The Anti-Corn-Lauc Circular persists in misrepresenting, the Spec- tator on
the Corn question—with what motive or purpose. we are at a loss to imagine. Our remarks, a fortnight ago, in answer to his gratui- ' tons attack—that " the landlords of various ranks, in every part of the
country. are mustering their tenantry and depernier meetings • whose chief object is support of the Coru-laws "—and :b.:. .‘ die wealthy
merchants and. manufacturers, with not numerous exee; are shy of the Anti-Corn-law movement "—are coutroverted i.e writer of the Cire,dar, and in a very uncivil manner. not in the Ic ci warranted by the treatment he had received from us. There is uo foundation whatever either for the one view or the Other here presented. The landowners could not meet or muster their tenantry at all for the ostensible ohject of supporting the Corn-lawst Cot tie 'shows eau only be held in autumn; uvulas dinners naturally take pinee at the nil tout of great meetings of fanners. the landlords tooh advantage of aeseunhiies eonvened for the celehration of agricultural improvements, to make political is cites. Not a single proh:ssed Pro-Corn-law meeting less bee :1 held Irons one end of the year to the ,,t him. Polities have been irregularly int rodueed, eolely under cover of diseueeing the merits of draining. aud the breed. of ball-. Nay. it is equally untrue to say that these musters have unilbrinly had in ■ hey the support of the Corn-laws. Captain Peeltell coull tell the Sp: elm' or a differoo story. So could. Mr. Blacken, the great oracle of the farmers: and the convention of the 31anchester Agrieultural Association was truly an Anti-Corn-law meeting,. But while fanners naturally assemble in autumn to celebrate their skill in agri- culture, mends:luta and manufacturers are all at watering.places. or on plea- sure tours. Summer is not the time for political meetings; and it could not therefore ho expected that until the return of families to town any demonstra- tioncould take place. The Spectator ought to have known that at many of the landowners' dinners the tenantry were only induced to attend by getting their grub for nothing, or under fear of being deprived of their farms. Would . any man call meetings got up under such circumstances true expressions of political energy on the part of the tenantry ? We see these associations are nearly all in debt, anti are supported almost exclusively by the landowners. The Association for the Protection of Agriculture' is 2S01. in arrear of sub- scriptions; and there is, and will continue tube due to its treasurer, 1/. Os. W.! And this the Spectator calls a mustering of tenantry, and junction of interests. Was the writer asleep when be talked such stuff as this, and said that the -wealthy merchants and manufacturers are shy of the Anti-Corn-law move- ment?' Why, these same persons have manifested their shyness by sub- -scribing about seven thousand pounds to the League, by getting five hundred thousand signatures to petitions, by inducing their correspondents everywhere to get up lectures and meetings, and by holding conventions of the various JOhambers of Commerce throughout the kingdom liar the express object of ex- pressing their opinion on the subject of the Corn-laws."
Agricultural associations are formed for the avowed purpose of pro- , tecting the " agricultural interest "—which means, in the mouths of nineteen-twentieths of those who use the term, maintenance of the Corn-laws. There are hundreds of these associations in England, and the proceedings at many of their meetings have been published. With very rare exceptions, they were Pro-Corn-law meetings. Does the Anti-Corn-law Circular wish to inculcate the gross error that there have been no meetings for the defence of the Corn-laws, because, for- moth, none have been advertised as such ? The announcement was perfectly- unnecessary : no donbt, other matters were discussed, but the stirring subject was defence of the Corn-laws. The landlords exhorted the tenants to cling to them as a rock of safety, and the tenants re- spOnded most heartily to the call. On this point the unanimity was manifest, and there was no occasion for dragooning the tenantry. We • 'never cited the agricultural meetings as expressing "political enero on the part of the tenantry," but as evidence of their disposition to main- tain the Cern-laws. To deny this, is to deny that of which every pro- vincial newspaper supplies proof. Facts also bear out the statement respecting the wealthy merchants and manufacturers. 'Fake Manchester itself: what proportion of the .wealthier classes even there join heartily in the Anti-Corn-law move- ment? who are Sir George Murray's leading supporters ? who Mr. Carnett's at Salford ? Turn to Liverpool : are not Lord Sandon and Mr. Cresswell elected by wealthy merchants ? Do any large propor- tion of the London merchants aid in the attack upon the landowners' tux? In the majority against Mr. Villiers's motion on the 18th of March, we find Representatives of Liverpool, Bristol, Hull, Southamp- ton, Norwich, Newcastle, Sunderland, Belfast, Stockport, Dudley, Worcester, and other places of minor importance, but dependent on commerce for their support. In Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, and Glasgow, there are large minorities, including many of the richest merchants, manufacturers, and bankers, who always vote for candidates ,attached to the landed interest: but where do we find the landowners voting for men not pledged to support the agricultural interest ? At the close of the article which challenged these remarks, it is waid-
" While we cannot admit that there is any foundation for the querulous
• lobe assumed by the Spectator, we think his suggestion valuable. Englishmen do: every thing now-a-days by dinners, and we earnestly recommend Anti- 'Corn-law banquets to all our friends as admirable means of heating up for ,recruits. Dine down monopoly, and you arc sure to blow it up." Now it is one thing to be "querulous," and another to stimulate letter exertion by placing in true though not gratifying contrast the apathy of friends with the activity of foes. Compared with the zeal of the agriculturists, there is lukewarmness among those who ought to , lead in the movement for free trade. We cannot consent to "back • friends" by deluding them. Indeed, this is not a matter of taste only, Int of calculation ; for we deem it a dangerous in-Tolley to underrate the power and the industry of opponents: and whatever the conse- quence, the readers of the Specie Cur expect to find in its pages, not half Ind whole truths—the materials for correct opinions on the state of questions and parties, which one-sided representations would never afford. He who relies upon the Anti-Coru-law Circular, without fur- ther information, would be grievously misled as to the real position of the Corn question. He would have no idea of the extraordinary efforts 'which the landed interest have been making to preserve their power of taxing foreign corn. He would grossly miscalculate their means of resistance; while the importance—the practical influence—of the meetings and lectures attended by men of his own opinions would be snuch exaggerated in his mind.
Previous page
