Star.
London, England, 1829-05-20 00:00:00

torn ware the result of labours the meteriak SOB
which they were produced did sot amount to asofeeedi
of the whole that went to forte the component pans of '
the complete snide. Oss half of the labourer's wages-11
weut in taxes paid upon the. *feral nesessirles or
futurist which the labourer consumed; the other half

was paid for fond; and, were it not fur the advantages
which the people of this country enjoyed from the divi-
sion of labour. the perfection of machinery, roads, and
other circumstances. they could not for a moment com-
pete with their rivals in the markets of the Continent.'
From the facts which he had laid before the House, the
disparity between the condition of the British and fo-
reign manufacturer must have been sufficiently up.
parent, and that disparity, though pressing with extreme
severity upon the manufacturers. did not produce a
corresponding advantage to the landed proprietor. li
was quite a mistake to suppose that the opening of the
port. in this country would have the effect of lowering
the price of corn to the extent which bad been repro.
seated. Opening the ports would only raise corn. in fo•
reign markets, not depreciate it in our own; for, what.
ever its price might be abroad, there would be always
the expenses of transit to prevent its .entering into an
undue competition with our native produce. The ea-
penset of transit from America would be 12r. from
Dantzic Is. 6d. from o.iessa. M. and, accordingly, (t!e.
former would have no well-grounded apprehension from
excessive influs,.ff he and the other members of the coils-
Innvite were 'shown any thing like fair play. As the
law stood, ailenever the price became really blab,
the ports were opened. and a glut ensued, which. ;in
the end, must prove ruinous to all patties. Tke
.monopoly which did exist was a misfortune of the
most serious kind; it produced unsteadiness and reiul-
`sions by which item dais in the community was most
injuriously affected. As to the turners, their intelest.
really went loge destruction of the monopoly, polar,'
6iadeed, that potties; of them who bad leases. He would
*oppose the case of this country in reference to its
foreign trade to stand thus; not that be meant.ibe
numbers should exhibit any approximation towards the_
real spte of matters, but they would suffice to "plain
his meaning. Suppose six manufacturers werOugaged
in supplying the home market, and twb with the
foreign, making eight in all, it was evident duo, if the
Legislature prohibited the introduction of such articles
as were required for paying the two bianufacturers, they
would be left to starve or to become the rivals of
remaining six. Thus the waged of labour would be
depreciated, the quality of men. food graclually•re-
duced. their labour per day, from being ten• hours.
ouldrise to eleven. twelve, this teen, or fourteen hoofs,
to obtain a bare maintenance. It was not to be denied,

that the corn lawspreverlieithiexPortatiort of mono!
factures, and that their mischievous effects recoiled
upon the agriculturists themselves, for the increase off
psupetism led to the. augmentation of the pools' rates.
What would be thought of persons who voluntarily put I
themselves in a state of btockaded—in a state no better
than that of a besieged town? It was nothing less than
to say that the production of corn for the people of this
,country should have a limitation to the soilof England/
He totally denied that the corn laws had the effect;
which was attributed to them of keeping the price al
sixty shillings. It fluctuated almost unceasingly. At'
the present moment the trade in coin was the most per.
feet gambling that could be conceived. At the present
moment great inequalities existed in-the trade between
this country and foreign Stater. The inconveniences
arising from those inequalities mist be apparent to
every body. It was owing to them that much of the
present distress existed. 'But bow did those inequali-
ties arise? Why, antely from the nature of the present,
corn laWs—tboselaws which, by prohibiting the haw.
tation of grain, denied the mechanic and the labourer
food, and created throughout the errantry an anti-sbeial
feeling which could not be otherwise than prejudicial sO
ft. These facts he trusted would convince the House
that some change onght vi be made. He might be
asked what change he would propose—whai substitute
be would adopta..fer:the existing lair? He would an-
seier, free trade ; and ha thought that the present, of all
rather times, se: the most proper for the introduction
of the princirles of flee trade as respected the imposts.'
tha of grain into this country. The duty upon cora.
Recording to the present plan, varied, Ile believed, from
I3a. to 15s. per quarter-.-(The Hon. Member was here
',formed that this day's duty was about 13..) That
was about what he thought. Now he would propos,/
that, instead of boor, as at present, flied upon a gra-
duated scale, rambling through note:rutin variations, a
ked duty should be put—say of 150 per quarter upo 1
wheat, 10s. upon barley, and fis. upon oat.. This would
be about the relative amount of their value. If they
would allow him to go into a Committee, he would
then propose that from these rates there should be an
annual reduction of 10 (for i im,elf he should prefer it
to be 21 'or Ss.) and he tried not so Much On the ad.
vantage of this gradthil !eduction as upon the acknow•
lodgment of the. pi inciple that the por to wei e to be open
at* fixed rate for corn to the free trader, as well as in
all other articles. Were this once enacted, the adeahiege•
heconteaded,would he much in favour of the agricultu-
rist. To examine thi. point.he would call their attention
to the mannef in which the fixed duty would operate
Gk • would at once open the porta of Great Britain tor
the receptiOn of her proportion of the surplus corn of all
she other countries in the universe. Goo knows, If ey
had Manulacturers enough to pay for every thing, pry-
eided they could obtain proper employment: The effect
at abe measure would undoubtedly be to tame the price
' Id' :ern all uv. r. the *odd, arid England would have
'tleaus of 'exchanging her manufactures for her share
iiii the commodity. In thi. plan there would he brined
bee* fluctuation or alternation of prier, eibratine in the'
`eastkcif, and alarming the people. The mo e the,
ibis: ke4 (like individuals) were scattered in this wide.
world, the le.s chaneethere would be of a reduction OA
demaad for their manufactures, and the less probabi-
lity of that &idea supply of food which occasionally
led to famine and misery, and is fact was the alleged'
cause of these corn laws. A steady price would, by
opening the maikee, neutrally keep*. the commodity at
its fair value..and prevent thole dangerous vacillations
of which eery body complained. It 'would also pre-
vent gluts, for the demand for their manufactures wool&
be regulated by the exchanges, and the prices would be
equally •deteimitied. Another adiantage from the
change would be, their getting rid of the monstrous and
unwieldy machinery of what were.caltrd the averages.
.The country Gentlemen who depended upon the equity
of these were not cc are of the tricks and frauds which
were daily practised in the regulationot these averages.
The dealers cf. coin .ss ere here more than a match tot
the country Genuernso,aad he had a variety of repre-
sentations from Liverpool, .Cork, and other places,
showing
how very imperfect these :swages were taken,
d how, its many instances, where tens of thousands of
qtViekrs were purchased,. they were struck at a much
Meter amount, f sale They were, in tact, like the Coraßill
itself; penicctly inadequate, and sot one claw ismer.
•
Ong tha. moose for which it WY Intended. He *sad
then an 'imposition, whittle be bord they would
imam witli*,^ ia-tbiaking beweGoitil;• and which be

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