The Sun.
London, England, 1823-02-11 00:00:00

COUNTY OF SURREY MEETING.

A'Meeting took place yesterday at Epsom, for
the purpose of taking into consideration. the great and increas-
ing distressei of the country, and the necessity of petitioning
tile Ifouse of Commons for relief from the great and insupport-
able burden of Taxation, by which the nation was oppressed;
and also for a speedy and effectual Iteforrel of the Commons
liouse of Parliament.

The Mon Sornirr addressed the Meeting in a neat
speech regarding the necessary forms to be observed.

Lord KING then came forward, and expatiated at consider-
able length on the usual hacknicd topics of reform, taxation,
&c., but without advancing any thing new_ upon either of these
subjects. He argued generally in favour of reduction of ex.
penditure in every department of the church and State; Enid,'
alluding to the strange idea of reducing the interest on funded
property, his Lordship observed, that before they touched the
property of the public creditor, they were bound to reduce all
offices, to abolish all useless places ; in a word, to inquire into
and economize in every department of the public service, with.
out sparing a penny to any man upon any pretence. His
Lordship concluded by moving the adoption of the following
Petition

" HONOURABLE TETE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
" The humble. Petition of the suffering Freeholders, Land.
owners, and Occupiers of Land in the County of' Surrey,
" SitxtvErti—Titat your Petitioners, after enduring all the
nggravaied distress which from day to day have premed upon
them with increasing weight since they last exposed the state of
their affairs before your Honourable House, in the month of
-Irebruary last, now again, with all humility, approach your
Honourable House, anti pray for that relief which your Ho-
rionrable House is alone able to afford.

" Your Petitioners most humbly venture to remind your
rforiciiirible Howie, that experience has unfortunately con-
firmed all the opinions contained in their former Petition ; that
allefirrriers 'are at this time still less able to afford the labour
neQessary to due cultiyation ; that the labourers In far greater
numbers are compelled to become paupers; that the further
fall in the price of produce, which your Petitioners anticipated,;.
has actually taken place ; and that the whole; or nearly the
whnia:of the groak produce is absorbed in taxes, tithes, wages,
tittellv WM- enentes ' Attending the cultivation of the land.
" That the relief which your lionourable lfouse was pleased
last'year, is most inadequate to the pressing netessi-
nes of your hunible Petitioners, who are again compelled, moss

humbly, to implore yOur honourable House to make a further
and much greater reduction of the burthen of Tax,ation, and
particularly to repeal the. House and Window Tax, and the
duties on Malt and other articles of the first necessity.
" Your Petitioners entertain the most decided opinion that
their present distress would never have been known, if the re-
presentation of the people had been consonant to the long set-
tled laws and Constitution of their country, they understand
that a majority of the Members of your Honourable. House is
returned by a small number of individuals, who have appropri-
ated to themselves, and to their own private benefit, those rights
which belong to the people at large. This unwarrantable Conver-
sion of a great public trust into a private property, has produced
an endless train of abuses in every department of the Govern-
ment, both at home and abroad, every where apparent in the
vicious system of boundless profusion, maintained for the sake
of the increase of patronage ; for this object, the public service
and the public servants arc paid at the dearest, and not at the
cheapest rate, for which those services could be performed and
fairly remunerated, and the interest of those individuals who
have usurped the property of returning Members to sit in your
'Honourable House, or of those who exeretse.the trade of pro-
curing*the return of Members, is preferred above every other
consideration.

" In the Army a host of General's and Field Officers/ utterly
disproportioned to the effective establishment, and unknown in
any other country, and a numerous expensive Staff, are paid
out of the produce of the taxes levied upon your humble and
suffering Petitioners, for the benefit of the Members of your
Honourable House, and of the other Rouse of Parliament, or
of their near connexions.

" In the Colonies a legion of Governors and Officers, enjoy-
ing splendid appointments, and a general studied system of ex-
travagance is maintained, and defrayed in great part from the
produce of the taxes levied upon your humble and suffering
Petitioners, for the sake of patronage, and for the benefit of the
Members of your Honourable House, and of the other House
of Parliament, and of their near connections.
In the Civil List, under the class of Foreign Ministers, a
most extravagant and unnecessary expence in the ordinary and
extraordinary charges in the appointments of Ambassadors and
Ministers with very largely increased salaries and outfits, is in-
curred and defrayed from the produce of the taxes levied upoa
your humble and suffering Petitioners, for the sake of the in-
crease of patronage, for the benefit of the Members of your
Honourable house, and of the other House of Parliament, and
of their near connections.

" In the revenue a large addition is made to the public bur-
dens pressing so severely upon your humble and suffering Pe-
titioners, in consequence of the expensive mode of collection
and management employed in that department, which alone
absorbs the sum of four millions ; a misapplication of the na.,
tional resources retained for the sake of patronage for the bene-
fit of the near connections and supporters of the Members of
your Honourable House.

" Your Petitioners humbly represent to your Honourable
House, that the pressing difficulties of the country urgently
require that all these numerous abuses in the administration of
pttblic affairs, so injurious to your humble Petitioners, but so '
advantageous to the Members of your Honourable House, be
speedily. and thoroughly reformed, and the expences of the State
reduced to the scale of former and happier times.
" In a Parliament fully and fairly representing the people,
your humble Petitioners place their only hopes of salvation
from impending ruin ; they believe that an Assembly composed
of the real Representatives of the nation will alone be able to
carry Into effect a general system of severe economy, and an
unsparing retrenchment of the Civil and Military Eetablisk.
ments, and of all Offices, Places, Sinecures, and Pensions, not
merited hy public services.
" Your Petitioners are confident that a reformed House of
Commons will have the virtue and ability to. apply the. wl.ole
of the nationel resources to the relief Of ehe public necessities,
and rather than consumate the ruin of the 'Landed Interest,
to derive resources from the Sale of the Crown Lands, and from
h • •
the excesses of that large mass of public property at present
employed in supporting the enormous Church Establishment
in England and Ireland, which may be reduced to a more mo-
derate scale, without detriment to true Religion or Morality.
" Your humble Petitioners suffering under the intolerable
weight of Taxation imposed upon them by the Acts of an un-
reformed Parliament, trust that a reformed House of Com-
mons will be able to apply the best remedy for the past, and
at the same time to afford the only security for the future,
they therefore most humbly pray your Honourable House to
establish an effectual Reform

" And your Petitioners will ever pray."

- -
Mr. LEECH seconded the motion.
Mr. COBBETT now came forward, and was received with
loud applause. lie argued in favour of Reform and the re-
duction of the Public Debt, and concluded by moving the
following as an addition to the Petition :
" Without which your: Petitioners can atve no hope of that
equitable adjustment with regard to the Public Debt, and with
regard to all contracts between man and man, which is abso-
lutely necessary to the defence of the „country againstioreign
foes', and to the restoration of its internal tranquillity.
M
r. litx NETT seconded the. amendment.
Lord ELLENDOROU GU did not altogether approve of
the Petition, and decidedly protested against the amend-
ment, which he hoped, on the ground of public, faith and aim-
mon honesty, would be rejected.
Mr. BENNETT supported both the Petition and the
Amendment.

Sir THOMAS Ti RTOW, in the midst of clamour, made some
observations against the Amendment.

Mr. T/lELWALL supported the Petition, but opposed. the
Amendment.

Mr. DENNISON spoke generally in favour of Reform.
Mr. H. Su stNEit was persuaded that Reform in Parliament
would afford no remedy for,the distresses now complained of,
whilst it would be themeans of producing incalculable miechief.
After a great deal of irregular and desultory remarks;
The HIGH SHERIFF put the question on thoPetitiou, which
was carried ahnost unanunously, tt,,Aat being but four hands
held up against It. He then put the question on the additional
words proposed by Mr. Cobbett, which were adopted by the
Meeting, thereltaving been but the sante number of hands held
up against it.
Mr. Rgx.litve then moved that five individuals should sign
the Petition on behalf of the Meeting, wit,iCh,was agreed to.
Lord ELLYIN-110,ROTIO11 said, that at a Meeting ,heid about
two years ago, the freeholders went to one aide and thinte who
were not freeltolde4l to the other. lie stiggeited that the Slime
course should be now pursued.
A number of persons said that the Meeting was a Meeting
of inhabitants as well as freehold•vs. -
Mr. Col:terve said, that the mode proposed by the Noble
Lord was not applicable ; the present was not a Meeting of the
Freeholders merely—it was a Aleeting of the Freeholders,. the
inhabitants, and the Occupiers of Land.
BENNA'r T moved that the Petition should be pre.
tented to the 'louse of Commons by Mr. Denison,;which was
agreed to. " •
- The -customary thanks were then voted, after which the
Meeting dispersed.

The Earl of SIiAr'r&SIMAY, at the request of Lord El-
lenborough, who was unable 9 attend, presented a Bill for
amending the Act of last Sesinon respecting Marriages, (his
Lordship said he mentioned this that it might not be consi-
dered as his own 13111), which was read a first time, and ordered
to be printed.
In answer to a few words said by Lord Holland across the
Table, the Earl of Shaftesbury intimated that ample time
would be allowed for the discussion of the Bill--Adjourned
till to-morrow (this day).