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distresses.

mass of the labouring population relief for the present accumulating generally, in this part of the country, is miserable in the extreme. We You have heard a good deal said have, at different times, heard and about the hand-loom weavers and read much of the destitute condition of the power-loom weavers. Hitherto, the poor Irish; but if they now are in it has been, that the power-loom a more distressed condition than the weavers have been able to earn a great mass of the population in this little more than the hand-loom part of the country, they are in a weavers, and have been a little better dreadfully suffering state indeed. employed by their masters, because What makes the matter worse, too, of the reduced prices arising from is, that all hope of improvement using the power-loom, at which, in under the present system is fast dy- comparison with those masters who ing away. Some masters have, until employed the hand-loom weavers, now, been in some degree sanguine, they could afford to sell their goods. that the present would be but a tem- Now, however, such is the increased porary depression, and that in a short depression in the trade, that the time all would be well again. This power-loom masters are obliged, in feeling appears now pretty generally some instances, to suspend their to be giving way amongst those who works almost entirely; and, in most have, until now, been foolish enough instances, to reduce their time of to cling to it; and the gloominess of working to about three or four days despair is consequently fast suc-a week. A few of the masters, ceeding to the exhilaration of hope. however, having either less prudence, In this state of things, every body is or more extended means than the asking the questions, "What is to be others, yet run their works the full done?" "What is to become of us?" time: this, however, is not likely The newspapers in the neighbour-long to continue, as goods keep hood have all sorts of schemes-sinking in price, if sales are effected some recommending one thing, some at all, every market-day. another, while a great portion of the There is, to be sure, in all this dispeople are not backward in express-tress and difficulty, the land, as you ing their indignation and grief that you are not returned for the Borough of PRESTON, since they very well know that no effort on your part would have been spared, to have effected an amelioration of their tremendous sufferings. What must be done in the course of the ensuing winter, I know not. I expect nothing in the way of relief from Government. The extreme of starvation is an evil of such frightful magnitude, that it is not very likely the people will patiently submit to it. I suppose this, too, is the opinion of the authorities here, as the country is being filled with soldiers. The mili

observe, to go to; but the difficulty of
obtaining the Poor-rates is very great,
and in some instances next to impossi-
ble. The inconvenience and distress
arising from this source is very seri-
ous. Query: Does Mr. STURGES
BOURNE's law, authorizing the ap-
pointment of select vestries, throw
any additional difficulties in the way of
obtaining relief from the Poor-rates?
This is a question frequently asked.
I shall feel myself greatly obliged by
your explanation of it.

I am, most respectfully,
WILLIAM FITTON.

Now, in answer to the question,

tary, however, will neither fill the at the close of this letter, I have bellies of the hungry people, nor pay

the interest of the National Debt. to observe, that the Bill of STURHowever, I believe that the fear GES BOURNE, about vestries, has meant to be inspired by the presence of the military, is meant to be all the only altered the law, in order to

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of the law, in favour of the rich, which stretches have, by degrees, brought the country into its present deplorable state.

But, there is here, and there is in no law that has yet been passed, any thing to take the power

Vestries may, in certain cases, control the Overseers; may restrain them from giving relief; but, after all, the Magistrate has the power of commanding the relief to be given; and, if it were

take some power from the poor, and give it to the rich; some of that power, which the whole body of poor-rate payers possess, in the management of the affairs of the parish. But, observe, that in the granting or withholding relief to a poor person, the whole body out of the hands of the Magisof the parishioners have not the trate. This is the security, and smallest power, even supposing the only security, for the poor. them to be unanimous. A Vestry may do certain things in the way of raising the money, and as to the manner of relieving the poor; but the Vestry has no power to refuse relief. STURGES BOURNE'S Bill alter-not for this power in the Magised the law as to voting at Vestries. Before this law, every person who paid towards the poor rates had a vote in the vestry, whether he paid little or much; STURGES BOURNE'S Bill introduced a prin- is to go to the Overseer of the ciple, tending to establish an parish: if he refuse to relieve, or aristocracy of wealth. Now, if a man be rated at less than fifty pounds a year, he has only one vote; if rated at fifty pounds, he has two votes; and if rated at more than fifty, another vote for every twenty-five pounds of additional rating, until he comes to six votes; so that one man may have six votes, and another man only one vote. Nothing was ever more unjust than this; but, it is only one more of those stretches

trate, horrible, indeed, would be the situation of the poor: there would have been rebellion in England long and long ago. The first thing for a poor person to do,

if he give inadequate relief, the poor person is to go to the Magistrate; that is to say, to any Magistrate in the district, or in the County, as the case may be. It` is the business of the Magistrate to summon the Overseer, to inquire into the circumstances, and to order relief, if necessary. But, suppose the Magistrate will not...... do his duty. This is a very horrible supposition, and I hope, that few cases of the kind have ever

occurred. I wish not to believe ing, for that they would not. In

that it ever can be necessary for any one to know how to go to work to bring a Magistrate to justice for so infamous a breach of his oath. I will not, therefore, take up more room with this matter at présent, especially as I intend, in my second Number of the "Poor Man's Friend," to enter very fully into this matter.

short, they knew very well, that they could not live in the country, unless there were the usual mode of relieving the poor.

To me it seems the most astonishing thing in the world, that any man in England can talk about the people starving! When we all know, that every inch of land, every brick and tile in a Aye, to be sure, the poor-rates, house; that all is pledged by the here are the sure means of re-law, to prevent the people from lief; and how there can be any suffering from want. Every man difficulty, such as Mr. FITTON of common sense knows that the speaks of, it is beyond my capa- field, for instance, which he calls city to discover. This I know, his, is only his upon certain conthat, when lawyer SCARLETT had ditions; and that one of those his Bill before the House of Com-conditions is this; namely, that mons, which Bill 1 trod upon, and he shall continue to pay money to destroyed, just as we do serpent's the Overseer of the Poor, in oreggs; when that memorable off-der that the said Overseer may spring of the wisdom of lawyer take care that no person in the SCARLETT, favoured as it was by parish may suffer from want. CASTLEREAGH, was before the This is a condition attached to House, petitions were coming every man's tenure and every posting up from the farmers, be- man's land. What do people seeching the Honourable House mean, then, by saying, that there not to attempt to pass lawyer are starving Weavers, and starvScarlett's Bill, which Bill con- ing Spinners, and starving Latemplated putting an end to the bourers? How are there to be any poor-rates, to a very extensive de- starving people, as long as this law gree, at any rate. The farmers remains, and as long as there are were frightened out of their houses and land? and, if there people in the yer SCARLETT got the law passed, country as long as this law is in. he must go and carry on the farm-existence, then the laws are set

senses.

They said, that if law- be any starving

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at defiance, and we are living in ticular class of persons; a thing, a state of Tyranny: for Tyranny that no government ever did beis that state of things, in which fore, and a thing which no wise men are, when they are compelled government ever did, or ever will to obey those, who, themselves, do. But, the fact is, that, before set the law at defiance. a government can come to think of such miserable tricks as this, it must be nearly “done up.” It can have no firm and natural resources to rely on. It is, like an insolvent tradesman, driven to all sorts of tricks; and its calculations are not, how it shall collect taxes and how it shall pay its way; but, how it shall get along, with all the usual forms, and with very little of the reality, of either receipts or payments.

Taking this view of the matter, we see, at once, how monstrous it is, for any Town or any County to call upon the Government to grant, out of the general taxes, money for affording that relief which ought to come out of the Parochial Assessments. To mention such a thing, to think of such a thing, seems to say, that we have come to that pass, that the settled law of the land is no longer to be attended to. To propose such a measure is not only impudent, but it is foolish in the extreme. It would be just as reasonable and as right for the government to take money out of the taxes to assist private persons, or partnerships, whose affairs are going wrong; and, monstrous as the thought of this is, PITT actually did it in the case of BOYD and BENFIELD. Indeed, it was in part, done in 1793 and 1811, in the Exchequer Bill Loans to merchants and manufacturers. This was not an absolute gift; there was repayment; but, it was an employment of the public wealth for the benefit of a par-" preferable to throwing the whole

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Those who talk of " government grants" to relieve the people; those who talk thus, like a silly, dull, pompous fellow of the name of TAYLOR, who is editor of the Manchester Guardian, and who, in his paper of the 1st of July last, is so obliging as to tell us, almost in so many words, that he “is a gentleman and a man of honour"; this fellow, who was Wood's negotiator with COLQUITT and BARRIE, and who knew, by instinct, that Wood had never said what hundreds of persons can swear they heard him say; those who, like this great conceited ass, talk about "a government grant" being

"of the population upon the poor- "we consider the subject, the rates, and breaking down their" more decidedly we are con"independence"; those who, like "vinced that a contribution from this great, sappy-headed fellow," the public funds is less objectalk thus, with all the unconcern “tionable than the system of as

imaginable; these people never "sessments in aid would be found, stop to think of the consequence" if carried to an extent sufficient of the attempt to put their advice" to meet the difficulty." into execution. This Taylor says, Oh! "the more WE consider"! “There have, during the past A pretty fellow to "consider”! “week, been various observations And thus, without more ceremony, "in the London papers respect- to settle the matter, that a grant "ing the call which has been from the general taxes is better, "made on government, to come is "less objectionable than the "forward with a grant of public " money for the relief of the des❝titute poor in the manufacturing "districts; and it seems to be al"most generally admitted, that “unless commercial affairs very "speedily and decidedly improve,

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system of assessments in aid.” There is a fellow for you! There is a conceited ass! He thinks that he has found out something better, or less bad, than the poorrates, which have existed three hundred years! This fellow is a some such measure must be pretty "WE" to settle a matter adopted. The proposition, of like this; and to determine, that ፡፡ course, is not free from objec- the safe, sure, efficient, and all❝tions; and its details would ob- pervading mode of relief is a viously require attentive consi- bad mode. Here we have a pretty "deration and great care, both in fair specimen of the capacity and "order to secure the most effec- the character of the “best public "tive and economical adminis-" instructor." To the follies, the "tration of the fund, and to pre-lies, the slanders, and the praises, "vent its being applied as the put forth by this "Instructor," poor-rates have been in some of the country owes no small part of "the agricultural counties; and its present miseries. It is the as there is no little danger of taxes, and the paper-money, and their being in this manufacturing the consequent Corn Bills that "one, in part payment of the produce the mischief; but you never hear the asses of the "In

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wages of labour. But the more

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