the ordinary rules of every assembly , they were now met te proceed with the consolidation of these matters . " This is certainly a angular argument to advance for taking so important a step—impoit&nt because it wri impossible to furnish tbe enemies of the people with a more powerful weapon than the inconsistency of tbe professed advocates of freedom , who by this means seek to attach disgrace to the whole , an * throw ridicule and odium upon the principles , for which consequence those
who have furnished the means must be held responsible . Sow , then , can " a simple question of discipline and order" jus ^ fy them in laying the cause sa open to attack ; for the more simple Ha . cavst from tchich they -acted , the mart factious and culpable is ( heir cinducl ; but he says the majority compelled them to secede . What ? Because the-dtsetpZt&s and ord er was to be legulated by a majority , the misority were compelled to secede ; truly this 1 b strange democracy . But he afterwards endeavours to catch prejudice by Baying that lie majority " bad obstructed the regular business of tbe Conference . " Kow what part of the business of the Conference 613 the majority obstruct ? ThB « icular Bonvening tbe Conference expressly says the " Confereneemefc to prepait a bin , * there is not a single word
abont a bill prepared by the ccmnsQ , and -which the Conference was to receive as the basis of ^ Bttmorim ^ On pain © r thjeh Mgh displeasure and loosing their Talneable services , and aoreoTei being placed by Messrs . Gardener , Miall , Bitehie , Brewster , and Co ., under the Dan of excommunication from the Conference ; and it is not only expressed in tike Circular that we met to « prepare a bill , " bat resolution seventeen of the former XJonferenrs , and to carry out which the Ic 3 t last Conference assembled , 3 s—" That this Conference having adopted such fust principles of representation , as are necessary for giving to . all classes
their equal share of political' power ; resolve at some future ^ period to call another Conference ( in "Which the whole people may be fully represented ) for the purpose of considering AITS' doenmenta which embody the necessary details for- working out the above prxnciples , '—and again , their own programme says , ** At the first meeting of the Executive Committee to be held iBimediately after the close of tlfis session , ALL documents which are supposed to embody the necessary details for -working out the principles of Complete Snffrage , must be placed in their hands . " This either does or does not mean what it says . if it doe * imply what it says ,, then , according to their own
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order of layinc down business , the Conference wr-j not sssembled under any obligation to receive a bill propared by the Csnnril ; but the Executive Committee was to be tbe first formed , and ALL documents , supposed to embody the necessary ditt Us , were to be submitted to them . Then how -w it , that ^ stead of pursuing this course , which was laid down by ! themselves , they were so resolute in pressing their invidious " priority" ? and then aLjer refusing to can j out tbe resolution pasrsd at tbe former Conference ! and for which , purpose
we were assembled—after breaking faith with the invitation by which we were convened—for some reason or another , setting aside their own programme , and after submitting the question to a vote , retiring from the Conference , thus violating an important principle , and furnishing the enemies of the people with a weapon against them ; they endeavour to throw all the odium upon the Chartist delegates , and , despite the evidence of their own documents , have the assurance t - ) accuse them of " obstructing the regular business of the Conference . "
Tbe Rev . E . Miall said , " they must bear in mind that the Council who bad convened' * 'hat Trody , wn , after all , the germ of whatever life the Conference had ; that it web the creature of fht Council , foi the purposes stated to be their main object" *—( hear , hear ) . Such language as this , is so repulsive to the principles of democracy , and the sense of dignity with which those principles should inspire us , and so contrary to the nature of our invitation , as to require no farther refutation than to be placed in juxtaposition with the address by which we were convened , and the resolution , which for the purpose of carrying out , we were assembled .
Let tbe Re v . £ . Miall point out the paragraph in any public document , which convened us as the creatures of the Council . We assembled as the delegates ofthepeopU , honestly and to the best of oar ability to * ' prepare a bill to be submitted to Parlia-jieut , for securing the just representation of tbe wholB people , " and " to determine the best legal and constitutional means for energetically and i ^ aceabl } carrying out the above ebjects . " I indignantly rspel the assertion that we went there as the creatures of the Council . In anutfcer letter , I intend alluding to the great stumbling block , ' physical force , " and showing who have been , and who are its abettors .
I remain , Sir , Yours tin'y , R . T . MOBKISON . Nottingham , January 9 th , 1842 . * Both Mr . Gardiner ' s and the Rev . E . MialPs speeches are taken from tha report of the Nonconformist
Tee Southern Star. Saturday, Jajojaky 14, 1843.
TEE SOUTHERN STAR . SATURDAY , JAJOJAKY 14 , 1843 .
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THE LAJsT ) j THE OSLT MEANS OF SALTATION FOB THE STABV 1 NG ¦ WORKERS . The pi-ogress of public opinion in respect to the laxd , as a means of salvation , is indeed most rapid and most satisfactory . Even the Free-trading portion of the community , those who have enunciated that "it wonld be a blessing if England was encrusted with lava , to prevent the growth of a single blade of grass , " are at last compelled to admit that
improved modes of culture are the means by which our agricultural brethren are to meet the altered circumstanoes of the rimes ; while in every direction you meet with distinct proposals to vnite the untilled soil and the unemployed labour and the unemployed capital of the country , for the purpose of producirg national wealth . The question is forcing its way into every circle , and is attaching to itself adherents of every persuasion .
Right glad are we that this is the case . Long have we held the opinion , and often have we expressed it , that nnkil we return to the soil from which we have been unnaturally divorced , and employ a due amount of our energy , skill , and capital to the fostering , encouraging , and advancing of the science of . Agbiccltobe , England can never enjoy internal peace or security , or her labourers have well-filled pantries and wtll-clothed backs .
Where are we to find employment for the machinerj-displaced labourer , but upon the land ? The loud cry of distress that rings through our manufacturing towns arises mainly from , the fact , that in the processes of manufacture , male adult labour has been almost entirely superseded , either by the cheaper labour of adnlt females , infantile " hands , " or inanimate machinery . Of wokk there is enough ! The mills and other manufacturing establis- mt nts tnrn out plenty of manufactured goods But those goods are moBtly machine-made . Adnlt labonr is not now in request in their production .
Vast nnmbers of able-bodied labourers are without employment , even when our manufactories are running extra hours ; and these in their endeavour to proenra the means of existence at all , necessarily pull down the wages of those of their brethren who are fortunate enough to procure employment , by offering their services at a less and still less rate cf remuneration . And this process is constantly going on 1 More machinery is constantly being set up ; and machines still further simplifying the manufacturing processes , and still further dispensing with animate attendance , are daily
being introduced . Look , for example , at the machine-making business itself ! The march of " improvement" in this walk of industry has been 80 rapid of late , that now an establishment fitted-np with new and improved tools ; with the self-acting planing-machines ; the self-acting lathes ; the Bcrewing-machines ; the drilling-machines ; the cuttingengines ; the slotting-engines : an establishment fitted up with these and similar * tools , " will turn out more ** work" with twenty "hands , " than only some . three years ago , could have been turned out . with one hundred " hands . " Yes , the machinemakeis have been latterly busily engaged in the production of machines to supersede themselves !
And this is but a sample of the working of the whole . Let any one now go into a machine-making establishment ; and let him ascertain the number of adults employed , and the number of minors ; and then let him compare their relative proportion now with a period only ten years ago ; and he will see the working of the whole system strikingly exemplified . Adult labonr is being driven out of the manufacturing labour-market . Por a while the superseded ones live on the earnings of their wives or their little ones ; " then the parish is appealed to ; the man becomes broken-spirited and pauperized ; squalid misery , abject wretchedness , and utter destitution is the consequence ! and enough of this meets the eye at every torn .
Again we ask , what earthly chance is there of finding remunerative employment for those thus displaced , but by bringing them upon the untilled soil , supplying them ; with the necessary capital to make a start , and thus enable them to produce the food they eat—to . earn their bread by the sweat of their brow ! We may be told that" Extension j > f Trade" will open the doors of the mills again , and . call into play the unemployed labour . We * answer that
POHMEB ESTESS 1 OKS OP TBASE . HAVE KOT DONE this ! We answer that our trade for the last fifty years has been constantly and continually " extending "; that in that short period it has " extended" SIX TIMES OVER ; that the labourer had full employment and good wages when trade was only one-sixth the amount it now is ; and that when trade is si * limes a 3 " extensive " as it then was , one portion of the labourers is
utterly destitute for want of employment , and the other portion starving upon insufficient wages ! No ! No 1 " Extensions of Trade" have not yet enhanced the comfort and weal of the mass of the workers engaged in manufacturing pursuits ; and , unless the nature of things change ; unless the like causes cease to produce the like effects , h is not to be predicated that another u Extension of Trade" will produce that which all former " extensions" have failed to produce .
Beside :, it is contrary to the principles of " political economy" that tha mill doors can be again opened to the adult labourer ! TfiiB would be a " return back" to the old , barbarous , and expensive modes of production " ! Who but a ** gosh" would dream of such a thing 1 " In a world of progress to talk of going back again , is to insult common sense "J Can it be believed that the possessor of capital will lay aside the cheaper p oceases of production , and
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take to the dearer ones ? Can this be expected 1 Is this in accordance with every man ' s experience , throughout the whole of the world ' s duration ? No , no ; to go back is impossible J " Improvement " is the order of the day . New inventions to enable ns to produce cheaper , and thus to meet the "keen foreign competition" to which we are BHbjeot , are as necessary to our existence aa a manufacturing nation , as it is impossible to lay aside the machines of the present day ' s use for the rude and bungling tools of a . century ago ! Bring adult labour again into play 1—how ? Would you have ns to spin
upon the jenny of thirty spindles 1 Or must we take to the one of fifty ? Would you have us to lay aside the power-loom ? Or do you mean to have the power-loom attended by a great , big , hulking fellow of a man , when his infantile daughter is quite equal to the task of dancing attendance upon two 1 Would you have us to discard the Lewis cutting machine , and the Perpetual , and take to the old , obsolete , utterly discarded Shears I Would you have us to break up our planing-machines , and our self-acting turninglathes , to return to the old and inefficient modes of
working iron by the hand-file and chisel ? Would you have us do these things ? If you would , we tell you it cannot be done 1 If you would not , pray teU us how you intend an " Extension of Trade" to employ the unemployed adult labourer \ View the question in whatever light we may : turn it over a 3 often as ever we choose ; to this conclusion we must come at last : that the only means of salvation for the starving workers , is to get them upon the land where they will be able to produce more than they can . consume , and be thus placed in an independent and enviable position .
Holding this view , and entertaining this feeling , we have hailed with delight every endeavour to turn public attention to the occupation and employment of the land as a means of removing the direful poverty brought upon the sons of toil , by the joint operation of our grindiiig-taxation and mis-directed application of machinery . Whoever has advocated the allocation of the poor upon the land , for the purpose of growing their own food , has found in us a hearty welcomer . On this question we have not
asked whether the advocate of it was a Whig , a Tory , or a Chartist . Whatever has tended to form a public opinion in its favour ; whatever has seeded likely to turn pnblic attention , to the consideration of the question , has bt sn hailed by us with satisfaction . We have done some little ourselves to aid it onwards ; and we have alacratively given the prod actions of Others , when our doing so could , in even a remote degree , serve the cause we deem of such essential moment .
We were peculiarly gratified when we first learned that Mr . James Garth Marshall , of Leeds , had determined to try some experiments on the small allotment system , from a conviction that it was necessary to bring the soil into play again with manufactures , to enable the producers of wealth to occupy anything like an independent or comfortable position . We readily gove insertion to his written views upon the subject ; and have now great pleasure in calling publio attention to what he has done in this matter since the publication of those written
. Let not either the reader or Mr . Marshall misunderstand us . We do not mean it to be inferred , when thus speaking generally , that we think the mode that Mr . Marshall has adopted in bringing some of the unemployed labour of this district in contact with the land , to be the bent , or even a commendable one , except in so far as it serves to direct publio . attention , and form publio opinion , upon the general question . We advocate , and lcik or , a quite different occupancy of tbe soil , from that
which obtains under Mr . Marshall ' s auspices ; but this does not prevent us from giving him his due praise for being so far in advance of his class in this district , as to take the initiative in the application of the land as a remedy for pauperism and poverty . Viewing the matter generally , we hail'it with all our heart : viewing it particularly , we must regret that Mr . Marshall has not taken a deeper and wider view of the question , and sought to give an example to his class which would have been worthy of all imitation .
The small allotment system is but an ekeing-out of the slender means of the under-paid operative . It is because he cannot earn living wages in return for his daily toil , that the small allotment is made him ; in which he can spend the time which he ought to have for recreation , and for tbe instruction of his family , in adding a few comforts to his otherwise scanty board . The small allotment is not svfficient to keep him fully employed ; or to return him sufficient for his own and his family ' s sustenance .
It is , at best , but an ekeing out . It betters his condition , we grant . It is a good as far as it goes we readily admit . But it does not place the man or the family , in an independent position ! He is not as an Englishman ought to be ! He cannot snap his finger at his fellow-man , should that fellow-man try to over-reach him , or oppress him . He cannot feel the true dignity of a freeman ; for | he is cot free . He is not free to act upon his own judgment . He is , in fine , fully and truly dependent .
The position we should wish man to occupy on the land , is one of independence ! To be there his own master ! To have sufficient of surface in his occupation to occupy his labour hours , and to return him an adequate living . To so occupy , that every improvement he made should be mainly his own , so that he might have every inducement to make improvements . In fine , we wish , in having the people allocated on the land , to form a natural market for labour , which , in its operation , shall so affect the arti ficial market , as to cause the producer in the latter to have sufficient wherewith to feed , clothe , shelter , and well-educate himself . It is clear that this never
can be done by the smaH-allotment system : although it may be done by the small-farm system , with a proper tenure , and a right principle of rents . Still , maugre all these mighty and insurmountable objections to the small allotments , we hail their introduction amongst the Leeds operatives by Mr . Marshall as a great good . They will lead to A BETTER APPLICATION OF THE LAND . Tho allotment system is but a forerunner of that more perfect system which will drag us out of the quagmires and sloughs which an excessive taxation and an insane application of mechanical and scientific power have plunged us into . The following appeared in tbe Leeds papers of Saturday last . It is with much gratification that we give it greater currency : —
EXPERIMENTAL ALLOTMENTS . " It is with peculiar pleasure that we lay before our readers the following particulars , illustrating the success of Mr . James G . Marshall's benevolent experiment to relieve the p&or by letting to them small portions of land to be cultivated on the system of spade husbandry . The account will be read with great Interest , and we cannot but think that many of our townsmen will feel a desire , after this auspicious commencement , to have the allotment system established on a more extensive scale , and perhaps by some public association : — " At Headingley there are 22 ttnanta , occupying from 20 to 40 rods eacb , at sevenpence per rod per unnnni or at the rate of £ 4 13 s . 4 d . per acre .
" At Holbeck there are eighty tenants on the land recently appropriated , occupying from ten to twenty rods each , at the yearly rent of from 6 d . to ad . per rod , or at the rate of £ l to £ 6 per acre . " There are farther at Holbeck 33 tenants , who have been before occupiers of allotments ; making 135 tenants in the whole , and 11 a . 2 r > 29 p . occupied . " The whole of the tenants have now paid their first quarter ' s rent without a Bingle instance of default or arrears , sitting down afterwards to a cheerful rent-day dinner at Headingley on the 26 th ult , and at Holbeck on the 2 nd inst , where upwards of 100 were assembled in Messrs . Marshall and Sons' new school-room .
" We subjoin the rules on which the allotments are conducted . The rent is calculated to caver tha amount previously paid for the land by the farmer , tog&ther with the rates and taxes and expenses of fencing and draining paid by the landlord . " Tbe arrangements hav- been - conducted under the management of Mr . Bolls , an experienced agriculturist , who has had the management of similar allotments in the south of England .
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V The allotments both at Headingley and Holbeck are occupied by familca taken principally , but not exclusively , from the class who are in destitute circumstances from want of tegular employment , and not habitual pensioners on tho peor > ra ' r-. It t ~ i \ u thought advisable to include some in I > tter oWcnmstances , both to prove to the poorer occupiers the value of the allotments , which are sought after as a boon by those who have sufficient otber resources , and also for the advantage of example to be hoped for from those who have superior means of cultivating their land .
I'A useful little work by Paxton on Cottage Gardening , ' was distributed on tbe oriasion ef both of the meetings ; and after the Holbeck meeting , Mr . James G , Marshall made a few remarks and suggestions , on the advantages and best mode of conducting the allotment system ; and Mr . Parker , the schoolmaster , having just returned from spending his Christmas vacation at Nottingham , was able to give some interesting particulars of the successful progress of the allotment system in that locality , where it baa teen long practised , and now amounts to 8000 , cottage gardens . Mr . Bolls gave some useful suggestions to tho tenants on the advantage of subscriptions amongst themselves for procuring seed , &c , jointly at a cheap rate , and in other practiced matters .
RULES . M 1 . The rent to be paid quarterly on the 24 th of Dec 31 st March , 30 th June , and the 30 tb ( September . If not regularly paid , the landlord shall be entitled to re-enter and take possession of the land immediately upon such default of payment . " 2 . The landlord shall pay all rates , taxes , and tithe . " 3 . The tenant shall beep in good repair the fences adjoining bis allotment ; and shall cultivate and manage bis allotment in such manner as the landlord or his agent may approve of . " 4 . No tenant shall kd allowed to underlet ; nor to cultivate except by spr ie husbandly .
" 5 . If either party wish to put an end to the agreement , one quarter's notice shall be given , and a valuation shall be put upon the crops , to be paid by the oncoming tenant . " 6 . Any disputes which may arise bet we an tenants respecting tbeir allotments shall be referred to the landlord ; bis decision to be binding . " 7 . If any tenant shall ta convicted of felony or other offence against the laws of his country , he shall forfeit the crops in the ground , and the landlord shall be entitled to seize the crop and re-enter on the laud without giving notice . " Again we beg that we may not be mistaken . In thus spreading abroad the above statement , we do not mean to praise the system it describes , other than in general terms .
We do not , nor can we , commend it to general practice . As a beginning , we hail it ! As an end , it is condemnable ! The tenure even of the small piece allotted to the labourer is a bad one ; or is rather almost no tenure at all . We admit that in a case which is avowedly " an experiment , " all can not be as might be desired . We do not wish to raise a single objection that might operate as a stumbling-block in Mr . Marshall ' s way : but in dealing with a question generally , and in praising his efforts to better the condition of hia Factory " hands , " we mu 6 t in justice to ourselves , and in justice to him too , point out the grounds on whioh we accord that praise .
We have before done this , in saying that we are satisfied and even pleased with the exertions of any and ever } one who points attention , as he has done , and is doing , to the land as a means of salvation . We look upon his conduct , in this particular , with peculiar satisfaction . His family are the largest millowners in Leeds , or in the West-Riding of Yorkshire . They are repotted to have made the most mtney by the operation of the mill-system of any family in England . We have quarrelled , and shall always quarrel , with the system , which while it has given them their millions , has also made it necessary for the worker in those mills to have allotted to him some twenty rods of land to enable him to eke out his mill-wages
to a living point . But we do not quarrel with Mr . Marshall for expending a portion of his money so obtained , to the procuring of those twenty rods for the sustentation of the man who has made him what he is . On the contrary , we hojd it to be , generally , a rightful and praiseworthy application ; and one which does credit to the heart of the gentleman who in this , as in many other things , has proved himself to be in advance of his class . However we may disagree with the means which have enabled the MabshaLls to become possessed of their millions , we certainly do not disagree with the expending of a portion of them so as to procure additional comfort to the working man who has earned them .
We have said that the tenure indicatcdl ' m the statement of Mr . Marshall's allotment doings is bad . We do not Durpose to go further into the question at present ; bat merely beg to call his attention , and the attention of ^ the . reader generally , to the following extract from the Morning Chronicle of Wednesday last . The question of tenure is there put in a strong light ; and we adduce this as proof that the views and opinions which we are well known to entertain on this branch of the subject are making their way into proper quarters . When we have the people occupying the soil , under phofkk tenure , and on a right principle of rents—then , but not till then , may we hope jfor better days and better doings amongst us . That proper tenure must be fixity of tenure . The advantages of it , and ihe disadvantages arising from want of it , are well set forth in the following extract : —
At a public dinner in Drogheda , on Wednesday last , ' Nicholas Boy Ian , Esq . of Hiltown House , in returning thanks for his health having been drunk , made the following remarks on the subject of fixity of tenure " I have taken a lively interest in the Agricultural Society , and have been the treasurer of that body , but I regret much that no one of our societies has taken a proper view of the best means of improving the culture of i tfae soil , by placing the relations of landlord and tenant on a proper basis—( hear , hear , and cheers . ) I will mention an anecdote which proves the necessity for some protection to the tenant , and I trust it will go abroad on the wings of the press . It has happened that
a gentleman of large piopeity had some land to let to a tenant at the fair rent of 25 s . per acre ; this year the land produced , in consequence of good management , an excellent crop of twenty barrels of oats per acre . The landlord became aware ol that fact by bis tenant taking a premium , and was present when the tenant sold the produce at a fait price ; when the landlord turned round on him and said , 'You got the highest price for your produce , and I find you have my land too cheap ; I must get from you £ 4 an acre , the real value of it , hereafter ;' thus making the tanant pay an enormous rent because he waa skilful and industrious , and taking to himself the profits of the tenant ' s labour . ( Cries of ' shame ,
shame . ' ) Who would venture to improve land under a system in which such an act could be committed ? ( Hear , hear . ) I regret that some of the landlords will thus turn the improvements entirely to their own advantage . I regret this aa a member of the parent Agricultural Society ; and the gentleman who acted as I describe is a member of one of the branches . ( Hear , hear , and shame . ) I would resign my office of treasurer , if it was not that I wish to ascertain whether the landlords will take the opportunity of doing that which alone can insure the improvement of the soil ; that is , to give fixity of tenure . ( Loud cheering . ) I give my opinion on this subject as a practical man . Gentlemen sign tbeir names as presidents and
vice-presidents , and secretaries of agricultural societies , and claim credit as persons anxious to improve agriculture : i would much rather see them sign their names to good leases '; ' but this they have not done—Uoud and continued cheers ) . I took the liberty of mentioning , a few days since ; at Navan , that , as it was impracticable to compel the landlords to give leases , it would be well if there was an act passed tc enable the tenant to register bis drains as permanent improvements for the landlord , as he registers his trees ; and when be is obliged to leave his land he might be able to call upon his landlord for
the value of hia improvements . I defy Mr . Smitb , of Dernston , ox Mr . Puxcell , to inprove without thorough draining ; give , then , to the tenant the power to register these drainB , and tha land will be improved—( loud cheers ) . I do not require that the landlord should giv « rip any portion of his property . Register the drains , and th'ise will become bis property on his allowing the out-going tenant their value . This would be a practical good In the case of those landlords who now give only seventeen or eighteen yean . ' leases . I wish that every paiish in Ireland would prepare petitions for snch a la » . »
We ha ye now exhausted all the space it is possible to devote to this question at the present . Next week we shall return to it , and show what other parties are doing on the land , who hold with u that the land is the only means of salvation . ¦ f i ft m i f r f" ^ J" « j ~ » rt A fi J > fi f i i f \ ^ i ^^^^^^^ h ^^^ J ~» f f in . r f j . r ji m . ^ - ^ ^^
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THE "SUCKING PIGS" AND THE "WHOLE } HOGS . " In accordance with our promise of test week ,, we return to the consideration ef the efforts of the Sturgemen at the Conference to cajole the Chartists ; and to get the pemblanoe of anything which could be called national ooncurreuoe in their schemes . We come , then , to the four resolutions moved by Mr . Bkggs : — I
" 1 . Tnat thisj Conference convened in conformity with a resolution passed at the first Complete Suffrage Conference , held at Birmingham , April 4 th—8 th , 1842 , and having for its paramount object the consideration of j the necessary details of a bill embodying the principles then agreed upon , namely : — The extension of the Suffrage to all male adults , not deprived of the right of citizenship by a verdict of ajury of their countrymen—vote by ballot—equal electoral districts—abolition of a properly
qualification for members of Parliament—payment of members for their services—and annual Parliaments ; —do now declare the adoption of these principles ; pledges itself to employ such means only for obtaining the legislative recognition of them as are of a striotly just , peaceful , legal , and constitutional character ; and will forthwith proceed to fulfil the mission with which it has been entrusted , resolved to support its chairman in preventing the introduction of any proposition not in accordance therewith .
2 . —That as this Conference will resist the introduction of any topio not obviously relevant to its main design , so it also disclaims all interference with existing organisations , recognising as its paramount duty , the arriving , if possible , at a cordial agreement in reference to the object towards which peaceful agitation may be directed . " 3 . —That this Conference , agreeable to resolution 17 , passed at the ] first Conference , is prepared to receive and to consider all documents which may be laid before h , and which may be supposed to contain an embodiment of the necessary details for working out the principles already recognised .
" 4 . —That the documents so to be presented to this Conference , be taken into consideration at the opening of our next Session , by a Committee consisting of the whole body of the delegates ; and that the Committee be instructed to observe the following rules : —1 , That ithe bill to be presented b y the Council of the' National Complete Suffrage Union , * be taken as the basis of discussion . 2 . That each clause as it is read shall be considered pari passu , with the correlative clause of the other documents . 3 . That all amendmentts be handed up to the Chairman in writing . ' *
After every possible " dodge" to get a Conference after their own kind had been resorted to and failed , it became necessary to try what could be done with such materials aa they had : and we certainly give them credit for having done this with sufficient artfulness . Had the Conference , as a body , been gullible , the specious manners and the sly manoeuvres of the STUB&E-men 1 might have promised them success . Of this wa have . an instance in the moving of their four resolutions all at once . The SrvRGE-men knew
better than to submit them separately to the discussion of the | Conference . The first three resolutions were long , ] : plausible , and seemed to require but little * observation , and to admit of not much objection . They were the bait therefore upon which to hang the fourth , which , under their cover , it was hoped would pass unnoticed-There is much evidence in these resolutions of deep , anxious , and well laid , design . The resolutions were prepared and printed , so that the Sturgemen could be well acquainted with them , and know all their purpose and their bearings ; but not a single copy was in the Conference , among the Chartist Delegates :
they were to take them on trust from hearing them once mumbled over , amid the murmuring conversation constantly going jon in a large meeting , and at a distain from whioh many of them could not hear them read at all . It was seen clearly that in this way , if any debate should occur , the attention of the Conference would be fixed upon some one point of some one of the four , while the bulk and body of the resolutions would be lost sight of ; and that thus , if the delegates could be " jockic d" upon the single limb , the whole carcase might be } dragged through . It was a deep fetch , but it would not carry . The delegates were too astute . The right limb was laid hold of , and the monster was dismembered .
To show that there is more in these resolutions than was intended to meet tha eye , we shall bestow some little attention on them ; and it is strange if we do not [ find in them evidence that the Sturgemen had , throughout , and from beginning to end , made up their minds that the " union" which they have always so pathetically urged was just the very thing they were determined not to have . i We point especially to the second of these resolutions , which pledges the Conference against any interference with " existing organizations . " This resolution directly contravenes the object of the Conference , * as stated by themselves . In their own circular it is stated that the Conference was to meet : — j
" For the purpose of preparing a Bill to be submitted to Parliament for securing the just Representation of the { whole People ; and for determining ON SUCH ' PEACEFUL , LEGAL , AND CONSTITUTIONAL MEANS ! AS MAY CAUSE IT TO BECOME THE LAW OF THESE REALMS . " i It was clear , then , that the " paramount duty" of the Conference was not , as stated in this resolution restricted to the mere consideration of " the object " towards whioh peaceful agitation might be directed . It embraced also I the " means" for its attainment And what right bad the Complete Suffrage Council
to debar the Conference from the consideration of any and all" peaceful , | legal , and constitutional means"for the accomplishment of its own purposes 1 Had this resolution been proposed separately and in its own place , after the " { preparation of a bill " , it would haue become a serious ahd important matter for consideration , whether the most efficient of all" means " for the causing ofjthat bill to become law might not be found in such "interference with existing organizations "—such judicious amendments and alterations in the organization of the Complete Suffrage Union , or of the National Charter Association , or of
both , as might have formed the two into one workable harmonious body , in which all the energy and influence and power of all the advocates of that bill might have been brought into one focus and phalanx . This would have looked like earnest sincerity . This would have gained them the confidence of all . It would have gained them even our confidence , who have never yet had faith in them . But this would have led to " UNIQN "; this would have destroyed party bickerings and disputes about leadership ; it would have brought all the avowed advocates of Universal Suffrage into one camp—concentrated
their efforts in one systematic plan of action—and have thus secured ] that "unity"' wherein lies the " strength" of all popular movements . This was the very thing the : STORGE-men never wanted —the very Ihing they always dreaded ; hence the constant doctrine of Friend " No , " that he did not wish the Chartists to join him—he wished to see them go on with their own Association ; hence the " parallel line" doctrine of j Mr . Spencer ; and hence , the resolution , second : of Mr . Begos' batch , disclaiming all Union of the friends of the proposen Bill , las to the means of its
enactment ! There needs no other argument than this one atone to satisfy the minds of any unprejudiced man , who is not a fool , that the object of the Sturgemen has always been to perpotnate divisions when they found them among the Universal Suffrage ranks ; while many other portions of their conduct show equally their determined purpose , and the deep , dirty schemes resovted to , for the creation of divisions when they formd union in those ranks . Indeed we have found this so universally the case , that we begin now to suspect , the
moment we hear a man bawling aboat " union , " that his purpose is to cause " u split" somewhere We have always ] found that men who rea'Iy wish for union inanifost their anxiety rather by taking eare to do nothing to create disunion than by making a great noise about it . If Mr . Lovbtt had not moved his amendment just when he did , an amendment would . ) have been moved " that the resolutionss now proposed be considered separately ; and that , a ? they are printed , every delegate be fur ? pished with a copyjof thorn , and of the Bill referred to by them . " Mr . ! Lotett , however , rendered this unnecessary , by taking " the Bill" at once" by the
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hornB . " His speech wag a good one for the purpose . It laid tbe Sucking Pigs" on their tail ends en . tirely . It took from them every pretext for perse . vering in their disuniting system ; and its result wag just whit we anticipated . Mr . Lovbtt did not ask the Council to withdraw their Bill . He did not offer any objections to ths spirit , or even the form , of the resolutions .- He merely asked that the very fair and reasonably position might be given to the Conference of having , as the basis of their discussion and consultation , 4 Bill with which they were all familiar , which wxa
simple in its terms , and brief in its provisions , and which had the confidence 0 % almost the whole working people , in preference to the one now intro . duced , which , though avowedly maintaining t ] j 9 same principles , was , in detail and phraseology , perfect stranger to a ! but the Sturgemen themselves ; and , indeed , to all of them except a chosea clique—the Council . They were at full liberty to j "pit" their Bill against the Charter ; to com- j pare and contest its several clauses one by one . They were at fall liberty to demonstrate the superiority of their Bill , clause by clause ; and , as
fast as they could do so to the satisfaction of the Conference , to reject the Charter and to substitute ft by the Bill they had prepared . This would have been a fair position . Everyman in the Conference bad a right to bring there a Bill of his own preparing if he thought proper to do so , and to submit ij to ' a like ordeal of approval or rejection . Taia ri ght was recognised in the circular by which the Conference was called . The Conference was called not to agree to TH E bill to be then and there presented ; but " to prepare A Bill , " &o . This was iall Lovbti asked . He said " Let the Charter be read : we all know all about that ; and then if you have anything i
better to suggest to us , we are ready to consider , and , if we approve , to adopt it . This was the true spirit of fair play ; the true spirit of " Conference " - the only thing which could make the Conference other than a farce . But the " Suoking Pigs" said "NO" ' . We have called you here , not to confer but to consent . You have " Hobson ' s choice" before you . You shall have , as the basis of your discussion , " THE Bill—our Bill—the Five Hour ' s Monster , which you have never seen , and of which you don ' t know a single word—or you shall have no discussion at all . Never , surely , were men seeking union so conciliatory as " the Sucking Pigs' *!
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THE TWO IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS . In accordance with our promise of last week , we give in this week's Star two most important documents . The one , tbe Indictment , will need no com * ment from us here . The time to comment on it will be in March next . Then we fancy thai both we and many others may have much to say upon and : respecting it . ¦ The other document , the Minutes of the Confer- j ence , is well deserving of the attention of the people , f There they have the business of the Conference before them at a glance . There they will find the division which sent the " Sucking Pigs" to seek their | Mother ; for that division let them know , for the j first time , that they " were out " ! Let the people look well at the recorded votes : they will learn from them an instructive lesson !
The suggested alterations and emendations ef the Charter v will also there be found . The people will have learned before this , that no = alteration has been absolutely made ; the amend- \ ments agreed to by the Conference being agreed to ; on the distinct understanding , come to by an un&ni * ] mous vote , that they should be considered and determined upon by the people themselves , in their several localities . We beg to call public attention to them . 1
We understand that it is the intention of Mr . i Hobson , our publisher , in accordance with an inti- [ mation made to , and sanctioned by , the Conference , : to publish the Minutes , including the People ' s | Charter , in a neat pamphlet form . It will thus be ; ready of access on future occasions ; and will be of value to the people in their consideration of the ! several suggested amendments in the Charter , inasmuch as they will have the whole before them at once . The pamphlet , we understand , will be ready next week ; it will consist of sixteen pages of royal octavo ; and will be sold for 2 d .
From an advertisement in another portion of this : sheet it will also be seen that Mr . Cleats . intends to print the Charter , with its suggested l amendments , in his Chartist Circular , for Id . Thns ; the Chartist body will have that document in two , . shapes : in a neat pamphlet form , together with all \ the Minutes of the Proceedings of the Confereno * , j for 2 d , ; and in the Chartist Cireular , mums the \ Minutes , for Id . .
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The " Three Leeds Delegates . "—Mr . William Brooke , of Leeds , has sent a letter here , denying that he voted with the " artful dodgers" in th $ : matter of the committee referred to in last Star , \ and affirming that he voted for Mr . Hills motm- i All I have to say upon the subject is , that Mr . \ Brooke voted for the amendment moved by Mr . Thompson , and seconded by Mr . Mitchell , ( M Complete Suffrage men . I saw him vote . —WH . \ HlLL * , w ^ "A Constant Reader . "— We do not know what j Mr . Carpenter is now doing . | James Hall . —Never mind the scrawler . % William Mattinson desires us to say , that , of tne % sum of £ 2 ISs ., published some time ago , for 1 ™ f Victim Fund , from Preston , 8 s . 4 ^ rf . was frm , Bambour-bridge . , . ' ¦ ¦ Croydon Chartists . —We have not room for tmr ,
address to Mr . Duncombe . ,. '• T . B . Simnitt , Newark , would be glad toknowv e the Mr . Boothby , to whose pen the Sturge docu- | ment is attributed , be the same Mr . Boothby viM ± figured at the last election as the agent of Sir J Wilde , M . PJ ... S Mysticus Secretus . —We received his letter wM * | ; sitting in Conference at Birmingham , and do not | know what has become of it . 1 Will some kind friend send B . Butterly , Back Album- j street , Halifax , a Northern Star of May Ui
1839 ? . ^ I General Councillors . —We have over and over 1 again stated that lists of Council which arnu | after Wednesday morning cannot appear m | the current week ' s Star . . - % Will the South Wales Delegite write to the tn * ' | vidual who gave him his address on the brtaHmg | up of the Birmingham Conference , at an « ar * 1 dale ? , & Charles Maunder . —His letter is reserved . - f , "Sound Advice . "—A political martyr lhus V >" . " ' % the Chartists of Great Britain :- " Thefollo ^ f % may , and ough i , to serve as an example to all in * |
Chartists : " — # „ t " The Portuguese gained a moral revolution in 183 | From a severe despotism they became a democw . 5 without ' ^ vea a bloody nese or an angry w * s They w-ixe called the sovereign people . Tne ' ' L ir i told , hy sincere friends , to be sure to manage uw ; own affairs ; but they thought they had gained w » i Constitutional Charter , and all would be ngta . j s ' . t of lawyers forced themselves npon the peoF » % as theii leaders ; said they were democrats ; P ^ j suaded the people they wauted the « advice 1 , , cured themselves in power , and sold toeir .. ployers . One of these said lawyers is now one » : the Queen ' B Ministers , at LiBbon . # .. f iiTk . pv ^ -k nnnnin fnusrht in 1830 . and gained , « j .-.
blood , a glorious revolution . They drove » tg » * from hia throne ; but . then , they could not ouk » , their own affairs , or they Wold not W& « * £ \ the result ? They allowed a man to **»*• "S . ¦• who accepted the title of CitizanKing ; and&e n » , done , with impunity , that which . ^ J ^ ° ^ 1 king only talked of doing , and the Frencn *« still slaves . ' - _ niete P " In the following year the Belgians gainedas f ^ . | a victory over despotism as any to be » P » | corded in history . The whole ™* * % * £ , >* 1 working people ; but when the middle ^ "f ^ | them masters , they came forward as lead 6 ' * ^ I people pai their affairs into their banOs ., ^ | they sold them . The Belgians arcs now ¦ * " J again , with the difference , that under fc&e vw ~ g yoke they supported half a royal family . _ "f ^ , § they have a whole one to maintain , and that u * ° * | to be a large one . . § " You see by these recorded examples , that it w o _ j use to agibte for , and gain by any " -m ^ Jb'I except you ate determined to manage it 'ffj ? " ^! have got it Let merit alone be a ^ " {" ^ ^ for candidates who wish to serve you , — ana ca « ^ of humbug ( " % ¦ \ ¦ - *
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. Salford . —It is proposed to apply , in the next session of parliament , for a charter of incorporation , and to make the municipal borough of the same extent as the parliamentary borough of Salford ,
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_ 4 THE NORTHERN S TAR .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Jan. 14, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct633/page/4/
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