The Sun.
London, England, 1842-06-28 00:00:00

METROPO

LAW ASSOC
TIES.

A crowded meeting of depu:les ft mit the various and nume-
rous branches of tho Anti-Corm-law Assotiations of the Metro-
politan districts, was held yesterday at the Central Office of the
Association, West Strand, for the purpose of adopting such
measures as should appear advisable in connexion with the
Great 111,Aropolitan Anti-Corn-law Conference, to be held in
Palace-yard, on the sth of July next, on
,the distressed state of
the trade, commerce, and mannfattures of the eduntry,
Among the friendi or the objects of the Association and
deputies pretAln, we noticed—Mr. Cobden, ALP. ; Mr.
Francis Place, Colonel Thompson, Messrs. Lyon, of Camber-
well; Petrie, Wells, Ely, Hadley, a Totteitharn i tlutford, of
Stratford; Austin, St, Martiti-111-lhe-Vields ; Shawe, St.
Luke's ; Stack, Kentish-town ; Aulton, Kentish-town ;
Wheeler, Ben. and jun Kentish-town j Sthith, St. Pancras;
P. A. Taylor, sen., and %Matt Taylor, Croydon j Atkin,
Mitcham ; Barker, Mitcham ; Alder, Murray, and Gibson,
Bethnal green; Bacon, Soiith, MOrse; and I3eates, Whit =
chapel , Gaghati; 8.1-. AMA'S, Soho ; Porter, Caiiibdivrell
Cox, Carril*.rWeli ; Erwall, Stratford ; Bowring, Little, and
'Shoreditch ; Nicholls. St. Anne's, Soho ; Beasell and
`Howell, ditto; William Harrison and Murray, Paddington ;
Bore/pool, Kentish-town ; Toms, Bethnal-green ; Palmer and
Middleton, Essex Ashton., Jasse, Alitrylebohe ; IL
Olman, Stratford ; P. A. Tayler, juts., lir. Bisek, Whitehead,
Chel,ea; Matthews, Machrien, St. Pancras, &c. &c.
Mr. Place, having been called to the chair, opened the
business of the meeting, after which a series of strong and
spirited resolutions were propoted, kept-hied, and sup-
ported by Colonel Thompson, Mr. Stock, Mr. Taylor,
stn., Mr. A. R. Shaw, Mr. Southmorse, Mr. Murray, I)Ir:
Ely Radley, Mr. Cobden, M.P. ; Mr: Hamer Stansfleld
(Leeds), Mr. Rawson (Manchester), Mr. Ashdown, Mr.
Aikin (Mitcham), Mr: Cox (Camberwell), The most
harrowing statements were made to the meeting by the respec-
tive speakers bf the deep distress and suffering in their djs-
tiicts, and throughout the cotintfy Onetally,
maintenance of the unjust Corn-laws ; and a strong hope wa§
expressed that the delegates from the various districts will be
at their pott en the 6th instant, at the gfeat if&ting its Palace-
tUrnished with all the information in their poker, slt as to
amass such a body of evidence of the distress existing through-
out the country as Parliament, in its wisdom, ought to take
into its most serious consideration—the salvation or total ruin of
the nation depending en their decision;

rATA/4 AelittENT.—VesierLy afterithbii, do ac-
cident occurred to a 3oung, man in the employ of Mr, Bal-
lard, painter and glazier, 22, Bed Lion-street, Holborn. He
had been engaged With stirnkt dthei wbrktiiet, to clean the paint
in &kik tit{ the shop-leads at
W-Ork at the first 'floor window; when his fdot Slipped, arid he
fellbackwardt oti the flag-sfaies befefp, the Mr. He was itritim-
diatel'y plated Jib eObeeyed 11 bettiOil
hnding his skull fractured, advised his removal
lege Hospital, where he expired in less than half an hour.
A large steam-frigate of 540-horse power is about
to be constrtleteti in the ilbciti/aftla at TbUldn: Prince de
hinVille) iii his voyip tEi Aiberiea, ittFn!loY tit it
application of steam to havigatibn, and this construction is, if
is so: d) oAcI tO be Trt after tilt ttiotitlS whieh he iiMeti.
7n6 Steifffi kf ift editipprie§, new
Steam-ship Trident (the laiitiCti of Which vessel from Blelfri,
Green and Wigranfil *6 noticed aboVo six
rireriths let the etirtipttny:i wHar(4l3OPlar Saturday
'din iirgh, With Upwards Of 100 pagsllget's knd a
'cargo. During die day she
,preOnted a Very gay appear=
31*e- dressednStienl: and notwith-
ei.n(ill*kliV linraVolirable weather,
ner during the day by permission of the Directors, wno,
usual on such occasions, had been very liberal in affording
every facility and comfort for the visitors. This noble ship
was inspected by several eminent ship-builders, whd expressed
their unqualified praise of her lAA Otteilgthi ahti ktirtS4 And
pronounced her cot Of the must perfect specimens of naval
architeistet Amt.

THE SUICIDE M.AIv!A-""StnrOV. teak pas es on
which ore or thole pe4:•stlt's• Yie not brought to the London
Hospital, 'under the effect's or pOit;tql `Of Cll'9 PO or
other, as well as frontialuri'et done in the Orkin; the rn-
tention to destroy life) and s.eViral Plr'Seiii in Lilt aliel!
lent institution, nially of them in a very dangerous state, who
have tint* much to rid themselves of existence. Yesterday,
between the hours of 'one and tWo o'clock) a middle-aged female
was brought there in a 'cab front tli6 end of Clevtland•street,
in the Mile-end-road, where she was found lying in a state of
insensibility, and labouring apparently under the effects of
poison. When taken to the receiving-room, the stomach-
pump was immediately used, and the stomach properly cleansed.
This gave her some relief, but it was feared that the poison had,
from the length of time it had been in the stomach, caused such
injuries that recovery is extremely uncertain.
COPENHAGEN, JUNE 18.—According to the Delft,
organization of the army, the total amount in time of peace. is
' fixed at.,24,150 men, officers included, viz., 3,047 artillery,
289 engineers the horse gl:.irds, 494 ; six regiments of :dra-
goons, 3,462 ; infantry, 17 regiments and 3 yagar battalions,
15,906 ; foot guards, 590.

BERLIN, JUNE 21.—IIis Majesty will return on
Thursday. We understand that he has accepted the invitation
of Archbishop Dunin at Posen, to dinneii. an Saturday, and the
invitation of the Estates of the province to fete on Sunday.--
liconbufgh, 2,)aper 8, June 24.

SIR R. PEEL and the POOR-LAW. 1
We have been looking through the more important of Sir
Robert Peel's speeches in which the existing Poor-law is men -
ti,,-ned. The result is a distinct conviction that the general
expectation of the Conservative public that he would acquiesce
in important alterations or modifications of that law must have
been founded on the opinion that he would, in some degree,
forego his own individual judgment, in order to concur with
what may be called the popular sentiment of his party. Per-
haps this was an opinion which the public had no right to en-
tertain. The facts, however, seem to be these—first, that
Conservative candidates and electors did very generally appear
to entertain the notion that the establishment of a Conserva-
tive Government would lead to alterations of the Poor-law in
a direction towards greater generosity and kindness to the
poor ; and secondly, that the Right Hon. Baronet, to whom
they all looked as the head of any Conservative Government
that might be formed, had uniformly and emphatically stated
his own individual opinion to be altogether in- favour of the
Poor-law as framed and carried into execution by the Whig
Ministers.

For ourselves—considering the praiseworthy feeling in
which Conservative objections to the Whig Poor-law had their
rise, and that these objections 'Acre looked on by the common
people as an evidence of kindness towards them--we do not
think there was anything preposterous in the opinion that Sir
R. Peel might give up to some extent his own judgment in
favour of the Poor-law, and act upon the less favourable judg-
ment of an immense body of his supporters. But as to his own
judgment, we find it. had been frequently most clearly expressed,
and most decidedly in favour of the Whig law.
I❑ ihe commencement of the Parliamentary Session in 1840,
a motion declaratory of want of confidence in Ministers was
submitted to the House of Commons by Sir J. Y. Buller.
In the course of the debate upon that motion, the Conserva-
tive leaders, and the party generally, were often taunted with
having lent themselves to what was called the Anti-Poor-law
Agitation. Referring to thts, in his speech at the close of
the debate, Sir R. Peel said:—
_

" Mark my answer: to the Poor law I gave my support,
and so far from showing any tendency to obstruct that or any
other useful measure, ilf I had not taken the part I did with
respect to the Poor-law Bill, with its good provisions, you
would not have had the remotest chance of carrying it."
Here, then, it appears that the Right Hon. Baronet claimed
to be not only a supporter of the law, but to have been mainly
instrumental in causing the law to exist.
The Right Hon, Baronet then proceeded to say :
" But an accusation has been made much more directly
against we by the Noble Lord (Lord Morpeth), that, after I
had supported the Poor-law in this House, 1 took no effectual
means of declaring my opinions elsewhere, but was ready to
profit at the elections by the outcry that had been raised against
it. To this charge I give a flat contradiction, and I will prove
that contradiction in such a way that it is impossible it can
be refuted. Now, what occurred on the hustings at the elec-
tion of 18.37? This was at the commencement of the outcry
against the new Poor-law, omit at my election I was taunted
with supporting that. Bill. Did I shelter myself under any
equivocation? Did I content myself with a silent approbation
of this Bill? What course could any man take—what more
effectual means than I did with my constituents, in stating my
opinion on this subject, and explaining the share that belonged
to me in the support of that measure? The election at the
borough which I represent was among the first that took place,
and in the course of my address to ray constituents, I said,
Without the aid so rendered to the Government by Conser-
vatives the institutions of the country would have been over-
whelmed with danger.' A person cried out, You supported
the Poor-law Bill.' I answered that I admitted it—that I had
supported the Poor-law 13h1, and further, that my opinions on
the subject of that enactment remained unchanged. I said
that I regarded the mere reduction in the amount of the rate as
one cf the smallest advantages of that measure ; but I valued it
because I saw in it the means of improving the moral condi-
tion of the poor, and that I was convinced it would tend to a
beneficial result as regarded the poor, but I shouldbe very glad

to see any hardships in it corrected.
" Could 1 have declared myself more explicitly on the hust-
ings that when I said that 1 believed the effect if the measure
would be to raise the character of the poorer classes, and pro-
mote the welfare of the public? bid 1 shrink then in the
country from taking upon myself the share of responsibility
that devolved upon me as a supporter of that Bill? I have had
this accusation urged against me for the last two years, that I
had silently allowed or encouraged the agitation against the
Poor-law to go on for the purpose of getting votes. I have
taken no notice of this charge but in my place in this House,
and 1 have, on the proper occasion, in this place, never dis-
guised my approbation of that measure. Therefore, the charge
of the Noble Lord against me—that I took no effectual steps to
discountenance the agitation was without foundation, for be-
fore my constituents I was ready to take my full share of re-
sponsibility. To this opinion 1 mean to adhere, and lam wil-
ling to take my full share of unpopularity for that measure.
I believe that the main enactments of that Bill are wise and
beneficial, although there may be something harsh in some of
its clauses; but on this account to retrace our steps, and re-
store the old order and system of Poor-laws, would be utterly
inconsistent, and contrary to anything like sound legislation."
All this was said in January, 1840, Sir Robert Peel appear-
ing to be then under the same strange impression—if we may
be permitted so to call it—which he is now, that they who ex-
pressed indignation against the New Poor-law, wished to re-
turn to all the abuses of the old.

Well, the resolution against the Government proposed in
January, 1840, was not successful. Things went on until six-
teen months afterwards, when Government proposed what Sir
R. Peel called their foul-weather Budget—his opinion being
that they had two Budgets ready, of which one or other was to
be used according to circutnstances, and that the more despe-
rate was chosen because their circumstances were desperate.
On the 27th May, 1841, a motion of want of confidence in
Ministers was again submitted to the House by Sir R. Peel,
and on the 4th of June the Right Hon. Baronet replied to the
arguments which had been urge d against his motion. He then
contemplated, as did every one else, his return to office, and he
then spoke of the New Poor-law as one of the improvements
which he should find established, nor did be quality this with
one word of doubt as to the satisfactory working of the law.
He said—

" I should find on being restored to power that we, who left
a clear surplus of two millions of revenue—that we, who in
three years reduced twenty millions of the debt, as well as re-
ducing the interest one million annually, must deal with a
deficit of eight milions on an administration of five years!
True I should find reforms ; true I should find a Poor-lam 6;

true I should find a Jamaica constitution of a defective nature

but for our recommendations ; true I should find an amend-
ment on the Canada Bill, which was said to be, if adopted,
fatal to the Bill, nay to the Government ; and which, notwith-
standing the prediction of the Noble Lord, did not in the least
impair the vitality of the Government. Among all these dis-
coveries which I should have to make, my satisfaction would be
somewhat abated on observing the melancholy state of the
finances, with a deficiency of 7,600,0001."
Here again, then, up to the very eve of the late general elec-
tion, it must be allowed that the declarations of the individual
opinion of Sir R. Peel were strongly in favour of the existing
Poor-law, and yet it is not the less true that the declarations of
his party generally to the constituencies in the country were
not in its favour ; but neither were they in favour of wholly
abandoning the new law, and returning to all the abuses of the
old. They looked to a revision of the new law, and the omission
of certain parts of it which were—or were supposed to he—con-
ducive to harshness, and the production of needless misery.
The question then occurs, whether the Conservative party
should be true to the general understanding with their consti-
tuents, or to the general respect which they owe to the fixed
opinion of their leader ? In our estimation this is ene of the
cases in which he should be more inclined to give way to them,
than they to him. At all events, their first duty is to see that
their own promises to the people, expressed or implied, be
faithfully performed. We can see no hope of good in political
society unless the common people generally defer to the better
judgment and the good feeling of their superiors in station—
and the continuance of such deference would be much endan-
gered if any promise held out to the people were not faithfully
maintained.—Morning Post.