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Northern Star (1837-1852), 2nd June 1838, Edition 1 of 1, Page 4

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    • TO READERS & CORRESPONDENTS.
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      NEGBO EMANCIPAIION . -THE MAJORITY OF SEVENTY-TWO . This is not just the time to comment upon the matchless insolence of the "Whig . Government , relative to the position in which they have placed themselves with the country upon the question of Negro Emancipation . "We say this is not the time , for slavery is an act of volition , if the slave ever nad "been free , and therefore we most leave the poor defenceless "Black , out of the question altogether , and -view the "blow as one aimed against his "White advocates . "We must pause till we learn whether their forbearance will sanction the act of the

      Government , and whether the agitation was merely got up as a holiday amusement . It is a question which "none "but the cold-blooded flesh merchant , or political economist can argue dispassionately , and as a mere mercantile transaction ; for ourselves , can only say that nothing would give us greater pleasure than to hear that the Black slaves had "become masters , and that the "White masters were , for a season , allowed to taste the sweetness of apprentice slavery . Apprentice slavery ! Let the freeman read the word , and think for a moment of the sad condition to whi eh cofowr subjects his fellowman .

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      MR . ATTWOOD—UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE . THE GLORIOUS SCOTCH MEETING . The cbarm of themoral " Reform Bill" is broken ; ihe spell has vanished ; the shadow is gone , and the substance is seen . Thomas Attw ' ood , a man more instrumental in carrying tbe Reform Bill than any other individual , has for five years endeavoured to mould the instrument to purposes of public utility , Taut he has failed . He does " not come to the agitat ion of the question of Universal Suffrage under the same disadvantages which surrounded most men who advocate the measure . He cannot be taunted with

      poverty . He cannot be supposed anxious for a scramble ; as the flimsy material in which he deals would ' vanish at once before a revolutionary breath , nay before a suspicious murmur . Here we have a Banker of great wealth , a Statesman of acknowledged ability . A Politician of unimpeached integrity , a Gentleman of acknowledged worth , setting tile hobgoblin of revolution-and disorder at defiance , and attachirg himself to that question -which others call dangerous , as the only means , of nat ional security and individual protection . "What will those who have assailed us for the last five or six

      years now say to the declaration of 3 Ir . Attwood and his noble associates , and to the 150 , 000 voices which re-echoedhis sentiments . Mr . Attwooe brings new-life to the question of Universal Suffrage . "We acknowledge that more time is required for righting the affairs of a nation , which have been long mouldering into decay , than for the adjustment of mere local or family matters . Knowing the difficulties by which a Government mcst be ^ nrrounded , wiich Undertook to fulfil all the . premises bv which , the Reform Bill was . carried , Mr .

      Att"WOOD was sat isfied with a progressive scale of improvement , not too hasty , but so complete , that at no distant period , those wbo pay for protection should be sure to recognize its approach in the onward march of national amelioration . For these reasons , the Birmingham Patriot was satisfied to brave suspicion and laugh at doubt , during the time allowed for trial ; but , when he discovered that the "Reform Bill'' meant nothing more than a transfer of power from the hands of the Tories to those of the " Whigs , and was , in feet , a mere delusion practised

      "cpon the people , be , without side-step or quibble , goes at once from the ridiculous to the sublime , and pulls the mast trGm tne eotnuenance of OcttcH . For the manner , the bold manner , in which our iero expounds bis principles , we refer our readers ^ to the report of the proceedings of the great meeting of Glasgow ^ which will be found-on our sixth paae . Hear one sentence from Mr . Attwoob ' s address , " The Hen of Birmingham , he said , were willing either to assist or lead them on ( Cheers ) in the cause of peace , loyalty , and order . The men of ¦¦

      Birmingtiin ^ wculd not shrink from assisting them even to the Death . " Let that sentiment be ensraven ¦ npon the heart of every white slave , and let him in Ms bondage , hug his chains , and wear the fetters which he . has forged for binself , if one general response of co-operation with the good men of Birmingham does not proclaim universal libertv . "We " are glad to be enabled thus to test public opinion ; the offer of freedom has been made by a party capable of granting it , and if it be Tefused , let us bare no more complaints of suffering , from which vou

      would not be released fortbe asking . " Eren to the Death . " How marvellously does this sestimem accord with those expressed in the objects of The Great , Northern Union , " to use physical force if necessary . " Moral power is" a shadow physical force is the substance . Moral power means , intellectual reasoning ; the " means of discovering how far the mildest nature can bear IBs without resenting them . It tells when obedience is a virtue , and when non-resistance i * a vice . It teaches man to know whether Ms disparity arises from the provisions of

      the great moral compact to which his ancestors subscribed in order that the buman family miglt , by a surrender , of their natural liberty , be able to enjoy undisturbed all the privileges of improved society ; or whether his disparity arises from a violation cf the great compact . " We admit that more difficulties are to be encountered by those who sue for Uniyersal Suffrage , than were presented to those who carried the Reform Bill . - Upon the one band , there was a . large and anlnflnential class of men , who sought for a participation in the

      Government of the country , who , by their wealth and influence , were capable of aTonsing the deepest enmity against the already enfranchised ; whereas , the parties being now nearly balanced-, each must know that so much gained by the outcasts is so much lost to them . Upon themselves , therefore , andupon themselves alone , must the people depend in this great strnggle . It was right that the antidote should come from whence thepoison wasadministered

      The men of Birmingham were justly looked upon as the aupes of the Conncfl , who placed them in the advance , or ordered them to retreat , as best suited their purposes ; but now we find that t £ ey were marshalled as a corps of reserve , in order to allow us a fair field whereon to exercise our power , and when we had failed , to present tie full front of an -united phalanx ready to die freemen rather than live slaves .

      Pebl , O'Coskexi , and Rtjssell are preparing the " beggar ' s dish" for Ireland , but it is canons to witness the little or no importance which the people attach to their cooking , while this new Cerberus , united in defence of constitutional abuses proves < to as more i&an any other _ circumstance , the great Taiae of eo important a leader of public oproioB , as Ht . 'Attwood at the present moment .

      Bi £ herte we ia-re stood neariy alone—a laughing stock for the extravagance of our principles . "We created discussion , till - Radicalism has become fashionable ^ and now stop it who can , we shall 3 iot try . Men of Lancashire and Yorkshire ! shall we with ¦ oor thousands of Associations , and our well organnized forees , remain mere spectators , while Birjning haa and Scotland wear the laurels ? - No , no ; Tjee&s , Bradford , and the other towns most be up and doing $ jtfcey must rally to the standard of &TTWOQT ) an . < j Jhe universal motto of freedom—

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      a——¦————¦—¦————Universal Suffrage—without which we shall be for ever slaves . Men of Leeds ! on Tuesday , your patriotism and self-respect will be tested . March to Hunslet in good order ; enlist as recraits in the national force for the acquirement of Universal Suffrage .

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      PEEL , O'CONNELL , AND RUSSELL . THE " BEGGAR'S DISH . " And , merciful Providence , is it come to this , Daniel ?—and have you thus crucified yourself ? No doubt our readers remember the oft told story of the ass , who , being in the possession of a party of robbers , and heavily laden with treasure , was pursued by another band , whereupon the propr ietors pricked and goaded the poor ass , and said go on . " Why so ? said the ass . "Why ! because the other robbers will overtake us . "Well , replied the ass , what avails it to me , to which of you I belong ,

      if you each make me carry as much as I can bear ? If the situation of the ass in question was piteous how much more so is that of the poor Irish , who have to carry the burden of the three parties together , —O'CoNNELL in their pockets , theWhigs , on their backs , and the Tories on their shoulders . The "Whigs enact the laws , the Tories administer the laws—the one party they must support , the other they must obey—while for the blessings eked out of all , they must fee the great state physician . If anything can equal the patch-work speech of the Honourable Member for Dublin , in the debate on

      the Irish Municipal Corporations Bill , oh Tuesday night , we have- yet to discover it ; for after ' our many peeps into the political kaleidescope , we have as yet been blind to the many shades which the great Agitator ' s speech presents to our view . How the good sense of the House of Commons could be so overcome , as to allow the simple question of Corporate Reform to be bashed up with the " Church point" and Poor Laws , and thus made a "beggar ' s di < h" of , vre are at no loss to understand ; but how Mr . O'Coxkexl could so far forget himself

      as merely to express a doubt that the boon ( which even Sir R . Peel called " niggardly" ) would be administered , is matter of alarm , if not of surprise . Upon the question of Poor Laws , Mr . O'Coxkell says , " "What was to be the test of the Corporation Franchise ? The Poor Law . * " Were they to wait fur a Poor Laic to enjoy freedom ? " "What stuff , how sightly would a hungry father and his starving babes look with the New Corporation Bill under one arm , Mi . O'Cossell ' s Landlord's Tithe Bill under the other ! But now we come to the

      question of questions ; to O'Coxxell's scaffold , his hobby-horse , his agent , his all ! Let us have his words" Tithes hai ttvn connected bv the Right Honourable Baronet with the Municipal Franchise ; but no two * ubjtct 3 could be more different from each other than the question of tithes and of Municipal Reform . In discussing tithes they nv . g \ it say that they ¦ would make a satisfactory ujraiigement dt calling tithes a" rent charef , and placing the burden on tns LmdloriLs , -wnicn tne landlords ironld afterwards place upon the tenants ; Lut the people of Ireland could -not thus be deluded . " So much , then , for the great principle , the only pr inciple , the " Church wedge . " Thus O'Coxxell confirms what we have never failed to tell tbe

      people , tLat the whole thing is a farce ; but what comes of bis scheme for pacifying Ireland , and of his letters to the Parsons , with repeated assurances of satisfaction ? It appears that his speeches in the House and upon the platform were so many delusions , and that now a rent charges does , in truth , mean tithe under another name ; but this fact has only been discovered by Mr . OXoxnell from the following evidence , for which we quote his words . He

      savs—TlielVrgut HoTrcrom , tl <> Gentleman had said that the public mind of Ireland iras in a state of calm with / regard to tithes . If it were , the calm was a factitious one ; he assured the Right Honourable Gentleman it iras by no means so complete as he appeared to snppose . Within the last ten days—and the press did Hot deem It meet now to state the facts—seven or eight public meetings had been held in Ireland , each attended by from S 0 , 000 to 150 , 000 persons , who assembled for the purpose of } . TOtes \ ing against tilhes , and expressing their determination never to pay them . That was the species of calm and tranquillity that xeailv existed . Now , three persons out of

      every hundred had te * -n selected to watch the proceedings for tha recovery of titaes ; so that a species of disrtpline had been adopted , -which would , doubtless , turn out to be of a very formidable character , but the necessity for which he ardently hoped would ceas * to exist . He would not go beyond these two points of difference . The House was aware that heavy arrears were due , and he would say let such an arrangement be made as would extinguish those arrears . If they wished a satisfactory settlement of the question let them extinguish the arrears , even though to enable them to do so they must resort to the vulsar expedient of putting their hands into the public treasury . " -

      If any thing in the annals of effrontery can beat this we should like to hear it . This gentleman undertakes to enter into a satisfactory arrangement with Tespeet to tbe Titbe Question , one which shall be equally congenial to the Clergy , the Government , the Protestant gentry , and the Catholic people ; it is to produce tranquillity , and yet it is but " a factitious one" after all—one which will transform tbe landlords into tithe proctors , and transfer the

      warfare from parsons to the landlords . But then there are arrears due , and Peter is to pay them instead of Paul . Matchless effrontery ! Yet it appears that Mr . O'Coxxell has not all this moral influence for while be is in negociation with the parsons for the amount of degradation , the brave Irish Catholic people are assembling in hundreds of thousands to register their hatred of a principle which proclaims their inferiority , and marks them as slaves in tbe land of their birth . Is it longer wonderful that Mr . O'Coxxell should find ample cause of complaint against tbe English Radical non-conformists ? Who

      now is tbe Tory Radical ? The first to form aa union with tbe leader of the gang , and graciously to accept the beggar ' s alms from him ? and whose rule the agitator bas so often cursed . How now can the Irish ( if O'Coxxell be indeed their mouth piece ) oppose tbe government of the Tories and the vice xegency of the Duke of "Wellington in Ireland . The Radicals of England are too stem in their principles to change at the bidding of a mere mountebank , and therefore , we heartily rejoice that they have merited the censure of O'Connell : it is , in truth , the best test of their worth . Oh ! bad we formed an alliance with Peet

      npon even a more extensive promise ef freedom , where would the foul-mouthed Agitator find words filthy enough wherewith to bedaub us ? The Irish could have borne , they have borne , the retrograde movement of Mr . O'Connell , while his paces were short , well-measured , and secured . They objected not to his making gods of those who , three years ago , he taught the people to look upon as devils ; but how they will relish his new connexion with the former supporters of Orange

      misrule in Ireland , is afagt which we are anxious to learn . Go on , good men of Wexford ! let your " hatred of Tithes be as lasting as your love of justice ; " and recollect that , when the brave Bagnell HartIY forfeited his life in defence of your liberties , O'Connell was his seducer and then bis betrayer , at least so says General Stewart , and from authority which he states is incontroverible . O ye gods , what a triumvirate ! O'Connell , Russell , and Peel 1 The Pope , the Devil , and the Pretender were fools ta them . '

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      THE BRADFORD MEETING . This " gathering" appears to excite great attention . The Cerberus in his den has given signs of trepidation . "We have had intimations that the police and military / arceisijkdy to be acted over again . "We rather think not . "We suppose his Lordship has had as much of that sport as may be agreeable—perhaps he may fancy to cultivate an especial acquaintance with some of th * " leaders " "

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      "Well the honest Patriots who may be there to express a nation ' s will , and the thousands uponthou * sands of honest men and women , who will be there to sustain and ratify that expression , will have great pleasure in assuring his little Lordshi p , that whatever force , of whatever kind , he may choose to employ , " The Battle shall be fought through at Bradford . " "We hear that a Noble Lord of most " Liberal" notoriety followed a Bradford witness , a tradesman , outof the

      Commitee Room , and said softly— " Is there not to be a great meeting at Bradford , on Whit Tuesday V " "Why the dolt ! he knew that well enough , and so do the Somerset House Gang . Yes , my Lord there i » to be a Great Meeting , and these Great Meetings are the very things you fear , because they' are the very demonstrations that will soon " settle the questioH , " as we settled the Factory Question at Leeds , with your friend the Hon . Member for Leeds , in the chair .

      "We were told the other day that at Bradford the " Guardians " and Power have set out four or five existing workhouses ; Bradford , Idle , Pudsey , Calverley , and North Bierly , for : the classification of " paupers . " So , so , they are getting the wedge in . Cunning dogs ! They won't build a great bastile ^ which they know well would not be allowed to rise a yard above the soil ; but they will try to make

      the system a little tighter with their present workhouse . Jim to go to Idle , Susey to Pudsey , the lads to Bierly , and the lasses to Calverley , and So on . Now , Hand Loom "Weavers , look to it , for your skilly is in the copper . Wool Combers ! the "Weavers are crowding into your shops " , and the Somerset House Devils are showering upon you the starving farmers .

      Only pay your rates , and all will soon " work well , " and you will soon be classified behind a tiigb wall where you may sing Rule Brittannia . " " Britons never , NEVER , NEVER , shall be slaves . "

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      ^ — : :. TO THE EDITORS OF THE NORTHERN STAR . London , May 30 th , 1838 . My Dear Sirs , — it a time when it is openly avowed by both Houses of Parliament that the poor of these countries hare no legitimate claim on the " property" of the rich—at a time when it is declared by the head of the State ( Lord Melbourne ) , that both the injunctions of Holy "Writ , and the " inferences of reason" authorise the rich " to leave poverty to its own punishment , " —a . t a * time when our Tulers unequivocally proclaim all systems of Poor

      Laws to be impious endeavours " to rob the supreme Governor of the Universe of some of his attributes , their object being to overturn the decree' -promulgated immediately after the fall , that mun should eat bread by the sweat of his brow "—n . t a time when the murderous New Poor Law Act for England and "Wales is styled in the House of Lords " a stiecessful amendment of ( Jie old law , " and when Eail Fitzvtil-liam declares , to the satisfaction of the said House , that , any improvement in the Poor Laws which had been effected in England was merely a step towards having no Poor Law at all ,

      which was the wise and proper view to take of it , " —at a time wheo such avowals as these are not only made , but practically acted upon to the utmost stretch of the legislator ' s power , and when the poor of these realms are , in consequence , menaced with utter extermination—at such . a time , Gentlemen , I deem it of vital importance to the Working classes , to have their attention drawn to a few plain facts touching the relative rights of property and labour in general , or rather tbe relationshi p which our " laws" have established between " property" and poveTty in tbeserealms .

      What is property ? Property is derived from the latin word proprius , or proprium , and means literally one ' s own . When a man calls any one thing his property , be means that such thing isexclusively his own , —that he has an exclusive right to theuse or enjoyment of it , and his right of property is neither more . nor less than the right to such exclusive use or enjoyment . Now before any man can have this right of exclusive u . se or enjoyment , it is clear he must either have produced the thing he calls his property , or otherwise legitimately acquired it—that is to pay , he must either have

      crested tbe wealth he calls his property , or gotten possession of it with tbe s . inction or assent of hisfel - low-citizen , as expressed by the lawsandinstitutions under which he lives . The formeT is the natural right of property ; the latter is the conventional-n ^ at . If all men were conscientious enough to act upon the natural ri ght , there would be no need for the conventional right , which is only a contrivance of society to enforce and secure the natural right . If all men would act honestly by one another , there would be no need for laws to enforce honesty ; but as that has never been , and probably never will be , the case , laws and

      institututions are necessary to secure justice between man and man : they are necessary to protect the weak against the strong , the simple against , the cunning , the industrious and honest against the would-beidle and dishonest . It is , therefore , in the . verynature of laws , that all who are to be governed by them , should have a voice in their formation , ' since , otherwise , what was intended to be men ' s protection might be men ' s curse and destruction . The object of laws being to determine for each and all their respective . rights ,, and to guarantee them in the

      safe enjoyment of them , the same causes which originally made it necessary to have laws , render it equally indispensable that all who are to obey them should have an equal ; voice in their enactment . ' If this principle be deviated from , what ought to be the work of all is made the business or patrimony of a few , the : consequence will be , that the few will legislate only for themselves , and leave the rest of society without protection . They will make that property which is not property , and what is really property they will divest of its

      name and attributes . They will frame tbe laws and institutions in such a way as to enable them —the law-makers—to engross all the wealth and honours to themselves , and to throw upon the non-legislating masses all the burdens , privations hardships , and inevitable drudgery of civilised life . Now , this is precisely what has happened in these countries . The few having usurped to themselves the machinery of Government , to the exclusion of the many , they have made that property which is not property , and what is really a-bsna-fide property , they have stript of the name and attributes

      of property . They have conferred on certain classes of society an unlimited power over the industry and productions of other and larger classes ; and not content with giving the former a right of property rathe labour of the latter , they have actually made the labour of generations unborn the property of other generations unborn , —thus claiming not only to make the bulk of the existing communit y slaves to themselves , bat claiming also to make our DOSterity tbe slaves of their posterity for ages and ages to come . Let me exemplify and make good these ' assertions by a few unquestionable facts and figures . ,

      It has often been a question whether land ought or ought not to be a subject of property . Some of the wi 8 estmen and abltst publicists the world has ever known , have held the negative . The land being , like the sea , or the atmosphere , an element which man's labour did not create , they contend that man can have no exclusive property in it , more 1 baa he can have in the sea , the atmosphere , or the

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      light ; of the -: sun . ; The landy >> eingj nipreoyer , the fountaia of all wealth > and . haying beeii created and given . by God to : maD , for the use of all mankind alike , without any distinction or reservation in favour Of . particular castesi or ^ classes , they contend that the appropriation of it by individuals is an outrage on God ' s providence , an invasion of t ^ e rights of others , whose means of existence it jeopardises , and the source of all the tyranny , misery and erime in the : world . Aright 6 f property in the land ' s

      produee they admit , but not a right of property in the land itself . The former is the produce of human skill and labour , —thelatter is the gift of God to all , while therefore they would secure to the fariner and labourer the , full enjoyment of the increased value imparted ; to tbe soil by their skill and labour , they wouldiinake the rents payable for theuse of the land itself , inalienable from the state , and appropriate them to the use and enjoyment of the community at large . All this , mind , is against the conventional right of property in land : the natural right , of course does not , because it cannot , exist .

      Now I am neither contending for or against this class of writers ^ I have cited their doctrine ^ simply to show that if society recognises the right of property in land , it must be in virtue of some convention or compact amongat the members of society itself—whether such convention or compact ought to exiHt , is a question for society only . I shall offer no opinion on the subject one way or the other . It suffices for my present purpose to show , that whether society ought or ought not , to admit such a compact , society is despoiled of the power of doing so by the

      existing monopoly of law-making , which the rich have created in their own favour That such a convention or compact has never taken place in this country is notorious . Nearly all the lands of England changed hands it the time of the conquest . A large proportion of them have repeatedly changed hands since . Neither at the conquest nor since have the mass of the community had any voice in determining how lands should be enjoyed or transmitted , or what proportion of the public burdens the landowners ought to bear . All we know is , that at the time of the Commonwealth the land-owners threw all the burdens ( which used before to be born by their

      class ) upon the shoulders of the people , and that they have since despoiled the poor of nearly all the lands which had belonged to them from time immemorial , and which even the Conquest and tbe ravages of feudalism had spared . To make this clear , and at the same time to show the atrocity of the aristocracy , who , after throwing all the burdens of society on the people , and robbing them of their common lands ? , would now u leave poverty to its OfDji punishment , " 1 beg attention to the following table , by Mr . Montgomery Morton , which appeared in the New Monthly Magazine , for November , 1833 . It illustrates the march of taxation and poverty in a way which the most ignorant cannot fail to understand : — -

      Taxi : 3 , National JJiibt , Parochial Assessments , and I'rice of Wheat in Groat Britain . ' ¦ : ¦ ¦ Parochial Awra ^ e ol Years . ^ axe ? * tusetV National Assessments wheat in ¦ ¦¦¦ Debt . in England pr . statute Great Britain and Wales , qr . £ ¦ ' - £ . ' ¦ - X ' . s . d . 1618 2 , 000 , 000 None !! — _ - > 2 4 1710 5 . 320 , 000 50 , 000 , 000 600 , 000 49 4 J 72 O 5 , ( ivO , 000 5 ) , 272 , 000 800 , 0 . 00 ¦ 32 10 1730 ¦ 5 , 545 , 000 47 , 705 , 103 600 , 000 32 5 1740 6 , 000 , 000 4-1 , 072 , 024 — — 48 10 1750 8 , 525 , 540 . -72 , 17 b , 89 S 8 . 10 , 000 28 10 1760 7 , 025 , 000 8 & , 341 , 2 ( i , S — — 32 5 1770 0 , 014 , 285 " i 2 ( i , « jiS 3 , 267 1 , 520 , 000 43 6 1780 10 , 265 y ( 05 1-12 , 110 , 261 1 , 000 , 000 35 8 1 . 71 ) 6 10 , 815 , 895 228 , 231 , 228 2 , 000 , 000 . 11 4 1793- 18 , 506 , 045 300 , 000 , 000 2 , 300 , 000 T > 11 1800 34 , 069 ,-157 451 , 099 , 919 3 , 000 , 000 110 3 1805 50 , 555 , 190 519 , 137 , 01 ) 8 4 , 267 , 003 87 1 1810 07 , H 25 , 595 631 , 284 , 000 3 , £ 00 , O 0 Q 103 3 1815 71 , 153 , 142 818 , 394 , 804 6 , 939 , 000 fi 3 8 1820 55 , 0 ( 53 , 693 843 , 391 , 805 8 , 411 , 893 65 10 i s ?* r » 2 , 9 ii ! . ' 28 o fmo . ooo noo 8 , 9 ( i 6 . l 5 t ; m « 1-S 30 50 , 414 , 928 800 , 000 , 000 8 , 279 . 218 ( 54 3

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      Immediately following this table , Mr . Morto ?; proceeds to show , that on the accession of "William IIJ . ( our glorious revolution !) the condition of this then slightly-taxed country was rapidly altered , and every alteration accompanied with frightful effects on the condition of the labouring classes , every scheme which . fiscal craft had tried in Holland , for the raising of money was imported into England . Taxes were laid on houses , windows , malt , hop ? , glass , paper , soap , leather , candles , starch , bills and receipts , hackney coaches , sweets and bread , salt , groceries , hawkers and pedlars , and so on throughout every department of consumption . But without going into particulars , we see , by the

      above table , that our . taxes have been increased , in little more than a century , from two or four millions to upwards of fifty millions , —our debt from nothing to £ 800 , 000 , 000 ,-our poor-rates from £ G 0 O , 000 to upwards of £ 8 , , , —and the price of wheat from 22 s . to . G 4 s . per quarter , without a corresponding rise in the price of labour . With respect to the debt which the aristocracy alone created , and ought alone to pay , we have been paying the interest of apart of it since the year 1694 ; that is to ' - say , for nearly 140 years . We have consequently paid off the capital of this portion of the debt seven times over , and shall have to pay it seven times seven times over again , if the fell system whitib engendered it is suffered to continue

      So much for the debt and taxes . Now for lands of which we have been robbed by the Aristocracy . I have no means 6 f ascertaining the exact quantity of lands taken altogether , but the following brief summaries , for which I am indebted to that excellent Democratic journal , the Northern Liberator , will show at what rate the hand of Aristocratic spoliation has pauperised the country in this way . In a Report of the House of Commons on the State of

      Common Lands , drawn up in 1797 , we find the number of Acts of Parliament passed in that and the 'three preceding reigns ) for enclosing lt waste lands , " ( the jobbers call everything waste which does not belong to themselves , ) as also the exact number tf- . ' -flgtes enclosed , ( that is ^ taken by the Aristocracy ffom the people , ) up to the date of the return . Here is the ; -robbers ' . ' own " resume , " or summary of thfe spoliations : —¦

      No . of Acts ., No . of Acres . In the reign of Queen Anne 2 1 . 439 George 1 st 16 17 , 960 . George 2 nd 226 318 , 778 George 3 rd 1 , 532 2 , 804 , 197 Talk of disturbing the rights of property ! Here is disturbing them with a vengeance . But let my readers imagine the spoliators stopped there ! Oh no ! the rapacity of our Aristocrats , like the marital love of Hamlet ' s mothery only waxed keener with every fresh spoliation , as if increase of appetite had grown by what it fed on . " To be satisfied of this , let the reader glance at the

      following table , which returns made to the House of Commons , show to be the number of Enclosure Bills in eachyear , from 1792 till the close of the reign of George HIV , « of blessed memory . " The enclosures of the five first years only are included in the preceding summary :, - — In 1792 there were , 40 In J 808 tbere were 91 1793 .. 60 1809 .. 123 1794 .. 74 1810 .. 109 1795 .. 77 I 8 H .. m 1796 .. 72 1812 .. u 1797 .. 85 1813 .. m 1798 .. 48 1814 .. 120

      1799 — 66 ISI 5 .. - .-. If 1800 ¦ -.. '¦ 80 1816 . 47 1801 -. - .. 117 1817 .. 34 1802 .. 97 1818 .. is 1803 .. 106 1819 . ' .. . 44 1804 .. 54 1820 .. 3 1805 .... 70 1806 .. 81 ;¦ ¦ 1807 ¦ ' ... '¦ .. . 93 v Grana total 2 ^ 287 Estimating the number of acres enclosed b y these Acts in the same proportionate manner as the

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      number ^ iven to the Enclosure Bills passed in the early part ° f i&eokoe ; Illi ' s reign , up to 1797 , we flhall find that the poor of England-fiaye" been despoiled of upwards of six millions of acres in a single reign— -the reign , of the " Good ; Old King " of blessed memory . No wonder our Aristocracy gloat with such devout affection on the membry of the " Good Old King . " It . was , indeed , a glorious reign for them ; but it was a reign af unexampled blood and sorrow for'" the people . " To the former his memory ought to be dear ; to the latter it was dear beyond what pen or tongue can appreciate .

      What will Lords FiTZwitLiATMt and : Londonderrt say to this P These Lords said , a few nights ago , in the House of Incurables , that the projected I ? oor Relief Bill for Ireland would confiscate property to the amount of fifty per cent , on the rental of Ireland . But I have no time now to notice this glaring misrepresentation . Upon another occasion ; I will return to their amiable and most ( Christian Lordships . ; Yours , & « ., . - j BRONTERRE ^ I cannot avoid returning Bronterre my best thanks for the above most able and valuable letter . "¦¦ - - ¦ : ¦ ¦¦ ¦ ¦' ¦¦ ¦'¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ' - . ¦¦ ' ¦; . ¦ ¦ - . ' FiVO'C . - "

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      CHALIiENGE TO Mr . AcLAND . ^ jr I find that you have now made your tour . Of dowse you must be sincere in your mission , and 1 am anxious for information , therefore , I challenge you to meet trie in the several towns where you have so successfully expounded your views upon the Poor Law Amendment Act , and there afford me an opportunity of discussing ihemeasure . The terms shallop as follows : —Jshall pay any expense attending the getting up of ' the meeting . Free admission , as those who can pay you are most likely to love a system which gives them the means . You shall speak first and last . . Those are the terms . I icait yoiir answer . Your obedt . Servant ,

      FEARGUS O'CONNOR , ; Mr . Finch . His letter was too late for this week It shall appeal- in our next . . , ' .. Probus . We cannot interfere in the matter of the Registrar . All Correspondents who wish their letters to appear must take care that they may be here on Wednesday . We cannot undertake to insert . anything at a later period of the week . " More Boons . "— " It works well , " We 'have received some appalling facts connected- with the New Poor Law atrocities , which , -though in type , we are reluctantly compelled to displace till next week .

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      OF the YORKSHIRE NEWSPAPERS Stamps furnished Weekly in four months . Average , _ 18 Weeks Leeds Times 48 , 000 2 , 666 Leeds Intelligencer ... 60 , 000 . 3 , 333 Leeds Mereury . I f 0 , 63 / 9 , 480 I 7 ORTHESN S 7 AS 176 , 300 9 , 822 Bradford Observer .. .. 16 , 000 888 Doncai- 'ter Gazette 36 , 000 2 , 000 Doncaster Chronicle 9 , 000 500 Halifax Guardian 5 , 000 277 Halifax Express ....,. . 6 , 500 361 Hull Roctingham 10 , 000 555 Hull Times 10 , 000

      —Hull Saturday . Journal 5 , 000 277 Hull Advertiser 30 , 000 1 , 666 . Hull Observer 5 , 000 277 Hull Packet .. 20 , 000 . 1 , 11 . 1 Harrogate Advertiser 130 — Sheffield Iris 12 , 000 ' 666 Sheffield Mercury 31 , 9 / 5 . 1 , 776 Sheffield Chronicle 6 , 000 333 Sheffield Independent 22 , 900 S ^ J- , 272 West Riding Herald 8 , 500 * ' 472 York Herald 33 , 600 1 , 866 Yorkshire Gazette 35 , 000 . 1 , 944 York Chronicle :... : ' ....-j ^ U ^ Optf 555 York Courant . ; .. . .. Jmmt 2 &Q ( & . 1 , 294 York « hireman ... 22 , 750 1 , 264 ' Yorkshire Racing Calende ' r . 50 * 0 * — The actual Consumption is 179 , 800 , averaging vveeklj

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      ^ * LEEDS . Mks . Nisbett . —The Morning Post of the 17 th April pays the following well merited tribute to Mrs . Nisbett ' s representation of "Constance" in "tbe Love Cbase . "_ After the national anthem was sung , and an opening address recited with great applause , by Mrs . Glover , the curtain rose to the best drama that has been produced by any modern writer—we mean " The Love Chase . " We wish that we could say that the play was presented in the siime , captivating form that won and secured the admiration of the town last season ; but the soul of the piece , the person most capable of giving fire and spirit to the beautiful language . of Mr . Sheridan Knowles , is absent , and in lieu of Mrs . Nisbett a Miss Elpbiostene

      tilled the part ot neighbour " Constance . " - We admit the difficulty with which-this lady bad to contend . Her predecessor made the characterh ^ r own . She brought all the charms of youth , beantyj ' talent , and wit to its representation ; she was the very character the poet wished to describe , and she contributed as much to the success of the " Love Chase , " by her fine acting , as Mr . Sheridan Knowles contributed to hers by giving her , ft . part with so much of capability in it . Miss Elphmstone ' is a pleasing actress , with , some degree of judgineiit and facility of expression , but she wants the ease and charm of nature . She is deficient in the nice appreciation of character which tlie ^ stage re ( inires and sbe falls into the great error of mistaking rant for impassioned acting . That beautiful passage in which the action

      oi a horse and the glory of a : chace are described by " Constance , " which Mrs . Nisbett delivered with so much grace , was given by Miss Elpliinstone in a boisteious manner , worthy of a school hoyden .. ' We think that Mr . Webster should have employed the recess in selecting some actors more suitable to the several excellent parts which . " The Love Chase " affords . He should have begun by disrhissingTiimsclf from that of " Neighbcur Wlldrake . " % hile Mrs . Nisbett ' s attraction continued , the public were indifferent about the inferior cast of the other characters—no one suffered but the author ; but now that the piece can only rely on its intrinsic merit for another run of success , it is necessary that some steps should be ta ^ en tb secure an efficient company . The house was tolerably well attended .

      Stealin g Sacks .--Benjamin Pollard was committed to Wakefield House of Correction ^ on Saturday last , for haying stolen two sack ? the property of Mr . -John Collinson ; of Hunslet . This youthful thief has been already convicted j and such is his character that his father offers in this-instance to give testmony against him . Gouldbin's Buildings . ^ n Saturday last , Samuel and Margaret Boys , Edward Ball , and Margaret Richmond , William and Caroline Dixon , and James and Ellen Doolan , were brought before Messrs . Clapham and Sriiith , the sitting magistrates , charged with keeping disorderly houses , in a place commonly called " Goulden ' s Buildings . " The charge was clearly proved by ^ several neighbou rs .

      &c , and the whole of the prispners were committed to the sessions to answer for . the nuisance . The pro- " fit which these infamous , promoters of vice obtain from keepingunfortunate girls is astonishing . One of them on being asked if be qould give bail for himself and wife m £ 20 each , and two sureties each in £ 10 , offered the money at Once to any person that woald be bail for him , and it was further , stated that he had a considerable sum in one of the banks . Another of them was stated to be the owner of several cottage houses . Goulden ' s Buildings , as at present occupied , is one of the greatest ! nuisances in the town , for it may be safely stated that one half of all tne robberies committed in the town by strumpets , are effected at that place .

      __ Robbery bv a Chabwoman . — -On Tuesday , Mary Johnson , an old woman , was brought up at the Court House , charged with having , on Saturday , while charing at the house of Henry Timmins , who wa ^ ooper in the employ of Mr . Hudson , of the Old Mills , in Swinegate , opened a box and stole £ 24 . 10 s ; m gold . On Sunday ths money was missiiigi she had a fortni ght previously been suspected , and the prosecutor had marked all his money . On Monday she was apprehended , and £ 6 . iOs . of the marked money was fojind upen hen She : then admitted having committed the robbery , and stated that she

      had loosed articles but of pledge , had paid debts j -and had purchased wearing apparel with thje remainder . Superintendent James , by great exertions , in congequence of the money being marked , has been enabled tb . recovef nearly £ 20 of the booty . She was committed for trial to Wakefield House of Correction .

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      . Factory ^ FORMAiioN .-Mr . John ~ Bro ^ flax ^ aner , Mabgate , wa 8 charged M ^ £ magwtrate * on Saturday last , with not aUS , Sf usual tune , for meals to his woVk people v £ i % Jn set forth the usual ple a on such occasions , ¦ * $£%£ arrangement by whicVtheirworb ^ houW 8 ^ S an hour earlier in ^ the evening , was more aSfX ate ^' S ^ 2 ^^ fein ^^^^ later . JAx . Brown , however , was informed tw the magistrates haoV decided on the queSn 0 ^ former occasion , and they should ^ mulct him in ih ^ penalty of JO ^ and costs , the lowest wmei ^ allowed by the law . . , "** lNGTJEST . r-On Thursday evenine last kn -in «« V Y > -W'&MC ^ fa ^ 1 ^^ Ann Garside , ' It appeared thaton the 5 th uit tW deceased was playinc _ about a-brick kiln ; at tt ? Huadersfield ^ r ^ Woodhouse Moo ^ Vnen ^ some meansor other , her clothes caught fire ' % was remored to the Infirmary in consequence ^ ? K * S& :- *** . ¦ . ' *¦ : % ** S

      The Young Husbani ) . -Last week a manias took place at the Eipon cathedral between a S man , . or rather a bo yi stated to : be ; under the zS fifteen , and a buxom widow of thirty , both reaicS *! m a neighbouring village . ; On the ^ or ^^ of ft ^ marriage , it is said the wife presented her busbaS w , th £ 100 for ^ xpenses and pocket money , ^ S remaining in Ripon two days foolishly squandering the Same , _ theytook their departure i / dS ^ nage amidsta large concourse of children , Vm ^ oi

      wnom appeared as manly as tbe husband T % P widow married an . old man ibr her first hiisband fo ^ the sake of his nches , and the parents of the boy w £ J influenced by the same motiveson the present occasion . It is stated after the expiration of the S moon , the tyifeintend 3 to send : her husband , aloni ^ Mr . ^ VJckford ^ queers' Academy , Dothebofe Hal , at _ the dehght&il village of T ) othehoys , ne 2 ^ 5 ? i t' F ° ^ ^ ' whereyouths are hoarded , clothed , booked , &c—and where , no doubt , he will derive ^^ muct benefit unde r the able instruction and tuition of Mr . Squeers , and his assistant Nicholas Nickleby . ¦ -.. : ^?

      -Science and Bationai , Amusement _ --It k with great pleasure , we hear that it is the intention " ot the Leeds Socialists shortly to commence a reen . lar series of week-night Lectures on Science , Literature , Morals . Polities , and Economics , for W purpose of affording the working classes of Leeds an opportunity of acquiring information on all these branches of knowledge , —an opportunity which they have not hitherto enjoyed . Many individuals of great talent and status in ^^ the literary , philosophical and scientific world , have promised their assistance to the carrying out of this benevolent project which

      , we sincerely hope , and indeed confidently expect will be attended with much good . Whatever moral ' metaphysical , or theological crotchets the Socialists may or may not have , we thank them or any body for taking any means by which habits of thinking and reasoning can be formed , and the intellectual faculties expanded among ; the working . classes only let the people begin to think , and they will take care of themselves , This ; body have it also in contemplation to open cheap concerts to the people , for which purpose several eminent musicians have offered their services . And thus will a light . pleasinff . and

      inoHensive species of amusement be provided for the people , by which they may be amiiscd" and edified without being demoralized , stupified , and debased ^ This , too , we hail with satisfaction . We . care not from whom ; we do long to see rationalamusement take precedence of the tavern and the beer-house- ^ the foot-race , the prize-ring , and all the other brutal . izing indulgences of the animal propensities , in which many of their present gratifications consist .

      Leeds Horticultural SociETY . —On the Queen ' s birth-day , this society held their first exhibition for tbe season , at the Music Hall , Alb'ion street . The room was beautifully ornamented with evergreens . A splendid plant of the Thunber'ia Alula was exhibited by Mr . Samuel Rice , gardener to J . R . Atkinson , Esq ., which was surmounted by a crown , most tastefully wrought , with the motto , Dieu et mou droit , in the flowers of the Hoca Cor * onosa . Over the Chairman was a splendid design on a marble ground , "Long live our Youthful Queen , " surmounted by a crown , wrought in panzies , which had a most imposing . effect , and was much

      admired , ihere was exhibited by Mr . 1 Rider , nurseryman , of Leeds , two most splendid plants in full bloom , the Tropoeohim tricolorum major , with a few Epacris in sorts , and a var ie'y of Cape Heaths , which were much and deservedly admired . At two o ' clock J . R . Atkinson , Esq ., in the absence of the Mayor , took the chair . He observed [ that he could not do otherwise than respond to the request of the society . It being the Queen ' s birth-day , who was only 19 years of age , and who was re'specteil was only 19 years of age , and who was re ' spected

      and held in high admiration by all her subjec | s , rr . ay she _ livef and reign in peace . He concluded by passing a high encomium upon the gardeners for their laborious toil , skill , and ability , in lhaving brought fruit , flowers , plants , and vegetables , to such astonishing perfection , considering the backward i spring , and the inclemency of the weather ; The following persons awarded the prizes in a ^ very satisfactory manniai : —For fruits , Mr , Hildyard ;; gardener to J . Hives , Esq ., ; Gleaddw Grove ; Mr .

      Abersbaw , gardener to R . O . Gascoigne , Esq . ; and Mr . Gelder , gardener ^ Leeds . For plants . aad flowers , Mr . Wemyss , gardener to Lord Howden , Grimston Park i Mr . Simpson , gardener | ta J . Hustler , Esq ., Bradford ; and Mr . Hudson , gardener , OsmanthorDe . The following prizes were / given : — To John senior , gardener to T . Clapham ] Esq ., Potternewton , 1 st Pine ^ 1 st Black Grapes . 2 ad French Beans , 1 st and 2 nd Steve Exotics , t ^ o pots each , 2 nd Greenhouse Plants , six pots each , 1 st and 2 nd White Ground Geraniums , 1 st Scarlet Ground , 2 nd Rose ditto , 1 st and 2 nd Clouded ditto .-J-JameJ

      Reynard , gardener to D . Luptbn , Esq ., Potter ; newton , 1 st , 2 nd , and 3 rd Eating Apples , lfit , 2 nd , and 3 rd Baking Apples , two years old , lstjPears , 2 nd Potatoes , 1 st Blanched Rhubarb , 2 nd Green ditto , 2 nd Cabbage , 1 st Lettuce , " 1 st White Turnip Radish , 1 st Red ditto , 1 st Green Onions .-JHenry Hague , gardener to Henry Stead , Esq ., 1 st Gooseberries , 3 rd Heaths , 1 st and 2 nd Self Auriculas . — James Brown , gardener to J . Hebblethwaite | Es ^ ., Woodhouse La " ne , 1 st Lemons , 1 st : Cucumbers , 3 ri Asparagus , 1 st Spinach , Rarest Exotic in flower , 1 st Exotic Boquet , 3 rd White Ground Geranium

      2 nd Balsam , four pots , 2 nd Fuchsia , 1 st Dahlia . — George Trotter , gardener to C . J . BrandlingJEsq ; , 1 st Cucumbers , 2 ndBlanched Rhubarbj 3 rd Green Rhubarb , 1 st Cabbage , 1 st and 2 nd Sea Kale . —S Bulmer , gardener to T . W . Tottie , Esq . j 3 d Cucumbers , 2 nd Tulips . —J . Fuller j gardener to G . Ll Fox , Esq ., Bramham Park , 1 st- and 2 nd Asparagus , 1 st Potatoes , 4 th Green Rhubarb , 1 st and 2 nd jCauliflower Brpccoii , 2 nd and 3 rd Lettuce , 1 st and 2 nd Cabbage Lettuce , ( 1 st Short-topt Radish / 1 st Carrots , 2 nd Green Onions , 3 rd Spinach , 3 rd Sea Kale , 1 st and 2 nd Heaths , four pots each . 1 st HerbaceouJ Plantssix

      , pots , 1 st Calceolarias , six pots , 1 st Balsams , four pots , 2 nd Scarlet Ground Geraniums , 1 st largest coliectinn of Greenhouse Plants , 1 st largest variety of Panzies , 1 st Pan of fifty , 1 st of i | entyr fpfirj 2 nd of twelve , 1 st and 2 nd China-edged ) Auriculas , 1 st and 2 nd Green-edged ditto , 1 st Tulips . — James Jackson , gardener to W . J . Foster , Esq . ; Roundhay , 1 st Green Rhubarb , 1 st Cactus , —Wm . Campbell , gardener to Alfred Birchall , Eaq ., ! Bnrley , 3 rd Cabbage Lettuce , 3 rd Greenhouse Plants , six pots , 1 st Rose Ground Geranium , 1 st and 2 nd Dark GfouHd ditto , 2 nd Cut Cactus . —James Njichol * son , gardener to Henry Behtley , Esq ., Oulton , 1 st French Beans , 2 nd Spinach . 2 nd largest colifectto

      of ( 5 | pohbuse Plants , 2 nd Calceolarias , 1 st Fuchsia , also a" most splendid basket of Geraniums , and * variety of other choice plants . —Henry Pike , marie * gardenerj Potternewton , 1 st Long-topt Radish , 1 * Parsley , also a dish of the biest Cauliflower Brpccoii exhibited , but on account of not being staged io time , could not compete for a prize . — -Geo . England * gardener to James Maude , Esq ., Potternewton , 2 no Parsley ;—RobertStokoe , gardener fo W . W « Brown , Esq ., Potternewton , ; 1 st Hardy Bouquet . — 'Wjllia ^ Gatlifle , Esq ., 2 nd Pan of Jfifty Panzies , 2 nd Ip « twenty-four , also the 1 st Pan of twelve . ^—Samnd Ricegardener to J . R . AtkinsonEsq . EImVo ° *

      , , , House , Design of Flowers , Petunias , and Tulips .- ^ - Cottage Gardeners : 1 st Gooseberries , J . Briggs ? Potternewton , and 1 st Winter Lettuce ; 1 st { Irishes , John Cbrdingley , Burley , and 1 st Spring Lettuce . The Committee return their most sincere thanks to the ladies and . gentlemen who jbaT fi hdnqufed the Society , by kindly Supplying " them wit ? such : a splendid display ' -of ^^ fruits , flowers , p lantsj and vegetables , considering the season of the year , | and in conclusion bee to assnre " rrreir frieridu thai no

      exertions shall lie wanting bn'their par ^ * $ ^ P to find on the paTt of their friends a correspoading disposition , to make the future exhibifions ot Una Society not to be surpassed by aiiy other in & e ^^ or neighbourhood . The fruits and flowers ; wwf . good : as could teasonarily be expected , confflderiDjJ the earliness of the show iand the inclemency pfj w weather . The Greenhouse PlantsVand 'V ' egetablea were jinueh admired , and the latter were of excellepi qual ^ y . The company ^ was numerous and ^ ^ nost highly respectable , and expressed their admiratipn at witnessipg suph a profusion of TdluaHe productions . . '¦ " ; V

      To Readers & Correspondents.

      TO READERS & CORRESPONDENTS .

      Relative Circulation

      RELATIVE CIRCULATION

      Leeds And West-Riding News. ' Al^

      LEEDS AND WEST-RIDING NEWS . ' al ^

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  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), June 2, 1838, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1008/page/4/