The Sun.
London, England, 1833-04-26 00:00:00

.9A,TTJORID s' r 3

HOUSE AND WINDOW TAXES.

MEETING at the CROWN and ANCHOR.
(ContinUed from our Paper of yesterday.)
Mr. O'CONNELL said he would tell them at Westminster
to-nightof the glorious meeting that took place there to-day
—of the thousands that came together and said there was no
re-action ; that would be an answer to those who said the
people were satiese d with Reform—that they had now
sunk back into their own private concerns—that no man
now minded politics any longer—that they did not care
whether Mr. Peel or Mr. Stanley was Minister, and that
they bad other business to attend to. Why this was
their business, if they were minding it. What could they
say to the people now ? They would now see the people
were doubly determined to come forward and demand a
repeal of the assessed taxes. The electors of Westminster
bad returned a Cabinet Minister to Parliament ; but it
was only in appearance. He hoped they would show them
that it was only in appearance, by their determination now
to make their rept., sentatives vote for the suppression
of these taxes.—(Bravo.) To say they wished to
have those things done, and yet not to take the trouble
of seeing it was done, would he, fir the first time, in
juring the characters of Englishmen. Freedom and
honesty were to him dearer than anything. He kopee
the electors of Westminster would show, by their conduct
this day, that it was their determination, as honest men,
to have all slavery struck down, and that they would have
justice done, by allowing the honest man to have the enjoy-
ment of his property unmolested ; and that they wished to
see that speculating knavery which preyed up to high
places, and plumed itself on what it called high
law, wrung from it, and justice in every place
substituted, in the place of the base service by which
polititical intricue was governed.—(Hear, hear, hear.)
The way to disarm their enemies was to insist on the abo-
lition of those taxes. Could any man say that such a
tax should be permitted to intrude itself between the people
and the rx trcise of their franchise.—(Cries of " Ho, his.")
Why was it ti at the people should be driven to go abow
among their neighbours all round the country. and get up
pub in tneetinge, making one universal cry from the land's
end to Julio Gr. it's house, of •t Down with the assessed
taxes ; liberty for the people, and protection for property "
He was obliged to leave them to go to a place wnere he
was endeavouring to get a better grand jury system
for Ireland—and Gad knew that it was much wanted—
hut he could not reconcile himself to go there until he had
first attended, and declared to this meeting that in him
they might find an untalented and ungifted, but a per.
severity and determined ft iend to their liberty and hemp-
neisa.—(Cheers.) They bad at all periods of the English
history proved themselves equal to uphold their just rights,
the question now was whether they would be satisfied
wish the mere Reform Bill, or would make a Waterloo
victory of it, when the cry was " Don't stop till you get
to Paris." He exhorted them not to stop till they got to
Downing•street.—(Loud cheers.)
The CHAIRMAN here read the resolution, but he was
received with laud expressions of disapprobation.
Mr. HUME felt anxious to address a few words to the
meeting, as it sus necessary for him to attend a committee
sitting to enqure how the expense attending the Houses of
Parliament might be lessened. They were aware that he
fully agreed with the objects of the meeting. They had a
right to obtain a relief from a partial and oppressive tax,
which, instead of pressieg alike on all classes, pressed
peculiarly on the middle class. He had seen instead of a
eystem of amelioration adopted, agents were sent through•
out the country, carrying with them a system of oppres-
aion.—(Shame.) He would read the resolution, which
stated

"3. That the enormously expensive machinery attend-
ing the collecting and levying of these obnoxious taxes,
together with the harassing and irritating system of
making surcharges on the original assessment—the only
means of attempting a remedy against which, has been
an appeal to the local commissioners, who, acting miner
forced interpretations of obscurely worded Acts of Parlia-
ment, are unable to grant relief from such unjust sur-
charges—render it utterly impossible that such an op-
pressive system of taxation, with all these attendant evils,
can longer be endured.
In all pat is of the min' ry there w; s tEs double mischief
of levying an oppressive tax, and taking a larger sum from
the pockets of the people for collecting it than any other
tax.—(Shame.) It was, therefore, one of the first taxes
which the Chancellor of the Exchequer ought to grapple
with, and be hoped, after the demonstration of 'eeling at
the present meeting, that the Noble Lord would give that
substantial relief, instead of giving a window here and a
window there.—(Laughter and hear.) Fifteen years ago
the people might have been content with a reduction of
bait a million, but the reduction now required must be
such as would give a large and immediate relief.—
(Cheera.) They must looK on the state of affairs and on
taxation in a different light from what they had done, and
trisile be admitted, that, with the present system of
manygernent, Lord Althorp could not have gone fur-
etißr than he bad done, yet what reform was so
snueia wanted for, was that there should be a change in
the systein.—(Cheers.) In 1792 the expense of the army,
vary, ordnance, civil list, &c. was only 6,000,0007., while
II was now 22,000,0001.—(Cheers, and " Shame.")
They had 50,000,000/ of taxes to raise, hut after p tying
the public creditor 88,000,09( 01., they had 22,000,000/.
ao work on, and yet they could not get relief from more
than one million ! They would have then a surplus of
half a million, which should aiso be applied to reduce the
burdens, and he was confident the matter was not so dif-
ficult but they might take another million or two. It was
only the will that was wanted.—(Cheers.) The people
were in a condition to demand that which they had been
riven to understand would be the result of the Reform
Bill, Yig. a good and a cheap government.—(Loud
cheers.) They were not in a condition to act tow irds
aerain nobles as objeats of charity, while they levied taxer
apoa the poor and friendless.—(Cheers.) It was incon-
saes-mit with the wishes and interests of Englishmen to
give pensions to those who had performed no service—
Cheers)—and the time was come when they must have a
ebatige in the system. The admission which had been made
by Ministers in their correspondence with the East India
Company, was most important; in that correspondence it
had been stated that the governors could not reduce their
expenses; to which Ministers replied, take away born them
their supplies, and the governors would soon reduce their
expenses.—(Hear, hear.) He hoped that the meeting
would hot allow une lute to be laid down by one Set of men
said another by another.—(Hear.) He called upon Mi-
niste:s to act up to their own declarations.—(Hear.) The
army of she country was five times the extent that it was
in the time of war. Was that to be tolerated ? Was there
any thing, he would ask, to be apprehended to this coun-
try from the great guns of Russia or Prussia, especial),
when they h.d an ally in France! No such thing. Then
why was so large a standing army to be kept up? The
present Parliament had disappointed the people ; they had
acted far otherwise than the people bad a right to expect ;
but while he made that etatement, Fe was bound to con-
fess that nianv Hon. Members who had voted with Mi-
nisters bort dune so with the declaration that they were
anxious to give Ministers an opportunity of showing what
trey meant to do. The people must be determined in
their oemand fur the reduction of the whole tf this two
and a half m.laons ; they must state that they would be
satisfied with nothing eke; and if Ministers s lid, we are
aft aid we cannot part with so large a sum, they should
be told that they must do so, or others could be found
that would.—( Hear, hear.) It was fur the protection of
the property of the country that the great debt that now
exiateed was contracted ; and was it not, therefore, hut fair
and just that that property ought to bear the atuden, and
not the preaNerave industry of the country.—(Clieers.)
If Ministers were desirous of doing it, there were plenty
of means of taking off these taxer, and he trusted that the
Meeting of to-d .y, followed, as he had no doubt it would
he, by many others in different parts of the country,
would show them the necessity of adopting such a course.
Mr. SAVAGE, in seconding the resolution, observed that
the country had been disgraced by the incapacity of the
Noble Lord who had brought forward the budget. Ile,
with a deputation, !sad seen that Noble Lord that morn-
ing, and had stated to him, that if he did not relieve the
people they would relieve themselves.—(Hear.) Why
avere tlitee taxes kept on—was it because Ministers
wanted them ? 10 ; but because they had a country
party too strong for them in the House of Commons.
The millions residing in town had a right to have their
grievances redi essed—( Ca eei s)—they did more labour
by far than the cogs and horses of the Aristocracy.—
(Hear, hear.) Would those, he would ask, who threw
the Duke of Wellington out of power in 14 days, give
their confidence to them who had acted as Ministers had
done ?—(Hear, and cries of " No.") That Noble Duke
would never have insulted the people of England by
bringing forward such a proposition as that which had
been brought forward by the present Chancellor of the
Exchequei.
• But Ministers might say—what could we
do ?He would tell them—in the first place, send the
bastards of the AtilituCf.ley packing—do justice to Ireland
e—do a thousand other things. Everything might be done
with the people, but nothing without them.
The CHAIRMAN, amid great uproar, put the resolu-
tion to the meeting, and declaredit to be carried unani-
mously.
Mr. ROBINSON, 11I.P for Worcester, in moving the
fourth resolution, holed the meeting would allow -him a
short period of their time while he stated to them the
important subject on txhich they were assembled time tc!