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( Conimuedfrom ow SixtK page . ) fijjes imposed upon Mm , but how trifiing -was Iheii « noinit when they looked at the Insaltliehad inflicted ml mniM > ity - But , listen again to what this inspector - £$ - ^ " Ho defence-was attempted , exeeptrthe often reneged one of being pressed to complete an older for jSpinenV toe profits of which . -would have been lost if fjjey tad not undertaken to supply the -whole quantity re-Jlyjed . The maf » &atea would net entertain this plea ^ affording a ny justification for so gross an abuse ^ f the po « eiafl employer can exercise orer the operatives in i district where labour a redundant 1 regret to say Op mill-oc cupiers < do not stand alone responsible , for gjjj cruelty towards the young females . " 2 * 0 ; the --rents had been driven by the surplus labour of the to work their own to death for ,
^ sth onsprrng existence . <¦ jt was prbveiW&at a parent had not merely consented $ o sacrifice ihi jphyslcal powers of iia child for money , j ^ t oMged his tender girl to exert herself to the last . jtanng the period the mill was at work , some of the rirfs were obliged to witMr&w , from physical inability fo iroifc longer . The parent of one young woman , about ¦ jijjeteen jests of age , was determined to "brave the « un * hment consequent upon opposing the will of | a 7 ma » ter , viz . dismissal from work for the future 3 ie -croceeded at four o ' clock on Saturday afternoon to Qm mill , fortunately obtained -access to the room where jjjjgirlhad been working from five o'clock on Pflday sjpniing , and insisted on -withdrawing her . He
ultijjut ^ y succeeded , but not , as he informs me , until voin the -msmging partner , Mr , ThrriftriU and his son , lad endeavoured forcibly to remove him from the premises . This and the other cases of overwork which jare occurred within the last two year * in the Bradford district must surely convince the most sceptical of jhe absolute necessity of a strong law to protect the fe&oaring class in these districts ; and the officers employed may reasonably deem auch cases as indicating ^ faX jj to be expected among a certain class of mills under * more active aiate of trade . ** There was not a Bo mber in the House , ha ( Mr . Ferrand ) did not care to ^ ist psrty be might "belong , who could hare heard this totement , and ~ who would isot blush for the honour of
jai country . { Hear . ) There never was , he -wonld venture to say . in the history of England , ao disgraceful a piece of conduct dragged to public light in the House ef Commons by a Member against a man who had the power of u&ctiES such horrors on his feUow-oountry ne n . The New Pooi law had placed this power in jjjii nun ' s hands . He had lost that power over the people in the neighbourhood of his milL The Right Bon . Bironet smiled ! From plundering and perse gogng to death the working classes in . the Deighboor bood of his siH the working classes had struck against jijjn ; ifcey had tfcfu 3 &d to be- any logger hia slaves ; jjjj miB stood atai . He was enabled to provide the jugins once more of working it ; and where did he
fad this ? TJnd % ? the Jiew Poor Law . He applied & the Skiptoa -srstkhouae , and they supplied him vj& twealj lands . Hb would ask the Bight Hon , lionet where those twenty hands now vrera ? The Sight Bon . Baronet had » heart , he i 2 iz . Ferrand ) taw , * ithin bis breast to which the cnes of these poor -wretches Would art plead in Tain . He had stated joaiE of the consequences of this "New Poor Law upon the muss in the north of England . If the House voold aOow him he would state ¦ what was the conduct of tte ^ issis tsnt Poor Law Commissj o nsra in the admisisfaraSoD of this law ; and in doing so , he ( Hr Ferjandi doubted not that the Yirst Lord of the Treasury ^ onld render an act of justice to him as -veil as to the
parishioners of the township where he lived , when he bad explained the scandalfcns conduct of the Assistant Poor law Commissioners . Daring the discussion of tke Kew Toot Xiw in that House Hon . Members would lemember -with what glee the Bight Hon . Baronet the First Lard of the Treasury had opened the red box bsforshim , anddragged out a statement from Mr . Mott . Paragraph after paragraph he read , bringing charges tha mest untrue against tie Ksighley Board of Gsardians . He ( Mr . Ferrand ) had sat perfectly composed behind him , feeling that he should have very litUe difficulty to prove to his conviction that the statements madeby Mr . > Iott were untrue , and contradictions bad passed between the right Hon . Baronet and friT ^ f .
Tbis had ended in a challenge on the part of the Bight Hen . Baronet to him ( Mr . Ferrand ) to move for a committee of inquiry , - when the gallant commodore the Umber for Marylebone , always ready for the fisht , j » tb BoSce of a motion for s committee of inquiry , and is ( Hz . Ferrand ) understood that he had brandished nil stick above his head on leaving the house , and Bid * - he had caught the Hon . Member for Knaresfceroash in a tap at last" Thst inquiry had taken place , and bo convinced was he ( Mr . Ferrand ! that ia could disprove the statements of Mr . ilott that bs had assented to the xtembera ol the committee i mposed by the Bight Hon . Baronet the First Lord of fia Treasury at once ; for he was convinced
thathalf-a-ttssa witnesses connected with the Keigbley Union R » M prove every -word of Mr . Uott ' fl statement to be IiJje . The committee had been moved for and appanted . The next day-when he { Mr . Ferrand ) came to £ * House an Son . Member had said to him " Why , Jsa feolish fellow , 70 a have agreed to a packed comiSiee ; ihsy-will-report against you . ** He ( Mr- Peraad ) had replied , he did not care whatsart of a comsitee there was , the witnesses -would prove the truth . Troicsgistrates , both Whigs , who had taken an active pr . In the forwarding of the measure , and vrho -were ereBUDBs supporters of the 2 f ew Poor Law , legal and lae&al cmcezs connected with the union , had been erauaea u witoesses , and every one of them , without
ercfptka , had declared that Mr . JloU ' a report -sras sn&ia . The coHnnittee had reported that Mr . Mott'a rg » rt us borne ont in his important allegations . " He pir Ferrendj regretted that there sbcald have been im lUespt in that committee to whitewash that public tSser . Lrt any man read the evidence given before that ftssmittee ; the Hon . Member for Finsbary sat on it , and » 3 dd bear him out in what he stated , and he would be ttcrkeed that the evidence was opposed to the report . l&tGmicitteehad reported that Mr Hott ' s statement was te . Mr . Mott , inhisreport , amongst other things , said ; "S 3 7 April , 1842 . I attended a meeScg of the board d { inrdians of the B ^ igbley Union on "Wednesday , ths I 32 i mstant , andresret to have to report to your
k « rd , that the proceedings of the guardians are very EKtisfaetory ; in short , they are entirely at-variance " ¦ ith tSs provisions of the larw , and the directions of Jen board . " He { Mz , Ferrand ) had put it to the vote h Sat committee , upon tiiB evidence of every v ^ tness , * s « i of Trnom bad proved that no instrucriens whatever fc » 4 been received from the Poor Law Commissioners , n * pt the original instructions , and teat therefore the l < wd ef guardians had acted in direct accordance -with fee ctigijia ] insiroetioES ; but the committee had come is » vou against the evidence . He must tell the House , ^ wrer , that the s&Ilant commodore 'Sir C . Kapierj fad voted by mistake , that his opinion was not * that « . Hctt ' s report -was borne out in all its most imyteil illations by the evidence of the -witnesses * bo hsd come forward to impugn it , " and Then he M&
wsd ont that this -was the sass lie had protested JJEMtliisvoie bring recorded ; bnt this opinion of the Kffifflitteelxid gone forth , to the -world as the convic-5 * Of JhB Hon . asd GaJant Commodore . But lie ( 2 Ir . raised ) » m Bc j a jn ^ j , ^ p ^ ^ y $ & -white-^* % * j « tam . B . e came to the House and he told the **« that justice had not been done ; that tha public " 3 "been put ta ^ reat -expense for the purpose of coming * fi » troth , and that he still would seek for it in that *** - He -was informed that opposition was to be *** to a motion of ¦ which he had Riven notice for a ** aicf certain papers relative to this qu&stion ; but •* -p £ bt Ben . Bar&eet the First Lord of the Treasury , /^ U ai straightforward rn > T > l" ? p- ^ ' of conduct for * j * he had always given him credit , said ie would «» 2 o » it—that the papers should be granted . There - "l peen a driving down of the Members of that " asittee to oppose hi » motion ; but the B ght Hon , 8 *! cad ssid that the ha
J ^ pipers should granted r *^* fcal bad he moved for by way of coming at the ?~* - He had moved for ' copy of all orders which r ™^ ™ jsjjjj ^ j , y the Poor Law Commissioners of ^• tt-hoEse to the Board of Guaroians in thB f ^ f " ^ ITiiioc since the formation of the same , in r * - up toths 13 th day © f April , 1842 ; also , copy of _ ^ c « i upon the proceedings of the Board , and ¦^ aniU thertpn flnring that period , « hich have been fc _ ^ k- ^** uui iKC VI ffr \ uuiwU ) "i ** k ** - * iiii ¦» - fc ^ v »« ?
~* JS » AsMitaat Poor Law Commissioners Mr" » SDQ Hr . 3 ioUto the Poor Law Commissioners ; jjjjs *_» tte ment of the particular instances in -which ^^ a ^ &ard of Guardians have acted contrary to tha ^ of the Central Board at Somerset-house ; J ^ T ™ ° * ^ nJher of times the said Assistant T » CommisioBsri , Mr-Power and Mr . Mott , have jj *? «» laid Board and the pjorhonsea of Keighley 5 * 1 . 3 ? ' the dates thereof ; also , a return of fVUiitUW
JM ^ ^~~ J I'W P UiOUC \ JU UJC EH * Xi ^ ) W }| ^« Iten ¦ lm 31 ^ ° i inmates -srithin the same on ityV ^ ot the union , and on the Ik day of June , M W . ° * ' 1 rist did tae S 01156 think the retnrn 5 **? after the committee of the House had Y 3 * ?^ act opposition to the ev idence of every jn ^ Uat had been examined before them , of all g ^ WJties , both for and against the lavF , that Mr . W ^ Jff J ^ * what vras untrue ? The Commissioners i fiW rdum to the House of Commons , — That *^^^ psst that iIr - Mott had made any report ^ ?*<* April , ISfS- '—wMch had been brought >< rf 'a 8 * ° * of the Ki ^ ht Hon » 3 iroDet for ii » e j > ni-* TtEi fa ! **** * < 3 to . Ffenand ) ^ onm in the House ; {^^• ^ iee conHEUsioners had not . any written V ^ to aao ^ ^ liaX spirit ae uaidKeighley » » iil ~| ° ^ sns had acted . " Novf he ( Mr . Ferrand ] 5 jJr ' ^ ^ hoard of guardians to listen to what was ¦^ Vrz *™^!" - ^ ott to the Poor Law Commission ^ wamutt ^ cf that Honsa bad beenappointed to
1 < s , p ^^ ^ ej " were true , and this was the retniTi ^ gf " Law Gommisaoners of Somerset-houffB ^ t- ^ -v Vay as "Poor ' -Law Commissior . era ^ a ' fcT ^ ttha * -Hou 3 : ? Tfereaey to gratify private * ** & » ??* Bpaj aateHJeDt which was falss from (¦ ^ V emd > ana then > when PBt to tha test of I * Ss , ' - «! l aey to ^ nis fCTWard and deliberately I ^ ^^*> fttb- "« t » tanents had not befin made ? ^ tN hJ ^ ** - » 1 rheM " ^ * ^ o « ™ t * i & i&i J ** 0126 rf him ? 35 is -country had l *^^! ^ ' ha ' Wag dism 5 ss&d from office . ! ** Sa » w ? fiiEmissed oa account of his condnct IS **^^™ ? His ( Mb FerrancTE ) firm ll ^ ldT : ^ ^ ^ d noDce that Ijfetti ^ ' ^ s to ^ eagn , he would ^^ SuS tTL S TeIJ « oaduct Now , one I ^ TtearjjrTf f ^ -Hon . Baro-jet the Firet Lord of I « y , led if thai Ryat B Bar ^ i ld
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giTB him Ms kind attention for one minute , he thought he « ould convince him that he vras in honour bound tado him an act of justice—( hear . ) The Bight Hon Baronet quoted from the Poor Law Commissioners repor t , which he drew from his red box ; and vrben he nia to ha turned round and looked at Mm { Mr . Ferxand ) , a member of that House anxious to dp his duty according to the best of his ability , ana said , " Let the Hon . Member , instead of babbling about green fields andall such , trash , go down into his own neighbourhood and inquire into the state of the workhouse there . " And the Hon . Member for Halifax shouted eut , a Within three-quarters of a mile of his own house "—1 & laugh ) . He - ( Mr . Ferrand ) assented that it was so and how loudly was the Right Hon . Baronet cheered by
certain Hon . Members opposite , who gloried in seeing him put down by the first Minister of the Crown— ( hear , ana a laugh ) . But at thB same time he felt conscious that all the horrible scenes described by the Right Hon . Baronet , and horrible they were , could not have taken place ; and he said that it was a disgrace to the country that Poor Law Commissioners , for party purpuses , should so deceive the Right Hon . Baronet—( bear , hear ) . He -was also determined to test the tenth of the assertions of M ? . Power , as well as to justify himself in . the * ig % fc of the BAgtt Hon . Baronet and of the Hous *; and 4 o show , therefore , that they were not such monsters in the parish of Bingley before the Poor Law , as to compel the living to companion with the dead , or to sleep four in a bed—and oh , how
eloquently did the Right Hon . Baronet describe those horrors , ' —he < Mr . Ferrand ) moved that , there be laid upon the table of the Housb returns of the nnwbera of times the assistant-commissioners Power and Mott had visited the boards of guardians of which the RigbA Hon . Baronet had spoken , of how many Teperts they bad made concerning them , and of tha number of inmates in the union from the first day of its formation to the year 1842 . Well , what was the fact ? Why , that previous to that report not one single commissioner had visited the poorhouse from the tame of the formation of the union J—( bear , hear . ) Bat if there were evils in that poorhouse now , who was to blame ? It was placed under the entire control of the Poor Law Commissioners and their assistant
commissioners . The guardians and parishioners durst not interfere j if they did , they would act illegally . They were bound down in the strictest manner by the blessed N « w Poor Law . —( hear , hear . ) But what was the treatment of the poor there under the old law , and what was it under thensw ? The number of inmates in the poorhouse of Bingley , at tbe formation of the union , was 13 j not enough to fill all the beds . —( hear , hear . ) Would the Right Hon . Baronet believe that , under the new law , the number bad increased to 56 1 —( hear , hear . ) And that crowded Btate or the house was under the sauction of the Poor Law Commissioners themselves , for their directions to the Board of Guardians were that the po » i should 1 ) 8 crowded inte that building , including the poor belonging to two other
townships in that union . —( hear , hear . ) He would , therefore , ask the Right Hon . Baronet , not as a matter of favour but as a matter of right , did he not think h " was bound to give some explanation of the attack which he made upon him ( Mr . Ferrand ) on a former occasion ?—( hear , hear . ) As long as we had the management of the poor ( continued the Honourable Gentleman ) we toek care that the living did not companion with the dead : we treated them with mercy and vdth justice , allowing them the enjoyment of every thing they had a right to expect by the laws ol England , " and what by the law * of God they had a right to demand in a land professing to he Christians and to be influenced by the precepts of the BibJe . { A cry of "Oh . " and " hear , hear . ") He
wished to bring under the notice of the House the dreadful state of the north of England in consequence of the operation of the New Poor Law ; and when he lead a description of the condition of Huddersfield , he thought that Hon . Members connected with the agricultural interest would say to themselves , " It is high time for ua to place our houses in order , for the New Poor Law will soon operate in the same manner upon us . " •* At the Guildhall , Huddersneld , on Tuesday last , January 31 , the overseers of no fewer than nine townships that Trexe in arrears with the payment of the calls of the board of guardians appeared to answer to summonses which had been issu 8 d against them by order of the board of guardians . The following is the list of the difference * : —Golcar , £ 3 i 2 s ., old arrears ,
besides the last call of £ 200 ; Comberworth arrears , £ 20—call £ 60 ; Cumberworth half-arreara , £ 20—call £ 70 ; Shelly arrears , £ 20—call , £ 80 ; Thurstonland arrears , . £ 60— call , £ 90 ; Lintbwaite arrears . £ 95—call , £ 100 ; Whitley , ( Upper , ) arrears . £ 53 10 a . 6 dcall , £ l" 0 ; Scammoden arrears , £ 27—call , £ 100 ; Klrkheaton arrears , £ 52—call , £ 300 . The first four of these cases were arranged with Mr . Floyd , the clerk of the board ; in the other five cases the overseen were convicted in penalties for the neglect , Mr . Beaton , tbe pverSoer of the , last-named township , told the magistrates that it was absolutely impossible to get the rates collected , as-ihs peeple were so Tery , -very poor ; and that -within the last fortnight he had taken ont no less than one hundred and twenty summonses , and that
last -wetk he was compelled to take out sixteen warrants of distress for the rate , which they were unable to pay . " He would ask , then , was not the Huddersfield Union in a state of insolvency , when 156 summonses were issued against poor persons who had not the means of earning their daily bread , which they would if they could , and sixteen distress-warrants were served upon men who had committed no offence , who had not one halfpenny to help themselves with , who 3 e fnrniture was gone , Whose bouses were stripped , who were sold up . who had become houseless wanderers , and were reduced to a state of miaerj qualifying them to be admitted as inmates of the workhouse ?—( hear , hear ) . Bnt the Poor Law Commissioners had lately discovered a new light , in the person of a Mr . Clements , - whom they had sent
down in the place of Mr . Mott ; and the manner in which he had treated the guardians was such as to raise the blood of any man of honourable and right feelings—( hear ) . Tbe insolent and overbearing manner in which thai person treated those who had grown grey in tbe service of the poor , respectable men , members of boards of guardians for years , tellin ? them that they were ignorant of tbeir duty , and that through them tbe country was being eaten up by tbe poor , was almost unendurable —( hear ) . This Mr . Clements had told them that he went dewn to set them to rights . And how waa he going to do that ? By cutting down a hill—( " hear , hear , " and a laugh > He had gone to Bradford and Halifax , and told the gnardi ins that they must compel the working classes , who had not the means of earning their daily
bread in their own honest manner , to cut down a hill , and if it were four or five mile * long , so much the better—it would give them more exercise—( hear . hear ) . That was the behaviour of that—what should he call him?—that Assistant Poor Law Commissioner , —he could call him nothing worse—( cheers , and laughter ) . The guardians inquired what was to be dene after the task was accomplished ? Must they find another hill ? " Oh no" said he , " let them put the earth back again ' —( hear , hear ) . Such were seme of the effects of the new law , bnt not alL Parishes were rapidly becoming insolvent ; the land was already eaten up by the poor rates . In Ms parish they had doubled and increased to the extent of £ 300 over that sinca the year 1836 ;
and in twelve months more the rental of the small farmers in the pariah would be wholly consumed . He would ask the Right Hon . Baronet , was that the method to be pursued to relieve the country from pauperism ?—( bear , tear ) . If such was the state of things in the Worth , where the people had m&nnfactnres to enable them in some measure to bear up under the new law , what would be the result in tbe agricultural districts , where the profits on the growth of corn were reduced , and the wages of the agricultural labourers diminished in proportion ?—( hear ) . Thanking the House for the indulgence he had received , he would now conclude bj declaring his intention to support tbe resolutions .
Mr . Shaemas Ckawtobd cordially supported the resolutions , considering them to be borne ont by facts . Sir R . Pkel said , he wished very briefly to advert to a Etatement which had fallen from the Hon . Gentleman the member for Enaresborongh . The Hon . Gentleman had referred to a former debate , in the course of whieh he { Sir R . Peel ) had addreB&ed the House , and had stated that , in alluding to the report of the committee of that House respecting the reports of Sir John Walsham and Mr . Mott , be had misconstrued the expressions contained io the reports . The Hon . Member farther quoted that report , and having adduced certain passages in it had expressed a hope that he ( Sir R . Peel ) would
now alter his ' opinion , and , being convinced that the construction put on the expression -was erroneous , wonld explain his error to the House . Now , he ( Sir R . Peel ) was sure that if be bad misconsttned any expressions , he shonld be gone ready to explain away his error , but since tbe Hon . Gentleman had spoken he bad jeferred to the report , and be did no $ find that sneb error of construction existed . The Hon . Gentleman said that the report gave a complete contradiction to what he bad stated . Now , he had referred to the report , and what did he find there ? He found that Dr . Nieboil -was in the chair , and thai on tbe question being put Vbat this report , as agreed to , paragraph by paragraph , be reported to the House , Mr . Gnmsaiteh moved a long aeries of xeeo * lutious of a tenor opposed to that of the report , and
on a division there were three for the amendment , and eight against it . Tbe Hon . Member for Marylebone ( Sir C . Napier ) voted vriib the majority . So much , then for the general view of tbe report by the Hon . Member . Now , what aB to its particular references 1 "With respect to Sir John Waisham ' s report , it said , " No attempt has been made to impoen the general accuracy , nor , with one or two triflmg and immaterial exceptions , any of the detaiis of Sir John Walsnam ' s report . " ( Hear , bear . ) With respect to the dead body story , » said , "At Keiebley . frequently , al Bingley only once , and then with the fill consent of ibe other occupants of the room , dead bodies of paupers have been left . till burial in the beds which they occupied whilst living and in tbe room where tbe other paupers , Tfho had been their companions during life , snll continued to sleep : bnt sheets were suspended round the bed in iaawia
which the corpse lay 1 and me expression , * corpse compa-nioned tjie linng , was not intended to convey that thb same bed was at the same time occupied t > y the dead and the living . Tnen with re-pcct to Mr . Mott ' s report , what was the evidence of the cossnittes \ TLej saic , " \ our committee is
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of opinion , that his report is borne out in all its most important allegations , by the evidence of the witneeea who came forward to impognit ; though undoubtedly it con ains some expressions which are too general and unqualified . " In what respect , then , be asknd , had he < SirR . Peel ) misconstrued the expressions in the report ? He did not really understand what was the poiut of the Hon . Member ' s charge . Mr . Ferrand explained that what he had asserted was . to the effect that the report was ia opposition to the evidence taken before the committee ; and he would refer to that evidence , as published , to shew whether his statement waa true or not . With regard to the Keighley union , he had not denied all the statements of Sir John Walsham , but what he
had particularly dwelt on wasithat in the Keighley workhouse , under the old law , there were only twelve inmates , whilst under the new law the poor of two townships went into it , and the nnmber was consequently raised to fifty-five . Sir R . Peel said the question was whether Sir John Watehani ' s report was or was not generally correct . That was the question . He found that the committee affirmed that report , and he could not help thinking that it was substantially correct . Mr . Ferbamb remarked that Sir John Walsham made it appear that the inhabitants of Keighley were to blame for the state of their poorhouse , and he perfectly remembered that the Hon . Member for Halifax had joined the Right Hon . Baronet in blaming them , speaking 1 >[ course upon the allegations
of that report . Mr . C . Wood said he perfectly remembered stating that the Hon . Gentleman , the Member for Knaresborough . was chairman of tbe Keighley board of guardians , and had been from the formation of the union an er efficio guardian in consequence of his being 5 justice of the peace ; and he also remembered remarking on the singular fact that the abuses stated by Sir J . Walsham occurred within , be believed , a quarter of a mile of the Hon . Member ' s own door , he being either chairman of the union , or ex officia guardian as before stated . ( Hear , hear . ) Mr . Febkand again explained . Although he was certainly an ex qffioio guardian , he bad refused to be a paity to enforoirig a law of which he so highly disapproved (* oh , oh !') . and it was without his consent or knowledge that the abuses complained of occurred . Uronical cheers . )
Mr . Miles declared his . conviction that the Poor Law had saved the country from destruction , especially the agricultural districts . Mr . Waxteb then replied as follows : —After all the debate that has t ^ ken place , the question is simply this—whether the House will support a law resting upon and embodying as it were the verj soul and spirit of this unnatural report—a soul and spirit which vfill aSVct tha future ; practice of the law for ever—or whether by sanctioning my propositions , or 8 ome one of them , they will impress upon the Government the necessity , if not the duty , of adopting a more Christian and humane principle as the ground of legislation ? ( Hear , hear . ) Now , Sir , as to the Right Hon . Baronet the Home Secretary—wiih
regard to the manner in which I acquired possession of this document , I do not know that I am called upon to give tho satisfaction he requires ( hear , hear : ) and 1 beg to say , fur ther , that I hold myself perfeotly competent to judge of the propriety or impropriety of making use of any document I become possessed of . ( Hear , hear . ) Nor do I come here to beschooled on points of delicacy or decorum by the Right Hon . Gentleman ( hear ) , but feel inclined to adopt and act npon my independent convictions of duty . ( Hear , hear . ) Here is a most scandalous communication ( hear ) , upon which is founded a most unconstitutional and most oppressive law . ( Hear . ) Others have spoken of this communication—I have dragged it to light and branded it as it deserve ?
and 1 am told , forsooth , I ought not to have done so , because tha authors of the mischief had chosen , in order to screen their offence , to put the words " private" or " confidential" to their production . Why , in that case no project of guilt whatever can be detected . The authors have only to say , ** We are acting confidentially , and therefore nobody must take any notice of it , neither while we are so acting nor for yeara after . " ( Hear , hear . ) The names of the Commissioaers , it is true , are not attached to this report , but this is not uncommon , for I have other documents of iheirs , undeniably authentic , to which iheir names are not attached . ( Hear , hoar . ) Besides , any document primed at ibe public txpence , I submit , ought to bo at the disposal of tha public . ( Hear ,
hear . ) I should like to know how long the word w secret" is to be in operation . ( Hear , hear . ) I can ! conceive secresy to be necessary during a short time j for the completion of an act ; but the act being in ! Ibis case completed by the Poor Law itself , it is tho I duty of every man 10 know by whom and by what means this legislative provision has been hatched . ( Hear , hear ) But tbeir most authentic acts I find are now disputed , even the dietary ol Ihe Cirencpster Union , which beara the signature of the three Poor Law Commissioners , but which , on its being pub-; lished , appeared so horrible , that thny dared not to act long upon it . There was a similar suppression oF a document during the Poor Law Inquiry of 1837 ( hear , hear ) , and I called the a'teniion of the House
at the time to so reprehensible a proceeding . ( HeaT , hear . ) Evidence was in that case tendered and and taken , which , when those who tendered it , found that it did not answer their pnrpose , or rather would pTove the contrary of what they intended , they effected its suppression . The chief of those who urged this suppressio veri—as indeed his activity in favour of the law would in no case suffer him to bo second—was the present Right Hon . Home Secretary , who , though he acted as one of the coman . tee , was really mistaken by one of the wi'nesses , as he ¦ will well recollect , as counsel for the Poor Law Commissioners . { " HeaT , heaT , ' and laughter . ) Tho Right Hon . Baronet at the head of Her Majesty ' s Government said , I had given no intimation of what
I intended to do if iheso resolutions were agreed to . Why , Sir , the Right Hon . Baronet himself supplies me with an answer . " I have not , " said he " received my fee for attending the patient . " So neither am I obliged to tender assistance to those who , so far from offering me a fee , are previously determined not to take my help . ( " Hear , " and a laugh . ) Now a * for the relaxations which have been spoken of . Toat must be a bad law , in the first place , which cannot bear its own enactment . The relaxations hitherto have been owing to no humane considerations on the parts of those to whom the execution of the law has been intrusted , but to their inability to enforce it . They frequently indeed allow a miserable out-door relief , but why !• Because the workhoHses at this
period of noi-employment and public distress cannot receive tho 3 e who are driven to its doors by suffering . In like manner , they send those whose life is extinct to be buried in tbe churchyards of their different parishes ; but only because the churchyard near tbe union-hqnses cannot contain them . ( Hear , hear . ) The Right Hon . Baronet spoke of the county of Bedford , which my Hon . Friend has called his pet county . ( " Hear , hear , " and a laugh . ) I willjast mention a pet union of his ( hear , hear)—the West Hampnect Union . A day or two ago I received a letter , stating that "in the West Hampnett Union several parishes raise voluntary rates , by which poor persons are relieved to whom the Poor Law Commissioners will not allow relief to be given
out of the compulsory rates . Able bodied men are prevented being tested , as it is" termed ; and the payert of these voluntary rates say that a considerable saving is effected by this system . The above information I had from two collectors of voluntary rates . I could send you strong cases of the Poor Law being th « cause of thefts and mendicity , and perhaps something worse . I cannot now omit stating that not long ago , in one of the parishes of the West Hampnett Union , I saw in one day six women employed in leading horses , drawing loaded dunacartA into the fields . Though I have Hved in Sussex all my life , I never saw anything of the kind before . " The Hon . Member for Somerset had spoken of the benefit derived bv the agricultural districts from this
law . Now , I happen accidentally to have copied ont of an old Manchester newspaper a passage which bears very strongly upon this . It is as follows . —¦ " Yesterday afternoon , shortly before the sitting magistrates at the New Bailey left the Court , a case of extraordinary novelty and hardship was brought before them . Two healthy , fresh-countenanced , but emaciated agricultural labourers , presented themselves in the witness-box , whilst at the extremity of the court were ranged in view of the magistrates sixteen individuals , one of them a female about thirty , with two infants in her arms , eight children , apparently all of them under ten years of age , and three whose ages might be from thirteen to sixteen years , two of them # iri 3 and the third a boy .
There Tvere two others whom we did not see , making up a party of eighteen . One of the men stated that they came from Towersey , in Buckinghamshire The farmers , he said , called a meeting to know if any of the parishioners would go down to Manchesttr , aB every body there was doing well . Several of us said we would go- They told us that they thought our families would do well to come down . They said there would be houses for us to go iuto when we got there , and everything provided for our use . They employed a man . named Clark to see after people who would go down , and we went to him . He asked what families we had got , and said we should do well indeed to come t we started accordingly to Mr . Waterhouse ' a , at Glossop . In answer to questions , the man Baid , six of the children whom the magistrates saw belonged to him , and two were his
brother ' s . The other man said , two of the rest were his owd , and four belonged to another person ; but he had promised to take charge of them to bring them down , and do the best for them be could * ] The first speaker then continued his story : —* We were brongbt , ' he said , * from our own county to Glossop in a boat , and from Glossop , Mr . Water house sent na forward in a cart . When we got there , there were forty-five of as ; we were pat in a ' bit of a warehouse ; and I have bi en there with my family three weeks , lying on a bit of -straw , which 13 the only bed I have had . The parish , ' , he said , in answer to questions , * paid thej expense of onr josiney down . We went b y ^ the boat to Marple , where they told us there wasj to be a cart to meet us , aud take us forward to Mr . Wateihouae ' o . We did not tr ^ w to what person m
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25 m ? S ? weTe ' » n « when wo left our own parisn . We were sent from our own parish to Cod * xirSffi * 7 * * % w i m 6 t with a gentleman named William Clark . We travelled nearly forty miles , P k ' v ¦? ¦* £ S ° » to tfw boat to where we emDarfeed . Clark came back with us to the boat , and when we bad embarked he told us that we were going to Mr . Waterhouse ' s , at Glossop . Two other fotailies came with ; us . I cannot tell whether Mr . waternouse had desired our overseer to send any hands . I worked at Mr . Waterhouse ' a three weeks , but yesterday he hired a cart and seat us in it to Manchester . Tha carter pat ua down ia the street
ana lett us ; he has sent another cartload this morning . I hav « seen them , in town , and he would have sent them yesterday , but the cart would not hold us ail ; so he told one of the women he would send them this mornmg in his own cart . I don't know what has become of them . I saw them in town this mdrnin « , and they said they wore going to the boat . W « two ( the men ) are farmers , aad the children are lacemakers ; we were in work at the time we loft Buckinghamshire . Tio magistrates expressed much indignation at the doception which had boen practised upon these unfortunate people , and intimated tnat tne parties principally concerned in thus
allurm n W « , their homeS 0 Ufin ( i t 0 be Prosecuted . iL' ood ? tated » * hat there happened now to be in town ( engaged in making inquiries on the subject of labour ) Mr . Muggridge , a gentleman employed by the Poor Law Commissioners ; and it was arranged that the overseers should go up to him , represent the case , and obtain hia assistance , if possible , in taking measures for returning the families to their native parish , from which they had been thus unnaturally oast off . In the meanwhile it was ordered that due cafe should betaken of them by the overseors of Manchester . We understand that the party , eighteen in number , were set down on Thursday evening at the Cotton-tree public house , in Anooats , of course entire strangers , without means or resources of any kind . They were , however taken to the
, workhouse and there provided for that night . I have documents that will overturn uearly every proposition that has been advanced on the other side ; but at this late hour of the night I decline bringing them under the notice of the House . The resolutions which I now propose I conacien-Boiously believe to assert truths . They may be unpalatable to the present Ministers , aa all propositions I have made on this subject were io the last Administration ; butthatisno reason why I should not propose them , or why those who think with me should not support them—( cheere . ) To meet the views of many Hon . Gentlemen near me , I will withdraw the first fonr resolution ? , and take the division only upon the last—( cheers . ) The House then
divided—Against the resolutions 126 For the resolutions 68 Majority 68 Friday , Feb . 24 . Lord John RussBtL preaanted the petition of the Bombay merchants , for indemnification for the opium confiscation in China ; ; and the Chancellor of the Exchequer , in reply to a question , intimated that the settlement of those demands waited the exchange of tbe ratifications of the Chinese treaty . On tbe order of the day for going into a committee of suDply ,
Mr . Hume called the attention of the House te the charge of the public establishments , and to the state of the revenue and expenditure of past years . He dwelt on the decay of the revenue , the increase of the national debt , the heavy burden of our military and naval establishments ; and on the necessity for the reduction of our state expences , and for the adoption of such measures as will furnish the meant of employment to the labouring population , and resuscitate tbe revenue derived from articles of consumption . He pleaded especially for a free trade in corn , and warned the Government of the consequences which would ensue if
nothing were done to relieve | the country . Mr . Williams contended that the Budget ought to ba opened to the House before thuy 'were called upon to vote away public money . Formerly , tho different departments had their estimates rigidly revised by the Treasury ; but such was not tbe case now . Until aomo 8 j"stem of control was adopted , it was hopeless to expect economy or retrenchment He compared our expenditure in different past years with the present ; complained of the great increase in the half-pay- and pensions , and contended that our expenditure should be made to conform to our ruvenue .
Sir R . Peel thought that many of the topics urged might have been reserved for explanation , until the estimates were actually under disenssion . Tne increase in the amount of naval pon 8 ion 3 was account e d for by the fact that formerly Greenwich HospltaL , had independent funds ; and the increase in th ^ Chargefor widows and orphans was the result of ihSs * irecommendation of the parliamentary committee . Mr . Williams had omitted tbe charge for tbe Irish estimates , in comparing the expenditure of 1791 with subsequent years ; and in considering the necessary expenditure of a great country like this , reference must be had to other considerations than revenue , as the dispositions of foreign powers , and the necessity of upholding out dignity . He admitted the great importance of endeavouring to reduce our expenditure as for as was compatible within tbe limits of our income ; and denied the position of Lord Howicfc in his speeeh of last week , that this
country , in proportion to its means , was more lightly taxed than other nations . But it did not follow that because peace had been established we could immediately reduce onr establishments ; good policy required that we Bhould still maintain a force on the const of China . A . reduction would be effected } n our Mediterranean establishment , which would be done in perfect dependence on the good faith and feeling of France . There was a great interes-i growing up in that country interested in tbe maintenance of peace ; newspapers were not always the oTgans of public opinion , and we might despise the Tavings of those who were clamourous for war . In the army , navy , and ordnance estimates there would be a reduction of £ 832 , 000 ; and he could assure tbe House that the estimates underwent the closest inspection and control of tne Treasury , and they were reduced to as low a point as was compatible with the interests of the country .
Mr . Francis Baring then rose to move for papers respecting the dismissal of Mr . Hoskins from acting as Deputy Judge-Advocate at Portsmouth . He was the last person in tbe House to interfere with tho prerogative of tbe Crown : but there were certain situations dependent on the royal pleasure which were not considered as removeable on merely political grounds . Mr . Hoskins bad been appointed by tb « late Government , and his qualifications bad been admitted by tho present ; but he had been aumtnarily dismissed , without complaint and without reason , except that bis situation
was not one for life . He ( Mr . Biting ) believed that Mr . Hoskins had been dismissed because ho was a Whig , and bi 3 successor appointed because he was a Tory . No stain rested on his professional or his private character , and he now filled tbe office of Mayor of Portsmouth by the unanimous wish of his fellow townsmen . His appointment had a judicial character ; but he had been dismissed with as little or less courtesy as a petty officer of tbe Customs or clerk in a department . He wished to ascertain the reasons . of it , or to hear what explanation or defence could be
given . Sii Geob . ce Staunton seconded the motion , and bore testimony to the character of Mr . Hoskins . Mr . Sydney Herbert explained that Mr . Hoskins held no appointment under the Crown . The office of Deputy Judge Advocate being in abeyance , Mr . Hoskins bad for eleven years acted , pro hac vice , on the election of courts martial , the members of which could choo ? e whom they pleased . He had on one occasion been set aside by a court m&ttial ; and the Admiralty , having
determined to re-establish tbe permanent office of Dsputy Judge-Advocate , in order to obviate possible public inconvenience , the Board chose the son of the previous functionary who had filled the office , he having fil ed the office when his father ' s age aud infirmities had rendered him unfit for the duties of the office . Tbe character of Mr . Hopkins was all that Mr . Baring had described it to be , but no ; injustice had been done to him , for aa he held no office under the Crown , so it followed that the Admiralty had not displaced one officer by another , on the score of political opinion .
Mr . Charles Wood thought that Admiralty should have offered the cffii-e of Deputy Judge-Advocate to Mr . Hoskins , and that political considerations had restrained them from doing so . He had an equitable claim to tbe situation . t Sir Charles Napier said it was always agreeable to have secretaries pitted ngainst each other , aa then the cat got out of the bag . He regretted that Mr . Herbert should have attempted to defend this notorious job . Ho narrated various cases of jobbing , as occuring within his own experlenca
Several of tbe naval officers in the House joined in tha debate , after which Iiord Palmerston remarked that there never was a clearer case , in which one person bad beeu dismissed , and another appointed , on political considerations . Mr . Greethara , who had been appointed to supersede Mr . Hosktns , held different appointments , being agent for Cnstonw , Excise , and the Admiralty , and was , therefore , not more eligible than Mr . Hoskina , who was held not eligible , as filling ithe office of Mayor of Portsmonth . By the very letter dismissing him , the Admiralty recognised the official nature oi the siluntion held by Mr . Hoskins . He admitted that in appointments a Government might properly recognise its friends , but it should not punish those opposed to them . After a few sbservatlons from Mr . Escott ,
Sir KoBEra Peel said , that bb the Government had agreed to give the papers asked for , the whole transaction would be distinctly understood . He admitted that the letter of Sir John Barrow , dismissing Mr . Hoskins , did appear to recognise him as Deputy Judge-Advocate . Bat there wa 9 a previous letter , intimating the Intention of conferring the revived office en Mr . Greetham , whose father had previously filled it for thirty-five yeara . He admitted the general principle of recognising service , and of not changing officers filling responsible situations , and he claimed for big Government the merit of having m&de as few changes as any Governnitnt , even where they rirvht have V-een most entitled \ oCz so , Tisjaely , in diplomatic Bppointtneuta .
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Mr . Laboucherb was satisfied ; frein the speec b o Sir Robert Peel * that if he had J been consulted , tnl transaction would not have taken place . Ha bad b » rei a junior lord when Sir James Graham was at the he , ^ of tbe Admiralty , and he then witneosed a gr « at pubb . c department admirably conducted . ! Such a letter ai that of Sir John Barrow ' s dismissing Mr . Hoskfas , would not then have been permitted to have left the office . He looked upon the affair as an ungenerous attempt to caw the electors of { Portsmouth , where government influence was notoriously great . Mr . Baring withdrew his motion , as ail the information was before the House which he desired . Mr . Blewitt called the attention of the House to the state of the North Boundary question between this country and the United States , and asked information as to the course which the Government meant to pursue with respect to it j
Sir Robert Peel hoped that Mr . Blewltt would not inf <» r the disposition of the American Government from the speech or bill of a member of the Senate . Friendly communications were now passing between the two Governments on the subject . Tbe House then went into a Committee of Supply ; and Mr . Sydney Herbert rose to njove the Navy Estimates . Compared with , the previous year , there is to be a reduction of 4 . 000 men , and a decrease in expense of £ 143 , 000 ; and on the entire estimates there will be a saving of £ 435 , 000 . \ A discussion followed , which lasted the remainder of the evening , after whieh the vote was agreed to , and the House adjourned . '
MON&ay , Feb . 27 . Lord Ashley presented some petitions against any interference with the beneficial working of tbe Collieries ' Regulaftotn Bill , passed last 86 ssion . I Mr . R . YORKE wished to ask the Right Hon . Gentleman the Home Secretary , whether the Poor Law Amendment Bill whieh be intended to introduce was to be precisely and identically the jsame as that laid before the House last year , with the exception , of course , of those modified clauses recognized by tbe House at the close of last session . i Sir J . Graham said , that tbe principle of the bill would be identically the same , but in some of the details various alterations would be made , and there would be Borne omissions with respect to the clauses introduced at the close of last session , and some ] alteration as to the apprenticeship clause , and there would be some additional clauses . i
Tfae Speaker then said , "I understand that the Serjeant-at-Arma has a communication to make to the House . " ] The Serjeant'at-Arm 8 then apppea ^ ed at the bar , and on being called upon by the Speakeir , said , " I have to acquaint the House that William Bellamy , a messenger of this House , and myself , have been served with a writ of summons to appear to an action off trespass issued by Thomas Burton Howard by Thomas Howard , his attorney . As the writ did not state tbe { nature of the trespass , I thought it proper to enter an' appearance to tbe action . Ou Saturday last I was served with a declaration , which shows that the suit was in consequence of ruy having taken into custody Thomas Burton Howard , and was against William Bollatny for having taken him to tbe prison of Newgate ; but as bot ^ these acts were done under the order of the House arid under your warrant , Sir , I hope we shall have the' protection of the House , and the direction of the House as to the course we 8 hall pursue "—( bear , hear ) .
The writ of summons and declaration were then laid on the table and reat-i by the clerk . The Solicitob-General said , he did not rise for the purpose of making any motion on the subject of tbe communication which Lad been made by the Sergeantat-Arms ; but he thought that it would be more satisfactory that the papers presented fbyj the Sergeant-at-Arras should be printed with the votes , and that they should take them into consideration to-morrow , and ke then gave notice that he should to-moirow submit a motion on the subject to the consideration ol the bouse —( bear . ) i
Lord J . Russell said he believod ; that some action took place in the course of the recess with regard to tho Sergeant-at-Anns and some of his deputies , and in which be understood that a sum of { money had been paid to the plaintiff in that action by order of the Treasury . If that were so , he thought , that although that proceeding mi ^ b the perfectly rig ht , thjsse papers should be laid before the Hous « . Sir . R . Peel said that whatever ; information tbe Government possessed upon the subject should be laid before the House . The papers laid before the House by the Sergeant-at-Arms were then ordered to be printed with the votes .
Mr . T- Egerton wished to make one or two observations on a statement made the other evening by the Hon . Membarfor Finsbury with respect to the treatmant of prisoners confined in Knutsford House of Correction . Since that statement bail gone forth there had been a meeting of magistrates , and an examination of the . prisoners , the result «» f which he would , with tbe permission of the House , state ; as the charges of tbe Hod . Member affected the discipline pf the gaol and the character of tbe magistrates . Th ^ Hon . Member stated , in tbe first placu , that one Samuel Lees had been ordered on the treadmill for the amusement of some ladies and gentlemen . Now , ( Lees bad been examined , and he stated that he had ! only been twice on the treadmill , and that only in tbe first week he
came . Both times were in tho afternben . Lees said , " I don't know that I ever was put on on any particular occasion . " On neither occasion j was he tb ^ re more than half an hour . The Hon . Gentleman had also refersed to the case of Robert 1 Wild , another prisaner , who declared that on entering the gaol " he waa told by the gaoler that the discipline was very severe , that he would take care he was ; punished , and that ho would not give much for bis constitution when he left the gaoL * Now , this prisoner 1 also had been examined , and he said that " on the day when he went to the gaol the governor read the rule ^ , at the same time telling him that he did so because they were severe , and they would find them 8 oj ; that if they were not attended to the punishment would be severe .
and that as to the stopping of the bread allowance , it would have such an effect on their censtitutions as by tbe time he had done with them their constitutions would not be worth twopence . " It was the duty of tbe governor to cause those rules to be read . They were ordered by the Home Secretary , j The prisoner in question went on to add that they made no complaint of any of the officers , or of the treatment they received , that the quality of the food was Rood , ( but that they complained Of the shortness of the quantity . Tbc-y never applied to the governor for anything but they were sure to be attended to immediately , or he showed a disposition to attend to the ! request . He ( Mr . Egerton > could assure the House that tbe magistrates were most anxious in their administration of
the affairs of tbe gaol , while they -wished to enforce discipline , to afford as much indulgence as possiMe , and to insure forbearance on tbe part of the < -fficers . Mr . T . DUNCOMBE thought the House ou « ht to receive such statements , when obtained from prisoners through tbe magistrates , with very treat ; caution . The account he had read the other evening was made and signed by the prisoners , who were prepared to come forward and repeat at the bar the conversation that took place between them and the gaoler on being taken into tbe House of Correction . He was not surprised at the version which had now been received through the gaoler and the magistrates , from prisoners Who bad two years' imprisonment to unrl « r ^ o , and who might well be supposed to have tbe dread of additional suffering
inflicted on them if they persisted in the account they bad formerly given to their friends . Buit , in order to get at the truth , he should mow for a teturn on the subject , which he believed would prove ] the trutb of what he had stated with reference to the Knutsford House of Correction . It was rather Bingblar , that the statement he made bad appeared in tfae newspapers some time aao . and had never till the ( present hour been contradicted . He bad also seen the statement of Thomas Clark , a fellow prisoner with Wild and Lees , whose period of imprisonment having expired bore testimony to the conversation with the gaoler , and exposed | he ctuel treatment and Bufferings they bad endUTed . He himself had written to Mr . Allison , a person living at Stoctport , and desired him to go over jto Knutsford and see tho prisoners , in order to ascertain the truth of their 'statements . His correspondent p-iid a visit to to the
Knutsford on the 9 th of February , and applied governor for permission to see tbe prisoners . The turnkey , however , stated , that prisoner ' s were only allowed to see their friends once in threejmonths , and all the prisoners having been seen within that time except Wild , he was allowed about tnn minutes' conversation with bim in the presence of the turnkey / In the letter be received , Wild was described as a mere skeleton ; from being plump-faced , as he was when admitted , bis bones , from inadequate diet , now almost protruded through the skin . He complained bitterly of tbe condnct of Lord Abinger . Who , once he heard a roan was a Chartist , seemed to think that ( was enough to sea ! his doom . He firmly believed that what Mr . Allison had stated was perfectly correct , and if he could only gfct a committee to inquire into the Bttrte of Knutsford gaol , he had no doubt he would be able to substantiate all the charges which he had made
against it . j Mr . T . EGERTON said tbe Magistrates Jeoarted the fullest inveatigatien into their conduct With respect to tho Knutsford House of Correction , be ] had only to say that the Hon . Gentleman on looking into the reports of the prison inspectors would flndjit described aB one of tbe beat , conducted gaols iu the country . Sir J . Graham felt that the statement mBde by the Hon . Member for Finsbury on the evidence of Mr . Allison , who was described to be a creditable witness , was directly at variance with that made by Ms Hon . Friend behind ( Mr . Eaerton ) . If Mr . Allison -was to
be believed , be should only say , that the conversation which passed between tnogaoletand the prisoners was very much to be regretted . —( Hear , bear . ) jTheie were also other parts of the statement made by Mr Allison well worthy of investigation . It was , therefore , expedient that inquiry should take place ; andjif the Hon . Merabur for Finsbury would give him a copy of Mr . Allison ' s statement he would undertake that an Inspector should , on the part cf the Government , immediately proceed to Knutsford and inquire into all ithe circumstances of the case ; whose report , when' presented , should be laid oa tte table of the House . —( Htar , bear , )
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Lord ASH Ley took that opportunity of calling tha attention of the Ktj ? ht Hon . Secretary of State for the Home Department to a subject ot considerable importance . He had just received a letter froni a very respectable gentleman , signed Thomas Barber , auditor of the Halifax Union , which was in these words : — " Fa'ifix , Feb . 25 . " Mf , Lord—Permit me most respectfully to ^ diracfc your lordship ' s special attention to tbe last pagVof the Halifax Guardian of this day . where you will find a statement of facts relative to the crnal treatment a boy has undergone , or endured , at the hands of bis inhuman master , a collier , residing at Blackley , four miles from this placfe It is not in the power of language to describe , or of imagination to conceive , . the spectacle presented to ray view when I examined hb back on Wednesday las * at the- union workhouse . With a firm
determination' of transmitting an account to you , I wrote his statement , but afterwards deemed it expedient to request the editor and publisher of the Guardian to report it-in the paper r he yesterday accompanied me to the workhouse and has given tbe snteSance of the boy ' s narrative . I have just returned froa tbe magistrate ' s office , where th » master has appeared under s summons from the overseers for the pnrpose of freeing the lad from hia parish indenture . The lad gave a clear and succinct statement of the treatment and sufferings be had endured for some weeks back , with aa artlessness that carried an irresistible conviction of its truthfulness to tbe mind of every individual present . The master was not able to disprove or controvert one iota of the statement , though defended by a professional gentleman , and the justices discharged the lad from his apprenticeship , according to the 20 th of George II ., c . IS ) .
" To Lord Ashley , London . " Along with that letter he had received a copy of the Halifax Guardian , and he thought he was justified ia calling the attention of tbe House to the case , because he had last year affirmed the total and immediate cancelling of apprenticeships for underground operations , and if that clause bad not been reversed elsewhere such a case as the present never could have happened . The Halifax Guardian thus reported the case : —( The report will be found at length i n another column ) . Having read the statement be had to appeal to tbe Kight Hon . Gentleman tbe Secretary for tbe Home Department , and request him , in virtue of the 3 d section of the act passed last year , to send down some official person
to make inquiry into the case , iu order that his report might be laid on the table of the House . Such a step would not only be justified by the act , but by precedent ; some time ago , when tbe Nuble Lord the nieniber for London ( Loid J . Russell ) was Secretary for the Home Department , an analogous case ocenrred of great atrocity . He appealed to . bis Noble Friend , who caused an inquiry to take place and the report to ba laid ou tha tabla Two years after another case ocenrred , into which Lord Normanby also directed an inquiry , the result of which was reported to the House ; but , apatt from all precedent whatever , and from the act itself , be felt quite sure that tbe Right Hon . Baronet would be most ready t $ extend tbe protection and aid of bis important office to such helpless and destitute objects—( hear ) .
Sir J . Graham could assure his noble friend , that alth ; u £ h this case was entirely unknown to bim till tha Noble Lord commenced his address to tbe House , he most warmly sympathized with him in the feeling of disgust which such a statement rau 3- create in the breast of every gentleman who beard it ; at the same time , all would agree with him in hoping that there was some exaggeration in the facts as stated . He would most readily institute an inquiry into all the circumstances by sending down a person worthy of confidence into the district , and if the facts as alleged were substantiated it would be hia duty to direct thai , prosecutions should be commenced acainat the parties implicated —( hear , hear . ) He was glad to take this opportunity of stating to tbe House , that notwithstanding anything which had " occurred elsewhere with respect to the acfc of last session , no one was more a&xious than he was to . give effect both to the letter and spirit cf that act , and adhere most strictly to all its provisions—( Hear )
Lord J . Russell called attention to the almost unprecedented circumstance ( with the exception cf the case of General Cunway * of the Duke of Wellington , as cominander-iu-ehief , holding a seat in the cabinet As a conspicuous political bias ; and his Grace had himself , on a former occasion , declared hia opinion that the comman (] er-in ; chief should not be a member of the cabinet . Sir R . Peel admitted that in recent times it had not been usual for the commander in-chief to have & seat in the cabinut But h « did nol conceive that it was contrary to constitutional analogy for that high functionary to be a member of tbe cabinet . Lord John Russell had referred to tbe previous case of General Con way ; and tbe Duke of Wellington bad been , at ene time , Master
of the Ordnance , an « i cabinet-minister . On the resignation of tbe late Lord Hill , he ( Sir R . Peel ) , with the concurrence of his colleagues , had advised her Majesty to appoint the Duke of Wellington to the office ; aud they bad also been all of opinion that it was due to bis Grace ' s eminent civil services that , in conjunction with the command of the army , he should still retain his seat in the cabinet . On the motion tbafc tbe Speaker do leave the chair , Mr . S . Crawford rose , and said be must tntreat the attention of the Government to the propositions contained in the resolution of which be had given notice , and which it would now become his duty to submit to tbe House . At such a period as the present , when most severe and extensive distress prevailed
throughout the country , it was , he thought , the doty of the House to enavavonr to alleviate that distress by lightening the burden of taxation . This , he conceived , could not ba effectually doue , unless they took into consideration the whole public expenditure of the country , and the means by which it was to be defrayed ; and In his opinion , before they assented to votes of the public money , they ought to know what amount of revenue might be drawn from tho country without unnecessarily oppressing the people . It had been said that the necessary expenditura of tbe country mu . it be defrayed ; but he thought that those who bad the controul of the revenue of the country ought , imitating the example of prudent individuals , first to look to their resources , and then to regulate their
expenditure according to their means . He did not orject particularly to tbe couwe pursued by the present Government , bat be objected to the system which ha « l been going oa fora number of years , under all Governments , » i voting the supplies before they were acquainted with tbe means to . which it might be necessary to have recourse for defraying their votes . He objected generally to the extravagant nature of tbe present civil an > i military establishments ; and he thought this extravagance had ariseu from no regard being bad to tbe resources of the country at the time when those establisbmsBts were formed . The Government might think that this doctrine was tainted with , the principles of Radical Reform , which he was aware wero not very popular in that House ; but be would
not hesitate to assert those principles , for be thought that no wan ought to maintain opinions out of doors which be bad not courage to support in that House . He found that 100 , 846 men were required for the army of this kingdom , 38 , 000 men being retained ia Great Britain aud Ireland . Now , he would put it to the Government whether it was necessary to keep up such a standing army ! Were 38 , 000 men required to keep in order tbe people ef the United kingdom 1 Ha found taut in Great Britain there was a force cf 25 , 127 men ; and , if the Government conceived that such aa army was requisite in this country , he would ask what rendered it necessary ? If they were compelled thus to Coerce the people of Great Britain there must be something wrong in their institutions or in their legislation .
( Hear . ) He thought a great reduction might be effected in the number of troops at present maintained iu Great Britain , and , if no reduction was made , he considered it a stront ; proof that the country was in a very discontented state . Nearly 13 , 000 troops , be found , were stationed in Ireland . He would ask if this was necessary , when they had in that country a constabulary force of 9 , 000 men , who were quite as emcient as a regular army ? Ha begged also to call the attention or the House to the wanton and extravaijant expenditure incurred for the staff , which areeunted to the sum of £ 165 , 300 . He wished to know what necessity existed for keeping up such an expensive staff , which in his opinion was almost useless ! The expense of the staff at head-quaiters , in London , was £ 16 , 800 . The
pay of the Duke of Wellincton bs Fielo-Marshal was £ 16 83 9 d per day , or £ 6 . 000 a y < ar ; and he . must say it seemed to him wholly unnecessary that any officer should receive such pay . There wero in the united kingdom fourteen different stations of the staff , the number of which might , be thought , be greatly reduced . The expences of the Commander-in-Cbief ' s office , wera £ 17 , 000 a-year ; those of tbe Adjutant-General ' s , £ 12 , 000 j 4 nd of the Quartermaster-General ' s , £ 6 , 000 . He considered this an enormous expenditure of the public money ; and he thought the business might be effectively conducted at a much lesB cost He found in the army estimates an item of £ 117 . 787 for volunteer corps . He would put it to the House , what services were rendered by these volunteer corps waicft entitled
them to such an amount ? Was there any record of their ever receiving the thanks of the House for their services , which must have been the case if those Bervices had been important and valuable ? He fsund fix tfae non-effective service 198 generals , who cost the country £ 89 , 000 ; tbe amount paid to officers retired on full pay was £ 64 , 000 ; and the pensions allowed to soldjera amounted to £ 1 , 243 , 17 G . The allowance to retired servants of the military department , waa £ 41 , 000 . In the Ordnance Department there were numerous heavy expencaa , iu which he thought great reductions might fee effected . The effective force of the naval service for the last year cost £ 4 632 , 000 ;
the uon-eff < ctiv « , £ 1 . 390 , 000 ; there being 184 admirals on the non-effective list Then , in tae civil department , be found that the salaries and other espenaea of tho Home-office cost the country £ 25 . , the expences of the Exchequer viexe , £ 18 . 000 , and of the Privy Council and Board of Trade £ 32 000 according to the estimates of the last year . The allowances to wjfcinjil and superannuated officers in the-civil de « paxtmeut amounted to £ 84 , 000 . To one item which appeared in the estimates of last year , that Of £ 39 ^ 000 for Btcretservioa money , he strongly objected . He thought , then , after the statements he had made , that sonia mea . 08 should be taken to alter the existing sya-. ( Continued in our Eighth page , )
Untitled Article
THE NORTHERN STAR . 7
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), March 4, 1843, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct984/page/7/
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