The Sun.
London, England, 1836-03-07 00:00:00

NEWSPAPER. STAMPS.

COMMON HALEL-(THIS DAY.)

abil! Pursuance of a requisition, most numerously and respect-
heldsigned, the Lord Mayor appointed a Common Hall to be
this
of e,." morning, fo- the purpose of considering the propriety
t ,tat) ationing Parliament for the total abolition of the Stamp
0,04'
ir Newspapers. The Chair was to be taken at one
but by twelve the Hall was nearly filled with most re-
spectablees tradesmen. By a quarter to one the Hall was com-
evrt iy crowded even to the galleries, which were filled with
O'Con-
nell antly dressed ladies. About the latter hour Mr.
arrived,O'Con-
and passed through the Hall towards the Com-
mittee-room, and was received with great applause. We un-
derstood the Hon. and Learned Gentleman was sworn in as a
f3leennin of London, in order to qualify him to address the Hall.
3
tvere Y"e
o'clock the Hall was crowded to excess, and as many
Shut out as would have filled it again. No question
a Common Hall has interested the citizens so much,
since the public mind was excited by the Reform question.
The Lord Mayor, accompanied by Mr. Alderman Wood, Mr.
!:,attison, Mr. Grote, and Mr. Crawford, the four members for
lit; city, Mr. O'Connell, Mr. Hume, Mr. Wallace, Mr. Roebuck,
I~I• Buckingham, Alderman Thompson, Mr. F. Duncombe,
Wilks, Mr. Wakley, Dr. Bowring, Alderman Humphrey,
Sir W. Molezworth, Mr. Scholefield, Mr. Wallace, Mr. Wil-
liams, and other ::!embers of Parliament, Dr. Birkbeck, Dr.
made, Mr. Scales, and other influential gentlemen, came on
the
platform. Mr. O'Connell was received with tremendous
cheering the other Members were also well received.
The LORD MAYOR came forward and said that having re-
ceived a requisition most numerously signed by many of the
most wealthy and respectable inhabitants of this great City, he
,4!(1 felt it his duty to comply with the request, and call the
ivtec'ting for the purpose of petitioning both Houses of the Le-
gislature for a repeal of the Stamp Duty on Newspapers. He
felt it to be his duty as Chief Magistrate—as the re-
quisitionists bad done him the honour to preside, to take
the pvition of Chairman—be would reserve to himself
toe liberty of enjoying his own opinion upon the matter, which
was one of very great importance. As Chairman of the
meeting, he did not intend to take any part in it ; but seeing
many of his 'fellow-citizens present, be hoped that every
person who wanted to address them would be heard fairly and
impartially on the subject, and that no. other topic would be
allowod to be introduced. With these observations he would
take his position, and leave the platform to those whose duty
't Was to open the business of the day, by proposing the reso-
lutions which they had prepared.—(Cheers.)
Mr. GROTE came forward amidst loud cheering. The
aPa. Gentleman spoke as follows :—Gentlemen, I have
ivays the greatest satisfaction in meeting my constituents here
assembled, but I have never had greater pleasure than upon
the subject we are here assembled to discuss.—( Cheers. )
You are aware that we are here met for the purpose of pro-
curing the repeal of the Stain!) Duties on Newspapers—
(Cheers)—that we are assembled to testify legally and con-
nitationally our opinion of the impolicy and the mischief of this
°diens tax.—(Loud cheers.) We are assembled, above all,
to protest against the principle of it—to protest against the
wrongfulness, of keeping out deliberately from the poorer
classes of the country the means of obtaining political know-
ledge,_( Loud cheers.) It is well known that at this moment
the Stamp Duties are of such a nature, that it imposes upon the
great newspapers just as much as is paid for the small ones
hat .as much is paid for the smallest sheet as is paid upon
the vast sheet on which the Morning Herald, the Morning

-s- ---- -
Chronicle, aed other great papers, are printed. This is a sin
against all the rules of fairness and justice—( Loud cheers)—
it takes no account .ef the quantity of the article consumed, or
of the difference of the means of the consumer, All are made
to pay the same, whether tole quantity of the matter to be read
be great or small. But though this is one of the
sins, it is not the least of the sins of the Stamp Duties upon
Newspapers ;it shuts out all the gi'eantbledge of political
mass of the -poorer
w
classes of the community from that k
affairs which ought to be liberally extended to them. If they
bad any tax at all, a different system should be adopted
according to the different classes of papers, and
At the piesent
and the prices at
'Which they were sold.—(Hear, hear, ha
titoe, in consequence of a great and gigantic monopoly,
it is impossible to publish newspaperse paid on every single
for the poorer classes,
when threepence duty must h
-. sheet, and the consequenceis that while the circulation
or these greet papers is cramped and
This is au evil of a narrowed, the smaller
sad ch.'aper are stifled and suppressed.
verY serious nature, and we are met here to exert ourselves to
the utmost to obtain legally and constitutionallyve a termination
there was a mischievous
of this tax. I :an say,that if !
and impolitic law it is that wh:ell.prevents the cooreat classes
front the pleasure of SG constantly sl arid innocently
afforded them, and whi:h con en . in. s ties poor man'e mind
t::, a miserable and stui:id vacuity, such as leads at
71 times to drunkenness
and excess of
If we wish to secure ourwe rights—our personal, peovlietriyeal,kiannl
wish to promote the interests oo_
..e constitutional rights-ife
the People, we will do every thing to promote the repealwere
all taxes of this kind. You are aware that those taxes eref
• gaposed by a Tory Administration, for the purpose of depriving
the people of political knowledge,„ and putting information
°a these subjects out of the reach of the bulk ofthreofcotrithe-
, enunity. lam sure, in the present day, no Chancellor
t xehequer, if they
did not now exist, would dare to propose
the imposition of them with such words in his mouth. But
when we cannot forget that they were imposed with such an
av° •
wed intent, purpose, and motive, and when we reflect that
. their imposition has produced so much misery, our regret is
110. !amity and bitterly increased. Gentlemen, there never was
' time more propitious for demanding the repeal than Ill!-
. lent. We have in power a Ministry who, I believe, are we . is-
Posed to do justice to the people, and it only requires
:I decided manifestation of your opinions to strengthen their
hands, and to enable them to
tconsolidate the interests of the
' eirttrY, which I am convinced
ter
of
fer have at heart.—( Hear.)
yevenue, there never was a
t. en if we regard it as a matter
better spare it, for then the ad-
vertisement and paper duties would be considerably increased.
am told by many persons, for some of whom I entertain a
. treat respect, if we have cheap newspapers we will
I have too
ill get nothing
ut vile and licentious trash. I don'tbelieve it.
• hie',
• ..."'" an opinion of the discernment of the great bulk of the
117:Ple asjudgment would point in
to suppose that their
wrong direction. believe the unstamped press is at '
Present driven into a coarsenessl of andlarieuagleaw;and if we had
a vileness of
elPression, by the unnatural hostility of
the t
eaP and useful publications they would circulate only what
would tend to the amusement,information, and enlightenment
been able to make myself
of the people. I fear I hadve
notof this vast assemblage ; but I
‘::!ildierstood at the remote en
of
thisonzratulate those around
.me on the important assemblsge
h nt to olitical
I hail it as an evidence of the state of feeling. 6n
itilb'is subjeyei, and as an earnest ofour attac me p
..
dente of
to the cause of reform and
nn Chancellor all, as an evi
Chancellor of the
t ce of a determined feeling which
t schequer can disregard. The Hon. Gentleman concluded
Yyroxosing the first resolution :--
ofss, and the good Government
! -14..at the prosperity, the
th: nation mainly depend upongrtehaetnmeoral habits and intelligence of
se Peeele, and that, therefore, to
ieimpose any tax upon the means
o..Vottaining moral or political knowledge, w_ dge is an act of injustice, and
'h to be opposedby all legal
h ina°nd Constitutional' methods. .
an of the London and Bit-.
toitsAike SOLLY, Esq., (C.
• ham Railway Committaeem) rose. to second the resolution,
the 'alcl—l present myself before you toe carry into execution
the duty which has been imposed on me—namely, to second
resolution of your respected Member
.Mr. Grote—( Hear)
and I
bay . can assure you that a more gratifying duty I could not
eve been required to perform. I agree most thoroughly in
artery observation which has fallen from your hon. representative,
i
nut 1 am convinced that the existing taxes on knowledge are
.
aistraliY an injustice towards the public,
_ but also to the admi-
can the
pen
,tion itself.—( Hear, hear.) How, for instance,
e eiPi° be informed of all the excellent measures which are
n',.7 .hrought forward. by the present Government for the atne.
' 'tion, if
in: tion of our Institutions and the. improvement of their con-
hould be con-
veye the vehicle through
which intlligence s
and , is oppressed and hopeded by heavy burdens?_( Hear,
trieralotid cheers.) I would also ask bow is the Govern.
eiii,i, to obtain the support of public opinion,
etre— is so essentially
T • -et their measures of Reform, le are kept in
necessary to the carrying into
if the people
I would
lgstil°l'ance of what is goin. forward ?—( Hear, h .
4 a'AYOU to look back to what has already been accomplished,
Rifttri
t' I Plat it to you whether any measure of improvement is not
butable to the increased intelligence of the peopie,--,
thee s
ko i , -uch good effects has resulted from this diffusion of
re-
:;wiedge, is it eot both just and expedient that every 0
pmiziniienF shackle should be struck off, and that all the vehicles
_f
otelligerice should move free and unrestrained in their
tonne ? Would you, I ask, have such men as Mr. e
O'Connellsuch
area"nr Legislative Assembly ?—would you
as Mr. Grote, your worthy and honest 11.?..p!heassveanitiadtiivric_,
tere 111" y other excellent advocates of your rights
StS, hut for the progress of knowledge and moral intelli-
gence of the people? Would You,this fact, have
sueh men m • ' • "the high office which be
holds ; as ~ r. Salomons filling
but for
tie
Look in Yotll. Municipal Councils ?—(
b en •
t at otheepountries. Would Poland have e .
in the situa-
Great cheering, )
..-1?4 it Was at present, had Kosciusko had such a nation to deal
with
a 3 this ?__(Cheers.) Would America have been what it
l''' had Washington had such a nation as this to deal with ?tat
T(Cheers.) Look to Ireland.—( Cheers.) What would I
trrY have &lite, had it not been for the able Representatives
the
4(1 in Parliament ? The more he thought upon the subject
aled.
i.e more he was convinced that this tax ought to be
It would be better not only for this country, but the world at
rl.,77—(Great cheering.)
ne Leen •
de_ia . MAYOR put the resolution to the meeting, and
e, uelertiend it to be carried unanimously, amidst tronendous
a ri•
rtr_Aelder6m an Woon rose to propose the 2d resolution, amidst_
the le noise and confusion, occasioned by the crowded state of
' lide lie was not particularly anxious, as far as he was
gericoncerned, to be beard ; for lie knew that there were several
.ratht_erraen there to-day, whom the meeting would much
w-sey bear than hiteself. He was sure that those present
state much inconvenienced in consequence of the crowded
ecoii.neeeenerfti °tine with the
He had never, in the whole course of his
the City, wi:neseed such a crowded Hall.—
cation.l' s.)- la
0,,...-ie was gratified at it, ar. he could, for the gran&
speed, 1, all present, state that the meeting would hear
the meeeserern many of the first political reputation. He trusted
lineaeirt°g would give every one an impartial hearing. For
been
e_iilill a few minutes ago, he was not aware he should have
with tt!lled upon to propose a resolution ; he, however, did so
thaa ill greatest pleasure, as no person was more favourable
woule raself to the object of the present meeting. He
h not
but wiziod Occupy the time of the meeting further,
as i(Mopw
was roceed immediately to read the resolution, which
Pose , s. It was very short, but very much to the pur-
to it 4114 be, therefore, begged the attention of the meeting
2. That the Tax upon Newspapers is a dir
°t
fax upon Know-