The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1872-11-02 00:00:00

SATritbd

ible for any respectable man to carry on the business ot
▪ eublican. This measure was looked upon by the Con.
▪ atives as well as by many supporters of the Govern-
mem as one which could not be justified by any cause,
and it was, therefore, withdrawn ; and during the last
set.ion it was replaced by one which, whatever might be
its shorts.,
omings, was certainly free from the arbitrary
,rot„h„atio_ ri of property which the other contained. Ac-
cording to ta
could say th, At there was no tyranny so great as the
hi experience he had had of public life, he
tyranny of the
for the laborione discharge of his public duties, althoughmajority. He gave Mr. Gladstone credit
he had shown a
• nits, at his back. In proof of this,
when he had a rasp
u inclination to ride with a high hand
the het,. speaker •rred to the use by Mr. Gladstone of
the prerogative of the
Royal Warrant in respect to the
Abolition of Purchase ;
till, and the appointment of Sir
Robert Collier to a paid judicial °dice. Local taxation.
I
a question affecting the cc
broached as a question of im-
cultural interest, had been .
I
1 portance so far back as the general elections in 186 e, and
eumercial as well as the Agri-
,
I yet these years had passed wit. host any legislation taking
place on it. The question of I. 'gal reform tied also been
I postponed, as was alleged for ma 'it of time, and because
thes e ssiGovernment
thought
.e establishment of the
ballot—(hear, hear). The hon. speaker expressed hini-
measure prope r o waste the time of the
forth
self against this last measure, desiguating it as a " hole-
and-corner' proceeding, from Vic establuihment of
which, however, the Conservatives, judging from what
had already transpired in respect to h, hail nothing to
fear ; they would have one great advantagv from it, inas-
much as they would have quiet o electin
• s wit, out the fear
of having their heads broken—(applause). He condem-
ned the foreign policy of the Government, especial', in
regard to the Alabama claims, and urged that it woui'd„
, been better if they had been referred to the same kind os
arbitration as was the question of the Canadian boun• ,
dory line. But he had a very sanguine expectation that ,
at the next general elecsion they would find things in a
different position, and when it might be found for very
potent reasons that the Conservatives should be trans-
ferred to the opposite side of the House to that which
they now occupied—(applause).
Mr. Honafray proposed the first resolution, which was
as follows, "That the present greatness and freedom of
England having been attained on a well-balanced consti-
tution of Crown, Lords, and Commons. this meeting
strongly deprecates any change which would tend to des.
troy or weaken either of these estates."
The resolution was seconded by Mr. Broughton, who
thought the great success which had attended that meet-
ing was a happy augury for the future of the Conserva-
tive party in Stourbridge. In a few remarks he spoke of
the importance of scriptural education.
The resolution Was put to the meeting and carried
unanimously.
Mr. W. E. Dowdeswell, M.P., spoke to the resolution.
Before he addressed himself to the subject which had
been no eminently proposed to their notice, and so well
received by that great meeting, he desired to express his
acknowledgments to the committee of the association for
the courtesy had extended to him, a perfect stranger,
living at the other end of the country to trespass across
the boundaries, and speak there that night. He was a
young man, and a young member of the House of Com-
mons, and perhaps scarcely of sufficient experience in
public speaking to have jostified the committee in en-
trusting so important a subject to him, had there been
anyone else available. As regarded his own opinion, he
could assure them that it was with the greatest pleasure
he rose, however humbly, to express the general opinion
of the district on the topics of which the resolution men-
tioned. The first portion of the resolution was to the
effect that the greatness and freedom of England had
hi-en attained under a welbbalanced Constitution of
Crown, Lords, and Commons. No argument was required
from him or anybody else in an assembly like that to
show that the people of the country were thoroughly
loyal; they had only to look back to the illness of the
Prince of Wales to be satisfied of the loyalty and attach-
ment of the people to the Crown, and that the feeling
was deeply implanted in the breast of every real English-
man—(applause). Some time since rumours were rife
that loyalty was dead, but at the time of the Prince's
illness it was impossible to stand at a Tailwav station or
in a telegraph office and not be assured of the feet that
it was as universal as ever in this good old land ; end if
any further proof were wanted of the genuineness of the
feeling, he could only wish that they had had the privi-
lege to be present at the great national thanksgiving to
God for his mercy to our national Prince, when, irrespec•
tive of creed, when Roman Catholic and Dissenter, High
and .Low Churchman, Jew and Infidel, met in the Na-
ton's] Cathedral to thank God with one voice for the re-
covery of the national Prince—(applause). He said no
further proof than that was wanted, no further argument •
was required from him to prove that England was as loyal
as it ever was, and the Crown as safe and secure as it was
years ago. They then came to the question of the House
of Lords, and he was bound to say that when he received
the note appointing him to speak to that resolution, he
found himself in a difficulty, for he had a very strong
opinion, which he believed was shared in by all Conser-
vatives, on the subject. And he thought he could not re-
fer to it than by repeating what their excellent Lord'
Lieutenant of the County said at Worcester on Saturday
evening loot. Lord Lyttelton, in responding to the toast,
said, "I, for one, have always held that the hereditary
Chamber of this country would be incongruous in its
character if its members were not actually and person-
ally identified with the agricultural and landed interests
of this country "—(applause). That was the effect to
which Lord Lyttelton spoke. Ass Conservative, he was
only too glad to find that was the view of the Lord-Lien-
tenant of the County, and he hoped he would instil it
into some honourable member of his name who sat in
the Lower House—;applause and laughter). The House
of Lords seemed to him always to have brought to bear
on all subjects brought from the Lower House, no mat-
ter how lung they might have been considered in it, a
fresh argument and fresh brilliancy, and to have given
the discussion quite a new life—(applause). And he was
bound to say that, although the House of Lords was her-
editary, the House of Commons might be proud if they
had inherited the same ability and the same energy in
their seats which characterised the House of Lords—
(hear, hear). With reference to the House of Commons,
he, for one, felt that the Reform Bill had brought to the
discussion of important subjects an energy and willing-
ness to work never surpassed in previous years—(hear,
hear). He believed, although they had a great number
of people in it very anxious to talk, there was more gen-
eral average ability in the present House. Ho did not
say that they had a greater number of men of mark, but
there was more average ability. He was not sure that
they had quite enough, acme thought even a little too
much, for it tended to iuerease tee amount of private
legislation, and this tended to sensational legislation—
;hear, hear). The second part of the resolution went on
to say that the meeting deprecated any chatme which
would tend to weaken or destroy either of those estates
—;bear, hear). He had already said enough to show that
as foe as the Crown was concerned, they had 110 reason
to fear that for many yeah( ha come, perhaps for ever.
the legitimate influence of the Crown would suffer, nor
did he believe there was anything to fear for the House
of Lords; and as to the third point, the constitution of I
the Hon. of Commons would depend upon associations
like that to say whether in the next Parliament Mr. Glad-
stone or a diffiorent Minister was to have the right of ad-
vising the Queen—(applause). He sincerely hoped asso-
ciations like that would work together to secure a Con-
aces-olive majority instead of the one they had to work
against at present—(hear, bear). He would give his rea-
sons for this, although it was difficult for him, coming
among tjlem u a stranger, after such an exhaustive speech
as that which they had had the pleasure of hearing from
the Chairman. With regard to Home Policy, they all
knew thet at the last general election the Government
went into power with an enormous majority of more than
100 in the House of Commons, pledged to the abolition
of the Irish Church. That measure was succeeded in
the following year by one not less confiscatory, the Irish
Land Bill Sow, he for one, considered that it was not
the particular act, but the motives which induced a Go-
vernment to bring forward such measures, that introduced
into the country generally a very great fear as to whether
rights and vested interests were safe in the hands of such
Ministers as these. or did he think that those fears
were calculated to be net at rest by the introduction of
the Licenaing Bill by the Home Secretary in the year be-
fore this—(hedr, hear). That was a bill which proposed
to abolish vested interests in a new and unprecedented
manner, in a manner never before heard of in England,
and although by the efforts of the Conservative party the
present bill was not so bad as the one before, he did not
agree with the policy of the House of Commons forcing
a permissive legislation in the country which allowed the
magistracy of two counties to have the public-houses
closed on one side the border at ten and the other at
twelve. He would not go at any length, however, into
those topics, as the Chairman hod touched on them so
fully. With reference to the foreign policy of the Go•
vernment, it appeared to him that since the Government
had been in power the peace.at-sny-price principle, or, at
any rate, non-intervention, had governed the foreign
policy of this kingdom. They would remember that at
the close of the Crimean war • treaty was concluded,
which until • few months ago was in for.. The time
was when Englani held a grand name among the nations
of Europe, but as time passed there were various subjects
on which they expressed their opinion, and having ex-
pressed it, they were unable to back it up by deeds, and
the high name of England began to waver in the opinion
of the world, and at the present momentit did not occupy
the position which it bell some yearn ago. The way in
which Russia. immediately France was crushed by Prussia
tore up the Black Sea Treaty was sufficient proof of that
—(hear, hear). Russia was making great strides and ad-
vances in the East, and unless we had a change of Go-
vernment and policy, the name ef England, he neared,
would not be so high in twenty years to come. It was
because he felt that deeply that be had come there to
assist at their demonstration that night—(applause).
Captain Noel proposed the second reeolution, which
was to the following effect :—" That the Conservative
party, both in Parliament and in the country, while deter-
mined to resist revolutionary change in Church and State,
are desirous of carrying out all improvements necessary
to the effective working of the innitntions of the cone-
'try. They were also anxious to maintain the integrity,
support the honour of the empire, to promote by all pos-
sible memos the prosperity and happiness of all classes
of the people, both at home and in the colonies, and to
live at peace with the whole world "—(cheers).
Mr. C. W. Collis seconded the resolution, which was
carried.

Sir J. S. Pakington, in rising to respond to the remains
lion very warmly received. The right hon, baronet said
he had been called upon to respond to the resolution
which they had just so cordially adopted; but he could
not proceed to do so without begging permission, in the
first instance, to express the gratification he felt at seeing
the present great gathering of the Conservative Associa-
tion of the town and neighbourhood of Stourbridge—
(cheers). Nor could he pass on to other matters without
tendering to them his most cordial and sincere thanks
for ths enthusiastic reception which they had done him
the honour to give to his name—(cheers)—and in thank-
ing them for that reception he thought they would not be
surprised when he said that be could not help reverting
fort moment to days winch were now long gone by, but
which were days different from the present. He adver-
ted to the time when it was his fortune to be a candidate
for East Worcestershire—(cheers). He did not come in
as his honourable friend in the chair did, at the head of
the poll—(laughter). On the contrary, his position was
exactly opposite, as he was at the tail of the poll—(laugh-
ter). As be had said, they now lived in different days.
Of course, in contesting the osmium division of that
county, part of his duty was to canvass every district in