The Sun.
London, England, 1844-04-10 00:00:00

were then listening to him. " ks," said they, " but
every sack of flour and cask of pork brought to this coun-
try will be to our injury; it will by so much reduce the price
of my stock and the amount of my gains." But the far-
mers should recollect that the people of this country
were not all fed. It was because not less than 10,000,000
of the population of Great Britain and Ireland—for he
always considered Ireland a part of his own country—
(Cheers)—were never fed at all upon meat, that he and
his friendS of the League advocated tne entire removal
of all taxes upon human food.—(Cheers.) He knew no
place in the kingdom where all the elements of prospe-
rity showed themselves so clearly, so manifestly, as they
did in Wolverhampton and its neighbourhood. Free
trade was all that was wanted.—(Cheers.) Why, they
had every thing about them. They in Manchester had
to go to America for every ounce of cotton they used,
before they could begin to work ; they in Wolverhamp-
ton had their materials at their very door, at every step
they kicked them before them.—(Cheers.) They had
skilled hands and skilled fingers. able to manufacture
articles from a steam-engine to a grate, and doe n to a
needle; and yet here they were, with all these advan-
tages, with their hands tied behind them by a parcel of
senseless squires, who knew nothing and cared nothing
for either them or their interests.—(Cheers.) It was
true, however, that they had even amongst themselves
people who stood by the corn-Iw, and why ? Because
it was termed a party question. There would be just
as must sense in maintaining the old system in astro-
nomy, that the sun goes round the world, and not the
world round the sun, because Newton, Copernicus, and
Laplace made it a party question, as making the re-
peal of the corn-law a party question. He could only
compare it to an absurdity which occurred in their own
House of Commons. A discussion took place upon the
subject of lighting the House. Some Honourable Mem-
bers maintained the superiority of the Bude light, and
others contended for a different mode of illumination.

However, at length a division occurred, and, strange
to say, the Tories walked out at one door, and the
Whigs at another. It was a party question.—(Laughter
and cheers.) Mr. Cobden concluded by saying they
knew the object of the League. Too many kind things
had been said of himself and his friends. They had
certainly done what they could ; but the League would
be entirely powerless unless supported by such gentle-
men as those by whom he was then surrounded. But
the question was not, as stated by their opponents,
whether the League was good or bad, but whether the
corn-law was good or bad.—(Cheers.) Really, as a
farmer's son ashamed to see how the farmers throughout
the country were bamboozled on this point, he conA:ssed
he was ashamed of his order.—(Cheers.) It was not the
League, but the corn-law, which was on its trial.—
(Cheers.) Now, he would advise the farmers present,
if, at any future meeting of the landlords they heard the
speakers begin to abuse Cobden, to interrupt them by
saying, " Please tell us how we are benefited by the corn-
laws—that is what we want to know—we want to hear
nothing of Cobden."—(Cheers and laughter.) He (Mr.
Cobden) cared little for the abuse heaped upon him,
Such scolding as generally proceeded from the squires
was, indeed, entirely unworthy of the tea-table of a
ladies' boarding-school. The squires, on these occasions,
were the laughing-stocks of the whole kingdom.—(The
Hon. Gentleman concluded a long speech amidst vo-
ciferous cheering.)
Mr. R. R. MOORE being introduced by the Chair:nan,
next addressed the meeting, and detailed the progress
of the League.
A subscription was then entered into, amounting to
upwards of 6001., exclusive of 1501. from Mr. Villiers
and Mr. Thornely, the two Members for the borough.
The meeting then broke up.