The Sun.
London, England, 1866-05-10 00:00:00

The Sunday Trading Bill.

Last evening a crowded meeting of the retail
dealers and traders of Whitechapel and neighbour-
hood was held at the Exhibition Clothes Exchange,
Houndsditch, "To protest" (as stated by the cir-
cular convening the meeting), " against the unjust
and arbitrary bill now before the House of Lords
as affecting trade and hawking."—Mr. Moss in the
chair,

The CHAIRMAN said the bill introduced by Lord
Chelmsford was a most unfair measure, inasmuch
as it did not at all affect the interest of the well-to-
do tradesman at the West-end, but extinguished
the business of some hundreds of small tradesmen,
who supplied thousands of the poorer classes with
the necessaries of life. It was true that the Fran-
chise Bill of Mr. Gladstone proposed to give the
working classes a vote, but he would ask them what
was the use of giving them political advantages
when they had no chance of providing for the neces-
sities of their own families by honest industry ? and
no chance some thousands would have if the bill of
Lord Chelmsford was carried. Political liberty
under these circumstances was a farce, more than a
farce, when a section, and not a small section, of
the community was thrown into a state of starva-
tion by the action of its legislators. This was the
first of a series of meetings, and he hoped that they
would combine to defeat the measure, which he de-
nounced as unfair, one-sided, and partial.
Mr. LEVY was sure that although the meeting
was composed of representatives of the humbler
classes, if it was made known that they would labour
under an injustice Parliament would not refuse to
listen to their prayer. (Hear.) He moved—" That
the bill introduced into the House of Lords in refe-
rence to selling and hawking on Sundays is most
unjust and arbitrary, favouring many tradesmen,
oppressing others, and deeply affecting many thou-
sands of the poorer classes."
Mr. ROHALL said this was not an honest bill. It
was introduced for the purpose of getting the thin
end of the wedge in, as the bill was one of excep-
tions, falling on the working classes only. If it
was a question affecting the observance of the Sab-
bath equally throughout the metropolis they would
not oppose it ; but it was not so. The West-end
tradesmen could do without Sunday trading, and
he was sure that the tradesmen of the East-end of
the metropolis would not keep open their shops
unless for the necessities of thousands of the very
poorest of the working classes.

Mr. MEDLEY supported the motion, and said the
existing laws were quite sufficient to put down
Sunday trading. On one occasion he was fined £2
for supplying a poor woman with bread, her husband
at the time being almost dead.
The motion was carried, as was also a petition to
Parliament in opposition to the bill.
A vote of thanks was passed to the chairman,
and the meeting, which had been of a very enthu-
siastic character, then terminated.

MISSING SHIPS.—The Erndth, from Helsingborg
to Hull, which sailed on Dec. 23, and now appears to have
put into Osterrisoer, and sailed thence on Jan. 30 ; the
Margaret, of Port Madoc, which sailed from London for
Ilaverfordwest on March 15 ; and the Speedwell, from
Plymouth to Courtown, near Wexford, which put into
Falmouth March 10, and sailed thence on the 21st, have
iwt Waco lnon herd 91.