The Express.
London, England, 1866-04-05 00:00:00

THE GOVERNMENT REFORM BILL.

MR. BRIGHT AT ROCHDALE.
ROCHDALE, Winnower NIGHT.
A public meeting of the inhabitanta of Rochdale
was held this evening in the large mill of the 00-operative
manufacturing society, in support of the government
Reform Bill. The mill, which is estimated as capable of
holding 11,000 persona, was densely crowded. Previous to
the ocenmeassenent of the proceeding' much amusement
was created by the exhibition of placards bearing the figure
of a very rough Scotch terrier, the heed of which bore $
remarkable similarity to the tail, with the superscription,
"Which is the head!---which is the tail r The Mayor,
Mr. SANTINI. Brom., took the chair, and was supported by
Kr. Refight, M.P., Mr. T. B. Potter, M.P., Mews. G. L.
Ashworth, Petrie, Have, Robinson, T. iuthworth, Tatham,
Kemp, Moen, and the principal inhabitants of the borough.
The prossedings having been briefly opened by the
Mayor,
Alderman ANNWORTII moved the following reso►ution—
" That Mowing the Reform Bill meetly introduced into
parliament by Kr. Gladstone, though coming short of what
the uneabsaehised were reasonably entitled to *lima,
will, if passed, prove a sabstantial and sensible advance
towards a fair representation of the people, this meeting
tenders its thanks to the government for the measure, and
for their expressed determination to supplement it by
other necessary reforms of parliament, and rewires to use
Its utmost endeavours to secure the passing of the bill into
law."
Kr. Perms, a town councillor of Rochdale' seconded the

resolution.
Mr. T. B. Parma, M.P., supported the motion.
The resolution was put by the Mayor and agreed to.
Alderman liners moved the next resolution, " That the
following petition in favour of the government franchise
bill be adopted, and that Mr. T. B. Potter, the member
for the borough, be requested to present it. That your
petitioners having considered the provisions of the bill to
amend the (representation of the people, recently intro-
timed into your house by the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer, hereby express their belief that such bill provides
an honest and sate extension of the suffrage in counties
and boroughs. That your petitioners have learnt with satis-
faction that the government intends during the present
session to lay before your house further measures for the
reform of parliament. Your petitioners therefore pray
your honourable house to pass the bill already introduced
without delay, and to reject all attempts to defeat it, or t•
alter its provision, especially as far as those provisions
will extend and simplify the existing franchise." (Cheers.)
Mr. Rosmeon, a member of the town council, seconded
the resolution.
Mr. BRIGHT, M.P., who was received with overwhelm-
ing cheers, then ruse to support the motion. As soon as
silence was restored, the hon. gentleman proceeded to ask
the audience to be as quiet as possible, as since Saturday
he had been so hoarse that he could scarcely speak in com-
mon oonvenation. The advice which he gave the govern-
ment three months ago had not been followed, for the Re-
form Bill differed in almost every particular from that
which he had urged the cabinet to prepare. But,
nevertheless, the liberal party throughout the
country bad agreed to accept it as offering a
substantial improvement in our representation. The
tories, however, were preparing to oppose it in a factious
and desperate way. At the time of their own measure Mr.
Disraeli held out promises, it was said, that in committee
they would reduce the borough franchise at least to 8/.,
while they had already proposed a 10/. franchise for the
county, and yet they were now resisting the moderate
scheme of the government. Mr. Gladstone had
estimated that the bill would admit close upon 200,000
new voters of the working class, but he (Mr. Bright)
thought this estimate was inaccurate, and that not more than
a bare majority of that number were really working men.
If this measure were not passed any idea of a redistribu-
tion of seats must be for some time at least abandoned. He
admitted that the working people were very quiet, but
nothing could be more obtuse than the declaration of cer-
tain people at headquarters that this extension of the
suffrage should not be given because there was no clamour.
Even those (continued the hon. gentleman) who vilify
them most in the House of Commons can walk amongst
them unharmed ; if the state of things were otherwise,
would it convince these men (Cries of " No, no.")
They might yield from fear, but they would not yield
from • sense of justice. (Cheers.) When in the years
1831 and 1839 your fathers were not so quiet, and when in
half • dozen popular counties there were great armies
ready to take the field, not drilled and armed, but still
assembling in vast numbers to approach a parliament
partly with petitions and partly by menace—these men, or
rather the men of that day—although they were driven
from their positions and the Reforeßill passed, they were
not more pleased that reform triumphed than they
are willing that reform should triumph now when
the workpeople are quiet and offer no menace. (Cheers.)
I may know nothing, being only your fellow-townsman--
a man not brought up in universities or in the society of
statesmen—l may know little or nothing of these things ;
but to me it appears that statesmanship consists partly in
what we call foresight and GI foreseeing evils that are
coming, in providing against them, and in this provision
absolutely preventing them altogether. At this moment I
regard Earl Russell and Mr. Gladstone, their colleagues
and the members of parliament who are willing to support
them—l regard them all as men to whom history will point
Its finger in future times and say these were really the
statesmen of their day. (Cheers.) Probably, however,
this tory party and the three or four men—for when it
comes to the final decision probably they will not be more
than three or four men—(laughter)—who sit on our side of
the house who will be likely to join them—the tories, I
say, have probably a double object in the course which
they are pursuing. They may defeat the bill, and they
may destroy the government for a moment ; we will
imagine this to be possible. What then? Will Lord Derby
some into office with all his old colleagues supplemented,
it may be, by the two or three men on our aide who
will join them? What if they do? Will they bring in
another reform bill, or will they try something else to
avoid reform Have you read the newspapers within the
last few days? You will have heard a whisper of
difficulties in the heart of Europe, that Austria
and Prussia are quarrelling over the distribution
or the division of the territory which they united two
years ago in seizing from Denmark. The Prussian people
at this moment have a parliament which is very much in
the position of the parliament of England some 230 years
ago. They have a monarch who seems desirous of playing
the part in Prussia which Charles I. played in England. I
hope in our less severe times that whatever may happen
him he may not come to so calamitous a fall as that which
overtook the King of England. (Hear.) Now suppose
that war broke out, can anybody tell how far it will
spread or where it may end? If you look at the map of
Europe you see Russia in the East—always a great army
there ; you see France in the West—always a great army
there ; you see Italy in the south with an army so large,
and military expenses so excessive, that the annual in-
come of the country does not suffice to meet the annual
expenditure. If a war breaks out between Vienna and
Berlin, between Austria and Prussia, how far the coots-
ration will extend no man can tell; but this it would be'
easy to do if we had a tory government in England anxious
to follow the course of the Cory government of 1793. It
would be easy, perhaps, and if it were easy it might
ultimately be perilous—it would be easy to postpone the
question of reform by plunging the country into a
European war. (Cheers.) Look across the Atlantic and
you will see a question not without delicacy, not without
difficulty ; you know the excited state of the Irish po-
pulations in the United States, you know something of the
difficulties which have arisen between us and Canada and
the abrogation of the treaty of commerce which has existed
between them. You know what the tory newspapers have
said daring the last four or Ave years on every question
oanneeted with the United States. There would besot no
dialoshy 'Wow 111 • government dotormisod to