Star.
London, England, 1826-05-09 00:00:00

the Remo, but he conjureLthe House to beware how
they injurid Ihe agricultural In of the country, by measures
which were to mush calculated, as he considered these to be. to
• *IN into the manufacturers the most unfounded feelings of ill Will
to the landed owners. --
Mr. Home Somme and Mr. STAIILIT. having risen at tke same
time, there was* loud call for the latter Gentleman, who, however,
gave way.
Mt. H. SUMNER said, that his sentiments were in
perfect unison with tie se of his Hun. Friend the Mem-
ber for Wareham. Ile thought the present measure
likely to be productive of great evil,, of which, the least
was not, that it would induce both the Agriculturists
and the Manufacturers, but particularly the latter, to
imagist, that it was only the forerunner of a total repeal of the Corn
Laws. He could not see the necessity of the measure, and was
determined to divide the House against It, even though he stood
alone, as he considered it the duty of any Gentleman interested in
the prosperity of agriculture to oppme such a motion.
Mr. STANLEY expressed his hearty concurrence in
the measure, and trusted that the Ministers would have
the support of a large majarity in i•s favour. He re-1
vetted the harsh opposition that had been made to it.
as he feared that such opposition would tend to create
bi•t r f cling in the manufacturing districts. Perhaps
he was iuduced to feel too strongly in favour of the
main n, from the circumstance of his having spent the
last fortnight in those quartets, and having personally
observed the extreme distress of the manufacturers. He
saw there the greater number of the looms out of ens•
ploy ment, and those weavers who were employed work.
ing each man for from ss. to 6 .6d. a w.ek ; whole
families starving for months on *one meal of oatmeal a
day, and bearing even that privation with a most com-
mendable spirit of patience, rather than apply to the
Poor Laws. This personal experience of their digress
night make him possibly too warm on the question
before the House; but in his despair of a better remedy,
he clung to it perhaps as a drowning man would eatch
at a straw ; he bailed the slightest ray of light that
gleamed on the gloom of their distress. He agreed in
:he opinion that the present measure would alleviate the
distress without iefluencing the fate of the Cora Laws,
as it was but a temporary and partial expedient ; and
that the mob there did not impute their distress to the
Corn Laws, was evident from the fact of their confining
their Colence to the destruction of power looms. This measure
was anxiously to be hoped for, as it would show a de'ire on the
part of the House and the Government to attend to the interests of
the manufacturing classes, and to reconcik them to the landed in-
terest. If be refused to give his assent to the measure. he could
not think he acted consistently with his feelings or his sense of duty.
Colonel WOOD lamented the misapprehension abroad
of use separateness of the manufacturing and agricul-
tural interests. He contended they were inseparable;
and that the home market was the most profitable to
the manufassurcr. He understood the price and duty
of the import a torn were to be specified in the Right Hon. Gen.
demur's Bill.—(No, No! from the Treasury Benches.)—lf not, it
was leaving a dangerous discretionary power in the hands of Minis-
tees ; and he contended that the price of corn ought to be made a
guiding rule. In the Committee, he would take the sense of the
House on the necessity of fixing a particular import duty.
Mr. Secretary PEEL admitted that he had said, that
the opinion•that 80s. or even 70s. was the maximum at
which corn could be at present admitted was a fallacy,
as the average being struck from the relative prices for
three months, it was evident the price may continue to
stand so high as 100 s. so long as six weeks; and, on that ground, he
. bad argued that the Government ought to possess a discretionary
power of regulating the admission of corn according to the passing
circumstances of the times; but, in making that statement, he
begged to be understood as not having intended, in the most remote
degree, to express an opinion on what ought to be the remunerating
price to the home growers of corn.
Sir M. W. RIDLEY maintained that the manufacturing and
agricultural interests were so inseperable. that wrong to me was
eventually injury to the other. The principle of the repeal of the
corn laws was salutary to the agriculturalists, ask undoubtedly was
to the manufacturers.
Mr. F. LEWIS gave the measures his support; the more so, as
he himself belonged to the landed interest, which interest he con-
ceived was not in the remotest degree injured by the present mea-
sure. The present measure, if not a remedy. would be at least an
alleviation of the present distress, and was therefore entitled to the
support of the House.
Mr. JONES would not oppose the bringing up of the Report,
but was net therefore pledged to support the measures founded on it.
Mr. J. SMITH would vote for the present measure; for he cm.
tended, that had not Ministers brought forward it, or a similar
measure, they would be justly to blame for neglecting the interests
and sufferings of the distressed manufacturers. He preferred k
however in its original form, not placing too great reliance in the
professions of Ministers.
Mr. BARING could not agree with his Hon. Friend
in applauding the line of conduct chalked out by the
Government, because it appeared t r him to be what no
one could read or understand. An Hon. Gentleman
on the other side seemed to think it of great advantage
that they should have the power of shifting the price of
corn at pleasure, so as to make it suit the view they
took of the circumstances of the country from time to
time. Now, this he considered as the greatest possible
evil. From the time when the Corn Laws were first
agit .ted, when the Right Hon. Gentleman opposite ad-
vowed the present system in 1815, he had constantly
opposei them, thinking the amount of protection much
too high, and that they were altogether open to many
objections: therefore any objection which he should
make to the present measure would not be owing to the
fair tar with which he regarded the Corn Laws, but be-
cause he thought that not a day should be lost in enter-
ing into such a revision as should end in placing them
upon a permanent and solid footing. Why this was not
done last year he did not know. Ihe present was also to
pass ever, and tLe consumer, the dealer, and the grower
were to Le left without any other knowledge of what
was to become of the price of cot n, excepting that it was
at the disposal of Government. The Hon. Member then
contended that the Government had acted most inju-
diciously in touching the currency under the particular
circumstances of the country. If they had left the ship
to right herself, the distress would long since have sub-
sided, they should have heard nothing of the want of
food at Nlanchester, and the settlement of the question
of one pound notes might safely have been left to the
next year. By the course pursued by Government, all
the distress was aggravated. The measures they
adopted knocked from under all the little traders from
one end of the country to the other the little capital
upon which they carried on their affairs. There had
been no want of goods, or of market; all that they
wanted was capital, with which trade could be carried
yet the Ministers ran heedlessly and without cause
iato a course which rendered capital far more scarce
than it had bten before. The difficulties of the manu-
facturing districts had long been known to exist, and
nothing was done; but as soon as a riot and same
symptoms of insubordination took place, down came
the Right Honourable Gentlemen—he would not
say hi6htened, because their courage was equal
to that of others—but in what the country thought
a panic, to ask for these extraordinary powers.—
He wit. in'ormed that the Committee over which the
Right Hon. Gentleman at the head of the Home De-
partment presided had come to the conclusion, that in
England there were to he no one pound notes, in Ireland
their were to be three tound notes, and in Scotland (as I