The Sun.
London, England, 1844-05-30 00:00:00

MEETING

AT COVENT-GARDEN THEATRE.

The usual weekly Metropolitan meeting of the
members of the Anti-Corn-law League took place
yesterday evening, in Covent-garden Theatre. The
dooms were opened at seven o'clock, and within a very
short period afterwards the theatre was crowded in
every part. The interior of the theatre presented a
very gay and lively appearance; the boxes were adorned
with banners, and the back of the canopy over the
stage was decorated with trophies composed of
armour tastefully arranged, while banners-were sus-
pended in double rows from the. prosCenium. These
decorations had been used in fitting up the theatre
for the Bat Masque on Monday evening, and had been
suffered to remain. At half-past seven o'clock, Earl
Dude entered the theatre, accompanied by R. Cob-
den, Esq., M.P., T. Milner Gibson, Esq., M.P., and
various other active members of the League, who
were loudly cheered as they passed across the stage
to their places.
Among those present we noticed :—Somers Her-
ford, Esq., Major-General Briggs, Sir William
Baynes, Bart, Col. T. P. Thompson, Capt. Duberley,
Dr. Cooke Taylor, Colonel Tucker, Messrs. W. A.
IVllkinson, 3. Spowars, Isaac Hadwen,Henry White,
William Fuller, G. Hyde, D. Dewar, H. Wedgewood,
T. Jobson, Charles Mackay, Andrew Doyle, G. J.
Dixon, J. Faulkner, J. S. Ashton, W. Elliott, T.
Oxford, S. King, Lattimore (Wheathampstead), W.
M‘Mullen, Professor 0. Byrne, J. E. P. Dean.
(United States), J. Thomson, W. Falconer, W.
Thornborrow, John Leach (Watford, Herts.), Wm.
Snelling, Thomas Dean, H. Crooks, P. Fairbairn
(Leeds), T. H. Potter, J. T. Daun (Nutfield), Jo-
seph Glassyer (Brighton), Wm. Brady (Dewsbury),
H. Crosfield (Liverpool), Jos. Bennett (Hitchin,
Herts), James Clarke, Thomas Bull, W. Robertson,
Edward Holland (Dumbleton, Worcestershire), T.
Schunek (Manchester), John V. Lyons (Cork), A.
Fellot Osler (Birmingham), Thomas Ruston, C. S.
Crowley, J. Angus, Henry Cove, P. A. Taylor, J.
De Silva, R. W. Cole, W. Egan, W. J. Johnson,
James Clarke, James !Latham (Leeds), Joseph Har-
ris, J. W. Fletcher, Jonathan Harris, Joseph Cran-
stone (Hemel Hempstead), Joseph Bennett, Martin
Robinson (Horley, Surrey), John Jackson (Halifax),
John Harris. _ _

The Chair was taken by the Right Honourable
Earl Deicie.
The SECRETARY then read the minutes of the last
meeting, which wore confirmed on the motion of Sir
W. Baynes; seconded by G. S. Crowley, Esq.
The CHAIRMAX then came forward, and was re-
ceived with loud cheering., which having subsided, the
Noble Lord addressed the meeting as follows—La-
dies and Gentlemen—ln rising to open the business of
this evening, I must honestly confess that I do not do
so without experiencing some embarrassment at the
siotvel situation in which I find myself placed.---cflear,
hear.) I assure you it is a very different thing to
look at the stage from the boxes, and to look at the
boxes, filled as they now are, from the stage—(Cheers.)
J am also the more surprised at finding myself here ;
although I fully admit that "all the worlds a stage ;"
yet so indifferent an actor have I been upon upon the
jereat stage of the world, that I hardly thought it pos-
eeible that I should have been called upon to
svp
ever, e:lr open this occasion. Having been called upon
h o
_I felt it incumbent upon me to appear here,
from this cooeMeration— I consider it to be the im-
perative duty, nuE only of myself, but of all those
who hold that the corn-laws are absurd in principle
and abominable in practice--I consider it the duty of
all such, however feeble may be their talents or their
means, to throw themselves into the scale, in order to
do the utmost in their power to weigh down that
powerful opposition which we have met with, which
we do meet with, and which we shall meet with,
be:eve we attalu our object.—(Loud cheers.) There
,„„,:•lier consideration, also, which makes me the
less unwiL;qg to appear upon this stage. That cons
sideration is. Lam et never has there been performed on
the boards of this tilee,re a tragedy of so deep a dye.
(Here there was some co:efusion created by persons
attempting to force their way into the theatre, which
was crammed to excess. In the Pildst of the con-
fusion created by this circumstance, some one called
out, " Do you think, because we were beat is South
Lancashire, we have lost our cause 'I This sally was
received with cheers and laughter, and contributed to
restore good humour. The confusion having sub-
:sided, the Noble (thairman proceeded :—) I was re-
=larking, that never had tragedy of so deep a dye
bean represented on the boards of this theatre—
never hal it entered the thought of the
poet to invent, or by fiction to add to,
the facts of history, horrors so appalling
.or misery so devastating as that which has been
eworked by the influence of that accursed corn•law
eeilich we are met to repeal.—(Loud cheers.) Al-
thbugh this law is painful to contemplate, when we
consider the effects which it produces, yet you will
permit me now to follow up the theatrical simile,
-there is much about it which is richly ridiculous.
'There is much of genteel comedy in the manner 'in
'which Sir Robert Peel manages his supporters by
playing on their hopes and fears in respect of this
.corn-law--(Cheers and laughter)—or rather I shoUld
:say there is a good deal of low comedy in the way in
which the Right Hon. Baronet coquettes with his
ttwo mistreases—his vague love—free trade in the lib-
stract—(Cheers)—and his more meretricious mistress
—monopoly.—(Cheers and laughter.) Any one who,
thirty years hence, shall look back upon the course
of corn-law legislation, will see as much broad farce
in relation to it as has ever produced shouts of
laughter in this house. But you may say you talk
.of looking back thirty years hence. You, therefore,
lbelieve that the corn-laws will be repealed before
dirty years are over. Undoubtedly I do.—(Cheers.)
No man in this theatre can entertain a doubt on the
subject. Not only those who contend that the
corn-laws are evil, and ought, therefore, to be
repealed, but those who support the corn-
laws admit that they must go.—(Loud cheers.)
You may ask me how they must go—why they
!must go—and by whom they must be repealed? I
.cannot. tell you that. I will net tell you when they
'will be repealed, how they will be repealed, or by
'whom they will be repealed. Are they to be re-
,pealed by those who are in favour of a fixed duty?
If think not. Will Sir Robert Peel and his rip-
poders--those who are opposed to a fixed duty, i but
who support a sliding scale—will they repeal thin ?
Hardly. Then I know not where we are to go,
unless, as a forlorn hope, we turn to Young England.
_(lronical cheers and laughter.) I have not an 7
great hopes of them.—(A laugh.) I know .not if
: any of you have read a poem which has recently been
;produced loy a brother of that fraternity. It is enti-
ttled "England's Trust," and the poet thus speaks of
Eogland
Yes, I could bear to see her crowded towns
oink into hamlets and unpeopled downs."
No doubt, he was a very courageous gentleman who
saidthia; he_ could bear to see many things which
-others- might shudder to contemp?ate. But the poet
-went
-wealth, commerce, law, and learning, all may die;
But give us"—
What? It must be something very valuable indeed,
Lae would imagine, that the Noble Lord who wrote
these lines proposed to be given in exchange for
wealth, commerce, law, and learning ; but no such
thin --
"But give us still our old nobility."
—(Loud cheers, and roars of laughter.) Certainly
:it must be a great satisfaction to any country to be
:ruled over,by people who could tell who were their
Lgrandfathers—(A laugh)—but it was certainly pay-
leg too-dear for such a gratification to sacrifice corn-
/Deice, wealth, law, and learning.—(Cheers.) I will
tell you hoW the corn-law must be repealed. It must
repelled by yourselves.--(Loud cheers.) Never
,eut down by defeat.—(Cheers.) Continue, in sea-
a;-Id r -Id out of season, in pressing your doctrines upon
itt ae
•
ne,u,ple, and m teaching the people the interest
which the v have in this question. See that tht great
m n. -tfee, towns are alive to the doctrines Of Issie
trade. sea itat at the next election they ,return
free-trade menehers to Parliament.—(Cheers.) See
:more especislly" that London does its duty.--7(Loud
the corn-laws will. be repealed.
(cheers.) In that "way
(Loud cheers-) And rem.ember.this,. that there is
no man, however humble his station, however mo-
derate his stbilitles, who may not hy his own indi-
vidual exertions, and by his energetic Bate
tof our
estent, accelerate the time
proceedings, to a certain
of the repeal of the corn-laws.—(Loud cheers.)
I have this feeling strongly upon me, and that is the
only ground upon which I have presumed to. appear
before such an assembly as this. I feel that it is the
duty of every man to do what little he can to en-
lighten his neighbour upon any subject with which
the may be conversant. It is that alone which has
"u.:luced me to oirer you a few observations.—(Cheers.)
151. doubtedly in great towns, and more especially in
tEn.ii great metropoli4, there must be a vast mass of
peo "la who are unacquainted with agricultural sub-
Ject'ie and it is not at all unnatural that those persons
slieuid (eel alarmed when it is continually and re-
peatedly 'tsielng dinned into our ears, by our oppinents,
that a repe. lof the corn-laws, must ruin the agri-
cultural inte, Vts,
and must throw a vast tract of land
out of cultivie;lese It is extremely natural for those
erfe‘
who are not p etly acquainted with agricultural
at that, for there must be many
matters to be alannecl:he have a litti, itzd, or who
in this great sown