The Express.
London, England, 1848-06-07 00:00:00

neither saidous for the people's charter nor the great plan of
reform which came near to the charter, proposed by the hon.
member for Montrose." The meeting was not 'needed by
Mr. Bright nor the other member for the borough, these
gentlemen excusing themselves, along with other influential
speakers, on the ground that they had already pledged
themselves to engagements at a meeting in the Free-trade
Hall that day fortnight, in support of the new movement.
There were upwards of 4,000 persons present.
Mr. W. Moan's, cotton verifier, took the chair, and said
there was not a citizen in Manchester who was satisfied with
the present state of things, and if they did not all go to the
same length, he toped they would not quibble about trifles,
but be prepared to battle unitedly for the great principle
which was involved in all the mo.cmeuts now going on—
the further enfranchisement of the people. Let them banish
all party feeling, and go for the great principle before them,
that of elevating man and placing him in his proper
position.
The Rev. D. R. STEPHEN moved the first resolution :
That this meeting, in answer to Leen John Russell's declaration of
his belief that the middie and working classes are satiseed with the
system under which the representative. of the people are at present
elected, and anxious to dispel the gross delusion from his mind,
maxi solemnly records that they are as one on the all-important
question of constitutional reform, and the absolute necessity of a
thorongli charge of that system; and further, that his lord: hip, by
his career as a minister of the crown, and by his frequent declara-
tions regarding the meditation and constitutional reforms, has dia.
coverml such an inability to app.-elide the wants and demands of the
country, tire! proved brassier( no devoid of that sagacity and undeviat-
log consistency of practice with principle, wider is essential to form
the character of a great altliautecoaftil .talesman, as to form the con-
viction on this meeting that he is incapable to manage the affairs of
ibis country.
He said he had long been coavinced of the truth of the prin-
ciples adopted by the People's League. He thouaht that
every into should be represented in the House of CM:omens ;
and though he had ben told that was un- English, he main-
taimel nothir.g was no English as manhood suffrage. He
thought triennial parliaments would be better than annual
parliaments, but would not argue the matter. In conclusion,
he had great pleasure in moving that resolution, fi-mly believ-
ing that most of the middle-class were prepared to admit
that there must, sooner or later, be a great extension of the
suffrage.
Mr. 'l'. 131tITTAIN seconded the motion, and thought it
his duty to give his vote against Lnrd J ,hn Russell's insulting
declaration in the 11,u,0 of Commons. It was high time
the people of every town came forward and t let Lord John
Russell that not only were they dissatisfied with the present
state of things political, but that they were determined to
have those things altered. (Cheers.) He thought Lord
John Russell end the aristocracy gee:km*loly had very little
knowledge of the great distress that the people suffered from
bad government. It had been slid in peril meat that the
peonies were very patient in their distress, bet was that to be
construed into political satisfaction? Ho should condemn
anything like a resort to physical force. (Cheer.,.) Let
them convince the people that certain reform: ougLt to be
serried, and they could then be carried by moral force. if
they got manhood suffrage, they would be enabled to ame
borate the condition of the working ensue, by reducing the
taxation which fell to an unjust extent upon them.
Mr. HENRY VINCENT supported the resolution.
Mr. 0..1. CLAW.KE, a working man, said he belonged to
the claw called chartists. lie spoke of the pleasure he felt
at having heard the right of men to a voi:c in the selec-
tion of men to represent them in the Commons' House of
Parliament, asserted as it bad been, and that it was advo-
cated upon the broad rtinciple of a natural right. Crime
was the result of igntrance, at least amongst the working
classics; and the party to which he belonged advocated the
charter, not as a means of committing violence and injury,
but in order to procure a more equitable distribution of eiu•
cation for every child born into the world. He advo-
cated, therefore, with great pleasure the passing of the
resolution.
The motion was then put and carried unanimously.
Mr. J. Bowes moved the second resolution :
That the government, by its wasteful and extravagant expenditure
of the public monies, and determined oppteitlon to all suggestions for
the rcslttetion of that expenditare—by its unbecoming defence of sine-
rums and unmerited pensions—and by its obstinate residance t0..11
demands for an equitable adjun'inent of the income and property tax,
ban shown
'itself to be no thoroughly imbued with clam feelings, and so
completel under the influinee of class interests, an to lse
hat!elyworthy of the confideiwo.of. he people: And, further, it is thc
Arm hflief and deep eaarctinn of this meeting, that the best and most
effetual way to gain their confidence, secure their afftetions, and re-
move their Just complains, and by which alone all cla-sea can be
united, is the full, complete, and speedy set option of the print:; le and
object, of the people's league.
Mr. WHITE seconded the motion, and it was :carried una
nimoualy
Mr. ROBERT RrMNET Moved :
That a petition, embodying the foregoing resolutior.s. sigred by the
chairman, be prepared and forwarded to toe members tor tuns city tor
presentation to the House of Commons.
Carried unanimously.
A vote of thanks to the chairman having been pasted, the
meeting terminated soon alter 10 o'clock.

MEETING AT PORT GLASGOW.
A requisition having been handed to A. Falconer,
Esq., Provost, to call a meeting of electors friendly to taking
into consideration the propriety of petitionieg the Comm ms
House of Parliament in favour of Mr. Hume's motion on
national reform, a meeting was held in the town-hall on
Saturday last, on which oc...nution Mr. Andrew Hair was
called to the chair.—Mr. M'Bryde, clothier, moved the tint
resolution
That thin meeting, boulder at the narrow, unequal, and unjust basin
upon which the exuding alotem of parliamentary reprcventaUoa rents,
deem it their duty to petition parliament for as extension of the !ran-
cid, agreeebly to that brought forward by Jaw-ph blame, hose.
bold aulfrage.
Ile said that although it did not altogether meet his views,
he woul I ►dopt it as approaching to universal suffrage.
Having b en put to the 'main r, the motion was carried
uaanimowly.—Mr.J. Johnstone moved the next resolution, to
the effect, that in the opinion of the meet ng, it was desirable
that the mode of electing members of parliament should
take place by ballot, in order to afford the elector protection
from undue influence in recordtng his vote ; and that the
meeting petition the ficti,e of Commons to support Mr.
II ume's resolution to that effect. Ile said it was well-known
that undue influence was frequently used to endeavour to
change the opinions of electors in coming forward to the
poll, and that if vote by ballot was adopted, thfs species of
injwnice would, in a great measure, be done away with.
This revolution was likewise carried uzanimously.—Mr.
Muir, nailor, neat moved that the meeting should support
Mr. Humes motion for triennial parliaments, which was
car ied.—Mr. William Johnstone, in a lengthened speech,
proposcd the last resolution—viz., equal et moral di.tricts.
In the music of his remarks, he said that if the glaring in.
equality of votes in Scotland, iu comparison to those of Eng-
land, and even Ireland, was brought prominently forward
in the House of Commons, it might be an additional argu-
ment in (drone of the subject of his motion. Carried unani-
mously. A committee was appointed to draw up a petition
and to procure its presentation.—Nords British Mail.

NORTH CHESHIRE ELECTION.
The close of the first day's poll, u the returns in
the Express up to a late hour of the day would lead the
render to infer, showed /dr. Legit considerably a head of his
opponent. The exact returns were stated to be as follows :
Mr. Legh, conservative 2,781
Mr. Aitley, liberal 2,103

Majoritv for Mr. Legb 604
Gross number of Inel:wider' cm tbe
Groes number polled brq. day miner-
-4,870

Leasing to poll
Yesterday Mr. Astley's friends did not succeed in reducing
the majority to any great extent. The following wu the
FISAL STATE OF TUC POLL.
Leith , 3,065
Milky

Majority for Legb

IRELAND.
DCBLIN, JU.II.E 5.

There was a crowded audience in Conciliation•
hall to-day, to hear the doctrine of merger ap-
plied to discordant systems of policy. The propo
action which I foreshadowed yesterday was well re-
ceived by the Old Ireland party, but to-morrow night,
in Music-hall, will most likely tell a different tale.
The schem" which Mr. John O'Connell developed is
substantially, identical with what I have already an-
nounced.
Men ask whether it is really a fact that Mr. John
O'Connell and the " moral force" repealers arc pre-
pared to work with mcn who avow themselves ready
to carry out the objects of that address by the means
it develops. Mr. John O'Connell. you will observe,
intimates that the new organisation will be legal and
constitutional in its basis. But with the men who
will necessarily take a leading part in the proceedings
land even management.who shall guarantee that those
characteristics will endure over the first meeting
The military renewed their very disgraceful quarrel
last night, and parties of the 31st, 55th, 75th, and, as
I understand, Slat, taking part in it. There were
nearly 300 soldiers in the talee, and many of them
were severely cut by the buckles and breastplates, and
are under surgical treatment ; but some were danger-
ously hurt. I understand the combatant regiments
will be for the remainder of their stay in Dublin con-
fined to barracks.
The clergy of Tnam, 121 in number, have memorial-
ised the Queen for repeal.
The motion fixed for to-morrow in the Exchequer,
to hear counsel on Mr. Maguire's right to an habeas
eorpm falls to the ground. The originator of the
Cavan National Guard is at liberty, and will not be
prosecuted. Ile threatens an action for false impri-
sonment against the committing magistrates.
Several persons have been held to bail by the
magistrates of College-street office, for distributing
the address of the Confederation.
The delicate manner in which the Earl of Lucan
introduced the poor law question in the House of
Lords will be doubly appreciated by the fact that his
lordship is a defendant in our law courts to a suit for
rates to a very large amount. The claim is against
the lands, the multitudinous defaulters having cleared
away with both rates and rents. The declaration,
I hear, would, if stitched together, make a full-sized
carpet. The pleader's fee was 20 guineas. Sic
fame !

INTIMIDATION TO R. MITCMEL'S lI:RT.—The Erening
Mail of to-night publishee the following; "Mr. Whitey,