The Sun.
London, England, 1841-05-27 00:00:00

KENSINGTON.

• A meeting of influential Reformers of this district tookplace
last n ght at the King's Arms Hotel, to rake into consideration
the means to be adopted to support Ministers in carrying out
the literal measures they have lately brought forward,. and to
obtain a repeal of the Corn-laws. Mr. Pilkingtod, one of. the
Mogiitt ales of the district, was called .to the chair. Consi-
derable discussion took place. Ultimately a petition to Parlia.
meat. in favour of free trade and the abolition of the corn mo:
nopoly, which had teen a2rced upt:n at a former meeting, and
received numerous signatures, was trdered to be sent to Mr.
Byng, M.P., for imrredirte Tre:entation. Mr Wickham
then proposed the formation of aa Auxiliary Anti-Corn-law
Association. The proprEal was most favouracly received, and
it was agreed to take the subject mere fully into consideration
at an adjourned meeting to be held no Monday evening next,
and alao hat was the best course to be pur.ued by the Re-
formers of Kensington in the prtrent: important cri,is.

CHATHAM.
In pursuance of a requisition signel by . 197 inhabitants of
Chatham, the High Constable, stir. Joseph lopkins, con-
vened
a public meeting, to be held at the end of the military
road, Chatham, at s x o'clock on Monday ; and it was an-
nounced that Mr. Sidney Smith, the lecturer, would. attend
and address the meeting. At six o'clock a nurnerosts assem-
blage of the working and middle classes was present,
.which.
by half-past six, the time when the chair was taken, had in-
creased to many thowands. At no period of time during the
meeting, it is computed, were lee than 5,000 present—some
say 7,000. Many went away from not being able to hear the
speeches.
Mr. STEPHENS moved the
.first resolution, to the effect
" That a system of legis'ation which consults the interests of
favoured and privileged classes, instead of the community at
large,is vicious and unsound ; and that the present laws regu.
lacing the ccrnmercial intercourse of Great Britain with fo-
reign nations are ruinous, and ought imme:iiately to give place
to a more enlightened and liberal po icy."
Mr.: HAY MAN seconded the resolution, which, having been
put by the Chairman, was unanimously carried, not one dis-
sentient voice being heard.
Mr. GOODING moved the next resolution.
Mr. G. JEFFERYS seconded the resolution, whicliw as carried
with the same unanimity and earnestness of sympathy as the
former.
Mr. S. SMITH then came forward, and was received with
several distinct rounds of applause. He advocated not the
cause of faction, or party, or single interest, but of every man
in Britain. The cause he advocated embraced not Britain
alone, but that immense territory upon which the sun never set,
that owned Britain for its mitre's. It embraced nut even the
British empire alone, but universal man, who must be deeply
affected by what even concerned this country, the mistress of
the world.—(lmmense cheering.) It was not a struggle be-
tween one faction and another, but between 30,000 landowners
and universal man.—(llear,_hear.) lie stood bcfure them for
justice ; the wieows' cries were ringing in hls care; and the
orphans' tears fell:upon his heart. It was needles, to disguise it,
the present was ths question of questions; they had had the Re-
form Bill, which gave them political privilege i, but what was the
worth of that, so long as the working man was lobbed of his
daily bread? Let them have cheap bread, sugar, timber,
coffee ; and let them hive those things cheap which were
necessary for their comfort, and ho would answer for it ffiat.
Englishmen would work out thrir own political salvation:
(Loud clutters.) A tax upon bread !—upon that without which
a man must die l—a tax on existence itself—upon the morsel
that was obtained by the beggar from sweeping the crossings
of London !—and upon the milk which the infant draws•from
its mother's breast !—(Cheers.) as it necessary for him to
talk of political economy, to use- any elaborate arguments on
the subject, in a country which called itself Christian, and in
the nineteenth century. in order to teach them the unlawful-
ness of muzzling the ox that trcd out a na:ion's corn? Could
there be two sides to such a question ? Mr. 'Smith here
enumerated some instances of distress of which he
had been an eye-witness in the metropolis, and which
excited the deep commisseration of his audience. He enter-
tained no antipathy towards elegant apparel, but when he
thought of .the situation of the aristocracy and of th.e work-
ing population, 'he did feel that it would be much better that
the rich man were a little less rich, and the poor man a little
less poor. Mr. Smith concluded a speech of upwards of two
hours' duration, throughout which he was most enthusiastically
cheered, by earnestly conjuring all those who felt the evils of
this grievous system to join together, heart and hand, in the
coming contest, and return only those men to Parliament who
were the won foes of monopolists.
On the proposition of Mr. Churchwarden Panic, petitions
to both Housi-s -of Parliament, praying for the total repeal of
the Corn-law', were then ordered to be signed on behalf of
the meeting by the worthy Chairman, and presented—the one
to the Lords by Lord Strafford, the other by the Hon. Mem-
ber for Chatham, Geo. S. Byng, Esq.
The meeting then passed votes of thanks to Mr. Smith and
Mr. Hopkins, and vietly. dispersed, first giving three times
three to tier Majesty s Ministers, •
• Many of the friends of repeal subsequently met Mr. Smith
at the Chest Arms Tavern, and formed themselves into an
Anti-Corn-law Association, which there is every reason to be-
lieve will prosper in an extraordinary degree, from the general
feeling of interest displayed by the middle and working classes
of these towns on the subject.

MR. GISBORNE.—'vVe are sorry to find that a
-F.mily calamity will deprive the House during the im-
-11.307._ -;on on Sir Robert Peel.; motion,' of the presence
ra. ant 'discus,. -nt Member for Carlow.' Our obituary of
0c.4 his second son, a Commissioner of
tljty feerds the from that colony to Eng-
Police in Auttriliii on his veys„,.. 'nful intelligence on
land. Mr. Gish°, tits fEctivil the pa. --se of Commons
Tuesday evening, just alter I.d fief-141.0:e
Diu. el:ire.
and immediately set out to join his family r.N I,,Acestti.•
BRUSSELS, 'MAY 23.—His 24ajeztly by a
tree of the :list of. May, grants the sum of 4,000 ft afiel'f-veaT
to Mt. J. Linden, . a Belgian Botanist for the time, Whitio 1
lie c-11l employ in the stient fie eltedition which he intends to
tale in the etitiinmtial regions of the Lew world, and especially
in Cnl mbia ; the duration of the grant is limited to three years.
Mr. Linda, is to send to the Government collections of sFeci-
mens of natural listiery, which he may have collected, to the.
value cf at least two-thirds of the sum which he shall have re-
ceived. In the month after his return, he is to make a report
which will be puhlshed in the Moniteur. ,
BRUSS4I,s, MAY 25 —Yesterday eveniiii; the
f ont .of the hotel of the English Ambassador was splendidly
illuminated on account of the birthday of Queen Victoria.
There was a grand dinner, at which were present the Foreign •
• Ambassadors, the Delgian Ministers, M. Von de Weyer, and
other persona of distinction.
.BERLIN, MAY lb.—Letters from Russia state
that:1001.01e begioning of the spring the hostility of the Cir-
oassians • rceornmenced with i..creased vidence. In one of
their late attacks Maier-General Backinin, a muc.h.esteemcd
Ilirsian officer, was killed by a musket-shot.
1.).0 ST-OFFICE ,ORD Eft S. The increase in
'this department of Post-ohiee duty, is- very Feat, ant',
has caused immense trouble to the depity, post-masters ;•
the poundage charged to the public 'is aecounted for_to
the money-order-office. Sums sos-doe a'., to the amount
nearly,sool.; were received and paid at the Qiiard
Posf,office during the last qu4yter the 4AlouTif used. not
to exceed 20/. •