The Sun.
London, England, 1842-01-20 00:00:00

PROGRESS OF DISTRESS•

Accounts of distress, dnichig the labottring population
still continue to pour in. It is not in one bola, but
in all districts alike, that we hear the wail of suffering
and of deep distress. In the course of the inquiries
which have recently taken place into the condition of the
population, discoveries of the most soul-harrowing kind
have been made—such as would scarcely have been cre-
dible but for ocular proof and demonstration. Mothers,
newly become such, laid upon pallets of dirty straw or
shavings ; half-naked children lying huddled together in
corners of damp cellars, or sitting shivering over the
flickering embers in a half-cold grate ; fathers bowed
down by care, and want, and famine, with no work, no
.food, listening only to the piteous wailing of the wretched
creatures around them ;—such have been the familiar
sights encountered by the visitors of the poor during the
last few weeks. Some of the enumerators recently ap-
pointed by the Anti-Corn-law Associations to inquire
into the distress existing in their respective districts,
have assured us and others, that they would do anything
rather than again encounter the scenes of misery and an-
guish which met their eyes in the course of their painful
inquiry. _ _

During the last week an important meeting has been
held at Skipton, at which a number of deeply interesting
facts were elicited, as to the physical condition of the
population of that district. The inhabitants of the Skip-
ton Union are engaged partly in agricultural and partly
in manufacturing pursuits. The northern district is al-
most exclusively agricultural ; the southern district is
chiefly manufacturing. It seems that the latter district
has suffered much the more severely from the prevalence
of distress ; for while the out-door relief in the northern
or agricultural district, has only increased from
2,4501. 19s. 4d, in 1839, to 2,594/. 98. Cid. in 1841,—the
the out-door relief in the southern, or manufacturing dis-
trict has increased from 4,0741. 17s. 3d.1 in 1839, to
4,779/. 4s. 81d, in 1841. The astounding fact has also been
brought to light by recent-careful investigations, that
in the, Skipton Union, out of
,a population of
16,610, four thousand and thirty-eight individuals are
subsisting on an average of only seventeen-pence per
head, per week; and sixteen hundred and ninety-seven
individuals, upon an average of only ten-pence three-
farthings per head, per week ! In other words, more
than one-third of the entire population of the Skipton
Union are .at present subsisting on an average of only
fifteen-pence per-head, per week ! These facts have
been made out by the most careful investigations, in
which men of all political parties have willingly taken

a part.
It is dreadful to think of the misery endured by these
poor starving fellow creatures of ours, at a season Of the
year so inclement as this ; and when we reflect, besides,
that this misery has been chiefly inflicted on them by
man himself—that it is his iniquitous laws which have
marred the beneficient objects of the Giver of all good—
it is surely enough to turn our thoughts into fierce bit-
terness and hate against the authors of the horrible
mischief.

WIGAN—REDUCTION OF WAGES.—We regret to state
that the condition of this town and the neighbourhood
is becoming worse and worse. Two large manufactur-
ing concerns have been in danger of closing altogether,
and a large body of colliers is also likely to be out of
work. We understand that Messrs. Pennington and
So

cotton-spinners, Hindley, having recently given no-
tice to the reelers in their employ of an intention to re-
duce their wages, and those.hands having intimated a
resolution to resist such reduction, the firm gave notice,
that, should the reelers persist in refusing to continue at
work, they must close the mill ; and thus all hands in
every department would be thrown out of work. As this
extensive establishment affords employment to more than
one half of the population of Hindley, it is not easy to
describe the gloom which this state of things has thrown
over the whole community of
_that_ neighbourhood.
About a week ago, Messrs. Eccles and Son, cotton-
spinners, Wigan, gave a similar notice of reduction to
their reelers, and this led to the closing of their mill for
a time. The agent of the Earl of Belcarres, we under-
stand, has given notice to the whole of the colliers in the
employ of his Lordship, at Wigan and the neighbour-
hood, and who are said to exceed 2,000 in number, that
their wages will be reduced in a few days. This intima-
tion excited considerable feeling amongst the colliers;
they held a numerous meeting at the Commerciall Hall,
Wigan, on Monday night, as we have heard, for the pur-
pose of taking into consideration the propriety of with-
standing the proposed reduction; but, as it was a meet-
ing of colliers, the result of their discussions had not
transpired when our account left Wigan. The distress
in the town is very great, and is increasing; large num-
bers of operatives are out of employ. A supply of soup
has been distributed during the last three weeks; but such
modes of relief can do but little where the distress is so
general and so overwhelming.—Manchester Guardian.

PROCEEDINGS AGAINST STAR-
VATION.
Mr. George Thompson, the celebrated Anti-Corn-law
Lecturer, made the following observations at Carlisle,
during the last meek
" Don't be dependent on foreigners !" This is another
very favourite cry of the Corn-law makers. Methinks,
if they were to practise the doctrine they preach, they
would be " poor indeed." Let us pay a friendly visit to
the man who preaches this doctrine, and let us see
whether he lives up.to it. For the beauty of all preach-
ing, is that which is by practice. Let us go and dine
with him at his own house, at seven, just after he has
left the House of Lords, where he hai silenced Lord
Radnor by crying—" Don't be dependent on foreigners
for your supplies," and the shouts of " hear, hear,' will
almost occupy a whole line in the next day's paper.
Alighting at his door, which perhaps, is opened by a fo-
reign footman—(Laughter)—you wipe your feet upon a
mat made of Russian hemp. (Don't be dependent on fo-
reigners.) Over your head burns a hall lamp, fed by oil
from the Polar Seas, and supplied with a wick, made
from American slave-grown cotton. (Don't de depen
dent on foreigners.) You are shown up stairs, and step
into the drawing-room, where you tread upon a Turkey
carpet. (Don't be dependent on foreigners.) My Lord
advances, dressed for dinner. A coat of the newest Pa-
risian fashion, of Saxony wool, made by the immortal
Cbroach with an Indian gem, set in Mexican
hina silk stockings, Morocco pumps, and a cu-
us Geneva watch, which tells him that you have been
Irkably punctual. He introduces you to his Lady.
lladvances. Over her pale intellectual brow waves
an osisich feather. (Ostrich feathers don't grow in
the tails of our barn-door fowls.) Round her grace-
ful neck is a row of pearls from Ceylon ; over her
shoulders, a profusion of Brussels lace ; in her hand,
a foreign fan, and further I might go, to prove
her independence of foreigners, and might talk of
corsets and other things as sacred ' - but will not.
Let us go down to dinner. It is spread upon a table of
Spanish mahogany. The tureens and vegetable dishes
are from Dresden. The turtle is from the Camanas.
(No sliding scale or fixed duty for turtle.) The contents
of the castors are all foreign. The delicious wines are all
foreign. The side dishes are all foreign, sent up by a French
cook. The tongue is rein-deer. The boar's head from Ger-
many. The dessert comes on. The olives are from Mount
Lebanon. The figs are from Turk?y. The raisins are
from Malaga. The dates from Syria. The apples from
New York. The grapeilfrom • Portugal. The pre-
served ginger from Jamaica. The nuts from Italy.
The pomegranates from Egypt. The prunes from
France. The oranges from Lisbon. The dessert over,
we go to the ladies. My Lord's daughter is playing a
foreign air. Singing in a foreign language. Has learnt
under a foreign master. Has finished her education in a
foreign country—going to be married to a foreign
Count. (Don't be dependent on foreigners for your
supplies.) The footman enters. Coffee from Mocha. Tea,
from Canton. Sugar from Siam. At eleven, you depart.
My Lady is going to a concert—a la Musard. My Lord,
to the foreign Opera, to witness the debut of the ad-
mirable figurante Fanny Show-her-legs, who has been
sent for express from the Prussian capital, for the
special entertainment of those wbo cannot endure the
thought of seeing their countrymen dependent on foreign-
ers for their supplies. (During the whole of this sketch,
of which we are able to give but the bare outline, the
audience were convulsed with laughter, and at the end
were loud in their applause.)—Carlisle Journal.

GERMAN PAPERS.
DrSSELDORF, JAN. g.--WC hear that his Majesty
the King, on his return from London, will honour our
city with a visit on the &l of February. The wallt of
time will most likely prevent his Majesty from visiting
Paris, as he will certainly not leuve London immediately
after the 25th, the day fixed for the christening of the
Prince of Wales ; and, as the Belgian Papers say, spend
several days at Brussels.
BERLIN, JAN. 16.—His Royal Highness the Crown
Prince of Bavaria arrived here this afternoon at two
o'clock.
HAMBIIRGH, JAN. 14.—The number of ships that
passed through the Sound in 1841, was—
From the North Sea
From the Baltic

Total 14,754

English ships—
From the North Sea 1,908
From the Baltic

Total 3,788
In 1840, the number was 4,071

Decrease in English ships in IW 283
The total number in 1840 was 15,657
Decrease in 1841 1,093
—Hamburg7e Papers, Jan. 4.

---- _
THE ANTI-CORN-LAW BAZA•R.--COntri-
butions to the approaching bazaar are beginning to flow
in from all parts of the kingdom. Amongst the paint
ings of great merit promised are—the tine picture, by
Martin, " Sadak in Search of the Waters of Oblivion,"
from the collection of E. Strutt, Esq., of Derby ; Hay-
don's .pictures, representing the meeting of the Anti
slavery Convention in London last year, and containing
portraits of all the most eminent Abolitionists. Another
very interesting article, in preparation for sale, is a very
costly book of autographs ; amongst them autographs of
her Majesty Queen rictoria, of the Duke of i'Velling-
ton, the King of Denmark, George 111., Lord Brougham,
George Canning, Wordsworth, Lord Byron, . Wesley,
Lord Jeffrey, Hon. Spencer Percival, Sir Edward But-
wer, Charles Dickens, &c., with a firman of the Sultan,
signed by himself, a despatch for the Governor of Aleppo,
&e. . The contributions in literature also promise to be
full of value, and interest. Dr. Pye Smith has sent two
copies of his work on geology, with an inscription ; Ebe-
nezer Elliot has furnished some origii.ial lines for the
occasion • j, CG. Prince has sent two copies of his " House
with the kuses,'" with an original poem on the fly-leaf ;
a lady in Hereferth2lire has contributed an original song,
with the music—and ti; ere will be no lack of novelty or va-
riety in any &pato,* pf this great fancy fair...46w
chair Guardian?