The National Register. — London, England, 1823-01-26 00:00:00

.t ~.ti '7'7 7 1f77 , 7 -- " - uarrr us somansar -40- AGRICULTURAL DISTRESS—R , On Tuesday last the High Sheriff of the Comity of So merset convened the fierholdets of the Shire at Wells, to consider of the state of the agricultural distress, as well as of the beat mess of alleviating it. A hostings was etected is front of the Town Hall, arid at I I o'clock the High Sheriff (A. Stuckey, Esq.) took the Chair, at-- compauied by a large body or the gentry of the Cuunt). Mr. Hunt appeared meanest them lit excellent health and spirits, and took his station clone to the county members, Sir T. Lethbridge and Mr. Dickenson. He was loudly cheered by the large coucutariie of p,rsous assembled iii trout of the hustings. The Hiatt StialliFF opened the business of the day by reading she requeirtiutiou pursuance et which he cuuveued the pretreat tweeting. Mr. &TANNING roar to move a string of resolutions, upon which he said he intended to found a petition to Parlia ment. fur the relief of the almost extinguished agrictiltu rims of the country. The taxes which oppressed that chum of the community were of the most unequal kiwi. arid had encreased of late years toast al.se 000 iii g extent I their county rate. had, in the course of forty years, Wien foots SOUL to upwards of 20,00irl.—in addition to these the local assessments, sod agraeultand taxes and rates of every description, bad gone ou until they had almost absorbed the whole property of the nearly ruined farmer. .—(hear, heat !)—What wan to be done/ They hail no alternative het to repair to Parliament witheat and call fur reirenchermita in the public expenditure in all the departments, and for a reduction of such taxes as fell unequally upon hitid, so as to afford thou some chance of averting iinpeuding ruin. He arraigned in strum; terms the esiscondect and usisinanagermut of thud system of Governusent which had led to this general calamity, and concluded by proposing a petition. The original emotion was for a petition to Pat 'lament, embracing a variety of topics ul relief fur agricultural distress, repeal of agricultural taxes, local rates, &c. bad general economy and reueschineut. Mr. STANDFoIit) seconded the petition, and warmly urged the prophesy and necessity of adopting the 'seashores reconinsen&d by the mover. He strongly is. Mated open the redaction ut the gaol and rates of the. county upon the regular farmers; the county et large be nefited by them, and ought to participate in souse of the impieties of their nielutenance. After dwelling upon Use negligence of the Government, in considering the state of the @tattoo, he touched upon the question of erform, cow. tarred it. its necessity, and stated himself to be one of the requisiturs who had signed and presented ou that day to the High Sheriff a requisition to court-tie a county meeting for that specific porpuse. On the original question being put, Mr. HUNT cause forward, and was received with loud cheers. He said he had uuce azure the gratification of wreetieg Isis fellow freeholders of Sumersetshire, after his long and cruel inearecratioo by some of their magistrates, l's llclerster gaol—lie, however, forgave them. He then, in a temperate speech, propvsed the annexed atuendaseut, and severely arraigned the conduct of the Soinersetslaire magistracy, whom he saw around him, for their want of spirit, patriotism, and ecumnity. He was particularly severe upon the county smothers, one of whom, he said (4 T. Lethbridge), had always been the servile adherent of Ministers, and the other had been chiefly employed iu iu zettiug sumetisitia fur Inuaclf, stud Ito instanced a light house job ha the Bristul Cheesier, and the Government money to the ye otentseiy, oP which lie (Mr. Dickenson) was Colonel. He called 4011 lilts to explain these matters to his constituents. Mr. HUNT moved an amendment, which went into spe cific redactions t the total remission of sinecures and un merited pensions ; redurtion of the salaries of all ufficers of stale, the Roya Family, the Judges, and particularly the Get man Pt once of Saxe Coburg, whoseliucotne °apt to be reduced to 6,0001. a year, the income of the Presi dent of the United States of America. It also specified particular agricultural taxes fur repeal. Mr. DICKENSON defended his public conduct. He thee said, that so far from the light-house dues, in the Bristol Channel, being • job to him from the Government, they lied come auto his family for a rateable consideration, from a Mi. Crisp, who had leased them to his grandfather. Sir T. Lirrwilninott claimed credit for his political consistency, and declared that he had never given • vote in the House of Commons which was not accefiling to his conscience. He was glad to attend this meeting of his constituents, for it enabled him, who was • Sumersetshire ilium to the back-bone, to hear their sentiments openly and manfully expressed, like Englishmen, and then to weigh them betide the meeting of Parliament. He had voted for the redaction of taxation, which was a fair plu mbic of his fit en determination to support economy and re trenchment. In or out of Parliament he should always be inroad to meet his constitneuts. Before the question was put, a Gentleman thought that the best way of deciding spun the respective 'writs of the two petitions, weal he to leave them both for signatures. Mr. HUNT said that would be making a pretty I bag of a county meeting—why, if all they wanted was to oh- Wu signatures toe petition, they might get them at home, without travelling this weather to • county meeting.— Never was such • nonsensical proposition made as that. General ltsTrfunsv urged the necessity of unanimity to render their act efficacious, end strongly recommended the original motion in preference to Mr. Hunt's, as it came from gentlemen of large props.. ty in the comity, and not from a stranger among them. He had no desire to be impolite to Mr. Hunt, whose speech had beeti mo derate, and who did not cum , forth amongst theta as moldier did in other counties, breeding mischief, with the genius of Thunman Yoh's. • Mr. Ileac reminded the °Pierre% that he was wrung in considering I as a stranger in Somernetsnite, where he bail been a treeliolder since about the time that the General was born—he hail been one for the last twenty seven years. The Hind MIS ERUPT, after some further diacnesion, was about to put the gneai..n upon Mr. Hunt's amendment, when it was agrees, after some policy between the parties who moved the original question, that they would yield to Mr. Hunt if he omitted the retains clause, as that world anticipate the expected meeting for that specific question. Mr. HUNT said, that if the High Slieriti woulu name a • day for the reform meeting, he Should then withdraw abe reform clause, arid let the remainder of his *mead pent stand. Tice Stimuli, after some hesitation and consul. as sieendament, the . principal clerical esta. tdursitiev, the Chapters and Deaneries. as well as Filliewships of celibacy. which weer wily calve. listed to primate vice. The Rev. Gentlemen encountered whiny interruptions. and was obliged to desist. The question was then called for, and Mr. Hunt's awendinent wu carried by an annual majority. kle then moved that tt be signed by the High Sheriif, our the 'but of the meeting. 'lke High Sheriff retivie.l to sign it. The liaise of Commons hail sledded that a petition so sive.' was that of the Sheriff alone, sad this was certainly not his petition. 'flits retinal led to great confusion. The illicit SH an IFF repeated his determination to per sist in refitting to sign the peti ion. It bad been decided by the House of Commons that a petition so signed was merely the act of the High Sheriff. Mr. HUNT hoisted that the High Sheriff was, as the public organ of the meeting, bound to sign the penti 0000 0 which had been carried by the majority. and his sugnatus e did nut any tardier identify Min with its cements, than as beiesg_the Chairman where it was adopted. The HIGH SHIRIFt repeated his determination not to aigu it, and asked Mr. Hunt why he could not move that it be presented by some Member to Parliament. Mr. HUNT replied, that lie c0..1d not move for the pre sentation of an unsigned petition ; one, lit fact, which wilhosit the Chairman's funnel signature would be a pen- Wm from nobody. ThiChairman was now the deposi tary of that petition, and mast steal with it as ha pleased perhaps taking it main his garden would be jest as earthl as sending it up to the House of Commun.. Mr. Hasa admitted that the High Sheriff had done his duty up to the present moment of the tweeting, but most certainly he was betraying it slow, iu refusing to authenticate the pe tition as the act of the roomy. The HIGH SHERIF/ said, be would always petform his duty fearlessly. Mr. HUNT then snowed a vote of ermine upon the High Sheriff, which was instantly carried br acclamation, as well as a Cute of thanks to Mr. Hunt. crowd, ' We feel it;—Hear, reign of George 11. the money - , spent during the 700 years before that period amounted to 7g 560.3491. and the National Debt then amounted to m. 8320001. 'hiring the reign of George the Third alone, there was expended in Great Britain the sum of 2,357,441,26g1. Nnw, Gentlemen, in matters of this kind it may perhaps be necessary to take more than nue mode of explanation. If we placed bu.o.loguitteas in a line on the ground, they would only extend one milt, whereas the sum spent in England in the reign of Get I l I. minute, would extend twice round the whole earth, a distance of forty-eight tht•usand miles! During the late reign, the price of the land, that is to say, fond c od d o _ increased from one million to two millions which, with the addition of taxation, made an increase of a million and a half to the consumer, making a of fire times the rental of the whole kingdom. (Hear, hear, hear.)—lit the celebrated petition of nay Land Grey, which was presented to the finuse of Comuwut s on the 6th of May, 1789, and which lies upnit their table unanswered to this day, it is stated, that the majii rity of Members for England and Scotland were returned by 15000 pawns out of a itoptilatioll 01 17 muffin s.— (Hear. hear, hear.) —It appcars, also, front a Return recently made, that RelUftill are made to the House of Commons as follows :-- Peers. Members. Is England and Wales 87 return 21/1 In Scotland In Ireland Total returned by 144 SOO The re urns by one C. Immo .en were as follows : Is England and Wales 137 Members by Commoners. Commoners Members In Scotland . ...14 return 14 In Ireland 19 .... $0 Ketarmd by Government .... 16 Making Add returned by Peen....• 187 $OO And you make a total 0f... 487 The whole number of Members in the House of Commons is B3B So that only 171 are returned by the body of the people. —(Cries of "Shave.")—Mr. CAIIIIIII* II next position was, that whatever might be the corruption existing in crnain Boroughs, it would be an act of injustice to the proprietors to disfranchise them. 1 should like to know what - injustice it would bet Before I can be bristliest to heLore it an act of injustice, 1 must see some law which gives to a private individual as swat an influence in the House of Commons as is possessed by the inn.- tants of Westminster, and the freeholden of the County of York put toszether. But I altogether deny that these exists any such law, and I of course &sty also the alleged injustice. Disfranchise a corrupt or a rotten borough, and you still leave the proprietor his vote for the comity, which is all that he either ought to have, or has a right to claim.—(Cheers.)-11, however, the safety of the country is to be sacrificed to private interests and tested rights, if this is to be done, what are we to thitik of the mat ..er in which our ancestors treated James the Secomi He possessed a " veval right" to the most exalted office office in this kingdom ; lie was an hereditary Monaich also, and yet we expelled him. (Cheers.) I am now too old to think of active life, and therefore shall concltele with expressing my most ardent hope that the prayer of your petition may be heard and attended to, and that I may never have an opportunity of addressing you again." The honourable gentleman concluded front the front of the hustings amidst loud and general cheering I—He then read the following resolutions: — Resolved, 1. That the Con►titution of this Country is a Go vernment consisting of Three Ind, ;pendent States, • Limited Monarchy, a Limited Aristocracy, and a Limited Democracy. That each has its distinct and peculiar functions, and privi leges, and that one of these estates cannot unduly inlluence the functions of either of the others without disturbing that ba lance which is essential to secure sod perpetuate the various advantages which may be derived to the people from a Go vernment so constituted. 2. That the Horse of Commons, as at present composed, does not express the National will ; on the contrary, it has too generally proved its readiness to comply with the dictates of whatsoever Minister may have dispexeed die favours of the Crown. 1. That the effects of the present state of the House of Commons have been the wanton and proligate expenditure of the public money, and the unprincipled creation and contimi ance of useless places and unmerited pensions, in defiance of the loud and general expression of the public feeling. 4. That the heavy pressure or load of taxes imposed, fur the purpose of supporting an extravagant Civil List, and of main taining a ruinously large Military and Colonial Eatabliahment, is totally incompatible with a state of profound peace and ac knowledged *enmity. 5. That the only measure which can remedy these evils, and preserve the country from the dangers that may be anticipated from a continuance of them. is a speedy and effectual reform in the Commons House of Parliament. 6. That a Petition, founded upon the above Remlotions, be prepared and presented to the House of Commons. The Hon. Mr. NYRE, In seconding the resolutions, exreased his decided conviction that nothing but reform could save the country from the evils with which they were surrounded. He confessed that he had lormerly advocated different doctrines, and was but a reconvert to his Present opinions ; but he felt that when despotism was abroad, sad when an undue influence was exercised l at home, it became the ditty of every man to exert I s *elf for the welfare of his c.iuntry. On the question that the resolutions be put, Mr. WORTLEY said—" Gentlemen, if I speak at all I most speak boldly ; I must speak ton with a confidence of bring heard, or else, with every respect I say it, it it were better I should hot speak at all. My hon. (nem., Mr. Fawkes, has put his argument in the fairest possible manner.—(blear, hear.)—l am tree to admit also, that if my hon. friend's premises are just, I fully agree with his conclamon, (hear, heer.) that it would be right to call imam the House of Commons to reform itself.--But deny his premises, and beg to add, that both you and he have taken a wrong view of the subject. I deny that . t • • • galat....‘• 4 k. °( TIIE NATIONAL REGISTER rfisniia. halos, militated to Is Taesday neat for thelieforen yean, (a person in the era meetiog--(lmid Motoring) hear) At the end of the mil i—REFORM. The Rev. Mr. Cnnswit.t. proposed an amendment ,the spent doting the 7UO years lot offi et of which was to aboiisli the principal clerical eau- to 7g 060.34,41. an d the m n i • INIMMIIMIMMIII ►- 4. L.. YORK COUNTY MEETING. WEDNESDAY, JAN. 42.—A meeting of the Freehold era of the county of Lak was this day held in the Castle-yard, York, pursuant to a requisition (signed by V,425 treetiolders) presented to the High Sheriff of the county, R. Bethell, of Rise, Esq. calling upon him to convene a meeting " fur the purpose of taking into con sideration the present state of the House of Commons, and the necessity of a Reform thereof," At eleven o'clock the hu gs were crowded with sonic of the first gentlemen of the county. Mr. Wooler was also on the hustings, as was the Quaker, Milan, of Dewsbury. of rallies! notoriety. At a quarter after eleven the High Sheriff, attended by several friends, took the chair. The Requisition having been read by the Under Sheriff, The Blum SHERIF/ addressed the meeting nearly as follows:—" Geatlrtneu Freeholders of the county of York,-1 n consequence of a requisition, numerously and most respectably vigited, requesting me to call a meeting on the subject of 1 5 arliamentary Reform, I have thought it my duty to give you the earliest opportunity of exer cising your undouuted and moat valuable privilege, that of discussing what, in your opinions, is connected with your interests, or the general interests of the country. — (Applause.)—l shall only add a hope, that as you res pect the right cf free discussion, you will give every man a fair, a candid, and impartial hearing, whatever may be his opinions. (Hear, hear.) By such peaceable, or derly, and manly conduct, you will stamp upon the pro ceedings of this meeting a character worthy of the great county of which you are the enlightened freeholders."— (Loud applause.) Mr. WALTER FAWIIES..—" Gentlemen, frequently as It has beets my lot to address you within these walls, never did I do so at • moment of inure vital importance than the present. It now requires tin effort to rouse your feelings, or induce you to resent any insolent threat of foreign aggression; you are not now called upon to strengthen the arms of the Executive for the preservation of your lives, your properties, your altars, and your hoares. You are called upon seriously to consider what the state of that country now is, and, unless you hear arguments sufficiently g to contradict the facts which I shall lay before you, to denounce that system of policy upon which the men at the head of our Govern ment have so long and so fatally acted—(hear, hear) ;---a system which has loaded us with a mass of debt, under which we effectual relief be afforded. (Hear, hear, hear.)—The measures of the present Administratiun have been acted upon by one set of meta fur the last fifty years, and have produced all accumulation of debt which would be to tally incredible if nut provable—a system which has spread abroad a most rapid and alarming venality; a system which has supported large standing armies which our ancestors wisely thought not only unnecessary, but dangerous in time of peace; a system which must cause a blush to tinge the cheek of every Englishman, when he reflects that the country of Elizabeth arid of William has been in connexion with those continental despots who have conspired to crush the rising liberties of man kind, and who have dared to stigmatise as factious and rebellious the descendants of the immortal heroes who bled on the plains of Marathon, and who fell at the Pass of Tnersuopylir, solely because they endeavoured to emancipate themselves trout the bloody and outrageous tyranny of the filussulinans--(cheers); a system which has engendered a host of Piacemeta, Pensioners, and Sinecurists—men, who congratulate themselves and the public on the increase of the Public Revenues, from which they derive their enormous profits,while thousands of their countrymen are steeped in poverty, even to the very lips, It will perhapi excite Mlle little surprise its some of your minds whets you are told, that its the reign of the late King, a period of 59 years, there was three times more money expended than in the reign of the 3 1 Stwcrcidus who pricedc4l hitu, (luring a period of 7uu linow‘. 4 •0 ,11 .1 1111 0iwo -.4 J " t • •N. _ - l ip I r~ ::.. I , ~ f '~l 1 .~ ^•t ~ P iP7 -4 / -