The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1872-12-10 00:00:00

Local anb Dastrict ittbm•

TRI ROL A. RIRBIRT, M.P. WI UNIONISM.
Than woe a mastbeg at won MO a tholtesad poems,
'Melly of the loboutlag ohm, at the Ooes &alma"
Dasalwalor_t ea Neater weeds& to hear 'Altana
Mesa the Rea. Antares Hubert, IL P., mad *then la
seareettaa with the Nodose' Agricultural Labourers'
'Hake. Mr. Herbert le third enrol the Sari of Oar-
same, M.P. for Nottingham, and a Hooter of Comsat
Lew; in 1871 he was married to Lady Flame%
daughter of the sixth Ilari Creeper.
Mr, 81100 E, of Whitechureh, was called to the chair.
In opening the prossedings he give halft' of the
low estate of the agricultural labourer, Ind paid he
was convinced the Union was the only moan. of raising
them.
Mr. SMITH, of Wititeenreh, fo 11WP 1, ni I acri, tt
that agrieultaral labourers sr' lai I hlv hat the
general body of tbo ratepoyots ollor,bee., as po•nt
as one is ill be moat go to the pariah, and come upon the
rates. Then he raid they must hare the franelise.
Men who had to obey law. they had no hand in making
were but illeeee—ialanlanea Tic htwe are dam tirt:ii
and class administered. He telpher' for rnery man rni
women of 21 to have tbe franchise ; and is, ,)ove odd
by moving "That this matting whilst it in it., nay
wishes to create feellnp of lvetility netween employers
and employed, Is of opinion that the National %gel-
cultural Labotuers' Union &active, the oonfih noe and
convert of the agricultural labourers of this c arty,
and hereby pledges itself to exert iti beat tfforts on its
behalr—(applause).
Hr. Nero* seconded the resolution, which he said
was quite in aceordanoe with hi. feelings. He enlarged
o a the normality and advantages of the Union and
urged them to be firmly sated till the victor; was
won.

The resolution wee oarried by maturation.
The Hon. ACII limealtr. M.P.. who was
remind with mush °hewing, 'meld : lam glad to moot
you here in the town of Doechatter--gLad, bemuse I
recollect (as you will all know) that this little town of
yours is am of these MU* spots which is perhaps More
boand up with the old history and the past events of
the We of England titan almost any other on which we
could stand—(applause). Yon might—if there were
such thing, as ghosts—in aimed any part of your town
In the middle of the night have reason to exwat to
meet the ghosts of those old raose—the Rowan, the
Dane, the Saxon ; and the ghosts of men who stand
nearer to us, and who played • Very Olp•TMOt part
not so long ago in our hbeory. Whilst I recolloct this
interesting eonnectlon of yours with the peel lit* of
Zeeland, I am glad to see that you are also living in
the preseil ; and that you am era.. are not Mislaid the
hopes, and the aspirations. sad ths efforts whisk are
making themselves felt in every English breast—
(applause). It la good to have a history of the part to
look upon, but his bettor still toll,. In the preeent and
to MOTO with thaw who IWO 1011M1014 In the race. We
ore hero to-night to meek opoa the subject of Union.
Sinai the baoner of Union me first raised in Warwick-
Mire, we have I think almost &demised to this pout—
that there Is scarcely anybody now who will °owe
forward sad deity you the right of uniting together—
(chervil. Indeed, it would be a very strange
thing if any person should do go, bemuse what do
we see ae we look around the rest of the population-
we
find Werybody who has got an interest to defend,
or en opinion to *stand, whother high or low, rich er
poor, to church or belonging to chaPel, what-
ever he say he is one of an ageoelation united
together for that common purpose—(applause). I do
not think there is any greet intent*, or profeedoe, or
trade, or any whisk has not in some
form or together—(hmr, hoar). And
It is quit* right it should be too, for it is tho life of a
free nation. What we mem by a "Ire, nation" le that
every part of that nation should have • perfect right
and perfect liberty to mite In malt • way salts mom-
ben may, within proper and right booed., think for
Its owe advantage sod its own interest, and that the
members may better their oiremastmess sod mike the
best use of Moos faculties whisk Clod haa ghee to each
of us—(homiswer). New U this freedom Wimp to every-
body, suety it Weep most of all to thaw of us who
are the West well of —upon whim the alrearastuwes of
life prow the hardest—those of us who have been least
toadied by that stream of prosperity, and that adman
of wages, which has need go many of our neighbours.
I say that if any part et the 'take ia to combing to
protect their own interests surely It should be that part
whisk is least well to do. I recollect its being said
shout wens foreign soldiers who were asartered epos
the inhabitants of Terkoy, and had the best the people
had—tlte bent breakfast and dinner, the best room be
live in, and this best bed to slow) ca—that the people
thought it harder than all that when them soldiers kit
their comfortable quarters they sant in • bill to the poor
people who had had to mainOMa them for the wear and
tsar of thole teeth—(leughter). They not only ato
them out of shelf and cupboard, bet shirred for Use
wear and tom of their teeth in doing It—which was the
untie/Jut out of all. flo I my ft will be • little too herd
for us, if thaw who are worst off, who Ishout the
longed hours and receive the smallest amount of wager,
were to be the one part of the nation which was not to
have the privilege of uniting to protect thentaslvra—
(hear, hear). Now on this subliiot of Union, there are
some people who will tell you it is a very foolish thing
on your part to think of uniting, They are ready to
waste a great deal of ;ay and &deka on you respecting
It. You must be vcry mlavildecl men, they say, be
think of jAalng a Union, and I ems very datger.us
person to be talking ti you—(lauchter)—tbst you have
done Tory wrong In cumin; to listen to me ; and If
certain person who o.cu...ies s cre-t oln in tide
country (the Bishop of (iourost r) is ri;t.• what :on
ehoold have done .1' h in.. at.,,, I can. t.iso
was, not to have genic threo wrili to hirsr
but should have voff :o tl•e roiliest horsey.i.it
--(land wive rf_"co. n0..)—.n4 Inite rioters should

pu't an end to all I ;It Tr-4
;ou--(ro:rie.il @haring).
(It be true that it is a fooled tbin.,. to join • Upton
there must be • gr-st many very foolish and eni•guiled
men in this nation; and it is o viry stmnze thlog that
people should act vo much ogtinst tboir own interests :
for there are already many thonlande of English
workicg-men bound tooother In those me it llnforis
which hays been to them a souroe of help, ard strength,
and comfort—which have giv,n them • real .pint of
lodepeodenoe, and • spirit of self.help; end, in the
hour of troubn nod adversity, have stood by them and
f
them against the il:* of life. On the whole =tlll..a to think that thee: men judge better for
themselves thee others jo,'ge for thorn. A noble lord
once went to his estate In Sootlanel, and wishing to see
bin sheep went out for a walk on the hills with the
shepherd; and VI he observed the sheep lying on the
side of a hill, be turned to the shepherd and said
"If I were • steep I should go and lie on the other
side of the hill to feel tho wind less." The shepherd
looked up in him fans and answered, "II you IMO •
sheep, my laird, you'd have mair sense "—(laughter).
And I think we may turn round on some of those who
give you such kindly warnings against Unions, and say
—lf you wane • working man, with a wife and family
to support on lit • week, you would bane mom some—
(applause). What are the great Unions that exist? for
there are acme very strange and ignorant 'dam spread
about them. Do you know what these great Unions
do for their members ? Why, there are yearly thousand,
and thousands of pounds paid away by them to relieve
atheism and to help men in old age—thousandm and
tbousmdm of pounds given to mitigate the hardships of
life and its aosideste— (bear, Mark If I reeollect
rightly, on• of the greatest Unions Is the Zeeman'
Union, which receives from its member' every year •
revenue of £49,000; and, if my memory nerves me. boo
• capital of £149,000 or £150,000 ; while in the last
three years four of the groat Unions have paid away
for benevolent purposes—the relief of siokosse, old age,
loos of tools sod oaroiiitie• of that sort,about • quarter of
minim sterling. A. we amok it, that does not seem to
be • vary lugs sum, but I should like to put before
you a simple illustration that will give you some notion
of its magnitude. We know pretty well what ClOO is;
if seek of you bad such • sum met into your pockets
you would feel very msob richer than you do now.
Well, whet Is the length of this room? (Somebody
said 300tt. •it is about 80) Now suppose• hall 166
feet loci; then out off from it four.afths of an inch,
and that little bit will stand in the same proportion to
the whole length of thee room u ElOO to • qoartor of •
minim. Those great Unions not only provide in that
noble manner for their members, but they are all!.
governed and self-managed bodies of which Ragland
may well be proud. They me governed in an orderly,
was, and prudent manner; and I can only say that to
my mind the management of those Unions is am graffito
able to um es • natio, as the Government of England
iteeif—(appias), It Mom just as mash as our
thavorameat M England, that then is he Itherlithmen •
masa of rbllity and power of managing oar own
affairs. Bet 1110•11 people will is,, all that is very well,
but we ham heard of some Tory wrong things done by
Uniems—of me workman oppeoning another, and of
acts which it wergild he very wroag—quits impossible to
defied: we have beard of laws pawed by Unions
whisk were miry nimbi* bemuse they throw dialeultles
in the way of prodsetion. I as perfectly willing to
admit snob things ham hiss; like slathers
has bora • bad side to Ualmainen, bat sin glad to
those Maims were *sly • few, and the objostimath. !
haters' ham been abandemed. Sousa have been un.
Moe enough to par bad rakes whisk mods it diesels
for employers In that trade to terry is their bantams.
But I hope you Sr. going to adopt the gold side of
Unioakm—you ar• golog to profit by the past impat-
ience and those past =4'km—will take what is good
and leave out what is ted—(chears). I'll toll you what
I maw by geed and by bed Unlade= Suppose
• forum wore ming • machine to make hay or
out wheat, and tho Union were to way to the farmer
ludas QM wahine he is taking away work from men
and we won't allow him to use it, that would be to my
mind • bit of very had linionism--(bear, bear). We
cannot do • more unwise thing than interfere with
machinery, which would throw difficulties In tho way of
employers. It may seem for the moment to be to our
adystatama, but it would be hurting ourselves. Just
look at It in one point of view. If the agricultural
labourers were to say they would not allow mechlnery
bobs used, what as injury that would be to their
brother workmen who urn makers of machinea It
would at once throw ti or nut of employment, and
fovea them may he to b c-one atioultaral labour rr,
thus creating • greater so-plus of labour than there
at present; distress wool I ther_by be increased, awl
wages fall still lower. That lea bit of bad Unionism
When a mac dreg rot r. airs for his dally toil that
which is • proper and suffilient reward for hi. exertions
—when he bas not enough to keep himself and his
family in health, and strength, and comfort. then I
say what your Union@ ought to do, what they have
been doing, and what I hope they will Goodhue to do
Is, jut to carry away • part of the labour from this
county to other Mates where it is better paid—
Lplanne). I don't think it I. difficult to draw tin
s between what is pod 411 i bad it, • Union, if we
one, try to do DO. There is no difficulty in rayieg
whet is right and fair on our part, and what is oat,
We don't wish to do what le unfair to the farmer. I
would never attend • meeting if It were intended to
urge. map to do what was mbar to thole employer.—
(h. 117 hoar). I think we ought to look at bth
of the quastion—(applause)—sod just as I eland up,
and will stand up to the very last for your freedom-
(applause)—and for your defonce—(obeers); just a. I
want to pet you In a poidtace whom ) .bail not be
formed to take whenever wages aro offered to you, but
like every ether Zoglish workman shall have fro*
*iota aid steal provided to enable you to carry your
Meer ebeaheretitlz the tame way as I went to
Si. 75S bma ee eat, I don't seat to one any.
WWI • onion which Writes at the real liberty of