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Northern Star (1837-1852), 10th December 1842, Edition 5 of 5, Page 8, ^orQ>tomms Cfjartfet $ate*tmaj.

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    • ^orQ>tomms Cfjartfet $ate*tmaj.
    • LOCAL MfiJEfiTS;
    • FROM OUR SECOND EDITION OF LAST WEEK.
    • Leeds :~Printed for the Proprietor FEABQU8 O'Connor, Eiq. of fiunmenmitb, Ccon*l .
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      ^Orq≫Tomms Cfjartfet $Ate*Tmaj.

      ^ orQ > tomms Cfjartfet $ ate * tmaj .

      Untitled Article

      Lokdos . —Mr . Preston will lecture on the Funded System , at the Clock House , QBtle-street , Goidensquare , on Sunday evening . Mossurr . —Mr . James Leach , of Manchester , trill deliver a lecture here on . Monday . Sowebbt . —On the 2 Sth of December there will be a Ball holden , at this place , the proceeds to go towards the Chartist cause . Tickete , mares , wffaepenoe each ; and females , twopence each . The Number of tickets will be limited , so that an early application will be necessary . The amosements ot the evening will commence at five o ' clock . Mb . Skeyisgtoh , of Longbourongh , will address the friends at Sheepshead , next Sunday afternoon , at two o ' clock ; ax d the Loughborongh friends in their room , at half-past six the same day .

      Hjxdlet . —Mr- Isaac Barrow will preach in BiEii ; ey on the morning and afternoon « f Sunday next . Those friends who hare been disappointed bj the former engagement not being ¦ attended to , owing to the serious illness he has suffered by the brutal treatment oi a townsman of his , may make certain , God willing , that he will attend to the present arrangement . Engagements made with the finends at Rxtcliffa Bridge were neglected from the same cans »; if they wish for another engagement , they wul please to write without delay . MttSRGW . —Mr . Joseph Wood , from Rochdale , will preach a sermon in the Chartist Association Room , Miinrow . Kirkheatos . —On Sunday ( to-morrow ) a lecture will be delivered in the A ^ ociatiou Room , st six o ' clock .

      Delegate Meeting —A District Delegate Meeting of the Hudderefi&ld Distnct will be heid at Daiton , on i > andaj , ( to-morrow , ) at one o ' clock precisely . Salford . —On Monday after Christmas Day , the friends in Salford intend bolcing a tea-party . Tickets 91 . each . Wigas . —On Monday , Tuesday , and Wednesday nights next , Mt . David Ros 3 , of 'Manchester , wil deliver three lectures in the Commercial HalL The chair to he taken at ei ^ ht o ' clock . THTTP 5 TOM . AyD . —A lecture will be delivered in the D ^ iLocratic Chapel , Thurtonland ,- on Sanday , Dec 18 . at six o ' clock in the evening , by a friend to justice and an hater of oppression . All classes are invited .

      BRADFosp . —Mr . Butterly , of Halifax , will lectnro in ihe large room , Butterworth ' s Building ? , on Sunday , si two o'clock in the afternoon . Admission fres- . Ths JtniBEBS OP THB GENERAL COXTSCIL will meet on Sunday , at ten o ' clock . A full attendance is r . q ; c _ = ted , as business connected with the election of delegates to the Birmingham Conference will be laid beiore them . The Commotes or utqcirt will 0 ro in their report to the Council on Sunday morning , at ten o ' clock . A PEBUC SEZTIXG of the Chartists of NeircasUe BEU Ga . teat « id will be held in tbe Chartist * Hall , on Monday evening , when business of importance will be traxjtacted .

      Ma-vchesteb —There will be « n adjourned member ? " meeting , on Sunday morning , at ten o ' clock , in the Carpenter ' s Ball , Garrett-road .

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      [ We fear that perhaps some few localities may get the following aricle a second time , haying h&d i ; in their last week ' s papers . A new arrangement in tire Post-Office renders , thi 3 unavoidable ; tut it will not happen in many places * —Ed . N . S . ] THE APPEOACHIXG CONFERENCE . CUTJSSS OT THE ELECTI 0 N 3 . ALARM OF TBB STtJBGS PARTY . SOLUTION OF THE MYSTERY WHY ' CHASTISTS" WISH TO "GET RID OF FEARGUS . " The 27 th of December will soon be here 1 On ihat day the Conference of Delegates , appointed by the people in open public meetings , in their respective localities , conformably to a request issued

      lj Mr . Joseph Siubgb , of Birmingham , on behalf of the General Council of the Complete Suffrage Association , will meet to prepare a BjII to be propesed to Parliament , to secure the real representation of the whole people . Several of the localities hare ejected their delegates ; others are preparing to do ? o ; and circumstances so combine , as to make this meeting one of the most important ever con-Tened , or holden , in connection with that Msvensent , which has had , aid has , for its first object the assertion of the principle of oniTersal right .

      The struggles connected with that Movement have been long and arduous ! The conflicts have been many and severe ! The persecuting hand of power has been laid on with heavy effect upon the advocates of , and firm adherents to , the cause of Usitersal Suffrage . From the first hour of the proposal of that measure by Hesbt Hitst , as the only likely means to secure a Radical Reform of the Commons House of Parliament , up to the present moment , there has been a continued i 2 \> rt on the part of Government to put the agitation down ; and a continued resistance on the part of the working

      people against the persecuting acts of the Government . In this resistance the working people have been ki alone in their glory . " They have not had the eo-operation , or even the countenance , of any of the classes above them in point of station ; Nay , those classes , one aad all , have been arrayed against them . Eaoh one , and all , have accused them of the most villainous * designs upon the property of the country . " Each one , and all , have harked-on the Government to " silence the grumbling rascals , " whose ** only aim was to uproot the foundations of society , and produce anarchy and confusion , so that they might have the chance of possessing themselves of the wealth of their neighbours through a general

      scramble . " Each one , and allt have joined in Volunteer Associations to aid the Government in putting down the ragged rascals , " who wished te "destroy oar gioriow Consiiuiion , by inciting the people to revolt , and by spreading disaffection and sedition amongst the labouring poor . " . Yeomanry corps have been embodied and used , with terrifie effect , to accomplish this purpose . The dungeon , the halter , and the block , have also been used . Imprisonments , and hangings , and beheadings , have been resorted to , to put dozen the demand foi such a Radical Reform as would restore to each male adult in the kingdom that share in the representation of the country which BiiCKsTosE says the Constitution awards him !

      And yet all these means have failed ' ! . The demand for Ukivbbsal Sxjffbage , and the conviction that rr alone can give ns a Parliament that will or can , honestly apply itself to ascertain the causes of our numerous social and political evils , with a Tiew to the application of a simple , yet efficient , xkhedt , is stronger aad more generally entertained than ever 1 The CoJfFERESCE to be holden in Birmingham

      on the 27 ih instant , is ostensibly called to give effe ct to that increased demand and growing conviction . It is ostensibly called to prepare a Bill to be proposed to Parliament , to enact that Univehsal Suffrage in the choice of members to the Commons ' House shall become law . This is the ostensible object of ibe promoters of that convocation of Delegates . And the people in answering the call made upon them to elect Delegates , are taking the necessary steps to realize that ostensible object .

      They are electing in all parts , men who have been long known to them by their stedf&st and firm adherence to the principle of Universal Suftbask ; men who have borne toe heat and the burden of the day in the advancement of ihat principle ; mea who have proved their devotion to it , by braving imprisonments , and enduring persecution in its infinity of shapes . The people axe taking the only mesas ihat exist to

      seeare the « &d tbe ozigittatoxs of ibis tftKFKBXKCK say they bare in view , by sending to ~ iY men whose whole life and character is * guarantee that then will be no flinwhwig from principle ; no deviation from the one right straight-forward coarse ; no temporizing j no eoqneUtag ; no compromises ; bo bargaining ; no skllihg- The people are taking tibia * the < mfy covne that men honestly fixed upon the attainment rf their object eould ~ po 3 sibly take : *^ a jet , the erinoement of their determination to

      Untitled Article

      secure the ostensible ends of the promoters of that CeOTEBEHCB , has caused ALARM and dissatisf action amongst those-same promoters !! They openly confess their surprise and disappointment at this answer to their appeal ! Now , why is this ! What cause is there for ALARM i What reason for either dissatisf action or surprise ! Why should the coneoctors of that C 02 TFEKENCE be disappointed I They profess to be admirers and advocates of the principle of Uniybbsal Suffrage . To promote the legislative adoption of that principle ,

      they call upon the people to elect a number of delegates to embody that principle into a document , called a Bill , to be laid before Parliament . The people respond to that call , by electing men to sit in the Conference Chamber whose past conduct proves them to be worthy of the people ' s confidence , inasmuch as it is a guarantee that they will honestly apply themselves to the business for which they are called together ; and yet surprise , and dissatisfaction , and ALARM is manifested by those who have issued the invitation to the people to confer together ! Again , we ask , why is this ?

      It is the result of the Birmingham election that has principally c&useo this ALARM ! The Birmingham people , having been called together in puhlic meeting , choose Mr . O'Connor , Mr . George White , and two other well-known Chartists , along with two members of the Christian Chariist Church , to represent them in the coming Confebesce . It is this result with which the callers of that Conference are dissatisfied . Our readers know the history of the Stodge movement . They know that that movement was not determined on till every other effort to cajole the people from the advocacy of Universal Suffrage had

      failed I They know that scheme after scheme was planned and developed for accomplishing this purpose . They know that they were denounced as "impracticable , " because they did not join in with the Anti-Corn-Law party , in endearouring to procure a " practicable" measure , the repeal of the Corn-Laws . They know that the dodge of " Extension of the Suffrage" was also tried ; and they cannot have forgotten the Fox and Goose Club scheme at Leed ? , which vras to amuse the people with Household Suffrage , while the foxts " got rid , " as Dan said " of Fearga ? . " They know that the Stubge movement for Complete Suffrage was never heard ot 'till it was

      plainly apparent that the Anti-Corn-Law party culd not possibly obtain the public ear ; could not get the pab . ic to listen , even to their nostrum for relieving the country from the dire distress and suffering it endured . The people know that it was not 'till matters has assumed this shape ; it was not ' till the advocates of" cheap food" and 11 wages" were literally driven from off the public stage ; it was not ' till the working people had evinced an unconquerable determination not to relax in their efforts to obtain Universal Suffrage , as »

      means of securing the end of good and honest government : the people know that it was not 'till the agitation for the Chabteb , had super ceded all other agitations , and frustrated the designs of tbe Free-trade-Poor-LaTv-enforcing party to make their question the 'question of ths day ; the people know that it was not till political agitation bore this aspect , that the Stprge movement was even heard of ! They know al so , that the maia movers in thai movement , were , and are , Corn-Law Repealers , and supporters of the horrible New Poor Law in all its atrocity !

      The Stcrge movement , however , at the juncture just described , was made . It professed to have for its object the enfranchisement of the people . Its promoters advocated what they were pleased to call Complete Suffrage ; defining their " completeness " to be just ihat which every body understood by the term Universal . They formed themselves into a new political Association , and asked tbe people to join them in it . They adopted the Noncon fo rmist newspaper as their organ of communication with the public ; and it is with the lament of that organ as to the result of the Birmigham election , that we now purpose to deal .

      We have already detailed the result of the election just named . We have already stated that tbe people of Birmingham chose Mr . O'Cohror and Mr . White , and two other backbone Chartists to sit as their representatives in the coming Conference , along with two of Mr . Stubge ' s friends . It may be well to remark too , that the public meeting which made this choice , was called by Mr . Stdbge ' s own party ; and that that gentleman presided on the occasion . Respecting the election thus made the Nomconformist of November 23 rd , has- the following remarks : —

      " The result of tbe election of delegates for Birmingham to the ensuing conference , recorded in out column * laat week , took oa , we honestly confess , somewhat by surprise . We cannot bat admit that , every deduction laving fee « & made en the score of tbe comparative qra ^ ino ** of the meeting , occasioned by the arbitrary conduct of the Town Hall authorities , and of local irritation , excited by a fancied slight , put upon an active Chartist agitator by Mr . Starge and the CoubcQ—ths rejection of four out of six names nominated by tbe Council of the Union , and tbe substitution in their room of avowed foes to tbe Complete Suffrage Movement , wears an ugly appearance . We

      cannot conceal from ourselves , nor shall we attempt to conceal from our readers , that the same game may ba played in msny other places . We know ihe advantages possessed by an unscrupulous and organised minority over undisciplined numbers , however superior in point of real force . We are quite alive to the danger , which , probably , none have foreseen more clearly than Mr . Feargus O'Connor and his staff of agitato * , of scaring , by means ot Bnccesstnl insolence , tack into inaction , if not into opposition , all those of the middle class who have bat recently given in a timid adherence to the great principle advocated by the Union . We foresee that , here and there , men who would have

      done battle for the tinftnf « vnr : hi « ftrt , mil not do battle vdfh them ; and that many a heart which would . have been content to strive on behalf of just principles , -will decline to take any part in a conflict , the issue of which tnrns only npon persons . Should , therefore , tbe Eiin object of the Birmingham Conference be defeated , although we cannot say we expect such a result , we shall not , after what bos already occurred , be overwhelmed with astonishment Such a calamity need sot be , onght sot be , will not be , if the avowed friends of Complete Suffrage are active , prudent , and firm ; but , leokirg to ail tbe bearings of tbe case , it would be childish to blink the conclusion that such a calamity may be . "

      The surprise of the Stubge party , at the result of the Birmingham election is here openly avowed . Now , for the life of us we cannot see , what there is to be " surprised" at , if the callers of the coming Contesekce expected or required its sittings to be attended by mes whose firm adherence to the principle of Umvbrsal Suffrage conferred npon them peculiar fitness for the task of embodying that principle in a Bill , and surrounding it with proper details to ensure its due and honest working . The men who were so chosen ; at least the four who we

      assume have caused the surprise ? here trumpeted forth , are lenovn as long-tried and earnest advocates of the main principle the Stubge party profess to have at heart ; and yet they are "surprised " that the people of Birmingham , who know what their services have been ; who know the devotion they have evinced ; who have been witnesses of the efforts they have made : they are " surprised" that the people of Birmingham , who know all this , should prefer such men to men whose profession even of the principle of Universal Suffrage is but of

      yesterday ' s date ! Really this expression of surprise " under such circumstances , is very ' surprising " > 1 The writer adduces several reasons to account , in part , for the ugly" result he deplores . One of them is local irritation , excited by a fancied slight put upon an active Chartist agitator by Mr . Stcrge and the Complete Suffrage CoonclL" This refers , we opine , to the faaoas " NO" of Mr . Stdbg * and his

      aompeers to the application for aflsistanoe towards ihe defence of the persecuted and imprisoned Georg * Warn . We know not to what extent "local irritation " may have been excited by that "slight "; but we do know , that if the remembxanee of that ' •( NO " influenced the people of Birmingham in their answer of NO " to four of Mr . Sttogb ' s nominees , and in the return of Whim himself , under Sturge ' s nose , the action reflects npon them the highest honour and credit ! It is honourable alike to ihe head and the heart . White is a man

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      who has served them faithfully and earnestly . According to the Nonconformist himself , be is " an active Chartist leader . " His services have been deemed worthy of governmental attention . Twice has he been hud by the heels ; and his zeal and devotion have only become the more plainly apparent . When he was under bonds ; when he was immured in one of the cells of Warwick Gaol ; when he enduring the full weight of Tory persecution ; whenhewa 8 awaiting his "trial , " where he would be enabled , the pecuniary means being forthcoming , to expose in all its hideous deformity , the system of espionage and spvism resorted to by the authorities to entrap poor Bimple-minded men ; when his poor but faithful friends were trying to raise

      those necessary pecuniary means , application was made to Mr . Joseph Stubge . To whom could application have been more proper ? Mr . Stkhge bears the character of a philanthropist . Philanthropht would aid any man , under such circumstances . But tbe applicants had a right to calculate on political sympathy . Mr . White was a Chartist ; in other words an " active" advocate of the prinjciplcs of Umversal Suffbage . Mr . Stduge professed to be the Bame . To him , therefore , and to his friends , was the application most properly made . A plain , simple , unqualified M KO " was the answer ! If this " alight" did cause "local irritation , " and diclated the" NO" of the Birmingr , ham people , it does them infinite honour ! '

      " We know the advantages possessed by an unscrupulous and organised minority over undisciplined numbers , however SUPERIOR in point oj real force . " Thus writes the Nonconformist / What does it mean ? Does it mean that an ' * unscrupulous minority" eleoted the Birmingham Delegates in the face of an " undisciplined majority ! " If it does not mean this , pray what does it mean ? If it does mean this , the advantages possessed by Buch " minority" over such " majority " were great indeed ! But what was Mr . StijRQE about , to let the " minority" enjoy such an ad vantage as to have the election to themselves ! Did he really decide in favour of the " minority V * If he did , his character for uprightness is hot worth much !

      It is amuzicg to notice what nonsense an angry defeated man will sometimes talk to take the edge off his defeat , asd soften his fall . The sentence just quoted is a sample in point . The pets of the Nonconformist were put on one side ; and other , ' and , in the opinion of the Birmingham people , better men elected in their stead . Forthwith the Nonconformist talks about " unscrupulous and organized minorities" triumphing over V undisciplined majorities ! " Nay , in his anger and blindness , he av « rs that such minority will always have an advantage over undisciplined numbers , HOWEVER SUPERIOR in point of real force . " What arrant nonsense !

      The " surprise" occasioned by this election leads our friend into some other " surprising" statements and admission ? . He avows that the result of this election , if followed up in a similar manner throughout the country , may end in a defeat of the main object for which the Conference is called ! ; This is a curious admission . The Conference is avowedly called to prepare a bill , embodying the principles of Universal Suffrage . The election of delegates pledged to maintain Universal Suffbage to the last gasp , may end in the defeat of that object . ' How this defeat is to happen the Nonconformist does not condescend to enlighten ns . The

      absence of such explanation , however fdroes upon us certain conjectures and suppositions , to account for the anticipated defeat . We cannot , for . the life of us , discover how " the main object" of the Conference can be defeated , by the return of well-known and severely-tried Universal Suffrage advocates , IF that " main object" be the advanc « ment of the principle of Universal Suffrage . If , however , the " main object" of the promoters of that CONFERENCE be not their avowed one ; ( jf they have , ostensibly , put Universal Suffrage upon their banners , while they have kept their real " main object" in the back ground ; if it should happen

      that their " main object" is not the Suffrage at all but Free Trade ; if it should turn out that this is the case , why , then , we can easily imagine how THAT " main object" may be defeated by the elections generally terminating as the Birmingham , one has done ! We can imagine such a de eat , and such a calamity , " as tbe Nonconformist calls ir , as this : but we cannot possibly imagine how the Suffrage " main object" is to be defeated by such means . The anticipation of defe at , therefore , by the Nonconformist , under these circumstances , raises a suspicion , to give it the mildest term , that tho M main object" o ! the ConFEREKCK-callers is not the ostensible one 2 *

      The Nonconformist next discusses the possible results to the uneducated masses of this anticipated defeat , and then falls foul of Mr . O'Connor in a style and manner that but too plainly show that 'his object and the object of his employers , is to "get rid of Feargus . " We will have his own words , however , and comment on them afterwards . Addressing himself to the working classes , be says : —¦ " Tbe time is fully come for holding np their idol to the steady view of their own plain and strong common

      sense—for dragging him forth from the dim light of his own own sanctuary , from midst his own professions and self-laudations , and exhibiting the man in his own colours a&d dress . We shall not imitate him in the use of scurrilous epithets—nor mouth , in tbe tone of ridiculous grandiloquence , the language of bnffonery and insult These weapons we leave to him whom they best beseem . But we ask the attention of working men to a few facts , calmly stated , and thereupon we cheerfully commend them to their own sober conclusions .

      " It can hardly ba forgotten by the labouring classes , that the principles embodied in tbe People ' s Charter , were enounced long Bince , by middle-class patriots ; and that , actuated by whatever motive , several leading men , now figuring in public life , assisted in the production of that celebrated document . Noiselessly , but not unsuccessfully , these principles were making their appeal to the judgment of society , when Mr . Feargus O ' Connor appeared upon the stage . Let us do him justice . He brought to the cause indomitable energy , considerable skill , unwearied activityand , in an ill-fated day , the doctrine of physical force . He organised what he found nnshapen and

      incoherent—he created a machinery which was powerful both for good and evil—and he employed it for tbe latter . By bitter denunciations , by fomenting the wont passions of human nature , by dogmatism the moat intolerable , and insolence which no spirit having a spark of manhood could broek , he drove from the people's ranks every middle-class leader , seemingly unable to rest until the stage was left clear for himself alone . The fruits of his violence speedily ripened—myriads of working men were goaded Into open conflict with the government—and the man who hid laid th ' s train , and kindled the match , slunk away to Ireland beyond reach of danger . Thoroughly defeated in

      this his own scheme of policy , he returned to begin anew his pernicious coarse . As though secret conspiracy . Incendiarism , and bloodshed , were not enough to destroy any vestiges of sympathy -which the middle classes might feel for the working men , he counselled annoyance in a scarcely less offdnsive shape , and harked on his followers to a disturbance of every pnblio meeting , and denounced as " humbug" every effort for administrative reform . He succeeded but too well in gaining the only end which will fairly account for bis proceedings . He rendered the breach between the two classes all but irreparable . By

      associating with ths principles of the Charter his own ferocity , he made them stink in tbe nftstrila of respectable men , and then availing himself of the disgust his own work had excited , he turned to the labouring classes , and stimulated , by producing before them the evidences of this disgust , their already hot resentment against all above them . He was now without a rival in the leadership of tfie masses ; and as , one by one , men bi cooler beads , of sterner integrity , of more disinterested hearts , rose into estimation with the unenfranchised , he denounced them with virulence the most incessant , and affixed to them the badge of infamy . "

      J » ow , labouring people , you have had Mr . O'Con-« or amougst you , associating and working amongBt yon , for now eight years . That intercourse has given yon opportunities of judging of his real character and worth . Your " own plain and strong common sense " would enable yon to make observations , and correct ones too , respecting any man who mixed among j » o as Mr . O'Connor has done , in a much less time than eight years . Ihe Nonconformist gays that the above

      piotnre ' * exhibits the man in his own colours and dress . " What say you t Remember , that it is painted by a man who knows nothing of Mr . O'CoKNoa bat what he has learned from his class associations . He never worked with Mr . O'Connor , as yon have done . He never mixed with him , either in publio or private ; and you have done both . We question whether ever he was in the Bame rocm with Mr . O'Connor , ox would even be

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      able to point him ^ out personally , if he was required to do so : and yet ihis man , with this degree of knowledge , presumes to paint , FOR YOUi a portrait of a " man in his own colours and dress * ' whom yon have known so well and so long ! . ' !; ¦ ' vThere never was a more glaring instance of class ignorance and prejudice than this same " portrait" by the Noncohfopnistl ' We Bhall pass over the garnish with which the savoury meBs is served up , and come at once to the "few facts , calmly stated . " *

      " It can hardly be forgotten , by the labouring classes , " says the A'oncon / brfljis / , "that the principles of the People ' s Charter were enounced long since by . middle-class patriots . " The working people certainly have not forgotten that it is long Biacetheyfirst enounced the principles oontained in the People ' s pharter ; nor have they forgotten the persecution and suffering that have accrued to them for such enunciation ! As for the middleclass patriots of " long since , " the less that is said on that head the better for the

      Nonconformist and his nnddJe-clasa friends , The greatest enemies that the working people , the " enpuncers of tho principles embodied in the People ' s Charter , " have had to contend with , have been the middle classes . It was the middle classes who hounded on the Government in 1 * 16 , 17 i J 8 j and 191 It was the middle classes who approved of the suspension of the Mabces Cerpus act , and , the passing of the ever-to-be-execrated SIX ACTS . It ; was the middle classes who raised the yell of . exultation when the prisons were filled with hundreds of victims who were dragged

      hundreds of miles from their homes , and made to endure tortures so excruciating as to cause some of them to commit suicide to procure ' a happy release' It was the middle classes , who called upon the Government to pass STRONG MEASURES to put thei " enouncers of the principles embodied in the People ' s Charter" down ! It was thp middle classes who applauded the apprehending of hundreds oi ' " enouucers , " the cooping them up in dungeons for months together , and then . turning them out again , without ; bringing the shadow of a charge against them , or even telling them why they had

      been incarcerated ! It was the middle classes who raised the loud peal of " laughter" at Canning ' s brutal jest , about the sufferings of "the revered and ruptured Ocden , " when the bowels had been shaken outbf his ibodybythedepriversof his persoual liberty ! It was the middle clasBes who approved of tho Indemnity-Bill beinn . passed , to screen the authors of this and similar atrocities , from the legal consequences of their brutal acts ; It was the mi'Idleciasses who formed the body of the Yeomanry Corps and the Volunteer Associations , under the command

      of some few sprigs of a spurious aristocracy . It was the middle classes who went with newlysharpened sabres , ' and oourago inspired by drink , to spill the blood of a number of unarmed and unoffending ' enouncersof the priuciples embodied in tho People ' s Charter , " on the field of Pbterloo , on the 16 th of August , 1819 ! It was the middle classes who went into the jury-boxes , and convicted Hunt and Cartwrioiit of having " enounced the principles embodied in the People ' s Charter ! " Ah ! no ! the middle classes never yet " enounced'' those principles ! ; .

      It | is true that Hunt , and CoBBKTT , and Cautwright belonged to the middle classes at the time they laboured with , and for , the people ; and it is equally true , that for so labouring ; for identifying themselves with the people ; for " enouncing the principles embodied in the People ' s Charter , " they were persecuted beyond measure by their own order ! They . were represented in exactly the Bame light as the Nonconformist , the organ of tho middle classes , of our day , represents Mr . O'Connor ! They were denounced on every hand . Consult the venal prints of the day ; and you will find exactly parallel " joortraiis ' to the one we have just given , professing to " exhibit the men in their own colours and dress . " It is a very old middle class gamp that the Nonconformist is now playing !

      " Noiselessly , but not unsuccessfully , these principles were making their appeal to tho judgement of society , when Mr . O'Connor appeared upon the stage . " This sentence exhibits the writer ' s total ignorance of what he pretends to write about . It is untrtie , in whatever sense it is taken . If it ia made to refer to the" long since" the writer had ju&t spoken of , the facts we have narrated respecting the persecution of the * ' enouncers" of " these principieB '' show that the ;' ¦ appeal " was any thing but a " noiseless" one ! If it is made to refer to the exaet time ot Mr . O'Connor ' s appearance on the

      politieal stage in England , it is equally untrue : for "these principles " were then certainly not " suecetffidly" making their appeal to the judgment of Bociety . ' * At the period of Mr . O'Connor ' s entree upon political life amongst us , sooiety was drunk , and unable to exercise any judgment at all ! It was when we had obtained the . Bill , the whole bill , and nothing but the Bill ! Itwaswhen the workingpeople had been cajoled and betrayed by the middle classes into the denunciation of those very principles which this writer tells us wero " noiselessly , but not unsuccessfully making their appeal to the judgment

      of society ! " It was when the middle-classes had succeeded in the procurement of the denunciation of the patriot Hunt by sections of the working people , for his firm "enunbiation" of "those principles , " and his exposure of the Reform Bill fraud ! It was at this period that Mr . O'Connor came amongst ns ; and it was his "lenunoiation . " of "those principles , " when the nation had got a little sobered , that caused their " appeal to the judgment of society " to be listened to ; and has eventually caused the patrons of : the . Nonconformist to ^ ostensibly espouse them ! ' - ' ¦ ¦ ' : - . - ¦ ¦ .-v-v . . ¦ ¦ ¦ . - . • . ¦ ¦ ¦ . "• . . . ¦ . ' ; - '

      Good God ! Look at the position of tho Movement at the period of Mr . O ' Conwor ' s coming amongst us , and then compare it with our position how I The agitation for the principle of Universal SuFFRAGK all but dead . The people split up into little sections , under sectional leaders , venting forth their grievances in a discordant and unconnected manner . No concert ; no oneneBS of purpose ; no organization ; no knowledge even of each ether ' s doings . ' Hunt dead { Cobbett , soon after , also removed from the stage of the living . No leader ; no rallving point ; no a ^ ititiaa I The people a ptey

      to contending factions ; ready ; to give their ^' sweet voices" almost to every humbug who asked for them ; and afraid to offend their leaders amongst the middle classes , by asking for the full measure of justice . It was when the Movement was in this sorry condition , that Mr . O'Connor was made a present £ of to the English Radicals . They accepted him ! He came amongst them . He , at first , inscribed upon his banners , "Universal Suffrage and No Surrender ; " and from that day to thia has gone on from conquering to conquer on behalf of that principle , until he has made the party

      who espouse it the only powerful party , as far as public opinion is concerned , in the state 1 Right Well do we know the opening of hia mission in Leeds to re-planc the banner of Univkbsal Suffrage amongst us , and establish the Radical Association . The invitation to him , on that occasion , was given by two working men . He attended to their call . At that period th& Leeds Times had passed into the hands of a new conductor . Bef ^ retime it had hot ranged itself under any bah * ner , but had professed to bo a no party advocate ; taking care always , however , to defvocafe the return

      of Whigs , when an election was at hand . It was judged prudent on the part of the new Editor to make it more decided in its tone . He proposed to join in the project of bringing O'Connor to Leeds ; and his offer of help was accepted . Several meetings of the Committee were held in the Editor ' a room and the large meeting place in the Commercial Buildings was engaged partly at the risk of the pablisher of the Tithes and partly at the risk of the friends who had first invited Mr . O'Connor . It was

      soon found , however , by these working men , that , with their new allies , Universal SIjfpragb was a great bugbear . V «» Cpnld not Mr . O'Cphkor be induced to Bubstztute Household for UmyKBSAt . *' "He will driye all respectable people away . " u ] Sousehoid JSuffrage is as muoh as can be reasonably agitated for , with any chance of publio support or success . " The answers were , by the working men , that ** iheyeotdi listen to ^^^ rio compromise . " "If the respectable people were scared away b y the bugbear of Universal Sujfrage , they must be used to it * and

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      then perhaps they wonld not deem it so very frightfnl . " Oh the day of the public ineeting , Mr . G'CoNnob met the Ce Bimittee in the Editor ' s Room . There he was set upon , and implored to : abandon Uniybbsal ^ trFHAGE . Counsellor Wales , then accounted a Radical , was present , and pleaded , aa if for life , that Mr . O * Cpi » - MOR would give way , aftd ¦ ¦'¦ eonsent to advocate Household , instead of Universal . The answer was dignified , decisive , and plain : — " I come here on a mission . I am sent by the working men of

      London to plant the standard of Univebsai . Sotfrage amongst the working people of Leeds . If there arie but three in Leeds who will join with m , e , we will join : but to no compromise or surtender ot the shadow of a shade of the full measure of justice will I listen . " After this he went to the public meeting . He explained his mission . He spoke home to the hearts of the working ! people . He enlisted their sympathies on the side -of right and justioe ; and from that day may be dated the political redemption of Leeds from the hands of faction !

      From Leeds he prooeeded all over the country . He also visited Scotland . He roused the dormant energies of the people . He infused into them a new spirit . He imparted to them a portion of his own " unwearied activity / ' He organized them . He directed their attention to one point . He made them acquainted with each other , and seoured amongst them co-operation for an undivided purpose . He made " the agitation really formidable , and it was , therefore , determined by those who had hitherto lived on tho people ' s divisions , and who had been great men in their little spheres , to get " rid of Feargds . '' .

      And now we come to explain the reason why the public have seen the hatching and blowing-up of so many plots and schemes to accomplish Mis purpose . Many people have wondered to find professing Radicals and Chartists engaged in the accomplishment of these schemes . They have wondered how it oould possibly come to pass , that men who were bound to confess that Mr ; O'Connor worked so , as hardly ever man worked ; that he "had brought to the cause indomitable energy , considerable Skill , and unwearied activity ; " they have wondered how it could happen that such a man should be conspired against , and plots laid . to accomplish his riddance , by professing friends : when we have given them our explanation they will wonder no longer .

      Mr . O'Connor ' s great crime , all along , from the first hour of his introduction amongst us , to the present , has been , that he was , and is , an ANIIMalthusian ; that he was the friend of labour , and an opponent of the dominant influence and power of capital . This is tho head and front of his offending . Had he been a Malthusian ; had he been a supporter of the hellish principle upon which the New Poor Law is based , and a Repeal of the Corn Laws now advocated ; had he been inclined to

      amuse thJB people with the question of the'Suffrage , while he was aiding in fisting on the chains of slavery so tightly as to leave the poor victims no liberty at all ; had he only holden his tongue on the mighty question of Labour ' s rights ; had he consented not to expose the infernal projects of New Poor Law coneoctors and enforcers ; had be only done this , he would hive been bailed by those who have bontinually conspired to " get rid " of him , as the best tool that could have been put into their handa ! But he was too honest . Ho saw . who the

      real enslavers of the working classes were . He saw the projects that bad been formed for their complete and effectual debasement . He knew the worthlessness of that pretended philosophy , which countenances the extirpation of a portion of the human race , because of a surplusage ! He gave utteranca to his sentiments . He spoke homo to the hearts and understandings of his auditors . He laid naked and bare , the schemes of the Malthusians . He ranged himself on the aide of Labour , and

      taught the Labourer how to know and , how to estimate his friend . He helped to turn the tide of public opinon on this question ; and it is because of this ; it is because he has been a stumbling-block in the way of the Free-trading New-Poor- La wing Malthusiana ; it is because 'ho has unveiled their hideous visages and exposed their horrible deformity ; it is because of these things , aad these alone , that one section of pretended advocates of Universal Suffrage have plotted and conspired to V get rid of Feargus . "; ' . .. - " . '" - ' . - ¦ "'' - " ¦¦< ' ¦ '¦ ¦ '¦/' ¦ ¦ .

      This conduct on the part of Mr . O'Connor has earned for him the unextinguishable hatred of the Places , the Humes , the Roebucks , the Warbubtons , and every disciple of the schppl of Halthus . It is this conduct which has caused the employing of every engine by this sohool , to procure the political destruction of this "indomitable " opponent . This conduct caused the establishment of the Working Man ' s Association , where the working men were to do without leaders ; and where none but working men were to take part . This conduct caused the employment of emissaries from this same Working Man ' s Association to go through the country to form-branch Associations , on this same principle of no

      leadership ; the emiasatiea living all the time they were so employed on money furnished by their leaders , Job Hume and Fbanky Place !!! . It was this conduct on the part of Mr . O'CoNMOR i that caused the numerous slights and insults -to be heaped upon him by the rump of the London Malthusians ; and the numerous plans and eoncoctions to prevent him from having the privilege to " address the public audiences . It was the reasons arising from this conduct on Mi . O'Connor ' s part that prompted the Fox and Goose scheme , to " get rid of Feargus ; " and we need no better evidence than this " portrait" of theNonconformist ' s to . shew us that those reasons have had some weight in the formation and deyelopement of the Complete Suffrage scheme itself . :

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      Leeds Corh Mabket , Tbbsdat , De& 6 th . ^ . iv » supply of Wheat and Beans to this day ' u market . IT smaller- than last week , Oata and Barley huiir There has been a fair steady demand for wS and last week's price fully supported . Fine B » rSr no alteration , but all : other , descriptions are vm dull , and 6 d to is . per quarter lower . OaU < £ } ] sale . Beans are very dull , and Is . per quatw ' lower . ; - ; . '¦ ; ' ' .. ¦ . ¦; . ' :. ;¦ ; , ¦ . ; . ; . - •/¦ > :,- : ¦ ¦ _ ¦ ; : * j THE AVERAGE PRICES i ^ WHEAT , JOB THE WKJj JSNDIKG DEC . 6 , 1842 .-Wheat . V Barleys Oats * Kye . Beans , Pim Qxa . Qrs . Qrs ^ Qrfl . Qrs . 0 ?

      2940 2414 355 : \ 419 . ^ ^ s . d . £ s . d . £ B . d . £ b . d . > £ a . d ; £ s t 28 2 J 3 I 8 6 } 0 19 m 0 0 0 1 \ 9 11 } 1 12 § Leeds Woollen Markets . —There has been virt little doing in the Cloth Halls , and the demand t » manufactured goods seems to have be » n sli ght ]* checked by the rumour that the Chinese Empewf had declined to sign the treaty nntil after our o ^ ri sovereign . The wool trade , however , is better , a » j tho labouring population hire more employment thai they had a fortnight ag ( fc

      SkiPTON CaTTLK 31 ABKET , TOBSnAT , Dec . ; 6 . ^ We had only a moderate supply of fat Beasts , b ^ that of Slieep was geod . Thers being an : avera *; atlendance ^ f buyers , and sellers being anxious t * obtain an adVance in prices , the market was rath * j heavy , and pricfis for well fed Beef rather hi gh *] but Mutton tbe same as last fortnight . Beef , 4 « I to 5 Jd ; Mutton , 4 d to 5 d per lb ^ . " " j Malton CobJi Mabket , Dec . 3 . —We have vejj little business done in the corn trade to-day , 0 *] farmers generally do not seem willing to compi ] With the present ww prices . We notice no alteratiiij i in the value of grain . Wheat , white 52 s to 53 i jj quarter of 40 stones ., ' Ditto , red , 46 * to 50 a per dw J Barley . 25 a to 27 s per quarter of 32 stones : Oak I 8 id to 9 d per stone . ' ¦ ¦ - .

      Richmond , Dec . 3 . —We had a tolerable euppl j I of grain in our market to-day . Wheat sold fro *] 5 i 6 d tola ; Oats 2 sto 3 s 2 d ; Barley 3 s 6 d to 3 i 9 d : I Beans 4 s 3 d to 4 s 9 & per bushel . v , York Corn Market , SATDBDAY i Dec . 2 . —W | have a very throng market to-day ; for in addition til a good attendance of farmers , we have a great nun ' \ ber of servants wanting places . Wheat is much ai feoted in condition by the weather , yet all description j support late prices . The same may be said of Ba *' ley and Oats , but Beans are almost unsaleable .

      HUDDEBSFIEL P CLOTH MaBKET , TlfKSDAY , Dec . 6 , —Our market this day presented the same unhealthy condition as last week . Peace with China has not ' as yet generated a better state of trade here . Fancy goods were in most request , but prices are ruinou 9 lj low . Wiater now approaches rabidly and great numbers are yet destitute of work . Wools still remain heavy . ; ; . _; :. ; ¦ ' ¦ ; . - ; . , ' - .. . ' . ' : . ' . . . : ¦ ¦ , ¦ - ' : :: :. ¦ ; : ¦¦; Liverpool Cobn MABKET , MoNpAT i Dec . 5 th . ^ Our imports during the past week include 3 , 8 ? 9 qrs , of Wheat , 5021 qrs ; of Oats , 3582 sacks of Flour , ani 9975 loads ol'Oatmeal from Ireland , with 754 barreli of Flour from Canada ; but they are otherwise light , A few parcels of Foreign Wheat have been taken 01

      speculation , but the millers and'dealers have bought cautiously , and the demand-has been met by holden at the prices of this day'fle ' nnigh * . Irish new hau barely sustained the rates then current ; middling fed has been sold at 63 . to 6 a . 2 di , whilst 63 . 5 d . t « 6 s . 6 d . per 70 lbs . may be considered top quotation ! for the best runs . Upon a moderate sale only then is no change to note in the value of Fiour . Mealinj Oats bave attracted more attention , best runs of Irisft selling at 2 s . 4 ^ d . to 2 * . Sd . ^ i e * 45 lbs . The weekY business in Oatmeal is of tolerably fair amount , ai : ' 21 s ^ to 21 s . 9 d . per 240 lbs . Malting Barley n \ nj | : be noted Is . per quarter cheaper . Beans and Pen have scarcely niaintained their previous value . ^ the beginning of the week a small cargo of Egyptian Wheat was sold in bond a < t 2 s-6 d . per 70 lbs . ; : it is understood to have been bought for shipmenT : to Belgium . : ::

      Liverpool Cattle Market , Monday Dec . 5 . — . The market to-day has been much the same as laaj week , both with respect to price and quality , thi greatest portion being of second and tbirdratf quality , which met with dull sale * but any thinf good eagerly sought after , and sold at last week ' prices . Number of Cattle at market— Beasts 1 C 94 , Sheep 5048 . ' ¦ . ' . " ' ,- . ; ' /¦ ¦' , - : '¦ . ' ¦ ¦ r ' ; -- ' r- "¦ ¦ - ¦' . - . ; Manchester Corn Market , —Saturday Dec . 3 i —^ For . prime parcels of English Flour there was i fair enquiry in the early part of the week , which j was checked on the- receipt of the depressed report ; from Mark-Ian ft ; Riihspnuentlv thft businosa doni

      was of a very limited character and prices barely supported . Oatmeal was in moderate * request at Uh previous currency . Increased supplies of Wheat Oats , Flour and Oatmeal from Ireland , the tott amount of which forms a yery oonsidcrable iraporj into Liverpool and Runcorn , may be noted ; whilsH those elsewhere require no particular observation ^ With very slight enquiry for . any description ofi " Wheat ,, few transactions in that artiole were reported at our market this morning . Flour was also very ' slow sale , and 39 a . per sack is an extreme quotation for choice White ? . No change can be noted in the value of . Oats or Oatmeal , but the sales made fully supported the rates of this day Be ' nni /? bt .

      London Cobn Exchange , Monda y , Dec . 5 . — Since our report on this day se ' nnight , we have received a veiy moderate time-of-year supply of Eng « lish Wheat , coastwise as well as by land carriage , and samples , and we had scarcely any put up to-day , from either Eefex or Kent . Tke stands being very poorly supplied , and the attendance of both town and country buyers rather more numerous than of late , we have to report a somewhat improved inquiry for all descriptions , and the sales concluded Were fully equal to those noted on Monday last , while ; a fair clearance was effected . There was rather more inquiry for all descriptions , and the sales oonoluded were fully equal to those noted on Monday last , while a fair clearance was effected . There was rather more inquiry for fine Foreign Wheat at fall

      rates of currency ; but in bonded parcels scarcely anything was doing . The duty still remains at 20 a . per quarter . We bad another heavy market for Barley , and the quot ations receded Is . per quarter from last week . Foreign Barley Was little sought after . Good Ware Malt was taken by the dealers at last currencies ; but the middling and inferior kinds were mending , and might have been purchased on easier terms . From Ireland , about 25 , 000 quarters of Oats have come to hand ; . but the arrivals of that article from Scotland and our own coaata have been small . Tbe best potatoe kinds maintained their value , but other kinds were 6 d . per quarter lower . Beans and Peas were very dull , and mostly Is . per quarter cheaper . The Flour trade was inactive , at about stationary prices .

      London Smithfield Market , Dec . 5 th . —On the near approach of the great Christmaa market , Which will be held here on Monday next , the 12 th instant , a very decided improvement is almost invariably apparent in the general quality of the stock exhibited for sale , especially as relates to the Beasts ; but we have to intimate that , notwithstanding there Were some few very superior Devons , Runts , Scots , ; Herefords , and old Susstx , including a few other breeds , on offrjr , extremely Well made up , the supply this morning was , the time of year considered , beneath an average , yet . that expected for next week , will doubtless be very prime . As to the foreign supplies , nothing fresh was exhibited , there beinjj only a few

      Spanish and Hamburg Beasts brought forward , tbe refuse of last week's supply ; they commondod very little attention , and even with difficulty disposed of at miserably low prioes . The imports in London and the outporta since our last , as will be seen » J the annexed returns , have been small , From o ur grazing districts our bullock receipts to-day were a « follow : —2 , 360 ^ Short Horns , Runts ,- « nd Irish Beasts , from Lincolnshire , Leicestershire , Northamptonshire , &c . ; 100 Scots , &c , from Norfolk , Suffolk , Essex , and Cambridgeshire ; 400 Hereford * Devwns , runts , and Irish beasts , from our Western and Midland Counties ; 200 of difierent kinds front other parts of England ; thirty homed and polled Scots , but chiefly the latter , by a steamer from Aberdeen ; and niuety beasts from Dublin , ci *

      railway . Although our number of Beasts was mnch about the same as were those exhibited on this day se ' nnight , we have again to report a very sluggish inquiry for them . However , as the finest qualities were again scarce , the prices of that description were maintained—they ruling from 4 a to 4 b 4 d pe ? 8 lbs ; but to effect clearances of other sorts a decline ; of about 2 d per 81 bs was submitted to by the salesmen . The supply of Sheep has been eonsiderabftr on the increase , which has a very depressing influence on the mutton trade , and in most instances the quotations rated 2 d per 81 bs lower than hut week , and several lots left the market unsold . Tito inquiry for Veal Was doll at . drooping eurrences , » f of 2 d per 81 b 8 . Prime small Porkers were quite as dear , but large Hogs might hire been purchased oa easier terms . ¦' . "¦ . ; : ; ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦; . ¦ - . 'V / . . ^ ;> . ¦ . ¦ ¦•;¦¦ : ¦¦ ¦' . ;¦

      Local Mfijefits;

      LOCAL MfiJEfiTS ;

      From Our Second Edition Of Last Week.

      FROM OUR SECOND EDITION OF LAST WEEK .

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      ouaajeaex , by jusuuA Hvutavn , n nu vtu » Ing Office * , Not . 13 and l * , Ma * et- * treot , BMggato ) and PabUahed by the nld Joshua TaoBSOKi ( for the aaldi Fbassus CCommob , ) afc ' hia S « tl * Ung-noue , Na 5 , Jdarket ^ tmt , Brt ^ te ; •» I internal C « mmuni « tfon exiting betw e « n the « I * . 1 No * ' 6 , Market-atneW and the aai < l Nob , IS and I l 3 , ^ arket-atMet , Briggatetthtu'conititDtiog tbt 1 whole of the aaid Printing and " Publishing OOM ¦ one Premise * . . . ; All ( Communications mtut heaAiw wed , Post-paid , t » - = Mr . BOBSON , Northern Star- office , heota . Sf tturda 7 » Itewmbee \ q , 1813 .

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      Time warns us that we must now olose this somewhat lengthy article . We have hot yet finished . The course we had ohalked out is far from being gone over . We have yet to detail other and minor reasons for the desire to " get rid of Feargus ; ' ^ but which are necessary ' ' ''" to be known in order to a full consideration and understanding ; of the subject . We have also to fling back the foul and . deliberate lib " of the Nonconformist , that Mr . O'Connor "brought to the cause , the doctrine of Physical Force . " We have

      also to expose the cowardly miscreant where he charges the oufbreaks of 1839 to the effects of Mr . O'Connor ' s Violence , and the horrible imputation contained in the . assertion , that " the man who laid the train and kindled the match , slunk away to Ireland beyond reach of danger . " We intend to give a full history of those transactions , and cause the blame of them to fall on the right hea - s . . We have also to meet ^^ his assertion , that Mr . O'Connor caused the defection of the middle-claSB-leaders . We have to meet him thoroughly and compieikely ; aud purpose to do it . : :

      This , however , must rest till another week . We have neither time nor Bpace for more of it at present .: .: v ; - / - ' -:- ^; v ; / ; ¦ / ¦¦ ¦ . . > . / " : \ --: : ; - ; '¦ ' ; We cannot conclude Without calling on the working people to complete the good Work they have so -well begun . Follow the example of Birmingham I Elect to this Conference men whom you knew as advocates of UwivERSAi . Sdffhagb ; men who have proved their detotion to piple ; men who will not temporize , or turn to the right hand or to the left ; men Who will not make the advocacy of the Suffrage a stepping-stone for the realttation of the Bchemes and projects of the Free ^^ Traders . We im plorel to send in whom

      you men yon can place implipit oonfidencer ; to listento no proposals about two delegates from one association , and two from the other ; to hearken tp iu > oompromigea , nb arrangements , no bargaining for you may depend on it that where such 1 is the case , a balk is to be effected , let whoever may receive the price I IV > : ihe WOrk ^ then , working-men I Look about you ! Choose men with eool heads ^ and honest hearts . Give them your wBtraotions in fiiU . Tell them what yon want them todo . Bid them ^ go do it ; and this Confer ence , respecting which there ^ is so much ALARM in some quarters , shall tend to the oonsolidatidn of onr ranks , the angmentation of our power , and the advanoement of our prinoiplea . In your hands we l «» Te the isBuo 11 God Bpeedyoul

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      3 ¦ ' " .. ' , . ' . - : . " \ -: ; T . EE ; : l ^

      Leeds :~Printed For The Proprietor Feabqu8 O'Connor, Eiq. Of Fiunmenmitb, Ccon*L .

      Leeds : ~ Printed for the Proprietor FEABQU 8 O'Connor , Eiq . of fiunmenmitb , Ccon * l .

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Dec. 10, 1842, page 8, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct916/page/8/