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I--: r - OBTANl -MEETING OF WuKilSG MEN AT LEEDS . Oii Tuesday evening last , a crowded meeting of the working men of this borough was held at tb /^ Miuie Hall , in Albion Street , to hear a viva voce report oi the statements made by a deputation latelj appointed by the Short Time Committee to lay their views and feelingB before her Majesty ' s government . The meeting was called for eight o ' clock , and by that hour the large and elegant Saloon was crowded to excess . The committee and their friends appeared in the orchestra precisely at the appointed time , and were received with enthusiastic cheering . Oa the motion of Mr . Robeston , Mr . Joshua Horjson "vras called to the chair , amidst great cheering . l / . e CB . » BJU .: ? f said the present meeting was called in pursuance of tne following placard : T - _ ' ^ flUT t XT Tt " » 1 T » PTlTVn y \ T » tit . iMVTVi '
" Working men of Leeds , your attendance is Tesoectfully requested by the Leeds Short Time Committee a 1 a public meeting to be held on Tuesday night , Januarj 18 , in the Music Hall , to hear the report of a Deputa . tioa lately sent by the Committee to Sir Robert Peel and other Members of the Cabinet , to press upon theii attention measures lor the due regulation of machinery , and for providing employment for . the unemployed . Mr . George A . Fltming , one of the Deputation , -Rill be in attendance , and describe the important proceedings connected with their interviews with the Ministers . " Factory -workers I attend . Be in pood time .. Information vitally affecting your interests will be laid before the meeting . " The chair will be taken at eight o ' clock . " By order of the Leeds Short Time Committee , "J . HOBSOX , Sec Monday , Jan , 17 th , 1 S 42 . "
It was just necessary for him to premise that oil the J » th of October last , the Leeds Short Time Committee received a communication from the Central Committee in London , formed for watching over and promoting the interests of the Factory Workers , recommending that deputations from the Short Time Committees of Yorkshire should be appointed to proceed to London , snd there seek interviews with . the ministry , particularly Sir Robert Peel , and to lay before him or then the state of pubiie feeling generally throughout the
country with reference to the short time measure . On the 13 th October , tke Leeds Committee met to take this letter icto consideration ; the result was that himself and Mr . Fleming were appointed as the deputation from Leeds , and they accordingly went to London . He Jiad the pleasure to say that in the proceedings of this deputation his friend Mr . Fleming had taken an active part , and as the bilb stated that he would be present to stite their proceedings , he would not . further detain them bat at once introduce to them Jlr . George Airs . Fleming . ( Cheers . ) . -J
Sir . Flemixg said he felt very much pleasure in having again the opportunity of addressing his old 3 Dd retpected fellow-townsmen , among whom , for some years , he had enjoyed very considerable happiness AnS he thought It was dne to himself that he should state tL : 3 at tke outset , inasmuch as in the course o \ the remarks he should have to make , he should have to aotiee the allegation that he bad nothing to do with Xeeda , er the West Biding , or with the factory system . That however , was only one of the facts asserted by the Whig press ; and it was generally found that when the Whigs prttfessed to give facts , those facts turned out to be mere fictions . ( Hear . ) He was called upon to give a statement of the reception which the deputation bad met with , and the general ten » r of their
inrer-• news with the Ministers . Mr . Hobson had already stated that the deputation from Leeds , on proceeding to London , was joined by deputies from other West ¦ Riding Committees . A meeting took place , and a generaJ plan of procedure was laid down ; and , as is ¦ was thought advisable , in order to Bave time , and in order to produce the clearest impression upon the miods of those Ministers with whom it might be proper to seek interviews , that one person should be appointed to speak in tke name of the deputation , the others giving such assistance fey way- of remark •_* ca . Toboration aa they might think ri ght , he had the honour to be selected by his colleagues to be the person to perform that duty . Previous , however , to waiting upon Sir Robert Peel , they were told that a
visit to the senior Member- for the Borough of Leads would cot be -unacceptable . They accordingly waited upon Mr . Win . Beckett ; and as hfi had up to that time fcnown nsthing "whatever of the appointment of the deputation , or of their being in London , they took the opportunity of explaining to him all their views . They had a vtry kind and flattering reception at his hinds , and he very generously offered that if be could be of any service to them in any way whatever , by accompanying tbeaa to the Ministers , or otherwise , he should be very happy to do so But as the deputation were desirous of steering clear of every thing like party ; as tfeey were desirous of keeping tie measures they were sent to recommend clear frum anything like the imputation of party measures , they
declined the offer when it was first made , and Stated to him as a reason , that they did cot wish that what they recommended should be considered either a Tory , Whig , or Radical measure , but a measure affecting a large portion of the working classes , and recommended by justice and humanity . ( Hear . ) Sir Robert Peel received them courteously and cautiously . When , they bad opened the business , and stated the nature of fee enactments which they had proposed , Sir B » Peel met them repeatedly by BUting several practical objections . These they endeavoured to meet , aad f <» r some time they conversed on the subject of the Ten Hours' BUL From that Str R . Ptel led them , by a broad and general question , to the consideration of the state o ? the nation ; it was evident
that he was desirous of hearing , through them , the opinion of the working men of Yorkshire upon that subject The deputation , therefore , took advantage of the opening thus afforded them , and freely and without reserve told him their opinions upoa the subject . They spake not merely of the extent of the distress , but stated their opinions of the causes of the distress , and of the mode by which it might be satisfactorily and permanently removed . Te all their opinions and statements Sir R . Peel gave a courteous , and he mi gut almost say , a kindly hearing ; and he ( Air . Fleming ) could assure the meeting thai he felt very considerably impressed with the importance of the position they that day occupied . For the first Bme , perhaps , in the history of this country .
h * fi the working classes an opportunity afforded them of speaking boldly and conscientiously to tlie Prime Minister of the country upon questions deeply affecting their interests , ( Hear , and cheers . ) Under former Governments { he would not say what description of . Governments they , w ^ re . ) it was customary to seek for information at second-hand ai it were . Commissioners were sent ont to gather information , dear Commifisiooexs they were , and they were sent out generally speaking to get np cases ; the information -was generally one-sided , filtered and strained through particular cbannfels to suit the purposes of the day , and ou that information , so obtained , some of the most obnoxious and disgraceful lsw « to be found in the statute book had been passed . ( Loud cheers . ) Bat on that
day it was different ; the virtual ruler of this country and the working classes came together . The one was desirous of knowing what the working men thonght and tbe working men were desirous that he should know really and trnly what they did think . In ~ that spirit they spoke , and in that spirit it was received . Whether Sir R . Peel possesses the moral courage to set himself above the conventional and " party influences by which , as an individual , he is surrounded , andwhtther or not , be will dare to act upon what he ( Mr . Fleminj ?) l > elieved to be his own convictions , of the cause of the eviis which affected this country , or of the means of remedying them , be knew not ; but of this he was sstisged , —perfectly satisfied , that he did know where the shoe pinched ; that he did know where the evil lay
and that was a first step towards having a sound and efficient remedy . ( Cheers . ) In the course of that interview , he presented to Sir R . Peel the report of the Enumeration Committee appointed by tbe operatives of Leeds , and stated to him tkat the general result of that inquiry was , thai nearly 20 , 000 peojple were living upon elevenpence farthing or elevenpence halfpenny per week . He tock it with an air of deep commisser&tion , and he said , I am grieved to say that I have already seen that document . I sympathise with the distress , and I feel that something must be done , and speedily , to remove it . ( Hear and cheers . ) Upon the whole , be would say , differing as he and all the members of the deputation do , from Sir Robert Peel and her Majt 3 ty " a ministers , that a more attentive and patient hearing could not
kave been accorded than that which they received from pim and his colleagues , llx . Fleming then went on to relate succinctly the most prominent vointe in their interview with Sir James Graham , Lord Wharncliffe , Mr . Gladstone , the Duke of Buckingham , the Lord Chancellor , and Lord Stanley . The Duke of Buckingham , he described as a fine , frank , John Bull sort of personage , without any shilly-shally or tergiversation about him , but a straight-forward nobleman , who said all that he thought , told them doing theix interview that upon a Ten Hours' Bill he was with them entirely , and that whether in office or out of office , they might depend upon his services . ( Loud cheers . ) "And , " added bis Lordship , "I don't think I can do better in tins case than act with your friend and ay friend , lord Ashley , your well-tried Parliamentary leader on . th » question . " In this plain unvarnished statement of their aeveral interviews , he ( Mr . F . ) had rather under-stated thaa over-stated the circumstances
because he did not wish to hold out false expectations , or to excite hopes that were not likely to be realised ; but , at the same time , it was but doing justice to those parties who thus received them , who thus listened to theii statement * , aad who expressed themselves as sympathising with them , that they should state thus much . By their future actions the meeting would judge whether the sentiments or views that had been expressed were likely to be attended to or their wishes earried out Toe deputation b * d taken the liberty of recommending , in addition to the enactment of a Ten Hours' Bill , a total Repeal of the Poor Law Amendment Act , or , iuch as alteration of it as would make it suitable to the manufacturing districts , in which they told him that law was inoperative , and that they defied any Government ever to put it in operation there . They also recommended that a committee of moderate men of all parties in the House ol Commons should be appointed at the commencement of the ensuing Session of Parliament to inquire into the operation of machinery
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upon the condition of the working classes , since 1815 , with a view of settliug the question in a broad , comprehensive , and liberal spirit ; and they recommended te ministers a plan for home coloniation , by which unemployed men and unemployed capital might be employed for tbe benefit of the capitalist , landlord , and labourer . Those measures were all founded on one principle . The ten hours' bill was the principle on which they hung ; and if they were right in demanding that , they were right in demanding all the others ; for they must go on , not in extending their foreign trade , but ti take measures for the promotion of a good sound snbstantial home trade . ( Heat . ) Immediately after the labours of the deputation were elosed , the deputation resolved that a report should be prepared ; they ap-_ * . l j •» . . . ^ _ _ - .
pointed him to draw up a rough draft of the report , and be did sa . Having other avocations to attend to , it took him some time ; but when it was completed it was sent to all the other members , that they might supply deficiencies and make corrections where nececessary and then it was sent to be fairly copied out The deputation were anxious that the report thus prepared should not be published until shortly before the meeting of Parliament , that it might produce a greater effect upon the country and upon Parliament . That was the answer he had to give to the question . " Why had the report been so long delayed ? ' It was deisyed that it might be accurate , and effective for the purpose for which it was intended ; and it had been effective ; it bad , in consequence of originally coining eut in the first
Journal in Europe secured a larger circulation than sny modern document he knew of ; and , while it h * d been hailed by one por tion of the press—while the Ministerial press had given it a hearty reception , speakinz of it in a manly and candid spirit—by the capitalist jwrtion of the press how had it been received ? They had touched it as gingerly as if it had been a red hot poker ! They had not dared to grapple with the principles it developed , but they treated it as every other person had treated such questions , when they had no arguments to offer—namely , the old style of Billingssate , and called tfee deput&fcon nick-names— a proof that thry bad nothing better to offer . They had been most remarkably industrious in making inquiries who and what the deputation were , and they had found out
that ( Mr . Fleming ) was an ex-editor , and an ex-journeyman plumber , which he never was in bis life ; and that he lived in London . But if it was all true , what did it matter ? And if it was also true that Joahua Hobson was publisher of the Northern Star , what did that matter ? Or if it was quite true that Mark Crabtr « e was a beer-seller , ( which he was not )—if tbe facts were true , supposing that the devil himself bad aaid them , it did no ; alter the principle one jof ( Cheers . ) And if they were not true , tbe deputation called npon those who challenged tbtm to prove their untruth . ( Loud cheers . ) And they woald have a tsugber job than they were aware of when they nndertook to do that These men act upon the principle which the Quaker adopted towards bis dog ; he said I will not kill thee ,
but give tbee a bad name . He then cried ' out " bad dog , bad deg , " npon which the people came with sticks and staves , and killed the dog outright So it was with our old friend Dr . Black , of tbe Horning Chronicle , and the Editor of the San , who had called out , not mad dog , but Socialist , Chartist , fit e . in the hope of raising a dust through which their friends migLt escape ; but they ( the deputation ) would take care they should not . ( Chetrs . ) It ha : l been objected to him that he had no thing to do with the factory system , and that if he had been a factory worker , he might have had something to say upon the subject Now he had resided four years in Manchester , and had had mnch to do with the Short Time Committee , in watcking the progress of factory legislation ; after that he was a year and a half in Birminghira , where he anxiously watched the progress of another branch of tbe staple trade « f the country ; after that he was two years and a half in Leeds , and they
would all know what oppor tunities of observation he had had here . Since lhat time he had visited all the great scenes of British industry , namely Leicester , Nottirgham , Sheffield , Glasgow , Paisley , Dundee , and other places . Indeed there was not a manufacturing town in the country , ner a department of manufacturing industry , that he had noV made it his business to inquire into , with respect to the nature , extent , scope , and result of the present working of the system . And is not a man who had made it his business t > get information in every part of the country , who has been all his life a working man , and who has been all his life identified with working men , and who has , particularly for the last twelve years , been working with and for working men , much more likely to know the interests of working men than those paltry and anonymous scribblers who presumed to ask what he had to do with tho business ?
( Cheers . ) But let them mark what that objection came to . If the factory workers aluue were entitled to speik on this subject , they alone con Id legislate on thig sabject ! Wm the landlord , or those who live upon fixed incomes , or the lawyer , or the -seldier , competent to speik on this question ? yet these composed the bulk of the houses of Legislature . And , he would ask , how could they judge of the claims of the factory workers ? had they even the experience that he had Did they not observe what a levelling principle that involved ; it was like saying that every class shonld legislate for itself , as they know their own interest best . A gain , it had been objected that he was a Socialist Tbe Shor t Time committees were in existence before the name of Socialist was known ; tbe Short' Time
Committees Wtre in t-xistence before the great Reform Bin humbug was introduced ; they had now been in existence for twelve or thirteen years ; and they bod been composed of men of all parties in politics and of ail sects in religion , who bad made this . the neutral or common ground upon which they could come aDd shake hands , having au eye only to the common rights of humanity and of their fellow-men . That was the principle on which they had alona acted . O-sstler , the high Tory , and Stephens , the low Whig , or tbe low Radical , if they liked it better , tbe lamented Sadler , with Lord Ashley , and ethers whem he could name—Fieiden , the
Radical , and Hindley , the Whig , had all co-operated in this great measure . \ Cheers . ) That answered at once the silly cry of Socialist or Cha . tist It was no Socialist measure ; it was so Chartist measure ; it was neither a Whig nor Tory measure , nor was it advocated exclusively by either Churchman or Dissenter ; it was a measure affecting tbe peace and tbe happiness—nay the very lives of thousands of their fellow working men . iGreat cheering . ) At tbe time when it was fashionable to profess a great deal of philanthropy and a benevolent feeling towards persons who were thousands of miles distant , at tke same time that they were , oblivious of the sufferings of those immediately under their nose—at the time when their attention was
w&olly absorbed by the negroes and their piccaninnies , when all parties wereanxioms for their liberation , and came forward and agreed to give £ 20 , 000 , 000 for their emancipation : at that time men of all parties and all creeds had been pressed into the service ; and no one thought of objecting to the efforts of theaiiti-slavery advocates because they co-operated with such . Aad when it w& 3 stated by Lord John Russell , ¦ while he was yet a Minister of this great empire , that the inhabitants of Bolton were in a more distressed condition than the black slaves abroad , why should they sot rest upon that declaration , and , sinking all minor differences , unite heart and hand to wipe away so foul a blot from the history of their country ? \ Cheera . } But be had been asked by many parties
why it was that amongst the measures which they had proposed lor the relief of the distress , they had not suggested a repeal of the Corn Laws ? He might also be asked by Chartists , why he did not propose the enact ment of the People ' s Charter ? His answer was , that rf he had been sent to do either one or other of these things , he would have kept himself to his business ; bet the measures they had proposed were not party measures , whilst the two measures of which he had last spoken were party measures , and the parties who supported them had a right to put them forward in any way they choose ,- at the same time , it waa tbe " duty of the Short Time Committee and iheir represen tatives to follow their own course- Bat with respect to the repeal of the Corn Laws , and the extension of
foreign commerce , it would be necessary that he should say a few words . In consequence of the Free Trade advocates having reiterated again and again their common fallacies , they had at last succeeded in ptrsuadiag tnemselTes that they were true—to what extent they had persuade d others he did not know ; but their common cry was , " We have got more cloth than we can consume , and tha foreigners have got more corn than they can eat ; by the repeal of the Corn Laws and tbe establishment of free trade , we should be able to exchange our clcth for their com , and then all would be right" But he would ask whether the conclusion did really follow from tbe premises ? They had g » t plenty of cloth at Leeds , and there was plenty of calico at Manchester ; the people of Ireland wert in
need of this cloth , and they sent all their agricultural produce to this country ; why , then , did not the people of Leeds send them their cloth ? The Irish corn could come in free enough , and Yorkshire cloths could go there free enough ; why , then , were they not sect and received in exchange ? It was because a third party interposed ; and so long as toe present system continued , that party would ttand there to rapidly accumulate the millions while the people were starring . ( Cheers . ) He was determined that the question of machinery and wages should be under-Etood , and he had engaged himself to a discussion in Liverpool and Manchester on these very subjects ; and he would take the best man they could find in any of the manufacturing towns to disprove the principles which he should proceed to lay down , and the facts by which he should sustain them . ( Cheers . ) It had been
stated that the introduction ot machinery had been a benefit to the working people of this country ; he denied that in tot * . He could go bade to the time when the people of this beautiful country , even in bis own recollection , were comparatively happy , and -many of those before him could recollect the time when there was leu machinery ; , but more comfort than at present ; when the meal chest was kept filled , the loaves were plentiful , and the bouse was comfortably furnished . That was the time when they did not wear such finely dressed doth w at present , but when the cloth and the men who wore it were substantial ! That was the time when the producing and consuming power of tee country wert equal , as one to one . At that time , the country possessed abvat twelve millions of mechanical -and tkree Bullions of manual power ; but now they had increased the mechanical power from twelve to twelve hundred millions . H « could tell the time when they
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had one wheel and one thread upon that wheel -, when one yarn was spun upon one Bpindle , as the old ladies do with distaffs ; but now we have the improved jenny and tha throstle , the double and the treble decker , an they could spin 1200 threads at once , all that was w&nted being a bit of iron , a bit ol coal , and a drop of water , and then they could " go on . He recollected the time when children were kept at home to play and run about as children ought to do ; but now they were sent to the factory in very early life , and were compelled to traverse behind the frames perhaps forty milea a day , whilst their parents were lingering out a miserable time for want of employment Indeed they had made a pretty job of " merrie England" since they got these new powers . Time waa when a working man _ _ _ _ _ . ^ . .
supported bis wife and family , and thought it an honour to do so ; bnt bo * the wife and child were forced to the mill to labour for the support of the father , whom the machines had almost superceded . Civilization had become inverted . They had often heard of tha Indian chief smoking his pipe while the woman did all tUe work ; but now the same thing had come to pass in England , for the wife and child were compelled to work , while the husband and father was compelled to "walk idly through the streets . In those days there were no railways and bnt few canals ; and they had to bleach aud dye by natural processes , and yet the world went jogging on comfortably ; but now the whole system waa changed , and by so means tor the better . Bat it had been asked , as there had been all this increase of wealth , why were the people so ill off Alderman Brooks said at Manchester the ether day , that it was because the base , bloody , and brutal landlords got it
all ; but he would maintain that those base , bloody , and brutal men did not get more than three and a half per cent , and he would ask if any of the manufacturers had been content with three and a half per cent ? If so , where did they get the millions they now had f [ Here tome interruption was manifested from a distant part of ttte room ; which was promptly checked by the Chairman-l It was commonly said that the supply and the demand regulated the price ; and so they did generally ; but there were two kinds of supply and demand . There was the artificial demand and too natural demand , the artificial supply and the natural supply ; and it was because they had the artificial rather than tke natural demand and supply , that this state of things was induced , and that the distress of the workisg classes had grown with the increasing wealth of the manufacturers . The bankers , too , made money dear or scarce , or cheap and plentiful , as best suited their interests . It was these men who
stood between society and its natural wants , aud who interfered with the natural supply of those wants . But it was said that tbe Corn Laws very materially tended to increase the evil ; he however must be allowed to say that he very much doubted this position . That was a law passed apparently for . the benefit of one class of the community at the expense of another class of the community ; therefore he condemned it ; but whilst condemning that they must remember there were many others passed in like manner . He believed it produced some ill effects , but that it bad reduced wages he did not believe . If the Cora Laws bad been the cause of the reduction of wages , there could have been no reduction of wages till the Corn Law was passed in 1815 , because the cause could not act until it was in existence :
yet how stood tbe fact ? He had before him a table relating to the city of Carlisle , which showed that in 1805 a hand-loom weaver got 30 s . per cut for his labour , but in 1815 , only ten years afterwards , things had so much changed that the weaver got only fifteen shillings for the same description of work . That was before the Corn Laws were enacted , yet the reduction amounted to fifty per cent What had been the reduction since ! In the twenty-five years that had elapsed since the Cora Laws were enacted , the reduction had been euly sixty per cent ; bo that if they were to reason very logically they would say thai the Corn Laws had stopped the downward tendency ; for , if tbe reduction had gone on at the same rate as it did from 1805 to 1815 , it would have
amounted to 175 per cent ; whereas it did in fact emount to only 110 per cent This was rather remarkable ; because the same influences which operated to reduce wages before 1815 , continued at work , and bad been extended since that Vme ; but he would leave those gentlemen who said so much about the Corn Laws reducing wages to deal with that fact as they best could . ( Hear , hear . ) They had also heard much about foreign competition pulliDg down wages ; but he regretted to say that it was not foreign competition , but borne competition , which had produced so much mischief . Mr . Fieming illustrated this by reference to a case in which goods bad been fraud en tly shipped to a foreign market , at prices greatly below those at which they had been purchased in Manchester , which
competed other houses , il they competed with them at all , to reduce the price of their goods in proportion , which could only be done by enlarging machinery and lowering waces , while the original trickster having exhausted his means , became bankrupt , in a large amount of debt , not one shilling of which was realised . The last topic to which Mr . Fleming addressed himself was the home colonization scheme which bad been Tecommeuded to the attention of Government Ht > maintained that there was sufficient land in the United Empire , If properly cultivated , to afford sugtentation to one hundred millions of persons . Tbe Morning Chronicle had been very wroth with the deputation for recommending borne colonization , and the
Editor , in speaking of it , ha * said that he did not think he was called upon to discuss so " anarchial a measure . " But he thought that Dr . Black when h « applied that term , must have got a new dictionary ; the ofyect of home colonization was the increase of property , increase of happiness , general enjoyment , and general contentment ; but anarchy , according to his ( Mr . F . ' s ) Old-fashioned notion of Its meaning , Indicated the very reverse of nil this . In conclusion , he read from the Morning Chronicle , a review of Mr . Laing ' s recent work entitled " Notes of a Traveller" which gave & very interesting description of the advanced state of agriculture in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany , where the farms occupied by the agriculturist were small but numerous . Mr . Fleming resumed bis seat amidst great cheering .
Mr . Wk . Hick then came forward and said , the pleasing duty devolved upon him of proposing a resolution which he trusted , after the statement they had just heard , wou ! d be most cordially received He had the honour to be one who fead assisted to send the deputation to London , —he had the honour to be one of those who had been instrumental in sending their friends-Mr . Fleming and Mr . Hobson to lay before the ministers their opinions on the great question of factory regulation , and what he wanted them to do was to mil him whether in so doing he had their concurrence and their sanction . ( Hear . ) He was not going to speak at any length , all he wanted them to say was , whether , when he voted for them he did right or wrong ; and by way of testing this he would , without further preface read his resolution . —The resolution was
" That the conduct of the SUort Time Committees of the West-Riding of Yorkshire , and the - . valuable labours of the deputation , sent by them to confer With Ministers respecting a Ten Hours' Bill , aud other measures calculated to benefit the working classes , meet with the cordial approbation of this meeting , and in its opinion entitle these parties to the gratitude and beat thanks of the working men of England , aud of the town of Leeds in particular . The clear , truthful , aud eloquent statements they have been the means of laying before the most influential members of the Government , respecting tbe condition of the infantile and
adult manufacturing operatives of this and other districts , and the general and deep attention which the report of the deputation has excited among all classes of the population , cannot fail to be of essential service to the cause of which they have been the able and disinterested advocates . The remedial measures which the deputation proposed for Uie consideration of Ministers , are , in the opinion of this meeting , based upon principles which , if fairly carried into practice , weuhl speedily place the working classes in the situation they ougbt to occupy , while a contrary course cannwt fail to ultimately injure all parties . "
Mr . Ro » erton , &aid , before seconding the resolution , he would , with the permission of the meeting give a statement of the formation of the first Bhort time committee in Leeds , and how it was formed . He was at that time working as a doth dresser , and it was at the time when Sir John Cam Hobhouse introduced into Parl ament a bill for the regulation of factory labour . The provisions of the proposed bill were printed in the Leeds Mercury at the time , and on looking it over the cloth dressers found there was no provision in the bill for them . This led them to debate upon the subject , and a desire being expressed that some rotice of them should be taken in the bill , thev confiulved Mr . Baines upon the subject
whoadvi'ed them to write to Sir John Cam Hobhouse . This also ¦ th ? y did , and that gentleman wrote them in reply , inclosing a copy of his bill , and requesting them to call together deputies from , all the shops , and to form a committee for the purpose of obtaining all the information they could on the subject of factory labour generally which they were to transmit to him . ( Hear , hear ) . Taese delegates did assemble , and that committee was chosen , and thus sprang into existence the first Bhort time committee in Leeds , now twelve or thirteen years ago ; since that time Leeds had never been without such oommittee , and he would leave it for them to say whether or not that committee had-watched over the interests of those whom they were appointed to serve . With these observations , he had much
pleasure in seconding the resolution . The Chairman was about to pat the zwolation , whea ¦¦' « . ¦ ¦ ¦ - . ' " Mr . Thos . Jokm , from the body of tjie meeting said he had an amendment to propose . He was invited forward to the platform , and then said that he differed entirely from what had fallen from Mr . Fieming ; that gentleman had spoken to their passions , he wouia endeavour to speak to their reason ; but in so doing he hoped his erzors would be pardoned , for he was not accustomed to public speaking , and was ill prepared to follow bo able a speaker as Mr . Fleming , to whose address he had certainly listened with a great deal of pleasure . Mr . Fleming gaid the short time committee had agreed that toe deputation were not to introduce the question of the Charter or the Corn Laws , in their interviews with ministers , because they were questions of party politics : but ho would ask , were they instructed to
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introduce the question of Home Colonization 1—And if they could introduce that , why not introduce the Charter . CHear . ) Why did they not go to the rootot the evil at once , instead of lopping off a few nseless branches . The speaker then combatted the statement which had been made , that all the Whig papers were against them , when there was the Sun which was the only papeir to be found which would report the proceedings of the late Convention in London . ( He * r . ) He appealed to the Chairman if tins was not the fact . ,. ?* »* IRMAsr . Aye : but the &m would . iot do that until it was paid for it , Mr . Jones , Did any other paper refuse it on the same condition ! : / The Chairman . I believe no other was ever asked . Mr . Jo . vts resumed . —When he came into the r °° . , ° had listened for some time with great to the excellent . - ' .-. " ..-.. .
delight and interesting address of Mr . Fleming , and for the first time in his life , in an assembly of working men , he had heard a cheer given for ; the E > uke of Buckfofiham ; a nobleman who had stated in his place in the House of Lords , that nine shillings per week was enough for any labouring ^ iBan to live upon and to maintain hia family . That was the individual whom the deputa tionhad thought proper to soft soap . ( Interruption and cries of question . ) He did not consider that Mr . Fleming had spoken reasonably at all , but had wandertd far from the question , and had eyeu introduced the accidents ou railways , when it was a fact that there were far more lives lost under the old system of travelling , according to the number of passengers , than there \ Vas by the railroads . ( Question , question . ) He would , then , State the grounds on which he had brought forward his ^ amendment . He did so because he was in favour of universal
liberty ; a « d of having all fair and open above ground . ( Hear . ) If these parties went to London to speak in favour of the working classes , why did they hot receive their instructions from the working classes—from those whom they say they went to speak for _? ( Hear . ) He was convinced that had they received their instructions from the people whom they said tuey represented , they would have had a different errand ; for working men would not allow their leaders any longer to drag them through the bogs and quicksands of poverty and faction . ( Hear . ) Much had been said about the factory workers
. In America , the factory girl was more respected than the servant girl . ( A yoice-r- ' Are they so here ?") No ; and for this reason . There the laws are altogether different ; because tLere the people lesislaie for themselves ; whilst in this couutry they are legislated for by others . The factory girls , therefore , are respected and respectable , and by their earnings keep themselves , and in some instances their parents ^ in comfort and ease . The speaker entered into a-variety of other statements not altogether bearing upon the subject before the meeting , but , rieyerthelessj he was patiently heard . He couoluded by proposing as au amendment : —
" That this meeting having heard the statement made by Mr . Fiewing on behalf of the deputation , who waited upon the Ministers on the subject of the Ten Hours' question , and having duly considered the same , are of opinion that the deputation not having beeu appointed by the people in public meeting assembled , and consequently not knowing the subjects , the importance of which the people would wish to press upon the attentlonof her Majesty's Ministers , that the deputation cannot be considered as expressing the views of the working classes ; and , therefore , the meeting is of opinion that no countenance should be given to that deputation , and that rather they ate entitled to censure for not having pressed the subject of th « People ' s Gnarter upon the Ministers , "
Mr . Wh . Hartley , auctioneer , ( not a working man , ) seconded the amendment . He spoke amid great , interruption , the entire of his argument being that the manufacturers were the workmen ' s best friends , and that the effect of a Ten Hours Bill would bo to drive them from the . country , and then the landlords would be able to compel the operatives to work any number of hour * for what they pleased to give them , without a ' chance of mending their condition . He contended strenuously in behalf of the manufacturers , and depreciated ia proportion the landed interet-t . He concluded by the expression of a hope that the meeting would not support the original resolution , but that they would affirm by a largo majority , the amendment which he had the " pleasure to second . Mr . Fleming claimed a right to reply , and he was about to proceed when
Mr . Wh . Brooke said he had another amendment which he wished to propose before the question was put . v - . ¦ ¦ ¦ - " ¦ . ¦ ¦• ¦ ¦ ¦¦ . ¦; . ¦ , , ¦ ¦ - The Chairman stated the rule to be that an amendment having been proposed and seconded , that must be put to the meeting before another could be proposed . If the amendment was carried , there would , of course , be an end to the matter ; if it was negatived , then would be the time to propose another . , : ¦ . ' . ' ,- . ; . ¦ ¦; "¦ ¦ ¦ . . ' :. -... . ' . ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ . . Mr . Fleming , therefore , replied to the remarks of Mr . Jones and Mr ; - Hartley , arid during his speech , Air . Brooke , at the suggestion of Mr . Hick , appended his amendmentrto tho original motion . The Chairman , before putting the amendment , read it over , and announced that Mr . Brooke had introduced big amendment , and appended it to the original resolution . He read it as -.. follows : » r .
" But this meeting is further of opinion , these principles and privileges can never be safely enjoyed , except under the legislative powera , which can only be obtained by the enactment of the People ' s Charter . " The Chaibman also inquired of the mover and seconder of the amendment , if , after that course had been adopted by the parties moving the original resolution , they 8 kould still continue to press their amendment . They said that their object ii ) moving it had been to secure mention of the Charter agitation : if that was their objact . now ii was obtained by the consent of all parties ; therefore , he supposed , as a matter of course , that they would ebnsidor the amendment needless , unities their real object ^ was , by a quirk , to censure tiie Short Time Committee and the deputation . lie was wishful , before putting the matter to the vote ; that the meeting should fairly understand the object and scope of each proposition before them . Mr . Jones would not withdraw the amendment . , ¦ ' ¦¦ ' '¦ ¦ ¦ . ' ¦;¦ ¦'' „ ¦ - ¦ ¦ ' The Chairman said the motives of Mr . Jones would be properly understood and ¦ appreciated by the meeting . With that observation he would put the two propositions to them . A show of hands were then taken amidst tbe most deafeiiing applause from the fast maiority who held up their hands for the vote of thanks tio the deputation and the Leeds Short Time Cornmittee . The Chairman said he had no doubt whatever of the result ; but , that there might be no mistake , he would put the propositiona over aizain . He did so , and there did not appear twenty hands for tho amendment ; while the resolution was adopted by a loud and universal shout of approbation . It was declared to be carried by an overwhelming majority , which again called forth loud and hearty expressions of joy .
The Chairman then addressed the meeting at considerable length , to the effect that the object of fc ' ae Short Timo Committee in calling that meeting was to afford the working men of Leeds an opportunity of speaking right out on this question , and to say whether or no they approved of the labours of the Short Time Committee and the deputation they had sent to Ministers . That opportunity they had had . He had given every facility for tho expression of ditsent . He had allowed a gentleman auctioneerone who was not a working man , ? ind who , therefore , strictly speaking , had no business at the meeting at all ; he had allowed that gentleman to second the amendment . He had also allowed the mover of the amendment to reply to the reply made to his speech
in moving that amendment , —a procedure totally out of order ; in fact , every facility possible had been given the parties present to express their opinion pro or c » n . That opinion they had expressed , in a manner at onoe decisive and satisfactory , to the Short Time Committee . In the name of the Committee he thanked them for the sanction they had given to the procecdinga of the Committee and the deputation . It furnished a complete answer to that portion of tho press who represented that the deputation had not spoken the feelings of the working classes of Leeds . ' - With thoir permission , he would notice some , few other White statements , for the purpose of giving them a flat contradiction , and thus set » he deputation right
with the public . As Mr . Fleming had said , the Whig press , finding itsoif unable to refute the statements , or upsot the arguments of the deputation , had resorted to the most paliry personalities , » nd had , bully-like , put the question to each member of the deputation , — " And who tha d- —rl are you 1 " One " . thing * the meeting . wqjilel al 8 onote . While they had been commenting day after day upon the Report , " and characterising it by all manner of "fine" nameB , they hid takehcare carefully to exclude it from their columns ! They had taken care not to let their readers know what it was they were talking about , and commenting on . Did this arise from a love of truth ? or froma fear of the truth ! Every man's own sense would supply the answer . This portion of the press , too , had employed themselves in giving answers to the elegant Q uestion they had put , " Who arftjyou" ? but they
had been singularly unfortunate . They had represented Mr . Fieming aa au ex-jQurneyntt&Ti plumber , and Editor of Mr . Owen ' s New Moral World . H » happened to be neither one nor the other 1 They had represented himself to be Mr . Fleming's Leeds publisher . He happened to be no such thing . They had represented Mr . John Leech as an ex-member of what they oalied Mr . O'Connor ' s Convention , and as having been on speaking terms with the late Attorney General . It happened that both these assertions were false . John Leech never was a member of any Convention ; nor had he ever the honour of an introduction to the late Attorney-General in any shape * Mark Crabtree had been described as a beer-seller . He happened to be no luch thiug ; and while the Whig prosa had thus employed tts « lf , in reference to the members of the deputation , instead of refuting their itatementi if they wer «
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erroneous , it had also endeavoured to defame other parties who had had no band or part in the getting of it up , other than as set forth in the •' Report . " Mr . Beckett , the Member for Leeds , had bean charged as the . gettersrup .-of-tbefarce . ^ aa these papers chose to call the proceedings of the deputation . Mr . Beckett had no more to do with it than Mr . Baines , of Leeds , had . The deputation had been appointed by the Short Time Committees of Yorkshire . They had met in London lid perform the duties imposed upon them . Amongst other parties , they called upon Mr . Beckett . / They acquainted him with the object of their mission . ¦ With that frankness and honesty which the meeting all knew Mr . Beckett to possess , he expressed himself
delighted at the step the Short Time Committees were taking . He said that he had himself , endeavoured to force upon the attention of those in power the condition of the working people generally , and the necessity of something being speedily done to better that condition . What that something was to be , he did not pretend to say ; but the method which the Short Time Committees were now taking , was one admirably calculated to lead to a good understanding between all parties , and result in some well-digested plan of relief . It was right that the government should learn from the lips of working men themselves what their condition and wants were ; and it was right that the working people should , of
themselves , learn what the position of the governors really was . If I can beof any srrvice , co : tinued Mr . Beckett , to you inany way * whatever , command my serviees . I am wishful to do all I can . to get the situation of the working people known , bo that steps may be taken to devise a remedy . On Saturday , I placed in the hands of Sir James Graham , the report of the Leeds Operatives' Enumeration Committee ; and I have reason t » believe that that document has told a tale . Your following up that report with your own knowledge cannot : fail to be productive of good . Sitth wore ; , the offers , and suoh were the observations of Mrw Beckett to the ^ deputation when they waited upon him * In gome instances the deputation had availed themselves of Mr . Beckett offers
of service ; in others they had declined . Ah ! but then ; say the Whigs , ; " Mr . Beckett paid you ' . ';¦ " and ' * he gave you thirty shillings a-week . " Did he , indeed ! If Mr . Beckett had paid us , I will be bouud he would hot hive had the meanness to offer such a paltry sum as thirty shillings per week lor suoh services ! That is the Whig pvice ; and none but a mind that has been accustomed to screw down wages to the lowest possible point , could ever have thought of offering Buch a paltry pay . . 'Pon my word , but these Whigs must have a strange notion of Mr . Beokett and the deputation , to think the one capable of offering , and the other , mean-spirited enough to accept , such a price . For myself , 1 can truly say , that I rate myself much higher ; as
being worth much more than thirty shillings per week ! and when I sell myself either to Tories or Whigs , I must have much more than that . That sum , thirty shillinga per week , is all the screwers ' -otthp- anti-Corn Law League can afford for the few despicable tools they have been able tg hire , the Finnigans and the Warrens ; and , forsootn , they think that every gentleman in the country is as mean and grovellini ; as themselves , and every working man as base-minded and despicably-spirited as the hired too / s of the slaughter-house keepers . No , no . When the members of the deputation hire themselves , they / will have more than 30 s . per week ; and they will be sure that the man who dares to offtir them such a price is » Bcrewer . But , then ,
were not the deputation paid 1 Iii troth , they were The experiees of the deputation were borne by the Central Committee in London . " What ' out of Tory money ? " No , out of Whig money ! The Whig MP . for Ashton ^—the Corn-Law-repealiDg Charles Hindley subscribed jE 50 ; and out of that were the expences of the deputation borne ! What ! then did hot Mr . Beckett pay you at all ? " Not a stiver ! Mr . Beckett has not even yet been asked for a subscription towards the expences of the Leeds Committee . But , working men , suppose that all these allegations had been true ; suppose Mr . Fleming , myself , aud Mark Crabtree , had been what the Whig press have described us to be ; suppose that Mr . Titus Brooke had been " illustriously obscure ; ' '
but which he does not happen to be in his own town , Dewsbury , where he is better and more generally known than any man in it ; Buppose all thiB had been the case ; and that Mr . Beckett hadpaid us the Whig price , thirty shillings per week ;' suppose , all this ; pray M . T . Chronicle what has this to do with the question ! Are men ' s creeds and opinions to be measured by the Whig standard before the working people are at liberty to depute them to do the working people ' s work ! Is it necessary that the operatives must ask Mr . Cotton Twist what shall be the occupation of those to whom they are to accord their confidenet ? Has ** liberality " come to this pass 1 Really , we are getting on ! What are the facts of the case ! The Short Time Committees of Yorkshire chose us to do
their business . They told us what they wanted doing ; and they said we have every confidence in you ; go and do iti We went . We did our work . We satisfied , amply satisfied , those who seint us . We have received an almost unanimous approval from this immense assemblage of working men . Who else has any right to call us to Mcosufitt To be sure , there are our statements , and our recommendations ; and there are the arguments we advance in support of those recommendations . These are public property . These have a right to be commented on , examined , knocked down , if they can be . Let the Whig press then try to do that / Let it confine itself to its legitimate duty . If we are in error , show us it .: If we have stated falsely , point it out . If tho ' recommendations we made are not good in themselves or are not worthy of being listened to , point out the evil—show their wnworthiness . If bur arguments are unsound
fallacious , prove , them so . This is ^ your duty j Messieurs the Editors of the Whig press . Confine yourselves to it . Perform your owu duty before you fiud fault with ours Meet us fairly , and don ' t carp about the length of our coat-tails or the description of buttons we wear upon our vests . We stand upon the right of demanding that you take us for what we represented ourselves to be . We were deputies from ; " the Short Time Committees of Yorkshire ; As such we acted . Enough : for us that those bodies accorded iis their confidence . Enough for us that those who delegated us are satisfied that that confidence was not abused . Enough lor us ^ that you have thanked us for ¦ our labours . On these things we take our stand . This is our position , and the Whig press will fail in dislodging us from it , by any attempt to make tho HTound of quarrel a personal bickering .
When the Chairman had concluded , a vote of fchauks to him for his conduct in the chair , and a collection to defray the evening ' s expences , terminated the business . The immense assemblage immediately dispersed ; and thus concluded one of the most spirited , most numerous , and best conducted public meetings ever held in Leeds .
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WAYS AND MEANS FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF THE CAUSE . NothiDg is more clear than that for the effectual advancement and establishment of any project , a sufficiency of proper means must be provided . The means of carrying on any tfBcient agitation in the present state of society are talent , honesty , and money ; the last being necessary for the right application and development of the two former requisites . The auti - Corn Law and Extension of Commerce faction have money in abundance at their command . They have no lack of tho necessary means for hiring apleadid rooms , specious orators , aud venal editors , and of bringing these into requisition whenever and wherever a chance of success inay be discerned . They have also , as an usual attendant upon wealth ,
& considerable amount oftalent at command . Talent is not always associated with honesty ; here is always enough of it ready for prostitution to ensure workmen for the wealthy , however discreditable be the labour . They have these two requisites for successful agitation in abundance , yet their agitation is unsuccessful ; because they are so utterly destitute of the first and most essential one as to be incapable of even a successful imitation of it . The cheat is seen through , and the people laugh at it . In the Chartist agitation , on the contrary ) , there is honesty in every principle to be contended for ; there is enough of talent in their advocates to make that honesty apparent to every , even the most a 3 tute mind ; and hence the wide spreading ; of the
principles of Ghaitism , maugre all the storms ; of perse ^ cution and ill the disadvantages of poverty . Still , however , it ^ a necessary tkat money should beraised . Lecturers cannot be supported , and a proper organisation aud due understanding with each other kept up without it . The modus operandi , therefore , by winch money is to be raised for all the expensive purposes of our agitation is an important subject ; aud deserves well considering . The cursed rule of faction has dried up the sources of tha poor man's wealth . It has robbed him of the ordinary comforts of his life ., and it is to regain these that our agitation is intended . We shut hot our eye ? , therefore , to the apparent hardship of attaining this by the sacrifice of a yet further portion in the way of direct centributioa . We know the patriotism of the people generally ;
we know ta «\ r enlightened sense of these matters ; we know that they would—nay , that they will and do—ohe « rfully tax themselves for this object to the extreme of their capability ; but we know also enough of their condition to make us feel anxious that this taxing should be made as light as possible Every means of raising funds for the Executive , which does not involve direct contribution from the people , niust have one of tvvo effects . It will either lessen the amount of those contributions , or it will extend the usefulness of that body . Both these are desirable , and the more fully both of them can be attained the better . We have great pleasure , therefore , in submitting to the careful reading of the people the following observations from a correspondent , who signs ?* C . J , M . Thorpe . " They are worthy of attention : —
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" In every project yet entered into for placing Mm workiniman in his proper&tationIn society , ^ wo essential points necessary to be obtained have never yet been attempted-: — . ' . '¦ - ¦ . : * . ' . ¦ * :: ¦ : . '¦ ¦ .. ¦ ¦ ¦ ' - . ¦¦ ' ; . ¦ ¦¦• ' -Jet- "It Isnejsessaryto ' mate « 6 «" « rare " ef w& depression andconsequenii misery the cans © of niselevation and consequent happiness . * " 2 nd . It U necessary to consider and treat man u superior to man ' s productions . - ; ; . . ' ? Tbe principal cause of tbe working man ' s degra * datioa and misery is competition . Every means pos sible has been used to induce one man to underwork others ; and all that trade societies could do has not prevented it ; it is , therefore , plain , if this cause can be made subservient 'to benefit the working man , iastoad of injuring him , he must commence rising : la She scale of society . .: ¦ . ' . ' : . v - ' ¦ ;¦ ¦¦ . : " i ^ - r ^ . 'V
" The plan suggested and practised by Mr . Pinder may be extended to every thing used or consumed by Chartists ; and , if it were , it would turn the tide of competition directly in their favour , and furnish them with the means of carrying Chartism out to its tallest extent .-: / "¦ - : '¦"¦ ::: ¦ ' .- \ - : : ¦ : ' ; ; * ; . ¦ : / : . - •¦ ' '" .. ¦ : ¦; ; '¦' : ¦¦ : ¦¦ "If , for instance , bread were purchased of . » baker willing to make the same allowance to the Chartists as is usually made to retail shops ; that w , one half-penny each four pound loaf , it would produce about one halfpenBy per day for each Chartist This would be more than suffibient to pay all the expeaces ueceasary tor the cauBe ; V © f Chartiam ; and , if the GhartlaU vrere to raake it known that they would deal with persons on those conditions , they would soon find plenty very desirous of serving them with every article for which they spend th « ir money ; so much so , that they woald oompete with each other , in order t 6 obtain their cu ^ . torn , the same as is done to obtain a contract to supply establish
any : large ment . The same principle might be acted on with respect to teilors , Bhoemakersi Sec , by employing only such as would make an aUowance to the society of five per cent . This would tend to make members , and bind them to each ether and the cause of Chartism , and supply them with the sinews of war , fee . This would also bring about the second essential , that is , make a man of more importance than what man produces . Hitherto , no man could join any society without a property qualification ; it is Heeessary , in order to belong to the Chartist society , that one penny per week be paid , and thousands cannot do that . But let the above plan be carried into practice and then all can join , for the only requisite will be , that they deal with those who make an aUowance to the society . Agreat ^ eal more might be said , but perhaps this hint may induce those who are more competent than myself , to enlarge on the subject and display its capabilities and advantages in the moat striking and convincing manner . " i . ¦ ' - ¦ :
We have already given our support to the principle of these observations by commending to the notice of the people the advantage offered to them by that excellent Chartist , Pinder . To him beloDgs the honour of having first promulgated thiB idea of making the wants and necessary consumption of the people subservient to the support of their own cause . Others , both in the same trade , and in other trades haveJBntitled themselves to great credit by following in his wake . Let the system be extended as far as possible . Let it , as Mr . Thorpe says , be established - ^ -settled as a fixed rule of practice with the Chartists body to purchase all their necessary articles of con-Sumption of siich tradesmen a » , like Mr . Pinder . make
their profits partially , at ' . least subservient to the general cause . We wish emphatically to place the example of Messrs . Pinder and Lundy be / ore the whole whole Chartist public . The one as manufacturer' gives one-twelfth part of his whole receipts to the Executive : the other as retail agent and deafer , gives one-fourth of his whole receipts to the Executive , and one-tenth to the local funds of the cause in his own town *; On that particular article it appears that enormous profits are realised ; especially by the retail vender . On every article which passes through the niiddleman ' s hands ^ a profit greater or less is realised . These profits have hitherto conspired to keep down the labourer ; let them" be made subservient to his elevation .
-We shall be happy to afford one column , if necessary , every week to the announoement of the respective sums due to the Executive from such tradesmen , manufacturers , and shopkeepers , as thus choose to let some reasonable portion of their profits subserve the ^ cause of liberty . The mode adopted by Mr . Pindeh is to give one clear twelfth of his whole receipts to the Executive . He deals only wholesale—and that the public may know that he deals fairly , and does not make promises without performing them , he requires each agent , who sends him an . © rder , 'to send off an exact copy to the Secretary of the Executive , who will thus be able : to ke * p ; ' a check against him , and to know that the Executive are fairly dealt with ; The Executive may , by the same means , keep a check on Mr . Lumpyj by noticing how much he gets from Pinder , and then , as they know the rate of profit , they know hoir much it sells for , and how much tkey should have but of
it-This system generally established , the " exclusive dealing" of the Chartists / will be worth something . Hitherto all efforts at exclusive dealing have failed ; partly , no doubt , not from personal misunderstandings ,, and the want of an universal principle of attraction . Here / then it is supplied . - . ' .- '• Let the baker ; the butcher , the tailor , the shoemaker , the draper , and general dealer , in any town , who wishes Chartist 'custom , bid for it fairly , and he shall have it . But let all who thus bid give the publiq a guarantee that theybid fairly . We have now before ng maky letters from tradesmen of all sorts , offering to devote a portion of the proceeds of their trades to the support of the Executive ; bat offering no means to the people of ascertaining whether they do so or not ; We shall publish no such vague statements as these . When parties , evince in an indisposition to subject themselves to scrutiny , the inference is , that their intentions are not fair .
As many persons ; may feel disposed to try this mode of catching custom as a mere business thing , wa offer a facility to all who are so disposed—we shall devote one column weekly , if necessary , to the advertisements of all persons willing to establish themselves as Chartist tradesmen , whether manufacturers or retailers ; arid for their advertisements we shall charge nothing but the Government duty , which is eigfeteenpeuce on each on « , and ;" . which ' must in every case be sent with the advertisement . In addition to this , we shall devote one column , if requisite , to the gratuitous ansouncement , as hews , of the sums respectively due from tbose parties to the Executive . ; :
We close these remarks with the following letter from Mr . Wm , Brelsford , blacking manufacturer , Np . 18 , Royle Road , Burnley , who , in the patriotic spirit of Mr . Pinder , gives an eighth part of his whole receipts * i p the Convention funds ; He says : — '* . ' . ¦ . . ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ . ¦ . [ " . . ¦ . " ] . ¦ ¦ : / ' . y .-. ¦^ ' . ' ; ¦'¦ .. '¦ . ¦ ' "¦ . ¦¦ ¦ . V When I wrote you last , I did not think of supplying aiiy part with blacking but Lancashire , but since it has gone the round of the paper . I -will abide by it . I will pay carriage to any part of the country . If the associations think proper to * send orders , 1 will endea vour to supply them . " :
'¦? . ' I thought that Lancashire would be quite sufficient for me to manage , if it was taken up with proper spirit . You need not think I want to make a livelihood by it , for 1 assure you I do not , for after doing a day ' s work , a person has little time to devote to anything , especially | dnr trade ( acarrier ) but I must take an hour from rest if needed . I do it for the benefit of the cause and not my Own , for were the ingredients given , after allowing profits to the retailer , percentage to the Convention fund ,-and paying carriage , there would be little left . " Please give ¦¦ the addressi in full Wm . Brelsford , 18 , Royle-road i Burnley , in your next , and you wiil oblige ,. ' . '¦• ' ' : ''¦ ' - ' . ;• ' '• • . ' ¦¦ . - ¦ - ¦; . "" ; ¦ ' . ¦ ¦" ;• . ' " Tour obdt servant , o " Wu . Brelsford . "
" Due to the Lancashire Convention Fond . : " ' " , T ¦ ¦ ¦ \ '' : - . ^ ' ¦ K " - ¦ ¦ : C- ¦ ¦ ¦ B .: d . Mr . Joseph S « tliff , Burnley 0 3 Mr . John HitcheD , near Burnley ...... 0 4 Burnley , Jan . 9 th , 1812 .
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Stone Bhbaking in Wobkhouses , —On Saturday night , at eight o ' clock , a numerous meeting of the SpitalfielcBi weavers was held at the Knive of Clubs , Club-row , Bcthnal-green , to receive the answer of the' Poor Law Commissioners in reference to a communication to them , conformable to a resolution of the trade , passed at a meeting held on the 1 st of January , requesting that they would take measures to exempt the Spitalfields' wearers from the employment of stone-breaking at the workhouse , and for other business connected with the destitution at present existing in that district . Mr . Boddington
was chairman . Mr . Fox Baid that a few weeks ago a discussion took place at a meeiiog of the trade , upon the subject of the employment of the Spitalfields ' weavers at the stone-yard of the workhousa , when it was resolved that a memorial should be sent to the Poor Law Commissioners , with a request that an exemption should be allowed to the silkweavers of that district . The Committee , according to then * instructions , have comaMicated the resolution then passed to the Poor Law ^ Gommissioners . They h » vo returned an answer , which waa in the hands of their Secretary . It was as follows .-
—> Poor Law Commissionera' Office , Somerset ¦' . ; -, ; . : •;¦ ¦ . ^ 1 ^ ? SiRr-I am directed by the ^ PoorLaw Comm > sioiiers to acknewledge the receipt of your letter of th « 12 th instant ^ forwardmg to theift ajppy pf a resolution passed at a meeting of the flKarative broad silk , weavers of Etethnal-green , Spitalnelds , and the ~\ vicinity , respecting the employment of paupers at the workhouses in the district at stone breaking ; and I am . to state that the Commissioners will make inquiry as to the alleged injuriouBeffects of this mode of providing labou | for paupers . : ' u lam , Sirjyour most obedientgervantf . ¦ ^* E . Chadwick , S ) c . '¦; : Mx . T . ^^ CUisse , No . 3 , ^ ^ Soath-street , HwAJane , Beth ^ l ^ reeMroad / ' ;
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. 6 - . THE NORTHERN STAR . ~ , " ' * — Ml ' ¦¦ ¦ i ... - ¦ ¦¦¦¦ - i —i . ¦»¦¦ r ii ir . II .. I-IM ¦ i , .., „ , — ¦¦¦ "" . " ' " " ' . . '" , " " "" " ' ' " " ' "~ ^'"" ¦ ¦¦¦'" "' ¦¦ ¦ ¦ '— ¦ ' ¦ " ¦ " ¦¦ " — ¦ ¦ ' " ¦ " ' ~ ¦" - - — ' ' " ' " "— " " ¦ ' ¦ " M < " - ii .- . . —i —» M i ' ¦ ¦ ¦ * - !¦¦ W » —wi ^ . ^ , - i ¦ ¦ ' - - ¦ - - ¦¦¦ ¦ ¦ "¦¦ ¦¦ " ¦¦¦¦'¦ ' . ¦ . '¦ . ¦ ¦ .- ¦¦ •' . '* . . '"¦' -.. ¦ . ¦¦¦ ¦'' . '¦¦• : ¦" . '¦ " - ' ¦ ¦ . ... : - ¦'¦¦¦ . ' . ¦ ' . "¦¦ . ¦'¦' .-, '¦ . ' : - ¦ .... - . ¦ ; .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Jan. 22, 1842, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct414/page/6/
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