The Sun.
London, England, 1832-09-01 00:00:00

MEETING of the UNITED KINGDOM AGRI
CULTURAL ENIPLOYMENT ASSOCIATION.

(Concluded from The Sun of yesterday.)

A meeting was held yesterday at the London Tavern,
Bishopsgate-street, of the friends of the above Society, for
the purpose of taking into con4deration the propriety of
disafforesting Epping Forest, with the view of finding em-
ployment for the poor of the metropolis in reducing it to
a state of cultivation,

JOHN HALL, Esq., of Uxbridge, was called to the Chair.
Mr. Waits the Secretary, said the principle of the
present Society was that of giving to labourers a certain
portion of land. in which they would have an interest. He
regretted that the farmers generally had an ohjection to
the labourers holding these little hits of land ; but he
hoped that prejudice would ere long be removed. It was
an important consideration that, in most of those cases in
which small portions of land were thus appropriated at
low rents to labourers, those rents were punctually paid ;
and there were instances in which the labourer realized as
much as 10/. an acre. Still he thought it should be an
invariable rule that in no case should the land he let at more
than farmers' rents. Notwithstanding the punctuality
with which tho-e small tenants paid their rents, yet land-
lords were so much accustomed to a different system that
it was difficult to induce them to abandon it. Owing to
the prevalence of the cholera, and the efforts necessary to
check its progress, the distress of the poor was brought
more immediately under the cognizance of the rich. In
the parishes of the metropolis, thousands were an-
nually spent in support of those who were very unwillingly
idle; not the old and the sickly, who were the proper ob-
jects of charity, but the young, the active, and the healthy.
He trusted, therefore, the capitalists of England would
find it their interest to embark their capital in thus mak-
ing provision for their poor.
A GENTLEMAN asked what was meant to be done with
Epping Forest ? He lived there, and was desirous to
know, as it appeared their property, according to the pre-
sent proposition, was to be distributed amongst the poor
of London.

111 r. WILLS said not so. The money was to be given
to the pcor. The worthy Secretary then alluded to the
establishment of Frederick's Oord, in Holland, as a proof
of the excellence of the plan proposed now to be carried
into execution.

A good deal of impatience was here displayed, and Mr.
Wills was requested to come at once to the business of the
meeting.

Mr.WILLs, sen., then moved the first resolution, to the
effect that the decay of trade, and the increase of the
poor-rates, rendered it necessary that employment should
he found for the unemployed poor of the metropolis upon
the soil, and that it was expedient that, as Epping Forest
was most applicable to that purpose, efforts should be made
to present a petition to his Majesty, praying that he would
allow it to be so appropriated.
Mr. WELLESLEY said, it was impossible that the ob-
jects of the Society could be realized without altering the
whole domestic policy of the country. He knew that the
experiments of giving small plots of land to labourers had,
to a certain extent, been successful ; but in some cases the
desired effects had not been produced—for it was found
that the labourers became, in the first instance, small
occupiers, and then ruined paupers. He agreed, however,
that giving small grants of land to the poor labourer was
alike advantageous to the labourer and to the proprietor of
the soil. He bad made the experiment himself in Sutton,
and thereby materially reduced the poor rates of that
parish. He was, therefore, not against the principle ;
but he thought it was a fallacy to hope to carry it to the
extent proposed, and bring into cultivation all the waste
land of the kingdom. With respect to Epping Forest,
his own rights were the largest of those who bad any in-
terest in that land ; and, though never having received a
favour from any man, he would not concede to any man
any portion of his rights, though he was perfectly willing,
if it was thought that Epping Forest could be made avail-
able to the public, to give up those rights on receiving an
equitable commutation.

Captain BRENTON thought that no good could be done
with Crown lands at all.

Mr. WELLESLEY said there was another objection to
the resolution. It went to destroy a fundamental principle
of our laws, which threw upon each parish the support of
its own poor, and here Epping Forest was to be made the
location of the poor of the metropolis.

Captain BRENTON then moved that the words " Epping
Forest" be left out of the resolution.

After some farther desultory discussion, the resolution,
as amended, according to the motion of Captain Brenton,
was agreed to.
Thanks were then voted to the Chairman, and the meet-
ing separated.

RAW HIDES.
Ter Stone. a. el. tog. d. Per Stone. s. d. to s. d.
13est Heifers & Steers 2 4 2 8 I Ordinary 0 0 1
Middlings 110 2 0 Market Calf 6 0 each.