Star.
London, England, 1830-07-30 00:00:00

RUINING:IAM POLITICAL. UNION.

According to postponement, in order ►o wait the convLiii .4c.: of Si,
Ftancis Burdett, the tiro annual meeting of the Political
took place at Mr. Beat dswor.lt's Repositeri, on Monday last.
Mr. T. ATTWOOD moved that Sir F. Burdett do Like the eltss:.
This havin., been done with acclamation,

Sir F. liunnETT rose and addressed the meetine. lie r
menced Ly expressing his gratification at seeing so :11111!enSe.
semblagc of his fellow-countrymen assembled together for the per •
pose of promoting an object which he had laboured to eueomphie
during the whole of his political life. All his labours in the caue-
of reform had hitherto produced little effect upon et, refer I.:cute
and little would ever he effected urless by a general imiou are
°potation of the people. It was perfectly in vain to expect to make-
any impression upon the bands of individuals interested in tl•e pre-
sent corruptions, for they were too true to the duties which they
owed to their constituents to allow any rentonetraneft of the people
to have any effect upon their minds. Ile had himself a curious
duty to petform, which was to explain how he was justitiri in giv-
ing them credit for such a faithful and cattscientious discharge of
their duty to their constituents. The fact say, the mmotity of these
gentlemen bad but about ind constituents, and most faithfully del
they discharge their duty to that select number. They would es•
sily learn what might be expected front the fidelity of menthere
freely returned by the people at large, when they bay how elstlfulle
and carefully theinteresta of this select number of con:elite-me wet,
guarded by their faithful representative:. He cautioned the pu'elie
against being led, by passing events, from the real and vital que.-
don of reform, as nothing could be more daitg,:rons to lifteity
the eyes of the public being tutned to things which wonieS
ultimately be of no avail. He alluded to what w ere file ay cal: e
the elections of the people. They all knew that clunties were t
sidered the most tree and independent; but they all linnet lir ne,
that the man of the greatest wealth was always the surest et hes
election, and that it was now esteemed, even by the rich, an act o:
great folly, certainly of great injury, to stand for a county. It nete
equally unnecessary for him to inform them boa small a pe.ti le at
county members the House of Commons contained. So renurieue.y
deficient, indeed, was the house of popular reptesentatives, One i
1793 Lord Grey offered to prove at the bar, that a majority of to
members were merely the nominees of Peers, or other great landed es
borough proprietors. With respect to the last Par:iament, it we:A.:
not thank hint fur what he was going to sey, roe would they be skit .
prised. He was going to make their d, ihece. The Het:omelet-
Baronet then proceeded to argue, that the mejotity of the I:elm
ben of Parliament, as at present constituted, were, on the whole,
fair representatives of their constituents. lie would defy any
man to prove an instance where any of those returned for Peat.
had acted contrary to the orders or the directions of those by
whom they were returned. (Great cheering.) If they tare
only as true to the interests el the people, and the nrinciy!
of the British constitution, as they were to their constituents, tl: •
people of England would speedily be res:ured to their birthright.
It was to advance this object they were met that day,—en obje
nut hostile to the constitution, but as much for the benefit of ti
King on his throne, as the happiness of the people. It was not
directed against any Minister, so much as intended to rescue ail
ministers from the hands of a boroughniongeriog faction. Irbil.
upon this topic, he might be allowed to express his satisfaction in
being able to state his entire confidence in the present king, who. in
the short time he bad been on the throne of his futeSithers. had di..
' played more true English feeling, and performed more acts
vote benevolence, than had been displayed or pe•rionticel by any Bet-
tish Sovereign for reigns past. He had called forth gallant lees
who had been laid on the shelf neglerted, and rewanled them tee
services long since performed—rewards which they meat long teii ce
have despaired of ever receiving. One of his firer tete was the re-
calling to his court an old and gallant friend of Lord Nal.
son, whose name would be long renumbered in the naval ae-
nals of his country. (Cheers.) lie had likewise shown the
ranee kindly considerations for the comforts and convenience of ail
classes of his subjects. In the recent opening of St. James's park.
he had displayed a desire to comply with the request of the init.:.
bitants of Westminster, who had now a ready access to its walks.
In short, in William the Fourth they had now a King of England,
and not the King of a faction.—(Cheering.) Now, therefore, war
the time to press all subjects ;of national importance. Sir Francis
then stated, that so long ago as the close of the American war, the
subject of reform bad been introduced into Parliament by Mr. Pitt,
with an eloquence which completely dazzled the people of England.
Those, therefore, who charged Mr. Pitt's former friends with being
apostates because they advocated reform, were themselves the apos-
tates ; for that great man was one of the earliest and first advocate*
for its necessity. There were records of his sentiments en that huh.
ject, from which lie had made extracts to allow what were his prin-
ciples, and the reason with which he accompanied them. They
would be found to be the same as those they were that day met to
support; and which he should always fee! honoured in advocating;,
either in Birmingham or elsewhere, whenever he thought hits ex-
ertions would prove useful. lie made this condition. because
there had been, and might be, seasons when all efforts yule
worse than useless. Sonic, therefore, had accused him of lukewarm_
uses and indolence (a voice from the crowd exclaimed s old Cobb( it')
Sir Francis, " Ay, and honest men too." (Laughter and cheers.) -
But he would defy any one to say, that in the ccutse of his long po-
litical life he had neglected, upon all fair occaseione, to come torwurel
in the cause of reform. as warmly and zealously as when he first be.
carne its advocate. The hon. baronet then proceeded to read ex-
tracts from a speech delivered by Mr. Pitt on the 17:h of May.
1782, in the course of which he indulged in the most severe sarcacone
on the present vicious system of borough representation. The wars
of old Sarum or damn had nothing to do with the British corm:-
tution, except so far as it assisted their proprietors to fiil their
pockets out of the public purse. What had the Nabob of Arcot to
do with the constitution of England ? and yet it wes nototious that
he had at one time seven members sitting in the English Patlia.
merit? The present system of representation had, hewer et, this
redeeming quality—that an honest men, who wished to serve his
country, might, by an outlay of 4,0001. or 6,0001. purchase a bo-
rough. So bad, therefore, was the system, that even an evil itself
became a mitigation of a greater evil, turd without which there would
be a total monopoly in the hands of a few. Another proof of tote
state of affairs was to be found in the fact, dirt at the pre-
sent time the largest counties, the tepresentation of which
was the family glory of what Mr. Bentham called " the puree.
brandishing tyranny," were now going a begging. (Hear, hear.)
Government, he thought, had shown a want of policy in not trans-
ferring the elective franchise of East Retford to the great and he-
portant town of Birmingham, and allowed them a representntiee
acquainted with its numerous interests. It must be perfectly knout,
to all how unconvernent members of the House of Commons ge-
nerally were with these subjects ; and that such a state of thinge
ought not to be endured. He would asset t that there was no spe-
cks of reform which would not be a benefit, it it were only a
change. That led him to point out the necessity of union. lie
deprecated all extremes which disconnected the reformers freon eras
other. Some points had been gained ; they were new enablrl to
speak of the corruption of the House of Commons in tweets for
which formerly an offending member would have been consigned to
the Tower, so perfectly shanteletes had Parliament become. fn this
state of things the people of England were called upon to unite reso-
lutely in a pull, a long pull, a strong pull, and a pull altogether ;
and they would assuredly ultimately succeed in overthrowing this
Dragon in its own temple, and, as in the use of the Blown of old.
shame its own worshippers. (Cheers.) Parliament was so eorreht
that the cleverest or most ingenious man would hid it in possible
to suggest or devise a plan which so invariably operated against itte
interests of the people. Sir Francis, atter stating that he should
always be found at his post. concluded a hong and able speech,
which the above is a mere outline, by expressing the pride he tilt
in being leagued in the Name cause with the Birmingham Union.
His services were altogether at its command, with a certainty of
prompt attention. (Loud cheering.)
Mr. AnTwoo° then addressed the meeting, erd in the enuret of
a sexy long speech dwelt largely on the distress of the country aid
its causes, contending that such distress did exist, whetever might
be said to the contrary. He considered the only temedy to be that
governments should be held answerable. In Turkey they hail
strange customs—and one of diem was to cut off the heads of gene-
rals unsuccessful in battle. Now, though he would not recommend
such a policy as this in England, yet he would undertake to a..e. that
if a law was passed to hang the :ministers whenever a genetil
state of trade occurred, the child .n the cradle would never live to
hear of a bad state of trade again. (Cheers.) Mr. Attwood con-
cluded by reading the report of the Union. and moving its adoptien.
Various resolutions were then put and caried, connected with
the 'ejects of the meeting. After a vote of thanks to Mr. E. Da-
venport, for his services to the Union, had been tr oved ard atconden.
Sir F. BUnDETT said, he could bear teetlinony to the truth et
all that had been said in favour of Mr. Daeenport's services in Far.
liantent ; and it was only to be regretted that such was the state ec'
the representation, that he feared the country was not likely again e •
have the honour and the bent lit of his services.
Mr. Daniwrontr expressed his satisfaction in liiivihg been slob
to render them service, however trivial. He joined most conlialiy
in all those sentiments of confidence, which had been expressed t
wards his Majesty. The virtues or the King afforded at lean one
ray of hope and the only one, he feared—from whielt the people
might look for redress lie assured them he felt honoured by being
considered ass mendee of the Union, and would further acid, that it
the arm of persecitt• should be extended to the Society, and o
victim was wanted, be should be found willing wake ready at all
times to be that vietint.—(Cheers).
On a proposition and vote of thanks to Sir F. Burdett, he res•
and paid he could not take leave of the met ting without expressing
the deep impression made upon him by the preceediegs of mat day.
He must say that they he out prospects of nice, as is the great
cause with which be was identified, which he had never before en.
!enabled during she whok of his political life.--(Chosra.) When
they met again, he hoped it would be more a meeting of congratu.