The Sun.
London, England, 1842-03-10 00:00:00

manufacturiug districts, and only 510 persons • had
come forward to affix their signatures to petitions in its
favoursin the agricultural districts. They were not
called upon to choose between the Noble Lord's Bill and
that of the Right Hon. Baronet. They had a law in
existence, and before they parted with that law
they were bound to be satisfied that the new
law would be a good substitute for it.(Hear, hear.)
He believed, with the Hon. Gentleman, that under the
proposed measure there would be a steady trade in corn;
that they would have a large and steady-importation,
and that must lead to a reduction in the price in Eng-
land. When the Right Hon. Baronet said that under
the operation of the proposed measure the price of wheat
would oscillate from 545. to 585., he (Mr. Blackstone)
could not forget that the measure of the Duke of Wel-
lington in 1838 had been proposed for the purpose of
securing a price of 635. That measure had been
tried for fourteen years, and according to the
Right Honourable Baronet's showing, instead of
635. the average price had been from 565. to 575.
He feared very much that the result of the Bill of the
Right Hon. Baronet would be to fix the price at an ave-
rage of 505., and he would regard such consequences with
dismay. He did not fear for the interests of the land-
lords, but for the interests of the agricultural labourers ;
for, if corn were at 505., their wages would suffer a
much greater reduction than the rents, for the farmer
would certainly reduce his wages before he asked the
landlord to reduce his rent. The wages of this country
at present amounted to more than the produce of the
wheat crop. Taking this crop at 50,000,000 of quar-
ters, at 575., the value would be 57,000,000/.; but the
wages of labour amounted to about 60,000,0001. a-year,
taking the average at 10s. a-week. Supposing that only
a fifth of this amount were taken off, he would dread the
consequences. He would then refer to the Report of the
Agricultural Committee, of which the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman, the Member for Dorchester (Sir J. Graham) was
Chairman. The concluding paragraph of that Report
was in these memorable words :—" Your Committee
avow their opinion that the amelioration, of the
agricultural interests depends rather upon the coun-
try's forbearance than the active interposition of
Parliament." The - Honourable Gentleman conclud-
ins, by expressing his intention to support the
amendment proposed by the Noble Lord opposite (Lord
Ebrington), which was that the Bill, introduced by the
Right Hon. Baronet, be read this day six months.—
(Loud cheers from the Opposition Benches.)
Mr. BUCK next addressed the House, but the com-
mencement of the Hon. Gentleman's observations were
totally inaudible in the gallery. He was understood to
say, that he thought he might say that Hon. Gentlemen
opposite had contributed, by their opposition, to the dis-
tress in the country. It certainly was not attributable
to the Corn-laws. Foreigners had shown no disposition
to take the manufactures of this country in exchange for
corn. There was no real reciprocity between this and
foreign countries ; on the contrary, foreign nations had
always evinced a dispoSition to take the bullion of this
country instead of its manufactures. If distress did ex-
ist, it arose from other causes than those over which the
Corn-laws could have control. It could not be for a
moment supposed that by a mere repeal of the Corn-laws
people could be induced to - embark their capital
in this country, or purchase our manufactures,
if they could be got one farthing cheaper elsewhere.
A few nights since a Noble Lord opposite taunted county
Members with not acting up to the principles they had
professed on the hustings. Now, for his part, he should
have been as happy as the Noble Lord, if the Right Ho-
nourable Baronet had thought it right -togo a little
higher in the scale—(Hear, hear)--but he was satisfied
that he was acting according to the wishes and feelings
of his constituents if he did r.ot act to embarrass a Go-
vernment that was favourable to the agricultural inte-
rest, if that embarrassment was likely to place in power
a Government that was inimical to the landed interest.
He would venture to say if the measure that had been
proposed in the last Session had been carried into a law,
it would have ruined the agricultural interest, and thrown
out of employ thousands of agricultural labourers, the
result of which would be that they must resort to the
unions. It was the duty of every Government to find sub-
sistence for the population. What had been said by the
American President was most true, that it was the
duty of every Government to do all in their power
to keep in employment its agricultural population. And
such had evils been the prevailing sentiment of every
Government in this country up to the year 1840. How-
ever they might have differed in the manner of carrying it
out, they were always aware of the necessity which existed
for protecting the agricultural interest. Whether we
looked back to the days of Mr. Canning and Mr. Hus-
kisson, or other of the enlightened men who conducted
the Governments of this country, we should find that
such invariably were their views. He felt it a duty
which he owed to his constituents to support the propo-
sition of the Right Hon. Baronet, and in doing so he
was only pursuing the same course as the representative
of the county of Devon, which he did as their represen-
tative of the City of Exeter.(llear, hear.)
Lord HOWICK said that, until he heard the two
gentlemen who had just sat down, he believed that the
act of 1828 was one now universally condemned—till
now he believed that the bad effects of that measure were
assumed by universal consent—that no one believed that
the sliding scale tended to produce steadiness of price,
but that on the contrary, since it had been in operation,
we had experienced the extremes of high and low prices,
and that the agricultural and commercial classes had alike
suffered under the most severe and continued distress.
lie believed that all this had been universally admitted.
He believed that the Act of Parliament, which only a
short time ago was considered so perfect that it could
not possibly be amended, which only a few months ago
had so many determined and enthusiastic supporters on
the hustings—let him add, such powerful supporters had
been abandoned.—(Hear, hear, and laughter.) But it
seemed he was mistaken. It was not to be left only
to a Noble Duke in the other House, who was
to be put quietly on the shelf, to retain his
good opinions of the old A ct, but. it had at
last found two defenders in this House among the ranks
of those who called themselves the exclusive protectors
of the agricultural interest.—(Hear, hear.) But, at the
same time, he must say he was not very lucky in one of
his advocates, because the Hon. Gentleman who had
just sat down concluded by a panegyric on the existing
law, although he intended to support this Bill. The
other Hon. Gentleman, he believed, was a more cruel
advocate, for he was going to vote with those who
opposed the Bill on very different grounds. He (Lord
Howick) had said that the existing law was universally
'to be abandoned—it was going to be consigned to obli-
vion, to the receptacle for repealed statutes. He was not
going to detain the House by any arguments for the pur-
pose of proving the folly of that Act, because the autho-
rities in its defence were so very weak, that it was really
not worth while doing so. He would, therefore, leave
Hon: Gentlemen who had just addressed the House to
settle that point with the Right Hon. Baronet opposite,
and with the Gallant Colonel, the Member for Middlesex,
who had just told them that the evils bf the existing
law, were so strongly felt in the last autumn, that it was
utterly impossible that any Government could keep their
places if that law was to be continued. He should leave
the advocates of this statute to settle the point with Hon.
Gentlemen on the other side of the House who found it
necessary to oppose the present Bill. But he could not
help remarking on the other side of the House, that Gen-
tlemen who admitted the peculiar danger of the existing
Act, who visited with the strongest condemnation any
attempt to repeal the Act, yet recommended, when they
were making alterations in the details of that measure,
and modifying its effect, them to maintain the prin-
ciple of the Old law. He did not mean, in treating upon
that subject, to introduce any'party spirit; nothing could
be further from him, as he did not think it was fair in
subjects of this kind. The Gallant Colonel, the Member
for Middlesex, insisted in a comparison of the merits of
this and the preceding proposition. It, was impossible
for him (Lord Howick) to do so, because even though
the principle of the measure proposed by the late Govern-
ment met with his approbation, yet that measure
did not go far enough, and it was brought forward at an
unfortunate time. On the other hand, the present Go-
vernment was now prepared to deal with the subject, and
he was bound to give them this credit that had brought
forward the measure in a manner the importance of the
question required, and when they were fully capable of
carrying the proposal submitted. They had also, he
thought, proposed a very substantial alteration and
amendment to the existing law. No doubt they con-
tinued what he conceived to be most vexatious and most
injurious restrictions on trade ; but, at all events, they
mitigated those restrictions which now exist, and they
diminished the evils of the present system ; and though
they did not, in his opinion, go far enough, still as far as
they did go they proposed considerable improve-
ment, especially as that improvement would lead,
at no very distant period, to a more complete and
effectual reform of the Corn-laws.—(Hear, hear.) It
was the beginning of a progress, which he was per-
snaded no power in this country could arrest, towards a
reform, before any length of time had elapsed, of the
Corn-laws—a reform which would be founded on a
much clearer and intelligible principle than any that had
yet been proposed. The argument which he wished to
address to the. House was, that the .Right Hon.
Baronet, in the measure which he had proposed, had
adhered too much to the principle of .the law now in
force. Although, as he (Lord H.) had already stated.
it was generally admitted, even on the other side, that
the Act of 1828 had been a practical failure, he did
not think that it was equally admitted that that
failure had been the necessary result of the
object which the Act- of 1828 proposed to
itself. It was undeniable that when that Act had been
proposed Parliament had been taught to believe that
its effect would be to maintain a steady and equal
price ;- and that the increase of duty, in proportion to the
tall in price, and the diminution of duty in proportion
to the rise, would have the effect of limiting the lower-
ing and rising of prices within certain limits, which the
framers of the Act conceived it was not expedient that
they should exceed. It must be admitted that that
was the avowed expectation of the Act of 1828, as well
as that of 1822. If it had not been framed with that
object, it would be difficult to conceive what was the
object and intention of that Act. He (Lord (H.) con-
tended that that object was one which Parliament
ought not to have in view.--(Hear, hear.)
Parliament stepped beyond its proper province,
if it attempted to legislate with a view ,of determining
what should be the price of food or any othercommodit,
whateVer. It was impossible, and if it were possible it
TearhntedainpinrliciemeonitosseiquacorebirilielterawrahilLna
would not be desirable, that the price should be confined
appointedntthyerseuwasplsupply,
,bay deficienttr li
a
seeking their own interest were renderingharvest,
eaalergrs,ewathsoeir'n_
vice to the community. They forced an economical
consumption, suited to the diminished supply-
The increased- price remunerated' the farmer for
the small quantity which he disposed of. In
the same manner, in abundant
years, the Price falls,
and the blessings of abundance are
shared by all classes
of the community. Now he believed, that any attempt

pornotchesespmarntstoffnif
;artlhiaamt etnhtetonnilnytewrfneyreinwlivthht
nt
hh i sonea tflu
Lir
ea.!
tuations of price arising from the variety of the seasonns.
could be advantageously diminished, was by the 11
checked operation of trade. The trader, if left to hits',.
self, purchased in dear years, and his stock is brought
into the market with great advantage to all, when there
was a less abundant supply, and imported a greater or less
quantity according to what he believed could be the
,_
de-
mand of the country in which he lived. This was the
natural state of things, and, if by law, they did. 1_10;
interfere with it, experience showed that itworked witht.
regularity and beauty which it was impossible sufficie° ,I),',
to admire. In fact, in the whole order of creation,
mil!
did not know anything more marvellous, and at the sa,,,e
time more striking, than the manner in which, by lu_',
combined operation of a number of individuals, none of
them thinking at all of the public interest, but each le 'nt.
ing only his private and individual interest, a suPP.',)o'l;t
food to great communities was regulated—how, with
11,
waste, without irregularity, and without interruphtin.s
each individual of a large nation was supplied with 1,0,,
proportion of food, in proportion to the IN hole su
the price varying in such a manner as to" enable,,,
production to be continued, at the same "`"ci.
avoiding an undue pressure on the consuni•
e,
The manner in which all this took Plac.
without any interference on the part of any public
the
thority, by the agency of men as unconscious as
result °i
wheels of some great machine, of the combined resnli
their operations, the more the considered this ben tn„,d
mechanism of society, the more' one must admire it, !"`t..
the more they must be convinced that it was an al-V„lnut
ment of unerring wisdom and infinite benevolence.
ees,
it was with this that men, with their clumsy contrivan
presumed to interfere. They were not satisfied with the
order of society appointed by Providence, and the raelat
Providence had established for the regulation of love.
supply, but they must attempt to correct and impNar,
what was established • and it was really extraordin
..f..
how slow men were to learn the folly of such interfereasn
In the memory of many men now alive, the laws Winn.
by their ancestors against forestalling and regra,4
were enforced ; the practice was denounced froineytlar,
seat of Justice as mischievous and injurious, while
le_i_.'s
man of ordinary education was .now aware that it ',lt
not merely harmless and innocent, but of great beabasad
and service to society.—(Hear, hear.) But
tii
made some progress in understanding the folly °f gnicejli
interference, as far as their internal trade was concern
—in that, perfect freedom was established, nut
they had -felt the benefit of the alteration• their
they still obstinately clung, with respect to
con,
foreign trade, to restrictions and contrivances,' he
ceived in the very self-same spirit, and Lion.
thought with equal blindness and equal presumpl.in,
The natural inducement to persons to increase theird,
to
portations when the supply at home was deficient, atiltseif
diminish it when the supply was abundant, was lnor no
perfectly sufficient. If there were a fixed dutY, fd la-
duty at all, the self-interest of the merchants wan „rise ;'!,_
duce them to diminish their imports when the loc 5, to
of corn afford them no profit,,and, on the other 1,911,1 the
increase them when the rise in price at once indicate" the
want that was felt in this country, and oa
certainty of profit. But the presumpto- and
which the Act of 1828 was founded, ent
which presumption was continued in the. Pres not
Bill, was, that this natural inducement was t to .
sufficient, and that ,it was necessary for Parliallt of
do something more—to give the merchant a ben
4s. in the quarter more than the natural course 0, `0 01l
would -yield him. What had been the result t 1 t
parties ? That in seeking to increase the indu,cerishi
which they held out to the trader to increase or ditn",,oes
his supplies according to circumstances and the_"d the
of the country, they had so thoroughly deranlie the
whole system of the trade in corn, as to deaf
left to
country of the great benefits which the trade, if „old
itself, would have afforded.—(Hear, hear.) Such l's dit
he the consequences of the measure•now in force, anew.
had been stated,, that upon - that fact the present noon.
sure Was founded. The_ reason which the Rightit ini se,
Baronet had stated for the measure before the -" in
and the nature of the measure itself, did, in effec"•ck)
volve the admission that such as he (Lord 11°,Sot
had described had been the effects of the law. ' il
else could be the reason for diminishing the duts',calilit
what else could be the meaning of those very sig,nifi j3a'
rests ?—(Hear, hear.) What did the Right 11°11*„ in'
ronet say of those rests himself, but that they Iver,' .at
tended to prevent the importer from looking to air:isy
rise of price and fall of duty, when prices were ,' ;iis. ,
high ? They were intended to induce hini,nt°,."ol'ti; ',.,:.-,
Ins corn into the market when the duty was stiffs The
low to allow him to sell with a remunerating profit. 01
Right Hon. Baronet proposed that, between 52' that
558., the duty should he 18s., in order, he believed, ~it , ~,,,'
when the price aose to 525. the importer might not %-q o's
for a further rise, but might at once introduce the sitr• onio
whieh was needed at a duty of 18s. That. was a, rtee ) 70
fectly valid argument ; he entirely concurred witane- 1,40
Right lion. Baronet as to the advantages of that arraci7sa '''s
ment. But if it were good when the price was het' los, of,
525. and 555, lie wanted to know whY ithestr.) ', itio
not equally good between 525. and 60s.—(Hear,void :yr!
If the Right Hon. Baronet made these rests to iteep of
holding out the importers of corn an inducement to ese ,:rs4
back the supply of corn when it was wanted—if titftocl „,,01
rests were made to restore trade to its natural state'
~,..„
to supply the importer with those motives, which N''''ato to ,0',4 I
operate if Parliament did not interfere—he scantednor i'liii
know why the principle was not good to a still gre-ar 1,1),1
extent.—(llear.) Unfortunately it was not in his Pn`,..,b. , 147,0
to be present during the previous debates on that
these'
ject ; but, as far as he could collect from reading l"i it.
'
debates in the papers, it did not appear to him thirds-
IDI
had-yet been explained why, after gohigon so far town e. fie
adopting a sounder and wiser system, they should •Pra iO,
cisely stop at that particular point? Why, if the °god '''''
ment were good, was it not followed out to its just lief i_,',
legitimate extent ?—(Hear, hear.) lie believed the ether ''.-c
reason assigned for not carrying the principle, far re "Aid
was this. The Right Hon. Baronet said that agne"trord ‘el
required protection, but that it was impossible Wa. se ti
protection when the duties rose to a certain amount, :gs,
therefore proposed to raise the duties at the lower ,Pt or- iit
of the scale of averages.. Now in considering that 5!,
gument, he begged, in the first place, to protest ag" ifo ~Vl,
such a use of the word protection.--(Hear, hear')to this '',;
maintained that it was an absurdity not suited
vitae,
age of this world. The only protection to agri .t, his :,s•
I, .
or to any other branch of industry, to which,
„ht I
opinion, it was entitled, was that protection .0 of of
secured to every man the enjoyment of the fralfroio
,ft
his own honest labour ; which prevented hilt, ' fair ."'
being either directly, or indirectly, deprived of throe tee.
~t{
rewards of his own exertions. That was the 014 P fel'
lion which he would acknowledge to be due either t° Wes
culture or any other branch of national industry no of
it not an abuse of language when, under the °oar
protection, they gave to one particular class of the oil
inanity the power of saying to their fellow-sukief.tcs h lie
fellow-citizens, " You shall take those things w"1 &les
produce though they may be dearer than similar art ex'
which you could obtain elsewhere. You shall °°,,i,ich
change that which you haveproduced in the manner ‘gula; - s
would be most advantageous to you ; but fisca', -ic ern a* 4
tions shall be adopted, with the intention and "e'tic use
,-• 1
compelling you to pay more for articles of domes pOr. ' ,
than you would pay for the same articles if PILI The •'
chased them elsewhere."—(Hear, hear, hear:l,os '
House had been long in the habit of making n- 'bring
in the right direction, but it seemed to be afraid t°heor.)
forward principles boldly and distinctly.—(Hear' to sLe:
But the time was now come--and he was gig-,... the
' in the late debates it seemed to ri,orti,
opinions of others, and particularly of the Nobliv and
the Member for Tiverton—when they should boll t.:, that
explicitly declare themselves.—( Hear.) He could atTle never
as long as he had had the honour of a seat in that House
d that ti
held language inconsistent with what he now state---of their
time was come when it must tie admitted as a princie. dustr,Yl
legislation that the only protection to which Britio rnj ; a%
was entitled, was that which he had already descrir Ol
that it was not necessary, in order to support one eTp;e(l.ll-a
the other classes of their fellow subjects shou'd be tot af ~
(Cheers). But when he said that he thought it right infer
,nay joi
himself from being misunderstood, as Gentlemed roes a ,
that he was an advocate for a total and immediate - s oe"
the Corn Laws, that was not his opinion and that 'frt i°
the opinion he was venturing now to emit:mr to a
oo ofpe
uPP° get
that House. He was an advocate for the princiPies pe eit"
commercial freedom, but in adopting that p l
rinciplea:s kin4'
tion was absolutely necessary.—( Hear.) And ficular,l)Cto'
all the circumstances of the country—loOking Par-lookin
the necessity of raising a revenue—(Hear, hear)-- eireny
the burdens imposed' on land—looking to all these_ doe_
~t,
,tances, he thought it wise policy to impose a mode.ra7 op the, :'••;,
corn, but in saying that, he only expressed the opinion Arid!. 1 y
supposition that the duty was indeed a moderate ondl7o osui :t;,.11
must further add that if the alternative were prone4ht flt:Vws',/
paining the existing system as modified by the isleoes?..;"„P'si
Baronet, or of the total repeal on corn, and he I,ls„„sider..ol''' ''''tis
choose between the two courses—at the same time e-t-hat.o."-__.6'1,1.,1t
both objectionable—the interests of land must 'n But
het Vi II
yield to the principle of total repeal.--( Cheers.) Brotecti°l34.'' ello'
willing that some amount of that which was called P d on the- 51,4
that a certain extent of restriction should be iraV'eroessor 'le
importation of foreign corn. But if protection is lii,f doe tl ,09,eig
he wanted to know why that protection is not equatj 0.01 -ri
ftahielurefaro
of
tehr e
produce e ther
of h
thee hi
aand d
ea_l(aHr ge:
r,ohrue:arar,
.s.)ahemoo.:11:::to
r.
vs
ononaru:rwi
ytted,':
:1.1,10,
fr, ;
Why was he entitled to less rotection when there asi"
°lf tgirteen ~,i
shillings were a sufficient protection when the price 0r.,.., orT: '',/
608., on what principle of justice or of fairness cool!'
_,'"ii'h'pe t.!
,o
pose to impose a duty of 20s. when the price of vinTop Wilas
~
fall to SCs. ? He was totally at a loss to undecstaule kooss! .
plea this could be contended fer..—( Hear, hear. ) fon to:libt:
as regarded the diminution of the duty in propoerni,. with t
rise in the averages, that it was a favourite argurn
lie I____ pod
other side of the House, and an arguraent which w."'d neer
Noble vie° • •On
to see had received more attention from hit leo opnn •
him (Lord John Russell) than in his (Lord Hng,levihan
that
it deserved, that it would be utterly impossible and tl?
as
thereforehl l o
dual dtyr i
as
ti et bwaeucy
eomrntdoariane certainadvisablepo ipoint
t thatamounttoonptroot
il maintaindeea
vfo tithe
m ::. duty,t_iin tndwxesencil I
:II;
it_ll.ltyh;
. . , ...rho
Government to relax the duty, subect to a "111 "
Morentto.
rise of the aver%
shown that a reduction of the duty on the
Choera*L„ fit :11`,1''
did really produce a benefit to the consumer.—(
that any ": -eof , •'
makeßut
beforei t a matteril e admitted
itthtee
d specialtha t
argument,ln terferenceheorwri; .05
ashuuapdt
yp an
clseoe
nag
syetsqo
uarguedbeentdeuipi tovhneadta
rise
experience pe
teiLniee
tniulcueenahs
average
aes
rgh:o.Blo.:unwg
3:lnnyi
t.
tort
e 8s o
:17. ,i ,
i s usderst°°d tto
the objection to any tar wa
(Lord fluor continued.—(Cheers.)
theuelu 1 tt
ismui vuoe—endeLCm(hciegehbretse
1)i -o. ta;bde 1 t:;•hauawi ?dhs'eatshtaue foliotd tae,ai thei
tt. heprPrbe
ddu radce and
he
r: ''l
''
J
id hoe
theshould
bibetter
tu
le,ri burdenhtah
Re t
hi it
e the wasi nxceobhoneeln:
tathhneed thoughtEbif tnchehiafitettqwubaeousrf;
muchdei bnu. tvi e: stillth they
y
150 ; an d _
burden, " h
ttlfehub;g:!ietesttseeurntmht tmaeht.aumtfthtehtenheteslipY.
ri_gudh(uttufeHeauorfn,
t.hheßaatarr.bo)anteHdteen(louuolrtddh
neti..,n:o:xtrwchipoveeqrk,o:lo.l_lAi. ,
ifiir„;..
tended that the reduction of the duty in the ma
_,:,,„iy jw-
,p,
was of no benefit whatever te the coosumer—it wastro"f co'pse-_ ,p;•
sorbed in meeting the increased chirges on impor ti 1;,, cold ,
thean
dn narrowing wr•ai nisgi
uthgeocf itricileepfrritumets which i„cilli
tthehne
tnseipntilii,Laittiinni„gearrol:
i
1,11) obtained,ceutPsn.t uTih
uponnat manner of regulating the duty, preve
chant from performing his proper office,
the
o argument,meet thos eh
having
ufi
stutorcthkeirn.inhtoan
fully into the su bjec t, and as the eeonn(d' iisb.f:trebn(leearoen°scycu°c—tuabildise-nnuq;u°°ll e: