The Sun.
London, England, 1830-03-13 00:00:00

THE FOURTH,

May it please your Majesty,—We, your Majesty's dutiful and
loyal subjects, the Freeholders of the County of Kent, beg leave
to assure your Majesty of our sincere and unalterable attachment
to your Majesty's sacred person and family, and of our entire
confidence in your Majesty's anxiety at all times to exercise your
higb, prerogative in a manner best calculated to promote the hap-
piness of your people: This knowledge of your Majesty's gra-
cious disposition induces us to approach with confidence your
Royal ear, and make known the dreadful distress which per-
vades every class of your Majesty's most faithful subjects. We
most humbly beg leave to represent to your Majesty that we
have viewed with sorrow the great and daily increasing distress,
and have waited with awful suspense the Meeting of Parlia-
ment, and not doubting but that the first, and leading measure
of the Session, would have been an inquiry into the causes of,
and an endeavour to alleviate the misery of your faithful people ;
but it is with considerable sorrow that we observe the conduct
your Majesty's Ministers have pursued upon the opening of
Parliament, is by no means calculated to satisfy our hopes and
expectations. We, therefore, deem it a duty we owe to your
Majesty, to our families, and to our fellow subjects, most humbly
to lay our complaints at at the floot of your Majesty's throne
and to press upon your Majesty to cause, without delay, a strict
and scrutinizing inquiry to be instituted into the causes of the
dreadful state into which our unhappy country is reduced, with
a view to afford some practical relief to a suffering, but loyal
population.
We beg most humbly to inform your Majesty of the existence
of anomalies that threaten the dissolution of society itself, and
equally involves the safety of your Majesty's throne and the hap-
pine.ss of your people.
We have a population increasing in intelligence and numbers,
which in other countries considered a source of wealth, becomes
a burden in ours. A great and avowedly increased commerce,
affording no return to the adventurer. 'lhe industry of the mer-
chant and manufacturer can produce no profit. The labour of
the artisan is either uncalled for or unrequited. The agricultu-
rist also, notwithstanding advantages of discoveries and an im-
proved system of culture, sees, year after year, his stock decline
in value, and his capital wasting. The tradesmen, never more
sober and industrious, every day sinking into the ranks of paupers.
Engendering with them anomalies we have no hopes, either from
Ministers or Parliament, the powers of which are only engaged
in the imposition of fresh burdens upon your faithful people.
lour Majesty's Ministers have declared their determination to
conduct the affhirs of the country upon the principle of economy;
but your humble petitioners would have felt greater satisfaction
had similar professions, made upon former occasions, been re-
deemed ; but your Majesty's faithful subjects regret that after
fourteen years of uninterrupted peace, they find their burdens
undiminished, and their means of meeting them have been every
year decreasing. Your Majesty's faithful subjects have thus far
laid before your Majesty their distress, and the causes which they
humbly conceive to be the cause of these dreadful disasters.
That your petitioners are most ready to bear a part of every
burden absolutely necessary to support the just dignity of your
Majesty's Crown, and the honour and safety of the country; and
they have not the least wish to withhold any supplies that might
be thought adequate to the duties performed ; but your people
cannot refrain from making known to your Majesty, that they
consider it is by the oppressive load of impositions, in the shape
of taxes, with which the nation is weighed down, that all its in-
dustrious energies are crippled.
That your petitioners arc fully aware that the burden has
been aggravated by the confidence and support given by former
Parliaments to both improvident and prodigal Ministers, which
support would never have been given, had the Members of the
Commons House been what they pretended to be—the Represen-
tatives of the people. Your Majesty's faithful subjects therefore
hope that you will cause an immediate inquiry into the Military
and Church Establishments, and into all sinecures for the pur.
pose of annulling them, and great economy in the payment of
public servants, as the means of at once alleviating the sufferings
of your people.
That your petitioners have no hopes but in your Majesty's pa-
ternal goodness, for they cannot but express their belief that the
majority of Parliament are interested in keeping up those enor-
mous establishments, and continuing those pensions and offices,
of which your distressed subjects so justly complain ; and the)
further implore your Majesty to direct your Ministry to support
the measures of Reform in the Commons House ; and that the
people may no longer be excluded from their share in the fram-
ing of those laws which the Constitution entitles them to, and
which measures would be attended with the happiest results
equally to the industry, the dignity of your Majesty's Crown, and
to the happiness of the people.
This was his address, and lie asked whether it did not

apply more properly to the subject of distress than the
milk-and-water address of the Noble Earl.
Mr. BENTLEY seconded the address.
Sir W. COSWAY contended that it would be more con-
stitutional not to notice the question of reform in the
House of Commons, in an addrestk to his Majesty.
Sir E. KNATCHBULL regretted what had fallen from the
gentleman who had moved the amendment. They were met
that day to consider of the prevailing distress, and be
should have been glad if the observations had been confined
to that subject only.—(Cheering. )—lf he could for a mo-
ment, as a Member of the House of Commons, consent
to point out to the King in what way he might effect a
reform in the House of Commons, he telt that he would be
unworthy of the confidence of his constituents. He hoped
that Mr. Larkin would withdraw his amendment, and let
the original address be carried unanimously.—(Cheers.)

Mr. Laitictx denied that the course he had taken, in
addressing the King on the subject of Parliamentary R!-
form, was unmnstitutional. For forty years they had
been sending petitions to the Lords and Commons, praying
for reform, to which no attention had been paid, and there-
fore he conceived it was high time for the people to go
even to the throne itself.
The question was then put, and, on a show of hands,
the High Sheriff declared the amended address of Mr.
Larkin to be carried in the affirmative. —(Great cheering.)

Air. BRADLEY then rose to propose a petition to the
House of Commons, describing the distress to be so 'peat
as to prevent individuals from p tying the existing taxes,
ascribing the sufferings of the people, in a great degree, to
the alteration of the currency, and praying for relief, and
also for a reform in Parliament, by which their just weight
in the legislature might be restored to the people of England.

Sir W. COSWAY seconded the motion in a short speech,
in which he argued that a reduction of taxation to a con•
siderable extent would afford great and immediate relief.

Major W.I. YTII then moved, as an amendment, a pe-
tition, which, after reciting the severity of the distress,
went on to state, that nothing could save the country from
convulsion and bloodshed but a prompt end effectual relief
of the poor rates and the petitioners point out a source
of relief instantly available. They allude to the national
property called church property, and they are of opinion
that an appropriation of a considerable part of the church
revenue ought to be made in aid of the poor rate.. They
particularly advise, that as the Bishoprics become vacant,
the successors appointed to fill them shall be paid a fixed
salary, not exceeding 3,000/. a year. That deacons, pre-
bendaries, and persons holding livings, should hereafter
be paid in the same manner. That parochial livings
should also be paid by a fixed salary—no person holding
such a living to have less than SOO/. or more than 700/.
a year, and that in such places tithes should Le abolished.
.
That when an advowson fell being private property,
the patron should receive a fair compensation from Go-
vernment,—and thus they hope that in the course of time,
reKduinege(diottn o.
aTe hsecyalpera ofy
tithes, that bane of agriculture, if not of religion itself,
roportioned steary of the
at
jhh7:;ll2
allb;e that
tbnie vzhiaienraivetyshme anda yUnited)ip

Mr. Honnxs inculcated the necessity of unanimity on
this occasion, and suggested that all parties might with pro-
priety support the petition of Mr. Bradley.
Mr. How woo), with respect to the existence of dis-
tress, believed that out of the Celina there was but one
opinion on the subject. He believed that the agricultu-
ral, commercial,- and manufacturing classes, were all dis-
tressed, and he thought they could not use too strong terms
in calling on Parliament for a reduction of taxation, which
would afford immediate relief. Taxation, overwhelming,
oppressive, overbearing taxation, was the cause of the dis-
tress, and be pledged himself to use his most strenuous
efforts to reduce it.

Sir E. KNATCHITILL suggested the propriety (as ►ina-
nimity Wall of the utmost consequence o■ this occasion)
of one of the two petitions, those of Mr. Bradley and of
Mr. Gipps, which were very nearly alike, being with-
drawn, and thus leaving the question to be decided between
Major Wayth's petition and that which remained.
The Marquis of WIWCHILSIA a!so strongly insisted on
the necessity of unanimity.
Mr. Glees then consented I. withdraw his p titien ;
and, on a shim of hands; the amendment of Major Wayth
was lost, and the original petition of Mr. Bradley was
carried.

A similar petition to the House of Lords was then
agreed to.
Earl Stanhope and Lord Teyahant were requested to
present the petition to the Lords, :anti Sir E. Knatebbull
and Mr. Honywood to the Conantoes.
Mr. BENTLEY then proposed, as a resolution--" That

it is the opinion of this meeting, that among the causes
of the distress which so generally pervades this country,
there is none so powerful as the tithe system, which, by
inflicting a tax of the tenth of the gross produce of the land, is
productive of most injurious consequences to the community
at large, to the agriculturist in particular, and to the in-
terests of religion itself; to the community, by inevitably
increasing the price of articles of the most nessessal y con-
sumption; to the agriculturists, by subjecting them to
vexatious restrictions in the cultivation of land, by pre-
venting them from competing with the foreign fAraner, or
meeting the overwhelming importation of grain, Is hick it
is the present policy of this country to encourage; and to
religion, by creating disputes between the clergyman and
his parishioners, which destroy that harmony which
should subsist between them, and on which his success so
much depends; and therefore Parliament east legislate to
no purpose better than the abolition of that oppressive
and impolitic system."—Carried amidst loud sheers.
Mr. ELLIS moved as a resolution " That it is the opi-
nion of this meeting, that the repeal of the duty on malt.
and the permission of a free trade in beer, afford
considerable relief to the poor."—Carried unanimously.
Thanks were then voted to the High Sheriff, and the
meeting was dissolved.