Vrobinces. Mr. Joseph Sturge's "Complete Suffrage" movement appears to have
made some real progress. The Conference at Birmingham, of Dele- gates from various parts of the country, sat throughout last week, and adopted a long string of resolutions, after a deliberation on each. They comprise an assertion of the evils of " class-legislation " ; and declare that every sane adult ought to have a vote for Members of Parliament ; that the vote ought to be taken by ballot ; that there ought to be no pro- perty qualification for Members ; that Members should be paid ; and that Parliament should be elected yearly. On Wednesday, Mr. Shar- man Crawford attended, and promised to move the House of Commons to consider the propositions agreed to by the Conference. On Thurs- day, on the motion of Mr. Lovett, it was resolved to call another Con- ference at some future period, to consider the Charter, among other plans of political reform, as conveying the opinions of the people on the details for carrying out the principles to which the Conference had already agreed.
The proceedings of the Conference were submitted to a public meet- ing in the Town-ball on Monday, and affirmed unanimously. Among the speakers, were Mr. Lovett, Mr. Vincent, and Mr. Bronterre O'Brien. Mr. Lowrey, a Chartist, who was not a member of the Conference, gave in his adhesion. Some of the working Middle-class Reformers of the North of England were also present ; and the utmost cordiality pre- vailed in an assemblage composed of Middle-class Reformers and Chartists.
A meeting was held at Plymouth last week, to consider the Income- tax and other measures ; which was remarkable for the conflict of opinion. No fewer than five rival resolutions were moved. The first approved of the Income-tax coupled with the Tariff; the second wholly con- demned the Tariff; a third approved of the Income-tax, as falling on the rich and leaving the poor exempt ; a fourth advocated the Charter, as the only means of abolishing all unjust taxes and checking extrava- gant expenditure ; a fifth declared that the Income-tax is unnecessary, as the resources of the empire are sufficient for every emergency with- out such a recourse; and it comprised a request that the Mayor (who presided) would call another meeting, as soon as the bills relating to Sir Robert Peel's financial measures shall be introduced into Parliament. After a strong contention between Tories and Chartists with Liberals of all shades, the last resolution was carried, by a great majority. Some- thing of the temper of the majority of the meeting may be gathered from a passage in the speech of Dr. Bellamy, the mover of the triumph- ant resolution. Speaking of the Income-tax, he said— It was utterly uncalled for ; and, far from answering the expectations of its promoters in lessening the financial difficulties of the country, it would aggra- vate every evil, augment in place of lessen the deficiency in the revenue, and raise such a hurricane of popular discontent as would drive them to the brink if not over the precipice of revolution. To that brink the present Govern- ment, by their rash, despotic, and he might say revolutionary measures, were impelling them with railroad speed; and he trembled for the safety of his country.
Other meetings on the financial measures have not possessed very much interest. The Income-tax has been the subject of disapproving resolu- tions by meetings at Chichester, Wooler, Leominster, Chatham, Sheppy, High Wycombe, in the Bath Liberal Association, and in Newcastle and Durham Town-Councils. The agricultural portion of the Tariff has excited hostile manifestoes from the Leicester Agricultural Asso- ciation, and a meeting at Harlestone ; where a resolution was passed declaring a fixed duty preferable to a sliding-scale. Other parts of the Tariff have been condemned by the carriers and shoemakers of Bath.
At the Leicester meeting, a Mr. Baby stated that the proposed Tariff had already affected the price of stock : a dealer called on him the other day to purchase six young oxen, and said that he must have them at the "new bill prices."
At the meeting of Bath shoemakers, the Chartists interposed, and carried an amendment declaring it " inexpedient to embarrass Sir Ro- bert Peel in his financial plans ": but the principals of the trade after- wards met again and carried their own resolutions.
At Chester Assizes, on Wednesday, Robert Sandys was sentenced to death for poisoning his children at Stockport, in order to obtain 3/. 88. from a burial-society. He was convicted at the last Assizes ; but a point of law was reserved for the consideration of the Judges, and it has since been decided against him. He said that he had suffered "a hundred deaths of mind' since his conviction. His execution is fixed for Saturday next. Eleven soldiers, who had been committed for a disturbance lately in Stockport, were acquitted, on the ground of doubt as to their identity.
Jonathan Taylor and Robert Nall were executed at York Castle on Saturday, for the murder of their wives. Taylor was a farmer at Escrick. He abandoned his family about four years ago, and took a public-house at Hull, where a woman lived as his wife: his landlord, Lord Wenlock, allowed his wife and grown-up children to keep the farm : some time after, Taylor returned, and was permitted to reside in the house : in October, he murdered his wife, while their children were at work in the fields, and ransacked her drawers, his object being to rob her of 701. which had just been paid to her for some cattle. Nall, a gas-fitter at Sheffield, married a young woman about eight years ago; but they quarrelled and parted : since that, they had separated six or seven times : in November, she consented to live with him again; but during the first night that they passed together, he stabbed her, in a fit of jealousy : he also stabbed himself; but seemingly with a faint in- tent, and he allowed himself to be locked up and seized without resistance. Both the culprits were calm to the last ; and Nall is de- scribed as carrying himself piously (of course!) and almost cheerfully. Ten or twelve thousand persons assembled to see the men hanged. The prisoners charged at Liverpool Police-office with the abduction of Miss Crellin were examined on Friday, and finally on Saturday ; when they were committed for trial. Dr. Copeland, a married man, who courted Miss Crellin under the name of Martin, was also exa- mined and committed, on a charge of having defrauded Miss Crellin of 2501., which he extorted under a threat of proceeding at law for a breach of promise of marriage.
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