The National Register.
London, England, 1816-09-16 00:00:00

F•:hrTEMI3ER IP.

WESTMINSTER MEETLVG.

Wednesday, in pursuance of a requisition presented to
the I sigh Bailin; a Meeting was has in Palace-yard, to
take into consilerution the present distressed situation of
the people at large, and to consider the propriety of pe-
titioning the Prince Regent on ties: subject.
The High Bailiff having taken the Chair, and elle:Ile:I
the Meeting in the usual form,
Mr. WALKKR stated, that he hell in his a letter
tram Major Cartwright. The Major was nut able to attend oe,
the present occasion, but his heart was with the \teethe.% ; acid
in his letter Ice had repeated %base opinions which he had so
frequently and so forcibly addressed to then'. The letter, how-
ever, was 10112, perhaps to long to allow (Wits being read ;
but that was a point the Meeting would decide.
Ito' question was then put, audit was decided that the letter
shotld not now be read.
The Rev. Mr. PARKES ebservcd, that he 1.•lt Linn&
*laced in a most arduous situation, when he ronsidereil himself
•
s
now addressing the Electors of Westminster as the repress'''.
t "live of Major Cartwright, who had grown old in their ser-
vice ; and must live in their esteem. The Electors of West-
minster had been frequently called together on most important
oecasians, but on none more important than the present, namely,
rut bear witness of the existence of general distress, extending
to all ranks—to the manufacturer, the agriculturist, and the
commercial man ; and which had driven all ranks to the work-
house and to the parish for support. It was nut necessary to
enter into the detail) of woe it was impovsible to turn to the
tight or to the left without alerting with calamity ; and unless
some extraordinary change should take plat e to prevent it,
this fertile country would become a desert. The voice of the
Electors of Westminster had often been raised to forte' them'
evils, butt that voice had bent neglected. The time, however,
was now at-cited when that voice must bs heard aml attended
to—the time was come, when those who directed public affairs,
if they wished for a calm, knew where to find it; if they wish.
ed for a storm, they knew bow to raise it. The national vessel
was overloaded; there was a dead weight teprin her, which, if
not removed, would :dam itcly sink her. This weight WAS ex-
rav agant expenditure, sinecures, and pensions. Let this dead
weight be thrown overbuiail —let the people rail for their con-
siifutfonal rights, and the vessel would be saved: but the work
of a great nation ought to be done speedily. The Citizens of
Westminster had said :ouch, but the time was come when speak-
ing was not sutficieut. —( Applause.) ,—W mild they wait patiently
to see themselves and children reduced to starvation,and mark.
ed as paupers, fur the finger of scorn to point at 1--(No, tie !)
- fier some further observations, in a similar style, the Rev.
Gentleman proceeded to move the first Resolution, which lie
trusted the ineeting would not adopt as an act of passion, but
St the result ut deliberate consideration. The first Resolution
was then read and adopted unatainoisly.
Mr. I IuNT, then came forward, and addressed the Meet-
ing as Englishmen, Fellow-countrymen and Fellow-citizens,
and observed, lie hail been selected to bring forward the next
Resolution. 'r,,e worthy Clergyman who had jwst addressed
them, lead dealt much in metaphors, he would speak plain facts
and call things by their right names. The general distress was
now aeknowleeiged by every class of persons, except the tax-
gatherers, and those who lived no them.—(zlop!,sees..:s.) There
was no doubt that all our distresses had their origin in want of
a proper representation of the people. The immediate cause of
our distress was, the carrying on for upwards of twenty ye ers,
a war, cruel, bloody and unjust, apinst the liberty of all man-
kind ; a war, the expence of which had ruined our commerce,
such reduced us to beggary and distress. But then we are told
- -Trite, we are reined; but then look to what honour we !hoe
obtained! If to have thriven liberty from Prance, and, by aid
of foreign mercenaries, to have forced the Boterbons upon
France, against the will of the people, was glory, then we hid
got glory indeed :—if to restore Papery was glory, then glory
was indeed ours ;--and for John Bull to have paid the
piper, then in deed we had obtained glory in abundance. (
ptaiire.) —By the Act of Settelment, which placed the present
Family out the 'Throne, it sv a provided that no plat-email should
bane a seat is the people's House of Commans ; would it then be
credited that upwards of 200,0001. of the people's money was
paid to placemen havaig seats in that !loose? And thins we were
governed by a set of borough- congers and pensioners.- The
system of that arch-master of corruption and bribery, Sir 1:.
Walpole, Has open—he used to put 5101.. or more outlet a plate,
at Cabinet dinners ; but the system of Pitt and Fos, for both had
followed the same system—(ti's no! i es yes! )--116 would repeat
it, both systems were the same. In proof of it, let ns only look
at the 20001. a year to Mr. Homer, the 404131. to Mr. Punsonby,
the 38,4001. to lord Camden, the still larger suns to Lord Arden,
amid it would be found that both sides were alike. Woold it be
believed, that one of these sinecurists received more than live
hundred Lit utenants, who had bled in the service of their coun-
try received for their half-pay 1 One good had resulted from
the labours ut himself, and those who acted with him. About
et•ven years ago, he posted up a list, containing the names of
fio of these sinecurists. Thenatter was not so well understood
then as it is 110 w; people had begun to calculate. A few days ago
Iv met a Gentleman, wlao resided in a small village, a short dis-
tiller from London, who had always been a loyal mum, a great
royalist and of course hail nut agreed ss ith titan ; but at this
meeting his friend said, " Mr. lfunt, you were quite right in
what you said in the Common Hall the other day ; upon calculi.
Lion,) tied Lord Camden receives more of the public money an-
nually 111:111 been raised by taxes in our town (Itagslioo for
some time past." This calculating spirit would do good ; it
would shew vs hat these sturdy beggars were receiving, *bast
those who had fonglit and Idea in the service of their country
were receis nig nothing% lie had Mien informed, that sec eral
Midshipineu, rather than go to the parish for relief, had engaged
in hay-making and hop•piekiiie, at the paltry sum of Ys. a day.
Was this as it ought to be? The Resolution he should have to
tcropose was, that a Petition should be presented to the Prince
Regent, desiring his Royal Mellows.; to call Parliament toge-
thee, nut as it had usually beep. called together, to divide the '
epoils of the people among themselves. but to receive the Pe-
tdions of the people, and to attend to them ; and well it would
br if they attended to them in time, and proceeded to relieve
ti:e people, by doing away the pensions paid to the Ladies
(trenv ilk-, Mrs: FOX, the Hiss liunits, and all ether
1 limns, lie was au are it swnld be said that these were but a
!lea-bite, perhaps they were not ; but a flea-bite was a nasty •
thing to look at ; and the misfortune was, that we were Ilea-
Lilco from the crowns of our heads to the soles of our fret; I
Lot a single part of US, however mina u., had escaped. Under
these ei!eumstaimes it was time the voiee of the people should
he lit tel and attended to; mud lie %vault' now call upon Lord
castlereugh to attend to those cries. tic know,Lord Castle-
reagh to be aanan of coarage ; but it' lie had any regard fur
his own piirsonal tiat'vtv —if lie had the safety and interest of
bls Royal .Vaster at heart--he would ad. ire las Lord •liip havoc