mounted to a great deal more than the many as are actually in employ? How " amount of the rent of the poor grand-comes it that we have about four-score father's tenements. "Aye," said the ambassadors and consuls in our pay, magistrates, "but you can sell the te- when about a quarter part of the numnements!" "Yes," said the grand- ber is all that we have in employ, and father, "but then I must, at last, come which quarter part it is perfectly evident to the parish myself." "We cannot to me receive ten times as much money help that," said the magistrates! and as they ought to receive for their serthey were right enough. The law au- vices? Upon what principle is it that thorized them to do this thing: the law men are to be paid for life for having authorized them even to strip the old served, for an adequate salary at the grandfather of his last stick of property least, during a part of their life? When to keep even his grand-children; but the law has not prevented our Government from keeping the families of the aristocracy and their relations and dependents out of taxes imposed even upon this poor grandfather and his miserable grandchildren. a commissioner, a clerk, an officer in any service, ceases to be employed in that service, aye, and when a common soldier ceases to be a soldier, why is he still to be paid? If, indeed, he have, in a hazardous service, been deprived of his sight, or of any of his limbs, or have suffered any permanent grievous bodily harm, this is the last nation upon earth that would withhold from him the protection due to his crippled state. But, otherwise, what pretensions has he to a single shilling of pay after his services have ceased? Where, in the practice of men in general, do we find any analogy to justify this species of expenditure of the public money? When a merchant, With regard to this class of persons, not another word need be said the injustice of compelling the people at large to maintain them is so monstrous, especially while the working classes are thus dealt with; it is so monstrous, that the very thought of it really half deprives one of one's senses. If such a thing were proposed in the United States of America, even in one single instance, the whole country would be a manufacturer, any tradesman or farin an uproar; and, if attempted to be acted upon, it would tear up the government, root and branch, in a week. So much for pensions, sinecures, grants, and all money given to people with a notorious want of any services whatever to recommend them. But there are what are called allowances and half-pay, whether civil, military, or naval. mer, no longer requires the services of an individual, he ceases to pay him. If, indeed, these public servants were compelled to become such; were compelled to give up pursuits of life in which they were engaged, and to go into this new pursuit by the imperative commands of the law; then it would not only be just to make them an allowance when their We have a prodigious army, a services were no longer wanted in their great navy, monstrous taxing and other new state of life; but it would be unjust civil establishments; but I very much not to make an ample provision for them question whether all the officers of the for the rest of their lives. But, observe, army and navy and of those establish- these persons have not only voluntarily ments, who are in employ, take so much entered into the several services; but money in the year as those who have have sought for the services, and have been in those services or offices, and obtained them in general by means not have retired from them, or have ceased of the brightest description. What now to be in them. Otherwise, how claim have they, therefore, to any alcome we with three generals to every lowance, or any half-pay, or any penregiment of foot and of horse, with two sion, when their services are no longer admirals to every ship of the line, and required? They have lost, it will with, perhaps, four times as many com- be said, their habits and their fitness missioners and clerks now in pay, at for the ordinary pursuits of life; but some rate or another; four times as that is not the fault of the public: the hment for projecting the Mill-bank Peni-unless they can live in a style that the tentiary, which has already cost the richest peers are enabled to live in, and people of this nation more than all the do live in. How does this square with new churches put together, and which, the practice of common life? Do rich as stated in the House of Commons, merchants and bankers think it neceshad cost more than a million of money sary to make their managing clerks as when the managers of it could pretend rich as themselves and to live in the to have reclaimed only eight prostitutes! same style? Does a great manufacNever was there a more flagrant job on turer, amongst whose people it is necesthe face of this earth; never was any sary to sustain regular discipline, and thing more wild in its scheme; never who lives himself in a country house, or was squandering of money more obvi- in London, think it necessary to enable ous; never was a thing more impolitic his overseer to ride in his carriage too? than to add to the population of this Does a lord think it necessary that his overgrown place by the expending of steward should keep fox-hounds as well this million and a half of money upon as himself, and be able to give dinners it, and thereby adding more or less to prepared by French cooks? But to go the poverty of the industrious classes in from private life to the Government, every part of the kingdom. the salaries of which I take as my No: having no taste for either standard; ; do the American people crotchets or conundrums, I have, at think it necessary that even their present, no need, but thank Mr. PREN- President, let alone their secretaries and TICE just as much as if I had. I am for ambassadors, should be able to vie in low salaries for two reasons; first, be- expenditure with the great merchants cause they would not be a temptation of that country? By no means. They for rich fools to crowd themselves into have had seven Presidents, I think it is; places of power; and, second, because and the salaries, joined to the private this standard would be a rule for all income, of no three of them would have public pay of every description. Some enabled one of them to vie in expense will say that, if you have low salaries, of living and of show with any one of you must have men of little talent; one thousand merchants of that country. men comparatively poor, and, therefore, Let it not be pretended, then, that great not trustworthy. Indeed! What, then, heaps of money in the way of salary are PITT, DUNDAS, and all the Prime Minis- necessary to command the use of great ters, in short, have shown great wisdom, talents and great integrity. BINGHAM, have they, and singular integrity of Philadelphia, the real original CANNING's fourteen thousand a year as BINGHAM, could spend more, and did Ambassador to Lisbon insured us won-spend more, than all the seven Presidents derfully wise negociations there! The put together could spend, in a year; enormous salaries to our finance Minis- that is to say, taking a year out of each ters have insured us wonderful clever-Presidentship, and putting the seven ness with regard to taxation and the together. But did this diminish the currency. The wagon-loads of money dignity either of their station or their heaped upon the CASTLEREAGES and deportment? Did WASHINGTON OF the WELLESLEYS have secured us sur-ADAMs, both of whom lived in the same prising respect and power upon the city, ever condescend to dine at the Continent. In short, look at our present table of BINGHAM; and did their wives situation, in all respects, and look at ever attend any of the assemblies or rou: poor Ireland, and say if you believe that of his wife? statesmen with 1s. 6d. a day could have brought this nation to a worse state than that in which it now is. Oh, no! it is not the salary that can give weight to the station of the man: it is the opinion which the people enSome will pretend that Ministers tertain of his talents and of his integrity; cannot be respected, and have a pro-and if their opinion of these be low, all per degree of influence and authority, the millions of the loanmongers will not jobbers used to rush to the Exchequer. bill office to lend their money, purely for the public good; getting the skirts torn of their coats; the coats off their backs, and, once I remember, the breeches off their bottoms, in their eagerness to get into the Exchequer-bill office, to subscribe their names as men willing to lend their last shilling (and, indeed, more than their last!) for the purpose of "preserving our happy con"stitution against the machinations and A raise it. But I am by no means of the opinion that men should not be paid at all. They should be paid moderate salaries: not enough to enable them to make a grand show in any respect whatsoever; but to lay down the principle, that men are to serve for nothing, puts one in mind of the servant who went to hire, and who, being asked what wages he demanded, said that he wanted no wages; for that he always found about the house little things to pick up. Now I am not for leaving a man to" violence of jacobins and levellers." pick up little things about the house. I am, therefore, decidedly against I am not for having any secret service unpaid public servants. "Give me," money, which, on an average, has, said AGUR, "neither poverty nor riches; during the last forty years, cost this na- "not poverty, lest I be poor and steal; tion more every year than the whole of "not riches, lest I be proud and forget the civil Government of the United" God! Never was there a better States of America and of the State Go-rule, never a better principle, whereon vernments into the bargain! A mode- to apportion the maintenance of the rate salary, with the necessary power of servants of a sensible and righteous conferring just honours and rewards, nation. I have said, and I repeat, that' together with the still greater honour of no chance, no accident, no set of circumrendering service to his country, is quite enough for any good man: bad men, or fools, are not wanted; and if they were, the nation's whole revenue would not satisfy one of them. stances, however strange, that might make it proper for me to be employed' in the public service, should ever induce me to pocket one farthing of the public money. I would be paid the actual expenses arising to myself from the ser vice, if I agreed to undertake it; and not a farthing more. But my situation the practice of all those domestic habits which render great expense unnecessary. I have laboured beforehand, notwith standing the repeated scatterings of my earnings, so as to provide for myself all that I care a straw about But this can be the case with but very few men, and especially men of great industry and talent and, besides, it is further necessary in my case; because, to preserve my power of being useful, I must always be able to say to the people: Gratuitous services are attended with two evils; first, that scarcely any man can fill an office in that manner, or, at any rate, would be found to fill it, un-is peculiar. Necessity has taught me less he have great private riches, and then you must have the riches and the incapable man along with them for, no man is called upon in a common case to expose himself to utter ruin for the sake of doing good to his country But a reason full as strong is, that the gratuitous public servant will seldom conceive that he has any responsibility upon his shoulders. The great stalkinghorse in defence of the justices of the peace is, that they are unpaid; and this has been repeated so often, that, at last, the epithet is applied to them in the way" of derision and scorn. Nevertheless, all their blunders, all their acts, many Here, gentlemen, I think, I may stop, of which are such that I do not think satisfied that I have shown the justice, proper to describe them, are all varnish- the expediency, and the easy practicabi ed over by the word unpaid! There lity of the first of the measures proposed is a monstrous fallacy in this, to be by me in my Address No. 1; and here sure; for we see them rushing forward I should relieve you from the heavy tax to get unpaid as eagerly as the loan- which I have, in this long Address, been Not one hour of your labour, not one single straining of your nerves, has ever given gain to me." imposing upon your patience. But Mr. making a stand against parochial taxes raised by a self-elected, self-appointed vestry. The principle applies with equal aptitude to every other species of WORTH. The fact PRENTICE, just after his false charge against me relative to the West Indies, takes occasion to eulogize, and not that only, but, by the position of the two ar-tax, and we may be quite sure that it The rest of the ticles, to put in a sort of contrast with will be acted upon. me, Messrs. POTTER and SHUTTLE- parishes in Westminster, and away to Well-merited, I dare say, are the eastward, are all uniting to act upon the praises he bestows upon these gen- the same principle; and we may be tlemen, for whom I entertain great re- quite sure that this will extend all over spect; particularly for the POTTERS, on the kingdom, unless représentation and account of their great humanity towards taxation go hand in hand. the working people when they were in really is, that without this principle be a state of indescribable misery. Mr. firmly adhered to, there is no such thing The slaves in Virginia PRENTICE, however, seems to have an as property. object in view further than the praises have a certain number of Members in bestowed upon these gentlemen; not the Congress who are said to represent encouraged thereto by them, I am very them; and they do represent them just sure; for, though it is barely possible as much as the Select Vestry represent that they may think with respect to me the people of Marybonne. The repreas Mr. PRENTICE appears to think, I sentatives of the slaves in Virginia take am very sure that they will say nothing care that nobody shall prevent them working; and that nobody of that sort behind my back; and they from are, doubtless, reserving themselves shall kill them or maim them; beuntil the bill shall have passed, and un-cause that would be injurious til I shall be at Manchester, in order to utter their objections to my face. Now, gentlemen, sincerely begging your pardon for the length of this Address, I conclude with an assurance, that I am Your faithful friend and most obedient servant, to And in the masters of the slaves. this respect the law-makers for Marybonne are as kind as the law-makers for Virginia. The slaves in Virginia have, however, just as much property as the people of Marybonne, and no more; for no man can be said to have any property at all if there be a body of persons elected by themselves to take from him just as much as they please, and to dispose of it in any manner that they please. The description which REFUSING TO PAY TAXES. these gentlemen of St. Pancras give of THE public-spirited parish of Mary- the arbitrary sway exercised over them bonne, and I beg the printers to spell fills one with astonishment in the first it in this way, has set an example which place, and then with indignation, rising has been immediately followed by the higher and higher with every new fact, sister parish of St. Pancras, containing till at last one loses all patience and together a population twice that of Bed-calls for something or another that fordshire, and surpassing that of the far greater part of the counties. The proceedings in the parish of St. Pancras I insert below, as I find them reported in the Morning Chroniclǝ of Tuesday last. There is a good deal of confusion in the statement; but the jet of the whole is clear enough; namely, that the people will not pay taxes unless they be represented by those who impose and who vote away the taxes. They are here shall, by whatever means, put an end to MEETING OF THE PARISH OF ST. assembled yesterday, at the extensive premises | now came to the consideration of a most seof Mr. Fairlie, in Augustus-street, Regent's rious public question, of the deepest interest Park, to take into consideration the propriety to them all. They had all been compelled to of resisting the payment of poor-rates in that pay heavy taxes into the hands of an irreparish, until they obtain a control over the sponsible body; the grinding taxation had receipts and expenditure of the parish funds. been most oppressive; the iron had entered Major Revell was voted to the chair, amidst their souls, and at last they had come to a the acclamations of the meeting, consisting of resolution to withhold the payment of rates in about two thousand persons. money till they regained the inalienable right Major REVELL said, they had met once-of which no unjust act could deprive them— more on the subject of parochial abuses, and the right of electing those who had the conhe was glad to see so numerous a body as- trol over their parish funds. (Cheers.) He sembled on the occasion; for he was confident would proceed to read the declaration which it was only by agitation, repeated and con- had been drawn up by the Committee, which tinued agitation, that they should be able to he was confident the meeting would approve recover their just rights. (Cheers.) From the of:reign of Queen Elizabeth till within a very "We, the undersigned rate-payers of St. recent period, the rate-payers of different pa- Pancras parish, viewing the irresponsibility of rishes had by law the power of electing their the Vestry-the wanton expenditure-the disown officers, in whom they reposed the im- franchisement of the parishioners in their portant trust of receiving and paying all natural and constitutional rights, and the moneys collected for the rates and levies. A self-election of a few to the exclusion of the few years ago, under a most corrupt Govern- many-do protest against the acts of, and the ment, the "Select" brought a bill into Par- rates assessed by the Vestry, and other irreliament, by which they obtained a power of sponsible authorities of the parish, and detaxation, of self-election, and of entire irre- clare our determination to withhold payment sponsibility. (Hear.) The parishioners of St. of any parochial rates now assessed, or to be Pancras, indignant at this infamous assault hereafter assessed; and we hereby further deupon the sacred edifice of public liberty, de- clare, that we will avail ourselves of the option termined not to endure it longer, nor could he given by law to allow our goods to be distrained associate with men who could tamely submit for the said rates, until the rate-payers shall to such unjust, oppressive, and tyrannical have obtained their just rights in the appointconduct, which was only suitable to the slavishment of vestrymen and other parochial officers, condition of the inhabitants of St. Petersburgh and shall have also obtained a sufficient conor Constantinople. (Cheers.) A committee trol over the receipts and expenditure of the had been formed in that parish, who were parish." determined to battle bravely and constitu- Having read this declaration, he would ask tionally for the restoration of the rights of the Government what must have been the extheir fellow-parishioners. (Cheers.) Two tent of oppression and tyranny on the part of years ago, a bill had been prepared by the the abominable Select Committee to have driven committee sitting at the Freemason's Tavern; the tradesmen of this large parish to resolve but such was the state of the House of Com-upon having their goods distrained upon and mons, that it was objected to as being too de-carried off, rather than submit to pay rates to mocratic. The bill proposed to give the power a body self-elected and irresponsible? The to the rate-payers to elect their vestry annually, and also the auditors. It would have made the parish a little republic (cheers), which they might be horrified to learn (loud laughter); but it actually would have given them annual elections and vote by ballot. (Cheering.) It might be said, "You go too far; this is revolution." His reply was They did not go too far; they went back to the same state which the parishioners enjoyed before the passing of the atrocious Select Bill Mr. WITHERS, on proposing the first reso-they merely returned to the ancient institu-lution, said, that after the able speech from tions. (Cheering.) It was said, "Are you so the Chairman, he would not detain the meetabsurd as to suppose that 14,000 parishioners ing long. He thought that, after four years' can annually attend and publicly vote for the petitioning without avail, the time was arrived election of a vestry?" He answered, Yes: when they must act, and endeavour to change, in the city of London 12,000 citizens could in a peaceable manner, the infamous system meet and record their opinions, and why not of parochial plunder so long carried on. in St. Pancras ? He wished the public to (Cheers.) He did not wish them to resist the meet together more often than they did. payment of the rates for supporting the poor; Public discussion tended much to public good. but it was important they should resist the It taught men their rights-it was only through arbitrary and unjust domination of the selfpublic ignorance that governors had been able elected Vestry. The Vestry consisted of 122 to introduce public slavery. (Cheering.) He vestrymen self-elected, and for life, with ir men of St. Pancras did not attempt to gain |