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Leader (1850-1860), 27th August 1853, Edition Town of 2, Page 831, Untitled Article

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      Untitled Article

      rwovv , Hke most large cities , contains some nar-, unhealthy streets , here called toynds . Sandy ' s JJtv wynds and curled butter are brought forward ove him a bit of a sloven , and a Sabbath breaker . ? imi" labours hard to find a hole in Sandy V coat . Whilst dwelling upon that very important subject / the curled butter ) , " Ion" has omitted to mention me other circumstances , which are , at least , equally ^ oortant . When he said that the working classes " f Gla ^ ow are debarred from breathing the air of Dunoorf or Gourock on Sundays , he ought to have

      told that there are twelve trains daily from Glasgow to Greenock , by which one can get to Greenock for sixpence , or a return ticket for ninepence . Thus , a person can leave Glasgow at eight o ' clock Saturday nicht and lie back about seven o ' clock on Monday morning , after enjoying the fresh air all day Sunday , and that without depriving his brethren , the crew of any steamer , of their Sunday . Return tickets to Dunoon on Saturday , and back on Monday , for

      fourteen pence , including pier money . If one chooses to go by steamers all the way from Glasgow to Dunoon , &c ! , they come yet cheaper than by rail—fares from Glasgow to Eothesay , in Bute , are only threepence . When he said that " all classes of people , of all religious persuasions , " approve of the . Emperor sailing on Sunday , he ought to have mentioned that there has been a public meeting , in the City Hall , to consider this matter—that though parties favourable to the TSni ' peror published placards , urging the people not to attend , yet the hall was crowded . That after several working men moved resolutions

      condemning the running of the boat on Sundays , those who approved of the running of the boat were heard in reply . A person named M'Guire , well known as a leading infidel , was particularly violent and unreasonable ; one Dodds first spoke in favour of the jboat running on Sunday—said it would improve the morals of the people —said the people of Prance were more moral than those of this country—referred to Dr . Guthrie and "the Vicar of Aberdare in support of his views—Dodds concluded about ten minutes past eleven , having spoken about forty minutes .

      M ' uuire proposed another amendment , similar to Dodck It being now twenty minutes after eleven the meeting granted him only five minutes to speak—he had previously declared that he would have unlimited time to speak in spite of either the chairman or the meeting ; the audience would not submit to this , but hooted and hissed him ; he , however , maintained his ground , and effectually succeeded in gagging the opposite speakers , who were eager to speak to show the fallacy of Dodd ' s argument—to show that the people of Franco are more frivolous and trifling in their dispositions , and are inferior to the Scotch both mentally mid physically .

      Yot , although those who moved the resolution , condemning the running of the JEmperor on Sunday , had no opportunity of exposing the fallacy of Dodd ' s arguments , or of showing M ' Guirc's unreasonableness , yet , when the motion and amendment wero put to the mceti «<* , tho resolution which declared , among oQier things , " that the sailing of the steamboat on Sunday toas nijitrious to the working-classes , would lead to the general corruption of morals , alike hostile to the

      1 oacc . and prosperity of the entire community ; therefora the meeting agreed to protest against such a pro-, ' iwr , wul . pletlge themselves not to patronize Sunday desecra ting steamers when they have occasion to travel Mrotu / kout the week" — this ' resolution was carried "linost unanimously , whilst tho amendment — viz ., that it was the duty of this meeting to support the Emperor steamer , " was rejected . llio

      City Hall , which will contain about G 000 , was crowded to overflowing , and there tho people of Glasgow pasHed a resolution condemning tho running ol n Kteanicr on Sunday , both on the grounds * of religion » 11 ( l <> f utility . « Ion , " in his letter , carefully sup-Fosso . s thosHi facts , and coolly asserts that " all classes ° J people , of all religious persuasions , " approve of tho 'inning of tho steamer—this is certainly extraordinary . •'

      Ion" appeal * to ho out , of temper ; ho elmrgos the "firdiau with nctinjr " infiiinoiiHly , " and , because hoiuo Wsons veiled , () 1 . , Mon , iy h \ HMH \ , he at onas asserts that ll worn Hl , |; i ) v K ; ,. innil (! I 1 (! e . wli ,,,, ) , < . SliyH ilm ( . thfl (}] lrifltjJlu - iy <) f vs . { , l , m ( i - f ' ! i lu ' ' < 1 UI '' ° lil )( U ''V t ( > < > H<>—perhaps bo iw " Hitt lmsfc qualified to jud-o ; but , when bo clmr ^ ¦ " « lmr « h with hoikI ' iuk pen-sons to boot , and to oce P'W «« ' » K < irH of tbo Emperor , doon it never -him " * llilU ' / lm ( l lm Oll n ht to tfivo some ]) roof or ' " llon ( ' . Y i » v Hupport of those chnrgflH ? tho T 1 <<(< l k 1 iowh miu io I ) o innn tll « «> uth ni « lo of J wood . Handy ' H good breakfast elicits a

      compliment to Sandy's clear head , illustrating Gobbett ' s famous saying respecting the way to an Englishman's brains—some parts of his letter indicate him to be a cockney . With that pardonable vanity peculiar to cockneys , he gives us to understand that the working classes of England will interfere in the matter . If " Ion" ever reads history , he ought to know that the English have , on several occasions , attempted to interfere with Scottish affairs , but that almost all their attempts failed . From the days of Edward I . to those of Laud , the Scotch never felt any gratitude for the alliance offered them by Edward , or for the Bishops and Liturgy proffered by Laud . In religious matters particularly the Scots have been extremely jealous of interference by any other party ¦ whatsoever ' *

      The people of Glasgow had a similar struggle with a railway company some years ago , and effectually succeeded in stopping railways on Sunday , the consequence is , that hundreds of railway employes can spend their Sabbaths in the bosom of their families , whilst , according to " Ion ' s" wise plan they would be toiling either as firemen , as cleaners , or whatever their work might be . Remembering the victory thus gained , the good accomplished thereby , and the many blessings earned for the men thus liberated from this seventh day slavery , can any person be so foolish as to suppose that the men of Glasgow . will now abandon their posts or flinch from dpini ? their duty ?

      They are exerting themselves to shorten the hours of labour on week days , so that parties desirous of going to the watering places may have still better opportunity of doing so ; I have mentioned the cheap rate at which they can travel , either by rail or steamboat . ¦ ' •¦ ¦ . Such of the inhabitants of Glasgow as do not go to watering places , can walk out , enjoy the pure air , and fiee the country . Kelvin GrOve , and other delightful properties in the neighbourhood , have been purchased for the use of the inhabitants of Glasgow .

      The people of the city , therefore , consider that they are doing everything in their power to allow the utmost freedom in spending the Sabbath in an honest and humane way , but they do not consider it either humane or honest , that other people , who toil hard on six days , should be doomed to toil on the seventh likewise ; they consider it would be oppression . " He who allows oppression shares the crime . "

      There ' foro they will do their utmost to prevent it . Considering the Heavenly precept—to do to others as they would wish others to do to them—they would not like to be deprived of the Sabbath day—neither do they see how they could be justified in the sight of God or man if they were to allow their brethren to be deprived of it . Still more guilty would they be if they were to aid or abet in thus dooming their brethren to tho seventh-day slavery . Yours very sincerely , Glasgow . JNO . MaCOREGOE .

      Untitled Article

      AN UNSTAMPED P It E S S . ( To the Editor of the Leader . ) Dear Sir , —Knowing your anxiety to obtain for work - ing men an unstamped press , I venture to appeal to you on behalf of the late Potteries Free Press , which wa « published to discover , first , whether the working classes would support a well-conducted penny newspaper ; and , secondly , whether the Government , which allows every other class interest to set up a newspaper in defiance of law , would allow the working class to do the same .

      Thoso who know how the Government dread the enlightenment of the people , will not bo surprised that they have determined to enforce- against the working classes a law which all other classes arc allowed to violate with impunity . Thoso who know tho anxiety of the working classes for information will not bo surprised to hear that the weekly sale of tho Potteries Free Press reached 2400 , and might easily lmvo been nioro than doubled in a short tiino , had itn legality made it safe to invest capital in a press which could have printed fast enough .

      Owing to tho peculiar circumstances which always attend an experiment in opposition to tho authorities , the- Potteries Free Press was not self-supporting . Besides tho money for its wile , I havo received 37 / . (> s . in HubseriptioiiH ; aiul there- is still a debt of 27 / . His ., or two thousand two hundred and twelve threepences . I . venture to suggest that you and other Editors equally anxious to obtain a free press , should endeavour to collect from your readers a definite number of threepences for tho liquidation of this debt .

      Tho AsHociation for Promoting tho Itapenl of tho Taxes on Knowledge havo undertaken the legal expenses attending the paper , but do not feel justified in making U 8 O of their funds for the niipport of a newspaper which must , of cour . se , fake a definite part in politics , and of

      necessity be opposed to the opinions of some members of a body which contains various shades of opinion . Requesting your kind attention to this suggestion , I remain yours respectfully , . ; ' , ' . '¦ ' , • C . DOBSOK CoiiI / ET . 20 , Great Coram-street , May 31 , 1853 , ¦[¦'' ¦ :

      Untitled Article

      ION'S REVIEW OF WENDELL PHILLIPS'S SPEECH . ( To the Editor of the Leader . ) Sir , —I have rend very attentively the speech of Wendell Phillips , and the review of it written by your correspondent loir . As one who takes a deep interest in the subject of American slavery ( having spent several years in the United States ) , perhaps you will kindly permit me to say a few words in reply to your correspondent's strictures . His principal objection to the proceedings of' the American Abolitionists seems to be produced by the " denunciations" they level at the advocates of slavery . But I really fail to understand how any monstrous evil can be faithfully assailed without the denunciatory style of writing and speaking being employed by its opponents . In dealing with a system like American slavery ( teeming as it does with such frightful iniquities ) , an Abolitionist cannot well avoid " abusing it . " But Ion talks of separating the sin from the sinner . There are certainly differences of opinion , and important ones too , which are perfectly allowable , and to which his theory would well apply . But it strikes me that no opinion , or act , which tramples upon sett-evident and universally recognised principles of morality and

      justice should be . subject to this charitable rule . If a man who perpetrates a burglary is denounced as " a robber , " why should the man who steals another be exempt from the disgraceful but well-merited designation ? Is an opprobrious epithet to be applied to tho man who commits the minor offence , while he who is guilty of the infinitely , greater crime is to be spoken of in mild terms , simply because he belongs to a powerful and " civilized" nation , which is deeply involved in the same iniquity ? For God's sake , let us call things by their right names .

      The Leader is the representative of democratic opinions . You have " denounced" in no measured terms " the perjured House of Hapsbnrgh , " and that Imperial burglai " , the Autocrat of the North ; but , according to Ion's theory , you were wrong in doing so . You should rather have attacked despotism , while you spared the despot ! Depend upon it , nothing is lost to humanity by refusing to address tho villain as if he were an honest man ; for it is only by speaking the truth faithfully that men ' s consciences are aroused . Garrison ' s terrible pictures of the guilt of slaveholding have awakened ahame and remorse in many a pro-slavery heart , and prepared it for the reception of anti-slavery truth .

      Ion takes exception to the following remark made by Wendell Phillips : — " Wo warn the living that we have terrible memories , and that their sins are never to bo forgotten . We will gibbet tho name of every apostate so black and high , that his children ' s children will blush to hear it . We will teach caution to tho living by dealing out relentless justice to tho dead . Wo will insist on explaining tho chance expressions ( whispered in a corner ) for liberty by tho tenour of a long and base- life . " Your correspondent then makes tho following extraordinary comment : — " You feel so much resentment at this language , that you would rather , hh you read it , bo a slaveholder thnn an Abolitionist . " Does he not believe that this is the fate that should be

      allotted to traitors ? He knows , probably , that Wendell Phillips ' s remarks apply particularly to Webster ; and does not tho man who , after having expressed sympathy with the oppressed betrays their cause , and becomes their greatest oppressor , from ambitious motives , deserve to bo " gibbeted , " if it were only to serve as a warning to others ? I would respectfully ask Ion how ho would comment

      on the piratical attempts that are being made to annex Cuba and Mexico to the United States for pro-shivery purposes , without denouncing tho individuals who are seeking to perpetrate tho robbery ; and whether , in writing on tho Itov . "Mr . 'Hooker's phmplilet , which attempts to prove that slavery is " a missionary institution , " ho would employ any other language than that of " scorn i "' Yours , very respectfully , S . W . CiriiHsoif .

      Untitled Article

      NOTICKH TO COJUUSSl'ON . DENTB . J . 1 ) . 1 ) . —Tho lot tor on < ho " 1 ' iuMley ] Uock-mittora ami Dock liiibourorn" noxt wock . Knit \ Ti ! M ik omi i-xut Numhxu . —tn tho iirticlo on tho " VUwt im < l tho Oniny , " n hIil-Ii * typographic ^ error ( of a immoral ) maktm . uh upouk of the " i-wmy under ounvnpu nt tho Hpitaouil Koviow uh four linn of ImttlcHhiim . It should lmvo boon three lino of bnlUcHhipn , —viz ., tho Prince Jteaent , htmi-ing tho Jln ( j of Admiral lTitoahuwo , tho London , « u < l tho

      Untitled Article

      August 27 , 1853 . ] THE LEADER . 83 ^

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Aug. 27, 1853, page 831, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2001/page/15/