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

GREAT CONSERVATIVE GATHERING IN
THE CORN EXCHANGE.

SPEECHES OF
R. P. AMPHLETT, Q.C., M.P.,
SIR JOHN PAKINGTON, M.P.,
W. E, DOWDESWELL, M.P., &c.

On Monday night last a very successful soiree MU held
in the Corn Exchange, under the auspices of the Consti-
tutional Association. Upwards of 350 eat down to Ms.
After tea the public were admitted for lid each, and the
Exchange was well filled. On the speakers entering the
room they were warmly received by the audience. Mr.
R. P. Amphlett, M.P., occupied the chair. On the plat-
form on his right were Sir John Pakington, Mr. W. E.
Dowdeswell, Jeston Homfray, Mr. B. Brooks, Mr. J.
Amphlett, Mr. M. Grazebrook. the Rev. W. J. J. Welch;
on the left Mr. F. Mouckton, M.P., Mr. C. P. Noel, J.P.,
Mr C. W. Collis, Mr. G. Grazebrook, Mr. S. Grasebrook,
Mr. H. Hickman, Mr. F. L. Smith, J.P„ Mr. C. Graze-
brook, and Mr. S. Broughton. There were also present
the Revs. T. Williams and F. Adley, Messrs. N. Hingley,
J.P., J. Jones (Parktield), J. L. Holberton, E. Smith, A.
P. Price, B. Wooldridge, E. Hill, T. Parker, H. Penney,
D. Lovett, J. Griffin, T. Greek F. Joscelyne, F. Heming,
cfsc

,
Mr. G. Grazebrook briefly introduced the Chairman to
the audience, who was warmly received.
The Chairman having expressed his great gratification
at finding so many of his political friends of both sexes
present, read a letter from Earl Beauchamp, who accoun-
ted for his absence be saying that bu had an appointment
which could not be pestpoued without inconvenience to
other., to visit 'the Continent. At the same time his
lordship wished the greatest prosperity to the association,
and hoped the meeting would be a great meet U. Letters
of spology were also read from Sir Smith•child, Bart,
M.P., and Major Fletcher (the latter enclosing a cheque
for two guineas for the funds of the association), who
assured the meetieg of their unabated interest in the
cause of Coneervatism. The Chairman said the present
meeting forcibly recalled to his recollection the last time
he had the honour of presiding at a meeting in that hall.
in 1868, when they were met, as they were that day, under
the auspices of the excellent and useful Constitutional
Association of that town. That meeting was viewed with
nervous apprehension by some, Stourbridge being a
neighbourhood that had long been looked upon as a kind
of Radical preserve, with which it was almost sacrilege,
or, at all events, great presumption, for a Conservative to
come into. But be wanted to kuow whether the Conser-
vatives of that district were sharing in that Conservative
reaction which they had abundant proof had now set in
in different parts of the country—(applause). Let them
look at the elections that had taken place in very varied
constituencies daring the last fifteen or eighteen months,
and they would find that in numerous cases Conservatives
had :replaced Liberals in occasional vacancies, but he
believed that not a siugle instance had occurred in which
a Conservative had been replaced by • Liberal—mp-
plame). This was especially the case with Southwark ;
, a metropolitan borough; with Surrey, a metropolitan
county ; the great West Ridieg of Yorkshire, a division
of Lent, • division of Hampshire, of Plymouth, of Truro,
of Freston, and curious other places—(applause). As far
as he could remember, during the last fifteen or eighteen
mouths there were only two cases where a vacancy had
immured where Liberals had been able to maintain their
position, and that was at Dover aud Pontefract, where the
vacancies were caused by the promotion of the members
under the Government, cases where many persons thought
it would be ungracious to vote against old members.
Therefore, he would ask again, why should they—the
constituency of Stoorbridge—forin an exception to the
rule, unless It was through toe unworthiness or unpopu.
butt) of the individual they had entrusted with their
votes at the last election. The question might be fairly
asked on both aides—What won weaut by Conservatism ;
was it a mere party shibboleth, or did it represent prin-
ciples upon which wise statesmen could rely and set:'—
(bear, hear). The principle of Conservatism was to pre-
serve the great institutions of the Throne, the Houses of
Parliament, and the Church—(applause). They respec-
ted and regarded these institutions because, judging from
the experience of foreign conatries, they knew they untied
oar condition and were best calculated to preserve our
civil and religious liberties; and they were determined,
therefore, on eh occasiom, and by every legitimate meats
to oppose that spirit of revolution which was not conten-
ted with that mixed form of government under which we
live, and nad, r which we have prospered, but wished to
give an undue pi °ninon. to Democratic principles—(ap-
planer). They were quite aware at the same time that
any institution that was valuably must not be allowed to
become rusty or obsolete ; and they wore therefore always
willing to adopt such improvements in our institutions as
would keep them in harmony with the spirit of the times
and with the changed condition of eociety—(applause).
He thought they might refer to the history of the last
fifty years, and see that the reasonable portion of the
Conservative party had been fully alive to the interest of
doing so. But, as an illustration of the difference be.
tween Conservatism and Democracy, he quoted the ex•
ample of the Irish Church. Mr. Gladstone found it ne.
cessary, for the purpose of keeping his party together—
and he (the sneaker) hoped and believed he found it ne-
cessary with great reluctance to himself—not to be satis.
tied with the removal of the anomalies and abases which
the Conservative party were quite willing to remove. The
Irish Land Laws also furnish an instance of the exigen-
cies of Mr. Gladotone's position to introduce an extent
of spoliation iuto the question of landlord and tenant in
Ireland, of which he was confident he had not heard the
last—(applause). But the Conservatives had been twitted
at times that they had no policy ; is was said that they
had no measures to propose—that all they did was to lay
upon the skirts of the Government and impede their an
Gun even in bringing forward measures of moderate re-
form. Now, he said that that was a misrepresentation of
the Conservative policy—(hear, hear;—for no political
party worthy of the name could live under such condi-
tions ; that policy never would be realised or recom-
mended by the leaders of the Conservative party. He
said this, knowing that bespoke in the presence ef one of
the most distinguished leaders of the party—Sir John
Pakington—(applause). On the contrary, as far from
their having no policy it was the recognised duty of the
Conservative party when in office to inaugurate, and when
in opposition to give their best support to, all measurer
of sound, legal, and administrative reform—(applause).
But he thought it would be uncaudid not to admit, and
it never had been his practice to refuse to give credit even
to his opp Aleuts when they deserved it; and it would be
uncandid not to admit that many useful measures bad
been passed through Parliament by the present Govern-
ment. But those who had watched the passage of these
measures would have observed that most of them had
been much improved by the action of the Conservative
party, and that, in fact, hut for their energetic support
many of them never would have been passed at all—(ap-
plause). And here be was led to observe that though the
Liberia party might be said to have a majority of a hun-
dred in the House of Commoes, yet they were hardly
united in one thing, or rather he should say, they were
united only on one question, and that was how to keep
the Liberal party in office—(applause). When the Go.
vernment were hounded on by the members of their party
to pus measures of which they did not approve, it was
only by the honest upport of the Conservatives that they
were prevented being in • minority. He argued that the
Education Bill furnished a case in point. But it was not
a question that was first mooted by the Liberal party, for
he thought he was not far wrong in saying that his right
hon. friend (Sir John Pakington) was one of its earliest
and most energetic pioneers, and, as a leader in it, he
was much earlier than many of the so-called Liberal
party—(applause). 11 it had not been for the exertions
of Sir John and the Conservative party generally, the
measure would have been passed as • purely secular men
sure. He might also quote the Mines Regulations Act—
one of peculiar importance to that district—to show
what the Conservatives had done. Everybody knew thst
that measure had been loudly called for from the Conser-
vative side of the house for many years`, and that bill,
whether it would be pradactive of goal or evil, was as
mach due to the Conservative party as it was to the Go-
vernment—Blear, hear). Without troubling them with
any details of the Licensing Act, he might be allowed to
observe that everybody, he believed, for the last two or
three years, had been agreed that some measure was ne-
cessary to regulate and put farther restrictions on the
liquor traffic; so that daring the session of 1871. the Go-
verment, by finding that many of their supporters had
joined the League, had been misled into bringing forward
• measure of the most arbitrary and unjust kind ever
hr :light before Parliament—ffiear, bean. It confiscated
a mod deal of property which had been put into action
so I supported by law, and put the whole licensing system
zeta swill an arbitrary condition that it was hardly pos.