The Sun.
London, England, 1841-05-28 00:00:00

THE CORN-LAWS.
PADDINGTON.

A public meeting of the inhabitants of the parish of Pad-
dington took place on Tuesday in the Vestry-room, Padding-
ton-green, for the purpose of petitioning Parliament in favour
of the late Ministerial propositions of reduced duties on corn,
sugar, and timber. Mr. Churchwarden Watts was called to
the chair.

Air. RAIKES CURRIE, M.P., moved the first resolution. He
would touch upon one or two points of the subject with which
he was profeasionally well acquainted—the effect of the Corn-
laws upou the currency and the monetary system. The
sliding scale of duties prevents the importation of corn until
prices reach the highest point. Then a great overflow of fo-
reign corn pours in at once ; and what is the consequence ?
As we have no regular trade with those foreign corn growing
countries, we have to pay for that corn in gold instead of
exchanging for it, as we oth: rwise would do, manufactured
goods Very lately we were obliged to disburse upwards of
seven millions of gold in payment of the foreign corn we were
obliged to import. The consequences are, that we are ever
liable, under the present system, to a national bankruptcy—a
catastrophe which we were lately only saved from by the most
stringent measures on the part of the Bank of England in re-
straining the currency, otherwise it would have been obliged
to pay out its last sovereign.
. . . .

:qr. BENJAMIN SMA ktT seconded the resolution. The in-
tention as well as the effect of the torn-laws was to keep up
rents by keeping up the price of bread. The country had
heretofore been ruled by nio-opoly and class interests.—
( Hear.) Unless the people supported the Ministry now, they
would deserve to be deserted for ever by all who had advocated
their rights. If they did not stand by the Ministry now—il
they admitted the Tories in they might look again for the
gagging Bills of the high and palmy days of Toryism.
After some discuss on, the motion was unanimously carried.
KEMSHEANT proposed, as an amendment, 'tt '1 hat the
meeting are of opinion that there has been a wasteful expendi-
ture of pubic money, and great mismanagement in the finan-
cial departmmt ; and, likewise, considering the great suns paid
by Government to the West India proprietors, they are of opt-
mon thA any method of making up the deficiency in the reve-
nue by means which would encourage slavery and the slave
trade, is to be reprobated by the meeting."
HOVENnow opposed the amendment.
Mr. STACY supported the motion.
One or two other gentlemen having addressed the meeting,
Sir BENJAMIN HALL, M.P., in answer to a request to
address the meeting, stood forward. He said there was one
point which, as be felt deeply interested in, he could
not refrain from noticing. He alluded to the grant of
20,000,0011/. voted for the West India planters.—( Hear, hear. )
Opinion was much divided as to the propriety of that measure
at the time of its introduction, but as he (Sir Benjamin Hall)
had on a former occasion, at the passing of the Reform Bill, ob-
jected to give compensation to individuals in possession of par-
liamentary burghs, as deriving thence an unjust and unconsti-
tutional advantage, he had also deemed it incumbent on him in
consistency to vote against the grant to slave-holders, on the
ground of its being an unnatural anti unholy system.—( Hear,
near, hear.) As regarded the Corn-laws, all he possessed was
drawn from the produce of the soil; but so hostile had he always
been, and would always be, to the cause of monopoly and class-
interest., and so anxious was he to see the principles of free
trade encouraged and developed, that for his own part he was
ready to make any sacrifice that might be demanded of him for
the general good.—( Great cheering. )
After a few words from Mr. BtIAINE, the original motion
and Mr. Kempsheant's amendment were put to the meeting,
when the former was carried by a triumphant majority, arid
amid great cheering, only about half a dozen hands being held
up for the amendment.
A Committee was then appointed to draw up a petition, em-
bodying the motion, and to use the necessary means for having
it signed and forwarded for presentation ; after which thanks
were unanimously voted to the Chairman, and the meeting
broke up.