The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-10-25 00:00:00

DINNER OF' THE OPERATIVE CONSERVATIVE
ASSOCIATION.

On Friday the members of the Operative Conservative Asso- .
eiation, taking advantage of the arrangements made for the
Tradesmen's dinner, on the Tuesday previous, held their first
anniversary dinner at the Amphitheatre. The splendid ar-
rangements, of which we gave an account, as made for the
tradesmen's dinner, were in this instance retained. The whole
of the !lags and other ornaments occupying the same position.
The band and the company of glee singers handsomely volun-
teered their services. At the top of the room was a very large
and handsome silk flag, with the inscription in gold letters
" Liverpool Operative Conservative Association." The ex-
citeinent which prevailed at the Tradesmen's dinner seemed to
have been communicated to this, almost to a spirit of rivalry.
The demand for tickets was unprecedented, the committee,
after 81)0 had been sold, being obliged to stop time supplies, and
announce on the door of the cointnittee-room that all the
tickets had b'eca sold. As before, the boxes were appropriated
to the wive4'ciangliters, and friends of those dining, and, at an
early hour. every seat in the boxes was crowded with their smiling
faces; and it was a cheering sight to see their respectability of
appearance and good order, giving the most conclusive evidence
of what was the effect of right principles when exerted amongst
the operative classes, and being strikingly dissimilar to the
brawling disorder of their opponents and its concomitant rags
and wretchedness. As early as half-past four o'clock every
seat in the room was occupied, and great numbers were wander-
ing about unable to obtain seats. The committee, from an
anxiety to accommodate as many as they possibly could with
tickets, had rather crowded the room.
A few minutes before five o'clock, the entrance of James
Aspinall, Esq., was greeted with thunders of applause. Shortly
after, Lord Sandon entered and was most enthusiastically re-
ceived. He was immediately followed by the Hon. C. J.
Canning, who was also loudly cheered.
The dinner was served up by Mr. Horne, of the Mersey
Hotel, in his usual excellent manner.
Among the distinguished company who honoured the opera-
tives with their presence on this occasion we noticed the follow-
ing:—
Viscount Sandon, M.P. ; Hon. B. Wilbraham, M.P. ; Hon.
C. J. Canning, M.P.; W. E. Gladstone, M.P.; Sir T. Brancker;
James Aspinall, Esq.; Nicholas Robinson, Esq.; Charles
Lawrence, Esq. ; Peter Bourne, Esq.; Win. Smith Fulwood,
Esq.; J. N, Wood, Esq.; Samuel Holme, Esq.; Richard
Dawson, Esq.; Robert Rigby, Esq., V.l'.; John Kilahaw,
Esq., V.P. ; Samuel Perry, Esq.; Thomas Carson, Esq. ;" J.
Pennington, Esq.; J. Wright, Esq.; C. T. Dunlevie, Esq.;
George Green, Esq.; .T. C. Eckersley, Esq.; T. M. Gladstone,
Esq.; James Irving, Esq.; F. Finley, Esq.; George Hornby,
Esq.; John Wilkinson, Esq.; &c.,&c., &c.
Among the operatives present. the following acted as vice-
presidents : —Mr. Richard Holmes, Mr. Richard Woolfill, Mr.
William Luwes, Mr. Richard Holden, Mr. Richard Perris,
Mr. Joseph Hill, Mr. Robert Mercer, Mr. George Harriott,
Mr. James Rooke, Mr. Robert ltitrby, Mr. Andrew Clitheroe,
Mr. Isaac Walker, and Mr. James Harriott.
After the cloth had been removed, " Non nohis domino" was
sung by the glee singers, the company all standing. After
which
The CHAIRMAN, after calling for a bumper. said they had had
some good old English fare—they would drink the health of a
good old English king. He would give His Majesty the
King, the Duke of Lancaster," which was given with three
times three cheers.
Glee—" God save the King," which was loudly cheered in
the singing.
The CHAIRMAN then said he would now propose to them their
most excellent Queen as the pattern of her sex. He would give
" The Queen, the glory of our country," given with three times
three.

Glee—" Hail smiling morn."
The CHAIIINI st said he had now to brine before them the
consideration of another branch of the royal stock, and without
further comment he would give" them "The Princess Victoria,
and may the partner of her choice be of sound constitutional
principles, and no mistake." (Great cheering and laughter.)
The toast was then given with three times three, with much
enthusiasm.
Glee—" Here's a health to all good lasses," which was loudly
applauded and encored.
The CHAIRNIAN then said he was about to propose a toast
which concerned them very materially. He hoped it would be
responded to with a good hearty cheer and in a bumper. He
would give "Our glories's constitution in church and state, the
pride of Britons, and the envy of the world"—given with three
times three enthusiastic cheers.
Glee—" With a jolly full bottle," which was loudly cheered
•in the parts having political allusions.
The CLIAIRNIAN then said he was about to propose to them
the name of a gentleman, with whom he was sure they would
be highly pleased. He was sure that that was the proudest day
of his life to have the honour of proposing to them the toast
which he was about to give. He was sure it would be enthusiasti-
cally responded to. Without further comment he would give
them "The health of their representative, Lord Sanders," which
he hoped would be given with nine times nine. (The toast was
given with almost interminable cheering, waving of handker-
chiefs, and clapping of hands.)
Lord SAN DON, on rising to return thanks, was greeted with
renewed cheering, which for some time precluded she possibi-
lity of his proceeding. When silence had at length been re-
stored, his lordship observed, he supposed he must take the
manner—the noble, the magnificent manner in which they had
been pleased to receive the toast just proposed to them by their
excellent chairman—he supposed he must take the enthusiastic
cheers with which they had hailed the announcement of his
name, as another evidence of the expiring and miserable state
to which the " faction" of the constitution of the country was
reduced. (Loud cheers.) He supposed he must take it as
another of those agonising throes By which they marked their
utter and final extinction. (Renewed cheering.) If he could
think it was given to himself—if he could imagine that those
applauses were a tribute to his own personal merit—and not to
whatever value might attach to him as a public man, he should
feel more diffident in rising to return his acknowledgments in
the best manner which he could command, and not esteem their
applause of the same value. But he felt that was not a meet-
ing in honourof any individual; it was a meeting to celebrate
the sympathy of the whole community in one great and im-
portant principle. (Hear, hear.) As such he halted it. and as
such it would he hailed—as such the expression of feeling that
it would call forth would be echoed to every corner of the em-
pire. (Cheers.) It would go forth to the ears of the whole
country—even to the ears (though they were reached but
slowly) of the administration of this country. (Hear, hear,
and loud cheers.) To their ears it would go that they (the con-
servatives) in Liverpool, at least the second city in the empire
were not afraid to meet for the expression of sound, loyal, and
constitutional principles—(loud cheers)—that they were not
-afraid to meet every class of their fellow-countrymen. It was
only a few days ago that they had met in that very place, nu-
merous and respectable assemblage of the tradesmen of this
great town. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) Now they had ap-
.pealedtothe operative classes, and the appeal had been responded
to with the same ardour and enthusiasm. (Vehement ap-
plause.) They had been told sometimes that the church and
state were in -danger, and he had sometimes been inclined to
share in the same feeling. But when he looked around him—
• when he saw the symptoms of adherence to their ancient con-
stitution in church and state in every part of this great com-
munity, he felt, indeed, that danger to-those great institutions
-was no longer to be apprehended. (Bursts of applause.) He
was not one of those who had ever despaired of his country—he
was not one of those who ever in the worst and gloomiest times
that they had been passing through, had ever thought that this
country would not rally and right itself at last. (Loud cheers.)
He had felt full confidence in its good sense, the honest feeling—
in the absence of that vanity and jealousy, and suspicion, which
marked the different classes in foreign countries. He had ever
relied on that absence of wounded jealousy and wounded vanity,
which, in other countries, tempted those who had not the good
fortune to be amongst the opulent classes, to be jealous of those
above them.—(H ear.) He had ever relied on the absence of
these feelings as a token that our constitution, and the orders of
'the state were in no danger.—(Much applause.) They were
free from those feelings and habits of thought, which in some
countries, were so prevalent—they were not actuated by the de-
sire 6f the Frenchman, io pull down every man to his own level ;
they rather rejoiced to see something abo-ve them—to have some
object after which to strain every faculty of mind and body to
reach —(Hear, hear.) They had that noble ambition which
was glad to see placed at a proud eminence some pre-eminent
object which they might endeavour to attain to, rather than be
anxious to bring down every thing to the dead level at which,
after all, a great part of the community must, in every country,
by necessity, and by the dispensation of Providence, be placed.
—(Cheers.) Were they for this the less happy?—[No.] Were
they the less independent ? ("No !") Were they less happy
in (heir domestic ties—less independent in their intercourse
with their fellow-men? (Hear.) Did they not hold up their
heads as proudly as the greatest demagogue in existence, and
did they think it any degradation, as men, to pay respect to
those who *re in a superior station to themselves? (No, no!)
They had smi wish to destroy that aristocratic branch of she con-
stitution whNi they had felt on many occasions to be the pro-
tector of their dearest rights—of the poorest classes as well as
of the rights of the richest. (Cheers.) They had felt what it
was to have in the house of Lords a body of men not swayed
by the popular impulse of the day—a body of men having as
great a respect for the chartered rights of the poorest of their
fellow-citizens as for the coronets on their own heads. They
had found by experience, when ademocratic party was in power
who were anxious to strip many whom he saw -around him of
the rights of burgesses, which they inherited from their fathers,
or who had achieved their rights bs the exercise of their own in-
dustry—that there was a House of Lords that had stepped for-
ward and refused, without proof, to deprive those men of their
'privileges. (Loud cheers.) Ile would give another instance,
of very recent occurrence, in which the feeling of the aristocra-
tic body had been manifested in favour of the humbler classes.
Perhaps it was not so peculiarly important to this town, less im-
mediately connected its it stood with country districts, than it
was to some smaller towns; but they would understand the cir-
cumstance when he explained it. An act had been lately intro-
duced into parliament for enclosing common fields; upon those
commons, in different parts of the country,. various small pro-
prietors had considerable rights. As the bill for enclosing them
passed the House of Commons it required only two-thirds of the
proprietors in value to have them enclosed—thereby conferring
on the richest men the power of overbearing the opinion of the
poorer. (Hear.) What did the House of Lords do? They
struck out that clause, and required the consent of two-thirds of
all the proprietors, including the poorest, before the common
fields could be enclosed. (Loud cheers.) They did more.
Anxious that open spaces should be reserved for the healthy re-
creation of the working classes in the neighbourhood of great
towns they refused to permit these enclosures within a given
distance ot any populous city. (Hear, and cheers.) This was
het a trifling instance iwitsalf, but he mentioned it as marking
the spirit in which•thearistocratic body in the constitution dealt
with the rights of the meanest of their fellow-citizens. (Re-
newed cheering.) He thought he need not appeal to them much
longer in defence of that body. He need not ask them wile-
eller that body were, as they .were told of the grandees of Spain,
dwindled in mind and in body, so as to have become, in spite of
their political station, a poor and insignificant set. What were
the peers in this country? The great landed proprietors. They
were not like the nobility of many foreign countries, the mere
hangers-on of a court—the creatures of a king, cringing for
petty and miserable court favour. (Hear.) No : they were
the great proprietors of the soil, having a deep and permanent
stake in the welfare of the country, and whose welfare must rise
and tall with the rise and fall of the welfare of every other part
of the =immunity. (Cheers.) Where did men look for the
best debates on every subject which occupied the attention of
;Z:l::theLet them look over the proceedings of the two
He did not m look at the most distinguished names in each.
house, for he meanremembered to throw scorn on the members of the lower
as Sir Robert Peel and
that amongst them were such men
When he mentioned their
Stanley. (Tremendous applause.)
not mean in any way to i names he need not say that be did
But, looking at the great disparagere the talent of that assembly-
of talent in the two houses, those
who had most opportunity :isms
once acknowledge that the eup.tlndiug to the subject would at
should it not be so ? They
cidedly with the upper house. esenertwth7yie Point of talent was de-
thmie oesetisuccessful lawyers,
bad within those walls the highest asid
Ihnctehaetetohuenbtrayr:
men who had been distinguished by
They had a body of' the wealthiest proprietorsLte
enjoying great leisure, possessed of a high education
every temptatisn that a noble ambition could present, ad with
distin-
guish themselves in the .service of their country. (Cheetnris.)-