The Statesman.
London, England, 1820-05-26 00:00:00

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Air. Serjeatit ONSLOW !;;;-sented a petition from
tb• Attorsol I e: of Berks. praying for
arsine 'therm on is the La.; relating to ecniveyamcs.—
od the table.
Mr. BLAtliallilliNE pr.•sented a petition horn ret-
tiln Pari.he4 In La. nestire, !staying that the Duty
o.ll.itnol might be repe.tie.l.—Laid un the tale*. end
ordered to be punted.
Petitions were preonte,l 'from Owners anti t)rrn•
piers of Lard in the c.Jtu.ties Of t'anihridpe, t twiner-
latish and S:afrurd, complaining of AR riruhilffti
ilistress.—Laid un the table, turd ordered to be
rtint-d.
Sit ti.CLEItli presented a petition from flic lietitors
o' the fount)• of Edinhnrgh, praying that th.• Duty
. vu Wo ti might not he repealnd.—Laid on the faille.
Hr. DAVIS presented a petition fr- m Robert
Wi,ram, agent to the petition, again.' the rr'nrn for
the Botor,:ls of Wallington, praying for more time, to
:.:1.•n• the recognizances to be enlarged.
After a few words from 31t.Amattcnomote and Lord
l'..sruom.tan, who conceived that a ,ittficient ease was
n.,; made out, the petition was
AI:IIIII.7LTUMAL DISTRESi.

Lard MILTON stated, that he had a rtition from

the Occupiers of Land of Holden, in the county of
• :'irk, complaining of agricultural distress. He was
that their allegations were not only founded
i;s Met, hu: were worhy of the attention of the noose.
At the same time, any matter which related to human
food was entitled to serious consideration. 9 lie pe-
titioners attributed their Wis'ress to want of rroteetion
against the inyortatioti of forei‘m corn. They looked
to agriculture as the soar•••• of wealth, soil only asked
tar protection. He did not exactly know to what ob-
ject the ilquiry, which an HMI. Member opposite bad
expressed his intention to ; roposr, was to he directed.
Would he merely inquire into the ability of the farmers
ti bear the burdens which lay Igloo them, or would he
endeavour to ascertain the nature of those burdens?
If his object was only to floe- into a limited inquiry,
• (Lord 31.) was apprelit•issive that it would only he
• ansislere i as all attempt on the part of the agricultural
in:els-at to euhaw e the pr;ee of their manufacture, tOr
1' •rn was ;is their iicinof let ore as cotton or pot-
ter:. that of other branches of public industry. But
if the obi' ect was to cater into a more extended itiostiry,
and, tb•istigh its means, to investigate those general
...apes of distress which affeeted the oszriessltnrists, as
p.irt the comnossi:ty, hr conceived that tons•ls gowl
might t a derived (ruins the elucidation of the real
grounds of the distress which pressed 'llion the country.
The Object of the petitioners was not to ohtain an on-
line advantage over other classes of the eso 1111 l unify ;
th,c wily wished to right theusse:ves and others too.
Were it otherwise. he should say that their object was
:lot philosophical, but calculated to do infinite mischief
iu ti•e present Pt.'s. of the country.
'i he petition having been brought np and read,
Mr. ff. SUMNER said, in ronseepience of the in-
Ta•ry which took place in !tilts, the [loose seemed to
I, satisfied iha. ?Ws. was the lowest price at which this
ura-grower could he protected against foreign compe-
titors. A s•,•e:ific inquiry ought now, in the first in-

stance, to take plate un that subject, to ascertain whe-
I:6er the means thus devised to prate .t the agricultural
interest had proved effe-tnal, 03 whether tither mea-
su-es were necessary to carry those which were then
adopted int., effect. It would then be fur the House
t inquire into the pres nit state of thine connected
with, the landed interest, and how fur the price of corn
mid he likely to be affected by attending to their
wishes. An inquiry on these subjects would, in his
i6:6inion, tend to tranquillise the public mind. 'I he
for them to consider should he, in the first
i:istance, not whether an increase of price should be
rante3, but vi farther their former measures hail proved
edident.
Mr. CURWF.X was of opin'on, that unless an in-
quiry took place, and unless adequate protection was
granted to the agricultural interest, the diminished
growth of corn in the country would he such, that ul-
timately the public must pay infinitely dearer for their
► if II than they hid hitherto pill, or than under °thee
Cactunstances they would be likely to pay. Bush the
agAculturol and the manuflictarieig classes were
stqingly intrreved in the iostitntion of snch an in-
quiry. Th.. country ought nut to be left at the mercy
of foreigner. for a supply of grain. He could wish a
great proportion of the Committee to whom the inquiry
might be confided, to ccnsist of commercial men.
Al:. COKE did not think that the present distress
arose from the want of a protecting price, but from
the ive4lit of taxation, and especially from the cruel
and impolitic tax laid on malt in the last year. He-
fore that duly was imposed, mutters were improving in
Noct•ik. They were not so well as touted be wished,
but they seemed to be looking up. He considered the
real cause of all the distress was to be found in that
system on which Ministers had uniformly acted ever
since they had been in Hit House, and it was his opi-
nion that if that system were not abal,loned, the coun-

•
try mast still go on from bad to worse, f-
•Por. vas convinced that if further pro-
teetion were granted to the agricultural interest, the
m•esure mast be higlily detrimental to all the other
class.‘s in the tommunity. These Gentlemen had a
peat opinion of eonntervailing duties; but if the
pliinciple serer fullawvd up on which they were dis-1
Oahe to art, the effect of it nmst be to cut off all cur
fogyign trade. Supposing corn could be had from
Poland for forty or fifty shillings per quarter, in that
ease, to prote-t.th3se 14entlemen, an extra charge of
forty or fifty shillings must be imposed on the consumer.
They thought it most unreasonable that the agricul-
tural interest should wish to raise the price of corn.
A more unseasonable time than the present could not •
Lave been chosen for agitating this question. If Ail
• prayer of the petitioners were attended to, it would in-
crease the distresses of the people beyond measure, and
he therefore hoped that within these few days the House
wonli give it a decided• negative.
liEltißlT (of Wiltshire) contended, that the
agrirelti:ral interest did not wish for any measure that
would mount to a prohibition of the importation of
corn. As far as he understood theirvrayer, it was their
Object not to raise the price of corn univecrossrilv high,
hut to beepi it ate steady renhineratingpricr—ana lower
it cod" ant bo‘gpseted. If ail the ports were open,
by a snillisient pillidstilon sot being granted', the pee-
wit-Malian toad not be borne—the poor rates tould
but be pail--tho labourers could not be employed. He