The National Register. — London, England, 1822-02-03 00:00:00

; . P .- - t ThVGS. -------- - SUFFOLK AGIIICULTVIIAL AME Two metiers were hehi ut Stownsatket on Tees , lny lai4t, under circumstances of perfect novelty The ti,t was a meeting of the Ostler , and Occupiers of Lind iu the eoultlY of nigh'Sitrotk, payment to a iiiitiiie appoittoneait of ifs sheriff; min i , Bennet, Esq. of Rungham near Bury. At one o'clock the High Sheriff ascended the hustings, which were immediately filled with a number of the lead ing nobility mid gentry of the comiti v. Amongst those present were His Grace the Doke of Norfolk, E.M.; the Doke of Grafton, Lord 11. Fitzroy, Lord C. Fitzroy, Lord Calthorpe, Lord Viscount Dianwich, Lord H gtield, Sir W. Rowley, NIX, Sir R. Harland, Sir H. Blitibury, Sir Wm. Middleton, and Sir Witt. Parker, Bails.; T. S. ljorich, Esq. M.P.; J. Macdonald, E4q. ALP., cite. ece. The Ilion SHERIFF (P. Bennet, Esq.) iii rooming the business of the day, still, that it was with considerable saiislectiou he informed them that little difference of old- Mon was likely to exist amongst the geutlemen who attended to address them. After the High Sheriff had been called to the chair, Sir H. Burr nunv came forward to address the nu cling. —He was told that in considering the causes of, and re medies fur, the ',resew agrienitural distress, he otielit to consider it without any leferenee to polities. How he wa, rigidly to agree with this suggesti smite did not know ; for how were they to understand effects without alluding to their causes? or how point out remedies without treating of the bootees of the disease ? If by inquiry they were to detect the causes of their present distress in the acts of public rum, how were they to reprobate those acts with out casting a stigma upon those who were the authors of thetii? (Cactus.) The care with which some gentlemen wished to keep the coutluet of ministers oust of sight, re minded him of the lan.mage of Uennis Bralgraldery, in the play of Jan Dull—" You'll be so good as not to be spaking of my wife iu my presence—for it would not be becoming ill me to hear her ill spoken off, and I know you can't snake well of her %Ulm's I telling a hie, lie." (Laughter.) So said the present so pput lets of klinisters; and as he did not wish to irritate them, he would do It's best not to touch upon any sore places. (Cheers ) There were, lie believ«l, two points, und not more than two points, upon which they were all agreed. 'the lirst of them was, that the *listless under which the country now laboured was almost insupportable; and the second, that the nation Mil it either raise its means to meet the present high sten d of expenditure, or cut clown its expenditure to meet the low level of its means.—lt was unnecessary for him to upou the extent of the distress; indeed it was too painful a subject for him to follow. 'llse labonrers had no employment, hi:close the farm( rs had no money to pay them. The condition of the farmer was even worse than that of the la:ooirer ; and he roily believed that the time would shortly come, when they would be absolutely una ble to pay their rents, rates, taxes, and tithes.—He should take op no more of their time with his observations, Lott should proceed to rea I a series of resolutions, to which he trnsted that they would give their cordial approbation. —(Lund cheers.) Mr. J. W. D. MEI( EZT read the resolutions. They were OS follow : " That the owners and occupiers of land in the county of Suffolk are now labouring Ulltiet unexampled distress, which is the more alarming, because it does not appear to result from temporary causes. " That we cannot concur in the assertion that our distresses are owing to an excess in tile production of corn: we cannot consider plenty as a curse, but we fear Mat a decrease in the demand has resulted filial the lamentable poverty of the people ; and we de sire to sec the condition of alt classes so much unproved as to ensure steady prices to the farmers, and employment to the labourers. " That excessive taxation is the main cause of' that distress which is crushing the landlord, the tenant, and the labourer, the gross amount of the taxes rising tar above that proportion which the income of the nation is able to sustain, and their effect having been aggravated by injurious operations on the currency of the realm. " That the return from a paper currency to that of gold has in effect increased the profits of all persons enjoying fixed pay or salaries, or places. as well as of the fundholders, at the expense of the agricultural and trading interests. " That if further and more effectual measures be not adopted for the relief of the agriculturists, the proprietors and occupiers of land, together with those traders and artisans who are chiefly dependent upon the farmers fur their support, must sink into irreparable ruin. That the decay of agriculture already disables the farmers from employing the laliourin,, , poor, and thus tends to degrade the condition, to demoralize the habits, and to destroy the inde pendence of the labourer, as well as to aggravate the overwhelm ing pressute of the poor's rate. " That the landed property of England is burdened exclusively with the support of the unemployed poor, with the maintenance of our chtuch, and with various charges from which other pro perty is exempt: while, on the contrary, must of the branches of our national industry enjoy immunities and protection from which the agriculturists are excluded. Under this double inequality, they find it impossible to bear that amount of taxation which is deniaoded from them on account of the civil and mili tary establishments of Government, and of the interest of the national debt. " That the expenses of Government ought to be reduced immediately, and to the lowest scale possible—not merely by the dismissal of inferior clerks, but by the abolition °fall unnecessary places, and by large reductions in the charges upon the civil list, as well as in all official salaries, and is the expenses of the army, ordnance, colonies, collection of taxes, and other branches; and, if possible, so to regulate the finances of the kingdom, that the gauss amount of taxation iitay be lowered it) as large a proportion as me Miterenee iu value between our present currency and that is' site depreciated paper in which the grimier part of our debs has been contrite:en." Sir 11T. An L A NI).--001.1e ult . Mg as Ido with ever y thing that has been said by my honourable frieuil Sir fl. I take the filo:fly of seconding these icsala. tubas. (Chet!. a.) Lot tont ingtield, Lot dI) titi ich, Lord Calthorpe , Mr. (jinni', anti 11,iril lit ii cy y , hissing se vet nily thowsed tae meeting in soppy' t u; sir ki. Buubnry's rebus lotions, Air. tiRIGI:v propovtd to arl.l the following to them:— •• itelslvett,-114.d. to the want of control over the public punv:, which a Partition:at freely elected would exertabc, attribute the ori;dti of our pretest di.rreaves; and therefore re i i nerr that the :Avalon ot the Honourable. the House of Cool won. way be iltrcewl w etixt an inionorbate reioroa in the wpre,enbuton, &iv the only ore.ras of artvinA. what of our propel ty—of prwervutg tit:: tranquillity, and ruittring t h e liberty ul tl,-; tits having bccu eueited with thunders of applause, and Itsviut; been seconded by Sir 11. Ituubstly, eab sap poi led by the Doh.: o Grafton, sir %V tat. Middleton, Ste. ea C. and uppwed by Ltd Gultboria and Colvuul Kolb- THE NATIONAL lIEGISTER The 111(1H SIIMRIII , I , pill ull the resoliiti )))) s, seriatim, eit rept that relative to Parliamentary reform. They were carrivd by acrittatilth.o. Lewd CALTHOttre.—I milve thit the m=olatinns which the ili4ll Shelia' ha, 110:\ I't'Bl be by him ou the part of th meeting. A scene of 11111,(1. 1111(1 1 . 1111f115 ( 1 11 1 1 Colin% et! I hat words c:tn scarcely do ju.lice to.—Ttle Fr, eholders exclaimed lltey %%wild have 1;.• petition nutria lteha In Were etnbrared in It, and the High Slierilr &claiming VI OUlti slot put the question upon Ilefortn, al Ina Tite Onto: of NonroL came forward, mid silence wit 4 partiall re tared. Huespressed a hope that t It Sheriti, after the nitwit tiality with Welt he hurl conducted %nitwit*, would not refuse to allow the opinion of the meeting to be taken upon the propriety or impropriety of a reform in Par liament. He believed in his conscience that a reform was the only means left to the country of aye; titsz still greater &tarter, titan those by which it was at present surrounded. (Gtiett cheerios.) The HIGH SUERIFir pot au end to it by declarthe to the meeting that he conceived the resolution iii favour of reform to be so irrevelant to the business of the day, that he should take anon himself the responsibility of deelinine to propose it In the time - libation of the meeting,—(Loud hisses.) %fr. el enter said, that alter the expression of public opinion w loch they Ire - 1 jug n iliiessed, they were justified in coils define the resolution as carried. Sir 11. llUuaeaY reminded the Iligh Ftheriff, that as he had allowed the rrsoluttini to he brought forward and canvassed by the meeting, the time for ',musette agienst its relevancy hail gone by. He eimetered it to be rather extraordinary in the filet' Sheriff to telk of the irrevelnney of the resolu tion In the Me:trees Of Ihe day, after he had allowed it not only to he eseportiel, but also to he opposed by deferent members of the assembly which lie saw aiound him. Col. !testi BROOK If declared III:it the proposed resolution took the county by surprthe mid advised the High Sheriff not to propose it to the meeting. The. theft SIIERIFIr declared, that he het himself quite petrified by the (entree pursued. Ile nod heard various itei Moue as to Ili • Ipropriet yof putting the pi °posed resolut• . Some gentlemen said I eat he afield to stihmit it to the meeting —others, that he ought not. by neither of these two 'tartlet was he to be intueiteed : he 'Mould rely entirely teem his own judgment; and that certainly led him to decide, that he was perfectly jo.litied in refusing alto:ether to put the resolution to the meeting. (Lend disapprolintion.) It was then attempted to submit the eighth of the original resolutions to the meeting; hot the toloasism which was created by the 'monist completely frustrated it. Finding it impossible to make himself heard upou the subject, the Huth Seeritf informed the freeholders that the hetheiess of the day was concluded; and immediately afterwards declared the ine e tf ie , t o he dissolved. The Welt Shesitle though he had taken this decisive step, still remained upon the hustings, as did also the greater part of she reeptiationisls. The declaration that the meeting was dissolved appeared so incredible, that many of them continued their demand for the resolution a Inch was so obnoziou , to the II lett Sheriff; others also densanded that a petiti )))) , founded on the resolu tions, should be sub:tinted to their consideration; and the cry for " The petition" was in consequence becoming sit enerul. that Mr. Meager was at last Miliged to come forward unit de. elare, that the decision of the High Sheriff had prevented theta from presenting filly petition whatsoever to the House of Commons. The Hien SaiEatr►,asa as this fact was made known to him, declared thud it bad by no means been his intentioti to prevent tt petition from being presented to Parliament. — Ile was pa reedy wiilin, to put it to the meeting, whether they noted consent to adopt a petitiou foouded on the reso lutions a leek they hail jut passed. This speech was succeeded by tries of" The petition, the petition ;^ as also by shouts of " You've h !rayed the couniy, Mr. High Shei a," find of " No petition that does not contain a prayer fur reform." The Hiatt Sit Eat re again declared his determination not to put any petition or restitution to the nteeting which ad. vetted to the necessity of parliamentary reform. Mr. Mee err entree forward to assure the High Sheriff, that thete would he no inconsistency in his putting to the meeting the resolatiou in favour of reform. even (hunch he was most strongly amid conscientiously opposed to it. Isis s igning;the resolutions in the capacity of High Sheriff would by no means pledge hint to the support of the ductiines which they contaiiied. He (Mr. Merest) would not deny that the High Slier if had a right to dissolve the meeting, if he thouelit 'proper j but he trusted that the worthy gentleman who filled that ()Rice would consider well before he determined to take such a step. (Cheers.) He implored the High Sheriff to reileet what a foolish appearance the county wotitl make, if, after a meeting so numerous and respectable as the pre sent, every practicable object was prevented front being at tained by hi-fixed deterininstiou out to tallow a resolution to eland in favour of reform. (Cheers.) The 1-110111 SIIERIVP ageht repeated, that lie conceived the question of reform hr.:relent ; and that he therefore could not allow it to be put to :he meeting. Mr. Maltase repented his assertion, that the High Sleeiff, in putting Mr. Grigby's resolution, would not pledge himself to support Ihe substance of it. He wits sure that the fligh Sheriff, if he gave the subject u consideration, would see the impropo iety of refusitig to put the resolution to the freeholders. The lIIGI4 SII MUFF again declared, that he could not meal:Acuity with his seroe of duty, submit to the meeting the resolution in question. 11 out now eeuerelly known that the meetine hail been dissolved; and some persons eitelobned—" Let Its begone, the Mr.:11114 is dissolved, and the six acts may mew be called into i iiii nediate operation." About this time Mr. 'eine, of Ipswich, e Ito was standing amid the crowd before the hustings, addressed the high Sheriff to the fullowiue effect i.e." Mr. Sheriff, I maintain tom/ slit discretion is left tit you; it is your duly to put the resoletiou to the ateetine, and to abide by ill result. As • freeholder, 1 say that the meet in g is nullified by your di-graceful, shameful, and tlibl10:1011rable conduct."—(Loud cheets.") Tluf Hien See:rue? said he hod dissulved the meetine utelet tote imptession that all the bitditesl of the (ley bad lit ell 6niaii d. lle again asserted his readilicsi Us put the question on the praprirty of embodying their resolutions into petitiou to the House of Cwouwtts. (Great and increased confusion.) Me. GniGue clime foreard sad said, that us the lligh Sheriff was detetthieed tai throw every oustaele iii the nay of reforru, he should now &notate., If to though the High Shout bad itgaiii celled the meeting eat esee, ace, that the lute:tide be theedved immedietely. (Wel Lieu...) A g ent It•uw.m, with whose name we were uunequaitited, seconded the motion, r hot after a b;tort di•t ossion, it was withtir.two ti) the itroiht•er. Lord Dun • mil then "loved that the petiii.mfouutled on the wren 11r.t v. 1.1 14 the tneettog. Lard C•wrtt4 kP E betuktird the resolution. (IttUrlellt.o iti,.ttlisl'rtrti nt.) The Ilium S llKaiEr came forward, to put the digestion opan this osmium A storm of hisses prevented him frogs being heard. Sir les it Burson Y wnsertremely happy to find Ih t the freeholders were su uia ' on the question of reform, eperiallc as the:, lentinients were must congenial with his own. With a view, Weever, to practical objects, he was of opinion that it would perhaps he Miter to allow the pr. Idiots lei pass as it originally was drawn op (Loud cries of " No," from every past of the crowd, " Reform, or no pe. tition.") 11.;, reason fur sayist,t to was, that the cruse of the meeting had bet 0 so fully and so decidedly exprei,e,l, that it must he felt hulls in the senate and in the nation, ihronah vitlich it would coon be sa Wel) disseminated by the press.— Whether the conduct of the Sheath had or had not been marled ith partiality, he would leave to that pre - 4 to de cide; he WWI determined not to e pre , s at prevent, the opi nion w hich he had formed regarding it. (Lund cries," Let us have the resolution for refoton."_ ..... .11r. Kum moved that a vote of censure be passed upon the High Sheriff. Several voices seconded it ; but it was afterwards wit The High Shorn,* succeeded at last is putting the question that the petition he read. HI, words were answei cd by loud cries of" No petition :" and the show of hoods on the affirmative side did not amount to 20. %Viten lie put the negative side of the question, every hmitl, with Iho exception of those above mentioned, was elevated in favour of it. Aft, r this decision the High Sheriff declared the meeting to he dissolved. Still the requisitionists did not quit their posts. Mr. Gooch. however, left his situation on the hen. tinge, as did also Lord Calthorpe, who, along with Led Diann till, had been extremely busy in r , commending to the High Sheriff not to put the relent' re•elution to the assemble. Mr. Gooch was accompanied from the hustings to the King's Head Loll by a considerable portion of the freeholders, who certainly did not bestow upon him the most flattering minks of their " eiteein and high conshleratimit Mr. Mee c.a. hoped that the freeholders would not se parate until they were informed that a requisition was at that very moment in conr•e of signature, calling upon the I I igh Sheriff to convene a meeting to take into considera tion the depressed state of agi icultoire. and also the necessity of a reliant in the Commons House of a I'm ie moll. (Load cheering.) He requested the intelligent einitanry of the county to come leeward and to sign the next sequisition. [Cries of "We will, in hundreds, if It be necessaly." He could assure then', on the gait of the many gentlemen of rank and fortune who hail attended on the present occasion. as well as on the part of himself, that they would one and all of them lie quite glad to meet them there upon a future occasion. (Loud cheers.) He would advise them to adopt the same kind of plan that had been adopted with so much good effect in the county of Norfolk. (Cheers.) A pause for about ten minutes ensued, dining which time considerable argumentation passed between the High Sheriff and several of the riquisionists. At last The Duke of Guarrost came forward, and informed the meeting that he hail just been given to understand, that the High Sheriff couceived himself justified by his own opinion fur the plan he had just adopted (and here his Grace observed that lie was sorry that lie could not consider the High Sheriff as justified in his :) still that high officer had no objection to attend immediately to their requisition in favour of referm ; and if a meeting on that subject could be legally held that day, his Grace said lie was happy to inform them it would be held insole. dtately. (Loud cheering.) Several gentlemen then withdrew to consult whether the Sheriff had the power to convene • aeeond county meeting held on the same day with • first. While they were absent, three cheers were given in favour of reform —and on their return they informed the meeting, that according to the gentlemen learned in the law whom they had consulted, ;mother meeting could be legally held that day in the open The requisition for a second meeting was signed by Isis Grace the Duke of Norfolk, his Croce the Duke of Graf ton, Sir li. Banbury, Sir R. Harland, Sir W. Middleton, Sir W. Parker, Sir T. W. Rowley, Messrs. Grighy, G. Webb. mid ii. Biddle. It was handed up to the High Sheriff, who, upon reading it, appointed another meeting to be held forwitlt. SECOND MEETING. I After the business had been regularly opened. Mr. NI etteter came forward and informed the meeting, that they must begin anew, and go through all the resolu tions once more before they gave their sanction to the resolution in behalf of reform. He then read all the resolutions, and moved that they be adopted 116 those of the meeting. Sir R. HARLAND seconded the motion. The HIGH SHERIFF ; before he put the question, sug gested to the meeting the propriety of waiting for the return of Mr. Omni', and of several gentlemen who had in I uitted the hustings. He as informed that Mr. Goch had been sent for, auJ in al l pro b a bility would return a few minutes. A pause of a few minutes occurred ; but as Mr. Gooch did not make his re-appearatiee, the High Sherd put the resolutions to the meeting; they were entitled unani mously, and amidst the loudest cheering. On tha reso lution ill favour of reform being put, a gentleman pro posed that it should be carried with three cheers. This proposition was imuie.liately acceded to. On the cheers subsiding, a fellow in the crowd moved, that three groans should be given to the High Sheriff. — We need nut any, that this proposition was met with the decided reprobation of the freeholders. Mr. hluttsT hoped that sill symptoms of irritation would be exhibited towards the High Sheriff, who had only acted as he had done from a sense of duty. He respected the manliness of the High Sheriff's character, and the boldness with which he had acted topon his °pi ntos, of what was light, Besides, as he bail given them au opportunity of canvassing the propriety nod expedi ency of a reform in the House of COllllllOll 4 , the tha r nks of the meeting were certainly tine to him. He (M....M.) t r u s ted that they would not withhold from the High she riff that mark of their approbation, which was generally bestowed upon all o ffi cers presiding over public nicet ings. He concluded by moving a vote of thanks to Philip Henna, Esq. Sheriff of the county oh Sutton., lur Lis conduct in the vaair this day, and for the teadimsa 1 .. .. ' 4 In 4tokt— . . _ - -‘" .. - - - ' 1 . _ tc . ; &........_.. -,....... .... , ---•••• %:. - ro ' fr ." . 4% ""`,..., . . - .., • s „.. - -I _ • . '11417. 1 1 1 111 VIIIM2 OO.- .14..- -.o " r ''. . . . . . .