The Sun.
London, England, 1844-05-09 00:00:00

MEETING

AT COVENT-GARDEN THEATRE.

The usual: weekly meeting of the League took
place -last 'night at Covent-Garden Theatre. Long
before the lic;ur appointed for the commencement of
the business' the theatre was filled in every part. At
half-Pia *Seve•ri o'clock the chair was taken by H.
Warbtirton,,Esq.; M.P..for Kendal, who was received
with lond cheers: • Among those-present we observed—
ThellOn.. Q. Pelham Villiers, M.P. ; Benjamin
Smith, 111. P. ; Richard Cobden, Esq., M.P. ;
Professor•Lieber ; Robert R. R. Moore, Esq. ; Hon.
E. P. BouVeriei Colonel Tuckett ; W. A. Wilkinson,
Es_q. ;P. Taylor, Esq. ;W. S. Burton, Esq. ;
WilliaM HaWes; Esq.; William Graham, Esq. ; John
Evans, Esq..; Dr. Cooke Taylor ; T. Sharwood,
Esq. ; G. Dunn, Esq. ; Chapman, Esq. ; J. Coul-
thard,Esq. ; C. J. BroWne, Esq. ; T. Poulter, Esq. ;
Jobn Lalur,. Esq. ; William Leaf, Esq. ; Major Reid
Revell.; J-Priss, Granger, Esq. ; Rev. E. Muscutt ; J.
B. Scott, Esq., 'Manchester ; Thomas Allen, Esq. ;
James -Clarke, • ,sq. ; Thomas Browne, Esq.; John
Gibbs, Esq., Aylesbury ; William Starling, Esq. ;
William Elliott, Esq.; Samuel King, Esq.; W. A.
Smith, Esq.; Michael Sal,vard, Esq.; Samuel Wat-
son, Esq. ; A. Colquhoun, Esq. ; J. Chalmers, Esq. ;
'John- Brown, Esq., Warehain ; Richard Forest,
; Hen,r3= L. Keeling, Esq.; Rev. Richard Tod-
man-;-Rev. H. Mirarn ; Lawrence Rawstron, Esq.,
Manchester ; Henry Rawson, Esq., Manchester ;
Samuel Harrison, Esq. ; James Brotherton, Esq. ;
William Henry Burke, Esq. ; J. T. Burke, Esq.,
Tottenham;. Thomas Turner, Esq., Bridgewater;
11. R. Marriott, Esq. ; W. Thornborrow, Esq. ;
Geesin, Esq. ; John Macfarlane, Esq., Edinburgh ;
S. Holbein, Esq.; It.. 0. Fuller, Esq.; Robert Bag-
shaw, Esq. ;,Rev. W. J. Massie, Manchester.
Ifir4-Warburton, on taking the chair, was loudly
•cheered. • • •

The minutes.of the last meeting having been read
and approved of,
The CHAlsteti!i proceeded to address the assembly.
lie said, that, although this was the first meeting of
the Anti-corn-law League in that place which he
had had the honour of attending, yet they
, were not . to suppose from this circumstance
that he was a novice in opposition to the corn •
•la*S-------(Cheers)—for ever since the year 1826,
when he first entered Parliament, he had never failed
on every occasion that presented itself, from express
ing his decided hostility to those laws.—(Loud cheers.)
As this was the first opportunity he had had of meet-
ing 'them since he had been returned for the borough
of Kendal—(Hear, hear)—he would beg to thank the
League, thus publicly, for the sympathy which they
had evinced during the election in his favour. Not
that its aid was necessary, for he was happy to say
`that 'the electors of Kendal
:were such decided free-
traders, and had so great an abhorrence foi the corn-
leeK that he believed any candidate who had come
forward as a free-trader would have . been. success-
ful.; but, 'nevertheless, be was deeply sensible of
- the _sympathy which the League had manifested
in his • favour.—(Hear, hear.) The meeting had
beeh so often lectured on the history of the corn-
laws, and .011 their abominatiens, that it was diffi-
cult to find any new tovic connected with the subject
-on which to address them. . Ile well recollected the
introduction of those laws- in 181.5; at that time,
when_ peace' had just opened the ports of the Conti-
nent,- and when it -was expected that the price of im-
ported corn, would naturally be much lower than it
had been during the war, tho general belief of all
thinking Men, when these laws were introduced was,
that they were introduced for the purpose of throwing
impediments in; the way of the importation of fo-
reign corn, of:giving an unjust monopoly to the
growers in this country, and he was not aware that
the thinking men, from that tiThe to this, had seen any
reason to take's different view of the matter.—(Hear,
heat:) He . well remembered the agitation -which
had been put in motion . against those laws ; tl
Ghat agitation he had lent his best assistance, and
he bad never relaxed in his opposition to them fn
that time to the. present.—(Hear, hear.) The eels-
duct of the landlords on this question reminded him
of the saying of a certain General—", Give me
money, and I'll get men : or give me men, and I'll
get money ;" so with respect to the great landed
proprietors ; their large possessions gave them in-
fluence over the acts of the Legislature, and
their influence over the acts of the Legislature
they. made 'use of ..for _the purpose of adding to
their property.—(Cries of " Hear, bear.") The
, agitation against the corn-laws went on for a number
of yearsc till at length, in 1840, the League arose,
and gradually _extended- _itself among the middle
classes in every town in the emplee.—(llear, hear.)
He was very glad to find that the proceedings of the
Le to had excited antagonist proceedings, and that
there had been formed not only an Anti-League League,
'iit that protection - societies had established them-
selves among the farmers, for he knew; that the more i
the subject was discussed, the better for the League;
only let ethe'questioe be reduced to arguinent, and
the League would triumph.—(Hear, hear.) It was
_true that the great landlords, more than the farmers,
. were active in these societies and Anti-League
League, and that their cry wag, "No surrender to
argument ;'but let us stick to our rights and privileges."
But, argapert would make its way, despite the
weighty influence of the landlords—despite the ma-
jority which their power now gave them in the
-Leg;sltiturn....-(gm., hear.) Everything showed
that, howeeee, by slow degrees; the principles of the
League were making their way on to a triumphant
result..
-s-(Hear, hear.) But three years ago,' a
large- 'majority of the House of Commons
refused . to grant even the insignificant, con-
cession of allowing corn to be taken out of
' bond, for 'the purpose of being ground and
baked . into biscuits, not for home consumption,
but for exportation. Since that time, however, va-
rious concessions, most important in principle, if of
no great value in themselves, had been made.--(Hear,
hear.) There had been abatements of duties made
which opened up the most gratifying anticipation for
the future.—(llear, hear.) Look, too, at the recent
budgetl-2(Hear, hear.) Hypocrisy, it was said, in
counterfeiting virtue, paid homage to virtue ; the mea-
sures to which the Government had of late had re-
course; with reference to the principles of taxation,
' were a clear acknowledgment by the Government and
the- Executive of tho truth of the principles advocated
- by the Anti-Corn-law League.— (Hear.) That had
been done with reference to wool, for instance, in which
they carried out to the full extent their doctrines of
total repeal of. all duties b,,,aring injuriously upon the
interest and industry of the country.—(llcar, licar.)
They. had'got a material improvement in the reduc-
tien of the duty on foreign coffee, from Bd. to Gd.
F:tr,V)und, the ditty On British colonial'sugar being
4d. Per .pound.. That, no doubt was going in the
right,directiOn. As he told them before,. it was a
- homage paid to theirprinciples.
- they had been aivocatin I. t admitted that all
.
as
itwas right. However, it
only. went half WA
it
tr.eited with their, by
continuing their peaceful 3 •
no distant period, a still furtherale, to
reductioncarry out, at
of that article se essential to the in the case
work-
ing cies:sec—Meat., hear.) Thenb comfort of the
upon, foreign sugar, which was red.ueeeredAf.as the duty
34s', per cwt., the duty on British colonial from
635. to
. being 245., per cwt.; so that there was sugar
duty ,of.los. per cwt. left upon that artiCireote.crlf
however, they must expect a very considerable, i
reduction in the price of sugar,
consequent upon
- that partial reduction of duty. There were 200,000
tons of sugar imported from the British Possessions,
and the whole of the sugar grown in those coun-
tries,.from which, under the proposed change, sugar
was to be imported, amounted to 90,000 tons an-
nuallY--nearly one-half of the whole quantity that
WO imported from British possessions. It was pro-
bable that, owing to the difference of price between
tfidse two description; of sugar, the, greater portion of
those- ninety thousand. tons would be subject to a
, higher rate of duty, be imported into this country,
• arid wetild have a material effect in considerably re-
: duoitig•the price of Sugar to the British consumer.
. Viero *as another instance in which there was cause
re'ent)gratultite them on • not only in hat ing their
Prlii9lsl4"icknowJedged;but'also -on having in the
rgslAtttlen. of . the price- of sugar to the consumer,
: it'er osPeetlpf reaping the benefit.—(Hear.) He
satirtlhat because' he thought, considering all
. poettiOn. that thelandl ds .... ~_ . _ or and the West Indian pro-
:: la.F.? Pro gavo :to; this, principles f
7eo npe.toNsaretoodearcleupon a Mi 'etwho had
'if 4f- -nt.fitg4lly.carrie'd ,the.„.prin'c' lul 71*
eine eff!ct,7-... (Hear, hear.) lie-would-ot
fore2Tatiiii:
quest* Sether, on a former occasion, byg
oipnpooi,in
g

those very principles which they now carried into
effect, the Government did not supplant their prede"
cessors. It was better that those who advocated the
reduction of those duties should not mix th mselves
up with any party considerations.—(Cheer .) Let
them -endeavour, by their reasons, and by tl-e mode-
ration with which they proposed them, to gain friends
to the doctrines of free trade from all parties whatso-
ever. By that course they were most likely, within
a reasonable space of time, to carry their principles
into effect. . The greatest opponents whom they had,
he regretted to say, Were a section of the working
classes. If the working classes, with the middle
classes, were unanimous in opposing those diffe-
rential duties and sliding scales the thing would
be done at once.—(Cheers.) He could not conceive
by what process of reasoning a portion of the work-
ing classes persuaded themselves they were benefited
by monopoly. It really came to this sort of argu-
ment—the greater the, quantity of any commodity
that was to divide among the whole of the com-
munity, the less a part of that community would
have. It would be just as if he were to say to them,
the larger the space in which that assembly was
collected, the less room there would be for any one
particular individual of them. The cne proposition
was just as absurd as the other. There was no dif-
ference whatever* between them. If there was a
larger quantity of corn, sugar, and coffee, to divide
among the millions of which the population of the
United Empire consisted, and if there was every
year a greater facility for introducing more of those
commodities, was it not clear as day that that
greater abundanee ' would reduce the price, and that
the purchasing of any given quantity would be
brought more within the reach of every member of
that population.—(Cheers.) Let them he high or
low, if there was a greater quantity divided among
the whole of them, was it not clear every one would
have more? Yet., it was that obvious proposition
which certain sections of the working classes con-
vinced themselves, he knew not by what process of
reasoning, to be unfounded; What effect could the
introduction of a greater quantity of coffee, sugar, or
corn have in depressing money wages ? A great
authority—Sir R. Peel—had, on one occasion, said
that wages were determined by the competition of all
the labour of the world ; and that was the case. It
was manifest that the price of any article of general
consumption was regulated by competition. It was
the same with lahour as. with other commodities.—
(Hear, hear.) There was another fallacy which he
regretted found advocates among a portion of the
middle classes ; not with many, because the greater
mass of the middle claws were with them. But
those to whom he alluded thought that a very large
proportion of the prosperity of the middle classes
depended upon the high rents of gentlemen of large
fortuue. _ It was easy by an arithmetical argument to
settle that question. 'What proportion, to the whole
population did gentlemen of easy eircurastances, who
lived upon their rents and incomes without following
any labour, business, or profession, bear—what was
their per
.centage to the whole population? Why,
31. It _was easy to test that by the population
of 27 counties, partly agricultural, and partly
,manufacturing, of- which the details had been tho-
roughly investigated. They might, therefore, pre-
sume that as those gentlemen in easy circumstances
formed only 31 per. 'sent. of the -whole populetion
of those 27 counties, the proportion could not
be very different in the population. of the whole
empire. Could it then be supposed that the prospe-
rity of all the shop-keepers, traders, Sec. depended upon
the custom of only 3i per cent. of the whole
population ? It was really too absurd a propo-
sition-to require refutation.—(Cheers.) . The argu-
ment of persons who so reasoned, was very much
like thd argument of the boy,' who having
robbed . his • master's till, when • brought
up for judgment, said—" Did I not lay out my
thievings at your shops."—(Cheers and laughter.)
Precisely-of the same kind was the argument used by
those who would persuade them to 'let' the landlords
rob them a little more, as they could get back the
greater-portion of. it by charging them a higher price
when they got them to become their customers.—
(Hear, hear, and laughter.) There was another fal-
lacy which, however, had a certain portion of truth
in it. It was said that the agriculturists—meaning
thereby, he presumed, rather the landlords than the
farmers--and manufacturers and traders of the country
had all one common interest, and that, if by any al-
teration of the corn-laws, one class was rendered a
little poorer, it necessarily followed that the other
classes were rendered poorer. Why, certainly, if
they all thoroughly understood their own interests,
and acted up to them, he would admit that, in that sense,
they had all a common interest. So England and
France had a common interest. They ought to re-
main .at peace, and they sacrificed the common inte-
rest of both if they foolishly went to war with each
other.—(Hear, hear.) • But no one could with
reason contend that France could not reap ad-
vantages in which England could not par-
ticipate, or that England could not, reap some
advantages in which France could not participate.
In the wider sense, their interests were the same; but
in the more restricted sense, they were different. It
could not be said that one party could not be robbed,
and that another party might not receive the proceeds
of that robbery.—(Hear, hear.) It could not be said
but that inns and other establishments on the mail-
coach roads were impaired by the formation of rail-
ways. It was in this more particular sense that their
interests were not quite the same. ' He was happy,
however,: to see that a very considerable and import-
ant section of the landed interest, headed as it was
by such great names as that of Earl Spencer—
(Cheers)—Lord Fitavvilliam—(Cheers)—Lord Rad-
nor—(Cheers)—Lord pucie—(Cheers)—Lord Kin-
naird—(Cheers)--and the Marquis of West-
minster—(Loud and -prolonged cheering)—were
beginning to understand their own interest.
Why, even it was lately promulgated, that it was in
consequence of the great decline in the price of agri-
cultural produce that . the Whole fanning world
thought of nothing but agricultural improvement—
that drainage was going on, and that they were im-
porting manure even from the other hemisphere.—
(Hear, hear.) -Why, what was this but a proof
that monopoly in the case of the farmers, as in all
others, led to idleneas and ignorance, and prevented
them from finding out those real advantages which an
unassisted position would give them ?—(Hear, hear.)'
It was gradually presenting itself to their minds that
their real advantage was not to be found in protec-
tive duties, but in their own industry and in their
own enlightened study. of that branch of agricul-
ture which they were the parties to carry into effect.
—(Hear, hear.) lie was, however, very sorry to
say, that there were certain parties who very ho-
nestly wished to see the decline of manufacturers—
who thought that- by reducing the magnitude of the
manufacturing towns it was possible to make of
England a very Arcadia.—(Laughter.) They were
of opinion that by certain measures which they would
gradually carry into effect, and which would throw
discouragement.upon manufacturing industry, they
would introduce all the simplicity of agricultural life.
Now, how was it possible for a country like England
to enter into such a career as this ?—(Hear, hear.)
Why, their happiness depended, in a great degree,
upon their political power, and if that political power
was diminished, other countries would step forward
and endeavour to deprive them of the many advan-
tages which they possessed as a manufacturing power.
—(Hear, hear.) When they looked to the large
masses of the population who were engaged in the
various branches of maneacturing industry, was it
possible for them to throw any impediment in their.
way without introducing the most dreadful state of
pauperism into the country?-(Hear, hear.) What
were the poorer classes to do ? There was one mode
of proceeding for the poor suggested—they might
expatriate themselves to distant colonies. They
would thus be constantly called upon,to exercise their
long arm, not merely for the expatriation of their
countrymen, but to defend them 'in distant parts of
the world.—(Hear, hear.) How were they to
atlord them that' protection in distant places, unless
they were enabled to do so from the produce
of their con-anerce and manufactures which they ex-
ported to distant countries, and which would enable
them to pay the expenses of that protection ? They
had embarked in a course of manufactures; other
countries had done the same; and if this country
lagged behind, those other countries would wrest
from England the superiority which she now pos-
sessed—that which formed a part of the character
of every • Englishman.—(Hear, hear.) Ile believed
that every man whom he now addressed would feel
degraded if he saw This country reduced to the state
of a second-rate power. —:(Hear, hear.) Therefore,
he said it was essential to- the greatness of England
that her commerce and manufactures should be up-
held,nnd the most efficacious way for them to uphold
it was by persevering till they succeeded in fully es-
tablishing the system of free trade throughout-the
Conn try .7--(Cheers.)
ingl,fra'nVdn was Lilt
ec
Ersneeived
xtPresented himself to the meet-
ing,
commenced by sayingwiththatthehs Hon.gireatestie;iritehrudsia3simr.
Warburton,. had not asked him to address the:in' that
evening for the purpose of visiting upon them a long
speech on-the subject of the corn-laws, which he had
too often done before—(No,
he might account fol.' the' absenc
no)—hfut in order that
'ozasrcuimaew,f,arrieer,idt•st2
the present. occasion. . As thezeu
friend, the Hon, Member: for
intended to have had the honour of addressinglirtitht'
that evening, but hdregretted to.say 'that he was preen-L.'
vented from doink 50 in consequence of a dorneftie
affliction which had occurred in his'fanely. easl;er if
their earnestfriends were to have been there thatevening,
and amongst them their usual chairman, but they
were -at present in Lancashire, in order to give their
aid and devote their best energies to procure the
success of a free:trade candidate, who had been
brought. into the .fiefd in consequpice of the.elsatb
of the- late Member. - It would be useless to state how
anxious he was as to the result of that election. He

believed a more important event could not have oc-
curred in the progress of their cause ; its importance
was scarcely equalled by the election for London, and
they could not forget what vast importance was at-
tached to that election, and what a great impression
was produced by its result, not only throughout this
eountry but throughout the whole world ; for it was
hardly exaggeration to say, when they considered
what was the single question at issue on that occasion,
and what the consequences of it might be, that its
vast importance must be acknowledged wherever the
influence of British commerce extended.—(Dear.)
In foreign countries the result of that election, he be-
lieved, was looked on as the approaching decline and
downfall of that restrictive system of monopoly
which was upheld by those who professed the
truth and wisdom of the opposite principle
in the abstract.—(Hear, hear.) It formed a
leading topic in the journals of Europe and America,
and was hailed as a sign that the commercial classes
were awakening from the slumber in which they had
too long indulged. Wherever they had an enemy, the
result of that election was seen with regret; and those
who wished well to this country beheld it with joy
and satisfaction. To confirm what he said, he would
call the attention of the meeting to the notice which
was taken of the late London election, by a leading
man in the United States—a man of great talent, and
a firm advocate of free trade, and who, till lately, had
been a candidate for the Presidentship. When he
was about retiring from the field, he put forward an
address to the people, and alluded to the London
election. After professing his attachment to the prin-
ciples of free trade, he said, " that he would not aban-
don the glorious principle now that its banner was
waving in triumph over the metropolis of the com-
mercial world.—(Cheers.) No, he would maintain
the immoveable ground he so long occupied
till he witnessed the great and final victory. A vic-
tory it would be indeed, and the harbinger of a new,
a brighter, and higher civilisation."—(Hear, hear.)
That election was an example of what might be done
if the people of the country only did themselves jus-
tice, and exercised their own sound judgment. It
would give a stimulus to other countries in the di-
rection of free trade. He alluded to the London
election, because a struggle of a precisely similar na•
ture was now about to take place in Lancashire.
There was, however, this difference—that the consti-
tuency in Lancashire would be of a mixed character,
part being an agricultural, and,part manufacturing
and commercial, so that if the same result attended
their efforts, it would be even more glorious than
that of London.—(Hear, hear.) He did not mean to
say that the two classes were in conflict. He believed
the man was not fit to be at large who thought that
the agriculture of the country was not bound
up with the prosperity of manufactures and corn-
merce.—(Cheers.) But he had no doubt there were
a large class in that country who had no sympathies
with the manufacturing and commercial prosperity
of Lancashire, because all their sympathies were with
domination, and they were jealous of the encroach-
ment of the commercial classes. That class, he knew,
would exercise their influence ; but when one consi-
dered what was their business and occupation—what
was the history of the people of Lancashire—it,
it would be difficult to find an excuse for them if
they did not follow the example of London.—(Hear,
hear.) The commercial and manufacturing classes,
understood what was due to their own order and interests
as well as any other class in the community, and he
hoped they would be wise enough to avoid party spirit,
and party zeal.—(Hear, hear.) The question of free
trade had nothing to do with party. At the very,
first meeting he attended in Lancashire on the sub-
ject, he was happy to say some leading Con-
servatives took a prominent part to further the
principles of free trade.—(Hear, hear.) He re-
membered that just the same thing occurred
with regard to the Anti-Corn-law Association in
London, a few years ago. The late Right Hon.
Thomas Peregrine Courtenay, who had .been Vice-
President of the Board of Trade, who was a Tory,
but who had always been an advocate for free trade,
asked him (Mr. Villiers) whether if he (Mr.
(Courtenay) were to address the constituents of a
metropolitan borough, as a candidate, the Anti-
Corn-law Associations of London would support him.
He (Mr. Villiers) had, in consequence, consulted the
leading persons belonging to those Associations, and
they all stated that they were anxious to give Mr.
Courtenay every support, because they considered the
country to be in a state of severe distress, and that
the more markets were opened to them the greater
would be the field opened for the employment of the
people. They said they would support any man
who would support a repeal of the corn-laws; and
that in support of the doctrines of free trade they
should be glad to avail themselves of the talents and
services of Mr. Courtenay, without regard to his po-
litics. He could not believe that in the present
state of the question the manufacturers, the capitalists,
and the employers of labour could be so faithless and
treacherous to their principles, or so forgetful of the
trust reposed in them, as to return to Parliament one
who would vote for the perpetuation of that curse and
grievance of which they complained.—(Cheers.) His
Honourable Friend Mr. Warburton had alluded to
the immense importance of our maintaining our
superiority in manufactures. It was.more important
to Lancashire than to any other county, that this
superiority should be maintained. When they con-
sidered the immense population which in that county
depended for their bread upon manufactures, they
could not think without horror upon anything which
should bring such a disaster upon that place as the
destruction of manufactures. The reason why the
question of free trade had become one of so much
importance was, because they were under the appre-
hension of losing those advantages by the eagerrivalry
of other countries. They were about to try the ques-
tion at this contest.—(Cheers.) They were about to
apply a test to this great manufacturing district.
The manufacturers, capitalists, and the employers of
labour would now have an opportunity of showing
how far they were sincere in those wishes they had
expressed to promote the interests of the industrious
classes.—(Cheers.) When they supported free trade
and called out against restrictions, they said that they
opposed restrictions because, by limiting the field of
production and lowering the profits of capital, they
compelled them to reduce the rate of wages. The
question now was, for whom would they vote ?
(Loud cheers.) They objected to limiting the hours
of working, by Act of Parliament, because it would
have a tendency to limit the number of people to be
employed and lower the rate of wages. But let them
enlarge the field of production, and more employment
and higher wages would be the consequence, and
every one who wished well to the working people
would refuse his support to any candidate who would
not support the doctrines of free trade.—(Cheers.)
Never was there at any time less excuse for with-
holding their support from those doctrines than
there was at present.—(Loud cheers.) Many
might have doubted as to what would have been the
operation of the corn-laws when they were first
passed. Many might have doubted when they had
no experience, but now that they had had a long and
dreary experience of those laws, no man could expect
any good from them, and most men had experienced
evil. There was hardly a week passed in which some
of those who had hitherto supported them did not
come forward and acknowledge their error in so doing.
Those who were capitalists—in the true sense of the
word, cultivators of the soil—(Cheers)e—whenever
they had spoken out, had denounced the corn-laws as
inflicting more mischief upon them than upon any
other class. Those who had addressed these meetings
had been unanswered. They had stated facts which
had been uncontradicted. There had been different
opportunities of answering their statement, but not
one syllable had been uttered in reply to them.—
(Cheers.) They would be followed to-night by a
gentleman, a farmer, who would tell them, as
others had done, that no advantage bad resulted
to him from the corn-laws, and that he was ready
to giye them, heartily, 'all his assistance to pro-
cure the abolition of those laws, and to promote free
trade. He had only risen for the purpose of comply-
ing with the request which the Chairman had made
to account for the absence of those gentlemen who
would have addressed them, and he would now retire
and make way for some other gentleman.—(Cheers.)
The CHAIRMAN then announced that Mr. Gibbs, a
Buckinghamshire farmer, would next address the
meeting.
Mr. Gums then came forward, and was received
with loud cheers. He believed that the stage of that
theatre had furnished this large metropolis with a
great deal of information and a great deal of amuse-
ment for many years past—a variety of different
characters had there been presented before them;
but he thought they would see a fresh one there that
night.—(Cheers and laughter.) Ile had been intro-
duced to them as a Buckinghamshire farmer. Ile
was a Buckinghamshire farmer. He was a native
and resident of the principal town in the county,
living under the immediate and heavy influence of
the great Duke, who bad been so often brought
before them.—(Loud cheers and laughter.) He
had been introduced to them as Mr. Gibbs.
It was rather a delicate matter for him
to introduce himself to them, but it was
necessary that he should have some further in-
troduction. He must therefore lay aside all coy-
ness, and appear before them as a straightforward,
plain-spoken man ; and he hoped that he would be
allowed a somewhat greater latitude in speaking than
was usually acceded to those who addressed them in
that assernbly.—(Cheers.) There were two reasons
why he should give them a history of his life. The
first. was to encourage every young tradesman ; and
the second was, to show the meeting that they must
not expect anythinF, from him but plain Buckingham-
shire facts, in plain Buckinghamshire language.—
a(Cdvh.eeresres.c)ir_cAumb:utatn3ces3o.r 34 years ago, he first became
a commercial man—a man of business, under rather
farmedsHiilaellszyntoot.ptiolvairageefofarodmfeorr,
he merely
his family—his business was in another line. He