The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-08-27 00:00:00

THE STOU_RBRIDGE OBSERVER.

the Norman Conquest, and the grinding I ley and Co. (Birmingham). Letters promising to
tyranny by iv hich it was accompanied ; the abide by the deci-ion of the meeting, and recom-
mending the acceptance of the terms demanded by
growth of the power of the Church; the t3lll the osrpsersativies. w. eredreceiveAdi from Mr. C. lielins,
first step in the direction of co ustitutional
as distinguished from arbitrary rule in the Co., Mr. VT. Harper, anC o.iiie,..esrsssrs .
ilbitea l t
3 1 't'
Brothers,a "a
reign of °Henry 11. by limiting the ecclesias- Messrs. J. Green and Co. (Bromsgrove), the ex.
tical influence ; the granting of Magna ecutors of Mr. Robert Dudley (Kingswinford), and
Mr. J. Hawkeswood (Quarry Bank). Regrt-t was
Charta by King John, and the summoning expressed at the absence of Mr. Ball -(Messrs.
of Parliament by Edward I. Guest and Co., Dudley), who was Chairman of the
Many a day has come and gone since the Masters' Association while it existed, and also
barons and the knights sat in one chamber, President of the Concilia.tioa Board before it col-
and the representatives of towns and counties lapsed. The absence of Mr. Ball was especially
'
in another. There were two members from
each shire, and two each from twenty towns, always
ump occupies n
ads
et
tet
prest,tr and, au
t trade, e
s the
cceeuffor;sith, h e
Mr.
s
including Scarborough, Grimsby, Lynn, Ball had also abstained from giving any official in-
Colchester, and Yarmouth. Neither Oxford
nor Cambridge was at that time represented. timation of his willingness to abide by the &ci,ion
of the meeting It will be remembered that the
opeiercativteshoriehinally struck for an advance of 30
So far indeed from the privilege being 18,59
Inist„
I,,u,hticthl nkihoedwifined
among
nademandsji to tthe
highly valued, it is found at later periods
list
that boroughs petitioned the Crown to be ' starvation list, and is alelut 25 the
relieved from the duty of sending a member per
cent below
of 1875. During the lest twelvemonth., how-
ever, the nailers have been paid about 25 per cent.
to Parliament on the ground that the 3d.
or 4d. a day then paid to every representative t
he preceding list,
less th a n thelB79 lisp, or 45 per cent. lower than
and the men and their families
for his maintenance was a burden too were
unabletoea:'c a ha existence at these Prices
grievous to be borne. Bishops, abbots, and and they accordingly went out on strike about two
heads of the church sat in an assembly months ago to tl-e number of nearly 30,000. About
corresponding to our House of Lords
; and. 2,000 returned to work at the advance, but the re-
maindermeeting
07rieihsutirlsIdoauvt peAnfdtic.nrg a the
lengthydecision sof the
even abbesses are said to have claimed and
exercised the right of sitting in Parliament. it was resolved, on the motion of Afri .
Perry,
discussion i
Established, in the first instance, as a means seconded by Mr. Russell, "That the demands o
, the workmen be conceded to and the
yceis.d:
eerr-s
1879 lit be
of obtaining money from the people by
thoe nailerswPceerrie,the
expected'leadte' rosfinedelss'
taxation to supply the wants of the Crown, " paid in
in
John future."—The decision was communicated
t
r oeum
f t'ie op .ratives, and
, the Parliament thus humbly founded
, became, after centuries of struggle, the real day. Dam jut the suspension work
'y
lawgiver of the country. have accumulated, and stocks in warehouses have
A marked example of the power gained been cleared out to a large extent, so that more
regular emplyment will be afforded.
o
by Parliament was afforded in the deposi-
from the throne of Edward 11. in 1327,
practically by the popular will. In course
of time Parliament had become sufficiently
established. to exercise the right of bestow-
ing the Crown by vote of its own members, .
thus setting a precedent of the greatest
possible importance in respect to the re-
lations between the throne and the people.
Then came a reaction tending to the assertion
of absolute power by the reigning monarch.
From the accession of Henry VII. until the
latter part of the long reign of Elizabeth, a
course of policy was pursued by the sovereign,
with the avowed object of establishing per-
sonal rule all but unchecked by Parliament.
The political power of the barons as a body
had faded since the Wars of the Roses, and
that of the Crown became for the best part
of a century almost entirety independent
alike of the will of the barons and the wishes
of the people. Throughout the reigns of
the Stuarts continued variance existed be-
tween the holder of the Crown and the
representatives of the people in Parliament.
Then came the accession of William 111.,
and the granting of the Bill of Rights,
which was the basis of the Constitution as,
now existing.
The Declaration of Rights, as presentedi
by the Marquis of Halifax, as Speaker of the •
House of Lords, to the Prince of Orange in
the presence of the two Houses of the Legis-
lature, stipulated that the suspension or exe-
cution of laws by the kingly power alone,
and that the levying of taxes for the use of
the Crown, without the authority of Parlia-
ment, should be illegal. The subject was
to have the right of petitioning the King for
the redress of grievances, a standing army
was not to be kept without the consent of
the Legislature, freedom of election and of
speech were required, and it was urged that
Parliament ought to be held frequently.
Such were the principal heads of this
famous covenant. On these lines the Con-
stitution was established, and from that day
to this the legitimate power of Parliament,
in directing the affairs of the nation, has
never been seriously questioned. When any
of innovation have arisen, the pro-
visions of the Bill of Rights have been, and
are still quoted as the basis of agreement
between the Crown and Parliament, limiting
the prerogative of the former, and defining
he privileges of the latter.

THE LION TRADE.
WOLVERHAMPTON, Wednesday.
The market was very brisk to day, though the
attendance of buyers was not large. But there
was a decidedly cheerful tone all round, and the
impression is gaining ground that the slackness
from which the trade has so long been suffering
is gradually but surely giving way before what
is regarded as the incoming tide of a permanent
improvement. At all events, manufacturers, as
a rule, are wL:11 off for orders, some of the leading
har makers having sufficient on their books to
keep them wed engaged to the cud of the year,
and the mills and forges throughout the district
are running full time, which means in many
eases the full six days from Monday till Satur-
day in each week. Prices for bars remain firm
at list rates. Earl Dudle3's quotation is £7 12s
6d.; Mews. John Bradley's and the New
British Iron Company 10s„ nod other lead-
ing houses £7 per ton, while medium bars are
.E. 6 5s to £6 10s, and the commonest descriptions
15s; There was a good enquiry on 'Change
this afternoon for sheets, at £7 153 (singles) to
£8 10a (doubles)per. ton. The latter kind were
chief demand. Hoops were not much wanted
but there was no reduction of price. Pig-iron,
too, was slow of sale, consumers just now being
well supplied, iut it was cheering to learn that
the stocks in tnak:u.s' hands were being reduced,
and as one furnace has been blown out this,
week, this will tend to keep down the evil of
over-production. The coal trade is rather dull,
considering that the demand for iron is improv-
ing, but the cool weather now being experienced
Ail cause a iittle more activity in tha household
branch.

BIP,MINGHAM, Thursday

A feeling of depression pervaded the iron
nfirizet this Ritmo:An caused by the continued
Wet weather and the rise in the Bank rate.
Busincss was limited in regard to nearly all
classes of iron, for local consumers have given
out a fair number of orders lately to cover them
against a contiegent advance in price, and mer-
chants declined to speculate now that the up-
ward tendency of the market has receivsrd a
check. Shipping order were mainly confined to
Aeets, %%hien realised. J. 7 15s. for common
singles and £8 103 for doubles. Bar and angle
iron was in very restricted demand for export,
tnl hoops were only in quiet request at about
£6 15s per ton. NaiL rod [um:factures deinauded
an advance of 5s a ton upon re-ent rates, owing
to the termination of the sirike hi the wrought
nail trade which will result from the decision of
the manufacturers this afterncon to concede the
advance asked for by the nailer, but the en-
hanced prices were not r i
ealisei except n oee or
two isolated cases, the current rate being about
£5 15.4 a ten. Marked belts met with merely a
menial seie at £7, £7 10 and £7 123 6i. The
supply of pie iron was plentiful, but transactioes
were i,anali in tue eggregata. The snej.)et of
!.ne short hOtirS of labour was discussed on
'Ohange, and the opinion was pretty generally
.:Apressed that l';:p2lish manufactures could not
successfully compete with the foreigner, handi-
capped as they are by the heavy tariffs, if the
abort hours system is to be maintained. The
deterrnination of the shareholders of John Bag-
ndi and Sons Limited, as shown by the result
of the poll this afternoon, to raise new capital to
keep on the concern was favourably commented
upon, as very great regret would be felt through-
out the district if the old-established concern
I had gore into liquidation.