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THE NOaTHEBjU STAR. SATURDAY, AUGUST 6, 1843.
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3Effi££rtal -parltemfnt.
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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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HOUSE OF COMMONS—MosdatJuli 31 . Mr . Homk withdrew ^ motion for ordering the Attobkct-Gejcerai . to prosecute Messrs . Wakd ami "WrtsissoN , the agents of Lord Desgahsoh at the election for Durham . Several Bills-were read a second time . On the motion of Mr . Chektophkb , an order was issued for committing to Newgate a nan named K » w ? tip 1 Potts , for affixing forged names to a petition presented to the Honse . The Order of the Day for the second reading of ihe Scotch Church Bill "was then read , and Sir J . Gkihaji went into a long statement of the objects of flie Act , -wishing that tne general principle of not opposing ihe second . readings of Bills that have passed ihe other House might bo observed on the jaresent occasion . -
_ . . .. „ 34 k TKaiiCK opposed the second reading . He denied that this Bill had been bronjrht in at ihe suggestion of the General Assembly of Scotland ; it was dearths * it originated at the suggestion of her Majesty ' s Government . He « mld state many things to show howsncere the secession from the Church of Scotland had been . Jt had created the greatest degree of admirationihronghont the country , 3 md he believed if this Bill passed into a law , great numbers more would flee from the Established Church , and Sock to theJree Church . Be moved 4 bas tie BIB be read a second time that daj six
months . Mr . B . Cochbasb supported the Bill . 2 &T . 31 UTBS 8 FGXD was sorry a Bill so important Ehould hare been bronght forward so late in the session ; he condemned it as disregarding the Act of Union , as an inraslon of the rights of patrons , which yrerekowto be , gjven * o » Church—to » priesthood , Who Tvere the worst depositories of snch a power . Lord J . Russell pointed out the confusion that prevailed throughout the SIB , between the declara--tbrj and enaetiva clauses , stating that clauses of theformer description weremost nnwisely introduced , and made a dangerous precedent .
Mi . < Fgx . Mjojxs sud the ministers who had left the Church iad seceded more in sorrow than in anger ?* Had they , as had been aBedged , been desirons of securing more power in the Church to themselves , they would have had nothing to do but id hare accepted lord Abskdbks ' s Bill of 1840 . Uui the present Bill and that Act were not the same . He-objected to the present B 31 that it threw too much power into the hands of the Church . Sr B . Pkkl closed the debate , in » speech of no great length . He said it appeared to him that many ofthe obserTaSonBliehad heard daring the discussion had no direct bssrirrg on the measure discussed . The great and main question was , whether the Bouse would a&ree to this measure , or abandon « ny attempt to legislate on the subject . On the < imsion that took place on the close of Sir B . Peel ' s address , the nnmbers were—For the Second Beading , S 8 ; Against it SO ; Majority , 18 .
The House then proceeded to some of the other business on the paper . The Earl of Liscolk postponed tall next session ihe Metropolitan * Buildings ± HL Thb Theatres Begalajaon Bill and the Slzve Trade Suppression Bill -were read a second time . The third reading of the Irish Arms Bill ' vras postponed till Thursday ; * nd the House adjourned at two o ' clock .
TcesdaTj Arecsr I . The House lad a morning sitting , the chief bnsiiiess oF ~ waich consisted in discussing the London € oal-wEppers 'Bill . At the afternoon sitting , Colonel Bcshjsooxe moved the issue of & new writ for the' borough of Bndbnry . Mr . Bij . ckstojcb moved , as an amendment , that JesTd Be siren to bxiog in & bUl to make an elfecioal inquiry into the hribery and corrupt practices alleged lo exist in the borough of Sndbnry . Considerable discnssion ensued , but ultimately the House divided , when the amendment was carried by 13 fr to 25 .
Mi . Waio > brought- on his motion . — " That an humble address be presented to her Majesty , representing to Iher Majesty that , in tho opinion of Has Honse , It is ^ not by . measures for the repression of local -riolenee that the discontents of Ireland can be allayed , but by removing those grievances which 'hare formed for many sears the subject of recorded complaint and remonstrance between the two countries . Th&l amongst the most prominent of these is the law by wHeh the whole ecclesiastical property of Ireland is assigned to the clergy of a small section ol the population ; and that this House , deeply impressed with the belief thai such a law 5 s not conformable to reason , or to the praclice of any Christian , pledges itself , after providing
for existing proprietary rights , and for the claims of her Majesty's [ Protestant subjects , cordially cooperate with her Majesty In effecting such a settlement of Church property in Ireland , as willremoTe all jvsb ground of complaint , and give satisfaction to the Irish people /* He supported this motion by an able and elaborate speech , tracing much of the existing condition of Ireland to _ the established Chnreh . Ireland had been only partially cosgnered when the Seformed Church was introduced ; -grasping " clergymen were sent over from England , T ^ ho , as Spenser complained , looked amply to their own temporal interest ; and that great instrument of the information , prayers in the n&five tongue , was neglected in Ireland , for to this
hour the English Liturgy had never been translated into Irish- Bsviewing the history of the conntrythe spoliations , confiscations , penal enactments of earlier times , and the straggles , efforts , insnrree-JjonSj sad concessions of more modern days—he showed that our whole policy in Ireland was as absurd and ruinous as it was cruel . The tithe system , which seemed as W contrived by the devil himself to frnfteaie ihe « jfb « B of tee Church ,- and to bring the reformed religion into contempt , was maintained with pertinacious stupidity , and enforced with all the rigour of law -among a people who did not belong to the establishment ; and even when at last the necessity of relieving the people from this burden compelled Parliament to legislate , it "was preceded by a fierce party struggle WltBi reference to this topic , he entered into" a review of his own labours in this field ; the breaking aip of Sir Robert Peel's administration in 1835 by 5
ihe ** appropriation clause ;* the -ultimate abandonment of thai principle by the "Whig Government and party , which he regarded as a great calamity , inasmuch as it broke faith with the people of Ireland , and threw doubt on the "bononr and faith of pubHe men . The main evil 3 which afflicted Ireland were to be traced to the statute-boot ; probe these evSp , and the Church would be found at the bottom . Who -was the author of the great ** moral miracle , " the ternpexaneeioDTemeni ! 2 fot tne Church ; bnt one of those humble men , on whose head the Wisdom of our ancestors would have set a price a century ago . Taking the census of the population and the last reportof the Ecclesiastical Commission . he stated the episcopal population of Ireland at 752 , 000 whose religions instruction cost fifteen shillings per head , while that of the Presbyterians wa& only Is per head , though he had never heard that the one was the less moral or religious than the other ; while nothing was reserved for the instruction of the Boman Catholics
or Dissenters . After giving some amnsing reminiscences of the secahvr arid political spirit in which ecdesiastie&l preferments ; from humble chaplaincies to bishoprics , were regarded and jobbed in by-past tames , he proceeded to the present condition of the Church in Ireland , admittiDg that much improvement had taken place , but pointing out those unions of preferments which still contume Jte oppro-Inanm of its ecclesiastical government , and rounded off ihiB jsortson of his speech by giving exteacts-from the sorreapondence with which he had been favoured by oneortwo Irish clergymen , evincing thatthB old feeling sfill existed . The Catholics were now eight millions ; Ihey could no loB ^ erbe treated asa separate comnranuy , or regarded as thB "hewers of wood ^ L ^ weIS * v ^ r" wllioi Dean Swift described them to be . Let them break npthe Iris * esabhshment nd
; get of its cmnbrbua machinery ; give to thewhBle Irish community an equal and lair fihar * m the distribution of the tithe fund ,- rest " 'f lumds of commiKaoners for this purpose , respecting vested rights , allotfing an f qual BunUn proporbon tothe population , to th&-threereligions : and , by a bold and Jearless policy conciliate a people who sfiU smart under & deep sense of humiliatton ^ d long-continued wrong . Prance and jbpam nui tried the exterminating policy and h&d lost the choreest & theFpopulafioi ByVUinatdv Tstasms roncesaon , we lost the United States . It wasonlyby yielcung to the people of Scotland on the score of their naiional religion , that the union with teat conutry was obtained and completed - and from all these examples he called on the House to te prudent in time , and substitute-a wise , agenerous and _ a ^ oDfidmg policy , for the narrow and jealous spirit m which we have hitherto acted towards Ireland . -
Jax . < kBEw seconded the motion in a neat and effective address , Ifird Eiiot eharaeterised Mr . Ward ' s motion , when raponnded by his speech , as being at once OOW and definite , which brought them at once io an assueon the question of tho maintenance or Enbver-Bion of the Established Ciitirch of Ireland . Withont a pledge for its security , the pnion would not 2 ists beea aeccdrfisbed , hot eniancipatjori achieved ; andasiesawJio difference between a . Protestant Soverejgnland a Proiestast Chnrch , so he could not adsit thit the removal of the one without the other would pla ^ the Hom&E Catholiee on the desired
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footing of equality with their other fellow subjects . Tho inviolability " ol ihe Irish Protestant Church was a leading idea in that resolution relating to emancipation traced by the dying hand of Grattan ; and the advocates of that measure , the most opposite in character , Piunket , Cannine , and Castlereagh , aJl enforced ihe same opinion . Tpe Protestant people of England and Scotland were not yet prepared for the spoliation of the Irish Establishment j nor was it yet com © to the Alternative of that spoliation oroivilwar . Mr . O'Connell now held opinions on the subject different from'what he * and other leaders expressed when emancipation was granted ; and without a distinct compact , not all the influence ot the Dake of Wellington and Sir Bobert Peel would have snffieed to carry that measure . On the condasion of Lord Eliot ' s speech , the debate was adjourned . '
The Noathebju Star. Saturday, August 6, 1843.
THE NOaTHEBjU STAR . SATURDAY , AUGUST 6 , 1843 .
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THE CONFERENCE . The necessity for the assembling of this body is now universally felt , and all but universally acknowledged . On the point of desirability , therefore , nothing more need be said . The » very general expression of opinion , almost throughout the whole country , settles the point that we must have it . Nor is there much disagreement as to time and place . Birmingham is , by a great majority of localities , fixed upon as the most likely place ; and we think an examination of the votes come , to and recorded , will shew that a great majority Jare for deferring its assembly to the first week in September .
We take it , then , as settled , that a Conference there must be . We take it , too , that it is nearly settled where it is to be holden , and the time it is to meet ; for whatever contrariety of opinion may have ^ existed a 3 to these two latter points , every one will give in to what is the expressed wish of the majority . It is time , then , now that a& preparations were ddy made . The delegates are to be appointed . The funds for their expenses are to be raised . The subjects for their deliberations have to be considered , and general instructien ? given . And a scale of Representation has to be determined on .
On the latter point , we may say that it will not be needful for the Conference to be a very large body ; not so large as the one that assembled in Birmingham in December last ; nor SO COStly . We deem the proposal of our South Lancashire friends , for a large district representation worthy of great consisideration . By caution and prudence in the selection of delegates , this course may be made to answer the intended purpose } best . A small numbar of weil-informed business-men , active , intelligent , and prudent , will be far better for all good ends , than a large number of persons selected
without regard to these essential qualifications . A small committee always performs more work , and better , thin & large one , even when personal qualifications are equal . In this case it is business alone that is to be attended to . We want men of aptitude , to take up the floating m&ss of proposals and suggestions for Organization , and oat of the whole form a msfematized plan : one that shall be perfectly legal ; secure to us the pnoTEcnON OS THE xaw ; be , withal , workable , and easy to be understood ; having the duties of all , body and head , members and office-bearers , plainly defined . This is what is wanted to be done in the first instance .
This is the main work . Now for this pnrpo 3 e a smallish ** number of wise men , well and JDdicionsly selected , will be far preferable to a large body heterogeneously mixed together . The question of expense is also deeply involved : and it fortunately happens that the least expensive mode wUl answer best for all Other purposes . This is not a trial of strength between two opposing parties , where it is needful that each should put forth its full measure of power , to sway public opinion on its side . It is a meeting for business , to grre national sanction to the best , most COmprsfcensiTe , legal , and workable plan of Organization that can be devised . Do not these reasons and considerations , then , support the proposal of our Lancashire friends for large district representation 1
At the same time great care will be requisite in the appointment of delegates . These should be chosen for their business-talents ; and prudent derotedness to the great cause that will be entrusted to their care . They will not need to be " orators . " Speech-making will not be tho vork the delegates will sent be to perform . Ability to speech-make alone , therefore , is no qualification for the oSce . Sound , practical , discriminating common sense is what will be mainly required . To these matters , then , we now invite the immediate attention of the Charfist body . Look out your men . Determine on the scale of representation Prepare your funds . Agree npon , and give your instructions .
There 1 b another point , to which sufficient attention has set yet been devoted . It is in our opinion all-important ; and we have waited to see whether it would be taken up by the Chartists generally , vr iiboni being pressed npon their notice . It lias arrested s glance hero and there ; and a word or two have occasionally passed respecting it . But not enough has been either said or done in relation to it . We mean the question of Scotch Umos with the English ! Is it net desirable to effect such an Act of Union between the two bodies of English and Scotch Chartists , that shall work so well that
neither party shall wish for " Repeal" ! Why should they be disunited \ Is there any benefit to be derired from it ? Is there any benefit in disunion ? If it be needful for the English Chartists , and for the Scotch Chartists , to have separate general Organizations , because of the advantages accrucing from general action and systematized movement , sorely it would be cot less advantageous to have a real General Union for all , ¦ which should promote feelings of amity , induce oneness of purpose , and direct energetically the whole force of public opinion npon anyone given point ! This
is an " Extension of Commerce" in good works that even we think would be beneficial ! Could not it be effected ! Is it not worth the trial I Should we not endeavour to accomplish it ! We think every sincere Chartist will , with alacrity , say " yes" ! Then let us to the ; work . Let us to the endeavour . SCOTCHMEN , what sat tou ! Give the proposal due consideration . Weigh well the advantages to be derived to yourselves , to your English brethren , and to the common cause , by such a jnnction . Bfflect well on it ; and let as have your decision . ENGLISHMEN ,
what sat tod ! Is the active and prudent co-operation of your nntiring unswerving jbritber Scot " worth the seeking 1 Is it not worth courting Will it be nothing to unite with a body of people who have stuck true and steadfast , through good report and through evil report , and conducted their afiairs withoHt one mishap ? See the field ef exertion widen before you , and see the number of well-drilled working laboorers ready to do their part in gathering in the rich land ripening
harvest ! See too the extended range of selection , for first-office-bearers that opens out . Many parties fear the experiment of another Executive . They fear that envy and jealonsyma-y be again at work , and produce more division and disunion th&n "we even now have , or have had . Would not this in a great measure be prevented , by bringing in new parties to act !—parties who hare bo partisans —who have not at their backs those who will be dissatisfied if they do not get in ; and others at their heels who will be dissatisfied if they do .
To the ^ CEartists of both countries we commend these considerations , Weigh them well . They are deserving of your every attention . Accomplish the work , and yon will find that it will be of the utmost service to the movement , giving it an impetus that will amply satisfy for the pains taken . Let onr Scotch bretijren look to this ? matter well . If they decide in its favour , no doubt their English brethren will be happy to meet them ; at the Conference , to consummate the detirahle object . If the place of meeting is inconvenient , the Scotch people
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hare bat to say so ; and we are sure that every effort will be made to accommodate them , compatible with convenience to all . ' Haying considered the question of the Conference and its labours in a somewhat circumscribed sense , we shall now take a more general view of the whole question , and indicate several other matterBjwhich will of necessity urge themselves on the attention of the assembled body ; and which it will be well to canvass over some little beforehand . '
The question of Organization and the leading features : connected with the subject have been long before the coantry ; and the farther steps which it may ] be necessary to take , after a plan of Organization i 8 agreed npon , will require some time for ; completion . The Organization is but the means ji the direction of pubKo opinion , the end . Of course the election of an Executive body , and the preliminary steps prior to such election ; rules for the appointment of lecturers , with directions for the government of their body ; gome improvement in the slovenly method of holding public meetings hitherto practised ; as well as means to insure perfect harmony in the ranks , will no doubt arrest the attention of the delegates .
The announcement of the League at Bristol that their battle would henceforth consist in bribing electors to support " Free Trade" principles , will naturally present to the Conference the necessity of adopting ; some mode by which , Me non-elective influence may be . brought to bear efficiently against the elective power upon the next dissolution of Parliament . Wemust be cautious , lest the denial of "Free-Trade" principles by the League , and the convenient adoption of the Chartist pledge upon the hustings , should lead us into a hasty confidence in our greatest oppressors . It is evident that upon the next dissolution the tactics of the League will be to unite with the Complete Suffragists ; and , in the event of the working classes directing their undivided
attention to the return oft wen ty out-and-out Chartist candidates , tho coalition will be tried to . be effected with 41 Free Traders , " ready to swallow not only the six points , but name and all ! But the Chartists must bear in mind , that they do not want to make their princip les in the House of Commons A mere second-ABT QUESTION ! now and then receiving the lukewarm anpport of " Free Traders . " Their game is to return , an active , talking , business-like , common-PLACE-M £ AStmE-OB ? IKDCTIKG STAFF , Who Will Sit night after night , and day after day , using the House of Commons in the first instance , as a channel through which Chartist principles can be inculcated throughout the ; world ; and , secondly , as a rallying point round which the working classes will muster with increased zeal and activity .
All these are questions which mast necessarily arrest the . attention of tho delegates ; while it may take some time after the plan of Organization is agreed upon to bring the necessary machinery into working order . The question of " leadership" has been very whimsically treated by politicians of all schools , they agreeing for the most part in denouncing ** leadership" ; while every party tends to the recognition of tne principle . Are . not delegates , although instructed as to their course , "leaders" pro temj > ore \ and with the consent of the people \ Are not the members of an Executive Committee acknowledged "leaders" ! and what is the object of our re-Organizition , but that of recommending and practising caution in the election of "leaders" 1 What would
be the position of a Chartist representative in the House of Commons , but that of "leader" ? How have the minorities of factions been so long enabled to hold dominion over the great majority of the people , except by u leadership" ! Thorefore , while we shall be ever ready to denounce the despotism of " leadership , " wo shall be equally prepared to defend the principle , as the best , indeed as the only , means of marshalling political parties .
Let us trust , then , that the aereral localities will forthwith put their shoulders to the wheel and prepare for the day of redemption ! We anticipate much from the bringing together of the leadess of the people . We live in times when all personal considerations must be merged in the general good . In order to make the proceedings of the Conference instrumental in establishing thestrength of the popular will , we would strongly urge upon the men of Birmingham the propriety of making arrangements to give OUR GREAT LEADER , Thomas Duncombe , Esquire , M . P ., a public entry into
Birmingham on some day during its sittings , and to invite him as a guest to a tea party the same evening . This will have the double effect of doing honoar to the champion who has fought our cause alone , while it will prove that we are thankful for good intentions . If " England has her Attwood , " the Chartists have their Duncombe . Both are presenters of Chartist National Petitions ; with just this difference between them : one raised up the ferment , and was frightened at the monster he had created . He slunk from his post , telling us that all that he meant by the People ' s Charter
and Universal Suffrage was " Little Shillings " and " One Pound Notes , " The other undertook his task in far more difficult times , and performed it manfully , and has stuck to us ever since I Never let it be forgotten'that it was Attwood that proposed the National Holiday ; that it was Muntz and Douglas that commenced the "Physical Force" Movement , when they went to Scotland to establish Rifle Ciubs , and sell rifles at 12 + 6 d . each ! And never let it be forgotten that when the first approach of canger was manifest , the whole squad BAN AWAY , Attwood saying he only wanted the " National Holiday" for the " Little Shilling" J !!
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done to society at arge by the precarious mode of leasing Church property . We do not mean that bishops demand a higher rent than lay lords , or the contrary ; but we do assert , that the peculiar conjditions annexed to those contracts , and the uncertainty of tenure under them , leads to a lax , islovenly , and negligent system of husbandry , by which the largest portion of benefit , which , under better circumstances , would be conferred upon society , is wholly lost . Did either of the noble Lords take into account the property belonging to Trinity College , the hot-bed' of Protestant prejudice , and
the cradle of Orange principles ? If we were now settling the account ; ia . good mercantile style between party and party , peradventure we might be seduced by commercial principles to make a sum of rule of three of it , and assume the calculations of the noble lords to be perfectly . correct : but When we come to view the question as a whole , and to consider that this kind of pepper corn" rent paid to the Church , is not only an injustice as a Protestant imposition upon a Catholic -people , but that the amount , be it large or be it email , loses its real arithmetical value ; and instead of
being looked upon as a kind of chief-rent , amounting to something short of half a million annually , it is viewed as the foundation of every grievance of which not only the IriBh Catholics justly complain , but as an intolerable abuse against which tho whole nation has set its face . It is the nestegg upon which every other grievance has been laid . It was the Upas-tree planted ia Ireland , upon the conquest of the Irish Catholics by their Saxon oppressors , intended as a badge of conquest , and as the standard round which tho Orange faction could rally , summoned by the cry of " the
Church is in danger . " It may now suit the policy of the Church-party , grown weak by abuse , to speak in tones of moderation ; but the outcry now raised against the Protestant Church in Ireland ib not confined to mere Catholic dissent . It has been forced into the Proteatant camp by the Tithe Composition Bill of Mr . GouxBUBN whereby the Protestant grass-land , made tithe-free by a resolution of the pro * testant Irish Parliament , was brought in to gavel and made to bear its proportion of the Church burden . Erom 1825 , the period ; at which this Bill took effect , the Royal , Loyal , Protestant Landlords of Ireland
have been like the Duke s daughter and the Moors wife ; hampered with a divided duty : the one to the Church as loyal Protestants , the other to the pocket a ? struggling landlords . Prior to Mr . Goulburn's , bill , the Protestant landlords , the Protestant parsons , the Catholic landlords , and the Catholic owners of Church property invariably made common cause in resisting tithe agitation ; that is , as long as the Catholic pauper with an acre of potatoes supported the Protestant parson , while the Protestant landlord with his luxuriant grass domain contributed not one farthing towards the salvation of his own soul ,
the people were transported , butchered , and destroyed by the associated defenders of the rights of . the Church . As soon however as this first innovation was made , there was a quickness in the landlord ' s feeling , whioh threw his love of Churoh in the shade ; and to this act more than to any other is to be attributed the rapid progress uade by the Catholic Association demanding what was called Catholic Emancipation . Goulborn was the means of carrying Emancipation some years before it would otherwise have been accomplished , inasmuch as the Protestant landlords recognised an injustice to
themselves in his Bill , whereby they were taxed for the support of tbeir own Churoh ; and from its enactment to 1829 we find the ranks of the Catholic Association considerably swelled by Protestant volunteers . Lord Eliot , therefore , has made an erroneous calculation , when he considers Emancipation , carried in 1829 , to have been a fulfilment of a contract made in 1800 ; and he is equally in error , wuen he would lead ua to a belief that , by implication , the Emancipation . Bill was a re-acknowledgment of the Act of Union . Wo , then , look upon the revenue of the Irish Church , not only as being
unnecessarily large in amount , but destructively so , as a rallying point for all the evil passions for that dominant faction who look upon it as the trophy of their party , won in a war against the Catholic people . Surely , if any portion of the wild Indians looked upon the possession of the Gates of Somnauth as of national importance , and if a great English statesman acquiesced inthe national prejudice , something is due to the feelings of the Irish Catholics , who in the pillars of Churoh and State recognise the triumph of the enemy , as well as a barrier arresting their promotion , and paralyzing their energies . What
has caused tho necessity lor a standing army in Ireland in times of peace , or of a mere Church war iu that country 1 What has led to an extensive police establishment t What has been the amount of coats in ithe Ecclesiastical Court , in the Prerogative Court , in the Chancery Court , and iu the Exchequer Court , expended in defending the Catholic defendants against their clerical antagonists 1 Have the salaries of Commissioners , the expence of citations to Bishop ' s Courts , the costs of bills filed in Chancery , the legal expences of Exchequer suita , the amount of records between the Shepherds
and their flocks arising out of actions tried on circuit , ot at Nisi Priiis , the enormous fees paid at Quarter Sessions by those who have been processed for tithe and against whom decrees , with all their subsequent expences in execution , have fallen : we ask ^ have these " sundries , " comprising a total three times as large as that set ; down by Lord Eliot as the little sin of the Church , been taken into consideration \ Has the blood shed at Rathoormac and elsewhere been set down in the account ? Has the ousting of Catholic tenants by Protestant landlords , lest as electors qualified by their land they should
vote for an Anti Church Candidate , been set down in the general account 1 And , if not , are we not justified in Charging it under the comprehensive head " sundries" ? The noble pillars of the Church , Lords Brougham and Eliot , were too mercantile in their mode of dealing with the Church property ; and having failed to render a satisfactory account , we , to whom it has been referred aa auditors , would make the following corrections , accepting the low total of the one , and the slight inconvenience of the other as our data , and we state the account
thus :: — ; The Protestant Church ef Ireland in account with the Catholic People of Ireland . Credit ... £ 432 , 123 Br . The destruction of industry , the propagation of feuds , the shedding of blood , the expense of collecting tribute ; £ 8 , 000 , 000
Interest upon one half of the National Debt , law expenses , Stipendiary Magistrates . &c , &c , &c , &c , &c , &o . ., 17 , 000 , 000 Frightened out of the country by Protestant Parsons and their Orange Staff ... 5 , 000 , 000 Loss from bad cultivation , and uncertainty of tenure 20 , 000 , 000
£ 50 , 000 , 000 From which deduct 432 , 123 And we find the balance due by the Churoh to the Catholic people amounts annually to ... ... £ 49 , 567 , 877 In this calculation we are very much under the mark ' , not having set down any thing nnder the usual comprehensive head " sundries" ; and shall now conclude with a bit of spiritual « £ for tat . We shall be glad to know then if the noble lords
considerthe complaint too loud for the amount of injury sustained i and if the whole question is to be merged into one of pounds , ahiliings , and pence , why are the Irish j Orange members , and the English Plumtbes allowed to make such a ferocious noise , about a grant ; of a few thousands ; a year to the College of Maynooth 1 ! We could say much more upon this unholy subject , butastbe putrid monster is in the deaththroes , we re t rain from disturbing that quiet which it has ever denied to its victims . When the monster perish s , the only" wonder will bo that it was allowed
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to live so long ; and when it is interred , the proper epitaph upon ! its dry tomb and unhallowed memory will be : — } " Here lies the Irish devil ! ! The last reptile That infested the land . " MMMAMVVVWtai ^ k ^ V ^^ ' ^/^////^
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"SIGNS OF THE TIMES . " I . THE SHEFFIELD ARTIZANS . Below we present the reader with a most important address which has within the last few days been published by " the Delegate Committee of the Associated Trades of Sheffield , " important not only for the sound truths it enunciates , but also on account of the parties from whom it emanates , the leaders of the Sheffield Trades . These men have hitherto had the reputation of being the mere tools of the " Freebootery , " and as such have often been daubed with [ the piraises of the pot-organs of
Sheffield Whiggery , the Independent and Weekly Chronicle , But a " change has come o ' er the spirit of their dream . " ! They appear to have discovered the blessings ( 1 ) of former ¦ Extensions of Commerce , " and are no way desirous of having a renewal of the dose ; consequently no approving paragraphs from the pens of the Leasers and the Ward ' s will now , as heretofore , reward their toils . And no wonder ; for , from beginning to end , the address is a complete refutation bq far as Sheffield is concerned of all the fanciful theories on
which the " Freebooters" found their system of chicanery and humbug . Machinery and the " Devil'sdust" system of exporting trashy articles , are alleged by tho authors of this address to be one of the main causes of the present distress so prevalent in Sheffield . What will tho > Extension" men say to that ! What & picture , too , of the Sheffield profitmongers the addressers present us with ! See "the cast-metal articles sent to China ; " the " razors that
will not shave ; the strops that take off the edge ; the scissors that refuse to cut ; the knives that presently brenk" ! These " cast-metal" gentry aro the " respectable , " " chapel -going , * ' "intelligent , " and therefore the " electoral" class of the community . Will the Independent , that along with the rest of the " Liberal" curs yelped so loudly at the heels of Mr . Ferrand when he made his famous devil ' s-dust " exposures in the . House of Commons ; will this base Whig hack dare to defend the characters of its " pious" and " religious" patrons against the damn '
ing charges preferred against them by the addressers ! It dare ! not attempt the hopeless task ! 16 knows well that the accusers are parties that cannot be misinformed , for they are the parties who are compelled by the present accursed system to toil at the making of these " cast-metal" deceptions , which are fast rendering the name of Sheffield a bye-word aud a mockery from the Thames to the Ganges—from the Rhine to the Mississippi . It will be seen that , instead of " Free . Trade , " which was wont to bo the cry of the Sheffield trades , " The Land" is the remedy for existing evils argued for by the addressers . This is most heart-cheering ! It tells that the thinkers among Ihe working classes
—those who must always influence the mass of their order , are thinking to some purpose ' . —that these thinkers are beginning to look for the restoration of their own heritage in the land of their fathers as the means of restoring themselves and their . order to a state of well-deserved comfort and prosperity . They are righjt as to the end—The Land . THE LAND , THE LAND is theonlyeffectual remedy for the wrongs of the suffering poor .
But what are their proposed means for attaining that end ? The ; union of all the trades . Go 6 d , as far as it goes , j A general union of the trades for purposes of experiment and partia I relief will be productive of j good ; and God speed them is our cry . But would they really achieve the independence and happiness of their class by again resuming their stand on the soil , something more than a general TradesUnion will be necessary . They must stiuggle for the right of self-legislation \ they 1 must ESTABLISH THE PBINCIPLE 8 OF THE PbOPLE ' S ChART £ R ! THBy MUST WIN THE POLITICAL , TO ARRIVE AT TUB ! SOCIAL RIGHTS OF HAN .
For this they are not yet prepared . There is no fear but that they soon will be ! They have hit upon the right cube { for the evils of the present system ; AND THEY MUST OBTAIN IT BY SOME MEANS . If Trades Unions ^ wiU not answer that purpose , the Charter will ? What a glorious " sign of the times" it is to see
the associated / Trades turning their attention to these important questions . Alone and of itself this single fact id sufficient to sustain hope that we shall come right at j last , notwithstanding the gloomy prospect that everywhere presents itself when we look at things as they are , and bring to mind the almost universal confusion and dismay that everywhere abound , j It is oaly to the working class that the politician and the social regenerator need look for means wherewith to work out his
beneficieut purpose . Themim > , and the " phy sical" to give actual embodyment to that mind , dwells a lone amongst those whose souls have not been deadened by tho withering curse of Mammon ; and whose aspirations { or liberty are not sent through the | till , but are pure emanations from nature's self . Of that mind the address we here present is an evidence ; aad it is the knowledge that MiiND must eventually overcome and overthrow brute force , that gives rise to tho hopeful conviction that the present system ot inequality and injustice will be superseded byj one which shall recognize in every man a brother to his fellow-man , and deal with all as the children of oae common father .
Yes ! England will be saved ! and saved , too , by her despised , derided , degraded , and spitten-u ' pon working people ' . Look at all the other classes What are they dcing ? What do they know of the evil that is now reaching them ? They Bee their property melt out J of their grasp . They see that all their efforts to retain it are futile . They see ruin staring them in the face . They one by one drop into ihe bankrupt list , or the insolvent list . They knew that all about them is consternation and alarm . They know that Ireland is agitated to her centre , for Repeal ; they know
that" Rebecca" is waging successful war in Wales , and that her " Daughters" seem to include almost tho entire population of the Principality . They know of the " alarming state of the mining districts , " where those who daily go into the bowels of the earth with their " lives in their hands" to pro . cure the means of enjoyment and comfort for the rest of society , are required to do so for eighteen-P £ f < CE-a-day J They kuow that " Chabtism" is but ia abeyance ; that it is not "put dotvn ; " that it merely smoulders ! liable to be fanned into a terrific fltme with the fiijst wind that blows . They know all this , and see all this ; and yet what know they of the cause ?! . ' What know they of the remedy 1
The confusion that everywhere abounds in the social world is not more perfect , nor more general , than the confusion that reigns in their own minds . Incapable of thinking clearly , it is impossible thafthey can apply a remedy . Thby have the poweb had they the mind , they could easily effect the change so much needed , even by themselves , to save their own property from silent but effectual transfer Lacking HIND , however , power is useless—nay « worse than useless !; for the efforts made by these classes , in ignorance , do but enhance the suffering to all parties , and augment the general turmoil . and discontent , until confusion has become worse confounded i -
If a deputation from the associated Trades of Sheffield , had waited upon the Premier , tc bandy compliments with him about the " general distress' * as the Iron-masters of Staffordshire lately did ; they telling him of what be but too well knew ; and he telling them that he DEPLORED the fact , and COMMISERATED with the sufferers : would a deputaion of working men , had they gone to Sir Robert Peel , haro stultified themselves and proclaimed their astute ignorance , by asking him , at one aud some time , to take measures to make
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prices low , and prices high ? U Would they hatj 1 asked for "free-trade" to make our "FIXED 1 burdens" more burdensome still , through reduced fl means ; and also asked for One Pound Notes , to §§ raise prices to a " range ADEQUATE to oia fi FIXED engagements" ! Would working men hatj ^ done this ! And yet those who despise them ; thoaj jjf who ape "intelligence "; those who assume airs dpj superiority ; thoBe who affect to prate ot u ignor . | l ance " , and deny the producer of wealth all partoirj lot in political power , " becausethey are not intelli hi gent" ; those who have the tote , because lowcunnhj % and a disregard of moral obligation has given them 1 " wealth' *; these men not only made such an exhi- p bition of their incapacity to understand the cornel moneai principles of political economy , but theyP actually proclaimed their , wonderfol want of know- | ledge to the whole world ^ eaying to all , " see what ®
asses we are"I ' "H God helpthee , poor ill-used country , did thy re-il demption depend upon the ' ^ upper and middle H classes" ! Fortunately , it does not . While thesep are driven to and fro , beguiled by every Will-o ' -the- ft Wisp that shows itself ; running after every nostrum p that ia propounded ; attaching themselves to every | Bpecies of quackery and empiricism , the working 9 people are steadily applying themselves to discover if
the cause of the evil that afflicts all ; and as steadily || looking for the kemedy . Assuredly as they do f | this , and acquire the knowledge , so assuredly wil ] M they acquire the power to apply that knowledge to j practice . England will be saved j but her salva- p tion will be effectuated by those who have fared 1 the worst , endured the most oxaal treafcmenc , suf- 9 fered the greatest indignities , been the most des- ij pised by the gaudy painted butterflies that the 1
corrupt maggotiy system has so numerouily en- l gendered . ¦ ' . H Of the m * D that is actively at work amongst the t § workers , the following address is evidence . Its % operations are not confined to the Trades of Sheffield . § These are but acting in common with the rest of their B brethren . The tide of thought b . s ® && ml Theripple 1 of the waves is diotinctly seen ; and ere long the dry I and parched teach of politics will be covered with the I waters OF life ; and . beauty and oider displace I confusion and turmoil . I
Here is the address of which we have spoken ;— 1 " Fellow Workmen , —In a late address we parti- I cularly pointed te two of the hydra of evils , which I have a strong influence on your trade—namely , the « vast increase of machinery , aird the trashy articles 1 that undermine your credit and character . With # respect to theformer , we again say , that notwith- 8 standing the injury it has iuiiicted , it has conferred ft many benefits on mankind , and might be productive m of a many more under a wise and humane system . % As to the injury resulting from it , it would be some % consolation if that was confined to our shorea ; but % the vast exportation * of it to foreign countries ( and ' $
we believe at the present time we are exporting | more than ever ) must , ere long , tell with fearful || effect upon our commerce , and cannot be passed 8 * over without exciting the most painful feelings , as it P must be evident we are doing all in our power to fff enable foreigners to close their markets against us . m Nor are the trashy articles we send them calculated II to allay those feelings—as we are quite certain , that H the only way to save us and the town from ruin if must bo by the excellence of our productions . To ! l enumerate all the evils arising from bad and low m priced articles , would occupy too much space * m we shall , therefore , notice those which are made p of cast metal , and the commonest steel , which is ff very little betterfor purposes of utility . The trades a
that are suffering the most from cast metal articles , 3 are the Fork , the Scissor , and the Table-knife If branches ; and those that are great sufferers , iu W consequence of common steel articles , are the Razor , f the Saw , and Penknife branches . There are a I many other trades that feel the baneful effects aris * § ing from this double cause . Indeed , as far as the § town is concerned , it is of such aa alarming magni- 3 lude as behoves all classes to take the matter into I serious consideration . Tho following facts are strik- % ingly illustrative of the <¦ ¦ ... r-tion of the employed I and tho employers in the alorenamed trades . In the I Fork Trade , for instance : — -such is the overglutted 1
state of the market , in consequence of cast metal I trash , that the far greater part of the manufacturers i of steel forks are reduced to a Btate of poverty and ft want , in consequence of the iow selling prices . The 1 condition of the poor Grinders is still werse , as it is f impossible for them to drag on any other than a ^ most miserable existence , working as they do at a | trade so destructive to the human constitution , that I th « late Dr . Young once emphatically declared— t j * That , nnder any circumstances , it was a punish- 3 j ment adequate to the crimes of the blackest f dye to make the perpetrators of them work J at fork grinding the remainder of their I I lives . ' As to the other grinding branches—and ia 8
particular the razor grinders- ^ -the poor artizans en- % gaged therein are but very little better in circum- . # , stances to the one just named , ix consequence of such J a system , while the respectable manufacturers see , | J with the most painful emotions , their trade gradually I dwindling away . The shopkeepers experience similar | effects , by being deprived of a portion of their cos- ' % tomers ; but the crowning evil is the loss of our f credit and character as a manufacturing town . We ' % talk of an Extension of our Foreign Commerce ! but : M to
we ought in the fir ^ tj pla ce redeem our character ' $ as manufacturers of genuine articles . At this ! l moment large quantities of cast metal articles are A wending iheir way to the Chinese market . Thus it i appears , after butchering a great number of tho in- a habitants , because they would not tamely submit to f be poisoned with opium , we are increasing the dis- 13 guso they have conceived against us as a nation , by sending them the most abominable articles that can I be manufactured ; and Sheffield , it appears , is to I stand the foremost in such a base transaction . 1
" Another evil , and which has been partly caused by the breaking up of the Cutlers' Corporation , is the great number of Hitle masters , who have done a great deal in producing the present state of things ; —still wo cannot attach much blame to them—the fault lies entirely with the system . If nine-tenths of them could only have obtained living wages as journeyman , they would never have commenced manufacturing . Necessity , which is above all laws , has compelled them to it . Dr . Holland observes in one of his excellent works , " that their credit seldom extends beyond the duration of a week . ' And , we believe , in a great majority of cases , not bo much . This readers them an easy prey to the factor or capitalist , who are always on the alert to profit
out of their necessities ; and tpe dealers ia hardware , act upon the same principle . Indeed , it is a well-known fact , that a coalition exists between them and many of the factors—their object being to force the little masters to ssll their own labour , and that of other ? , fpr almost nothing . Can we , then , be surprised at the present state of oar workmen , when their labour , is thus sacrificed at the shrine of such unfeeling and grovelling BeJfishness ? 2 s it possible that property , in wheels , in shops , or houses , can maintain its vaiae , under a system which forces multitudes to barter their labour for the first necessary of lifo , and not a sufficiency of it 1 We again repeat , that we do not blame the little masters for such a state of things , as they have the same equal right to a livelihood with any member of the community ; and the only way to prevent them
irom manufacturing , must be by finding them employment whereby they can live respectably as journeymen . This is a matter that particularly interests the workmen and the respectable portion ot their employers , if they mean to save themselves from impending ruin . We could point put other evils , but shall refrain from so doing , on the present occasion . We therefore close this part of the subject , by giving a quotation from a letter of a gentleman , of unquestionable veracity , who has travelled into many parts of , the world . His language is as follows : — ' A traveller , alive to the honour of bis country , and jealous of any impeachment of its pr inciples , cannot bat be sensitive to the reproaches of foreigners complaining of English razors that wUl not shave , or siropa that take off the edge ; of scissors that refuse to cut ; of knives that presently break . '
" Fellow-Workmen—You will perceive from what has been already stated , that your position iu respect to your trade , is far from buing enviable . It seema as if you wag receding fast back to a primitive state , lo fact the degrading system leaves no room for the expansion of the human intellect . To remedy this partly , we again urge upon your serious attention the necessity of diverting a part of your labour to another pursuit ; and there is none more worthy of your notice than that of the land . Tae most strenuous advocates of this measure contend , ' that the principles , upon which if , and the preceding subjjctsare based , are widely distinct—the one being political economy , the other moral economy . Tie chief consideration of the political economise is pro *
duction , leaving distribution to regulate itself . The moral economise would unite both , so as to produce the' greatest happiness to the greatest number . ' The political economist calls for great production for export , and estimates the happiness of the country by the amount sent annually away ; not considering whether the masses are benetftted by tho return . The moral economist looks to production as only valuable in proportion as it increases the happiness of the producers . If w ¦ admit the moral axiom that 'labour is the source of all wealth / it ought to follow thai the producers of tho same shou'd be proportionately oieva ' -ed . in society in the ratio of thoir u > e !' uiuess , and tho idlers , or non-producers , the reverse . Fof untkr a wisa svstem oi distribution few distributors
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THE IRISH CHURCH . By out Parliamentary Reports , it will be seen thai this vexatious and irritating question has been , brought before the House of Commons in something like an understandable shape , by Mr . Ward ; and his so doing has thrown the chHrch-Baints into great dismay . On this question of Irish Churohism we have often had our say ; having , from the very first existence of this journal , continually shewn the necessity of banishing the last viper from Ireland . It was to little purpose that the good Saint Patrick ,
" Drove the toads down in the bogs , And bothered all the varmin , " if the land was to be infested by one poisonous monster , who , like the harpy of old , destroyed all that came within its reach . The fanciful Church-logic of Lord Bbotjgham adopted by Lord Eliot , might have served for the public ear some half century back , or may , even now , do for the outlines of a Magazine Article ; but ; they are ho spiritually-temporal for the ear of the landlords , and too absurd to receive favour from man . Lord Brougham , who has recently appeared as the Tory chronometer—whereby
the youngsters in the Commons may set their time , endeavoured previously to Mr . Ward ' s motion to open the eyes of the ignorant upon the subject of the Irish Church , by assuring the Lords that it was no grievance at all ; that its existence imposed no tax upon the Catholic people ; and that its destruction would confer no benefit upon them . The Noble Lord appears to look npon the revenues of the Irish Church as a kind of chief-rent , payable by the owners of land , and subject to which , the land has been transferred from time to time . Lord Eliot , in the Lower House , takes the Bame view of the
question ; and , in the attempt to confine the subject to a mere question of figures , he assures us , that the total revenue of the Irish Church , is only £ 432 , 123 . We believe the figures of the Noble Lord to oonsiBt of the aggregate amount compounded for by Church parsons , under the compulsory Tithe Composition Act ; leaving out of view altogether the enormous amount of Church property consisting of glebe lands , bishops' lands , and income derived by M lay impropriaters , " which would reach , negatively and affirmatively , to more than double the total Bet down as Church revenue by Lord Eliot . By negatively , we mean especially the great injustice
3effi££Rtal -Parltemfnt.
3 Effi ££ rtal -parltemfnt .
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HOUSE OF LOBDS—ToEsnAT , Augcst 1 . ! Ehe Royal Assent-was given by commissioB to the W ^ tmlfaiHrfactBTerB Bill , the Loan Societies Act Cpnfinnance KB , the Bridges { Ireland ) Bill and several private bills , . o -The Commissions for Taking Affidavits in ScotiffiQdiano Irdand Bill was read a second time , and ordered to bs committed on 010 X 5487 »> - ¦• The Dake of Wjoxutgtom presented papers relat-3 nz to-Scinde by command of her Majesty . Tneir Lordships ihenadjournsd to Thursday .
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4 THE NORTHIRN STAR . j ' _ ___ _____ ^ I
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Aug. 5, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1224/page/4/
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