The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-11-01 00:00:00

THE STOURBRIDGE OBSERVER.

At the platform where, owing to the absence of
Mr. Thorohi Rogers, M.P., Miss Jesse Craigen, of the
Political and Social Progressive Society, presided,
there was an audience numbering several thousands.
Miss Craigen was received with enthusiastic cheering,
on rising to open the proceedings. She remarked
that she was glad to be there to represent one-half of
the people, because the women were one-half of the
people. (A Voice: "The greater half.") She was
glad to represent John Bull's better-half in doing
what they could to fight the battle of the people
against privilege. They were that clay to demand
peacefully, but with firmness, that the House of
Lords should be taken clean out of the way, and
should obstruct the people's legislation no longer.
(Cheers.) Two hundred men, or a few more, were
at the present time blocking the road to pro-
gress of 30,000,000 of people, and if 30,000,000
of people aaffered themselves to be stopped on
the road to freedom by 200 men then they deserved
to remain slaves. Their Government should be a
representative Government, and it was time that they
taught the people that the fountain of power was not
nbove on the throne, but below among the people.
The House of Lords did not represent the people. It
represented 800 years of slavery of the people and of
tyranny by the privileged classes. It represented the
greatest theft that was ever perpetrated under
Heaven, the theft of the land of the country from the
people to whom it should belong, and it represented
obstruction to every measure that would ameliorate
the condition of humanity. The resolution was
moved by Mr. Ellis, seconded by Mr. Giles, supported
by Mr. haws and Mr. Anderson, and, as at the other
platforms, was carried with acclamation.
Dr. G. B. Clark (Highland Land Law Reform
Association), presiding over the proceedings of the
eighth platform, said this agitation would go on until
they had reformed not only the House of Lords, but
the House of Commons itself. They should continue
until they had so reformed the House of Commons
that it would really represent the common people.
The people were ready, and before another month was
over, if the Lords—thanks to Lord Salisbury—(groans
and hisses)—who was one of the best men whom the
Radicals could have in the House of Lords—per-
sisted in their action, the people were prepared
to deal with them. The Marquis of Salisbury was
performing a most useful work. His Lordship was
for many years a member of the Lower House, all the
fun of which he had lost since becoming a member
of the hereditary Chamber. Probably he desired to
get down to the Low House again; if so, the Radicals
were prepared to give him a chance of doing so, and
let him go in as the member for Salisbury; or, if he
so wished, let him go in for the representation of
Liverpool, or same such good Tory constituency.
(Laughter.)
At the termination of the speeches, in all of which
the House of Lords was denounced in the most sweep-
ing terms, three loud cheers were given for" Glad-
stone " and " Chamberlain." As the proceeding!

throughout were most orderly, so the enorinous crowd
dispersed in equally %Oat fashion at the close. At no
time was there anything approaching a tumult, and
on the whole the demonstration was most admirably
carried out. At five o'clock the processions re-formed
and marched out of the park to the music of the
bands to their respective destinations. The thorough-
fares through which the dernonstrationists passed
were much crowded, and during the afternoon there
was a considerable congestion of traffic in the vicinity
of llycie-park-corner.

The following petition, signed by Major Sharp
Hume, Mr. C. A. V. Conybeare, Mr. A. Stearne, Mr.
Southgate, the Rev. Stewart D. Headlam, Dr. Pank-
hurst, Miss Jessie Craigen, Dr G. B. Clark, and Mr.
Wm. Trant, as chairman of the nine platforms at this
gathering, will be presented without delay to the
House of Commons. It is expected that, on presen-
tation, its prayers will be supported: "Unto the
Honourable the Commons of the Untited Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland in Parliament assembled—
The humble petition of inhabitants of this realm in
public meeting in the county of Middlesex assembled
sheweth—That the House of Lords spiritual and
temporal in Parliament is a great and grievous
hindrance and injury to the welfare of this
realm; that the privileged place and power of
the lords spiritual and temporal in Parliament are
dangerous to the rights and liberties of the people
and destructive of the good government of the
country ; that the aforesaid House of Lords, by the
members thereof who sit there by privilege personal,
and are non-representative, and therefore not
responsible to the people, de4 to the great harm of
the kingdom, constantly thwart and oftimes bring to
nothing the voice and will of the people, speak-
ing and acting through their representatives
in Parliament ; that the existence of the afore-
said House of Lords is wholly subversive of
the representative character of Parliament,
and entirely defeats the purpose for which Parlia-
ment was instituted, whereby the grievances of the
nation go unredressed, just and necessary laws fail to
be passed, and the liberty, peace, and prosperity of
the realm are greatly and seriously endangered;
that, for the reasons aforesaid, to your peti-
ttoners it doth manifestly appear That the
House of Lords spiritual and temporal in
Parliament is useless, dangerous, and ought to
be abolished.' Your petitioners, therefore, humbly
pray that your honourable House will resolve to the
effect following: (1) That in the interest of the
nation it is necessary that the House of Lords
spiritual and temporal in Parliament should cease to
exist; (2) That an humble address be presented to
her Majesty tendering the aforesaid, and also the
earnest wish of the Commons of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland that her Majesty will be
pleased to order that henceforth no writ of summons
to the House of Lords be issued to any person whom-
soever, or will be pleased to take such other steps in
that behalf as may be fit and proper.' Or that your
honourable House will adopt such proceeding for
effectuating the purpose aforesaid as to your hormr-
able House shall seem meet. And your petitioners
will ever pray."

A great reform demonstration was held on Satur-
day at Newcastle-on-Tyne. It was attended by the
miners of Northumberland and the workmen of Tyne-
side generally. The members of the various trades
met in the centre of the city, and, accompanied by
bands of music and devices of various kinds, marched
in procession to the town moor. Here there were
four temporary platforms, around each of which, not,-
withstanding a cold, bleak atmosphere, gathered
several thousand persons. The chairman and speakers
were almost entirely chosen from the working classes,
the attendance of members of Parliament being pre-
vented by the opening of the session. Resolutions
were proposed from the four platforms, and in each
case carried unanimously, trusting that the Govern-
ment would reject any compromise on the Franchise
Bill, expressing the opinion that the existence of an
hereditary and irresponsible Chamber at the present
day is in practice both a danger to our national pro-
gress and a constant incitement to mischievous agita-
tion, and urging upon her Majesty's Government
"the importance of taking steps at an early date so
as to amend the Constitution of the country that the
free and orderly action in it of the representative
principle may no longer be frustrated by the House
of Lords."

At Blackheath on Saturday afternoon last, under
the auspices of the united Liberal associations of
Greenwich, Deptford, Lee, Lewisham, Woolwich, and
Plumstead, a demonstration took place in favour of
the Franchise Bill and against the action of the
House of Lords. The meetings were held in a large
hollow near Whitfield 's Mount. The Rev. Brooke
Lambert, vicar of Greenwich, presided at one plat-
form, and wp.s supported by Mr. F. Verney, the
Liberal candidate fbr the borough of Greenwich, and
Mr. Briggs, M.P. Mr. F. Verney moved the first
resolution : "That this mass meeting of the inhabit-
ants of Deplord, Greenwich, Lewisham, and Wool-
wich strongly approves the determination of the
Government to pass the Franchise Bill, protests
sgainst the conduct of the House of Lords in reject-
ing it, and urges the Government to submit to no dicta-
tion from the Peers." Mr. Patterson Nichols se-
conded, and Mr. Jolly, .LP., supported the resolution,
which was carried with but few dissentients. Mr.
Briggs, M.P., moved the second resolution: "That
thi.3- meeting declares its conviction that the here-
ditary element in the constitution of the House of
Lords is bad in principle and pernicious in practice,
and that immediate steps should be taken to remove
all restrictions on the right of the people to govern
theniselves." The Rev. j. Wilson and others sup-
ported the resolution, which was carried unanimously.
At another platform Mr. E. P. Trenchard, president
of the Borough of Greenwich Liberal Association,
presided, supported by Mr. Firth, M.P., Pro-
fessor Thorold Rogers, M.P., and others. Mr,
J. F. B. Firth, M.P., supported one of the
resolutions,' and said the noble gentlemen who went
prancing up and down at picnics in the country told
them they were willing to bow to the popular will.
They would have to do so, whether they were willing
or not. 'Professor Thorold Rogers, M.P., denied that
the Lords had ever been of any service to the English
people. No one had ever heard of an hereditary
engineer, carpenter, shoemaker, or tailor; all those
men had to serve apprenticeships to their trade; but
in the most difficult business in the world—that of
doing justice between class and class—they had men
who had not proved their capacity, but had hitherto
proved their total incapacity for the work. The
resolutions were carried by majorities. There were
some interruptions, but on the whole the 25,000 or
30,000 persons estimated to he present were orderly
and well disposed.

_
THE NATIONAL DEBT.—A Parliamentary paper issued
this week shows that the net balance of the National
Debt in 1884 is £711,588,323, against £755,570,374 in
1874.
THE CANADIAN EXPERIMENTAL FARMS.--The follow-
ing are the yields of the ten experimental farms estab-
lished to test that portion of the Canadian North-West
l'jing beyond Moose Jaw on the line of the Canadian
Pacific Railway: Wheat, 211 bushels per acre; oats,
; barley, 23±; peas, 121. These good average yields
were obtained in spite of the fact that they were from
the sod alone, and not from an ordinary seed bed such
as is universally made, it being desired to show the
nature of the land this season in this rough manner of
cultivation, rather than wait for another season for the
proper preparation of the seed.. These tests are now
generally accepted as establishing the good agricul-
tural capabilities of the immense tract of land in
questiou.