The Statesman.
London, England, 1822-01-16 00:00:00

,3111. 1117.11 E.
—row—
THANK!, OP 'rue INU WITANT HOUSEIIOLDWIS OW
KEtOING TO JOSEPH ESQ. M.P.
In compliance with a requisition presented to Henry
Pease, Esq. Mayor of Reading, a Meeting of the in-
habitant Householders of that borough was convened,
on Monday last, at the Guildhall, for the purpose of
• cinsidering of " the propriety of expressing their gra-
titude to Joseph Hume, Esq. for his constant and un-
wearied exertions in Parliament. and more especially
for his most laborious and minute detail and demon-
stration of the wasteful extravagance exercised in va-
rious branches of the national expenditure, and of the
correptiog inileence thence arising; and for his stre-
nuous and indefatigable endeavours to promote a sys-
tem of economy, retrenchment and reform."
The Mayor having been railed en to take the Chair,
and baying addressed the Meeting on the butanes* of

the day,
HENRY dlAßen, Esq., then presented himself to the
Assembly. At the recited of a number of Gentle-
men who had signed the requisition which bad just
been read, he came forward to offer certain proposi-
tions for the consideration of those whom he had the
honour of addressing. lie did so, because be consi-
dered it to be the duty of every Englishman to lend
his assistance when he saw his country involved in
the must serious distress. Various were the causes to
which the dist d situation of the country was attri-
buted; for Ministers themselves could not deny—no
person, indeed, could deny—that great distress did
at present prevail. Different political writers, had,
however, assigned different reasons for the existence
of that distress. He believed those reasons might be
divided under three separate heads. One class of po-
liticians told them that a redundant population was
the cause : soother class declared that the distress of
Cie country arose from a superabundance of food ; a
third body stated, that it was the effect of an aggra-
vated taxation, rendered still mote burdensome by a
wicked. unjust, and impolitic tampering with the cur-
rency of the country. Now, that distress should arise
from a redondentipopulation, sod a superabundance
of food at the same time, was such an anomaly, was
so gross an absurdity, that it could not be treated se-
viowsly, it must give rise to feelings of levity. That
there was a body who argued that the evils of the
country arose from a redundant population, was known
to every one ; and the mention of this sect put him in
mind of an anecdote which he had heard, relative to
the wife of a clergyman wall known in the literary
world. 'this lady became such au enthusiastic prose-
lyte to alit anti-population doctrine, that she went to
alt the cottages in the village where she resided, coup-
selling the single against marriage, and the married
against procreation. lint the most pumling part
of the matter was, that the husband of 'his lady
(she herself, by the way, having been a very fruitful
sine) was obliged, la the coorse of his clerical duties, to
exhort the people to " increase and multiply,and replen-
ish the earth."—(banAter.)—lt was evident that their
inerstors were unacquainted with this anti-population
doctrine; for the veryformula of the Church of England
demanded their sympathies and prayers for the lovely
part of the creation, when in that situation which was
generally the concomitant of the " holy state of ma-
trintony."—(Applause.) The very laws were opposed
to this novel doctrine. Were not young men who re-
omitted in a state of celibacy taxed nearly doable?—
Some individuals, indeed, had such bad taste, that they
preferred taxation as the smaller evil of the two—
(laughter) ; but still it could not be controverted that
their cell), try was visited as be had stated. But there
were those who declared that a superabundance of food
created all this distress. Now surely it was an ex-
traordinary thing, that there should be at the same
moment too many months, and too much meat for
them. It was said, that every age became wiser than
that which preceded it. And certainly, if this were
tree, be could not help thinking how exceedingly ig-
norant the ancients must have been, seeing that they
never thought of this fatuous doctrine. The father
of Solomon, who was himself a wise man, (or perhaps
he would not have reared so wise a son,) amongst
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other prayers for his people, wished that their garners
might be replenished with all manner of stores, and
that their sheep might bring forth thousands and tens
of thousands in the fields ; and the reason he assigned
for this was, that there might be no decay of the na-
tion—no leading into captivity, and no poverty in the
land. Now he should be glad to know why, in the
days of King David, abundance should be deemed a
blessing, and in the days of King George, plenty should
be considered an evil? There was another class of
politicians ; and to that class lie felt a pride in belong-
ing. Ile meant those who thought there was neither
too much food nor too many mouths ; but who pointed
out the real cause why those mouths and this meat
were not united in that way which the natural sym-
pathy which existed between mouths sod meat autho-
rised. They attributed this divorce to the immense
extent of taxation.—(Applause.)—Under the present
grievous system which prevailed le this country the
very laws of nature were violated: for certainly one
would as soon expect the needle not to be attracted by
the magnet, as to find the people of England petition-
ing to go to the woods of America, or to mix with the
wild beasts of Africa, in order to escape from that
rain and distress which encircled them on every side,
if it were not for the system pursued by Ministers.—
lie would not here enter into a detail to show what
ruinous effects excessive taxation produced with refer-
ence to all classes of society. Ile would merely ex-
emplify its tendency by referring to one article—
barley. It could now be purchased at 20s. per barrel.
Bat, when it was converted into malt, and from malt
into beer, and, finally, retailed in the public-houses,
it paid very little less than Ws. duty to Government.
Perhaps he might be told, that as the amount derived
from the tax was very large, it was fair to suppose that
theme was no falling off in the consumption. But al
wise Government would not look uterely on the pre.
sent consumption. They would c msidcr what the
consumption would probably be under other circum-
stances. And if the tax were taken off, there was so
doubt but that every cottager would be enabled to
procure that nutritious beverage, beer, in a manner at
once comfortable to himself, and beneficial to the
agricultural interest.—{Applause.)—fiat there was
another thing connected with this excessive wisdom
which, if not attended to, bade fair to destroy whal
some gentlemen were very fond of talking about—
' reanalt ei 1 order. Mr. Mar di then proceeded totrace
the effects produced by the substitution, at first. of paper

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