The Sun.
London, England, 1841-05-10 00:00:00

MORNING EDITION

THE BREAD TAX.
GREAT MEETING AT LIVERPOOL.
On Thursday evening a public meeting was held in the Music.
hall, Bond street, Liverpool, to receive a deputation from the
National Anti.Corn.law League, consisting of Thomas Bailey,
Kee.. John Bright, Esq., Jan Brooks, Esq., Richard Cobden, Esq.,
and other gentlemen, who came hither to stimulate the people of
Liverpool to a vigorous co.operation with the Manchester League.
The Music-hall was more densely crowded than we have ever wit.
tressed it on any previous occasion, thionged as it frequently has
been. It is probable that so vast an amount o- persons wa.s never
before congregated within the walls of the Music.hall, and the
most enthusiastic spirit was manifested by the meeting. Shortly
after seek' o'clock the deputation entered the room, accompanied
by several of the leading gentlemen of Liverpool opposed to the
corn-Laws; and were most- rapturously received. On the platform
-We observed a large body of gentlemen well known in Liverpool
z!siaitaunah opponents of the Corn-laws.
On.the motion of Mr. W. HATHBONR, Sir Joshua Walmsley was
esilled upon to preside. The worthy Knight took his seat amidst
the lOud plaudits of the assembly.
'The CHAIIVIAN, in opening the bnsiness of the meeting, said
thus—He was not aware of the exact order in which the pro_
Ovedings were to be conducted, but they had assembled for the pure
Pose of receiving a dapusation from the Manchester Anti-Corn.law
League, who would address the meeting on that all-important
teak which had been so frequently discussed in that room. The
subject Was one in which all, from the highest to the lowest, were
-Most deeply interested, and he was sure that he had no occasion
to bespeak their earnest attention. All the deputations from the
Anti-Corn-law League had observed the strictest impartiality as
to politics, which were totally excluded from all their meetings,
for the repeal of the Corn-laws was a subject which could be freely
and fairly discussed without at all entering upon party putitics.—
ttoud cheers )
The CHAIRMAN then called upon
THOMAS BAZLEY, Esq , who came forward amid much applause
end addressed the meeting. He said that a deputation from
Manchester had come here to confer with the people of Liver-
pool on one of the most important subjects which could occupy
the attention of the citizens of any community. They had come
to ask for the advocacy and assistance of Liverpool in thee
great struggle in which they were engaged—a struggle which had
for its object the feeding of the hungry and the clothing of the
naked. They came hither not to dictate, not to give advice, not
to interfere in local questions, but to be cheered in their onward
course its procuring bread for the people.—(Applause.) Man-
chester and the manufacturing districts, but Blanchester espe.
chilly, had long felt the deprivation attendant on our fiscal regu-
lations, especially of that barbarous and inhuman law which hindered
the labourer from receiving for his industry the staff of life. Hitherto
Liverpool had enjoyed a higher degree of comfort than Manchester,
but if tt at law were not repealed, the slay would come when distress
would be flit more acutely, when ships would go from this port
freighted with a less amount of our manufactures, and return
with a less amount of the produce of other countries. All that the
League asked for were equal and just laws—(Cheers)—and on this
principle alone was their agitation conducted. Would not the
meeting, therefore, join with them ? They (the deputation) had
been In almost all the neighbouring towns; indeed, he might say,
in nearly all parts of the country, endeavouring to enlighten
and to arouse the people. They stood there as missionaries of
the cause in which they were engaged, and even thanhful
for the help and assistance which had been afforded to them.
They would proceed as they had hitherto done, fur a crisis
had now arrived when one grand effort must be made to
emancipate the industry of the country at large. For a long
time Manchester had stood almost alone. They had been accused
of indiscretion : they had been charged with having asked fur
too much. When wish bated breath and beaded knees they
asked for an inquiry, they were taunted with being unreasonable,
When they asked permission to bake foreign corn, in bond, they
were said to be unreasonable; but the fact was that they had asked
for too lit•tle, inasmuch as they did not demand the whole amount
of justice to which they were entitled.—( Applause.) In connection
with the subject before them he would state one or two facts which
would show the negligence of our Government compared with that
of other countries in reference to that employment which ought to
be afforded to every people. Being himself interested in spinning
by machinery, he was some time ago waited on by a Prussian no.
bleman, who, after a lengthened conversation, told him that they had
in Prussia water power, building materials, and all the elements
for constructing manufactories, but he concluded by saying, " we
have not got your arts, your industry ; give us those, and then
we shall be able to compete with you, and, probably, to rival you.')
—(Hear, hear.) The other day, in coming from Bolton by the
railway, an engineer of some celebrity, said to him, " Permit me
to introduce to you a general officer in the Russian service, which
is in this country for the purpose of obtaining information con-
xiected with our arts and industry. He (the speaker) found that
this Russian general was not only purchasing steam-engines, mill.
gearing, &c. and looking after all the materials of industry which
were to give impetus to his country's manufactures, but carrying
out plans which would very materially injure this country if the
intention were to enter into foreign competition with us. He
would ask if ever an English nobleman or general officer went
from England to learn the arts of other countries so as to enable the
People of these kingdoms to earn their bread or to raise themselves
in the scale of civilization. He had neves heard of such a thing,
the people were left to themselves, but they were shackled,
and they would never be free unless with giant strength
they broke the bonds that bound them.—(Cheers.) A combination
of huge monopolies was crushing the energies of the United King-
dom ; but the greatest of these monopolies, he was sorry to say, was
to be found in our own landed interest. The unnatural sight was
presented to thee' of Briton crushing Briton. They found that the
landowners were possessed of all the comforts which arts and
manufactures could give to them, and monopolised to themselves
all the bounties and blessings of Providence. They circumscribed
the island, and said it shall not maintain any except those w lie
can be supported by the limited extent of our domains. They
found, continually, that the eldest sons of the landowners possessed
the estates of their fathers—that the eldest sons of farmers became
farm era—and the eldest sons of labourers were permitted the
high privilege of being hereditary hedgers and ditchers.—(Hear,
hear, hear.) Ile disubted whether the Legislature was aware o
the amount of distress at present in this country, but this ought
tto be made known, and every one exert himself for its removal.
They (the deputation) had one elaim upon the meeting—Man.
chester was identified with Liverpool as one Intelligent vast corn.
triunity, and he would ask them whether they were willing to pros'
:mote that degrees of liberty in trade which they had a tight to
Obtain. He would ask them whether their representatives in Par-
Lament. were supporters of that degree of liberty ?—(Cries of
No.") With our commerce unshacked he had no fear of our
wintry ! but with our trade in chains, as though it were a felon,
he had_ no hope ! He would exhort them with one effort to esta
bliSh the freedom and supremacy of commerce—for commerce,
like its sister mercy, was twice blessed. It blesseth him who gives
and him who receives.—(Cheers.)
JOHN BRIGHT, Esq., of Rochdale, next presented himself, ana
was very warnsly received. He said that on any ordinary cccasion
he should feel that he owed a very humble apology for offering
himself to the notice of that audience, but he felt that he should owe
an apology to them, and to every one of his fellow-countrymen, if
on this occasion he hesitated to come forward, and throw any little
influence he possessed into the scale of justice which now seemed
trembling in a balance. He was as convinced as he was of his
existence of the justice of the principle in which the Anti-Corn .law
league was based, and being thus convinceed was certain that it
would ultimately suceeed in its object. He thought that there
was abundant evidence in the present condition of this country,
or rather of the people of this country; to show the necessity of his
coming forward, and indeed of every man becoming a missionary
in this great cause. From the highest to the lowest in the realm all
felt difficulty and embarrassment, and to a degree, which, probably,
:the oldest in this country had not hitherto witnessed. This wide-spread
distress spared no man, woman, or child. The deputation, therefore,
came before the meeting on a sound principle as respected the justice
of their cause, and as they had shunned all party politics—as they
Caine, not as a combination of one trade against another trade, but
as the bread-eating people of England against a giant and wide.
wasting monopoly—they were surely entitled to the sympathy and
support of all.—(Great cheering.) Dining the whole of his life,
but especially during the past two years, he had bestowed much
consideration upon this subject, and the result at which he had
:arrived was not to endeavour to make a mystery of the question.
!The want of success which had attended exertion previously
made, hail arisen in some measure from the question having been
wrapped up in so many coverings that the kernel could not be
reached. The mode in which he wanted the meeting to view this
subject was the one in which he had endeavoured to view it him-
self. He wanted them to bring the best judgment of their heads,
together with the test feelings of their hearts, to bear Olson the
question, to drive away all prejudice, and regard it as the simple
question that it really was. He defied any sane man to come
forward and say he believed that a Corn.law, by which the
supply of food was diminished, was just, or could be defended
by a sensible or conscientious person. The bread-tax
,wag passed for the avowed purpose of keeping prices
&Ltd steady. If that was the intention of the Le.
gistature, as it undoubtedly was, and if the effects of the law
had been in accordance with the intention, which was well known
to have been the case, by what means had the price been raised ?
By making an abundance or a scarcity of corn. Did the meeting
'think that the price of a commodity could be raised by increasing
supply?—(Cries of " No, no.") If during the Parliament of 1815
to 1828—for he considered them as one Parliament, as they had
throughout manifested one spirit and one object—they had passed
some such provision as the following, it would only have been to
state the real object :—" Whereas, for some unknown purpose, it
is expedient that the bread of this country should be raised to 60,
70, or SO shillings per quarter," and if officers had been sent
throughout the country to enforce the law, could they have kept
up the price without cooking a scarcity ? Nothing but a scarcity
.could make corn dear, and therefore it followed, as a matter of in-
e.vitable necessity, that the Corn-laws of 1815 and 1887 had for
tho.,r object the diminution of the quantity of corn. Could any
az," man believe that a law, having for its object the diminishing
of tha .unount of food, could be beneficial to a country ? It was '
an vim°, ibted fact that the supply of food was diminishing,
whilst the population was rapidly increasing; and if the meet.
ing could gonvince themselves that an increased population
could be a de•guately supplied with a decreasing amount of
food, then lb ey Could convince themselves of that which was a
melf.evident falLO)'. If they could follow him to scenes that I.e had
witnessed, there ,vas no Man so stupid as not to acknowledge that
thousands and millions were suffering from something which rtitht
be remedied, or that a state of things must come about in
which propetty and life. would be insecure. Two or three of the
London Papers, well-known supporters of the Corn-laws, had been
loudly denouncing the factory ayttem, and declared that it must be
destroyed, Why, the landowners would be the greatest sufferers if
this were done, for there was not an estate in the country that
would then be worth 6d. Liverpool could not exist in prosperity if the
tr. anufacturing districts were in distress. What would they expect ?
Su.'eiy agriculture could yield nothing to export when it could not
give sufficient food for the people on its boil. What then must be
exported ? manufactures or nothing at all. If there were no ex-
ports Were would be no imports, and the splendour and wealth of
toil would then vanish more quickly than it had appeared. He
defied any man to point out a place where the Anti.Corn.law Mis.
sionaries could not bud arguments as strong against this system as
in the factory districts. 3very part of the country was interested, and
to every part the Anti-co:It-law League was determined to carry information on this question.—(Much cheering.)—Ne der was there
a question requiring so little clap-trap. It was the pi:shiest that he
Iliad ever spoken upon, when divest'td of the hundred thousand
things which had been winded about it for the sake of mystifying the people. He came from Rochdale, whero there were manufac-
tories of woollen and cotton, but owing to this law the cotton had
got the better of the woollen manufacture. In 1838 one third of
Our woollen manufactures went to America. At that time the
tariff was laid on, and the British Minister wrcte to say that had it
not been for our Corn-law that tariff could not have been passed.
Since 1838 not 1-20th part of our svoollen manufactures had gone
to America. The result had been a decrease of employ an wages
to the labourers, much discontent, and extensive combinations, for
the men thought that the masters had wrongfully reduced their
wages, whereas the profits of the master had also been severely
cut down, and many became bankrupts. Tne men wasted their
'efforts uselessly against machinery instead of directing them against
the abominable law which had ,been the cause of their dis.
tress, Wages, since IS3B, had declined one-half. Was it
likely that these men could live in comfort if any of them
had an additional child ? he looked upon it not as a blessing but
s's a ;curse sent from heaven.—(Hear, hear.) It used to be a
proverb in their neighbourhood, when God sends mouths lie
se, Ws food. God might send children, but the aristocracy would
riot: let th em have food —(Much Cheering.) The wide-spread and
disastrous effects of the Bread-tax were one of the most appalling
in circumstances connected with it. It would be a very small
Matter if only some dozen of brokers and manufacturers were
tumbled d own through it, In America, so customary was it for
the brokers to fail, that Wall-street was known by the name of
"" Rotten Wall_street," but notwithstanding this failure of brokers,
all the labouring population could procure an ample supply of
total. Ile knew from letters which he had seen, and from state-
Wants which he had heard, that labouring men who had gone to
A Aserica were continually exhorting their relatives here to go to
a cutintry where they were permitted to eat the fruits of heaven tura listurbed—(Much cheering)_....and yet there was no country
so Itilessen with natural advantages as this, and God had