The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-11-21 00:00:00

ELECTION NEWS.
EAST WORCESTERSHIRE ELECTIOV.

WORKING MEN'S MEETING LAST
NIGHT.

A large meetiog composed principally of working men
wan held in the Corn Elehange, hest night. for the Fur-
row of supp uting eles:rs. Lyttelton and MartiMs prin-
ciple.. At seven o'clock, the time appointed. the room
was shout half-full, lint soon after that time the boll wan
well tilled. Mr. It Miles woo voted to the chair. an lon
the platform we netieee .1. Woolley, Job Mills, R, d.
R. Shirt, W. Paektrotel, I'. Shirt, H. Mills, Cart-
wrieht, Eastlake, Bullock, Ac.
The Chairman sail the meeting was called for the
p•ireose et giving the working men an opportunity to
express their opiitions ite to the merits of Liberals and
Tories, and !taped that till plesent would give a fair hear.
rig to the speekere. no matter on whose site they spike
it. p reties were interested in having the support of the
ettrhiog men, arid it Was for thero to discuss winch was
the beet to antipart. Now, he wotild ask, who put that
great beet, etr upon us. the National Debt ? It wits the
Tories. Who caned the wars? The Tories. Anti who
put thirty millions of debt on us? Why, the Tories
And wile was against the Abelition of Slavery? Why
the Tories opposed it nil they meld. Who repealed the
Corn Lows? Why Colad.i and Bright —(applautte)—
and since they had passed they (the working men) had
been better fed and clothed, and those who parsed the
Corn Laws deserved their best respect —(apeleuse). If
those laws hail nit been repealed they should have been
much worse if. Then a Protectien Society sprung up,
and who emitted it? Why the Tories: and it seas aprrr.
tection sham. end fell to the ground. Who gave you the
Reform Bill in 1832 ? Why the Liberals. A good deal
hail been said about persons turning their COati. It was
said that Mr. Gleilstone and Mr. Lyttelton had turned
their coats. He thought there was credit dine to them
for turning their costa after they bad found out their
miettake—lapplause). He contended that the franchise
ouglit to be wore equel. try should a person at trier.
Icy Hill have u vote because he was in a borough, any
more than a person in Stourbridge ?—(hear, hear). As
regards education, be contended that all working men's
children ought to be educated. As regards the Factory
Act, the Tories panned that, and what was good for the
goose was good for the gander. Why did they not give
the agricultural laboured the seine benefit ?—(applause).
He had said something about the Tories ; now, what
have the Liberals done ? Why, they abolished slavery,
emancipated Catholics, gave us tree trade, a free press.
and took the tax off newspapers, and fire insurance
companies (the latter Inetteure being introduced by Mr.
Sheridan, of Dudley) and also the duty of tea and
sugar— teheera). The Liberals had done all thin. and
that was the reason why they should Ruppert the Liberal
candidate'. He should now call upon Mr. Bullock to
propose the first resolution, which was as fellows: "That
we, the working men of Stourbridge, having heard and
read the addresses of and pledgee given by the Liberal
Candidates Sr East Worcestershire. namely, Messrs.
Lyttelton and Martin, and believing thet the principles
then uttered are calculated to benefit tem country at
large, do hereby pledge ourselves to me all the legal
means in our power to secure the cetera of those gentle-
men to Parliament "—(eheers).
After having reed the foregoing resolution, Mr. Bul-
lock said thet his friend had made so msny remarks on
different subjects that he had not left him any to speak
about. The emancipation of the Catholics was • subject
he would speak about; that bill which made • Catholic
equal to his neighbouls. Before that bill was passed no
Catholic wan in otlice, or allowed to hold any important
post in the country. On the subject of the Irish Church,
he had beard it said that the Irish Church was like an
army where they were all officers but only one private,
because there were bishops. clergy, vicars, and others
too nutnerons to mention, but only the poor curate had
to work. Ile did not believe in a bishop, the owner of
five or six livings in IrelaniLliving abroad doing no work,
and also being paid a sum from the Curates Protection
Society to employ the poor curates who worked hard,
whilst he was Heinz in splendour. Or in a fat bishop's
owning four or live who said he was ill with the
grist at Rath—thear, hear, end laughter). In Seelland
they lied no strife it'unit anything cf the sort, then why
should it not be so iu Ireland ?—(hear. hear). Mr. Bul-
lock went OU tO say that the best thing they could do
would bet,, do away with the Itiohope, Archbishop'', and
other such peewee's, and do away with the Irish Church
—kuock it d iwn—(hear. hear). He then sat down aund
loud applause.
Mr. Woolley, seconded the resolution, and in doing
so conteuded that they wanted a wholeetile reduction in
the expenditure, and advocated the adoption of the bal.
Lit as the bast prevention of bribery. And Mr. Martin
would support the ballot, and Ire would ask those pre-
sent to support Mr. Martin. There was another import-
ant thing that must be attended to.—that was trades
and the next parliament will have to attend to
it, and it will require very tenderly dealing with es it
affects most of those present. Who were the first who
introduced the piestion of that great principle, non-in-
tervention ? Why Bright and Cobden. They were told
the other night that the Tories gave them the Reform
Bill It was true they did, but it Was through Messrs.
Bright and Gladstone. During the abort time the Con-
servatives have been in office, they have increased the
national expenditure three millions, permanently in two
years, and he concluded by exhorting these present to
give their votes manfully and fearlesly, and not be bribed
by a quart of ale or • paltry piece of coin. (Cheers).
He called upon those present to do ell they could to
support the Liberal Candidates and not to split their
votes. A few verses had been composed by a friend of
613 to be sung next Monday, which be would read, and
they were as follows: