The Sun.
London, England, 1842-08-02 00:00:00

The Delegates met yesterday morning at the usual
hour, at Herbert's Hotel, Palace-yard, P. A. TAYLOR,

Esq., in the Chair.
The CHAIRMAN opened the proceedings by the follow-
ing address :—He said—This Conference is drawing to
a close—our mission is fulfilled—our work is accom-

plished. It remains to review its proceedings, and to
give an account of them to those by whom we were de-
puted. Our object was two-fold ; to give a just and com•.
plete statement to the public of the real conditions and
prospects of the places from whence we were sent ; and
to press upon her Majesty's Government the necessity
of affording immediate relief. The former has been
most powerfully and completely effected ; and the me-
lancholy and heart-breaking accounts of destitution and
misery which have day by day been communicated by
the Delegates, must have convinced the most sceptical
that it is not in human nature to bear the continuance of

such suffering, and yet it is to be feared an increase
of that suffering is approaching, although, as the De-
puty from Nottingham expresses himself, "No one dares
talk of the winter." Every thing that could be done
to represent to the Government the condition of trade,
and the destitution of the people, has been attempted
at various interviews with its members, and the result

has been nathing. They have been told by individuals
from all parts of the country, and engaged in every
description of manufacture—that their trade is de-
clining, their capital diminishing, and their unem-
ployed work-people starving ; that foreign countries
are offering us food, for want of which the people
are perishing, in exchange for those manufactures
fur which there is otherwise no demand. They
have been conjured by the claims of justice,
by the rights of humanity, not to suffer their own sordid
interests to trample upon the enjoyments, the comforts,
the very existence, of thousands, or tens of thousands, of
their fellow creatures and fellow countrymen, and they
have been conjured in vain ; They seem resolved upon
maintaining the iniquitous Corn-law, which aggrandizes
their own wealth, and deprives the people of employ-
ment and food, a ndkeeping the peace of the country—r. e.
by repressing the frantic attempt of the famishing to
supply themselves and children with food by force. Our
duty is done ; we hare exposed the evil, suggested the
remedy, denounced the wrong, and warned the Govern-
ment of the consequence of persisting in that wrong ;
and it remains for us to return to our constituents
and tell them that all our efforts to obtain
justice for them have failed, and that we can
hold out to them no prospect of improvement,
and no hope of relief. It is fearful to con-
template the future. That a:great and highly civilised
nation will finally suffer its prosperity to be blighted,
and its progress obstructed, by a faction of
landowners, is not to be believed. That the
millions of industrious and intelligent artisans
who ought to be the glory of our country, as they have
been the creators of its wealth, will quietly submit to
the destitution they are now enduring, to the utter ruin
which seems rapidly approaching to gratify the g,rasping
rapacity of a landlord legislature, is neither to be an-
ticipated nor desired. I trust they will use no violence,
but not submit to be starved—that they will respect pro-
perty and life, but not suffer their children to perish by
famine ; and if, when the time arrives that " pri-

rate property has become a nuisance," the struggle
for existence is repressed by bloodshed, by
whatever name that bloodshed may be cha-
racterised in a British Court of judicature—in the
eye of reason, of justice, of posterity, and of God, it will
receive its true appellation, and be stamped with the
guilt of murder.—(Applause.) I have only to say, an
address will be submitted to you for your approval, and
this Conference will then be dissolved. The Chairman
then proceeded to read the following documents :
" TO P. A. TAYLOR, ESQ.

" Dear Sir,—Being informed by this morning's post
of the probability of the Conference breaking up its
sittings in a few days, the Committee of the Leicester
Anti-Corn-law Association, being anxious to express its
thanks to the League, have directed me to forward to
you the accompanying resolution, praying most earnestly
that this righteous agitation may speedily be crowned
with success. " I am, dear Sir,
" Your most obedient servant,
" 'l'. P. HULL, Secretary.
_ _

" Leicester, July 30, 1342.
Resolved,—That the Leicester Anti-Corn-law Asso-
ciation have observed with much admiration, the energetic,
persevering, and highly useful services of the Anti-Corn-
law Conference assembled in London ; that they feel
confident a cause so essentially just in its principles, and
so momentous in its consequences, must ultimately be
successful, and they trust that the enlightened and
patriotic men who have thus far conducted the lakiness
of the League, will presevere in their agitation, until
they realize the accomplishment of their great object ;
that this Association begs to express their most hearty
thanks to the National Anti-Corn-law League for their
indefatigable exertions on behalf of suffering humanity,
and promise the League upon every future occasion their
prompt and contitious support."
"TO THE CHAIRMAN OF THE ANTI-CORN-LAW LEAGUE.
" Dear Sir,—The speech of Mr. William Brook, one of the
Deputies, at the interview with Sir Robert Peel, has induced
me to send you the following official statement; believing, as
I do, that his speech will give a wrong impression to all who
read it, as to the amount of distress in this district, which is
very great and alarmingly on the increase :
Amount of paupers in April, 1840
66 April, 1841
66 April, 1842 9,431
Increase in the quarter ending July. 1842
Total — 10,992
" So that out of a population in this union of 100,000, we
have nearly every ninth person a pauper, receiving relief, to say
nothing of the thousands in distress, who, from their dislike to
the Poor-law, will 'rather starve than have relief.
" I make no comment on then facts, but leave them for you
to make vital use of them you think proper.
I am, dear Sir, yours faithfully,
" BENJAMIN ROBINSON,
" Huddersfield, July 30. " Guardian for Huddersfield.
" P. S. I have sent Sir Robert Peel a copy of this statement
by the same post."

" I3acup, near Rochdale, July 30, 1842. 1
" My dear Sir,—As I hear you are still in London, I think
it my duty to let you know that trade does not increase in this
part of the country. A good deal has been said about trade
being better, and the Guardian and some other newspapers
have reported it so; however, we have not experienced any
improvement at all in prices, and with the exception of we
thought a little more inquiry about a fortnight ago, there has
been no alteration for the better. On the contrary,
for the last week we have been worse. I am a
Guardian of a poor-law union in this neighbourhood,
and the applications for relief are on the increase
and as haymaking is over (at which many of the poor get em-
ployment), our rates will increase most rapidly, except we
have a decided improvement in trade. Masons, joiners, stone-
getters, &c., who depend upon out-door work for their liveli-
hood, are fast getting out of employment, and as their trade
has been very slack for some time, they have no funds to fall
back upon, and will nearly all have to go to their townships for
relief. Cottages, which in 1835 and 1836 got up in rent in
this neighbourhood at least 30s. at four pounds value (and at
that time it was a favour to get a cottage near
us, some of our hands having to come two miles
to their woik ), are now lowered as much as they
got up then, and there are thirty empty ones within a short
distance of our works. It must be recollected that these thirty
have all been tenanted. 1 think you know that our house at
Manchester is very extensively engaged in business, and I
will give you extracts from two letters I received from my
brother, dated the 21st and 23d inst.
"He says, ' I have nothing more to advise you about. It
appears to be as we anticipated, viz. that the little improve-
ment we had last week would soon disappear. It has entirely
done so.' Then after stating the extremely low prices that one
description of cloth was offered at, he says, ' Is this a good
trade? Is this improvement ? I say not. The Guardian
when he says the improvement he mentions for last week con•
tinned up to the time he wrote his article this week, does not
tell true, and I fear he knows it. He is anxious to quote
things better, and so am I, but not when I know it is not
true. Honesty is the best policy ; but newspaper editors don't
appear to think, or at least they don't act as if they thought so.
I hear the report of the state of trade in the Guardian has
been quoted by Sir Robert Peel in the House of Commons.
It answers Sir R. Peel's purpose, and even if the Guardian
should contradict what he has reported, fir 11. Peel will not
allude to that in the House.'

ROBERT MUNN.
" Cullingworth Mills, near Bradford, JO 26, 1842."
"TO P. A. TAYLOR, ESQ., CHAIRMAN OF THE ANTL-COEN,

LAW CONFERENCE.

" You will see by thee extracts, &e., that our trace is not
improving, aid that distress is increasing. I hope, before you
leave London you will be able to make an impression on the
Government. I think from the accounts in the papers they are
becoming rather alarmed, but, of one thing I am quite certain,
that if they believed in the distress as it really does exist, they
would be ten times more alarmed. It is quite evident, the
pressure increases every week, and, except something is done,
which will have an almost instantaneous effect, we shall be very
soon indeed at a complete stand; and, if we are so, who can
attempt to foretell the consequences.
" 1 remain, yours respectfully,

" Sir,—Though hying on the confines of the moors I read
with heartfelt satisfaction the report of your proceedings daily
in the pages of The Sun, and I am persuaded that in the most
remote and obscure parts of the country the people are looking
with hope and, intense interest, far more on your proceedings
than on those of Parliament.

"Distress, which is proved to pervade society, is awakening
inquiry in every mind ; and the firm conviction that the causes
of that distress are traceable to the Corn-law concentrates the
execrations of the masses upon the heads of those whom they
regard as protected robbers, and their blessings on yours.
If anything could incite the people to revolt and retaliation,
it would be the deep and sullen sense of injury inflicted on
them, which all the sophistry and art of interested and ingenious
politicians cannot move from their minds. But there is an en-
lightened conviction gaining ground, that society cannot be
well regulated by war ; and this conviction, in connection with
the influence of religion on thousands of the suffering, induces
them to look with intense interest for some other means of de-
livering them from the unnatural famine occasioned by the ac-
cursed Corn-law. I have read the report of your proceedings
only to discover what practical plan ofrelaietfrtihcee
tCoornefaedreannee
hardly
may have to propose, and have
satisfiedant Piel
that the Corn-lat3s.•
arguments, however able,
is unjust and impolitic, andsothat all our evils are referable to it.
" Of the various plans proposed, the refusal to pay direct
taxes seems to be the most effectual, as welt as being peaceful
and constitutional; but it is justly doubted whether it will
ever be acted on to such an extent in Britain as to effect a
eh a
stop all h mills in the country (another plan proposed)
i iattv