The Press. — London, England, 1856-03-29 00:00:00

MARCH 29, 1856. altogether insipid. (Laughter and cheering.) The ass°• ciation might please a few i disappointed electioneering cau didates—(laughter)--or t might be supported by people who wished to be lifted into the House of Commons upon the backs of constituents whom they would betray as soon as they had taken their seats. Why, at a meeting of this very association at Drury-lane Theatre, some time ago, Mr. Tite, the member for Bath, avowed his ignorance of politics, and said his studies had been directed to very different objects ; but he (Mr. Finlen) supposed that, when Mr. Tite was elected, the association considered that he was the right man iu the right place." (Cheers and aughter.) An amendment to the original motion was then moved, and created a laughable disturbance, till the chairman, in a vain eft; t to put a stop to the "row," put the amendment and the original reso lution to the vote, but declared that neither the one nor the other were carried. The meeting then separated without adopting either resolution. A MONSTER MEETING was held at Hanley, in Staffordshire, on Tuesday, to consider the best mode of carrying out the free-trade principle with France with regard to the exportation of pottery and im portation of wine. Above 12,000 persons, represent ing the different district potteries, were present, and this immense mass of people formed in procession and marched through the town of Hanley to the marketplace, where the proceedings of the day were opened by the High Bailiff. Mr. Smith Bodley then rose and moved the first resolution : That this meeting, considering the introduction of an abundant supply of wholesome beverages into this country, while calculated to yield an increase of revenue, would tend to the advancement of our international rela tions, as well as the improvement of the moral and social condition of the people, is of opinion that an immediate and considerable reduction of the duty on foreign and colonial wines is indispensable, and pledges itself to press the importance of such a reduction on her Majesty's Go vernment. He then explained the object of the meeting : The object they had in view—and when the resolution spoke of the reduction in French and continental wines, that was not the only object they had in view—that was not all—they did not mean to have free trade only on one side; but what they aimed at was this—they asked France to take their pots, and they in exchange would take French wine, and in order to honour the wine would drink it out of their own pots. It might seem egotistical in him to refer to his visit to Paris (most of them were aware of it), as he had already borne testimony to the in terest excited in the minds of the French people upon the pottery question—for it was to be remembered that at the Paris Exhibition, wherever you went (said the speaker ), you might pass stall after stall, and see the persons looking. 'irking no questions ; but when you went into the Stafford shire potteries department—gentlemen were there who could testify to the truth of his assertion—when you went into the Staffordshire pottery department, what did you find? Why you found that every Frenchman wanted to buy everything. There was a friend of his there—he thought his gr mdmother must have been Irish—(loud laughter)—labelled all his pottery " sold," and when he asked him why lie did so, be said the reason why he ticketed" sold " was that he could not answer all the ques tions that were put to him. Such was the fact, and he be lieved in his heart the Emperor of the French intended that the French people should themselves be gratified by having their products whether there was free trade with France or no. Mr. Smith Child, M.P., seconded the resolution, and quoted the well-known passage from " Coningsby" explaining that the origin of the excellence of Lord Monmouth's dinners at Paris lay in hot plates. as a proof of the superiority of English porcelain, and the advantage the French would derive from its use. Mr. Oliveira completely identified himself with the object of the meeting, and explained the various steps he had taken with the view of obtaining a re duction of the wine duties in this country. The French Government, he was convinced, were most anxious to carry out a reciprocal international reduc tion of the tariff; and in every part of Europe, in the wine districts of Spain, Portugal, Germany, Sicily, and Italy, he had met with but one respobiie to his proposition, that they were ready to reciprocate by a reduction of the duty on our goods, and that the English market was the great object. The Hon. F. L. Gower proposed the second resolution That in the opinion of this meeting the relaxation of the high duties imposed by Great Britain on foreign wines would induce the countries benefiting by an increased de mand for their productions to modify the restrictions on British manufactured goods—particularly in France, where our local manufacture is all but prohibited—would give an impetus to the industry of this and every other staple manufacture of the kingdom—the beneficial effect of which it is at present impossible to foresee. Mr. Macgregor, M.P., supported the revolution. He thought the reduction of duty upon all wines would open a market for pottery of inconceivable extent in France and Hungary. He regarded the duty upon wines its a premium upon adulteration, for he was convinced, from statistical facts, that two-thirds of the wine drunk was adulterated. These resolutions were proposed and carried unanimously. Several other resolutions in accordance with the object of the meeting welt: also proposed and carried, and a THE PRESS. petition embodying the spirit of the whole drawn up for presentation to the House of Commons. THE QUESTION OF AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS was entered upon by the Right Hon. Hamilton Nisbet and Mr. Bsnks Stanhope, members for North Lin colnshire, before a meeting of their constituents, at the Corn Exchange, Boston, on Wednesday last. The Right Hon. Hamilton Nisbet briefly stated his views upon the various measures which had at dif ferent times been brought forward respecting agri cultural statistics in general. With respect to Lord Stanley's bill be said:— If the bill were an honest bona-fide measure, a simple enactment requiring the acreage under cultivation to be returned in a fair way, there would be no objection to it, and such requirement would be reasonable. They would do what was fair and right, but they ought to avoid placing themselves under the centralising control of any arbitrary authority, especially when they might have the power of choosing their own persons to make competent returns. He thought it was not intended to embody the propositions contained in the recommendation of the committee, and that in the bill there would be no direct enactment in sisting upon the compulsory return of the amount of pro duce; but he found, on looking over the act, that there were provisions which it was necessary the farmers should consider; and he, for one, should not give his consent to the bill in its present shape. (Hear.) The only diffi. culty he felt with respect to it was, how he could support any part of it. On looking at the preamble from the be. ginning to the last clause he found it proposed to effect a return of the acreage and of the stock held by each occu pier; vet the manner in which it was intended to set about obtaining that information was so insidious and su de lusive that be wished the farmers to be on their guard against the measure. In general, any measure relating to property, and which proceeded from the Board of Trade, imposed pains and penalt►es unless the provisions of that measure were complied with ; and he therefore looked with extreme jealousy upon any bill emanating from that Source. Upon the whole he thought the bill would have an injurious effect if it were not carefully considered and amended :-- He did not despair of having a fair bill that would be of benefit to the country ; but they ought nut to let the l'resi dent of the Board of Trade think that they were not fully alive to their own interests. By a very simple machinery they might obtain the average quantity of corn grown in this country without having recourse to the schedules of such a bill as the one proposed. ( Hear.) After expressing an opinion that he did not think it was requisite to make any return of stock—there was nothing to be gained by such a return—Mr Nis bet concluded by observing that what was required was a bill founded on clear and comprehensive prin ciples, with no Board of Trade to override it and in. troduce additional enactments, without first going to Parliament for fresh powers. Mr. Stanhope ex pressed similar opinions with regard to returns of stock. As to the bill, he thought its objectionable feature was that the returns were to be sent to the Poor-law Board; by which means l►e feared many persons would get more information respecting the affairs of their neighbours than Nas desirable. He thought the most proper way would be for occupiers to have the power of sending their returns in a sealed envelope through the country guardians to the Board in London. THE MANCHESTER SUPPORTERS OF THE LOCAI. DUES SHIPPING Bn.t. held a meeting on Thursday, at their Town hall, to organise an association for continuing the agitation of this question, and " to obtain the right of appropriation of the Liverpool town dues." Resolutions expressing regret at the withdrawal of Mr. Lowe's bill by the Government, and calling upon the manufacturing districts to co operate with the Manchester Corporation " to secure the abolition of these unjust exactions," and foi the organisati At of an association to attain that object, were severally proposed and unanimously passed. A PETITION AGAINST Slit G. GREY'S POLICE Btu., particularly with reference to the Ist Clause, hand ing over to the chief constable the appointment of the county constabulary, has been agreed upon by the poor guardians of the York Union. rttrapplitan. THE LORD MAYOR'S EASTER BANQUET. THE annual Easter banquet given by the Lord Mayor on Monday last was attended by his Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge, 31alor-General the Earl of Lucan, told M aidstone, Lord Wodehouse, Lord W. Lennox, Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone, Sir J. Pakington, dm, and upwards of 230 guests. The Duke of Cambridge, after returning thanks for the health of the Royal Family, responded to the toast of " The Army and Navy" : He hoped and trusted—though in this matter be spoke without any authority—that they were now on the eve of peace. Such a wish might perhaps aornd somewhat sin gular coming from the mouth of au officer responding to the toast of " The Army and Navy ; " but he oould assure all present that it was a great mistake to sulpose that the army and navy wished for war for war's sake. They were 297 ready to make any sacrifice of personal feeling and intsrest iu the performance of their duty, but no Men won d more rejoice than the members of those two services if their exploits during the recent campaign should conduce to the establishment of such a peace as the country bad a right to expect. (Applause.) With respect to the state of the Army and Navy, his Royal Highness observed that their present efficiency had never been equalled, and he hoped would not be again permitted to be seriously weakened.— If peace were established, the country ought not to revert to those limited establishments which existed previous to the outbreak of the recent war. He trusted that the lesson in this respect would not be thrown away, and that they would henceforth look on the maintenance of the army and navy as one of those neces sary evils without which a great empire could not possibly maintain its position in Europe. He regarded the money spent on the army and navy in the light of money laid out in some necessary investrnen., and it was just as necessary to provide for the security of the empire by maintaining an army and navy as it was to insure one's house agains fire or any other calamity. At the same time he would defend no extravagance, but only such outlay as was necessary to keep up the efficiency of the services. Lord Wodehouse, in replying to the toast of "Her Majesty's Ministers," touched upon the immense responsibility involved in the conclusion of peace : In the important transactions in which the Government were at present engaged—and more especially the noble Secretary for Foreign Affairs, who was conducting negotia tions in Paris—it was only the feeling that they were sup ported by a great nation like this country which would carry them through all their difficulties, and which would enable them to support those difficulties and to surmount them. The aspect of England—one of calm dignity, waiting for the result of the negotiations—had been such as to inspire great confidence in the Government and great respect for this country throughout Europe. Relying on that support, the Government had pvrsevered through two years of war; and although there might exist in the country a very natural regret that the war should not be continued some what longer, until England had the opportunity of putting forth all its strength and resources, yet he was convinced there was no desire on the part of any class to prolong war for one moment beyond the actual necessity of the case, and that when peace was concluded it wonld be hailed by the people of this country in the at ms rational, fair, and honourable spirit which had characterised their sentiments throughout the contest. (Cheers.) Sir John Pakington, in proposing the health of the Lord Mayor, alluded to the promised reform of the Corporation, and remarked that he hoped it would not interfere with those agreeable hospitalities for which the chief magistrate of the City had so long been celebrated. Mr. Gladstone, in returning thanks for the House of Commons, alluded to the arduous duties of the house within the last two years, which he thought, on the whole, might be regarded satis factorily. He thought we might consider peace as substantially attained, and, if it were so, the late war would stand conspicuous in history for the purity of the motives from which it originated, for the fidelity and honour of the great alliances by which it had been carried on, and for the rapidity with which the moral and political objects had been achieved. Among the many duties now devolving on the House of Commons, he regarded there-establishment of the equilibrium of the public finances as the most impor tant It would be the duty of that house to consider bow the heavy burdens imposed upon the people could be wise y alleviated, to institute a thorough, systematic, and search ing investigation into the state of the public establish ments, and to make wise:circumspect. cautious, but, at the same time, bold and vigorous efforts to bring them back into the state into which they ought to be, so that during peace, while making adeqnate provision for the security of the country, members of Parliament might be able to grant to the labouring population that relief which they had a right to expect, and, at the same time, if unhappily they should live to see the day when it would again be necessary for England to buckle on her armour and to draw the sword, her establishments might be found in a con dition thoroughly fitted fur the work the) were expected to perform, and the heart of the conn•ry might not again be wounded and torn by calamities which could not be re lieved, bat which it was felt might in great part have been avoided. A SPECIAL Count OF COMMON COUNCIL was held on Monday for the purpose of considering the pro priety of passing a resolution of congratulation to the Emperor and Empress of the French upon the birth of an imperial prince. After a brief discussion the motion was put and carried unanimously. The following resolution was then agreed to : That this Court tenders to their Imperial Majesties the Emperor and Empress of the French its hearty congratu lation on the auspicious birth of a prince--an event of momentous importance to the general interests of France, and conducive to the domestic happiness of their Imperial Majesties. That this Court tecals with pleasure the gracious visit of their Imperial Majesties to the (iuildhpll of this ancient city, and it now renews the hopes and aspirations then expressed by the Corporation of London for the long life and happiness of their Imperial Majesties, and that France may continue prosperous, in intimate alliance with this country, and in amity with all the nations of the world. The Lord Mayor has communicated the resolution yo the French Ambassador• A