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Northern Star (1837-1852), 27th March 1841, Edition 5 of 5, Page 7, Untitled Article

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      Untitled Article

      XO MB . O ^ - MALLET , OF THE DUBLIN CHABTIST ASSOCIATION . u Hereditary donkeys ! know ye not , VboeTer rides , —yourselves most bear the load ?" jit DbaB O'Mallbt , —Of comae yon hare stood -pan the se » shore in a storm , and seen the wave that »„ , roiled unbroken for many a league upon tie surface rf the wstdeep , till parted at last , as if bymatfe , by eome

      jiasen agent , jolt as it had nearly terminated its race . Yon b »* e * een wave after -ware broken in the nine spot , j ^ di parted and dashed into foam , none escaping ; and bite pondered at a like fate happening to each and U . Ai the tide receded , you baTe kept youi eye gxed uptffl the spot , and , at length , discovered a little jock , vhieb , ttwsb buried and hidden from the sight , _ gt peTertbekOi » aa fixed , motianleas , immovable , ud povalaL

      O"M > De 7 , that little rock was like still Truth , and the pig nn n > **« Toeiferous and frothy Fiction ; tos Tbile , fiction coTered truth , but -when the rage jad passed any , and the storm had abated , fiction fled U& truth remained nrt «; h » Vffn . Such , O'Afailey , has jjeen tin state of agitated Ireland for the last twenty yaa . swell upon the surface has been kept raging jar the mere purpose of obscuring truth ; bat , alas i fe -nrta are beginning to break upon the immutable gas rock—the tide is receding , and those with jjarpest vision opon the shore are beginning to see tsJli laid bare and uncovered .

      O'Malley . whsa a man of mind reads the history of gp-goot d&yi ; the exploit * and noble deeds , the selfderation and self-resignation of a Wallace , a Bruce , a Simpdes , a Washington , a Harvey , an Emmet , asd a jj&gaald , make toe patriot ' s cheek glow , his blood jq qnkk and hot , and his nerres become elastic . gt Met that they lived , and "wen ready to die , # & for themselves , nor yet for an age , bat fer a pringjig , to serve all ages . He is bat a poor philosopher The serer sees Ufa in death , or worse than death in grog , Ee is no better than the beast that bears his Vfirien , whose appetite and mind are one .

      lamj last letter I drew a sad , but true , picture of Intod ; let us now , my friend , having travelled round her anal , take a review of the principles of her " patriots " fs the lait ten years . Let us sink all that happened bettt "Beform , " but eome to that period , and endeavour to iee ste rack now that fiction has spent its foam . Kow then , O'Malley , I take the one great principle fe » fcidi the mind-ef Ireland was to be directed , " the repeal of the "Union , " and I ask you to follow me of

      ttroc ^ i a statement plain and simple facts , which ao *> jfci » t rj-esn much longer hide from the opening eje of jc £ = mj mHHons . loose little stubborn facts must be inward . It Trill not do to cover them with " the wave & » i eom * s unbroken from the coast of Labrador ;" y ; KCT can they be much longer obscured by " the Wiekltf * hills , " or the " Hill of Howth ; " nor will the B jnen fields , * " the rippling streams , " or " verdant TjSeyr" attract attention from them . is

      L ^ ani has been mad for yean . Ireland now in ijadd interval , and she begins to reason with herself ; tad bo » , O'Malley , hear me upon the Repeal 1 give yoa our Charter in my last ; it was fuller than ge prn ^ j «>> Charter , inasmuch as it contained the < rb&t principle , Universal Suf&age , Annual ParliazaoX acd Tote by Ballot , together with a large tnm ' . of detail , such as the abolition of tithes , appdnaatt of magistrates by the people , but above all asd before all , " cheap Government . "

      Jot , you who have heard the storm rage full many t time and oft , will remember rude Boreas whistling aQ til wild notes through every creek , cranny , nook , asd crriee in Ireland , and how each pale one revelled to lis the jocund sound : you will remember that the Bepal cry was wafted throughout the land upon each JMSBg breeze ; above all , beat in mind that the motto T&&— " No matter what a foreign Parliament felt inclined to do , or no matter , however kindly it may be disposed towards Ireland , nothing but a domestic

      legislators can govern Ireland for the benefit of Irishmen . " You will reeoBeet that the people were told thai " Jamaica , Xewioandlanu , and Prince Edward ' s I sland had their separate legislatures , and why should not Ireland have hers ? " Tern wiU recollect that -we were told that " it TM impoitibk fat Irishmen ' s fcuaines to be as well done abroad u at home ; * in short , that Efpeal was the panacea for all our woea , Jf ow , 0 'HiHey , bear all that in mind : that Repeal was the priaapJfi ; and being agreed upon the principle , we next come to the practical means of accomplishing it .

      There were two ways , then , of accomplishing Re-* ul , either by force , independent of Parliament ; or by * vote of the House of Commons ; by physical revobaon or moral force . Physical farce is denouaeed , and by » a * more strongly than myself . I denounce it from B ? xaJ , before every moral effort of which man 1 b sptbii hu been tried , and persereringly tried , and has Itiad . I denounce it , except where right cod spires * i ti it , sad makes it a moral obligation for the

      sup-PHHMB of a combination of might and "wrong . Pbysiaifarae Bevet need be tried , except for lack of moral wrap by moBd cowards . Physical force , then , is ont of the question ; and we must next fall back upon oajl ioTO ; thai is , upon a combination of right and a # S , nwraDy marshalled , and effectually directed . Maal force , ponrtrsying wrong , while physical energy naia the wrong-doers apprehend the most effective of aUnaontcdons , that wherein might and right

      con-5 g » , tkea , upon whom is this moral power to C 5 * aa ? 2 i * t qaestion is at once , and satisfactorily " ** & & by Mr . O'ConntU ' s sppeal for " petitions , I * &iaa , petitions . " in fact , tbere b only one point towa ^ i it an be directed , namely , to the House of ftsa *« tt . What , then , follows , as a natural inference ? tti j , aadoub tedly , that the petitioners are , by all f * a . in their power , to strengthen the hands of those « avk > a they seek a favourable response ; that is , » Be friends in the House , through -whose intere « ^ iBpfc rSon , moral courage and ageney , the petition-^ wr are to be encourac&i in their work .

      j / ^^ de bite each session , with facts brought to «» spa the justice of Ireland ' s demand , and reported 'f * 8 iffiperial press , would give moral life aod moral ^^ -o the moral force applicants . In order to ^ f ^^ aas . tceD , the one great and all-absorbing ^^ d hsve been to keep the constituent and the ^* a » tive mind in perfect harmony , by adding , * & dsb&te , new converts ; and , upon each election , C * ° < % old offenders .

      * k » ' = 7 friend , let us » e H thii course has been ^^ ; « n 4 , that wb may arrive at a fair conclusion aoa fjg ^ mn i now accompany me in a trah ^ L . ^" e ^* re ^ e uorrid scenes which I have J / V * ^ within seven miles of the " improred " ^^^ "improved Ireland ; " and we will traverse taj ^ »« weh of this combination of right k *** in sepport of the Repeal of the Union . j ^ j ^ ' . ^ divided upon the question , and had a ^*^ ^ y of forty-two . Seven yeara have jjat ^*^ d let us enquire what has become of dhi ~® atit 7 . and what now would be the result of a kB ^ T *' ***«¦ thousands , and ten * of thousands , and ~ " **« « UwusHMii of pounds have been paid for the f ^ ae measure ?

      5-, ^ . f * * 8 t forth the places which returned I b ^ tt 1834 > ""bich do not return Repealers now . **>» fi ^ iii > eator ' * own doOT of &" ° ' country Jjrt . ^* ** **» door of his town honse in my titr . ' Z ^ ^^ Kewy county , Mullins ; Cork county , Tj ^ jT * ««« ighs , —dty , Dr . Baldwin ; Mallow , Q ^ j ^ f * 1 John O'Connell ; Waterford county , 5 ^ ^~ S a « M , Jacob ; Clare , Macnamara , jnn . ; ao ^^ ^ anty « nd borough * , —comity , the Bight C ^^^« dX * ioT shlti , {" W ) u > Uthe traitor ? " ) ®* X * $ m ' Clonmd l B « aayne . knJJ ^ Cuhel » d Clonmel , the two mosi Radical fe « s £ r * become the Gatton -and Old Sarum of ^'•• a *^ ^ mU 8 hroom * * fox Sro ^ pl * ce * ° * i . m think of Clonmel retemiag Dr . ^^ - «« wmty College ! My God ! uiro

      ' ^ "y ioBnk ; - «>~« "j ugn every coanry rrom J " S ; ^ to ' * EiDgle tura - Kakenny ««»**• Wai ^ T ^ fy ***> Sullivan ; Carlo w county and i' ^ . Wlu ** bavedreadful , 0 ! dreadful havoc , ) ! . ^ J ^ their 8 te ! ld ? A * bton , Tates , and ^ ^ ttdthe T ( « y Bniffi . Shocking , shock" ^ W * dreadfnl !> KiBg ' s county , Fitz-? " * ' Sl ^ ' " honest * ** ^«; Kildare r * »^ r W JBn- J J > mn co ^ t ^ ' Fiu . imon ; iw ^ T >^ na v ' county , Drogheda , | ^ ' 5 e » rj , Brady ; iomagb , DobbilL

      Untitled Article

      Thus , O'Maney , Bince 1834 wehave lost twenty-four , or the biggest half of our minority of forty-two , without one single man of those I have mentioned being replaced by a Repealer ; no , not one ! I dont mention myself , because I so fortified Cork county as to close it against all but Repealers ; there Roche , a Repealer , and in every way aa Irishman » ad a gentleman , has taken my place . Now , O'Malley , take the Baronets , the expectants , the Commis-ioners , and all tho # e ready to be aoppedoff , from the eighteen remaining of the minority of 1834 , and you may safely estimate your strength upon the next division at eight at the very outside : and this is the PROGEESSIOS of Repeal !

      I » gw , OMalky , let the whole rotten press of Ireland , the " Liberator , " and the Corn Exchange " patriots ,-answer these facts by facts , and not with " old Cumber land , " ' the Queen , " " Sergeant Jackson , " or " Mr . Litton , " or " O glory be to God , and blessed be His holy name , I gained a bloodless triumph . " Let us have facts . Ireland is beginning to ask fer her whistle ; she must , at all events , have a tune or two upon it Now , O'Jialley , I coma to auother rock , one upon -which I mean todaah another of fiction ' s waves to atoms . I have shewn thai , physical force being

      abandoned , and properly abandoaed , an abandonment sanctioned by Ireland ' s moral Btrength , that her moral energies were not " practically , " honestly , sfficiently , or indeed at all cultivated ; and that aU the moonshine cry of the " patriots , " to ' save them from Stanley , and Jackson , and Litton , and the Orangemen , " is sheer humbug—that , in fact , the Very grievances of which they complain are the effect of causes produced by the " patriots" themselvea , Htre , then , I proceed to another mountain of facts ; and facts which , sooner or later , must and shall be answered . Now , attend to me , O'Malley .

      In 1832 , we furnished the Irish constituencies with a bill of particulars . We said . Repeal of the Union -will give yon a resident fostering landed proprietary , who will be spurred on by emulation to give you encouragement , and who will be a check upon any inclination to tyrannise , from the interest which each will have in appealing to his conduct as his title to your suffrages . It will give you men for local administrators of the law who have an interest in the peace , the happiness , and the prosperity of Ireland , instead of the present race of bloodsuckers , who make your pretended crimes a justification for their real iniquities . It will give you Irish laws , made by Irishmen in Ireland , for the government

      of the Irish people . It will five you a national stomach to consume the prodnee of your land , and backs to wear the produce of you * hand * . It -will make the owners of property look into taxes -which they must pay , if their tenants cannot In short , it will restore Ireland fr « m a state of provincial degradation to national independence . We said you are a Catholic people , and should not pay a shooting church ' s parsons , and we want to abolish tithes in name and nature , and to give . the amount , now paid to the said parsons , to the people to whom it belongs ; we spoke not of a scale of grievances , but we complained that the

      payment of a farthing was unjust , and tithes should , therefore , be abolished in name and nature . We said the magistrates have cruelly oppressed the people , and we see no remedy but in allowing the people to appoint their own magistrates , subject to the proper tribunal for the due execution of their office . We said every man of twenty-one yeaig « f age is entitled to a vote , and should have it . We said Annual Parliaments are part and parcel of the constitution , and our Irish members require but your countenance and support , to give them strength to acquire this and all other things to which they hereby pledge themselves .

      Well , O'Malley , no man in Ireland , no twenty men , no thousand men in Ireland , werked as I worked for the accomplishment of those things . We were mutually pledged each to the other , by a solemn bond and covenant We , npen our part , said , we know your sufferings will be great in resisting your landlords , by v » ttng f * r men who promise so much ; but you have the Bill before you , and it is for you to say whether or no the advantages held out will more than counterbalance the sufferings

      to' be endured ; and the people , from the Land ' s End to Cape Clear , with one -roice answered , " we agree , Wfi will endure all tor oar coxmUy'a good , our families , our homes , and ouraltars . " Be it so , " said the " patriots , " " and cursed be he who first strikes the national colours from the Irish standard . " Well , to work we went , and the poor , but honest and confiding people backed us ; and and I for one , stood by them in return , and resisted every act of aggression consequent upon their oppostion to their landlords .

      Well , O'ilalley , " patriotism" is a fine thing to talS Of ; but , in my opinien , there is more real devotion to country , which is patriotism , in tbe poor man , who , with a wife and a house full of children , bravely risks his all for his country's good ; who defies distress for rent , ejectment , persecution , and prosecution ; than there is in the man who makes no socrifioe ^ &nd runs no rist , bat fattens and grows rich upon the misfortunes of bis country , Jfow , O'Malley , let us analyse the effect produced by the desertion of the people by the " patriots . " Here it is , then , all of a heap , like Brown's cow , and from the Morning Chronicle , which has the fallowing as a justification of Irish indignation against Stanley ' s Bill , while it furnishes the most damning proof of the villany ef the " patriots , " The Chronide says : —

      ¦ " In the Chronuxe of Tuesday last appeared a communication from our Dublin correspondent , in which he gave an abstract of the returns , showing the decrease of electors , on a comparison of the register in 1835 with the register of 18-il , -which -we here repeat : — Antrim „„ . „ 877 Leitxim 17 Armagh 902 Limerick ( County ) 1 , 221 Bandon 10 Limerick ( City ) ... 1 , 128 Carlow ( Borough ) ... 57 Longford 130 Cavan 150 Mallow 188 Clare .. „ 983 Mayo 766 Cork 727 Me&th 543

      Cork [ City ) ......... 873 linwrj , 135 Donegal 320 ftneens County ... 5 * 1 Down ..... 1 , 102 Ro » comm « n 805 Dowupatrick 201 Tralee § 3 Dungannoa 1 Waterford 692 Dungarvan 287 Waterford ( City ) ... 151 Eania ... " . 8 Westmeatb ., 538 Enniskiilen 133 Wexford 1 , 173 Galway ( County ) ... 1 , 470 Wicklow ., 252 Ki . 'dare 269 Kilkenny ( City ) ... 77 17 , 243 King ' s County oil

      " In the counties and boroughs , not in this list , there has 6 een some very slight incre&semeiit , or the couititnene > , has been stationary . There are no returns from the counties of Monaghan or Dublin ; but Mr . Gratt&n , in a letter to the electors of Kildare , which appeared in the Chrohide of Tuesday last , estimates the loss in both at 2 . 757 voters , which gives a grand total decrease of 20 , 000 for all Ireland . " Now then , O'Maliey , are jou satisfied ? Up to 1835 the tenants resisted their landlords ; allowed their families to be driven : from house and home , in expectation of the- boons promised by the " patriots ; " bnt after three years of " hope deferred , " of anxious seeking and heart-burning , they said , " we have had enough of bumbng ; we have done onr share ; we have ontraged onr landlords : ten thousand have been ejected , ten

      thousand more , rather than appear to vote against Ireland , wont register at all ; by that means we shall save ourselves the disgrace of voting for the enemies of our religion , while our landlords will be Battened with our neutrality . " Now , O'Malley , have I or have I not fully , fairly , and justly accounted for the decrease of the Irish county constituencies , and are not the poor people fully justified ? Had we gone on , year after year , adding something to our moral-force power in the House of Commons , standing-fey onr every principle , and had we established onr general associations for the protection of voters and the exposure of tyrant landlords , Ireland

      would now have had an increase of £ 0 , 000 voters more than those registered in 1835 , instead of a decrease of 20 , 000 . They saw Lord Duncannon , Sir Henry Paraell , the Hon . Robert King , Mr . Leader , Mr . Wyse , and Mr . jephson , with score * of others , QOt up to the mark , hooted from the husttngB ; and they bow see Lord Duncannon , Six Henry Pamell , and Mi . Wjbb " in the best ministry' that Ireland ever had , and they see Mr . Jephson transformed into Sir Denham Norreys , and they ask , how is this ? Now , Mr . Wyse and Mr . Jephson are as honest as any two men in the House , and , instead of changing one jet of their principles , they stuck to them , like gentlemen , but the "Liberator " has melted down to their temperature .

      My majurity in 1 S 32 , for the county of Cork , was 842 . In 1835 , my majority would have been above l « 00 , but the enemy struck , and we stopped at S 60 of a majority : but my majority would have been nearly double what it was three years before ; and why ?

      Untitled Article

      Because I stood fast by my every pledge , tested the ' House upon Repeal , opposed every , humbug , and would not listen to the deceitful system of taking an instalment of twenty-five shillings rent for twenty shillings tithe ; because I risked my life and everything , in exposing every act of persecution ; and , in justice to the landlords of the county of Cork , I will say that there were fewer in that county than in any county in Ireland , though the largest and most aristocratic Well , how is Cork situated now ? Why it has lost 727 of its constituents , and 727 of the remainder will never again vote against their landlords ; whereas , if the measures , for which they made so many sacrifices , had been honestly maintained in the House of Commons , Cork county would have added more than 3 , 000 to its constituency , instead of having » decrease of

      72 T . O'Malley , my services in that county , which gave the tone to Ireland , have yet to be published . I registered the county—I roused the county and Ireland , all Ireland , through the county of Cork . I rode and drove thousands of miles by night and by day . I have paid eight and Dine pounds a day for posting , always doing all the work myself , and galloping from town to tawn as fast as four horses could lay leg to ground . I have ridden miles fast asleep and wet to the skin , I have slept in damp beds in rooms that never were slept in before . I have changed my clothes at Mill-street , and again at M&croon , on my way from Kantuck , home , fifty

      miles in a gallop . I have left home again in an hour , at midnight , to ride thirty miles more in pelting rain . I have had notice from servants to quit my service , as they could not keep up with me , although always mounted on thoroughbred heroes . I have tumbled down in the ball of James Redmond Barry ' s house , fast asleep , while his butler was lighting me a candle ; and I have been in the saddle in five hours to ride seventy miles , and address three public meetings . I paid for the reporters , who reported oar proceedings at meetings , three guineas each , and then got but a corner . I was arrested for attending and taking the chair at seven meetings , and refused to make any compromise , lest I should appear to compromise my party for my own liberty . I prosecuted

      General Sir George Bingham for ordering the military to ride the people down ; and , as counsel for the Crown , the Crown refusing to prosecute , I used my privilege of setting every Orangeman aside , till I got a fair jury to eonvict , and I did get a conviction . The "Liberator " was leading counsel , bat he ran away while I was doing the work ; while the very judge who was to try me , perhaps , Beit , was fuming and raving for abusing ( as he called it ) the privilege of the Crown ; but I weak on ; the General was convicted , and fined sixpence ! I was counsel and agitator for every one who pledged himself to Repeal . I never took one farthing from any one . I posted fifty miles in the dead hour of night , with four horses , to conduct Mr . John O'Connell ' s election at Yougball , acd made my way through drawn sabrea to the hustings and returned him .

      That was the way to get an Irish constituency ; and the best proof is this , that ten millions of money would not have beaten me in the county of Csrk . Let m » but get another pnll at them , and I will put them in the same prond position once more , and humble the devils again In the dust- When they do aee me again , it will be with the old flig tying , with a few new demands , e ^ iuralent to the times we live in , upon it : but not one single erasure ; AND THEY SHALL SEE ME AOAIN ! O'Malley , I have accounted for Irish apathy and the decrease of the Irish constituencies , and now I come for one moment to a consideration of the charge of encouraging the English people to use violence to Mr . O'Connell .

      O'Malley , as a lover of fairplay , you will hear both sides of the question . You will look on both pictures . Look then On this side , And on this . " 1 will meet you In " O ! Mr . O'Connor , Dublin , London , Cork , and his torch and dagger Belfast , Birmingham , Man- Chartists , wont let any cheeter , Newcastle , and man be heard , or hold a Glasgow , to discuss the meeting , but themselves . " justice of trades defending —D . O'Connell . their property by unions of "I met Feargus O'Contheir order . I will pledge nor at a meeting at Presmy « e 2 f to restrain all per- ton , last Week , and I had aonal feelings so streng a great mind to kick him . " against you . I will also —Some bully at the Corn discuss with you the eeve- EicAanpt . ral questions upon which " You never would have you profess to differ from been more right in your the English Chartists . I life , my friend , than if you will pay all the expences ; had kicked him well . "you shall make all the D . OConneU . arrangements ; I merely "O ! If Feargus OCon-8 tipulate for free admission nor was to come to Dublin , and no packing . " —F-OCon- the boys Would treat him nor t Letter to D . O'Conneii . to a swim in the Liffey . "" Let no man be drunk ; D . OConneU . let no man riot ; if any should , let him be instantly restrained , "—F . O'Connor ' s Leller on ihe Leeds Meeting of 21 st January , to which O'Connell was expected .

      Now , O'Malley , lo * k on those two pictures , and say who is afraid of argument , and who is the bully ? I can only say of my Preston friend , that he has good luck on his side not to have gratified his inclination ; for , although I have never seen the hero , I would undentake to thrash him and another or two like him . Well , again , I challenge Daniel to meet me in the very Corn Exchange , for the first place ; and thnre I will defend Chartism and O'Connor against humbug and O'Connell . I will psy my own expences ; I will go alone ; I ask but free admission , and no silver tickets and kid-skin glove " patriots . " I must have the blisters and frieze coats , and then I defy mortal man to beat me upon Irish ground .

      O'Malley , I mean to make this a great day for Ireland . I have started early , and written this letter before breakfast I will write for fifteen hours to-day , al ] , about Ireland and the Irish ; my observations may not be published just now in a book , but they will in time to come . This is my last day , as to-morrow the Assizes close , and all hope of convoy will be gone-No man shall affect ignorance of Ireland after he has read my present series ef letters ; he shall see the very grass growing , and bear the vallies ring- with the sound of Ireland ' s real grievances . I will let you and the world know whether or not I understand my country and my countrymen .

      O'Malley , 1 said , from the commencement , that Repeal would find an opiate in some new-forged counterfeit My next shall be npon the last twenty-four pounder fired from the humbug camp , as an address to the Irish people , in which the anti-Catholic prejudice of Sergeant Jackson and Mr . Litton is administered to the uneasy and sleepless repealer , as if it was all new , or , as if those Orangemen had told us anything that we didn't know before- Humbug , all humbug . I am , O'Malley , Your faithful friend and countryman , FEARGUS O'CONNOR . P . a I will show you what the " lion" in his net can do for his country in one day .

      O'Malley , just lake my letters to the liberal Irish papers and ask them to publish them , even as advertisements , and to name their ow » price . 3 dare them—I defy them ; aye , and I will make them do it y « t , in obedience to public opinion . F . O'C .

      Untitled Article

      TO HER MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY THE QUEEN . Madam , —The next institution « f society which we have said requires reorganization , in order to its bec * ming really beneficial to the community , is the Chnxch—a very few words respecting which will suffice to place the matter in its proper light and importance It is a fact , declared by two eminent divlaes of the Church of England , that religion , as connected with

      the state , is established , not because of its truth , but because of its utility . Thus , then , I am saved all the trouble of demonstrating the anti-scriptural nature of oar National Church as to the doctrines she inculcate * Warburtoa and Paley have taught ma that this is a test to which I have no need to subject the state machine for the coercion of conscience . She exists on account of her public utility , and if she does not answer that end , then she has no claim to exist at all .

      By the Church is not meant the people who belong t , e her communion ; these are her children , who , ae . cording to the sentiments of the Archbishop of Canterbury , in his primary charge , are expected to crowd , with pious affection , to the altars of their mother ; nor de * B the Church jnean the places dedicated to the performance of the national worship . These are only tne temples in which her public functions are performed ; the Church is , in reality , the established priesthood , in

      Untitled Article

      connection with those-who have the distribution of ecclesiastical good things , and a standing army , and a numerous and vigilant established police , to enforce the claims of the eald priesthood , by the wholesome and Christian means of coercion and compulsion . This is really the Church of England as established by law . She is , in fact , a chattered company , with your Majesty at her head , progessing a monopoly of religious wares , and punishing , when she can do bo with impunity , all who refuse to use or purchase her meiccandisa . Tltfa is her corporate character , and I beg your Majesty to bear in mind this . I am only now speaking of her in her secular capacity . I waive all investigation into her right to be considered , apart from her connection with the state , as a section of the universal church of ChriBt .

      Now , in this her state character , she issupported at the public expence , as one of the Institutions of the country , and she is so supported on th « supposition that she renders to the community certain important services In return fo * the support thus afforded her . I am not prepared to say that she does not render Borne important services . I believe Bhe does ; but the two most important ends for which every state church exists , she is , by her unhappy organisation , almost wholly prevented from accomplishing . These are , the guardianship of public morals , and a maintenance of a spirit of good will amongst the people . As to the first of these

      subjects , it is notorious that , wherever her influence is the most predominant , there is the state ef public morals most deplorable . For a proof of this we have only to look at the Universities and at all Cathedral townsJ Nor is this at all a matter for surprise and wonder , when we see the manner in which the patronage is distributed . In 1831 , the total number of livings in England and Wales was 10 , 872 , the distribution of which was as follows : —In the gift of ' the King and Government , 1 , 014 ; lay Nobility and Gentry , 6 , 030 ; Bishops , 1 , 304 ; Dittos and Chapters , 1 , 042 Universities , 794 ; Private Ecclesiastics , 1 , 423 ; Corporations and Charitable Institutions , 197 ; Inhabitants ,

      68 . We all know that a vast proportion of these livings are given to the creatures of the minister of the day ; to younger sons and brothers , who ore more intent upon killing game than euring souls ; and to persons who purchase them in direct violation of the regulations of the Canons , but who are permitted to bold them notwithstanding . Can any body wonder that when the patronage is so corruptly distributed , the Church ' s guardianship over public moralB should be only a mere name ?

      The case is just as bad if we turn to toe other branch of the Church duties : —That of promoting good will among the people . Alas , she is much more likely , in her present form , to stir up strife and contention . Here sending a conscientious Dissenter to prison , and there refusing the rites of burial , not to a person unbaptised , bat to some infant whose parents had chosen to have it initiated into the Christian fold , according to the forms of their own communion . One day driving off a poor widow ' s cow , and leaving her son in bis blood , for daring to defend it ; and the next engaged with a refractory farmer , who had neglected to pay due reverence to his spiritual guide . Truly , the sooner your Majesty begins to exercise your powers aa head of the Church , the better . If something is not done to reform the Church , in a few years we shall not have a Church to reform . ¦

      Lastly . —The constitution of Parliament must be entirely reorganized , or peace and contentment can never surround your throne . The very notion of representation is inconsistent with the present constitution of the House ot Commons ; nor can genuine liberty be secured until such changes as the altered and improved state of the public mind clearly indicate to be necessary , be effected in the constitution of the House of Lords . Only think of men in the nineteenth century , being deemed and declared competent to legislate for a great empire , solely on the ground that their fathers did bo before them . If the nonsense by which the hereditary House

      of Legislators is supported , hod been applied to the business and operations of common life , we should have been now dressed in the skins of beasts , and living ou acorns and roots in the woods . AU has been progressing but the science of Government ; that has stood still , or if moving at all , it has been in a direction directly opposite to the real interest and well-being of the nation . Depend npon it , Madam , the House of , Lords must bo brought into a state of accord with the spirit ot the age , or , by and by , an insulted people will arise in their moral majesty , and , in the face of their power , the HoUse of Lords will cease to exist as a legislative assembly .

      But defective as the constitution of the Upper House unquestionably is , it is perfection itself when compared with that which claims to be the people ' s representatives . Even the very forms of the House are at variance with common sense , and wduld not be endured a month by a really free people . Just , for example , look at the fact that the men who pretendUo have their power conferred by the people , refuse to receive a notification of the people ' s wishes except in Uje shape of a petition couched in the most abject

      terms , if it be upon a particular subject , and concluding with a promise which they well know the petitioners never Intend to keep . Then , again , the petition may be presented ; they are not always received , and still let 8 attended to , while measures of the most grinding oppression , and on which the public disapprobation has been unequlvocably expressed , ore passed with the most provoking coolness ; and the hard earnings of the people are voted to maintain a system calculated to undermine the very framework of society , and to destroy every vestige of liberty , except in name .

      The same atrocions system of misrule pervades every department of the state , and is especially observable in the appointment of Magistrates and other Executive officers , and in the powers entrusted to the Lords Lieutenant of counties . The former are men having generally no sympathy with the people , no knowledge of the law which they are appointed to administer , and an utter recklessness as to the consequences of the acts they may feel disposed to perpetrate ; and the latter , instead of being compelled to convene public meetings , when called upon to do so by a given number of the inhabitants , can refuse to do so when the object is one which It suits their views of interest , or of prejudice , to

      refuse ; and thus to stifle , in a considerable degree , the legitimate expression of the popular voice , In matters of paramount publio interest . These , and they are but a few among the multitude that might be adduced , are some of the instances which prove beyond reasonable question , that these most important of our social institutions need a searching and practical reform , and that reform we must and shall obtain . The people must be fully and fairly represented , or it will be seen at no distant day that further forbearance is impossible ; and consequences will follow , of a nature and extent that is quite out of the power of human prudence to calculate or foresee .

      Thus , Madam , hare I token a concise view of su « h preliminary matters as seemed essential to be known , in order to the clear understanding of our subject . We have inquired into the various duties devolving upon the Government , and hive examined them at considerable length . We have seen the vast importance to all ranks and classes of such a system of criminal jurisprudence m shall tend at once to prevent the commission of crime , and promote the reformation of the criminal population . We shall now proceed to examine whether , and how far , the present system of prison discipline , as existing in this country , is calculated to promote , binder , or prevent the realisation of these important objects . I am , Madam , Tonr Majesty ' s faithful and obedient subject and servant , NUMA . London , MarcA 3 rd , 1841 .

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      " THE LEAGUE" ARGUMENT . MB . EDITOR , —If anything further is wanted to prove that the professed advocates for a repeal of the Corn Laws are a set ot dishonest and vile hypocrites , the following facts will settle that question . I attended a publio meeting on Monday evening , at Deptford , in Kent , for the purpose of meeting the great sophist of the day , Mr . S . Smith . I found that gentleman at work amongst a room full of middle men , with a few exceptions , endeavouring , as usual , to make them believe that the working classes were so completely dead to their own interest , that they allow themselves to be duped by a set of fellows , called Chartists , who were paid by those who were opposed to the repeal of the Corn Laws . That barefaced falsehood compelled me to break silence , and ask if , at the close of Mr . Smith ' sremarks , I might be allowed to correct some statements mode by that gentleman , which were at variance with truth . Instead of receiving an anfivrer , there was

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      a general cry of these middle meu , " turn him out ;" a counter cry of a few fustian jacket niea was '' bear him ; " which ended in those men being expelled by torce , and myself threatened to soon follow ; but they , finding that I was not to be intimidated , allowed me to remain . As Boon as order waa restored , the liberal Sydney Smith stated that he would not answer any questions which Air . Neesoia might a&k , and he felt it hU duty to inform the meeting who that gentleman was , ia order that they might be on their guard Mr . Neesom was the person who was mainly instrumental in upsetting the Anti-Poor Law meeting at the Crown and Anchor , the other day , by taking the chair and putting an amendment favourable to his views ; and further , he had been one of the foremost to attend similar meetings , and so strong was the opposition of that individual , along with others , to his ( Mr . Smith '*) views , that they had completely , destroyed his attempts to get for the poor a cheap loaf ; that they could not hold a meeting in any part of London without the certain

      defeat of their objects . But the Northern Star newspaper was the most to blame , as it gave weekly reports of those meetings , and the proprietor , F . O'Cennor , a man whom he as uuch despised as he did Mr . Neewm , applauded the doings of those men . He begged to inform the meeting , that ; it was the intention of those with whom he bad the honour to act , to use the strong arm of the law ia future ; therefore it is neevsaary for the London Chartists t # look out . As Mr . Smith-is a reader of the Star , I beg to inform him that I fear not his threats ; bludgeon men or sabres will not intimidate me from doing my duty in exposing the vile cheat , and where ever Mr . Sydney Smith is , then am 1 also . Allow mo , Mr . Editor , to say , I am an advocate for free discussion , and do not approve of noise and clamour instead of argument ; but after what passed lost night , we may expect knock-down arguments from those canting knaves , the C « rn Law Repealers . As far as London is concerned , the League is dead without the hope of a resurrection . .

      My next business in this affilr will be , to preach Mr . Smith ' 8 funeral sermon , of which I shall give public notice . Should you be able to find 5 place for the insertion of the above in your forthcoming Star , you will oblige , Sir , Yours very respectfully , C . H . Neesom . 76 , Hare-street , Bethnal Green . P . S . —I may just odd , in reference to Mr , O'Connor's wish , for another Convention , dec , I am moat ready to do all in my power to forward bis views .

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      ^—RELIGIOUS FREEDOM (?) TO TBS EDITOR OF TUB NORTHERN STAB . Sib , —On Sunday , the 16 th instant , a written bill was posted on the Joint Stock Shop window , to the following effect : — " A sermon will be preached on behalf of John Clayton ' s family , whose death was caused by Whig persecution in North&Uerton gaol , at five o ' clock this afternoon . " The religious churchwarden gave orders to Ward , the policeman , to pull it down , Which he did . tt was then written « n with chalk , when the aforesaid worthy came and rubbed it off . The room is not licensed , nor the parson who was going to preach—so there was no sermon . The above is a strung proof of O'Brien ' s statement in his last letter . People would become religious , but the tyrants will not nllnw it .

      Good heavens ! we have eome to a pretty pass . We are denied our political rights—also our religious rights . A man cannot now teach the doctrines of truth , love , and justice , without being licensed . In haste , Yours , in the cause of freedom , John Davbon . Stockton , 16 th March , 1341 .

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      MRS . CLAYTON . TO TUB SDITOR OF THE KORTHERK STAR . Sir , —As your valuable paper has ever been the medium through which the rights of all , without exception , have been fairly advocated , but especially the working classes , I feel it to be my imperative duty to thank you for the interest you have taken in my personal welfare , under my unprecedented affliction , I mean the loss of my husband , who died in the cause of Chartism , and for that prompt attention you have paid to communications from different parts of the country . Though he was a poor man , and of few abilities , compared with others , had he been a rich man—a

      Collins or n Love tt—you could not nave shown greater marks of respect , or have Bpoken of him in terms more affecting , or have been more ready to assist his helpless wife and children . Other friends have followed your example , and lent me their pecuniary aid , to enable me to gaia an honest livelihood , that I may not be left to the mercy # f oppressors , or the frowns of tyrants . I sincerely thank all persons wh « have used th « ir influence in the cause of the fatherless and widow , and should any Chartist friends grant me their support , I trust they will he satisfied that the same is not misapplied , as it is my intention to acknowledge aU sums received by me , be they ever so small , throug the medium of your paper .

      Sir , I take this opportunity of most gratefully acknowledging the sums already received from the following places : — £ s . d . Manchester Victim Fund 200 Members of the Christian Church , Birmingham 13 9 Bath Female Radical Association 0 11 3 Marylebone and Paddingtoa Victim Committee 2 6 0 Sir , by inserting these few lines in your paper of Saturday next , with the sums above named , you will greatly oblige , Tours respectfully , Sarah Clayton . N . B . All communications addressed to Mrs . Clayton , No . 87 , Porter-street , Sheffield , will be promptly attended to . Sheffield , March , 16 th , 1841 .

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      HOUSE OF LORDS , Friday , March 19 . Petitions for the total abolition of church patronage were presented : in favour of the Corn Laws , from Cork and other places in Ireland ; and in favour o Church Extension . The Earl ot ABERDEEN presented a petition from Newfoundland , similar in many respects to one which be had brought under the consideration of the Houss in 1839 . The petition set forth that it was the most distracted and unhappy colony under the dominion of Great Britain , and that of late its condition had become much , worse . Its greatest evils had arisen from an abuse of the constitution granted to it in 1831-2 , and the House of Assembly was at present constituted in such a manner that it was impossible it could discharge its legislative functions ¦ with advantage to the colony . The Detitloners prayed for parliamentary inquiry .

      The Marquis of Normanby said , in the early part of the session the governor had stated to the House of Assembly that the matter was under the consideration of the Government at home , but the Noble Earl appeared to have overlooked that point . An amendment of the election laws had also been recommended by the governor , and in the event of their refusing to do so , he had stated his intention to Buspend the issuing of writs until he had received the . instructions of ihe Government at home . Under these circumstance * , he hoped the Noble Earl would not press the subject further at present .

      Mr . NiCltOLLS , the resident Irish Poor Law Commissioner , was then called to the bsr and examined . He admitted that great irregularities bad taken place , but he could not well account for them . He also bore testimony to the high character of Mr . Stanley for integrity and veracity . After a lengthened examination , the witness was ordered to withdraw , and their Lordships adjourned till Monday .

      Monday , March 22 . Mr . Phelau was examined at great length relative to the returns from the Poor Law Union of CionmeL Mr . Peildwr , an attorney , residing in Clonniel , was also examined , after -which it was resolved that Mr . Hall , from the Office of the Poor Law Commissioners , should be ordered to attend at the bar on Friday next , and Mr . Hawley ( one of the Assistant Poor Commissioners ) on Monday .

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      HOUSE OF COMMONS , Friday , March 19 . On the motion of Lord John Russell , the House went into committee on the grant from the Consolidated Fund to the South Australian Company . Sir W . MOLESWORTH ( lid not think the grant went for enough to meet the justice of the case ; it appeared to him that the debt due by the Commissioners to the Emigration Fund , amounting to . £ 50 , 000 , ought to be included in the present Tote , or a supplemental one ought to be taken to tbat amount The Chancellor of the Exchequer explained that the present vote waa not a final settlement of the matter ; it was merely to provide for the repayment of bills advanced upon the faith of the colony , and from which parties ware now suffering under very great inconvenience and difficulty . The resolution to appropriate A sum . of £ 155 , 000 from the Consolidated Fund , by way of loon , was then agreed to .

      O ) i the motion for going into Committee on the Poor Law Continuance Bill , Mr . Wakley moved an instruction to the Committee to divide the BUI into two pattB , He proposed to separate the clauses relating to the law itself , from the clauses relating to the continuance ef the Commission ; and thuB , he said , he gave an opportunity to those who wished to render the measure permanent , without prolonging the Commission beyond the five years . Mr . Wakiey indulged in a denunciation of the cruelty of the law as it is at present administered . He told a story of a child who had died while its mother was in the Workhouse ; it bad been taken from her to be weaned , and died of convulsions ; its death was concealed from the mother , until she heard it accidentally ; she ran after the body to the burialground , and there the first thing that she heard was that it could not be taken into the church , because it was supposed to have dietl . of the smallpox . He warned

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      the landed aristocracy that this law would endanger their seats ; and he pronounced the Honse—the Reformed , be could not call it the amended Honse ot Commons—tliatoould sanction each & measure , worse than the old Boronshmongerlng House of Commons . Xord j . Russell bad listened in vain for any argument in support of the Hon . Gentleman's motion . They bad bsen favoured with , a dissertation on the Reform Bill , and he recollected , when that measure wks before the Honse , it was alleged by some that if the right of returning members was conferred upon the metropolitan districts , they would have sent into that House men who ought never to have been

      there—mischievous demagogues , having no regard for the real interests of the people , and who , if they happened to be lawyers , and" sat in courts of justice , would turn them into arenas for political discussion , and pervert tne powers conferred on them to their own purposes . ( Cheers and laughter . ) With respect to the child alluded to by Mr . Wakley , Lord John hod been told that it was kept from the mother in order that excitement might not aggravate its malady ; but the concealment of Its death was exceedingly blameable . Lord Jebu reasserted the principle , that a Poor Law is meant to provide simply for destitution . Mr . Fielden opposed the bill .

      Lord G . Somerset objected to the Bill being divided into two parts , ' although he was strongly opposed to several of its clauses . Colonel Sibthorpe expressed his determination to give the ' measure his most strenuous opposition . Sir H . Vebney believed that since It had come into operation the wages of the labourers had been increased , and that the general feeling of the country was in its ' favour . After some further discussion Mr Wakley withdrew his amendment . Mr . T . Parker then moved , as an ameudmemt , that the Bill be committed that day six months . The Hon . Member reierred t « returns of the amount of poor rates levied in various agricultural and manufacturing districts , in order to show that of late years they had considerably increased , and that , therefore , the argument upon which the supporters of the Bill mainly rested , Viz . that it would effect a considerable saving in the amount of poor rates , was of no value . Mr . Grimsditch seconded the amendment .

      After Borne further discussion , the House divided , when there appeared , for going into committee , 247 ; for the amendment , 51 . The House then went into committee . * Lord J . Russell , in answer to Col . Sibthorpe , stated that it was his intention to propose that the number of assistant commissioners be reduced to twelve . Mr . B . Wood moved that the number of assistant commissioners be reduced to five , and after the 31 at of December , 1843 , that no assistant commissioners do continue in . office . The Hon . Member ultimately withdrew his amendment , but Col . Sibthorpe insisted on dividing the committee on the amendment , when , there appeared—for the amendment 46 ; against it , 191 . On the motion of Mr . w . attwood , the Chairman reported progress , and asked leave to sit again-Adjourned at a quarter post twelve o ' clock .

      Monday , March 22 . Lord J . Russell in reply to a question from Sir R . Peel , said he should proceed with the early clauses of the Poor Law Amendment Bill that evening , in « rder to give an opportunity for discussing the various amendments , of which notice had been given . He should then , propose to resume the committee on Friday and Monday next , after which be intended going on with it de die in diem . On the motion for resolving into Committee , on the Poor Law Amendment Bill , Mr . H . Hince said he hoped there was no intention to hurry the Bill through the House before Easter . Lord J . Russell said there was no each intention . He thought , however , that in . Committee , long intert » 1 b between each sitting were detrimental .

      Sir E . Susden hoped that Borne clause would be introduced to enable married couples to live together in workhouses . The separation of man and wife created a strong feeling against the Poor Law . Colonel Wood said that in the Staines Union aged couples were not separated , but were allowed a room to themselves , with a fire in it , where they might live comfortably . Mr . WAKLEY quoted a correspondence respecting tb « Uxbridge Union , where the Board of Guardians had refused to sick paupers the diet ordered for them by the medical attendant . In gaols the medical officers had always absolute power in this respect . Mr . Dabby said , that under the Old Poor Law the order of the medical attendant must be confirmed . If the articles ordered were withheld tbere was on appeal to a magistrate , and so there was atilL

      Lord Howick said that no Board of Guardians would refuse to attend to the orders of a medical attendant without strong and just grounds . It might happen that a , man professing a medical education might also possess an anxiety to acquire a low and despicable popularity , and might be capable of abusing a trust reposed in him . If the Beard of Guardians suspected a medical officer of w attempt to set aside the regular system of relief they would be quite right to set aside bis orders . He could scarcely credit it to be a fact , so discreditable to the gentlemen of England , as that a Board of Guardians would refuse articles really necessary when ordered by a medical man . Some discussion followed , in the course of Which , GeneralJoHNSON said that it was with great paia be bad beard what had fallen from Lord John Russell on Friday night ¦•

      Mr . Grots contended for the propriety of a check , on the part of the Guardians , over the medical attendant , because , etherwlse , the whole controul of the Union would rest with the latter functionary . Mr . EaSTHOpe contended that there was ample security against any . improper interference on the part of the medical officer , who might be discharged by the Guardians ; but it was not right that he should be limited in what he though ); proper to order . Mr . W . Atxwood said , the lives of the paupers could not be considered safe if the medical attendant was not to be entrusted with any discretion as to their diet . After some further discussion , in the course of which some warm observations passed between Mr . Ward and Mr . W . Attwood , the House resolved itself into Committee . Lord John Russell moved the first clause , fixing the period for which the Poor Law Commission should exist .

      Mr . Easthope thought five years too long a period for the prolongation of the commission , and moved , as an amendment , that 16 should extend only until 1843 . Mr . Grots was of opinion that the period should not be shorter than five years . He denied that the powers ef the commissioners were arbitrary , although they certainly were large , because the important duties they bad to perform required that they should be so . Mr . Wakiey said the Hon . Member for London had not advanced a single reason why it was necessary to renew the commission for five y « ars .

      Mr . Hawes said he bad known the workhouses under the old law , and he had a good deal of experience of union workhouses , and he solemnly declared that under the old system many of the workhouses were as bad as gaols , in which treatment was experienced by the paupers whick might justly be called torture ; and yet Hon . Members now sought to destroy the only system which hod ever grappled with the enormous evils of the old law . He denied that the present system could be fairly designated harsh or oppress ^© in its operation , and said he was willing to share all the unpopularity which ' might be incurred by the Hon . Member for the city of London , for defending this bill , having neither wish nor desire to sit in that House upon such popularity as might be acquired by opposing this bilL

      Mr . T . Duncombe said the question really at issue was , the extinction of the Commission , or its perpetuity , and contended that the law could be better adminis tered without a Central Board , by leaving its provisions to be carried out by the Boards of Guardians throughout the country . The Hon . Member then quoted instances of great cruelty which had been perpetrated iu Union Workhousea , and asserted that under the oil law no such oases had ever occurred . Mr . Darby supported the amendment . Mr . Hamilton contended that the Poor Law Bill bad failed in one of its main object * , that of raising wages . On the contrary , it might easily be shown that its effect had been to reduce them . He admitted thai nothing could be worse than the old system , but it did not follow from that , that they should " go the whole hog" with , this measure , and nave " the BUI , the whole Bill , and nothing but the Bill . " He thought it might be necessary to continue the Commission , but he sheuld vote for ita continuance for the shorter period .

      Sir G . Strickland would also vote for the shorter period , and was of opinion that , unless some material changes were made , the present system could not coatinae to be the permanent law of the land . Mr . YiilierS supported the clause . Mr . W . Atxwood supported the shorter period , in order to give a more frequent power of revision to the Hnuse of Commons . It was said that this waa done indirectly , because in the estimates the question might be brought annually under consideration ; bat if so , there could surely be no objection to do that directly which was not deemed injudicious when done indirectly . . ¦ : ' ' Mr , Muntz thought It might be as well , in accordance with the principle of voting the continuance of this commission for five years , to similarly vote the Mutiny Bill and the estimates for five years . On a division , the amendment waa negatived by majority of 171 to 135 . . ;

      __ .... Colonel Sibthokp said he should take the sense of the House upon the reduction of the salaries of the Commissioners , from £ 2 , 000 a year to £ 1 , 000 , and their travelling expenses from three guineas to one guinea a day , which be thought quite enough to keep them ia " good working condition . " He should also move to reduce the salaries of the assistant-commissioners from £ 700 a year to £ 300 a year . On the motion that the clause should stand part of the Bill , ' , Mr . J . Fielden moved that it be expunged . The committee again divided , and the amendment was negatived by a majority of 163 to 49 . The clause was then agreed to , the chairman reported progress , and obtained leave to ait again .

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      ¦ — . ,- THE NORTHERN STAR . 7

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), March 27, 1841, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct848/page/7/