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Northern Star (1837-1852), 3rd May 1851, Edition 2 of 2, Page 1, I i* •x

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    • T0 FEAEGUS O'CONXOB, ESQ. M.P.
    • ©ijartfet Jnteilitttitte
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      T0 Feaegus O'Conxob, Esq. M.P.

      T 0 FEAEGUS O'CONXOB , ESQ . M . P .

      Halifax , April 20tli. Peak Sib,—Yon Are...

      Halifax , April 20 tli . Peak Sib , —Yon are apprised of some prot \ ertv left to you , near Halifax , and we are | t expectation that yoa will , ere long , visit oar neighbourhood , to make some arrangements about it This being our expectation , a committee has been formed to make provi-^ tm fo r a lecture while you are here ; and in case that cannot be , you have announced m th e Star your intention to take a Northern tour this summer , in either , or' both cases , gboukl they happen , we shall be glad to hear from vou , * either by letter or through the Star ,

      if possible , fourteen days before your visit I The Committee is composed of about twenty of the Old Gnards , with power to add to their number . We know that you are unwell , and bare been so some time ; and , of course , R-e wish to leave the matter iu your own hands , and by no means to stir from your resting p lace Bllyonr health is restored . We sincerely Trisb your restoration to health , and that your valuable life may bo spared to see the downfall of that system against which your iorefatherS : and yourself have so nobly fought . We shall look for a word from you by Saturday next , either by letter or in the Star , and if this note be successful , we shall only have to announce it and we have no doubt of a good

      meeting . Here follows the names of the Committee : — B . Eashtbn , F . Mitchell , Wm . Maud , H . Hayle , J . Sutcliffe , R . Sutcliffe , D . Lawson , J . R . Holden , J . Lawson , J . Wadswortb , Win . Barette , Samuel Magson , J . Fletcher , D . Iiawngley , J . Bean , W . Lister , and H . Fletcher . . B . Rushtok , secretary .

      TO THE MEN OF HALIFAX . M y Friends of Halifax , —Although I have understood , and from good authority , that an attempt has been made in your town to injure my character , I am glad to find by your ' tetter that it has not succeeded . I never personally meet any antagonism ; I always leave my character in the hands of the good

      Old Guards . And now I have great pleasure in informing you that , although I have been very ill indeed for five weeks , that my health is again restored ; and , as I have told several Ministers of the Crown 10 . the House of Commons , I am determined to live five hundred years , if I don't carry the Charter before that time . I have been very frequently in y our town , and I have always been well received by your order .

      Isdvr , Old Guards , this is the second day of the Exhibition , and , thank Gob , as yet there bas been no revolution in London ; but , nevertheless , the Frencb papers state , and the Times reports it , that there is to be a revolution in France on the 4 th of May —that is on Sunday next—but I hope the revoluti on that will take place in this country will be a mental revolution . And , as a good thing cannot be repeated too often , let

      me remind you of my old maxim— "Moral " power is the deliberative quality in each " man ' s mind , which teaches him how to rea" son , how to endure , and when forbearance " becomes a crime , and should that fail to u secure for man all those rights to which he " is justly entitled , and should physical f orce « be required ( which GOD FORBID ) , it " will come to his aid like an electric shock , " but the man who marshals it destroys it ; " and the man who recommends it is a kuave

      " and a traitor , and will be the first to desert "it " Old Guards , I assure you , that when I am moping about ia my own house , the working classes are never out of my mind , and when I was a rich man I gave every farthing of my money to the poor ; but now I am a poor man , as I have been RUINED BY EXPENSES , according to Lord Melbourne ' s maxim . They are shortly to have an election for a new President in France , and the SPECIAL CONSTABLE Pbesh > est well knows that some of the most influential men in that country are his greatest opponents , and now , mark wbatltell you . To provetoyou thatself-interest

      is the basis of human action , he would rather that ten million Frenchmen were slaughtered , if it preserved his position , than save the lives of every one of them if he lost it ; while , I dare say , you will come to the fair conclusion , after your knowledge of me for so many years , that I would not shed the blood of a man , woman , or child , if it was to make me Emperor of the world . And , as I have often told you , it is my pride and my boast to say , that I never committed a cruel act in my life ; and it makes my blood ran cold , when I know that many of yonr class are starving , while if yon were united , there would not be a pauper in the land .

      In conclusion , old Guards , let me tell you that it will give me great pleasure once more to visit the busy bees in the Northern hive . Tour Faithful and Uncompromising Friend and Advocate , Feakgos O'Cossoe .

      Xatiokal Land Axd Labour Was Society. Th...

      XATIOKAL LAND AXD LABOUR WAS SOCIETY . This body held its usual weekly meeting at the City Chartist Han , Golden-lane , on "Wednesday weiring ; Mr . Edwards in the chair . The deputation appointed to wait on Mr . O'Connor and the otber . Directors of the Xational Laud Company deUvered in their report . They had received all the necessary facilities for arriving at a true knowledge of the monetary position of the Company ami were promised any further information which if might be in the power of tne Directors to afford them .. Correspondence of a highly favourable nature was read from Mr . J . Sweet , of Nottingham ; from Burnley , Edinburgh , Bilston , and other places , and Mr . Wheeler was instructed to reply thereto . A discussion took nlace respecting the

      rales , when a committee of four persons were appointed io assist the secretary in taking tne necessary steps to procure their immediate enrolment , there being a considerable demand for them . The question of the appointment of officers was then brought forward , and it was ultimately decided that Messrs . Wheeler and Windeler should sign the rales as the acting secretary and treasurer , and two other members , in order to comply with the forms rapped for enrolment , and that the election of Officers should take place at Golden-lane , on Wednesday evening , May 6 tb , when all members of the

      society , and those desirous of joining are requested to attend . The following persons were nominated to stand as trustees , Messrs . Allsop , Saul , O'Connor , Oastler , and Sewell , and a deputation , conin g of Messrs . Wheeler , Broomfield , Stratton , sad Windeler , appointed to wait upon them in the order they were nominated , and procure the conse nt of at least three persons out of that or any future list that might be nominated . Several new Members were enrolled , and deposits paid on «> ghteen shares . Scrip to a large amount was also Promised to be deposited with the society . The meeting then adjourned .

      . At The Foot Of Vanxhall-Bridge, On The...

      . At the foot of Vanxhall-bridge , on the Middlesex arte , Messrs . Castle and Co . bare fitted up a bulldog for the accommodation of 200 men , where a co mfortable berth , with the use of washing apparatus , plates , knives and forks , Ac ., may be had for " . pernipbi . Breakfast , including meat , for Od . Ao smoking allowed" in the building , or on the ^ joining wharf ; but a ship , lying alongside , will ** ve the purpose of a " cigar divan ; " and those * ho promenade the deck will enjoy " a beautiful « ew of the river and its traffic . " Tbe Bishop of London , Cardinal Wiseman , and *« her Gavazri , says the BuMtr , were , on the 12 th Jjt i standing shoulder to shoulder at the private « ew of ( he exhibition of the Sational Institution of tt <> Frae Arts .

      A toBs o nan at Niagara having been crossed in 10 r » . walked out to the precipice , took off his clothes , gave one Ungating look at the gulph ° » neath him , and then went—home . His body was found next morning in bed . Tub Jfinaota Free Democrat has the following notice of amarriage : — "At Watah City , March ?* 7 _ M aw-kee-ko-ke-wah-hab-dauchy-kew , Esq ., W Miss Wee-huu-kaw , daughter of Maw-kee-hoo-¦ oay-naw-zhee-fcaw , all of Wanatah coanty , Hioe-* Ma . The editor participated in the feast on this of ^ * ana wjj presented with the hiad-quartew

      Ar00113

      Anitnational Tripes' Journal. M. Xiy. P....

      aniTnational TRIPES' journal . M . XIY . P . 704 LluljMiUMTsif ^ .. jk ™^ * ¦ — ' ' . _ . " ]_ . « r « ve Mhiiiinga a »« Sixpence pur Quarter

      ©Ijartfet Jnteilitttitte

      © ijartfet Jnteilitttitte

      National Charter Association. Offices 14...

      NATIONAL CHARTER ASSOCIATION . Offices 14 , Southampton-street , Strand . The Executive Committee of this body held their usual weekly meeting , as above , on Wednesday evening last ; John Milne in the chair . A large amount of correspondence from various localities and individuals was read . Messrs . Bolton and Clifton attended as a deputation to solicit the . assistance of the Executive , in order to resuscitate the movement in tbo parish of St . Pancras , and tbe Secretary having been instructed to act with the deputation in getting up a public meeting for that purpose , the deputation withdrew .

      John Shaw attended from the united Councils of the Tower Hamlets to advise the Executive at the present time not to hold open-air meetings in or around the Metropolis to adopt the National Petition , and Mr . Shaw being informed that the Executive repudiated the idea of holding such meetings in the Metropolitan districts , but , in the country , they were of opinion that out-door meetings might and ought to be held ; Mr . Shaw then retired . It was reported that Ernest Jones had received a letter from Sir George Grey , stating that he ( Sir George ) declined to . receive a deputation relative to Frost , Williams , Jones , and Ellis , but that he would

      present the in ? moral to the Queen , on behalf of the said persons , if respectfully worded . Messrs . Araott and Jones were appointed to take the memorials to tbe Home Office , and also to see Thomas Buncombe , M . P ., with reference to bringing the case of the expatriated patriots before the House of Commons , and the Secretary was instructed to solicit the attendance of the whole of the delegates to the late Chartist Convention , resident in Lyndon , at the above office , on Wednesday evening , May 7 th , at half past eight o ' clock , to act with the Executive as a committee , to carry out the decision of the said Convention relative to the exiles .

      Thornton Hunt then read the following , which was unanimously adopted as the NATIONAL PETITION . "To the Honourable ( he Commons of Great Britain and Ireland , in Parliament assembled , " The humble Petition of " Shewetb , That the People of this country , in gr < -at numbers , bare called upon your Honourable House to grant them the right of tbo franchise , on the principle that every tax-payer ought to be an elector .

      " That a measure for that purpose , entitled " The People ' s Charter , " and embodying the following details—Universal Suffrage , Vote by Ballot , Annual Parliaments , Equal Electoral Districts , No Property Qualification , and Payment of Memberswas composed by members of your Honourable House , jointly with certain persons of the class at present denied the right of representation , and was afterwards submitted to your Honourable House , and has from time to time been urged upon your adoption by the petitions of the People . " That the provisions of that measure have severally been acknowledged as sound and just .

      " That these facts arc too well known to your HO " nourable House to render any lengthened enforcement of them at all necessary . " That , therefore , your petitioners begof your Honourable House forthwith to enact that the provisions of tbe FeopJe ' sCbarter be the law of tbe land . " And your petitioners will ever pray , & e . " The Committee then adjourned to Wednesday evening , May 7 th . Signed on behalf of the Committee , Jobs Arsoti , General Secretary .

      Mascuesier,—On Sunday Evening Last A Lec...

      Mascuesier , —On Sunday evening last a lecture was delivered to a numerous audience by J . Leach oh " The Difficulties of the Land Company—their Causes , and the Duty of the People in reference thereto . " Mr . Leach said , it would be scarcely possible to introduce a question of higher importance than the one for consideration that evening . It was not a question of an isolated or local nature —it was tbe question of the world , and went to the root of all their social vrrongs and political iniquities ; hut he was sorry that he bad nothing very cheering to advance on hebalf of that particular

      part of the subject . . Beiore be proceeded further , he would explain his position iu reference to the National I / uid Company . It was true , his pecuniary interest iu its funds were but small , having never paid more than 5 s . towards a four-acre share , which he took up when the Company first commenced operations . It was not his intention to detail tbe reasons why he did not continue to pay as a member of the Land Company ; but there were those around him who would remember the part he took , and the ill-will he sot for the opposition he gave to tbe policy adopted by the directors ; and that he did not abandon the stand he made on

      that occasion until the opposition offered to him by some of the members of this district had become so personally offensive , that he saw he could not be of any service in giving that direction io the Company ' s proceedings which he knew to be essential to its success . It was then he left the Company , telling the members that , as he could not do any good , he would stay away from their meetings . He ( Mr . Leach ) would not give a lengthened review of the Company ' s proceedings ; it was sufficient to know that , as its affairs were now presented , it was a complete and decided failure , without the possibility of being redeemed , excepting by a decided change , both in its principles and in tbe conducting of its affairs . Mr . Leach

      then proceeded , at considerable length , to discuss the present position of the Company ' s affairs , and proved from various documents that , if the estates were brought to sale under the Bill now before tbe House of Commons , the dividend to the shareholders would be extremely small , if , indeed , it paid anything , after the mortgagees and the vultures of the law had had their feed out of it . In conclusion , Mr . Leach made the following propositions to the meeting , and contended that their adoption would immediately relieve the Company from its present difficulties , and ultimately accomplish the great end it was designed to achieve : —1 st . That the Company consists of 50 , 000 shareholders ; supposing 10 , 000 of this number would agree to go on

      with tbe Company , and pay £ 3 ner share upon the shares already taken up , £ 1 to " be paid as soon as possible , 10 s . of which should go towards the immediate relief of the Company . This would give £ 5 , 000—the otber 10 a to go towards the commencing of Co-operative Stores . This would also give £ 5 , 000 , which might be divided into £ 500 , to ten of the principal towns , where the greatest number of Land members reside . Each of these large or central stores could extend their branches in their various districts , so as to afford an opportunity to the great bulk of the members to expend their money in their own establishment , and from the profits of which the remaining £ 2 of the £ 3 advanced upon each share should be paid . Thus ,

      the advance of £ 1 from the present 50 , 000 shareholders , would give immediate relief to the Company , and set on foot a vigorous co-operative effort , with a capital of £ 5 , 000 to commence with . The remaining £ 2 per share , paid from the profit of co-operation , would give £ 20 , 000 , and could be employed towards paying off those members who are not satisfied to go on with tbe Company . With an earnest effort on the part of the members , this could be accomplished in twelve months . The Company , once eased from its embarrassments , could more rapidly extend its operations , and , with the rents of estates and the profits of co-operation , erect mills and other workshops , which , when fitted up with the best machinery would become as

      prolific in production on behalf of the labourers , as they have hitherto been under the power of tbe capitalist ; and thus , by combining under the hands of the workers , the two great elements of national wealth—agriculture and manufacture—place the labourer is a troly independent position ; and if he be not so placed , he must ever remain a mere machine of production—a bondslave to the wealth he is creating . At the close of Mr . Leach ' s address , many questions were asked , which were answered by Mr . Leach at some length , and in an apparently conclusive and satisfactory manner . Many of the audience were much surprised at the statement made respecting the small amounts they were likely to receive in the event of the estates

      being sold , but seemed much pleased with the propositions offered for saving the Company from breaking up , and pushing on with vigour its important undertakings . It was then unanimously re * solved— " That another meeting of the Land members be held in the People ' s Institute , on Sunday morning next , at ten o clock , for tbe purpose of taking Into further consideration this important questfon . " An unanimous vote of thanks was given to Mr . Leacb , and the meeting separated . Touuobdm . —A public meeting was held in the iociety ' fl halL on the 23 th ult ., for the purpose of taking into consideration the condition of four Polish and Hungarian Refugees , lately arrived in the town . —Mr . Brook was called to tbe chair , and the meeting ; was addressed fe y Mr . lattersall , of

      Mascuesier,—On Sunday Evening Last A Lec...

      Burnley , who in a telling speech , pointed out the evils inflicted by the Northern Autocrat . After whioh the following resolutions were unanimously carried . — " That in the opinion of this meeting the Polish and Hungarian Refugees in this country , are deserving the sympathy and support of the good and benevolent of all classes of society , inasmuch as their exile is caused by their glorious efforts to emancipate suffering humanity from the atrocious despotism uf Austria and Russia . " Moved by Mr . YViielright , seconded by Mr . J . Mooney . — " That as you have affirmed that the Refugees are worthy of the support of every class in society , this meeting therefore pledges itself to use every means iu its power to carry out the first resolution . " Moved by T . Barker , seconded by Mr . S . Stott . .

      Bniauro . v . —The following resolution was put at a general meeting of the Chartist body . —" That this meeting regrets the publication of the letter , in the NorOtem Star respecting the refugees , some part of which has'been misconstrued , but consider Mr . O' Connorjustified in guarding tbe people against any attempt being made by foreigners visiting London , creating arevolution . Knowing such a course would cause the government to entrapour best advocates ; and most likely Mr . O'Connor would be sacrificed , which we should truly regret . We have full confidence in that gentleman , for the many services ha has rendered the cause of democracy . " Shefeieuj : —AttiTneeting held on Sunday , April 27 th , at Mr . Edward Grayson ' s , 22 , Steelhouselane—Mr . Bagshaw in the chair—a resolution was passed approving of the conduct of Mr . Bezer in tbe late Conference , and condemnatory of Mr . O'Connor .

      Tiie New Chautist Movement.. Chartism Ha...

      TIIE NEW CHaUTIST MOVEMENT . . Chartism has returned to town after three years' absence , and is reintroduced to the public by the Tints . Chartism , which appeared tokave committed suicide in 1848 , like an Indian devotee at the feast of Juggernaut , by a voluntary prostration under the feet of the Special Constable , ' suddenly arises in the midst of us—" medio defonteleporum —with renewed life ! It seems by the great chronicle of the day , that the unknown Mirabeaus and Sieyes have been sitting in convention , whence they have issued a «* programme" of action for tbe season , as comprehensive as any from the energetic brain of Mr . Lumley , propounding a general reorganisation of society—universal suffrage , rfaut

      of labour , nationalisation of land , and what not . This reappearance , with so much redundancy of vigour—on paper—will surprise many of our readers who have supposed that Chartism was decently buried after the 10 th of April 184 . S . But sudden resurrections are as common on the political as they are on the theatrical stage . It is true that in one sense Chartism has been dead : the members of "the working classes , " disgusted with the failure of their great demonstration , with the conduct of their " leaders , " with tbe discredit thrown on their " monster petition" by the wholesale importation of ribald signatures , have since been totally inert and apathetic . The prosperity which is SO grateful to the Chancellor of the Exchequer has contributed to this inertness , Candid

      politicians admitted as probable , that many of the genuine old original Chartists held aloof from the joint demonstration with tbe Irish ; and it would appear from the names now advanced that most of the quondam leaders have dropped oft through death or disappointment and disgust . From statistics that have come out in the recent movements of the Chartist body , it would appear that the number of those claiming to bo members of tbe Association does not amount to 4 , 000 , for the whole of Great Britain ; a fact which would alone imply that tbe numbers in the separate towns must be utterly insignificant . In its three-years' burial , Chartism has wasted to a bare skeleton . Few who have thought of it at all would be prepared to learn such a complete ossification of the once formidable body .

      It would be difficult indeed to reconcile that wasting with the preservation of any life at all , if it were only a matter of statistics ; and on their showing , the prostration of Chartism might be as unduly exaggerated now as its vigour and dimensions once were . The Charter Association , however , still retains some faculties . Although but a skeleton , it stiil has its members stationed in the towns of the non-agricultural districts , possessing a machinery inferior only to that of some of the great religious associatons ; its members are among tbe active politicians of the working classes : they arc

      able in some places to show what intelligence , activity , fixed purpose , and organization can do in creating practical influence . In the Staffordshire Potteries , for example , although undeniably insignificant in numbers , as undeniably do the Chartists hold a balance of power in the management of local affairs : thus , in the recent election of Guardians , they are said to have' « nominated" those who were elected . They seem to have acquired this really remarkable position by using their organization for the popular party , whatever that may be , in present practical affairs .

      From the Programme published by the Times it ia evident that the new movement is an attempt to apply this method to the kingdom at large : the Charter Association advertises itself , with tbe help of the Leading Journal , as the general agent of the working classes . Consistently with that view , the reviving Chartists invite a union with the Socialists —a considerable and increasing number , hitherto not organized . The new and enlarged attempt is made in a state of the public feeling considerably altered since 1848 . Although standing with practical England in the remote and shadowy regions of "isms , " neither Chartism nor Socialism is quite tbe bugbear that it once was : common sense begins to regard each as a rude hask containing some kernel of truth , that may ba worth analysis : a process in which even the Times begins to assist in a slashing bantering fashion . —Spectator .

      Cosviciios Op An Old Offender Is Iuimi D...

      Cosviciios op an Old Offender is Iuimi Distillation . —At the Court of Inland Revenue , on Wednesday , Charles Barnett and Mary Barnett , the former of whom is now in the House of Correction , Uoldbath-fields , were charged with removing spirits with the intentof defrauding her Majesty of the duty thereon . —The Chairman said the court had no doubt whatever about the case . —Mrs . Barnett then approached the bench , and exclaimed , "For God ' s sake have mercy on me , I am but an old woman . — The Chairman said there would be no necessity to convict on the first count of the information , but tbey should convict Mary Barnett only on the second and third , £ 50 on the second , and £ 100 on tbe third count . —Mrs . Barnett again entreated the mercy of tbe court , and promised to do anything that was required . —The Chairman said that both herself and husband were notorious smugglers , upon whom all sorts of punishment had hitherto been ried in vain .

      Accident to Mh . Graham . —Letters from Malta dated 12 th of April , mention a frightful accident that had just occurred to a son of Sir James Graham , serving as naval cadet on board her Majesty ' s ship Queen . It appears that Mr . Graham , who is a remarkably fine enterprising boy , was showing off some feats of activity with his young messmates aloft , when , missing his hold , he fell from the misen-top to tbe deck , fortunately catching a rope that in some degree checked the violence of the descent . We were glad to hear last night that , although much hurt , the young sufferer was progressing favourably . A Loso Assuiir . —The Treasury of Hanover has just been relieved of a claimant who was , it may be assumed , one of the oldest names on the pension lists of Europe . A lady named Ton Leuthe , the widow of a subaltern civil official , celebrated last vear the 75 th anniversary of the date of her state

      allowance . It was given under the following circumstances : —In the year 1771 , when the unfortunate Queen Caroline Matilda of Denmark obtained by the intervention of her brother , George III ., an asylum at Cette , in Hanover , she wished to adopt a child to supply the void left in her heart by the detention of her own children from her . An orphan girl , known as " little . Sophie , " was selected , and remained with the Queen till the death of her Majesty in 1775 . In her last hours she recommended the persons surrounding her to the care of her relatives for provision by pensions for their lives , and the wish was complied with through the exertions of her chaplain , Pastor Lebzen . Among them was "little Sophie , " who received a pension of 400 thalers , and drew it regularly for seventy-five yesrs . She has just died , more than eighty years of age . — Preusshche Ztitung .

      A locomotive engine is said to be building in New York for the Erie Railway , in which nothing bat alcohol is to be used for heating the boiUrs , Ciffib Wab . —A Parliamentary paper announces that the sum required to be voted towards defraving the expenses of the Caffir war for the years ,, 1850-51 and 1831-52 is estimated at £ 300 , C 00 . Mr . W ; Thackebt has volunteered the discharge of the Laureate ' s duty , hating njedsujedia ^ May Day Ode , " of forty verses . ..

      National Association Of United Trades. T...

      NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF UNITED TRADES . T . S . Buncombe , Esq ., JI . P . President , ' J Established 1815 . " fiat jhstitia . " " Ifiit were possible for thTworking classes , by combimng among themselves , to raise , or keep up the general rate of wages , u iKud hardly b ' e said tliat this would be a thing not to be punished , but to be welcomed and rejoiced at ' Stuart Mill .

      In our article of the 19 th ult ., we offered some remarks upon the influence of machinery upon the fortunes of labour . While we cautiously guarded ourselves from being supposed ignorant of the immense advantages which scientific improvements and mechanical inventions are calculated to confer upon society , when introduced with a due consideration for the immediate interests of those upon whom the pressure of its introduction is more severel y felt ,:, we expressed our strong conviction that

      great injustice had , in numerous instances , ite ^ ii inflicted upon the working ' olassea by the combined influence of the avaricious , monopolising spirit of capital , and the culpable apathy of the Legislature , in withholding that protection to the vested rights of labour , which is never withheld from any other class of the bod y politic , when , in their cases , public utility and private interest are brought into collision . Compensation is the invariable rule when the surrender of class interests is demanded ; even for the public benefit , labour is the sole and constant exception .

      ... Wo noticed the Herculeneail difficulties thrown in the way of our law reformers , by parties who set up their claims for a vested right in a public wrong . If the specious reasoning by which these injurious monopolies are thus successfully maintained—such as long established custom , creating a sortof perpetual patent or freehold right , that these monopolies had been recognised by the Legislature , which by legislating for their regulation ( as iu the case of the West India slaveholders )

      had sanctioned their existence , and thus legalised a social enormity—we say , if such reasoning is deemed valid , and that in such instances a claim for compensation is recognised by the state and tolerated , ( we had almost said sanctioned ) by public opinion ; with how much more force and justice should the workiug man ' s claim for compensation be considered , when his very means of existence is rudely violated and torn from him—not 80 much for the public good , as for the private emolument of individual capitalists ? -

      \ Tlie position of the working nian , thrown out of employment , without notice and without compensation , by the introduction of some new machine , is one of unequalled injustice and severity . The law which , by a specious fiction , is said to be the impartial and sufficiently efficacious protector of the lives and property of both rich and poor , steps in and completes the full complement of the wrongs inflicted , by its connivance upon labour . This impartial , immaculate , law says to the poor man , work for your living , support youv family b y tbo

      proceeds of your industry , or take , your choice of the alternatives—imprisonment in a pauper gaol , or in the House of Correction—while the iron man , the creator of the modern Frankenstein , the non-consuming automoton of five hundred-man-power , is earning five hundred men's wages , and pouring them into the coffers of a class , who—stimulated by the most intense avarice , and an ambition , insatiate and illimitable—is rapidly rearing itself up into a rampant aristocracy , which , with a vampire instinct will suck up the very life blood of the nation .

      That the people—that is , the working people—of this country , is gradually , but certainly , approaching a state unequalled in any civilised nation in the world except Ireland , we think no man can doubt . We are not deceived by the present fit of commercial sunshine or the Free Trade glorification over the cheap loaf , though we yield to no man in a just appreciation of the value—the priceless value of that great but tardy act of justice which secured to the people of England , and wo hope for ever , the blessings of untaxed food ; but we sadly fear that no man can

      predicateupon alongor uninterrupted continuance of even the present amount of prosperity . The slightest disturbance in the political atmosphere of this country or of Europe—a rupture with America , —another partial failure in the cotton crop , or any unforeseen disarrangement of those fortuitous accidents , upon a concurrence of which the well-doiug of the people is left by our legislature to depend , and away goes all our boasted prosperity , and the national vessel will be again exposed , without rudder or compass , tothcbuffetingsandpeltingsofthe pitiless storm , and , as heretofore ,

      the crew who manage her , will have recourse to all sorts of lubberly shifts and expedients to keep her afloat . Who can look forward to an event—if not absolutely certain , unfortunately much more than probable , without feelings of anxiety , bordering on dismay ? Every invention which supersedes manual labour is hailed as an unmixed nations ] blessiHg , bat no one seems to think or care for those whose means of existence are thus paralysed , and by no fault of their own . Your political doctors of either school , Whig , Tory , Free Trade , or Radical , particularly the latter , will give a

      hypocritical shrug , and tell us it is an " unavoidable necessity , " a " natural dispensation , " which is quite beyond the reach of legislative care , and must be left to find its level to the influence of time and chance . Profound philosophers ! Humane , benevolent , enlightened legislators ! The displacement and consequent ruin of thirty thousand individuals by mechanical agency , is a mere bagatelle , when compared with the prospect of supplying the world with stockings , ( which won't fit ) at twopence , or twopence-halfpenny per pair . As for the 30 , 000 robbed unfortunates , why , they will simply bean aggregation of redundant labour ; and if they are wise , they will imitate the economy of the beesand

      , swarm off to other hives of human industry , and , of course , fulfil the useful function of stimulating " cheap production" by the unavoidable pressure of that competition , which they will , carry with them like a pestilence , into whatever department of labour may be doomed to the infliction . Although accustomed to the heartless policy of trade , our readers will think , perhaps , we are drawing the long bow ., and experimenting upon their credulity . But we assure tbem , in sober seriousness , we are drawing their attention to an indubitable fact—to a process which is now in actual operation , with all its consequences of misery , privation , and crime , known and unheeded .

      We present the following extracts from the Times of Monday , the 28 th ult . .. m . x . ' i ^ "Nottingham , April 20 th . I a t , a 9 ter holidays have , to some extent , contributed to add to the previous depression existing in the staple trades of this district : but as the result will be a slight diminution in the rate of production at a time when the supply exceeds the demands , its effect will be beneficial . " . : la this instance supply does not stimulate demand , Presently we shall find the revecs *

      National Association Of United Trades. T...

      ot this doctrine put forth , as an irrefutable axiom . . Although the rate of production is inereasin " greatly , from causes , described in the . Times of ; the 21 st inst ., the number of unemployed hands is daily increasing , and , ' at ' the present time , in and around Nottinghanvalone , nearly 1 , 500 hands are said to have been discharged during the last sis weeks Only a few of the best hand-wrought hose will con . ' tmue to be made b y the old class of stocking frames , while the largo mass of cheap goods in stocking drawers , socks , & o ., vriJ 2 . hereafter bo produced from roundabout frames , which at the present'time are being built m ¦ considerable numbers . Indon . l

      such are tlie changes constantly taking place ,- both ill laco and hosiery machinery , that every week brings out some novelty , to surpass the inventions and adaptations of the week preceding . Some hosiers are building roundabout frames , simply on M . Olaussens principle , while others arc employing the best mechanics they can find , to improve them in various wa . vs-some .. adapting the Jacquard , another contriving ; the' means of adapting steam power to working theni in factories , while others improve upon the simplicity of tlicir construction or power of speed . " These inventions are superseding tho emine lass of

      c operatives who recently were , for many months , on strike , and" succeeded by that means in obtaining a higher rate of remuneration from their employers , andat tho same time they ' settle the long-vexed question of "frame rent" very summarily . The strike of tho Stocking makers cost them more than £ 3 , 000 in direct contributions , besides many thousands indirectly , while remaining so Jong unemployed . The sweeping changes hero indicated are the causes of much anxiety to all classes in the manufacturing districts of the midland counties , particularly in and around

      Sottingham . Sweeping changes , indeed . Alas ! for labour . Oh , when will tho working men see that strikes do not remedy their grievances , but really aggravate them ? Strikes but stimulate and hasten the march of machinery , and in no instance check or prevent it . Machinery must be made to be the slave of man , and not his destroyer ; and this can onl y bo done by a determined effort of tho working man to become its possessor , and claiming and sharing its benefits by the right of ownership .

      The Editor of the Nottingham Mercurywho writes , of course , in tho interest of the employing class—affects to allay the fears excited by the present aspect of affairs . His whole argument ho borrows from the Political Economy , School , and may be expressed by what he terms one of its soundest axioms" that supply creates demand . " We wish it was so as regards labour , but wo have always been told by the same class of

      philosophers , that the sole cause of tho misery of the millions arose from their redundancy , as compared with the demand for their labour . But we always observe , that those gentlemen use their arguments after the same fashion as the traveller did his cloak , to suit exactly opposite purposes—to keep tho heat out or to keep it in . They seem to possess the happy faculty of blowing hot and cold with the breath of the same argument , just as it suits the occasion .

      We give one short extract from the Nottingham Mercury , which will give a lively idea o f the magnitude of the evil which ia now overtaking one already deeply oppressed body of men , and of the glorious pre-eminence we are to enjoy , nationally , in the privilege of supplying twopenny stockings to tho Hottentot , Bushmen , aud the wild denizens of all quarters of the globe . What signifies the destruction of one of our staples of manual labour I It thirty thousand of our fellow-countrymen are doomed to go stockingless , shoeless , or even

      houseless and foodless , the hosiers will build up grand houses , and grow sleek and fat , by the large export trade they will drive in their twopenny roundabout hosiery , with nations and peoples five thousand miles away . Think of this ye stocking weavers , and bless your stars that your late masters will make rapid and splendid fortunes , and another laurel be placed around the brow of the genius of British Commerce , by so small and insignificant a sacrifice as your own and your fami-. lies beggary . Thus , then , the Nottingham Mercury ;—

      We entertain the opinion that the new supply of cheap goods will create a demand for them iu millions of instances in places , und under circumstances , where tbe population have hitherto been either entire strangers to such comforts , or by their poverty unable to procure them on the terms at which they have previously been offered . While a single machine , superintended by a young woman , with an assistant girl under her direction , shall be able to produce the material for a hundred dozen pair of stockings per week , which stockings , complete and fit to wear , will be sold to consumers 5 , 000 miles distant from the place of their production at 2 d . or 2 Jd . per pair ; and caps , shirts ,

      drawers , petticoats , gloves , & c , at proportionately low prices , it is impossible but that from the natural wants of mankind , and the advancing progress of civilisation in so many regions of the earth , a vast and steadily increasing demand for such articles must be the result of their supply . Thus employment will be created , labour remunerated , wealth be increased at home , tho comforts and elegancies of social life be diffused abroad , and the patriot and philanthropist find equal causes for rejoicing in those creations of the genius of the mechanician and the artificer which a short-sighted

      policy on the part of some individuals would consign to utter oblivion , lest their adoption should create a temporary suspension of labour among a particular class of operatives , or direct a portion of existing capital from its present and accustomed channel of employment . The fact that increased supply will always be followed by increased demand ought to be felt alike by governments and individuals as a sufficient reason why no impediment should be allowed to stand in the way of that supply being in ever J way and every thing as unlimited as possible .

      This may be set down as fine writing ; we dare say it is , but we look upon it as so much sand thrown into the eyes of common sense . We do not believe iu any of tho fanciful anticipations which the writer indulges in—of the wonderful blessings which are to ensue by an unlimited supply of t » vope 23 ay stockings , for which not even a savage would doff his

      mocassins . We think that the ' pride and ambition of British manufacturers and British mechanics should be to produce an article unequalled in its excellence of quality , rather than to indulge in a deadly competition , to see who could produce the cheapest and most worthless article , hi the disposal of which , among people who were ignorant of its quality , they might maintain an unrivalled supremacy . We'think such a supremacy is neither creditable to them or the nation , particularly when we consider at what a melancholy sacrifice of skill and industry this supremacy is to be obtained .

      We think this is neither a legitimate nor an honourable , application of mechanical science . It is excessively damaging to the national character . In America , Germany , ' Switzerland , Belgium and France , British machine wove and steam printed goods are at a heavy discount ; they are celebrated for their worthlessness . The comparative insignificant amount of our exports of . such goods to these countries , sufficiently proves the bankrupt character of British manufactures , notwithstanding . they are cbeapeued at the expense of British industry .

      Would that we could awaken the working classes to a sense of their humiliated position —that we could induce them to throw ofl ' their dependence upon strikes . and turnouts as remedial agents for their grievances—that-we

      National Association Of United Trades. T...

      could makotlieni sfte , that hi a ' national protective and constructive ' combuiatiou lies their onl y salvation . rTliat their first efforts , through such a combination , should bo directed io rc « heye tho labour market from some of its superincumben t load , which the thousands tbey annuall y spend in unproductive strikes would soon accomplish effectuall y . This would pava the way to the nex t great object tbey should to

      aspire — -tho establishing self-supporting home colonies , embracing agricultural and manufacturing pursuits and hure the greater the amount of machinery they could surround themselves with , the more would it conduce to their welfare mid happiness , and not , as now to their ruin and degradation . This is the onl y checkmate which cittl be given to tho aggressions of capital , upon the rights of industry .

      The day for the realisation of these measures , we think , cannot be very far distant . To this complexion we must come ; to thisthe most frightful anarchy , or the most souldebasing slavery ; to one or the other , things are rapidly approaching . William Puel , Secretary , 259 , Tottenham Court Road .

      Dreadful Railway Accident.-* Eight Lives...

      DREADFUL RAILWAY ACCIDENT .- * EIGHT LIVES LOST . A fearful collision took place on the Lancashire and Chester Junction Railway , between , trains running from Chester races to Manchester , on Wedueaduy evening . Three very bug and crowded trains left Chester in the * evening for Manchester , and the locomotive power of the first train being insufficient for the weight behind , it came to a standstill ia the long tunnel between Frodsbam and Sutton —a tunnel about a mile and a half in length . A second train ran in to them soon afterwards , but was fortunately going at so slow a pace , that but a few persons were hurt by tho collision . The third train appears to have come up and run into the second train at a fearful speed .

      Colonel Petit , one of the 50 th regiment , says : I was in a first class carriage near the end of a train which left Chester at about a quarter to seven in tho evening . It was a long train . When we arrived at the tunnel ( Frodsham ) the train came to a dead stop for want of steam , aud the next train ran into us front behind , although the guard had been sent back with his light lo show as n signal of

      danger . Tho train had not boon standing more than two or three minutes , but had been going very slowl y a long time . The carriage was entirel y smashed . I became insensible for a time , and on recovering found myself sitting on a portion of the carriage , the framework of which appeared to have been destroyed , for I walked out on one side on a level with the ground , and came in contact with the side of the tunnel . I saw several

      people—I think four or five—who 1 believed had been killed , lying ou tbe ground ; and a good many camo on with tho train , with broken legs and other injuries . Mrs . Ridgway , of Bolton , I am told , was tho name of a lady killed . I was severely shaken , but beyond that , aud some cuts on the head and face , with a bruise on one leg , sustained no injury . Surgical attendance was provided for the sufferers . I camo on to Manchester , and arrived there at half-past two to three in the morning . Tho guard of the third train said : We left Chester at half-past seven . There wore lights at the tail of tho second train , but the steam from the engines bo filled the tunuel that we could not see them .

      Mr . Auaill , superintendent of the Electric Telegraph for tho Manchester district , says : I was in a first-class carriage ( about the fifth ) of the second- train . The first train of tho three left Chester about five minutes to seven on Wednesdsiy evening , and consisted of about twenty carriages . The second left about a quarter-past seven . In the Frodsham tunnel we struck tho first traiu , but did not smash it , on account of our going at the time very slowly . No person in our train was hurt by that I think ; but a few persons in the first train were bruised , Wo had not become stationary more than three or four minutes ,

      when the third train ran into us , producing a fearful crash , which seemed a very prolonged one . There were about twenty-five carriages in our train . The carriage in which I was sitting was smashed , and the roof knocked off . Iso one in ; the same compartment with me was injured , " but several other parties in the other compartments of tho carriage were . I assisted to take out two men , one of whom had lost his fingers , and tbo other was severely cut on the head . Another gentlemen , who appeared much injured , was took into the Albion Hotel , Manchester . After

      the accident the greatest confusion and excitement prevailed , on account of the utter darkness in the tunnel . The cries of" Murder" and " Help" were frightful . People were seeking wives , husbands , and friends in all directions , and running about in tho greatest alarm for some time . I sent to a neighbouring farmhouse far lights as soon as I could find my way outof the tunnel . At or near the end of the train was an open truck crowded with a great number of people standing , which the engine must have struck , and over which it was supposed to have passed . One man was entirely thrown out of that carriage upon the roof of a covered carriage , and said how he escaped- God only knew . I arrived at Manchester about twelve o ' clock .

      Another gentleman who was a passenger by the first train said it stopped in the tunnel through there being too many carriages for the locomotive . Tbe second train ran into them and broke several of the last carriages and hurt some of the people . The third train then came up at groat speed and there was a great crash . Among the injured were Mr . Leete , surgeon , Newton , leg broken , and Mr ; Wilson , spirit merchant , ofJfewton , one ot whose thighs was fractured . Mr . Lennox , of Newton , had one log severely cut . Mr . Hurry , of Newton , had one leg broken , and Mrs . Hurry , one eye much lacerated . They were conveyed to the Legb Anna Hotel , Newton , as also was Mr . J . C . Napier , of

      Manchester , calico-printer , who was suffering tVom severe internal injuries . Mr . Johnson , of the Albion Hotel , Manchester , is amongst the wounded . From inquiries made at Frodsham , about two miles from the tunnel , we learnt that eight persons were killed , including Mrs . llidgway , of Bolton , and Mr . Davidson , of Manchester . The other bodies had not been identified . At the Sutton end of the tunnel a temporary hospital had been fitted up , but it could not be ascertained how many patients were there . Mr . Burgess , surgeon , of Frodsham , said ho had just returned from Cheelham , near Manchester , where he had been with Mr . Hooper , a gentleman , who had been much injured in the train .

      having -remained crushed under a carriage for a considerable time before he was discovered . Mr . Rooper had sustained a compound fracture of the holies of the breast , and was not likely to survive . There were about 1 , 500 people in tho three trains ,, and , besides the persons killed it is expected that at least thirty-five or forty have suffered severely from fractures of limbs . A ' commercial traveller , Mr , Steele , Chancery-lane , London , gave his name to the press as a person present in the first of the three trains , and ' he stated that the company ' s servants in charge , of tbo first train were much to blame , and indeed manifested thorough incapacity totake charge of a train . He says tho engine fell short of water . Mrs . Ridgway , it is said , was accompanied by her sister , and when killed was sir .

      ting with oue hand clasped in the hands of her sister One of her livery servants , riding behind the carriage , was also killed , and it appears surprisingthat any of the party escaped ; for the carriage wal Z ^ ^ S back oft » e » econd train , aid tS truck was dashed to atoms ! Later PAnncui . AR 9 . -The details of this Bhockio * accident had not becnfully ascertainedi up to ife tlil ^ ?^ tbe * ° the kilIe d had nob Si X ; tH amon ! ? st 'Nm was Mrs . Withnall , widow of the late Major Withnall , of Bolton ; Mr . Davidson , salesman at Messrs . Bannewnan ' s warehouse , Manchester ; Henry Anderson , paper "anger , Manchester . ; and . a young man named flewell , of -Whitley , Cheshire . The other bodies have not been identified .

      * .*. X J O Zwere Put; Was K>R>; Z >4 V....

      * . * . X J O Zwere put ; was K > r >; z v . ics , r / ^ : \» 4 ^®\ iu » r •' v ; . . :. v ; -- >/ k •' ¦ £ ? - ? y ^ . iJ ' Jg ^^^^^^^ ' '

      The Stock, Copyright;- Stereotype, Steel...

      The stock , copyright ; - stereotype , steel-plate and woodcuts of " Lardner ' s Cyclopaedia , sold by auction last week . The , property was . up at JE 3 . 000 , and after , ft spirited , bidding , knocked down to Messrs . Longman and U > . «> , m .

      I I* •X

      I * x

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), May 3, 1851, page 1, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_03051851/page/1/