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JFebbitai^ 24,1855.] THE LEA DEB. 177
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TAXES ON KNOWLEDGE. The annual meeting o...
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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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Mr. Robert Iiowe At Kidderminster. On Tu...
Bessarabia from * Turkey ; ana , eating like a canker into JhTheart of Germany , established herself on its great arterial river , the Danube . We see how difficult it is to rouse and unite Europe in aims ; how difficult it is to stimulate Prussia—the very country most likely to be Absorbed—to union and action , because her peril is so Jartreme that she has almost lost the hope of existence ; Ind therefore , when Lord Aberdeen ' s Cabinet determined on war with RussiaM think they came to a wise and magnanimous determination , and it was the duty of the country to second them . " Mr . Lowe contended tha t * despite the results , the expedition to the Crimea had been well planned for the object - ew an immediate success over the Russians . The
^ landing was admirably managed , and a triumph was at once achieved . There commendation must cease , for the army in twenty-four hours should have been in Sebastopol . " The department whose duty it was to minister to ^ the wants of the army , has utterly broken down . The General has not shown the activity and zeal we have a right to expect . ( A Voice : " He is too old . "") Well , perhaps so ? I wish to say nothing harsh of that gallant soldier who lost an arm at Waterloo , and has since given his best energies usefully to the public service ; and perhaps it is hardly to be expected , that if we take a man from his desk , at which he has been sitting for thirty-five years , and at the age of sixty-four or sixty-five require him to enter on the stirring duties of leader of an army
in a severe and active campaign , he should be altogether as efficient as we should desire . . . . Now , the question comes—what > is the remedy for this state of things ? That it should continue would be intolerable and unendurable—inconsistent with our power , dignity , honour , nay , perhaps , with the very existence of this nation . We possess more of what is desired by mankind than other countries , and we must keep what we have with a strong hand , or a stronger man will come and take it away . The cankerworm which has caused the failure -of this campaign , and which pervades every department of the civil and military service , is the vice of public patronage . ( Cheers . ) Merit is not promoted ; the only thing considered is personal connexion and
favour . It is , indeed , humiliating that we who supply an engineer for almost every railway that is made , and for almost every steamer that is afloat ,- —who furnish the brains and the talent by which the affairs of . other countries are organised—that we should fall so far below others in this very respect When our own public affairs are concerned , and be so infinitely surpassed by what we have been in the habit of scornfully calling the barbarous power of Bussia in the art of war , in the art of keeping an army alive . " Acknowledging some merits for military service in the despotic system of Russia , the Emperor being able to dismiss and recal at a moment ' s notice , Mr . Lowe proceeded to say that he approved neither the remedy proposed by Government nor by
Parliament ; that of Government was to appoint commissioners to take charge of every department of the army , leaving those in command just where they were . To continue in office , a man acknowledged to be unfit , and to send another to take charge of him , was repugnant to common sense . It was as if , when they had a horse that could not draw a cart , they put on a leader to draw him and the cart too . { Laughter ?) He could not approve Mr ; Roebuck ' s committee-either , though he had done him ( Mr . Lowe ) the honour to set down his name for one of the committee . He thought it could not make proper inquiry without having before it the officers and others engaged in the Crimea . It would not be just to enter into an inquiry touching their
conduct without hearing what they had to say ; and it would not be of any use merely to find out that there was something which was wrong at home , without being able to trace it further . Another objection was , that it would interfere with and hamper the War Department at a time when of all others it could least afford to be bothered . Mr . Lowe drew a frightful picture of the work now to be done at the office of the Secretary of War , and said he was assured that the department was at this moment in a condition of the most hopeless and inextricable confusion . It was impossible that Lord Panmure could do all that was necessary to be done , but at least he might be let alone , and not be worried by a committee . Moreover , a committee of this kind was
most objectionable , because it really transferred the duties of the Executive to the House of Commons , always a most dangerous thing ; and lastly , such an inquiry as was proposed would certainly involve statements respecting the French army which the Emperor of tho French was desirous should not be known , and would probably weaken our alliance with that country . He thought that when an officer did not do his duty tho proper way was to recal him . ] 3 ut there was a reason which ho believed operated with tho Government to prevent the rocal of Lord Raglan , and no doubt it was an
important one . It was that he had acted throughout moat harmoniously with pur gallant allies , and had never by any intemperate sally or unnecessary opposition interrupted tho excellent terms on which they had acted with ua during this campaign . Tho second remedy would be an entire reconstitution of our military system , so that merit should bo the road to promotion instead of favour and seniority . At present an oflicor did little more than buy an annuity when he entered the army , his pay being only intoreat on tho money ho invested in the purchase of hia commission , and ho gave hid
services to his country gratuitously . At his death the Government appropriated his commission , instead of its being a benefit to his widow and children , so that , really , our present system was a premium upon cowardice . At present it was almost impossible that a man should rise from the ranks , whatever might be his merit , bravery , or good conduct , being the very opposite of the system pursued by Napoleon , who said that every man , ought to have the materials for . a marshal ' s baton in his knapsack . A similar reform must be " carried through all our civil departments . It was not reason enough why a man should be put at the head of the medical department that he had had the yellow fever half a dozen times , had been in the West Indies , and served in the headed
Peninsula with usefulness , and was now a greyman , who ought not to be disturbed in his old age . He would have public men prevented from making appointments , except the candidate ' s ability and knowledge had been previously tested by a sufficient examination . This would strike at the root of the evils under which we were now suffering . " Finally ( said Mr . Lowe ) , it is my wish , as I believe it is my duty , to support to the utmost the present Government . This is no party question , and I am prepared to say the same shouldthe present Government be dissolved and power passed into other hands . We are at this moment in contact with all the Powers of Europe—who are either our allies our enemies , or in a position which a very slight influence
may convert into the one or the other . It is of the last importance to our success or honour that we should exhibit an appearance of stability and constancy in the eyes of Europe . Neither is it easy to overestimate the influence of the name of Lord Palmerston over diplomatic circles on the continent , or the importance that is attached to his being placed at the head of the Administration . His name is a pledge of our determination to resist Russia to the utmost ,, and his fall would be regarded as a triumph of the principles of t he peace party , whom foreigners believe to have a power they do not possess in this country . We must learn to put off party differences till the return of peace , and to present a firm and united front to the powerful enemy with whom we are engaged . "
Jfebbitai^ 24,1855.] The Lea Deb. 177
JFebbitai ^ 24 , 1855 . ] THE LEA DEB . 177
Taxes On Knowledge. The Annual Meeting O...
TAXES ON KNOWLEDGE . The annual meeting of this society was held on Wednesday at Exeter Hall , The chair was . taken by Mr . Milner Gibson , M . P ., who , after briefly sketching the history of the society , said that the remainder of the " Taxes on Knowledge" must follow the advertisement duty . To partially effect this , a bill has been introduced by the Government" for the repeal of the newspaper stamp , and having seen it in manuscript , he would take leaye to inform the meeting of the nature of . its provisions . The Chancellor of the Exchequer—he was afraid he must say the late Chancellor of the Exchequer —had laid on the table the bill , which proposed , in the first place , to abolish the compulsory stamp altogether . It proposed that all printed matter up to the weight of four ounces should be capable of transmission by post at a charge of one penny for each transmission . ( Cheers . ") It further abolished the security system altogether ( cheers ')—that detestable system first established by Castlereagh , in the -legislation _ JcnQwn _ jas _ the _ Sjx Acts . These were the leading provisions of the bill ; but there were clauses in it which had evidently been introduced , out of regard to what might be called the vested interests of established newspapers . It had been contended that the privilege of retransmission was very much valued by existing newspapers , and the bill proposed to give them' that privilege for seven days from the date of publication , on such of their number as they chose to stamp , and to continue that privilege to them for the
space of ten years . As a general rule this privilege was to be conceded where the weight of the paper did not exceed four ounces , but as there were some large papers , and one well-known journal which exceeded that weight , there was a clause in the bill providing that papers containing a certain number of superficial incites should , even where they exceeded the stated weight , still enjoy the privilege . The priviloge was , as ho had before stated , to bo seven days for each publication , and to last ten years from the present date . These were the contents of the measure , which was of the nature of a
compromise with publications now existing Ho should have preferred a more simple measure ; but the Government plan , while it was moat favourable to the established papers , which retained all their present advantages , yet effected two great objects—the abolition of tho compulsory stamp , and the termination of the system of securities . Should there bo any opposition to this scheme , ho could only explain it on the hypothesis that there was a fear of the cheap penny newspaper ; and it was for the sake of that penny newspaper that he supported tho bill .
A resolution for tho Repeal of the Paper Duty having been moved and carried , Mr . Cobden moved the following resolution : That this meeting hna heard with satisfaction that a bill was introduced last night by tho Government , to abolish the compulsory nowspapor stamp and tho security system , and to admit all pr inted matter to a cheap rato of postage . " Ho viewed this question , as being so important , socially , educationally , and politically , that ho for ouo should never rest until he had seen it becomo
the law of the land . When he first heard that the Chancellor of the Exchequer intended to bring forward the measure , he said , " Don't be too sure , there ' s many a slip between the cup and the lip , " but he little dreamt , when he said that , thatwithin forty-eig ht hours the right hon . gentleman would have ceased to fill his important office . He regretted his secession , but did not think that the circumstance would endanger the safety of the measure , for Mr .- ' Gladstone was a statesman whose convictions you could reach ; as a statesman he had a conscience ; and when once you had convinced his understanding , you were sure to have his support , whether in office or out of it ; and holding as he did the very highest rank in the House of Commons for
eloquence , he would give the measure such aid , whether in office or out of it , as must ensure its triumphant passage through the legislature . He did not think it necessary on that occasion , seeing that there was a bill on the table of the House of Commons which recognised the wisdom and expediency of all they had been advocating , to go into a long argument to show the necessity of repealing the newspaper stamp . His right hon . friend the chairman had alluded to certain clauses in the bill . He cared nothing about an extra quarter of an ounce , if it carried off the opposition of a powerful organ ; neither did he care about giving a privilege for ten years . There was one thing upon which existing papers laid a great stress , but one which he did not think was of such very
great advantage—he . meant the repeated transmission of these papers by post without any renewed charge . The argument used in favour of this , that it was a great public advantage , was in his opinion a great delusion . People sent papers by post when they cost fivepence , because papers were then a luxury which only the rich could enjoy on the first day * while others must wait . But that would not be the case when newspapers were cheap . He had once asked an intelligent American what he saw in England that most reminded him of his being in an old country , and his friend replied that what mo 3 t struck him was the notice stuck up everywhere , " Yesterday ' s papers at half price , " adding that in America nobody would have yesterday ' s papers at any price .
That would be the case in England when a totally free press had free scope . People did not buy old clothes when they could get new ones , and neither would they buy yesterday ' s papers when they could get to-day ' sthey would rather buy to-morrow ' s if they could get them . ( Cheersandlaughter . ) There would be anew class of papers altogether suited to a new class of readers , and selling alongside of the present papers would train a new class of future readers for the "latter . The advocates of this reform had been assailed by individual organs of the press in a way for which they were totally unprepared ; for when he first entered the arena of politics , those very newspapers were his fellow-labourers in the cause of free-trade-in corn .. ( Cheers . ) But the very
moment he proposed to make free-trade in newspapers frOm that moment they became Protectionists . ( Laughteri ) He had once brought great obloquy on himself by saying at a Yorkshire mechanics' institute , when endeavouring to induce the Conservative patrons to permit of newspapers being brought into the room , that what the people wanted was news—facts—not leading articles . For that innocent remark he was accused of a disposition to gag the press , and it was added that he disliked leading ' aliTcIe ¥ b ^ au 8 e ~ tb *^ apers'trimmed '" Win ^ pfroin " time to time . ( Laughtef : ) He suspected that in promoting these reforms he should be creating more free criticism than ever , because he believed that in a few years there would be three times as many newspapers in England as at present ; and further , he believed that public men were all the better for the criticism they
received , and that , on the whole , they got quite as good treatment as they deserved . ( Question" ) One point connected with newspapers had recently been broached in a pamphlet published by liidgway , to which he would just allude . In that pamphlet it was urged that all leader writers should put their names to their articles ; but all he could say was , that if any law were proposed such as had passed during the republic in France , ho for one should give his vote against it , although ho was not quite sure that a newspaper did not have more salutary influence when it was known who conducted it . Ho was sure that public men would not bo half so useful if they spoke behind a mask . He looked to the repeal of the stamp as calculated to produce equality between the London and provincial papers , and to give a local paper to any village in the country , and he had sufficient confidence in his countrymen to
believe that in the long run tho best conducted papers would everywhere meet with the greatest success . ( Cheers . ) Mr . Bright believed that , whether they took it as a question which related merely to a branch of industry , or as a question of a greater and higher character , they would find that there were insuperable objections to the laws which regulated tho press ; and that those laws were discreditable to thorn as a people , and disgraceful
to tho Parliament by which they wore enacted . Let them treat it for a moment an a mutter of industry . He hold in hia hand a copy of tho Times newspaper of the day before . Tho bare coat of making tho paper , the matoriul of it , was thrco farthings ; on that the Government imposed a tax of one farthing , or 88 per cent ., on tho valuo of tho paper—a very high rate indeed compared with any other tax levied at present . Tlio original
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Feb. 24, 1855, page 9, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_24021855/page/9/
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