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Northern Star (1837-1852), 10th March 1849, Edition 1 of 3, Page unpag

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      GEXTLEMEff , I have read the account of your Wednesday's meeting , held in the Hall of Commerce , Threadneedle-street , with surpassing pleasure l ) ecauBe from it I gather the fact that you are now about to take a step in the right direction ; while the question of Free Trade , in its several phases , is being agitated according to the se-¦ peral interests of different parties , you hare taken it up as a whole , by combining land , manufactures and education .

      Thelandlord agitates the question solely as oneof rent ; while leaning upon his oligarchical crutch , he will not condescend to establish his own altered position upon just as good and mere sound and firm basis as before Free Trade was established . If he consented to the reduction of our navy and military establishments , the sweeping away of the Civil List , to making religion voluntary—or rather , the payment for spiritual service voluntary—the entire disbandment of a police establishment , only rendered necessary to preserve his

      ascendancy by force , the reduction of the salaries of all officials to that standard established by altered circumstances , which would enable them to maintain their social position , and to live just as luxuriously , the prices of all the produce of Labour being reduced ; and to the reduction of the interest upon the National Debt to that standard which would enable the fundholder to procure as much of the necessar ies and luxuries ' of life , according to the reduced standard of prices , as he could formerly procure for the larger amount ; and be it remembered , that when the National Debt was

      contracted , that the amount of interest stipulated to be paid to him would not procure for him the sameamountof produce , ofeitherlandor manufactured goods than one-half that amount would procure for him now . Under these circumstances do you hold it to be national faith that a Reformed Parliament should pay sixty shillings in the pound upon a debt contracted by a Parliament that voted itself profligate , unthrifty , and corrupt , in 1832 , and the more especially when that debt is paid wholly by the labourers of the country ?

      Let me show you the altered position of a fundholder , say in 1812 , ' 13 , 'H or ' 15 , deriving £ 100 a-year , or any amount , from the funds , at that time , as compared with Ms present positon . His flour , a principal ingredient of life , he will get for a third of the price that he paid then ; his stockings , shirts , drawers , pocket-handkerchiefs , for less than a fourth of tliepr ice ; his woollen clothing at the slopshops which compete against the labourer , at a third of the price ; his meat at half the price ; his butter and cheese at less than half the price ; his boots , Ehoes , and hats at about

      half the price ; his furniture at less than half the price ; his wines , spirits , and luxurieswhich he may or may not nse—at a considerably reduced price ; his rent , in consequence of the competition in the building trade—all affecting every branch of your trade—at a considerably reduced rate . He can travel three miles by an omnibus for threepence , instead of paying three shillings for an old hackney coach ; he can buy his newspaper for fivepence , instead of sevenpence . Jf ow that alone , if he is a politician , would save him £ ' 212 s . 2 d .

      a year , or nearly the interest upon £ 100 ; and then , instead of paying in fare , coachman and guards , over £ 6 for going to Manchester in twenty-four hours , he can now go there more comfortably , and in better company , in a third class train , in less than ten hours , for oneseventh of the money ; so that in that alone he will save over £ 5 , and fourteen hours' time . Then if he received even one letter in the week , it would amount to £ 2 12 s . a year , as the average rate of postage would be about a shilling ; whereas he could now receive an equal number for 4 s . 4 d .

      Well , then , if the interest upon the funded debt was reduced even by one-third , leaving the fundholder in a better position , it would amount to as much as the whole of ilr . Con-BEX ' s proposed reduction . And I tellyou now , that the Government is precisely in the same situation as any other trader , and the iundholder is in precisely the same situation as any other creditor of a trader , and that now it is all humbug to talk of preserving intact that national faith which was based upon tlie faith of Protection , which was the keystone of the arch .

      Gentlemen , I have very frequently shown you that prices in the retail market are not always measured by those in the wholesale market , and , without travelling back to the war times , let me measure my assertion by a period within every man ' s knowledge . Wheat now averages about forty-five shillings the quarter , and during the summer of 1847 it was one hundred and twenty shillings a

      quarter . WeU , the price of the quartern loaf now I put down lowly at 6 tL , while at no time during the summer of 1847 , while wheat was nearly three times the price , did the quartern loaf reach Is . Id ., so that measuring the retail article oy the present Avholesale price , the quartern loaf should not be more than 4 § d . ; thus I show you that the baker cheats you out of twenty-five per cent in the article of bread alone .

      2 iow this would not be the case if , according to the proposition of Mr . "Walton , a large number of consumers were their own producers . You must observe that , although I acquiesce hi the principle propounded by Sir . Waitox , I do not adopt his numerical scale of 1 , 000 families , nor shall I assume that he means to stop there ; but what I wish to bring your mind to bear especially upon is this , that if

      you have Free Trade in everything else , you must have Free Trade in Land as the only possible means of employing the otherwise surplus population , whose wages are measured by the destitution of honest millions , constituting an idle competitive reserve . Gentlemen , let me now call your attention , Firstly , to the justice of Free Trade in Land .

      Secondly , to the reason why Free Trade in Land is resisted . And , Thirdly , the effect that Free Trade in Land would have upon all classes of society . Firstly . — As to its Justice . Suppose Protection to have enhanced the value of Land , and repeal of that protection to diminish its value , can we not furnish precedent from State necessity , national requirement , and from what proprietors of other properties have been compelled to submit to ? Suppose , then , a large ship-owner to have invested thousands , or hundreds of thousands , in ships , upon the faith of the Navigation Laws , as framed when he embarked in the

      speculation . His property , by the alteration of the Navigation Laws , will be incalculably reduced iu value . Suppose a large sugar , tea , coffee , or spirit importer to have a large capital invested in those articles , and a large reduction in duty , which would reduce the price of the article , to iake place ; what , in such case , is the justification ? Why , that individual interests must give way to national requirements . But wh y is it not so with the Land ? Simply because , notwithstanding the Reform Bill , Land is stall governed b y the old feudal system : the

      landlords have contracted debts , entered into engagements and contracts , made marriage settlements and provision for younger children , upon national faith , based " upon Protection , while traders were not exactly in . the same situation . "While possessing the reins ofgovernnieiii , they quartered ; their youriger children upon the industry of the country—22 ? Pairs lave the presentation to nearly 3 J 000 livings ; the Army , Xavy , Ordnance , Civil List , Church , Police , Customs , Excise , Legal Job" ^ gs , Conunissio ' nerships , aud Colonial ^ ffices are aH ' at their disposal , and , therefore , *««• have the fat and the lean . Between the t " J horns of the dilemma * the abolition of

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      Protection reduces the value of their estates a ™ makes their liabilities more oppressive , while the adherence to patronage furnishes a means of family support ; and this is the reason why , while submitting sulkily to Free Trade , they adhere pertinaciously to that extravagance , the abolition of which would level the waters . Secondly . —The reasons why Free-Trade in Land is resisted are , because the landlords are , in a great measure , the mere nominees of large farmers , who dread the subdivision , lest the value in the retail market Bhould enhance the value in the wholesale market ; that is the landlords' reason : the manufacturers' reason ^ i rOtPCtlOTl VAnilAno ilin •* - * . ! ^ i > j . 1 _ _ _ , .

      is , lest free labour , in the free labour market , should establish the standard of wages in the artificial market : and the working man's objection—or rather his want of energy—arises from the fact that , in too many instances , hia wife—an artificial creature—has been trained to an artificial life , and prefers the buzz , the clatter , and the news , the glittering shop window , and the gin palace , to a comfortable home

      surrounded b y her family , and supported by the free labour of her husband . In proof of this I can assnre yon , that some of the best occupants upon the several estates belonging to the Land Company have been dispirited , disheartened , and banished , by the continuous tormenting and dissatisfaction of the artificially-trained wife . But , nevertheless , all will adopt it at last .

      Thirdly . —The effect that Free Trade in Land would have upon all classes of society . would be—notwithstanding Free Trade—to increase the value of Land , and thereby to increase the value of every other property in the kingdom ; but , above all , the greatest and most valuable property—Labour , when the Land was thrown open to the competition of that large and influential class . Now , letme place thesituationofanoperative clearly before you . Would not the operatives of England be too happy if their masters entered into a contract to allow them four days '

      work in every week throughout the year and measure the wages at two shillings and sixpence a day , or fifteen shillings a week ? Surely , then , if the labour of the hired labourer is worth two shillings and sixpence a day to the employer , it is worth as much to himself ; and see what the denial of work for two days in the week entails upon him . Five shillings a week—the amount of wages he loses for the two days—amounts to £ 13 a year , which would pay the rent of the best cottage and four acres of the best land purchased by the Laud Company . It would pay the rent of

      eight acres of land , purchased at £ 40 an acre , at four per cent , upon the outlay . Gentlemen , succeed to-morrow in getting a million , or half a million acres of Land—and mind , scores of millions have been stolen from you—and you may give the Government a guarantee that there will not be an unemployed labourer in England . What surplus belonging to the building trade and to agriculture , could you not employ ? while I have frequently shown you that their employment would give vitality to every branch of Labour , trade , and commerce—and to this you must come at last . -

      I have shown you the difference between the wholesale price of flour and the retail price of bread ; and I will now show you the difference between the wholesale and retail rent of land . Take a thousand acres of land , let to a farmer at a pound an acre , and subdivide it Into farms of five , ten , fifteen , or twenty acres , and in twenty-four hours you will have it tenanted by free labourers , and industrious tenants , at thirty shillings an acre—not a defaulter durin » the whole of life—and at the

      end of seven years not an occupant would take £ 3 an acre for it ; and then , instead of grumbling at a splendid cottage—the like of which he never lived in , or expected to live in—he would live underground in a cave—take lodgings two , three , four , or five miles off—until , out of his own industry , he erected himself a house . You may ask , why do landlords object to receiving £ 1 , 500 a-year instead of £ 1 , 000 ayear for that estate ? My answer is—because they fear that the increased rent might lead to die abolition of power which secures

      patronage . Again , you may ask why the farmers object to pay l , O 0 OJ . a-year for a farm worth I , o 00 ? The answer is—because they cultivate it in a slovenly manner , because they do not employ a sufficient amount of labour to produce the largest amount of profit . And again I remind you , that if a large farmer pays five shillings an acre more than the value of a thousand acres of land , it increases his rent by 2501 . a-year , or , at four per cent ., would pay the interest upon 6 , 2501 . capital ; while it would not signify a straw , at the end of ten years , whether a small tenant paid 2 / . or 21 . as . an acre for four acres of land .

      The more he had to pay , the more industrious he would be . I could enlarge to an almost unlimited extent upon this subject . I rejoice that you have adopted the principle , and that you have sent your petition to Sir Robert Peel . But , mind , although the folly of to- day is the wisdom of to-morrow , the Honourable Baronet must not rob me of my laurels , as next week I will supply you with an extract from a letter addressed to the Irish landlords upon the subject of Free Trade , and published in the " Star" of the 17 th of July , 1841 , recommending the identical policy now adopted by Sir Robert Peel .

      Gentlemen , as the House of Commons is almost exclusively governed by precedent , let me now call your attention to the manner in which the landlords , both English and Irish , dealt with the highest description of property —I mean Church Property . Formerly , tithes were paid in land—that is , the parson took the tenth sheaf of corn , the tenth cock of hay , and the tenth rod of potatoes , as his share of the produce ; thus partaking of all casualties and calamities to which the crop was liable . Now that was the ancient system of paying the Church ; butjsince those good old times ,

      tithes have been commuted into a rent-charge , and now the parson receives his tithes according to an average price of seven years . According to the first mode , he toot his share in all chances , his tenth rod of sound potatoes , or his tenth rod of rotten potatoes—now he is benefitted by a calamity , as the loss from damage or failure increases the price of the remaining produce ; however , it is still a corn rent , payable upon the average price of corn for seven years ; and again I ask you , what can be more fair , just , equitable , or

      proper , than that the landlords' demand should be regulated by the same standard that established the claim of the Church , that is , by a corn rent ? that is , that he should receive his due proportion of the produce of the land , being co-partner with the tenant , but npon very raejual terms , as the rent of the landlord does nof anjouht to a fifth of the expenditure and liabilities of the tenant ; yet , according to the present system , " the tenant is obliged to vote for the landlord or surrender his farm , while the landlord represents himself . Thus

      the tenant , representing five-sixths of the property , ^ n ot represented , while the landlord representing one-sixth , is represented .

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      Gentlemen , it is very easy to beast of prophecies that never were made ; but now allow me to call your attention to propositions of mine , which stand upon the journals of the House of Commons since 1833 . Here they r * ii « i •_ A _ T . » .. * i . * i ? -.

      arc : — ,. "To move fov leave to bring inaSfli to compel Irish landlords to give leases for ever at a corn rent ; and in all cases where lands are now held upon lease or accepted proposal , and are considered too dew , to give to the tenants of such lands the right of appealing to a jury , who shall establish the value in like manner as the value of private property is now ascertained , when required by the Crown , or legally authorised corporations , or individuals , for national or private pvuposcs . " " For leave to bring in a bill to make legal provision for the poor of Ireland . " "For leave to bring in a Bill to consolidate the several Stamp Acts now in force in Ireland . " " For leave to bring in a Bill for the better regulation of Quarter Sessions Courts in Ireland , with a view of making those courts cheap courts of equity , as well as ceurts of law , whereby cheap justice might be brought home to the door of every poor man . "

      " To move a resolution of the House , that it is desirable , as well for the ends of justice as for the tranquillity of Ireland , that all clergymen , being magistrates , should be deprived of the Commission of the Peace . " Now those are the measures that Icontended for in 1833 and ' 34 , and I shall conclude this letter with three extracts' from my letters to the Irish landlords , the one published on the 10 th of July , l « 4 i , # a » as follows i"Toil can be all robbed in less than six weeks , though you had the Court , the Lords , and the Commons with you ; and then you -would be thrown into revolution with the fundholder , the parson , the mortgagee , the simple contract creditor , your mothejrg , your brothers , your sisters , and your dependents , who will be as loth to give up their grasp upon their monopoly , as you have been to surrender yours . Judge , then , in which situation you can best arbitratewhether before or after transfer . "

      The next is from the paper of the Bame date , and is as follows ;—" 1 mention these tilings to warn you of your danger—to alarm , you . of tlie tUiefs appYoatVv—tOTWisejouto action , in order that , profiting by the pourtrayal of your own folly and the folly of others , you may take the means of doing , gratuitously for yourselves , that which if left undone toy you will be done by rougher hands ; for done , believe me , it will be , and that right speedily . My Lords and Gentlemen , pray , pray , pray keep that one feature full in view—THAT DOSE IT MUST BE , and , therefore , the question is , WHO SHALL DO IT V The last is from the " Star" of thel 7 th of July , 1841 , and is as follows : —

      "My Lords and Gentlemen , — "Political Economy" has no "finality , " and , believe me , that the political economists will never rest satisfied till they make you tenants in your own houses , stewards to your owu estates , and beggars from the Pole , the Turk , the Russian , the Prussian , and the American , upon your own land . They wish to place vou upon the shop-board , making breeches and coats , which " the foreigner may ormay not purchase according to convenience ; while they would make you dependents upon the foreigner for that which you must have three times a day , or starve , or do that which , lam quite sure , you never coitid bring yourselves toy as you haw transported thousands «» on tkowandsforthesdme—STEAL . " r

      Now my letters to the Irish landlords were written from York Castle in 1841 , all upon the subject of Free Trade and its consequences , so you have my warning voice to them , and my propositions submitted to the House of Commons in 1833 , while you will recollect that at the close of last Session I gave notice oi a motion , the object of which was to attach to each workhouse a sufficient quantity ofland to employ the Labour of the unwilling idlers , and to divide the profits amongst them .

      Gentlemen , 'I always looked upon the Trades of England as the great stumbling-block in the way of national improvement ; I now look upon them as pioneers in the march of Progress . Do not mind the potato rot , the corn blight , the love of women for gin palaces , and the love of some drones for idleness . Open the market for industry , and then appoint me FLOGGER GENERAL of the willing idler , and you may depend upon it that I will not spare the whip and spoil the child , but that I will administer a sufficient amount of counter-irritation to the

      back to give vitality and spring to the legs and arms , and a well-stocked lardev for the stomach , as the result . Go on , then—do not stop short of the mark ; and if trade should get brisk , and your leaders should desert you , let the volunteers carry on the war of Right against Might—of Justice against Injusticeof Knowledge against Bigotry and Intolerance —of Profitable Industry against Unprofitable Idleness . Your cheerful co-operator and obedient servant , Feakgtjs O'Conn ob .

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      THE TOOTING CASE . JUDGE'S CHAMBERS . —Monday . The Queen oy the Prosecution of tiie Guardiaxs of the holborn and chelsea union v . Lrouet . In this case an order nisi had been obtained by Mr . Bnllantine , on the part of the defendant , to remove the indictment found herein , the coroner's inquisitions , as also the depositions and all proceedings had thereon , by writ of certiorari , from the Central Criminal Court into the Queen ' s Bench , on the ground that an unfair prejudice had been created in the minds of the public by inflammatory and unjust newspaper articles and reports , and also that from the state of the defendant ' s health , he labouring under a disease ( inflammation of the heart . and lunss ) , death might be produced from the

      excitement arising by being placed at the bar of the Old Bailey to take his trial ; and further , that the depositions upon which he was indicted showed no case to go to a jury ; and a trial in the Court of Queen ' s Bench would be less influenced by public prejudice than a trial at the Central Criminal Court . Mr . Peiebsdorff , with Mr . Duscombe , on the part of the Holbova Union , now showed cause against the order being made absolute for the issuing of the writ of certiorari . Sir . Bauamine having replied , Mr . Justice Patteson said , in givingjudgment , he was not called upon to say whether the indictments were sustainable or not ; and ho ought to be careful before he hazarded even an opinion , and he would wish it to be understood , and that it should go

      abroad , that he expressed no opinion on the point either one way or the other . The indictments were found , and they must be tried before a Middlesex common jury ; and it was the same thing whether they were tried at the Old Bailey or the Queen ' s Bench ; the only difference being , that in the one case the defendant must stand before the bar , and in the other on the floor of the court , except that a new trial might be applied for . If the present application was granted , he saw no reason why it should not be granted in case of murder . With the condition hi life of the parties he had nothing to do ; and , therefore , nnder all the circumstances , he was of opinion that there was no ground for the removal , and that the writ ought not to issue . The order must be refused . Order discharged accordingly .

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      As UsviiSE Policy . —JcrroU ' t Weekly Nevis thus refers , in not an unfriendly spirit , to the radical fault of the present agitation for financial reform : — "It is certainly desirable to save ten millions a year if no important sacrifice is made ; but it is felt that ten millions saved is not ten millions got , and that after all it is but a poor instalment ot the nation s wants . Having worried and fumed oiu-selves ; bavin * wrenched asunder private connexions , as all agitations do ; having negfected our private affiui _ s and spent no inconsiderable sum , we shall be cheated of the hard-earned and petty victory by a compromise at the last moment ; and takingnfteon or ten shillings in the pound , we shall be left , with an uWornJa Parliament , to a rono _ wed system of e ^ ereould smaller point of

      agita-^ eSri a K have been selected , never one j wwwento ss »« s & wsf * a J ^^ eSth ^ S ^ USrSe Shin ' ir the requisite number of postage-s amps . SSstf&saasaKMsa 9 ? f ws hSeen revised throughout the kingopen lat « r than heretofore .

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      ¦ ¦ MR . KYDD'S TOUR . TO THE EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN STAB . Djiar Sir , —Since I last wrote . I have attended meetings continuously , almost night after night . During my visit to Liverpool last week , at the close of my first lecture on Financial Reform , Mr . Broderip , a leading member of the Council of the Liverpool Financial Reform Association , offered a series of remarks on the character of the body whose interests he represented . He said the Association -was not at a'l political in its nature , although , no doubt , important political results would follow from its existence . The members of the society , with whom he was personally acquainted , were to a man in favour of extending the suffrage . The propriety of linking the suffrage and a reduction of taxation together , and making such a junction the basis of their

      propapandisin , had been seriously and deliberately discussed by the council—the suffrage portion had , after mature consideration , been abandoned , a ' .-tliaugh—judging from the debate on Mr . Cobden ' s motion—he was of the opinion that widening the basis of the House of Commons would , after all , have to be the preliminary towards any important curtailment of financial extravagance . As for Mr . Cobden ' s measure , viewed by itself , was not worth an EFFORT . Mr . Cobden was not the representative of the Liverpool Financial Reform Association . He ( Mr . Cobdeu ) had declared his approval of a reduction of taxation of some £ 10 , 000 , 000 , and they ( the Council of the Financial Keform Association ) k

      too' advantage of euch declaration to popularise the principles they advocated . This was a full explanation of the connexion between the member for the West Riding and the Liverpool Financial Reformers . A conversation of some length , between myself and Mr . Broderip , was continued , the nature of which the reader will easily surmise from the foregoing remark ? . I never wish to meet a more honourable political friend or opponent than Mr . liroderip ; and I hope the mere surface Reformers , who are at present braying , like a well-known quadruped when his ears are tickled with a straw , will profit by the emphatic and sensible declaration , "Mr . Cobden'e measure , by itself , is not worth an effort . " One feature in the composition of the Chartist

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      body is worthy of notice . It is the ' great accession of youths , from eighteeu to twvnty-five years' of age . T ^ hese doling men , full of energy and ' eourage , have grown to manhood within a few' ye ' ars . " ; -They are the pupils of the agitation of 1839 , and : oM 842 , ' uni-Uag buoyancy aud liope . What may . not those joung men accomplish , if they continue , to ( . da » Qte ; their minds to the study of questions of social ,. political , and literary , interest ? The old . will-dlc out . but the young , like the sapling , will crow " sturdy with years . Never had youth such opportunities' as tlie young men of this time . ' Europe full of revolution and change , the industrial mismanagement " of their own country increasing perplexity , andtpwivingithe incapacity of her present rulers , are atb fields for lessons traughtwirh importance and interest ; v Let me ask our ypung men to go on in this good- work , and endeavour to get others to aid them . , .-Countrymen , wrsake now and for ever the allurements Pf dissipation , trifling , and what is miscalled pleasure ,, for the ftmbition

      noblep . of saving your coantrv , for on you resits the hiture fate of millions : - ' The audienres attending my lectures in Manchester mcre&se rapidly . ; On Snn'day eveuing last , the People ' s Institute wag filled at-fine penny admission . This is a great change in a few weekaj-nndis attributable to no excitement of a . political kiod . It is the calm and steady niarck . of . myid Uiat never tetrogades , and a tribute of respect to'She : great prihci pies of which I am the humWadyocate ;"'; I hope all the districts in'Noriih ' and ; i 5 trath Lancashire and Yorkshire will Bend' delegate to Todmorden on Sunday , the 18 th , go that we'may be enabled to reflect on the past , andy impossible , do something for the better time coming . — : I am , as ever ) your obedient servant , Samuel Kydd . r . S . —AU parties desirous of my services must write to Mr . T . Ormesher , 52 , Little Bridgewaterstreet , Deansgate , Manchester . ! S . K . a , — - .

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      NOTTINGHAM . MR . O'CONNOR'S LETTER " TO THE C 1 LUITISTS . " TO THE EDITOR OF TIIE NOKTHEHNSTAH . Sin , —We should be exceedingly obliged if you would allow us to say a few words in friendship to Mr . O'Connor . We have no ill-feeling . towards him , neither have we any desire to sow disunion in the Chartist ranks . IVe have advocated the principles of the Charter through evil and through , good report , some of us at the cost of our personal liberty ; but we assure Mr . O'Connor the opinions we hold on political questions , we held long before the name of Mr . O'Connor or the Charter was known to us : opinions which have been held and promulgated by the democrats of every age and of every- country in the world . Many of us are as old as Mr . O'Connor ,

      and wo trust equally as capable . of thinking , notwithstanding his gratuitous assertion , that those who call themselves Republicans "know nothing of the moaning of the term . " We have not gathered our opinions from him , and will not , therefore , hold ourselves responsible to him . We telljiim we do sympathise with tho .. democrats of France , and , indeed , with suffering humanity everywhere . The wobld is oub cocatbv aim ) to do good OUR religion . It appears to us rather strange that any man professing the opinions : Mr . O'Connor professes , should nave taken offence because we and others have thought right to celebrate the revolution of February , and do honour to tho democrats of Prance . and other countries .

      Mr . 0 Connor says in Ins letter that we have no right to compare Republican governments with monarchies , and proceeds to say that in America there is as much " Class-distinction and popular discontent as in any monarchy in tho woi'ld . " Now wo frequently l'ead American papers , but cannot perceive that such is the fact ; there may be a little noise with the free soil party , butstill the Americans are wedded to their institutions , and believe them to be the most perfect in the world ; however , if they are not , they have the power to make them the perfection of human wisdom . One thing is certain , there is no lauded aristocracy in America , and the Americans are blessed with a cheap government ; land is cheap , and the people of America have in greater abundance the necessaries of life than the ¦

      people of any other country . But what is the use of Mr . 0 ' Connor blaming us for holding nltra-domocratic opinions and promulgating them , when he tells us there is not a " particle of .. difference between a Republic and a Monarchy with the Charter ? If he really thinks so , his letter of lasfc week is a mere string of words without meaning , a fli g ht of the imagination which conjured up a sort ot bugbear in the shape of Republicanism . But lie seems to be afraid of offending the middle classes ; we beg to remind him that the middle classes are always behind on the march for reform . When we have advanced a little further they will become Chartists , and will carry the Charter as they recently carried Corn-law repeal . If France is . not all we could wish , we have no doubt she will be before

      many years elapse , when democracy is firmly established and fully developed there . There is no evidence in Mr . O'Connor ' s letter to prove that in Switzerland there is one law fov the rich , and another Jfor the poor , because one man knocked another man down . We fancy that in every country of the civilised world ( Switzerland not excepted , ) there is a law to protect the weak against the strong . . . Mr . O'Connor tells us that in Belgium the neople have got all but the Charter , and cheei'fuTly pay from £ 5 to £ 18 per acre rent , for land . We are not awave what this " all but" means ; bnt if " all but " the Charter would raise the rent of the land in this

      country from £ 1 an acre , to £ 5 or £ 18 . an acre , we say , emphatically , from such an " all but" as this , " Good Lord , deliver us 1 " It is of no use talking about the "Pope , 'Pretender , President , or the Devil ; " only that if a President were under " popular control , " he would have no will of his own , whether he were elected for life , or for four years : so that Mr . O ' Connor ' s arguments on that score go for nothing . If the time intervening between the election iu America of one President and another , be " one continuous period of turmoil , " what turmoil would there not be in this country , with annual elections for Members of Parliament ? In conclusion , we really are astonished that Mr . O'Connor should have written such a letter as that

      addressed to the Chartists in last week s » S « r ; in fact , we cannot perceive the use of a President under any circumstances ; the office , in our opinions , is a relic of monarchy — of barbarism , and will ultimately be dispensed with ; a President for life we consider not only useless , but a positive evil . On behalf of the Republicans of Nottingham , J . Sautjek , W . O . Bexier , A . Maltby , J . PiiocTon , G . Rodgers , J . Barber . . Temperance House , Lowe Pavement , March Oth .

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      THE VICTIMS . AN ADDRESS OF TIIE WEST RIDING RELIEF COMMITTEE TO TIIE CHARTISTS OF THE WEST RIDING OF YORKSHIRE . We , the Relief Committee , who are appointed to look after the families of our friends now suffering in Wakefield House of Correction , call upon you , as men , to come forward and assist us in the hour of need . You will remember that we . have Lightowler . Smyth and Son , Frith , Angus , Wat Tyler , and many others , with large fitmiliea , vtio big suffering through the loss of their natural protectors . We appeal to the Chartists of the West Riding of Yorkshire to arouse themselves to a sense of their duty . It Is incumbent upon them to enable us to relieve

      the families of our friends , who are-suffermg in the cause of Democracy . Chartists ,-we-have eighteen families , consisting of upwards of eightysoids , made widows and orphans by th e accursed laws of our law makers , and if you have a spark of humanity or feeling in your bosoms , come forward and assist us . All donations , however small ,, will . be thankfully received by the committee , who , meet every Saturday evening in the Democratic School Room , Croftstreet , Wakefield-road , from half-past seven to halfpast nine o ' clock , and on Sunday , evening , from six to nine . Post-Office orders must be' made-payable to Thomas Wilcock , and letters"directed to Robert Ambler , 64 , Bower-street , Bradford ^ ^ » ; : Pinned on behalf of the ConAuttee , v ' ° J . SffiEt ; BKHsidant *! .-T . Wilcock , . Treasurer , R . Akmip ,, . Secretary . ¦ Bradford , March 4 th , 1849 . ;" ,. . / ,, ' , " j , " .., .,

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      Malta , February 25 . —An artillery / . ^ oldier shot himself on Friday last : he put his . muskct under his chin , but it is supposed to have slipped " on touching the trigger , as the ball and fii ? e bte ^ off 4 i £ chin , mouth , and nose . Ho . lies in . a ; Korriblc' sth % . Last night , at half-past eight , a soldieicof « the ^ 69 th fehot himself whilst on sentry at the palace . 8 "fl © 9 js ' said to be dead . No clue has jet beejfrobJStoed ^ fOl'j tjlC reasons of these dreadful ; acts . XiiThe * VPSIiilSer is' tdday , like an English sununev ; £ ? n ? i £ ' £ 8 ; JwJJbiH « " . .:...-. . -- . sisiriZ . 1 SS& 32 && ¦ ¦ ¦

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      -te ^ c- ^ y C ^ y ^^^^ T c ^^ ' The following appeared in our Third I ^ difioo * ^ of last week-: Dublin , Thursday . —The Wmt op Error . — It has been intimated to tlie siate prisoners that the . arjjumenuonUie v . ritof error , in the case of Smith O'Brien and othsrs against the Queen , cannot be entered into , at the very earliest , before In ? ., 20 th of May , but more probably not until a month 'later , namelv . the 20 th of June .

      . Removal ok John- Mitchel . — The Cork Examiner says : — " Orders , we understand .- have bceii issued for the removal of John Mitchel from Bermuda to the Cape of Good Hope . The climate of the latter colony is very genial , and peculiarly adapted for persons affected with pulmonary comj . plaints , —so much so , that it is considered a Ma . deira for the Bast Indians . " Tlie : Times adds : — " Ot Mr . MitcWs removal from the Bermudas we believe there is no doubt , and that it has been already carried iato effect is suspected from the fact of the last West Indian , mail briuging no letter from tile convict to his family in Ireland . " m

      Friday-Rklea . se of Mr . O'IIiggin's axd Others on Bah-. —Yesterday the Lord-Lieutenant errlercd the release oi bail of the KiliiMinham Young Irelanders ; viz ., Messrs . Rea , Mean ) , 0 'Higgins , Halpin Meyler , and J . Brennan . Deaths from Starvation . —The account of deaths from starvation continue to increase . In Tipnerary a father aud daughter have botli died for want of food . The details as given in the proviucial journals of the miseries of the lower classes are truly lamentable .

      FRANCE . —Friday — Fimther Arrests . —Fifteen persons have been arrested on a charge of rebellion at Lanonaille , and committed to the prison of Perigueux . Several others had effected their escape , amongst whom were the son aud sotv-inlaw of the late Mayor of the town , who were believed to be the leaders of the insurrection . The Consliiuiionnel announces as official that the Pope has claimed the collective intervention of Aus * tria , Spain , Naples , and France , to re-establish the former government at Rome . Count Martini , the Sardinian minister at 3 aeta , has received an official notification of this demand of intervention from the Curdinal Secretary of State .

      THE ROMAN STATES . EvAcrMTio . v of Ferrara .. —A telegraphic despatch has been received here ( Paris ) from Ferrara , dated 25 th ult ., announcing the complete evacuation of that city and the papal territory by the Austrian troops .

      OPENING OF THE PRUSSIAN CHAMBERS . Berun , Feb . 26 . —The Prussian Chambers were opened ( his morning ! at half-past eleven o ' clock , by the King . Cologne , Feb . 26 . —The day before yesterday being the anniversary of the French Revolution , it was kept here by a grand political dinner , whieb was attended by anuraeraus patty . Some « hta democratic speeches were made , especially l > y the Deputy Geadbaeb , against the house of Hohenzollern , the Count of Brandenburgh , &c . &c .

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      CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT . Fai . se Charge op a Criminal Assault . —On Thu 2 - day S . Cooper , 59 , soldier , was indicted for feloniously accusing llenry Charles Sellers , clerk , of an offence punishable by the statute , but of a nameless character , with intent to extort money from him . Mr . Bodkin and Mr . ltickard conducted tho prosecution , and Mr . Uallautinc defended the prisoner . The charge made by Cooper against Mr . Sellers will bo in the recollection of our readers . Mr . ISodkin said ;—That two bills had been preferred against Mr . Sellers at tho Middlesex Sessions , both of

      which were thrown out by the grand jury , but tho prosecutor , feeling that this result ¦«;« not a sufficient vindication of his character , had decided upon the present proceedings in order fully to prove to his own friends and the public , that there was no reality or foundation for the odious accusation that had boon made against him . After the cxnininatiod of several witnesses , Mr . Justice Crcsswell summed up , and the jury immediately returned a verdict of guilty . The prisoner was then sentenced to be transported for fifteen Years .

      POSTPOXEMEXT OV TUK TltlAL OF Mr . DkOVTET . — On Friday , Mr . Ballantine applied to the court to postpone the trial of Bartholomew Peter Drouefc to the next session . He held in his hand tlie affidavit of a professional gentleman , a member of the College of Surgeons , which stated that Mr , Dronct was suffering from inflammation of the heart and lungs , and , although he was partially recovering , he was still in a most precarious state of health , ami quite unfit to take his trial . Upon this ground he applied for the postponement . —There was no opposition made to the application , and the Lord Chief Baron said it was quite clear that , under the circumstances , trial must be postponed . AttEOED Murder . —J . Manby , aged 32 , described as a p lasterer , was arraigued on the coroner ' s inquisition for the wilful murder of his wife Elizabeth Manb y . The evidence of the principal witness ( Mrs . Griirder ) was not sufficiently conclusive , and the jury , ni ' tcv a few mintues * consultation , found a verdict of '' Not Guilty . "

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      TriE Inquest ox Dr . Crook . —On Friday forenoon , at eleven o ' clock , Mr . G . I . Mills , deputycoroner for Middlesex , and a most respectable jury of the inhabitants of Islington , assembled at the Pied Bull , near the church , for the purpose of inquiring into the death of Dr . William Henry Crook , aged sixty-five , who was discovered with his throat cut in the Caledonian-road , near tho now Model Prison , on the morning of Wednesday last . The particulars will be found in our sixth page . After the examination of several -witnesses , the jury returned the following verdict : — " We find that the deceased , Dr . William Henry Crook , was found dead on the morning of the 2 Sth of February , in a brick-field , situate in the Calodonianroad , Islington , with his throat cut in tho manner in which it has been viewed by the jury , but how or by whom such wound was inflicted there is no evidence before the jury to show . "

      Melancholy Catastrophe ox tub Sha . v . xo . v . - — Wednesday last a sail-boat left Williamstown quay , at tho opposite side of tho river , for Di-ominoer , at the Nenagh side . There were nine passengers on board and three boatmen . The boat was als 6 laden with sheep and cows , purchased at the fair of Mountshannon , county of Galway , and the property of some of the men on board . The day was cold and stormy , and about half-way across there arose . i sudden squall , which immediately swept away the sails . The boat then became unmanageable , and the passengers confused : one of them

      struck a cow with a stick , when she made a plunge , and with her hoof started one of the boards in the bottom of the boat , which instantly filled with water . The unhappy passengers were seized with horror—they lost all presence of mind—and they Sank , without a Struggle , to vise no more . The boy at the helm saved himself by clinging to an oar . The passengers were " jobbers , " four of them inhabitants of Nenagh , and named Edward Moore , Patrick Oleary , John Flynn , nnd Thomas Eg . ™ , all of whom have left wives . Two other men wer « buyers of Mr . James Adams , of Cork , and had £ 400 in their t ossession .

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      To The Tr Ades.

      TO THE TR ADES .

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      THE EMMETT BRIGADE TO TTTP pn-in SSJflKSffiS ^ -M ^ S

      . ; ' 'Awake , arise , or bo for ever-fallen ' !" nrtS ^ f r > who havb adoPte ( 1 that martyred nohjeof nature , Robert Emmett , as our . » patron hSL j'Y m - ' 0 kc youv a « l-asri vn ' thenameof injured humamty-again , in the name of that justice on which the base oppressor has ' dared to stamp t « m hoS , » ctUI on you . to rally to tlve glomuV J , f " The -People ' s Charter , " and to convince the base , treacherous Whigs that their system of espionage is bootless—that their employment of the Powells and Bavratts has gained them nought but ignominy—tha t , dauntless as ever , you will rally round our peaceful banner , raising hish the riorious watchwords : « liberty . Enualitv . Vatm-nitv t »

      Kemomber , that without the franchise-without political equnhty-we arc slaves ; remember , too , that , there arc many victims to Whig espionage , whose wives and children , without vour aid , will pine and suffer in want , misery , andVetchednoss . S > nall such things be ? No ! a thousand times—No e * > ' ° Vr unit y » philanthropy , and love of justice forbid it , ye admirers of the dauntless Hoberfc Enjmett I Then , up again , and enrol yourselves UjMler the banner that still waves proudly unfurled * ' The National Charter Association . " Remember your oft-repeated vow to "tho Charter and Jfo Surrender . " Small aid from each unit , banded together

      m countless myriads , must achieve a great , a glorious victory over the combined forces of tyranny injustice , and oppression . ' then , with spirit , you men of Marylcbone and Paddington I Show that ye possess Fraternitythat ye are determined on Liberty—that political Equality shall prevail ; that you , at least , will "bid the world go free ; " that you are determined to run a race of emulation , and , if possible , furnish forth the man who , duly appreciating tho motives of Robert Emmett , shall , with his free hand—amid the shouts of enfranchised millions—inscribe the epitaph on his now uninscribed tomb .

      Signed , on behalf of the Emmett Brigade , Samuel Mujtden , Chairman . « i * » * ^ ™> Secret « ry . Cricketers Arms , Bell-street , Marylebone , March , 1849 . The Executive Committee of the National Chavtcr Association met at their rooms , 144 , High Hoiborn , on Friday evening last , March the 2 d . Mr . Thomas Clark in the ch . iir . A communication was read from Glasgow , signed b y Duncan Sherrington , approving of the proposed Chartist policy . —Mi Fusson attended as a deputation from Finsbury , to request the Committee to call into existence the Metropolitan Delegate Council , and , on the motion of Mr . M'Grath , tho subject was ordered to bo

      taken into consideration at the next meeting . — Application was made from Ashfovd , Kent , for the missionaries' services , to propagate Chartism in that district ; . to which the assistant-secretary was instructed to reply . —The list of council submitted by Mr . John Jackson , of Manchester , was ordered to be added to the list . The assistant-secretary was instructed to inquire relative to a place for holding public meetings in the borough of Finsbury , and the Committee adjourned . West-Rising Delesate MEETING . — A special West-Riding delegate meeting was held at Dewsbury , on Sunday last , for the purpose of devising measures to more effectuall y organise and aritato the West Biding . Mr . Alderson of Bradford , in the chair

      . —Delegates from the following places were present : Leeds , Bradford , Dewsbury , ITeckmondwike , HuddcrsfieM , Honley , Holmfirth , and Battley . The following resolutions were agreed to : " That in order the more effectually to arouse public attention to the importance of our principles , it is expedient that a local lecturers' plan be drawn up ; the expense to be borne by a general fund raised for that purpose . "—" That the secretary correspond with the various localities not represented at this meeting , and get a list of the persons able and willing to assist in this work . "— " That this meeting stand adjourned to Sunday , the 18 th instant , at Mr . Alderson ' s Room , Butterworth ' s Buildings , Bradford , in order that those districts which have not taken the matter up may have time to do so .

      National . Registration and Gexeu . vl Election Committee . —A meeting of the above body was held at the " Two Chairmen , " Wardour-street , Soho , on Monday evening last . Mr . John Simpson in the chair . The address to the Chartists of Great Britain was brought up , read , recommitted , and ordered to be brought up again at the next meeting , on Monday next . —Mr . Allnutt attended as a deputation from Finsburv , to request that the committee sh ° uld be extended , whereupon it was resolved , — " That this committee recommend to the various localities in and around the metropolis to nominate some of their most active members , at their next meeting , from which nominations the vacancies , f rom various causes , shall be filled up . " The

      committee then adjourned to Monday evening , March 12 th , at eight o clock . Nottingham . —At meetings held at the " Newton ' s Head , " the " Seven Stars / ' the " Colonel llutchingon , " and the " Byron Ward" localities , votes of thanks were g iven to F . O'Connor , Eso ., M . P , fov the borough of Nottingham , for his admirable speech in opposition to the Habeas Corpus Act Suspension Bill . Hatjfax . —A general meeting was held on Monday evening last , in the Working Man ' s Hall , to examine the last quarter ' s account and elect a new council . Messrs . Edwards , Burrows , and Binns audited the accounts , which were passed

      unanimously , and a vote of thanks given to the late council for their services during the past quarter . The following persons were unanimously elected as the council for the next three months : —J . Edwards , B . Wilson , E . B . Burrows , Alex . Stradlin , W . Maud , Win . Lancaster , E . Hooson , J . Clissett , president ; J . Crossland , vice-president and corresponding secretary ; J . Binns , financial secretary ; a-nd'M . Ilirst , treasurer . The minutes of tke preliminary meeting of Lancashire and Yorkshire , held in the Heyrod-street Institution , Manchester , were read and discussed . The following resolution was unanimously agreed to : — " That we call a delegate meetinsr of this district to be holden at Nichols ' s

      Temperance Hotel , Broad-street , at eleven o clock in the forenoon of Sunday , the 11 th inst ., to take into consideration the propriety of electing a delegate or delegates to represent this district in the forthcoming delegate meeting of Yorkshire and Lancashire , to oe holden at Todmorden , on Sunday , the lSth of March , and that the following places be requested to send delegates , viz .: —Halifax , Sowerby Helm , Sowerby Longroyd , Queonshead , Lordship , Mixenden , Wheatley , Warley , Warlcy Edge , Kingcross , Elland , Stainland , and Midgley . —J . CrosstAXD , Secrertry .

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      ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE . Dubwam , March 1 . ATiEUPTisa io Suoot . —Joseph Peyre , a . Trenchman , aged 32 , was charged with having , at Sunderland , on tiro 21 st of November , discharged a gun at Thomas Greenwood , with intent to kill and murder him ; likewise to do him some grievous bodily harm . The prisoner , who it will be remembered was tlie mate of a French ship , on the day in question fired at the prosecutor . The shot struck him about his head and neck , and the sight of one eye had been destroyed . Mr Matthews addressed the jury for the defence . His lordship having summed up , the jury returned a verdict of Guilty , with intent to do crievous bodily harm . His Lordship , in sentencing

      the prisoner , which lie did through an interpreter , said , " Tell the prisoner that tho jury have found him guilty of shooting with intent to do grievous bodily harm , which , b y the law of England , is punishable by transportation ; but that as he is a foreigner , we shall not pass that sentence upon him ; that we respect the laws and customs oif other countries , and we expect the people of other countries will respect ours ; and that shooting at any one is a very heinous offence in the kingdom of England ; that we hope he did the act of which he has been convicted in a moment of passion , and without premeditation , and that he in sincerely sorry for what he has done . Under all the circumstances of tlie case , we shall only sentence him to six months' imprisonment with hard labour . "

      IIiGinvvf Robbery . —Jonathan Bowvon , 21 , was charged with having , at tlie parish of Easington , oa the 30 th December last ( he being armed with a pi 3 tol ) f feloniously assaulted James Simpson Alderson , on tho Queen ' s highway , and stolea from his person £ l ± 10 s ., his monies .- — Joseph Henderson , one of the party who committed the offence , was admitted approver . This witness was subjected to a scverv cross-examination , but nothing material was elicited . Various other witnesses clearly fixed the prisoner with the crime , and the jury found him Guilty . A previous conviction was put in , and he was sentenced to twenty years' transportation . —Prisoner : Thank vou , sir ; I did not know I had so long to live .

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      ¦ ¦/ fr ¦ •• &LC + > sl ~ S /^* t /^ Z ^ a ^^ C ^ G ^ AND NATIONAL TRADES' JOURNAL , li

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      VOL . XII . P . 594 . LOHDQIf , SATURDAY , liRCH 10 , 1849 . „ . ™ " » « p ««** s * £ ! r-;^ == ^ ^ V ... ' ¦ ¦ ¦' - :, ^; 'V * ' t ? irc Shilllnga and Sixpence fiiir ^ iicu'lcr I ^ m ^^^^» mmmm ^^^ m ^^ mK ^^ m *^^* m ^ mmaa *^^ mmm * w ^ ' ^ t *^ mi ^^^

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), March 10, 1849, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1513/page/1/