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TEE JJOETHEB.H STAR. SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 1843.
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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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Tee Jjoetheb.H Star. Saturday, January 21, 1843.
TEE JJOETHEB . H STAR . SATURDAY , JANUARY 21 , 1843 .
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THE LAND ! TWf ; OXLT STEAKS OP SjLLVAHOH TO THE STiBVISG TF 0 EKEB 5 . axucle n . Ih last week ' s Northern Star we discussed , at considerable length , the general question of the occupancy sad employment of the lakd , as a means of removing the dire poverty and'destitution which iai now become the lot of fhe labourers of England . We then attempted to show that there ib no other way of again profitably employing the machinerydisplaced adult labourer , than by placing him once more upon the soil , and enabling him to direct his energies to the production of fcad , and raiment , and shelter , for himself .
In the course of that article we explained the grounds upon which we accord our meed , of praise to all who endeavour ie form and direct pnblio opinion in faTonr of fliis cheap , available , and truly practicable remedial measure . On this question we are toily oa&olic . "Whatever tends io advance the general question in prrbiic estimation , we hail , with satisfaction , and are happy to co-operate with every one , no matter what may be his peculiar political or sectarian opinion , who endeaTOurs to enliBt poblio opinion in its favour .
In this spirit we accorded praise to Mr . J . -6 . MjfFtsrmA for havisg been the first to introduce amongst tie Leeds operatives the Email allotments , as a means of enabling them to raise their millwages to something Ilka a living-point ; explainieg however , Hiai that praise w& 3 not for the mode Mr . 3 flA-R 5 m . ua . has adopted in his employment of ras iasd , but rather because his exertions and example are likely to lead ultimately , to a much better application of the soil . At tiva orniolnCTon of iljat arfiolo wt ) intlmitfid that we shwsldretarn to a consideration of the ques tion , and show what other parties , besides Mr . iflATtsHux . are-doing on the lasd .
In accordance with that intimation we resume the subject ; and the parties to whose exertions we at present wish to point public attention , in connection with the occupancy and employment of thb land as a remedy for poverty and starvation , are the Socialists . In the first place , we must premise that the mode adopted and practised by the Socialists in their occupancy aad application of the soil , differs entirely and essentially from the mode adopted and practised
by Mr . "Ma-rshitz , and his brother Alloters . The principle of aitaon amongst the Socialists \ s common and entire occupancy of enough of laxd to produce plektt for commsn eDJoyment" : the principle of aeiien which guides Mr . 'Mabshah and his brethren is to allot a small piece of ground , under strict and stringent regulations , to the underpaid labouring man , to enable him , by working otet and above his regular daily hours of toO , to eke out lis scanty wages to something like the point of xiTTSG sustent&tion .
With the Socialists thb xasd is the ground-work of all their contemplated improvements . It stands foremost is their list of requisites to extricate the 2 abourera from poverty , and the fear of poverty . To get ttpox tttk xakd , is their first and main object . Possession of the soil , on which to employ their own energies , for their mvn benefit , is , with them , a sine qua non .
It is true they have peculiar notions respecting ihe distribution of the wealth they may thus create It is true that they hold to ihe principle of ? community of property « ° that they hold that " all'th stuff i'th world belongs to all th ' fowk i ' th world . " It is true thai they hold that every man on the soil -ought to do something towards ihe production of wealth ; and that every man ought to have his share of the plenty sd prodnced .
Into the tiath or falsehood , the propriety or impropriety , of this principle , we are not now going to inquire . It is to whai they axe doin # with respect to thb ulkd question , that we wish to direst attention ; and this on general , not particular grounds . The Socialists hold , then , with us , that thb laud is ihe only means of salvation for the starving workers Entertaining thiB opinion , they hare begun to act upon it . They hare organized themselves into a compact , for the purpose of obtaining land , so as to employ it for their own benefit . They have obtained possession of a considerable amount of surface ; and they are at this moment actively engaged in " an experiment , " in the issue of which the labouring classes are deeply interested .
Last week , we gave particulars of the doings of Mr . M *~ frh * tx in the town of Leeds , which doings have excited so Email amount of public curiosity and attention . But those doings , in , the aggregate , amount only to the allotment of some eleven acres of laud amongst a number of operatives in small parcels often or twenty rods each . The doings we sow direct attention to , amount , in the aggregate , to the possession and application of more than one thousand acres of land , and the expending of scores of thousands of pounds . If the one be thought worthy of public attention , surely the other is no less so .
It must be remembered , t o * , that Mr . 3 £ arshaix has had no opposition to breok , so powerful interests arrayed against Mm to prevent his progress , or discourage him in his endeavours : while the Socialists have had a most powerful , unscrupulous , and unremitting opposition to face and beat down . Falsehoods the most vile ; accusations the most outrageous ; calumnies the most bitter ; have been industriously circulated respecting them ; and the worst passions of human nature have been stirred-¦ n p , by appeals to blind prejudice , and set to work destruction to the " new-fangled sect" who preached up " labour for all ; and enjoyment of the fruits of labour iy all ?
In spite of all this , however , the u new-fangled sect" have gone on in the even tenour of their way ; and have obtained possession of one thousand acres of land , and laid out some £ 40 , 000 , for the purpose of proving to the labouring classes of England that it is possible to bo combine Lasd , Capital , and Labour , as to produce plenty of all the first necessaries of life fob ail . Their operations are , avowedly , " an experiment . " It is an experiment deeply interesting to all ; but doubly bo to thai , class who are at present doomed to almost unremitting toil and inadequate remuneration .
What , then , are the Socialists doing ? is the very natural question that suggests itself . How does She experiment" progress ! What are the indications of success or failure that present themselves , as far as they have gone 1 In answer to these queries we are about to give ihe statement of a gentleman who has visited thenestablishment , and reported as to the condition in which he has found their affairs . The reader must understand , however , that this testimony is not from
a Socialist . It is not a report drawn up by themselves , to serve their own purposes . It is the evidence of a stranger who has visited their establishment easually ; one who is politically opposed to them . We say opposed to . them ; for ihe writer of the account which we are about to give Ib a Fret-Trader , according to the present definition of the term j and , as far m we are able to understand the Socialists , their principles and actions necessarily oppose and supersede the doctrines and plans of the Malthusian Economists .
It was in the Morning Chronicle that the followiag account appeared , For som 9 months past a series of papers bearing the signature of " One who has tchislled at the Plough" have been regularly inserted in that journal . The writer of them has shown that he is practically acquainted with the operation of farming ; and he has also proved himself to ba no mean wielder of apen . M » ny of his articles have evinced great fihrewedness , jmd common-sense judgment ; ind Uti descriptions ~ are generally graphio aad iaferestfng , '
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He seems latterly to have been engaged in . a tour throughout the agricultural counties of England , to note the degree of perfection or imperfection observable to a passer-by in their several modes of cultivation . Under the head , Notes from ihe Farming Districts" has he communicated his observations to the readers of the Chronicle ; and the paper we now give in answer to the question ' - * What ere the Socialists doing ! " form No . XVII . of the SerieB : —
A JOTTRXEY TO HAKHOKT HALL , Y j HAMPSHIRE , WITH SOJtB PJLBT 1 CULABS OF TJiE SOCIALIST COMHUKITT , TO WHICH THE ATTENTION OF THE NOBILITY , SKNTKT , AMD CLERGY , IS EABMESTLY REQUESTED . Having heard a remark made at the inn where I was staying for a few days in Salisbury , that two travellers , who had left behind them two cloaks and two walking-sticks while they attended to some business in the market , were supposed to belong to the Socialist community at Tytherly , in Hampshire
from the circumstance of their walking-sticks having engraved on the heads the resemblance of a beehive , and the words , "the working bees , " I was induced to make some inquiry about the distance to and smaSion of their $ ethxx > e . The correct information to be gathered in Salisbury was extremely scanty ,-aud accordingly , « n being told that the distance was only twelve miles to the village of Brongbton , and that the community were located near"&at village , I procured a conveyance , aad , in company of another geatleman , set off for Hampshire .
This was two or three days after the visit of Ihe two members of the Beehive to Salisbury . It was a lovely day . If a country with so good a soil , and so poorly cultivated , could have afforded pleasure to a traveller at any time , it would have done so on such a day as this . But tbe road lay through a section of that bare country formerly described as visible from Old Saram , and there was nothing to be satisfied with but the excellent roads ^ which , being of flint on a hard bottom are maintained at little expense . Leaving Salisbury , we had the Beat of W . "Wyndham , Esq % one of the members of Parliament for the borougii , en our left ; and , for the next twelve miles , the entire distance , I saw nothing worth mentioning , save that a field of good turnips , and another of beautiful young wheat , would be seen as spots on a wide uncultivated common , much of the coil of * rU « & -was quite as good as that sending np the young wheat and the resprctable
turnips ; which turnips again might have be 3 n of a much better quality but for the negleot which characterized their cultivation . I have said nothing more was seen worth mentioning . But , at an inn called ihe Winterslow Hut , I receive d information that iho wages of labouring men had been reduced to seven shillings a week by the largest farmer in that district , and that the other fanners were expected to follow immediately with a similar rednction ; and the common expression of those who were present , tome of whom were tradesmen from Salisbury , and one the respectable landlady of the house , was to this effect : " God above only knows how the poor creatures axe to be fed ! What matters it to them that flour and bread be cheaper this year than lastl They could buy little of either last year , and they can buy t ~ little this . They must buy potatoes , not bread , and potatoes are but a middling crop this year ; they are good , but small . "
We arrived at the village of Broughton about one o ' clock , and having pat np onr horse at the inn , we proceeded on foot to Harmony Hall . Broughton is but a poor looking village , irregularly built , ard surrounded by farmers which indicated that the Working Bess Community would have no difficult task to compete with them . The soil all around is qui f 3 deep enough for common cultivation . It is deeper than many of those parts in the Lothians , or Roxburgh or Berwick shireB , where a rent of from £ 2 103 . to £ 3 10 s . an acre is paid for a middling soil . The sub-soil is chalk ; and I believe that wherever there is a sufficient depth of soil above chalk , that soil is , generally speaking , fertile . It might bo shallow on some of the higher districts ; but all that I saw , and I examined it in several situations , varied from twelve to twenty-seven inches in depth . The chalk was a variety well adapted for lime , but , saving the Socialist community , little
advantage was derived from it ; their lime-kiln was the only one I saw during the day's journey . The rent of the land about Broughton is from ten to fifteen shillings an acre . With other burdens , not borne by the Scotch farmers , it would amount to 20 s . or 25 s . an acre . But while the tenants of the Marquess of Tweeddale , the Earl of Wemyss , the Earl of Haddington , Sir George Clark , the Duke of Roxburgh , and other landlords , whose land I happen to be acquainted with , would pay from £ 2 10 s . to £ Z 10 s . for such soils , and make a profit , the farmers of that of Hampshire find they have a hard bargain with the moderate rents they now pay . When I saw their style of farming , their wastefulness of fertilizing agencies , their insufficiency of manual labour , their want of economy in hor ^ e power , and the unconquered fonlnesa of weeds , which seemed to wage perpetual war with their crops and prove victorious , I was cot surprised to hear them murmur and tell of hard times .
Leaving tbe village , we proceeded southward For nearly a mile the lane in which we walked , hedged by coarse bushes , gradually ascended , and the soil on each side seemed wearing thinner and thinner . Having fortunately met a woman who directed us through a field towards the left , we followed a waggon ' s track , and in five minutes I was standing in a field of turnips which grew in drills , showing a bulk of crop and robustness of health quite refreshing to the eye , after the poor specimens of turnip culture I had seen is that and adjoining counties . I observed to my companion that u these were "Socialist turnips" they promise well .
But before going -. further , I should remark that I knew nothing of the Socialist property , nor of any ndividual connected with it . 1 h&d , ^ like others , been reading wandering paragraphs in the newspapers about this community , some of which had not ong before stated that the whole establishment was brokes up , that the members were dispersed , the property seized by creditors ,. and soon . My companion-knew nothing of them but by hearsay . In fact , though living within twelve miles , he knew as much of China as he did of Harmony Hall , and that was not much . He was one of those jolly countrymen well to do in the world , who believe the British army and navy can , and ought to , thrash all the world , if the werld needs a thrashing ; who grumble
when the tax-gatherer comes round ; who take m a paper which they seldomread , but who still grumble at the government—no matter what party is in power ; who think no times are so hard as the present times : but who forget all grievances when the next hot joint comes on the table . Such was my companion . Little as I knew of the Socialists , I had been able to inform him that they did not wear claws , nor horns , nor wings , nor tails ; that though they were human in shape they were not cannibals ; neither did they steal little children and put them in boiling cauldrons just for the love of the thing . But though able to tell him all this , I was not able to obliterate the opinion which he had imbibed from the hearsay common in Salisbury , that
the Socialists were an assemblage of the greatest vagabonds that s-too-lenient law had left upon the face of the earth . In short , some of the stories 1 heard in Salisbury are too ridiculous , I might Bay criminally libellous , to be mentioned . Yet by many they were believed . My companion had never read for himself on any subject , and I was much amused with his account of what he had heard of the Socialists . He had a friend in -Broughton , on whom we called , and who gave us the first information of their property and personal repatatiox : it surprised both of us considerably . " Their property , " Baid he , •* consists at present of one thousand acres of land , and they are now in treaty for the purchase of another estate ; they have paid down £ 500 of a deposit on it , and it will be theirs next year . " To this I rejoined , that I was completely astonished ; that 1 had never dreamed of rheir having such a property ; and begged to know
how it was cultivated , compared with the farms I had seen in the neighbourhood . To this the gentleman replied ( and I may state he is a man of property and respectability in the village ) , that , so far as he coald judge , they were cultivating it very welL "But , " inquired my companion somewhat eagerly , " What sort of people are they ! We have heard Euch strange tales about them , over our way , that I have been quite at a loss what to think of such people being allowed to live among you . " ** Why , " replied the other , all that I have seen of them , or have heard , amounts to this , that it would be a high honour to this parish if one half onr inhabitants were as decent in their behaviour as they are—it would indeed . And more , it would be a credit to our gentry if they would employ people in as great numbers and to as much advantage on the land aB they do . "
" Lord blesB me 1 yon don't say bo ! " exclaimed my friend from Salisbury , " and such stories as we have heard of them ! Do you say all this of them is sober earnest !" " I do , " replied the Broughton gentleman . "As for their peculiar notions about property , I don't agree with them ; but , so far as saying they are well behaved people , setting a ^ ood example to this neighbourhood , I Bay it most sincerely . " ** But , " interrogated my companion , * are they not all . Deisfa that believe there is neither a God nor a devil 1 "
" If I understand the term Deist ? replied the other , it means a believer in God . As to their belief in religion I suppose they are like other people , of different opinions . One thing I know is that they come to onr church , and some to the chapeL They sit and hear the sermons , and go away again aB others do . They never introduce religion nor politics into any conversation with us in the village ; but I once talked to two of them on the subject of religion , of mj own accord , and they told me they had the same opinions of religion now as formerly ; that there were no peculiar opinions among the boeialists , save
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that each man might enjoy his own opinion without molestation ; that they , the two , being believers in the Christian doctrine of salvation through Jesus Christ , attended a place of worship , and that n « attempt was maJe by auy member of the community tefdissuade them for going to church . " ' * Lord bless me . " exclaimed ray companion ; " you don ' t say so in eainest , do you V * " But , " I inquired , for I had not been prepared to hear this favourable account of their tolerance , " what do the clergy say of them , they don ' t like then ? , 1 shoold suppose V * " The Methodists and Baptists , and such like
make an outcry against them , " replied the gentleman , but our clergyman of the parish church says nothing about thea . All of us hereabouts were much alarmed when we heard of their coming at first ; but we look on the , m now c very good neighbours ; and as they set a good moral example to our population , and employ a good many of out poor , and as they never attempt to impose any opinion on us , we have no reason to dislike them . One of them married the daughter of a farmer in this neighbourhood , a short while ago ; the banns were put up in tbe parish church , and our parson married them . Oh , depend upon it , they are doing good here in a moral point of view . "
** Lord bless me I" exclaimed my Salisbury friend once more , on bearing this ; " did the father of the young woman give his daughter to a Socialist !" " Certainly , " returned the other , * ' Why should he not ?" " Because , " said my companion , " they have anew wife whenever they tire of the old one . " " Nonsense V returned the Broughton gentleman ; " ridicnlqns nonsense . They have no such practices , and , bo far as I ever heard , no such doctrines in theory . They propose , when they can get an act of Parliament for the purpose , to simplify the law of divorce , by allowing married persons to separate by mutual consent , after several repeated notices and repeated trials on them to try once more , and once
more again , for certain periods of time , for some months each period , to agree ; if after those trials they are still desirous of being paxtc i they ma \ be divorced . As for any other laxity of principle I know none . The most delicate and well-bred conduct characterizes them so far as I know ; and nobody hereabout , however opposed to them , attempts to Bay a word against their moral character ; that , as I said before , might be an example worthy of imitation to many in this parish . In short , the Socialists are very well but on one point , which , concerns themselves more than anybody else i ; on that " point I believe them to be fatally in error ; aud more , that sooner or later they will split and fall to pieces on it—I mean the community of property .
There will always be idle men willing to talk and to live at thei expense of the industrious . Your talking men are not commonly the best workmen , and seldomer still are they willing workmen . In faot , those of them that are really industrious men are pretty well tired of the numbers who come visiting and living idly from distant parts of the country . Besides that , if they were all willing alike , they are not able alike , nor used alike to such works as cultivating a farm ; and I have heard that several of their carpenters , bricklayers , and such like , are but indifferent workmen when put to a job . In fact , the
ignorance of most of those who came here at first of practical matters has led them into extravagant expenses- They have been imposed upon on every hand . Then , again , consider the folly of expending thirty thousand pounds , aud upwards , on a building before improving their laud . Instead of beginning like working bees , thejr haye done quite the reverse . Toe bees begin by making honey , using any place for a retreat that may fall most readily ia their way . There we have the working bees and the drones living alike on the common store ; building and building , aud leaving the honey-making to the last . "
Snch was the aecount I received of the Socialist community in the village of Broughton , and it is given at full length , because of the opinions of others in the neighbourhood , who spoke to the same effect . When we reached the turnip field , aB already said , I remarked to my friend that if these were " Sooialtst turnips , " they promised well . They were Socialist turnips , and we booi after found seven hundred Socialist sheep , which made my fritnd exclaim , "Lord bless me ! who would have thought it !" Winding dona a gentle declivity , we saw a red three-storied brick building near some large forest trees . Theso trees seemed the commencement of a wooded district , which contrasted pleasantly with the naked country we had travelled over from Salisbury . As we approached the red-brick house we could observe that its outward form was tasteful
and all its proportions substantial . It stood at about fifty yards to our right , while on the left was a farmyard , old and uncomfortable looking , with some ricks of wheat , waggons , pigs , and cattle . Adjoining the farm-yard was a new house , which might have been taken at first : view for the respectable residence of a substantial farmer . This we found was built as a temporary residence for those members who arrived previous to the large house being bnilt . On every side of us we saw unfinished work ;
heaps of bricks , piles of mortar , logs of timber , half-built walls , and broken ground as if in process of being laid out into gardens . No person being visible , we looked around us for some time ; at last I saw three dogs approaching , which I proceeded to meet , supposing that , as it was Harmony Hall , there could bo no harm in meeting the dogs . They did not deceive me ; but one of them belied the reputation of the place by saarling at the other two . They growled in concert , and then departed on Berne errand of their own to a dust-heap , where one of them finding a bone , produced a contention much iu tbe same way as dogs do in the old world .
We advanced to the open door , which showed a spacious lobby , from which stairs went down , and stairs went up . I met % middle-aged female who politely told me some one would speak with ns presently . Following her were three yonnger women , plainly , but tidily and respectably , dressed . My eye was following them up stairs , when I perceived a man befors me . He wore a cloth cap , and a respectable suit of clothes . After the preliminary courteBiee , I told him that we had come to see the establishment , and any information he choose to Rive ub would be received as a kindness . Wo were then conducted into an office , where two men were sitting , one as if posting a ledger , the other writing a letter . AH the London daily papers , and several others , were on the table . A book lay open , in which we were requested to write our name ? , which done , our guide , whose name I afterwards understood to be Atkins , or Atkinson , told us to walk " this way . "
We descended to the basement floor , which , on tie other side of the house , looked out on a level with a lawn partly in process of formation . On this floor there were several large apartments ; one of them a dining room . Dinner was just over , and as a finale to it , the members were singing a beautiful piece of solemn music . We were not asked to go into their presence , but we went to the kitchen * after examining an excellent piece of machinery , which , through a tunnel , conveyed the dishes and the dinner from the kitchen to the door of the dining hall . A boy , who was passing , showed us how it worked , and presently several other boys appeared . All of them were so clean and neat in their clothes , so healthy in their appearance , and at the same time so respectful in their manners to us and to each other , that I could not help staying behind to talk with and look at them .
In the kitchen there were three or four women , with a very large assortment of dishes to wash . I did not know what the dinner had been , but judging from the refuse of bits and scraps , which seemed to me to tell more of abundance than economy , I supposed they had all got enough of it . The women m the kitchen were like all the others , tidy and respectable in appearance . The only thing that puzzled me was , how they should be bo " well as they were , with such prodigious piles of plates , washed and unwashed , around them . I can say nothing adequately descriptive of the fittings of this kitchen . At Brighton I was told that the London architect who superintended the erection of the- whole , said that there were very few kitchens so completely and expensively fitted np in London . I am sorry 10 say that such is to all appearance , and by all accounts the case .
Outside the kitchen there were commodious washhouses , cellarage , baths , and a well-arranged place for each member to wash himself as he comes from his work before going to meals . Ascending again to the next floor we entered a ball room , and going up stairs we saw the sleeping rooms , all as conveniently arranged as can be under one roof . Upon the whole the house is commodious , but I was much disappointed at seeing such a house . A village of cottages , each with a garden , would have surely been more appropriate for a working community , and much cheaper ; the sum expended on this building , not yet half furnished , is said to exceed £ 30 , 000 . Snob extravagance previous to cultivating the land would stagger most people on the question of the sagacity of the working bees .
Mr . Atkinson conducted us to the new garden , which contains twenty-seven acres . I was then introduced to a Mr . Scott , the chief gardener , whom I found to be an intelligent and thoroughly practical man . His operations of trenching and planting , and indeed gardening in every department , were extensive . Brickmakers were making bricks ; builders were building ; lime-burnera were burning lime ; road makers were making roads } the shepherds were with the sheep ; nine ploughs were at work j a hundred acres of wheat were already sown , and more wheat land was being prepared ; a reservoir was being constructed to save all the liquid manure ; and in snort , everything was being done to improve tbo land which industry and capital could accomplish and skill direct .
Mr . Scott was having portions of some of the fields trenched with the spade . He paid the labonrers £ 5 per acre for it , and expected them to work so as to mako two shillings a day . I remarked that this was more wages than common . He said it was ; they only gave the ploughmen and other day labourers nine shillings a Keek ; but as it was scarcely
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possible to get a good workman in that part of the country , he allowed a higher rate of wages to get them to work with some spirit . In answer to a remark I made about pro-. ely tiling their workmen to fjoialism , he replied that they uever made any attempt ; but if they did attempt it , he believed anything might be accomplished , any change might be effected , but a change in the old slovenly style of working : on that point he believed the present generation of Hampshire labourers to be incurable . It will be perceived by this that the members of the community do not ; themselves cultivate the land . S : > me of them work in the garden , but few of them I snap : 3 t , are fitted for out-door work . Their number was at the time I was there
sixty ; thirty more were expected soon after . Tbe quantity of land is 1 , 000 acres , held on a lease of ninety-nine years , at a rent of fifteen shillings an acre . They have the power of purchasing it within that time at a certain price ; and they have paid down a deposit on a neighbouring estate of three hundred acre ? . Taeir landlord is Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid . There is some fine wood on the ground , and an aveuue of fine old yews , which for beauty and extent is perhaps not equalled in any other part of England ' . The comm unity intend cor - verting a portion of that avenue into a summer ballroom . Adjoining , are large numbers of full grown trees , resembling the size and shape of the mainmast of a man-of-war .
I saw in several parts of the woodlands that the vegetable mould was gathered into heaps to be carried and used as manure . On almost every estate in the kingdom there is a nob . soil of this kind that might bo collected and carried away without any injury to the trees . Mixed with lime it is an excellent compost . 'I did not see the agriculturist , but Mr . Scott , the gardener , was conducting several experiments in the fields with the spade on alternate ridges with the plough . His manner of trenching was this : — The earth was lifted two spadeaful in width , and to the depth of about a foot . This was taken in
wheelbarrows to the place Where trenching was to cease , there to fill np the last opening . A piok was taken , and the bottom of the trench loosened to the depth of eight or ten inches . This loosened subsoil was allowed to remain . The adjoining soil , two spadesful in breadth , was then turned over , taking care to bury the weeds iu the bottom . A second working with the spade in the same trench , turned up a fresh soil to form the surface of tho new seed soil . The bottom of this second trench wa <* loosened with the pick as that of the first , and the next was begun by again burying the top mould . They had a subsoil
plough on its way from Smith , of Deanstone s factory , in , Scotland . They were gradually introducing improved implements , but the greatest difficulty they found was to get the Hampshire labourers to work with them . They had thirty of these labourers at work . I was told at Broughton that about one-half of the members ate no butcher-mo . it , but lived entirely onvegetablo diet . They at first brewed beer , but now they have curtailed that expense . One shilling a week is allowed for pocket money , but few of them are ever seen to spend even that in the neighbourhood .
To conclude , I may remark that I believe their land to be well worth £ 3 per acre of rent , and they only pay 15 d . They have an excellent bargain , if they manage it well ; and whatever may be said of their Social crotchets , it must be said of them that their style of farming is of a Buperior kind . Those noblemen , gentlemen , clergy and others who dislike the Sooialiats would do well to show the working population that good farming is not necessarily an adjunct of Sooialism ; else , perhaps , the working population will think the doctrines of those who pay beet , employ most , aud produce the greatest
abundance of crops , are the best doctrines . This 13 no , light subject . Missionaries of all religions in all parts of the world , in all ages , have succeeded in proselytising more by introducing arts and sciences , by teaching new means of acquiring wealth , than by preaching abstract theories . We have an eminent instance of this in New Zealand , at the present time ; and unless the landed gentry take a step in advance , or at least side by side in the same road with the Socialists , they will find the labourers of Hampshire voluntarily converted to the new doctrine . Again I say this is no light subject . Let the gentry and clergy look to it .
Owe who has Whistled at the Plough . Such is the account given by the writer in the Morning Chronicle . He truly says " this is no light ., subject ! " " A thousand acres of land ; " " a treaty , jpr another estate ; " " £ 500 paid on it as a deposit ; " a field of turnips , refreshing to the eye ;" ' s ' even hundred sheep eating them ; " " building , said to cost £ 30 , 000 ; " a dinner , judging from the refuse of bits and scraps , which seemed to tell more of abundance than economy ; " " a garden of twentyseven acres ; " " brickmakers making bricks f ' " builders building ; " " road-makers making roads , " nine ploughs at work f M a hundred acres of wheat sown , and more wheat land preparing ; " I'faith , H is no light subject !"
All this land , these turnips , these sheep , this garden , these ploughs , and this wheat , are used for the purpose of providing A DINNER for the members of the bee-hive , which tells more of ABUNDANCE than economy ! Truly it is " no light subject J " " Dinner was just over ; and , as a finale to it , the members were singing a beautiful piece of solemn music " ! We have often heard the saying " no song , no supper . " Recent experience has taught the labouring people , that the correct reading is " no dinner , no song ! " 1 Here , however , was to be found both dinner and song 1 The reason why these were so found is " no light subjeot" ! We advise the labouring people generally to endeavour to find out that reason ; bo that they may
a ^ ath sing ! We sospeot that an attentive inquiry will show that reason to be in the fact that the land is occupied by , and worked by , thoselwho eat the dinner and sing the song ! We perceive that the Governor of the Establishment where this ABUNDANT DINNER , ( with a song after it !) was found , has deemed it necessary to correct one or two trifling inaccuracies in the writer ' s statement . He explains : —
" Firstly , tbe regulations of the establishment do not permit of persons coming ' visiting and living idly from all parts of the country . ' Secondly , a very large Bum was expended in farm-stock and improvements of various kinds ere any bailings were erected . These latter ; have not cost more than balf the sum stated ; and it must be understood that a large proportion of them ore intended for the accommodation of pupils in infant , elementary , and polytechnic schools , which are now forming . Thirdly , very many of the members are at present occupied on the land ; and it is intended tbat all shall be partially so occupied . There are other inaccuracies of a minor kind , which it is not deemed necessary to notice . On the whole , however , the account is the most correct and impartial yet given to the world by a stranger . "
This , then , is what the Sooialists are doing They are occupying land , building dwellings , growing turnips , feeding sheep , sowing wheat , eating abundant diunebs , employing labour , paying better wages , and introducing amongst their neighbours an improved system of farming : while their moral example is suoh as to win golden opinions even from those who have been taught to regard them as the vilest of the vile . At ! this result of their endeavours we must express our moBt unbounded satisfaction ; and a most fervent hope that entire success will attend their future exertions .
In this expression of satisfaction , however , let us not be mistaken , We do not identify ourselves with the peculiarities of the Socialists . We know that they have some crotchets about" external circumstances ;" and about men being" the creature of them . " We know-also that they have some notions out of the common way , on the question of Marriage and Divorce . With these , however , we have nothing to do . It is with the occupation and employment of thb Land to the production and enjoyment of an ABUNDAN f DINNER that we wish to direct attention . An
abundant dinnei is an " external circumstance" that we can understand ; and we can also understand that that " circumstance' has a good deal to do in " forming the human character . " To obtain that abundant dinnbb for the labouring man is an object of the first importance with us : and it is because that abundant dinner has flowed to the Socialists from having the power to grow their own wheat , and feed ther own sheep , and eat both , when grown and fed , that we ask the labouring people to look on at what they are doing !
The labouring poor must bear in mind that it is not necessary that they all turn Socialists to enable them to do as the Socialists are doing with ths land . They can obtain possession of thb land , and use it , too , to the production of an abundant dinner , for themselves , without embracing all the peculiarities of Socialism
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We do not know that the turnips at Harmony are any bigger , or the sheep more fat , or the dinner more -abundant , because , and only because , the inmates of Harmony Hall hold the doctrine that " man is the creature of circumstances . " We suspect that manure and labour had more to do with the " eyerefreshing" orpp of turnips ; and that the turnips had more to do with the fatting of the sheep , than the bare doctrine of " external circumstances . " Land and labour will prodnce food : if theae be in j the possession of the labouring people , and if they use them so as to produce an " abundant dinner , " and have sense enough to eat the dinner when it is produced , depend upon it it will not be necessary for them
to become sectarians of any denomination to enjoy it ! If they produce for themselves a good dinner , and eat it , they may sing after it , without being Socialists ; unless , indeed , Sooialism consists in producing , eating , ! and singing ! The above account is cheering to the labourers . By it they may see what can be done under most discouraging circumstances . No single sect of men have had a tithe of the opposition to contend with that the Socialists have had . In spite of all , they
have secured for themselves " an abundant dinner . " That " abundant dinner" will the labourers generally secure to themselves , whenever they get upon the land ! They Will get upon thb land whenever they have so operated upon public opinion , m to have it in favour of such an employment of the productive energies of the soil , and the physioal ener . gies of the labourer , as shall end in the production of a good dinner for himself first , and a " biting-on " for whoever may come afterwards . To the formation of that public opinion , then
should a portion of their time be devoted ! The question , as wej said last week , is making rapid advances . The publication of the above account by the Morning Chronicle is abundant evidence of that fact . It is our duty , and the duty of the poor themselves , to help it onwards . To the Socialists we say , Go on ! Produce more turnips , more sheep , and more wheat ! Show what
can be done with the land . Introduce the most improved modes of cultivation . Slake the most of your bargain ! You are engaged in " an experiment " which , in its issue , may advance or retard the cause , of the poor very materially . It is an important problem you have set yourselves to solve . Its solution may have effect upon the world at large . It behoves yon ] therefore , to be circumspect and mindful . Be so ! The world will now watch
you ! The public eye is opened upon you ; and if you are not careful , rancour will seize upon some false step of youta , aad prevent public confidence in you . Your card ] is now a thousand-fold more difficult to play now than before 1 Look well , therefore , before every leap you take I We had intended , before closing this article , to have indulged in ] a friendly remonstrance with some of the Socialists , respecting their "insane" and unaccountable policy towards the Chartists ; and to have addressed some recommendations to both parties as to a future course of conduct towards each other . Time and space , however will not permit us to enter into this branch of our subject . It must
be reserved for another opportunity ; when we hope to be able to shew that both greatly mistake their true interests when they suppose that their proper position is in antagonism to each other . The end sought by both is the same : there is only a difference as to the means : and while the Chartists ought to have no objection to the Socialists { using the means they are doing to give to the world : a practical example of what can be done for the people on the land ; so ought there , on the other hand , to be no abjection , but , on the contrary , aid , from the Socialist to the Chartist , in the obtaining of that power which will enable both to accomplish their end , the Salvation of the starving workers by means of THE LAND !
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THE" SUCKING PIGS , " AND THEIR DESIRE FOR "UNION . " There is matter in the speeches and discussions Of this Conference With which we might yet occupy many columns more than we are disposed to devote to it , in confirmation of the correctness of the views we have always taken , and the justness of the suspicions we have always expressed of the motives and purposes of the Sturge-men and their adherents . Indeed , we might begin and go through every one of the speeches made ( by them on the motion of Mr . Lovett ' s , at which We laid down the subjeot last week , and through ' the whole of their proceedings afterwards ; and ev ^ ery single squeak of every single " piggy" might be seen to furnish evidence of the same trnth ; the truth , that their " talk" of union
waa mere hypooritic cant , and that their purpose was , as it ia , and has ever been , to sever the working classes into two bodies ; carrying away the weak-minded , the short-sighted , aud the bad-principled , after the freej trade phantasy ; and leaving , as they hoped , the remainder too . weak to effect any useful purpose . We say that evidence of this shines through all their Conference acts and speeches , and all that they have done and written since . But the task of analysing suoh a mass of ill-covered sophistry , plain contradictions , and clumsily concealed personal malignity as showed itself at the Conference , is one for which we have little stomach ; it is rather too extensive a piece of dirtinese . We take , therefore , a sample from the sack ; and that the sack may be well judged of we take the best sample , the speech of the Rev . Mr . Spencbb upon LovBrr ' s motion for making the Charter the basis of
discussion in the preparation of the Bill which they were met to prepare . Mr . Spenceb said : — " He saw no reason why they should be bound to a particular document ] because it happened to have been introduced five yearB ago—( hear , hear . ) He wished that every delegate bad read another document , which he would call the I People ' s Bill of Rights , " and he thought they wouldj find it an improvement upon tbe Charter ; more liberal , more generous , more for tbe people's good , and j more for the protection of their lights , than tbe Chatter—( hear , hear , and " No , no . " ) He contended tbat they had as much right to a name as any body else—( hear , hear . ) It was said that there was a prejudice on the part of the association in
favour of a name—( hear , hear . ) He certainly did not see why any person should be compelled to call himself a Chartisfc—( heat , neat . ) He was in favour of Complete Suffrage , and he would do his utmost to catty oat the details necessaryjfor its enactment , but he objected to a body of men coming there and saying , that they should not consider the principle under any other name thau the People ' s Charter . ( Hisses . ) He was present at the last Conference , land the members of the Complete Suffrage Association conceded almost evety thing to tbe advocates of the Charter which could be asked of them , but I nothing was conceded in return . ( Cries of no , no . ) He repeated the truth of the assertion . But did they { repent what they bad done ? Ne .
They thought that what they bad done was right . He trusted that be had the interest of the working classes at heart as much as any man living , and his hope for them in this movement was the union of their own body with tbe electoral body ; the infusion of fresh energy , fresh life , and fresh blood from another class . ( Cheers . ) Let the working classes have their own field- He thought ] the members of tbe Complete Suffrage Association could render them much service in working separately ;] but if they remained one party , and that a divided one , the effect of the new movement would be lost for ever . ( Hear , hear , and no , no >) He had beard the Bill to which so many allusions had been made , read over , accompanied with the explanation of
the accomplished barrister who had drawn it up , and he was surprised at the opinion expressed by one gentleman who advocated the Charter , who could not have seen much of the Bill , that it was bad in the preamble and in its' clauses . ( Hear , hear , heat , from Mr . O'Connor ) . ] He ( Mr . Spencer ) had brought his common sense to j bear in judging [ of the bill ; and he must say tbat be did not think the opinion he had alluded to , was a correct one . He had read the Charter , too . He had heard jit explained , and if gentlemen would only consent to have the Bill of the Association ,
which had been drawn up with great care and at a great expence—if they weuld consent to have it discussed , then , at the end they would be able to say whether they thought the bill or the Charter the most valuable—( hear , hear ! , hear ) . He could not understand why it was contended tbat the Charter should be the basis of discussion . Every body knew what the Charter was , but every body did not know what the bill of the Complete Suffrage Association was—( hear , hear ) . If they condemned a ) measure about which they knew nothing , he would tisk whether they would not be blindly following blind leaders , and whether they
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would not be voting in the d « k ?—( hear , hear , and disapprobation ) . If the Conference were determined to act in this way , he felt bound as an Englishman , and claiming a right to think and act for himself , to say that rather than he would give up his independence , he should henceforward recommend that there should be two parties / and that they should carry on their Conference under different namei —( hear , hear , hear , and much disapprobation ) , it ought to be borne in mind that the Charter TOU only an outline of the proposed Bill , and that it wanted filling up . On the other band , the Bill had been filled up
with very great cars , and if adopted , it would be the glory of the land—( hear . lhear , and no , no ) . Why not allow the members of the Association the same privilege which the advocates of the Charter demanded for themselves ?—( hear , hear ) . If it was to be said , " yon moss come J » us first , " he must say no— ( hisses ) . As a clergy man of the Church of England , he could converse with a Dissenter on the principles of Christianity , without any sacrifice of his own convictions ; but if the Dissenter asked him to turn to his way ef thinking , he would not do ho , . Neither on the other hand would he ask the Dissenter to coma to him . He wanted liberality ia
religion aa well as everything else , and he rejoiced to ny that with resprct to the brethren in the Church , there was a disposition , when they saw a man determined to think for himself , to allow him to do so . He wantod to lower tho taxes ; but he would do it in a fair way . He wanted to reform the Church ; but he wished to do it in e : cordanc 3 with scriptural reason . He wished to extand the elective franchise , and put every man in possession of his civil rights ; but he sought to do that by peaceable and legitimate means , and he weuld be no party to anything that could lead te disorder or to destruction of the national institutions —( hissing and much confusion ) . "
If any man can wish for more , evidence of the insincerity of the Siurge party , when they talk of " union between the middle and working classes , " than is afforded by this speech , we wish him joy of his stupidity . As an attempt at argument we have seldom read or heard a speech , whioh was more anocesaful in the answering of itself . As a cover for the deep designs of the Sturge men , it is , though the best effort of the party , a perfect failure . The Rev . Gentleman saw no reason why they should be bound to a paticular document , because it happened to have been introduced five yeara ago . "
Did this very sentiment furnish to the Rev . Gen tlemanno argument against their being" bound to a particular document , because it happened to have been introduced , " the previous evening 1 Sorely a five years acquaintance with a document should , at least , even in the estimation of a Sturge man , be as geod a reason for adhering to it as a five minutes acquaintance ! How futile , then , is the argument (!) which so overturns itself 1 But look at the dishonest perversion of facts contained in these few wordsi It was not because the Charter had been five years before the public that the supporters
of the amendment wished it to be made the basis of discussion ; but because its provisions wore familiar to them . They knew all about them ; they knew that they did contain an embodiment of the great principles for the success of which Mr Spencer , and the rest of the Sturge men professed anxiety ; they knew that it had obtained the confidence of tbe working classes favourable to those principles ; they knew also that it had obtained tbe confidence of many among the more honest of the middle classes favourable to those principles ; they
were sincere and earnest in their desire for a union of all those among the middle and working classes who do hold them , for the furtherance of those principles ; and they concluded naturally and rightly , as all parties honestly seeking union must have concluded , that they were more likely to effect that union by taking , as their basis , a common ground , over which both had travelled and were familiar with , than by taking a new ground of which neither knew anything at all but what Mr Biggs and Mr . Spencbb might be pleased to tell them about it .
This course must have been approved and adopted by all parties desiring to effect a union between tke middle and working classes for the legislative establishment of the great principles contained in the Charter ; but this course was not approved and adopted by the Sturgemen in the late Conference therefore the Sturgemen in the late Conference had no desire to promote such a union . In his laudation of the " five hour monster , " Mr . Spencer expressed his wish that every delegate had read it . If it had been the wish of his part ; for the delegates to be acquainted with the con *
tents of the Bill , they had the means of gratifying their own wish . The Bill was printed , and might have been put into the hands of every delegate , at the same time with his card of admission . And , considering the stand which the Sturgemen intended to take upon the Bill , it ought to have been bo presented to each delegate . Each delegate would then have had an opportunity—a very indifferent one to be sure—but still some opportunity of reading it , of acquainting himself with its details , and of noting its great superiority over the Charter , so much dilated on by the Rev Speaker . Bnt this didn't
suit the Sturgemen at all . Their object from the first was to avoid everything upon which a real union for principle could be effected . And we verily believe that if they had thus furnished each delegate with a copy of their Bill , and if , upon examination , the Bill had been actually fonnd to provide honestly and fairly for the enforcement of tho great principles , and it had therefore been cordially and unanimously adopted by the delegates to the exclusion of the Charter , they would have been filled with disappointment and consternation ; they would have been agonized with fear lest the delegates
. should be able to bring the pc 3 ple into like modes of thinking , and so effect that " union" which ia their very hearts we believe they dread . We' h&va no doubt that if this had been so , or if the Chartist delegates , determined on " union" had even swallowed the " pig in a poke , " and taken the monster as it was , we should have had the Sturgites themselves the very loudest of all parties in denonnoing these delegates for inconsistency , for fickleness of mind * and for bad faith to their constituents , in the hops that by this means they might split up the people into sections , and so prevent the" union . "
" He contended that they bad as much right to a name as any body else . He did not see why any par « son should be compelled to call himself a Chartist " Here again , the perversion and the sophistry which form the cloven foot of party peeps out from under the Rev . speaker ' s argument . The question of the " name" was not at all before the Conference . It was the thing they were talking of ; the documentthe embodiment of principles . About names there had been , as yet , no discussion ; nor had they been at all introduced , except as the Reverend speaker and a few of his " Sncking Pig" friends had lugged them in , nolens volens , to form a cover for their policy .
But , if it had even been a question of names , theargument of the Reverend Gentleman is again a two-edged one . If he objected to the name of the Charter , surely his Christian principle should have taught him that others had an equal right to object to any other name . And since he must know that union can be obtained only by one of two courses , sameness of view , or' concession , his Christian principle should have : again taught him , that it honestly desiring nnion , the minority should ba prepared at all times to concede to the majority every thing whioh migftt not involve a sacrifice of the thing to be united far . Now it was admitted by Mr . Spencer , and by aH . the Sturge men , that the Charter does contain an embodiment of their
principles . It was admitted by Mr . Stuhge in his opening speech , that the only prejudice and objection was against tbe name ; tbat the thing was tho very thing which they desired ; that they considered " a nnion with the working classes" necessary for its attainment ; and that they had , therefore , invited them to this Conference for the purpose of obtaining such a union . We say that under such circumstances bad it been a question about names , their Christian principle should have instructed them , that inasmuoh as the name was not the principle and that the principle might ba as well recognized under one name as another , H was their duty , rather than to jeopardise the union , to coDoede the point to the majority . So that if it had even been a question about names , ( he obstinacy of
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_ 4 THE NORTHERN STAR .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Jan. 21, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct634/page/4/
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