Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1863-12-21
The Confederate Cause in Lancashire.

Uader This caption, the LoLdon Iuoe1 gneS in each
lumber letter IRON its special correspondent at Man
Ia his letter of Nov. llth this correspondent
gives account Of one Of The largest meetings ever
ned in Stockport which took place in the hall Of tie
Mechanics Institute, fer the purpose Of giving express
sion to the public feeling on the great American queS
don.
Not less than 1000 persons were present. and several
hundred we're unable TO gain admission. The vast
J1rIy Of the audience evidently sympathzers
With the South, the Northern sentiment besg chiefly
represented by small knot of individuals il the from,
OF the gallery. Nezsrs Spence and Poole, Of Liverpool,
aud Clark and KershaW, OF Manchester, were present
as deputaton from the Southero Independence Asso-
cation.
Amid long and continued cheering, the chairman Mr..
Councillor w. Ferniey, opened the proceedings of the
meeting BY saying he rejoced to crow led meet
ing because it proved to him that the sympshes of the
people of Stockport with the South At previous
meetrg he had asserted that nine out of ten of the
people Of Stockport were stsunch supporters Of the
Confederate Everybody in this country, and
peCiay in the cotton districts tired OF hearing o.
the mutual destruction and blOodshed now going on he
tween the armies of North and South, aud as nobody
could tell when thAs horrible carnage would end, be
thought the time bad arrived for tie Powers of Europe
to offer their friendly councils Had We not motives
well of interest Of kindness, prompting to in
erpose between North and South The working classes
had suffered quite enough, and tired Of working
SuraJ." So long the American war was permitted
to continue, they would still be subject to the same
hardships they had been experiencing for two years.
a tha he 10
for tee United States and became an international one
for the world.
These remarks received with loud cheers, espe
ally those relating to the sSutb and a person who
in The body OF the hall to protest against the tenor
Of the Charmans remarks, summary elected from
the room.
Mr. wu. Leigh, member of the Stockport branch
of the Southern Independence Association, then spoke
to resolution introduced by himself urging the British
Government 70 enter into communication with the Eu-
ropean Powers and concert with them to the beet
means o. bringing about peses. One or two passages
deserve to be quoted: "a g'eat part Of the working
Asses had already become paupers; the capitalists had
been compelled to shut up their mlls Our so-caled
neural policy, was not neutral butrather beligereht
pOey-a policy Of hostility 70 one of the parties in the
conflict If the people Of Stockport really wished to
be neutral let them urge Her hsjestys Government TO
Ike sides with other neutral powers and ask for Gee
saton of hoslies. Owing, apparently, to the visit Of
certain renowned stump orator, (Bsecher Lord Rus
ss had changed his views foe now he said Engshmen
we're chiefly on the side of the North. Perhaps when
the people had unmis Gkeably spoken out n other dis
rcts ss they would do here this evening" Earl Rus
sell would come back again to the truth"
This speech enthusiastically chee.ed, sad was fol.
loved by an address from Mr.. James Spence, formerly
Confederate Financial Agent in England, who showed
that the emancipation pretexS by which the North
sought to gain the sympathies of Engshmen, the
most transparent Of humougs eff" said he ''any one
desires emancipation, he must give up the Union, for
emancipation was violation of the Constitution, and
as soon a. that is violated the Union is at an end
real emancipation By the North only result Yam
kss Russia aud Southern Poland and OOO 600 slaves
being made free and 100000 Of fresnsn being made
apss Hw was it that all their anti slavery zeal was
directed against the Confederate StAtesl Were the
members of the 'Union and Emancipation Society g-
noIAnt of the fact that slavery existed in Cuba Brazil
and in Turkeyi Had they never heard Of DahOmey ?
And how wss it that before the war broke out, Federal
slavery was not equally denounced!"
Mr. Spence was followed by Mr.. Greenipg, who offer
ed anrSmsndmsnt to the tc. that the meeting, whilst
deplOrng the continuance of the war, yet deprecated