The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-08-31 00:00:00

MR. MUNDELLA'S ANNUAL ADDRESS.

Mundella, M.P., attended a meeting on Monday
evening in Paradise-square, Sheffield, for the purpose of
delivering his annual address to his constituents at the close
of the Session. More than ordinary interest attached to the
proceedings in consequence of a strong Conservative opposi-
tion to Mr. Mundella, owing to his opinions on the Eastern
Question. The walla were covered with placards calling
upon the electors to assemble ha thousands to vote against
the usual resolutions of approval and confidence. It is
estimated that there could not have been fewer than from
10,000 to 12,000 persons present. The Mayor (Alderman
Mappin) presided.—The following account is taken from The
Times of Tuesday :
Mr. Mundella,, who was received with cheers,
hooting, and the singing of "Rule Britannia," had
the greatest difficulty in getting a hearing. He said
he wished those who stood by him to remember that
they claimed to represent popular government and
free discussion. (Cheers and hooting.) He appealed
for a fair hearing for him:elf as well as for his oppo-
nents. (Cheers and disorder, as well as the singing of
"Rule Britannia.") They might strike, hut they ought
to hear. They ought not to be so unmanly as to strike
before they did hear, His Opponents, day after day,
week after week, and month after month, had given
their own rendering of his conduct, character, and pub-
lic work, but he never answered their personalities. He
answered to his constituents. (Cheers, hooting, and dis-
order.) He believed there was no member of the Par-
liament in England who had been subjected to the
same amount of misrepresentation and detraction that
he had, and it was very unfair if, when he came before
his constituents, they would not hear him. (Cheers
and disorder.) He was determined that they should
hear him; if not at that meeting, he would visit every
ward in the town. (Cheers and renewed disorder, a
section of the meeting hooting and others singing
"Rule Britannia.") Pointing to the disturbers, Mr.
Mundella remarked, "This is a poor specimen of
Sheffield working men." The Mayor appealed to the
meeting ta preserve order, and mentioned the names
of several young men, sons of leading townsmen,
who were prominent in creating the disturbance.
Mr. Mundella, addressing himself to those imme-
diately around him, said they had had a seven months'
Session and had kept very late hours. The principle,
"We won't go home till morning" had been carried
to the extent "We won't go home at all." They
might suppose that after all this work there had been
a rich harvest. He was afraid they would be dis-
appointed with the crop. Foreign polities had been
thickin the ground and made a great show, but he did
not know whether the field would be worth the cost.
There was one crop, however, -/hich would be very
heavy. They would have enough of that to last them
for a few Sessions to come, and that was national ex-
penditure. (Groans and prolonged interruption.) He
had done his best to stem the torrent of Government
extravagance. (Here the interruption was rendered
so irresistible that Mr. Mundella was compelled to
desist; free fights were indulged in; and a number of
young men belonging to the town rendered themselves
conspicuous by their endeavours to break the peace
of the meeting. The Mayor went to the extreme
length of naming a number of these persons and
charging them with unruly conduct.) Mr. Mundella,
in resuming, protested against such an unseemly
exhibition on the part of men of high social position.
He said it was discreditable to society and a very poor
example to set to working men. Adopting the advice
of his friends, he decided to try and speak to the re-
porters. He said the promises contained in the Queen's
Speech were very few and unusually uninteresting in
character; but he was very sorry to say they had not
been realized so far as domestic legislation was con-
cerned. He first referred to the Bill for the Con-
solidation of the Factory and Workshops Acts. Al-
though there was nothing very original in the measure,
part of it was good and very much needed; therf-
fore, he gave the Government his assistance in
carrying it through, and Mr. Cross had compli-
mentarily acknowledged his services in this re-
spect. (Applanse.) Adverting to the County Boards
Bill, the speaker said it was based on such a system
that, after being read a second time, the Government
themselves dropped it, and they heard no more about
it. (Laughter.) He asked his hearers what would they
think of a system of municipal government. such as was
proposed in the counties by this Bill, which gave the
representation to the magistrates and Boards of Guar-
dians. This was the Conservative idea of the represent-
ation of the people. (Laughter.) It was the old story.
The Government was merely supported by the county
members ; their strength lay in the counties. It was
the landed aristocracy they endeavoured to conciliate.
Hence the fact that most of their measures were
adapted to meet the wishes of the landed gentry. It
was the landlord first, the farmer second, and all
the rest of the world nowhere. (Laughter and cheers.)
During the present Parliament, for instance, the
Government had been subjected to pressure, and had
been compelled to yield to the demands of the county
members. Take the grant which had been made to
relieve the burden on land. Then take the ease of the
agricultural child. That child might have an educa-
tion, but for some years less than the children of his
hearers. (" Shame 1") The child was under no pro-
tection from the Factory Act, and, despite the re-
commendations of the Royal Commission appointed
by the Government, he might be taken from school
at ten yefftrs of age, and might work full time, and
that full time might be as many hours as the
farmer required of him. (" Shame !") He then
alluded to the Agricultural Holdings Bill. The
Government made it so that a coach-and-six could
go through it, and they did more—they provided
the coach-and-six themselves. This Bill was to give
the poor farmer security for the capital invested
in land, and !so tend to increase the production and
food of the people, and some of the ablest men of this
country had calculated that some GO orBo millions a year
of food which they had to import, and for which they
had to pay the foreigner, might be grown at home.
But what had happened? The Government made, as
he told them, a coach-and-six to go through their own
Act, and the only class of the community that had
benefitted by it was not the farmers but the lawyers.
(Great uproar again occurred, and it was a consider-.
able time before the speaker could proceed) Let them
take the great meat question. He did not charge the
Government with a deliberate intention of going back
to protection, but he did say this—they had introduced
a Bill at the beginning of this Session to compel every
head of 'foreign cattle to be slaughtered immediately it
touched English soil. Last year the Duke of Richmond
himself declared against such a measure, but after wards
the screw was put on and the Bill was brought in.
The farmers had had three bad harvests, there was a
difficulty about their rents, and the Government had
allowed themselves to bring in a measure which was
one of the most dangerous ever brought into the House.
(Cheers and hooting.) He did not want to claim the
credit that did not belong to him, but he could say
that he gave the first fatal stab to that measure.
(Cheers.) When the Bill was introduced it provided
that cattle from every quarter of the world should
be slaughtered at the port of entry. That measure
was so altered that the objectionable features
of it were expunged. (Cheers and disorder, which
was continued for several minutes. The vast
crowd shouted, hooted, sang, and,, swayfd to and
fro in the greatest excitement.) Speaking to the
reporters, the hon. member said his opponents were
determined that he should not be heard, but they
should hear him and know what he had to say.
(Cheers, and prolonged hooting.) The people of
Sheffield in their calmer moments would not approve
proceedings like that. (Cheers.) He wanted to have
told them why he supported an Intermediate Educa-
tion Bill for Ireland—a Bill of which he heartily
approved. (Cheers and hooting, and "Rule Britannia'
once more.) they had an education which was accept-
able to the people of England and Scotland. Why
should there not be also an education provided
that would be acceptable to the people of Ireland?
(" Hear, hear," and cheers.) For his part, he
would not be deterred by any bigotry from giving
that advantage to the Irish people. (Cheers and
disorder.) He alluded to the support he rendered
to Mr. Mellor's measure for relieving friendly societies
from the •z3rd clause of the Poor Law Amendment
Act, and said, although defeated in the Lords, they
would carry it next year. (Cheers and tremendous
disorder, which lasted for several minutes.) The hon.
gentlemp said it was impossible for him to say any-
thing reasonable or consecutive amid such a dis-
turbance. He had come there to fulfil his compact
with his constituents, and it had been evident for
some days that there had been an organized opposi-
tion to prevent him from doing so. The walla of
Sheffield had been placarded with falsehood and mis-
representation, which they dared not let him answer.
He should for the present leave his work to speak for
itself. They had silenced his voice to-night in a
manner that was not creditable to gentlemen in
Sheffield, bnt he promised they should hear it five
times as much. (Cheers.) There was not a ward in
the town he would not visit, and an opportunity should
be afforded of passing judgnaent upon his conduct. A
man who passed judgment upon another man's conduct
without hearing him was a coward. (Cheers and dis-
order.) A man who formed a judgment without hearing
was a slave. (Prolonged cheers, hooting, and disorder,
amid which Mr. Mundella retired.) The Mayor said
it was useless to prolong the meeting, and in a scene of
indescribable confusion he called upon those in favour
of Mr. Mundella to show it by holding up both hands.
Although he was unheard, the Meeting understood
the action of those on the platform, and a forest of
hands went up in favour of the motion. This was
followed by prolonged cheering, waving of hats, and
other demonstrations of delight Before the Mayor
could put the contrary, Mr. Robert Shaw, from the
waggon, held up a placard " Against," and there was
a large show of hands in rapport of it. The Mayor de-
clared the majority to be in favour of Mr. Mundella,
n
Y cheered. A vote of
tha to a close one of them
ao
largest and most disorderly gatherings ever he even
a announcement
to ctehe e m
11ins thator was
brought loudly 1
in Paradise-square.

On Tuesday Mr. Mundella, M.P. received a depu-
tition from the Sheffield Butchers' Association, who
presented him with a vote of thanks for his successful
action in connection with the Government Cattle Bill.
In reply the hon, member referred to the improvement
effected in the Bill in its passage through Parliament,
and said the result of the Bill would be a large supply
of foreign cattle at reasonable prices. Had the Bill
passed as introduced, meat would have reached famine
prices; in other words, it would have been a return to
a Protective policy.