The Sun.
London, England, 1844-02-02 00:00:00

mined that if one iota of those duties were diminished, bye-
which the rents were increased, they would not permit the
Minister to retain his place.—( Cheers and counter cheers.)
lie believed that in bygone times such intimations might
have been privately conveyed to a Minister; but
he believed that never before lead announcements been
publicly made, so indecent, so haughty, and so dictatorial as:
those which had been recently made by the landowners at their
various public meetimes.—( Loud cheers. ) They had openly
threatened that if the Minister did not do that which was the
most injurious to the interests of the country, bus which, at the
same time, increased their rents, he should he put out of office.
—( :beers. ) Such was ti}e language held by Noble Dukes
and Noble Lords at those meetings. There was no abuse
which had not, at those meetings, been lavished on the Right
lien. Baronet. For himself, he bad no wish to see the Right
lion. Baronet removed from office. He would as soon that the
Right lion Barnett should be in office as any other person
who supported the restrictive system ; but what was to him a
source of regret, was to see—lie hoped the Right Hon. Barone
would excuse the term—the want of spirit which the Right
lion. Baronet exlabited,—(Cheering and counter. cheering. )
Why did he not turn Fiend upon these eeaple—( A laugh from
the Tory benches)—why did he not show to them their utter
helplessness wi bout him.--(immense cheering from all parts
of the House.) Why did he not show to them how utterly
unable they would i.e to administer any system of Government
without him ?—( Chet( rs)—how, with all their rank, and
property, and pride, they were compelled to fall back upon
.persons of ()dent, and experiance, and capacity ?—(Loud
cheers.) If the views which the Right. Hon. Baronet enter-
tained were just and scund, why did he not carry them out,
and rely upon the people ?—( Loud chaers.) By that means
be wou'd maintain ,hat high standing, and attain that sound
rep uta'ion, for the sake of which alone he had said that he
valued office.—( Loud cheers.) Let him set at defiance that
miserable party which urged him to do that ehich would he
injurious to the county. They had not the capacity to manage
the affairs of the nation, even if her Maje-ty should send to the
Duke of this, or the Duke of that, to form an Administra-
tion.—( Loud cheers.) t%'hn wete the victims of pride on the
one side, and of avarice on the other ?- the people.—
( Hear, hear, and cheers.) Could they, then, wonder
•that, as a representative of that struggling people, his Hon.
Friend the Member for Rochdale, should make a motion to
stop the supplies and to create confusion when they were suf-
fering under- such great and erring grievances without any
hope of redress?—( Loud cheers)—or could they wonder at the
influence which his other lion Friend (Mr. Cobd,n) who
did not go so far as his lion. Friced the Member for Roch-
e( ile, whodid not desire any organic charge—could they be sur-
prised at the influence %%hi ch he had attained over the ()pinions
of the people—(Loud cheers)—when justice was thus refused
them?—( Loud cheers.) bile they re faseel to do justice to the
people, what right had they to complain of his efforts?—
(Cheers. ) Could they wonder at the power of that great
combination of which he was at the head—( Loud cheers)—
j while the people were suffering such evils and were hopeless of
obtaining redress?—( Loudetheers. ) He entreated the Right
lion. Gentleman to consider the state of the people, and if
they treated their distresses with indifference they would find
that they hail committed the greatest error that a Government
• could possibly commit.—(Cheers.)
Mr. GLADSTC)NE rose to explain. The lion. Gentleman
opposite laboured under a misapprehension. lie had made a
quotation from an article which had appeared in a recent
number of a periodical publication, and had accused him (Mr
Gladstone) of having been the author of that article. Now,
not only was he (Mr. Gladstone) not the author of the article,
but he was not aware who was the author, and he had never
read a line of it.—( Cheers and !atwitter.)
Sir JOILN HANMER said that. when the Right Hon.
Member for Wolverhampton spoke of the sufferings of the
people, he tom lied a chord which vibtated, not only in his (Sir
J. Hamner's) heart, but in the hearts of all those who sat on his
(the Ministee ial) side of the house.—(Loud cheers.) Whe-
ther the landowners were right or wrong in their political
economy the statement that they were at all regardless of the in-
terest or of the suffering of the people was untrue—(Cheers)
—an.l could be rebutted—(Cheers)—by every act of every
gentleman belonging to the landed interest who had conic for-
ward in public life.—(Cheers.) He thought it was by no
means difficult to discover some of the causes of the distress to
which the Right lion. Member alluded as worthy of being
seriously investigated by Parliament. He depended greatly
upon our fareign t rade.—Cheers. ) Now, all trade consisted in
a double gyration. Hon. Members opposite had specially
adverted to free trade, and he knew that it was the opinion of
many persons that they should establish free trade with all the
world, without the slightest regard to the duties which foreign
I nations imposed upon our productions. Now, it appeared to
him that it stood to common sense that when an import duty
was unfairly placed upon our productions by foreign nations
they must operate upon the whole course of national exchange.
The labouring population had suffered greatly from deprese
shin from whilleh they were now recovering gradually, he be-
lieved in consequence of the good harvest. Free trade was a
good thing.—(Cheer.s.) Ile only wished to see it carried
into effect—(Cheers)--when he denied that that was free trade
which dist egarded the impediments thrown in the way of trade
by other nations. lie knew that many high author-oh s were
against him—he knew that Mr. Deacon Hume had said that
it would be fir their interest to diminish all duties on their im.
ports, regardless of the conduct of foreign countries in that re-
spect; but, with all respect fcr that gentleman, he must beg
leave to deny the conclusions to which he had arrived.—( Hear,
hear.) lie hoped the Right Hon. Baronet would follow up the
line of policy which he had commenced last year, of treating
the colonies as integral parts of the mother country. With the
colonies we could always have free trade, without any fear of
hostile tariffs ; and, considering their variety and extent, there
was scarcely any commodity which we could not obtain
ft= our colonies. He trusted to see our colonial trade fully
developed,, and our trade with foreign countries increased, on
the reciprocity principle, and by that means the demand
for labour in this country would be increased, and its indus-
try developed. lie hoped that the demand of the
people in Ite42, when, unfortunately, instead of exhibiting the
effects of their industry, they were forced to show their desti-
tution ire the public streets—he hoped that the demand made by
the people of a fair day's wages for a fair day's work would
never be obliterated from the minds of the Members of that
house.—( Cheers. ) Any man who could forget it was un-
worthy of a seat in that House.—( Cheers. ) That question
was at the bottom of all the evils of our social system. He
loped the attention of Parliament would be ermstantly directed
to tt ; and he considered that the colonies afforded a constantly
incr.. wing sphere For th.. en.rloy:nput of ,ur capital and of our
labour, and he trusted that through those means the desires of
the people might be accomplished.—(Cheers )

Mr. GIBSON rose to explain. He should he curry to
misstate or misunderstand the sta'ement of the Right lion.
Baronet. Ile had understood the Right. Hon. Gentleman to
soy, in reference to a change in the corn-laws, that he did not
contemplate any change, but. he did not understand him to say
hat the maintenance of the corn-laws s betted permanently
form a part of his policy, or that be would, under every cir-
cumstance, adhere to the protective system.—(Cheers. ) He
did not understand the Right lion. Berm-let to say that he
would maintain the present corn-law system as part of his po-
licy.— (Cheers. )
Mr. SCAR LETT thought it. was singular that on the first
occasion on which a gentleman connected with the Anti-
Corn-law Ceague should have addressed the House during the
present session, he should have accidentally, no doubt, misre-
presented the declaration of the Right lion Gentleman. He
congratulated the House or, what. had taken place, as he con-
sidered it of the utmost importance that the declarations: of
the Right Hon. Baronet should be resoled from the misrepre-
sentations of the Anti-Corn-law League. He distrusted the
Anti. Corn-law League, and no one who had not wit-
nessed it would believe the state of vexation and irri-
tation which the proceedings of that League had in-
flicted on the country. It had prevented the outlay of
capital on land, and had impedA the improvement of agricul-
ture. it had been stated that the League intended to interfere
in the election of Members to that House. fie took that
opportunity of protesting against such conduct as a gross breach
of the privileges of that. House. —( Cheers and laughter). If it
was a gross breach of their privileges for a Veer to int, tiers in
the election of Members to that House, how much more was it
a breach of their privileges for any body of men to enter into
a great combination—a conspiracy to raise money for the pur-
pose of inte;fering generally in the election of Members of
Parliament? Such a body was never before known, tor could
it long exist consistently with the public safety. It was attempt-
big to sow dissensions between a'l classes of the country, to in-
timidate the I. gislat ure, and to unsettle the public mind upon
great questions lately sett'ed by l'asliament, in contempt of
Parliamentary authority. The authors, the promoters and the
subscribers of the League, taking upon themselves, as they did,
a sort of dictation to the country, ought to he regarded as en-
gaged its a great criminal conspiracy, deserving of every dis-
couragement and of every mark of displeasure.
Mr. MUNTZ said he felt that he should not be doing his
duty to his constituents and the country if he suffered the
speeches of the Right Hon. Baronet and the Noble Lord to
pass wi•hout obseevati ,n. Ile had learned to his surprise that
they were all in a state of prosperity. It was singular that he
always heard the best report of affairs away from his own
town. With all the boasted improvement, however, there was
scarcely any alteration in the price of manufactured articles,
and no one article had advanced in price up to that moa
merit, and some had even been reduced. The question
of mployment was a question of profit. The middle
classes were glad to be the medium of feeding the
lower, but then they themselves must receive some profit
in return for their investments.—( Hear, hear.) He would
advise the Right Honourable Baronet not to halloo till he
was out of the wood.—( Hear.) An advance in prices—sueh
an advance as would secure a fair remuneration to the em-
plojer—was necessary to seeurepermanent prosperity.—( Hear.)
A good deal bad been said about improvemeot in the state of the
revenue. Undoubtedly it was nothing but right that the income
should be equal to the expenditure of the country, and he
had supported the property-tax, because he believed that that
mate of increasing the revenue was less open to objection
than many others. But when they considered the sum which
hod been raised by the property-tax, and added to (hie the
Chinese money, he did not see that there was any great cause
for congratulation. If those sources of income did not exist,
where would be the increase ?—( Hear, hear.) It was scarcely
to be supposed that the Noble Lord anti the Right lion. Ba-
ronet knew any more about the state of the country than they
were told, and no doubt they believed in the alleged improve-
ment ; but from his own knowledge he was enabled to state,
that sa nicely were the English balanced with foreign manu-
factures, that if they were to rise only two-and-a-hall per cent.,
the English trade would materially suffer. Let them not boast
or brag of improvement until they saw that it was based on a
permanent foundation.
Mr. M. PHILIPS said no one would more rejoice in the
improved condition of the country than himself, but he believed
that the improvement was exaggerated ; at present it was very
limited in indication, and it was too much to conclude that they
were entering on a certain career of prosperity. The im-
provement was rather in the condition of the people from extra
employment, than in the profits of the employers.—( Hear. )
lie regarded the low price of provisions as having made a most
material change amongst the operative classes, and he wished
he could conclude with any degree of certainty that further
legislation in the same direction would produce that effect in a
greater degree. Ile regretted that the speech of the Right
Hon Baronet would convey to the minds of those who had been
enduring so much suffering, that they were not to look for re-
lief at his hands by means of any alteration in the laws
which regulated the price of food in this country.
Ile was apprehensive that wheat would rise before
many months had passed over their heads, and so surely
as a rise took place so would the ability of the working
classes to purchase manufactures be diminished. He did not,
therefore, derive such confidence as some Hon. Members ap-
peared to have done, from present appearances. It was to be
remembered, too,. that the price of the raw material of the
cotton trade was from ?Id. to 1:d. per pound higher in this than
in other countries. Ile extremely regretted this result with
reference to the exportations to China, as he feared there wood
be a large export of British manufactured goods whichessert re
not suited to the real wants of the country. The.tesa
and they
on
was one which necessarily involved the sugeartrdau
must relax the latter it they wished to push. tth,.whidctehlevtleitdh China.
Nothing had been done, he repeated,rasofs
expect great relief to the sufferinghe p t ethe community. Is
wee only by alterations in the duties on sugar, corn, and other
that permanent prosperity could
great articles of consumption,
be secured. With reference to the amendment of the Hon.
Member for Rochdale, after listening to all the arguments
high he had brought forward, he must say that he could not
concur' in the course which the Hon. Gentleman was taking,
and he felt compelled to record his vote against the amendmen*.
Colonel RANA/DON said if he acquiesced in the course
which the Noble Lord proposed to take, it was only because ha
believed that a more fitting time would present itself for dis..