Star. — London, England, 1818-01-27 00:00:00

BREWERS' MONOPOLY. 0 tf) A Meetini having been called by public advertise ment, for tEe purpose of takinif or i t f t ! r to consideration the late advance of the price of , at one o'clock yesterday a considerable number of persons of re spectability assembled at , thc clown and Anchor Tavern, Strand. • its. BARSIM BERTIMONT. the Gentleman who had called the Meeting, entered at the hour named in the, advertisement forproceeding to business, and moved that one of the . Gentlemen • who accompanied him, Sir Henry Wilson, should be called upon to take the Chair. 'The motion was agreed to. Sir HENRY WILSON, haying taken the Chair, ad dressed the Meeting. He was flattered by the ho nour he had just received, though he could have wished it had fallen on a person of greater talents and importance. He would, however, endeavour to perform his duty impartially ; and in the first .in stance he begged to make a request—as it would be impossible for him to sit there with comfort, if any thing should be introduced of a political nature—he hoped in such a case he should be supported by the meeting in calling the party to order—(Applause). The subject upon which they had met was one ex tremely detitate. They had assembled to call upon those who were, leading characters amongst the Brewers of the Metropolis, to account for conduct which to the community appeared to be nothing less than arbitrary—that of advancing the price of the commodity which they manufacture, to the great prejudice of the lower orders, and without . assigning any cause for the increase. Some defence of their conduct, some argument in .support of the advance, was necessary to• do away that prejudice which at present existed against the brewers :• and he, who had lived no little time in the world, could from ex perience take upon himself to say, that no greater honour and honesty existed among any people than those who formed. the community of this kingdom, and that if satitfactory grounds were shewn, both upper and loweeorders would cheerfully subinit to the advance. 'the necessity proved, he was firmly convinced the community at large would be satisfied. For the sake of their own personal hondur, he hoped the brewers would be able to make out a satisfactory case to justify the step they had taken, and to shew that they had not wantonly taken it from a disposi tion to suck the vitals of the people. It was to defend the people against a monopoly that brought him there, being a Magistrate of the county ; but though such was his motive in coming, it was his hope that the parties accused, or their agents who might be present, would be enabled to meet the charge with a triumphant defence. The Brewers were Gentlemen who had advanced immense capitals to manufacture that which absolutely formed the support of the lower orders. They were entitled to a profit on the speculation, and he hoped nobody would ever wish to deny them a fair remuneration for their services. But admitting their claim, he could see no just cause for an advance on the - price of porter at this moment, • when put of the duty was taken off, the price of labour less than it was, and that of Malt also dimi nished. If, without any just for raising the price of porter, this had done by the brewers from a desire to become more opulent than they were at presents-by preying on the vitals of the com rr.unity, be wntild give them joy of wealth so ac- 1 qulred, but could , not wish to participate in it. He hoped the Brewers would be able to defend their coadUct, That the result of this meeting might be to girt the public confidence in the inviolability of their honour, in their integrity, and justice. Mr. Nutty, encouraged by what had fallen from the Chair, rose to offer some few observations in be half of th e brewers. He should not have presumed to obtrude himself on the notice of the meeting, had it riot been from some statements which fell from the Chairman, and which he, with the greatest defer ence, was oblig ed to say, were incorrect. But fi rst of all he bend leave to say be admired the conduct of the Gentleman who had called this meeting. He considered it patriotic to enquire into the advance xbich,bad recently taken place; but at the same time he. must complain of the title which had been given,ta the advertisement by which that meeting was convened ; it had been called a meeting to take into consideration the brewers monopoly. He should not have expected from the respectable persons who proposed this meeting so harsh an epithet applied to arj creditable body of men, without at least some fair investigation, and proof that the imputation was deserved.. But the brewers were to be condemned by anticipation—they were to be aceused and judged and condemned and punished, without being heard. lie hoped, however, to be abic to vindicate th e cha racter of t hat body of men from the imputation so unfairly and inconsiderately cast upon them, that the rise of porter to sixpence a pot was the mere re sult of monopoly, or exaction on their parts, and not owing to other causes, by which they were them selves influenced, and over which they have no eon troul ; and he should not have stood forward this day for their vindication, if he was not prepared to offer such statements in proof of his assertions, as should shew the brewers were not deserving the blame thus precipitately cast on them. Itt the first place, although the price of porter to the consumer was six, • ce the pot, that was not the price paid to the brewer ; he received but fouipence-halfpenny from the publican. There was then the duty of ten shillings per barrel paid by the brewer, which amounted on the pot to thirteen-sixteenths of a penny. The duty on malt amounted on the pot of porter to seven-sixteenths of a penny more, and the heavy duty on the importation of foreign hops, which were principally used in the manufacturing of porter, added one-fourth of a penny to the other burdens which fell upon the brewer, so that exclusive of these duties and of the publican's profit, lie only received threepence per pot out of the sixpence now paid by the consumer. The remaining threepence went for t hi purchase of barley, hops, the expence of manu facturing, and the brewer's profit. There were still other taxes, which in their operation pressed heavily upon the brewer. Those which fell m the first in stinct on the farmer who grows the barley and the hops ; and on the mobster, who converts the barley into malt, were ultimately felt by the brewer, as were t hose imposed on the various utensils which he had occasion for in his business. There was be sides the brewer's license to be paid for, as well as that of the victualler. In what he had said of the 1 . r I . . r.-- r.r.rb - VICI BREWERS' MONOPOLY. unc --- on . 1 t I I A Meeting having been called by public adverti se- the ament, for tEe purpose of taking consideration tha II the late advance of the price of , at one o'clock mu ) 1 1 yesterday a considerable number of persons of re- the spectability assembled at , th clown and Anchor hoc a Tavern, Strand. • the I ' Mr. BARSIM BERMIONY. the Gentleman who had he called the Meeting, entered at the hour named in the fro 1 I advertisement forproceeding to business, and moved but that 'tale of the . Gentlemen • who accompanied him, wei Sir Henry Wilson, should be called upon to take the art Chair. The motion was agreed to. to 1 Sir HENRY WILSON, haying taken the Chair, ad- pri, dressed the Meeting. He was flattered by the ho- troy tour he had just received, though he could have this wished it had fallen on a person of greater talents wa: Sind importance. He would, however, endeavour to for a i perform his duty impartially ; and in the first .in- sine stance he begged to make a request—as it would be wis irtipossible for him to sit there with comfort, if any fall thing should be introduced of a political nature—he the hoped in such a case he should be supported by the .beii meeting in calling the party to order—(Applause). 65s The subject upon which they had met was one ex- hig tremely delitate. They had assembled to call upon the those who were, leading characters amongst the ohs Brewers of the Metropolis, to account for conduct dut which to the community appeared to be nothing less poc 4 1 than arbitrary—that of advancing the price of the tho commodity which they manufacture, to the great qua ) prejudice of the lower orders, and without . assigning to ~. any cause for the increase. Some defence of their rial conduct, some argument in .support of the advance, on' I was necessary to• do away that prejudice which at arse i• present existed against the brewers :• and he, who bre had lived no little time in the world, eauld from ex- tier • perience take upon himself to say, that no greater rice honour and honesty existed among any people than bj those who formed . the community of this kingdom, pro and that if satisfactory grounds were shewn, both I 1 upper and loweeorders would cheerfully subinit to t i er the advance. 'the necessity proved, he was. firmly convinced the community at large ould be satis fi ed. ' w e, I 1 For the sake of their own personal hondur, he hoped b the brewers would be able to make out a satisfactory the case to justify the step they had taken, and to shew low that they had not wantonly taken it from a disposi- hist tion to suck the vitals of the people. It was to defend te ;„ the people against a monopoly that brought him 6 there, being a Magistrate of the county ; but though 11 t such was his motive in coming, it was his hope that had 1 . the parties accused, or their agents who might be out t present, would be enabled to meet the charge with a ado . , triumphant defence. The Brewers were Gentlemen Par' who had advanced immense capitals to manufacture Prq that which absolutely formed the support of the s'°" lower orders. They were entitled to a profit on the sees speculation, and he hoped nobody would ever wish by I to deny them a fair remuneration for their services. bee But admitting their claim, he could see no just cause tor, for an advance on the - price of porter at this moment, Psic • when part of the duty was taken off, the price of few labour less than it was, and that of Malt also ditni- nos Dished. If, without any just for raising the ch a price of porter, this had done by the brewers tae from a desire to become more opulent than they SUIT were at presents by preying on the vitals of the con- _ i _scia. rr.unity, be ertudd give them joy of wealth so ac -1 t un s quleed, but could , not wish to participate in it. He atlii hoped the Brewers would be able to defend their 1 'e • coadUct, That the result of this meeting might be to tile give the public confidence in the inviolability of their spec honour, in their integrity, and justice. moi Mr. Datinr, encouraged by what had fallen from in t the Chair, rose to offer some few observations in be- was . half of th e brewers. He should not have presumed !f: a to obtrude himself on the notice of the meeting, had is , it not been ham some statements which fell from wiii • the Chairman, and which he, with the greatest defer- bre it ohm, waeoblird to say, were incorrect. But fi rst of fits t I all he begged ave to say be admired the conduct it t ( .1. i - of the Gentleman who had called this meeting. He in c ! considered it patriotic to enquire into the advance out xhich,had recently taken place; but at the same get a i . time he. must complain of the title which had been sail ga, given,tai the advertisement by which that meeting mot was convened ; it had been called a meeting to take hall at 1, into consideration the brewers monopoly. He should not have expected from the respectable persons who c„ah • proposed this meeting so harsh an epithet applied to me arj creditable body of men, without at least some and fair investigation, and proof that the imputation was the.. deserved.. But the brewers were to be condemned ma, > I I by anticipation—they were to be accused and judged his i ''', and condemned and punished, without being heard. who Ile hoped, however, to be able to vindicate th e cha- ;re ratter of that body of men from the imputation so don al . ' unfairly and inconsiderately cast upon them, that The the rise of porter to sixpence a pot was the mere re- to 6 g , suit of monopoly, or exaction on their parts, and tine rt , i not owing to other causes, by which they were them- eau l e t selves influenced, and over which they have no con- con troul ; and he should not hive stood forward this Bre day for their vindication, if he was not prepared to 6 d. , at I offer such statements in proof of his assertions, as for Ishould shew the brewers were not deserving the the ' .. blame thus precipitately cast on them. Itt the first of k place, although the price of porter to the consumer thei was six, ali ce the pot, that was not the price paid to eiiB \ \ the brewer ; he received bet fouipence-halfpenny boo from the publican. There was then the duty of ten the r 1 shillings per barrel paid by the brewer, which to I amounted on the pot to thirteen-sixteenths of a we: penny. The duty on malt amounted on the pot of thr porter to seven-sixteenths of a penny more, and the of 1 I heavy duty on the importation of foreign hops, which not , were principally used in the manufacturing of porter, tha added one-fourth of a penny to the other burdens fro which fell upon the Virewer, so that exclusive of these cot duties and of the publican's profit, lie only received onl threepence per pot out of the sixpence now paid by the tb . i the consumer. The remaining threepence went for ma the purchase of barley, hops, the expence of mans- all: k facturing, and the brewer's profit. There were still not other taxes, which in their operation pressed heavily mu upon the brewer. Those which fell in the first in- 9, 11 1 stance on the farmer who grows the barley and the k" hops ; and on the maltster, who converts the barley eve into malt, were ultimately felt by the brewer, as far 1 were t hose imposed on the various utensils which P" he had occasion for in his business. There was be- Pai sides the brewer's license to be paid for, as well as rat that of the victualler. In what he had said of the I jog , . • 1 ~ I. 1 victuallers he was particularly ar.rious.not to be mis understood. Though they had a profit allowed them on porter of '25 per cent. they had no more than they deserved •, for a more deserving class of men than the victuallers could not be found in the com munity; and many of them, though they gave all their time to the public, could hardly gain a liveli hood—could not, indeed, maintain their families as they ought to be maintained. Having thus shewn, he hoped, that the high price of beer did not arise from what was called a monopoly of the brewers, but *aes the high price of their materials, and the weig. e( taxes under which they laboured ; in the article of foreign hops, to which they were obliged to resort from the great scarcity, and extreme high price of the home commodity, there was an addi tional duty of ls. 6d. per pound, which added a far thing per pot to the price of beer—so that the brewer was under the necessity of charging his present price for the commodity he sold, or of abandoning a bu siness which otherwise would yield no profit; he wished also to set right some inaccuracies which had fallen from the Chair, respecting the reduction in the price of malt. Previous to the War Malt D u ty being taken off, the price of the best malt averaged 655. within three months afterwards the malt was as high as 100 s. per quarter, and at the present moment , the price of the best malt is from 80s. tot:Ws. It was observed also, that Government had taken the war duty off the malt, merely to pit the amount in the i t pockets of the brewers ; whereas the fact was, that though the reduction of the war duty was 16s. the quarter on the sth July, yet the malt had since ripen to 51. per quarter ; so that the high prices of maw rial, and heavy taxes, were the true cause of the rise on beer, and not any fault of the brewers. It was also stated, that the great fortunes vested by .the brewers was another means of monopoly ; but expe rience has proved that the business could not be car tied on by small capitals. The great capitalist, bj working cheaper, and taking a smaller profit in proportion, benefitted, instead of injuring the public. The CHATPIAN said there was one point the gen tleman had not explained, and that was, how it hap pened that porter should be at a much bigher price, when malt and hops were lower than la st year.' Mr. Davey said, in every former instance when the price of malt had been high, that of hops wai , low, atidyice versa. It had never happened in our history till now, :that both had borne a high price together. . Mr. Baatistoser said, that as the Gentleman who had just addressed the assembly bad concluded with out a motion, he should bring forward one for their adoption. He would net have taken the ostensible part he had taken on this occasion, without making proper inquiries into the subject now under discus sion ; nor should he have come forward if he had not seen the public had in many instances been wronged, by the brewers—more—much more than they hai been now. He had acquainted himself with the his tory of brewers, their advances, and their average prices for twenty years, but particularly for the last few years ; and he could prove, that the business, as now carried on, was a complete monopoly, to the ex clusion of that fair competition which took place for the public advantage in every other article of con sumption. He contended, that from a fair compari son of the prices of the present period, compared with this time twelvemonth, there was a fall of Is. 2d. per barrel in the expense of materials, and the conse ci;ense was the brewer, instead of lowering increased ' 1 the commodity five shillings per barrel. With re spect to the question of monopoly, nothing could be more clear than that the brewers enjoyed one, at least in the general sense of the word. At present there was a superabundance of capital in the market, and if monied men had any room for the employment of it, they would be glad to do so. They would very willingly contribute their capital by establishing new breweries, if they could be allowed to share the pro , fits of the brewers, or they would be disposed to lend it to minor brewers, but there could be no advantage in doing so. Supposing that men were now to lay out sheir capital in a brewery, how were the public to get their beer ? Retailers of the article were neces • sary, and where were they to be found ? All, or al most all, the shops for retailing beer, were in the hands of the present brewers (Hear), or they were at least under their influence. Could any new spe culators in such a business open new shops ? No— the law was against it. They must obtain licences, and that could be done only upon one certain day of the year ; and, when that day arrived, would the Magistrates license new houses ? He would say from his own experience—No. About fourteen years back, when the brewers of the metropolis discovered a greater spirit of rapacity than at present, their con ' duct drew down upon them the utmost execration.— They raised the price of the article from sd. per pot to 6d. The circumstance made much noise at the time, and an attempt was made, in consequence, to establish several new breweries, upon the principle of competition. Among the rest was the Golden-lane Brewery. The effect was, to reduce the price from 6d. to Sd. The Golden-lane Brewery then went on for some time, to the advantage of the public ; but the di ffi culty the proprietors found was, as some of t hem kt informed him, to procure persons to sell their beer. They applied for licenses for houses in eligible situation, but in vain. Though they had been the cause of reducing the price of the article to the public—though they had compelled the Brewers to make it of a much better quality, still they never were permitted to open a house. They then bought three houses ; but in a very short time they lost two of them. The reason alleged by the publicans for not dealing with the Golden-lane establishment, wa s , that they lived in a poor neighbourhood, and had frequent disturbances in their houses ; the proprietors could not protect them, and therefore they must deal only with brewers who had the power of defending ' them, when their license was in danxer. He knew one person who promised to deal with the brewery alluded to ; but he was told by one whom it would not be St to name, that if he went to deal there, 'he must take care of his license, and he was in conse qnence obliged to forego his intention. ( Hear.) — }rum what he had just stated, it must be evident to every person, that the advertisement did not go too. far in calling the business of brewers as it stood at present, a monopoly. He had taken considefable pains with this subject, but, wishing to be as accu rate as possible, he had written down the result of his inquiries ; and he honed the Meetis.g would psu-dor. him, if'he took the liberty of reading a paper which ' hehad prepared. Mr. kteatneoer then read the following statement: I have at various periods heard the brewers say that flieir trade was not worth following. Now, I am disposed to attach every reasonable credit to the declarations of Gentlemen of such eminence in so ciety. I will therefore admit what they say to be true, thus far, that at certain times when the market has run high, they (in their humane consideration for the condition of the poor) forbore to raise the price of beer, as they might justifiably have done ; they made no profit, they even suffered loss; and ,that their trade at those tunes was not worth follow ing ; but when they did determine on the step, at all times so reluctantly taken by them, of raising the price, they would not themselves fix a losing pnce for a lieu of a shilling or two per barrel, continued for years upon their great returns, would be ruinous -would be too great a sacrifice to expect from the public spirit of any men. I request my hearers to consider well the fairness, or otherwise, of this con clusion, because much of the subsequent reasoning is built upon it. Referring back, 'therefore, to the prices per barrel, just quoted, and which are seen to be, in one case, a little under the market price, of the nominal quantity of the nominal material, and, in other cases, a little above it, we may come to an inference, that the market price of the nominal quantities, and of the duty, is sufficient for the selling price of the manufactured articles, as it has been made of late years. I think this is fair reasoning l l upon their own data ; but let one, two, or three shil lings be added to the market price of the professed, materials, as a necessary surplus of charge per bar rel. I have no objection to it. Let them have 35. 1 and they will then have more than they had in seve-. ral years, in 1799, in 1800, in 1810, in 1812, and 1813. It will then follow that the surplus difference beyond such 9s. will be an extra profit to the brewer, unless indeed he has proportionably added to the strength of this beer, but the surplus difference of the selling price of the beer over that of the material has been in some years immense, 18s. and 20s. and upwards. If the strengthening of the quality had followed such an increase, we should have had an extract of malt so strong that it would have glued our lips together-in which case mine would now be sealed. But there has been nothing of the kind ; beer, generally speaking, for the last fifteen or twenty years, has run on in a limpid and vapid stream, without any material variation. The excess of sur plus then has been an excess of profit to the brewer, and when we consider the immense returns in the trade, that one hundred thousand barrels in a year is by no means equal to the quantity brewed by the principal houses-that in such a trade an advance of only five shilling; a barrel is equal to 25,0001. and that the advance in some years has been as much beyond what according. to their own sheaving and prices of their own fixing is a sufficient profit, we may readily account for the princely fortunes which have been made in this trade in a short time, and the justice of the co mplaints of the labouring classes, at whose expense such fortunes are made. Let us now examine the alterations of the price in a succes sive order, with a view of discovering the occult causes of their changes. For a year previous to the first advance, made by the brewers in 1799, 45.6 d., per barrel was the nominal surplus above the mate rial. Upon its subsequent advance in 1804, the sur plus appeared sunk to 2s. In another in 1802, the difference was 7d. minus, that is, the professed ma terials cost more by 7d. per barrel, than the beer when made was sold for. The materials then be came cheaper 25 per cent. upon which the brewers in 1802, lowered their price 11 per cent. and made their surplus 7s. 9d.; this was taken so kindly by the public, that in less than four months (the mate-. rials all this while lowering from 275. to 235.), upon the reduction of 4s. in the materials, the brewers raised their prices ss. The materials sunk from 275. to2Ss. and the beer was raised from 255. to 40s. but a climax was yet wanting. In July, 1803, there was a rise of Is. iri the materials, they still being 3s. un der the last price, when the barrel was at 355. and under the price in 1799, when the barrel was 30s. ; under these circumstances of cheapness in materials, the price to the public was raised to 455. per barrel ; in other words, beer was raised to sd. per pot, while the malt, hops, and duty collectively were less than they were in 1799, when beer was sold for Sid. per pot ! An excess of three halfpence per pot over for mer profits, and be it always borne in mind, that an advance of a single halfpenny gives 50,0001. to the brewers of 200,000 barrels. At this period, the brewers were far more insatiable than now. They found by experience that they had only to fix.a price and the public must pay it. Upon a small advance in the materials, therefore, they raised their price two steps at once-from sd. to 6d. per pot, the beer at the same time being most wretched ; upon this the Golden-lane brewery was projected, when the brewers drew in their horns, and went back instantly from 6d. to sd. This competition did the public great service ; it caused the quality of the beer to be mended, and the prices to be kept down while the material rose : nor did the brewers then venture to raise their prices for eight years. This establish ment throve for some time ; but, as I am told, owing to mismanagement, to many disadvantages arising from the hostility and power of the brewers, to their customers in low neighbourhoods leaving them for other breweries, where they might expect better pro- tection in their licenses, and, above all, to their being ' , obliged, from the public nature of their accounts, to, adhere to malt and hops only, they have not prospered. The next increase was made in 1813. It only left a surplus difference of I/..5r. Old. between the price of the materials and of beer when made. The value , of the materials increased still higher, and the brewers found it necessary to make a still further increase in January, 1814. The price was now raised to its highest pitch, viz, to the price we are now called upon to pay, but the increased price only left the brewers a surplus of 2s. 6d. above the market, price of the Ma.teriaL Soon , however, the ma t er i a l s drop.' peci..k.irice:i.aot so the price of beer. The brewers were not now desirous of disturbing the settled order 'of thing& Their surplus rose to nearly 20s. pe r bar • teL Val:dinar; (I think it was) hereupon corn plained-ht tEe Roué of Coisimons of the unreason able prices of the brewers, when Mr. Whitbread re -1471, that they (the brew ers ) h a d conferred, and had ihed not to lower the price, bet to increase the quality. Before the neat sittiug . of Parliament, howevet, they thought proper to takeoff per pot, reducing their surplus, which had tin 19s. lid. to the yet large surplus cf 14s. sid. next year they took on another•h a lf pcnny , 1, titl succeeding year, 1816, the pri ce o f the fit: • rose, and upon this, strange tosay, the:: rcdi:ced,:. • beer another farthing. The reason that duce these Gentlemen, after continuing their pr :e 455. for a year and a half, upon the price of materials, to lower their price to 40s. is quite :. plicable ;unless, indeed, the investigations o f ti le : lice Committee, then becoming riSlic. decision. Since then there has been two s'ers L f . crease of prices, both in mate -rials and :n beer since the rise in January last ::ear. the price cf rials has lessened ; :he of malt. hn r .. duty, is Is. 2d. per barrel le,s than it wiisi A , t Now what is done upon this decrease of expe rse ._ The barrel of beer is raised ss. the quart i s from sd. to 6d. The materiali norst arn ou , : more than 455. 5Na, per barrel. and the pr'.ce t c consumer is raised equal to ;he highest pricechird during the war, when the srar malt tax wa s ca the price of the materials "was 525. 6d. seven more than at present. But let us view :he etf this case in the aggregate, not :lint the peofi, exacted is half so excessive as others in former in 1803, 1813, and 1814, for instance. First.l:l;:4 we may fairly assume that the brewe rs did year fix a price to carr: on a Toeing tra:lc. and expenses have since beers !evening. I kno w : 4.1 large sums were given by the brewers din g year for terms in ucensed houses, that is, for vilege of selling beer-8001. for one station, for another, 1500/. for a third, and so strong symptoms that brewing then comir.ar.:::., profit worth having. The 6s. '2d. per barrel. above last year's prices of materials given by rise, may therefore be considered as extra We will first erarnine the effect of this the: 7;l of a single souse. One house, deserved;,: brewed 300,200 barrels in ISI6. The eltra that house upon one year's trade, therefore, i. a sum of 101,8141. J 6e. but the whole amcun: by the eleven brewers in the same year was I. Ve barrels, upon which the extra pront gives 445 !•,:. Is. 44. by far the greater part of which is from the pockets of the labouri:;g poor of the polls. A fine harvest trulz! Without any pr lar exertions of intellect, without ar.7 rri•:k. tc" ., t .s tlemen, the heads of the eleven brewvries. ther, combine, and give the word for n( 1: - :y million sterling to be transferred from the the poor to their own ; and it is done—s..vh golden reward of a mere act of volition! L.: would be the reward of eleven poor should combine their wages only Is. meet this new levy upon their necesitie . .*: A for three months I" This statement called forth Olouts of app:.. Mr. BaAuxo!:? then resumed his speech, ceeded to address the company. It appean clearly from what he had stated, that kr ic:_r _ _ years the public had been subjected to a c-r -series of wrongs from the brewers times when the public voice was raised a, l'- lowered their prices ; and afterwards wher...'H: were dispelled. ventured to raise their i• ,:s magnitude unknown in former times—= c r• which no man could contemplate in any Het except that of complete monopoly. He be understood that he did not make a'v c against the biewers personally ; many of tc most respectable men, and so was the ge--; then at the head of the table (Mr. Drury; .s.;:c just addressed the compa n y. I t was t h e s- , t he complained of—he meant that of arhitrars ing, that gave a set of Magistrates privilege :0 , Who Should, and who should not, have licenses :o • beer. or did he mean to say any thing ag the Magistrates, but against the system which them the unjust power -which they possessed; ad' hoped to see the time soon arrive when the syr.. would be completely corrected—( Appleutee.) Beaumont then proceeded to read abstracts frcn different Acts of Parliament which had been pr. in different periods of our history cn the sub:ee brewing; and it would be seen that all these A were first in favour of the liberty of the pecp:e: that the Acts passed in modem times w,rt , :ore of a contrary tendency. An Act of Henry 111. E. the price of beer according to the price of barley : Act of the 23d Edward 111. fixed the assize of her In the reign of Edward IV. letters patent were gran to certain favourites, under which they were • rized to demand of the brewers a silver penny every barrel of beer brewed by th em . Thi s . e , - I l ever, was so much complained of, that nine yeant. ter an Act was passed reprobating this privilege. declaring it to be null and void. In the reir Henry N 111. and Edward VI. Acts were passed ag brewers found conspiring to raise the price of • and for such offences they were to be punished . standing in the pillory, having one ear cut off. to be subject to perpetual infamy. la the icip, l Edward I. an Act was passed to empower M . ; trates to grant licenses to publicans ; but that ft done only for the purpose of preventing the ba2 - disorderly behaviour -.rhich prevailed in public.hyas , James I. afterwards granted letters patent to —his son Charles did the same, and made theni7:' large sums of money for the licenses ; but his in doing this was only to put the money into :rs • Exchequer. In those letters it was stated. en C the reasons fur issuing them, that the beer seas ttl strong and heady, and caused intoxication —q; laughter seemed that this King, in his pct . • solicitude for the heads of his subiects—a which they did not afterwards F.:eIV fer iris ( Loud laughter and applause )--thought proper t , - sign this as the reason for issuing his patents. •;:. this, in 1664, the trade became complete:\ f 7, t open ; because the oppressions of former times c.. no longer be endured ; and it was not until tau rer of George 11. that the present system of licensing adopted. The intention and avowed of iect was.: check the disorderly practices that prevailed ill lie-houses, and it was enacted that licenses shoul.l-, granted only for one year, at the expiration of v . :- time the licenses were to he renewed. It was this which laid the foundation of that monopoly w now existed, and rendered the fabric of it comp It gave Justices the power of deciding without 2 t peal, what persons should obtain ; a nd stitnted little parcels of Justices in every district• absolute masters of the licensing trade. It wu