The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-19 00:00:00

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THE SUN, LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, AUGUST 19, 1864.

KR. ROEBUCK AT SHEFFIELD.

SHEFFIELD, Aug. 18.
Yesterday evening Mr Thomas Jessop, win holds the
two offices of Mayor and Master Cutler of Sheffield, gave a
dinner at the Cutlers' Hall to the members of the Town
Council, the Cutlers' Company, and the gentlemen who
have acted with him on the committee for the relief of the
sufferers by the inundation. It was almost exclusively a
local gathering. Mr Roebuck, M.P., being a distinguished
guest from a distance. _ _

Mr Tilos. DUNN, in proposing the toast of the borough
members. said perhaps he would not be intruding on the
time of the company, being, as he supposed we were, on the
verge of an election, if he took the liberty of saying a word
or two as to the duties of the electors of the West Hiding.
It should not be forgotten that the House of Commons was
now what the middle class of the country made it. The
middle class had taken the responsibility, enjoyed the pri-
vilege, and could not be released from the duty. He remem-
bered a time when the middle classes had very little to do
with the majority of the members of the house. The coun-
try prospered thee, great men were in the house, great duties
were done, and the name of England was held high through-
out the world, When the changes came doubts arose whe-
ther this position would be maintained. On the whole, he
thought, they would now be agreed, whether Tory, Whig,
or Radical—that the position of the country had been up-
held. As to its material prosperity there could be no doubt.
But it was quite possible that the lower interests—mere
mercantile interests—might prosper and yet the country
sink in its own estimation and in the estimation of the
world. England had not come to that yet, and it depended
on the middle classes to prevent any such cala-
mity. All present knew how much he (Mr
Dunn) wished it also depended on some other classes to a
greater extent than it did now ; but at present what the
House of Commons was depended mainly on the middle
classes, and what the house was that eventually England
must be—the House of Commons being the ruling power.
What, then, had the middle classes to do ? He was speak-
ing to men of his own part y and to friends who were not of
his own party ; he was sorry they were not—(laughter)—
though he knew they had an equally great desire for the
prosperity of the country, Both parties looked at the means
differently, though they had the same end in view. What,
than, had the middle classes to do, to whatever party they
belonged ? They had, if possible, to sink minor differ-
ences. That, so far as he could see, was the rock ahead
on which they were likely to run, Men were too liable
to fancy they saw things so clearly that there could be
no mistake, and that all who did not see the same were
fools. If this went on, the rosult would be that whether
a Liberal or Conservative were returned his re-
turn would be in the hands of the minority. In that case
his election would not be the best, for it would not be the
return of the mind of the electors, which was the thing re-
quired. He (Mr. Dunn) wished he could impress on his
friends, and his younger friends especially, the importance
of not making up their minds so strongly as to separate from
their friends on minor matters, on mare questions of detail,
and say, " I will either have all or none." As a nation, we
ought to agree on great things, agree to differ on minor
things, and, as far as possible, pull together. It had often
been asked what had the middle classes done for the House
of Commons during the 30 years the power had been in
their hands ? Where were their men ? To that it, might be
answered, compare the position of England now with the
position it occupied 30 years ago. It was not yet all that
could be wished, but it was more than dare have been hoped
for 30 years ago. Notwithstanding that the middle classes,
of whatever party they were, did not sufficiently consider
their responsibilities, and did not sufficiently educate their
young men to enable them to go into the House of Com-
mons, bearing with them that weight which they ought to
have to do good to their country, he was proud to say they
might point to middle-class men on both sides the house
without hanging down their head. From the left hand of
the Speaker—he was sorry to find his friend, Mr Roebuck,
sat though ho did not always vote on that side—he might
select three names, Mr Hardy (hear, hear, and laughter),
Sir H. Cairns, and the leader of the Opposition, Mr Dis-
raeli, all middle-class men, and he did not think the Conser-
vative party had any need to be ashamed of these. Among
the Liberal members he might mention the name of one
who was lately in the Ministry, and in some degree
under a cloud, which he (Mr Dunn) thought ho ought
not to have been—the member for Halifax. (Cheers.)
Mr Stansfeld was a man who, if he lived, was certain to
make his way in the house and the country. Then
there was the member for Sheffield, Mr. Roebuck.
(Cheers, and some faint hisses, immediately drowned in a
renewed burst of cheering) When mat had strong opinions
and had the honesty to express them, they did not always
expect every one to agree with them. But whatever the
views of gentlemen with regard to the political principles of
Mr Roebuck might be, he would appeal to any man whether
John Arthur Roebuck might not be put forward as a
representative—a worthy representative—of the middle
classes. He might name, too, the member fur the Univer-
sity of Oxford, Mr Gladstone. There were three men on each
side of the House sprung directly from the middle classes,
each worthily representing their class, and the moral he
would draw from this was, to urge the middle classes so to
train their young men that they might be able worthily to
occupy the positions held in the House of Commons by
such men as he had named, (Cheers.) Mr Dunn concluded
by proposing his toast.
Mr ROEBUCK, who was received with reiterated cheers,
after some introductory observations, said—ln my converse
with life I have always, when I fell in with a man, endea-
voured to find out in what he may have been concerned, and
the circumstances by which his mind is directed. When I
have found that out, 1 have endeavoured to lead him to talk
of that which he understood, and from that I have derived
interest and instruction. I, sir, unfortunately for myself,
am a politician, and I want to talk politics. If I had felt
any diffidence about that, my honourable and dear friend, if
he will allow me to call him so, has set me an example
which I shall not hesitate to follow. He has spoken of the
present Parliament as a do-nothing Parliament. (Hear,
hear.) I understand that " Hear, hear," and I say that the
last session was par excellence a do-nothing session. (Hear,
hear.) Now, just wait a moment. (Laughter.) Perhaps
the idea may receive a different signification before I have
done. (Cheers and laughter.) That do-nothing Parliament
received into its hands a grand deposit. What was that ?
Why, that politically it was appointed to watch over the
welfare and the interests of England. (Hear, hear.) Thirty-
five years ago, or something more than that, there arose up
among the people of England a desire for reform. The re-
form began by liberating the Catholics. Then came the grand
reform—the reform of Parliament itself. We then, sir, re-
formed—l say we, for I formed part of that band 30 or 32 years
ago—we reformed the municipal corporations, of which you
stand forward upon the present occasion as a worthy repre-
sentative; we reformed the Poor Law, we reformed the
government of the colonies, we reformed the municipalities
of Ireland, and then, sir, we freed trade. (Cheers.) That is
the result of the reform of Parliament. (Cheers.) Well,
now, what is the result of that I look round me, and lam
proud of being an Englishman. Thrones have tumbled
down, empires have been destroyed, the model Republic
bas been rent in twain ; but England stands serene in her
greatness, and dares the world to oppose her onward pro-
gress. (A voice--Denmark.) I will touch upon all those
wags before I have done. (Cheers.) Well, that is what
we received as a deposit when we began to represent the
people of England in the present Parliament—a precious
deposit. Where was there a nation like it ? Where was there
security for person, for property, and for character like that
which England then gave to all her subjects ? Let me illus-
trate by one of the arts which has since taken place. Have
any of you—l have—watched the painting of a great pic-
ture ? The artist began, having made his plan, and coon
covered the canvas; he stuck in this figure and that figure,
and you said " How rapidly he worked ; he has, indeed,
done great things." But then came the finishing of the
picture. That was a slow process. The things he did from
month to month were not recognised by the uninformed.
That perfectly illustrates what took place in Parliament.
We reformed all the great abuses, and we aro now endea-
vouring to perfect the great picture we then began, (Cheers.)
I do not mean to say that there is not yet much to be
done; there is. I am very much of that class of man who
says, think not of rest while aught requires to be done.
That is very much my feeling, but still I cannot help con-
sidering the grand deposit that is in my hands—the great
happiness, welfare, and wellbeing of the great people of
England that is committed to me. Shall I hastily, rashly,
imprudently, do things which shall render doubtful and
dangerous that which lam attempting to perfect. Now,
sir, pardon me, I am only following in the tracks that have
been made for me ; pardon me if I say that there were
three things upon which the Parliament of England and
the Government of England acted in a manner foreign
to my view, and yet I am here to vindicate the course
they pursued. First of these was the great schism that oc-
curred in the modern Republic on the other side of the
Atlantic, My feeling was at once to recognise the Confede-
rate States of America. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) That,
I say, was my feeling, and had I been Prime Minister it
should have been done. (Loud cheers.) Though out of
every 20 men I meet 19 are sympathizers with the Confe-
derate States—(A voice—And would recognize them)—No,
no, you are wrong. Though, I say, 19 out of every 20 men
are sympathizers with the Confederate States, still I must
say that the sympathy of England went not to the point of
risking war for the Confederate States, (Hear, hear.)
Well, then, Parliament—that middle-class Parliament of
which my hon. friend has made mention—taking its view,
taking its cue—its command from the kingdom over which
it was destined to rule, said we will do nothing to risk the
danger of war. The Ministry, following Parliament, did
the same thing. I think as a bold politician Lord Palmer-
ston was wrong—(hear, hear, and no, no)—but he is a
much olc%r man thin T, and though I do not accord with

PRICF ..4d.
STAMPED,....SI.

his opinion I cannot mistake the prudence of his conduct.
(Cheers.) He did what England desired he should do. Ho
has followed what is called perfect neutrality, and we are
now as we were at the beginning of that conflict. The next
case in which Parliament acted differently from my view
was that of Denmark. I thought Denmark oppressed by
the bandit powers of Germany, and I would have sent the
English fleet to defend her. Again Lord Palmerston said
No." He followed the people of England. They felt
for Denmark, but they did not feel so much for Denmark
as to be willing to go to war for her. Lord Palmerston, a
very wise old gentleman—(cheers and laughter)—took his
cue from the people of England, and we allowed Denmark
to be made the prey of the robber Germany. (Hear, hear and
Shame, shame !) Shame it is; that is true ; but I cannot help
feeling that the shame rests with the people of England.
(Hear.) Well, now, I come to touch upon a ticklish subject,
It it were not for the leading up on the present occasion I
think I should hardly have had courage to venture upon it.
("Speak up.") I. speak as loudly as I can ; you listen.
(Cheers and laughter.) I come to the question of reform.
Now, you have returned a middle-class Parliament. I have
been in that middle-class Parliament; I form a portion of
it ; I live in it from day to day, and from night to night.
I know its feelings ; I have probed its wishes ; I know what
it will do, and it will not reform itself. But still comes the
question, are the people of England in such a state of mind
as to compel Parliament to reform itself ? (No, no.) I say
they are not—(hear, hear)—and Lord Palmerston—again
I quote the prudence of that wise old gentleman—(laughter)
—said, " Parliament is against reform ; I wont propose re-
form until Parliament compels me," Well, now these are
the three great things that the present Parliament have
done. When you say they have done nothing, let me bring
to your mind what would occur to a patient in a high fever.
If he sent for a doctor, and the doctor were to determine not
to bleed him, is not that as positive a proceeding as bleeding
him ? I say, then, that determining not to go to war is as
positive a proceeding as if they had determined to go to war.
Though the patient might recover, and you would then say
the doctor was a clever man ; or he might die, and you
might say he was a fool; still the fact would remain that
the doctor had taken a step as complete in the one case as
in the other. If he had bled him he would have been act-
ing; by not bleeding him he would be equally acting. The
do-nothing Parliament, by not going to war, has in every
case been as active as if it had determined to batter down
the whole world. I look around me and ask myself what
is the state of England ? Is not property safe ? Is not
every man able to say what he likes ? Does not every man
enjoy tnat privilege so dear to Englishmen of grumbling
as much as he wishes ? (Laughter.) Cannot you walk from
one end of England to the other in perfect security ? I ask
you whether the world over or in past history there is any-
thing like it ? (No, no.) Nothing. All I ask, and as
I ask it the trembling and fear comes over me which
came over the old superstitious heathen when a man had
pursued a course of uninterrupted success and he thought
the gods were envious of his happiness and would turn a
great catastrophe against him-1 pray that our unrivalled
happiness—unrivalled I call it, for it is such as the world
never saw before—l pray that our unrivalled happiness may
escape the terrible ending that the superstitions fear and
tremble for. I say to you now that in order that it may so
escape you ought to be very careful how you decide that
your representatives ought to act. You are so happy, you
are so distinguished from the rest of the world, that every
step a wise man takes is taken in trembling and in terror
lest he should in any way whatever render insecure that great
happiness you enjoy, which the world sees and which the
world envies. (Loud cheers.)

The remainder of the speeches were of a complimentary
character.

THE BELFAST RIOTS.

(From a Correspondent of the 2.1-orniny Taq.)
DUBLIN, Aug. 18.

There was no improvement yesterday in the state
of Belfast. On the contrary, the mobs seemed to
have acquired increased confidence in their strength
and defied the local authorities, who, though sup-
ported by a very large force, both of military and
police, were quite unable to subdue them. It is re-
ported that the greatest indignation prevails among
the people because the authorities do not control the
mobs or put an end to the disturbances, notwith-
standing the immense force at their command. "I
have seen (says the special reporter of a Dublin paper)
the police and military march through crowds that
a moment before Lad been committing excesses
without making a solitary arrest, although the cha-
racter of the mob was plainly discernible, if one
might judge by the large bludgeons they had in
their hands, or the other weapons that a not very
else observer conid have seen partly concealed about
their persons." It was utterly impossible for any
person to pass through the streets after nightfall on
Tuesday with safety. Balls whizzed in every direc-
tion, and several persons were more cr less injured.
The Pound and Barrack-street neighbourhood and
the fields to one side wise the scenes of a series of
pitched battles, the like of which, for ferocity and
daring, were never before witnessed in Belfast.
Sandy-row was quiet, the opposite mob never hav-
ing, in any riot that over occurred, penetrated into
that locality. _ _

The meeting of Roman Catholics, mentioned in
my telegram, was held at the Catholic Institute at 2
p.m. It was convened ostensibly to consider the
best means of obtaining protection to life and pro.
perty during the present disgraceful riots. About
1,000 persons ware present. On the motion of Mr.
.'Kenna (Ulster Observer) Mr. D. O'Rorke took the
chair, and addressed the meeting at some length,
exhorting them to peace,and begged them to retire to
their respective districts, to keep within their
houses, and under no provocation to leave their
dwellings. Even if their houses were wrecked, he
would auvise them to retire to the rear. (Here
there were loud cries of "Better be shot on the
streets than die like dogs.") Mr Wm. M'Coy did
not approve of the policy recommended by the
chairman, and moved—" That as the magistrates
had proved false to their assurances, and had proved
themselves throughout the riots thorough partisans,
the Catholic party have lost all confidence in them,
and feel bound to at once take measures of their
own accord for the protection of their lives and pro•
perties." It was carried unanimously, and after a
short address from the chairman the assembly dias
persed, some of them firing shots.

In the course of the forenoon a deputation of
merchants, appointed at a public meeting, waited
on the magistrates to urge them to enrol special
constables, and take other measures for the defence
of the people.
Alderman MULLAN stated the object of the depe,,
tation, referred to the excitement and terror that
prevailed, and the fact that the mob were in many
parts of the town able to commit outrages with im-
punity. He stated that it was the opinion of the
merchants on 'Change that the course which should
be adopted was the swearing.in of special constables
to assist the civil and military authorities, who were
unable to cope with the evil. From 5,000 to 10,000
special constables could readily be procured—most
respectable men—who would not hesitate to under-
take the duties imposed upon them,
One Magistrate asked, whether the special con-
stables could be trusted to act impartially ?
Alderman NIULLAN said he considered the ques-
tion little short of an insult. Ho and others who
often acted as special jurors could not act otherwise
than impartially; and how could it be ques-
tioned that respectable men would do otherwise
upon their oaths when the peace of the town was
at stake? Catholics as well as Protestants were
ready to serve, and, as he had said, 5,000 to 10,000
trustworthy persons could be obtained in an hour
if magistrates would be sent to the various districts
to swear them in. Every one should be in his owr.
house by nice o'clock, emcapt those charged with
protecting the inhabitants ; and if this course were
adopted no more would be heard of the riots. The
present system, he urged, was quite ineffectual,
FL um 40 to 30 men were sent to guard public build•
ings which were in little danger, whilst streets and
dwelling-houses were left at the mercy of the 'nob.
No decision was come to at the time ; but at a
subsequent meeting, at two o'clock, a resolution infavour in special constables was adopted
a
g persons to tender their
nd a proclamation of svear in g
inviting
services was posted extensively through the streets.
A considerable number were sworn in.
The Right Rev. Dr. Dorrian, the Catholic (Coad-
jutor) Bishop, disapproved of the meeting held at
the Catholic Institute, and, as an antidote to the
inflAmmitery article in the Ulsret 01'.6erver, had the