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Northern Star (1837-1852), 30th September 1843, Edition 1 of 4, Page 4, £nral atflr Gmv' <a $nteUiz&Ke

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  • Departments (4)
    • £nral atflr Gmv' <a $nteUiz&Ke
    • LATEST INTELLIGENCK
    • PORTRAIT OF W. P. ROBERTS, ESQ.
    • THE NORTHERN STAR. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 50, 1843.
  • Adverts (2)
  • Text (10)
  • Transcript

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      Untitled Ad

      . »» - ~ —¦ ^ . ~ , ^ . . ^ - . . . ^ . . . >~ THE LAND 1 THE LAND ! ! THE LAND 31 ! Feargus O'Connor , Esq . will Lactura on the above important subject , in the Large Theatre of the Rotunda , Blacafriars Road , on Tuesday evening , October 3 rd . Platform Sixpence ; Upper Circle , Three-pence ; Pit , Twopence . Doors open at Seven , Lecture to commence at Eight o ' clock . Working-men ! do your duty ! Attend , hear , and judge for yourselves 1 !

      Untitled Ad

      Mr . O'COHKOB has received communications from many districts in all of which a -very great desire is expressed to bave a pobtbaii of Mr . Roberta , the people ' s Attorney-GeneraL We cannot wonder that a strong wish should be entertained to possess a likeness of so truly amiable , talented , and true a man ; and although we know that Mr . O'Connor had determined to give no more Portraits , jet we bave tbe pleasure to announce that all Subscribers for Three Months , from Saturday , the 33 rd of Sept , will receive A PORTRAIT OP W . P . BOBERTS , THE PEOPLE'S ATTORNETGENERAL . We request the several Agents to open lists for the enrolling of names , as none but Subscriber * from the above dates will receive a plate . Tbe price of Paper ana Plate when presented will be Sixpence ; and none will be sold without the paper .

      £Nral Atflr Gmv' ≪A $Nteuiz&Ke

      £ nral atflr Gmv ' < a $ nteUiz&Ke

      Untitled Article

      DTJ »» EB . —Deatb of a Black Sheep . —Died , on Triday corning las ' ., at twenty minutes past seven o ' clock , sjjed nip- months , the . fieraZd newspaper ( late C&ronit&X Since the birth of thfe dwarf , symptoms of preBu ^ tnre dissolution have been visible , and , irotwiti ' . standinR all the care and unremitting attention T , hieh Its too fond butss could bestow upon tbe » r pet , it got weaker under their caresses , instead of Ratherin ^ strength , nnta at last it rank isto ?_ n everlasting slumber in its father s arms , at the tow . above stated . The immediate cause of death -is teething . Jt had no teeth j and however * ngry harmless in the bitin

      ^ m ight be , it wasperfectly g way . Some years ago the Dundee Chronicle newspaper was for sale , and the Chartiste here mastered their strength in order that they might , iy purcfeaEirig it , procure a local organ through which , under their own management , the principles of the People ' s Charter might be prominently kept before the public The . result "was the " purchase of that paper at the sum of eight hundred pounds sterling { £ 300 more than its value ) . Shares in the concern were rapidly taken up , and instalments thereon regularly paid for a considerable time . The paper fell into the hands of the new proprietors , however ,

      long ere one third of the purchase money- was paid up , and of course they had to borrow what they were deficient of . This state of things ted ihem into obligations to some persons who were enemies to the Chartist cause . These parties did all that in them lay to- frustrate the only object which was had in view in purchasing the journal , namely , to forward the « anse of democracy . This difficulty might have been jjot over had the people continued to pay the instalments upon their shares regularly . TbeCftronicfewas not long * nder Chartist management ,-however , when it becamB evident that a certain party of professed friends , from some of wiom better things might have been looked for , wished to have it in their own hands , and under thsir entire control . This liad the effect of

      damping the energies of those who felt no interest in the undertaking , except as far as the advancement of the great pubfie cause was concerned . Some continued to pay and grumble-j others stopped payment at once ; ultimately , the paper . did fall into the bands of those who seemed so anxious for it . Shortly miter this a gentleman , from Manchester , was brought do » n to edit it ; but a few articles which appeared in the Star , put a ^ eal upon his labours in thi 3 quarter . Since then editors , managers , reporters , {!) printers , and printers' devils have been changed and lechanRed wiih the changes of the moon j but all proved unavailing . At last they tbonght of changing the name of the paper ; bnt , alaa , w ^ at after all is in a name ! The Herald aroBe from the ashes of

      Old Chnmyj Trat , like its prec ' eceF ? or only existed to experience the contempt and neglect of all honest politicians . And if ever the well-known fable of the * Old Man and his Ass" was verified to the letttrit has been in its brief existence . It was a professed Sturgeite ; yet in its half-grown pages , it was led sway by every wind of doctrine . In attempting to please every body , it offended » 11 « nd was pitched overboard into the bargain . [ We give the above as ¦» re received it , trusting to the veracity of our correspondent for the truth ofthe * iatement 3 it contains . We should not have noticed the matter , bnt that we understand great dissatisfaction prevails among a number of tae Chartist body in Forfarshire , who mbgcribed their money for the purchase and

      support of a paper , which did not at all represent their sentiments when brought under , as they supposed , Chartist management . They conceive that their money , has been wrongfully applied ; how far they suv be right they are the best judges themselves . ] SHEFFIELD . —MORE " SPV&IQVS CffTLlRT . " — Mr . John Pearson , of Angel-street , appeared before the magistrates on Friday last , to answer a charge made against him for having in his possession a -quantity of blades marked ** cast steel , " they being atadaof common tied . It appeared that there was an informality in the summons , and it was dismissed ; bat the goods were detained , and another summons granted , charging him with the manufacture of spurious cutlery , for the purpose of sal ? . There are

      some awful exposures taking place . The Independent , the organ ^ f the free traders , and the Mercury are at open war , the freebooter's" journal palliating the conduct of the " respectable manufacturer * , " « nd alleging that the Corn Laws compel the manufacturers to " get up" these inferior goods . The Mercury , however , withont dtnying the right to ¦ take inferior goods , justly charges the freebooters with dishonesty , in imposing on the world as ** superior cutlery , " the east or ** sow xktai . goods which they for a lone time have been making in great abundance . The "trieks of the trade , " too , are

      being laid bare : London met chants getting their goods made in Sheffield , and having them marked with their owkkame as London made , and extorting as high as eighty j » t cent , profit upon them . Sorely , these things will open the eyes of those who are continually bawling out that we haye lost our foreign trade because of our protective duties ! Many a , tima have the Chartist lecturers , in their discussions with the - Le » gW men , stated these things ; bat they have been unblushing ^ denied . . However , now they cannot deny them . Let them only come to Sheffield , and they shall have them thrust usder their noses .

      The Trades . —The trades are going on with the good work of enrolling themselves into an associated body . Twenty-seven have already joined . The table-knife blade makers , to the Dumber of 600 , have turned out for an advance of wages , and are likely to succeed , as several masters have already acceded to their demands . There is one feature connected with this turn-out , that evidently denotes the "March of mind . " At their first meeting , it was debated ^ whether it would not be advisable to purchase or rent a piece of land , to employ the tarcontsnpon , witha view to increase their funds , and prevent the waste of capital and labour . The proposition suet with universal satisfaction , and we believe the associated trades will take the qae&tion up , and deposit their funds in a solid bank , and not trust to the chance of being bilked by the M rag rooks , " ss many of the benevolent societies have been by a certain swindling shop now defunct .

      SATH . —Seizures por Chubch Bates . —Onr Correspondent writes ;—One - of those disgraceful scenes bo opposed to the character and interest of true ChrinisBUy , has beea enacted in this city . It appears that some of the inhabitants of Snow-hill and Tining-lane . in the parish of St . Saviour ' s , refusing tosubscribe towards the support of a Church the doctrines « f which they disavowed , declined to pay the rate of fourpence in the pound levied for that purpose ; the result of which was that the holy (!) * officials" of religion sought a distress warrant to be levied , upon the goods of the recusants , which being granted was dnly put into execution on Friday

      and a watch was taken from Mrs . Curtis , and one also from Mr . Sinkins , some bed clothes from Mr . Watlocfc , and a cart from Mr . Window , who is an out an out Chartist . A short time ago a poor man in Wiltshire was distrained on for Vicarial tithes , to the amount of 10 s .. expences incurred upon a rate of Is . 4 d . when the worthy successor of the apostles visited the man ' s wife who was . ill at the time , and Jindirg bo money forthcoming , immediately left , and so sooner had he done bo than the bailiff entered and took the chain and one of the man's two tables . Bow well to these " -apostolical" harpies apply the lines lately jrfveu in the

      Examiner—* The Pharisees of old heaven ' s path to seek Gave tithes of all , and fasted twice a-week ; Our ¦ wfcer BB . intBEB . ch plans have far surpassed , They tnke the tithes sad leave the poor to fast . " BAHHSLEY . —The town is in a . state of excite-Bent in conBeqnence of the attempts of some of the masters to reduce wages . The attempts of Norris and Co . to break through the printed list of prices has failed , sad the men under their employ have retnrned to their work ; but another struggle has now commenced . Haxworth and Co . have long

      manifested a disposition to reduce wages . On Monday , the 18 A , » public meeting of the work-Ben was held on May Day Green , when it was snaaimonsly resolved to strike sooner than submit to a further reduction of their miserable wages . On Mvni * y last another pnblio meeting was held oh May D-ty Green ; the meeting was addressed by Messrs . Grimshaw , Harper , and Garbnti . Information respecting the progress of the strike was given , and the weavers of Barfcsley pledged themselves to support the Btrike . against Haxworih and Co . to the last .

      Latest Intelligenck

      LATEST INTELLIGENCK

      . Foheich . —The revolution in Gr < ece is the allateorbujg topic of tke movement . The charge was ¦ effected without the shedaing of a drop oJ blood , by tiie mere " moral-foree exhibition of an armed people xa& patriotic soldiery , surronndmg the Regal Palace , * nd compelling the booby Gtho to submit to their < k * r d N w « ° h Were > * Constitution and the kiek-* ot « r the Bavarians and all other " Foreigners . " -which we wfll lay before our readers next week . -S ^ — ~ aspjr « y has been discovered at *^ hW ™ » of «^ " ^ machine » intended to hilTZPa i ? £ »**** of all the Ruffians , " had

      Untitled Article

      A Gbjlsd K p * TOiwas given to Esoartero lh « Ex-S ^ nt of Spun , b , the Lord May ^ ofLol ' do ^ at the Mansion House , on Tuesday last . ¦" uuuuu > Dextb of Piorissoa Biu . —We have to anjBonnce the death of George Joseph Bell , Esq p . fessor of Soots Law in the University of Edinburgh < m Saturday last , after a protracted illness . ' JUxai . Adc » iWT . — Qfl Wednesday morning , about ^ jgh ; o'clock , a labouring man , named James Burl , waainthe ^ tMBe }* ' st ihe Eqaitable Gas Works , ¦^ UDes-b&nk / assisting in tbe" unloading of some eoai . wbeo by some accident one of the waggons rait against him . lie wai knocked down , and the wheel passed over his head , depriving iha unfortunate man m * n instant oflife . The < Jeeecs # d has left a wife aad joopg family to deplpre his loss .

      Portrait Of W. P. Roberts, Esq.

      PORTRAIT OF W . P . ROBERTS , ESQ .

      Untitled Article

      OUR n IMPROVED" TRADE . MOEE "PROSPERITY . " At length we have another gleam of sunBhins ; and much is Bought to be made of it . We have had Beven long years of " depression ; " two good harvests , and the stats of manupactdhes in Spain have " revived" xib a little ; and the journals of both factions are claiming for their respective parties , the credit of having caused that revival . " The Tory Standard says that Peel has " restored

      prosperity f the Whig Chronicle Bays that Pbk , has caused " our merchants to give their goods away' '!! The Standard says that "in two short years , Pkel has wrought a glorious and happy improvement : " tbe Chronicle makes answer , that M Peel has , first of all , sacrificed the Farmer , to enable the opulent classes to pay the income-tax : and since then he has sacrificed the Merchant and Manufacturer to kerp up the bhadow of Foriegn trade"l

      All parties are however agreed , that we have a " better trade" ; » . e . we have more of it just now than we had . The cotton manufacturers are busy ,-the demand for woollens is much more " active" ; the worsted and stuff trade is " great : '' in fact , in all departments of onr clothing-manufacture more is doing : but at what cost ! What is the price we have to pay for our u prosperity" I How has it been brought about ! BY A SACRIFICE OF ONE-TWELFTH OF OUR PRICES ! By giving the foreigner and the tax-eater all the advantage of the PKKL-forced reduction in eost of living . "

      Is this doubted 1 Read what follows from the Chronicle of Tuesday . It is worthy of great attention . It is another proof of the improved tone of feeling" which the Chronicle of Monday glorifies bo rolliokingly . It proves that new node * of thought are manifesting themselves amongst the Febk Traders , as well as amongst the Chartists . Jt shews that there is even in the Chronicle a disposition to listen to economical tbitths "—a desire " to comprehend principles" ; and we must congratulate the Chronicle most heartily on its conversion to , and enunciation of , the doctrine so long exclusively confined to the pages of the Northern Star , and so loag derided and opposed by even the Chronicle

      himself . O ! yes , there is a change in the tone of the pnblio mind : and the following extract from tbe Chronicle is one great proof of it . Let the reader of the Star look over it well ; and let him call to mind the scores of times that similar facts have been adduced by us , as reasons why we should not adopt the theories of free trade ; because they were calculated * TO BENEFIT KOBODY , except a few foreigners : and except annuitants and office

      holders at home , the pcschasikq powzb or whose ikcomes they woulb ikcrkase" ! Glad we are to have the reluctant testimony of the Chronicle to the truth of our reasoning , and the force of our objections . That testimony is all the more valuable , because the Chronicle shows that it is founded on , and borne-out , by the operation of the Free Trade Tariff . Such an admission from Buch a quarter wo certainly did not expect . Here it is , however : let the reader treasure it up well : —

      " In the finance accounts of the year ending January S , 1843 , the value of the produce and manufactures of the United Kingdom exported , calculated at the official rates of valuation , was in tbe year ending the 5 th of January , 1841 , £ 102 , 705 , 372 ; 1842 , £ 102 . , 517 ; and 1843 , £ 100 , 260 , 101 . Every person knows that theae official rates of valuation do not cerretpond either to tbe declared or Use real value of the commodities exported . They signify , only quantities ; and we learn , therefore , from these returns , that the quantities of exports In 184 t exceeded those of 1841 , and those of 1841 exceeded those of 1842 . The falling-off in the year 1 S 42 , as compared to tbe bad year of 1841 , was £ 1 , 920 , 416 . That diminution in the f uantities of oar exports in the year that the tariff came into operation , is another proof of its disastrous effects .

      " Tbe same returns supply rts with tbe declared value of these exports , which were , in the year ending January 5 , 1841 , £ 51 , 406 , 430 ; 1848 , £ 51 , 634 , 623 ; 1843 , £ 47 , 381 . 023 . The increased vaJne of tbe export * In tbe year 1841 corresponded to tbe increased quantity , lost year , however , tbe quantities of the exports were reduced £ 1 , 920 , 416 , say one-fiftieth ; but the value , ¦ which is of roach more conseqaence , was reduced £ 4 253 , 600 , or one-twelfth . To enable our maxufaciuren and merchants to expert and sell even thai

      diminished quantity , THET WERE OBLIGED TO SUBMIT TO A SACRIFICE OP £ 4 253 600 , OB OITE-TWELFTH OF THE WHOLE VALUE OF THE EXPOBTS . Sir Bobert Peel boasted a little , in July , of our reviving trade , which it now appears he has forced to the injury of our traders , by degrading prices . Sy his scheme , he first of all , sacrificed tbe farmer to enable the opulent classes to pay tbe Income-tax ; and since then be bu sacri ficed tbe merchant and manufacturer to keep up , under bis restrictive system , the thadtno of a foreign trade .

      " It is well known that tbe price which our manufacturers can obtain abroad for their commodities determines , in a great measure , the price for which they can be sold in the borne market By not allowing a free importation of those foreign commodities for which ours can be exchanged , a comparative glut of the latter was produced in the foreign market Oar merchants were compelled , to a certain extent , to give them away , The result , therefore , of Sir Robert Peel's legislation to degrade prices was , first to injure bis agricultural friends , and next to injure the merchants and manufacturers . He has otnrfiUcd nobody , except a few fokeigkebs , IMMEDIATELY , not ultimately ; and except AWMJ 1 TASTS AUD OFFICE-HOLDEBS AT HOME ,

      the PURCHASING POWBR OF WHOSE INCOMES , including those of the First Lord of tbe Treasury , BE HAS INCREASED . It is a strange theory , bat it is most certainly true-, that we had procured the AnDual Finance Accounts , for the express purpose of laying the facts contained in tbe above extract before tbe readers of the St-ar ^ and grounding on those facts precisely just such conclusions as the Chronicle has so eonvincingly arrived at ! At the present moment those Accounts lay open before us ; and we can truly say that the " facts in figures" quoted by the Chronicle are correctly extracted .

      But what a blow to Free Trade" those ftcte give 1 What a stunner ! They show , most con elusively , that its effects can only be , " to sacrifice the Farmers Jinl ; " and tiien the Merchant and Manufacturer , to keep up the shadow of a Foreign trade . " ! J That IT CAN BENEFIT NOBODY , except a fea forei gners ; and annuitants and officeholders , ihs rcBCHASnre rowsx or whose ikcomes » win ikcbkase /' Thank you , Chronicle . Pretty fair for a beginning ! Excellent , for a first manifestation of to an improved feeling . " Go ox , good Chronicle . Pursue the path you have thus entered upon . Evince more of this " disposition tt listen to economical tbcths , " and you will soon be able " to comprehend principles "; and wfca jo * dp co * pmhkkd the

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      principles you have now ( perhaps by chance ) enunciated , yom will find that they lead to anything but the establishment of the theories of Free Trade I The facts adduced by the Chronicle f $ ay p \ i 6 w what has been the prir ^ M wWoh we haye purchased our present trading ' prosperity . " T > jose facts * ko show lhafc we have not muoh to boast of ; that we had better sing-small : or v ^ inay chance to have to sing , in a very short tinre , a far different tune . ' Our M prosperity" has not any oi the elements of endura * bility in . it . It is bmt a gleam . Tbe clouds are not all chased away . A short time may see the san of " prosperity" completely shronded from view : completely hidden behind the black darkness of utter despair .

      With the light afforded bythe Free-Trade Chronu cle in the foregoing extraot , read the following twaddle from Mother Goose : — " Pood is how cheap , and thade is brisk . These two facts stand in the relation to each other of cause and effect . Trade is brisk because food is cheap . The great body of consumers , having less to spend on food , have more to spend on clothing and ether necessaries . Hence tbe makers of cloth , and cotton and linen fabrics , are now comparatively busy . Here , then , is a knock on tbe head to those foolish reasonera who say that if the Corn Lairs were abolished and food were made cheap , trade will Immediately fall off ; " the fad being directly the reverse .

      " Another fact is worthy of notice . THE TENDENCY OF wages IS NOW TO hise . At Bradford and Halifax , such is the demand for labour , that a considerable advance of wages has , in many cases , been made . The same is observed in Scotland , in several towns where trade is brisk . Now , be it observed , at tbe very time when this increase of employment , and rise of wages , have taken place , food has been falling in priee . Here , then , is another knock on the bead to those foolish reasoners , who say that if the Corn Laws were taken off , and tbe prices of food lowered , wages would fall;—the fact being , as in the former case , exactly the revurse . "

      Here Mother Goose is strangly at war with her " leading organ , " the Chronicle . Both are Free-Traders : and both assign different and distinct causes for the " briskness of trade . " " Trade is brisk , because food is cheap" says Goosey . " Trade i s brisk , because Peel has forced our merchants to give their goods away , " Bays the Chronicle . Which is right 1 We vote for the Chronicle . He shows the most improved feelinq ?'

      "The great body of consumers having less to spend on food , have more to spend on clothing . " So says Goosey . What a falsehood ! Is it . not well known that the reductions in teases-during tbe last two years , are more than equivalent to the reduction in prices of food ! How then is it possible that "the great body of consumers can have more to spend" on anything ! Have the colliers more , who are now receiving only , in many , places ,

      eighteen-pence a day ! Have the spinners of Lancashire more t Have the weavers of Lancashire more ? . Have the silk-weavers more t Have the frame-work knitters more ! Have the linen-weavers of Barnslev morel Have the men employed in the Iron-works more 1 Have the copper-makers more ? Have the woollen-workers of Yorkshire morel Have the men employed in tbe neighbourhood of Heckmondwike more 1 Have the power-loom tenters of the Huddersfield Stabket ' s more } Have the

      faney-weavers , of tbe fanoy district , more f And above all , and before all , have the paintebs in Mb . COBDEN'S employ at Choklkt , MORE ! Answer , Mother Goose ! And in doing so , mind and not give yourself another w knock on the head , " as a ** foolish reasoner . " M tendency op wages is to hise . " Wo are clad to hear it ! Good news it will be to

      those who are now just wageless ! We fanoy however they would much rather feel the " rise , " than hear of it . Have tbe wages of tbe cotton spinners , a tendency to rise ? Or the wages of the cotton weavers ; or the copper makers ; or the furnace men ; or the silk-weavers ; or the linen-weavers ; or the fancy-weavers ; or the woollen-workers } If they have a tendency to rise , we fear it is to rise downwards ! ! What say Mr . Cobden ' s printers !

      " At Bradford and Halifax , such is the demand for labour , that a considerable advance of wages has in many oases been made . " Very { considerable , truly ! Something indeed to boast of . ' A few workers , in one department , that of wool-combing , in tbe towns of Bradford and Halifax , have just effected a very slender ** advance" in their wages , for a time ; and this proves that the " tendency of wages is to rise . " Poor Goosey .

      There is before us at this moment a table exhibiting the prices paid for the combing of all sorts of wool , previous to the rise , and the amount « f the advance on each sort . It was furnished us by , the men themselves . It is accompanied by the following statement , which will shew the M More" that the wool-combers have gotten , even with the " rise " : — " To show tbe actual condition of the Woolcbmbers , even after tbe advance in wages has been effected , we will show you what amount of labour he has to perform , and what bis weekly earnings , with incessant toil , will only amount to . We will suppose , therefore , that the

      Woelcomttr gets from the warehouse 61 lbs . of wool , marked , say , long M . This has to be washed ; then combed ; a second time washed , and combed over again . He will then have about 48 lbs . of wool to be paid for ; tbe remainder being waste to tbe Woolcomber . The » e processes will take hm sixteen hours a day for the week through . The besult will be , that for all THIS LABOUR HE IS REMUNERATED WITH TEN shillings , EVEN AT THE ADVANCED PRICE ) It need not be wondered at , if we think that the masters yielded to our wishes more through tbe dread of despair tfaan- any sympathy with the condition of their slaves . "

      Rare "tendency to rise"I Plenty of " more" ! Ten shillings a-week , for sixteen hours' labour « ach day ! What an amount to spend on cheap food . " What did the woolcombers get , when food was dear ? Can poor Goosey say f We will wait to see . The Times , i . e . the Old Times , has also had its "song of triumph" on "our Prosperity . " That journal of Tuesday last is full of boast of the great u improvement" in all branches of trade . We would ask the vaunters of what avail is this , or any other , improvement to that portion of the working classes who toil from day break to mid-night to make profit for their taskmasters , without the meaua of abstracting from their wages a single farthing to add

      to that storo which , after a long life of toil , should be ample as a retiring salary for the overworked operative ! Where is the fund out of which compensation for loss of limb is to bo awarded to the sufferer 1 or out of which the widows and the orphans are to be compensated for the loss of their supporter ' s life 1 Does not the bastile haunt them as the only refuge for premature old age ! Is not the combination of the masters , under the double influence of capitalists and administrators of the law , so complete , as to enable them to reduce wages to the merest existence point ? Where , then , we would ask , is the slave ' s share of our great " commercial triumph" ?

      Amid this boast of general " improvement , " have the poor rates been diminished ] or can they be diminished ! Are the long lines of our best otechanics , now turned into street-sweepers and Btonecrackers , by aught reduced ! Not a bit of it . The great advantages of " improvement" are confined to the owners of the nonconEuming producing power ; to the foreign jobbers , who traffic with them ; and to the tax-eater . If this great" improvement in trade " is not generally beneficial to all , of what avail is it to the working ^ classes ! Do the proceeds circulate equitably through all classes of society ! Have the community of shopkeepers joined in the "O , be joyful" of tho manufacturers ! Or , will the quarter ' s revenue , the test of consumption , evince a corresponding improvement ? We shall see .

      Bat if we even admit that the Times '' s picture was true , a perfect portrait of the " improved" condition of the whole nation , how long will it be before it is daubed over by the brash of the foreign artist ! And then , from what source are our useless , because unemployed , operatives , artizins , and mechanics to be supported ! This , after all , is the great—the greatest consideration—the question of questions . The working men have had their "halcyon days " before ; and the long and dreary night of adversity " has followed their short day of " prosperity . " In the days of sodden , transition , they were satisfied to

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      rise and fall w ^ ^ JB < fc ^ y neither eaw or thought of | h 0 ^ yggg wWoh Ba bj eoto d them to periodi changes . The y have discovered , however , ^ rf tertainiy was capricious , and but of short duratio'a ; while uncertainty wad sure to follow , and was of long existence . So muoh for the mere commercial branch of the subject : let us now direct attention to the agricultural portion . This great "improvement" is in the main attributed to a succession , of two good harvests . Wo would ask , then , ought not the

      farmers , in such case , to be the loudest in exultation ? Has tbe eystem become so complicated and entangled as to deprive the grower of all participation in "improvement , " while his industry and capital furnish increased means for the manufacturing speculators to gamble upon in the manufacturing market ! Does Ireland , a wholly agricultural country , participate in this general" improvement" \ Have the operations of Rebecca , solely based upon agricultural distress , been re'axed in consequence of this succession of two good harvests' Has Mr . Cobden erased one foul epithet from his agricultural

      vocabulary in consequence thereof ! Have the complaints of the English and Scotch farmers been in any wise diminished ! Have the landlords evinced their satisfaction at this "improved" state of things ! Has the agricultural hostility to the Prime Minister , who has brought them about , been silenced , or in any degree lessened \ No : and for this simple reason ; because the eystem of which he is the head and front is a system of centralization , by which tbe few owners of non-coasuming producing power are enabled to appropriate to their own " sole use

      behoof and benefit , " all the resources whioh legitimately belong to all the people £ &nd even he , the Minister , will find himself , in the midst of this " prosperous" system , like " tbe starving man in a cook' shop . " The money is there : we admit it : but it is not there for his benefit , or to his account . Ten per oent additional assessed taxes will not contribute much to bis Exchequer ; because each House has not its fair share of the nation ' s wealth ; and we much doubt that his Exchequer will receive any increase of Income Tax , consequent upon the boasted " improvement of trade . "

      We have no desire to deny that more cotton is imported , that more goods are manufactured , and that tho manufacturing world is just now active ;" on the contrary , wo rejoice at it ; and for this especial reason : the oo-existing poverti of the PEOPLE WILL BE THE PRACTICAL ANSWER TO THE Free Trade Malthusians . A " Baecession of two good harvests , " with a " brisk trade , " and " redticed provisions , " will convince the working classes that such a multiplication of advantages having

      failed to confer any , the slightest , benefit upon their order , they must henceforth look , not to the chances of « apital for employment ; not to the manufacture of foreign cotton as the field for the exercise of industry ; and not to the power-loom as the only implement of labour . They will look to their arms ss their capital—to the Laud as their labour-field—to the spade as their working implement—and to their Charter as the means of insuring CERTAINTY , and of conferring the permanent advantage upon themselves .

      Untitled Article

      THE LEEDS MERCURY AND HIS M BUBBLE . " Of all th « turning , twisting , slippery , eel-like opponents that any one ever engaged with , surely the Leeds Mercury is the most tortuous and the most disingenuous ! He is indeed " cunning offence '' : a regular trickster in debate . la the Northern Star of August 26 th , 1843 , we had an article on the Land question , founded on a statement of tho doings of Mr . Linton , of Selby for the present year , 1843 . In the course of that article , we noticed a controversy that Mr . O'Connor had formerly had with the Leeds Mercury ; and again adduced Mr . O ' Connor ' s triumphant

      answer to the sneer with which his inferences from actual fact had been met by the " profound political economist" of the Mercury .- that answer containing , from the Leeds Mercury itself , statements of doings on the Land , whioh left Mr . Linton ' s far in the shade . We made a little merry on the occasion ; and concluded by stating that in another article we 6 hould prove , from Mr . Baines himself , that " the Land , the Soil , was our last and only resource , " as a remedial measure for the many evils inflicted ttpon us by tho labour-displaying operations of machinery : that Mr . Baines had himself , long ago , seen that" there was no help , no euplot , BUT 1 « THE SOIL . "

      In the Mercury of the succeeding week , ie . the 2 nd of September , thia article of our ' s drew forth from the " profound political economist , " a leader , which opened thus : — " The Land Bvbblb . —In the Northern Star of last Saturday , we find four columns of words , with about the same number of ideas , to prove that farmers of four acres ef land may , bythe skilful management of their farms , realize a profit of £ 300 a-year , after paying their cento , taxes , and wages . ' !!"

      On the latter portion of his assertion we joined issue with him . We denied that we had attempted to prove any such thing as that " a profit of £ 300 could be made from four acres , after paying rents , taxes , and WAGES . " We stated that it was not possible for him to have drawn such a statement from our ' * words ; " that it was a purely false and groundless assumption ; an assu mption made too under such circumstances as precluded its being attributable to mistake or accident : for we had more than once in the course of the article he pretended to be replying to , distinctly set forth that the £ 300 was the " return FOR LABOUR , after rent

      taxes , seed , and wear and tear of implements had been paid for ; " that in fact , the £ 300 was THE wages ; not" CLEAR PROFIT" after wages had been paid , as the Mercury in another portion of his 2 ud of September article asserted . We put it to himself , whether he had not being practising " gross delusion" upon the public , in putting forth Bucb a statement as if it was ours ; and then reasoning on that statement , and on that statement only , for the purpose of exposing its " absurdity . " We further desired him to explain how the mis-statement had happened ; to meet the question fairly , allowing us to state our own case , and not tax bis powers of invention to misrepresent .

      Now it was the article m the Star of August 26 th , the " wordy" article with only " four ideas" in it , that the Mercury said had attempted " to prove ' that farmers of four acres might , by the skilful management of ttieir farms , realize a profit of £ 300 a-y ear , after payment of rents , taxes and wages . " It was to that article , and to that article alone , that his assertion applied . It was that article , and that article alone , that we charged him with wilfully misrepresenting : for as we shewed him , the misrepresentation could not be accidental . It was to the statements in that article that we invited him to turn his attention , and combat fairly ; offering , If he would do 60 , " to tussle the matter with him . "

      The strong case of glaring wilful misrepresentation that we made out , would not allow the Mercury to shy off . He felt himself convicted before the public of a very dirty trick , unless he could manage to wriggle out of the mess . To leave it where it was , would be damning . Some attempt mast be made ; and accordingly in last week ' s paper we had it . He took a fortnight to consider on the matter ; giving a week ' s nojice that he would have " something more to say . " And , accordingly , on Saturday last we bad it .

      And how does the reader imagine that he met the charge of misrepresentation ? How does he imagine that the Mercury proves the correctness of his assertion , that the Northern Star of the 26 th of August , had attempted to show that a PROFIT of £ 300 , afterpayment of rent , taxes , and wages , " could bo realized from four acres of land ! How does the reader think that he M proves" this t Why , by quoting front the Northern Star of the 22 nd of April lastUlt Slippery Mercury I Twisting Mercury I Trioky Mercury 11 You asserted that tho "four oolumos-of words" in the Northern Star , of August

      Untitled Article

      , , : _^ j ^ . £ s a 1 acre of potatoes , 2783 stones , at 4 d .......... 43 7 * Part tops of do . 60 days eating for ene cow 3 q ! 1 acre of rape after the potatoes ; first cutting , in the beginning of Match next , will feed 20 cows 32 days ....... 32 0 r Second cutting at the end of April , will feed 20 cows 15 days 15 0 t 1 acre of Sweed turnips , after the rape ; tops of tbe S weeds , food for 20 cows , 7 days . i 7 0 | SS . drills , 2 feet apart , 220 yards long ; t ^ e turnips 15 inches apart in the drill , will give 16 JB 24 turnips averaging 5 pounds each , or about 33 tons of bulbs : these , with 1216 stones of straw , will keep 20 cows 61 days 61 0 4 ,

      £ 161 r ~ 7 Deduct for 1216 stones of straw , at 3 d . peretone ..... 15 i 1 And yon have produce of I acre in two yearn £ 146 3 t Four acres at the same rate ... ............. £ 584 15 } Giving as the worth of produce for four acres , for one year . £ 292 7 4 The potatoes I bave calculated at less than I am selling at I now sell at eevenpence per aeore , of twenty-one pounds : I have calculated their - at sixpence .

      The rape I have calculated at less than what the beat writers on agriculture give as the average produce and worth . The produce of the turnips is from my own data . What I have easily done , I expect to be able to do again . I calculate the worth of food for a cow at one shilling per day . Mr produce , actual and estimated , I hsta measured by that standard ; and the foregoing is the result Had I only calculated the produce when converted into milk , and sold in Leeds , as I sell mine , at 2 ^ d . « qnart , the result would have made tbe Mercury atare . But I am free to confess that if I pursued " any system of calfcivation , " 1 could not thus realize ; but pursning the method of acting generously to the land , both with laboor and manure , the land acts profusely to . wards me .

      The following extract from Mr . Blacker ^ work on Small Farms , will shew that I have not over-estimated my coming crop of rape . He says : — " Tbe immense produce of rape , when weft manured , is beyond anything that can be imagined . If let stand until it gets into blossom , it grows to the height of six feet . I am almost afraid tosay that I believe that with the addition of some straw , an acre will keep thirty head of cattle in fall milk for a month . " I am therefore muoh under the mark ; for I bave calculated for two cuttings ; and Mr . Blacker says one will do nearly aa much as I have set down for both . My turnip crop is only an average one . Fifty-five ton * have been grown to the acre . Trusting that you will follow up the Mercury woll ; I am , yours , respectfully ,

      Leeds , September 27 tb , 1843 . Now , this is from an occupier of land just under the nose of the Mercury . He " holds" under the present M . P . for Leeds ; and we have not yet heud that he has been "liberal"enough to avail himself of the " fne" hint of the Mercury to raise his rent ! We believe he is content with the rent ha gets . Let us not be misunderstood , however . We mean not to contend that it is possible to cultivate every acre of land to such a result as that of either Mr .

      Linton or our correspondent A . We never intended to do any such thing . In all that we have said , ia all that we have done , we have merely tried to sho * the great value of labour , when scientifically applied to the land ; and to show this , we have produced facts as to what has been dose : bat we well know that the result must always differ , according to local circumstances . Under all circumstance . ' , however , we certainly do contend that it is possible , on any land , if it be land at all , to realize yearly much more than " one-tvnth of £ 70 , wages included , " by a proper and scientific " system of cultivation . *

      The Mercury further says : — " We are glad to see the Chartists turning their attention to the cultivation ef the land ; it will give then an increased interest in tbe tranquillity and good order of society , and make them anxious to preserve whatever is valuable in tbe Government and Institutions of the country . We hear that a plan was promulgated at their late Conference in Birmingham , for the parchase of 1 , 000 acres of land by this body ; on wkidi our principal fear is , that it will never be realised . "

      It is something to have the Mercury ' s good wishes . He is " glad the Chartists are turning their attention to the land . " He was not very " glad " when he sneered at them for doing so ; or , if he was , a sneer was a rather curious mode of expressing " gladness . " Has not his " gladness" sprung out « f the position in which we have placed him , in relation to this Land question ! We have shown thai in "turning attention to . the Land , " the Chartists

      have but followed the advice given them , years ago , by Mr . Baijtes , in the report from his pen which we lately inserted in the Northern Star : and wa opine that it is the appearance of that document ; that truth-telling document ; that , has changed the tODe of the Mercury ; and not " the plan promulgated at the late Conference at Birmingham . " Changed , at all events , that time is . Now , he no longer sneers , but expresses " gladness . "

      He fears that " the plan for the purchase of 1 , 000 acres of land will never be realised . " Let him render aid then . If he really entertains this fear , he may do something to quiet it . He has " shares ? we know , in some concerns , not as likely to realise " one-tenth of £ 70 a-year , " as an acre of land wellcultivated is : let him " invest" with the Chartists , and he will have done his part towards getting that which he now fears never will be realised . We bave a right to expect , if there be any heart in this expression of " fear" and " gladness , " that every exertion will be used by the Mercury to " give the Chartists an increased interest in the tranquillity and good order of society . " It is all the Chartists desire . Give them this , and they will be content : " anxious to preserve whatever is valuable in the Government and Institutions of the country . "

      Untitled Article

      26 th , attempted to prove certain statements ; and when you are accused of wilful misrepresentation , you rebut tliat accusation , by quoting from the Star of the 22 ad of April ! i Clever debater ! Fair man !! But the whole of the Mercury ' s paibnkss is not yet apparent . It was to oub article that be took exception , jit was with our words " ,. "idealess " as they were , that he found fault . It was to us that he attributed the attempt to " prove the £ 300 CLEAR PROFIT , after payment of rent , taxes , and wages" ! It was to the Editor of the Northern ; .

      Star that he waa addressing himself in his article of the 2 nd of September ; and it was the Editor of the Star that charged him with misrepresentation ; with downright sheer invention , for the Bhallow purpose of replying to his own-created " absurdities " , as though they had beea ours . It was to us that he had addressed himself ; it waa with us that the controversy lay . And how does the fair man ; the honest man ; the ingenuous man : how does he prove that the statement which he had

      attributed to us had been , aa he said , made by us ? How does he prove thai t By quoting from a letter written by Mr . O'Conrob , and signed with Mr . O'Connor ' s own name , and which appeared in tho Northern Star more than four months before the article of ours , to which he took exception , was even thought of !! ! If this be not an honest way of getting out of a mess , commend us to one that is t O , the virtues of a shift ! the usefulness- of a trick I the ] convenience of a stretching

      conscience ! ' And after the fair man has thus acted ; after he has thus tricked ; after he has thus dodged ; after he has done that , which a man with a spark of honour would have despised himself had the bare thought of doing it only crossed his brain : after he has just done this , he modestly says : — " We do not know that it is necessary to say another word in answer to the vapouring of tbe Northern Star of the 9 th , instant , except that ail the terms ' misstatement' , ' wilful misrepresentation , ' ' disingenuous conduct , ' &a , ic , recoil , not by assertion , but by demonstration , upon the heads of those who use them . "

      Was ever ! impudence more impudent than that on this earth ? i If there were , pray what was it like t The terms are applicable to you , and to you alone , Air . Mercury . You have net shaken them off ! You have only fixed them more certainly . With the ingenious calculations tho Mercury has based on the quotation from Mr . O'Connor ' s letter of April 22 nd , we shall not , at present , meddle . We have no need to do so . They cannot by possibility have anything to do with the question in dispute between the Mercury and us . What was wtitten by Mr . O ' Connor on the 22 ud of April cannot by possibility be made to appear as an articlejof our ' s of the 26 th of August . To that article we pin the

      Mercury , It was to that he replied ; designating it as " four columns of words with about the same number of ideas . " From that we shall not at present budge . We are not going to allow the Mercury to lead us a dance over any period of time he likes . Our { dispute is a simple one . To ourselves he must confine it , if he pleases . If he is beaten , let him say ! so . If he is conscious that he cannot longer maintain the controversy , unless he gets some one else to aid him , let him also say so : but till he does bo confess , he must pardon us for not permitting him to " run from the question . " To the articles he has attacked he must reply ; and not seek to justify those attacks by quoting from others .

      Wo feel the less called upon to examine his calculations , so founded , because he himself gives them up as of no { moment . He distinctly says ;—" Tbe issue to be decided , however , does not depend upon three or four pounds aa acre in wages , but upon the infinitely more important question , whether any such profits ! aa £ 70 or £ 30 an acre , wages included , can be made yearly by land in general . We deny that onetenth pact of that sum can be realised in ordinary years and by ordinary « ops , under any system of cultivation ; ami we say ] that if either the rich or the poor should embark their time or their money in laid under auy such expectations a& those held out by Mr . O'Connor and the Northern Star , they will find themselves grievously deceived , and will be apt to throw up in disgust a pursuit , which , if followed with perseverance and with sober and well- » egnlated expectations , might conduce essentially to tbeir happiness and to tbe general prosperity . " I

      Now here , for the first time , we have something tangible . For the first time is the question fairly put . For the first time has the Mercury given us a chance of anything to reply to . The Mercury denies that one-tenth partj ) f £ 70 can be realized in ordinary years , by ordinary crops , under any systeh of cultivation . " But on what does he found his denial ? Does he adduce / acts f or does he disprove those we have adduced ? No , His bare denial is all that he essays to offer . Whether the world will consider that denial sufficient , when contrasted with the facts of other people , remains to \ be Beea .

      On an former occasion , on the 26 th of August last , we said that Mr . John Limow , who lives only at Selby , some nineteen miles from Leeds , had conclusively proved that he could grow upon little more than three-fourths of an acre of land , produce which would bring him in £ 57 3 s . 4 d . after he had paid a rack rent ; paid taxes ; paid for seed , and for wear and tear of implements . This statement we have gijren tho figures for , under Mr . Linton ' s own hand . | Tho Mercury must , therefore , excuse us , if we prefer Mr . John Linton ' s hard facts , the result of actual experience ; to his soft denial . Mr . Linton has certainly proved t hat it is possible , with a certain " Bystem of cultivation , " to get more thau ' * one-tenth of £ 70 an acre , wages included . "

      We might be content to leave this portion of the question just where it is . The pitching of a fact against a n > ere assertion ; an assertion unaccompanied by reasoning ; is generally thought to be sufficient . But we are not so content . The Mercury shall have more facts . And when he replies to them , wo trust that he will attempt to gainsay them by something stronger than mere assertion or denial . The fact jwe shall next adduce , to show that more than " one-tenth of £ 70 can be realised from an acre of land , " ib the experience of a farmer not more than { two miles from the Mercury Office door . He pursues a certain " system of cultivation "; and the following is what he has to say on the subject : —

      TO IHK EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN STAR . Sir , —Having been for some time of opinion that the " Land' ? was the only resource ; the only tneanB by which we Can employ the labour of our machinerydisplaced population ; I bave been macbJBterested in the various accounts of experiments in farming which you have published from time to time in the "Star . " I have also read with pleasure your account of tbe •• Potatoa" war which you bave been carrying on with the Leeds Mercury I bave seen his last article in the Mercury of Sept . 23 td , in which he " settles' tbe question in thej old-fashioned " can't-be-done" mode ; by saying •* we deny that one-tenth park of £ 70 or £ 80 ,

      wages included , can be made yearly , in ordinary years by ordinaryicrops . " And does Mr . Baines really think that this assertion of his will be taken as argument against the ] facts detailed by Mr . LIHTON ? If so . I send you a few more such for him to " settle" in the same way ij being convinced that the causes hich have produced bare backs and empty bellies with gorged warehouses ; wbich have produced such tin enormous amount of labour unemployed , while ( Ac Land is comparatively a barren waste for the want of that labour , will very sc » oii be apparent to all , if the qut-stion is to have many more such " settlers" as the Mercury hia attempted to give it .

      First , then , for " Potatoes , " as they seem to be a standing dish . On Monday last I was so curious as to try how many potatoes I had upon two drills , two fe « t apart , and ninety yards long : and taough I have not yet got them to grow " 160 pounda per score yards , " I have not the least doubt but that I shall improve , after reading the Instructions for cutting , manuring , sprouting , planting , && , contained in the article you copied from the Mercury . That article was a gem , which would bave bden lost to the world had you not

      dragged it to light : and I must thank tbe Mercury and you for the real bentflt I have received from' tbe reading of it J ? rom two drills ninety yards long I weighed sixty-nine itonea of potatoes : which will be about 1071 bs . to the drill twenty yards long : or lflOlbs . to twenty square yards . Tbia gives to tbe acre 2 783 stone . Myjcrop of potatoes wM be followed V a crop of rape , tebe cut about March and April next The ground will then be sowad with Sweed turnips . The following I calculate as tbe produce of the two years course : —• ;

      The Northern Star. Saturday, September 50, 1843.

      THE NORTHERN STAR . SATURDAY , SEPTEMBER 50 , 1843 .

      Untitled Article

      DEYELOPEMENT OF THE NEW "HOLY ALLIANCE . " FRANCE , SPAIN , AND IRELAND . . WHO IS THE PROPHET ? It was really very presumptuous in us , noi only to have made a prophecy but to have in * cumbered its fulfillment with so many details : nevertheless we receive daily proof that we were correct not only in our prediction , but in the very means by which it is to be fulfilled . The English press allowed our bait to float for sixteen days upos the surface , until dire necessity compelled the fei to nibble ; and since then we have had ' a succession of greedy bites , not only from our English contemporaries but from our brethren upon the Continent La Presse , a French journal , very hostile to Eog '

      land , bow anticipates the enlistment of a Jarj * French force for the advancement of English policy to the great cost of France ; while the Debats , * journal devoted to the service of any ministry tb « Louis Phiixppb may honour with his countenance ) deals in an unusaally lengthy declaration against Daniel O'Conneia , and the Irish Repealers . Add to these facts the one that Olozaqa , the coadjuW of the bloody Narvaez , has left Madrid upon secret embassy to Queen Christina and the King of the French . As we have no wish to mistake tfcfl opinions of French writers we will here t& forth those portions upon which we mean K *

      comment . La Presse Bays : — " The resignation of our ambassador , whoever nWJ replace him , will restore to England the ground she W lost , and make us lose all the advantage we had gsineo ; still fortunate if we are not asked to interfere toincrw * our deficit * , to interrupt our great works , and to la 11 the support of our arms to advance British policy undtf the plausible pretext of the necessity there exists of p" " ting an end to tbe convulsions of that unfortan" * country . " From the above we learn that the writer antici * pates a deficit in the French Exchequer occasion by the application of French funds for the payme ^ of foreign troops to aid Eoglend in her foreW policy .

      Now let us see what wo wrote upon the 7 tb * September and published upon the 9 ih , under & head ' Work of the Session . " 41 We and our contemporaries hare reviewed t&j Ministerial work of the past Session / according to <* several political peculiarities , but more with » ft * j !* to th 6 disappointment ; created at home , than wftbiejP ' euceto its effect abroad . If tbe Tor / Afifliil * 7 **

      Untitled Article

      A THE NORTHERN STA ^ , *? '

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Sept. 30, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1232/page/4/