The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1838-01-02 00:00:00

ever be opposed to the socinjan, papist, and other enemies of
their church and their unrivalled constitution. (Great applause.)
Ile had intended. to speak on suit; e of the great political ques-
tions of the. day, but as They doubtless were anxious to hear his
worthy friend, the Loaaurarrle baronet, he would not waste tite:r
time by any such remarks. The honourable gentleman resumed
his seat amid great cheering.
T,he AIRMAN then briefly proposed the health of Sir
Francis Burdett and the electors of North Wiltshire, mud took
ot•casion in the n tine of the ladies present, and that:;rent
senbly, to thank him for attending there that day. 'lhe toast
was received With vociferous cheering.
Sir FHANcts BURDETT then rose, and the cheering was re-
sumed and continued for some minutes. When he could be
heard he was understood to say that if- any man wanted any
thing to animate "atd flatter was devoted to the insti-
tuttons of his country—whowasdevoted to the glorious consti-
tritium Of 'England—who considered as the aim and end of that
glorious constitution the freedom and happiness of the people at
large; and all other parts of that glorious constitution only as
atijUncts tti such cause, t herefore atluded to its suppot t, was to him
itanything could he wanted to animate the humblest bosom with
a determination to stand or fall by such a state of things. On
the eontrary it would he that exhibition of public spirit—it would
be that animated manner in which they hail done him the honour
to, invite him and to receive hits that dais; and that invitation
coming from that Oortitun of the people of England—tbat indus-
trious foundation of all ihat was great in the country, was to him
a h'o'tter of more satisfaction 'and pride,' than ifit had hen from
the combinattim of all the greatest men in the country, all alutt,tt
greatness depfnded on that foundation, the people themselves.
It was an animating sight to see in that room persons of all
ranks; degrees, and conditions, all coalescing together in the
sane glorious cau'e, and all meeting together in a state of
social and of practical freedom, which was never exhibited iu, ,
and did not exist in any other country on the face of the earth.
And 'while they so united the sound sense of the people of
EnJand, they set at nought and Leander( with shame those
shadow pretenders to patriotism, (great applause,) and thOse
itnpudeut self-styled patriots. anti lying impostors that would
impose upon the people of the United' Kingdom. (Great ap-
plause.) They Were happy in living in a state of society which.
the experience of many hundreds and hundreds of years hat-
proved to be exactly he result, that chat meeting exhibited 6,
' au admiring world, butt which did not exist in any other coun-
try at the moment that he was addressing theta. ( eiir.) It
was not a great while since they 114,1 a person travelling th rough
their town, for the purpose of aitempting to 'delude the minds of
• the people in that place—a patriot as •he was Called: from Ire- •
laud—a paid patriot—he meant Mr. Ranieri O'Connell.
' ('Laughter and great applause.) ' Dean Swift had said that
every t ning done in Ireland wasdifferentfrom that done in every
• other part of the World. There was something in what was
done there, notonly different but rePrignant to the undeistanding,
and is as different as light was to da`rknes at the same time,
tie always thought that the presence of the one was the absence
of the other, butt in Ireland they tvete the same., ( Laughter.)
'('here the crown of inartyrdon could•be:worn without its thorns. -
The great patriot; who was supposed to be making great sacri-
fices to the public, in that country, never forgot the tule of
honest lago his prototype. (Great applause.) If he were in -
the ministry, he would no more permit any thing in the shape
of an O'Connell rent to be raisei by pence from the Starving,
people, tha' their forefathers permitted time collection of Peter's
pence for the Pope. (Laughter and great applause.) Such
rent did not come as a voluntary contribution from English-
men, but with force anti compuslion front the poor wretches
under the intimidation of the priests. from whom they dared
not withold if, although, at the same time, they had not a potatoe
to pm ioto•their mouths. (Applause.) That rent was collected
tinder such dreadful influences, Which he said was a perversion
—a sacrileizious perversion of the priestly office—over the
ignorant, bigotted people of that country, for the alter of
peace was connected with an altar
,of treason —(applause)—.
and that rent could be called nothing else than a-fund for the
soppott and maintenanceortreason im that country.--(Great
applaitsie.) But the government some years agii thought it
wortha their while, when slavery was more under consideration
than at 'present; to put down a certain kind of superstition called
Onoersin' yet this system had spread, and they bad permitted -
the plunder and extortion of the priests in Ireland, of the wret-
ched, enslaved people of that country`.—(Applause.) The first
thing with him, if he had the power, would be to emancipate
those people from that' yoke; to take front their feet toeir
shackles, and give them freedom. Butt certain men, headed by
the priests, whose influence they well knew, when they recol-
lected, that the denutoogue himself falls dpwn on his knee.s lie-
fore those priests, no doubt to edify his enlightened coontrvineo,
__(laughter)—misled and deceived them. It seemed that we
at present are in a most extraordinary situation. We have an
atiministtation that seemed to have no confidence, no founda-
Jim) in any part of the country, anti which, by some strange
means or other, exhibited a strange amalgithaation at times, and
an inconsistency of principle of an extraordinary description,
and a union of characters, amongst whoM were the popish re-
presentatives who acted under O'Connell, and were known as
his tail, with others of a like description, of whom it might he
said, as was said of sin, that it was indeed possessed of scaly
ohnoin,u,, and like the set pent, armed with many a
mortal stica:—(4plause.) But it was impossitile for it to last
long. In l!;l3glatttl the, decision was complete, as was shown
by the want of confidence in the present administration.- ,(Ap-,
plause.) The persons by whom they were supported, and from
whom they stooped to receive 6..41)41, were persons who had no
confidence in them;
.rte meant not only in their integrity and abi-
lity, but bad a perfect contempt of their imbecility, and yet were
I,t he interested dupes of such a set olpersons, who cOuld'ordera ud
cancel council's inffience---who.in the 11-ouse.of‘Commons sup-
ported..the ministry. voted against the great patriot, Waklev,
and others of that description,, and in 21 hours after, dind at
Conduit [louse, and Then denounced the Whigs as the most de-
graded people on earth. (Great applause.) Again, lie came
back, for he had more changes than Prometheus himself, and
supported.the same ministry, and they accepted that support to
enable them to carry measures, though_ from their internal
weakness they were incapable of themselves of carrying one
measure—and of framing a measure that wonid.operate in and
way beneficial to the country, for they had not. passed one that
had not failed in operation. Even aftercvming
.opt of the

Clouse of Commons, and being improved in the Lords, which
they could pass without possibility of risk to the institutions of
the country, they had lent. a helping hand to make perfect that
which was incapable of being-put into. practice and operation.
But look at their present measures, and he wished to know if
any one had succeeded. ,Their measure affecting slavery in the
\Vest Indies, for which the people.of this-country, to their iin-
mortal.honor, with hand and voice, raised:2o millions of money
for a purpose after all so litle effective, for it seems now they
have again the same cry about slavery; and meetings held in,
different parts of the country on the, subject. So that in point
of fact, thou,,h this country had paid the price, it had.not ob-
tained amend in view, . Well, then, look at any other, which.
were mere experiments but very dangerous ones, andmaile with
rashness and presumption, and it itould seem that they had
taken tip so many at the same (line that they were not aide to
perfect any. Even the East Judia,..measure, which at present
they knew nut how it-would act, they had no reason. to suppose
would be less dangerous to our. possessions in the part of the.
wnrld. Again, there w. ete various attempts to reform the laws,
whin h. certainly ought lobelite first object to which attention
should he directed and a piestion above till others in estimation ;
bra he a ante 4 to see men who coati,' do their irasn work' end to
see effected some measuie which' in its consequenee should he
found to operate advantageonsly for all:- IA-pplansel Again,
look at what-they had 'done in the cliurch,-,tintl• he' wanted to
know who was benetitted by that unsettling -of every thing by
these ;alterations, which even were_uncatted for and ag,ittlist
the, interests and purposes of those they were -intruded to benc-
tit-7hti wanted to 'know what poalible good • had' been derived
from the alteratiousibey had attade. Agairr,.there was another
great qitestiMl'Which they had not,beeti able to accomplish. A
great deaf of betiettr-and• 'which' they all particularly
understand—whirla hail called. attention to the feeli-ng that ,it had
caused It, be exhibited—he alluded Ito the• new poor law act.'
What haul it done? Why no!hing but caused-universal discon-
tent and dissensions. Veil, then,. go to *any- of 'the measures,,
and he would venture to say that there was-nor owe that haul not,
only produced consequences foreign to its•iorention, brit hail
fallen far shot t. of being any aineodmenr.- There was not one
that he knew that bad not produced temporary and irreparable
mischief. Anil he could tell them, that administration would
not be long supported, 'as was clear and apparent, for all the
mon of great :wilily in the country were opposed to them. They
had men orability, and of practical experience—men capable of
executing, the duties wideh ought to be executed by the present
inibevile ministry, but these persons, by' the projects they en-
tertained, and their adherence: to office, deprived the -cotintry
of the beneficial exei else of those talent's, and would not relax
their hold of power till their body fell to pieces, front very weak-
ness of the party to whom the government of the country was
entrusted. Without. caring. much about the present administra-
tion, except that he wished-to see greater talent. and 'integrity
bronght, into the public service—(applause)—they were then in
the state in which no ministry dared wake any encroachment on
the-liberties of the subject or the constitution. (Loud cheers.)
They were perfect iy safe from every thing but their incapacity •
and "imbecility Iv hieh nothing could withstand. • England. hail
stood-agiiiist the continued world—nor only against France, a
o'reat,'principal. and enlightened nation—Mit all Europe com-
bined with France, directed, he supposed, by the greatest genius
of the day almost—Napoleon Buonaparte —but Providence rai-
sed tip for us a genius treater still than that who stood forward
in the defence of the liberties of this country—be scarcely need
mention the name of \Vellington.—(l remendous cheerier.)
When he mentioned that name, he mentioned the greatest man
that this or any other country in this or any age or time he was
pet feet' y satisfied ever -prialuced.—( Applause. No general ever
Tosseesed such great- moral qualitie.a attended with such scrupu-
lous honesty and integrity—such a- total absence of all self—.
ianul when they easy such .l1(nl/ii.1 to the country—such an- ah- •
,sence of all ambition and vanity, and personal consideration of
any description it surprised him, more to see such ability too on
every occasion7-nothing surprised him so • much .is that single-
ness of purpose, and honest integrity of Mini! " iCh shot", so
chnspictiously thiough the whole of his long successful and glo-
rious career.—(Great applause.) He would venture ,to take
the operatives that had honoured. him uiih t heir, invitation that
.day, as a sample of the operatives.lhroughout this great enap-ge,
:mu' be would take leave to address,adow words to them,, be-
cause having invitationa 10 meet 01 hell; who we're no way. in-
feriar to them in true English feeling; and . understanding
and who might not. from the season of .the year, find it possible.
to ,render Linn so great a gratificatinn as :he haul, in meeting
them, by expressing- his regaid.and high estitoatinn in which he
lield.,thern, and assuring ahem that he should never basitattf,
disregarding all personal consideratinns, to give.thein his, best
supporrand assistance, and ,also the constitution and institti-
lions of the country.. (Applaus ) As had been said by their
respected chairman., he thought the dawn was approaching, and
daylight breaking think:oi the thick cloud wt,ichfrnat time, to
time haul baffled their sight, orrleceived by, its lurid glare,, a
great.pntipuof the peuple—t hat he trusted was nit's passing
away, and that even in. Ireland the settles would fall from the
eyes of the people, and that even ntini-ters themselves, and
that great, portentous bubble—Daniel O'Connell, Might fall
like Dagon, and shanitiliisworsbippers, and not the least those
degenerate Englishmen who had trectune his. co.adjutots:77
(Great applause 1 ile.fiad that confidence in the enuntry he
ever haul, that while he, acted honestly and, independently, and,
fearlessly in defence utf the instittitinns.of the country, he should
always meet with the stipport of the great bulk of the people.
lie
had no fear of so dreaded a calamity as that of society being.
dissolved, and confusion ensuing, whiie the operatives cause
forts aol in defence of all they. held dear, as they hart done that
day. (The hon: gentleman sat down amid ththiders of long
continued plaudits.) •
The CFI AIitSI A N next gave—" The ,I)uke of \Vellington, the
pride of the British arinv, and the conqueror of the conqaeror
of Europe." Drunk with \Vellington liOnotirs.
Song-7" Old England's glory."
TheChaittstars then said that it was with much pleasure
that he proposed " The health of. Charles Wilkins, Esq., and
the Conservative bar." The toast was drunk amidst loud
cheering.
Mr. WILKINS then rose, and was received. with continued
cheering. He said, gentlemen and brother operatives; or as a
certain learned personage whet some time. since, 'had honoured
their borough, would term them, "miserable reistnant of an ex-
piring faction." (II ear and laughter.) How joyons.'they
looked in their miser), I. With what magnanimity and entiser-
vative philosophy they regarded the approat•hing agonies of
theirffeinise. (Cnntinued applause.) They. had been. pleased
to couple his,name with the, consetvative bar. He confessed
that it appeared to him extramdiriary how any man calling him-
self a barristet, supposed to be imbued with the spirit and con-