The Sun.
London, England, 1842-05-07 00:00:00

posed persons, spreading false and dangerous intetligelreo
delude the people, they ate tube arrested and punished, with
the rigour of the law. 0., A
" They are equally to take care that the peasants ,1*;1n -
'i m r
the same subserviency to the legitimate power 'Of their
seigneurs. if any should prove contumacious, they Ife.fttiliki",/
brought back to their duty by mild means and persuasion, and •
in failure of this by the rigour of the law.
(Signed) " PEROWSKY."
"To this letter is subjoined an order from the Grand
Master of the Police, aide-de-camp of the Emperor, prescribing
to the masters of police to give their utmost attention to pre-
vent any false interpretations and false reports that may be
spread about on the imperial intentions as manifested in the
above ukase.

(Signed)

"CACOCHEKINE,, '
Grand Master of Police."

MASTERS AND MEN
TO THE EDITOR 01' THE SUN.

SIR,—As your paper is the advocate at all times of the poor
and the oppressed, 1 think it right to correct what appears to
me a gross mis-statement in your paper of yesterday, of the
nature of the dispute between the colliers in the neighbourhood
of Hawarden and their employers. The colliers, as fa: es I
am able to know, by no means wish to dictate to their employers
who shall or shall not conduct their business, but Mr. Staley is
supposed by the workmen to have suggested and carried into
practice a scheme for reducing the colliers wages from IBs. to
about 12s. per week, by enlarging the meshes of the screens
that screen the coals, so as to admit one-third of the coals, for
which they were used to be paid, to pass through them as
slack ; their strike is, in fact, to prevent an actual reduction
of wages of 33 per cent., and no man of feeling v.ill say they•
are at present overpaid for risking their lives in a coal-pit..
Mr. Editor, I do think it is high time that the higher and
middie classes took the situation of the poor working people
into serious consideration, and at once put a stop to this insane
system of reducing the wages of labourers. The working
classes, it is well known to all, are at the present time totally
estranged in sentiment and feeling from the higher and middle
classes, and that they look upon their employers in all parts of
0 a country as their worst tyrtnts and oppressors, and how cm
they feel otherwise towards them? When they see the nail-
niasers in Staffordshire, who at present cannot earn more than
4s. 6d. per week, reduced 20 per cent. ; when the hosiers
suffered reduction after reduction till they can scarcely earn
4s. 6d. per week ; that weavers are earning no more ; that
the working men in Liverpool have b:en reduced 50 per cent.
since 1835 ; and that this reducing system is still going en in all
parts of the country. And of what use is it to masters?—every
reduction in wages produces immediately a corresponding reduc-
tion in the price of manufactured articles, reduccs the value of the
stocks in the hands of capitalists, and disables and disinclines
them to purchase again till gcods are actually wanted; whilst
the reduction of wages makes it impossible for the mass of the
people to purchase the articles that should give them employ-
ment. The consequence of all th s is, that the working people
are compelled to produce more goods to get a living, whilst the
demand is lessened, competition is increased among the toas-
ters, and their profits are reduced at every reduction of wages.
If there be no demand for the goods, let fewer goods be
made, but no man with the feelings of a man, and especially of
a Christian, will be instrnmental in reducing the wages of the
poor, till they can no longer, even when fully employed, pro-
cure food and clothing for themselves and 'families. Your insertion of my letter in your valuable paper, will much
ohlige my brother workmen, and, Sir, your friend and admirer.
Liverpool, April 27, 1842. A WORKING MAN.
[ We have inserted this at the request of our Correspondent,
but he must see if there be little or no demand for goods, the
masters must either reduce wages or throw out of employment
a number of their men.]