The Statesman.
London, England, 1823-01-30 00:00:00

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Dickinson received 4,0001. a year out of the duties cut-
/geed, yet hundreds of lives were lost,becaute the lights
were not properly kept up,l the Greyhound cutter was
lost anal on that occasion 40 souls perished. Mr. Dick.
inson had said, that be (Mr. Hunt) made an insinuation
but a direct charge. Hs charged Mr. Dickinson with
having received large sums out 44.1ita taxes, sad with
I'llll4 never seepented for them. lie would repeat
that, 'in consetrience of the lights: not being properly
kept trp at Pathotme, hundreds atrd hundreds Olives
were lost, infinitely more valuable than that of the Hon.
Member. He (Mr. H.) had bees once in the Channel ;
there were e o lights out. and tlaey were within, two
eablea' length of running upon the coast.—A Captain of
a vessel with whom he bad conversed, and wbo had been
stut in his cutter, the night that the Greyhound was
lost, had •stated to him that there was no light at all
that night at the Lighthouse, in consequence of which
all went down. _ .

Mr. GOULDING.—This is illiberal and disgraceful, but
you cannot injure Mr. Dickinson.
Mr. HUNT.—If Reform had been accomplished would
those lives have been sacrificed in that infamous man-
ner ?
Mr. Coucorwe.—Thls is disgraceful.
Mr. HUNT—The lying Sherbert's Mercury had called
the last Meeting a rabble, disgraceful to the Country—
would they continue to give motley out of their pockets
to support each wretches? That Paper supported all
the atrocities committed in Ilchester Gaol. Mr. Dick.
inson, too, had put a man in irons for charging Bridle
with having istolen deals supplied by ,{be high Sheriff.
He was kept in irons and in solitary confinement front
the beginning of October to the end of April. After, all
the 'atrocities of the Oaoler, who was fount' guilts, even
by a packed Jury • yet a, man of the name of Poole, a
Magistrate, bad dared to declare upon oath, that he
approved of the conduct of that execrable wretch.
Air. Poole here attempted to speak, but was received
with much disapprobation.
Mr. HUNT—If, they had Reform would such things
go on ?—Would any man have the impudence of Poole
to brave out such conduct? He was not surprised that
be hair given muds evidence, for he bad sanctioned all
the atrocities committed.
Mr. POOLE-,1 never sanctioned any atrocities.
Mr. HUNT—These are the men that would dictate
to yon.
alr.••Sasterisen—it is you that would dictate.
Mr. Gown:to—You are a bully ; your conduct is
disgraceful.
Mr.liuNT—The fellows of the local press bad attacked
him. When Mr. Dickinson mumbled in the House of
Commons, like a mouse in a cheese—
Mr. Goutanno—Sharne ; this is disgraceful.
Mr. Hoar—He sent Reports of speeches which be
had paver uttered, of one speech in particular; which Sir
P. Bardett declared to hie that be never uttered, to be
printed in the country papers. He called upon the meet.
tug to Si) whether they would have a thorough Reform
The Gentlemen who hail addressed them, beat town' the
bash, bat did not start the game—be would start the
game, and he believed the people would cry holloo—[a
laugh.] He would submit nothing but what honest
men, and lovers of liberty, would approve of; he drew
up a petition which nu Englishman, who did not share
in the taxes, wduld oppose. It was known that the pro-
perty of the Duke of Bedford consisted chiefly of Church
and Crown lands—the propert7 of Lord Grosvenor was
Crown lands. The Whigs forged irons for the people
though they talked of freedom. lie did not seek for an
equslity of property. hut to protect the people from op-
pressirio : the Parliament and the corrupt part of the
env had f.,r many years deluded the people, and when
he endeavonred to advocate their cause, lie was sent to
ga. The laws enacted by such a Parliament were
rendered a thousand times snore odious by the•blagis.
trate' who executed them ; they used to hector the peo-
ple into their measures, but now the people might act for
themselves. If they were disposed to join with the people
lie would say, receive them—forgive them—hat take
care bow you trust them"—(a langh.) In 1817, 'million
and a half of persons tigned Petitions in favour of Re-
form, and millions would do so now. The people called
for nothing reir. Up to the time of Edward 11,
freemen had a vote.—The distinction between a Slave
and a Freeman was, that the man who had a voice in
the laws by which be was governed was free. otherwise
lle wall sieve. • Where was the impious wretch who
would say that the God of Nature, who had stamped his
fortis onmao, would yet, degrade him with the hateful
badge efsl ?--;(eppluate.)—That wretch was blas-
phemous, indeed, who would say that lion intended to
have say portion of his people slaves. lie would now
prourd to read theyetition which he, intended to sub•
snit to the consideration of the Meeting.
Here' he read the petition, as hich was as follows:
. • "TO TIC HON. 111 E COMMONS' IiOUSC, &C.
"The Petition of the Freeholders, and other Inhabitants
of the County of Somerset. assembled in Public
County Meeting, conveued by the Sheriff In the City
of Wells, this 28. h day ufJannary. IS:TS
" Sagami—Thai your Petitioners have, for a great num-1
ber oT years, contributed l.trge sums of money annually
towards defraying the expenses Of a long and bloody war,
and for the support of a system of a Government which they
were taught to believe, by the Pc'olic Press, by the Parlia-
ment, awl by the great Landed and Monied Proprietors of
the Country. were absolutely necesssary for the protection of
the Throae. and for the safety, happiness, and welfare of
the people of &gland. Your Petitioners lament to find that
the;r conti.lenee was grossly abused, and that they hare been*
deceived, duped, and cajoled by the above-named parties,
who conspired together to oppress and plunder your Petition-
ers, to carry on wicked, unjust, and tmneeessary wars, en-
tere t into and continued, as your Petitioners to their sorrow
now find, solely for the purpose of upholding and perpetn-
nting a corrupt state of representation in the House of
Commons.
••• Your Petitioners now plainly see that the cause of all
this wanton, wicked, cruel, and unprincipled sacrifice of the
meant; of Mood, which were so unfeelingly spilled ; the pro-
fligate waste of the wealthand 'property of the nation.ohleh
was wrung from the earnings of a suffering, patient, and con.
fisiing people, and which were so lavishly squandered away ;
that all the long and creel past mem-logs of the manufac-
tnring and tabouring parts of tl:e community ; and that all
the present unsupportable sufferings of your Petitioners have
their origin, and aro solely to be attributed to the want of a
fair, a free, and equal Representation of the People in the
Commons' House of Parliament.
Your Petitioners now very plainly Perceive, that the seats
in Parliament have all along been filled with the relatives.
hangers-on, and dependents of certain great aristocratical
families, by means of borough ski other corrupt influence :
which persons, having no interest, nor feelings in common
with the people, have contrived by their packed and corrupt
majorities In Parliament, to appropriate all the Crown and
Church lands (the undoubted property of the public) amongst
'themselves, their relatives and dependents ; and by the same
corrupt and unjust means, they have contrived to obtain
large grants of the public money, arising from the sweat of
'the industrleus labourers' brow, which they have annually
divided and apportioned amongst themselves In pensions,
sinecnres. end pay for useless and unnecessary places.
••• Your Petitioners, therefore, most earnestly and most
confidently pray, that your Honourable House will forthwith
pass an Act, to insurl such an immediate and complete Re-
form in the Commons' House of Parliament, as avid give to
every Englishman, Seoteluoan. and Irishmen, a vote for the
Representatives who are to sit there; and your Petitioners
further pray, that to enable every man to give his vote
honestly mid conscientiously, that they may be protected by
the ballot. These, your Petitioners firmly believe, are the
only safe and of-ctual remedies for their present sufferings,
and that without these your Petitioners can hope for no secu-
rity in future for their lives, their liberties, and their property.
When such a Reform is effected, your Petitioners will have
fall confidence, that such freely, equitably, and conscienti
ouslychosea Parliament will, without loss of time, adop-