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Leader (1850-1860), 6th May 1854, Edition 1 of 1, Page 416, Untitled Article

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      MAY MEETINGS . Fhe numerous meetings which always occur in the nerry month of May hare already commenced . The Church Missionary Society held its annual meeting , tn Tuesday , Lord Chichester in the chair . In the iourse of his spceeh he remarked that the present irar is a chastisement inflicted on nations for their sins . With regard to the funds and operations of h \ s society , the report affords some interesting ) tatistiC 8 . Its total income : last year was no less than 123 , 915 / ., an increase of 2983 * . over that of Last year . But it falls short of the expenditure , laitf 8 J& , and leaves a deficit of nearly 868 Z . The society has 118 stations , 1661 teachers of all classes ; and in all jta stations throughout the world last year there were ICfr . OOO attendants at the services .

      . The ^ British and Foreign Bible Society , celebrating its anniversary on Wednesday , under the presidence of Lord Shaftesbury , also brings to light some curious statistics . The receipts for the year ending March ; 31 , 1854 , had been for the jubilee objects , 66 , 507 / . and for the million , Chinese Testament fund , 30 , 4 £ 5 / .. Tinder tUe head of general receipts there ^ ere , for ; Bible _ 8 ajid Testaments , 66 , 009 / . ; and gener ^ pM ^ QPeS ) 59 , 656 / . ; total , 125 , 665 / ., or an aggreg 8 ^ , an \ pi | nt of 222 , 659 / 1 The increase in the re ~ ceipt ^^ is more than 10 , 000 / . as compared with the preceding isrear ,. and 8226 / L as compared with any thaa

      previojU ; year .,, . During the year the society- had ij ^ uedQ ^^ ewer 1 , 367 , 528 copies of the Bible at home ajpq abroaa ^ making the total number since tie comnieQceinent of the society to be 27 , 938 , 631 ! .-, " T ^ Gjo ^ er ^ esfes ' Benevolent Institution celebrated Ae ^^^ B nw ; -ye ) Bt' of its : age , on Wednesday , by a ¦ gr « it * § gni |^ -, aiV , ifee London Tavern . Since it was ii ^^^^ his institution lias - relieved 3300 , goye ^^ ss « s -, an 4 has provided sixty with small biit ^^ in incomes . _ . The provident fund now amounts ¦ i ^ l ^^ pt- . WffvestjB 4 iii . GovernmentSecurities . A I ^ bi ^ piiial ,,, < welt ^ etfervedi was presented to the ¦ ' it ^ M ^ J > f ^ Zsiin ^ ¦ The sum of 86021 had been . f ^ jbllfHtid ^ j rjIitit Mr . , Laihg declined to accept more ,, i | b « a || p ^/ » r ilie remainder U > be invested for the instimeeting Society

      _^ T 4 g ^ aii ^ l of the for the Libeca ,-"f ^^^ JS ^^^ n from State Patronage and Control , * ra » r . fi ^ d ' ii ^ ' .. ^^ hury , Chanel , on Wednesday , Mr . ^ psley ^ elUiit in the chair . The prineipal reeolutipn ; carried at the meeting ; was this , proposed t > y t $ Mi Arjcher , who ably put the case of the Dis-. ? 'That , legaTding the liberation of religion from Stele patnHi « g » and control as of primary importance ,, this meetug moires ab the unproved position and prospects ^ of the siwaeiy ^ ejasfinjjj for tbat object , and earnestly trusts that , strBngtb | n « d by accessions to its ranks and an augmentation O 0 tsi 8 ^ arc& , it may prosecute its enterprise with growing eiwrgy and success . * : ¦ Ljord Shaftesburjr , the ' most indefatigable of modern chairnien , presided over the twelfth annual meeting of , the Field-lane Sagged School , on Wednesday . At this institution upwards of 2000 little ragged fellows have received some education since its

      commencement ; but the chairman rightly remarked that little good can be done while these poor children leave the school for pestilential homes , unlearning there what they . had been taught . la the Night Refuge , attached to the school , 26 , 399 persons slept last year . The Protestant Alliance does not seeemto flourish . At the annual meeting on Thursday , Lord Shaftesbury in the chair , the balanoe-sheet ^ showed a deficit of 263 / .: income 936 / ., expenditure 1199 / .

      The London City Mission , however , seems a more prosperous concern . Last year they raiBed an income of 27 , 484 / ., an increase of 10 , 000 / ., over the preceding year ; then ? missionaries made 1 , 439 , 380 " visits , " and distributed no less than 1 , 931 , 705 tracts .

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      delegate for Padihana moved its adjournment , in order that the delegates might have a private consultation- On Monday morning a meeting of the operatives was called by the weavers' committee , and then the murder was out . Mr . Baxeadale , the chairman , made a speech reviewing the entire struggle , and , after referring . to the Stockport strike , and the threatened reduction of wages at Blackburn , he told the people frankly that funds were not forthcoming in sufficient plenty to warrant a continuance of the struggle . Mr . Cowell then took up the tale , and pronounced an elegy over the ten per cent . battle : —

      14 Though it may be said ( said he ) tbat we , on the present occasion , have suffered a defeat , let me tell yon , my respected friends , that had it not been for this agitation , wbicb we are now bringing to a close , I fe « l perfectly satisfied that tbe operatives of Preston , Blackburn , Stockport , Manchester , and every other manufacturing town in the kingdom , would at this time have been working at a redaction of ten per cent . I believe we have prevented a reduction takin ' g place for tbe next ten years , and that , if ever the time should come when another reduction is contemplated , it will never come under the denomination of a ten per cent . Tbat cry has so often resounded in the ears of the manufacturers of Preston that they will for ever be disgusted when they hear the

      name of ten per cent , mentioned . Wliile we now advise you to return to your employment , rest Assured that whenever a reaction takes place in the commercial affairs of this country , the telling-note shall again be sounded in Preston , * Ten per cent , and no surrender . ' Bat you , the working bees , of Preston , of Blackburn , and- of -other towns and districts , must be prepared for the emergency , and whenever the demand is made , if wo have a good fund at our back , it is ' , my decided conviction that the employers will give the advance rather than risk another turn-out . I have a word of advice to give to the masters of Preston . When two contending armies meet , and . one has proved successful , I would ask the employers of Preston t « reflect whether it

      would lie right for the victorious army to pursue the enemy after they have grounded their arms , and ride roughshod over them ? I hope the employers will take this advice . Now tliat we have withdrawal - from th . & field , I hope and trust they wjll be willing to open their , gates and let you resuiao your work . Cheer up , lads and lapses . My lteart is as warm in the cause as it was the-first day I sounded my voice for the ten per cent . " In conclusion , the speaker urged fcis hearers , when they got to work , to contribute Id . each per week , in order that they might raise a fund which would enable them at some future time to gain the object in struggling for which they had now been defeated . This address was received with the marked approbation and sympathy of the multitude . Iff the forenoon of Monday the following address informed the public of the final intention of the weavers' committee : —

      u TO THK TRADES Ain > PEOPLE OF BRITAIN . " Friends and fellow-countrymen , —We , the undersigned members of the executive committee of the Power-loom Weavers * ' Association , beg to inform yon that a combination of circumstances renders it imperatively necessary that we should lay before jou the position of tbtf Preston weavers . " The successful termination of the late strike at Stockport , which was immediately followed by an advance of wages in Blackburn and other places , led us and the factoryworkers of Preston to believe that the employers were in a

      whose funds , as I stated in my last , are very considerable , have resolved to continue the battle , and give expression to their intentions in the following address , which Appears at the head , of this week ' s balance-sheet : — " Friends and fellow-workmen , —Whilst we have during the last seven months , been pursuing this struggle in behalf of that labour more especially connected with the spinners and minders of England , other branches of factory labour hare been maintaining . their struggles fora fair reward , for their toil—tbe throstles , the card-room hands , and the wearers . All these branches have , through the pressure of circumstances , been compelled to abandon , for the present ,

      the contest ; and tbe spinners and minders are now left alone to contend with the united capital of the three manufacturing counties , for that which we held , to be our right in the first report we issued ,-and now assert to be our right in this , the . thirty-first report , namely , a just remuneration for our labour . Persuaded tbat our claims are founded upon reason and justice , having at all times be « n willing to leave our cause to an honourable arbitration , and to abide faithfully by the issue , and having taken the initiative in every step that could lead to a fair and permanent settlement of the dispute with our late employers to no effect , we are

      determined now , as on the first day we were locked out , to obtain by fair and peaceable means that for which we have so long , so earnestly , and so honourably contended . This resolution to persevere in our demand was passed unanimousl y at the most numerous meeting yet held in Preston of parties connected with the spinning and minding Iranch , on Monday last , aud is in entire accordance with the wishes of the various districts which have so nobly supported us ; and to those districts , as well as to the public generally , w « take thU opportunity of tendering our grateful thanks , and trust they will still assist us in our efforts to obtain , whilst acting in conformity with . * peace , law , and order , ' that advance to which we have an undeniable right . "

      The resolutions referred to were passed at a meet * ing of the whole body of the Preston spinners , held at the Albion Ian on Monday afternoon , and are to the following effect : — _ . " That we , the spinners and self-actor xnmders of Preston , pledge ourselves to stand by the committee under every circumstance . " -That we , the spinners and self-actor minders of Preston , do hereby pledge ourselves not to resume work until we ha . ve gained our object ; i . e ., the same jrices we bad pre * vious to being locked out , or tbe average of the trade . " That we tender our sincere thanks to the public and trades of the country for tbeir liberal support , and beg a continuance of the same during the remainder of the struggle , and especially acknowledge tbe noble exertions of the Amalgamated Committee of Trades . * - *

      From their balance-sheet it appears that the spinners have this week had a surplus of . 6 O / . 9 s . iOfcd-, which they hive carried over to their fond , or / near hauslible Box , as they term it ; which certainly does not look like a failure of funds . To test the feeling of the body , shop-meetings of the spinners and minders were held yesterday , and the result was such as to throw out no hope of a speedy surrender of the agitation on their part . The Amalgamated Committee , which receives , as I have before stated , the moneys subscribed by the general public , gives its approbation and support to tbe course resolved upon by the spinners ; giving the following reasons for believing that that body will be ultimately victorious : —

      " In the first place , the * Associated Masters * cannot procure unskilled labourers and make them into workers at that branch any more than they could make similar bands into engineers , machinists , or any other branch of trade requiring a servitude of apprenticeship . In tbe next place , the spinners , &c , are a body united for years past with their brethren throughout the manufacturing districts , who at the present time are contributing largely towards the support of the Preston operatives . Lastly , from the resumption of labour at the opening of the mills up to the present time , there are only to be found about twenty spinners and piecers at work , the majority of whom are strangers , although their body numbers to the extent of itbout 3000 members . "

      In representing it as difficult to educate skilled spinners , I have reason to believe that the Unionists are mistaken . I know it to be a . fact that many manufacturers have taken advantage of the stoppage of their mills to substitute self-acting mules for common mules ; and that they ore fast teaching piecers to manage these machines . Anticipating the future conduct of the agitation , the Amalgamated Committee says ;—¦ " We have been credibly informed that the noble people

      of Blackburn feel greatly aggrieved at the abrupt and unfortunate termination of the weavers' atriktf'at Prciton . Wo understand that they have been induced to flag ia their hupport of the people of Preston , in consequence of the misrepresentations ol the card-room hands , aud the untrue reports of persons who , wo believed , were friends of the weavers' cause ; and now , discovering the real state of the case , they are determined to rally onco more around tha Iravo men of Preston , and aid them in righting tbe battle of I ., a bou r . ...

      " Before taking leave for the present it is here necessary to atute that tlie liabilities of the weavors committee being jrreat , the agitation of their own districts will bo continued ? or a time longer . There being also ubout two © r three thousand unaLlo to resume work , in consequence of the spinners not returning to their employment on tflB ^ mnsten * terms ; and should the spinners remain out , of which there can be little doubt , the great probability is that largo numbers of the weavers already employed will be again forced

      position to give a similar advance , which was conceded by thirty-two of the employers , but was afterwards taken off through the refusal of four employers to 'follow the praiseworthy example of the great majority of the trade . After a thirty-six weeks' struggle we are obliged to bring the contest to a temporary close . •* We nave been compelled to adopt tliis alternative by the universal combination of the employers , whose pakL agents have swept the three kingdoms for the means / of destruction to the Preston operatives . These hirelings have teen assisted in the circulation of their nefarious misrepresentations by a powerful liut unscrupulous press , and by the miscalled guardians of the j > oor , who have emptied their workhouses of all tbat could crawl from the eates .

      41 The employers have been further assisted in their unholy crusade by the recent proceedings of a portion of the overlookers , who have lent or sold tncmseWes to the employers to circulate throngh the country false statements respecting the position of Preston , which have had the effect of curtailing the amount of subscriptions in those towns where their misrepresentations have been made . Coupled with these obstacles , the Eastern war and the high price of provisions have operated as insurmountable difficulties in the continuation ef the power-loom weavers' struggle . The operatives have , therefore , been advised to resume work until a more favourable opportunity ; as the time will come when that ten per cent , will bo granted to the operatives which is now unjustly , and b y might , withheld from them .

      . THE LANCASHIRE LABOUR-BATTLE . ( Fbom our Correspondent . ') Preston , Thursday . Thb accounts which I have given latterly of the iailing funds of the Unionists will have prepared the far-sighted for trie speedy termination of the struggle . Money , the sinews of all war , is of course absolutely essential to the further progress of such a battle as this has been , and when the combatants on one side have been living from hand to mouth , the stoppage

      of supplies must be immediately followed by a cessation of hostilities . For some weeks past those who nave had the welfare of the workpeople more at heart than the empty glory of a victory , whkh must have been injurious to all , have earnestly advised the abandonment of the battle while yet the funds were undimi nished . This counsel , however , was disregarded , and the employers have now certainly good warrant for asserting that the operatives have been reduced to an absolute inability to hold out any longer .

      At the customary meeting of delegates from all the districts , held on Sunday last , at which it haa been heretofore usual to make public delivery of the sura 8 brought in , it was obvious that there was something wrong , for , after the meeting had be « n opened , the

      " In conclusion , we beg that you will carry out the following resolution , passed by the central committee at their meeting held on Sunday last : — ' That the executive of the Weavers' Association draw tip ita address to the country , stating the reasons that have brought the Preston strike to a conclusion , and ""Soliciting the working classes to subscribe to support those whom the manufacturers have thrown upon the streets , and to pay off any engagements the executive have entered into . ' " ( Here follow the signatures of the committee . ) The funds subscribed for the relief of the weavers

      were sufficient to admit of a payment of half-a-crown a he-ad being made , but the weavers wece not disposed to content themselves with that pittance , and it therefore seemed best to the committee to close the agitation , and devote future subscriptions to the discharge of their liabilities , which are heavy . In spite of the failure of * other bodies , the spinriets ,

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      416 THE LEADER . [ Saturh / y , _ ¦ i- . ^ . I ¦ - II ¦ — - — I -H I ¦ - - - _¦ I ¦ . I . ¦¦ — . . ¦ — - ¦ - - - _ , -, ¦ . ¦ ¦ ... . . ¦ , — — ¦ . _ ,,.. _

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), May 6, 1854, page 416, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2037/page/8/