The Sun.
London, England, 1867-09-04 00:00:00

THE REFORM FETE AND BANQUET.

A general meeting of the London Working Men's
Association was held last evening at the Association
Rooms, Bolt-court, Fleet-street, in reference to the
forthcoming fete and banquet at the Crystal Palace
on the 30th inst., in celebration of the passing of
the Reform Bill—Mr. G. Potter in the chair.
The Cif AfinfAN said the first business of the meet-
ing was to confirm the action taken by certain
members of the association in conjunction with the
delegates from the trades and other societies in pro-
moting the proposed Reform fete and banquet.

Mr. STACY then moved—" That this association
endorse the action taken by several members of the
association, in conjunction with the delegates from
the societies of working men who took part in the
Reform Demonstration of December, 1866, in pro-
moting the Reform fete and banquet at the Crystal
Palace on the 30th inst., and empower the committee
to announce the fete as under the auspices of the
Working Men's Association."
Mr. WICKS seconded the resolution, which was
unanimously adopted.
The SECRETARY then stated that as secretary of
the Reform Fete Committee he had received the
following letters from Earl Russell and Mr. Glad-
stone, M. P.
"Pembroke Lodge, Richmond Park, Aug. 31.
(i sir,L_l beg you will thank the committee, in
my name, for doing me the honour of inviting me
to the Reform fete and banquet on 30th September.
As,
it however,
be o
ut of I expect to be in Ireland at that time,
my power to accept the invitation.
It would not be candid of me to stop here. I must
Still
add, therefore, that I am too uncertain what effects
Lo
enthusiastic
ic in
companion the
dark' may
for those who wish
may produce to be
a fit Lord
n Derby's
to celebrate the passing of the licforru Bill of 1867.
ad eiy-it's hn '

Among these measures
" Other measures, unconnected with the reform of
tPhaerlfivatmuerento,
are to be mentioned, in my opinion, a general, sound,
unsectarian education of the people ; the abolition
of church rates, and a redress of grievances, both in
fapthpiesar to
country. me
to be necessary to assure
regard to the relations of landlord and tenant, and
of the maintenance of the Church of the minority,
of which the Irish, as a nation, justly complain.
Upon all these measures the present Government
will, I conceive, use the influencethey have acquired
to resist and suppress those remedial measures which
in my judgment, are absolutely essential for the fu-
ture welfare and honour of the United Kingdom.
" I beg you will submit this letter to the com-
mittee, and remain, your obliged and faithful ser-
vant, " RUSSELL."
The letter from Mr. Gladstone was dated from
" Hawarden, Chester, Aug. 27," and after refer-
ring to his attendance at the proposed banquet,
about which negotiations are still pending, goes on
to say : _

"It appears to me that such a celebration as your
committee propose is amply justified by the great
extension of the franchise which has been given by
the act, and that it will tend to create an enhanced
sensewhich it imposes, as well as the
powers tnde duty
privileges
it
confers. Of course, your
satisfaction would have been more complete had some
other parts of thesubject, and especially the redistri-
bution of seats, been treated in the same comprehen-
sive manner as the borough suffrage, and had the
enfranchisement in boroughs not been connected
with provisions so inconvenient and irrational with
respect to the payment of rates through the owner.
—I have the honour to be, sir, yours faithfully,
" W. E. GLADSTONE."
The Secretary said he would take this opportunity
of stating, in reference to a paragraph appearing in
an obscur3 weekly
Paper of last Sunday, and copied
into some of the daily papers, that the name of no
member of Parliament had been used in connection
with the proposed banquet but on the authority of
his own, handwriting. The resolution adopted by
the association that evening, approving the proceed-
ings of the committee, was a refutation of the other
portion of the paragraph in question.
Mr. PACKER then moved, and Mr. Thomas
l a That
Fund this association, seconded, the following resolution, which was car-
ried :I—athyehlegstathbe-
ishhent
legitimate expenses and promoting the return of
a,sso to
bea t i o
devotedu reco t eo nd p
working men to the reformed Parliament as the re-
presentative of labour, and that the committee be
instructed to prepare a plan for Working out such
proposition, and submit the same to a general
meeting of members for approval."
On the motion of Mr. Pardoe, seconded by Mr.
Adams, the sub-committee on labour were requested
to consider the propriety of at once convening a
delegate meeting of the London trades' societies, to
take into consideration the position of those societies
consequent on the state of the law respecting
picketing, .as laid down by Baron Bram well at the
late trial of the tailors at the Central Criminal Court.
The.rneeting then closed with a vote of thanks to
the e.h4irmaa and the Reform Fete committee,