The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-01-16 00:00:00

THE SILK TRADE:

MEETING OF Till; SILK DYEfiA.
On Thuraddy evening, after the meeting of the weavers, at
Friammount..Bethoal.green, op the subject of the uneitanopkd
distress existing amongst them, a meeting of the silk titers took
place at the Red Lit:h public-house, Phoenix-etrret, Spiteleads,
to receive the Report of C Committee appointed to draw up a me-
morial or petition to the Board of Trade, laying before them their
Present distressing situation, arising from the order for the impor-
tation of foreign goods. and praying that the order might be ie.
seinded, he such other meesures as might be deemed advisable fat
their relief.
The room ,in which the meeting took place was completely tided
before the chair was taken, and etch man present appeared to en-
tertain a strong feeling of the necessity of adopting such measures
as might afford them a chance of nhtaintng rel:el from the distreMel
under which they at present 'abets*.
The dyers, compared with the weavers, are but a Small body,
the prosperity of whose trade depends, as a matter of cobra*, 011
that of the weavers, and their present distresses, as a necessary
consequence, result from the same effects as those elperiewiett
by the weavers.
Ifir. Jona, SIMONS being called to the Chair proceeded to ad..
dress the meeting. In consequence of the great numbers of their •
trade at present without employment and hourly making appli-
cations fur relief from their funds, which had lately beeo much
drained by the sums expended for the relief of the aradfted
people, and in varier.* other ways, a meeting had been held the
preceding Sunday, for two purposes—lst, to afford, as far as its
them lay, relief to those out of employment ; and. 2dly to colt.
alder the propriety of petitioning his Majesty's 0011371111nt to
take into their serious consideration the present alarming state of
their trade. A Committee of three persons vros then appointedso
draw up the memorial, it'd the present meeting being called to
hear the memorial read, he hoped every attention woald be paid.
It could not be denied, he said, that one•lmlf of the dyers were out
of employ, and the other half even only half employed. It *as
impossible, therefore, that those who were only upon half work
could afford mach for the relief of those who were quite unem-
ployed. The masters had applied to the Board of Trade, bdt he
understood they were very coolly received, and not liateoed tO. It
was therefore incumbent on the men themselves to solicit thew'
teetion of his Majesty's Government. Ile would appeal to the
oldest dyer in the rootn and ask if, in the course of his whold life,
he had ever witnessed a stagnation in their trade at this seasow, ao
alarming in its consequences as the present. ;Several voices ea.:
claimed never, never, never.) Many of them who had always beets
able to earn a livelihood for themselves and familial, were maw
ceiving parish relief. :In estichision, be requested the attentisu.of
the meeting to the drangh of a memorial which would be mail
their Secretary.
A string of resolutions trait then proposed and eariied with rem de-
ministration appmation, to the effect, that it was highly neeediary'
ti adopt aoine means of relieving their present distresses; tisifls
the opinion of the meeting, their distresses were chiefly ceased
by the removal of the prohibition for itnporting foreign its, which
timid rival them in point of cheapness, but were not superior ha
in quality; and that a petition be presented to the Board of Irak.
A petitit ion tunneled on the resolutions was then presented and

Three persons. Messrs. Lloyd, ten. Freeman, pen. and Ol&dwin,
were then appointed to present tt.
Thanks were afterwards voted to the Chairman, and the misting
separated.