ช thes advocates for the Boroughs has not been addressed to the people; but to the peers and the King; and this argument is, that if the aristocracy give way to the extent proposed, the people will"DEMAND MORE and that they will go on from demand to demand, till they leave no vestige of Members, and that the House 'dia hot deserve the censure he had cast on it! This, my friends, if you look into the staff before-mentioned, published as aforesaill, you will find to Be an accus rate analysis of the said stuff, as far as any meaning can be discovered th ft and there is not a person in Preston, the present form of Government. Now, not even a girl or a bordon the staff impated to your Cock does not say that the people will never rest till they have destroyed the present form of Government, but it says, and repeatedly says, and keeps hanging on to the point, that the people will not be content with this reform; that, if there were no ballot, the representation would become even more corrupt than before; that the people would not hear of the meusure with much gratification; that those who were drawn in the militia would not serve unless permitted to vote; that many of the young men in the north were determined to rot in jail rather than serve in the militia if they had not this privilege; that he, if he were in their place, would do the same; that he HOPED this measure would be carried, and that there would be no re-action, although he really might ask how the great mass of the people could be called on to come forward to support a reform from the benefits of which they were to be excluded, and which was intended for those above them; that he believed that this subject would now be pressed on their attention by petitions; that he had heard of numerous meetings about to take place; that although the noble Lord (Lord John Russell) thought that there would be no agitation, he (Mr. Hunt) knew, from good authority that there would be such agitation as they had never seen before; that he was anxious to hear Sir Charles Wetherell and Sir Robert Peel speak, and was sure that they would not make use of his (Mr. Hunt's) arguments to serve their purposes: lastly, that (as I have quoted before), he had been misled by others, when he had used expressions that were thought disrespectful to that House, and that he had been mistaken with respect to the character of its age, who will not clearly perceive that the effect of the stuff must be, if it has any effect at all, to furnish the strongest of all arguments to the opponents of the measure, and thereby to cause one of two things, the rejection of all reform, or the producing of a convulsive revolution. It is impossible for you not to perceive that this was the direct tendency of the stuff. A few days after this stuff was published, I, perceiving the drift of it, published the following in the MORNING CHRONICLE, as the next day of the publication of the Register was too distant. Here you will see the nature of univer sal suffrage more fully explained than I had ever explained it before, I beg you to read it with attention, and then to lend me your patience while Toffer you some further remarks2200 27woł va 21 sił to noitonse Kensington, March 6, 1831, Pogong 901 I PERCEIVE that one great ground of opposition to the measure how before Parliament, for making a reform in the Commons' House, is this: "that the Radical Reformers will still remain as discontented as ever ; and will never rest till they have totally destroyed the Govern ment in King, Lords, and Commons." Now, Sir, I have, for rather better than twenty years, been, what is called a radical reformer, and my opinion is, that this ground of opposition is wholly false. Supposing the mass of radical reformers, to feel as I feel, upon this occasion, their feeling is that of entire satisfuction, and of gratitude to his Majesty, who has chosen, and given his countenance to, servants who have proposed this reform. My opinion is, that every sincere radical reformer ought to be contented with the measure at present under discussion, if it be carried into full and entire effect, but, Sir, having the Government, the Aristocracy, and no pretension to that sort of weight in the Clergy! The old Dake of Richmond the compunity which might lead me had seen this fifty years ago, and you to hope for any effect from a mere opin will hardly believe that it had escaped 10% of mine unsupported by reasons; my attention now; I who had discussed will, Sir, if permitted by the room the matter so many times with the ve that you have to spare and by your great nerable Major Cartwright, who, at one indulgence, proceed to submit to you time, actually proposed to shut out those reasons. For two things, not soldiers, sailors, custom-house officers, embraced in the present plan, the radi-and the like; but, who, when he percal reformers have prayed, namely, ceived that this destroyed his principle, UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE, and the BALLOT. abandoned his intention in this respect. With regard to the last of these, it is not To the old Duke of Richmond it was yet under discussion; but in the observa- objected that he would," by giving the ons which I am about to submit to you, right to yearly or other menial servants, I shall embrace them both. Whoever and especially to paupers, throw too has had the patience to read amy writ great a weight into the hands of the ings, during the last ten years espe-" aristocracy!" For the dignity, for the cially, know that I have most strenuous- honour, of man, I would, if the thing ly contended for the abstract right of were left to me, still have Universal voting as belonging to every man ar- Suffrage, in spite of the knowledge ayed at the age of maturity, being of which I must have that it would bring sane mind, and not stained by indelible tribes of pickpockets to the poll; but, Sir, came, In the last number of "Advice the question has, as you will perceive, to Young Men," I have deduced this two sides to it; and I am not, for the sake night from the law of nature itself; but, of maintaining a favourite principle, to Sin my immoveable conviction upon reject, no, nor to lessen the value of, the this subject is, not to prevent me from mighty unmixed good which is now to entertaining a deep sense of gratitude be conferred upon my country. towards those gracious e who, under the red to sanction of the King, have the people this mighty good. If I had been the I this good, attempt to cite in this case Let not those who would cavil against the United States of America; for, as I the people should have gone the told Mr. Jeremy Bentham, in my writ length of Universal Suffrage; but, being ings from Long Island, one of which receiver instead of a giver, am I not writings will be found in the "Year's to feel grateful for so much good, merely Residence in America," ignorance of because a something is omitted, which facts as to this point, made him put had made part of my plan? This forth and rely upon an argument of exWould be presumption indeed, and would perience wholly untenable. In one certainly have earned me the contempt State of America there is something of the whole community, not excepting approaching to universal suffrage; but those in whose behalf. I had contended in no other State that I am aware of. for this disputed right, 4 von In Virginia, for instance, a a man must be JdBesides, Sir, UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE a freeholder, In other of the Slave has tip sides to it, which men, of sense States, every free man has a vote; and do not overlooka If, on the side of the observe, that free men are u white le men; people ditoadmits every working and that a white man is not there a man who honestly gains his living working man. In the Midland States, brother sweat of his brow, let it be where slavery does not exist, no man recollected that it admits also soldiers, has a vote who does not pay a tax. In sailors, people in the dockyards, servants three of the New England States, in she public offices, excise men, tide- Massachussets, New Hampshire, and waiters, coachmen, grooms, footmen, gar- Rhode Island, the elector must, swear deners, and all the innumerable tribes of that he is worth a hundred pounds. In poor persons absolutely dependent on Connecticut (the other New England C State), 1. the voter must be a white man, that the radicals would not be satisfied who shall have attained the age of twen- with this reform; and this was prety-one years, must have resided in the cisely what they stood in need of as an township six months, and have in the argument against abolishing the boState a freehold of the yearly value of roughs, and against giving any reform seven dollars; or, must have been en- at all! Curious! that the good and sinrolled in the militia, and have done duty cere and disinterested people of Preston therein, one year next before the time of should, by making sacrifices not to be voting; or must have paid a state-tax described for what they thought the within the year next before his voting, good of their country, send into the and must in all cases have sustained a House a man, who has been incessantly good moral character; and a proof of laughed at by these unmannerly people, bad moral character is, a conviction of until he took upon him to make an bribery, forgery, perjury, duelling, fraud, assertion, the obvious tendency of which or theft, or other offences for which an was to defeat the King and Ministers infamous punishment is inflieted. in their intentions to put an end to rotten boroughs. This is the most extended suffrage known in the United States of America. However, Sir, the Member for PresWhy, then, have I contended for a greater ton, in his apparent eagerness in this extent of suffrage in England? not be- case, expressed no disapprobation of cause I found it universal in America; any scheme that might have prevented but because there the people choose paupers from voting! He expressed, King and Lords as well as Commons. indeed, his decided approbation of this; The reader will find the whole argu- and this is the more surprising, as he well ment in "The Year's Residence," from knows that one-third part of the whole of paragraph 400 to 412 inclusive. I re- the electors of Preston are deprived of the peat, however, that if I could cause my right of voting in consequence of being wishes to be acted upon, I would try the paupers! The right is not withheld universal suffrage; because in principle it is right; but when so much is tendered us of good, and about the nature of which no man can dispute, I am not to cavil at this, immense mass of good, because it is not accompanied with the including of this principle. from them by any general principle or law. It is not a right not given; but it is a right taken away, and solely in consequence of their being poor and in need of relief. Of this he approves, and repels, with indignation, the insinuation that he has been elected by paupers! But, there is another description of This, then, is the universal suffrage of persons whom I would by no means this radical champion! What, Sir, is it exclude from a scheme of universal a part of our radical creed, that soldiers, suffrage: but whom some of those who sailors, excisemen, tide-waiters, dockprofess to wish for universal suffrage, yard people, coachmen, grooms, footseem quite willing to cast out; namely, men, Peel's new policemen, and whole the paupers. The Peels, the Barings, swarms of pickpockets; is it a part of the Horace Twisses, the Calcrafts, our creed, that all these ought to be cheered again and again! most vociferously cheered the Member for Preston, when he said," that this reform would "not satisfy the Radicals, because it "did not go the length of universal suf"frage." This was precisely what they wanted; this was the assertion upon which they had been resting from the beginning of the debate. They wanted a friend in need, and here they found him! He declared himself a thorough radical; he took upon himself to say suffered to vote, and that the poor la Such, Mr. Editor, is by no means the ther som foolish nor so felt it right to say, that he had been need, is the RIGHT of every Englishman,"luded to by the right hon. Gentleman, and they are neither cruel as to allow that the political rights" misunderstood. What he had said was, of any man are to be taken away upon that in his mind, every man liable to the insolently tyrannical pretence that "be called out to serve in the militia he has been in the enjoyment of a civil" should have a yote for the representaright. The radicals of England would" tives who made that call. He never admit soldiers, excisemen, footmen; "could mean to extend the franchise to nay, thief-takers, and even crowds of paupers, as the law of England disstrongly suspected thieves, they would qualified all paupers from voting. admit all these to vote, in order to leave I beseech you to mark this well! I Do pretence for excluding the honest have before shown the injustice, the ploughman and weaver, whom calamity savage cruelty, of taking away the right has compelled to resort to the parish of voting, or of withholding it from book; but far from their minds to ex- parish paupers, while it was left to be clude the latter while the former were fully enjoyed by soldiers, sailors, footadmitted. The radicals of England, men, all the menials of every descripSir, despise not the poor because he is tion, police-runners, pick-pockets, and poor." They would fain have seen the other reputed thieves, and even by street suffrage extended to all men; but I or hedge beggars and gipsies. I have know not a real radical reformer, who before remarked on the brutal injustice would not treat with scorn inexpressible of giving the right to all these, and the man who would cavil at so much withholding it, at the same time, from good as is now intended the country; the laborious and honest ploughman or the man who would furnish the deadly weaver, whom ill-health or a large enemies of reform with an argument for family may have brought to the poorthe discovery of which they might be book: it is not, therefore, of the savage in despair; the man whose patriotism cruelty of this that I am again about to bursts forth in strains indignant at the speak, but of the gross, the immeasurathought of keeping swarms of pick-bly profound ignorance, displayed in the pockets back from the polling booth, while his blood moves as slowly as the water along the feculent pool at seeing the honest, though indigent, ploughman and weaver, repelled in his approach to that scene of the enjoyment of his rights. The length at which I have been led to trespass upon you prevents me from entering, at present, upon the other part of my subject, 1 Iam, Sir, your most obedient 9 and most humble servant. short stuff which I have just inserted from the Times newspaper as ascribed to your Cock. The Cock is here represented as if totally ignorant of the most common concerns of the country in which he was bred up. He would exclude paupers from his universal suffrage; but would not exclude, by any means, men liable to be called on to serve in the militia. Now, then, the fact is, that in all the agricultural counties, and markedly so in the county in which he was born, three-fourths of the men liable to serve in the militia, are paupers, during a very considerable part You will perceive, my friends, that of the year, and some during the whole the stuff says that every man ought to of the year round! What, then, behave a vote, who is liable to be called on comes of his principle of representato serve in the militia, Now, I pray tion; what becomes of his universal you mark it well, there was a short suffrage? What becomes of his castuff published in the TIMES newspaper [pacity for the making of laws? But on the 5th of March, as having been his reason for this exclusion of paupers spoken by your Cock on the 4th of really surpasses, in point of profundity March, which stuff was in the following and fitness, the proposition itself. He words: "Mr. HUNT having been al-would exclude the paupers " because WM. COBBETT, they are excluded by the law of Eng- CROKER, who has, for many years, liyed land!" Famous reason! He did not in the palace at Kensington tax-free; say what law of England; but no CROKER, who is the colleague of Welmatter; if this reason be worth a straw lington's son in the borough of Aldein this case, then is there an answer at burgh, which has eighty voters; this once to all those who call for a reform. CROKER, who is about to have the stool Was there not good reason for putting pulled from under him by the present remen into dungeons in 1817; and is form, praised, in his speech of the 4th of there not good reason now for making March, as reported in the Times; yea, you pay sevenpence a pound for your this CROKER praised the " plain honest sugar instead of threepence? Why," statement of the honourable Member my friends, the law of England sanctions" for Preston!" PEEL (Robert) who rotten boroughs; the law of England was the great champion of the boroughs, sanctions all the pensions and all the said, (speech of the third of March, in sinecures of which we complain; the the Chronicle,) you say to me, law of England, in short, is such as to take a rule which must inevitably require that great alteration in it which " turn out the honourable Member for will be made by 'the bill of Lord John" Preston, I reply NO !" So, my Russell; but upon the principle stated friends of Preston, PEEL, who wishes by your Cock, every abuse must be suf- to preserve all the rotten boroughs, and fered to exist, because its present ex-who sits for one himself, which is to istence is warranted by the law of Eng. lose one of its Members; this PEEL land. likes your Member so well that he 66 66 My friends, I have, I dare say, said a would adopt no rule that should turn great deal more than enough to make him out of his seat! The next eulogist you congratulate yourselves that HUFF-of your Member is WILLIAM PEEL, the MAN and Co's "very best man in Eng-brother of the last, who sits for a rotten land" has been found, or at least that borough containing fifty voters, and who the stuffs imputed to him have been is about to have his stool pulled from found, to be deprived of their power of under him. This man is, by the mischief by their wonderful feebleness Chronicle, reported to have spoken thus, and ignorance. But I must proceed to in the debate of the 7th of March:: show you a few instances of the use" He did not know whether the hon. which the enemies of reform made of" Member for Preston (Mr. Hunt) was his statements and assertions; for, as " in the House or not, but if he was, he to argument, these stuffs contain not a was too good-humoured to be offended ,particle. When he was, at Manchester," with what he (Mr. W. Peel) was swearing, by the "living God," how he" about to say. His observation then would treat "the rips," if they at-" was, that the noble Lord opposite tempted to silence him, little did you was mistaken in supposing that this imagine that he would go into the" would be the last reform that was deHouse and tell them that he had been" manded; for he felt sure, that if a misled by others, and had been greatly "reformed Parliament sat, and the mistaken in the character of the Mem-" present Member for Preston was rebers of the House, when he bestowed" turned, as returned he no doubt would his censure upon them; but much less" be, that honourable Member would did you expect to hear him applauded by not sit in the House for three months, members sitting for rotten boroughs; "without saying that the reform was and still less to hear his sayings quoted, well enough as far as it went, but it in proof that those rotten boroughs" did not go far enough; and he would ought always to remain. Yet this I ask them to let him prescribe, and am about to show you was the case." would advise them a dose of Hunt's CROKER, who came out and got into" matchless composition. (Murmurs.)" place by his defence of the DUKE of Next came the grand Leviathan of YORK in the case of Mother CLARKE; money, ALEXander Baring, who said |