The Sun.
London, England, 1840-04-02 00:00:00

EVEN [N LI- EDITION

ANTICORN-LAW DELEGATES.

The Delegates again met yesterday at two o'clock.
J. B. Smith, Esq., being absent ,for a few days upon
urgent business,
Mr. JOHNSTON, of Glasgow, was called to the Chair,
when tho minutes of the two last days were read and con-

firmed.
The Secretary, Mr. S. SMITH, stated that the Petition
Committee had made another report, which was up to the
23d :31,rch. The number of petitions for total and imme-
diate repeal now amounted to 487, the signatures were
346,932; against the Corn laws 492 petitions, signatures
385,859;—while those in favour of the bread tax were,
petitions 805, signatures, 51,456.—( Laughter.)
A great number of letters from all parts of the country
were read, clearly showing that the agitation was gaining
ground in every quarter, and more especially amongst the
farmers and agricultural labourers, and also amongst the
clergy. One from Beaminster inclosed a piece of the bread
used by the labouring classes ; it was as black as coal, and
'Bard as atone.
Mr. AIeRCYD wished to be allowed to make a few obser-
vations. In taking up The Sun of that morning, he saw
it reported that the Duke of Buckingham said last night
in the House of Lords, upon the Earl of Radnor saying
the labourers in the parish in which he lived, the agri-
cultural labourers, bad 9s. per week, " If they were so well
off, what cause of complaint had they against the Corn-
laws ?"—( Hear.) Now, no one, be ho peer or commoner,
could object to have his own argument used against him :
therefore the Hon. Duke could not object to what he was
about to say. He found that, in 1706, the average price
cf wheat was 645. 10d. Now, in the same year, Sir F.
Eaden had made a minute and personal inquiry into the
expenses of sixty-four families engaged in farming labour
ia different parts of the country, which averaged 14s. ld.
...week, while his wages amounted only to Sc. lid.
I average a.week. Now, that difference they all
knew must be made up from some source—they all knew
I that in fact it was made up out of the poor-rates.—(Hear,
' hear.) That system was now abolished ; but the expenses
cf the maintenance of a labourer's family had not de-
creased---all that was profit thrown into the pockets of
the landlords. By the showing of the Noble Duke of
Buckingham, he had brought forward an argument of the
strongest nature in favour of the repeal of the Corn-laws,
which it would be impossible for him to explain away.—
( Hear, bear.) He had forgot to state the fact,
that 'wheat was now six shillings dearer than it
was in 1796, which made his argument the stronger.
He thought that it clearly appeared that our agricultural
labourers could not be so satisfied as the Duke of Bucking-
' ham supposed. He thought that all that would be neces-
sary was that they should enlighten the labouring classes
on the real circumstances of their present position.—
( Hear, hear.)
Mr. COBDEN said that there was a very important
consequence to be drawn from the remarks of the Duke of
• Buckingham, and that that remark would afford them a text
- to dwell on fur a long time. People had hitherto been anxious
to ascertain who were the parties who benefited by the
present Corn-laws, and what was the division of the spoil
—for spoil there certainly must have been. They know
that by the present system a vast deal of money had been
taken out of the pockets of somebody, and put into the
pockets of some one else.—( Hear, hear.) But no
one had yet been able to determine what were the
relative profits of the landlord, the farmer, and the
labourer, They had now, for the first time,
:he means of forming a judgment on the subject from a
fact admitted by one who was a landlord himself. It
appeared that the agricultural labourer was to be content
with 90. A week, while the best Essex wheat was selling at
82s. a (patter. !he Gentleman who preceded him had
given them a statement of the relative amount of wages i
received at present and forty years ago. The condition
of labourers had not improved since the last-mentioned pe-
riod, and they should see if the rent of landlords
had also remained unchanged. Was it not well known,
however, that rent had doubled and more than doubled
within the period to which he had referred.—( Hear,
hear.) He thought, therefore, that it would be easy to
see who were the parties who alone had shared in the
;derider which was derived from those laws which it was
/heir object to repeal.—(Hear, hear.) The Chairman of
the Salford Poor-law Union bad told him that the charge
of maintaining each of the poor in his workhouse
amounted to two shillings and three pence per week.
1,. bad, however, been ascertained that the average of each
family in this country was four persons and a half ; so
that the condition of a working man receiving 93. a week
was in reality something worse than the paupers of a work-
aneae._( Hear, hear.) He should repeat, that he thought
the observation of the Duke of Buckingham a valuable
one, and that they could make use of it for the future.
Mr. SMITH said that there were parts of the country in
;i which the condition of the labourers was much worse than
ureter the old Poor-law, but in which, however, land had
risen, since the change in that law, from 251 to 601. an acre.
Mr. JONES =aid that he thought it should go forth to the
country that it been asserted that labourers should remain
satisfied with 9s. a week. —( Hear, hear.) In the county I
of.
is Derby he hid reason to know that the costs of main- i
taming e
i risoners in the county gaol amounted to 2s. 3d. a
e cox, and he believed that their maintenance at present
cots 3•!. a week. Those labourers, therefore, who, in the !
()Onion ~f the Duke of Buckingham. had such reason to
t he content were, in reality, worse off than the prisoners of
the Derby gaol.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. limos. of Leicester, said that he wished to state a
f w facts 8,5 the results of the Corn-laws on the town from
chink he came. That town contained about 50,000 in-
Liso,itents, and one-fourth of that number were now sub-
sisting on charity.—( Hear, hear, hear.) A sub-
aertp-on of 4.0001. or 5,000/. had been lately raised
f, r the relief of the distressed cf the tcwn, but he believed
ilia. rush 1018 almost exhausted, and he could rot say how
a large portion of the inhabitants of Leicester would
henceforward be enabled to live. The labourers of Lei-
-1 crater had until now been employed during a great part of
?he year in working for the American market. From that
market, however, there was now no demand, and though
ithe Americans owed us Lirge sums they were Fre-
venxil by the Corn-last's from paying those sums
'. out of the corn of their abundant harvest last year.—( Hear,
Lea,.) The population of Leicester had not taken on the
i Corn law question till of late, and they had now a Work-
-1 ing Man's Anti-Corn-law Association which comprised
more than 1,000 persons.— ( Hear, hear.) He thought
after the termination of their efforts as an Anti-Corn-law
I League they should address themselves to the promotion
1 of civil and religious liberty, the obtaining of household
!I suffrage_( Hear)—vote by ballot, the reduction of the pro-
pry quatitication of Members of Parliament, and the pro-
motion of the greatest happiness of the greatest number.—
( Hear.) He trusted they would allow him, as a private
meeser of society, and as a political character in Leicester,
the liberty to recommend this course, and by so doing, he
thought they would not clash with the principle or design
of the association. This lie proposed to do himself, andhe
recommended other gentlemen to do the same in their re-
spective localities. He thought if they returned home and
adopted this course, they would attach to them all
Vex better part of the working classes of the country,without
whom it would be ne use for them to go year after year
to the Legislature. Since, then, they would feel assured
they did not go there as manufacturers for the promotion
of their individual interest, but were actuated by a desire
for !be advancement of society, and the diffusion of li,-
berty—he thought he should not discharge his duty if he
did net express his gratitude to the men of* Man-
cneater for the obligations they were under to
them. He was too old a politician not to know the nd-
y.oitage of attendiag to their advice, which he earnestly
hoped would be done, on this important business.
Mr. STreets said he should be sorry to say anything
that would take away the effect of the recommendation
of the last speaker, being one of those who, al-
though satisfied with the ground they had made,
Icerifeased he had little hoped to see a change effected
by the House of Commons as at present constituted.
He eaine before them in consequence ef having that
morning received a letter from a friend at Stockport,
' containing some valuable statistics relating to dear bread,
which: he would read to the meeting. There were, no
doubt, gentlemen who differed from them respecting the
Corn-laws, in conecquence of their own interests, but who
Iwould, nevertheless, be sorry to he implicated in starving
their fellow-subjects. That this was the effect of the
Corn-laws, he thought was clearly shown by the 2d and
ISI Tables He would, however, allude, first of all, to
\ Table No 1., which was—
Statement showing the proportion of the Wages of the
Country-Labourer to the price of Corn :—;