The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-09-10 00:00:00

•
—Might not those in power, acting on the Manches-
ter principle, have sent their dragoons into the
City of London, during the late election, swept
me :mil my flags away, and placed your Lordship
• the situation I now hold I—( Loud cheering.)
—Why were not these flags pulled down in Smith-
field ?—why were they tint removed I My Lord
Mayor.. I need not state why. But, if the Smith-
tit was thought legal by the Magistrates
—ti the first law authorities in the country—and
even by the Secretary of State himself—then I
conteini. 'lilt, by a parity of reasoning, the Man-
clo.ster Meeting was no less legal. Is our City the
• one where the people are to he suffered to
inert to express their grievances. and are the
p- the or Manchester alone to be refused thi► pri-
vib-ge, to which they have an undoubted right, in
onornon the rest of his Majesty's subjects
Are they ulotie to be slain and slaughtered for doing
dint which elsewhere can he done in peace and

Some of us can remember the
.ion which prevailed, and the importance that was
attached to the circumstance of a single man
being killed is a riot in St. George's-fields ; we
can '.ll remember the serious inquiry set afloat by
this great City when a life was lost at the time Sir
Francis Bartlett was committeri to the Tower. In-
deed ire all occasions it was well uttd properly con-
aideved that the constitution could be as seriously
wounded throtigh the oppression or injury of
a sinette individual, as by the loss of numbers
however considerable their extent.-1 should as
much wish as any men that the people could meet
under the .geiserel Magi.trevy of the country—
erittfmteitauthorities hest calculated to give dig-
eiry and importance to their deltberatirioe The
people of London, for instance, can meet, or
'ether I should say, cent/ meet in Common Ilan,
under their own Corperation, to ex press their
setissions.—f elpplintte, and some laughter nr the
allusion to the Lord Mayor's refusal to cud! a
C'elvwqn is it ant ton much to
•cluirge the people, aho have not the aid of those
-who are considered their superiors, with being
tumottious and rash in meeting its public, alter
they have in vain spoiled to the Magistrates to cue-
erne assemblies in the usual manner, and have al-
most as often as they so:birthed met with nothing
brut abrupt refusals heur.)—Whereser
the people hare met, they have conducted them-
atdvea peaceably, though—(Hear, (rear, hear).—
in general without the attendance and support of
these who formerly attended their meetings. So
delicate were some persons of allowing the people
to judge fur themselves, that on a subject upon
which they ought to be peculiarly able to judge,
namely. the mode in which a new tax would affect
them, they were not thought by their Chief Magi-
sorer to have sense or discretion enough to consider
-such a subject, or even competent to give Monte.
lions to their own Repreeentatives. If even mischief
out city occasion did unite from popular meetings, on
goons. may I ask, ought the responsibility of such
tri.chief fall ? Ou whom else but those who threw the
people on their own resources for the expression of
their grievances? On the Magistrates, who will notees
they ought, legally to convene the people together,
and on the Government, who seem to encourage
those Magistrates to throw every difficulty in the
way of the people in the expression of their
vstevances.—(fletir, hear, hear.)--lit the Re-
sr Iniinits which I have prepared foe this eremites.
1 have taken the mast studious pails, the ut.
rivet care, to avoid every thing extreueoss to the
precise question, every thing which could, in the
ehglatet degree, teud to create a violent or infiem-
seetery feeliag in the breast of any honest elan,
whatever may be the bias of his particular political
opeerns.—(Heer, hear.)—lf grievances do exist
ainortg the people, and if the people, in their
anode of seeking redress, mistake the proper
do submit to the sense sod candour
cr *tee honest man. whether it would not be much
better to allay thew grievances by the operation of
time, cud the intervention of conciliatory conduct,
by the aid and good feeling towards the people
ef the country, so far as it can and ought to
by given by the Government, the Magiotracy,
and the persons of rank and property who with
well to the country, until who have it in their
power to lend adistatice in it period of general
distress. Even if the opinion of this class of society
was that many of those grievances were imaginary,
and that for such as were real the people had mis.
taken the remedy, nevertheless I thiuk it would
better become those in power to be kind to people
whom they thought were deluded, to alter their
opinions by mildness and considerate forbearance,
titan to exasperate their passions and outrage their
feelings, by meeting them with open avowed bowie
lily. and dispersing them by violence and blood-
' shill. That can never have the effect of bringing
about the work of peace—it must create evil—it
meet r can effect good."—(llear, hear.)
The worthy Alderman concluded his speech by
moving the Resolutions—(far ?Arch see Advertise-
ment laps: page.)
After the worthy Alderman lied read his Resole.
(inns. he added, that he had neglected to allude
to the period when the Riot Act had been read at
Mettchester; lie thought that of very little coin-
entratise importance at this moment ; for the Meet-
ire, so fat us it had gone. appeared by every ac-
collet to have bete conducted peaceably, so that
there appeared no justification at all fur reading
tent Act. If, however, the Riot Act was read at
all, it must have been read by the Magistrate at
or mew his own dour ; so that, according to every
eircount, a man stenctieg by could not hear what
the Magistrate was reading from his paper. But
even if it had been tend as it ought, so as to have
made the meeting sensible of what was going on,
will there could be Ito justification for the inl-
et:try execution dint was subsequently done upon
at• unarmed and defenceless multitude. If the
Rica Act had been read in the most open ninn-
ies. these atrocities would not change their chit.
r toter, they would be still illegal, and revolting to
humanity and justice.—(Cheers.)
Nlr. lIVICOMBE said, he ruse to second the Re..
eulutions.
At this moment Mr. EMI' rose, we presume sup-
posies that Mr. Hurcoinbe had finished, but on
tti.doug his mistake, he immediately gave way to
the seconder.
Mr. Hunt:wine said, that he had little to add to
the energetic and elective 111111111er in which the
worthy Alderman (Waittiman) bad proposed the
Resolutions, and had dune his duty this day, as he

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