The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1873-10-25 00:00:00

ONIONISIkI AMONG LABOURERS.

A meeting general labourers was at the
linth, on Nforalay evening, for the purpose
of iii,umoting Unionism. Both the mernh.rs for the
city were invited. Colonel Hay ter sent a letter saying
that he was called away fr,,ra Bath by private business,
but should be happy to become a vice•president and
subserthe towards the funds. Lord Grey de Wilton
attended the meeting, which waa presided over by Mr.
George Mitchell, of London.

The Chairman, in opening the proceedings, said that
he had foun.i empl fyinent for • number of agricultural
labourers, who had been discharged because they
joined the Union, which was now 100.000 strong. Al-
luding to the Marquis of Bath's statement at the
Church Conerese, that the condi' i fia of the labourers
was not so bad as Canon Girdlestrine had deplete I, the
Chairman said that before he became a successful
London marble-mason he worked on the estate of the
Marquis, and took lodgings in a labourer's cottage. He
went to bed in • ro, m, and when he awoke next morn-
ing he was ir,rritied to find sleeping in the same room
the labourer and his wife, three boys, three girlff, earl
another lodger. This was the second time he had had
a member of Parliament on a platform with him,
and he maintained that this was not the way in
which labourers should be lodged, who would be good
citizens and workmen if they were well housed and well
fwi. They were not asked to combine to do harm to
anybody, but to better their own condition. There
would be no fear of the lab rulers, for what they had
borne made them the greatest heroes of the day. Tney
were the most law abiding people in the land ; and after
16 months experience with them, he could fearlessly
assert that they had never created a disturbance. In
refuting the statement that the agitators lived on the
labourer, he said that he pitied the agitator who had
to live on the crumbs fr en the labourer's table. In
conclusion lie stated that he believed the labourers
would have the franchise in less than three years.

Resolutions drclarirg that • union WWI neceesary In
the interest of the homes of the working men, and for
getting better remuneration for the labourers were
moved. .

—.—
Lord Grey de Wilton, M. P., addressed the meeting,
observing that he was pleased with the calmness and
moderation with which the speakers Iliad stated their
ese, ; and although he did not agree with every senti•
ment enunciated, he could not help regretting that
some of the speakers did not occupy seats in Parlia-
ment. He thought that if the House could hear from
the lips of representatives of the working classes what
were their wants and wishes it would be • good thing
for the House, while a little Parliamentary experience
would prove to those representatives that the interests
of the working CiaPB.l were not so much neglected in
the House as some perwns would have them believe.
He saw at the bead of the bill announcing the meeting
the motto, " Union in strength." In crornexi,n with
this truism he wish. d to give them one piece of advice,
whidi was that being strong they should be merciful.
He should be very sorry to hear it said that a society like
theme had coerced any man to joiu its ranks. They
must recollect that every man had as great a right to
abstain from jeintng the l robin as they had to join it,
aid that every man had as full a right as they had to tix
the price of hie labour. Sach a line of polo!), would be
au unjustifiable interference with thc liberty of the
subject, and would not, he was quite sore, meet with
the occurrence of public opinion, without which euch
orgaeiratione as theirs could not exist. With regard
to strikes, the noble Lord said that everybody most ,
deplore them. They caused inconvenience and almost
ruin to the employers, and still more so were they the
caure of inconvenience and ruin to the labourer. But
moat painfully of all did they press upon the wives and
children. The public, an well as the contending partiee,
likewise suffered, and the only effect of a strike most
be to benefit a foreign country. He was pleased to
' see that one of their principal rules was to introduce
I arbitration tor the settlement of didputerr. lie wee
' not oar of those who believed in the infallibility of
arbitration, became he, thought some rn et and
important attempts having regard to America
' had not been successes. (" No, no," and cries of
"No politics.") At all event., he thought arbitration
the beet mode of settiing the difference that might
' arise between wasters nuti men, soil the drain, on the
port of the latter to introduce them, exhibited a gratify-
' ing desire for conciliation. The result, tie thooght,
would be to obviate the most paininl diarietere arising
from strik• • In concluaion, the noble Lord exprevert
approbation of the benevoleue objects of the Aaeocia-
tion—the giving of aisistance in times of sickness,
decent burial, and aid when emplcyment was short.
His !petal WAS loudly appianded.