The Sun.
London, England, 1839-03-06 00:00:00

MANCHESTER CORN-LAW ASSO-

CIATION.

(BY EXPRESS.)
MANCHESTER, THIS MORNING. TWO O'CLuCK.
In consequence of the interruption given to the proceed.
ings at the Meeting on Thursday evening last by parties
who had not any right to attend the meeting (the terms of
the advertisement restricting the meeting to those persons

....
who had signed the petitions praying for the repeal of the
Corn-laws, the Anti-Corn-law Association determined that

the parties really interested in the matter should have an
opportunity of expressing their sentiments uninterrupted
(if possible) by parties who have declared their intention
of turning all public meetings, of whatever description,
into " Universal Suffrage Meetings." Accordingly it
was determined to hold another meeting, which was fixed
for last (Monday) evening, at the Corn Exchange,.and
in order, if possible, to prevent the intrusion of disorderly
persons, admission was granted by tickets, which were to
be had at the rooms of the Anti-Corn-law Association, and
at the office of the Manchester Times. In the interval be-
tween the last meeting and the present one, an address
written by a working man, and characterised by the ex-
pression• of sound principles, made its appearance', and it
is understood has greatly enraged the leaders in the dis-
orderly proceedings of last Thursday evening. The fol-
lowing is a copy of the placard :
WORKING MEN OF MANCHESTER.

FaLtow SUFFERERS,—An attempt, a successful attempt, has been
made to degradelyou in the eyes of the country and the world, by a
number of individuals who have violently assaulted peaceable men,
assembled together to enjoy the sight of free citizens to discuss
their grievances; and this has been done in your name, and in the
name of Fr.edom:

Shall we evince our love of liberty by depriving others of that
precious right ? we who denounce the tyrants who drove us like
sheep from the field of Peterloo—shall we attack others under pre-
cisely the same circumstances ? Can it be just or right to :To that in
the name of the Charter at the Corn Exchange which it was unjust
and wrong to do in the name of Castlereagh at Peterloo ? We are
demanding Universal Suffi-age. It is our right, and we shall ob-
tain it. But will not our enemies point to such scenes as that of
Thursday evening, and ask triumphantly whether men who dare
not listen to discussion, who clamour down all who differ from
them, and attack, net their minds with arguments, but their bodies
, with chairs and stools, are prepared for self.government ? Will not
even our friends, who were driven from the platform on Thursday,
some of them with broken heads and bruised limbs, begin to doubt
the safety of placing their lives and fortunes at our mercy ? Would
not their wives and children cling about them when they returned
wounded to their families, and beg them not to give them up to be
governed by the terrible Chartists.

But we are told the Corn-law agitation is a Whig trick, to put
down the cry for the Charter. Are we then so little in earnest about
the suffrage as to be decoyed aside by smother cry? Are we really
such children that our leaders are afraid of losing us at the sound of
a Whig rattle? What a compliment to men who demand a
Charter of self-government! But what proofs are there that the
Anti-Corn-law agitation is a Whig trick ? Do Manchester men
subscribe thousands of pounds, give up their time to go to London,
work their mills short time, sell their yarns at less than cost price,
and become bankrupts, all to amuse you with a Whig trick ? No ;
the masters are up in agitation because, like ourselves, they are
suffering om the badness of the times.

We are told again that the Anti-Corn-law agitators are upon a
wrong scent, that they will never succeed in their attempt for a total
Repeal of the Corn-laws; but may we not then the more safely
leave them to find that out? Surely that is no reason why we should
deprive them of the freedom of action. We have had our Regenera.
tion Societies, our Ten Hours' Bill, our Socialism, and other vlans
for the mending of our condition, and now we have our Charter ;
how should we hke it, if the middle classes had interrupted our pro-
ceedings, and prevented the discussion of those schemes peaceably ?
But I hear it whispered in private, we will force the middle
classes is join us for Universal Suffrage, by preventing them from
holding meetings upon the Corn-laws, or upon any other question,
until they do. If this be the real motive, then ail the other pre-
tences are hypocritical, and the opposition resolves itself into a case
of downright tyranny; and this mode is adopted by men professing
a love of liberty, at this day, when press-gangs are no longer tole-
rated in our streets. Suppose we could succeed, without regard to
reason, justice, or law, in forcing the middle classes into oar ranks,
would such unwilling allies serve us in the day of need ?
Should we not despise them if they tamely submitted to such
coercion ? But be assured we shall not succeed. We are
dealing, not with slaves, but with Englishmen—with men
who fought for us at Trafalgar and Wa• erloo, whose courage
has conquered half the world, whose Ratitude has borne
them equally along the burning sands of Africa and on the
ice-bound shores of the Pole. They are not to be subdued by
physical force. You may destroy them and with them the hopes of
the empire, but they are Britons, and you cannot, and I glory in the
fact, compel them against their will to obey you.
Let us no longer then go out of our way to oppose our fellow.
countrymen in their honest endeavours to break down tho monopoly
of the Bread Tax. Let us learn to do unto others as we would that
they should unto us, and may Heaven defend the rights of the poor.
A WORKING MAN.
In order to confine the character of the meeLing to the
parties really entitled to be present, and to repress any
disorder that might possibly arise, a strong posse of police
officers was stationed at the doors of the room, and the
fofms and chairs being removed from the room, a much
more ample space was afforded for accommodating the
parties. At about a quarter before seven o'clock the doors
of the room were opened, and several hundreds of persons
speedily entered the room. As the Anti• Corn-law Asso-
ciation had given the tickets without much discrimitiation,
it was apprehended by many persons that some. Chartists
were present, and would attempt to raise a disturbance.
They certainly did attempt to disturb the Meeting, but
were soon put down.
On the motion of Mr. Alderman KERSHAW, seconded
by Mr. Alderman Coulee, Thomas Harbottle was called
to the Chair, there not being more than a dozen hands
held up against him. The Room was now quite full, and
The CHAIRMAN, on taking his seat, was loudly cheered.
He said—Not in the least degree discouraged by one of
the most violent outrages upon a respectable public assem
-blage 'as that which was last week experienced, he had
not thought that there would or could have been persons
who were capable of insulting and assaulting the persons
who met together ; and yet he had no doubt but that the
interruption was the act of previous concert—of pre-con-
certed arrangement, as indetd at all public meetings, the
object of which had not been in perfect accordance with
the notions of Mr. Nightingale and his friend Pat Mur-
phy, and his few choice associates, whose invariable price
tine had been always to interrupt, and sometimes to de-
stroy those meetings. It had been surmised by some of
their friends, who knew the character of that gentleman,
that such would be the case on the former occasion, and so
it had been. He (the Chairman) knew not whai might be
the precise object Mr. Nightingale had in view by such a
course of proceeding, bnt he was perfectly satisfied that,
whatever was his motive or object, be certainly took
a most improper mode of forwarding his objects. The
course pursued by these individuals had had one ef-
fect.—( Hear.) It had caused every trade in Manchester
to:send to the Anti-Corn-law Association their strict adhe-
sion to the principles of the Association, and they had sent
subscriptions in order that they might be enrolled as =Sn-
ipers of the Association, and had determined to snpport the
Association to the utmost of their power.—( Cheers.)
They might therefore thank Mr. Nightingale and his
friend Mr. Pat. Murphy for the demonstration. It would
be an act of extreme imprudence for them to take up the
position which they were prepared to-carry out ; or if they
hesitated one moment as to the course which they ought
now to adopt. There could be no halting between two
opinions; they had formed an attachment to their princi-
ples, and were prepared to the utmost to carry
those principles into full effect.—( Hear, hear.)
He was happy to say that he had no fear of
their being disturbed that evening.—( Cheers.) He should
deem it his duty to protect by every legitimate means in his
power, the Gentlemen who were authorised to address the
Meeting on that occasion ; and although it bad been
thought advisable to admit persons by ticket, he begged it
might be distinctly understood that it was not on the ac-
count that they were afraid of the most full investigation,
or of the utmost publicity. They courted publicity, they
courted inquiry and investigation ; otherwise they would
not have dared to have submitted their cause to the bar of
the House of Commons.--( Cheers.) They had been as-
sailed on the one hand by ignorance and prejudice, and
they had been interrupted by others from cupidity.
Having stated that the object of the meeting was the re-
moval of the most abominable of all imposts, the tax upon
grain, the Chairman called upon Mr. Cobden to address
the meeting.—( Loud cheers.)
Mr. CoBDEN then came forward and was received with
, tremendous cheers, and a very feeble hissing. He said
that there was nothing that he liked'so much as, free
discussion, and testing the truth by reason and argument ;
and he should never be opposed to reasoning with any man
who, as a reasonable being, was determined to take up the
advocacy of the Corn-laws ; but he must protest in the
' name of the working classes of Manchester against the con-
duct of men, who would prevent all discussion of this ins-
' portant question ; and, be would venture to say, in the
name of the great body of intelligent, hard-working, re-
spectable men of this town, that they were as deeply dis-
gusted, and felt themselves disgraced—if they could be
disgraced by the conduct of others—by the conduct of
those men who, in their name, feloniously broke into that
room and eventually took possession of property which
the Anti-Corn-law Association were pledged to replace or
pay for; and having driven out the lawful occupants, took
upon themselves to conduct the riotous proceedings which
the meeting had already heard of. Working men of Man•
chester (continued Mr. C.) look to yourselves—you who are
members of Benefit Societies, you would not wish to dis-
cuss your own trade concerns. Look to yourselves, for
those lawless men who took possession of this room occu-
, pied as it washy the Anti-Corn-law Association—those men
who make inroads-into rooms engaged by the anti. Slavery
Society—those men will take possession of your cottages
and clothing unless you check them in the bud.---( Cheers. )
Nay, I have no hesitation in saying that even your quiet
and happy, and well-regulated firesides, will not be safe
unless the strong arm of the law is brought to interpose be-
tween the wishes of these lawless men who would have no
other restraint but the fear of the law, and its consequnncei.
(Cheers, and some cries of "Question.") lam glad to find
that we have in this room men who are opposed to us, so I
will proceed to the question. The question is, whether
all classes of this great manufacturing community are inte-
rested alike in the total and immediate repeal of the Corn-
laws ? Now I hope I have hit the question.—( Cheers. )
But we are told by certain individuals in this town that
this is a question in which the master manufacturers are
alone interested, and that the working men' are not. We
are told that we are not working men.—( Hear, hear,
hear.) I am a working man, for I work as hard as
any man can do in my own business ; and I say that
the labouring men are the most interested of all others.
Mr. Cobden here took a review of the commercial relations
between this country and Spain, Portugal, Africa, China,
and South America, observing that there was a reciprocity
of commercial intercourse in those countries only which
yielded the luxuries of life—such as never come into the
possession of the operatives ; whilst, on the other hand,
there were in Russia fifty millions of people, in America
thirty millions more, and in Prussia and Germauy a further
. population, who, during the last few years, whilst our trade
had been standing still, were willing to grow corn and
breed cattle, and exchange them for our manufactures, whilst
the operation of the Corn-laws prevented the free inter-
change of corn for our manufactures.—(Cheers.) Now
they had heard of the talk in the Chamber of Commerce
about the great necessity of getting cheap corn, because
the labourer abroad was able to work cheaper than we could
in this country, and we wished to undersell the Americans,
Russians, Prussians, and Saxons. Mr. C. confuted the
notion that cheap food must of necessity produce lower
wages, and referred the meeting to the year 1835, when