The Sun.
London, England, 1850-06-13 00:00:00

LABOUR AND THE POOR.

Last night a meeting of a very singular and curious
character took Vac° at the National Hall, Holborn, It
was a meeting called by Mr. Mayhew, the metropolitim
correspondent of the Morning Chronicle, of coster-
mongers, street-sellers, jugglers, standing paterrers.
street performers, flying stationers, and labourers.
For some time before the doors of the hall were
opened, large groups of men cf the above callings were
to be seen in Holburn inquiring one of another the ob-
ject of the meeting. At the hour appointed, half-past
eight, the proceedings commenced ; the side gal-
leries of the hall were filled with costermongers; the
end gallery was occupied by the street performers and
stationers; and the assemblage in the body of the ball
was composed of barrow-men: altogether, we should
imagine there were about 500 persons present.
On the platform, among other notables present, we
noticed many well-known London characters, via, the
tall man who relates an endless variety of conundrums
in our leading thoroughfares, the Highland dancer, in
costume, the French polisher, the man who vends the
wonderful snap, which is warranted to take out grease
stains, tar stains, wine stable, &C. &C. The entrance
of Mr. Mayhew was the signal for most vociferous
cheering.
Mr. MAYHEW, advancing to the front of the platform,
said, Gentlemen, my object in calling you here to-night
is to enable you to make a statement, in the mast unre-
served manner, of the difficulties that you encounter in
cb:aining a living by vending articles in the street. I
assure you, my only motive is to hear your hardships, and
to place thorn before the world, that the higher classes
may know something of the miseries endured by people
of your class. I have not been sent here by Govern-
meet, by Sir RoLort Peel, or any other person; but this
meeting is called by me, the cards were issued by my
direction, the hall is paid for by me, and if there are any
policemen present, they have no more right to be here
than they have to be in my private house. I can
honestly say, I telieve the meeting to be entirely free
from their presence. I implore you to keep order. I know
you can do so. We shall then arrive at something that
may tend to alleviate your hardship. I call upon the
delegate of stationers to come on the platform and
address you. _ _

A very intelligent-looking man here appeared and
addressed the meeting. He said—Five-and-twenty
years ago I first made my appearance in the streets of
London, and I can assure you the streets were then
widely different from what they are at present. My
first effort was to recite in public•houses, for I have re-
ceived the education of a gentleman; but that was not
to my liking. I then turned penny-showman. This
mode I adopted for ten years. This did not snit me, and
I tried every thing that my ingenuity or imagination
could suggest. If there are any old men here, I dare say
they can recollect, years that have long gone by, the
man who first sold the little silver spoons made to go
through the eye of a needle. I am that man. Of the
misery and privation that I have endured, no person but
men of " our class" can imagine. For weeks, aye, for
months, has the dry arches of Waterloo•bridge been my
only shelter. Am I to be despised because I prefer
getting my living in the streets to going into the work•
house? My own conscience tells me no; but am I not
so? We are driven and hunted about by the police like so
many wild beasts, and yet our only crime is to get bread
for our starving families. The man then, in a very
feeling manner, implored the meeting to keep order, that
a statement of their distresses might go forth to the
public, and, above all, to the higher classes, whereby
they might be enabled to use their influence with men
in power to help them in any possible manner. The ad-
dress of this na,.n was listened to throughout with the
most marked attention.

The costermongers' delegate then followed. He ad-
dressed the meeting to the same effect as the preceding
speaker.
The delegates from the street-performers, labourers,
barrowmen, and others followed, at the conclusion of
which Mr. Mayhew briefly addressed them, imploring
them to return peaceably to their homes.
Thanks having been voted to Mr. Mayhew fur his past
exertions, the meeting peaceably dispersed.