The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-11-30 00:00:00

structed in the town, and constructed in a manner to last for
ages, never to be destroyed, and that is what in all other
works ought to be done. You will say there has been a
great change, and so there has, but none of you can calcu-
late the good which has been done. You do not know
the diseases which have been prevented. Many a poor
labourer might be prostrated upon the bed of sickness, if it
had not been for the measures which were taken, and we
all know that health to these people who live by the sweat
of their brow is most essential. There is another subject
upon which I may touch—the subject of the improvements
of the town. (Hear, hear.) That is another very important
consideration, upon which I shall have to give a vote,
which I hope may be in accordance with your views. The
parsimony which had been shown by the old corporation
has in some degree been shown, in the present, and very
golden opportunities have been lost of making these im-
provements, which you will now have to do at a very much
increased cost,—that I am quite certain of. I have been
engaged in investigating the matter, and the result will be
shortly laid before you. Now, gentlemen, if my lifebe spared
for three years, and my conduct be not approved of
by the town council, I beg you will turn me out. That
is all I have to say. I really do feel more
than I can possibly express for the kindness I have received
from a vast number of individuals whom I do not know,
even by sight. It really is most gratifying to my feelings,
and I beg to return you my most sincere thanks, and to wish
you every possible happiness. (Loud and prolonged ap-
plause.)
The VICE-CHAIRMAN said he had been entrusted with the
next toast, " The Liberal Members of the Town Council."
(Cheers.) With that toast he desired to couple the name
of a gentleman now present, who was well known to them
all Mr. Gladstone. (Great cheering.) Mr. Gladstone's
private character was as well known to all present, as his
attachment to his public , duties. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Earle
had referred very properly to the great advantage which had
been derived from the assistance of Mr. Gladstone upon one
of the committees. Mr. Gladstone had been equally useful
upon the dock committee, where his suggestions had Jnet
with the approval of some of those whom he (the Vice-Chair-
man) might be allowed to call his most violent opponents in
political matters. (Hear, hear.) They should value him
highly as a representative, and they might feel pride in the
fact that they had present that night two representatives of
the Abercromby Ward, each of whom might be described
as No. 1. (Cheers.) They all knew how easy of access
Mr. Gladstone was to any one of them, at any time, awl he
believed the same remark would equally apply to Mr. Earle.
(Hear, hear.) He knew that. he was hina3clf quitc incom-
petent to do justice to the toast, and without further preface
would give them —" The Liberal Members of the Town
Council, and Mr. Robertson Gladstone." (Loud and en-
thusiastic cheering.)
Mr. ROBERTSON GLADSTONE, upon rising to return
thanks, was received with renewed bursts of acclamation.
When silence had been restored he said : Mr. Chairman,
Mr. Vice-Chairman, and gentlemen, I should sincerely wish
that my duty upon the present occasion, in as far as it res-
pects returning thanks to you for the toast which has been
just proposed and drunk, were a more onerous one than it
is ; and I am sorry to say that, even straining a point, it
would be scarcely possible to satisfy you that therejre in
the town council more than 1.0 or 11 liberal members.
(Hear, hear.) However, that perhaps is not the fault of
the individuals—it rests with the constituencies, and if they
think proper to elect men of particular views it is not for
me to complain. However, upon behalf of the liberal mem-
bers, I beg leave to return my sincere thanks for the honour
which has been done them, and, if I may be permitted, to
express.my own gratitude for the high compliment which
has been paid to me, and which I feel far exceeds my merits.
(General cries of "No, no.") I feel grateful to the Vice-
Chairman, and likewise to my friend Mr. Earle, for the very
friendly and kind manner in which they have alluded to my
conduct. I can only say that I have endeavoured, with the
best intentions, and as far as I have ability, which, perhaps,
is not to a very great extent, to offex such suggestions as
from time to time have occurred to me, and which I con-
ceived were at all calculated to bear upon the general good
of the community. Gentlemen, I have a great abhorrence
of the mind which can suggest nothing—which can only
tread the old beaten track—oppose every object which in
itself is calculated for the good of mankind, and then after-
wards, when a measure is carried, shelters itself under this,
"It as become law, and it is my duty to bow and obey
it." I say you had better have representatives who
are in advance of everything that has ever
been, than to have such men as these, who are
for ever trailing in the mire. (Cheers). The best course
is to cut all connexion with such men as these; and as
allusion has been made to one of your representatives, of
whom personally I desire to speak with every possible
respect, I say you have a representative in the council who
professes to give Sight to everybody but himself. (Hear,
hear, cheers and laughter). Now, gentlemen, I should in-
deed be colder than I am in temperament, if I did not say
how warmly I join in the feelings which have been expressed
this evening with reference to the return of Mr. Earle at the
the last election. (Hear, hear). He is before you, and there-
fore no man can compliment him before his face ; but we all
recollect how long he has been connected with Liverpool—
how long he has been known—how long his conduct has
been before you, and that it has been ever marked by
straightforwardness, by great ability, by the most pure inde-
pendence, and the most honest determination to swerve
neither to the right hand nor to the left, when he thought
that he was acting correctly. (Cheers). It would be well
perhaps for myself and for us all that we could say so much
for ourselves. I feel that I cannot, and I therefore desire
to praise what I see in others, however faulty I may feel
myself. Now, gentlemen, having offered my congratulations
upon that subject, I dare say you will excuse my alluding
to one or two others. (Hear, hear). First of all let me
say if any man entertained a doubt that there was some-
thing wrong in the Abercromby ward, I would refer him to
the last election. I tell him that all hasty excitement being
no longer in existence, all undue influence set aside, reason
has resumed her seat, common sense is again at the helm, and
you see in the return of my friend who sits next but oneupon
my right the exercise of that sound discretion, which I believe
strictly speaking, is the inherent characteristic of the people
of England. (Hear, hear, and loud cheers.) Gentlemen,
there are some circumstances connected with the first of
November and the elections, which perhaps it may be as
well not to advert to ; but you should be all aware that the
honest, independent voter was at least attempted to be tam-
pered with : and moreover, that there was induced in one or
two individuals, what I would call a very spurious kind of
charity coming at that moment. (Hear, hear, and cheers.)
There were proposals to supply the poor -that is, the poor
voter—with coals. I would rather warm their hearts or their
toes either, at any. other season of the year, than at the
season of the municipal elections. (Hear, hear.) Charity
like everything else that is good, should not be roused for a
moment—it should be awake constantly and for ever.
(Cheers.) It is not when a municipal election has been won
by a very large majority, that the fitting time has arrived
for a display of charity. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) Charity
has no connection with municipal affairs. (Laughter and
cheers.) Now, sir, let me call your attention to what was
certainly a very extraordinary occurrence. On the first of
November, the opponent, the deadly opponent of liberal
principles, was returned by a majority of 249. On the 12th
of November, the true consistent friend of the liberals was
returned by a majority of 12. Now, will any man give me
a satisfactory reason how that majority of 249 was brought
into existence ? How do you reconcile the .two things ? Is
there any man here who can make black into white ?
It is the fact, and I have the best authority for knowing
that it is not alone in the case of representatives
connected with the Abercromby ward, but unfor-
tunately, it is the case in other wards also, that
the appetite and the stomach are made the highway to the
brains, if there are any, and in this way the seat in the
council is secured. (Hear, hear). Now, gentlemen, is not
this disgraceful ? (Hear, hear, and loud cheers). Is it not
highly discreditable to us all, and particulasir —.tang, as it
does, from those who mei,° eAtraordinary professions ?
I am satisfied that the example of Abercromby
ward will stand in bold relief before the community, and
we can only hope that for the future other wards will do as
you have done, will exhibit, the caws liGternlinqfLlTl Fos every
one must have witnessed on the occasion of Mr. Earle's
,election, to exercise those feelings boldly, and no longer to
'bear the trammels, but to return the man best fitted to
represent their interests in the town council. (Hear,
hear, and cheers). Now gentlemen, I may perhaps
not weary you if I call your attention to one or
two matters which occurred to me before I came
here, and possibly there may be some difference of opinion
upon them, and therefore, to tell you the truth, I am desi-
rous to have some expression of opinion upon them from the
gentlemen who are assembled round this table. I put in
my pocket, and I have here a statement of the purchases
made by the corporation within the last few years, of landed
estate, houses, and buildings of which the purchase has
been paid directly out of the till, or else by money borrowed,
the interest of which is charged in the annual accounts and
current expenditure. Mr. Gladstone read a list of the pur-
chases he referred to, amounting to £154,763 15s. 3d., and
proceeded : —Now, gentlemen, that is money of which the
interest has gone out of your pockets, and I want to know
what the present generation are to get for it ? Recollect,
that if you are to trust to the mere sale of the property, you
must wait until the next generation comes. This large
sum, extracted from your coffers, ought to be met from some
source or other. I will take the liberty of telling you what
my notion is, under certain restrictions. There should be
power, on payment of a fine, to convert all that leasehold
property into freehold. The amount produced by that fine
I would propose to place one-third to the extinguishing of
the corporation debt, one-third to the credit of current
expenditure, and one third for the purchase of land in the
environs of the town, where the corporation might make
their own streets, according to their own plans and width,
without having to meet the objections of owners and the
claims for compensation. (Hear, hear, and applause)
When we make those streets it would be a useful plan;
and this notion, I believe, originated with the borough engi-
neer, Mr. Newlands, to have a small tunnel in the streets,
in which the gas and water pipes might be laid,
so that whenever anything went wrong, the streets would
never have to be taken up. (Hear, hear.) I should dispose of
the funds arising from these sources in this manner. There
is £154,000 added to the corporation estate. Well, they
cannot take that property with them from this world into
the other, We hive ovary right to the use of it, What