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v November 4, 1854.] THE LEADER. 1035
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LORD FALMERSTON AT ROMSEY. Tbe annual me...
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THE LOSS OP THE AKCTIC. Details of the l...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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V November 4, 1854.] The Leader. 1035
v November 4 , 1854 . ] THE LEADER . 1035
Lord Falmerston At Romsey. Tbe Annual Me...
LORD FALMERSTON AT ROMSEY . Tbe annual meeting of the Romsey 4 l District Labourers' Encouragement Association" was held at Komsey , Hampshire , on Tuesday . Lord Palmerston ¦ was the hero of the day , and gave away prizes to a great number of labourers . He then made unto them the following speech : — " I have very great pleasure in being president of this useful institution , and it has afforded me infinite gratification to see so many of the labourers here having , by their good conduct in every possible way , earned the rewards which have now been bestowed upon them . It is unnecessary , in addressing those who have distinguished themselves as you have by your good conduct , to say
anything touching that course of conduct which is calculated to secure personal comfort and respectability , and to call down upon man the approbation of his neighbours . But , nevertheless , it is always well that people should bear in mind general principles , though in addressing j ^ ou , whom Providence has placed in the labouring classes , it may not be out of place to remind you that the distribution of wealth and- poverty—the arrangement by which there are comparatively few rich and comparatively many poor , is the condition of the world in which we live , and that no human institution can alter this arrangement—cam make all the poor rich . It might he possible to make all the rich , poor , but the condition of comparative poverty is a condition which ,
by the arrangement of this world which we inhabit , must inevitably be the lot of a great portion of the human race ; but , although it has been tlie pleasure of our Maker in a world which is a world of trial and transition , and not the ultimate destiny of mankind—though it has been the pleasure of our Maker thus to subject a great portion o f the human race to trials and . privations to enable them to . qualify themselves for that future state which awaits them , yet Providence has not been niggardly in those qualities which are calculated to secure to man that happiness which awaits those who well conduct themselves here , for all the good quali t ies of human nature—all tbe qualities of mind—rail tlie qualities of intellect , all the qualities of heart— -everytbung that tends
to dignify human nature , and to enable men to distinguish themselves in the condition in which they have been placed— -these qualities have been sown broadcast over the human race , and are as abundantly dispersed among the humblest as they arc among the highest classes of mankind . You will find that all children arc born good . It is bad education or bad associations in early life that corrupt the minds of men . It is true that there are now and then exceptions to general rules ; there are men who are born- with clubbed feet , ther « are men who are born blind , there are men who are born with personal defects ; and so also now and then it will be found , that children are born with defective dispositions ; but these are
rare exceptions ; and be persuaded of this , that the mind and heart of man are naturally good , and that it depends upon training and education whether that goodness , which is implanted at birth , shall continue and improve , or whether by neglect , or bad education , or bad associations , it shall be corrupted and spoiled . Now , therefore , the first thing you would naturally infer from this is , that it is the duty of all parents to see that their children artwell and properly educated— -that they are early instructed , not merely in what is called book learning , in reading and writing , and things of that kind , but that they are instructed in the precepts of right and wrong , that they are taught the principles of their religion , and their duties towards Grod and man . Now the wav in
which that can be done is by the father and mother building up their courae upon that which is the foundation of all goodness in social life—I mean a liappy home . Now no homo can bo a happy one if the husband is not a kind and affectionate one- to his wife and a good father to his children . ( Cheers . ) For that purpose ho must avoid two great roeka upon which many men in the humbler classes of life make shipwreck—I mean the tobucoo-tihop , and the beer-shop , and publio-liouso . Tho tobncco- » hop ruiii . s his health , disorders his stomach , and loads to all kinds of disease . Well , if ho wore a man living in a desert inland , dependent upon himself alone , it would be his own look out . Ho might then ruin himself , if Utt pleased , and
just as ho pleii . sed ; but the labouring classes must roinombor that their health and strength is tho wealth of thoir family , and if they ruin tlioir health and strength by ultomporanco of any kind , they ant not merely injuring themselves , but doing irro , inxnblu ditnuige to t . hono who are dependent upon tluuu . So imioh Cor that great , iiho of tobacco , in which houio nicn unfortunately , to their detriment , indulge , liut the lii'tir-shop aiul tlui publiohoiirto go much further in tlioir bud eonsiiqucuces , because tho habits thorn contracted not only loud t . <> tho du | jcrudutiou of tho individual and tho hnpovcririhinent of bin
family , but lead also to ollem'tv-wiiid crimes which in their result tend to place n man in the couditiomol' a felon and a convict . No man who indulges in drink cnu fail to fuel degraded when ho recovers from hirt intoxieittion : mul that degradation—that sound of ditfriMirlatlun - le . ads him again to drown liin euro In ronmved intoxication ; and from atop to mop ho fall . s to tho lowoul , pohsihlo euitdllion in which a man can Ins . Don ' t imagine , when J am naying these * things 1 am not perfectly aware they nfl'oct not thosut 1 liuvo tliu plenums of addressing . No mini would huvo vouio hyro to-day to receive
the rewards of good conduct who had not been perfectly free from , these things . You are entitled by your good conduct , and the position in which you have placed yourselves , to give good advice to your neighbours , who have not been so fortunate as you have been , not so alive as you have been to your duties to yourselves , your family , and your country . It is gratifying to see so many men who have , in the various pursuits of agricultural industry , entitled themselves to these rewards ; but there is one circumstance connected with the list of prizemen which is peculiarly gratifying to me to think of . I mean that among you there are a certain number who have lived so long in the employment of particular masters that you have shown that not only those who have
so lived must be most deserving men , and therefore have done honour to the class to which they belong , but the fact of their having lived so long with particular masters does equal honour to those masters with whom those labourers have so long remained . " He here selected eight instances from the list of prizes , and continued : — " Those eight servants have , on an average , lived thirty-three years with their respective employers—a fact which does the highest honour both to the employer and the employedwhich speaks volumes in favour of the farmers who have engaged them , and t he men by whom they have been served . I trust that next year we shall have even a larger assembly of prizemen than on the present occasion ; that
the example of these prizemen who go forth to the world with the honourable marls of the approbation of the committee of this institution will serve as an inducement to others to imitate their example—that the good conduct of the labourers will more and more entitle them to the respect and consideration of the farmers who employ them , and thus the two classes who so mutually and necessarilly depend oil each other will find their relations more and more cemented by mutual consideration and respect—a degree of things most important and beneficial to the interest of the nation at large . He proposed ' Success and Prosperity to the Labourers of Hampshire . '"
At the dinner in the evening he made a characteristic speech in responding to " Her Majesty ' s Ministers . " " I can assure yovi that your worthy mayor has not , in any degree whatever , overrated the desire which animates her Majesty ' s Government to promote to the utmost of their faculties that system of progressive hrw provement in every branch of our social system which it must be the object of every enlightened statesman , to follow out , and which it is so greatly for the'interests of the country should be fully developed . In that respect , however , 1 can hardly take credit to her Majesty ' s present Government for any zeal or success greater than have attended the efforts of successive
Governments for now more than a quarter of a century ; for it is a remarkable and most gratifying circumstance in the condition of the country , that whereas in previous times the labours , and the time , and the attention of statesmen and Parliament were chiefly occupied in convulsive struggles for the retent i on on the one band , or the obtaining on the other , of political power , for the last quarter of a century , and somewhat more , the attention of the Government of the day has been directed to internal , social , . and legislative improvements ; and Parliament having seconded their efforts , the greatest possible progress has been made in . everything that concerns the welfare and happiness of tbe nation . The result lias been that although we have within no distant time had to contend with great privations , from famine in one place , from . scarcity in another , and are now involved in a war which requires every effort the nation can make ,
the greatest loyalty and contentment reign throughout the length and breadth of the land—that we hear no more of conspiracies and insurrections , but that the nation seems animated by one common feeling , that Government is carried on for tho benefit of the whole , and not for the partial interests of individuals and classes , and that those who nrct charged with its administration devote- tho bent faculties of their nature , and the most zealous attention , to do all that is possible to increase tho comforts of tho people , and secure the prosperity of Lho nation . ( Applause . ) The present Government , however , has certainly upon its hands a work of greater responsibility , a work of deeper importance , a work of kirgw—I trust not . ijiHunmountablc—difficulty than has devolved upon ainy administration since tho closing of tho hint war . On this occasion them has boon no dill ' oronoc ! but ween tho Executive ( Jovcrnnicuit and tho
country , except , thin , that the liovurnniunt clung to tho hopes of peace long iil ' tor the country hud made np its mind that war was inevitable — ( i > haartt ) - ~ hu . t in that respect , 1 think tho country will not , find fault with tho ( aovuniinorit , because it wast clearly the duty of those who worn charged will * the fort lines and destinies of a groat tuition to postpone to the lulost period tho dreadful nltcrintt . ive of war . Tho country and thofiovoruiuuuL have both conto to tlie conviction that it , was neoiis . sary to draw tho sword for tho purpose of maintaining principhit * of tho utinoht , importance to Lho vvuliaru < if munkiiul—for tho purpose of not only supporting tliowoulc against tho strong , and protecting tliti commercial and political interests of an ally , but for supporting I . ho sacred principles of iitturiiiitinnal ri ^ 'ht , which , if violated in one case by a powerful ( jiuvtMiiinoiit , uKniiiBt a weaker neighbour , would b « drawn into a . precedent , ami load to a Hood of injustice which , Mooncr or later , would huvo uwuv tw our own
doors . { Long continued cheering . ) There never was in the history of the world a more honourable spectacle than that which has been exhibited by the British nation . "We have embarked in a war and are fighting , side by side , in honourable ambition , with a power that in former periods we were only wont to met hostilely in the field . ( Cheers . ) We trust that that new companionship , cemented by the blood shed in action , and confirmed by those laurels which will be intertwined in victory , w ill long endure ; and that the two great nations which are at the summit of civilization , not only in Europe , but of the world —two nations most worthy of the esteem of eacli other—will , as the result of the resolution of the Government and the country to engage in this contest , be for ever bound together in terms of friendship and affection . ( Tremendous cheering . " ) Anticipating that whatever may be the difficulties and
dangers of the conflict—whether it may be long or whether it may be short , the result can be one , that is , that the arms of Rngland and France reared in combat for tho cause of justice and truth , for the cause of liberty and of national independence , not seeking conquests for selfish objects , but for those of the most noble and generous character—I cannot but feel confident that the result , come when it may , will be such as will gloriously crown the efforts which the nation has made , and will place the honour of this country— -will place the character , dignity , and -well-being of this country—upon a surer and firmer basis even than that on which they have hitherto stood—( great applause )—and when the people will look back upon the sacrifices they , have made , they will feel that the result has fully justified the means that were used , and they , will feel that they have been rewarded l ) y ample success for all the exertions which the Government has called upon them to make . "
The Loss Op The Akctic. Details Of The L...
THE LOSS OP THE AKCTIC . Details of the loss of the Arctic steamer have arrived from time to time . More have been saved than was at first anticipated ; nnd no doubt more would have been saved had not the officers , and crew , and the male passengers , preferred their own safety to that of the women and children . Out of upwards of 400 only 88 have been accounted for . Captain Luce , the Commander , was saved , and he thus reports the loss to Mr ; E . K . Collins , tho chief proprietor oi the " Collins-line , " to--which the Arctic belonged : —
" Dear Sir , —It has become my most painful duty to inform you of the loss of the steam-ship Arctic , under my command , with many valuable lives , I fear among whom must be included your own wife , daughter , and son , with whom I took a last leave the moment the ship was going down , without myself expecting to see the light of another day to give you an account of the heartrending scene . The Arctic sailed from Liverpool on Wednesday , Sept . 20 , at 11 a . m ., with 233 passengers and about 150 in the crow . Nothing of especial note occurred during tho passage until Wednesday , 27 tJi , when at noon we were on the banks , in lat . 45 . 45 , and Ion . 50 . 00 W ., steering west per compass .
" 1 he weather had been foggy during the day , ami generally si distance of half to three-quarters of a mile could bo seen , but at intervals of a fevr minutes a very dense fog followed by sufficiently clear weather to seo one or two miles . At noon I left , tho deck for the purpose of working out the position of the ship . In fifteen , minutes I heard a cry of ' Imrd a-star'bonrcl' from the officer of tho deck . I rushed on deck , and had just got out when , 3 felt a crash forward . At the same moment I saw a steamer under the starboard bow , and the next moment she struck against our guards and passed astern of us . The bows of the strange vessel seemed to be literally cut or crushed off for about , ten feet , and seeing that she must inevitably sink in a few minutes , and taking n hasty glance of our own ship , and believing we wore comparatively uninjured , my llrnt impulse was to endeavour to save tho lives of those ; on board the sinking vessel .
"Tho boats were clearer ] , and the first officer and aix men left with one bout , when it , vn \» found our ship was leaking fearfully . The engines wore net to work , bilgo injections put on , steam pumps . and the four deck pumps worked by the passengers and crew , and the ship headed for land , which 1 judged to bo about iifty miles distant . Itcing compelled to lc . uvo my boat with tho first officer und crow to take oaro of tlicmselvns , several inoilbotuitl attempts \ voro made to cheek the leak by gutting nails over Lhu bow , and , finding the leiik y ; n ' min £ on us very fast , notwithstanding all our powerful meant * of keeping her free , f resolved to get the bunts ready , and as many ladies and children platted ' » 1 'ieiii u » possible , bvtt . no mionur had the attempt . b < ieu mudo than tho firemen and otherrt rushed into thorn in Hpito of all opnoNiLlon .
. ........ . " Woolntf this state , of tiling I onion :. ! ( lie \ nmi » to bo veered Hstorn by ropes , (<> lie Kepi I" rea . lines * until order could be somewhat iustorc . 1 , when to my dismay 1 saw them cut the rope in the •«•«« , "'" I M () 1111 diMitppcsur astern in tho fog . Another l . oat wan broken down by persons rushing into her while liaiiK'ni ? at the . davitH , and many were predp itate ., 1 into Hie mm and drowned . Thin occurred while I Jiml lawn en uW cd in KulUntf tho starboard tfiinrd-buiit ready , nnd placed tho hoc . ond oflieer in cliume of her , whim tlm same fearful tteeno n »
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Nov. 4, 1854, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_04111854/page/3/
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