The Sun.
London, England, 1842-11-28 00:00:00

WITH A

M /kJ-)
- OF c
RINA
*

NEXT; THE 30ih INST.,
WILL BE PUBLISHED,
it-N.EW CHINA SUN,

CONTAINING
‘,EVERYTHING INTERESTING
WITH RESPECT TO CHINA, AND
A DESCRIPTION OF THE
FIVE FREE TRADE PORTS OF
CANTON, AMOY, POO-CHOW-POO,
NINGPO, AND gIiiitIGELAE ;
I;46GETHER WITH ALL THE CLORIOUS
A:;13 IMPORTANT EVENTS OF TEE
• ' LATE WAR IN THAT COUNTRY.

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and of all News-Agents.

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LONDON :

if( XD AtOItNING. NOVI:AIBER 2S, 1842.

Whatever may may be the case with the landlords,
ty tenants seem to be corning to their senses.
At a recent
meeting of the Coggeshall .terrieul-
Aural society, Mr. FISHER HOBBES 6aid
lie agreed with Mr. Hanbury that the times were
hiding dark against them. When they heard in
frriotis quarters that the Premier was sa7ing no
Minister could stand without giving up the Corn-
laws—when they heard in other directions that there

were eight persons going over to America, sent out
by the great house of Baring, to show them how to
cure their pork to advantage for the English market—
when they heard that something must be done in the
spring of the year, it led him to think the saying
of that great patron of agriculture whose health they
had drunk was coming to pass, and that having got
the end of the wedge in they would drive it home.
In travelling through the country he did not see a
parish which might not be increased a coomb.per acre,
and that would more than find food for the increased
population for years to come.—(Cheers.) Bat when
they looked to the waste lands, and the miserable
way in which their grass lands were managed, he felt
that they might break up one-fourth of that grass
land, and the remainder, if well managed, would be
sufficient to find beef and mutton for the country.—
(Hear.) Much had been said about drainage and long
leases, but let the British farmers do what they could,
they must have some protecgon. What they wanted
was confidence.—(Hear.) It could not be expected
that if they had not confidence men would lay out
one-fourth of the fee-simple of the land, which they
must do to well cultivate it before they could produce
a crop of corn to feed the population of the country.
That being the case—the population depending on the
land for the support of the poor and for tithes—he
thought there ought to be some settlement of this
unfortunate question, in order that they might be en-
abled to go on farming with success. He feared, if they
went on in this unsettled state, they would feel the
effects of it for many years to come ; for where was
the man that with justice to his family could go on
and make the improvements that he did four years
ago ?—(Hear, hear.) They saw where a man had the
opportunity he was " whipping the land," and it must
be so, for the landlords were afraid to give leases, and
the tenants were afraid to take them; and therefore
there was nothing bnt depression and misery in agri-
culture.

That is most important, testimony, It shows
that under the protective system, which has in-
flicted such injury on every other interest, the
lend is but half cultivated. It proves that the
cultivation cannot be, and will not be much ini-
proved, till the Corn-law question be settled ;
and it tells the public an 'alarming tale of coining
depression and misery!; of 'landlords being afraid
to give leases, and tenants afraid to take them,
without which, the most intelligent agriculturists
say, there can be no improvement.in agriculture,
unless confidence be restored. That brings the
question to a narrow issue. Can the,Legislature,
by any law, by any means in its power, restore
or give that confidence except by totally abolish-
ing the Corn-laws Before answering that ques-
tion, let us lay before the public some more testi-
mony to the same effect. Mr. HOBBES spoke in
Essex ; at a meeting of , the Anti-Corn-law
League in Manchester, on Thursday, Mr.
PRENTICE made this report of Cheshire :
When the farmers were once fairly led to consider
the qiiestion, they said, " No moderate fixed duty for
us ; we have been humbugged long enough ; we have
been promised moderate slides and jumps, and every
change has only made us worse. Do not let us have
any more of this moderation. If there is to- be a
change, let us have it at once. Let us have total
repeal—(Hear, hear)—that we may make fresh bar-
gains with our landlords, and start with a fair chance
of success." The energy of the League was doing
much to convince them of the necessity of re-
peal, even where their lecturers did not go.
Landlords and tenants were both getting tired of
this eternal agitation, and they said, " These
Manchester people are so determined, that they
will never stop short till they get the whole (-)f
the Corn-laws swept away.—(Applause.) The
League has made things a great deal worse for us
with this constant agitation ; we are tired of it, and
cannot do with it any longer • and as these men will
have total repeal, let them have that, and have done
with them." Then these men were astonished at the
idea of 50,200/. being raised in a few weeks ; and when
it was exprained that our tracts were bound up in every
missionary and other magazine, Whig, Tory, and Ra-
dical ; that one at least would be sent to every free-
holder and elector in the kingdom ; how the lecturers
were going into all the agricultural districts, and how
the country was to be agitated with tenfold energy of
purpose,—they said, "We cannot stand it ; let us have
done with it hear.)

So much for the Cheshire farmers. Here is
a report of what a farmer, in the south: of Sorrier-
setshire, said—
Why, gentlemen, it be no rarer gone than a fort-
night, since the proprietor of a large estate down our
way sent for me to come to him. Well, I went. He
know'd I farmed a good bit of land ; he know'd I had
money to lay out; he know'd I had laid out money
on my land ; he know'd I grew. the best corn, and
turnips, and worzel in the county ; he know'd I was
reckoned an improver of land. Gentlemen, I am
one that tries to make the most of my land. This
landlord know'd it. He said. "Now tell me what you
will give for such a farm, if I give you a lease, with
liberty to improve it as you like ?" Says I, " Sir, I
am much obliged ; but tell me first what the prices of
my corn and cattle will be when I have improved
your farm, and I will tell you the rent I can
Tay." To this the gentleman replied that the
questionof prices was now in a manner settled ; the'
Corn-law was settled; the tariff was settled; and
prfeeS would soon be settled: • " Corn-law settled !
tariff settled I prices, settled!" says I. " Why, the
whole three are unsettled ;. we have had nothing but
unsettled prices since we had a Corn-law, and I. sup-
pose never will have. You won't let the Corn-law
alone, and you can't let it alone ; and it won't settle
prices if it were let alone. No, no, Sir," says I; "no
taking of bases with matters as they are now." So
to this the gentleman replied, " Well, but it is your
opinion that land cannot be properly farmed without
a lease, is it not ?" " Oh, yes, Sir," says I, " that be •
my opinion, sure enough, and my experience too ;
but land must be badly farmed, or go without farming,
afore I touch it on a lease in such times as they we nod.
live in." That I did, gentlemen. I tOld,this landlord
my mind; I ben't :geared to speak to nobody; I pay
my rent and my taxes, and my debts, and care for
nobody. So as I said already, cheapness is a relative
term. Things don't be too cheap for them as buy,
tnayhap ; but they be too cheap for me."
There is not only panic, therefore, there is dire
confusion, amongst both tenants and landlords ;
the latter cannot let, and the former will not
hire, their land for any length of time. No man
will take a lease till he can tell what the price of
corn will be; and no man can tell that, because
no man believes that Sir ROBERT PE L's settle-
ment of the question will last a year, or, if it do
last, that prices will not fall lower than ever they
were before. The single question now is, put-
ting humanity, justice, right and wrong, starv-
ing or feeding the people, out of view—the single
psquestionurtend
alan end of
rto A
l landlords
sand m
expediencynt
i.cafrori iies , Can the Legislature
Anti-Corn-law
thaawatgiatanty lLina%avrildt as-
ucan
make will last five years? We are sure that it
cannot. Omnipotent as it foolishly boasts itself
to be, and as people still more foolishly believe
it to be, it can only put an end to Anti-Corn-law
agitation, and give. confidence and security 'to
both farmers and tenantsi.by totally abolishing
the law. . .
The

sliding scale is universall3T conileinned.
Can the Whig nostrum of a fixed duty, however
moderate, be substituted for that? It cannot.
The Parliament may enact it—the Parliament
cannot maintain it; that is beyond the power
of Parliament. Sir ROBERT PEEL himself
has declared that the first dearth would
extinguish it. But at present our ma-
nufacturers are everywhere exposed to
a keen competition, which they cannot
sustain, under a heavy load of State taxes and a
tax for the 'landlords. It is impossible, there-
tbre, for them to cease agitation against a fixed
duty. In every season of distress it would be
renewed. The farmers would be perpetually
harrassed by doubts and uncertainty, and a fixed
duty can ho more be maintained than the
sliding scale.
To the farmers themselves such a duty would
be a great injury. It would enhance all the ex-
penses of cultivation. They are now too, and
would be still more then, exposed to competition.
If the community had food enough with foreign
supplies in a bad season, in an abundant season
it would have a great deal to spare. The
farmers would want to export ; they would
be unable, and they would suffer deep distress.
En a short time they would clamour for the repeal
of a.duty which kept their produce from corn-
petitirr, in the foreign markets with the produce
of other countries.

I 1. We take itfor granted that the public will never
consent to A bounty to compensate a fixed duty,
though that i;as been recommended by 'one of
the most celebr.zted political economists of the
day as its indispensable accompaniment. But if
neither sliding scale nor fixed duty can settle
this important question, put an end to agitation,
and allow both farmers and. landlords to make
their bargains by those permanent relations of
cost, of supply and demand, which determine
prices with the regularity of a law of nature,
what remains but the total abolition of the un-
just law? The sooner that be effected, the sooner

will landlords be able permanently to let their
lands ; the sooner will leases be taken, and the I
sooner will those improvements be made, which,
on the testimony of Farmer HOBBES are neces-
sary, and can be made. By the abolition of the
Corn-laws, which cannot much longer be averted,
we shall gain a great deal' more than free trade—
we shall gain a full and complete knowledge that
the power of the law-maker is much more li-
mited than the public supposes, and we shall
thereafter endeavour to ascertain what he can
accomplish before we tolerate his perpetual med-
dling , with things he does not comprehend.

The Convocation of the Scotch clergy broke up on
Thursday, after continuing their sittings, with closed
doors, for seven days. As far as can be ascertained,
the meeting resolved to adhere to the principle of
Non-Intrusiont to transmit a memorial to the Govern-
ment to change the law in accordance with their
views, and in the event of this request not being com-
plied with, to withdraw and break off their connec-
tion with the State. The total number of clergymen
present was 470, and of these not more than 250
were established ministers, being about one-fourth of
the Church. At the conclusion of this affair Dr.
Chalmers, Dr. MParlane, and the Moderator, had ab-
sented themselves.

We regret to learn, by the Dutch papers received
last night, that a fire broke out in Batavia on the 23d
of August, which destroyed property to the value of
2,500,000 florins—about 200,0001.